Livvy turns 3!

My baby is 3 and I am sick about it. How did she get so big so fast? We made her day extra special, and she loved wearing her birthday hat from breakfast to bedtime. She decorated her own barbie cake because the big kids insisted that she had to have a theme. This turned into Livvy herself being adamant about her coming birthday party with a "barrie feme" (thats barbie theme for those of you that are not fluent in Livvyese). She also was quite certain that she wanted pink bubble gum for her birthday. In fact, that was the only thing she would say she wanted. I have trouble not spoiling my precious baby, so needless to say, she got her pink bubble gum. Amelia was not thrilled, she had to wait until she was 4 to chew bubble gum. So far, we have not had any serious bubble gum chewing incidents (just a lot of swallowing). So maybe chewing at 3 isn't such a bad idea after all. Perhaps it's a sign that I should lower the age on Amelia's ear piercing. FYI all that Livvy is asking for from Santa is yellow bubble gum. Apparently she wasn't satisfied with just pink. Any advice for parents of burgeoning addicts?

More BUGZ!

OK, So I am finally getting the rest of Caleb's Bug Show on the blog. I know the camera work is scary-- I'm blaming it on Livvy. Caleb did a fantastic job on his part, and he did a little reprise at home so we could get the full effect. I told him to choose just one song to put on the blog. His pick is the military ants song. Enjoy the show!

Caleb and BUGZ!

Caleb (and the rest of the second grade) performed in an adorable play called BUGZ! He made his costume himself and declared himself a katydid. Not surprisingly, he was the only katydid in the show. Originally, he wanted to be a spittle bug (I didn't even know they existed). But at some point during the creative process, he transformed into a katydid. Isn't he the cutest bug ever?

Spencer's Home!

Spence came home bearing gifts. So just in case he misses Pakistan (yah right) we can all dress up and make him feel right at home. We love having Spence home and we are so excited to be together for more than 3 months!!

Building with the Home Depot

Caleb has always loved to build things, so we went to a workshop where the children were able to do a project. They had a lot of fun. Aren't they adorable? Don't they look so poroud of their accomplishment?

Amelia's 6th Birthday

Amelia is 6 years old. Wow! On the day of her birthday we had a family celebration complete with games, gifts, cupcakes and a Happy Birthday song. Thanks for the gifts Grandma Shirlee!

These are pictures of Amleia's "friend party". She celebrated with an almost sleepover party. We made pizzas, had makeovers, decorated pillowcases, played games, and of course ate popcorn while watching a movie. I had a couple of girls frm my sunday school class come and help me for part of the time. The lady standing behind Amelia is their kind mother coming to pick them up.

Back to School--Hooray?

This is not Livvy's first day of school, but she was deteremined to try. She even packed her own lunch box.




Here is Livvy's real first day of school. She couldn't be more proud.

Ok, so I know that most mothers talk about back to school through misty eyes, crying over their lost child. Then there is me. I was so excited about sending all the kids back to school this year. Actually, I was counting down the days. Am I all alone? Am I the worst Mom ever? I rejoiced about sending Livvy to her first preschool class (although it is hard to believe she is old eough); I loved saying goodbye to my big kindergartener Amelia; and I had no problem pushing Caleb out the door and into his second grade classroom. As much as I love being a Mom, I can't help but love the little taste of freedom that school gives me. I have a total of 4 hours a week with absolutely no children. And many more with just Livvy. Going to the store is a whole new experience. My life is so peaceful. We have a routine. I breathe a sigh of relief. But as I read other blogs about shedding tears on the first day of school, I wonder if there is something wrong with me. So I ask, am I alone? But even if I am, I still will not mourn, I will continue in my euphoric state until winter break.