January 2011

Bradley has started wanting to watch more and more TV which is really nice.  He now asks to watch "Dora" all of the time.  It has been nice to broaden his horizons a little and makes for some nice afternoons when he will let me have a break.  Here Bradley was watching TV on our little DVD players.

 Bradley also says some of the craziest things.  We were having fun on a Sunday playing some games together when I got upset with one of the children.  Bradley quickly piped up, "Don't get mad get glad."  We all were so taken back and amazed at this child that doesn't watch much TV at all.  He said that he heard it on the Disney channel. 

He also says things like, "It would be funny if the van's tires all fell off while driving."  Not sure what his mind is thinking at all hours of the day, but he continues to baffle me with his thoughts (and scare me also).  Another funny thing he said was, "That would be funny if we mixed ketchup and mustard with a blanket and then put a pancake in it."  Last year after watching "How to Train A Dragon," Bradley said, "I never saw the train, just the dragon."  I wish I was better at writing these fun moments down on paper to let him know when he gets bigger how much we would laugh at his antics and thoughts when he was younger.

For Martin Luther King's Birthday, since the kids had the day off we headed to "Monkey Island."  We had never been there before and were anxious to get out of the house.  It is really a fun place.  I felt uncomfortable as I was signing my life away that the insurance wouldn't cover any injuries, though.  Other than that, the two hours spent there were awesome.  At first Bradley wasn't really enjoying the slides at all, but after about 30 minutes, he was definitely way comfortable.  Luckily Johnathan or Camille would follow him around to whatever slide he wanted to go on at the time. There were a few times when the kids started to get a little too daring, but there were really no accidents that occurred. 

Tanner, Johnathan, Bradley, Parker (blue) and Carter

We will definitely be back- Bradley can't quit asking if we can go there again. 

Camille had fun taking pictures with our camera on our way back from voice lessons.  The sunset was gorgeous and since I was stuck in traffic, there were many picture moments.

Funny Bradley wearing my boots.  They almost go all the way up is legs.

What would I do without these sweet kids to make me laugh all day?

2010 end of year fun!

We had fun sledding after returning back from California.  We had Cooper &  Cameron come with us.  It was a little too cold for me, but nobody else complained at all.  Bradley even didn't want to come in when it was time.

 Parker

 sled train

 Camille, Bradley & Johnathan

 Carter

 Johnathan & Cameron being very creative going back to back.

 Bradley

 Sled train again - Camille, Cameron, Tanner, Parker & Cooper

 We had fun going up to Grandpa & Grandma Beck's house to celebrate the New Year.  The evening started by playing games and eating tons of food.  We enjoyed playing the new game we got for Christmas - "Things" and also playing Taboo.

 Some craziness going on.

 Carter

 Parker & Tanner while playing Taboo.

 Melissa was letting Bradley take pictures while we were playing games - boy did he enjoy that power taking pictures of everything and everybody.

 Melissa was so nice to spend time with Carter, Parker & Bradley.

 The moment has arrived - the over sugared and sleep deprived kids!

 Going to bed was very tricky since the kids were on one and very crazy.  They did end up falling asleep after about 1 hour- getting to bed around 1 a.m.

 Parker & Bradley

 Byron, Sharon & I stayed up until 3:23 a.m. talking and playing games.  We were a little bit crazy, but it was one of those moments that will be remembered.  We took a picture to document our insanity:).

The fast asleep children.

On New Years, we enjoyed having more family around.  Jeff, Emily & kids all came which made for some really fun games and play time. 

Melissa playing "Matthew, Mark, Luke" with the kids.

Byron & I were helping put back some things that got taken down to paint the kitchen a month previous.  It was fun to be helping while enjoying each other.

For a neighborhood gift, we got a 2 liter of diet Pepsi and some menthos.  We had fun going into the back yard to see how high we could get the Pepsi to go.  It wasn't as spectacular as I imagined, but fun.  All of the kids enjoyed checking out the excitement.

I can't believe the year 2011 has arrived!!!  How crazy it is to think that it just felt like 2010 arrived or even 2000.  Time definitely flies quicker as the years move on.  I am excited for a new year and look forward to many fun and enjoyable moments in 2011.