Our big 4 year old!

 

Evan turned four on Tuesday, August 7.  We had a great day full of fun.  It began with Evan getting to open some early morning birthday presents.  He was so happy today was finally here!  Just look at this smile.  The present he is holding below is actually from Elaine.  She wanted to get Evan a special present for welcoming her into the family and thought a perfect time to gift it to him would be his birthday.  Such a smart girl. :)

Later that morning we got to hang out with some of our best-est friend's the Pray family.  Cameron got Evan this awesome batman shirt!  Cameron has it too, both boys love that they can dress as twins!

Carly even made us all a special lunch and then we got to celebrate Evan with ice cream sandwiches.  It was fabulous!

Later that afternoon we headed over to the Fountains to hang with our other best-est friends the Wisners.  Tuesday is free train day so we treated all the kids to a ride on the train.

This was Elaine's inaugural train ride too.  She slept through the whole thing.

 

Then we visited the toy store, ¡me gusta! KIDS.  The children had  a lot of fun testing out the toys.

Then it was home to meet Daddy and then head out to dinner at one of our favorite Birthday Spots, Red Robin.  Just look at our happy boy as the servers sing to him.

 Followed by another look of delight knowing he would get to eat this delicious birthday treat.

Finally, Evan's birthday was capped off by a few more birthday gifts from Mommy and Daddy when we returned home that evening.  What can we say, this kid is spoiled. :)  Let's just say he was pretty excited.  Look at this picture below; it says it all.

At four Evan is awesome!

Here are some of the important milestones to date:
-He can spell and write his name (Preschool is awesome!)
-He can draw actual pictures, including people, the sun, grass.  He also enjoys trying to color within the lines.
-His favorite color is red!  He also enjoys orange and yellow.
-He is a very good eater.  Evan tries new things, he doesn't always enjoy them, but will make a good effort to taste when asked.  He loves strawberries and watermelon.  His favorite foods are pizza and spaghetti.  His favorite sandwich is peanut butter.
-He can ride his big boy bike super fast and with lots of skill.
-He is excellent at video games on the I pad and Leapfrog.
-He loves to play and has nonstop energy!
-He is a champ at make believe.  Enjoying pirate adventures and tea parties and picnics with his sister.
-He is a natural entertainer and can be found singing his favorite songs (Vegitale Worship Songs) and dancing.
-He loves all things boy- cars, trains, boats, superheros, bikes, racing, and pirates, to name a few!
-Most importantly he loves his family and enjoys spending time with all of us and prefers to be together with us if it is an option. :)

We are blessed beyond words to have our amazing, larger than life son, Evan Asher!  Thank you God for blessing us with his precious life just four short years ago.  Happy Birthday son!  You make us very proud and bring us joy every day.  We love you!

Elaine's first Thanksgiving

This post is way over do!  Bear with me, I am trying to catch up. :)

Here is our little turkey on Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 22.  Doesn't she just look adorable.  Here is another cute picture of her too, just hanging out.  Her shirt couldn't be more accurate.  We are so very thankful for our little Elaine.

We all were able to celebrate at my Grandma'a again this year.  Our family always has the best time.  Here is Grandma giving Jim a few carving tips; she also was admiring his work.     

Here is my family in action all working together to get the delicious meal on the table.  We had a lot of great team work going on. 

 My Dad helped to entertain the kiddos.

Here he took some time out to take a nice picture with Evie too.

And no Thanksgiving celebration would be the same without also helping to celebrate my Mom's Birthday, that also happens right around Turkey Day.  The kids were very happy to help blow out the candles, and also greatly enjoyed the cake and ice cream treats.

 Lastly, a lovely picture of my brother and sister-in-law together.

It was a wonderful, delicious, and super great Thanksgiving!  We are blessed!

Five Months Old

Our little love bug turned five months old on December 8.  She continues to be just the cutest thing and has the most beautiful twinkle in her eyes when she smiles.  

At five months Elaine's accomplishments include:

-Everything and anything is going in her mouth and being chewed on.  She can't get enough of her toys.  Can we say TEETHING!  She also does not sleep so great during the night because of it too. 

-She is sitting up really well on her own with some support, as seen in these pictures.

-She loves to stand and has really strong legs.

-She has the best smile and laugh which turns into the cutest little giggle when you tickle her.

-She can roll, but is not so good at rolling all the way over.  She is happy just hanging out, playing with her toys and chewing on them.  She needs variety though!

-She continues to be such a good girl, but is a little more random on sleep these days.  She had a bit of a cold along with the rest of her siblings which messed things up a bit, along with teething.  She doesn't sleep long in her car seat now however, either and is easily startled. 

-She does like the Ergo and can be found checking everyone out while riding in and then will usually fall asleep.  

-She loves to see what everyone is doing and prefers to be carried facing outward and enjoys being carried on your hip too.

-Elaine continues to be a great eater and is growing like a weed.  She appears to be a little longer than her siblings at this age.

-She loves her feet and especially enjoys pulling off her socks.

We love you so much Elaine and Happy Five Months!  You are growing up too fast!