The Kids

Christian will turn 3 April 21st.













Nika turned 5 March 26th

















Kyle turned 1 March 2nd. (The bruise on his head is from Nika opening the door into his head)

Now a Level 2 Swimmer

Last night Nika pasted from a level 1 to level 2 swim group. We were so excited, so we celebrated with cookies. Nika is crazy about swimming. She talks about it non-stop. For those interested, passing level 1 can be a little hard. Some kids really fear putting their face in the water. Nika had to do 10 bobs (holding on to the edge of the pool and dunking yourself under), of which Matt said she easily did 13. To add to the excitement, Nika had only been in the level for less than a class and a half. Now next challenge, Level 2. In Level 2 she has to do back and front floats. Yeah Nika!

Christian is also taking Parent-Tot swim lessons with me. I believe is also a natural. He has been working on doing bubbles in the water, and I believe by the time his little arms are able to reach the edge of the pool he too will be bobbing away.

Group Birthday

On Wednesday Nika had her Fourth Birthday. Yeah. We didn't get any pictures. Booo. On Sunday our Sunday Night Group got together to celebrate all the kids who had thier birthdays in March and April. We again forgot our camera, but our friends managed to take pictures of mine. Below you see Nika (4), Nathanial (soon 1), Keiton (soon 1), Karis (1 yr 6 days), and Christian (soon 2). The party orginally was just for the one year olds, but I was so blessed to be included. I can not believe that all this kids' birthdays were packed into less than a month.

For those without babies, the cool couples get pregnant in mid-summer.

Happy Birthday Me!

March 7th 28 years ago I had my birthday. Embracing my inner child I picked out a Tinkerbell Birthday Cake. It was a wonderful time. My mom came and made me Chicken Cordon Bleu with Scalloped Potatos. For dessert we had Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream cake.

Photo Shoot

We gave Nika our old camera. She has taken over 150 pictures on the camera (good thing the card will told another 350). I took a picture of Nika taking a picture of Christian. He loves having his picture taken and say cheese, so the two are quite the pair. Nika demanding him to stand next to the tree and Christian saying cheese to ask for his picture to be taken.

Princess Dresses

My mom didn't pass on the crafty jean to me, so she made the Girls Fairy Dresses. Aren't they cute. I caught them here dancing to Papa Boyd's Fairy Organ Music.

Hair Cuts

Christian got his hair cut on the 13th of the month. I think it makes him look so grown up. He was such a big boy. He stayed still and seemed to really enjoy the experience (I think he thought it was neat.).

I really like Nika's Hair cut too. Grandma Kay did it yesterday. It really makes her look less like a toddler and more like a Little Girl.

Zoo with PaPa Jim

We went to the Zoo with Jim and Kathy this weekend. The Kids had so much fun. It worked out great. Grandpa, Grandma, and Kenny met us at the Zoo and then we walk all over for about 6 hours. They slept good on the way home.

Storytime

Since Kiley has been with us, we have made it a habit of reading one book to each kid before bedtime and naptime. Here you see Storytime before bedtime.

Camping

We went camping the weekend of July 26-29th with some of our close friends. The ratio Adults to Kids was crazy 8:8. Next year I think it will be even crazier, because three of those were under 5 months. Next year all eight will be on foot.
We all took our bikes and bike trailers. Since we had three (Kiley, Nika, and Christian) we bought another trailer. It is way cool, a chariot.
All the kids had fun rolling around in the dirt, throwing rocks, going on rides, swimming (in dirty lake dorina), and eating junk food.
I really enjoyed camping with these guys. Everyone feels comfortable enough to kind of keep an eye on each others kids, giving us a lighter load.

More cute pictures @ The Bowmans', the Lundes' and the Rowles'.

Healing Frozen Panda

Thought I would share this little part of our daily life. When Nika was born we got this cute little Panda you put into the Freezer to soothe bumps and other hurts. But everytime Matt uses it to soothe the kids he animates Panda, doing funny things. I don't do that. I don't know if it is lack of new inspiration or what. But the other day I used it to soothe a hurt finger and Nika broke out of her cry to show me how Panda is supposed to act. As soon as I followed her lead the hurt went away. It was a miracle Healing Frozen Panda.

No More Monkeys Jumping on the Couch

Lately the girls have just been crazy about tearing the couch apart and jumping on it. They needed little encouragement to pose for these pictures.

Monkeys

We went to the Zoo yesterday and found this monkey vine swing. Kiley picked up on it quick, but Nika was a bit timid.

Summer Fun

The day that Alex was born, I had Kenny in addition to Kiley, Nika, and Christian so we broke out the sprinkler. Above you see Kenny doing a cartwheel through the sprinkler and below those daredevil preschoolers Kiley and Nika braving the cold water.

Time to warm up on the beach towels. They looked just like little tweens.

Not Twins - Cousins

I got in real trouble the other day when I went out and got Kiley and Nika four matching outfits. Today when I went to get the girls dressed they expressed their desire to not match. They are so cute. They have so much fun playing and dressing up together. My mom has commited to making them matching "Princess Dresses."

Grandma West

Here you see Grandma west with four of her six grandkids

Ain't it Great to Be Loved

The girls are very much in love with their new nephew. At times it is hard to keep them away from him

Five in the Family!

Our Neice Kiley is now living with us. Last night all the kids decided it would be fun to hang out on the couch with thier blankies. There are the three who are bring so much joy to out lives. Kiley is two months older than Nika and the daughter of Matt's oldest sister. Her brother Kenny was living with us earlier this year. We are unsure how long Kiley will be living with us, but I am having a lot of fun with another girl to play with. Getting out of the house hasn't been perfected yet, but with time I am sure I will master it.

Preschooler Love

Nika announced the other night that Benton loves her then that She loves Benton. Maybe they are spending to much time together. Nah, you know Preschooler Love is so fickle.