The New Baby

Our family has grown by a new baby...

a baby grand, that is.

Oooohh...I have always thought baby grands were beautiful, but the prices...not so beautiful.

So, when we heard our friends were planning to sell their baby grand, we jumped at the chance to buy it.

And the piano happened to be the color I love most...shiny black!

I can not wait to hear the kids play on this beauty!

However, with anything new, there is an old.  We are saying goodbye to our beloved upright piano that has been in Jamie's family for quite a few years.  All the kids have learned to play on it and we have been so blessed to have it.  But the sound board is rusty, a few of the keys don't work, and it just can't be tuned anymore.  It's ready for retirement.  

But...

Jacob has talked his dad into tearing the piano apart, and building something out of the wood.  So, it's really not "goodbye," but rather, a little facelift.  Can't wait to see what they design...though I have my eye on a coffee table with glass covering the keyboard.

Visas...check!

Guess who got their China travel visas today??

Can you tell we are not at all excited?

Even more excited is Daddy...who is still wondering what to do with 4 kids and a dog while he's working!

Faithful Friend

Gus hung very close to Laura after school today.  He followed her, and would lie down beside her when she was still.  At one point, we found them like this.  Laura didn't seem to mind that this huge friend was hogging the camera! 

 A couple hours later, right before dinner, Laura became very somber and whiney. Gus would stick close to her, and then come over to Jamie or me, almost nervous-like...then head back to her.  Kind of like he was telling us...hey...she's not feeling well!

 I held her and she started to cry these silent tears that not only break your heart, but also make us wonder what on earth she's thinking about that makes her suddenly so sad.  Well, Gus was right there with her, and she actually laid her head on his back while she cried.  So sweet!  I wasn't paying attention at the time, but from this photo, it looks like Gus is crying on my shoulder!  Ha!

He stuck close before bed, too.  It makes me wonder if he knew she wasn't feeling well so far ahead of when we knew.  Perhaps that's why he was staying so close this afternoon.  Love this pup!

A Winter Break

I feel so redundant saying this, but this winter has been the snowiest, and coldest winter I can remember...bar none!  Suffice it to say, we were all ready to take a break and soak up some sunshine.  Jamie booked a trip to San Diego and it was just what the doctor ordered.

We wore our sunglasses...thx for sharing, Jacob...

 sipped our cool drinks on the decks...

 sought out water wherever she could...

explored the safari park...

until our legs were tired...

 swam in the pools...

 took on the water slide a million times...

(Char had to run down the last section because his little body wasn't heavy enough to carry him all the way!)

 watched a potter form some beautiful pieces from a big slab of clay...

 sized up the huge aloe plants...

 watched the sea lions on La Jolla beach...

ate fresh, buttery corn that Daddy won at a local market...

 and even learned to iron (he was excited to try it!).

We came home to a driveway full of snow, and another ice/snowstorm today.

What a difference, but we feel refreshed and so thankful for a wonderful trip!

The Cuckoo Bird

 Laura starred in her first musical...The Cuckoo.

It was put on by the third graders at her school,

and guess what part she played?

Yes!  The cuckoo bird!

Of course, Gus had to come see his girl perform.

Had he not fell asleep, in the front row no-less, he probably would have enjoyed it.

Laura was in a bit of a snit when we got to school.  This was her look all night.

She didn't crack a smile until we pulled into the garage at home.

 Nope.  Not even the hint of a grin.

But she's still the most beautiful cuckoo bird ever!

Jacob's Recital Song

This is a portion of Jacob's recital song.  I just love hearing him play.

And Gus is learning the art of photo-bombing.

Tooth #2

Loose tooth #2 has been hanging by a thread for about a week now.  Char was in no hurry to get it out, and freaked out at the idea of anyone pulling it.  Part of me was fine with that because loose teeth creep me out.

However, this tooth was turning colors because it wasn't really connected anymore, and it needed to be out of his mouth.  So, while at a friend's house, I got up the nerve to pull it...my first tooth ever to pull out of one of my kids' mouths.  In the bathroom we went, I grabbed a tissue, Charlie screamed, and out came the tooth.  Then he said, "I didn't even feel anything."  I guess the scream was just to add a little drama to the event.  He was happy that the tooth was finally out, and that the toothfairy would be making another visit.  Too bad the toothfairy didn't show up...must have been caught in the snowstorm...

Family Meal Time

I value family meal times.

Growing up, our family ate meals together daily.

Today, our family does the same.  Homeschool allows us the opportunity to eat almost all of our meals together...save a day or two, here or there.

It allows us time to chat, share stories, and just keep in tune with one another.

Laura is taking this one step further and including Gus...which would be fine if said individual would quit dumping over his water dish, and if the two of them didn't slop it through my house!

Love these two!

Gong Xi Fa Cai

恭禧發財

or

Gong Xi Fa Cai

or, easier yet,

Happy Chinese New Year!

We celebrated by wearing our Chinese New Year Shirts,

and eating long noodles for dinner.  Someday, I would love to celebrate the CNY in China!

Finally...a tooth!

Charlie is the last of the kids to lose a first tooth.

I have witnesses...this kid was NOT going to let anyone pull his tooth,

nor was he about to inflict any amount of pain on himself.

No amount of bribing would move him...not even from Grandma and Papa.

The tooth was dangling by something less "than a thread."

Finally, breakfast toast did the trick and the tooth came out on its own.

There is another tooth right behind it, dangling by perhaps "a thread."

No doubt, it will come out all on its own.

Happy Birthday, Jenna Mei!

What a fun birthday weekend we had with Jenna!

This is the fourth birthday we have celebrated with her, and they keep getting more and more fun!

Grandma and Papa came to visit.

We decorated cupcakes to take to Sunday School.

 She helped Amarin make her icecream birthday cake.  She chose pink, bubblegum icecream, very-berry Oreo cookies, and chocolate sauce.  She loved the flavor.  Let's just say the rest of us thought the cake was...well...pink.

 She had been excited for days to open her presents!

Finally, a big girl Bible.  Pink, of course.

 Friends came over to join her celebration.

Then she got to spend the night at the hotel with Grandma and Papa.

We laughed at her fashion statement here...jammies and all!

After church, we went out for lunch.  She was very happy to get a birthday treat.  She wondered at first why there were so many extra spoons on her dessert plate.  Then she happily shared.

Happy 7th birthday, sweetie!  You are getting to be such a big girl.  We love you!!

Three Years

Happy 3rd Gotcha Day, Jenna Mei!

We love you!

Whose trip was that?

Jamie and the boys have made some wonderful memories on their father-son trips.

They often chat about their trips, and like looking back at their photos...that were still on the computer!

So, they decided to make memory books.

They chose all the photos to be included, the layout, design, and words.

So easy, quick delivery...they couldn't wait for them to arrive so they could read them!

Here is Amarin's book...Legoland in Florida.

Our little buckaroo, Charlie, at the Dude Ranch in Texas.

Seriously, he is the cutest cowboy EVER!

And...wait a minute...who is this?

Inside...it's Jacob and Daddy on their trip to California to see General Sherman.

Either this is the wrong cover, or they looked mighty strange in those-there parts.

We laughed so hard when we opened this book.  

These are actual people, and their names are on the spine of the book.

Apparently, photos got mixed up, and their faces were put on the front of Jamie and Jacob's book.

Sure looks like they're having a great time, though, doesn't it?

What a hoot!

A new book is in transit...but this certainly made us chuckle!

The Arctic Chill

The arctic chill in the midwest has hit...hard!

I can't remember it ever being this cold.

So we, along with every other person in the midwest, emptied the shelves of our local grocery stores beforehand. I was with a superhero, so I knew no one would mess with my loot.

 The snow fell, the wind blew, and the temperature steadily dropped.  We had to draw straws to see who got stuck taking Gus outside.  Jamie had to snow-blow the driveway twice due to all the drifting...and the plows that made a mountain at the end of our driveway.  Funny how the drifting works...our yard had over a foot of snow, but at our neighbor's across the street, we could still see some grass.

Jamie and I woke in the middle of the night to the beeping of a smoke detector in need of a new battery.  Why does this only happen in the middle of the night?  We determined that it was coming from Jacob's bedroom, changed the battery, and went back to bed.  (Jacob remained fast asleep, but remembered hearing a beeping noise in his dream...) 

A few minutes later, it started beeping again.  We oh-so-joyfully jumped out of our warm bed to find another battery lest we never get any sleep.  At that time we noticed our house was pretty chilly...and that our furnace quit working.  Panic!  11 degrees below zero at the time, plus windchill, and the house was already at 54 degrees.  I kept trying to plan where we would go with 5 kids and a dog...and what to do with frozen pipes!  After trying a few things, Jamie determined that the vents outside were frozen, not letting any fresh air into the furnace.  He broke the ice away, and voila!  Heat!

This was our temperature this morning. Our local radio station factored in the windchill at minus 40.

We are doing our best to stay cozy, and I even let the kids have another day off school.  School is canceled here tomorrow, too, but no such luck for them.

 This is Jacob staying warm.  Who knew teens thought Elmo is cool?

Trying, again

A few months ago, we gave up trying to keep glasses on Laura.

She would just pull them off and throw them on the ground.  And then eventually step on them.

But over our Christmas break, I decided to try the glasses again.

After all, her opthamologist would love for her to wear them and keep her eyes as strong as possible.

We want her eyes strong, too.

She, on the other hand, really doesn't prefer them.

No one can say that she doesn't communicate her feelings!

Our Card Shark

Laura's newest endeavor? Card games!

She loves to watch them...closely...and laughs hysterically when someone shuffles the deck.

Then we all laugh at her laughing.

It's the simple things in life that bring joy.