Feb- the month of love and no school

So there has been a lot of quality time this month as a family; partly because of the simple fact that the weather has caused school to be out WAY too much.  Even President's day which was supposed to be a make-up snow day was cancelled due to snow.  We did get one nice week of weather...it was like Spring was teasing us.

Derrick-  his biggest accomplishment of the month is he is getting more independent going potty.  He can do most of it himself and usually just needs a little help getting redressed.

Kaden- he is still keeping us on our toes and guessing at all times.  He actually (by his own choosing) actually went to the RIGHT sunday school class.  Noone was more amazed than me.  Again what comes out his mouth worries me more than anything.  This was once again proven to me this weekend.  Over the weekend we had a wedding (Steph and Chad's), while on our way to the church we were following Chad and they were a little bit ahead of us, Kaden turns around and tells Nate "You can go faster there are no cops behind us".  Man did I get a glimpse of the future.  He also told everyone that Saturday is his "drinkin" night and when we got home he was handing out drink tickets to his brothers. 

Andy has also amazed us this month.  He actually (after many months of Sarah, Matt and myself asking) has started to go to WOW (Wed. Church group for kids) and is LOVING it!  He also had his 1/2 time basketball game and did very well.  I am just amazed and how much better he has gotten in a year- he is really starting to understand the game. 

We have also continued some traditions-
Superbowl is when we each make our own pizza.  This year the boys added sprinkles to theirs.  
Valentine's day- Nate did get my flowers again (thanks so much) and I made a beautiful meal for the whole family (Cesar Salad. Cheese Ravioli with Garlic/Cheese Ciabotta Bread and mini cheese cakes for dessert) 

We also got a couple nights with friends (both as a family and also just Nate and I)
The Bahl/Ridler night was a blast- our kids are all the same age so they just go play together!
We went to a Superbowl family party and had a GREAT time! (The team I was cheering or actually won!)
Nate and I along with Matt and Diane got to go to a Wild game! This was one of the most fun games we had been too- lots of fights (which I try to discourage at home so felt a little bit like a hypocrite), Cameras down by us and the mascot. 

We also got a wonderful opportunity to watch our niece Paige over night- she was such a Good girl!  The boys love her so much....they waited on her hand and foot!  .

Family-

We have continued to make great progress on our basement.  Ceiling up in big room, started working on walls in office and we have gone through and organized all the toys (that was a BIG job!)

On the sad note there have been some family health problems including my grandpa and uncle.  Hope all is well with them soon!

The start of a new year!

Another year has started and we have already lots of exciting things planned as a family.  The boys are growing up so fast and they remind me of  that everyday with things they say and things they do. 

Andy:  He has learned some important lessons in the last month.  The most important lesson he has probably learned is not to give up (especially on himself).  This past summer he did not pass level 2 swimming lessons on his first try and he flat out refused to go back no matter what I did (he actually ended up working off the amount it cost me to register him).  This was one of the first times in his young life that something did not come easy for him and he did not know how to handle it.  Well this almost happened again this month, but this time I REFUSED to let him give up on himself.  He has been taking Piano lessons since October and he had to memorize Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  I found him laying on his floor crying that he could not do it.  I let him calm down then asked if he was going to quit this too or was he going to let me help him and prove to himself he is capable of more than he knows.  So he let me help, and we broke it down bit by bit.  The smile on his face was priceless when he had it mastered.  I was so proud of him and more importantly he was proud of himself!  The next night though he was reading to me and came to a word he believed was too big for him.  I asked him what did we learn.....his response "don't give up and break it into small chunks".  AND HE NAILED IT!!! He has even promised to give swimming lessons another try this summer!

Once again he has started basketball camp and is doing very well.  It is a passion of his and I am so proud of the improvement he has made in the last year--- he is starting to understand the game and has gained confidence in his game- he has become aggressive!

Kaden-- This kid never ceases to amaze me.  He is such a go-getter and will not let much stand in his way.  One night Nate was tired of him coming out of his room so he shut the light off by the little string on the light in the ceiling.  Instead of whining or complaining he moves the table in his room underneath the light, puts a chair on top of the table and climbs up there and turns it back on himself.  Now we were not too happy about the fact that he could have gotten hurt but at the same time there was a part of us that was like--- Good for you for figuring out the solution to your problem!  

He is also our negotiator of the family.  He will negotiate extra treats for himself, extra cuddle time, or whatever his little heart desires that day.  He has made many deals with Nate regarding the dropping off at school.  Nate usually does not even walk him in the school (which Kaden wants to do himself but has some how gotten Nate to agree to give him licorice if he does it all by himself.)

Kaden has also decided that he wants to marry himself.  He idolizes his Uncle Jerry and in his mind Jerry is married to himself and Kaden thinks this is totally cool.  (Now unfortunately Jerry did not see it that way) 

Derrick-  aka Big D
He has adopted this nickname and at times that is what he prefers to be called.  He is also getting bigger by the day...the other day he was trying to convince me that he was going to be 10 and I almost cried.  I am not ready for my oldest to be 10 let alone my baby.    He falls asleep reading his books nightly, its so cute and every one of my kids has gone through this stage.  He also likes to sleep on his bedroom floor, again another stage that each of my kids has gone through.  However he is a little smarter about it- he lays down two pillows to sleep on. 

His phrase of the month was "I will!"  Every time we asked him to do something we always heard "I will" even if that is not exactly what he meant!  I have a feeling we will hear this phrase a lot when he is a teenager too!!!

He has also been talking a lot about girlfriends and kissing girls.  YIKES!  When I would ask him who his girlfriend is the answer is always KTP- no idea what that means. 

Family-

This last month has given us a lot of family time.  We have gotten the opportunity to celebrate Natalie's (3rd) and Paige's (1st) Birthday's with them.  The boys love their cousins and can not wait for the next one to arrive.