Fun Times!

We've been having a lot of fun over here and keeping plenty busy. Baseball for Jaren finally started this week after getting rained out last week. He has had 2 practices and is loving it once again this year. Not to mention he is playing for DeBruin Electric...how fun is that! :) This year he would like to try and do a little pitching for his team so he has been faithfully heading to the basement to practice and is doing a very good job. Bethany is still very much enjoying gymnastics once a week. I've been having a hard time getting pictures of her because of the large number of other gymnasts that are usually in the way. I'll keep trying though. Erica and Kate are busy hanging out with mom. :)
We had a wonderful weekend celebrating our Savior's resurrection and the promise of eternal life. We spent the day with my family and the chaos of 11 kids running around. Thankfully it was a beautiful day so they could run around outside and burn all their energy.

All ready to go...Kate, Brynn, Lauren, Reagan, Bethany, Luke, Erica, Jaren, Klayton, Hailey, Drew
Kate checking out what's in her basket.
The "hunt" is on. There are not enough hiding spots so we just put names on the eggs and they have to find their own eggs.
Kate hanging out with daddy. :)
Getting instructions for the 2nd half of the hunt

Heading out to find our first Easter geo-cache

Every Friday morning the local skating rink has cheap skating for little kids. It's a fun little outing for Erica to enjoy while the others are at school. This particular Friday Bethany got to join us. Both girls had a great time as you can see by the smile on their faces. Kate thoroughly enjoyed just people watching in the stroller.


One more of our smiley girl.

What a great day!

Today's weather could not have been better and we made sure to get out and enjoy it. Erica, Kate & I took a short walk to play at a park and then we picked Jaren & Bethany up from school and came home to enjoy the rest of the day outside. The kids had a great time on the swing set. Everything takes on a new found fun when ate is able to start being involved. They love having her around doing what they're able to do. I just can't get over the love that they have for her and Kate couldn't ask for any better brother & sisters.

We were also able to burn the big pile of sticks that the kids have found on our yard and over at the farm. To help ignite the fire our Christmas tree was also thrown in. Jaren had the privilege of starting the fire and I think it's safe to say that he really enjoyed it. What I don't have pictures of is Jaren taking pieces of paper and starting them on fire just for fun while waiting to start the big fire...Caramel Grandpa (aka Calvin) would be so proud! After the fire died down a little we roasted some hot dogs for supper and marshmallows for dessert with Farm Grandma. We are now ready for camping season to start and we even have a new fire starter.

~And just one more picture of Kate to show off her beautiful blue eyes~

Wow, where have I been?!?! Most of my Internet time is done while feeding Kate and typing one handed is a slow process for me. There...that's my excuse. :)

We are really enjoying the beautiful weather that God has blessed us with the past few days. We have also unfortunately been dealing with sick kids for the past week. I thought today would be a great start to a healthy week but I was wrong. Bethany is down for the count again with a 103 temp and vomiting. To put it mildly...she's miserable. :(

Fun things around our house...

1. Kate is now 6 months old. She is so much fun to have around! We have her dr. appointment tomorrow so I'll have the official stats then but I'm thinking she's 12-12.5 lbs. She loves the independence of sitting on her own and grabbing the toys out of her little box. She would like it if someone was sitting by her the entire day long, but after a few minutes of crying she usually calms down and realizes she can play on her own. She has discovered a love for the outdoors. This will come in handy in the next couple of months when we have ball games to attend. Kate thinks Erica is the funniest person ever and is constantly giggling at the silly things she does.

2. Erica just got registered for preschool. It's so hard to imagine sending her off to school, but she is so very excited. Finally something for her instead of just going to Jaren & Bethany's events. Erica is a riot and is constantly making us laugh. It's very hard to take anything she says or does seriously. Right now we have to play "What time is it Mrs. Fox?" every single day. Kate also seems to thoroughly enjoy this game. Erica stays busy by going to story time at the library once a week and KidShine every other week. Last week we ventured out to go roller skating. She loved it and was bummed that we had to miss this week due to her being sick. Hopefully this week we'll be able to go again.

3. Bethany is buzzing right along in Kindergarten. She has made so many good friends this year. I think we're going to have to have some playdates over the summer so this little social butterfly can play with her friends. Bethany is also participating in gymnastics once a week and is loving it. She wasn't interested in t-ball or soccer but really wanted to do gymnastics to we thought we'd give it a try. She has gone out of her comfort zone quite a few times with what the teacher has asked them to do (she's not much of a dare devil). Bethany had her first friends party this year for her birthday and had a blast. The girls could have danced the entire time. Something I'll have to think about for next year. :)

4. Jaren is so ready for spring/summer when baseball will start. He has 1-1/2 weeks until practice and about a month before his first game. He would like to try and pitch this year so I think we'd better get out there and work with him. Jaren still enjoys school...especially PE and recess. He is a great help at home but at the same time can be very frustrating with his know-it-all attitude that every child goes through. :) He is probably the most excited for the camping season to start. The roasted carmels w/ ritz crackers is high on his camping priority list. Jaren's biggest concern right now is "What will I watch if football gets canceled next season.?" :)

Sorry for the lack of pictures of Jaren. All the most recent ones are on my camera which has been misplaced - I'll find it soon and then do a whole post of just Jaren. :)

I'll try to be a little more faithful in updating the blog but I don't promise anything. :)