Build-A-Bear and a Carousel Ride!

Earlier this week, Isaac and Elise's friend Abbie turned 5.  To celebrate, we were invited to her birthday party at Build-A-Bear at Concord Mills Mall.  We hadn't ever taken the kids there, so they were excited about this new adventure.  They both enjoyed the process of making their own furry friend and washing/fluffing it.  Elise made a dog named Sparky with a mint scent, and Isaac made a bear named Lovie with a cotton candy scent.

After this experience, we went to the food court to have cupcakes and ride the carousel, which they also loved!

What a fun party celebrating a sweet friend!

14 Months!

Gracie is 14 months old now!  She has learned to stand on her own and does this every so often.

She also loves to flip through books and says 'book' every time she finishes nursing. She often wakes up in the morning and says 'book' as her first word of the day.

This girl is so loved by our family and we are blessed to have her joyful heart with us everyday.  She is such a treasure!

Easter at church!

This year, Grace had a fever of 102.9 on the Saturday before Easter, so Steven stayed home with her while I took the big kids to church.  Our church had Easter parties in the kids' classes, the Easter Bunny showed up, there was an Egg Roll, and we got to participate in a photo booth!  It was so much fun!  Here are some pictures from the morning... 

Fun with Harry

The last time we were in the store, both kids wanted to ride this green guy.  Since his price was recently lowered from 50 cents to one penny, we obliged. ;)  They had a blast!  

Elise's new friend!

Elise's bug-loving days weren't a phase last summer...  Again this year, she has shown her propensity for playing with insects. This is the latest little buddy she found.  She imagined a whole story about 'her'.  That her mother was missing and that Elise gave her a passy.  

We love our little bug-loving girl!

13 months!

Grace is 13 months old now and as cute as ever! She is such a joy in our home!  

She still crawls everywhere, but she is starting to do a little monkey crawl where she puts one foot down like she's walking and the other knee is bent like she is crawling. She is very close to walking!  She definitely cruises the furniture quite often, as well.

She also has a few words in her vocabulary including my mama, dada, book, Oreo (our cat), Nana, Ba.  

Grace has become a great sleeper, taking two naps each day and sleeping through the night.  She did not sleep through the night until about a month ago.  Sometimes she still wakes at 5 or 6 AM for a nursing, but she goes right back to sleep.

Isaac and Elise love Grace so much! Each day they include her in some of their activities.  They also frequently "babysit" Grace for me. This includes them watching her for about five minutes in the playroom and "keeping her safe". It is so sweet!

We are so blessed to have Grace in our family!

 

Tents and Trash day!

Family Night!

A few weeks ago, our church had its monthly family night. We had a great time as a family and we also enjoyed spending time with our friends Jeff, Jennifer, and Gabby.  The family night includes lots of high-energy music and drama for the kids. The parents enjoy it as well!  Afterwards there are lots of activities for families to participate in. Here are some pictures of our big kids cutting out "forgiving hearts". The theme of this family night was forgiveness. 

Homemade tent!

One of our kids' favorite things to do is to make homemade tents with pillows and blankets. This week we had to replace our heating and air-conditioning system and the gentleman who did it gave our kids some cardboard that they had left over. Our kids use that to make a very fancy homemade tent.  Typically, Isaac is the one who designs the tents, and Elise is the one who determines what is going to be inside the tent (books, food, etc.) The day that these pictures were taken, Grace joined in on the fun!

Grace loves books!

Our sweet little girl loves to hold and look at books! In fact this past week she has started to say the word "book".  She pronounces it "ba-book!"  Anytime we hand her a book, she smiles and flips through it.  The wonder and amazement in her eyes is breathtaking.  Here she is, reading one of my favorite childhood books from my Granny and Pawpaw Gurley....