Last night the girls from our small group were able go out to eat together to celebrate the May birthdays (Jody and I)...it was an encouragement, just like I say every time we hang out! God has been very obvious in answering a prayer of mine from the last 6 years, that I would find close friends that would spur me on and support me in biblical womanhood.

We were some of the last people to leave the restaurant...almost had to be asked to leave :)

Shannon, Kristin, Jody, Ashely, me, Erin, and Dawn

Kristin brought this goofy birthday gear to use for pictures

We've been to Papa and Gramme's pool several times now and it keeps getting better and better! The girls hold their own and are a joy to watch swimming and playing.

Yesterday we stayed at home all day. It was wonderful! We all rested well from the busy weeks we've had recently. I am going to enjoy summer, when we aren't in a rush to get out of the door and can take our time to do anything we want!

We lounged in our pajamas most of the day. When I went in to get Vivian from her room time, I found her like this, reading to all her babies, "'cause they have to go to sweep."

Several weeks ago when I went to Richmond with some girlfriends, Janelle (Avery and Rachel's mom) so graciously kept the girls until Aaron could get off work. They were very excited about spending the day with their friends. If you remember, Avery and Vivian are the same age (about 3 weeks difference), and Rachel and Kate are the same age (about 3 weeks difference). This makes for lots of fun play!

Thanks to Janelle for her help that day, and for giving them such a thrill with playing dress-up!

We have lots of babies coming to our church in the next few months. It's so exciting!

Last Saturday we celebrated God's gift to Ben and Molly...baby Isaac. He will be here at the beginning of July. Molly looks great and got lots of great things to prepare for him...almost everything was purchased from her registry!
We had a fun time at the shower. There were so many people! Gretchen made up a really interesting game for us to play that provided lots of laughs.

Luke! His brother will be here this summer, too.

Jill was so sweet to help entertain the girls during all the craziness of the shower. She took ribbons from the opened gifts and made necklaces and bracelets and belts for them...they thought it was the coolest thing and Vivian played with hers for the rest of the day! Gotta love Jill.

Last night we celebrated Sierra's birthday (belated...her actual birthday was May 25th) at Mom and Dad's house. Mom grilled bbq pork chops and the whole nine yards to go with it, along with birthday cake for dessert. Sierra is such a sweet part of our family!Vivian had to be right in on the blowing-out-the-candle action. Sierra was gracious to let her do it, and then of course we had to relight it once Kate realized that she wasn't paying attention and missed the whole thing:

Last Friday Vivian invited us to watch her sing in the end of the year program at preschool. We were delighted to attend! All of the children sang two songs together on stage, and then each class did their own short performance. Vivian's class said the Pledge of Allegiance, named all the colors, counted to 10, and sang Jesus Loves Me. It was fun to watch all of the children to see their different personalities. So many times I wished I could have witnessed what went on those preschool mornings :)

Aside from a two or three week weepy phase in the fall, she loved preschool this year! She has grown attached to the kids in the class, and hopefully we will be able to see some of them for her birthday party coming up!

I tell her almost daily to STOP GROWING :) haha

Bradley and Collin...two sweet preschool friends.

Kate wanted so badly to be up there singing with the big kids. I was so glad that Gramme came to help me tame her while we watched the program. Overall she did well...just really excited and animated (Kate, not Gramme, although Gramme was also well-behaved :)).

On Sunday afternoon we were invited to Vinton for an authentic Italian meal with our dear friends Franco and Antonietta. I used to teach two of their sons, Frankie and Antonio, and I miss seeing this family often! We haven't seen them since Vivian was a baby, so it was a great reunion, but it also felt as if no time had passed at all. They are a very welcoming, loving family. We ate an entire plate of lasagna before the main course (steaks) came to the table :) It was so much food, but it was great company. Frankie was excited to play with the girls and showed them all of his toys. The girls ate so well and also played with their small dog. It was a fun afternoon! Thank you for feeding us, Antonietta!
Frankie is in 3rd grade now...time goes so quickly! His English has improved tremendously.

We had a great Memorial Day yesterday! We relaxed at the pool, and had some friends to join us, too. Vivian and Kate continue to surprise me each time we swim at how much fun they have doing it. It is a joy to watch them play and entertain themselves. And of course they loved having friends there to create more fun!

Thanks to everyone for making the day so enjoyable. It was a great treat.

Lilah, Jax, Julia, Kate, and Vivian (Tyson is in the bottom corner)

Sweet splashing girl!

Zach and Cohen

Here's some proof that my brother Stephen is an awesome uncle!! This was not posed...I caught him in the act.

I know I am so behind in posting about what we've been doing, but while I try to catch up tonight, here's something to hold you over...

This is for all my fellow Glenvar Elementary grads :)

Vivian wears this for pajamas several times a week!

Yesterday I had some time to kill before picking V up from preschool, so Kate and I stopped in at a park to play for a while. There were two school buses there, and the playground was packed with elementary kids. We headed in anyway, and Kate really held her own. She played right alongside them, taking turns on the slide with them, climbing the stairs with them, completely unaware that they were giants compared to her.

I love the little evidences around our house of these children!

Last Saturday, a couple days after my birthday, Aaron took me out to dinner and I was so shocked to see great, great friends who came to join us!

Love to all :)

I didn't bring my camera (upset about that...I didn't think I would need it for anything!), but I stole these pictures from Kristin and Shannon's blogs. Kristin got this great picture of Brett and Jody.
Needless to say, this birthday was a memorable one. I am so thankful for my sweet hubby who in this picture looks like he needs a nap!
Does everyone look uncomfortable and dorky when people sing Happy Birthday to them in public, or is it just me???

A couple of weeks ago we put Vivian in Kate's crib at bedtime, just to see how she would react. She thought we were joking or bluffing, so when we actually turned the light out and left the room, she cried a little. After a few seconds they were talking and playing, and then fell asleep within 20 minutes or so.

Since then, they have slept together every night! They ask to sleep together, and it has been so sweet for us to listen to them play together before they fall asleep. We love to go in and check after they get quiet to see how they are arranged in that small space!
We weren't planning on this...it just happened. But we hope to move them to Vivian's bed soon...I was waiting until the summer but now I am more motivated because I know that they can actually fall asleep together. Of course I'm worried about Kate being in a bed, but I think we simply need to try it and trust that she really is growing up!

We hosted a Garden Party last year for Vivian's birthday. She had about 10 friends come celebrate with her! One of the memorable things about that day was that it was so HOT. The flower theme was carried out with the invitations, decorations, food, activities, and favors...we had a great time getting ready for it :)
Here are the pictures...they are somewhat out of order, but since there are so many I don't think I can take the time to reorganize them. Just look through all of them so you don't miss anything! haha
Carissa did a great job of focusing on the kids...if your children were here, feel free to order some of these great shots from the Picasa website...there are some good ones!

The post I was referring to from last week is about Vivian's 2nd birthday party! Erin was a correct guesser...I'll have to think about a prize!

Maybe now is a great time to remember these photos because her 3rd birthday is about a month away! I'm starting to think about it more and more...it's coming quickly but I am certainly not ready for her to get any older.