Amelia's Birthday/Baptism

This past weekend we had Amelia baptized, and since it was so close to her birthday (tomorrow), we combined the two events. We had both sets of parents, all our siblings and their significant others, and a few cousins come. It was so nice to have a house full of family. Amelia liked playing with all the tissue paper from her presents. She was also a little surprised about her hair getting wet in church! If you would like to see more pictures of this past weekend click on the large group picture.

Busy Month

We have been pretty busy this month. Dillon is off school for his track-out. (He's in year-round so they get 3 weeks off and 9 weeks on.) He spent one week with his grandparents and had a blast there helping his grandparents and going to museums with Grandaddy.

Then there were all the Easter egg hunts--Alyssa actually did 4: one at school, one at church, one with my mother's group, and one with friends. Dillon was out of town for the one at church, so he only got to do one. (As a punishment, he didn't get to join in on the mother's group hunt. It was really hard taking that away from him, but I had to teach him a lesson.)

I have also been gardening with the kids. I have really been enjoying it. This is a first for me because I used to be a complainer when it came to manual labor, but it is really peaceful working with nature. (It helps that I am trying not to complain as much :) Dillon and I, also, transplanted a tree that started growing in one of the flowerbeds to our front yard. It was Dillon's idea to take a picture so we could keep track of how much it is growing.

Then we had a bunch of stuff at church for Holy Week from Thursday night to Saturday. Tommy and I went to the Easter Vigil Saturday night for his baptism while our friend watched the kids. The service was really beautiful and watching Tommy get baptized and receive communion brought tears to my eyes. (Don't tell him that ;) Then Sunday morning, we opened Easter baskets, dyed eggs, and spent the day as a family. I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and remembered what is truly important about this holiday.

Lastly, although you can't tell from the picture, Amelia is finally getting around--she's 11 months and both my others were either walking or at least taking a few steps by now. She is very laid back, so she was perfectly happy just sitting in one spot. That was totally fine with me since I have the other two kids to watch. However, even though she is finally mobile, she is not really crawling; she is scooting. She looks like an inch worm--it is really cute. Here's some video for you to check it out.

Enjoy the rest of your spring!

New Job!

This week I started watching my friend's baby. His name is CJ and he is 3 months old. I must admit that I was a little apprehensive about watching someone else's baby, but so far the transition has been good. He is so cute, so that makes the job a little easier. :) It's kind of strange that I am getting paid to watch a baby since I have been doing it for free for 5 years. It doesn't seem that long, but I guess the saying is true...Time flies when you're having fun!

PS--Dillon is not in the picture because he is visiting his grandparents (my in-laws) for the week.

Birds of a Feather

Everyone has heard the expression "Birds of a feather flock together." This expression must not be true when it comes to families. My parents both come from relatively large families and every member is distinct from the other. In my relatively new family, I can tell that each of my children have very different personalities. Sure, there are similarities, but for the most part they are nowhere near the same. (Those of you that know my first two can attest to that!) Take tonight's dinner for example. We had a simple meal consisting of hot dogs, carrots, and crackers. Dillon ate all his crackers first, Alyssa ate all her carrots first, and Amelia ate all her hot dog first. Three children from the same two parents--all with different desires.

For me, having a relatively big family (as far Western society is concerned) has truly taught me all seven virtues: charity, hope, faith, courage, justice, temperance, and most of all prudence. You may be surprised that prudence is the one that my children have taught me the most. According to Wikipedia, prudence is defined as "proper judgment of reasons for action with regard to appropriateness in a context." I am naturally a judgemental person--it comes with the territory of being a know-it-all. :) After having children that are so profoundly unique, I am less likely to judge other children which in turn leads me to judge humanity less. After all, it is not my place to judge--it's God's. In scripture, having a large family was a blessing, not the burden Western society has deemed it. So, when you see me in the grocery store with all my kids in tow, even though I may look stressed, in my heart is pure joy.....well most of the time.

Winter Fun!

With all the craziness of the holidays, I have not posted in a while. We had a great Christmas and New Year's. We went up to Tommy's parents in Virginia for Christmas and then up to my parents in Maryland for New Year's. We were gone a total of 8 days, so we were glad to be home once it was all over. Alyssa said that she missed her bunk bed--there's nothing like sleeping in your own bed, I guess! Dillon stayed with my parents an extra week, and he had a great time. He got all the treats and TV he wanted, so I'm sure it was heavenly for him!

Well, down here in North Carolina, we don't get too much snow, so it's a big deal when we do. It snowed all day yesterday, and the kids had a great time! To see more pictures of our winter this far click HERE.

Christmas Fun

So far we've had a fun, festive week:

Visiting Santa - Monday Night

Ladies Christmas Dinner - Tuesday Night

Making a Gingerbread House - Wednesday Night

Tomorrow is Alyssa and Dillon's last day of school. Alyssa has her Christmas program that we are all going to. Then on Christmas Eve we will be going to a friend's house for dinner. Christmas morning we will open presents, go to church, and head up to Virginia to see Tommy's parents. After that we head to Maryland to see my parents and go to my friend's house for a New Year's party. Then we will head back to NC, but we will leave Dillon in Maryland to spend time with my parents while he is off school. Then my parents will bring him down here for my birthday (January 10). Needless to say, it will be a busy couple of weeks, but I love every minute of it! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! To see more pictures of the above stuff click here.

Happy 4th Birthday Alyssa

Alyssa turned 4 this past week. We made cupcakes to bring to school the day before her birthday, but unfortunately, she was sick on her real birthday. It was nothing major--just a low grade fever and she slept all day. By dinner time she was feeling much better and she was up for cake and ice cream.

Then yesterday we had a party with some family and friends. I think she had fun. If you would like to see more pictures from this month click on the picture of Alyssa in her birthday crown.

On another note, those of you that have been in my kitchen may have seen the pictures I have of Dillon and Alyssa climbing in the dishwasher. I only had 2 frames like that, and the pictures look perfect where they are, so for Amelia, I decided to take a picture of her in the bathroom sink to put on the wall there. The one you see is the best one I got.


I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season.