So Amy started us off, our first niece and now our first GRADUATE. She has always been such a cheerful, happy, girl and is quickly becoming a beautiful young lady. She has always been so inclusive of all the little siblings and cousins and has patience and love for all. She has a servants heart, and wants to become an elementary school teacher. She is amazing and we love her dearly. Many congratulations to our dear Amy!

Double digits

Now the BABY is ten. Since we moved into a bigger house, our kids have become like fish who grow bigger, depending on the size of their tank. It's like they now have room to grow, so they decided to become giants. All three of them. It's insane in one year how much they all have changed. But yes, the youngest is ten. He's still surprising us daily with his hidden talents, his witty humor, affection and his overall joy. He is the most easy going of all of us and seems to adapt to any group or situation well. He is expanding his musical abilities and we all get to watch him perform with Lauren Mann tomorrow for both a piano and drum solo. We had his annual backyard water balloon volleyball family party here on Sunday and will have his friend party on Saturday. He will be finishing up grade four here soon and is going to summer camp for the first time. He's bigger and taller than the other two were at ten years old, and he seems to have a constant appetite. I think he'll soon become the big little brother.

13 on the 13th!

Happy birthday to my middle boy, Liam! He is growing fast and has changed so much in the past two years from a standard typical kid to more of a unique and talented teenager. He has been so busy these days. Three days a week he's in boxing where he is getting super fit. It is showing in other areas where he can now outlast us all, like on the ski hill. His skiing abilities have improved majorly because he's more in shape and has also had three lessons this winter. He is in yearbook and lego robotics at school. He just started jazz band as the drummer and concert band (trumpet). He still goes to drum lessons, and in between all that he enjoys youth group and does lots of reading and homework! He's still madly ticklish (see the bottom picture). We kinda like this one. He's a keeper.

2017

Here we are, another year. Sometimes it seems like year after year, life is as it has always been, with the same things happening and the same problems over and over no matter how hard you try to fix them....fighting children for instance. And then your facebook pops ups a video from 8 years ago and you get zipped back to those baby days when life was about napping and walking the kids to the park. Life has changed and we are full force into those teen years of hormones, homework and attitude. I don't mean to paint a nasty picture, because it isn't all stress and war around here, but sometimes the majority of good gets lost in a 10 minute brawl over trying to get someone to read for his English assignment. Grr. I must say though, I love having kids that are smart and starting to surpass me in their talents and abilities. They are catching up to me in size, and actually when I was staring at Shea's unusually large thighs yesterday, I decided to measure them at their largest part, and they are only 1 inch smaller than mine! He is 9! Riley is "cracking" us up with his changing voice, and Liam is getting teased daily for his beginnings of a mustache. Oh puberty. I remember you. Life is different than when I was a teen though, so in some ways I feel so unprepared for knowing how to deal with all they are going through. For one, I wasn't and am not a BOY. For two, I did not have access to the internet, snapchat, and all the other means of learning, conversing and chatting with friends. It is so distracting for their chaotic brains! And third, our lifestyle is just so different from mine as a child. Our family was poorer, with most of our spare time involved in church activities (never sports) and a totally different family dynamic. I feel like it's all a guessing game and I'm just trying my hardest not to screw things up for them. Some moments I burst open with pride and enthusiasm for all they are and will become, and other days I just want to hide under my bed and pretend they don't belong to me! The joys of motherhood. I will survive!!! and they will be amazing.