Ben's birthday party

 All Ben's Avenger stuff from Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Cliff.

 His new Hulk shirt from Anna.

 His birthday dinner that Anna made.

 Mini cheeseburgers and sweet potato fries.  His choice.

 Dirty Ben.

 Dirty, dirty Ben.  He had been coloring with markers and got it everywhere.

 His castle cake that Anna made.

 It was a double party with his cousin Rebecka who shares his  birthday.  Angie made Rebecka a beautiful cake.

 He is so fun to watch opening presents.  He was squealing over one of his gifts.

 Sword and shield.

 His reaction to the quilt I made him.

Blowing out candles.  It was a great party and a great day.

Ben's 5th Birthday

 Benjamin Robert Anthony turned 5 years old on Friday, February 22nd.  He had counted down his birthday for 2 weeks prior, so I knew we needed to make it special.  I had plans to celebrate with a picnic at the park- a special park we don't go to very often- and invite his very best friend, Andyman.  However, the weather didn't cooperate.  Plan B?  Chuck E Cheese.

 We went in the late morning, and there were just a few other kids there which makes it a nice place for kids.  I gave the kids their tokens and they were off!

 They had a great time!

 What a handsome boy.

 Sam playing whack a mole.

 Emma riding in the spinning cup of hot chocolate (and looking pretty!)

 Andyman racing cars.

 A picture with Barney. On a totally different note, I was thinking the other day that I have been watching Barney for over 20 years.  I can sing all the songs and name all the kids.  Sad, huh??

 Dancing for free tickets.

 Andyman and Ben at Burger King.  Best buds.

 Ben and Sam.  Cheesy silly boys.

My newest 5 year old.  Love that boy.

An evening at the Park

 A few weeks ago, Sam, Ben, Emma and I walked down to the lake to feed the ducks.  It was a beautiful evening.

 Sam just about had that duck eating out of his hand.

 I forgot to tell Ben that the bread was for the ducks.

 Guess I should have told Emma also.

 After the lake, we continued our walk to the park where we played.

 And kept eating the duck's bread.

 I'm not sure why the bread was considered such a treat, but it was and they. ate. it. all!

It was a nice evening!

February

Can it really be the last week of February?  I'm not even sure where January went.  I also am not sure why I haven't blogged in a few weeks.  I have a bunch of posts to upload, and my plan is to do that this week.  Here's a few random tidbits about what we've been doing and what we've been up to.

• Paul came home for a quick overnight visit a few weeks ago and we had a family birthday party for him.  It was a nice, but quick visit.  I'm so glad he can do that on a semi-regular basis.  He also brough Courtney, his "friend".  It was nice to get a chance to visit with her and get to know her a little bit better.
• Paul Sr. went up to Shorter University last Sunday/Monday for a conference which was held on the campus.  He was able to attend Paul Jr., church on Sunday night and meet alot of Paul's friends and of course, spend some time with Paul and Courtney.  He enjoyed it.  I would have liked to go, but I had school.  Paul arranged his schedule so he could have last Monday off.
• My class of 4,5 and 6 year olds were in rare form last Monday.  I'm not sure what was up, but they were talkative, rowdy and pushing the envelope.  Hmmmm.  Hopefully the break this Monday will cure all that!
• Benjamin turned 5 last Friday.  My baby boy is 5.  He is such an interesting child.  He reminds us so much of his brother Zack in so many areas.  He gave us a great show at his party (pics to come).  He is fun to give gifts too because he is so expressive.
• I made him a quilt after about a year of him asking for one.  I started it Wednesday night after church and had it finished Thursday about 2am.  If I totaled up the time I spent working on it, I say it took me about 4 or 5 hours.  I think it's the quickest quilt I ever made, thanks to the super easy pattern. Pics are coming.  He was excited when he opened it- it made my whole night when he ran over to me and hugged me and told me he loved me for making it.
• I took him, Sam, Emma and his cousin Andy to Chuck E Cheese Friday morning for his birthday.  They had a ball!  We usually only go on birthdays, so it is a special time.  Then we went to Burger King for lunch and they played more there.  I wanted to take them to the park for a picnic but the weather we had made it impossible.
• Sam fell into the corner of a wall at they gym Thursday evening.  I took him to the aftercare where he received 4 staples.  He was not happy!  Strange thing is that about 5 years ago, he did the exact same thing and received 3 staples.
• Anna is becoming a very popular baby sitter.  She has two regular jobs babysitting a week and a third semi-regular job.  She and Ellie just landed a house cleaning job twice a month also with a possibility of another.  I'm glad God is giving my girls opportunities to earn some extra money and to learn such life skills.
• We only have 6 more weeks of Classical conversations than we are done for the year.  It has flown by!  I have really enjoyed this classical model of education- it has propelled our homeschool much further than anything else through the years.  My younger 4 children will be leaps and bounds ahead of where the older 3 were when they graduate high school.
• I've lost 2 more pounds finally.  I was stuck there for a while, but I am so RELIEVED to have broked that long plateau.  My total is 136 down.  Woo-Hoo!!
• Paul was given an opportunity to go back to Brazil this summer, all expenses paid.  He didn't even have to stop and think about that before he said absolutely!  He also gets to travel by canoe down the river to share the Gospel with tribes that "normal" missionaries can't go to.  That just thrills him!  (And, honestly, it makes me more than a bit nervous)
• Emma is about 3/4ths potty trained.  She does very well- most of the time.  We've started leaving the house without diapers on and so far, she has managed to let us know when she needs to use the bathroom.  Even at chuck e cheese and burger king, she let me know when she had to go and she remained dry the entire time!
• That's about it!  Look for lots of pictures in the next few days!

Paul and Courtney

Paul's visit

 Paul came home for a quick visit on Friday evening.  He brought Courtney, and I made him a feast of some of his favorites.  Meatloaf, cheesy potatoes and veggies.  We were all so glad to see him.

 Emma ran right to him and hugged his neck for a good 5 minutes before letting go.  It was so sweet.

 Enjoying dinner.  Not sure what Paul has in his hands!

 These 3 were the only ones who posed for me!

 After dinner, we had the family over to celebrate Paul's birthday which is next week.  Again, I made some of his favorites: cookie cake, ice cream and of course, nutty fagan.

Look at his two little brothers watching to make sure he blew out every candle!