Testimonies

I had the boys with me at mutual on Tuesday, and when we went to leave I couldn't find my keys. We looked for them everywhere and still couldn't find them. Ethan suggested that we say a prayer to find them. I took them back to the room we had met in, now empty, and we knelt down. Ethan said the sweetest prayer and after he was done the thought came to me to check the trash can. I reached over and gave it a little shake and sure enough my keys were in there. (how they got there is still a mystery) Porter helped us say another prayer of thanks, and we headed home. When Ethan told Rob about what happened he explained to him that he now has a testimony of prayer.

A few days later Rob was having a rough week at work and asked us to pray for him that he would be successful in that days appointments. Just after lunch Rob called us to let us know that our prayers had worked. When I told Ethan he was thrilled to now have two testimonies.

Last night Ethan was sad to have to go to bed and miss the end of the Laker game. He asked me if I would tell him in the morning who had won the game. During his prayer before bed he prayed that the Lakers would win because it would make Daddy happy. This morning when he woke up I told him the good news that the Lakers had won the game and he said,

"Yes!! Now I have three testimonies!!"

Thank goodness they won! :)

Someday...

There is a chili cook off and car show downtown every year and I always seem to miss it. I have always loved old cars, so when I realized this morning that it was today, I packed up the boys and headed out. I couldn't believe how many cars they had there!

Porter thought that this purple truck was pretty cool since it matched his favorite laker jersey.

I was drooling over it myself.

Ethan always tells me that he wants me to paint our car black with flames. I've tried to explain to him that it wouldn't really look right on our pilot. :) He loves his flames, and insisted we stop and take a picture of each car. Here are some of the best ones.

The rainbow one was their favorite.

Ethan liked the skulls graphics on this one.

Someone even had an old tricycle they had fixed up.

There was a petting zoo set up too, and we were pretty surprised to see a camel and a zebra!

It was a fun way to start the day. Maybe someday I can have one of my own... a car, not a camel. :)

Time to paint

Yesterday was Ethan's last day of preschool. Miss Heather was awesome, and he's really going to miss her.

She gave all her students little goodie bags, and Ethan was so excited that his paints that he had used all year was included. Painting was his favorite thing to do in school, and he couldn't wait to use them. I went and bought a set for Porter yesterday, and they have spent the ENTIRE morning painting.

They did a great job and were so proud of their paintings.

I actually liked seeing such a colorful mess on my table.

Party Time!

We had a birthday party for Lincoln on Sunday. Following tradition, we got him his own little cake to destroy. Lincoln doesn't know how to blow candles out yet and his brothers were happy to help out.

He wasn't too sure what to do with the cake at first. He just kept poking at it.

Once he got a taste of it though, he went at it.

The kids were just tortured watching, so after a while we told them that they could jump in there too.

Lincoln was one happy boy.

One is Fun

Lincoln turned one on the 19th. I just can't believe it's been a year already!! This little guy is so sweet and has truly been a blessing to our family.

Here are some Lincoln fun facts:

• 22 lbs
• 30 inches
• 3 teeth
• Still does the "army" crawl.
• Will walk along the furniture, but absolutely refuses to try to walk on his own.
• Loves balls, and will chase them around the house all day.
• Loves giving kisses. (at least his slobbery version)
• Definitely a momma's boy.
• Is going to be my first real blondie, but still waiting for his hair to grow. :)
• Loves being entertained by his big brothers.
• Loves anything with buttons on it, especially the phone or the remote.

Best Day Ever

Any time we do anything fun for the boys they name it the "best day ever". We aim to have as many of those as we can. Today was the first Saturday that Rob has had off for a long time. We tried to make the most of it and started off the day with a lot of cuddling and wrestling. Around lunch time we decided to go pick up a slip n' slide. Rob and I have talked about getting one of these since before we even had kids. I don't know why we waited so long, we all had so much fun!!

Ethan and Porter were so excited to try it out...

...while Lincoln found a safe spot to hang out in the shade.

The one we got has two lanes so you can race, so the boys each got a lane. It took a while for them to get the technique down. The first few times down they only made it halfway.

Rob finally started tossing them down the slide.

Then we decided to join them...we had to see who was faster right?! :)
(Sorry, you'll have to live without seeing my graceful slide)


There was a lot of splashing and goofing around and Porter was trying to hide.


When the boys got thirsty there was a perfect drinking fountain.

Lincoln finally got a turn in the winner's circle. He wasn't too sure about the cold water, but he loves to splash.

We spent hours outside enjoying some family fun time. It truly was one of our best days ever.

Ethan's idea of fun...

I think Ethan got a little bored a few nights ago. He started messing with his baby brother. Someone taught him that if you lick cheerios they stick really well.

Then he decided to join in the fun too.

Lincoln decided they looked too yummy to leave on their heads.

Mother's Day

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. I'm lucky to be the only girl in the family because I get spoiled rotten. The day started off great when Lincoln slept in long enough for me to get ready for church without him screaming for me. Ethan gave me this card that he made at school that he had been hiding from me since Thursday.

Inside I found a beautiful bracelet that he made all by himself! Check out his pattern skills!

He also gave me a flower pen from church. The primary had asked the kids something they love about their mom and turned it into a poem. Ethan's response was so sweet...

Then there's my Porter. This cute little boy, and what does he say????

According to him, Dad does fun stuff and I do boring stuff. I love that kid!! I guess I have some work to do.

Rob planned to go visit his mom's grave and asked Ethan if he wanted to go. He drew the sweetest picture to take...

Rob spoiled me all day with gifts and making all the meals. Thank you to my boys, all four of you!! I am so lucky!!

Seaworld

We were able to go to Seaworld again this year with a group of friends. The boys were happy to spend the day with cousins and their best buddies. We heard that it's best to see the polar bears early, so we headed their first. They were both out and active. The boys loved watching them try to get their treats out of the ice.

They were impressed with how big their paws were, and that it took all their little hands to make one paw.

We took in a Shamu show...


...and the boys even were brave enough to pet the rays this year!!

Lincoln liked watching the sea lions.

We had to go see the sharks too.

Lastly Rob and Eric convinced Ethan to go on the Atlantis ride. (They bribed him with fruit snacks.) By looking at the expression of absolute terror on his face, I don't think he liked it very much.

They were pretty exhausted after a long fun filled day!

Growing up is hard to do

Ethan got a "choose the right chart" from his primary teacher a couple months ago. He instructed me when he got it that when he filled it up he got to do something fun. He's been working really hard to fill it up. He finally earned his last sticker last week.

It was pretty funny watching him try to decide if he wanted to go to Disneyland or McDonald's. You would think it would be an easy decision, but he ended up choosing McDonald's!

He just happened to complete his chart the day before his kindergarten Dr. visit, so I was glad to be able to give him something to look forward to after his appointment. I tried to prep him of what was going to happen so he wouldn't be surprised, but he was so nervous. They gave him a gown to put on and it cracked me up that after he got it on he put his hat back on. I took this picture before the doctor even came in. It's awful to see a little guy so sad.

He had to get 3 shots and his blood drawn. It was a pretty rough morning but once we got to McDonald's he cheered up pretty quickly.