Merry Christmas 2012

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas! 

We will be celebrating the birth of Christ...remembering that He showed up in the most unexpected way.  And, celebrating that He continues to "show up" in our lives everyday. 

Happy Halloween 2012

Happy Halloween!  I love this time of year!  Last week we had a great trip to the pumpkin patch and even braved the corn maze for the first time.  Tonight, we had a great time celebrating Halloween with friends!

Love Spooner Farms

The fab four

 

Not everyone thinks that wheelbarrow rides are fun.

Pumpkin slingshot

Our cute ninja...year 2!

Princess Belle!

Luke LOVED his scary costume!

The cutest puppy I know...for all 15 seconds that he wore the costume.

We throw a pre-trick-or-treating get together, and then hit the streets in force!

growing...Growing...GROWING

 It's been too long since I gave a quick update on what the small Stewies are up to, so here we go....

BENJAMIN -  22 MONTHS

Benjamin is quickly closing in on 22 months old.  He continues to be a very active and fun little guy, and is HAPPY (almost all of the time.)  He tries hard to keep up with the big kids, which keeps us all on our toes.  He's an excellent sleeper (still happily in a crib).  One of my favorite things he says is, "I love you Mama.  I love you."  It melts my heart...and I think he knows it!  When he wants out of his crib, he usually starts down the list...  "I love you Mama.  I love you Daddy.  I love you Ukie.  I love you Pe-a.  I love you Nanny."  Just waiting for someone to hear him and come to his rescue.  It's adorable.   Benjamin continues to love Elmo, and recently, he's fallen completely head-over-heels for Dora! His older brothers really want him to like Diego instead...which cracks me up!

18 months to 2 1/2 has always been a challenging stretch for me!  But, with Benjamin, I find that I am loving this stage.  Watching him grow and discover the world is so fun.  Love this little munchkin!





NATALIE- 4 years old

Natalie is 4 and sees life through ROSE colored glasses!   This girl loves all things girl!  She recently named her kitty (a toy), Sparkles.  She then informed me that the kitty will also answer to the name Pinky, Lovey, Diamond, Heart, or Glitter.   She loves her babies and spends most of her free time playing with them in her room.  She makes elaborate nursery set ups,  hosts very fancy tea parties for her babies, and tucks all of them in to bed at night.  I absolutely treasure this age!  I get a tear in my eye when I see her comforting her dolls...(kind of like how Aaron can be found crying soft tears of joy when the boys are having a Star Wars battle.)  Natalie is loving preschool, learning her letters and perfecting writing her name.  She's my buddy, and really likes to stick close to mom.  She's very helpful and has earned the honor of being best table setter in our family.  She recently informed me that when she grows up, she would like to drive a bus.  She then informed me that I will be required to watch all of her (real) babies while she does that.  So, it looks like I've got job security for the future!  Natty-Kate is our sassy, sparkly, ray of rainbow-colored sunshine!




PETER- 6 years old

Peter is 6 and is in all day Kindergarten this year...sniff sniff.  I miss having him at home, but he is LOVING school.  He is quick to make friends, and is a leader in his class.  His favorite parts of his school day are riding the bus, recess, and lunch. Oh, and learning...that's great too! If you know Peter, that sounds just about right! Peter started reading at the end of last year, and continues to amaze us!  His favorite thing right now is soccer.  He lives for soccer and is on a team of great kids (with great parents).  He's fast and aggressive and we are having so much fun watching him play.  Soccer is the perfect sport for 6 year old boys...running, kicking, falling, mud...is there more to life?   He's also a big fan of drawing, and recently learned how to draw stars.  He shows it off like a magic trick!  I love the wonder he finds in these discoveries.  He also learned the books of the New Testament (song) and is often belting out..."Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts..." in the grocery store, or at the pumpkin patch, wherever.  Peter has a soft sweet heart, and I love that our rough-and-tumble boy who knocks the world around all day, still snuggles up every night for reading.




LUKE- 8 years old

Luke is 8, and is taking 3rd grade by storm.  This boy loves school, and learning!  But, he also recently discovered wall-ball, 4-square, and kick-ball at recess.  He likes them so much, he asked if he could join a wall-ball team.  He was completely perplexed to find out that there is not a wall-ball league.  Luke is also playing soccer this year.   He enjoys playing defender.  In a recent game, he was having a hard time getting after the ball.  Aaron told him to pretend the other player was his brother who had just taken his favorite toy...that seemed to do the trick! (Not sure what that says about brotherly peace in our house...but it's reality) Luke is on a great team, and the coach is truly amazing...emphasizing hard work, team play and sportsmanship, over winning and super-star play. Wow! Love the lessons our son is learning.  It's a blast to cheer on the Eagles!
Luke is growing up a little too fast for me!  The other day he informed me that he is a young adult.  I informed him that he's still a kid.  He said, "fine, I'm an older kid...almost a young adult."  That's so Luke!  His enthusiasm for life is inspiring!





Aaron recently accepted an ordained call as the Executive Pastor for our church (more details on this to come.)  But, that led to the church asking for a recent family picture...which led to me balancing my camera on a ladder in the driveway, and snapping the picture below (and about 50 others that didn't turn out.) 

Back to Preschool....

Today was the first day of 4 year-old preschool for Natalie.  There was no hesitation.  She was thrilled to start and can't wait to go back!

Ready to go!

love this picture...we look all glowy...good job taking it Aaron!

This girl loves her daddy!  And her daddy adores her!

She looks so small behind that big back pack!

These three sweet girls are in class together....and all live in the same neighborhood.

Tea Time

And they're back...

The day was a success! The boys reported that they have "super nice" teachers!  

Luke comes off the bus, and declares the day "AWESOME."

Peter said the bus was fun, and really bumpy!

Don't you love Peter's hat?   And, just another reason to LOVE our neighborhood!  Two of Natalie's friends came to the bus stop and passed out popsicles to the big kids who went back to school today.  Thanks Riley and Lauren!!! 

Back to school....

Whining about waking up early, nervous butterflies, pondering the perfect outfit for today, blinking back a few tears (of joy)...and that was just MY reaction to back to school!

Lucky for me, the boys took the day in stride!

Luke was so excited to get back to school! He was all smiles and 3rd grade coolness!  Yesterday he informed me that he would be wearing something "awesome" for the 1st day of school...and he would NOT be wearing a "fancy" shirt or anything with a collar.  No arguments here.  I love that he's becoming his own person, and as long as it didn't have Sponge Bob on it, I was happy to oblige! 

1st Day of 3rd Grade

Today is Peter's first day of all-day Kindergarten.  He was excited, but a little nervous too!  Just as we were getting ready to leave his classroom, his eyes got a little glassy and he was blinking back a few tears.  I leaned in and gave him a tight squeeze, but Aaron was the real hero.  He swooped in, told Peter how proud he was, hugged him, there may have been a fist bump, and sent him off walking tall!  Way to go, Dad!!!   

1st Day of All Day Kindergarten

As we were driving away from school, Benjamin said, "where Ukie, where da guys?"  Which is his  way of asking where his brothers are.  I'm not sure, but Benjamin and Natalie just might be celebrating a little peace and quiet too! 



Bonus picture:
I don't know this child, so I feel a little bad posting the picture, but it was just so funny.  As Peter was settling into his Kindergarten class, I looked across to see this little guy, all tucked up in his shirt.  He looks excited for the 1st day of school, don't you think?  :-)

Priceless...

I took Peter to Kindergarten open house today. We met his amazing teacher, Mrs. Hunter, who asked, "Peter, how will you go home everyday?" (meaning by bus or parent pickup) 

 He answered, "well, I think I'll go home happy everyday."

 And I bet he will! 

 

It just keeps getting better....

I never went to VBS growing up...or at least I don't remember it if I did.  I'm pretty sure the 300+ kids that attended VBS at UPPC this year, will not forget it!

The whole program was amazing, but my favorite part was watching my hubby strut his stuff.   I never-ever-ever get tired of seeing Aaron and Adam do program together.   Billy Blaze and Hank Hangtime did not disappoint!  You've just got to watch the videos and see for yourself!

Here's the lead in video.....



And here's their dance and walk-on...



Billy and Hank were superstars and even signed autographs!  Unfortunately for Aaron, his celebrate status doesn't seem to follow him home!  Although, I have joked that he and Adam could make a little extra cash performing at birthday parties after VBS!  So, if you ever need some expert Sky Dancers for a party or special occasion (I'm thinking Golden Anniversary, or Sweet 16)...I know the guys. Ha!

I'm so grateful for all of the volunteers and staff that make VBS happen.  These guys get a lot of the "glory" but they are just 2 people in a team of 100's that makes this a memorable event every year!  Thanks UPPC!!!

4 year old pictures....

Today seemed like a great day to head out and snap a few pictures of Natalie now that she's 4!  I took her down to Chamber's Bay and here are my favorites....

Happy Birthday, Peter!

Today, Peter turned 6 years old!  He is a sweet, athletic, funny boy, and his smile can melt my heart!  Happy Birthday to our sweet Pete!

Here's his birthday video: (click play and then click the cog at the bottom to change the "quality" to 1080)



Not really part of his birthday, but a highlight of the summer (so far) was going to the skate park for some fun! 

We had a birthday bash in Portland with the cousins! 

In case you missed them, here are links to Luke and Natalie's birthday posts!

Click here for Luke

Click here for Natalie