We Have a Swimmer!

Hannah has proven that she can swim. She is capable of jumping off of the diving board and swimming independently to the ladder (to climb out and do it again)! She has been working on this for awhile now, and has accomplished it. I had a proud moment watching her (and also felt a little less nervous about her being in the pool).

Good work, Hannah!

(She actually posed, mid-air, for this picture.)

The Smile With the Missing Tooth

Here is the promised picture of Jay's new smile (see previous post for the story).

Please excuse the chocolate all over his face...he really enjoyed his "Moose Tracks" ice cream.

Jay's First Missing Tooth

On Sunday Jay discovered that his tooth was extremely loose. Being that this is his first to go, it pretty much made his day. He was so excited that today might be the day it fell out. I encouraged him to keep wiggling it with his tongue so that it would be ready soon.
Well, today Jay asked his Dad to step in and assist the process with a pair of pliers (I guess the suspense was just too much). On the second tug, the tooth came out. He proudly showed it to his siblings (Daniel was especially interested). We then put it in a tooth box and he put it under his pillow.
Since Hannah lost her first tooth, I have jokingly told the kids that when they lose a tooth that then I "put on my tooth fairy skirt, pick up my tooth fairy wand and skip down the hall to put a surprise under your pillow." They think it's hilarious, picturing me skipping down the hall all dressed up. Jay brought it up tonight as he was carefully placing the tooth box under his pillow.
He's upstairs now, sleeping, anxiously awaiting what the "tooth fairy" will bring.
Tomorrow I'll post a picture of his new smile. Oh, that missing tooth is going to make him look older...*sigh*

A New Vocabulary Word

"Mommy, I have sa-lima on my thumb!"

(Julia trying to use the term saliva which

she heard her older siblings discussing the

other day.)

Check out that crazily long tongue and out-of-control morning hair!!

Brotherly Love

Most of the time, our boys get along. They have extremely different personalities, but manage to have a brotherly comraderie which I love.

That being said, I walked into the kitchen and saw Daniel standing there with only one sock on. When I asked him why, Jay jumped up and showed me that he also had just one sock on. The reason? They had started the "sticky-slippery" club. The socked foot allows for slipping across the kitchen floor while the unsocked foot sticks to the kitchen floor. (Notice, too, that they are dressed alike. I overheard the conversation in their room where they decided on what to wear. It was really cute.)

How have I made it this far in life without being a part of that club? I hope they'll let me join...

Tami's Wedding

This past Saturday was my sister-in-law, Tami's wedding. It was truly one of the most fun weddings I've been to.

Here she is...

(my sister Mandie, Sara Garms, and I arranged the flowers)

Pretty flower girls...

Me as a bridesmaid...

The boys handed out programs. The looked really handsome and took their job pretty seriously.

Mandie, Sara, and I also made the cake.

Julia at the end of the day...

Knoebels

Knoebels is the best amusement parks for families.

We took the kids there today and had a blast.

John and the kids on the Kiddie Roller Coaster.

The kids and I on the Flume.

Contrary to the pictures, there were plenty of rides that Julia could ride on, too.

I just liked these two pictures best.

Maybe I'll post more another day...right now, my pillow is calling me.