Andrew Jeffrey!

Andrew is 6! He was so excited for his birthday and couldn't stop talking about it for days. He kept reminding me of all the things I needed to do for his birthday and telling me to put it on my to do list.

Andrew is such a good boy. there really is no other word to describe him. He is just so good. He wants to choose the right and make us happy. He is a very good obeyer most of the time. He loves to have a clean room and is such a good helper. He cleans the toilets for me every week and takes out the trash. He wakes up happy every morning with a big smile on his face. He loves to snuggle and give kisses. He is such a lover. Andrew also has a strong spirit about him. He loves to learn about the gospel and has a good understanding of things. Andrew is a little OCD about things, but it just makes him all the more loveable. One thing he obssessess over is toys. He will be introduced to a new toy and eat, sleep, breathe it until the next thing comes along. This year he has gone through pokemon (he memorized all the cards and could tell you anything about them), Bakugans, Bey blades, Ninjagos, and now Hero Factory. He gets so excited about them and will talk your ear off about them. Drew is also a very smart kid. At his parent teacher conference his teacher had nothing but good things to say about him and asked if she could have more kids like him. :) He is an amazing reader. Santa brought him his first magic tree house chapter book, which we thought would be a little advanced for him. One night over Christmas break he fell asleep at 6:00pm. We thought he was out for the night, but his sisters woke him up at about 9:00. We told him to read in his bed. An hour and a half later he came out of his room and said he had finished the book! I was totally shocked! Since then he has read 4 more of the magic tree house series and loves it.

We had a Ninjago party this year. Nothing like 10 six year old boys running around being Ninjas! He was most excited about his sensei wu piñata.

Practicing his ninja moves!

The  kids made paper ninja stars and then we had a little throwing contest

Big Birthday hug from little sis

There are some boys in the ward who take karate, and I had them come over and teach the kids some moves. It was really funny to watch!

Super Ninja Livi

Green Ninja cake

He wanted Coco puffs for his birthday breakfast!

It snowed, it snowed, it snowed, last night!

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam!

Livi has officially graduated from Nursery and today is her first day in Sunbeams!! She is so excited to be in Primary with Avery and Andrew. Here she is waiting patiently for church to start so she can go to her new class! :)

Christmas 2012

waiting to come down the stairs on Christmas morning

Chrsitmas is my most favorite time of the year. I love the meaning and the magic of Christmas. I love traditions and making memories. I try to do as much as I can to keep the spirit of Christmas alive and help the kids feel and know the significance of the Christmas season. This year was pretty mellow, but lots of fun. The kids didn't get out of school until the 21st which made things feel a little rushed.
Avery's Christmas list this year made me laugh. She wanted an IPad, her own cell phone, an Smartboard to play school with, her own computer, or a horse. I said sorry, not a chance. She said she would just ask Santa then and I told her that Santa wouldn't bring anything that the parents didn't say was okay. She was sad, but okay with that answer. So, she decided to ask Santa for some Barbies. that we can handle. :) Drew is easy to please and happy with anything and everything. He loves his toys and is easy to buy for. He wanted Santa to surprise him. Santa brought him a new bike!
Livi was very specific in her request. She wanted a pink train with flowers on it. Luckily Santa was able to deliver!

Avery got a new bike from Mom and Dad

Andrew made us a calendar for 2013

Andy has become the breakfast man. He wakes us up every morning and makes breakfast while we read scriptures. The kids love seeing daddy before he goes to work. They got him a new waffle maker.

Livi and her pink train from Santa

Santa put gum in livi's stocking and she was so excited!

Andrew on his new bike from Santa

The girls playing the new Guess Who game that Santa brought for the family

Andrew got a new Ninjago lego set from Grandma and spent 2 hours putting it together all by himself. He LOVES Ninjago!

Ballet

Avery started taking ballet at the Mildenhall youth center a few months ago. Her teacher is Ms. Merina, a Russian Prima ballerina lady. She is really strict, but really good with the girls. Avery has learned a lot. They had a little performance before Christmas break. Avery got to wear one of Ms. Merina's ballet costumes from Russia. It was for an older girl, but we made a few alterations to make it work. Avery LOVED wearing it, and all the other girls keep telling her hoe lucky she was. She felt pretty special! Avery did a great job in the show!