I'm just posting an update.

I want to keep this somewhat current, but that's hard to do some times when there's nothing new to report.

Half of us have been sick these past few days. I credit that to eating at El Chico's in Granbury...that's what I get for craving mexican food. I completely jinxed myself when I told Jamie on the ride home, "I'll be paying for that later." Which I did...the entire night (use your imagination so I don't have to go into details). And as if that wasn't enough, Iris and Rosalie got hit the next day. Poor Iris had it the worst, but she's pretty good when she doesn't feel well...she likes to stay in bed.

When I'm not sick, I like playing Rock Band or Guitar Hero with Jamie. Those are the only games that I'm good at. Guitar Hero World Tour came out last Sunday, and we made sure we got it. I wish it was easy enough for the girls to play because they always seem to get a guitar or the drum sticks and act like they're part of the game. Watch out for Iris, though...she'll smack you with a drum stick if you make her mad. She says, "I'm gonna bank you!"

We don't take the kids trick or treating (I know...we're soooo mean). Last year they got to dress up for a friend's birthday/costume party. We had four very beautiful cats. This year we lucked out, and have another friend that is having a birthday/costume party for their little one. We will have a clan of ninjas (check back next week...I'll post pictures). The kids are really excited. The party is the day after Halloween. On the night of Halloween, we're all going to watch The Promise in Glen Rose (http://thepromiseglenrose.com/). It's a production about the life of Christ. I saw it when I was in high school and was really impressed with it. The kids are going to love it. They can't wait for Friday, and neither can I.

Other than what I mentioned above, not too much has been going on. But I like it that way.

Happy Birthday Iris

Today our precious Iris turns 2. We ate birthday cake last night because I have to work Wednesday evenings. Instead of a big cake, we did cupcakes, and everyone got to get in on the action.
Our lady bugs were strawberry cakes frosted with chocolate and strawberry icing, topped with chocolate chips and mini oreos. I baked and frosted them, and then the girls took care of the decorating. As you can see, Jamie got in on it, too.

Iris was still asleep from her nap when we got started. I woke her up hoping that she'd want to help out, but she was still pretty out of it, and ended up just eating the chocolate chips while the other girls finished decorating. We were crunched for time because Jamie needed to go to a men's group meeting, and my sister Ashley (who had stopped by) had choir rehearsal. So, me, being the "greatest mom ever" (as proclaimed by my kids), let everyone have cupcakes before eating dinner.

The cupcakes ended up tasting really good. Lily ate 3, and was about to grab a fourth when Jamie had stopped her. Jasmine licked the frosting off of 2, and was getting another to do the same when, again, Jamie had to stop her. Rosalie nibbled most of one, and Iris was given 2--the one with her name and the one with the number 2 on it. Iris ended up wearing a lot of hers.

Ashley left, shortly followed by Jamie. The rest of us decided to go get happy meals, and then came back home to eat and hang out together. Last night was really a sweet time. I so enjoyed watching them decorate, and then eat the cupcakes. I have a happy, precious bunch of kids. I don't ever imagine life without them because they've made mine complete. Happy birthday my beautiful baby Iris, and may God bless you with many more to come.

Our most recent happenings...

I love this picture. I have to brag...I have a beautiful baby! Levi is 3 months old now, and is just the most wonderful blessing. I wake up to him every morning cooing, smiling, and kicking off the covers. He's laughing now, which is a real treat. He'll be our last (unless God sees otherwise), and seems to be growing too fast. I'm just sooo in-love with this little guy. That's one thing he doesn't do without: love. His sisters smother him with kisses. They all want to help out with their baby brother. I'm just enjoying him right now. Before I know it, he'll be his daddy's little buddy, so I want to soak up as much of him as I can while I still have a chance.

We went to the Ft. Worth Zoo yesterday for homeschool day. We met up with some friends of ours. All the kids had sooo much fun, and did very well for the long day that we had. Even though we were there pretty much all day, I think we missed some animals. I love going to the zoo. I remember when I was pregnant with Jasmine, Jamie took me to the zoo for my birthday. He's so thoughtful :) I was very thankful that he was able to go with us. I don't know how I would have managed without him there. He not only helped keep an eye on the kiddos, but he'd also made and packed our lunch and snacks for the day. He does such a good job when I finally let go, and let him help ***Note to self...I should let him help more often...***

As if the zoo wasn't enough, I also managed to drag the family to the mall afterward to get Iris' birthday present. This year, all the kids got to make a trip to Build-A-Bear Workshop. I wanted to keep their birthdays simple, but special. Iris turns 2 on October 8th, so it was her turn to make a bear. Jamie got to take her through the process this time. She picked her bear quickly...she's a girl that knows what she wants. When it was time to fill the bear, the noise from the machine scared her, but I was quick to get her sisters over there to help out. It worked, and Iris was ready to go on. When she went to pick out clothes, she picked a Nascar outfit. Jamie liked that. But I had to intervene. I had them put it back, and directed them to a different shelf of clothes. Thus resulting in what you see in the picture. She named her bear Baby.

Oh, and another silly picture of the girls. You know, in the age of digital cameras, most silly pictures get deleted (unless you keep them to black-mail someone). But I have lots of goofy pictures. They really show personality, and most of them have a story. It's a sweet time when you get to sit down with a photo album and flip through the pages to remember those moments.