Natalie is ONE!

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I can't believe she is one, I really can't. I am a little too sad about this baby turning one. With Jacob I was so excited for him to get bigger and do the next thing, but it seems that with each subsequent child I am less and less ready for them to grow up. Perhaps it's because Natalie might be our last, but I am so sad about her turning one. Brett thinks it's great, he is exited for her to get bigger, to play with her and see what kind of little girl she's going to be. I will like that too, but I wish I could keep her a baby just a little bit longer. I have three older kids, I want one who just lets me hold her!
We squeezed in a family party for her after school and baseball. I think she would have rather just gone to bed, but her brothers were so excited for her birthday. They decorated the house with pink balloons and signs. They loved helping her open her presents and watching her dig into her cake. We love you Natalie, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Two Wheeling Sam!

All it takes for Sam is a little competition, and a little of him thinking we don't want him to do something. Sam's good buddy, Shane, learned to ride a two wheeler the other day. As soon as Sam saw him riding down the street he decided he wanted his training wheels off too. Brett quickly got them off, hoping Sam wouldn't change his mind. Of course as soon as Sam realized how excited we were about him learning to ride a two wheeler, he wanted the training wheels back on. So we cleverly told him we thought he was probably too young to learn to ride a big boy bike anyway, and I told Brett to put the training wheels back on. That's all it took and Sam was back on the bike asking Brett to help him. It took about 15 minutes of Brett running behind him holding on and Sam was off by himself! We were so proud of him, and he was so pleased with himself. He kept telling me all night, "I'm just so happy mommy, I am so happy I can ride a big bike!"
We all think there is a good chance we have got ourselves into a little trouble here. Sam is the kind of kid we might find riding down a busy road five miles away as soon as we turn our backs. Now that he can ride a bike, this kid might be out of here! I am still proud of him, I'll just have to keep a close watch and listen for the garage door opening!

CRAZY!

When my sister Christie came to town when Sam was a baby, we dressed him up in her little girls dress. We thought it was hilarious and took pictures of him. Now that dress belongs to Natalie, and we took a picture of her when she had it on the other day. I think I really haven't realized how much they look alike. It's hard to tell them apart! Can you tell?

Happy Easter

Next to Christmas Easter is my favorite holiday. We had a great day hunting eggs, watching conference, eating lots of Easter candy, and having dinner with wonderful friends. It was a fabulous day!

In case you are wondering, no I did not make my kids dress up to watch conference, that picture is from last Sunday. We stayed in our pajamas until 4:00 when we went to our Easter dinner, oh how I love conference Sunday!

It's Tough being Batman

Ever since Sam got his new Batman costume, he is rarely not wearing it, even to sleep in. I love it!