A 'Berry' Sweet Birthday Girl

Today we celebrated Rachel's 5th birthday with a party at our house. We celebrated 'Strawberry' style with a Strawberry Shortcake theme. Along with our family and a few good friends, we sang 'Happy Birthday', enjoyed cake and ice cream and she opened up her presents. The kids all played together until it was time to sing and cut the cake. The boys all congregated around the computer - playing Star Wars games and watching movie shorts. The girls played in the playroom and all seemed to get along really well. It is so cute to hear 8 girls all giggling as they run around playing. Rachel was thrilled -- She loves to be the center of attention and she knew today was her special day. I love seeing her happy. After the party ended the bigger kids went over to spend the night at their Grammy & Papa's house - another special treat. The kids absolutely love to spend the night at their grandparents house. So, so glad Rachel had such a great day. I can't believe that in just a very few short days she will be five years old! A special thank you going out to all of our family and friends who shared Rachel's day with us and helped to make it special. We love and appreciate all of you! Click the link above for more pictures of the party.

Gymnastics

Rachel has been attending a new gymnastics class at Parks & Rec. this fall. She wasn't quite old enough for the class, but got a pass from the coach of her previous class. It is a tumbling class and the age is 5 - 10 years. She is the youngest in her class and is about middle of the pack when it comes to her skill level. Doug and I love that she enjoys it so much. She pays close attention and tries hard to do everything just right. The pictures from above are from the second or third class. The photos at the bottom are from a couple of nights ago. When she started the class she couldn't come close to doing a split. Look at her now! I hope she continues to want to do gymnastics. It's one of my favorite memories from when I was little and I hope she enjoys it as much as I did. I had to sneak that picture of Kate in there... she was doing a bit of 'Daddy Gymnastics' herself! You can also see in that last picture, she was trying to do a split just like her big sister... she's really starting to try to do everything Rachel does. =)

Smoky Mountain Christmas 2010

We picked up Noah early from school yesterday and headed up to Dollywood for the afternoon and evening. The weather was perfect and there was no waiting time for most of the rides there. When we arrived, we worried a bit because it was packed, but found that most of the people were there to see the Christmas shows. You would not believe the lines for those shows (Wow!)! We enjoyed the roller coasters first and then we got to experience Adventure Mountain - something we hadn't done yet this year due to the line volume during our other trips. Adventure Mountain is a new attraction this year and it was really cool! The kids loved it. Rachel was just tall enough and wasn't afraid at all, even though there were parts where you were several yards off the ground simply walking across a steel beam with nothing to hold onto but the rope to your harness. Both she and Noah said it was the highlight of their day and can't wait to do it again. After that we headed over to the 'Country Fair' area and the kids enjoyed the traditional rides they continue to love... We wrapped up our day when it grew dark (and cold), enjoying the Christmas lights on our way out. After we left the park we enjoyed Corky's Barbeque, a long time favorite of ours before we picked up Miss Kate from Mom's house. It was a great day!

Almost 5

It is amazing to think that in less than two weeks our little girl will be five years old... She recieved her last Imagination Library book, "Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come!" and she was sad that her books had come to an end, but was excited for the title of her last book. She seems excited about the idea of Kindergarten, but still tells me she wants to stay home with me and just go to school a couple of days a week. I think she will probably change her mind by next fall though... she absolutely loves her preschool and I think she's going to do great in big girl school as well. She has chosen to have a Strawberry Shortcake themed party and we have been trying to get things ready for it with her help. She loves being the center of attention and she knows for her big day, it's all about her. =)

Last Soccer Game of the 2010 Season

Noah had his last soccer game the day before Halloween. The kids played so good. They played hard and with a lot of heart. They won the game - 6 to 4. I was so proud of Noah -- He really came a long way this year and although there were ups and downs of the season I was glad to see him finish it with such a great game. After they had run through the line at the end the coach handed out their trophies - cool bobble head trophies. Noah thought it was his coolest trophy ever. The team gathered up for a picture and one last huddle. After the game, Mom and the rest of us headed to Gatti's pizza for a celebratory lunch. I look forward to seeing him play in the spring and a little bird told me she wants to play in the spring as well...