Happy Birthday Nikki!

-Happy Birthday Nikki-

Another year older and wiser for Nikki. All day Mia wanted to know when the party was going to start. She could not wrap her little mind around the idea that Mommy was not going to have what to her constituted a "Real Birthday Party"! Then when Mommy and Daddy left for birthday dinner she said: "I am not invited to your party? That's not fair!"

Even though Mia thinks Mommy got robbed, Nikki did get all she wanted for her birthday- a NOOK. Nikki has become a little book worm over the last several years, reading just about anything she can get her hands on. She decided several weeks back that she wanted to join the ranks of the e-book readers and set her eyes on a Barnes and Nobel NOOK. She shamelessly plugged friends and family for B&N gift cards as gifts this year so she can fill it with e-books. Thanks to all who contributed to her addiction!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOO FOO!!!

Brenner's soccer season came to a close on Saturday. The championship games were so intense that we did not seem pick up the camera to get a picture of him in action, but I love this picture of him and his teammates on the bench. In years past, the "Bench" was a place to go play and goof off until your name was called to go back in. Now it has become a place to rest-up, get a swig of Gatorade and attentively watch and cheer on the team. The boys are growing up! His goal in the second game which tied the game and sent them on to the third round sent shivers down my spine, and to see the look on his face as the other boys run to give celebration "slaps" makes a Daddy almost cry!

Brenner and Cayden also had their spring piano recital and each did a great job with the two songs that they have been practicing for six weeks now. Brenner played "Fire Ants" and "Just a Carefree Day" and Cayden played "In the Hall of the Mountain King" and "The Raven's Call". They did awesome, and Brenner even said how much fun he had playing. Wow, I will have to remind him of that the next time he complains about practicing!
Nikki took Mia and Cayden to the strawberry patch to pick strawberries one night while Brenner and I were at Scouts. These two kids would eat the whole gallon bucket they are holding if they had their choice. Brenner on the other hand has still not had any fruit since he was spoon fed it out of "Gerber" jars! He does get a banana every once in a while when Mommy makes "Nut Bread". If it were called by its full name, he would not touch it either.
Cayden and I worked on his end of school project, a reptile diorama. He loved making a lizard "buddy" out of clay. Nikki had some great ideas- Brown sugar dirt, and melted Jolly ranchers for the water. As you can see, it turned out great!

Cayden and his "Buddy".

Silly Bandz!!!

Have these Silly Bnadz hit your school yet? Well if not- BEWARE, because they are coming. One day several weeks ago, Brenner came home from school with a colored elastic band on his wrist. I asked him about it and he said it was a silly band. I thought, that is silly, we at least had "Jelly Bracelets" that were more than a colored rubber band back in the day. Well turns out they turn into shapes when you take them off your wrist, some glow in the dark, some glitter, and the new ones are even tie-dyed!?!?! Brenner found another on the playground and started trading with his classmates. In no time he had turned those two into a wrist full and both boys are addicted!!! They are kinda cool (even the high school kids get into them, as Cayden made a trade with one of our priests at church last Sunday) Mia loves them too, but is having a hard time with the trading thing, she gave away her favorite (a pink glitter butterfly) the other day for something she later decided she did not really want and has cried about it ever since. Brenner, being the good big brother that he is, is on a mission to find her another one but Cayden on the other hand is just out for himself!!! He said: "trade one of my dinosaurs or sharks for a butterfly, are you crazy!"

We are sorry for the hiatus!

Wow! It has been over six weeks since our last update, and for our faithful followers- (we realize there are most likely not any, but we are hopeful!) we are sorry! Although it seems that we have been in Blog Hibernation, we have all been very busy and active, I promise! We just have not picked up the camera in a while I guess, and the one time we did, there was no memory card inserted- Crap! And as all who blog know that it is never any fun to post with out pictures- that is our excuse. I will try to reconstruct the last month and a half if I can. Here it goes-

The first week in April we had a ward talent show that several of the guys from elders quorum got together and formed a rock band. Talent or not it was lots of fun and we played Weezers Buddy Holly, complete with thick rimed glasses, black spaghetti ties, and cardboard box speakers for us to destroy and jump into at the end as all great rock stars do! I was asked to emcee the event a week or so before and it turned into quite the show, with wardrobe changes, cheesy jokes and lots of crazy fun. As this was the night that the memory card was absent in the camera, if anyone has a picture of me dressed as Carnack the Magnificent- I would love a copy! The above picture was pulled from another blog- Thanks Taylor's! Brenner and Cayden took the Georgia CRCT and both think they did well. Although we will not know the scores for sure for another several weeks, they are both excelling in school and Cayden has become quite the little reader and Brenner is our little Mathematician (did not get that from his Daddy). And for those who were wondering- Yes Cayden can now tell the difference between two dimes and a twenty dollar bill! =)
Nikki has been studying in her spare time as well and passed with flying colors another ARDMS Board the end of April. She is now certified in Obstetrics & Gynecology! Way to go Foo Foo!!!

Around the first week in May our Elders Quorum shook up a bit and I am no longer the EQP in The Monroe Ward. After almost three years in the presidency in one form or another, it was time for a "MOVE". And not the kind of "MOVE" that has dominated much of my time over the past several years! =) Looking back, it has been a lot of fun mingled with a lot of hard work, personal growth and lessons learned. If after three years I only take away the words and teaching of our extremely wise and wonderful Relief Society President, lesson and skill well learned.

"If you are going to error, error on the side of charity."

Hopefully many of those lessons learned I can pass along to the 12-14 year old "Boyz" of the ward as I am excited to be involved in the Boy Scout program. It will be lots of fun too, just of another type! Hiking, camping, canoeing, knot tying, tent sleeping, boy building and tinfoil dinner eating..... Sounds like a good time to me! We have great leaders and great boys to turn into Eagles! Let's go troop 793!!!
Brenner and Cayden's room received a bit of a makeover. It was a little unintended, but a trip to IKEA for some kitchen nick knacks, turned into new dressers, night stands, trophy shelves, and some really cool reading lamps. The boys did need them as they have been sharing a dresser, and their various trophies were piling up. But IKEA- shame on you!!!

Trip to Zoo Atlanta. That cute little baby Panda Bear is getting very big. It reminds me of our "cubs" getting to big. Stop growing kids!!!
We have decided that we are better pot and planter gardeners that entire scape ones, although our Gardenias do have flower buds on them for the first time since they were planted. Georgia is so great this time of year and although it has been a little unseasonably hot, the heat makes everything grow as if it is on steroids. This is one of our hanging baskets on our back porch- what some miracle grow won't do!

And Club FHE is steadily growing too. We see growth each month and last month it seemed to be in Washington State!?! Something happened in that corner of the country as five subscriptions came in form Washington in a week, it is funny as it is just about as far from Atlanta as one can get! Still waiting for that Alaska Subscription! =)

So other than a great Father and Son's camp out, and nice Mother's day weekend (surprise- no pictures), that just about catches us up to the current. The kids will be out of school soon and the summer will be in full swing. With all that comes along with busy summers, we will try to keep updated a little more often, and promise to take our camera with us more often!