One Month!

 At 4 weeks old, Seth is still having a lot of tummy problems...

he is also still loved and adored.  Look how big he looks next to Amber.

He won't take a pacifier very often, but when he does it sure does help.  We bought him this swing to help with his tummy too.

 Visiting Jared at Scout Camp.

 All ready to go to the creek.

We bought him a bassinet so that he can sleep on his tummy because that seems to feel better than being on his back in the car seat.  Also, the pediatrician gave him a prescription of Zantac to see if it will help with Acid Reflux.

One month old and just perfect.

Some Good Ole Fashioned Summer Fun

 It's summer break and we are living it up!  Jared, ice blocking with the youth group at church; there are 8 blocks of ice under that board.

 Playing Risk together.

 At the pool.

 

 A pajama storytime at the library.

 Clarissa,having a tea party with her favorite dolls.

 Jared, at Scout Camp with his friends.

 Playing in the creek, catching crawdads.

 A wienie and marshmallow roast in our backyard.

 Making homemade candles.

 Feeding the chickens while we wait for the candles to cool.

The finished candles.

Some of our other summer events have been going to the park, making crafts at the library and going to the summer movies at the theater.

An Anniversary Boating Trip

 This weekend was Grandma and Grandpa Mattson's anniversary and they decided that they wanted to spend it at the lake with their children and grandchildren.  We all met at Claytor Lake (about 10 min from our house) and they rented this speed boat for the afternoon.

 All the kids are excited to go out on the boat for the first ride.

 Cousin Jimmy and Aunt Kara go out on the second trip.

 After a little boating, the kids swam with Chris and Uncle Dan.

 This is what Seth did for the whole afternoon, he literally slept through the whole time and woke up just as we were leaving.

 Chris and Clarissa are going "Grandpa fast."

 Amber navigates while Grandpa drives.

Even Amber enjoyed the tube, Jared was the only one that didn't like it, but we blame that on the fact that he rode with Mom.

 I told Bill that my Grandpa would always drive the boat fast so when Krystal and I went out, he said that he would take it "Grandpa fast,"  the kids all decided that this was a little too fast, but they still had smiles when we were done.  We all had a great time and really appreciate Bill and Laura for spending their special day with us.

Three weeks

 Seth is 3 weeks old and although he is as handsome as his shirt proclaims, he spends most of his days either sleeping or crying.  This week he has slept through outings to the soccer game, library, movie theater, swimming pool, park and lake. 

 Poor guy, this is what he usually looks like if he is awake, only we are usually taking turns holding him so he knows that he is loved.

 Often when Seth is asleep, I just sit and hold him and stare at him, I just wanted to share the view that I get to see when he is peacefully sleeping.

 He is growing so big that he is starting to outgrow his newborn clothes.  This was the outfit that he wore when he came home from the hospital.

Chicks, Fawns, and Daddy

 Ever since we moved into our house 5 years ago, we have wanted to get chickens.  Finally that dream has become a reality this weekend.  These lovely ladies are 5 of our 6 pullets that will soon be egg laying hens.  We each have a chicken that we have named: The black one is Jared's, named Nero (Italian for black).  The White with black spots is Chris' chicken named Henrietta.  The brown one is Krystal's and her name is Bella.  The one in the back in white with beige spots and Clarissa named her Pearl.  The one with the gold head is Amber's that she named Gold.  Unfortunately, Gold met with disaster two days after we got the chickens when she flew out of the coop while our dog was loose and Diesel killed her.  So, we got Amber another chicken that looks just like Gold and this one she named Amber.  We hope that she survives better than Gold because I'm not looking forward to the kids running in frantically yelling, "Amber is dead, or Diesel killed Amber."  I know, call me crazy.

This is my chicken, Bianca the Brave.  Whenever she sees me coming, she always runs out to see what goodies I have brought for her; cantaloupe, bread, and corn are her favorites.  She also loves to eat the beetles in the yard and is the most brave as she will wander around by herself while the others flock together. 

 This is the chickens next to their coop, we have since built them a little pen and love going out in the morning and letting them out into the yard to eat bugs while we read the Little House in the Prairie books.  When they are all done eating bugs, they walk back into the pen and we close it up, then come back in the evening to put them in their coop.

One day I went out to check on the chickens and instead of being in the yard, they were in their pen, but there were these two fawn in the yard.

 This is how Chris started his Father's Day.  I can't think of a better way to celebrate being a Father.  Aren't they adorable?

 The kids made Chris a sign and this Father's Day hat to wear to his breakfast of Mountain Man Omelet.  We also spent the evening watching "Courageous," a movie about being a good Father, that was what Chris wanted to do for his Father's Day.  My favorite part of the day was finishing the movie and realizing that he is already the perfect Father and there are no regrets because he always makes the kids his priority and it might mean that there are some projects not done around the house, but we are happy family for it and there will be time for household projects when the kids are gone. 

Two Weeks

Seth's fist visit to the library at 7 days old.

 Seth's first tub bath, with help from his three sissies was taken at 9 days old.

 At 10 days old, we took Seth to the park for the first time and to meet his little friend Rebecca.

 At 11 days old, Seth was the man of honor at the garden party baby shower put on by my friends Heather and Nicki.

At two weeks old, Seth is still fussy and still peeling and still gets all the attention in the house.  He had another busy week attending his sisters' dance rehearsal and recital, going on a date with Mom and Dad, meeting his Aunt Kara, Uncle Dan and Cousin Jimmy, going shopping with mom and the girls and then again with mom and Aunt Kara, going to the library again, going to church, walking with Grandma and mom and the girls at Wildwood park and having FHE at the Morgans house.

Dance 'Till You Drop

Clarissa has been taking dance classes since 2006.  She took dance from a studio in Pulaski and then from one of the homeschool moms for a couple years.  In 2010, Clarissa and Krystal started dance at Music Comes to Town in Radford and took it there for two years.  This Fall, Krystal and Amber tried dance at Radford University, but in the winter all three girls switched to taking dance at Pulaski Dance Productions with Stacy Collins.  For the first time in 7 years, I am completely happy with the studio and teacher.  With three girls interested in dancing, I have been trying to find a place that wouldn't be too expensive or too time consuming, but would also provide a high quality dance experience for the girls.  I love the discipline and physical challenge that comes with ballet and the creative movement that comes with jazz.  The girls love moving to the music, mastering their routines and dressing up in sparkles!

Our three lovely ballerinas, ready to dance as lilac and blue fairies from Sleeping Beauty.

Clarissa and Krystal are in the Intermediate Class.

 Amber is in the Beginner 1 class.

 Krystal and her friend Delaney who is in the Beginner 2 class and was a pink fairy.

Clarissa is the oldest in her class and the other girls look to her to remember what comes next in their routine. 

 This was Amber's first time performing dance on a stage and she did a great job, she didn't seem nervous at all. 

 Amber's second dance was "We are Siamese" from Lady and the Tramp.  She was adorable and always remembered to shake her tail.

Clarissa and Krystal had two jazz numbers.  The first was Duel of the Fates from Star Wars and the second one was See You Again by Miley Cyrus.  I have watched these girls do ballet for years so I wasn't too surprised at their talent in ballet, but I was blown away by their style and talent in the two jazz numbers!  I had no idea they could dance like that.

We are so proud of these girls for working so hard and performing so beautifully.  They would often fall asleep on the way home from dance because they were so tired from practicing, but all the hard work paid off.  We love Miss Stacy, she is a beautiful and talented dancer and look forward to many more years of working with her.  I just love what she has done with these girls.