With the case counts higher than they'd ever been...times ten...we went back to virtual church in November. It's hard to stay home, but we are trying to be responsible and conscientious. Grandma and Grandpa have joined us a few times when they've come to help with the house. Although it's hard for Grandpa to listen when the kids think he is their walking fun house. Haha.
We ARE very thankful that virtual church is even an option. It has been so nice to able to still feel connected even if it's not as much as we would like. I sure am looking forward to when this is all settled down and we can go back and be in person with our church family!
When we ordered couches for the girls' new rooms Peaches' got backordered. It finally came literally months later. We were carrying it over to the grange together when T said, "I think it will just be easier if I carry it myself." I thought he looked so funny packing a couch on his head. :P
Boo made a beef pot pie with homemade crust for dinner one night!
This one actually wasn't Lou...Peanut tried to give me a hug as I was bringing Lou her plate and it didn't go as planned. The animals enjoyed it. Haha.
Peaches is learning that you shouldn't bring Queso over to a dog. He hates dogs. This was from when she tried to introduce him to Grandpa's dog. He didn't scratch her...it was more like a single puncture and somehow it turned into this.
Grumping.
And 10 seconds later.
Opening presents from Daddy's sweet secretary.
She got Daddy an automatic candy dispenser and the girls Grinch bath bombs! They loved them!
Eleven?!? This girl needs to slow down! I can't believe how grown up she is! She gets more mature and beautiful every day!
Boo is my mini-me. Not just in looks, but in personality as well. Just like me she is a by-the-book, black-and-white, rule following, Type A. She likes to have things in order, and is our only child who cleans without being told. :) She wants things done the "right" way, and she works hard to make sure they are. She likes to have her space clean and tidy, and gets frustrated when her sisters don't do their part to make that happen. She will be very glad to have her own room and space that she can keep tidy without anyone messing it up. :)
Boo is our worker bee. I think God gave her the gift of a strong work ethic. She is amazing and once she sets her mind to something it is going to get done. She can work almost as long as Daddy and I on the house and is always the first to volunteer to help out. She is strong too and can do adult-size jobs with ease. Daddy and I are so grateful for her help, and continue to be amazed at how hard she works!
This year most of our activities were cancelled. We've REALLY missed dance, as Boo is such an amazing dancer. She will often put on music and make up beautiful dances on the spot. Maybe she will be a choreographer! Soccer was another thing lost to Covid this year. Thankfully we've still had Awana and Boo continues to excel, holding "Study Club" for her sisters and making sure everyone has their verses memorized. :)
She is awesome at school as well and consistently pulls straight A's. She is very self-motivated and I rarely have to direct her on her schoolwork. She gets up and starts on her own and works until her plan is finished for the day. I really appreciate how responsible she is...it makes my job as a learning coach so much easier!
Boo is responsible in all areas of her life. I never have to worry about her making bad choices. We trust her judgement completely. She's not perfect of course, and occasionally blows up at her sisters, but those times are few and far between. She has Daddy's "long fuse" and it takes a lot to get her riled up.
She is so sweet and helpful with her sisters, and while babysitting isn't her favorite thing she will do it when asked. Legos are probably her favorite thing to do with them. I love seeing them play Legos together. They will sit for hours and build, often times listening to Odyssey while they work. I love how close they are, and pray they will always be the best of friends.
We were so thankful that Noni continued to do piano this year, and Boo has really grown in her abilities. She practices often and likes to have her songs perfect. It's been fun to see her growth.
Here is her birthday interview:
1. Favorite color: yellow
2. Favorite toy: I don't really have one
3. Favorite fruit: lemons
4. Favorite TV show: Floor is Lava
5. Favorite lunch: I don't really have one
6. Favorite outfit: My new shirt with a pair of stretchy leggings
7. Favorite game: Beat That
8. Favorite snack: I don't really have one
9. Favorite animal: Owls
10. Favorite song: In the Sweet By and By
11. Favorite book: I don't know
12. Your best friend: Ella and Rebecca
13. Favorite Cereal: Multi grain Cheerios
14. Favorite thing to do outside: Climb trees
15. Favorite drink: Lemonade
16. Favorite holiday: Christmas
17. Favorite breakfast: Pancake cereal
18. What do you like to take to bed: Ruff Ruff
19. What do you want to be when you grow up: an archeologist
20. What do you want for your birthday dinner? lasagna
Happy Birthday Boo,
I can't believe you are 11 sweet girl! You are growing and changing so quickly. You are so beautiful and sweet, responsible and thoughtful. Daddy and I are so very proud of you! It is such a joy watching you grow into young lady God is
helping you become.
I love how much you love to read. Just like Mommy you often a book in your hand. I love finding you reading your bible. You can never go wrong with that! It is such a joy to watch you growing in your faith. I pray that you will always have that heart for God and His word.
Thank you for all you do. You are such a hard worker and Daddy and I are so thankful for you. We appreciate all your help more than you know and I know we wouldn't be as far on the house without you.
Thank you for being so responsible! You make this Mommy's job so much easier by doing the right thing and helping out around the house. You are such a blessing, and I so appreciate all you do around here to help the house run more smoothly. You are kind and thoughtful and always on the lookout for ways to help. I don't know what I would do without you!
Happy Birthday my sweet sweet girl! I love you so much! I can't even put it into words. You are a blessing straight from God. I am so thankful for you! I can't wait to see what amazing things He does in your life this year! As 2 Corinthians 13:14 says, "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you." I love you baby girl.
Peaches brings so much joy to our family! She is funny, energetic,
thoughtful, loud, silly, and for the most part a very happy girl! She
lives life to the fullest and is 100% in for everything. She is either
flying on a cloud or down in the dumps. There is rarely an in-between. I
think we could all take a cue from this age and learn how to be in the
moment and enjoy it to the fullest...although I won't mind when those
emotions start to temper out a bit and find a balance. Haha. :P
She really has matured this year and can go off and play sweetly for hours without me having to worry about her getting into anything. We are working on listening and obeying right away...it's a hard one to master but we are getting there. :) She loves to dance to music and is always up for a dance party!
I don't know if it's because she started early or what but Peaches is a wonderful little piano player! I can't believe how well she does! She is constantly playing the piano, and I guess all that practices pays off because she can play amazingly well for her age. We are so thankful for all that Noni has done to teach her!
Peaches is such a sweet girl. She loves to play with her sisters, and gets along with each one of them. She and Lou have started to butt heads recently as Lou gets more assertive with what is "mine!" but they still play together well for the most part. She and Peanut play the most together, and rarely argue. She plays Legos and Calico Critters with Bug and Boo and they are sweet to include her.
Peaches LOVES school and Awana! She is so excited when it is a school day or Awana night. Her teacher says she is sweet and helpful. She is always excited to tell me about her day at preschool and the things she did. She loves her little friends there and talks about them all the time.
Here is her birthday interview:
1. Favorite color: purple
2. Favorite toy: my brand new scooter
3. Favorite fruit: yummy apples, actually all of them!
4. Favorite TV show: Crash (not a TV show)
5. Favorite lunch: chicken nuggets
6. Favorite outfit: this! Thank you Ma-ma!
7. Favorite game: The new Crash
8. Favorite snack: ants on a log, actually energy balls
9. Favorite animal: The Nina-corn!
10. Favorite song: Jingle Bells
11. Favorite book: My new Nina-corn book
12. Your best friend: Eva
13. Favorite Cereal: Honey Nut Cheerios
14. Favorite thing to do outside: Play on the swingset
15. Favorite drink: apple juice (at school)
16. Favorite holiday: What's a holiday? Ohh, Christmas!
17. Favorite breakfast: Donuts
18. What do you like to take to bed: Every animal, even Do-do, even my brand new Nina-corn
19. What do you want to be when you grow up: Elsa!
20. What do you want for your birthday dinner? Cupcakes! and chicken nuggets and cake too!
Happy Birthday Sweet Girl,
Peaches you are amazing! It has been so fun to watch you growing this year. You are changing so quickly and turning into a big girl right before our eyes. I love your passion for life and your infectious joy. You know how to live life to the fullest and remind me to do the same. You are such a blessing.
The best part of this last year was when you asked Jesus into your heart. You thought long and hard about it and when you were finally ready it was a joy to behold! Daddy and I were so proud of you. Your face was radiant with peace and love and joy! We are so so happy that you made that life-changing decision and we pray you will hold fast to God for the rest of your life, through all the ups and downs. He will never leave you or forsake you.
You are a such a sweet friend and always kind to others. I love to watch you at Awana. You are always on the lookout for little ways you can help others and make them feel included. You are good at seeing the needs of others and meeting them. I love to watch you play sweetly with your sisters. I pray you will always be the best of friends.
I love you so so very much sweet girl. You are truly amazing. Four was a wonderful year and I can't wait to see
what five brings!
We had a wonderful advent season leading up to Christmas. We had movie nights, presents, special breakfasts, letter writing, doing nice things for each other, cookie decorating, ornament making, and probably more I'm not remembering.
Snowman pancakes take 1.
Lou was not happy with me for putting in her in the highchair when it wasn't time to eat.
But she got over it when she realized she was getting to paint!
I was very proud of myself for coming up with this ornament craft using toilet paper rolls..2020...because I am not the crafting mom. I love crafting, and I love my children, but I do not like to mix the two. Haha. That said, they did very well and hardly made a mess! It helps that they are getting older!
Here is the finished product. They did very well!
We did cookie decorating one day. I can definitely tell they are getting older with this activity. This used to be an hours-long process and a huge clean up, but this time Peanut made the dough and then she and Boo cut them out and baked the cookies without my help at all. Lou ate more frosting then went on her cookie, but she had a great time doing it and spent over ten minutes frosting one cookie so I'd call that a success. Lol.
Here is Lou's finished product. :)
For some reason I didn't take a picture of the big girls' finished cookies. They turned out really cute!
Santa waffles.
T's secretary got us all presents and mine was this adorable snowflake board. We made a snacky dinner and watched a Christmas movie one night.
Lou is hilarious during movies. She climbs over the back of the couch, falls off, runs around, and does it again. Over and over and over. In this picture her legs are between the couch and wall.
Lou got big girl undies! We'll have to tackle potty training one of these days! She's already way older than the others, but she is not a big fan of the potty so we've been taking it slow.
Speaking of Lou, she loves helping me in the kitchen. She always wants to stir things. I let her help me make Christmas tree waffles one morning.
One of my friends started selling Color Street so to support her I bought the girls some fun winter nails. Two packages was able to do all of our nails with a couple strips left over!
Snowman pancakes take 2.
It was sad not doing a few of our traditions like ice skating with the homeschool group or going to the pottery place but we are looking forward to those things next year!
