Catching up (before I get behind again)

I intended to do 3 more posts before we leave for Alaska, but obviously never got around to it.  So here is a 3-for-1 special, just for you.  :)

Addie graduated from Pre-School...on to Kindergarten at MCA in the fall!

 

Annalee caught a catfish at the ranch

We took a trip to Dallas to visit Keith and Becky, go to Legoland, and to a pro soccer game.  At Legoland there was an awesome room with all the key features of Dallas built entirely of Legos!

Dawson liked watching the Lego pump jacks go up & down.

Brady loved playing Legos with Uncle Keith!

Keith works for FC Dallas and was able to get us passes onto the field for the pre-game warmup!

giving the players high-fives before the game

Dawson still loves his cars...

Annalee turns SEVEN this Friday, the day we leave for a 2-week Alaska trip.  So we started celebrating last weekend when I visited my parents in Lubbock.

She had her first slumber party this past Friday...it was a huge hit and so much fun!

You can guess what she's into...

We LOVE the summer and spending time at the pool!!!

 

Pretty sure Dawson is our youngest swimmer.  It clicked with him last Friday.

We get back from Alaska on July 4th, and I promise I will post lots of pictures as soon as I can!  :)

Happy 2nd Birthday, Dawson!

Can my baby really be 2 already?  Dawson keeps me on my toes and makes me laugh all through out the day.  He is such a joy to be with (most of the time), and brings a whole new meaning to the word "curious."

He is also showing signs of his mom's slight ocd behavior, as shown above...when he plays with his cars, they must be lined up perfectly.  I like to mess with him and make them crooked.  He scolds me, and I laugh.

Did I mention he's extremely curious?  I hear his Uncle Dave also had the "Fire, Ready, Aim" complex as a child...and he managed to make it to adulthood.  So we have some hope.  So far it's just an occasional toy being flushed down the toilet or......

 .....salt and pepper artwork at the dining table.

Something else he's really good at is overcoming obstacles.  If he can't do something the conventional way, he'll create a way.  Like when he can't get his spoon to get the last few bites of chicken fried rice....

We are so thankful for this little boy who loves life and shows us daily that when there's a will, there's a way!  :)

end of the school year stuff

April re-cap:

Annalee is officially a second-grader, and just finished her 3rd season of soccer (still loves it)........Brady seems to be on the same musical track as Uncle Dave.......Addie is finishing up her 2nd year as an Awana Cubbie and is more than ready for Sparks AND Kindergarten next year.....Addie had her first season of soccer and loved it........Dawson is, well, almost 2 and is keeping us busy every second of the day with his playful antics and curiosity.  Here are some snapshots of the past few weeks:

Oh my....the washing machine is gonna get a workout this year!

Addie scoring one of her 25-ish goals this season

Annalee loves soccer!

Uncle Dave's mini-me

Annalee won the 1st grade girls field day race...I hope she'll be a runner like me!

The Lanham Street girls dominated their races.

Annalee LOVED her teacher, Mrs. McAninch!

Addie and Joe were Cubbies together.

What we're looking forward to this summer:  Gymnastics classes for Annalee & Addie.....swim lessons for the girls and Brady.....Dawson's 2nd birthday.....horseback riding lessons for Annalee.....a big family trip to Alaska.....Nana Camp.....swimming at Mimi's pool every day.....and a laundry room & kitchen re-model.

Ready to Be Myself

Brady did a cover of Uncle Dave's newest single, "Ready to Be Myself."  And if you haven't bought the new album (For the Life of Me), go straight to itunes and buy it!  (After you watch my video first.)  :)

Happy Belated 2012!

Is this really the first post since Christmas?? My apologies. Guess I've been a tad busy.

I'll try to catch you up...

We brought in the New Year with our besties, the Voskamps. We realized how lame we were that we were tired around 9:30.

Annalee had her first Awana Grand Prix...she had fun making and racing her own car.

We got to go visit the ranch we sort of own now (long story) that's just northeast of town, called The Nail. It has a really cool man-made pond complete with a zipline, a shooting range, a gazeebo, and a large facility to be used for parties...even has a kitchen & bathroom. Gonna spend a lot of time there this summer.

Brady is still really into puzzles!

Lee took Annalee & Addie to a Daddy/Daughter Valentine's dinner at church. It was precious helping the girls get ready...they wanted everything to be perfect for Lee.

Brady has become quite the singer. He spontaneously bursts into song throughout the day, and is more than happy to put on a concert for you. Here he is singing along to Uncle Dave's Papaya song.

Addie can read!

On a whim today, I pulled out one of Annalee's 1st grade easy readers and handed it to Addie, asking if she wanted to try to sound out a few words. Whelp, she showed me...she read the entire thing by herself! But she wasn't proud of herself or anything...

Then I got out Annalee's kindergarten easy readers and she got through the first 3 in about 10 minutes with very little help. Here's a video.

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

As we've done the past several years, we went to Lubbock to visit my fam on the 22nd and came back Christmas Eve. We like to do as much as possible while we're there...

Science Spectrum

Dawson was fascinated with the electric train...

...but he was quite leary of the life-like T-Rex that moved & roared.

Waiting to board the Polar Express

playing with new presents at Nana & Papaw's

On to Christmas Day...we couldn't believe we woke up to a White Christmas! The 3 older kids were so excited, it didn't seem to bother them that they couldn't ride their new bikes (girls) and big wheel (Brady).

We had an awesome snowball fight at Mimi & Pop Pops' house...although it would've been so much better had it been the Midland year for the rest of Lee's siblings! :)

Awww, mean Daddy!

taking a break to taste the ammunition

Brady made a snow angel.

Never eat yellow snow.