it's official

Evan is a board certified Pathologist.

he took his test back in may

and today he received the news...

he PASSED!

way to go babe,

we are so proud of you!

we are definitely going out to celebrate!

***I know i have been a total slacker in the 

blogging area.  i have had absolutely no motivation,

but i promise i will try to update you all soon.***

FOUR!

on march 17th, my baby turned four.

Landon has blessed our lives from the moment he was born.

he is full of life.

he is determined and courageous.

he is a hard worker and doesn't give up easily.

he is our lucky charm!

INTERVIEW:

what is your favorite color?

"blue"

what is your favorite movie?

"uh, woody"

who is your best friend?

"you and daddy"

Tell me three words that describe you?

"i like salad" (me: no what things describe you?) "ummm..."

what is your favorite treat/snack?

"candy, i like candy"

what is your favorite drink?

"milk, oh i mean chocolate milk"

what is your favorite food?

"salad" (with no hesitation:)

if you could live anywhere, where would it be?

"to the cabin"

what's your favorite thing to do in school?

"painting and drawing with ms. shelley and ms. susan"

if you could do anything for a whole day, what would it be?

"uhhh...go to school, work with grandpa, and umm let me see..."

what's your favorite time of the year?

"spring"

what is your favorite toy?

"my basketball hoop, i love it!"

what do you want to be when you grow up?

"Buzz, i'll push my button and fly"

what was your favorite part of your birthday?

"my michael jordan outfit, because i am michael jordan."

(he wore it to braxton basketball tournament and was introducing himself..."hi, i am michael jordan")

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LANDON!

we love you!

AAU basketball

Rec. basketball is over and our AAU season has begun.

i can't believe i didn't post at all about the rec. season.

braxton's team were 14-1.

they only lost their last game.

they did great!

now we are into the AAU season,

which means more competitions and traveling.

we have already had two tournaments.

5th grade Charlotte Tournament- CHAMPS!

4th grade Salisbury Tournament- CHAMPS!

Way to go boys!

Keep up the good work!

sick (x4)

last thursday night ALL four of my boys were sick.

they were up all night with the flu.

i have never had all of my boys get sick all at once,

but they were.

it was so sad and miserable for all of them.

Landon was so sick that he didn't want to move.

in fact he said he wanted to sleep on the bathroom floor.

he would wake-up sick about every hour

then he'd lay right back down and fall asleep.

so glad that they are all better now.

first snow

sunday night we got our first snow of the winter.

we only got a couple of inches and it had melted by morning.

but they still delayed school for two hours.

me and the boys were hoping for a little more,

so that they would cancel school and we could build a snowman,

but no such luck.

Braxton is TEN

What???

How is that possible?

braxton has always been a great kid.

easy going, easy to handle

he is such a JOY to have as a son.

he is smart and determined

kind and strong.

he is always willing to stand up for what he believes in.

he chooses every week to not practice with his basketball team on Sundays.

even though it is hard for him not to be there,

he didn't even hesitate when making the decision.

BRAXTON, WE LOVE YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

INTERVIEW:

what is your favorite color?

"orange"

what is your favorite movie?

"i don't have a favorite movie"

who is your best friend?"

"my brothers and my mom and dad"

Tell me three words that describe you?

"athletic, smart, and nice"

what is your favorite treat/snack?

"hmmm, butterfinger is my favorite treat and my favorite snack is chips"

what is your favorite drink?

"gatorade/powerade/propel"

(and yes, he said slash after every answer)

what is your favorite food?

"hmmm, probably...macaroni and cheese pizza"

(found in west yellowstone, montana)

if you could live anywhere, where would it be?

"you already know this one, Boston."

why?

"because i want to see the New England Patriots and the Boston Celtics play"

what's your favorite subject in school?

"science/math"

if you could do anything for a whole day, what would it be?

"play football and basketball"

(it is a no brainer for him. yesterday we had a birthday party and he chose basketball practice over a party!)

what's your favorite time of the year?

"i don't know...OH, fall, summer and whenever I play basketball and football"

(fyi: he plays basketball and football all year long!)

what is your favorite toy?

"none, i don't really like toys. I love my basketball and football"

what do you want to be when you grow up?

"doctor/College basketball and football player/NFL player/NBA player"

me "oh is that all" (LOL)

what was your favorite part of your birthday?

"when you and dad surprised me and had my basketball team sing happy birthday to me and getting new basketball shoes."

Ethan's Baptism

Ethan was baptized on saturday, february 4th.

his birthday.

it was a very special day!

Ethan's grandpa & grandma patterson were able to be here

and he had several friends from the ward in attendance.

Thanks to all of you who supported Ethan,

we are glad you could be a part of it.

on a less serious note,

i have to share a funny moment...

as we all gathered around the baptismal font to watch

Ethan be baptized, we listened to the words said and

watched as Evan dunked Ethan under the water, as he brought him back up

Landon yelled... "Dad...don't do that" in a scared voice.

i guess he thought Evan was hurting him.

He later said to me, "Mom, i hate baptism."

(Landon has a fear of water, if you can't tell)

Ethan turns EIGHT

ethan is the most amazing kid!

he is so loving and kind

smart and selfless.

we asked him what it was he wanted for his birthday

and he said "i don't need anything, i have all i need...my family."

he is always thinking of others before himself.

ETHAN, WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

INTERVIEW:

what is your favorite color?

"blue"

what is your favorite movie?

"ummm, this ones hard. ok you pick...i like all movies."

who is your best friend?

"my brothers"

Tell me three words that describe you?

"hmmm, caring, nice, and loving"

what is your favorite treat/snack?

"probably, chips"

what kind of chips?

"sour cream and onion"

what is your favorite drink?

"lemonade"

what is your favorite food?

"macaroni and cheese with hot dogs"

if you could live anywhere, where would it be?

"with my family"

Is there a particular place?

"No, where ever my family is"

what's your favorite subject in school?

"math, and you already know that."

if you could do anything for a whole day, what would it be?

"hmm, probably play basketball with my brothers."

what's your favorite time of the year?

"february, winter"

why?

"because, i like when it snows and it is my birthday"

what is your favorite toy?

"my basketball"

what do you want to be when you grow up?

"an NBA player and doctor"

what was your favorite part of your birthday?

"spending time with my family and being baptized"

GIRLS TRIP

las vegas

the last week in january me, my oldest sister (amy), and my mom

had a GIRLS TRIP in LAS VEGAS.

my mom and amy had to go to market for their store,

so they asked if i wanted to join them.

i am so glad i did!

we had so much fun!

we got up early

stayed up SUPER late

had girl talks

acted goofy

and most of all

had many, many

belly LAUGHS.

the only thing that could've made it better

was having my little sister (mandee) there.

she is due to have a baby any day now, so she can't fly.

can't wait until next year to do it all again.

Thanks DAD for watching the kids

and

MOM & AMY for inviting me!

january

a new year, really?

i remember how long a year took to pass when i was little,

it felt like forever,

but now that i am older and need more time,

where does it all go?

*****

a relaxing day at duke gardens...

what a great day!

christmas

okay, so i know this is a little (or a lot) late,

but life just doesn't seem to slow down.

i don't want to overwhelm myself with catching up on ALL the posts i have missed,

so i will just touch base on a few of our highlights in december.

we made our yearly tradition of

baking and building gingerbread houses,

(an all time favorite at our house)

had a pre-christmas dinner with friends,

made oodles of homemade christmas candy & goodies.

christmas eve was full of traditions...

popping popcorn

(regular and carmel corn)

watching polar express

opening christmas pj's

reading the christmas story from the sc

riptures

and spending time together.