Hunter turns 9!

Happy Birthday, Hunter! We have never met anyone so loving, sweet and tender-hearted as our nine-year-old. His smile lights up the room, and his laugh is infectious. He's all about being happy and having fun. He has a brown belt in karate; he just bought an electric guitar and started taking lessons; he is a master Bakugan Brawler and he loves to ski and ride his bike.

Here's the electric guitar we bought for Hunter once he earned half of the cost himself.


Here's Hunter with his Grandpa Thorstenson at his birthday party at Pirate Island.


Each time he opened a gift from one of his 18 friends at the party, another Bakugan appeared!

Visited Grandma Last Night

Our family visited Grandma in the rehab center last night (not your normal rehab center). She had shoulder replacement surgery. She didn't have her hearing aids in so she couldn't hear me very well. But she seemed to be doing well. Lucy did a dance for her and Hunter showed off his Karate. It was a really nice family night.

Birthday Week

Lucy and me only 4 years ago. Here is Lucy today....



It started with a family dinner on Sunday, cupcakes at school on Monday with a Brick Oven dinner that night, a "Happy Birthday" dance class on Tuesday and then a birthday party with 16 of her friends today. Lucy has done nothing but talk about her birthday for the past month and has prayed every day that she would have a fun birthday. Her prayers were answered.

Our sweet six-year-old is smart, funny, affectionate and a total perfectionist. She's a born leader, independent and helpful. She has grown up a lot in the past year. (She asked me once if she could shave her legs and another time if she could wear a bra--We're not ready for her to grow up that fast!) Lucy enjoys being creative and can be found drawing, coloring, cutting and pasting almost every day. She loves to write notes, which we often find under our pillows. She would never dream of enjoying something unless her older brother and younger sister are there to enjoy it too. We love you, Lucy! Happy Birthday!

Bella the Toddler

Mel took these pictures of Bella recently while she was babysitting and I can't resist posting them. With the move, I haven't taken any time to blog, but I'll get back into it soon. You should know that Bella is walking now (finally) and doesn't bother crawling at all anymore. She is a busy toddler, always getting her hands into something. She enjoys being around other children. She can say a number of different words ("ball", "thank you", "cracker", among others) and can make several animal sounds. She loves her blankie and Dr. Seuss stories. Her favorite foods are clementines and black beans. Every time she sees something that looks good to her, she says, "Mmmmmm...."

Halloween

Hunter as Harry, Bella the Bunny, and Lucy a.k.a. Cinderella

Baby Beauty

Bella was a model for a day, posing in the onesies our very talented friend, Melanie, designs, makes and sells. Mel is just getting her business started with many more cute things to come at baileybabydesign.blogspot.com. I hope Mel doesn't mind that I snagged these pictures from her blog. I haven't taken many pictures of Bella lately. Thanks, Mel.
Bella is now nine months old and weighs next to nothing. She has learned to propel herself by getting up on one knee and pushing forward. She also rolls a lot to reach things. Her favorite song is "Eency, Weency Spider", which calms her in almost any situation. She is a sweet, pleasant baby and can finish an entire cheese stick in one sitting.

Hunter's Baptism in Grand Cayman

There's something special about having your first child baptized. A family friend who was at Hunter's baptism described it as the feeling you get when a new baby is born. It was a sweet experience, and the smile on Hunter's face when he came up out of the water was priceless. Hunter was baptized in the ocean by Danny right after his cousin James was baptized by his dad. They were both confirmed immediately afterwards. It was definitely the highlight of the trip for our family, but there was a lot of swimming, snorkeling and relaxing as well.