Updates on my KIds

Is it OK if I talk (maybe brag) a little about my kids?  I hope so.  If not, then stop reading.
In no particular order.......

Carys is so sweet.  She looks for ways to help out.  She is an awesome baby sitter and playmate with Giovanni.

Other little kids and babies love her, too.

She even tries to make her mom feel better.  Yesterday, I was having a bad day and was kind of a grouch.  We were eating lunch and she got up from the table and made this bib out of a napkin and put it on.  Just to make me smile.  It worked.

Another kid who always makes me smile:

He wakes up in an awesome mood and is so much fun.  He goes hard all day, but then crashes on the couch. (Remember, it is summertime, here - no school.)  Lots of times this happens before we know it, and he has conked out without brushing his teeth.  A few days ago, he had a dentist appointment for a check up.  Before he went, he asked, "Mom, can you like not brush your teeth for a really long time, and then right before you go to the dentist brush for like an hour?"  I told him that he would get cavities if he did that, because you needed to brush your teeth every day.  "I'm in trouble, then," he said.  Miraculously he didn't have any cavities.

Garrett is all of a sudden huge.  He has grown so much in the last few months.  This picture was taken at a recent soccer game that we got to watch.  Kevin is going to give all the details of the game on our family blog, but basically it boils down to Garrett making an awesome goal to give his team the victory.  It was exciting.

 After the game he gave a high five to his biggest fan.

Ansley is at the beach right now with her best friend, Laura.  Aren't they beautiful?

(Ansley-left, Laura-right).

While at the beach, Ansley got an e-mail from the Hacienda of Hope in Ecuador. They have officially accepted her as an intern and English teacher starting in August.  She will be postponing her freshman year of college to work with these kids.  We are so excited for her and so very, very proud of her!

Look how cute.....

One would think that he is a good sleeper with all the cute sleeping pictures we have.  Actually, that's not the case.  My nickname for Giovanni is "Squigs".  That comes from the word "squiggle" which is a made up word that combines squirm and wiggle.  I made that word up when I was pregnant with him and every evening when I would sit and rest from the day, he would start "squiggling" like crazy.  I thought maybe that I just wasn't noticing him moving so much during the day, and when I got still, I noticed that he went crazy.  But, he still has this pattern.  He is pretty mellow during the day, and about 5 or 6 o'clock in the evening his high gear shifts in.  If he has had a nap during the day, it is a happy high gear.  If not, it is a kind of grouchy high gear.  But nap or no nap, he gets that energy boost at that time of day.  The time of day when all the other kids in our house are winding down.  Did he not get the Blume kid protocol memo??  I guess not.  

                    Bronwyn is enjoying snow days in Abilene while we are burning up down here.  

These two guys, Stephen (right) and Weston (left) are good friends of Bronwyn's.

We are so excited that they will be coming down to Porto Alegre in June to work with us for two months!  How cool is that!  All the details of their visit aren't ironed out yet, but we know that it will be a great experience for all of us.  We can't wait to meet them in person!

Well, that's all my kids.  Kevin asked if I wasn't going to brag on him a little too, you know because people would be expecting it, etc.   So...... 

 I'll just say he has a really nice smile

and always adds a "special touch" to our family photos.

Thanks, honey.