A bit of catch up

I've been a terrible blogger lately, here is my quick update on what has been keeping us so busy.

We had lots of fun cheering on the Seattle Seahawks all the way to the Superbowl!  It was really fun to see them win and brought the entire community together.  This picture was taken at the train station where we tried to ride a train up to Seattle for the victory parade.  Too bad thousands of people had the same idea and we didn't actually make it.  Still had a fun family day.

Linsey and her friend Emily played another violin duet for a solo and ensemble contest and got a perfect score!

 We got some snow which always makes for a lot of fun!

I took Linsey and some of her friends to see Bethany Mota, a youtube sensation.  We waited with probably a thousand other tweens and teens.  It was pretty crazy, but a day she will never forget! 

Linsey and Emma participated in Junior Festival.  They had to memorize two piano pieces and play them for judges.  They both received top scores and are working their way to earning one of those gold trophies.

Austin's preschool class had a field trip to the fire station.  This is a field trip that I have gone on many, many times as each of my kids have gone through preschool.  I have to admit that while the newness has worn off and I could practically give the tour myself, I was a bit sad to think that this was my last fire station field trip.  My kids are getting so big.

 My favorite picture of the day, Mr. Smooth-man Austin

Linsey played soccer for the middle school, (after a nice break of a few years) - She did great!

Hunter played 5th grade basketball and loved it.  He also played Upward basketball and any free time he had he loved walking down to the school to shoot hoops.  It's no wonder he's gotten quite a bit better lately.  I love watching him play sports.

We went to Spokane for a Robotics competition.  Because it was a work trip for Jared, we had our gas and hotel paid for and we got to go and visit some of our favorite cousins!

As an added bonus, they had adorable baby chicks.

And that brings us to March.  

A little St. Paddy's Day fun!

My kids always love making leprechaun traps. I love seeing them use their creativity.

Austin's first soccer game, in the pouring rain.

Hunter loved that he got to be the ref.

I love that girls 8 and up were invited to the General Women's Conference this year!  It was so fun to take both of my girls with me.  We enjoyed the talks and music and also had fun going shopping and having dessert together afterwards.

We keep busy, but we are always having lots of fun.

Sweet children, fun times, feeling so blessed.

Words of Affection

Ever heard of the Five Love Languages?
I'm pretty sure my love language is words of affection.... of course I love to be spoiled with gifts, acts of kindness, and everything else - but simple, genuine, thoughtful words mean a whole lot to me.  Always have, always will.

My sweet husband knows me well, and my kids are learning too.  For my birthday this year, words were my gifts.

I woke up this morning to this cute little box from Emma.

Inside was a book, made by her, full of reasons why I am a "grate" mom and how much she loves me which apparently is more than chocolate.  She even admitted that she would rather have me than a dog.  If you know Emma at all, that's a really big compliment.

I got home from my morning run at 6:50 a.m. to this.  

 ...and this.  It was delicious!  Pretty impressive for so early in the morning.

Jared and the kids hid little notes all around the house.  I found most of them this morning, but I stumbled upon a few others throughout the day.  So fun.

Most of them were really nice, some of them were just plain hilarious.  All of them made me smile.

Even Austin wrote me this sweet little note.

Jared secretly asked a bunch of my friends and family on Facebook to describe me in two words.  He put together a slide show and it was pretty much the sweetest thing he's ever done for me.  I loved it.  I got a little teary as I saw the kind words that my friends and family used to describe me, it really made me feel wonderful... made my whole day.  Here are just a couple of the many slides, just to give you an idea the creative way he shared these sweet words.

Most people wrote two words, some wrote more, some were extra creative.  Jared added pictures and music and the whole thing made me feel so incredibly special and so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people in my life.

The Young Women I work with at church each wrote me a little note on a birthday card and the words they said meant more to me than they could ever imagine.  

I had a wonderful day.  The preschool kids I work with showered me with hugs and kind words this morning, I had a delightful lunch with my girlfriends, and my children served Jared and I a romantic dinner this evening.

My family sent me upstairs while they cleaned up dinner.  I'm feeling pretty spoiled.  I told my kids that I wished everyday were my birthday, but then Emma pointed out that if everyday were my birthday I'd be really old.  I guess I'll just stick with once a year.

Best. Birthday. Ever!

(I think I pretty much say that every year.)