Happy Birthday Emma LeeAnn

My sweet baby girl is no longer a baby. She just turned 7!! So hard to believe. I am pretty sure she was a small baby in my arms just yesterday.

Ben has decided that the kids do not need a big birthday party every year. This is a hard concept for me to swallow as Emma has tons of friends like I did at her age and it seems I always had at least ONE party if not two - one for friends and one for family. But I can understand how between decorations, food and the actual Party, the cost and time of a party can add up. Especially since the kid's birthdays are so close together. Emma had a big party last year so I just put together a small play date with some of her friends. Because it is Spring and sports are in full swing only 2 kids made it to the park to play but it was Emma's two "BFF's" so it worked out just fine! Madison, Angelina and Emma played it up at the park and I brought special cupcakes for them to share. It was a perfect little gathering!

On her actual birthday I made Emma a soccerball Cupcake "cake" for her to share with her classroom. Last year Emma wanted PINK cupcakes and Ben came back home from her school with about half of them because the boys refused to eat them. But this year the soccer cupcakes were a success and were all gobbled up rather quickly (thanks Pinterest for the idea!).

The best thing about Emma's birthday and not having a big fancy party was that we got to spend a little more on her birthday presents. She was asking for a Nintendo DSI and we discussed it at length. After much contemplating we decided to get her an iPad - not the newest version. I know that seems excessive for a 7 year old's birthday presents but we had good reasons. Her desktop computer is about 15 years old and in big need of an upgrade for her to be able to play her games and get online. We felt we could put more educational games and learning applications on the iPad then a DSI. Also, I was thinking of getting her some sort of MP3 player and this worked for that as well. And of course, although technically it is "hers" we are all allowed to use it as a family and she must share it with Matthew. We are also using it to teach her responsiblity. She can only use it when her homework is done AND her room is clean. There are even more reasons but believe me it has been a blessing to have and use.

My daughter is amazing and I look forward every year to see how she is growing. She has a strong personality that everyone adores. She can be so strong yet so sensitive at the same time. She loves performing and is rarely nervous in front of others. She loves to be girly but can hang just fine with any boy. She has a temper and can be sassy but she also loves to give hugs and kisses. She has a great memory and a thirst for knowledge. She is ALWAYS asking questions. She is a great listener and is wonderful at following directions. She is crafty and imaginative yet also logical in her thinking. She is everything a mother would want her daughter to be!

April starts the string of family birthdays. Matthew's is up next in April and then Ben in May and possibly the newest addition in May or June. It's a great time of the year in the Jett house!!

Reflections

Georgia has a contest they do every year that they offer to school aged children. It is to support the arts and to support children's creativity. The contest starts at the school level and then winners participate in a county then a state competition. When I was in school they called it Kalediscope but now they call it Reflections. When I was in school we usually did something at school that we submitted for the contest. Now it is all voluntary and you do it on your own at home. We didn't do it last year but I decided this year to ask Emma if she wanted to participate. Of course my crafty little girl said YES!

The theme this year was "Diversity Means....". You have the option of submitting a drawing/painting, photograph, dance, song, poem, etc. Pretty much any sort of artistic expression. Emma had just learned how to make those paper dolls that connect by the hands and really wanted to use that in her artwork. So all by herself she cut them out and then she picked out a poster board to put them on. She drew different faces on them all and for her submission she wrote how everyone is different in their own way. I was very proud of her and thought she did a great job all on her own. We turned it in and several months later when I had pretty much forgotten about it we found out she won third place in 1st Grade at her school for her artwork!

They had a ceremony for the winners at the school where she received a nice certificate and a fancy medal. Her favorite thing was that she also received a voucher for a free ice cream at lunch! The other cool thing was that her best friend Madison placed first in their grade so she was there too.

Very proud of Emma and is excited to see she is already making plans for next year's submission. That's my girl!

Soccer Fever

I am so glad we put Emma in Soccer. I hope she sticks with it for a little while. It is great exercise and she has already learned so much about her position and teamwork. She did Fall and Indoor and is just starting her Spring Season. She has the same coach as she did in the Fall but this time Ben is the assistant coach. She is lucky to be on a great team who support her and help her to look good! But of course she is always the cutest little soccer player out there. And I mean little!! She is usually the smallest one out there but she is getting better and better at being more aggresive and going after the ball. We will take a break over the summer but then back into it next Fall. She is starting to say she wants to do gymnastics again but maybe I can talk her out of that by next Winter ;)
She is number 11

Going after the ball!

TEAM IRISH

That's my girl!!

Kindergarten Here We Come!!

At the beginning of the month we officially signed Matthew up for Kindergarten! Hard to believe he is old enough for that. This means next year Emma and Matthew will be at the same school. They will get to ride the bus together and maybe see eachother in the halls. They are both pretty excited about that!

He has done better in Pre-School than I ever thought he would. He gets along pretty well with his classmates. He seemed to favor the girls in the beginning but has slowly made buddies with the little boys in the class.

His reading skills are getting better every month. I think Matthew will be our book worm where as Emma seems to excel more in Math. He has always loved letters since he was an infant.

Here are some pictures of my cute little boy!

Community Helper Day at School!

Sigh of Relief

I am 24 weeks pregnant today! If this little one follows in her brother/sister's footsteps and comes early that means I only have about 12-13 weeks left to go. How time flies!!

As I blogged earlier in the pregnancy I had horrible sickness my first and most of my second trimester. I am finally over that and gaining weight (maybe a little TOO quickly!) instead of losing weight.

I had an ultrasound at 19 weeks where we found out it was a girl, but what I didn't initially add was that the doctor stated I had what is called PLACENTA PREVIA. I didn't write about it because I was not quite sure exactly what it was. Let me tell you - if you ever need a diagnosis DO NOT look on the internet!! What a scary bunch of stories I came across on this condition. The doctor and several websites stated that Previa prior to 20 weeks usually resolves and there is no need to worry. BUT the horror stories from the majority of people made me extremely nervous. I was put on pelvic rest which meant I couldn't really do too much - not even pick up my sweet little kids. So for 30 days I pretty much went to work and then went home and lounged on the couch. I had a follow up last week for another ultrasound and to my extrememly happy surprise, the Previa had completely cleared!! If my complete previa had not cleared I was going to have to look forward to bed rest, possible bleeding complications and a C-section delivery. Although many ladies with this condition end up just fine, I did not want the stress of worrying about any of it. And now I'm in the clear!

So my next goal is to start getting some exercise and to start refreshing myself on the Bradley Method of Childbirth. Both my other prior deliveries were successful Bradley birth's and I hope for a third one just as pleasant. Since I've been so sick and then on a 30 day restriction my body is so out of shape. I can barely walk up to my office at work without getting out of breath. My plan is to start walking the track at the park and doing some good stretching at home. I know my family will be a great help. We are all so excited for the new princess to arrive. Below is a picture from the second round of ultrasounds.

Valentine's Day

We had a simple yet sweet Valentine's Day this year. It was Matthew's first year giving cards at his school so I tried to make it something fun for him. I luckily found Dinosaur cards that he really liked and was excited about. I added some dinosaur gummies to make it super special.

For Emma, I found a cute idea on PINTEREST and it actually came out pretty good. I braided bracelets for each of her classmates and put it on a handmade card Emma put together. We used orange because that is the color for first grade at Bascomb Elementary (Green is Kindergarten and I think 2nd is red, etc). I tried different types of bracelets but braided was the easiest way to go and since I had to do 24 of them, EASY was the ONLY way to go!!! I think they turned out pretty cute and Emma's report was that they were a success in class.

Ben surprised me at work with a perfect red rose and a beautiful card. He is so awesome! Everyone at work was talking about how great he was. Even the guys. I am so blessed. He also made a yummy spaghetti dinner and although I made a red jello dessert for Vday , we ended up eating cookies Emma made. For Family Home Evening the day before I had us all write on cut-out construction hearts why we loved eachother and what we loved about our family. Then I taped it on our bedroom doors. It was great to hear what the kids had to say. Matthew was happy to get watch television with Emma. And Emma loved being a big sister. They both loved Daddy's tickles and Mommy's cooking. What a great little loving family I have!!

Discovery Bear

Matthew was chosen to take home his classroom Bear this past weekend. Matthew was more excited about it than I thought he would be. We had fun having Discovery Bear with us for the weeked. The bear got to watch Matthew get his hair cut, got to Emma's soccer game, play with Matthew's dinosaurs and Emma's bear Love Bear, go out for Frozen Yogurt, sleep in Matthew's bed and attend church with us. He was the perfect house guest and we are glad he is our friend!

It's a.......

GIRL! Please enjoy the first pictures of our newest little princess. Emma was excited. Matthew not so much, but we have time to help him realize it's not so bad having a baby sister.

Stop Growing Already!

My kids keep growing. I guess it's because I feed them and take good care of them, but sometimes I really wish they would stop! They are getting so big I can't believe it. On New Years Eve Day I got Emma's hair cut. With her new glasses and her do hair do she looks so mature. How can my sweet little girl look so grown? And Matthew went shopping for new Church clothes with Ben and when my husband sent me this picture I gasped. He looks like a little gentleman. Where did my baby boy go? In all honesty I love that they are growing up but somedays I just sit and think how much I am going to miss these days when they are so little! Good thing I have this blog to keep the good memories.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Stars

It's no secret I love my kids. And I can't brag on them enough. So here again is some gushing from a proud mother about her little super stars.

Emma was presented again with the Bright Star award at school. Meaning she has shown she is kind and considerate and a big help at school. We proudly watched her cross the stage and receive her certificate from her sweet Principal Ms. Flowers. Every year her teachers tell us what a pleasure it is to have her in their class. Ms. Beattie this year told me the following: "Emma makes my day EVERY day!". What a great thing for a parent to hear!

Matthew has learned a lot at school this year. He is making friends and getting smarter every day. I was not sure what to expect from his Christmas performance. He had been practicing his songs but he is not as comfortable on stage and in the spotlight as his sister. My guesses were he would either be too shy to participate or be so loud and off tune that he wouldn't be missed! Well I was pleasantly surprised that he did a perfect job. He sang great with his class. I could hear him at times and he was fantastic. The other awesome thing was that he was front and center on the stage so we had a great view of him and his sweet smile! Emma really enjoyed being in the audience for a change and getting to root for her brother. It was a great night!

I know I have more proud moments to come and I just can't wait!!!

The Girls

I am lucky to say that I grew up with a great group of friends. Some of them I met in Elementary school and stayed in touch all these years through different schools, Marriages, moving, and kids. We normally try to meet up at least once a year but last year couldn't seem to make it work. This year we ALL made it and it was a blast like always! Kelley I've known since Kindergarten and Nadia shortly after. The others I met in middle school and a couple I went to Highschool with. These are the smartest funniest gals I know and I can honestly say that they helped me succeed in school and as a youth. Love them!

Left to Right: Laura, Andee, Ashley, Me, Nadia and Kelley (That's Albert in the front with the green scarf!)

Thanksgiving Leftovers

I was looking at my pictures and realized that I skipped over Thanksgiving in my Blog. Ooops!

So here is our exciting Thanksgiving activities we had this year.
Both the kids had programs at school. Emma did a great play where she had a couple of lines to memorize and was dressed up as a Pilgrim. They sang great songs and had a fun time. I snapped a picture of her with one of her classmates Tomas. I think he is a cutie!! Matthew had a Thanksgiving "Feast" (AKA:Potluck) that had all the Thanksgiving fixings. We had Turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and anything else you can think of. They opened with a Turkey song that Matthew continued to sing for weeks and weeks after. Below is a picture of him with his Turkey hat and the Thanksgiving placemat he made for us. I was so blessed that the activities for both kids were on the same day. So I just took the day off to spend with them and Ben. It was a great day!

Actual Thanksgiving Day we spent in Peachtree City with Ben's grandparents. Grandma and Grandpa Johanson were moving to Utah so this would be our last big get together before they moved. I invited my parents and we all had a lovely time. Unfortunately I was still having trouble with baby sickness but I tried to eat everything I could because it looked so good! We are going to miss our trips to Peachtree City so much.

I am Thankful for having such a wonderful family! And it looks like Matthew is too. When his teachers asked him what he was thankful for he stated the following: "My Daddy, My Mommy, and My Emma"!

I also had to add this picture of the Reindeer we went to see! It was pretty cool to see REAL Reindeer. They had it at the Learning Express near our home. The line to see Santa was around the corner so we just took a second to take these pics. Happy Holidays!!

Surprise!!

I had been feeling pretty sick since the beginning of October. I had back pain some cramping and just felt yuck. After about 3 weeks of this I finally decided to go to the doctor. I had a large cyst removed about 10 years ago and thought that maybe I had another one that was causing all my symptoms. I spoke to the doctor who decided that it could possibly be a cyst but she was going to run a bunch of simple tests to rule out anything else right away. I sat there waiting for a little while and the doctor came back in the room and said...."well, it's not a cyst.....but you ARE preganant". Um what?! Wasn't really expecting that response! She said it was really early but the test definitely was positive. I went home and after Ben and I let it soak in a bit we were really happy and excited. We shared the news with our parents that day and waited till my first Pre-natal appointment to tell the kids. They are even more excited than we are. Emma of course wants a baby sister and Matthew says he would like a boy. We should find out what it is in February.

That is all the good news. The bad news is that I continued not feeling well and in fact got worse. I can't keep food down and feel sick all day. I am tired from not eating and have a headache constantly. Smells make me sick and food tastes just awful. Even things I used to love taste so different now. At my last doctor's appointment I had lost about 5 pounds and a test showed traces of Ketones. The doctor wasn't too thrilled about that and said if the amount were any higher she would have me admitted for IV fluids. Instead she gave me some medicine to try - a combo of Unisom and B6. It seemed to work at first but I started vomitting again the other day. I'm giving it a couple more days and if I don't feel better I will have to go back to see the doctor.

I'm 13 weeks now and just pray that I will be over that first trimester Funk soon!! I have a baby to start getting ready for ya know.

Family Photos

A while ago I entered the kids in a photo contest and Emma won. She had the most "likes" on Facebook and so we got a discounted photo session with a great local photographer (and a friend from church). She takes great pictures and I was so excited to see what Barefoot in Bluegrass Photography could do with our little family. We scheduled a day for the photo shoot at a nearby park and spent a couple hours taking multiple shots. The kids did great and we had a ton of fun. Melanie said she took about 200 photos. Unfortunately later that night she found out that her camera had malfunctioned (something that she has NEVER had happen in her many years of picture taking) and our photos were lost. We scheduled another day for photos. The boys were not too thrilled about having to take pictures again and Matthew was having a lot of trouble cooperating. Emma of course is always ready to be the center of attention! Melanie worked her magic and got some really great photos even with the grumpy boys. I put some up on the main blog page but here a few more of my favorites. I recommend you book your next family pictures with Melanie!!

I have to add this last photo too! The photographer texted me and told me she couldn't finish editing the pictures after coming across this picture. She said it was the funniest thing she ever saw and couldn't stop laughing. She even put in on her website (so embarrassed!!). She said it was her favorite picture. The story behind it is that grumpy Matthew would not smile for the camera and when he did he would close is eyes. So here is Emma helping him out.....
What a crazy beautiful family I have. Love them!!

Halloween 2011

Mermaid, Pirate, Dinosaur (Trunk or Treat)

The Girls

Me as a boxer

I didn't get many pictures from Halloween this year. I don't know what happened! But we still had a good time.
The Saturday before Halloween I took the kids and Angelina to the church Trunk or Treat. Emma decided to wear the mermaid costume that Aunt Rachel mailed to us. Grandma Jett had it made it a few years ago for Natalie. It was a little snug on Emma but she was EXTREMELY determined to wear it, so I let her. Matthew didn't want to be anything other than a dinosaur so we used the same costume I made him last year. We added a dinosaur head that we got at the dollar store to make it even better. Only problem was that when he put the hoodie on, it covered the dinosaur's eyes. SO, I thought it would be a good idea to put eyeballs on top of the hoodie. BIG mistake because it made Matthew look like a frog or alligator. But oh well, he still had a good time roaring like a dinosaur. My costume was a boxer - I had a black eye and all!

The Trunk or Treat was great as always. The kids favorite was the homemade donuts and rootbeer that the Snyder's made. They had dry ice with the rootbear so it made it look like a witchy potion!! Pretty cool.

On Halloween night we continued the tradition of going to my brother's neighborhood. The kids enjoyed it and the weather was perfect. Emma wore the princess costume she got for her Ballet Recital earlir in the year. It fit better than the mermaid costume and was easier for her to walk around in .Ben helped them move along to all the houses so it moved pretty fast. We have more candy than we will ever eat and will most likely be giving some away. Another fun family holiday! Can't wait for more to come.

October Fun

I love the fall. I love the cooler weather and the beginning of a string of fun Holidays. We started the month decorating for Halloween. Grandma Jett sent us a cool door decoration and the kids and I carved pumpkins. It is a ton of work for me since they can't carve too much right now. But it's still fun to pick out the patterns we want and scoop out the pumpkin "guts"!
We also went with a friend to downtown Woodstock where they had a little Fall Festival. There was music and activities. I had a Caricature (SP?) done of the kids and they got their faces painted. They also had a dance party, played with sidewalk chalk and won prizes in a bowling game. It was a fun night that was also free so everybody was happy!!

Emma painted as a cat with the purse she won!

Mariah won the purple necklace she is wearing - cute!