Sherman Family

Mini Vacation to Lake Davis

2009-07-05T15:06:00.000-07:00

Last week we took a last minute mini vacation to a small resort by Lake Davis. It was a really beautiful place- it had a pool and spa, a 6 hole golf course, a big forest, a fishing pond and cute little cabins. The cabin we stayed in backed up to the golf course and volley ball court and the kids had a great time playing out there. We took Grandpa's fishing boat- John and Ben went out fishing two days, but didn't catch any fish! Ben still had a great time out on the lake. The second day Heidi went along while Kate and I packed up the cabin (we decided to check out a day early because we weren't sleeping too well!) and Ben blamed his sister for not catching fish. He said, "The sisters are too loud- they scare away the fish". Kate started walking quite a bit while we were there and loved pushing her walker around on the green. We had a fun time, but were reminded how much work it is to travel with a 5, almost 3 and 1 year old!

The view outside of our cabin

Ben and Heidi waiting to go into our cabin

Checking in- Kate had a tough car ride!

She's walking!

Dad and Kate swimming

Our cabin

Kate walking

Heidi was very entertained in the sand

Ben and Heidi used the water from the coolers to build a sand castle

Kate

Ben and Heidi in the fishing boat. Ben got a new stringer- his favorite toy for the trip!

A Busy Saturday!

2009-06-27T20:01:00.001-07:00

We had a busy day today. This morning Ben had a swim meet at the Granite Bay pool and thankfully our babysitter, Bekah watched the girls for us because it was really HOT! Ben was very excited because his cousins came to watch him swim. He did well today- he completed all his races without stopping on the side. He got a best time in freestyle and may have in backstroke, but we never got his official time. The last two meets he has done really well and is having FUN! After the swim meet we went over to the Galleria for the grand opening of the new Disney Store because Mickey and Minnie were there. Unfortunately, the line was really long and after waiting in it for about a half hour we gave up and just went by the stage and waved at them. Heidi was very concerned because she really wanted Mickey to see her dress. Mickey waved at them so she was satisfied. Then we got some ice cream instead! Dad and Mom both made it to the gym this afternoon and now Dad and Ben are back at the pool for the Flick and Float. Heidi and Kate are enjoying their blow up pools on the deck while I type on this nice WARM evening- summer is HERE!!!

Look how cute Allie is in her sunglasses and halter top

Ben is ready to go!

Getting ready to dive in for freestyle

Andrew, Luke and Ben

Such good buddies!

Ben and Luke by the record board

Waiting in line to see Mickey and Minnie

Heidi wants to join the swim team!

2009-06-27T19:59:00.000-07:00

Watermelon Exploration

2009-06-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

Aunt Leslie created a great summer activity plan for us and this week was fruit and veggies week. Yesterday for fruit and veggies week, we explored a watermelon and the kids had so much fun. We smelled it, touched it, guessed how many inches around it was, put cards in order of growth, cut string to measure the circumference, put it in water to see if it would sink or float and cut it up. I gave Ben and Heidi each an end of the watermelon in a pan with a spoon and butter knife and they spent a long time cutting it up. Ben kept saying, "Okay Heidi, now let's explore this". Kate explored the watermelon by eating it!

Heid's ABC's

2009-06-27T17:22:00.000-07:00

Fairytale Town

2009-06-25T09:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon we took the kids for a little trip to Fairytale town in Sacramento. They had fun running around, going on the slides, looking at the animals and having snow cones. Snow cones was Ben's favorite part- he carried that thing around the whole time as you can see from the pictures. The other favorite was the roosters. The kids thought they were so funny. We are really enjoying having Dad home more for the summer after our crazy spring!

3 little cuties in the king chair. You can have birthday parties in this room. Heidi asked Ben, "Benny, you want your birthday party here?" Ben answered, "Maybe next year Heidi." I love to listen to the conversations they have now; it's so cute.

Heidi was trying to hang onto Baby Kate for the picture, but she would not cooperate

Sitting by the little minnow pond.

Guess what Ben wanted to do? "Dad, do you think you can catch one of these with your hands?"

Cutest Wizard of Oz characters ever

Ben with his snow cone in the Cinderella carriage

Sherwood Forest

This is as far as Heidi got on the crooked road before she freaked out and Dad had to rescue her

Kate and Dad- she is definitely a Daddy's girl. She must say "Daddy" a hundred times a day!

Watching the pennies go down the Wishing well was very entertaining

Here are the roosters the kids loved!

Silly faces :)

2009-06-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

Silly kids waiting in the car for Dad to check in the Sequoia at the Toyota dealer. I was entertaining them by taking silly pictures. Aren't they a cute bunch?

A Fun Monday at Folsom Lake :)

2009-06-23T22:23:00.000-07:00

Grandma T had a great idea- since John doesn't work Monday mornings, it would be the perfect time to take the boat to Folsom Lake. So we did, and it was so much fun. Grandma T. watched Kate for us and John, Uncle Dave and I took Ben and Heidi. It was such a beautiful day and there was hardly any other boats out there. John, Dave and I all got to wakeboard twice and after being forced into the tube Ben and Heidi loved it. They even sat in there to eat their lunchables (not while we were moving). At first John rode with them and then they went by themselves. They were so cute- you can see the video below. They would wave and both of them kept giving the "faster" sign. I started to give them a little bit more of an adventurous ride and they got stuck in a swell and fell out. Ben was such a good big brother; he swam over to Heidi and held onto her until the boat got back- I was so proud of him. They were done after that, hopefully I didn't scar them for life! Anyways, it was a great day, we had so much fun! Thank you Grandpa for letting us borrow your boat and truck and thank you Grandma for watching Kate!
At first Ben wasn't really sure about getting in the water

Once he got in, he loved it! Here he swam the rope handle out to Uncle Dave

Dad and Ben

Ben and Heidi really loved to hold the flags (good thing there are 2 in the boat!)

Dad and Ben on the first tube ride

Heidi having a snack

Dad with Ben and Heidi

Riding all by themselves- they're so cute!

Sorry for the video quality- it was a little bumpy

Gators Swim Meet June 20

2009-06-23T21:56:00.000-07:00

Ben swam in his second swim meet last Saturday. He swam Freestyle and Backstroke again and beat his times in both. His backstroke race was amazing (according to his fan club)- he dropped 35 seconds! He was more comfortable and had more fun at this meet plus he had Grandpa Rich, Grandpa Les, Grandma T, Uncle Paul and Kelsey there to cheer him on!
The team cheer before the meet started

Ben was so cute in his Gators shirt doing the cheer

Ready to swim!

Grandpa and Grandma came to watch

Ready to dive in for freestyle

Waiting for his turn

Getting some last minute encouragement from Dad

Isn't he cute

Ready for backstroke

Uncle Paul took some great pictures with TT & Jesse's camera- thanks :)

Giving Grandpa Rich 5 after the race

Ben with his 2 grandpas

After the big race :)

Jennifer Kaye's Wedding

2009-06-23T21:22:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday John and I took a short trip to Sonoma for my friend Jenn's wedding. It was a wonderful wedding in a gorgeous setting. The weather was perfect, the scenery was amazing and every detail of the whole event was so thoughtful. Jenn was a beautiful bride and I am so glad we were able to be part of her special day. It was fun to hang out with Alexa and her husband Chad too, and since we didn't have kids, we could carry on a conversation :) Thank you to all of our wonderful family members for helping us out with the kids- I don't think they even missed us- that's a good thing :)

Ben's Last Day of 4 year old preschool

2009-06-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

Ben on his last day of preschool

Ben on his first day of preschool

He's grown up so much this year!

Daniel, Carson, Ben and Weston

Mrs. Fritz, Ben, and Mrs. Suel- he really loved his teachers

Ben had a great year of preschool and is totally ready for Kindergarten. He learned so much this year and continues to amaze us with his knowledge, critical thinking skills (negotiating), wit and ability to relate to kids and adults. He learned how to write his name, write many letters and most of his numbers and made lots of new friends in his class. He actually went into class this year without chasing me out the door. By the end of the year, I was the one chasing him to get a hug and kiss before I left. We had our first parent teacher conference this year and it was very positive; hopefully that trend will continue! I can't believe he is done with preschool already, it seems like we were just at meet the teacher day when he was 3....now he's going to be a big Kindergartener!!!

Kate learning to stand

2009-06-23T16:23:00.000-07:00

Kate learning to stand

2009-06-23T16:00:00.000-07:00

Kate has learned to stand up for a few seconds at a time and is very proud of herself. We are waiting for her to take her first steps any day! These pictures are from one of our late night hang outs (thanks to growing teeth!)

Ben's First Swim Meet as a Gator!

2009-06-22T16:20:00.000-07:00

One June 5, Ben swam in his first swim meet as a Granite Bay Gator. He did really well. When we first got there, he said, "I don't really know if I want to do this. There are A LOT of people watching." But he got in and swam all three of his races and finished all three of them. He got three ribbons which he is very proud of. He actually got first place in backstroke because he is the only one who did not get disqualified. He is the youngest swimmer on the team and has worked really hard. There have been lots of days where he has not wanted to go to practice, but once he gets there, he has fun and is improving. He especially likes his Gators racing suit! We are very proud of him!!! Go Benny (as Heidi would say)!!!
Ben in his Gators suit

Waiting to dive in for his relay. Dad and Ben's friend Gary are helping him out.

Ben's dive for his 25 free

Getting ready for his favorite, backstroke

Ready for backstroke

Ben's 1st Backstroke race

Some of Kate's New Tricks

2009-06-22T00:06:00.000-07:00

Check out Kate saying "Daddy" and doing her funny dance!

Cool Thunder and Lightning Storm

2009-06-21T23:56:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago we had a crazy thunder and lightning storm. We had already put the kids to bed, but we got them back up to watch it. Ben was especially amazed and had lots of questions. I think they mostly liked getting to sit with dad on the deck after bedtime :)

Heidi's Purple Hearing Aids

2009-06-21T23:42:00.000-07:00

Heidi outgrew her ear molds for her hearing aids so when we went to her appointment to order new ones, she adamantly wanted PURPLE ones. If you know Heidi, you know it is not worth arguing with her about certain things. So we ordered the purple ones and she is very proud of them. She was very excited to show them to everyone, especially Grandma T. She must have asked me ten times on the way home when Grandma could see her new hearing aids. After her appointment we stopped at Noah's to get her a bagel for being so cooperative.

She picked out her outfit for her appointment

Heidi and Kate outside the office

Heidi with her new purple ear molds

and her bagel!

Warriors Last Game & Awards

2009-06-21T23:35:00.000-07:00

The Warriors had a great season. The boys really learned a lot and had a lot of fun. Ben's favorite part of baseball is hitting and being on the same team with his cousin Andrew. He was very excited about his first trophy.

Ben turns 5!!!

2009-06-21T22:52:00.000-07:00

After much deliberation, Ben decided to have a bowling party for his 5th birthday. He invited his cousins and a few of his friends and we had his party at Strikes. It was a fun party!
Ben is a busy 5 year old. Some of his favorite things are fishing, golfing, hanging out with his cousins, hunting for bugs, working with clay (thanks Doug Wylie), going to the park, hitting baseballs, counting his coins, riding his bike and the dumptruck, reading the Bible and doing any kind of work with his dad. He finished his second year of preschool and is ready to start Kindergarten at Sierra Elementary. He played his first year of Tball on the Warriors, is swimming on the Gators and learned how to ride a 2 wheeler recently. He is very helpful with his sisters and around the house. He has a kind heart and is very smart- it is neat to see how he has grown this past year. We are very proud of our boy!
Ben's party crew

Hoping for a strike

TT & Luke

Got a strike!

Heidi really got into bowling

Ben & his bowling cake

Kate saying "Grandpa"

2009-06-21T22:40:00.000-07:00

Happy 1st Birthday Kate!

2009-06-21T22:01:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that Kate is already ONE!!! Her first year has flown by, but she has been so much fun. She is a very happy baby who loves to play, loves her brother and sister, loves to be outside and loves music. She does have a little temper when she gets frustrated (wonder where she got that!) She says, "Daddy, Mommy, doggie, Heidi, ball, and birdie". She signs: water, food, more, all done and play. She's so smart :) She has a beautiful smile and loves to dance, especially when Ben sings for her. She makes us all laugh and I really can't imagine our family without her. Happy Birthday sweet little Kate! We love you!!!

Ben and Heidi were very happy to help Kate open her presents

Cutie Kate

On her birthday we had a picnic at the park

Ben was very proud of himself for climbing the rope

Eating our picnic dinner

Heidi was excited about Kate's princess cake

Grandpa and Grandma joined us at the park

Kate & Allie's 1st Birthday- A Pretty Pink Pony Party!

2009-06-18T21:08:00.000-07:00

Kate and Allie had a very fun Pink Pony Party for their first birthdays. It was a hot day but we still had a great time with our family and friends. Grandma T. and TT (the great party planners) surprised us with a petting zoo and pony rides which the kids really enjoyed. We had a BBQ, pink margaritas, ice cream sandwiches, and of course the birthday girls had cake! Kate was not very excited about her cake, she tried a little, but then wanted to get out of her seat. Allie loved hers and it was so fun to watch her dig in and enjoy it!
Pictures of the first year with Kate and Allie- it went by so FAST!!!

Mom and Heidi

Waiting for the animals to come in

Our family

Kate and Allie really loved the animals. They were really excited!

Allie and Kate wanting to pet the animals

Mom with Heidi on her pony ride

Ben especially enjoyed the animals. Even after most of the kids were in the pool, Ben still wanted to pet the animals and ride the ponies.

Ben in his cowboy hat

Cute little Heidi

Sisters and cousins

TT & Kate with the pony

Dad & Kate

Uncle Dave & Kate

Getting ready for CAKE

Two cute little bugs!

Kate tasting her cake

Allie loved her cake

Kate wasn't so sure about having cake on her hands

Cute Kate

So cute!

I love this picture- Check out Andrew and Luke's darling faces

Heidi and Kate in the sink

Heidi and Stella taking a bath after the big party!

Some Random Pictures from May

2009-05-27T15:12:00.000-07:00

Dad, Ben & Grandpa going golfing

Heidi wants to be on the swim team too

Ben & Heidi in their jammies

Cute little Kate

Heidi's outfit for lunch

Our new gate at the top of the stairs :)

Ben gets the game ball

2009-05-27T14:46:00.000-07:00

At Ben's baseball game on May 8 he won the game ball. He was very excited and proud. We were proud of him too! He is really enjoying baseball and especially likes being on the same team as his cousin Andrew. Heidi and Kate keep themselves busy- Heidi finds all kinds of trouble to get into and Kate sits in her stroller and eats snacks, such a good girl!

Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-27T14:18:00.000-07:00

On Mother's Day, we went to church and then spent the afternoon at Grandpa and Grandma Sherman's house. The kids had a lot of fun swimming with their cousins and we had a nice meal together. In the evening we went to Grandpa and Grandma Nederveld's house for dessert and some more swimming. It was a nice day with my kids and family.
Our attempt at taking a picture before church

Baby Kate wants to go out in the pool

Lucca, Ben and Enzo

Jumping in!

Kate loves the baby pool

Aunt Donna and Kate

Uncle Dave, Enzo and Stella

Little Kate

Ben showing off his muscles

Heidi being silly

PIctures for Mother's Day

2009-05-27T14:07:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Uncle Jesse and TT we got some good pictures taken for Mother's Day. Here are a "few" of my favorites.

Some Random Pictures from the past month

2009-05-26T16:21:00.000-07:00

Baby Kate

Heidi and Ben in the bath

Helping mom give Kate a bath

Heidi in her Belle nightgown

Heidi and Kate playing with the kitchen

Ben's Field Trip to the Train Museum

2009-05-19T21:59:00.000-07:00

Ben and I went down to Old Sac to the Train Museum with Adventure Preschool. Grandma T. so kindly stayed home with "the sisters" as Ben calls them. We had a great time together. Not very many kids from his class went so we Ben and I got to hang out a lot which was nice. Ben really loves to have undivided attention! Afterwards we visited the gift shop and the candy store across the street. We spent 51 cents getting his penny smashed and then ended our date with lunch at Wendy's- his choice :)

Grandpa's 62nd Birthday- April 27, 2009

2009-05-19T21:40:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Grandpa's birthday with a BBQ, squirt gun fight, basketball...all kinds of fun.
Everyone likes to help blow out candles.

Heidi's new princess life jacket

Grandma T and Heidi

Baby Kate

Grandma G and Andrew

Baby Allie

Kate having fun with Grandpa

Allie and Kate

Ben

Heidi

Andrew

Luke

Allie & Kate playing together

Ben and Andrew playing basketball

Kate's 1st Haircut

2009-05-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

Kate has a lot of hair and was starting to grow a mullet. We decided it was time for Aunt TT to give her a little trim. On Grandpa's birthday she got her first haircut in Grandpa & Grandma's kitchen sink. She did pretty well and she looks so cute. Thank you TT!

Our Sweet 11 month old Kate

2009-04-21T21:16:00.000-07:00

Kate turned 11 months old today. I can't believe she is almost a year old already. This month she has really started to crawl quickly and can pull herself up on all the furniture. It has been very cute to see Ben's reaction as she has learned to crawl. He gets so excited the faster she gets. She is trying to say some words like Dad, Mama, Ben, ball, duck, and bath and tries to give big kisses. She has a very sweet disposition, loves people, and is very cuddly. We love her so much!!!

Our Cute Little Monkeys

2009-04-17T00:38:00.000-07:00

I found Kate these super cute Nick & Nora monkey PJ's at a garage sale last weekend. They are so adorable on her. Heidi has monkey jammies too and she wanted to wear them since Kate had hers on. Ben said that Kate looks like a little Grandma T. (she wears the same kind of PJ's). I couldn't resist a few pictures- they looked so cute!!!

Happy Easter

2009-04-17T00:25:00.000-07:00

We went to church in the morning to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and then spent the afternoon at the Nederveld's. Grnadma E., Aunt Emmie, and Uncle Gary were here from Southern Ca and then we had us, my parents, Aunt Jamey, Toni, Jesse, Paul and Kelsey there. The kids enjoyed being the center of attention and Ben was especially excited that he got to play horseshoes with the men. They aslo had a great time in the spa with TT and Uncle Jesse- except Ben, he was kind of grumpy. I was very bad at taking pictures this Easter- I didn't even get a picture of the kids with their Easter baskets or all ready for church! Bummer!
My favorite Ben line from Easter: He pulls a T-shirt out of his Easter basket and is smelling it. "Mom, the Easter Bunny must have got this at the store. Smell it, it smells like Marshalls."
Hope you all had a good Easter! He has risen!
Kate having her Easter lunch

Grandma T. is currently Heidi's favorite person

The guys playing horseshoes

Heidi just wanted to go in the spa

Ben & Heidi with Grandma E.

Kate loved the spa!
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Kate also loves Uncel Jesse

Heidi with her new goggles from the Easter Bunny

Happy 60th Birthday Grandma!

2009-04-17T00:12:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we celebrated Mom's 60th birthday. We had a nice brunch in the morning at our house as well as an egg hunt for the kids since the VandenAkkers were not going to be with us on Easter. The kids loved it- they were so cute running around collecting all the eggs and then opening them all to check out what was inside. My favorite this year was Heidi- she would shake every egg next to her ear before she put it in her bag. She didn't get the concept of quickly finding eggs, but she had fun. That night the adults went to Zocalos downtown for dinner. We had a great time together. On the way home, we stopped at Walmart for some allergy medicine because Mom's birthday wouldn't be complete without a trip to Walmart! It was a nice day celebrating Mom's 60 years. We love her very much and appreciate the wonderful mom and grandma she is!

Mommy Daughter time

2009-04-17T00:02:00.000-07:00

On Monday night of Spring Break, Heidi and I had Mommy Daughter time. We went to look for summer shoes, but didn't find any. We had fun though. We went to the mall and Heidi tried on shoes (one of her favorite things to do), played on both playgrounds, ate at McDonalds, and went to the "Princess Store". She got to pick out something from the Disney Store and as soon as we walked in, she spotted a princess towel and that is what she wanted. She also declared that Ben needed a Power Ranger towel- at least they were on sale! It was really fun to spend one on one time with Heidi- she's a great kid and becoming quite the little lady!

On the way to the mall with mom- "Cheese mommy"

Heidi's first ride on an escalator without a stroller

Heidi with her Happy Meal- notice the boo-boo under her nose where she fell out of a shopping cart at Expo a few days before.

Baseball Game

2009-04-16T23:58:00.000-07:00

Great game! Andrew and Ben both got to play catcher and Andrew hit a triple to receive the game ball! John helped out in the dugout getting the kids ready to bat. Ben loves when "his dad" helps.

Ben rides his 2 wheeler!!!

2009-04-16T23:46:00.000-07:00

On Friday, April 3, John was working out in the front yard and Ben was playing on his 2 wheeler. He's been working on riding without his training wheels a little bit, but on this afternoon he just taught himself how to do it. We are learning that Ben does very well at teaching himself how to do things- much less frustration when no one is watching. He's a very proud 2 wheel rider now and he has even progressed up to his bigger bike. Way to go Ben!!!

Ben's Easter Party

2009-04-16T23:42:00.001-07:00

On April 1, Ben had his preschool Easter party. Heidi, Kate and I went and enjoyed some time hanging out with his class. Ben's favorite part of the class parties is the watermelon- thank you to the parent who always brings it. Mrs. Fritz and Mrs. Suel have been great teachers for Ben this year and he is really thriving.

Our 2 cute girls!

2009-04-16T23:39:00.001-07:00

I got Heidi and Kate matching outfits from Naartjie (one of our favorite stores) and they looked so cute in them, I had to take some pictures. Aren't they sweet?

March 26- Ben's 1st Baseball Game

2009-04-16T23:27:00.000-07:00

The first official baseball game for the Warriors was March 26. The boys did a great job and had a good time. They looked so cute in their uniforms and were very serious about the game. Heidi came to the game with her own fashion statement- her tutu over her jeans and Little Miss Fun T-shirt.

Ben is ready for the ball!

TT and Heidi

Ben up to bat

Sweet little Kate is so good at sitting in her stroller throughout the game

Here's Ben ready to catch a ball. He is really good at being in ready position.

Cute little Heidi watching her brother

The cousins- Ben and Andrew

End of the game cheer

Kate is 10 months old

2009-04-16T23:19:00.000-07:00

Our sweet little Kate was 10 months old March 21! She is a wonderful baby, always so happy. She is crawling all over the place and is pulling herself up on furniture. She loves to eat pretty much anything you put on her tray. She LOVES her family and wants to keep up with her brother and sister. She says, "Da da", "Ma ma" and tries to say "Ben" and "ball". She is such a blessing to our family and we love her so much!!!

Ben's Kindergarten Shots

2009-04-16T23:07:00.001-07:00

Last month (I know it's been awhile since I blogged!) Ben had to go get his physical for Kindergarten including 5 shots!!! We talked about his appointment for a few days to prepare him and I told him that he could pick out a prize after his shots for being brave. And he was VERY brave. I think he actually cried more when I took the bandaids off the next day. Well, for his prize, he wanted a 100 foot tape measure from Home Depot. So after his appointment we went over to Home Depot to get his tape measure and to Honey Treat for Ben's favorite bubblegum ice cream. Our little guy is all ready for kindergarten!!!

On the way to the doctor's office- Oscar and softie came along for support

Waiting for the doctor

Ben's amazing 100 foot tape measure

The wounds

Grandma T. made this for Ben after his shots. She made one for Heidi too, but Heidi ate it before I could take a picture.

A Beautiful View

2009-04-10T00:27:00.000-07:00

We are loving our new house and one of my favorite things about it is having big windows along the back of the house with a nice view. A few weeks ago (since I am really behind on blogging) I was working at the kitchen table and Ben came over to sit by me. He was looking out the window and said, "Look how beautiful the sky is." And it was really cool looking. It had been a cloudy, rainy day and for a few moments the sun peeked through and was lighting up the houses across from us. Ben told me to take a picture to show dad because "he will be really impressed." So of course I did!!!

Ben and Andrew's 1st Unofficial Baseball Game

2009-03-14T17:02:00.000-07:00

Today the Warriors had their first unofficial baseball game. It was a practice game, but the boys took it very seriously. Ben, Andrew and Spencer (Andrew's neighbor) had their own cheering section. Uncle Jesse, TT, Grandpa, Uncle Paul, Kelsey, Aunt Jamey, Sheena (Spencer's mom), Luke, Abagail and I were all there to cheer them on. John had a swim meet and Leslie and Andy are in Colorado with Andy's sister. Grandma T. watched Heidi, Kate and Allie so they didn't have to be out in the cold wind. Grandpa even got to be the 3rd base coach at the end of the game. TT and Uncle Paul got them warmed up- Ben informed me that it would be much better for TT to help them get ready for the game since I don't know how to throw very well!
I have to say the game was more intense than I thought it would be, at least for the cheering section. We realized there's quite a differnce between 4 and 6 year olds on the baseball field. The boys did awesome though! They hit the ball well, figured out how the game works, mostly, and really hustled to get the ball. It's pretty entertaining to watch a herd of little guys all chasing a baseball and then dog piling to get it. Ben did get a few minor injuries trying to get the ball, but I was very proud of him because he was very brave and kept trying. He finally got the ball one time and ran to home plate with it. He was just standing there while the rest of the team was running back to the dugout and we couldn't figure out what he was doing. I asked him why he was just standing there and apparently he thought that when he got the ball, it was his turn to bat, so he was waiting at home plate. He was a little confused, but he figured it out. I loved watching Andrew go up to bat- every time he ran out there with so much excitement and couldn't wait to hit the ball. He made some good catches today too and threw it to first base.
Next Saturday is Opening Day so it will be the first official game. We don't know who won the practice game, but according to Ben, him and Andrew were the winners. He told me in the car, "I'm glad me and Andrew are on the same team so we can protect each other from the big bad boys." I tried to explain that none of the boys are bad, they're all just trying their best....he didn't really want to hear my explanation so I just told him to do his best and have fun. We'll see how the next game goes- it definitely will be a fun season!
Ben, Andrew and Spencer getting ready for the game

The baseball players with Uncle Paul and Kelsey

TT and Uncle Paul helping the boys warm up in their flip flops

Ben getting ready for his first turn to bat

Ben's first hit

Andrew's first hit

Ben and Coach Mark in the field

Andrew in the field

Ben's second bat

Waiting to run to 2nd base

Andrew's second bat

Ben and Andrew love to run around the bases

Ben and Andrew fielding- they were very serious about this.

Some instruction form the coach- Can you guess who kept getting the ball?

Andrew is ready for the ball!

Ben waiting for the ball

I love this action shot of Andrew- he was going for it

Ben got stepped on in the dog pile and hurt his leg. He was being very brave, but a hug from TT helped!

Team cheer

And the high 5's for the other team

A Dancer and A Swimmer

2009-03-12T22:37:00.000-07:00

This week Heidi had her first dance lesson at Maidu Community Center. She was a little apprehensive at first, but after a few songs, she was having fun. She did want to do her own thing though as you can see from the pictures. She was very cute in her little leotard and tights and when it was over, she wanted to have "more dance class."

Getting ready for dance class

Ready to go.

She's such a cutie!

Sitting in the chairs by Mom and Kate

Here she is about to run off

She did not want to sit on the parachute with all the other dancers

Today was Ben's first day of the PAC swim clinic. He had a great time and was especially excited about his new Speedo. He is very proud of it- he thinks it makes him look really strong and swim really fast. He hadn't swam since last summer, but jumped right in and had fun. His goal is to be able to swim all the way across the pool so he can be on the Gators this summer!

Here he is in his new Speedo- so handsome!

He looks so grown up!

Just Some Cute Pictures

2009-03-12T22:32:00.000-07:00

A Great Teacher

2009-03-09T23:07:00.000-07:00

Ben loves to teach Heidi things, actually most of the time it's more like bossing her around. But this time he was giving her a demonstration. Heidi has been showing some interest in being potty trained so we have been putting her on the potty when she tells us she needs to go. She has been successful a few times, but gets quite upset and scared. Ben went in there to sit with her the other day and she stopped crying. Then a few minutes later I heard them laughing and knew they were up to something. I peaked around the corner and saw Ben showing Heidi how to wipe. Although he forgot to tell her how much paper was necessary, he did tell her to flush after 3 wipes so even though there wasn't much paper left on the roll, at least we didn't have a plugged toilet. Oh and he also taught her that she should get undressed to use the toilet because that's what he does.

A Beauitiful Rainbow

2009-03-09T23:02:00.000-07:00

The other day we had a break in the rain and the sun peaked out for awhile. I was working at the kitchen table and looked out the window to see a beautiful rainbow. From our deck, you could see the whole thing. Ben ran out to see it and was so excited because he had never seen a real rainbow before. He must have said 15 times, "I can't believe I saw a real rainbow. It's so pretty."

The Bachelor Finale!

2009-03-09T22:56:00.000-07:00

The girls got together last Monday night to watch the Bachelor finale. Notice how we strategically placed a picture of Jason in the background. Toni and Jesse brought over their margarita machine and made us delicious margaritas to enjoy during the "most dramatic ending in Bachelor history". I'm glad we got to share the "historic" moment together. Thanks girls!

Front Yard Fishing

2009-03-09T22:51:00.001-07:00

One of Ben and Heidi's favorite things to do outside is play with their fishing poles. Ben is trying very hard to teach her how to cast, but she really just likes to do her own thing. He eventually gets frustrated and casts it for her so she can reel it in. He keeps telling her that if she practices enough she'll be really good like he is- I don't think she really cares.

My Little Laundry Helper

2009-02-25T10:56:00.000-08:00

Ben's 1st baseball practice

2009-02-25T10:51:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, Ben had his first baseball practice for his T-ball team, the Warriors. He had so much fun. John took him and then took him to get his baseball shoes and pants afterwards. Ben was very excited and is very proud of his new shoes that he got with Dad. We are looking forward to the first sports season! I can't believe he's already playing T-Ball!!!

Kate's 1st golf lesson from Ben

2009-02-25T10:42:00.000-08:00

This morning Ben brought in all of his golf clubs and a few golf balls to teach Kate all about golf. He told her what each club is called and what it is used for. Kate was most interested in how everything tasted- yuk! As he was showing her the golf balls he found Friday, he says to me, "Mom, I think she is really impressed with all of this." Then he tells her, "Kate when you get a little bigger like me, you can have your own golf clubs." Kate can't wait!!!

Who we'll see in heaven

2009-02-24T15:33:00.000-08:00

Today on the way to school, Ben started asking questions about heaven. He asked when different people were going to die and I told him that only God knows when we'll die. He sat there thinking for a minute and then said to Heidi, "You what will be great Heidi? We'll even get to see David in heaven." Heidi just gave him a blank stare. "Come on Heidi, you know David, he killed Goliath, you remember! He'll be in heaven because he loved God, but not Goliath!"

Sherman Family Dinner

2009-02-23T10:11:00.000-08:00

Uncle Dave has been in town for a few days and we've had fun hanging out with him. Yesterday, we all got together for lunch after church. The boys played downstairs for hours and had so much fun in the bounce house and watching a movie. Heidi and Kate took naps, but when they woke up, it was so cute to see all three girls together. We couldn't believe that only a few years ago it was the three boys like that, and now they're getting so big! We are very blessed to have great family and cousins close in age.

Kate and Stella- They're almost the same size! Aren't they cute?!

Heidi didn't really want to participate in the pictures

Aunt Donna & Heidi

Enzo, Ben and Lucca- Even though it's 60 degrees downstairs, they get hot playing and like to run around in their undies!

Heidi's picks out her own clothes

2009-02-23T09:55:00.000-08:00

The other day, Heidi wanted to pick out her own clothes while Ben was at school. This is her masterpiece. I especially like that she picked Ben's crocs to wear.

A few hours later, this was her clothing choice.

Kate is 9 months old!

2009-02-23T09:45:00.000-08:00

Kate turned 9 months old on Saturday. She is growing so much and is very happy. She has her two bottom teeth, and we are waiting for her top two to pop through any day. Even though she is teething, she's still pretty content. Things Kate loves these days: watching Ben and Heidi, eating (she even eats vegetable baby food with enthusiasm), playing in her exersaucer, watching Praise Baby and Baby Einstein, playing with a tub of toys on the floor, Cheerios and Puffs, giving hugs, taking baths and going for walks outside. She says, "Da, da" and makes "n" and "b" sounds. We're working on "Ma, ma" but she really likes to say "Da, da, da". She is just starting to crawl by scooting herself across the floor on her tummy. She is a very sweet baby girl! We love her so much!

Mega Block fun :)

2009-02-12T23:04:00.000-08:00

Ben and Heidi love to build with Mega Blocks and the other night Ben wanted to take pictures of all the buildings we built. I am not going to post the 15 pictures he took of the buildings, except for this one that I took of him with the building he made for Enzo's birthday. He wanted to send it to him, but we just took a picture instead. He's such a cute kid!

Ben and his cheesy smile

Mom and Heidi

Our JCPenny Pictures

2009-02-12T22:07:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday we took the kids to Penny's to get their pictures taken. Kate and Ben were very cooperative, and Heidi was a little bit more difficult. She did not want to wear her clothes because Kate was in her diaper so she thought she should be too, she wanted to have the stuffed Elmo doll in the pictures, and she was very stingy with her smiles. Oh, our Heidi is definitely her own person, but we love her!!! We did get a few decent pictures of all three kids though and lots of cute ones of little Kate.

Heidi's Current Phase.....wearing Ben's clothes!

2009-02-12T21:47:00.000-08:00

This week Heidi likes to wear Ben's clothes, from head to toe. The past two days, she has had a full meltdown when I wouldn't let her leave the house in Ben's shorts and T-shirt. It is pretty funny because she goes into Ben's room fully clothed in her cute outfit and comes out fully clothed as a boy, including Ben's undies. Then she tells me, "I boy like Benny." It's amazing because she can get all her clothes off and new clothes on all by herself. Today I had to take a picture of her- I was cracking up because she had his shoes on the wrong feet and the shorts totally crooked. The worst part is that I have lots of extra laundry- she is so well trained to put her clothes in the hamper, and she does every time she changes!

Here's Heidi looking more feminine with a cute new haircut from TT.

My interesting conversation with Ben

2009-01-25T00:16:00.000-08:00

Ben never ceases to surprise me with the things he says. Today he got up during his "nap" and had to use the potty. He was using the bathroom off the kitchen and I was making a cake in the kitchen when he says,

"Mom, did you know that I can hear Jesus talking to me all the time?"
"Really Ben, what does he say to you?"
"Oh, he says all kinds of things."
"How do you know it's Jesus? What does his voice sound like?"
"I know it's him because I hear him talk to me in my head."
"So what's something he's talked to you about?"
"Well, today, he told me not to eat fruit snacks anymore because they make my tummy hurt."

He went on to talk about something else and mid-sentence he stops and says, "Wait, Jesus is telling me something right now."
"What's he saying?"
"Oh, he's just talking about those fruit snacks again."

That kid makes me laugh!

Family Day at the river

2009-01-24T23:44:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, we took the kids up to Auburn to play by the river. We stopped at Venita Rhea's, our favorite breakfast place, on the way and then found a spot to park and hike down to the river. Sometimes we don't think ahead too well on these adventures and this was one of those times. We brought the stroller for Kate and had to carefully hike down a big hill with it to get down to the water. People watching probably thought we were crazy pushing a stroller down a hiking path, but Kate thought it was great fun. On the way back up, I carried Kate and Heidi rode in the stroller while John dragged it behind him like a sled since the wheels wouldn't even turn in the rocks. The kids had fun throwing rocks and casting their fishing poles. They just love to be outside and the weather was so beautiful. Heidi was quite adventuresome in the water. Good thing she was wearing her boots because she just wanted to stomp around in the water. She did fall down though and was not happy about getting wet. She solved the problem by taking off her clothes and just wearing her onesie and boots. Ben and John threw lots of rocks and Ben worked on learning to skip rocks. John also took Kate on a hike over to the waterfalls which made me very nervous. She liked it though! It was such a nice day to get some fresh air and enjoy God's beautiful creation.

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Bubble Bath by Dad

2009-01-24T23:37:00.000-08:00

John gave the kids a real bubble bath the other night. I think he used 3/4 of the bottle of bubble bath and the kids had a great time. They were just so excited and were laughing the whole time. They made Heidi a princess dress out of bubbles and Ben big Power Ranger muscles. We were all laughing. Great job Dad!

Ben, Heidi & Kate

2009-01-24T23:31:00.001-08:00

Here are some random pictures I took of the kids being cute. It is really neat to see how both Ben and Heidi are with Kate. They love her so much. In the mornings Kate and Ben sit together on the couch and watch cartoon while he feeds her Puffs. Heidi likes to help with Kate. She brings her toys, burp cloths, and gets her diaper and wipes all ready for me when it's time to change her. And of course, Kate loves all the attention. We are so blessed!

Date Night

2009-01-24T23:27:00.000-08:00

A couple of weekends ago, my sweet sister offered to watch the kids for us for an evening while we went out on a date. She even did my hair and makeup for me before we left which is always so nice. We went to Mikuni and to see a movie. It was so great to have a conversation over dinner and go to a movie together. The kids had so much fun with TT too. When we got home, her and Ben were cuddling on the couch. TT- thank you, thank you, thank you! You're awesome!

Kate's Baths in the sink

2009-01-24T23:23:00.000-08:00

Kate loves to take baths in the kitchen sink now that she can sit up. She will sit in there for close to an hour and play in the water. I can do the dishes in the other half of the sink while she is taking her bath. Great way to multitask :)

Kate's 1st Bath in the BIG tub!

2009-01-24T23:16:00.000-08:00

On January 4, 2009, Kate had her first bath in the big bathtub with her sister and brother. She was so excited! She laughed the whole time at Ben and Heidi slapping their washcloths in the water. All of our kids love to take baths and it's fun to see them all in there together having fun. Now Ben is even able to get Heidi ready and in the bath without our help; I was surprised the first night I went down to start the water for them and they were already in the bubble bath!

Weekend with TT & Jesse

2009-01-24T23:09:00.001-08:00

We had some fun family times together before Jesse had to fly back to Nashville. We went sledding (except Mom, Heidi and Kate) and spent Sunday afternoon at Grandpa & Grandma's house. We had lunch and then the kids (big & small) did a rock painting craft Aunt Jamey brought over. It is so great to have TT back home and we can't wait for Jesse to get here too!

TT & Jesse's Christmas

2009-01-18T16:59:00.001-08:00

We really missed having TT and Jesse here for Christmas, but when we got home from Seal Beach, they came over to give the kids their gifts. They are always so thoughtful and got the kids such great gifts that they love. The biggest gift though is that they are moving here! We are so excited to have them in CA!!!

Trip to Seal Beach for Gram's 90th Birthday

2009-01-18T13:31:00.000-08:00

On Sunday night, December 28, we made the trek down highway 5 to Seal Beach. We were there for two days to celebrate Grandma’s 90th birthday. Ben & Heidi had a great time at the beach and playing with their cousins and Jack and Frank, On Tuesday we spent the day together to honor Grandma’s birthday- we had a big Bingo game, ate, played with the kids and ended the evening with a beautiful gondola ride through Naples (a Venice experience Long Beach style) to see the Christmas lights. Happy Birthday Grams. We love you!!!

Grams with grandkids and great-grandkids

Jack & Baby Allie- Jack and Frank are so awesome with the little ones; we wish they lived closer!

Frank and Heidi

Ban & Heidi by Grandma's rotating tree

Katelyn and Kate

Heidi posing with her tatoo

We celebrated Luke's 3rd birthday while we were there too.

Uncle Paul and Ben

Ben was totally into the BINGO game. He and Katelyn won lots of prizes.

Uncle Paul and Luke calling the BINGO numbers

Ben playing with Uncle Jesse and TT

Some serious BINGO

Heidi, Grandma T. and Aunt Jamey ready for the gondola ride

Grams with all her Great-Grandkids

Jenell, John and Baby Kate

My Long, Lost Friends!

2009-01-02T22:48:00.000-08:00

On Sunday afternoon, two of my dear friends from high school, Jenn and Alexa, came over for lunch. Alexa's husband, Chad and Jenn's fiance, Paul, joined us as well as Jenn's mom, Janet. We had a nice time catching up and telling stories. It doesn’t really matter how long it’s been between visits, we always enjoy catching up with each other! Thanks for the lovely afternoon girls!

Heidi and her gifts

2009-01-02T22:43:00.000-08:00

Heidi enjoying her gift that already broke and has been returned. Her boom box was very cute, but broke soon after it was opened. She loves her Pretty Pony from Aunt Jamey that she is hugging in this picture. It’s funny because the pony is named “Pinkie Pie”, but she calls it “Stanky Pie” and Ben just cracks up!

Our Three Christmases of 2008

2009-01-02T21:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas was definitely exciting this year! We are so blessed to have wonderful family to share the holidays with.

Christmas #3
Grandpa & Grandma Sherman and the Fashano's came over on Christmas afternoon for Christmas #3. The boys all got Storm Trooper helmets and dart guns from Grandpa & Grandma, which entertained them for the rest of the day. They also had a great time playing in the bounce house in their undies. We looked down there and saw all of them stripped down to their undies. They claimed to be too hot from all their exercise. They also made up a move called “Grandpa Georgie” that they were doing in the bounce house. Whatever it was must have been funny because they did it over and over again. They had so much fun together and they get along so well. We had an amazing “Thanksgiving” dinner which Grandpa & Grandma Nederveld and Uncle Paul joined us for. Then we just had a relaxing time hanging out.

Ben, Enzo & Lucca

Enzo & Ben opening their gifts

Enzo & Ben trying out their new gifts

Christmas #2
Christmas morning we had a Christmas time with our family- the kids opened their Santa gifts and a few from Dad & Mom. Ben got the fishing pole he had been hoping for and Heidi got her Barbie fishing pole that she was brainwashed into wanting by her brother, the fisherman. Heidi was so cute because before she opened her Santa presents, she found Kate’s and opened them one by one and showed each one to her. She would say, “Look Baby Kate, you like this!” It was very sweet. She also got very excited about every present she opened and would oooh and aaah over it. She is a funny little character. Ben got up first and checked everything out. He came running in our room, right next to my sleeping self and told me, “Mom, you even got something in your stocking and so did Dad. Dad, you got a new shirt!” He ran back and forth a few times reporting on everything from how much Santa ate to what he thought was in each package. He was a little worried because John took apart his fishing pole to wrap it so he was searching for something the right size. He was very excited when he opened it! Tricky Santa wrapped the reel in a separate package so when he opened the pole he said, “Don’t worry Dad, we can go buy a reel at Wal-Mart”, then when he opened it, he said, “Well, I guess we don’t have to get one at Wal-Mart. Santa already got it!”

Kate, Ben & Heidi on Christmas morning

Heidi and Dad

Kate was excited about her stocking

Heidi

Ben

He got his fishing pole!

Ben and his globe

Heidi and her boom box (already broke)

Dad helping Heidi with her Barbie fishing pole

Christmas #1
We started our Christmas celebration with a day with the Nedervelds. We met at an old folks home in the morning where the kids passed out cards, cookies and bead necklaces that they made to the residents there. We weren’t there very long, but I think it was worth it to see the joy on most of their faces when they realized people came to visit them. When we got there, they were all in a room “watching” a movie, and most of them were sleeping. Once the kids started passing out their little gifts, most of them woke up and were excited to see them. One little lady started to cry when Ben gave her a necklace. Ben was so cute passing out necklaces to each person and giving them hugs. The day before, he spent 4 hours making the necklaces because he wanted to make sure he had enough. He even made special ones for the men with “man colors”. It made me realize how easy it is to do things like that and wonder why we don’t do them more often! After that we went back to Grandpa & Grandma’s house to eat, open some gifts and hang out together. We went to Christmas Eve service at Adventure together and then headed home to put tired kids to bed! About 10 minutes after we out Ben to bed, he was calling for us. John went down to check on him and he said, “Dad, I’ve been thinking about this and you better leave e the front door unlocked for Santa because we have glass over our fireplace and he won’t be able to get through.” John assured him that he would make sure Santa could get in. Later I was walking by his room, he wanted to know if Santa would check out the fireplace so he wouldn’t get stuck and reminded me to unlock the front door. Luckily Santa made it in!

And a Ben line- his comment about the very burnt Chocolate Rum Cake I pulled out of the oven… "Mom, you better make a better birthday cake for Jesus than that!” And I did!
We are so thankful for all of our blessings and for the great gift of Jesus this Christmas season.

Big Brother Ben

2009-01-02T16:45:00.000-08:00

Ben is really a loving brother to his two sisters. He especially likes to help out with Kate- she just loves him and thinks he’s so funny. The other morning John taught him how to feed her cereal and this is what I saw when I got home from the gym in the morning. It was so cute!

Grandma & Baby Girls

2009-01-02T16:40:00.000-08:00

Just a cute picture of mom with Allie & Kate. They’re so sweet!

Life Group Party

2009-01-02T16:38:00.000-08:00

We have a great group of couples that we meet with every other Wednesday night at church. It was really neat to get to know everyone better this fall and share our stories as we worked through a book learning to “do life together”. We had a fun end of the book/Christmas party at our house with four other families. Our house was full of friends, lots of kids, 13 to be exact, and yummy food. The kids had a great time in the bounce house, which is still set up in the downstairs, and watching a movie while the adults ate and chatted upstairs. We look forward to doing that again soon!

Cute Kate- 7 months old

2009-01-02T16:27:00.000-08:00

Kate is such a little cutie and has such a delightful personality. She now has 2 bottom teeth and is working on some top ones. She loves to eat and has nice chubby legs! She can sit up on her own now and only falls over once in awhile. She is very loved!

Ben's Christmas Program- Joy to the World

2009-01-02T16:13:00.000-08:00

Ben’s Christmas program was quite something this year. There were over 250 three and four year olds on the stage with angel halos and red flags including his cousin Andrew. Ben did great up on stage singing all the songs and doing the motions. He was very serious about being on stage. He is such a little man! We are very proud of him.

Ready to go!

Here's Ben waiting by his friend Jameson to walk up to the stage

Heidi and Aunt Jamey watching the show

Ben and his red flag

Ben, Andrew and Luke- so handsome!

Heidi and the boys

After the program Ben got to go to Chick Filet with his two grandpas. What a treat!

Heidi's PCOE Christmas Party

2008-12-10T14:48:00.000-08:00

Today we went to the Placer County Office of Education's annual Christmas Party. There were lots of kids there this year and Ben and Heidi had a good time participating in the activities and talking to Santa. Last year Ben would not get within 10 feet of him and this year he kept asking me to go back and talk to him some more. Heidi stared at Santa for a long time and then decided it would be okay to stand a little closer as long as she was next to Ben. Heidi's favorite part was the snack table and kept going back to fill up her cup with more Pirate's Booty. There was a little boy Heidi was playing with who also had in hearing aids and Heidi kept asking him, "Those Heidi's hearing aids?" I don't think he understood what she was asking, but it was good for her to see other kids wearing them. It's a really neat get together because there are toddlers with all kinds of disabilities and the kids don't even care; I wish they could stay that non-judgemental and innocent forever!

We have GRASS!!!!

2008-12-09T16:43:00.000-08:00

Last weekend John made great progress on our yard project with the help of our dads and Phil to whom we are very grateful! On Friday, John came home from school and finished the irrigation before Luke's birthday party. He told me that we would have grass by the next day and I thought, "Yeah, right!" But we did! He cleaned all the Home Depots in the area out of sod and even drove up to Lincoln Saturday night after we got our Christmas tree to get the last rolls and then carried them all down the steps so he could finish in the morning. It looks great!!!

Costco Christmas Tree

2008-12-09T16:32:00.000-08:00

Saturday was a very busy day! After a long day of yard work (for John), we went to Costco to get our Christmas tree. Grandpa and Grandma came with us which was great because it was really busy and it was nice to have some spare hands and eyes! Most of the trees were still wrapped so of course I made John unwrap one and then we ended up with one that was already open. The best part was that Ben got to help wrap it up! It's still in the garage and hopefully it'll make it in the house tonight, or maybe tomorrow!

Sweet Heidi

2008-12-09T16:21:00.000-08:00

Heidi loves her babies and stuffed animals and is always very busy with them. She cooks for them, changes their diapers (with lots of Kate's wipes), feeds them bottles, puts them in Kate's swing tucked in with blankets and a bottle, puts them to bed, takes them on walks and talks to them constantly. She entertains herself well, and it is so fun to watch her play and see her pretend play developing.

Santa visits our neighborhood

2008-12-09T15:24:00.001-08:00

Waiting for Santa on the firetruck

Ben was telling Heidi that she should get some lists ready to give to Santa

Ben patiently waiting

Heidi climbing up and down the stairs

Santa's finally here!!!

It is amazing to me that Christmas is already here! I was reminded last Monday when Santa visited our neighborhood in a firetruck. Our sweet neighbor down the street called around 6:30 to let us know that he would be coming sometime before 8. Ben and Heidi were so excited! We got them bathed and in their Christmas jammies, of course, and Ben even dug his Santa hat out of his closet. Had I known it would really be 8 by the time he made it to our street, I would have waited to tell them because Ben waited by the front window or outside the whole time! He insisted on waiting outside for awhile because he was afraid we wouldn't be able to hear him from in the house. Heidi must have climbed up and down the front steps 50 times while we were waiting. I finally made them come back inside because it was freezing. We cracked the windows so we would be able to hear the music. Ben had his lists in his hand the whole time to give to Santa, but unfortunately he was in a sleigh on top of the truck and did not come down, so we just got to wave. He was a little disappointed after all that waiting, but I assured him we could send the lists to Santa. Heidi was really mostly excited about her Santa jammies!

Ben learns to PUMP the swing!

2008-12-09T14:55:00.001-08:00

We have been working with Ben for over a year to teach him how to pump himself on the swing. He usually gets really frustrated and upset, but on Sunday when we were at Allie's dedication party, Ben hopped on the swing and started pumping himself! Way to go Ben!

Allie

2008-12-09T14:55:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-29T23:52:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to our family and friends. We hope that you had a relaxing day and time to reflect on the blessings in your life. We spent a great day with family starting with Run to Feed the Hungry, followed by rest at home and dinner at Grandpa & Grandma's house. We missed our family who were elsewhere this year! We are so thankful for the love in our family and the opportunity to continually see God working in our lives. We had a crazy, busy year, but it is hard to complain when I reflect on how truly blessed we are. We have healthy, beautiful children, loving family on both sides who adore our children, great friends, a neat group of people who we have grown close to at church, a wonderful new home in a great neighborhood, jobs that we enjoy, the list goes on and on.... Our lives are full and I am thankful for that!

Grandpa & Grandma's beautiful table

Uncle Mario and the girls playing the piano

Heidi-pop

Kate eating her Thanksgiving sweet potatoes

I didn't get a picture of Ben, but he spent most of the evening outside with Uncle Paul looking at fishing stuff and learning how to cast Uncle Paul's pole. We all had to go out to watch his new skill. Heidi was excited for him and after a good cast, said, "No way Ben!" She's started saying some funny things!

Thanksgiving Run to Feed the Hungry

2008-11-29T16:21:00.000-08:00

Aunt Jamey was the organizer and got us all signed up to participate in Run to Feed the
Hungry this year. There were over 26,000 people in the "race" !!! All of us walked with the strollers except Aunt Vanessa- she ran the 10K! Way to go! It took the strollers 1hour50minutes to finish. We had a good time together and the kids did great considering we woke them all up early . Thanks for getting us all signed up Aunt Jamey! It was a fun way to start our Thanksgiving day!

Our whole group

Ben in his shirt ready for the race. He decided that Uncle Paul would win because he's so fast :) He changed his mind during the race and declared that Aunt Vanessa was the winner!

Jack, Frank & Vanessa

Our family getting ready at the starting line. Thanks for letting us borrow your fancy stroller VandenAkkers- it was great! Heidi was very excited to sit in Lukey's seat and eat snacks.

Baby Kate all bundled up

It was a little early for Heidi

Paul & Kelsey

Ben & Dad

Grandma & Grandpa

If you look really closely you can see Grandpa sprinting up to find the owners of a lost stuffed dog- he found them and saved the day!

Ben with his hero Uncle Paul & Kelsey

Check out all those people!

Heidi got a little antsy in the stroller

And then Baby Kate wanted out too

Ben rode part of the time when his legs got tired

Children's Discovery Museum Day Trip

2008-11-29T15:13:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday we took a family day trip to San Jose to visit the Children's Discovery Museum. The museum was awesome! The kids had so much fun; there are so many things for them to play with and explore. We were there for about 3 hours and we covered a lot, but could easily spend some more time there. The water area was by far the favorite! Afterwards we ate a yummy Mexican dinner, and it was a nice surprise when we got to the restaurant because Tuesday was kids eat free night! We decided that next time we'll make an overnight trip out of it so we don't have to do so much driving in one day with kids who don't like to sleep in the car:)
Dad and the kiddos outside of the museum

Heidi loved this display where the balls floated above the air

There was this really cool wall that was covered in little pegs about the size of light brite pieces. Kids can stand on both sides of it and push on the pieces to make handprints. Ben kept going back to it and playing some more.

Heidi playing with a jumbo sized puzzle

This display had a video playing on how columns are designed and made and two posts with a bunch of pieces to try building your own. Heidi worked on it for a long time.

Dad and Ben working on something with circles

Baby Kate was a good sport riding around in her stroller

This was in the circle display also. There was two carts- one with wheels and one with a sled bottom. The kids could pull on the ropes to move them to see which one was easier.

Dad and the kids are sitting in a dome with a clear top that showed different kinds of rain

Heidi liked the art area

Ben & Heidi in the grocery truck

The bubble area had different tools for making bubbles. They especially liked this one with hoses that blew out air to make bubbles.

All of these pictures are in the water area which was by far the favorite. There was an area for bigger kids and another for toddlers. Ben and Heidi both LOVED it. It was the last area we visited and it was hard to get them to leave.

Thanksgiving with the Shermans

2008-11-29T15:07:00.000-08:00

On Sunday before Thanksgiving we went over to Grandpa & Grandma Sherman's house to have a pre-Thanksgiving celebration since we were all going to be apart on the real day. It was such a nice, relaxing day with good food and family we love. The boys always have a lot of fun together. Here they are watching a movie on Grandpa & Grandma's big bed! Thanks Grandpa & Grandma for a fun day and a yummy meal:)
Enzo, Ben & Lucca

More Pictures of Kate (in Allie's Cowgirl Accessories)

2008-11-23T19:26:00.000-08:00

She's Cute, She's Sweet, She's Happy & She's 6 months old!

2008-11-21T22:46:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Kate is 6 months old today! She has already brought so much love and joy to our family. She has a smile for everyone, lots of laughs for her brother Ben, is Heidi's real live baby doll, loves to cuddle Mom and enjoys watching football with Dad. She has started eating baby food and loves it! She has a very pleasant disposition and is very patient. She has found her voice though, and although she is usually quiet, when she is hungry or tired, she can let out some loud screams. I can't believe she has already been here for 6 months; I can't imagine our family without her. We all love her so much! Happy 6 months baby girl :)

Playing with Dad

2008-11-21T22:39:00.000-08:00

Heidi loves to wrestle with Dad and takes full advantage of having him to herself when Ben is not around. Tonight when Ben was taking his shower, Heidi had fun playing with Dad. I interrupted their fun with my camera :)

More work on the yard!

2008-11-15T21:43:00.000-08:00

Today John and Ben continued our landscaping project. They went golfing early this morning and then spent the rest of the daylight working in the yard. Today was the day to use the "tiller" as Ben calls it. John taught him how to use it, and the kid was in heaven. He is going to be so bored with the yard when it gets finished- he is loving the process. And it is a process. They have been working so hard out there. Actually, as I am typing this at 9:45 Saturday night, John is still out there with the flood lights on. Our neighbors probably think we're crazy, but I am thankful to have such a hard working and talented husband who is able to do so many things to improve our home, and it is fun to see Ben learning so much from him.

Haircuts from TT

2008-11-15T21:28:00.000-08:00

TT is the best at doing hair, so when she is home she gets us all fixed up! She cut Ben & Heidi's hair and cut and colored my hair. THANK YOU so much TT! Heidi's hair looks so much better and I love my new dark, short hair! We really appreciate you doing that for us!

Heidi sat very still for TT and Ben was the photographer since I was rinsing my hair. I think he took about 30+ pictures of Heidi getting her hair cut. There were some interesting angles, but he did get some good shots!

Ben getting a trim- his hair wasn't very long, but he insisted on getting a haircut from TT

Heidi looks so cute with her new style :)

The Fountains with TT

2008-11-15T21:12:00.000-08:00

We were so excited that TT could be here for the weekend! We really miss her and love to spend time with her when she comes home to visit. The kids get so excited to see her and think she's the best. On Sunday when the girls got back from Napa, we all went to the Fountains. The Fountains is a new shopping center in Roseville that has many water fountains- our favorite is the huge one in the middle that plays music and has dancing water. There is also a playground, Big Spoon and Gelato- what more do you need? Here are some pictures from our fun evening.

TT with the kiddos

The boys watching the water- Luke looks like he's enjoying his dessert!

TT & Heidi in the mist

Everyone squeezed on the grasshopper

Heidi likes this ladybug toy

TT & Heidi on the slide. Heidi has become a little unsure if going down big slides by herself.

Napa Trip

2008-11-15T20:53:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went on a ladies weekend to Napa for Aunt Jamey's 50th birthday surprise trip. Leslie, Toni, Kate, Allie and I met my Mom, Grandma, Aunt Emmie, Katelyn, Aunt Jamey and her friends from Southern California in Napa on Saturday morning. We toured three wineries, did some wine tasting and had a nice picnic lunch. We stayed overnight and had fun hanging out together. Kate and Allie did great on their first wine tasting trip, although one tour guide (who was not very nice) wanted to check their IDs because he thought we were a sting operation. Overall it was a very nice weekend celebrating Aunt Jamey's birthday!

A New Look for Snow White

2008-11-05T16:19:00.000-08:00

Heidi is a very creative dresser when she has the choice. She insisted that she needed to wear her pink hat with the Snow White dress. This was after she had on a baseball cap backwards with the dress; I missed that picture though. She definitely has a mind of her own!

Ben's Bird Friends

2008-11-05T15:50:00.000-08:00

Grandma got Ben a bird feeder from Walmart awhile ago after he had been begging me for birdseed. He kept trying to put different food on the deck to attract the birds, which obviously did not work. We've had this bird feeder now for awhile and the first time we filled it a few birds came once in awhile until Heidi spilled the whole thing all over the deck. Yesterday when Grandma was taking care of the kids, she refilled it for Ben. Today while he was eating lunch, birds just kept coming and eating the seed. At one time, I think there were about 20 birds pecking at food on the deck, since the first ones threw the seed from the feeder all over the place. Ben was soooo excited, he just kept giggling and telling me I had to come look. He decided if they like seed so much, they would probably love some of his carrots, so he put some out there. He also put his fly swatter from Cafe Loveless on the railing so when they step on it, it will flip them. When they would fly away, he would say, "Another one fell off the deck!" I reminded him that they could fly and he responded, "I know they can fly Mom! It just LOOKS like they are falling off." Silly me. He even named some of the birds, of course the first one was named "Andrew". My favorite part of the whole ordeal was when he said, "Wait until Heidi gets up from her nap and I show her this. She is going to be very impressed!" That kid's vocabulary is something else!

Boys & Mud

2008-11-01T23:17:00.000-07:00

Today was a rainy day, but that did not stop the guys from working in the yard. It was wet and muddy out there, but they worked hard shoveling dirt over the back fence. Ben was dying in the house because he wanted to be out there with the guys. He must have got out of his rest 20 times "just checking on Dad" and giving me many other excuses. I finally gave in, bundled him up and sent him out. The best part was that he wore Heidi's pink polka dot rain boots from a garage sale because his croc boots are too small. He started to give me a hard time about it, but I told him if he didn't have boots on he would have to stay inside. Shows you how much he wanted to be out there, he wore the pink boots! He had a blast and was covered in mud. I went out to take some pictures and he was up to his knees in mud. They had to hose off before coming in the garage. Thanks to our Dads for helping John today in the wonderful conditions- you're the best!

Halloween

2008-11-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

We spent Halloween at Andrew, Luke & Allie's house with our family and their neighbors. When I mentioned maybe celebrating Halloween with our new neighbors, Ben looked at me like I was crazy and said, "We always have Halloween at Andrew's house, we have to go there!" So we did, and the kids had so much fun. Ben was a red Power Ranger and this year he and Andrew were totally into Trick-or-Treating and RAN from house to house. Ben was worried all day that it would be raining, but there was a nice little break in the rain. Partway through, it started to drizzle and Heidi was ready to go back. She does not like getting rained on. She was a princess this year and was so cute in her pink dress and crown, although soon after she got out of the car, she broke her wand. Baby Kate had 2 costumes. She was a ladybug, but because it was a bulky costume, we took Heidi's cowgirl costume for her to wear too. Leslie had their house set up so cute for the kids. She had the front room full of fun activities for the kids and they really played so well together. Grandma T and Grandma E made yummy homemade donuts for us and of course we had lots of other food. Everyone had a good time and on the way home Ben asked, "Dad, how much longer until the next Halloween?"

Luke, Spencer, Abigial, Andrew, Ben & Heidi

Ben & Heidi with her broken wand

Baby Kate, the cutest Ladybug ever

Grandma T, Heidi & Grandma E

Allie & Kate's first Halloween

Me & Baby Kate

The whole crew ready to Trick-or-Treat

It was a big group of trick-or-treaters

Dad & Baby Kate

Grandpa helping Heidi

At one house they were handing out Dorritos and Heidi had to snack on them along the way

Aunt Jamey and the girls

Heidi was showing off her candy- she liked to open the packages, but not eat the candy

Andrew & Luke coloring

The Power Ranger and his new car from Grandma E

Baby Kate in her cowgirl costume

Dad & Ben making bead bracelets

Heidi swiped some Mike&Ikes out of the candy to pass out

Heidi found Allie's doll and she was having a good time playing alone in the playroom

She got the doll a chair and was reading to her

The kids finished the party with a dance show!