Audrey started taking a mommy and me gymnastics class at Flip It Gymnastics in Bluffdale and has loved it. I started her in a class on Tuesdays, but there was an over active kid in the class, so I switched her to Thursdays. Yes, I judged. Wrongly. The kid was actually normally in the Thursday class, which I soon realized. I also realized that all kids, including mine, would rather run and jump on the trampoline rather than listen to instructions. We both learned something. ;)
I bought Steven a new suit and forced him to allow me to take a picture. I think he liked it. Maybe. ;)
Well, it happened. Steven turned the big 1-3! That's right folks, he's a teenager. TEENAGE BOY in the house! Steven is an awesome kid and continues to be a beacon of humor and energy. (Seriously, the kid is the Energizer Bunny!)
For Steven's birthday breakfast he had ice cream. That's been his go to "Most important meal of the day" food for the past few years. He was complaining about having to go to school on his birthday, since Adam never has school and Sarah often doesn't because of Thanksgiving. Mike gave in like the softy he is and took him skiing. He came home and gamed the day away and we celebrated with his favorite ice cream cake. Audrey wasn't sure Steven's lungs were strong enough to blow out the candles, so she helped him. Repeatedly. It's a "family birthday" year, so we kept it simple.
1. Steven is a morning person. Still. Hopefully always. He wakes up and is ready to start each day running. Slightly exhausting, but a quality I hope he holds onto.
2. He can talk. And talk. And talk. And talk. Another great quality of his. He can chit chat all day and always has a ton of things to say. The only issue is when he goes to bed and once his mind and body relax he suddenly wants to discuss the mysteries of the universe with his brother than needs as much sleep as possible. We have to knock on the wall every night to say, "Shush!"
3. He loves to learn. Not necessarily school topics, but he loves to listen and absorb anything people want to tell him. He loves random facts and will then share them with us. He really enjoys history and science, and shares fun nuggets of info with us.
4. He has found a sport he loves to play. Lacrosse has been great for Steven. He plays in the spring and fall and even though it takes up three nights a week for practice, and games Saturday, he always looks forward to it.
5. He's a good friend. When Steven was a kid he'd walk up to random kids and ask if they'd like to be friends. He was never shy. He doesn't try and collect friends as much, but he's a wonderful friend to the ones he has. I've had moms thank me for his kindness to their kids.
6. He's a great helper. Steven has matured a lot this past year. I ask him for help with things and he just does it. I keep expecting him to say no, or throw a little fit, but he doesn't.
7. He's a great brother. Steven is Adam's best friend, and although he can sometimes be a stereotypical big brother, he is good to Adam. He also adores Audrey. He never complains about helping out and playing with her. He and Sarah have more unspoken love at this stage in their lives. ;)
8. He's a good student. (When forced to be) ;) Steven's teachers may mention his talking, but we always consistently hear that he's a good kid. His mean parents make him turn in all of his assignments, so he's gotten on the honor roll each quarter.
9. Steven is creative. He likes to create and it's fun to see what his mind comes up with.
10. Steven is kind. He likes to "trash talk" with friends, but is nice classmates and others.
11. He's a gamer. He's currently into "Call of Duty". We made him wait until he was 13 to play it. Give him an ear and he'll tell you ALL about it. All. About. It.
12. Steven is funny. He has a great sense of humor, and although many of his current jokes have to do with bodily functions, he adds a lot of fun to the family.
13. He's one handsome kid. He doesn't want to hear it, but he's a great kid inside and out. Girls have started texting him and he tries to pretend he doesn't know why.
We love our Dude and are incredibly grateful for the blessing of being his parents. He adds energy and life to our family. Happy Birthday Dude!!!
I purchased a lot of fabric during Covid, and wanted a better place to store them. Ikea had a storage shelf I wanted, but it was out of stock for weeks. I'd check every morning, and when it finally came into stock Audrey and I rushed in as it opened and got one of the four they had. One our way out we had to pass the expertly placed play things. Audrey saw the kitchen and table/chair set and didn't want to leave. I thought they'd make a great addition to the loft, and make is so she could play while I sewed, so it ended up being a win/win for both of us. ;)
This has been an eternal project, and it's not entirely Sarah's fault. We started this gem in January 2019. We'd gone to Joann's to buy fabric for a baby blanket and I heard an "EAK!" from Sarah. She'd found some cute Harry Potter fabric and decided she just had to make a quilt. She cut out all the fabric herself and sewed it. She had the top part done in a couple months. Then it was set aside and neglected because of a tiny princess that not only took time, but also destroyed all in her wake. ;) Since we didn't have basement couches we thought it would be a great time to finally tie the quilt. It's now April and we haven't progressed, but I have a good feeling it will be done this year. Probably. Maybe. Hopefully. ;)
Out with the old and in with the new. 2020 was a crazy year to say the least and I don't think anyone will miss it.
Keeping with tradition, we didn't really do anything. Audrey went to bed at her usual time, the boys played video games, Sarah and I watched a show and Mike hung out with us and then fell asleep. (It's May and neither of us remember, so it must have been a wild night) The fireworks all over the valley woke up Audrey so we let her out of her cage to watch them. It was fun to watch her watching them. She loved it. The boys came in and joined. Even though our big kids think we're lame, they put up with our lack of action on New Year's Eve.
Happy New Year everyone! Hopefully this year sees some great new changes full of less plagues. ;)
