Patrick’s wishlist

Mom, for my birthday, I want a knee pad.

A knee pad? Like that you wear?

No…like you can play games on it and stuff.

Like Soccer?

No…like Joe has.

Like an iPad?

Yeah! An iPad!

Today

Occasionally, Luke will get a text from me while he’s at work that says something like, “On my way to Mexico. Be back in 3 years” or “Dropping the kiddos off at the office and heading to the spa.” Today was one of those days (although this happens much less frequently than when I had 4 littles under 4).

I wrestled with the two year old all during Mass this morning (what did you expect from a two year old at Mass without any other adult, you might ask? It’s a valid question) Then we came home and spent an hour cleaning the basement, only to find all the pillows and blankets pulled out of the closet and the cushions off the couch and chairs ten minutes later. And then the normal Mom, I spilled the lemonade all over and Mom, Patrick is playing with my toy and I had it first! and He started it! and I hate this meal.

Then I walked into this…

 

Patrick was “reading” to Leo sitting on his lap.

 

We are so blessed.

Back in NP

 

Happy 5th Birthday to our sweet Godson, Nicholas. I remember finding out Emily and Michael were expecting Nicholas when we were still in the hospital with one-day-old Dominic.

Nicholas had a great firefighter birthday—complete with a tour of the fire station and a firefighter DQ ice cream cake.

We were happy to see some of our old friends—here’s sweet Giana and William.

The kiddos got to get into the ambulance and firetruck and see tons of equipment. Nothing screams 5 year old boy birthday like the Fire Station!!

Here was the whole crew (minus Leo and Jackson who were not having pictures due to missed naps, and D who was back in the Holdrege at school).

Happy Birthday, Nicholas!!

Ice Fishing

We went to Tom and Susie’s for some ice fishing a few weekends ago.

Tom has this great ice hut (I’m showing my ice fishing ignorance…is that what it’s called?) and a camera, so you can see everything that’s going on underground—very fun!

The three big kiddos crammed in the tent with Tom while Leo slept.

And Luke enjoyed a cigar on the frozen lake.

They caught a few! Jackson loved picking the dead fish up over and over and violently throwing it to the ground (until mom told him to stop).

It’s a crazy experience walking around on the same lake we boat and ski on in the summer. One of the boys even said, “Hey—we’re like Jesus!”

Jackson

Jack-attack! Happy Birthday! You have grown up so much! You are mom’s big helper still. I cannot work in the kitchen without you by my side. You have been constantly asking me to play Spider-8’s with you and you are good at it, too. You are pretty coordinated and love to play any game that includes a ball—you have enjoyed balls since you were just a baby! You like to take your time with most things, which doesn’t always go well in a family of 6. You always give lots of kisses and hugs before mom or dad leave and you HAVE to close the door for us (must be a trait acquired from dad). You are a lover! You love to talk on the phone. It doesn’t matter if I’m talking to a telemarketer-you want a turn, too! You are becoming such a sweet, grown-up boy! We love you so much!!

Here’s what you had to say about some of your favorite things:

1. What is your favorite color? Green, blue, orange

2. What is your favorite toy? Switch n Go Dino

3. What is your favorite fruit? Grapefruit

4. What is your favorite tv show? Jake and the Neverland Pirates

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Mac ‘n’ Cheese

6. What is your favorite outfit? Superman shirt and sun shirt

7. What is your favorite game? Spider 8’s

8. What is your favorite snack? Suckers

9. What is your favorite animal? Horsey

10. What is your favorite song? God Bless America

11. What is your favorite book? My Dinosaur Book

12. Who is your best friend? Jake Mach and my Godparent, Emily

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play Swingset

15. What is your favorite drink? Lemonade and juice

16. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My spiderman

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Pancakes with chocolate chips. French Toast sticks, too!

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Pancakes and a fork

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Scuba diver or a grandpa or an astronaut.

Patrick

Happy Birthday, sweet Patrick!

What a little man you’ve become. You are our social butterfly. It seems that no matter what setting you are in, you can happily make new friends and bring many smiles to little faces. You are getting so good at your letters and you impress us with your ability to spell the names of all your brothers as well as your own. You have a great smile! Your brain is always going about 4 times faster than your mouth can, so you are constantly stumbling over words, trying to get all that information out of your head. You love, love, LOVE Batman. You wear your Batman hoodie almost everyday and you love to tell anyone who will listen about how lucky you are that it has Batman ears on the hood. Like most four year old boys, you can be very, very silly! You are usually easy going, often following directions and so proud of yourself when you do! And recently, you had a short-lived phase where you wanted mom to put gel in your hair. You thought you were pretty hot stuff! You love music! You’ll just turn on whatever CD is in the stereo and I’ll watch you dance and dance. We love you so much, four year old!!

Here’s a few things you had to say about your favorite things:

1. What is your favorite color? Orange

2. What is your favorite toy? Transformer Car

3. What is your favorite fruit? Banana

4. What is your favorite tv show? The Penguins of Madagascar

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Jellybeans (mom says Mac n’ cheese)

6. What is your favorite outfit? Batman outfit (a Halloween present from Ben and Brittany)

7. What is your favorite game? Frog hopper

8. What is your favorite snack? Banana (mom says fruit snacks)

9. What is your favorite animal? Pigs

10. What is your favorite song? Twinkle, Twinkle

11. What is your favorite book? The Farmer book

12. Who is your best friend? my brother, Jackson and my whole wide world family

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play football by kicking the ball at Jake and Jena’s

15. What is your favorite drink? lemonade

16. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My new batman buddy

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Dippin’ eggs (overeasy eggs)

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? chicken nuggets and apples

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? firefighter or a swimming diver that swims under sea