Happy Birthday Boys!!

 Happy 4th birthday Beckett and 7th birthday Jackson!! First up, was Beckett. Beckett loves all things cars/trucks and loves to load and unload things, so this year we got him his own dump truck. He loved it!

 We celebrated the morning with a birthday donut!

 Before school, he was able to drive his truck around for a little bit.

 Off to school! I can't believe my little boy is 4 years old! He is the funniest kid I know and is always making us laugh. He has the best imagination and can get lost in his own little world. He is kind and loves all things hotwheels and batman. His favorite color is orange. He loves playing with his big brother. He is my snuggle bug and still crawls into my bed in the morning for some snuggle time. He makes us proud everyday and we thank God for blessing us with him. We love you more than you will ever know Beckett!!

On Beckett's actual birthday, we let him choose what he wanted to do. He wanted to see a movie and go to Chuckie Cheese. So that's what we did! We saw the Good Dinosaur and then headed for some crazy Chuckie Cheese fun! 

 Jackson rocking the Guitar Hero.

 We decided to repeat last year's birthday party and rented out Sparkles. Here is Beckett with his birthday necklace.

 No help needed! He zipped around and only fell a couple of times. :)

 One of the best parts about Sparkles is the Laser Tag!

 Ready to go shoot!

 Beckett spent most of them time running around with his buddies Ryan and Parker. They were really cute together.

 They loved running and jumping off the bench.

 All the kiddos! We had 58 kids this year. I decided to invite all the kids in their classes and a couple of other friends. It was quite a large party, but everyone seemed to have a great time!

 Jackson chose an NFL stadium themed birthday cake.

 Beckett chose Batman.

 Birthday song and blowing out the candles!

 They spread Beckett's candles out a little far....

 Mommy and Daddy got to have some skating fun :)

 Family shot! I was so thankful that one of my friends offered to take my camera and take photos. I am always the one behind the camera!!

 Beckett loved roller skating again this year. He was able to do it a little bit without help but could skate much faster with the guard.

 Happy 7th birthday Jackson. Jackson really wanted a dirt bike for this birthday. After much thought, we decided to get him a small one. He loves it! What can I say about my sweet Jackson? He has the best hair, is so kind and empathetic, full of energy, math loving, athletic, great big brother and just an all around great kid. He makes us proud everyday and we love him more than words can say!!

 Jackson got a birthday waffle :)

 I was able to volunteer for Math rotations on his birthday, so I was there to celebrate with him at school. :)

 He brought a cookie cake. I think Mrs. Papa gave him the biggest piece ever!!

 For Jackson's actual birthday, he really wanted to go to Legoland with his friends Jack and Thomas. Legoland closes at 7, so I finished my clinic early and made it home by 4:30.I thought we were going to be fine until I found out that you had to be there by 5 to get in. With traffic, there was no way we would make it. Jackson was disappointed but we quickly changed gears and headed to an indoor arcade with an obstacle course way up in the air.The kids couldn't wait to get their gear on and climb up!

 The obstacle course was probably 25 feet in the air. You were attached by a harnass and then you tried to manuever your way across very thin ropes, moving balance beams, etc.

 Jackson zippped through like a pro!

 Wobbly ladder!

 Tight rope!

 This was by far the hardest part because he couldn't reach the rope above him for balance. He had to walk on 2 thin ropes and then yank his harnass ahead of him to keep moving forward. The kid has some serious balance!

 Being the mommy....I had to make sure we had all the protective gear needed to keep him safe. I spent more money on his Kevlar chest protector, neck brace, and helmet, but I have to make sure my baby is safe!!

 Such a little stud :)

So far so good!  We have had 2 falls but no injuries. He is getting braver and can't wait to take it out on a dirt trail!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

 Oh how I love this time of year!! The month of December is crazy busy between the boys's birthdays, Christmas parties, Santa etc. We don't have single Friday, Saturday, or Sunday this month that is not filled with some sort of festive event. We even have several during the week!! I often wonder if we should cut something out, but they are all so fun, I just can't! The boys had the best time decorating the Christmas tree this year. They loved looking at all their homemade ornaments from years past and different ornaments that were bough for different reasons, It was so much fun! Beckett didn't quite understand that the reason why Jackson had so many more ornaments than him was because he is 3 years older, but he quickly got over it!

 Jackson wanted to climb the ladder to put on every ornament.

 Therefore, so did Beckett. We started to get a little top heavy, so we had to spread them out!

 These 2 crazies! It is not easy to get them to pose for any pictures these days!

Oh well! It will have to do.

 Santa at the club! Both boys were so excited to tell Santa what they wanted this year!

 Each year the boys get to pick out 5 things to ask from Santa. This year we had to change it up a little bit because all of Jackson's items were a little large for Santa. He wanted a Wii U, Kindle, Nintendo DS, Yo Kai Watch, Dirt Bike, and an Electric Guitar. We cut it to the Wii and Kindle. Santa will surprise him with the other 3 gifts. :) Beckett, on the other hand, wanted EVERYTHING! It was not easy to get him to understand that he could only pick the 5 things he wanted the most. He chose a Spider pet (EWWW!), Batcave, Kindle, Power Ranger, and Hot Wheels.

 We love you Santa!

 The club was decorated beautifully this year!

 Family shot!

 Next it was time to head to Santa's Workshop! This year they made a wreath which was really cute! They had all sorts of things to decorate the wreath from presents, nutcrackers, cars, Santas etc.

 So much to choose from! Beckett zoned right in on the car. He briefly glued it onto his wreath and then wanted it off so he could play with it. This boy LOVES his cars! Just like his daddy!

 Holding his masterpiece.

 Such a cute project!

 As were were waiting for the Wonders to finish their wreaths......girls are a little more particular than boys on their choices...the kids got a little restless.

 I wish I knew what he thought was so funny!









This weekend we also had the Poston's Santa Party. They actually have Santa come to their house! This is Jackson and Christopher with Santa. It was funny though, as soon as we walked in, I asked the boys if they wanted to see Santa. They both took their shoes off and ran upstairs to play with the other boys.

 Santa...again...I was a little worried with all the Santa exposure that it may stir some non-belief, but Jackson reassurred me that all the Santa's we see are Santa's special helpers and not the Real Santa.

 Another family shot :)







This week Jackson had his first big presentation at school. This is a funny story. A couple weeks ago, Jackson and I were reading a book on lions. Jackson still loves lions. He stopped me and said that he had to do a power point presentation on a country. He said he really wanted to do a presentation on a country that still had lions in the wild. We got out the globe and came up with Senegal. Fast forward a few days later, I get the details of the presentation. We are to present the holiday traditions of a country. Uh oh.. What do they celebrate in Senegal? Well, they do celebrate Christmas, despite being 95% Muslim, but their biggest holiday is Tabaski. During Tabaski, they sacrifice their best animal, usually a sheep. How are we going to explain sacrificing to a bunch of first graders! Well, the good news is that after they sacrifice the sheep, they make an elaborate meal. 1/3 of the meal the family eats, 1/3 goes to friends and family, and 1/3 they give to the poor. We focused on that part of Tabaski. :) Jackson got up to do his power point and did great! I was so impressed with how confident he was in front of his peers.He didn't seem nervous. Afterwards, he fielded questions and was comfortable saying he didn't know they answer.
We ended the presentation with a traditional Senegalese dessert, which was luckily delicious and easy! Caramel bananas ofer

 It has been a long time since we took any professional photos, so I wanted to include some of my favorites on the blog. My sweet boy! We are so excited for his 4th birthday this week!

 Growing up way too fast!

 My heart.

 LOVE!!!

 I don't think Greg and I have had a professional photo of just the two of us since we were engaged! My handsome husband :)

Out beautiful family. We are so blessed!