Six!!

Happy birthday to our happy, kind, even-tempered, empathetic first born!  Six already!!  Such an exciting day for our big guy and he loved every minute of it!!  

He awoke to balloons and streamers and begged to open "just one" present that morning!  We have always done presents at night but didn't really have a reason for doing so, so I think we have a new tradition.   After opening a Ninjago lego set and having a pancake breakfast he was off to school with Ninjago cupcakes to celebrate.   Unforrunately, Rich had to be out of town for the day which ended up being ok since that just meant we were able to celebrate an extra bonus day once he got home.  And, it was a bonus that Nani and Poppa came over to help with the celebration that afternoon.  We celebrated with pizza and more cupcakes that night and opened presents from them, which included another lego set that he got work on immediately. 

Rich got home the next night so he opened the rest of his presents and celebrated with more cupcakes!!    

We were supposed to have all of the family over on Saturday, the 10th, to watch the Army Navy game and to have another celebration for his birthday but Joseph actually woke up with strep throat.  He complained of a sore throat Friday night and woke up Saturday saying the same thing so Rich brought him to the doctor early that morning and sure enough it was strep.  After a round of antibiotics and a nap he was feeling back to his normal self, so we were able to celebrate Army's win (for the first time in 13 years!) and just enjoy a lazy afternoon before heading to Legoland the following day.

Joseph chose to go to Legoland as a family instead of doing a friend party so that is what we did for the second year in a row.  He has been wanting to go on the Ninjago ride since it opened last summer so he was so excited!!  Thankfully he had the antibiotics in his system for over 24 hours from the strep so on Sunday morning we were up and ready to go!  It was such a great day!! The park was SO empty, Charlotte slept for the first almost 4 hours, the weather was gorgeous and we just had such a nice day!  Joseph wanted to do the Ninjago ride first and they walked right on-Rich took all three of the kids (we were shocked about Julia wanting to go but she did!) and then they went on it again (although Julia decided she didnd't want to do it a second time.)  From there we just bounced around the park, going on rides and enjoying all of the holiday Lego fun.  We ended our day with a walk through the aquarium and then made our way home.  I almost hope that he continues to choose to do a fun family day like this for all of his future birthdays because it really has been a great tradition so far.

 See, Charlotte came, too!! She was such a trooper.  I think I took one for the team because she was up a lot the night prior but at Legoland she slept for the first four hours (from 10 to 1) and then was happy hanging out for a bit before falling back asleep until we got home.

 A quick photo op with Lego Santa.

 

 We attempted to do the 3D movie but less than a minute into it, Julia said that she wanted to leave, so I left with her and Charlotte while Rich stayed with the other two.  Joseph and Ella enjoyed it while Julia and I roamed around the lego building area to play.

Joseph is such a loving, kind, and funny kid.  He is always willing to help other and continues to be a great rule follower. He is respectful and honestly never really gives us a hard time...he does have a "tone" that he'll use which sometimes needs to be put into check but thankfully that doesn't happen too often. He has learned so much since starting Kindergarten and we are so proud of his progress-we love listening to him learning to read and to see his inventive spelling really take form.  He has a great memory which never ceases to amaze me and can still sit and listen to books forever, which has always been a favorite of his to do.  Julia still always calls him "budder" (brother), Ella still calls him "Jofush", Rich and I often refer to him as "buddy" and nothing from Charlotte yet, but soon enough! He is very affectionate towards Charlotte and she definitely lights up when he entertains her.  He is also very affectionate towards me, especially when it is just the two of us around-he is always willing to give hugs and kisses which I'll happily be the recipient of for as long as he's willing to give them.  

His other current six year old favorites consist of:  

Legos (especially Ninjago)

Playing outside-especially in the cul de sac with Brandon and Alex

Soccer

School-continues to say that he loves everything about school daily, especially his best buddy, Kai

Wrestling with Daddy or with anyone who is willing to do so

His sisters-he is such a doting older brother...seriously, so good with them!

Food-such a good eater!  Of course, he likes the typical 6 year old favorites (pizza, ice cream, etc) but also has no problem eating eggs with spinach, broccoli (with ketchup, of course) and downing milk

I guess I should also include the iPad.  He could sit in front of it/play with it forever but thankfully is really good about the limited screen time that we allow him which is one of the reasons why I think he enjoys it so much.  

We just love you so much Joseph Ducote and are so proud of the boy that you are turning into!  

We actually had one more celebration the following week!  Laura and the kids came up to watch Joseph's kindergarten winter performance (more on that in another post) so they came to the house after to have a mini celebration since the original one was cancelled due to his strep.  We celebrated with a scavenger hunt for Lego Nexo Knights and with cake, of course (ice cream cake per his request)!  It was a great way to finish out his week of birthday celebrations!  

 

 May all your wishes come true, buddy.  Love you!  

Charlotte Grace-3 months!

This little peanut turned 3 months on December 3rd!!  

I have always thought that she has been a pretty alert baby but this past month she has definitely taken off and we've seen so much growth and so much interest in her world around her (aka her siblings in her face entertaining her nonstop!)  She had a few firsts this past month which included sleeping through the night (8:30 to 6:00!!) on November 19th and her first laugh on November 30th!  So awesome with the sleep (even though it was in the swing and I'm sure I'll pay for it eventually when she can't be in the swing any longer) and so fun with the laughs!!  Joseph and the girls are all trying to get her to laugh constantly now which is so fun to watch.  Her hands are constantly in her mouth this past month and she is drooling ALL OF THE TIME!  She is also pretty good at making bubbles and raspberry noises.  She is a strong little one and is real sturdy now with holding her head up and when laying down she often lifts her head and feet up at the same time as if she is doing a crunch.  She prefers to be held facing outward and is not a huge fan of the carrier, most likely for this reason.  She makes the most adorable pout before crying and sometimes  when we see the put we are able to distract her enough it doesn't end up in tears. She still has no interest in the paci or in the bottle but we'll keep trying.  She does continue to be a great eater (as long as it isn't from the bottle!) and is still eating every 2 1/2-3 hours during the day (or sometimes more frequently depending on our schedule and when she has to be on the go) and she often is covered in milk.  My milk supply is still very heavy so at most feedings it ends up spraying all over her face (the joys of nursing!) She continues to be SO loved by her siblings and she is always watching them and they love having her constant attention.  Ella will often say, "Charlotte is so cuteness" which always makes me smile, Julia still refers to her as what sounds like "Baby Lar lar" and Joseph is full of kisses for her when he comes home from school or early in the morning.  It's nice to see how affectionate they are with her and that they still love her even when she can be disruptful during story time before bed and I'm sure are told too many times during the day, "One minute, Charlotte needs something..." They really all have been so good with her and knowing that sometimes things need to wait but with that being said, she's a champ, too as she is always sleeping on the go and often found eating on the go (poor girl has experienced me having to wipe Julia during mid-meal for her.)  Again, the joys of nursing!!  Despite the chaotic moments from time to time, we are so thankful that she is here and we have loved the past three months with her and look forward to continuing to watching her grow.  We love you baby Charlotte and are so glad you are ours!!  

Looking super sweet and cozy for her 3 month photo shoot.  I just can't choose one!!  Love all of her sweet expressions and just love this little girl so much.  

I have had this sweater for all of the girls so had to include the following comparison pictures in this post.

Charlotte-December 1st, 2016 (2 days shy of 3 months)

Julia-January 5, 2015 (3 days shy of 4 months)

Ella-March 24, 2013

(3 months and 2 days)

 She continues to love the bath and her sisters, especially, are such great helpers while she is in the bath.  

 Getting all bundled up one crisp winter morning.  

December 2nd

Happy 3 months sweet Charlotte Grace!  

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!!  We had a great Thanksgiving this year in San Diego and are so thankful for our four favorite blessings!  

And, especially for our newest little blessing!  

We enjoyed a relaxing morning at home watching the Macy's Parade, cooking and Rich and I took turns running, too, which is always a nice way to begin the holiday.  We then headed to my parent's house around noon to meet the Ozecks and Mr. George.  We had a great day together just hanging out, cooking, eating, playing with the kids, watching football...all of the typical Thanksgiving fun!  Rich deep fried a turkey again this year and despite the look on his face in the picture below it came out fantastic and was delicious!  He has redeemed himself from last year's disaster!!  

 Julia sure does love her Auntie Laura!

 My mom had everyone trace their hand and then write one thing that we were thankful for on it which she turned into a game.  My dad read each of the hands and we had to guess who wrote what.  Some of the highlights from the game were that Julia wrote "Brandon and Alex" who are our neighbors.  I wrote "school" and Mr. George guessed that it was me by saying, "It must be someone who has kids in school and is thankful that there is school so they get a break so it must be Lisa!"  Way to go, Mr. George!!  And, Rich guessed my mom who wrote "Love" saying that must be Nani since she loves love!!  The kids were able to understand the game and had fun playing, too!

 After we finished that game we used the hands to play Pin the Feathers on the Turkey with them and everyone, young and old, enjoyed themselves!!  Uncle Dave, Uncle Rich and Poppa earned the most laughs as they were pretty far off from the turkey...hopefully next year they'll have better aim!

 

 

 Even Mr. George joined in on the fun!!  Pretty awesome for a 95 year old!

Our finished turkey and all of the things that we are thankful for!  Happy Thanksgiving!