Reptile Fun

Today we went to a birthday party for Brayden's best friend. He had a reptile party and the boys were in Heaven.

 Brayden

 Bryson holding a banded California king snake

 Brennan holding a ball python

 Brennan catching a ride

 Bryson and Rosie (an Australian bearded dragon)

 The snake was going in his shirt

These baby tortoises were 3 days old. They grow to over 200 pounds and can live to be 100-120 years old.

 This tortoise liked Brayden. This is what they look like at 1 year old.

This tortoise is roughly 15 years old. He'll continue growing and will get about 40-50 pounds heavier.

Brag on Bryson!!!

Bryson is in Kindergarten this year and they had their year end award ceremony this morning. Each child in the class got an award and his was the Academic All-Star award. 

Then he got the Boy PE award for the ENTIRE Kindergarten (there are roughly 120 kids in Kindergarten at his school) AND he got the Boy Music award for the ENTIRE Kindergarten. 

He also has not gotten his clipped moved off of green all year long. I am so beyond proud of him!!!

Nerf gun birthday party

 We had Brayden's nerf gun party last weekend and it was a blast. None of the kids were ready to leave when the party was over.

The candy bar was a huge hit. Each kid got to fill a bag with whatever candy they wanted.

Some on the yummy food.

 The kids flew through the drinks since they were running around outside.

Happy birthday, Brayden! 

Nerf Birthday Party Sneak Peak

Shark Party!!!

Brennan turns 4 in a week and we had his birthday party this weekend. He really wanted a shark birthday party. I had a lot of fun planning this party and thought it turned out pretty cute.

Brennan saw this cake online and really had his heart set on it. My sweet friend, Nicole, did a fabulous job and Brennan squealed when he saw it.

Shark fin and life preserver cupcakes

I made some signs for the party since the park we had it at is a little hard to see from the road.

My 1st attempt at doing water bottle labels, and I think they turned out pretty cute.

Shark tooth candy necklaces

Shark gummies

Swedish Fish

I'm not sure if you can see, but Dustin cut shark bites out of the sandwiches

I made some shark infested jello...these were a big hit!

Close up of the shark fin jello

Shark fruit snacks

Shark birthday party sneak peak

I haven't had a chance to pull the pictures off my camera, but here are a few pictures from my phone. My friend, Nicole, did an awesome job on the cake, cupcakes, and cookies!

Praise the Lord!

Tonight Bryson asked Jesus into his heart. It is so amazing to watch both boys become believers so close together. Bryson met with the pastor last month with Brayden, and is very excited about his decision. We are going to have them baptized together, how special is that? Brandt was baptized on Father's Day so we are going to try to get the boys baptized on Mother's Day this year. I'm very proud of my boys, and I know the Lord is too.

Bluebonnet pictures

Our friend, Maleigh, took pictures of the boys in the Bluebonnets this week. I'm amazed at how easy it was this year compared to years past. The boys are really growing up.

Last year we had a severe drought and there were no Bluebonnets. Our friend Erin took these pictures for us instead of our annual Bluebonnet pictures. If you want to check out even older pictures, here are our Bluebonnet pictures from 2010, 2009 and 2008. I can't believe how fast time has flown!

Brennan

Bryson

Brayden

Brandt

Our exciting afternoon...(warning graphic!)

This afternoon I took Brennan to Target for a quick trip before it was time to go pick up the older boys from school. He decided to jump on the big red ball in front of the store, and much to his surprise he jumped clear over the ball and landed on his chin on the sidewalk. As soon as I got to him he was dripping blood.

Off to Urgent Care we went. He screamed the whole way there begging me to please take him home. Poor baby remembers going in December when he broke his collar bone and did not want to go back. Thankfully once we got there he calmed down and actually took a nap while we waited 1 1/2 hours to be seen.

Warning graphic picture:

Here's a before picture.

He asked me to take a picture of his chin so he could see it. Thankfully it had pretty much stopped bleeding by this point.

When the doctor finally came in Brennan laid on the table and was completely still and cooperative. He didn't say a word. When they asked him if he wanted a washcloth to cover his eyes from the bright light he just nodded.

Cleaning up his cut.

This kid was a champ! When they gave him a shot in his cut, he didn't even flinch. His eyes welled up, but that's it. The doctor said it feels like a bee sting, I can't imagine getting that in your chin. He didn't mind the drape over his face either. Seriously proud of my THREE year old!

Normally they wrap kids in a sheet and have 3-4 nurses pin them down. Not my boy. He just laid there, no sheet, no one holding him down, just him holding my hand. Sweet angel!

All done! Brennan ended up with 4 stitches. The doctor and nurse couldn't believe how good he did. They said he was seriously the best patient they had ever had, child or adult. She gave him 4 suckers for his 4 stitches. He immediately came home and gave a sucker to each brother, completely his idea.

The nurse putting a band-aid on his chin. As soon as she was done he was sprinting out the door. Hopefully, we won't be going back anytime soon!

Back at home, good as new!

Brennan and his very well deserved ice cream!