6!!!!!!

Oh, Gabriel...where has the time gone?  Everyday you come home from school reading more, telling me about all of your friends, heck...you've even taught me how to do something on the iPad!
 You've outgrown two bikes now, so for your 6th birthday we took you out bike shopping.  You took your time, had the store get ALL of the bikes in your size down for you to look at.  You explained the details and pros and cons of each option before choosing your Army bike.  It was the best because it came with the Army pouch of course.
 You chose to have a Minecraft birthday at your Grandma Cherlyn and Grandpa Greg's house in Houston.  That was a good idea because you know Grandma likes to go all out for celebrations.  :)  She and I had a great time getting everything set up for your birthday while you slept, and the excitement on your face meant the world to her.
 These days you enjoy lounging around chatting, reading books with someone, looking at the iPad or playing the Xbox.
 But, you also enjoy getting outside, and the bounce house was a special treat for your birthday party. And having Uncle Steve, Aunt Clara, Jessica, Ebby, Bea, Sebastian, and Viktor there too was wonderful.
 How are there 6 candles on that cake (which your sister helped make and you helped decorate)?!  How are you so tall in that chair?
 Your love of nature continues to be strong.  You're kind and thoughtful of all of God's creations.  Just the other day you were at the pet store walking around telling each and every animal, "I care about you."  It melted my Mommy heart.  Your idol is Jeff Corwin...I mean...you even look like a little Jeff Corwin in this picture....
 Your sister adores you.  At school when the other kids are making things for their moms and dads, she declares most everything is for you.  I don't think you realize how important you are to her, but that will come with time.
 You're such a fantastic loving member of this family.
 I hope you never lose that passion for learning, that natural curiosity you have, and the compassion you have for those around you.  Kid...you make me proud to be your mom every. single. day.
Happy 6th birthday, Buddy!

A Bit of Winter...

For a storm that was going to hit OKC with a light dusting, and then it was going to go around OKC...it certainly hit us fast and with intensity.  The drive to school was less than fun with patches of ice and dry snow swirling in gusting Oklahoma winds.  Ugh.  Brian picked up Gabriel from school for me since he has more experience driving in the snow.  And once everyone was home we got to play in the snow, and then we had some lovely neighbors over for dinner.  :)  It ended up being a wonderful day.

Also...Gilbert is ridiculously photogenic.












Oh...and did I mention someone lost a tooth a few weeks ago?
We were all VERY excited for him.  :)


Gilbert

I had every intention of hopping on here to talk a bit about our newest family member, Gilbert Blythe, and then illness happened.  We've had colds, and flu, colds combined with allergies leading to ear infections, sinus infections, and pink eye.  Ugh.  This winter isn't playing nice.  Or is it spring here now?  I don't know...the temperatures keep yo-yoing around so much it's difficult to tell.

Anyway...Gilbert.  I was so surprised on the day Scout died that the kids immediately wanted to get another dog.  It went against everything I had read about grieving your pet.  But, the kids were into the idea and wanted to honor Scout's memory but helping another dog, so we poked around on the web checking out rescue groups and the local shelter.  We were planning on getting another Golden Retriever....  Well, you can see things didn't turn out that way.

We've never had a boy dog.  I never really wanted a boy dog...but low and behold...this little guy named "Royce" (a Red Heeler/Labrador Retriever mix) jumped out at me from the local shelter's site.  I showed him to Brian and we talked about it with the kids and decided to head over to meet him.  We even brought Paisley with us to make sure they got along if things went well.

Immediately I knew Royce was NOT the name for this dog.  He was sweet and dapper.  But, fun and lively.  He was a Gilbert.  The name suits him so well.  He has a mischievous sweetness about him that I love.  He's settling in nicely.  He's become my little buddy...trotting along behind me as I go about the house.  And he's a fantastic addition to our family.  Scout would be pleased.  Paisley is still trying to figure out how to be an Alpha, but we're getting there slowly but surely.

Scout






I've been dreading writing this post.  Sadly, in December, our family had to say goodbye to our beloved dog, Scout.  After only 3 years as a member of our family her health began to rapidly decline.  We discovered a few months before that she was suffering from thyroid issues and was in the early stages of heart failure.  In addition to that she began suffering terribly from arthritis.  Her pain must have been becoming too much to bare as she began lashing out at Paisley in a violent manner.  Dog fights were becoming a new normal in our house, and eventually she even growled at one of the kids.

It's never easy to say goodbye to family.  Never.  But, this was especially difficult.  The decision to have a dog "put to sleep" is not one I take lightly.  Worrying about whether or not Scout was going to hurt someone became a daily concern, and knowing that she was in so much pain that she was not acting as her loving and sweet self at all times was becoming too much.  Telling the kids was difficult.  Explaining to them that Scout was very sick, in a way they may not really be able to visibly see, was challenging and heartbreaking.

On top of all of that, Scout was my pal.  My shadow.  Bless her heart, she followed me everywhere.  I was never alone, always hearing her faint snoring in the background or feeling her nudge for attention.  She always took up her post with me in my sewing room, and I miss turning around to see her looking at me sleepily from her chair.  And every night, when I feed the dogs dinner, I think of her and her enthusiasm for food.  She is missed and we hope she knows how loved she was. We're so lucky she was a part of our family.


Riding in a Jet Plane

Brian recently joined a local flying club and the club is looking into adding a third plane, so we drove over to the local airport to take a look at the contender.  Unfortunately it didn't make the cut (it was going to need an engine overhaul), but the kids enjoyed climbing around inside.




Neither of the kids seems eager to go up in the air in a tiny plane yet, but they certainly thought pretending to fly it was very neat.

Lorelai + Sweetie

Lorelai and I get to spend a lot of extra time together now that Gabriel spends his days at school.  Sure she has afternoon PreK most of the week, but we still get a lot of one-on-one bonding time.  I always feel badly that Gabriel is missing out on that time together, but am enjoying getting to know better who Lorelai is without her brother influencing her behavior.


She talks a lot about Sweetie, the horse she rides every Tuesday.  She's come so far.  She no longer rides with a necktie on the horse, she holds a riding whip, and her helper no longer runs right along beside her.  I get compliments almost every week from other parents of new riders who are amazed at her talent and focus.  I'm so excited for her that she found something, and "someone", she loves so much.  She and Sweetie are a great pair.