Easter

Harmony Park Easter Egg Hunt

Every Easter, we meet at Harmony Park with family and friends and do an easter egg hunt along with a potluck lunch. It started about 10 years ago and even though people have moved away, everyone still comes back each year to continue this tradition. It's really fun, safe and the kids have a great time. We have been doing it for the past 5 years. My kids really look forward to it.



Niamh, Tyrone, cousin Colt & Gavin

We visited with Grandma & Grandpa Abbott (they live across the street from the Park)


Cousin Easter Party
My sister, Kim and her kids organized an Easter party, with games, food and an easter egg hunt. The kids got to dye eggs and make bunny ears. Then they had a relay race outside and did and easter egg hunt. There were 21 kids there. I don't know how they managed it all. I don't think I could handle that many kids, loaded up on sugar.

Gavin & his cousin Kami racing

Niamh found her own entertainment


Tyrone racing.

News

So, in Abbottland news, we moved a week and a half ago. We are loving our new home. It is huge and the people who lived here before us did so many lovely upgrades, it was exactly to our taste. The kids don't know what to do with themselves. They have a huge loft/playroom and just run back and forth all day long. The weekend we moved, we took the kids up to Alamo to stay with my mam. We were able to get the basic things unpacked. They have had a lot of their toys packed away for a year and a half and so it was like Christmas when they came back and saw all their toys unpacked. Our neighborhood is so quiet and our neighbors are so friendly and helpful already. There is a lovely park straight across from our house. We are so happy and although there is still lots of unpacking to be done, we are so ready to put some deep roots into this area of town and hopefully stay in this house forever. I know you are all dying for pics. We are painting the kids rooms and their bathroom and I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so sorry, but no pics until every last cardboard box is unpacked and everything has a place. I will say I already have Isla's baby clothes washed and hung up and her crib is all set up in the room Niamh and she will be sharing.
Gavin still has a little over 2 months of school left. We are driving him back and forth to school each day. It is a bit of a stretch to say the least, with me driving close to 100 miles total each day. It is so worth it though. He received an award in school yesterday for bringing up his grades by a whole letter grade. He is doing so well and this sacrifice is so worth it to me. (I'll remind myself of this everytime I fill up at the gas pump.)
Tyrone is such a good helper everyday. He brings me all the laundry from all the rooms and has become a very accomplished dishwasher. He is so excited for Kindergarten. The Elementary school he and Gavin will be attending is just a few streets from our house. They are already begging to ride their bikes to school. We'll see.
Niamh is getting to be such a big girl. She transitioned from her crib to her big girl bed when we moved. There were a few nights of her waking up and getting out of bed and wandering around the house, but she is used to it now and is loving her freedom. She also loves going in her closet and changing outfits multiple times a day. She is even trying to put her baby sister's clothes on, even though they don't fit. She is the first to wake up in the morning, 6:30am or earlier. Who needs an alarm clock? She is always very chipper and tells us all "Good Morning!" She is such a little sweetie. She is also a violent madam. She loves to punch her brothers and pull their hair. They put up with a lot from her, but show her who is boss every now and then.
Isla is growing bigger everyday. I have 10 weeks left of this pregnancy, but I already feel ready to pop. At my last Dr. visit, Dr. H said she was breech. She has some time to turn, but I'm getting nervous that she is going to stay right where she is. It feels different carrying this way and she kicks me right in the side of the groin area, which is very painful. I have heard of Dr.'s being able to turn babies into position, but I really don't want to mess with that. I've heard how painful it can be and how sometimes, the babies turn back right into breech position. Dr. H and I both feel if she is breech, it's for a reason. So, I am praying that she will turn on her own, if not, I guess I'll be having a C-section....eeek!
Lucas is staying at the same area command and commutes every night to work. He actually enjoys having his alone time and listening to his crazy music. I know he is getting anxious to make a change in his job, whether that is to detective or another special unit. He is very happy where he is right now though, so I'm sure once we get settled and Isla gets here, he'll know what he wants to do.
It feels so good to be on our own again and to finally have a place of our own. We are so blessed! Pics coming soon!

Tyrone turns 5

Tyrone has been counting down to his birthday for weeks now. He turned 5 on March 9th. The day before he had a friend party with all his Joyschool buddies. He decided he wanted a Policeman party, much to Lucas' joy. There are not any party favors out there for Policeman parties (plenty of Fireman stuff, go figure.) We made do and got creative. He wore his Police uniform and took all the kids to jail. We were able to locate a huge box at R.C Willey and Lucas created a jail out of it. It was a huge hit with all the kids and they kept themselves busy for the whole 3 hour party. Tyrone got lots of great gifts from his friends and was so happy all day long. The next day, his actual birthday, I heard him get up about 6:30am. I wondered why he didn't come into our room. When I went into his room he was waiting patiently in his bed for us to all sing "Happy Birthday" to him. He opened his presents and played all day with them. That evening we had our traditional family party with all the cousins. We even played "donut on a string game." You tie donuts on a string for everyone and they have to try to eat the donut with their hands behind their backs. Whoever eats their donut first, wins. The kids had a fun time, even though the little ones cheated and just grabbed the donuts and ate them :) I think Tyrone had a wonderful birthday and it was definitely worth it when he told me thank you and said "this is the best day ever." This is my little boy with the imagination that has no end. He makes a game out of anything. He is so like Lucas in a lot of ways. I guess Lucas was the same when he was a little boy. Tyrone can entertain himself for hours with pirate crusades and world war battles. It is so fun to watch him. He is very dependable and very smart. He loves figuring out games on my phone and on the computer. He has recently discovered classical music and really enjoys listening to different kinds of music. I think he is really going to love Kindergarten this fall. Happy Birthday Tyrone, we love you.

Belly

6 Months Preggers.

Gavin's latest obsession

So for the past few months, Gavin has been talking constantly about submarines, deep sea divers, flippers, The Navy, The Army & tanks. He got a submarine toy for Christmas and plays with it all the time. He's been asking for flippers since before Christmas. We have explained to him that there is no point in getting flippers until the summer time when he can go swimming and it's not so cold outside. This is all he talks about. He figured out that soldiers in the Navy get to live in submarines and he told us that when he grows up he will be a soldier in the Navy. He is very excited for this. Then, he decided he likes tanks and he will be in the Army as well as the Navy. I'm not too thrilled about this, but hopefully he will grow out of this phase. Not that I wouldn't be proud of any of my children who chose to serve in the military, but it's got to be scary for all those moms left behind.
A few weeks ago, we took a trip to Idaho to visit my sister, Trudi and her family. On the way back, while driving through Ely, we spotted a tank outside a veterans office. We had to stop and take some pictures of Gavin & Tyrone in front of it. It made his day, it was all he could talk about for the rest of the day.

Happy Birthday Lucas!!!

Lucas turned 29 a few weeks ago. He had to work the night before and go to court that morning, so we didn't celebrate his birthday until 6pm that night. It was hard waiting all day to wake him up and sing Happy Birthday. The kids really wanted to give him his presents. Tyrone helped me bake a cake for him that day. We had Cafe Rio for dinner and had birthday cake after. I hope it was a fun day for him. He only got to celebrate his actual birth day for 6 hours. I told him we could celebrate his brithday all weekend, so we did. On Sunday night, we had a cake and icecream with the family. The following Monday, we went to dinner at Red Lobster. It was so good and it was so nice to get out together. I love you Lucas, and I'm so glad you were born :)

It's about time for an update. First of all we are planning on moving in a few months. We're not sure exactly, but I'm hoping by at least April 1st. We are planning on moving back to the northwest side of town. We really miss it over there and are anxious to get back. I'm not exactly ready to pack up again. I hate packing and although most of our stuff is in storage, packing up for 5 people will still be a task. My mam has offered to come help and she is the best packer in the world, so I do have some hope. Isla is due on June 4, but I really don't expect her to make her appearance into the world until the next week. I'm anxious to move and unpack and be settled before she does come. I'm all about routine. The last few months have been stressful and I am ready for a big change.
Gavin is doing really well in school. He loves his teacher and his friends. We decided when we do move to keep him at his current school for the last few months, and commute everyday to his school. It is so important to me that he finishes a whole year at at least one school. He is so smart and has come such a long way. I am proud of him and grateful he has adjusted despite all upheavals in his educational journey this far.
Tyrone is in Joyschool 2 days a week. We will be sad to leave Joyschool early, but he may be able to still go if I'm bringing Gavin back over this side of town. Tyrone is so ready for Kindergarten this fall. He is bored out of his mind on the days he doesn't have Joyschool and he is constantly needing to be given things to keep him busy. He loves playing games on the computer (they're educational of course) and he had my phone figured out a few days after I got it. He's very smart and loves figuring out how things work.
Niamh is as wild as ever. She is such a tomboy one minute and a princess the next. When we go to the store, she always finds shoes or a dress that she wants and she defnitely has style already. It's fun having a little princess around. She loves Tom and Jerry and watches them everyday. She loves her brothers and loves sword fighting with them. She likes to scream at us when she doesn't get her way. I guess I am getting my own back with that, so I can't complain too much. Although, be assured, she doesn't get away with it, just like I didn't :)
Last week everyone at the house was sick except for me. Lucas and his mom had bronchitis, his dad had a cold, Gavin had a sinus infection, Tyrone had a cough and runny nose and Niamh had 2 ear infections. I felt like Florence Nightingale and was on the verge of losing my mind, but thank goodness all are on the mend this week. I'm praying I can stay healthy and not catch anything, so we'll see.
I have been reading up a storm. I've read almost 9 books already this year. I'm on my 9th book right now. I really love to read, but it has helped me escape so much as well. When I am stressed or needing some "me" time, I read. It's been awesome. I know I won't have as much time to read once the baby comes, so I guess I'm stocking up now.
Lucas is doing well at work. I usually know when he's had a stressful night at work. He doesn't always tell me what happened, at my request. Some of the stuff is just too disturbing. Last night, some neighbors called about a domestic dispute between a couple. Turns out the guy hit his wife in the face. He has been having an affair for months and the wife caught him. Lucas and his partner wanted to get a statement from this lady, who had a huge black eye. She didn't want to tell them anything. They can't force her. I know it made him mad, that they were trying to help her and she refused it. I guess he had a night of people fighting him the whole time. It's not an easy job. He loves it and I know he tries to make a difference where he can but I know it takes it's toll. I'm so grateful that we have the gospel in our lives and that we have the truthfulness. It has helped us so much lately.
Well, I haven't taken any shots of my enormous belly yet, but I will post one next post.