Double Digits!

Another milestone reached! 

My children are no longer little.

All of my children are now in the double digits. 

He may not be so little anymore, but he sure is still cute!

Big brother making sure he was still the tallest 10 year old

of the house! Just wait, James. Lawrence may catch you yet!

Wonderful friends sharing in the celebration.

Yep... now I see why they all get along with Lawrence so well!

Lawrence, what a sweet, fun, funny, lovable kid you are.

Always remember, no matter how old you get, you will always be my

Teddy Bear!

We love you!

9th B-day

My little man celebrated his 9th birthday yesterday!

I helped Magdalene make his birthday cake using a recipe from her new cook book. It was a big hit (very delicious)! She is becoming very adept in the kitchen and we all benefit!

The big green candle was our solution to mom someone having forgot to get birthday candles. Worked great though. Green is Lawrence's favorite color and there was already the right size hole in the cake.

G'ma provided the birthday boy with a 6 pack, and since he is my only kid who likes "black pop" he doesn't even have to share!

Star Wars and Lego!! Perfect combination! 

A couple of Lawrence's cousins are in from out-of-state visiting G'ma for a few days and the timing was perfect. The boys were able to join us in the celebration. 

As you can see, they enjoyed each other's company. And, thankfully, the only injury they sustained was a swat to the side of the head for the birthday boy during sword play! (Notice the scratches near Lawrence's right eye). He recovered quickly and their activity choice soon switched to Legos! Smart thinking.

Always a good time when you can share your day with friends!! 

Even better when the friends are also family!!

Thanks for joining us!

(Thanks to G'ma, too. It is always a pleasure to have you with us!)

 And, to my new 9 year old!!!

I hope you know how loved you are.

You are laughter, smiles, craziness, chaos, and love all bundled into one!

Out of all of the boys in the world, I am so glad God chose you to be in our family!

Feast of St. Lawrence

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of catholic deacon and martyr, St. Lawrence. St. Lawrence died on the gridiron. Maintaining his trust in Christ and his sense of joy, even while suffering through such an agonizing death, he told his tormentors "Turn me over! I'm done on this side." So, in his honor we grilled hotdogs and enjoyed a "grill cake."

You can read about this wonderful saint and see the inspiration for our dessert at the Catholic Cuisine blog. So many great ideas for celebrating the faith can be found on the website.

Prayer to Saint Lawrence

O glorious Saint Lawrence, Martyr and Deacon, who, being subjected to the most bitter torments, didst not lose thy faith nor thy constancy in confessing Jesus Christ, obtain in like manner for us such an active and solid faith, that we shall never be ashamed to be true followers of Jesus Christ, and fervent Christians in word and in deed.

• Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

V. Pray for us, O holy Lawrence,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray.

Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, the grace to quench the flames of our vices, Thou who didst enable blessed Lawrence to overcome his fiery torments. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

And now he's eight!

And what an adventure to eight it turned out to be.

Thursday evening my little man was involved in a head to chin collision which lead to a two and half hour emergency room visit. His bottom teeth were pushed up far enough to puncture the gums directly behind the upper front two teeth. (Lots of blood!) All looked ok enough to be sent home with instructions to head to the dentist in the am. The instructions also included lots of popsicles and ice cream on the menu to help reduce some of the swelling. So, Friday morning, after being wished a quick happy birthday by his siblings, off we went to visit the dentist (after all, which kid wouldn't want to spend their birthday morning in a dental office.) After x-rays, it was confirmed that the front teeth were pretty loose and would need to be splinted. Lawrence is now sporting a very attractive wire metal strip that is adhered to his two front teeth and the tooth on each side. His activity and diet are restricted for two weeks as we wait to see if the teeth tighten up in there again. We are praying the two front ones will survive!

After hearing that he is only allowed soft foods for two weeks, there was great fear that his birthday dinner would need to be postponed. After assuring the dentist that I would cut his pizza into less than bite size pieces, Lawrence was given the "go ahead". And much to his pleasure, he was also informed he could eat lots and lots of ice cream and have a nice large piece of cake to go with it; after all, they would be considered "soft foods". (Of course he had to also agree that he would rinse his mouth out and brush his teeth really well when finished). So, thankfully, the birthday dinner proceeded as planned.

Cake... yum!!

What caused this excitement you might ask...

A nerf machine gun, of course!

(Sometimes, garage sales really pay off)

Thanks, Mark, for the cool spider.

(Even mom likes this one! She's not too fond of the "natural" spiders creeping through her house)

Happy Birthday, my little man!

Thanks for handling all the excitement so well. You're a tough little cookie!

And such a cute one too!

We love you!

A Blessed Day!!!

Sunday was a day filled with celebration.

Lawrence received his First Holy Communion!

Congratulations, Lawrence! This was such a great moment in your faith journey!

I have such wonderful kids!!

Thanks G'ma for joining us at Mass. It was a joy having you with us.

Thank you, Lawrence for one good picture with your mother!

Lawrence, I hope it was a day you will always remember!

Jesus, we trust in you!

Blessed John Paul II, pray for us!

Birthday fun!

Family and friends!

(Yes, Myriah was here too. She is behind the camera)

Cupcakes (and ice cream)!

Waterballoons!

Games!

Gifts!

I love you, Teddy Bear! Happy Birthday!

Fencing!

Uncle David and Aunt Kari... you were right! James and Lawrence have been participating in a fencing class and having a grand time! I think they look very cool in their gear!