Clydesdales

The boys were off of school for President's Day and Jake was lucky enough to not work until 6:00PM so he was able to spend the day off with them. The Clydesdales were in town from the Daytona 500 and were making a special appearance at the Tanger Outlets in Daytona so the boys were able to meet them and take a ride!

Adventures to Melbourne

For Christmas Jake's parents got our family a year membership to the State Parks. With boys who love to spend time outside this was the perfect gift for us.

 

We woke up Sunday morning and decided to venture south. Our first place on the agenda was Erna Nixon Park in Melbourne. Although it was beautiful, the trails were short and the park was small. We ended up having a picnic lunch there, walking the 3/4 mile trail and getting in some good pictures.

Our next stop was even more south. We visited San Sebastian Inlet. It was a beautiful place but more on the beachy side and with two boys wearing boots and us all in sneakers we felt out of place. There was limited trails but a beautiful dock and pier that we got to walk out on and view the water.

And well the ride home was long and loud. Ben decided to serenade us with his voice most of the way. All the other boys got a nap in but Brayden...this kid never naps!

Art and Science Fair

The older boys had an art and science fair at school in which they were all to make an art project and do a science fair project.

Aiden did a social studies project with his Aunt Layla about the Gold Rush. Brayden did an ipad themed project in where it was named iAmerica and had applications of landmarks and symbols of America.

Bransen and Brayden did an art canvas made of masking tape. They put masking tape in different locations on their canvas and then painted in between.

Brayden also did the spelling bee at school. I was so proud. For someone who was so shy just  a few years ago to see him on the stage brought me so much pride. Even his former teachers coulfn't believe how far the shy little boy had come. And even better news he was the last third grader standing. It was between the third and fourth grade classes!

Superbowl Weekend

We had a great week together and SuperBowl ended it with a great win! Don't tell Jake I said that! :)

We spent the weekend together doing our normal family things....running errands and FOOTBALL! No wins coming home from the Barrette boys this weekend but they both played so really good ball.

And to end the weekend we went to a SuperBowl party at one of Jake's co-workers house. The boys had a blast playing with eachother, with Rex the K9 and I had a great time watching the Patriot's lose!

What better way is there to end the weekend than that?!

And to start the week off it was the 100th day of school which meant Raylan go to dress up as a 100 year old!

Our Weekend

So after some unexpected turns in our weekend I got to spend the whole weekend with my three boys! This is usually a weekend that it's only Ben and I but I was lucky to get some quality time with Brayden and Bransen.

We started our Saturday off with some flag football. Both boys pulled some flags and played great games. Unfortunately only Brayden's team was able to pull off a win!

After the game the boys worked up quite the appetite so we headed over to their favorite food spot, Highjackers for some lunch and they all got to play on the playground. Ben thoroughly enjoyed his fires!

Next on our stop for the day was Port Orange. We stopped and saw Jake who was able to get us a quick visit with K9 Loki. He did some tricks, let us pet him and jumped on top of Jake's new patrol car. The boys thought that was the best part and knew Jake would soon be bringing it through the car wash! 

We ended our afternoon with Coldstone ice cream. 

And onto Sunday. We relaxed. Which is very uncommon around our house. We went grocery shopping, lounged around the house and played outside in the afternoon before the rain made it's way. 

We have all five boys this week. Which means all these snacks will be devoured before next week!

Love these two.

This is Ben. This is Ben when he is mad that he can no longer play outside in his blue car because mother nature decided to rain.

He's going to make a great husband one day!

I turned the corner and saw this. A picture's worth a thousand words. 

Spirit Week

This week was spirit week at school. Each day the boys were able to dress up with the theme. And although I didn't get any pictures of the first two days, which were Pajama Day and Denim Day, I did get some pictures of Wacky Wednesday and Jake was able to capture a few from Spirit Day!

Happy Birthday Ben!

And just like that our baby boy turns ONE! We got to celebrate him all day with family. And on top of that for Jake's side of the family and Patriots win! We have a nice day filled with family time, yummy food, good cake, presents and lots of smiles!

Ben at ONE:

•                  He is nodding his head yes and no and answers your questions that way. 
•                  He waves by and blows kisses!
•                  He still is not a big fan of car rides!
•                  Little man can sleep! He sleeps about twelve hours at night but naps are still a hit or                   miss!
•                  Loves playing with his big brothers. Anything they do he is not far behind.
•                  Eating is still his biggest love. Fruits and cheese are his new favorite and he loves                       his "fish heads"
•                  He loves his Pep and the expression every time he sees him will light up your eyes.

Our birthday shout outs!

And just like that, 365 days and a year of firsts have gone by in a blink of an eye. You’re a blessing beyond means, the final piece of the puzzle and the spitfire to keep us on our toes. Your smile defines your love and I’m so blessed to witness it day in and day out! Happy first birthday Benjamin!

Where do I begin ... you were the unexpected. The unplanned. The "oh my God, another one?!".

A year has gone by since you entered our world and the immeasurable amounts of laughter, smiles and joy you've brought continue to amaze us. You're so smart, so stubborn; my last little boy. Watching you grow has been, and continues to be incredible.

We didn't know it, but you were the final piece we needed to begin our story. A year ago today the first page started with you.

Happy birthday Benjamin; daddy loves you!