Loveliness

Valentines Day and the days surrounding it are fun to do lovely sort of things.

He liked this one..shaving cream and food coloring. 

And I had two little 'helpers' to make sugar cookies.

We waited to frost them until Christian came home, so Noah and he could frost most of them.

There were lots of sprinkles involved, and plenty of sticky frosting to clean up...but they enjoyed themselves!

I believe that is a HUGE yawn, Noah!

This was a very tiny heart, piled high with sprinkles from Noah.

Noah and I made heart Lego creations

Heart pancakes were loved by all, except Jonah

Who knew Play Doh could be so lovely

Handsome little boys...

oh how we love you.

Good for the Soul

The sunshine and warmth were much welcomed today.

We went to the arboretum and brought Grandma along with us. 

It was good for the soul.

This day came as a much needed breath of fresh air..literally.

News Years Eve

We had a wild and crazy time at the Sweigart house on New Years Eve..

maybe not anymore than the usual. It was a good time all the same.

We had pizza and sloppy joe's for supper. The kids decorated gingerbread houses, lit sparklers with Grandpa, and played a very interactive game.

Mia and Christian working on their house

There was NOT a shortage of sweets going on...Noah tried his hardest to put a dent in the candy supply, but he kept coming up with more opportunities.

The game was one in which the kids had to find someone to complete the given task (there were 12 boxes I think). There was a variety of things, some involved singing, some physical (I think Grandpa did his fair share of burpees), some were finding someone with a birthday in a specific month, some listing off Christmas trivia questions (the names of all the reindeer, the 12 days of Christmas, the gifts the wisemen bought, how many pa-rum-pa-pum-pum's there are in The Little Drummer Boy). In one way or another, I think everyone but Eliana was involved. It was entertaining...lots and lots of laughter and noise!!

"Papa" and "Baby" are competing for the most often said words by Jonah.

Both people are very loved by him :)

We ended the fun filled evening with a game..Quelf. It is a very random, silly yet entertaining game.

For Carissa, anytime she made eye contact with someone she had to say, "I have you now." And then,  I don't even know what she had to do for the turn that I have this picture of...but its just too classy, so I needed it on here.

Almost all (with the exception of Jonah and Eliana, maybe?) welcomed in the New Year awake!

Our Christmas family times have officially come to an end...

Happy 2016!!!

Lanterns and Sparklers

Part of the fun over the Christmas festivities included Dad getting Chinese lanterns and sparklers. He's just a fun guy like that.

The lanterns went for QUITE some time, it was the perfect night to send them off.

The sparklers were used on New Year's Eve.

Twirling around a little stick on fire...sure brings out the awe and joy!

Our Year [2015]

(the highlighted text can be clicked on to open the event described)

In January, the boys and I flew out with Mom and Dad to celebrate the adoption of Mia, Gia and Jace into the Gredler family.

In March, I went with the boys and my mom to MN, to visit my Grandpa Birky. I was glad we could go, he turned 95 on Oct 23rd (my newest niece, Eliana Joy, was also born on this day!) this year.

In the spring, we got six chickens! They are known as The Greats...as they are named Ardis, Lois (yellow ones), Fannie, Faye (brownish red ones), Stella and Lola (black and white ones). Lola ended up being a rooster (Dale), so he went to live at our doctor's home (his wife is my friend). Ben did a really nice job preparing for them...they have a bit of a chicken mansion. He continues to perfect his chicken farming! The boys like to treat them like pets, and the ladies give us 5 eggs daily, which is more than we usually need!

Also this past spring, we celebrated my Dad's 60th Birthday. Tim & Carissa's family all came and surprised him. The celebration and fun family times surrounding this, were certainly memorable.

This summer, we took a family trip to Colorado. The five of us spent time around Colorado Springs, which was a much needed and enjoyable vacation. We joined the rest of the Sweigart family at Garden of the Gods...stopped to see the Royal Gorge the next day, and proceeded on to Mt Princeton, where we all stayed in 2 large cabins. We had a great time taking in nature and using the pool/water slide.

Christian: Our  6 year old! He graduated preschool in the spring and started Kindergarten this fall. He rides the bus to school and then gets dropped off at the high school after school so he can get a ride with Daddy home. He is learning things so FAST. He reads and writes more each day. He seems to enjoy his classmates, and loves his teacher, Mrs. Lehman. He loves to color, play outside, Hot Wheels, Legos, and playing the Wii. He is a good helper, both in the kitchen and on projects involving a hammer and nails! He LOVES summer, getting to wear shorts, flip flops and swimming are up there among his top favorite things in life! His brothers certainly look up to him...and overall he is a very sweet, funny boy!

Noah: At three years old...he keeps us laughing frequently. If its not the faces he makes while he's talking, its what he thinks up to say. He is playful, ornery, and the biggest sweetheart when he wants to be. He is a very good big brother to Jonah (most of the time), and looks up to his big brother "Shish-en". He loves to put together puzzles, color, ride his bike, swing, Legos, and play outside. It is amazing how much he has grown up (here and here and here) over this past year. 

Jonah: Our baby, he is one year old and definitely not a small baby who just lies around looking cute anymore. Its kind of crazy to think that his poor hair/head used to look like this and now he has a VERY full head of light brown, curls. He remains cute...but is into EVERYTHING! He says many words and flashes his full smile to many. He brings us so much joy, so playful and lovable. He also brings a lot of activity...let's just say, when he's awake, there is not a dull moment. We all love him very much...and he clearly shares the same feeling for us in his kind way of giving kisses and hugs. 

 Us: Ben changed teaching jobs this year, and is working at Hesston High School. We are all happy with this change! He continues to teach Spanish. He continues to be very handy around the house, and has done small jobs for others throughout the year as well (at least 3 main painting jobs mainly). We all love him dearly :)

      I continue to love being at home with the boys, and working the minimum hours I can at the hospital. Both have their rewards in their own ways. I worked full time over the summer months, so Ben stayed home with the boys while I was gone. I was glad when it was over...the summer months can be brutal as far as quantity of patients having babies AND I missed my own babies at home!!!

 2015 has treated us well. 

Our family has remained healthy, 

and we are thankful the boys are growing physically, emotionally, and spiritually. 

We are very blessed.

Blessings to you all in 2016