He's back!

Here is my husband at the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. He spent 10 wonderful days in Europe while chaperoning students. He saw sooooooo much and took tons of pictures (took us over an hour to file through them). We missed him so much and it is wonderful to have him back. The kids thought we should serve him breakfast in bed on his first morning back.

Happy Birthday Hannah

My big girl is now 8 years old. She turned 8 last Friday but it seems the celebration has been going on for the last two weeks. As you can see, Hannah got a camera for her birthday. She loves going out with Daddy on his shooting sprees so we thought now that Hannah is a mature 8 year old, she could handle an adult camera. She loves it and I know she and Marc will spend a lot of time together taking pictures.

This is the outfit Ben picked out for his sister. She loved it.

Here is my big girl at one of her many birthday celebrations. The cake was awesome...a dragonfly.

Hannah's grandma Judy lovingly put this scrap book together for Hannah outlining the first 8 years of her life. It is a wonderful gift to have.

Today Hannah had her party with her friends at Marc's school. It was a High School Musical Party so what better place to have it then in a highschool gym. The girls had a great time. They made pom poms and had to do a cheer for Hannah. They played freeze dance...which is always a hit, they played the "unwrap the present" game and a basketball game as well. They enjoyed dancing together and it was a really great time.

Hannah opening her gifts. She was spoiled.

I can't believe what a big girl Hannah is getting to be. She is such a wonderful daughter and I love her so much.

Miss you Daddy

Marc is in Europe right now on a tour with some students. The kids wanted to send him a little message and hopefully he'll check in and be able to see them. He actually just called from Florence, Italy and he's already taken 400 pictures. We miss him terribly but we're very happy that he has this opportunity. Love you Marc.

Welcome Baby

Here is the latest addition to our extended family. Marc's sister Kerry had a beautiful baby boy this afternoon. He looks just like his older brother Dominic when he was born. I'm sure that he will be an incredible blessing. I just wish we were closer so that we could be a part of his life. Guatemala is too far away.
The funny part is that they were expecting a baby girl...obviously God had other plans. No name yet as they are still in shock and hadn't expected to have to name a boy. Sarah just won't do.

May the Force be with you Benjamin

Benjamin had his birthday party yesterday and it was really fun. We had spent a whole lot of time planning this as it was Ben's first real birthday party with friends. We had it in Marc's school gym and Ben had eight friends attend. As you can tell by the pictures it was a Star Wars party and the whole idea of the party was that the kids needed to do their Jedi training so that at the end they could become Jedi Masters. First the boys made lightsabers and their first trial was lightsaber training. Trial 2 was using the force to put balls and frisbees through a hoop. Trial 3 was pod racing. Trial 4 was the obstacle course and trial 5 was destroying the death star. The boys just loved it and it was amazing to see smiles on everyone's faces. Marc and I commented after that we had never seen nine boys so well behaved. We kept them pretty busy. Once they completed their training and their training cards were all checked off, we had a ceremony where each boy was presented with their Jedi Master Certificate. They all thought it was pretty special. We then ate some food, opened presents and had the cake. It was a lot of fun. I'm still trying to get over the fact that my boy is turning 5 on Wednesday. He is so precious to me and such a wonderful gift from God.

(Lightsaber training)

(Pod Racing)

(The coolest cake ever)

(Time for presents)

Happy Valentine's Day

After a few days of being sick on the couch with a horrible cold, Marc and I headed off to Bellingham for a night away. I know, Bellingham doesn't sound like the most romantic place but we had to pick up some things for the kids' birthday parties so we kind of killed two birds with one stone.
We had a really nice time just being together. I don't think it really mattered where we went. It was just really great to be alone without the kids. We went for a nice dinner and were able to sleep in the next morning (soooo nice). Saturday morning we went for a walk along the ocean in the Fairhaven district of Bellingham. It was beautiful but cold (BBBBBRRRRR!). The above picture is one I took of the boardwalk with Marc's camera. Once in a while he actually lets me use it. We finished off our time away with a nice lunch at the Olive Garden and then came back and picked up the kids. It was probably the first time we had actually been alone for Valentine's Day in years. I love my husband so much!!!

Happy Birthday Marc

Marc turned 35 on Thursday. Although I wasn't able to throw a big party for him because I was working, we did have a nice time with Alison and her family. Here is the "cake" and I think we still have cupcakes leftover. Uncle Marc got to spend some time with little Luke and it was fun watching Ben and Luke discover each other while hiding in the gift boxes. The kids got Marc some workout gear, chocolate, and of course Luke Skywalker. The Hall clan got Marc some treats and a monopod for his camera. I got him a fisheye converter for his camera and it's something I think he could have a lot of fun with. Here are a few pics from the evening. Happy 35th Marc...I'll be there soon. Love you.