Happy Birthday Anne - 2 Years Old

Baby Anne turned 2 years old today. I guess she's not a baby anymore. She is still about the size of some 1 year olds though so I guess we can still call her baby. :) We had a really fun day. We opened some presents in the morning (mainly because the boys couldn't wait). She got really cute dresses from my mom and sister and a doll house from the family. Then we had a yummy breakfast and got Christopher off to school. It was also school picture day and I can't wait to see what his first pictures look like. After we picked him up from school we went to the park and had a small birthday get together with friends from church with kids her age. We had cupcakes and they played and had lots of fun. Annie especially liked the little squirrel she could ride. When we came home it was time for a quick bath and we played some more. When dad got home we had dinner and then it was CAKE time. Annie was so cute singing to herself and blowing out the candles...which we had to do twice because the over zealous boys did it for her the first time. :) We opened the last present after that. Then we played a very loud game of duck, duck, goose which was hilarious!!! Now they are all in bed and the house is quite.

Birthdays are so fun! I love my little Annie so much. Since it looks like I might not get another girl I'm so glad she is the little spirit I got. She is pretty strong willed but I hope that will serve her well in her life and she learns to control it. But she is so sweet and cuddly and her smile is the best. She has such a fun personality and the things she says sometimes just crack me up. I love that she loves her brothers and that they love her. She is such a special spirit and each morning as she lays with her head on my shoulder I am grateful that she is a part of our family. I love my little girl and look forward to having a wonderful mother daughter relationship with her as she grows.
Happy Birthday Anne!!!!!


Go for it Annie....rip that paper. Present from us. A little people doll house. She needed more girl toys. :)

Birthday breakfast...bacon and pancakes with peach syrup. My kids love breakfast meat. :)

Fun was had by all.

Cupcakes at the park.

Playing at the park.

I used to try to do really creative cakes, but I wasn't very good at it, so we go simple now. :)

Blowing out the candles was so cute. I wish I could get the video on here. She sang Happy Birthday to herself right along with all of us.

The ice cream was more yummy when she ate it with her hands.

Dad liked the cake too. :)

Opening present from grandma and grandpa Bearnson (Sutherland)

Whooooo Hoooooo!!!!

We just found out that Jeff passed (with very good scores I might add) the first two CPA exams he took last month. He has two more to take but I'm sure he will pass those just fine as well. He was nervous about it but I knew he would pass because he studied hard and had his family and friends praying and fasting for him. We are very grateful to his family for holding a special fast just so he would do good on the tests. We are so excited and are going to PARTY tonight. :) Way to go Jeff!!!!!

Christopher starts kindergarten...Boo Hoo...Hooray

Christopher started kindergarten a week ago. It was a day I was excited for and dreading at the same time. I was excited for him that he was going to start experiencing this part of life. I loved school as a kid, even though I was shy, and I knew there were things he was just going to love about it. But I was dreading it more for my sake. I knew I was really going to miss having him at home. He is my little helper and always makes me feel good. For weeks before school started I would cry even thinking about the first day of school. We also had a hard time because Secaucus has full day kindergarten and I prefer half day. But for some reason this move felt right and it felt right to put him in kindergarten instead of doing pre-k this year which is half day. (But they do have a half day for the first month in kindergarten to get them used to it)For weeks he was saying how excited he was for school and I was hoping that his enthusiasm would continue. When the day came he was still excited right up until it was time to go to class. They all met in the auditorium for a little intro from the principal and all that jazz, then they announced teachers names and it was time to go. Of course, his teacher was first and they didn't even let you go in the classroom with them (I didn't like that). At that point he just started crying and it really broke my heart. Jeff had told me I had to be strong for Christopher but I was already crying at that point so that was useless (I think Jeff teared up a little bit too). We gave him lots of hugs and one of the aids took his hand and led him to class. I was so nervous at home waiting to pick him up. I was hoping he hadn't been upset for long. When I picked him up he was so excited and said that he stopped crying when he got in the class. He hasn't cried once since then and is excited to go every morning. I barely get a hug out of him before he runs in to class and he always says how much fun he has when I pick him up. I think he really likes being around so many kids his age and he seems to really like his teacher. She seems to really like him too and always says how adorable he is and how he reminds her of her nephew. I'm just relieved that it has been such a good experience for him so far. I still can't believe I have a 5 year old. We've had to get on a much more strict schedule having him in school but it's been good for all of us. I still get a little sad when he's not here at home with me though. :( I miss my little Christopher. :)


Trying to wake him up on the first day.
Eating breakfast on the "You are special today" plate. A wedding gift that we have really enjoyed.

Here he is in his school uniform and backpack with his lunch/snack bag. I love little kids in their backpacks that are as big as they are...especially when all they carry in there is one folder and their snack. :)

Waiting to pick up Christopher after school.

Yeah Christopher! That is his classroom behind them. I think he was a little tired of all the pictures I had been taking and all the questions I had right when he walked out the door.

All the kids play for a while on the playground after school. This is where Michael gets to get involved a little bit which is nice so he doesn't feel left out.

This was after the second day. He is telling me all about what he did that day and eating the rest of what he didn't eat at snack time.

Goodbye North Bergen, Hello Secaucus

Our move was a whirlwind of finding a place, packing and moving all within a week. Of course, I had been looking at places forever, but as tradition with us, everything happens last minute. Here are a few photos of our new place. I haven't done a lot of decorating or anything yet, but at least most of the boxes are unpacked. :) This place feels a little more like a house than an apartment. It's a duplex and we have all 3 floors. It's not like it's huge or anything, but at least we aren't above or below anyone. The main floor has the living, dining, kitchen and a half bath. The upstairs has 2 bedrooms and the bath and then there is a basement with the laundry and plenty of storage. The kids can even ride their bikes around down there. We like it, although I have to admit I'm not a big fan of hard wood floors. I like soft carpet. :)
The kids room. Annie has been demoted to the pack n play until we get Michael a new bed this weekend. :)

We finally have our own room...what a luxury. ;)

P.S. Oh, Jeff got released as bishop this last Sunday. It was a surprise for us but it's nice to have him around more. :)
PPS. I'll let Maile announce who the new bishop is. ;)