Brenda's Little Blog

So, here's to my promise to keep this updated. Lately I have been reflecting so much on my life. I watch my kids and marvel at how unique they are and how quickly they grow. Family truly is the center of life and it is amazing at what each of my kids add to make my life so meaningful.

Devan started Jr High this year, and is doing so well. He is really being conscientious about keeping up his grades this year. Maybe all of the battles to do homework in grade school have finally paid off...He is playing football again this year and decided to give it a go at being the quarterback. Being a mom watching the game is so full of emotion. I am so proud to see him out there and the dedication he has to his team. Every time he is knocked to the ground it seems he is the last one to get up and I am always on the edge of my seat. I guess that is just the way the game is played. Most importantly, it is amazing to see how loving and sweet he is with his baby brother. He torments Kelsie relentlessly (reminds me of growing up with Joe:)), but he really has a special bond with Garrett.

Kelsie is now in 2nd grade. She does so well in school. Her teacher sends the week's homework home on Mondays with a list of what to do each night. Kelsie comes home and does the entire week's worth on Monday. I can't figure out if she "likes" to do homework or if she just wants to get it all done so she doesn't have to worry about it the rest of the week. Either way I don't think I will have to worry about her being a procrastinator. She is doing Tumbling and Cheer again this year. She really is dedicated. She will practice over and over and over and over until she really masters it. She is constantly doing backbends and the splits...how it makes my legs ache to watch. When we go to the football games she studies the cheerleaders so intently and learns all of their cheers. It is so cute to watch her analyzing and imitating their moves. She is also such a great big sister to Garrett. She loves to carry him around....even when she takes Garrett out of his crib because "he was crying, Mom" it is hard to get too mad at her. She just loves being the big sister.

Garrett is growing sooooo fast. Why can't they stay little babies longer? I had a meeting at work this morning and decided to weigh him while I was there. 13 pounds, 12 ounces. No wonder my back hurts:). He is starting to sleep a little better, he has mastered about 6 hours for 4 out of the 5 past nights. I still don't get much done during the day, he still only cat-naps. But it is too much fun to play with a baby all day, so I really can't complain. He has the biggest, open-mouth smile...ear to ear with eyes that sparkle. But as soon as I pull out the camera he is all too serious. Go figure.

It is so crazy to think that not even a year ago Lance and I were in Hawaii and I figured I was soooo tired due to the time change. Little did I know that our lives were about to change so dramatically. I would have insisted that we were happy with our two kids. We had our boy and our girl and they were both getting to the age where they were both in school all day. I could work a little more and still have evenings and weekends with the family (and a few days off to myself). We could take our trips to Disneyland, Washington DC and New York and not have to worry about packing a diaper bag. My little Honda Civic was the perfect size for a road trip. Just when you think your life is going just how you always wanted....SURPRISE!!!! But I wouldn't have it any other way.