Water play

Dylan and Haley washed the Yaris today. Then Dylan "accidentally" sprayed Don. Then Dylan ran away fast, leaving the hose unattended. Nick jumped at the opportunity to play with it!

Harley at 8 months

Beautiful, enthusiastic, loving, smart, and HUGE.

It's that time of the year again....

Our beautiful orange Azalea is doing its thing!

Nicky Noodle Snickerdoodle

Try to look past the dirt on his face : )

Trampoline fun

Last night my wonderful, handy husband put up a new fence in the backyard so that the kids could have access to the trampoline (and later the little pool) without having to worry about getting trampled by an 80-pound dog. Everyone, with the possible exception of Harley, is happy about the new boundaries : )

Thankful

I'm thankful for 6 healthy children who have made us very proud, a 30-plus-year friendship, a 20-year marriage, my sister's ability to make me laugh always, Nathan's clear head, strong back, and financial wisdom, Dylan's musical talents and academic achievements, Sean's lofty goals and commitment to Sea Cadets, Patience's sense of humor and maternal instincts, Jordyn's bright smile, Nick's platinum hair, Nathan's and Dylan's jobs, Nathan's and Dylan's choice in girlfriends, public schools, great teachers, plentiful work for Don, sunny weather, scholarships, reliable cars, sufficient funds for our needs, a God who knows us and loves us anyway, parents who are "right there" even though they're not geographically close, the internet, a house that fits us all, and for vacations!

Princess feet!

Yesterday both girls were shuffling around in their "high-heeled" princess shoes : )

Today Nick discovered Patience's princess shoes on the shoe rack and immediately put them on. Career in the NHL? Maybe not...

Professional ballet dancer? It's possible...

My birthday!

I had quite the birthday celebration this year! Not only were Heather and Haley here from California, but Sean brought Justin over and Dylan invited....you guessed it! Haley!

Don barbequed hamburgers with all the fixins, and then we had cheesecakes for dessert.

I got my very own Webkinz and a Wii Fit Plus : )

Mother's day tea

Last week Jordyn's preschool had a mother's day tea. The kids all lined up and sang...all the kids except Jordyn, that is...and then they served strawberry shortcake and gave us gifts that they had made. I got purple bath salts : )

Haley's baseball medal

Last weekend a Langley softball team (not Haley's team) invited her to go to a softball tournament up in the interior. They apparently needed a ringer. Dylan almost died from Haley withdrawls, but in the end it was worth it because not only did her team do very well, but Haley did so well individually that she earned a tournament MVP medal!

Play ball!

Last night Patience and I dropped Sean off at cadets and then swung by to pick up Naylene, who lives near the CTC. From there, we all went to Walnut Grove to watch Haley play ball. It was a beautiful evening...perfect for watching a ball game.

Right before Haley got up to bat I told Patience, "Now watch Haley hit a home run," and sure enough she did!

Dylan taught Patience how to eat Spitz last night. Patience loved them and told Haley's mom, Sheri, "This is the most delicious food I've ever had. Except for birthday cake. And pizza. And banana splits."

Adorable girls in matching outfits

While I was in California last week mom and I spent some time at Gap Kids and Old Navy. We got these adorable matching outfits for the girls that they were able to wear to school today as our weather is finally warming up!

Birthday milkshake

On Sunday Don secreted Patience away for a father-daughter birthday celebration. He took her to White Spot, where they make delicious milkshakes and let her choose whatever she wanted. Her choice? This huge bubblegum-flavored milkshake, topped with whipped cream and gummy bears!

STAR winner!

Patience is the first kindergartener this year at North Otter to win the STAR award. STAR stands for safety, teamwork, academics, respect. Any time a student gets "caught" by a teacher displaying one of these qualities, their name goes into a box. At the end of the month, 10 names are drawn and those winners can choose prizes. Patience chose this Dora the Explorer box, which she keeps her now extensive (thanks to Grandma for cleaning out her jewelry box) earring collection.

Spring has sprung...

and outdoor playtime is here!

Fine Arts Scholarship for Dylan

Dylan received the District Authority Scholarship for Fine Arts to the tune of $1000! He'll be recognized both at an awards luncheon and at the graduation ceremony.

On the same note, Naylene also won a $1000 scholarship for French! She's been in the French immersion program since grade 6.

It's nice to have such talented children in the family : )

Kwantlen it is!

Last week we found out that Dylan did not get accepted into UVic's music program for next year. It was not a huge surprise, as he came home from his audition knowing he hadn't played his best. Nor is it a bad thing, as God seems to be directing Dylan's steps to Kwantlen with his acceptance into their program, a great local job that works around his school schedule, enough money through scholarships to pay for all of his tuition there, and a reliable, economical vehicle to use for the next couple of years.

I have to say that it did take a temporary toll on Dylan's confidence....even to the point of making him question his ability to make a career in music. Thanks to Haley who encouraged him to follow his heart, he is now back on track for becoming the best music teacher D.W. Poppy has ever had : )

Patience's birthday dinner

Last night we had a wonderful dinner to celebrate Patience's birthday. We ate the lasagna that Heather made while she was here, broccoli, garlic bread, and a Dairy Queen ice cream cake (yummy!).


Naylene brought a birthday gift from her and Nathan. It was a bad full of princess treasures, as well as a card with $20 in it! You should have seen Patience's reaction...she's never owned a $20 bill before!


After dinner and cake, Naylene, Patience, Jordyn, and I raced to Patience's soccer game and made it just in the nick of time.

Patience's 6th birthday

Patience woke up to a "light" version of birthday decorating, as her parents had stayed up late playing cards and dominos with Frank and Heather. But she was still very excited and enjoyed opening up her gifts.