My Awesome Kids

I think that should be the title of every post!

Jonathan is such a big boy. He already has four teeth and more are coming in. I put him in the front part of the shopping cart the other day. He is flying through his baby stages. He wears toddler size clothes and size 4 diapers. He turned 9 months yesterday.

Daniel is growing up fast, too. He is always paying attention, even when we don't think he is. The other day, we were in Sam's Club and I asked a worker where the formula was (they seem to move everything around every time I go in there--it drives me nuts!). Anyway, he didn't know so he called out to a co-worker a few aisles down, "Hey Chris! Where is the formula?" Chris told us where it was and went back to work. I thanked the man and started walking away. All of a sudden, Daniel yells out, "THANKS CHRIS!" Nathaniel and I had a good laugh about it.

Today is Andrew's last day of preschool. He has come a long way this past year. He is talking better and he knows his letters and he is starting to write his name. I can't believe that he will be in kindergarten in the fall! Here he is with his wonderful teacher, Miss Julia.

Emily wrote me a song for Mother's Day! She wrote the music and lyrics all by herself, and she even made her own sheet music. I've been trying all day to upload video of her playing the song, but it won't work. I'll try again next week.

Nathaniel is doing very well in school. I'm so proud of him for all he does, and he does it on his own. He had a huge year-long 4th grade project this year. I helped him by taking him to the library and buying his supplies and proofreading, but he did all the work. He got a 97%! He is a huge help to me at home. He plays with Jonathan and takes Daniel to the bathroom and plays outside with his younger siblings. Andrew is always so excited when Nathaniel comes home and plays outside with him. I love to watch them all playing together.

Little Trooper

Andrew fell on the playground at preschool yesterday and chipped three teeth. The dentist was able to see him right away and fix them. Andrew was so brave. His teacher was so impressed with him. This is the same child that didn't make a peep when he got his IV at the hospital. He is a tough kid!

I went with Andrew on his preschool field trip to the zoo on Monday. He was really well-behaved and stayed with me the whole time. I think he might have been afraid I was going to leave; he still has a hard time when I drop him off at preschool. Anyway, I brought Daniel and Jonathan, too, and we had a great time.

This is a tiny turtle they found.

On Monday night, we went to our local Pretzelmaker because I had read that it was National Pretzel Day and they were giving out free pretzels. Spending 12+ dollars on pretzels isn't something I would normally do, so I thought it would be fun for them. We must have been the first ones to ask for the free pretzels, because the cashier looked really confused. His manager assured him that we were correct, and we all got a free pretzel. I forgot, however, that this particular Pretzelmaker is also a Great American Cookie store! Oops! I think the kids would have preferred the cookies.

Day Out with Thomas

We had such a wonderful time this past Saturday at the Day Out with Thomas Celebration. It was one of those blissful days where we were able to just enjoy being together as a family, and the kids were so good and cooperative. There was no fighting and very little whining. We got to ride the train and there were lots of different tents and stations to visit: mini golf, sandbox, bouncy house, play tables with tracks and trains, petting zoo, and, of course, a gift shop.

Four years before, we had been to the same Thomas Celebration with a very excited 6 year old Nathaniel, 3 year old Emily, and 8 month old Andrew. Jonathan is in the same exact outfit that Andrew had worn. I can't believe how much they look alike. Jonathan doesn't look like he's having much fun in this picture, but he was an angel.

Here is the picture of Andrew from four years ago.
Jonathan kept trying to steal Daniel's hat as we waited for our train ride to start.

The kids were excited to have their picture taken with Sir Topham Hatt, or "Sir Thomas Hatt," to Daniel.

Petting zoo--Emily and Andrew

It was a little sunny--can you tell?

Thanks Thomas!!!

Cute Little Boys

Here is Daniel singing "Who Let the Dogs Out?" It's so funny when he just starts singing it out of nowhere. He learned it from Emily's Just Dance Wii game. I love his little smile at the end.

We signed Andrew up for YMCA soccer. He liked it in the beginning, but lately he doesn't want to play. He looks so cute, though! Maybe he will like it better next year.

Happy Times

My sweet Jonathan has been sick lately--again. He is my biggest boy so far, but he has been sick the most. Look at that smile! Oh, it brightens my day!


You can tell how big he is in this picture. He is not quite 8 months, but he weighs 26 pounds!

Nathaniel had a fun birthday. He invited four friends from school to his party. I took Emily and Nathaniel and his friends to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid (he has loved reading the books; I've even read them) and then we came back to our house for pizza and cake and ice cream. His friends were so well behaved, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

He wanted a Diary of a Wimpy Kid cake, so I used frosting to make the face that is in the books. I bought the picture holder at Walmart. The great thing about it is that it is reusable. Great for the May family! I used it on Emily's cake, too.

We went to an Easter egg hunt in our neighborhood on Saturday morning. They had a great time.

"No, Mommy, I don't need a nap. I'll just rest here on my sippy cup for a few minutes."

Spring Break

We finally got through all of our illnesses (me and the three older boys), so we decided to take a trip down to Florida to see Papa and Nana and TJ (my dad and stepmom and nephew) for a few days. Michael had some deadlines at work so he couldn't go, but I decided to take the kids down there myself. It was a wonderful trip. The kids were so good, and the drive wasn't bad. It took us 9 hours each way, which includes an hour worth of stops. We had so much fun while we were there. My dad was sure surprised when I called him Thursday morning and told him we were on the road and we would be there that night!

Here we are at Brooker Creek Preserve in Tarpon Springs on Friday. We had a great time on our nature walk. Jonathan was an angel, as usual.

This was at a train show in St. Petersburg on Saturday. Within minutes of this photo, Andrew knocked poor Thomas and Annie and Clarabel (his coaches) right off of the outside track. As my dad said, "He's the only one who knew they were on the wrong track." :-)

Emily was such a good sport, and she had a great time even though she was the only girl and we did mostly "boy" stuff.

This was taken on Saturday at Sawgrass park. TJ got to come with us.

This raccoon was too cute.

Dad said you can always see an alligator at Sawgrass, and he was right. This one is really far away--I just zoomed in a lot.

My sweet Andrew--he cried for Daddy on the way there, and he cried for Papa and Nana and TJ on the way home.

Here are some things I learned on this trip:

Even with a GPS that shows expected arrival time, the kids will still ask, "When will we get there?"

The May family should stay away from train shows.

A house full of tile + the May children = LOUD!

Portable DVD players are one of the greatest inventions ever.

Sonic has outdoor bathrooms--thanks for the tip, Ginger! This was especially helpful in rainy weather.

We need to take more opportunities to do fun things as a family.

My kids are awesome, and they are excellent travelers!!!

My Guys

Can you guess what they are watching?

It's on the Food Network.

It's Alton Brown's Good Eats. The episode that has their rapt attention is about chocolate. :-)

The other day Daniel was upset about something and so I was comforting him. All of a sudden he yelled, "I NEED CHOCOLATE!" He's a boy after my own heart!

He wore this Burger King hat until it disintegrated.

Yesterday, I said, "Andrew, how about grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch?" Andrew: "No, steak!" Mommy: "What, no shrimp?" Andrew: "Yes!" Note to self: sarcasm is lost on a 4 year old.

He loves his Emily!!

Here is Nathaniel, being an awesome big brother. Jonathan hasn't said anything cute yet, but he sure is adorable when he coos. He is a big boy--24 pounds. He outgrew his car seat a month ago. My new nickname for him is Chunky Monkey, because he is so cute I could eat him up! I am so lucky that I get to kiss those puffy cheeks every day! He will be 7 months old tomorrow.

Poor Nathaniel has been sick all week. He's been a trooper, though. I can't believe he will be 10 next month!