Surrendered in praise: Mega Post.

It's been awhile. We have been packed full busy. Insanely busy, but in a very good way. :-)

A lot has happened since the last time I have posted.

Amazingly this is the first year that I have gotten bluebonnet pictures since we have had Dakota. The last time I took some, Cassidy was probably 18 or 19 months old.

This year, there was a beautiful field of them just outside of our neighborhood.

Baby really wasn't too sure about all of the flowers, but Caitlyn got her to smile!

When we took these it also happened to be the day before Micah's birthday, so I had to capture

some of the birthday boy!

We had a great time celebrating his birthday!

I love how serious but fun this little boy can be.

I also love how content he is....well, he does have a motorcycle.

But, ever since he has been able to communicate, he has always shown contentment.

He rarely asks for anything,

and every time we asked him what he would like special for his birthday,

He would say,

"I don't know!"

It made it a little more difficult to think about a great present,

but of course,

anything with wheels will work!

I love his adventurous spirit.

I also love that he can be sensitive and caring.

Um, maybe he has to as he has all sisters.

This boy has always been all boy.

As soon as he could move around he was doing some EXTREME things....

like climbing on the roof,

jumping off cliffs,

climbing the counter top, then the microwave next to the refrigerator, to ya know, get on TOP of the refrigerator...all at only 18 months.

Scary. As a mom. He would climb so high, and sometimes fall SO HARD, only to climb insane heights again! I have learned to pray better because of this little boy!

Thankfully as the years has passed I have seen him learn to do a little more risk calculating.

He has replaced absolute NO FEAR with common sense.

Sigh of relief.

What a sweet 6 year old!

He is proving to be a smart, logical little man. In fact, I often am dumbfounded by what he knows! I will ask him how he knows something to which he often replies,

"I don't know HOW I know it, I just know it!"

Micah, You are an amazing six year old who loves adventure, loves learning, loves life, loves to be silly, and loves motorcycles!

When you are asked what you would like to be when you grow up, you often answer with,

"a motorcycle racer."

You have taught Mommy how to let go a little, pray and trust.

You have such a tender heart and have a strong desire to do what is right.

We love you so much and pray that as we watch you grow this next year that we will see you fall more in love with your Savior. May you serve Him and follow Him all of your life in every adventure He blesses you with!

Micah's birthday was spent playing at the park and then having family over for dinner and cake!

These two are buds:

Loving to jump:

More pictures of our six year old boy:

Sweet baby girl:

Well, the other big birthday we had this month was mine. It was a big one too...

the big 3-0!

It sounds silly now, but for some reason I have always wanted to claim 30.

Maybe it's because so many people mistake me for being in high school or college. I have gotten the, "Oh, its so nice that you help your mom out with the grocery shopping!" from the clerk at Costco. Turning 30 hasn't changed that quite yet. Just the other day when the AT&T guy came out for a schedule repair, he clearly showed annoyance that all of the kids were playing on the porch. As I walked to the door he said, "Are there any adults around here? Where are your parents?!?"

Um. I know I can't look like the older sibling. But oh well.

I'll just take it as a compliment as long as it lasts.

And, I'll remember the times I heard Micah saying, "Mom seems like a teenager. She acts like one and looks like one. And she is never going to be as big as Daddy."

In 10 years things will all change. Well, almost everything. I'll never be as big as Daddy. But, I am certain my kids will no longer think that I act or look like a teenager.

It was a fun birthday, and I got to celebrate it for 3 days! On Friday, I spent a whole day with Diane and Holly without kids! It was a great laid-back day...just what I needed. Thanks to my favorite man. He's the best.

Then, my mom watched all of the kids so that Greg and I could have an evening to ourselves. They also spent the night (this was the first ever for Addie...but she didn't do that great), so Greg and I slept in until 9:30...went for a light hike and then out to lunch.

I was spoiled for the weekend.

And, I failed miserably at getting any pictures!

The day after my birthday I headed out for a great hike.

Ladonna, Katie and I have been wanting to plan something for quite some time, and we finally did! It was a blast.

In fact, I was a little nervous about the day when it was SO DIFFICULT to head out the door (it was just one of those mornings!),

but it turned out just fine when we arrived for the hike.

Addie getting all packed up: