Ann-Marie turns 5

Today (Sunday) was Ann-Marie's actual birthday. She wanted to open up Aunt Carla and Aunt Sheila's gift first. She loves it...thanks!!!
Her dinner choice was shrimp and pasta....here she is eating off the special celebration red plate.
I think this picture captures Ann-Marie's personality....she is so exuberant about life!
And she's very thoughtful...she said she had to have pictures taken with both her brothers.
Birthdays really make you reflect on the person on their special day. Darrell and I are so very thankful for the blessing of our children in our lives. Each of them are unique, and we really enjoy watching their personalities develop.

Ann-Marie's Birthday party

Our family has a tradition of having a big birthday party when a child turns five. So this was the big one for Ann-Marie. We had her birthday party on Saturday at the gymnastic club she goes to and we invited her preschool class, our special family friends from Maryland, and our family friends from Ellwood City, PA. Sixteen children showed up and as you can tell from the pictures, they had a blast. After the party, we had family and friends over to our house.
Ann-Marie showing off her moves.
Alec enjoying the foam pit. No fear there!
The "spanking tunnel"
The carousel cake...thanks Angelique for the idea!
Ann-Marie and best friend, Rebekah, opening presents.
Ann-Marie getting wrapped up like a cupcake!

Grand Day

Patterson Primary School had Grand day yesterday and honored the children's grandparents. Evan's Pap was able to come and they had a wonderful time. We're so thankful for the role of our children's Grandpas and special Amma in their lives. The theme yesterday was "Grandparents are out of this world" which is why Evan has an antennae on his head. What a special memory!

Old toys

Darrell's dad gave Darrell all of his surviving Tonka trucks from his youth and we brought them out today. The kids LOVE them. They are from the time when Tonka's were all metal and tough!

new toy

Before deck furniture comes.....a sand and water table for the kids! Hopefully, this will keep the kids interested in playing on the deck while I cook dinner in the evenings. Alec especially loves it.

Soccer game day

Today was the first day of soccer games for Evan and Ann-Marie. They've both had two practices but were looking forward to playing a game. The only thing Darrell and I could say was "BRRRRRRRRRR!" Ahhhh, the parental sacrifice of standing in the 50 degree "Spring" winds for two hours. They both had fun, so that's what counts.

Festival and birthday

Soccer was canceled this weekend due to swamped fields from a recent rain, so we decided to brave the Maple Syrup Festival at a local park. We only waited in line about an hour for buttermilk pancakes, buckwheat pancakes, sausage and juice. The kids were really excited because they had seen the white buckets near several trees in the park for the last month and they knew that the buckets were collecting the sap for maple syrup. So here are some pictures of the kids enjoying their pancakes with local syrup.

The extended Jerome family also pulled off a surprise 75th birthday party for Darrell's dad. Seventy-one people showed up! We had the nicest day of the spring so far and everyone had a good time! Happy Birthday Pap!

Ann-Marie's ear tubes

This is just a quick update on Ann-Marie's procedure this morning. Thank you for all of you who have been praying for Ann-Marie. The procedure went smoothly and she now has tubes in both of her ears. Thank you to the Marnik family who took Evan and Alec early this morning so Darrell and I could both be present for Ann-Marie. She had to be at the hospital at 6 a.m., her procedure was done promptly at 8 a.m., she was out of recovery around 9 a.m., and home by 9:30 a.m. (It's nice only living about 7 minutes from the hospital!) She's a little loopy yet, but quite happy after a popsicle, hot chocolate and a doughnut with sprinkles on top. She has complained about a little ear pain, but we were sent home with medication.

On another note, Spring soccer has started and both Evan and Ann-Marie are involved. First games are this weekend, so we'll probably have some soccer pictures to post.