And it's a......

So, my adorable niece Jadyn is going to be a big sister on February 11th! Today Justin and Jessica went to the doctor and found out what the new little baby will be and..... IT'S A GIRL!!!!!

We are so excited to have another precious girl in the family! We can't wait to meet her!

Congratulations Justin and Jessica!

Finally...

Ok, so after like the 5th person asked me about subscribing to my blog, I finally put it in! Sorry it took so long! It was actually pretty easy, I figured it out myself! And it works, tried it out today! I thought I was a "computer person" until I got knee deep into the blog world and realized that I had a lot to learn..widgets, gadgets, html, playlists...all new words for me, but old words for the pro bloggers! Thank you to all who have helped me figure this stuff out!

So, now you can subscribe to our blog and then you will get an email when I put out a new post!

But just in case, if you see that you are not getting emails related to the blogs after all, please let me know, maybe my efforts weren't as good as what I thought!

Goodbyes...

We had so much fun with Aunt Rachael and Brent while they were home and now it is time for them to go back to Maryland. SO sad. The boys loved having them home and were very upset when they had to go....Benjamin cried before we left the house and Luke was shouting and waving, "good-bye everybody!", like no big deal, what is all the crying about? I knew that he didn't realize what was going on, but I knew it would come eventually...

As Benjamin was silently crying in the backseat of the car, all of a sudden Luke yells at the top of his lungs.."IT'S NOT FAIR!" and I said, "What's not fair?" And then
Luke said" First Maryland took uncle Justin and now they have aunt Rachael!" Like Maryland was some character off of Stars Wars or something...maybe one day they will understand?
It just made us all cry harder!

We love you Brent and aunt Rachael! We can't wait until you come back home!

Ella Grace, 9 months old...

I can't believe that my little girl is already 9 months old! It seems like just yesterday that we were racing to the hospital to have her! And now, it is almost time to start planning her first birthday..my, where does the time go? I am so thankful that I am able to stay home with her during this time and just enjoy her and her sweetness, just like I was able to do with the boys. I wouldn't trade it for anything!
I love you, my sweet Ellabella!

Oh, Geez...

So, the boys wandered up stairs and all of a sudden I hear Ben saying, "Uh, Alissa, did you know that Ella can climb the stairs?" Uh. No... Trying to control my anxiety about the stairs in general, I decided to relax and enjoy her accomplishment! She climbed the first one, then looked at us to see if we were watching and were going to do anything... Then she smiled and just kept going...
And who do you think were coaxing her on?
They even promised her a "prize" if she got to the top...
Yep, she made it to the top, smiling all the way! She was very proud of herself!

Happy Birthday Benjamin!!!

Today was Benjamin's 7th birthday! I can't believe that he is 7 years old! I remember bringing him home from the hospital like it was yesterday! What a beautiful boy he was! And what a great baby:) So laid back! I can't imagine him getting any older, but I know he will. I thank God every day for sending me such a precious boy! What a joy to be his mother! He is going to be a mighty man of God and be able to do anything that he sets his mind to! What a blessing! Singing "Happy Birthday"...
Blowing out his candles...
Priceless...true child-like joy...he had no idea...how awesome to pull off such a suprise!
he absolutely couldn't believe what he got for his birthday! All the grandparents chipped in and got him a "Wii" game system, which he has been wanting now for a year and a half! He actually has been saving all of his money to buy one for himself, but now gets to use that for something else! He was so excited! We have spent all day playing it and even now when all the kids are sleeping, daddy is getting it all to himself!
Happy Birthday to my sweet 7 year old! You are my sunshine!

Luke Freeman #7

Luke had his first soccer game bright and early this morning also! It is 3 on 3 soccer which is pretty fun to watch! He stopped 4 goals from the other team! However, once he did that, he decided to be the goalie all the time, even when his team needed him down at the other end of the field! So in the end, there was a lot of yelling "Luke, go help your team" and then he would take off in full sprint to the other end! fighting for the ball with his own team mate...
gettin the hang of it...
group huddle...
Go fire!!!
What a great game, they all played really well and were exhausted at the end! No scores either, but according to Luke..."we whooped 'em".....um, no.....

Benjamin Freeman #88

Benjamin had his first flag football game today, which was alot of fun to watch! It is through a great christian organization called "upward". He was going to play tackle football through his school, but mommy just wasn't quite ready for that! This way he can learn some of the basics of the game before he gets tackled to the ground! We'll see about next year... Each game they get to run through a tunnel of smoke and have their name called over the speaker! And yes, they even have their own cheeleaders! Sooo cute!
There was ALOT of running...
Look at that great form...at least he's trying:)
Daddy giving a pep talk...
Since they don't keep score, there are no winners and losers,
but according to Benjamin..."we whooped 'em"...
according to coach Ben, "um, no we got whooped!"
Oh well, I guess it's the thought that counts right?