Ben is....

..."Da best guy." That was how Ben described his favorite Kentucky basketball player (John Wall) this exact same time last year, when he was just a three year old. But now? He's four. Four! How has that happened so quickly and without my hardly even noticing?!

This year at his fourth birthday, Ben still loves Kentucky basketball, he still says John Wall is "da best guy" (even though he's not even on the team anymore), he still adores knights and everything medieval. In fact, Ben pretty much still loves everything that he did a year ago, just with even more passion than he did back then.

We're watching Ben grow from a little toddler into a full-fledged big kid and that's pretty awesome. We love you, Ben, and know we're going to love the FOUR year old you this year!

April 2010
May 2010
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July 2010

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September 2010

October 2010

November 2010

December 2010

January 2011

February 2010

March 2011

April 2011

84/365...enJoy

Today I took the kids to the "Knight Museum" (the Bob Jones gallery downtown) as it was the outing that Ben's been begging for for months now. It's his favorite place! And right after dinner he and I headed out for our birthday date. Man, you get that kid out by himself and he's got a LOT to say! He talked my ear off all night. : )

Starting the birthday festivities joy...


82/365...enJoy

What's the best thing about a few rainy days right in a row? The first sunny day that follows and the puddles that are left behind! These two crazy kids came inside soaking wet and ridiculously happy after splashing through the puddles on their bikes. The only thing that made them happier than the spray that shot out from under their tires was when a brother happened to be standing close enough to get blasted by that spray as they flew through the puddle.



Splashing through the puddles joy...




80/365...enJoy

This weekend we had the luxury of cashing in our first of two incredibly thoughtful "Congratulations on Ten Years of Parenting" gifts (we hadn't known those were in order before but we're big believers now). Saturday afternoon, Jimmy and I left our crew in the capable hands of my very brave brother and sister-in-law and headed north  for a night at the Waverly Inn, a Bed and Breakfast in Hendersonville, NC.
With big plans for documenting our mini-vacation, it would turn out that I was far too busy enjoying a quiet lunch, strolling aimlessly through the quaint downtown, browsing in stores that caused my heart to palpitate at the thought of having our small children in there with us, and napping at 7 in the evening so as to be rested for our late dinner in the restaurant that had been voted "Most Romantic" in Hendersonville. Yeah, I was way too busy to be snapping photos.

This evening away together was absolutely perfect timing and exactly what Jimmy and I needed. We are incredibly grateful for the thoughtfulness behind this gift and have decided that somehow or another these nights away need to happen far more often.

Pure relaxation and rejuvenation joy...

79/365...enJoy

We're Going on a Bear Hunt has been a family favorite for a long time. The love continues with Ben and Jack and that makes Jimmy very, very happy. Of course, who wouldn't love a story that involves a blanket cave and flashlight?

Bear Hunt joy...


78/365...enJoy

It's that time of year again. March Madness! The whole family looks forward to following Daddy's bracket (usually to a win), and we especially look forward to the Kentucky games. Since tonight's game started pretty late and we had three kids who really wanted to stay up for it (would have been four if Ben had known it was an option), we decided to make it a game night to pass the time. Caroline made it through the ice cream sundaes right at the start of the basketball game and then conked out in the first five minutes. She's not quite as hard-core as her daddy and big brothers. : ) Kentucky is in the lead at the end of the first half and I have a few excited boys (big and small).

March Madness joy...

77/365...enJoy

My kids have grown up with month-long summer visits with their cousin Ashleigh since Travis was just two years old. Her visits are always a highlight of our year. So this year when she asked if she could come for a few days at the beginning of her spring break we were all pretty pumped. There were more than a couple of kids counting down the days until her arrival and this morning it finally came. It's probably a good thing she'll still have a few days of her break left when she gets back home because I'm thinking she's not going to get a whole lot of rest around here.

Ashleigh's here joy....