Paxton's Birthday Weekend

Whew. We had a super fun and equally exhausting weekend!!! Friday morning my best friend Sarah and her twin 3 year olds, Mason and Mallory, came to visit and celebrate Paxton's birthday! We hit the ground running as soon as they arrived. We took Mason, Mallory and Harper to the mall to play, ride a train, eat lunch, enjoy some dip n dots, and ride a carousel. Then we loaded the car and went to the science spectrum for some more fun!! Everyone was having such a good time that we stayed there for a while and I went and picked the boys up from school and took them to the science spectrum to meet up with the 3 little ones!!! We played and played there until we couldn't play any longer and then it was off for another adventure....dinner. Ha. Dinner in a resturant with 5 kiddos is no easy task, but we did it, we survived and we had a great time! We glanced over at another family/friends and their kiddos were old enough to have a kids table to eat while the grown ups enjoyed conversation and their own food. Ha. Soon enough we will be there too!!

Saturday we headed to McDonald's for breakfast and to let the kids play on the playground for a while (it was such a windy weekend, it was hard to find a lot of outside play time). The kiddos played for a good while and then we headed back home for more play time, lunch and rest time. We had to get everyone rested up for Paxton's bday party at Jump n jungle!!!!

Oh what a fun party Paxton had. There were 10 kiddos total. Most of them family and Sarah's kiddos, which, let's be honest, they are like family too!! Paxton had one buddy and his 2 year old brother  that he wanted to invite and boy oh boy did they have fun!!!! Paxton loved hanging out with his friend and they were a constant blur the entire evening. Running and playing together! It was so much fun!!! I hope I can remember the excitement Paxton had for the rest of my life! He was so happy and felt so loved by his family and friends!!!

Thanks again Sarah for making the trip for his party. I loved every minute getting to hang out with you and your precious kiddos!!!! 

Now, let me go hibernate for the next week to catch up from all the stimulation!!!

Yummy dip n dots!!

Sitting so patiently, watching cartoons while Sarah looked for shoes!!

Fun at the science spectrum 

The girls playing veterinarian!!

Two years ago, we took all 5 kiddos to the science spectrum for the first time!!! My oh my how quickly they grow up!!!

All the kiddos at Paxton's party!!

Paxton wanted a Super Mario Brothers party!! Grandmom Voda made a super cute cake and Gigi made delicious cookies! He felt pretty special!!!

Such a fun weekend celebrating 5 amazing years of Paxon James! 

Harper Girl

Because nothing says "I'm ready for t-ball" like a unicorn on your back!

Love this girl and all her motherly characteristics. I love that she so eagerly wants to keep up with the big boys, but she never strays from who she is! She will wrestle, play ball, run and gallop...all with a baby in her arms or near by (can you see the baby doll lying in the grass in the picture above). She is fierce and loving. Spunky and nurtureing! She is our Harper girl and oh how we love her!!!!

Fan Club

One thing I am learning about being a family of 5, is whenever a kid has a sporting event, they have a permanent fan club!!!

I know having siblings can be one of the most frustrating life encounters, but I pray the love they sometimes show to eachother will grow and grow into a bond that cannot be broken!!!!!

Brother let me be your shelter

I’ll never leave you all alone

I can be the one you call

When you’re low

Brother let me be your fortress

When the night winds are driving on

Be the one to light the way

Bring you home-NEEDTOBREATHE 

Paxton is 5

Paxton is 5! Wow. Just wow. Such a milestone age. No longer a toddler, and now an official big kid. He will finish up pre-school and we prep for kindergarten. He's a whole hand old now! These past five years have been such a ride, but I would have to say, watching him this past year, as he matured from the age of 4 to 5, has been my favorite (and equally exhausting). He is figuring out his emotions and how to express them without having full meltdowns. This takes a lot of maturity for a highly sensitive child! He has found his own sense of humor, and he has found a joy that can only be described as awe inspiring. Yes, he has moments of down right impatience, emotional outburst and such a stubborn personality, but even the most difficult of day doesn't compare to the most beautiful of days with him! He has the sweetest heart and loves to be around other people. He gives the best hugs...like, best hugs of all time! He gives his teacher a hug all throughout the day, and when he sees Maddox's teacher, and Maddox's kindergarten teacher he is eager to run and give them a big hug as well. It's hard to fully explain how beautiful this is unless you've walked this journey with us throughout the past 5 years. If you remember back to the times when Paxton was in total fear of anyone new. The door bell could ring and send Paxton into a fit of anxiety. Shaking and crying because he was so scared. Think back to his first year of Mother's Day out when his teacher had to carry him throughout the day because he would get so nervous about each transition. He is finding confidence. He has certainly found his voice and expresses just what and how he thinks a situation should go. He isn't afraid to express when he is unhappy, but that is met with the more beautiful character trait that is over enthusiastic and charismatic about new fun adventures. He is smart as a tack. I have no doubt that he will be reading by the end of this summer. He is the most detailed color-ER I have ever watched. He loves video games and is discovering a love for baseball.

Oh my Paxton, my love, you are a light in my life. I am truly honored to be your momma and to guide you throughout your life! I love you so much little man!!! I am so proud of the boy you are becoming!! I know some days are just so difficult and frustrating and I want you to know that I am always on your side, even when it's my job to make sure we get you back on track! I love how proud of yourself you are after a great day at school. I love you to the moon and back. I have a feeling, this year will be the best one yet!!!!!

Random

I walked into the kitchen to see this written/drawn on the tiny chalk board. Ha. Love this illustration, Maddox!!!

I took Harper to lunch the other day and she just sat across from me at a 2 person table, just like I would if I were having lunch with a girl friend!! It was too precious and she was certainly a topic of many people's conversation around us. At one point Harper said "these people keep looking at me!" Ha. Yes they do sweet girl, when you are this cute and well behaved you demand the attention of the entire room!!!

I love her more than she loves pink ice cream with sprinkles!

It is a rare sight to see the boys playing nicely together. Bless their hearts, the way they think and approach things are so different from eachother, it is often very very hard for them to work together!!  But at this particular time, they were making domino trains and knocking them over. The giggles were contagious and the ability to work together was a breath of fresh air for this weary momma!!

A ball player, his biggest fan, her tutu and her baby...the only thing that would make this picture any sweeter is if big brother were in it too!!!

Baby sister problems: this is what happens after a day of basketball and t-ball games....little sister falls sound asleep with a sucker in her hand! Bless her soul, she sure is a trooper!

Finishing off a fun and busy day with a fun dinner at Texas Roadhouse!!! So blessed to live this life with these three kiddos and their super handsome daddy!!!

Fishermen

The entire first grade led the morning chapel today They were sharing about the missionaries they have been praying for all year! Each student dressed like a fisherman and they went with the theme that we are called to be fishers of men!! Such a sweet moment seeing all the precious first graders and their love for missions.

Maddox has mentioned several times this year that he would like to be a missionary in Africa and tell others about Jesus! Precious boy!!! What a wonderful reminder this morning that we are called to share the love of Jesus everywhere we go.....and to be joyful while doing it!!!!

"Come, follow me." Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people."

Matthew 4:19

God Knew

I never ever want to forget the way Maddox smiles and giggles!! He can be such a fun kid, spirited and opinionated. I've said it before and I'll say it again, he is going to change the world he lives in just by showing up! God knew how much we needed this little boy in our lives, but I never could have imagined the joy my heart would feel when watching my little boy so passionately conquer the world!

I never want to forget the way Paxton conquers his own battles, one by one, every single day. He battles his fears and anxiety and boy is he proud when he conquers new tasks. He is cautious at first, but when he is comfortable there is no holding him back! I love his forced laugh right now and I love how frequently we get to hear it! God knew how badly we needed Pax-Max in our lives as well, but I never could have imaged the joy my heart would feel like I do when he grabs my leg and tells me he loves me and the sound of his belly laugh!!! 

I never want to forget the passion Harper has for her babies and animals. These are not just toys to her, they are her life. She treats them so sweetly and is so nurtureing. God knew how much we needed her in our lives, but I never could have imagined the joy I would have like I do when watching her "mother" her babies. 

Poor Maddox and More T-Ball

Welp, we've entered the stage of life where we have activity after activity. Today was supposed to consist of Maddox's basketball game, then off to t-ball pictures for Paxton followed with a t-ball game. Poor little Maddox was so "off" this morning. Pouty, grumpy, and just acting like a not fun little boy. I was about to loose my mind (and already lost my patience) when I realized his poor face looked so flushed. I checked his temperature and he was running a fever. Good grief kiddo. I thought maybe he just got a little over heated so I waited a bit and checked him again. Nope. Fever was even higher. I called our nurse practitioner and it turns out the dang walk in clinic we went to last week (when we found out he had strep) put him on half to dose of antibiotic that he needs to be on for his height and weight. Geeze. So now we get to start another round of antibiotics to kill of this dang bug. Poor guy just can't catch a break!!!

Thankfully, my mom was available to watch Maddox and Harper while I took Paxton to pictures and his game. Nothing more miserable than not feeling well and sitting out in the sun with a lot of screaming parents.

Paxton had a super fun game!! He was the last one to hit for his team, which means he gets to be the "home run hitter" (he hits and then gets to run all the bases and bring the remainder of his team in). He loved that!! Then he got to play in the pitchers position. He got the ball every time and threw it to first base. He did so good!!! His second time up to bat, he accidentally let go of the bat and it went flying. The parents started to chuckle (not being mean, but come on, watching t-ball can be pretty funny). Well, Paxton heard it and got super embarrassed and started crying. Poor guy. The "fans" immediately realized what happened and started cheering him on. It took him a minute, and a good visit with his super awesome coach, and he got up there and hit the ball again!!! I was proud of how well he recovered. No one likes to feel embarrassed!!!

His final time in the outfield he played the catchers position. This too was super fun for him because the ball was thrown back to him after every play and he handed it to the umpire!!! Such an eventful game for him!!!

To top it all off, when the game was over, he received the Game Ball!!! I wish I could have gotten his reaction on video. He was so cute and so happy!!!

Here are all the players praying before the game!!

Ready to get that ball!!! (He's on the pitchers mound)

Sweet little buddies!! These two are in the same preK class and they have a lot of fun together. 

Our super pax with the game ball! He was SO happy!!

Love watching these two bond so much over baseball!!!!

Hoping I have some fun photos to post of Maddox's basketball game next week. It will be his last game of the season (and it's trophy day!!)

More T-ball Fun

Tonight, Paxton had the super fun opportunity to join the Texas Tech Lady Raiders Softball team and be the "highlight team" of the game. His little team joined the Lady Raiders on the field and one of the kiddos got to throw the opening pitch!!! It was so much fun!! Once again, Paxton is doing so good in new environments with new people and surroundings. He said he got nervous but then he " thought, nah, I'll be fine!!" Good job buddy. Oh so proud!!!

Here's the best picture I could get (he's number 4). 

Big brother waiting to cheer on his little bro!!! (Please don't remind me how big Maddox is getting. Geeze he looks 10 in this picture)

Harper girl trying to mimic Maddox with her "guns up" 

Cheering on the Lady Raiders (and waiting on mom to let them have concession stand snacks....let's be real, who can go to a baseball game without a good unhealthy snack!?!)

T-ball

Paxton had his very first t-ball game yesterday!!! It was SO much fun and he did fantastic! He hit the ball great, ran super fast, paid attention when in the outfield, got the ball once and immediately threw it to first base, and most importantly, he had a blast!!! This is seriously the most amazing t-ball team to be on. They are SO organized and the coaches are amazing. There are tons of dads and moms that help out and the kids are learning a lot!!!!

So excited for this t-ball season!!!

Ok, so I'm not even pretending when I express how organized they are. Look here at this picture of Paxton sitting in the dugout. Do you notice all the baskets hanging on the fence? They hung them in batting order for all the kids to put their glove and water bottle in while they put on their batting helmet and waited their turn to hit! Then as the game was ending, they packed their bags for them so everyone was ready to go!!! I'm in non-chaos heaven!!!!

Brad was asked to help at first base!!! So cute! Here he is with Paxton after Paxton's second hit!!!

When the opposing team is finally ready to bat (bc let's be honest, even with the most organized t-ball teams, it's like hearding cats to get each player up to bat) the coaches will hollar "check!!" And that is their que to get ready and get in their ready stance. How cute is Paxton here all ready for the ball!!!!

Little sister cheering him on!!! (Maddox has found two little friends to play with during the games/practices. He's pretty hard to catch most of the game)

One more of Paxton ready to go!!! This is right before he got the ball and threw it to first base!!

Oh so much fun!! The best part is watching Paxton giggle and have a great time while playing. I sure hope the rest of the games are this fun for him!!!!