Isabelle Cosby, Age 8

March Madness has a different meaning at our house. Not only is it Spring Break and sometimes Easter, but it is Isabelle's birthday too. This year was #8 for our little Jelly and she was over the moon about being the birthday girl. She took donuts to school to celebrate with her classmates and got sung to at soccer by her teammates. She had one main thing on her birthday list this year, the American Girl Doll of the Year Isabelle, of course, and was thrilled when she opened the big red box on March 23rd. Olivia loved it being her big sis' birthday too and wrapped up many many gifts and baked treats for a week.

Isabelle is an avid reader and had recently finished the Ramona Quimby series that Aunt Tara had given her. She loved the books so much that they inspired her to request an Isabelle Cosby, Age 8 birthday party. It was a unique theme that proved to be a little tricky, but we quickly got on board and came up with a super fun night. She invited all of her favorite friends, including 4 boys, to a Drive Inn Ramona party, backyard style. We played games, ate lots of fun food and when it got dark, watched Ramona and Beezus on the big screen in our very own backyard. All of the kids loved it and Isabelle was super pleased with the night. I thankfully had lots of help from my mom and Alee and it was so fun to see Belle and her buddies playing and running wild.

Isabelle at age 8:
* Belle loves to play sports. She had an awesome basketball season this past winter and has really started to shine in soccer. She often prays to be "more athletic."
* Jelly is wicked smart. She reads at a 6th grade level and is always in the top of her class in everything. She represented her school in a 2nd grade writing competition and has had 100% on every spelling test this whole school year...without ever getting the list out of her backpack. I can't keep up.
* Isabelle is highly creative. She loves to play make-believe still and loves the arts.
* She can't decide if she wants to be a ballerina, author or marine biologist when she grows up.
* Belle still loves cheese. She NEEDS something cheesy all the time.
* She is not an adventurous eater and likes to eat the same foods most days.
* Jelly is an early to bed, early to rise type of girl. She does not stay up well and is up with the sun daily. No matter what.
* Isabelle is a great big sister. Olivia wants to be JUST LIKE HER and Belle is patient and kind to Livi almost always.
* She still really loves animals! She begs for a pet DAILY and misses her horse in Montana badly.
* Belle loves to travel. She is always ready to pack a suitcase and take off.
* Isabelle does not like to go to church. We don't know why, but she has dreaded it since birth.
* Belle loves to be busy. Her mind is always busy and she functions best when her body is as well.

Isabelle is such a sweet and kind little girl and there are so many things that she is still so innocent about. We are also starting to see her grow up a bit more than we feel quite ready for, but we know that this is the story of life and we are doing our best to teach and guide her. She is definitely a "first born" and has had to teach her parents how to parent along the way and we are so grateful that she is so patient. Happy 8th Birthday Little Jelly!

Spring Break in a familiar place!

I have been anxious to get back to San Antonio since the moment we left, two and a half years ago. It was such a sudden move and my entire world was changed upside down over night. The change has been good and we love our new home, but I am still homesick often. Ben on the other hand, feels much different. Every time I suggest we head back for a visit, his response is the same...We lived there over 8 years, we've seen San Antonio. I finally won the battle though and with a week off of school in early March and nothing on the books, we packed the car and headed "home."

We made the familiar drive and drove through our old stomping grounds first, commenting on all of the changes and those things that stayed the same. We stopped at a favorite friends house and the girls and I all loved seeing the Irwins and Barrs. Isabelle and Audrey were good little pals when they were babes and picked up right where we left off. Ben checked us into our hotel and we spent the next few days in several of our favorite places.




We toured the Alamo once again. It happened to be raining, which was strange for San Antonio, but the Alamo was fun with a now older Isabelle who studied it recently in school. Olivia couldn't remember anything but loved walking around downtown and made me a nervous wreck on the Riverwalk as she teetered on the edge of hopping right in.

Seaworld was a must on the girls list and we all had fun watching shows, riding rides, eating junk and getting wet. Isabelle has wanted to be a Marine Biologist most of her life and her early years at Seaworld may have influenced her.

Sadly Spring Break was coming to and end and it was soon time to head back to our "new" home. As we were pulling on to I10 Isabelle shouted out that we forgot to go to her favorite donut shop but Ben was already going 80mph and in the wrong direction to stop. She was disappointed but we agreed it just gave us another excuse to come back soon. San Antonio will always have a special place in my heart. It is where we bought our first home, where my babies were born, and where we learned what it means to be married. It was a good week and we all enjoyed remembering the Alamo once again.

Month two...February

February was a busy month with nonstop fun along the way. In between Valentines Day and Olivia turning four, Isabelle and I went on a date with my Young Women to the High School musical, Olivia enjoyed Rodeo day at preschool, we started a new soccer season and loved watching Isabelle in the 2nd Grade Patriotic performance. She had a speaking part and talked all about the history of the Star Spangled Banner.



Creekfest was a highlight of the month like years past, and Belle rocked the mile while Olivia cheered. We partied that night with pony rides, pizza, bounce houses, photo booths, face painting and a DJ. Ben and I always enjoy Creekfest but also very much enjoy when it is over.




Another fun month written in the history books...still haven't figured out how to slow that silly clock down.

Four in February!

Little Olivia turned 4 years old and had so much fun being the birthday girl. She loved taking donuts to her preschool class to celebrate and asked us to sing to her many times when we had a mini family party a few days before. She loved meeting grandpa for a birthday lunch and requested a birthday pedicure out of the blue. She loved waking up to a chocolate cake and Disney decorations and she especially loved her birthday party at Pump it Up with all of her favorite friends. They bounced and jumped and ran wild for a good two hours and afterwards ate cupcakes and cheetos and M&Ms. The whole birthday was Minnie Mouse themed and the red and white classic Minnie costume was on the top of Olivia's wish list. She was thrilled to open each of her presents from everyone and was so surprised that so many people thought to bring or send her a gift. It was a special week of celebrating our little lady and once again Ben and I find ourselves praying that time will slow down.




Things about Olivia at age 4:
* Olivia is very passionate about clothing. She has opinions on what she wants to wear and with what accessories and there are definitely outfits that she thinks are perfect for certain occasions. I have learned to give her two options and then make her commit.
* Livi is a dancer. She is learning quickly in her ballet class and dances around the house all day every day.
* She still loves Neenus and has added Cheezits to her list. She eats most of her calories before noon everyday and then mostly snacks.
* Olivia loves Isabelle and cries if Belle ever gets in trouble. Belle is the person she runs to if she gets her feelings hurt and her favorite thing to do everyday is find some time to play with her big sister.
* Livi has lately decided she is "scared" in the dark, or in the bathroom alone, etc, and we cannot wait until she gets over this phase.
* She is getting super fast on her micro mini and spends some time everyday outside cruising.
* Olivia has decided that she wants to marry Robin Hood and it melts my heart every time she says it. I hope she always does! Ha ha.
* Livi loves to cook and asks me most days what we can bake. She loves following the recipe and likes me to go through the check list after every ingredient.
* Olivia knows all of her letters and most of the sounds they make but is not overly interested in working on them daily. She rather run, jump, do flips and dance.

Sugar and spice and everything nice. Sounds just like our Olivia.

LOVE

I love love! I love February. I love hearts and pink and sugar cookies and flowers. I love Valentines Day!

Both girls made love-note boxes for school this year and spent an entire workout for Ben and I making them. It was fun for Olivia to understand the holiday a little bit more this year and we laughed when she wrote OLIVIA as well as SAHNN on her box. She enjoyed passing out her cute Valentines we made and had so much fun eating ice cream sundaes with her classmates.

Isabelle counted down the days until her class party and couldn't wait to read the special notes from each of her friends. She has such a cute teacher this year and Mrs Steed makes everything fun and special.



Valentines Day was actually a school holiday this year so Ben and I surprised the girls with a trip to the Houston Childrens Museum downtown. They ask to go there at least weekly and were beyond thrilled for the day trip. We spent the day climbing, building, make-believing, and learning. We took a break for a few minutes and had lunch at the museum cafe and then spent several more hours exploring. It was a good family day and we left tired and a little bit more in love. I love love.