SIX!

Somehow another year has gone by and our little Buddy is six years old! He is such a tiny little guy that it's hard to believe he could be that old. But, what he lacks in size he more than makes up for with his personality. He is such an expressive boy. When he is happy, he is really happy. But if you make him mad, watch out! :)  He is usually really happy. He is the kid in class that everybody wants to be friends with. His teacher adores him and is always telling me how cute and funny he is. He is overflowing with personality and it really is hilarious.

Like most kids, Matthew hates homework, and that really has been our biggest frustration this year...so I guess I can't complain. He loves school and is doing really well, but I think he just wants to leave school at school. He is one of the top readers in his class. I was SHOCKED to hear this because for the first several months of school he refused to read at home. But he's way ahead of the game.

Matthew's current obsession is Pokemon. It is still mind boggling to me that this was ever popular, and even more mind boggling that it's made a comeback. But it's the thing these days, and he and Emma have joined the ranks of Pokemon fans.

Matthew is such a great brother to his sisters. I think he actually likes having all sisters. He has such special and unique relationships with each of them. He really looks up to Emma, and though they can really fight, they are also the best of friends. I STILL can't get them to not share a room. They just want to be with each other. Matthew and Ellie seem a lot closer in age than they are...probably because she is almost his same size! She loves being included in things that he does, and I think he likes playing with her because she will do pretty much anything he wants to do. However, she also has a very strong personality and is not afraid to put him in his place! He is really great at helping her with things and is such a great big brother. He is also really great with Alyssa. He loves making silly faces and using silly voices to get her to laugh and smile. And he loves to show her off to anyone and everyone and to tell them how cute she is. I love it.

This year, I'm hoping to keep birthdays simple and easy and I think we succeeded with Matthew's birthday. We were able to spend this last weekend with Jon's family. I made a peanut butter pie and we had it for Mother's Day/Matthew's birthday with them on Sunday.

On his actual birthday, we had doughnuts for breakfast (his request) and then he and Emma got to skip school and go to Dreamworks' bring your kid to work day. The kids have to be 6 to go, so it worked out perfectly that they planned it on his 6th birthday. He was SO excited! They spent the morning at Dragon Trainer's Camp and did all sorts of fun activities. I picked them up at lunch and we headed home to get ready for his birthday play date. In keeping things simple, but still wanting him to be able to celebrate, we invited a few friends over to play in the sprinkler and eat popsicles. His birthday happened to be on the hottest day of a nasty heat wave so it was a good way to pass the afternoon. We finished the day off with his requested dinner of cold cereal and smoothies, which was perfect, considering the weather.

We are so grateful to have our little Buddy (even though he doesn't want us to call him Buddy anymore...ha!). He is such a fun and crazy kid. We sure love him!

Pokemon cards from Grandma and Grandpa Farrell

The most amazing peanut butter pie!

Safeway donuts...we go all out at our house!

He loved his birthday card and stickers from Grandma Lorraine.

I love their expressions here. He got his very own Pokemon trainer kit. Birthday made!

And Emma's face here is priceless. She was trying so hard to be happy for him, but was obviously jealous. It's hard having to wait 7 weeks for her own birthday!

Sprinkler fun

Trenton, Chase, Ekke, Matthew, and August. He's got some great friends!

Ekke gave him a bubble gun and the kids all had a blast with it.

Six Year Birthday Interview

What is your full name?  Matthew Farrell

How old are you?  Five  You’re five? Are you sure? Oh, I’m six.

What's your favorite color?  Red

Who's your best friend?  Tommy

What's your favorite animal?  Cheetah

What do you want to be when you grow up?  Artist

What's your favorite movie?  The Lego Movie

What are some of your favorite books? Ummmm...I don’t have any favorite books. Oh, Pokemon books.

What makes you happy?  Alyssa!

What makes you sad?  Someone just snatching a toy from me that was my favorite toy and I wasn’t done playing with it.

What's your favorite food?  Toast with peanut butter

What's your favorite song?  The Happy Song (from Despicable Me 2)

What games do you like to play? Monopoly Jr Party

What's your favorite toy?  Pokemon kit

Change

Where do I begin? Life is funny sometimes. Just when you start to get comfortable, something comes along to stir things up and get you out of your comfort zone again. The last several months have been full of potential change and lots of uncertainty. We are not at all where we thought we would be right now and we are headed in a direction that a few short months ago we never would have imagined we would be headed.

Last fall, we really started feeling like change was coming. We did have a baby, so there was definitely a lot of change and adjustment with that, but we felt that there was more. Over time we felt several promptings to be prepared. For what? We had no idea! We definitely felt like the time was quickly approaching for us to move out of the house we are renting. We had no plans to leave Jon's job, so we started looking at other cities around us. In the meantime we started preparing to move. Without even trying, we found a new home for our chickens. Then we got the yard put back together, and we did some major dejunking and deep cleaning in our house. It's amazing how much stuff you can accumulate in just four years!

In January, Jon was approached about a job in Portland. I won't go into much detail, other than to say that that whole experience was very inspired. We weren't looking for a new job. That was the farthest thing from our minds. But when he was approached about it, we both immediately knew that he needed to pursue it. The job seemed really promising, they flew Jon out, he had a flawless interview, everything seemed perfect. We were sure this was the answer to our prayers and the reason for all of our previous promptings. But through an incredibly bizarre series of events over the next few weeks, the job fell through and we found ourselves in shock and feeling very lost. Of course, we knew that he wasn't guaranteed that job. But the whole process was a series of inspiration and miracles and all signs were pointing to YES. We told each other several times that if the job didn't work out, it would be because it wasn't supposed to. The night he got his no from that company, we very unexpectedly found ourselves walking down a completely new path. One that we never would have even considered on our own. Doors were opened for us to start exploring other options, and it became very apparent that the job in Portland was an avenue to bring us to this new path.

I wish I didn't have to be so vague. But everything is still so uncertain right now. Most of the puzzle pieces are still missing. We have no idea where we'll be in the next couple of months or what we'll be doing. We could still be right where we are. At the same job and in the same house. We might not. But ultimately, we both feel an incredible amount of peace (and occasional bouts of major stress and freaking out :) ) right now. I wish I could somehow share all of the little miracles we have seen over the last few months and the promptings and inspiration we have received. It has been one heck of a roller coaster ride. But we have never felt so completely sure that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing right now.

We have both learned so much and have grown in ways that we wouldn't have without the experiences we've had over the last several months. We have definitely learned a lot about patience and trusting the Lord's timing and plan for us. It is comforting to know that He can see the big picture, He wants us to be happy, and He is willing to help us along the way. This doesn't guarantee an easy path. Really, we expect that it will be quite the opposite. Growth comes through trials and stretching ourselves. And we fully expect to continue to be tried. But we hope that as we continue to move forward in whatever direction we feel we should go, that the puzzle pieces will continue to fall into place, and we will slowly be able to grow and stretch ourselves in the ways that we hope to. I'm excited and anxious to see where the next few months take us!

Six Months

At six months Alyssa is 14 lbs 6 oz and just under 25" long. Her length is right on track with all of the other kids (they were all 24 3/4" at 6 months) but she is a lightweight. I thought with how much she eats that she would be 16 or 17 pounds, but I was definitely wrong! Alyssa is the first of our kids to keep her dark hair (which I am SO happy about) and she is the only who didn't get Jon's blue eyes. I'm pretty sure they'll be hazel like mine but for now, sometimes they look brown and sometimes they look green. Just when I thought we'd only have blonde haired, blue eyed kids, she came along and proved me wrong.  :)

This little girl of ours is growing up so fast! It's crazy how much faster it goes with each kid. Alyssa brings so much joy to our home. The kids love doing silly things to make her laugh and they often compete to see who can get her to look at them or who can get her to laugh. This often happens at breakfast when they're supposed to be hurrying to get ready for school. :)  She's a good distraction though, I suppose.

I love that Alyssa is into the interactive stage now. It's so fun to watch her learn and to play with her. She has been able to sit on her own since about 4 1/2 months and will sit and play with anything in her reach for long stretches. Her doctor said she sits like a 9 month old. However, tummy time is still pure torture for her and she still can't roll (she has a few times, but definitely not consistently). I recently looked through the kids' baby books to see where they were at 6 months and all 3 of them were right where she is...sitting at 4 1/2 months, hating tummy time, and still not rolling at 6 months. So, it apparently just runs in the family and I'm really not worried.

Alyssa wants SO badly to eat everything. She somehow instinctively knows when we have anything edible and will open her mouth and excitedly start making noises. We've tried a few foods...bananas, avocado, apples, strawberries, peas, and green beans. Bananas are by far her favorite, avocado was not a winner, and everything else she makes a funny face but will keep eating it. She still has the tongue thrust reflex and just pushes food out with her tongue, so we don't do solids often yet, but it's hard because she wants them so bad! She loves gnawing on real food though and the mesh teether bags have been awesome. I've also noticed that she has really sensitive skin and tends to break out in a horrible rash every time she eats food. Ellie had this same issue. It is awful! Between the two girls, I think we need to buy stock in Aquaphor...that stuff is a lifesaver.

Alyssa is incredibly friendly and is fascinated by people. She definitely does not have any stranger anxiety. Alyssa is really great at napping during the day. She goes down exactly 2 hours after she wakes up for the day, and then again 2 hours after she wakes up from each nap (so she takes two 2 hour naps). So, even though the times aren't consistent, it's nice to be able to count on that routine. Unfortunately her nights tend to operate on the every 2 hour schedule also. In fact, as I typed that, she started screaming from her bed. She went to bed 2 hours ago...it's going to be another long night! About once a week she'll sleep a 7-9 hour stretch, but it's always at the beginning of the night. She goes to bed around 6:30, so her long stretch ends a couple hours after I go to bed, which isn't really helpful. :)  I hope she figures this sleep thing out soon, because I am exhausted!

She LOVES swinging

Her first selfie

Waiting for the doctor. I love this little face!

And just a fun comparison...Ellie and Alyssa at the same age in the same outfit...I think Ellie's bright blue eyes give her away.

A Few of My Favorites

I've come across a few recipes lately that have quickly become staples in our house. So, for my sake and if anyone is wanting some new recipes to try, here they are.

Salsa Verde Chicken Wraps

I use whatever salsa I have, usually Herdez. I also cook the chicken and peppers together and then add the other ingredients, so it's all warm. These are amazing and so so easy. I want one right now!  Honey Baked Chicken Jon was really wary of this because he doesn't like curry and the kids thought it smelled disgusting. But everybody ate it up and loved it, which is really really rare with my picky kids! I used 4 chicken breasts, but other than that followed the recipe.  Chicken Pot Pie This is one of my absolute favorite meals of all time. I could eat this every night and never get tired of it. Mmmm...we ate it tonight and I made enough that we get to have it again tomorrow. I can't wait! So, on to the recipe...I always use whatever veggies I have. Tonight I used carrots, zucchini, and asparagus. I've also used peas, grean beens, corn, mushrooms...really the possibilities are endless. And because I'm lazy I usually just use a can of chicken instead of cooking chicken ahead of time. I also just use 2% milk and it works just fine. Last, I am horrible at making pie crusts, so I just mix up a batch of biscuit dough and drop it by the spoonful on top of the filling. It's amazing...I want to go eat more right now! Salsa Chicken and Black Bean Soup I got this recipe from my friend Erica, and after making it only one time it made it's way to the top of my favorites list. It's incredibly easy and so tasty and the fact that it's a crock pot recipe earns it bonus points! There's really not much else to say...I follow the recipe with Erica's adaptations and it's amazing! Whole Wheat Bread  I don't think this should technically be called whole wheat bread, since they also use white flour, but whatever. So, I've never actually used bread flour. But I do a mix of whole wheat and white flours. I usually use 4-6 cups of whole wheat flour and decrease the white flour accordingly. I am working my way up to making it with only whole wheat, but want to make sure it'll turn out okay with the changes. Also, I don't use yeast packets...I just have the big Costco pack of yeast. So the conversion is 4 tsp yeast for this recipe. That's about it...this is SO easy and SO good. I just made a batch (3 loaves) on Thursday and there are only 2 slices left. It's just that good.

Weekend with the Kings (and the end of our trip...finally!)

 We were able to spend Friday night through Sunday morning with our good friends, the Kings. They moved away 3 years ago and we've really missed them! Unfortunately we saw them at the end of our trip when everyone was exhausted and ready to be home. We'll have to plan better next time. :)

Saturday morning we got up and went to the Newport Beach Temple. We just walked around the grounds and took some pictures. Madeline is filling in for Alyssa in our family picture.

Totally unplanned twin outfits.

Emma and Madeline

All of the kids except Alyssa

After the temple, we took advantage of the gorgeous day and went to one of the beaches in Newport Beach. It was perfect.

Matthew found lots and lots of seashells to fill his bag.

Andrew being buried

Emma and Ellie being crabs

Matthew thought he wanted to be buried, but changed his mind pretty quickly

Cute girl feeling the ocean for the first time

Later that day we rode bikes and plasma cars at the greenbelt by their house and then had a yummy barbecue with them and some friends of theirs. Jon and I were beat at this point. We were totally lame and went to bed really early. We'll just blame it on Alyssa who was in the habit of waking up every 1-2 hours all night long. We got up Sunday, packed, went to the first part of church, and then headed out.

And just because it's too funny not to share, I'll end with the story of our stolen girl scout cookies. We had packed our lunches for the drive home and put them in the fridge at the church, along with a box of girl scout cookies. When we were leaving church, Jon went to get our lunches only to discover our box of cookies laying on the counter completely empty. We thought it was more funny than anything, that somehow in the one hour we were at church in the morning, someone had found them and devoured the whole box. But word spread throughout the ward, teenage boys were questioned, and it was discovered that the bishop's son had eaten them, thinking that they were his dads. This all led to a series of phone calls, texts, and humorous emails. It was pretty entertaining.

We survived the drive home and gladly fell into our beds when we arrived. Matthew was so exhausted that when he realized we were going home he burst into tears. He sobbed uncontrollably for a long  time because we weren't going back to Legoland. Alyssa struggled at the end, wanting to get out of her car seat. But it was an otherwise quick and uneventful drive. All in all it was a fun and memorable family vacation.

Legoland Day 2

We had big plans to get up and get to the park early for our second day at Legoland. Reality was we were all tired and had a hard time getting going so we didn't get there till after the park opened. But everyone was excited to get back and go on the rides they hadn't had time for the first day.

We did a few rides and then grabbed some lunch. After that we decided to go check out the aquarium that is attached to the park. It was really fun and was the perfect size. We saw the whole thing in about an hour, which was perfect, and they had a fun little quiz with questions as you went through the museum. The kids really liked trying to find the answers.

By the end of the day we all felt like this. It was a fun but very tiring couple of days. 

We packed up and were on our way to our final stop of our trip, our friends the Kings, for a couple more days of fun.