For our family the month of March was full of wonderful highs, but also some unfortunate lows.The fun for the month began at school where Macie and I participated in our school's celebration of reading week. Each day we were given a theme for dress up and Mom took full advantage of the opportunity to make us some new outfits!!!
Day One was Dr.Suess Day, and both Macie and I thought that it would be lots of fun to dress up as Thing One and Thing Two from The Cat in The Hat. Mom was a little dissapointed at first- she wasn't quite sure she would be able to come up with something cute, but after dressing us in the morning she was pleased with the finished product she created.
Both Macie and I enjoyed behaving like the characters from the book:
Mom was a little nervous that Macie might take it a little too far...
Poor Presley was sad that she didn't have a costume. To make her feel included, Mom called her Thing 3 and took her picture as well.
I bet the Cat in the Hat WISHES he had Presley as his Thing 3!
Day 2 was Twin Day and Macie and I dressed as cowgirls!
Day 3 was Super Hero Day! We were SO excited to dress up as Bat girls, and Mom was thrilled to make us ruffle dresses out of t-Shirts!
The last day of dress up for the week was School Spirit Day. Mom bought us some school t-shirts and made them into dresses using our school colors. Our outfits were a HUGE hit!
The highs of Reading week were great, but that afternoon they were deflated after our family took Jackson to the vet. Mom noticed that he had been limping more than usual and wanted to make sure that nothing was wrong. Unfortunately something was wrong- the doctor informed us that Jackson had bone cancer and that it was pretty severe. The whole family was distraught. After talking with Aunt Hayley over the phone, Mom and Dad decided that we would medicate Jackson and keep him comfortable until God calls him up to play ball in Heaven. We aren't sure how long he has, but we are determined to make his remaining days happy.
That afternoon we all spent time with him in the yard and gave him all sorts of love!
Before school the next day, Macie and I made sure to snuggle with him to make sure he knew just how much he is loved.
Macie didn't want Eddie to feel let out, so she made sure to give him some extra attention. I'm not sure Eddie is too happy about it:
By Saturday morning the family was emotionally exhausted and enjoyed some much needed downtime on the couch with each other.
That weekend at Awana Macie and I dressed up for Crazy Hair Night! Both of us designed our own hair do's for Mom to execute. Macie insisted on having curlers all over her head,
While I chose to have 10 different pony tails all tied in a top knot with bows.
At Awana that night our Sparks class was chosen to sing in front of everyone:
Our bible study leaders have told Mom that Macie and I are both doing incredibly well in class. They rave about Macie's ability to recite information when needed. Mom decided to test her the next morning before school and was shocked at her memory- unfortunately for Macie it is proof that her attitude, not ability, is going to be the reason she can't accomplish something.
So proud of what she can do when she wants to!
It was Presley's first time and she had a blast!
We spent the rest of the day with our Dad laughing, smiling, and playing.
At dinner that night we all told Dad how incredibly grateful we are for everything he is and everything he does.
St.Patrick's Day came 2 days later, and Mom, again, was thrilled to make outfits for the occasion.
Mom was a little nervous when she dropped off her little leprechaun at school. She wanted to make sure that we behaved ourselves- we promised we would...
While we were at school, Mom, Presley, and Nixon went to the park. She was such a sweet girl- definitely not a leprechaun.
The trip to the park was fun for Presley, but poor Nixon was coming down with a cold and was not happy! After some medicine, a bottle, and a nap, he was much more content.
That afternoon he sat in "the pond"for the first time and chuckled at the sights and sounds. Mom couldn't believe that all four of her babies sat in that pond!
When he tired of the pond, Mom placed him on his tummy. He rolled over from his front to his back, and Mom was determined to get him doing it on film so that she could show Dad. Listen as her and Presley cheer him on to no avail:
We are having SO much fun with our baby brother, and I love to help out. While Mom was putting Presley and Macie to bed that night, I entertained Nixon with some baby Yoga. His favorite pose is Happy Baby!
Before Nixon went to bed, Uncle Will found a new way to get him to laugh:
Aside from our daily dress up, our week was rather uneventful:
Mom made Macie an "Everything is Awesome" dress,
and Macie also got to wear the coveted rock star vest- a big deal in our household.
You can tell by the look on her face that she is really proud!
Our new trampoline arrived, and thanks to Mom and Dad, it was up and ready to jump right away!
Our backyard is a pretty fun place to be!
Because the weather was SO warm this week, Mom let us play with water in the backyard. She set up the slip n slide and Presley was confused on how to use it:
Unfortunately this week poor Nixon's health didn't improve much. His cold and cough seemed to be getting worse, and nothing seemed to calm our once sweet and quiet baby (It didn't help that he was also teething).
Presley declared her independence during the week and insisted upon eating at the dining room table like the big girls.
She actually did a very nice job. Mom decided to give her another big kid task, and the next morning, let Presley pick out her own outfit! We all laughed; Presley looked like she belonged in an 80's pop music video.
After a few slight modifications, Presley, and her outfit,were camera ready.
That Friday Night Uncle Will took Mom and I on a helicopter tour of the Las Vegas strip- that's right, I said a HELICOPTER tour!
Flying high above the LasVegas strip was amazing, and having the doors off made the experience that much better. Here are some pictures that we took from inside the helicopter WITHOUT zooming in- look at how close we were:
The ride was AMAZING, and an experience we will all remember!
The Ketcham's stayed for 3 days, and each day was jam packed with fun activities!
We hiked Red Rock:
We visited the Children's Museum:
We played at the Container Park:
We enjoyed time together being silly:
We went bowling:
Most importantly, we enjoyed each other's company:
It was hard to say goodbye to such amazing people. We are so grateful that we were able to see them and hope they know how much we cherish their friendship. After the Ketcham's went home to Arizona, poor Nixon took a turn for the worse. Mom and Presley took him to the doctor where they discovered that he had low grade pneumonia. Mom was grateful that she now knew why he had been so miserable, but dissapointed that her poor kiddo was so sick.
Back at home, Nixon began his medicine and fell asleep soundly on Dad.
At the end of the month we head off to California, so poor Mom only has a few days to clean, pack, cook, etc. She seems a little stressed, but Macie and I can't wait to hit the road for some fun in the sun. There will be lots to see and read soon!
