Worms and More Worms!

Connor being the bug boy and Jenn being the tag-along surprised me a little while back with a call to come to the backyard to see what they caught . I cautiously go wondering what may be in their hands this time. I go to the backyard and there greeting me at the door I see the two very proud kids with their hands full of wiggly worms! Not just one but many worms wiggling, trying to get away from the little tyrants that have just captured them.You can see them trying to wiggle their way out in between their little fingers trying to escape Connor and Jenn's death grip. When Jenn opened her hand to show me you could see the worms desperately trying to escape up her arm which she of course pulled it back in with the group- she couldn't let that gem get away! Gotta' love my little explorers! Thanks Mom for capturing this incredibly gross moment!

You can see the excitement on Jenn's face!
Such a proud little boy!
Look at the worms hanging from in between her fingers. Uh-oh one's is trying to escape!

Happy Birthday Jenn!!

Our little Jennifer June turned 2 years old on April 10th which was a Sunday and what a busy weekend that was. My little brother Michael got married the day before, the 9th in the Oakland temple, and the next day was not only Jenn's birthday but my other brother Aaron blessed their baby Logan that day as well. Plus, it was my new sister-in-law Autumns birthday! It was a super fun weekend with tons of family and friends around to share in the excitement. Needless to say I did not once again make a cake for Jenn but rather got some help from good old Sam's club. I guess it doesn't matter who made it as long as she loved. Which she did since it had pictures of the different princess' on it. Jenn is such a fun little girl full of stubbornness, happiness, and energy. She is such a strong willed little girl and with that stubbornness comes a lot of frustration both on her part and ours, plus she of course has to do everything herself. She loves to jump pretty much anywhere, she will randomly just start jumping wherever she is, she loves to play with Connor outside finding bugs which are usually handfuls of worms, and rolly-pollies with on occasion snails. Outside is where she loves to be, whether it is jumping on the trampoline, riding her trike, playing dress up with plastic princess shoes or just wearing them for the sake of being pretty. All throughout the day she will have one of her many babies in her arm. With Roxanne in preschool Jennifer and Connor have become wonderful friends (when he isn't in the mood to tease). Their characters are so similar in so many ways. We love our little Jenn who is so full of life and love.

The two Birthday girls- Jenn and Autumn
Getting help from Dad to blow out the candles!

The Newlyweds- Michael and Autumn! So excited for them!

Oakland Zoo

We had a chance to go to the Oakland Zoo about a month ago and it was so much fun. It was nice to be able to get out as a family and do something that we knew the kids would enjoy. You can buy a season pass for just a little bit more so we decided to do that which will be fun to take advantage of this summer. After the zoo we went to Fenton's which is such a fun place to go and get ice cream. I had been dying to go there since before Christmas. They give you these huge portions of ice cream that is just spilling over the plate they put it on all complete with whipped cream and a cherry on top. We got the yummy traditional banana split sunday!

Disneyland

The posts are completely out of order but I knew I had to just get them done anyway. This year the Parker clan did a last minute family reunion to Disneyland. There were a couple that weren't able to make it which is sad but its hard planning a trip that is good timing for all six of us. We all had a wonderful time and for sure the highlight of the trip was my little brother Michael getting engaged! We are so excited to have Autumn in our family now. With her being a cheerleader she of course quickly made a friend out of Roxanne. Her two favorite ride buddies were of course Sandi and Autumn. It was a fun three days, though it rained a lot but for sure other than the two getting engaged the highlight of the trip was when Roxanne got to meet Rapunzel. Since the first day we arrived that was the question we got asked time and time again was when would it be time to meet her. It was so much fun seeing Roxy when the time finally came. I thought she would have just ran up to her and gave her a hug, rather it was like she was in shock and couldn't believe her eyes. Rapunzel talked with them for a little while, took pictures which of course Connor had to stand next to Flynn in order for us to get a picture with him in it- no princess pictures for him! Disneyland is one place that I can go time and time again and it never gets old. Can't wait for the next time (whenever that will be)!

The newly engaged couple!
Jenn and Jason on Mr. toads wild ride!
The cousins!
First day there, yes it did rain a lot if you couldn't tell from the clouds!

Roxanne Turns 5 Years Old!!

Roxanne has finally turned the big 5 years old! She was so excited to turn 5 because that means she is that much closer to going to kindergarten. It was a little difficult planning a birthday party since Ethan was only a month old but it was well worth it. They jumped on the trampoline, played pin the tail on the donkey and of course had a Rapunzel cake. Roxanne was so excited to fill out her invitation cards and pass them out to all her preschool friends. Her favorite things to do are her homework, read, ride her bike, of course take care of baby Ethan, and play dress up. Happy Birthday Roxy!!!

Christmas and Ethan's Blessing

I am so far behind on posts but I thought I needed to do some of the highlights of what has happened. Christmas was a great time though it was tough recovering from a c-section. I was able to luckily come home Christmas Eve, though many nurses told me I would most likely have to stay. I didn't want to add that to my list of reasons why I hated having a c-section, it would have been too depressing waking up in the hospital Christmas morning and not being with the rest of my family. Anyway, I came home Christmas Eve night and had NO idea the pain that would be involved on the way home from the hospital. Every single bump in the road killed my incision, something I was not prepared for. Jason was so nice to drive as careful as possible but I was so surprised at how much it hurt. We made it home and the kids were able to open one gift the night before Christmas. This was one of my favorite memories of growing up was getting that one gift early, for some reason it made me anticipate even more what was in store for me the next day. It was a great Christmas and I was so grateful for Jason's parents who came down to help for this whole experience. It was such a relief to me to know that I wouldn't have to worry about the kids and their needs being taken care of. The kids had such a wonderful time with them and I think almost everyday they went to the park- talk about being spoiled with attention! I will always be grateful to them for their generosity of their time during that difficult time I went through. In all honesty that was one of the hardest trials I have ever been through and nothing could prepare me for it. I am grateful for my wonderful husband Jason who through all of it comforted me through my ups and downs of crying one minute because it all felt like a terrible dream to making me laugh the next. I am so grateful for my amazing beautiful baby boy Ethan. He was hard to get here but I would do it all over again in a second. He is such a sweet, happy little guy. We were able to bless him in our home on New Years day which was a great, intimate experience between his two Grandpas- Grandpa Rick Parker and Grandpa Paul Tillberg, Jason, and our Bishop Sincich. You could feel the spirit as we were able to give our little one a name and a blessing. I couldn't think of a better way to start off the New Year.

I always love taking pictures before they go down and see the presents, as you can tell Jenn has spotted them and is very excited!

So excited for her new stroller to put her many babies in!

Baby Ethan was blessed in the same outfit that Connor was blessed in.

A Little Adjustment

Before I had three kids everyone said that three was a big adjustment. That you could add 10 more and it wouldn't make much of difference. Well, I don't know if it is just me or not but three wasn't so bad. I kept waiting for things to get harder and they never really did. Of course I had my ups and downs just like anyone else dealing with any amount of kids. However, four for me was a huge difference. It felt like my work load had instantly doubled and chaos was a constant. I guess everyone has their numbers and four is mine. You could add almost any amount of kids and I don't think it would make one bit of difference because things are always crazy. When Ethan turned about 3 months old things have started to get a little easier. He is in a routine of his own so I finally know when he is tired instead of hungry, he sleeps through the night, and he loves just being around everyone. Ethan is a people baby- loves to be around others especially if they talk to him. His personality reminds me so much of the way Roxanne was when she was a baby. They both had a big appetite, they both would watch TV if it was in eye site, they both love books. I remember reading to Roxy when she was about 3 months old on the bed book after book and she would stare at the pages intently, Ethan is the same way- loves to read books and gets so excited. Its funny how they have their own personalities from a baby. I remember trying to read to Connor and Jenn when they were babies and they didn't want anything to do with it. But they were more active babies, Jenn started crawling in no time and Connor didn't care to crawl and started walking quick. Anyway, things are going great and I love that we are kind of in a routine. Ethan is such a happy, cute, baby. It makes me sad to realize he is already almost four months old, time is going by way to fast. Before I know it all the kids will be off and in school leaving an empty house during the day.