Waiting early for Santa

This is where we found Grant one night last week at 4:30am. Matt woke me up just so I could see how cute he was. Can't figure out why this seemed like a good spot to sleep, except he was maybe waiting early for Santa? Matt and I are both really more surprised that he took the time and effort to lay out his comforter on the hearth, especially since (in typical stubborn 3-year-old fashion) many nights he hollers for us to "cover him up" in bed because he "can't." Ahhh, never a dull moment in the Steuer household.

Making their lists

Hope they've been good because they have been doing a lot of cutting and pasting this evening!

Halloween

Kids + Markers - Supervision

= an abstract art project on her brother Liam's face

= a lesson in makeup application on her brother Grant's face

(love the eye shadow touch...she is sure to be a professional someday)

= Barbie and Woody Zombies (just in time for halloween)

Luckily all were semi-easily washed clean. Miss Mia will no longer have access to markers for quite some time. Very creative I must admit.

Check out our muscles

Mia Pia

And to think she was terrified of this "tree face" a mere 2 years ago...

Our latest obsession...

The kids are really loving the new Wii party game. Yes, it is a video game but I totally love that the kids can all play together. Jackson is totally hooked. I caught him up at 5am with the sound down playing "Match Up." Guess we have to hide the remotes before we got to bed:). Totally a fun game for the whole family. Love the second video where Grant hugs Liam and says that they both "winned" when in reality they both lost. Such a cute moment.

Happy Friday!

Throwback Thursday

This is what happened after Jackson ingested some ham and dried pea soup Daddy made for dinner awhile ago. Yup...definitely allergic. Poor baby.

L.i.am

Liam is always getting himself into bizarre situations. He always manages to get "stuck" in or on something. Sometimes it is quite amazing how he is able to manuver around and become trapped. Thankfully so far we have not needed the jaws of life to remove him from a piece of furniture! He has even somehow pushed his hand into a tall cup and needed help removing it--who does that? Here is an old picture of Liam getting his upper body stuck in the rocking chair.

He is also a little joker. He loves to do goofy things in order to get you to laugh.

Here is a recent photo of him getting stuck in a kiddie chair. He has serious talent, right?

Flexi-baby

Seriously...how is this comfortable?

The twins

Grant and Liam are really starting to develop different personalities. It has been fun seeing them talk alot more and express themselves when talking about school or something else.
They go to Sunday school each Sunday as well as preschool and it seems that Liam is more outspoken and easy going than Grant is. Grant is a little hard-headed (hmmm, cannot imagine who he gets that from) and more shy. Although they both love Katelyn so much, Grant is more gentle and loving than Liam. They are both still screamers which drives Matt and I totally crazy on a daily basis and I am really hoping they outgrow that soon. I think they are both big cuties though. I am looking forward to watching their personalities grow!

8 months

At 8 months...

I pull up on everything constantly!

I am drinking only formula now and am enjoying many different foods

including yogurt and puffs.

I am very loved by my brothers and sisters and I laugh at them constantly.

I enjoy exploring everywhere.

I still get up about once in the evening,

but like to sleep in past 8am if my siblings don't wake me up!

I babble lots and lots!

I love splashing in the bathtub.

I am wearing 9-12 month clothes.

I like to wave bye-bye, but only when I want too.

I am growing and growing!

We so love this baby girl. Matt and I are totally smitten with this little one and have thoroughly enjoyed watching her grow. We are so relaxed with her and I think it makes a difference. She is so adorable and fun! We are so blessed!

Spongebob Party

Jackson's 6th Birthday was a success. The theme was Spongebob Squarepants and I think everyone had a great time. It was a gorgeous day...a perfect day for a party!

Spongebob Cake

The Birthday Boy

Blowing out the candles


Partiers enjoying birthday cake

Spongebob Pinata

Grant

Jake with Spongebob's legs



Jackson enjoying his candy

My brother was the hit of the party by bringing the Chicken Limo. All of the kids got to ride plus Uncle Chris and Grandma Warren. Leave it to Uncle Chris to take the party up a notch. Thanks so much! It was a cool surprise!

Jackson and Jake after the limo ride

**Sorry for the lack of posts. Although I have many reasons for not updating, the following are the highlights.

1)The start of school has taken some adjustments on all of our part. They are all enjoying it so much though.

2)We had a mini-pukefest 2010 that affected everyone except for Matt which rendered us useless for about a week and a half. Mia even ramped it up by giving us our first nosebleed simultaneously while puking. It was amazingly disgusting.

3)Some random sinus infection has spread through the family as well and it has brought along unexplained fevers in several of the kids. Have a mentioned that I love fall/winter and the illnesses they bring? It definitely has something to do with reason for not posting numero uno. Love it that the kids schoolmates feel like it is necessary to share their germs. Not to worry though, my kids share right back:).

4)When I have time to post, it is really pretty limited and for some reason I have so many problems uploading pictures, posting, etc. on blogger. Anyone have any suggestions? Many times I have intended on posting, but became totally frustrated and just gave up due to problems. Arrgh!

Anyhoo, Jackson had a great birthday. I cannot believe he is 6 years old already. Feels like I just had him yesterday! Please slow down a little life, ok?

More babies growing...

Mia, Grant, and Liam started preschool today...

Grant

Liam

Had to have a funny face pose!

They did great at drop off. Anxious to hear how the first day went. So very quiet in the house with just little Kate!

Fun Pics

Mia and her "kids." She asked me to take her picture with her "kids" on her lap. Looks like she has about as much lap space as I do when all the kids want to be held! Funny to me that she says they are her kids because she tells me almost everyday that she doesn't ever want to have kids or get married because she wants to live with me forever (must remember this one during the teenage years). Mia and the twins are frequently telling Matt and I that they love us "this much" with their hands out wide. It totally squeezes your heart. She told me this morning that she loved my face and hair and that's why she wants to live with me forever. Hilarious!

Mia and the twins playing "train" while Jackson is at school. Mia and the little boys have bonded since Jackson started school. The three of them start next Tuesday and I think they are all really looking forward to it.

Jackson helping load the dishwasher (momma loves that!) Jackson and Mia are really starting to grow up. Jackson has figured out how to do so many things. He is such a smart kid. I think he can control the TV remote and computer better than some adults can! We read as homework everyday after school, but Matt and I have been asking him to read the books. He really does such a great job. I cannot believe how many words he recognizes and remembers from time to time. He loves school. I really like it that he has some of the same kids in his kindergarten class as in his preschool and Sunday school. We went to our church picnic a few Sundays ago and Jackson and Mia both had friends there that they were excited to see from school. One little girl in Jackson's class has a sister in Mia's class so they were all playing together. At the picnic, Jackson ran over to his friend and grabbed her hand then brought her over for us to meet introducing her as "Charlotte from my school." So cute that he thought to introduce us! I love it that even though we are in a bigger town, we are able to have our own little community with church and school. Although I am a little sad that they are growing so fast, I am really enjoying seeing their personalities develop and seeing what kind of people they are going to be. Fun to see them grow!

Toothless Grin

Jackson lost his first tooth last night right before I got home from work. He was crunching on ice which helped loosen it up and he ended up pulling it out. He was pretty upset at first, but was excited to show me and Nana when we got home. I would say that the tooth fairy brought him a gift, but he totally did NOT want the tooth fairy to visit and refused to put his tooth under his pillow. Too funny!

Big baby Kate

She can hold her own bottle...

She can sit pretty all by herself...

And...watch out! She is on the move and starting to scoot everywhere!