Brooks is starting school on March 15th. We are so excited for him as he is more than ready to attend the "building school". He will go three days a week from 9 am until noon. We are super excited that the school is a Christian school that will teach Brooks the Truth. We've been practicing school and he loves it. The beginning of his workbook was so simple for him that he started to get silly, so we decided to jump to the end of the book and Brooks still gets all the answers right! He is so amazing.

Tonight I decided to keep a piece of paper by me to write down the things Brooks says that make me laugh. Every night he says things that make me giggle, but by the time I go to blog them they have slipped my mind. So, here is a recap of conversations with Brooks tonight.

"Actually, I will go and get you Play-Doh" as I go to grab some from the cupboard.

"Okay, that is your choice" as I take a blue pick from the Tupperware.

"No, no, I've got to safely take it out" as I tried to remove the Play-Doh from the container.

"Take the Play-Doh and gently pull it back so that it doesn't break. Wait, I'll pull gently." as I tried to get the Play-Doh off the counter.

And last but not least:
"Jesus gets sad when I eat adult Popsicles".

Oh, he is such a blast.

As Greg and I cleaned up the kitchen after a massive Play-Doh party, we noticed Brooks eating his ice cream with his eyes closed. We also noticed that Brooks had turned off all the lights. We asked Brooks what he was doing. His response?
"I'm falling asleep while I eat my Popsicle."
Duh.

The weather has been beautiful and the time inside has been driving us crazy. On Thursday, Greg took the kids outside to play. They played for a LONG time and came inside with pink cheeks and boogers running down their faces! They were still the most adorable buddies I've ever seen, boogers and all.

When I got home from the gym last week this is what met me at the door. He has been so pathetic and sick. Now, he seems to be getting better (although still on his antibiotic), but he is about as challenging as we have ever seen him. We think it might be a combo of being extra spoiled for a week and still not feeling 100%. Bless his little heart though, he is such a sweetie.

Chloe-Belle has a tooth! Here she is, using the most convenient teething toy possible...her toes!
Belle's bottom left tooth broke through the gum yesterday and now she is even eating steak and mashed potatoes! Just kidding.

Chloe was dedicated on Sunday at church. It was a busy morning and started off a little bit rough. Brooks continued to have a temperature and wasn't feeling well at all. We toughed it out and went forward with Chloe's dedication. It was a really nice dedication and was very important for us as parents to publicly show that we desire for Chloe to be surrounded by those who love the Lord, grow up in a home with God at the center and most importantly love the Lord herself one day.

Our pastor, who we love like a family member, did a great job.

After Chloe was dedicated we whisked Brooks out of the service, brought him home and the poor little guy continued to get worse. Finally this morning we took him in and he has a double ear infection. He has been pathetic but wonderful at the same time. He is a great patient who doesn't complain and would rather be left alone when he is sick. He obviously gets this from his daddy and not his mommy (who isn't a very good patient).

We praise the Lord that Brooks seems to be getting a little bit better tonight. We also praise the Lord for our wonderful church family and our wonderful kids that He gave to us.

Greg and I are going to do a "re-do" Valentine's Day next weekend. The day was full of boogers, crying, fevers and medicine for our family. It wasn't very romantic but it is reality when you've got kids.

Who need Valentine's Day anyway, when your husband treats you like every day is Valentine's Day?

Brooks is also our Valentine, although a little bit "over" the whole taking cute pictures idea. Here is the result of us trying to get a cute Valentine picture of Brooks. He was such a stinker and he knew it. I know he's been sick, but he wouldn't even give us one smile.
Bless his heart too...the heart of a BOY!

Chloe is our dear, sweet Valentine. She is so sweet and snuggly. What a princess. She seems to smile a lot more than she cries.
Bless her heart.

Brooks went snowmobiling with his Uncle Mouse on Thursday. Uncle Mouse came across another guy on the trail that said to him, "Wow, looks like your little guy (Brooks) is having lots of fun." Uncle Mouse said, "I think he is, why?" The guy responds, "He's asleep!"
This was the start of the illness. I am sure if Brooks were feeling better he would not have let Uncle Mouse bring him home.

Brooks certainly is the entertainment of our house. If we were to describe him in three words they would be:
Funny (Super funny)
Energetic (Walk? What's that mean?)
and
Passionate (about everything).

Lately, Brooks has been testing us to our limits and we have to remember that his energy will one day be a great thing when he is the guy who leads our country. Seriously, this kid is going places. Places that need people with lots of brains and a huge ZEST for life and everything that life involves.

We love you, Buddy.

This is mommy's birthday cake with candles and all!

Our little Chloe-Belle is such a princess. I love that GREG got her dressed in these pictures, headband and all!

Chloe had her six month check-up this week so she put on her best pink puffy hair bow for her appointment. Maybe she would have worn black if she would have known she was going to get 5 shots! Poor thing.

Here are her stats:
Height: 26.5 inches (76%)
Weight: 18 pounds 10.5 ounces (91%)
Head: 18 inches (99%)
Perfectly healthy!