Godspeed Angel Our Beloved Chick!

Well blogger pals, today is the day that the chicken Caroline raised goes to her new home. We are thrilled that friends of my sister are taking her in and that Caroline will have liberal visitation. :) They have land as well as other chickens, turkeys and geese so Angel will be sure to shake a tail feather or two there, ha ha! Caroline is doing alright (although she will miss her lots) knowing that this is the best place for her and that she did a great job as her Mom. Here are some pics:

Just for comparison, this is what she looked like 6 weeks ago when we got her...man she grew fast!


Angel and her Mommy this morning...how sweet is that?!


Farewell Angel! Have fun in your new home, we can't wait to come visit! :)

HOORAY for KALEY: She Got HONOR ROLL too!

I am so extremely proud of Kaley for making honor roll in 7th grade this semester...she has worked so hard! She totally earned every A and B she got completely on her own, which is fantastic! She has overcome her struggles enough in math to get a B and got an A in Advanced Language Arts...way to go! I'm so happy to know that although she has entered the world of teens where your friends are everything, she is still working hard in school and growing up to be a wonderful young lady...love you Kaley Rose! Congrats!

LONG OVERDUE: Easter Pix!

This Easter, Caroline and I tried the sunrise service and although it was dark at first when we arrived, it was quite moving. We came home and colored eggs with Kaley and then all went to my parents for the annual brunch and egg hunt with the littlest members of the family. My girls helped their little Nieces, they had a blast and I have never seen so much candy in all my life! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday too. Here are some snaps from the festivities:

Here's what the girls woke up to bright and early on Easter...hooray for goodies!



Sisters checking out the loot on Easter morning...


Ouch!



Caroline gets down to eye level with chickie to teach her that pecking feet is not polite. :)



I think this picture of Kaley is beautiful!


This is my favorite shot of Caroline! She looks so pretty in her dress and is smiling so proidly with her chick in the basket. :)

Honor Roll Award-HOORAY for Caroline!

Last Thursday, our Caroline Elizabeth got an award for academic Honor Roll and for being a "star student" according to her teacher. We are SO proud! She has struggled this year with both her grades and behavior as many of you know, so a celebration was in order. After the award ceremony at school, I took her to the mall for yet MORE Webkinz as a reward. Here are some photos from the ceremony:


Check Liney out with her award (top left), she's so happy!




Here is our smarty pants with some of her 4th grade friends...



Grandma and Poppy came to support Caroline too!



Here is one proud Mom with her star student! :)


GO CAROLINE!!!!!

Kaley's Birthday-Part 3 (the last)!

We had part 3 of Kaley's birthday festivities last night...to celebrate her on the day. She requested spaghetti, salad and garlic bread for dinner and we included her Grandmother and her new friend in the fun. Grandmother brought her a cake (vanilla-her fave) so we blew candles out again and wished her the best 13th bday ever! Here are a few snaps...didn't get many as the camera was acting up (or was it the photographer...I really need to read the manual for my new camera, ha ha):


Kaley & her sister's chick...can you believe how big it's getting already?!


Doug's Mom and her new friend Joe helped celebrate on Kaley's actual bday on Wed.!


I love this pic of the birthday girl! :)

Kaley's 13th Birthday- Part-2

We had a lovely brunch with my entire family today and finished the rest of the huge cookie cake from the day before with everyone...



Carolie picked out this very pretty purple candle for her sister...sweet!



Whoa...awesome! A new 20" TV for her room from Mom and Dad!


Kaley got a DVD player from Grandma and Poppy to go along with her new tv!


Kaley is a very special young lady and is so blessed to have a family that loves and spoils her the way they do! She made out like a bandit and has been the center of attention (something she is shy about) all weekend...I think she's relieved to have 2 "regular" days before she officially becomes a teenager on Wed.! :) Stay tuned for part 3 soon...

Kaley's 13th Birthday- Part 1

Kaley Rose celebrated her upcoming 13th birthday this weekend with a great skating party with her friends. I think they all had a blast! Caroline was very brave and although petrified, didn't give up and ended up doing very well for her first time. I, on the other hand, only lasted on the ice for about 30 minutes...my ankles were killing me, LOL! I gave up and let my sister Lisa hang with the kids on the ice while I took pics and video. Kaley was most excited that her boyfriend Austin came to her party and was a good sport being the only boy there. He gave her a sterling silver heart necklace too...I've never seen her smile so big! She has some wonderful girlfriends too, so thanks Brooke, Sheryl, and Jordan for helping Kaley have a great birthday! I'll post some video, but here are some snaps from the fun: