Nolie the Performer!

Nolen had a performance on his last day of Mother's Day Out.  Next year he will be in the 4 year old class....and then it is Kindergarten!  Lord, help me!!

As you can hear by Eric and I cracking up in the background....we find these videos hilarious!  What is it about kids in a group singing songs that is so funny?  Well....it could be Nolen's yawning, or staring at Eric, or it could be the fact that he does the same move the entire song and then all of a sudden realizes that everyone else is doing something else so then he does that for a while.  This kid is so funny.....and seriously could not be any cuter!!

A 1st Grader? Really?

I am not sure how this happened....but I have a 1st grader.  Gavin says he wishes he could stay in Kindergarten--and I kind of agree with him!  He is growing up too fast!
We LOVED his teacher this year.  She was amazing with Gavin and totally put my our minds at ease.  At their awards ceremony, every one got an award from Ms. Sherrod.  Gavin got "Awesome all the time", which suits him well!  He also got zero tardy's...us Gifford's like to be on time. 
We are so proud of Gavin.  He is such an amazing little boy and so smart.  His vocabulary and way of thinking continue to entertain us.  He uses big words that he doesn't know what they mean and often pronounces them wrong--which is hilarious.  His new phrase is "well, that was awkward" which he often uses totally out of context. 

They don't do a regular field day in Kindergarten here but they did do a few team events. 

They did a balloon toss, which Gavin and his little partner managed to win even though he never caught the balloon!  It just kept bouncing on the ground but never popped.

They did a few others too but tug-of-war was definitely his favorite.  

We are looking forward to a great summer!  We have been staying up later and sleeping later (thank God)!  Gavin has been sleeping until about 9:15 every day and Nolen slept til 8:45 yesterday, which is a miracle!

We have been swimming every day.  We are looking forward to a visit from Nanu, Krista and Ayla in a few weeks and a cruise with Eric's family at the end of the summer!

Cohen is 7 Months Old--Ahhhhh!

Cohen is 7 months old.....before I know it we are going to be celebrating his 1st birthday! I think with each child you have...you realize more how quickly time passes. I look at Gavin and Nolen and I know I was there when they were babies but I have a hard time remembering the little details. I want to remember everything....what he smells like, how soft his skin is, how crazy blue his eyes are, the sound of that sweet little voice.....I could go on and on.

The "mohawk" is back!  His hair is coming in sooo fast and it is so blonde.

Cohen is on the move!  He is doing the "wounded soldier" crawl.  It is so cute...he pulls with his hands clasped together and pushes with his little toes.

He claps and yells "Aaaayyyyyyy" which is adorable.  Whenever I clap for him, I always say "yay" and he is totally copying me....clearly a genius!  He waves.....at himself.  He is completely mesmorized by Gavin and Nolen.  Cohen is still the happiest baby on earth.

Cohen is wearing a size 4 diapers and a combination of 6-12 and 12-18 clothes.  He is hovering around the 20lb mark.  He has big, juicy legs and about 3 chins.  He has 2 teeth but by the looks of his gums...I would be willing to bet there will be a few more in the next month. 

He is a "biter"......which is not fun.  I  try to scold him when he does it but it is really hard because he looks at me and smiles....and then I melt.

Beach and an Anniversary

We made another quick trip Florida for Great Strides for Ayla's Army.  Of course we went to the beach a few times.  We also celebrated a milestone anniversary--10 YEARS!

Since Cohen was 6 months old this trip, he was able to have sunscreen on.....and actually get out from under the umbrella.  I think he likes the beach!

Ayla, Nolen and Gavin had fun looking for "sea creatures".

My boys LOVE the beach.  They don't even want to eat when they are there.  They are just too busy playing.

Oh how I LOVE those fat legs!

Per the recommendation of Lori (aka expert on all things Destin) we went to Bistro Bijoux for dinner to celebrate our anniversary.

We took Cohen with us and had a great dinner outside.  He was an angel baby as usual.

Eric and I have been married for 10 years!  We got married when we were practically babies--I was 21 and he was 20.  God has strengthened our marriage through the years.  I have seen so many times where fertility struggles tear people apart and we have been so blessed....all of our struggles have only brought us closer together.  Life has not been perfect but I am so thankful for my husband.  I know that we can get through anything together.

Mother's Day

I had the best Mother's Day.  I got the sweetest card from my "babies daddy" and Gavin and Nolen made me stuff--which is pretty much the most treasured gifts a Mother could get.  They are often times humorous but always so sweet.  I felt really loved and special.

Nolen made me this....it says "I love my mommy because.....she reads to me, she takes me to toys r us, she gives me hugs and she plays with me."

Nolen also made me this.....a few of his facts are wrong (he blames the wrong eye color on Daddy-HA!) but I LOVE it.  His drawing of us cracks me up....don't you love my gi-normous hands?

Gavin painted me this rock.  He informed me that the 3 blue things are birds, and the orange thing hanging from the tree is a bird feeder.

This book is hilarious......I will tell you what it says since some of his spelling is wrong.

My mom is just like a superhero because she can.....

clean the whole living room all in one day! (HAHA!)

Even when my mom is exhausted she still.....
does nothing! (This is my favorite....at least he knows I am able to relax)

My mom is so smart that she knows....

sewing.

My mom is also as beautiful as....a butterfly and as sweet as...flower.

I love my mom so much because.....she keeps me safe.

There were soooo many years where I did not like Mother's Day.  I wanted so badly to be celebrating it as a Mommy and I felt especially sad on this particular day.  After several years of fertility treatments, surgeries and disappointments.....we now have 3 amazing little boys.  I know that our boys are miracles from God.  People who don't know anything about fertility don't realize how much of a miracle conceiving a baby is.  Everything has to line up just perfectly and while it happens all the time for a lot of people.....it is so incredibly difficult for others. 

This day is so special to me....but at the same time I can go back to those days and remember exactly how I felt and my heart breaks for the people who are feeling the way I did.  I don't ever want to forget what that was like.  So, while I had a great day this Mother's Day with my full, very loud home, I was also praying for the childless....because I know what that is like too. 

The shirt says it all!

Easter

We had a great Easter!  Our Church did something different this Easter and Eric was a part of it.  I will hopefully have the video of it to put on here in the future.  I really believe it touched a lot of lives and I was sooo proud of my husband.  

We went "'casual" this year.  I made Gavin and Nolen's shirts and Cohen's outfit.  I was pretty happy about how they turned out.

My three boys....they are getting so big!