Ashley’s trip to California with Uncle Wes & Aunt Kara
30 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
For Ashley’s 14th birthday my youngest brother, Wes, and his wife invited Ashley down to California as their gift to her. Wow! Due to the holidays and crazy schedules, it took 4 months for the trip to finally arrive and the anticipation was amazing. She had such a fantastic time. What an amazing privilege to have family give my daughter experiences like this. We are so blessed.
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Celebrating Jordan’s 12th Birthday!
01 Mar 2010 1 Comment
Jordan’s last pre-teen year – wow. The morning of Jordan’s birthday we sat at breakfast and asked Jordan what he wanted to do at the end of the day to celebrate his birthday. “Open presents and have cake,” he said. Sounds pretty obvious except for the fact that Jordan has NEVER asked for a birthday cake in his life. It had never crossed my mind! Thank you Ashley for cranking that out by the end of the day. Once we were all home (he was last), he got to do his presents, have some dinner, cake, and then have a movie evening.
Additionally, he’s been talking about going to Great Wolf Lodge for nearly a year now. When a great deal came up for home schooling families we jumped on it, celebrated his special day a couple weeks later, and headed to Grand Mound, WA for a family overnight mini-vacation.
Happy Birthday, Jordan! We love your quirky personality that always surprises us. Your sense of humor is amazing and your determination and faithfulness are so admirable. You are precious to us and our Heavenly Father.
It's my birthday!
Skyping with Gramma & Grampa for the first time
Celebrating with his "Ding Dong" friend, Mr. Keith on Super Bowl Sunday. Thanks for the cake, Kim!
Heading into Great Wolf Lodge on a balmy, February afternoon in WA.
Jordan and the Great Wolf mascot (I'm sure he has some name...)
Getting battered in the wave pool
Basketball in the water was where Jordan parked it for hours.
Bekah’s 8th Birthday – December 15, 2009
12 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment
Can it really be EIGHT years? Can Mommy’s baby really be 8? Ashley seemed like such a big girl at 8. We moved from Seattle when Ash was 8 and in 2nd grade. Imagining that Bekah has really reached that age is mind boggling for me. It just doesn’t register. And as I reflect on the issues that we’re currently struggling with for Bekah (a big, bad attitude), I don’t remember any of those things for Ashley. Maybe my mind is numbed to it. I’ll have to check the journal I wrote for her, maybe it will have some hints to her behavior.
At any rate, the calendar doesn’t lie and Rebekah Joy Bodger must have turned 8 on Tuesday, December 15th 2009. We had a fun day celebrating Bekah.
- Started the day off with Bekah’s favorite: French Toast
- School must go on…
Once everyone was home, Bekah got to open her gifts.
- Wii Cheer 2 game from Grandma Yogi & Grandpa Don
- Very cute box and girlie goodies from Uncle Wes & Aunt Kara
- A very special photo album of Bekah’s years came from Gammy & Pa along with $20.
- The very special doll the was given to Gammy by her sister, Irene. Now passed on to the dolly girl, Bekah.
- The photo album
- Balloon bouquet from Bekah’s gymnastics coach!
- The Target gift card from Gramma and Grampa Schertz draws a smile
- Polly Pocket Cruise Ship from Ashley and Jordan (Black Friday deal!!!)
- Shock & awe
- at the gift
- she didn’t think
- she’d ever get.
- So happy with her very special Nintendo DSi
Happy, happy birthday Rebekah.
We Love You very much.
Bekah’s 8th Birthday Party – LEGOS and Princesses
12 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment
Birthday girl!
Saturday, December 12, 2009, Bekah had her 8th B’day party at our house. She invited 9 friends, Bella and Sadie couldn’t come. It was a much anticipated and very fun event for all.
The Girls! ...And Willie. Mary, Sydney, Bekah, Molly, Grace, Caroline, Mikayla, and Janelle
Girls and LEGOS
Crafts
Ice cream only - because Bekah doesn't LIKE cake (easier for Mom!)
Ashley’s 14th
16 Oct 2009 1 Comment
Our first baby is FOURTEEN!
On Friday, 10/2, Ashley got a Mom and Dad date where we went and picked out her first cell phone followed up by the movie FAME with us and her friend Rachel. It was a fun night. The phone has changed her life, but we haven’t had to take it away… YET.
On her actual birthday, 10/5, we opened presents together at home and then headed out to a special family dinner at Red Robin. Embarrassing her with the Red Robin birthday song was very fun.
Ashley got a phone call from Uncle Wes and Aunt Kara the morning of her birthday. They announced to her that for her birthday they were going to fly her down for the weekend in January or February.
Celebrating with the family is always special, but celebrating as a teenager the party with friends is always a highlight. It was a ‘party year’ for her (up through 10 they get yearly parties and then it goes to 13, 16 and then 18 years) but between Ashley and her friends there are 4 birthdays within 44 days. These good friends got together and planned a birthday bash they called “B.R.A.M.’s 14th B’day Celebration”. B.R.A.M. are the girls’ initials: Bekah Russell, Rachel Mansfield, Ashley, and McKenna Welch.
Enjoy the pictures of her big day(s)!
Birthday Card from Gramma & Grampa
The Girls
Ashley and Jordan
Tearing up over a note from Gammy
Special memory album of Ashley's first years from Gammy and Pa
Lamp and iPod doc from Grandma Yogi
Red Robin sings for Ashley
McKenna, Bekah, Rachel and Ashley
Friends!
Beautiful Birthday Girl
Catching up…
18 Apr 2009 Leave a Comment
in Birthday, Easter, Family Outings, friends, Mariners
Saturday, April 10th through Tuesday the 14th were crazy busy days. There were events for each of the kids, multiple parties (4 on Saturday alone!), Easter, Mariners preparations, and oh, my birthday, before Opening Day at Safeco Field arrived on Tuesday. It was all very fun, but exhausting when the adrenaline finally could taper off Wednesday evening.
Bekah at ballet with Sarah Huber - 9th grader from church working on a school project. Aren't they darling?
Easter eggs. These are actually all raw! Willie didn't want the dye to go to waste so he and Ashley colored every egg we had in the house!
Our annual egg hunt at the Mansfields. These are the kids of the ladies in my Bible Study. Only a few are missing...
The kids at church Easter morning. He is risen!
Bella & Bekah - too cute not to post.
Almost time to head onto the field for Mariners Opening Day 2009!! (4/14)
We were really THAT close to the action! Willie with the balloon arch and Keith Johnson to his left.
I'm on the field, too!
Done on the field, now way up to our seats.
Now back home at Safeco, Griffey's 1st at-bat. He was all business after this - and even got a hit! So exciting to have him back in Seattle.
My friend, Ede, even gave me a birthday greeting at the game! What fun!
Facebook, a stadium full of 50,000 fans, and these screens came together so that my long-time friend who I only run into every now and then & I actually interacted. She knew I was getting a b’day greeting because I’d said so on Facebook, and later in the game, she got on the big screen during the 7th inning stretch dancing time. Even amongst 50,000 people, God has a funny sense of humor to connect people!
Jordan’s ELEVEN!
14 Feb 2009 1 Comment
in Birthday, Family Outings, Jordan
What a miraculous day we celebrated on February 5th! The boy that doctors didn’t expect to see his 3rd birthday has turned eleven.
Yeah! Jordan got a strike at bowling!
Gramma and Grampa arrived from Raleigh while Jordan was at school and were here waiting when he walked in from the bus. They talked him into some hugs and kisses before hte present opening began. Thank you everyone for your amazing kindness!
Wii Fit from Grandma Yogi and Mom & Dad. Fun stuff!
Reading card from Gramma & Grampa
Jordan (and sisters) check out his new keyboard! Thanks G & G!
We tried to have a little party for Jordan at the bowling alley but neither of the kids he invited were able to attend. Turned out to be a really good thing, because I screwed up big time and didn’t check to make sure lanes would be available. We got there with Gramma & Grampa and league bowling had just started and no lanes would be available until 9 PM! Oh, dear! Sorry, my Jordan, who doesn’t like change. We headed to The Old Spaghetti Factory (to Jordan’s chagrin) and enjoyed some dinner before heading home.
The next day, we got Jordan out of school early and took him with us to the home school field trip to Jump Planet. Angry that we weren’t heading straight to bowling, he pounded the seat and yelled a good portion of the way there. After convincing him that we had to wait for Daddy to finish with work before we could bowl, and driving into the parking lot, Jordan was ready to head in and try it. See another post for this adventure.
Finally, it was time to head to bowling.
A spare!
Jordan's style of bowling - hold one hand and throw!
Nice strike, Ash!
Bekah style
Due to arm pain, Willie bowls lefty
My lack of style
Gramma style!
Waiting to roll
Had to throw some Wii Fit in before heads hit the pillow for the Birthday boy.
Time for some balance work for Jordan on the Wii Fit board
Then & Now – Bekah is 7!
15 Dec 2008 1 Comment
Happy 1st Birthday!
Happy Birthday, my dear Bekah!
I can’t believe she is already seven. Where did the years go? I love that Bekah is so focused on God. Not that she always gets it right, but when she is asked to make a list of things she’s thankful for then God gets all the glory. When it’s time for bedtime prayers, she’s asking for family prayer requests. And when it comes to neighborhood friends, she always knows who attends church and is diligent at inviting them to attend with her. Her heart belongs to Jesus – our biggest prayer. Hold on to Jesus, Bekah!
She is also a huge lover and bundle of energy. Sometimes these conflict. She’ll sit around and snuggle for the day and then have so much energy at night she can’t sleep. And she loves her dolls. Of all our kids, she is the only one it has ever made sense to purchase toys for – she will play with toys over and over.
I love you Bekah and look forward to many more years with you, my dear!
Bekah and Ken out in the snow and ice on her 7th birthday
Phantom of the Opera
11 Oct 2008 2 Comments
All dressed up with somewhere to go
For Ashley’s 13th birthday, Grandma and Grandpa did a very special “experience” gift. She got to take her mom and dad and go to Phantom of the Opera!! Ashley has recently been working on one of the Phantom songs (“Wish you were here”) in her voice lessons and when the advertisements came out that Phantom would be here, closing on her birthday, I knew we had to see if something was possible. Thanks to G’ma and G’pa, it was! Hooray!
Ashley borrowed one of my dresses and a pair of my shoes (yep, she’s a big girl), wore my mom’s mink coat, and once Grandma Yogi (Willie’s mom, who used to have a dog named Yogi and thus became the grandma with yogi or Grandma Yogi) arrived from Ferndale to watch the younger two we headed out the door. Quick bite of dinner – classy, Taco Bell drive thru – since it was already 5:20 and the show started at 6:30. But it was enough to tide us over through the fantastic show and then we walked over to Cheesecake Factory (Ashley’s choice). We had some appetizers and each of us ordered an amazing slice of cheesecake. What a very special and memorable day.
