Tulsa weekend...

 This picture is so funny because we had to stop multiple times to let Haynes pee on the side of the road...I sure do love this kid!

We pushed our kids pretty hard obviously....these are just a few shots of Ella through out the weekend. She would be talking and then just stop and be asleep.  My most favorite is the one of all kids asleep on each other.  I love these kids!

Boyd Wedding Day!!

 Family Picture

 It was a LITTLE chaotic behind the scenes...but it all turned out great:-)

 This little girl was the most adorable thing in the audience:-)

She was a GREAT little leader and had the best time.

The wedding was beautiful and absolutely perfect.  Brian did an amazing job officiating and mostly we are SO excited that the BOYD's are married!!  

Tulsa Zoo

 Friday morning we headed out for a FABULOUS breakfast, recommended by Brian Emery.  Then we headed to the Tulsa Zoo.  It was a perfect day, beautiful weather, and not too bad of a crowd.  The kids loved riding the camel, the only disappointment was when there weren't any Cheetas...Haynes favorite!

Halle had a great time and we discovered something that she LOVES.  We bought this little fan to cool her off and she wouldn't let you stop spraying her...she LOVED it!!!  Literally I have never heard her cry or throw a fit over anything until this fan:-)

Rehearsal Dinner

 Family Picture of everyone dressed up for a few seconds...

can you tell how excited Haynes was about his button shirt?!?

 Katelin and some friends made these cute signs for all the boys to carry down the isle...there were 9 kids in the wedding!  The boys did a great job of following directions:-)

 Isn't she beautiful...even when pouting?!?

 Thankfully she shook that off and found some joy and was a great leader for all the little girls.  

 My parents are really amazing!  They came to Tulsa with us and helped us with our kids ALL weekend.  They took the kids after the rehearsal and after the wedding.  They also headed to the zoo with us on Friday morning too!  We couldn't have done it without them...and Halle loved a little Champ time:-)

This might be my favorite picture of the weekend!  We are so proud of Katelin and Kevin...the way they have pursued Jesus and set a new standard for their family.  Brian had the privilege of marrying them for his first wedding too!

Birthdays at Gingerbread

 Haynes actually got the option of spending his birthday at school or heading to Tulsa early for Katelin and Kevin's wedding.  He chose to go to school and celebrate at school.  We made some cute little dirt cake snacks for Haynes and headed up to school to watch him get his birthday "spankings."  

*One of Haynes things is that when he takes pictures he won't ever look at the camera!?!

Haynes chose a lunch at Johnnies...

We just love celebrating you sweet Haynes Cole!

Encouraging our 5 year old

Brian and I decided that on "big" birthdays we would celebrate our kids by having different people speak into their lives for that season.  We ask a few guys to pray for Haynes, ask the Lord for words to encourage him, and then meet for an early breakfast and encourage him.  Brian took everyone to an early breakfast at Ozzie's.  Jake Bauer, Josh Waggoner, Brian Emery, Mike Billingsley, Justin LeBeau, Gerod Grigor, and David Burget came to celebrate Haynes.  Brian did such a great job coordinating this, but forgot to get a picture:-)  These men have all impacted Haynes life in a powerful way and it was so fun to hear them encourage Haynes. 

My favorite part of the day was when Haynes came home.  Brian had left for work and the boys were upstairs playing with some of their new birthday toys.  Port started asking Haynes about where he went for breakfast, who came, and what they said...Haynes told him who came and where they went and Port was comparing who had come to his breakfast 2 years ago!!  Then he asked about what the guys prayed over him and Haynes went through EVERY guy and told Port exactly what they had said.  I love seeing these men pour into my son and him just soaking it all up!  

We are expectant for big things from this tender warrior this year!

Haynes 5th Birthday party!

We had a Super Hero party for Haynes 5th birthday!  A sweet mom from Haynes class made the most adorable cookies for his party...they were amazing.  My Granma and Mom made some adorable capes for all the kids and we headed to Andy Alligators for the rest of the fun!

 After some quick pizza we prayed for this mighty man and sang happy birthday to him!  I truly fall more in love with this kid EVERY day.  He gets more funny and tender hearted each day!

 Here are the adorable capes and most of the kids!  We some how managed to quickly get a picture of EVERYONE!  And then they were off to play games and ride rides!

The boys loved this ride...I wish I had a picture of Haynes and Beau riding this too!  Beau couldn't make up his mind whether or not he thought this was really fun or not:-)

 After climbing the wall we headed to the go karts!

Everyone ended their night with turning in their tickets for some loot:-)

Happy Birthday Hayners!

Hug-A-Bear

We had our last weekend with Hug-A-Bear.  I always seem to forget we need a picture until Sunday night!  We decided to go swing on the amazing rope swing and bring Hug-A-Bear along.  It's crazy to think that Port will no longer be in Kindergarten after next week!!  We have LOVED every single moment of our time as a Kindie at Gingerbread this year!

Teachable Moments

Our boys are enjoying sports MORE and MORE every single day.  It's so fun watching their little competitive drive come out a little more each day.  There is also a TON of teachable moments along the way...Sweet Haynes....I love watching my husband walk these boys through this process, he is the perfect daddy for these boys!

OKC Marathon

 We got up early and headed to OKC to cheer on Lolli & Champ and Jenny who were walking/running the half marathon.  We didn't manage to see Jenny, but we saw a few other friends.  When we got there it started raining and we quickly realized we didn't bring the appropriate clothes:-)  Our kids quickly learned how to cheer on the people going by...only a few times did they say "that's a granma!"  I quickly reminded them that their "granma" was walking in this race!

 J.J. was our first person we spotted and got to cheer on!

 We even got to run a little and pray for Jeannie...she did awesome!!

 Next came Lolli!

The kids even got to walk a little bit with Champ!

It was such a fun morning.  On the way up there Brian kept saying we are going to walk the half marathon next year...I kept thinking there is NO WAY he will walk 13 miles with me, he will have to run when he gets in that atmosphere.  On the way home he agreed he would have to run:-)  We'll have to see what happens!

Thunder Playoffs

The Thunder are in the NBA Playoffs in case you have been living in a cave and haven't heard.  We had some people over to watch one of the late games one night.  Halle seemed to have a tummy ache and kept getting upset.  We would finally get her asleep and then everyone would cheer.  The game came down to the last minute and our entire house managed to cheer silently because of this sweet girl.  It was hilarious watching everyone jump and cheer silently when we won!  

Go Thunder!

Swimming with Champ

 Lolli and Champ got a new pool liner and my kids couldn't hardly wait to try it out!  Champ warmed it enough for the kids...notice Lolli and I weren't getting in!  Champ loves to let the kids put bubbles in the hot tub...it's by far one of their favorite things.

Halle even jumped in for her first swim at Lolli's too!  Champ quickly learned that Halle LOVES to swim and if you swim with her you will get wet.  She splashes the ENTIRE time she is in the water:-)

Dance Pictures

 Brian was at a retreat during picture weekend.  My parents offered to come take the boys and Halle to lunch while I took Ella to her pictures.  As always, fixing Ella's hair can be a bit challenging:-)  After one "talk" we had a pretty enjoyable morning getting ready...that is until I look out the window and notice some of the boys dancing on the roof!!  Never imagined setting the rule that we don't get on the roof...but then again they are Hartsock's!

Ella is one of the youngest in her class, but you wouldn't know that for many reasons.  She absolutely LOVES it and seems to be doing a great job too.  When we got to pictures she got VERY insecure about what was going on:-)  She clung to me most of the time, but eventually warmed up to her friends.  I finally asked if she wanted me to tell her what was going to happen and that seemed to help a lot.  She was very serious about her pictures and listening to everything Miss Felicia and Miss Maggie had to say...We were all a little surprised, but that's when I remind myself that she is just 3!!  We'll see what happens at the Recital in a few weeks!

*When we got in the car she did tell me that she needed lipstick like Millie's:-)

Corndog Friday

 Our community servants, elders, had a retreat a few weeks ago.  I called all the wives and invited them to my parents to swim and watch a movie.  Lolli and Champ decided to provide corn dogs and tater tots for dinner.  Here's some of the kids eating dinner!

 Once it got dark enough we turned on the Dolphin Tale and had popcorn!

Then the kids started looking for frogs, which might have been one of their favorite parts.  Haynes has a wheelbarrow of frogs:-)  So thankful for the these families!

Morning Cuddles

I am so thankful for these morning cuddlers. 

 Right now all three of the older kids share a room and Halle sleeps with us.  The boys just love getting Halle first thing in the morning to cuddle with her...let's be honest we all do!

Thunder Date with Lolli and Champ

Champ called early one morning asking if the boys could go to the last Thunder game before the playoffs.  Lolli and Champ came and picked up the boys early to go to the Arts Festival.  The boys waited by the door...patiently?!?  They had a fun day of face painting, treats, and then ended with the fun game.  I think they had a great time, but unfortunately the Thunder lost.  Haynes just couldn't enjoy the night with a loss...great opportunity to work on our character:-)

Thanks Champ and Lolli for the fun boys date!

Halle and Joy

We got to swim with the Bennet's the other day.  Halle and Joy had matching suits and were adorable as always!  We can't wait for these girls to be best friends and change the world together!!

She's my daughter...

We ran up to Jcrew to pick up the boys some clothes for Kevin and Katelin's wedding.  Ella insisted on trying on an outfit for the rehearsal dinner.  Ella is SO opinionated about her clothes...I can't figure out where she gets that from:-)  I've figured out that she likes to see things on models or in a magazine, so she found this put together and insisted on putting it on.  Then she struck this pose and said, "Oh mom, I LOVE it!"  

Morning Competition

I just love my husband...

We were having breakfast together and reading our family devotional.  Haynes decided to do a cartwheel across the kitchen...not that odd around here:-)  He asked Brian if he could do that and Brian agreed to the competition.  Port was the judge...such a fun way to start your morning!

Baseball Practice

 We were having a hard time finding a field to practice on without conflicting with other teams, so we suggested practicing at my parents house.  Brian and my dad measured everything out and painted a field on the grass.  It's perfect!!

 Halle and Champ LOVED watching practice together!

 Lolli had popsicles for everyone after practice...of course!

Halle tried a little but wasn't impressed, she did enjoy making a mess on Lolli.

Then we had to swim...

Champ loves adding bubbles to his hot tub!

Mulberry Tree

We have moved into the house next to Brian's parents house, my kids are in heaven!!  They get to see their cousins EVERY day!  The other day I knew they were in the backyard playing, but felt like I needed to check on them.  I walked out to find Judi coming out of the house saying they were picking berries!  We found them and they had a bucket of berries.  I ran back to find out what kind of berries they were so we could know if they were safe or not.  We are now working on making a mulberry pie or cobbler!  

Ella's hair...

Ella and I seem to battle about her hair daily.  

She loves it to be long, so do I...I just prefer it to be brushed:-)  

We usually give LOTS of options...down, up, braids, etc.  Now she has learned that she prefers Daddy to brush her hair.  I love watching him love her so gently and tenderly...he is really the best daddy!

Happy Birthday Harper!

We got to celebrate Harper's first birthday with her family!  We just fall more in love with her EVERY day.  She got this beautiful wig, but we prefer her dark hair:-)  There's just nothing like watching a 5 year old open birthday presents, be prayed over, and blow out birthday candles for the first time while holding onto her beautiful momma.  We are so excited to see all that God is going to do in and through you in this next year Harper Florence.  Love you!