Jim's Birthday!

2/8/09
Jim turned 31, which makes him officially an OLD MAN! ha ha ha Ask him, he'll admit to being old. We had a fun dinner with his parents, who came down to help us celebrate. Jim requested angel food cake with frosting on it, his usual birthday cake. Here is Grandpa, with the traditional birthday torch!
Here is Grandma, the woman who waited and waited and waited for years, and then gave birth to Jim and still loves him after all these years!I think Jim had a pretty good party this year, he got some sweet presents! This one had him a little confused, but Grandma sure got a laugh out of it - and so did the boys. They thought it was hilarious! Too bad the picture doesn't show it better. It is a popsicle stick with a marshmallow on either end...the only way Grandma could wrap up an olympic-sized weight bar without it being too obvious. Pretty clever!
Here is the real deal after it was brought out of hiding.The boys and I gave Jim catalogs so he could look through them and find "the perfect bike". It came with the financial backing to go and buy one. I actually went and was going to buy one for him and surprise him, but went to one store and the salesman actually told me to go somewhere else if I wanted a good bike! So, after visiting a few stores and being surprised by sticker shock and by how many variables there were in buying a "real" bike, I decided to let him choose it out himself.
Happy Birthday, Jim! And here's to at least another 31 more!

Reading Glasses

Eric had been saying "my eyes are blurry" for a while, so at the beginning of February I finally decided that since we had eye insurance I'd take him to the eye Dr. Between Jim and I, the kids are doomed to need glasses of one kind or another. Either that, or because Jim is blind from reading out, and I'm good until I read (and even then I'm ok if its not for a long time) - maybe because we're opposites the kids will be just fine?

Well, the trip to the eye Dr. was interesting - I could tell Eric wanted glasses because he kept saying "I can't see it" to things that I'm sure he could. The Dr. even said to him "I can tell you're a smart kid, so I'm going to talk to you like an adult. If you need glasses you're going to get them. But, you have to tell me the truth. You're probably getting glasses, so don't worry. If you need them you'll get them. But, tell me what you can see and what is blurry so we get you the right ones" After that we got better results!

His prescription is so low that you can't even buy him glasses at wal-mart or wherever off the shelf. A week or so (and some of Jim's hard-earned money) later, they were ready. I was glad they came in as fast as they did - Eric kept asking me if they had called yet! He seemed to think he was really cool with his glasses on, and knows to be careful with them! Here he is reading.

Eric really is a big reader, he loves to read! He will stay up for hours in bed, when I think he's asleep, and he'll be reading to finish a book! Last summer he was so excited about the summer reading program - he finished the entire program in just a couple weeks because he kept reading and reading to get it done! Good for Eric! May he forever enjoy reading (and never loose those glasses!)

Random Pictures

Here are a few random pictures.

1/26/09

The next few were 2/4/092/8/09

Thanks Riley and Jill for the ADORABLE outfit! 2/11/09

To proove that I exist...

2/14/09

Eric's Valentine's Day ice cream party at school.

Give a kid a camera...

Jan. 24, 2009

Give a kid a camera and this is what you get! I was planning to get a few pictures of the lady in a different location than before (her chair she sits in while we shower), while the boys were supposed to be getting in the tub...and we ended up with both cameras and even a battery change...here is a taste of what happened.

Michael being funny with batteries.

One of the boys took this picture of me.

Can you see how much fun Eric's having?

Kate, making a funny face.Michael, happy to be allowed to even touch the camera!Kate, looking up at her brothers lovingly. CUTE!Another boy-taken picture. They thought it was pretty cool!Eric, having his turn at battery fun.Happy Girl! (Kate)

Happy Boy! (Eric)This picture is for Jenny - her shirt says "Does this diaper make my butt look big?" Thanks for the funny clothes, Jen!

Remember that time...

Tired girl (Kate).Michael, finally getting in the tub for his bath.

Kate, 3 Months

Here are some pictures taken mid-January of Kate, 3 months old. She is so cute, sometimes I can hardly stand it. Don't you just want to kiss those cheeks?

This is a funny one! But, look at those pretty blue eyes!Jim thinks its mean, but I've been trying to get a picture of her sad face. It is so adorable, and sad! Her little lower lip does the perfect curl-up thing, it breaks your heart and makes you take pity on her! This picture is pretty close to "the look"...and, for the record, I did pick her up!

Awards Ceremony and Lunch With Dad

Eris was given 3 awards at the school awards ceremony in January. Good job, buddy!Sometimes Jim's work schedule makes it so that he doesn't see Eric for a few days: Jim is sleeping when Eric goes to school in the AM, and then Jim doesn't get home from work until after midnight. So, the solution - go eat lunch with Eric at school. Eric never knows when daddy is coming, but he is always really happy. January 14, 2009 we all went to school for a family lunch.See how happy he is! Eat fast, there's not much time!

Playing Games!

Grandpa's funeral brought us together, so we had a little fun. We O'Neils always seem to have a new, funny, game to play. Eric must be an O'Neil to the bone - he always wants to play a game, and this was his big chance! Here are a few pictures of the fun!

Eric, eating all the chocolate he can until his turn is up.

Michael, with help!MeganJadePapi and Eric, sucking M&M's into their bowls.Papi, Chris, and Eric watching the "bear hunt" and other action games.Michael and Maddie, going on a bear hunt.Michael's first self-portrait!

It was good to see everyone again. When is the next O'Neil reunion?

Farewell, Grandpa O.

Grandpa O. passed away on the morning of New Year's Eve day. He was a good man, who loved his family - all of us! We knew we still had him on borrowed time, and now he is with Grandma again. We went to Vernal for his funeral on January 10, 2009. It was bittersweet times, being able to see the O'Neil clan again after such a long time, but having to say goodbye to Grandpa.
This is the last time I got to see Grandpa, in April 2007. It was also the first time Michael got to meet him.

This is Eric meeting Grandpa, in August 2002.

We love you, and we miss you, Grandpa! As Grandma would often say, Cheerio!

The Fruitcake Toss

Jan 2, 2009 we went to the annual fruitcake toss in Manitou Springs. Chandra and I went with all the kids to see what it was all about. It was really cold! They have throwing competitions for every age. Eris was sad we got there too late to get him in on the action, with a saran-wrapped and then foil wrapped piece of cake. Thay weigh each piece, and measure every throw. Thay also have a competition of throwing by "machines". You can build your own catapult or sling shot and compete for the furthest distance! It was great times, despite the cold. Next year I'm going to take some hot chololate and get there earlier so the boys can have a turn throwing!

Here is a picture of the kids watching the competition: Arhan, Michael, (stroller wheel with Kate), Eric, and Caper.This is the mascot: a piece of fruitcake! The two guys out there are measuring how far a piece went.So, Eric became very interested in making an invention to throw fruitcake - and what is fruitcake? I decided that since he was so interested I should take the thime to teach him a little about it. The next few times I went to the store I looked for some, and finally found some! Here we are, trying it. Michael, Jim, and I decided that we didn't care for it much.Eris decided that he liked it! (I guess someone has to!) So, he got to eat the rest of the cake, a little piece at a time, in his school lunch.

Christmas 2008

This year was our first Christmas in our own house! It was really nice and relaxing, just being here with our own little family. We had Christmas Eve dinner with the Farnsworths, it was nice they were here to join us. Santa came and found us, even in our new house. In fact, he left us a trampoline - and he and his elf even set it up, too! We enjoyed our morning here, had breakfast at the Farnsworth's house, and went to Longmont for dinner. The kids and I stayed there a few days with the Vinton clan while Jim had to come home and work. What a nice Christmas we had!

Here are the traditional pictures (you and your presents) to help us remember this year, in years to come.

Eric:

Jim

Me
Kate

Michael