Ahoy It's A Boy!

Sam and Alexandria are expecting their first baby on June 4th.  This baby will be the 13th grandchild on the Titus side and the first grandbaby on Alex's side.  Babies are so exciting.  There is always so much joy and such anticipation...what will his name be? what will he look like? what will his personality be like?  Everyone in my family loves babies, so we were thrilled to find out they were expecting!

The adorable shower invitations Amanda made

We threw a baby shower for Alex in Carmel last Sunday at my mom's house.  My mom throws the best parties.  She always goes all out...researching ideas and paying careful attention to every little detail.  The shower had a nautical theme which was a lot fun with all the different options for decorations and food that we found on Pinterest :).  All the Titus girls as well as Alex's mom and sister pitched in to make the party a big success.

The beautiful mother-to-be with her sister, mother, and grandmother

The lifesaver game...if you say "baby" you lose
your necklace.  Person with the most necklaces wins.

One of the professional sugar cookies made by Mom, Olivia, and Maddie

Advice for the Mother-to-be

Stanley sisters

The two youngest Titus sisters

Opening gifts

Some of the many spectators

The beautiful quilt Grandma made for the baby

Some of the many adorable baby clothes they got as gifts

The mother-in-law and mother of the mother-to-be
...that is a lot of mothers :)

Almost all the Titus sisters and sister-in-laws...we missed Amanda :(

Can't wait to meet the newest little Titus!

A Dream Come True

I got to meet one of  my role models on Sunday.  It's funny that I called her my role model before I even met her, but I follow her blog (so closely) that I felt like we were old friends.

Her name is Lindsay and she is the niece of one of the ladies in my homeschool group, Ange.  (Many of you have heard me talk about her before or may have even seen her blog:  http://mychildiloveyou.blogspot.com/). Soon after Ange and I met, she told me I reminded her of her niece (who also happened to have a lot of girls...6 to be exact!) and that I should read her blog.  I have been hooked ever since.  The likelihood of ever getting to meet her seemed slim because she lives in Nebraska.  But it just so happens that she is the godmother of Ange's son who made his First Holy Communion on Sunday, so she and her husband and four of their children flew in for the celebration.  Ange also invited the whole homeschool group over...so I finally got my chance.  The whole week before, I was giddy with excitement...like I was preparing to meet a celebrity.

She was very sweet and very real.  I wish I could have sat and talked to her all day.  We had a lot in common and I enjoyed sharing stories of growing up in big families, raising girls, knowing the Zunigas, and the different temperaments of our children (of course!).  Her children were very sweet too.  The girls all matched in the same dresses that they have on in the picture above.  We talked about how we love to dress up our girls.  Paul and I also got to talk with her husband, John, too.  It was fun to hear some of the stories about his family...he is one of 8.  We really enjoyed their company.

One of the things I love most about her blog is that there is so much joy in her writing.  You can tell by her words that she LOVES being a mother and truly delights in her children.  She writes about the small things that many parents (including myself) tend to overlook.  She also writes about the big things...issues we all deal with and how she handles it.  It is refreshing to hear from someone who seems to be living her faith and her vocation to the fullest.  She inspires me to be a better mom.  I am grateful for her example.

Daddy's Birthday?

I put a question mark in the title because aren't adult birthdays really celebrated for the kids?  I mean usually we don't care much about the cake and ice cream, and the balloons and crepe paper, but the kids...they get SO excited...as if it was their birthday.  I try to include the girls in as much of the planning, decorating, baking, and gift giving as I can to give them an opportunity to think of someone else besides themselves and experience the joy of giving.  I often have to remind them that the day is not about them and what they want, but to think of the other person and what he/she would like.

The girls were thrilled when I told them we were getting Daddy an ice cream cake from Bruster's, our favorite ice cream spot.  Paul picked a chocolate oreo cake with chocolate cookie dough ice cream and carmel filling...and yes, it was just as delicious as it sounds!

Paul had to go out of town on a business trip on his actual birthday, so we gave him his cards and gift the night before, but we didn't end up having his birthday dinner until Friday.

One of Rose's birthday cards for Paul

The 31 year-old...he is so old ;)

We wanted to do something special for his birthday dinner, so we decided to make him a birthday banner.  Our store-bought birthday banner is quite girly and we thought he deserved a more masculine look on his special day, plus this was way more fun!   I wrote the letters, then the girls decorated each one....even Ella got in on the action.  It was so cute how they kept trying to hide it from him and say, "you can't look!" until everything was perfect!

We also got him a balloon bouquet...the girls picked out an Angry Birds balloon.  Quite fitting since that is only game he will ever sit down to play. 

The next day, he got to "use" his gift which was 18 holes of golf with two of his buddies.  And he played with his new set of golf clubs which he got with birthday money from his parents and mine!  

Paul is truly a gift.  He gives SO much of himself to our family.  He plans his days so he can be home with us as much as possible.  He is never too busy to read to the girls, lay with them at bedtime, take them on a bike ride, or watch a play that they made up for him.  Even after a long day at work, he will give me a night out instead of complaining that he needs a break.  I thank God every day for bringing us together and for such a selfless father for my children.  I don't know what we would do without him.  

Titus Invasion

Last weekend my parents and a few siblings stopped at our house for the night on their way to Nashville (one of the benefits to living in Louisville!).  I wish everyone could have come.  It was mom's birthday, so we had a little celebration together, which was nice since we often miss out on birthday parties in Carmel.

Mom's birthday cake

Pinterest idea...couldn't resist

Happy Birthday, Mom!

I love when family comes...it is always a big party with people everywhere!  Mom called the week before they came and asked how many people could sleep at our house.  I told her we would make it work for anyone who was able to come. We always seem to find room, especially since all my siblings can pretty much fall asleep anywhere.  The girls are more than happy to give up their beds for visitors...they actually enjoy sleeping on the floor...it's like a big campout.  Or sometimes they end up with a sleeping buddy, which is even better :)  I wish I had taken pictures of the sleeping arrangements...two of my siblings ended up in bed with my girls, one in the room with Ella, two in the school room, and parents in the basement.  And I think only one person had to sleep on the floor!

Mom and 4 of her 5 granddaughters...love this one!

I don't know if it just brings back memories of growing up in a big family or what, but I love the crowdedness (is that a word?!)!  There is nothing better than a house full of family!  I commend my parents for bringing up 11 kids who all get along and enjoy each other's company.  I think I speak for all of us when I say that we would rather spend time with each other over anyone else we know.  My siblings are my best friends.  I pray for that same friendship for my girls.

Thank you Mom and Dad for always making family so important.

Ava on Two Wheels

We had been teaching Ava to ride her two-wheeler for the past month or two whenever there was  nice enough weather.  On Holy Saturday, Paul decided to practice with her, but told her he was just going to run beside her this time.  She took off and all the sudden she rode like a little pro...turning, going down curbs, and starting by herself!

She needed a little fine tuning, but I couldn't believe the difference from the last time we practiced with her just a week or two ago!

Everything finally clicked and she is so excited to be able to ride with the big kids now!  We are so proud of her!