Holiday Celebrations

Holidays were always very special times at our house when I was growing up.  My parents went to great lengths to make sure each holiday was filled with memories.  I loved all the traditions we had and eagerly anticipated each celebration.

I want my children to grow up with that same love for the holidays.

Although Valentine's Day is mostly a Hallmark Holiday, it is a fun holiday to celebrate with the kids.  One special thing that we have done for the girls the past couple years is have some treats on the table for them to wake up to in the morning.  It starts the day off on a good note!

This often includes candy (of course), a new book or toy of some sort, and a homemade card with one of their favorite characters.

Their wonderful father also surprised each of his little princesses with their own rose (each with its own vase of course so they don't get mixed up)....they felt so grown up!

I got some beautiful roses of my own as well :)

I tried to make as much of the food that day Valentine-themed as possible.  We started off with a healthy dose of pink heart pancakes with red M&Ms for breakfast, heart-shaped pb & j sandwiches for lunch, and peppermint ice cream hearts between Oreo crumbs after dinner...yum! :)  And we definitely hit up the Papa Murphy's heart pizza earlier in the week!

Besides our family celebrations, we also had a Valentine's party with our homeschool group where they learned about St. Valentine, passed out Valentines to their friends, and decorated cookies.  Overall, I think the girls had a great holiday and hopefully felt very loved! :)

Paul and I even snuck in a little celebration in the evening with a glass of wine by the fire while watching Top Gun...I know...we are hopeless romantics ;)

Hugs!

Oh, Diet Coke

I know what I am about to say may shock many of you, but my Diet Coke drinking days are over.  I have not had a Diet Coke in 4 weeks!  That's right, I gave it up cold turkey (hopefully for good)...and all it took was one comment from a mom in my homeschool group about the affects of aspartame on your body.

As many of you know, Diet Coke had become my go-to on stressful days, when really I should have been relying on the Lord.  I used to limit myself to 2 a day, but lately had been drinking more like 4 a day!  I still miss it some days, but am trying not to cave into temptation.  I will have to find a cold substitute for hot summer days, but now I pretty much drink water and hot tea...lots of tea!

So, if you thought it was impossible for Danielle to give up Diet Coke...be amazed! :)  Where there is a will there is a way.

Hugs!

Homeschooling's best week yet!

Last week was probably the girls' favorite week of homeschooling so far.  Besides the basic math, phonics, and reading lessons, we talked about restaurants and different places to eat. On Tuesday we talked about bakeries, so after we finished our school work, I took the girls to Homemade Ice Cream and Pie Kitchen to let them see a bakery first hand.

I let each of them pick out a treat.  

Madeline picked a huge strawberry (pink) cupcake.

Rose picked a cookie "monster".

Ava picked an Oreo cupcake. 

(my favorite...I had to sample each one, of course :)

Needless to say, I got showered with thankful comments like, "you are the best mom ever!"  Maybe I need to take them there more often :)

When we got home, we furthered our knowledge on bakeries by doing some baking ourselves.  My little helpers and I attempted to make cake balls.  They didn't quite look bakery-ready, but they sure tasted good!

Rose taste-testing :)

On Wednesday we talked about pizzarias.  I tried to find a place where the girls could actually watch a pizza  being made, but they seem to be few and far between here in Louisville.  I decided to take them to Papa Murphys...I thought  they could at least watch them put the toppings on.  When we got there, it was just us and the owner.  I told him what we were studying and he decides to take the girls in the back to let them help make a pizza! 

The owner couldn't have been nicer to us and he was wonderful with the girls!  He has 2 young kids of his own, so luckily he was very patient with them and knew what they could and couldn't do. 

Each girl was given a dough ball big enough to make a large pizza.

They first flattened it by hand as best as the could.

Then they put it in a machine to make it into flat sheets.

Once on the pizza plate, they stretched it to fit just right.

Then they each got a block of mozzarella cheese and got to shred it using the cool cheese-shredding machine.  

This was their favorite part of pizza making!

Then it was time for the toppings!  We added LOTS of cheese!

Then sausage and pepperoni for the girls (of course) and some extra toppings on one half for mom and dad.

It turned out to be an incredible experience for the girls...so much better than I ever could have expected!

Then to finish the week off, we went to dinner as a family at Five Guys on Friday night!  

Lots of fun learning and good eating last week!

Hugs! 

Birthday Diva

Turning 5 is a very big deal...at least for a certain now 5 year-old at our house.  Rose has been talking about turning 5 for quite some time, so when her birthday finally came around on July 23, only a week after Ella was born, we had to do something special to celebrate.  She said she wanted a barbie/princess birthday and told me everything I needed to do to get ready...she was very specific.  We told her that she could pick one friend to come over and gave her a choice of activities that they could do together.  Of course she chose to go to a nail salon to get their nails painted...just like 'big girls' do.

We invited her best friend, Ally (from our old neighborhood), over and my mom (who was here helping me out) and I took the two girls and Ava to get their nails done.  They loved picking out their nail color and sitting together with their hands under the nail drier.  They even got designs on their nails...with sparkles!  While they were waiting for my mom and I to get our nails done, they watched a movie in a cute kids' pedicure chair  and pretended to give each other pedicures.  I love that it doesn't take much to please a five year old!

 The princess makeover continued at home with make-up, dress-up clothes, jewelry, and tiaras. 

And of course, no birthday party is complete without a pinata!  The girls each took a few wacks at a fairy pinata without much success, so Paul took the liberty of cracking it open.  With one swing, he successfully decapitated the little fairy and candy flew out everywhere.  

After presents, we finished off the party with the birthday girl's choice of food; pizza, juice boxes, apples, and a mermaid barbie cake.

The birthday diva must have had a great day because she said she wished she was turning 6 tomorrow so she could have another birthday!

Hugs!

Introducing...Ella Clare

Friday evening, July 15th, Ken and Joy drove down to Louisville after work to watch the "big" girls while we went to have baby #4.  We got to Norton Suburban hospital (where Ava & Madeline were born) around 11 that night and got checked into a room around 11:30 or so.  Luckily Paul and I were able to get some sleep that night before the labor got more intense.  In the morning, things were still progressing slowly, so the doctor came in  around 7:15am and broke my water to help speed things up.  By 11:30 am, the contractions were much more intense, so I decided it was time to get the epidural.  I am so thankful for anesthesiologists!!!  By 1:30 pm, on the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Ella Clare joined the world as the newest Klinker.  What a wonderful day to be born!  Ella weighed a perfect 7 lbs. 13 oz. and was 19.5 inches long.  What a beautiful little miracle God has blessed us with!

Dr. Wilson and Ella praising the Lord after being born:)

Proud father of 4

Momma snuggling with baby

That evening, after being transferred to our recovery room, Joy and Ken brought big sisters by to meet little Ella.  Right away Madeline said, "I hold it."  She didn't really know what to think.  I think it will be interesting to see how she handles sharing "her Mommy" and "her Daddy" with another little person.  Ava loves babies, so she was anxious to hold Ella and didn't want any help.  She already knows exactly how to hold her and handle her because she practices daily with her own baby dolls.  Rose also held little Ella, but told us we should have named her Grace.  I think she will enjoy having another person younger than her to help with and to tell what to do:)

Madeline is a big sister!

Ava, the little pro:)

Rose holding little Ella

Ella Clare is adjusting beautifully to this new world!  We think she favors Ava as a newborn, but it will be fun to see how she changes week to week.  We can't wait to take her home!

We'll keep you updated with lots of pictures!  Can't wait for all of you to meet her!

Hugs!

VBS - Son Surf Beach Bash

Last year Rose went to our church's VBS and it left quite an impression on her because she talked about it all year long.  So this year I signed up Rose and Ava and I helped with crafts all week.  They had childcare every day for the kids of the parent helpers, so Madeline enjoyed playing everyday with her junior high helper, Juliana.  I made sure Ava was in the same class as her friend, Whitney, to help with her first "school" experience without mom.  She did awesome!!!  She didn't cry all week, but followed directions and enjoyed every minute of it.  She never did learn her teacher's name, but just called her "teacher" all week, which I thought was cute:)  Rose didn't really know any of the kids in her class at first, so towards the end of the first day after she saw me in crafts, she had a little bit of a meltdown, but did great every day after that and of course had many new friends by the end of the week.  And whenever Rose, Ava, or Madeline saw each other in the halls, they would stop and give each other a big hug...it was really very sweet.

All the kids getting ready to sing their VBS songs at the end of the week.

Rose's painted sandy feet along with the Footprints poem.

Each family was given a cd to take home of all the themed songs they learned that week.  We listened to them every day in the car and the girls learned them quite well, even little Madeline.  Here are some videos of their recent performances for Paul and me.

"Jump, Shout, Give a High Five"

"Son Surf Beach Bash"

"Meet Up with Jesus"

They crack us up!!!

Hugs!

4th of July Festivites

When spending time with family, life is always at its best.  Last weekend we went to Carmel and got to meet our newest niece, Julia Grace, and take part in her beautiful baptism.  It was during the 12:30 mass at OLMC, which I had never seen before.  It was a beautiful ceremony and Julia was perfect throughout it all.  Then we got to celebrate with family from the Klinker and McKinney side afterwards.  Ben and Brooke are great parents...Julia is a lucky and precious little girl!

The newest member of the Church!

On Saturday, many of my siblings and I spent the afternoon  making festive 4th of July treats, like rice krispie stars, bald eagle cake balls, Uncle Sam cake balls, and other red, white, and blue snacks.  Rose and Ava even jumped in to help decorate.  Then despite the blazing hot sun, we siblings played some friendly games of volleyball with intermitten breaks in the pool.  We finished off the evening with an All-American cookout and lots of laughs.  It was great to have everyone together...except Nicholas, of course:(

Two out of the four days that we were in Carmel, Rose and Ava lived in my parents' pool.  We had to make them get out each day after spending 3 hours or more in the pool at a time.  They even got the courage to jump off the diving board (without life-jackets) and swim to the ladder by themselves.  They really are little fish this summer!  Even Madeline jumped off the diving board (with her life-jacket) because she had to do what big sisters were doing!:)  She is quite the little daredevil.

Paul and I even got to steal a night away, just the two of us, before the newest Klinker arrives!  We enjoyed dinner out, an Indian's game, then loads of fireworks...which was my favorite part!  After sleeping in until 9am the next morning, we ran a couple errands, then headed to Jersey's Cafe in Carmel, which was featured on the show Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.  Their menu was crazy long, offering loads of different hoagies and cheesesteak options along with loaded baked potatoes and PA Dutch Birch Beer (like root beer).  Paul got a hoagie that was packed with fries, steak, coleslaw, fried egg, Red Hot sauce, and cheese.  How often do you get to eat something that wild?!  Both our sandwiches were delicious, which made the hour wait for our food well worth it.

While we were gone, Rose and Ava got to go to Carmel Fest with some of their aunts and uncles.  They got their faces painted (with unicorns, of course), balloon animals/flowers, and got to see some fireworks.  They are so lucky to have family that wants to spend so much time with them!  Madeline stayed home and put Grandpa to sleep:)

What a fun-filled 4 days!  So thankful to be surrounded by amazing people on the Titus and Klinker side!!!

Hopefully next time I post there will be a new Klinker in the family;)  Keep us in your prayers.

Hugs!