"Like A Dream Come True"

These were the words that George used to describe his Halloween/Birthday/Baptism weekend. George was on cloud 9. The anticipation leading up to everything was almost too much for him to contain. We'll start with Halloween.......George started that day with an 8 am baseball game. Immediately after that he had some friends over for a costume party. Then it was off to big brother's football game. We hurried home, redid costumes, had cousins, aunt, uncle, grandmas and grandpas over for the festivities. George lives for Halloween....absolutely LOVES it....he has had this costume picked out since 2006......

The cousins have such a good time together. Poor George is the "in between" cousin......James and Hanna are close in age.....Curtis and Conrad are 5 weeks apart.....Charlie and Ruby 2 months apart.....luckily, Curtis and Conrad let George hang out, and it was so much fun for him!

Family Portrait

After a night of running around the neighborhood and eating mass amounts of candy, he was ready to get baptized! As you know, we usually go to the 1/2 of Halloween sale on his birthday, but since it fell on a Sunday George got to decide whether to hit the stores or get baptized. He woke up on his birthday, had waffles and ice cream, and opened presents. George has worn his CTR ring ever since he got it in primary....you know the kind that bends until you get it the right size. George NEVER took that ring off....he wore it to school, baseball, bathtime, etc. It never came off. So, he was so upset a week before his birthday when that little ring just cracked right in half. He was thrilled when one of his presents was a 'real' CTR ring. He also opened his new set of scriptures, a journal, and I've never seen anyone so excited about a scripture bag. But, that's Georgie for you. He loves it all! His baptism was after church, and he was thrilled. It was so nice to see him so excited to become a member of the church. I think I might actually be doing something right! His baptism was a success and George was glowing. George was so happy to have family and friends there. Now, I just mentioned that CTR ring......because of that ring, George's baseball coach, an inactive member, recognized George was LDS. When I mentioned George was getting baptized, his coach told him to let him know when it was and he'd be there. Well, his coach kept his word and attended George's baptism. We have come to find out that he has the desire to come back to church. My little Georgie is a good little missionary!

We had our family over for a birthday/baptism celebration. George loves having people over, and I am pretty sure the smile never came off of his face! He was showered with presents, attention, love, and the Spirit. It was a wonderful day for our whole family. Now, I am a little embarassed about this next picture, because I never thought I was this kind of Mom....turns out I am! Yes, that's me helping him blow out his candles!

I am so proud that George had the desire to be baptized and embraced it. He is a sweet, caring, confident kid. When the Bishop called his name the next week in sacrament to announce him as the newest member of the ward, George raised his hand and stood right up. He makes me smile...he also makes me scream, but he definitely makes me smile and laugh a lot! Thank goodness for my George!

First Time

For some of you, this may not seem like such a big deal, but in this household we are celebrating! I don't mean to mock this in anyway, or make my children seem unintelligent. They are actually pretty smart. I rarely ever have to help out with homework, and they do well on their own. I wish I could say their success is due to me, but I peaked in 4th grade and it went downhill from there. Anyways, back to the point of this post......James got straight A's on his report card. He has always gotten good grades. Usually a 3.5. Last year, his cousin, Hanna, got straight A's in 7th grade (her parents rewarded her with an IMAC) and I am pretty sure that is what lit the fire under James to get him going. He set the goal. Being the smarty pants that he is he asked his father (knowing his mother would say a hug or a kiss) what he would get if he got straight A's. Well, his father said a cell phone.....I am pretty sure Scott didn't have much faith in James at this point. For those of you that think it's crazy that my almost 13 year old doesn't have a cell phone probably think I am extremely abusive due to the fact that my children are deprived of a lot of our modern technical devices! Throughout the semester James would report his test grades to me, and they were all really good. Now, I assumed he was just reporting the good and not reporting the bad. There was one time he tanked on his math test, and he was so disappointed. He did everything the teacher asked of him in order to bring that test grade up. Needless to say, James is a hardworker.....I've always admired that about him. So, report cards were mailed November 10th. Due to the holiday the following day, he had to wait until the mail came on the 12th. There he is, waiting patiently for the delivery......

Once it was in his hands, he insisted on opening it

The next picture is my favorite one, because our "straight A" student was getting frusterated trying to open it. We had to talk him through it.....bend the edges, tear at the fold! It cracked me up and so typical

Here is Dad double checking, just to make sure

And there he is.....the proud new owner of a cell phone! He actually returns my texts......I should appreciate it while it lasts!