Jake is TWELVE

And truly our Gentle Giant.  January 25, 2019. It has been a month since we celebrated his Big Day, but live moves at a break neck speed, and this post is a hard one to write, so it kept getting pushed to the back burner.

Jake.  TWELVE.  Doesn't even seem possible.  He is the third of four children, and many days displays all of the typical characteristics of a middle child, but some days he is the exact opposite.  He is wise beyond his years, funny and witty, tall and proud, so intelligent and quick to learn new things, but also so gentle, kind, thoughtful, and sweet.  I remember saying when he was a toddler and young boy that "everyone needed a little bit of Jake Weaver in their lives."  While he is not as "little kid cute" as he was back in those days, the endearing qualities that led me to repeat that over the years are still there.  His eyes may not be as blue as they were when he was a baby, but they are still the windows to his soul, and there is so much going on in there you can't help but look into them and wonder just what he's thinking.  But don't wait too long, because then he will start talking, and it can be hard to get him to shut up!  He is passionate about many things, and knowledgeable as well, so the things he can tell you are utterly amazing!

Here a a few pictures to remind us how far we've come!

This is Evie and Jake 1 month after his birthday
See below for the pic of Evie when we brought her home.

Jake started celebrating his birthday as early in the month as he possible could!  I think every dinner we ate for 2 weeks was his "birthday dinner" so he got to pick.  I know we went to New China - his favorite that everyone else kinda hates, but there were a couple of other nights out that were deemed his as well!  He also has a basketball tournament the weekend of his birthday - hence not waiting to eat a "heavy" meal that weekend.  So, suckered us out of some extra meals along the way.

He celebrated with new shoes, a new bed, and a new picture to hang above his bed.  He celebrated with his friends at school, his team, and his family.  On his actual birthday night - Friday night, we loaded everyone up and had dinner at Fuzzy's Taco Shop.  It was loud and crazy and so much fun!

And, we ended the weekend on Sunday after we finished up the tournament with a loss by brightening EVERYONE'S day with a new addition!  Welcome to the family, Everest Pearl!

Everest Pearl "Evie" came home to us the Sunday after Jake's 12th birthday

Jake, coming in at 5'10" tall and 170 lbs, had QUITE a 12th birthday!  No real "party" to speak of, but with all the love and adventure he got to experience along the way, I think the memories made outweigh a party any day!  Welcome to your last tween year, Big Guy!  Embrace it - the real fun beings next year!

We love you BIG!

The One With My Eyes Wide Shut

February 22-24, 2019

This image does a very poor job of describing what this weekend looked like.  We were all over the place, never in the same place, and in lots of places.

Friday night, Lara was supposed to be at a baseball game in Guthrie, but after they already got to the fields, they called the games due to weather.  So, she ended up babysitting until midnight instead.  Emma went to Perkins Friday night and spent the evening with her Grandpa (as Nana and I were together at a sorority event).

Saturday - the girls were on Finn duty for the morning.  They took and/or met up with Finn at his Upward basketball game, and helped corral him for that event.  Then, Lara was supposed to go to baseball in Enid - but again cancelled due to weather (the wind was blowing 40 miles an hour!  IT WAS INSANE!).  Finn was at Nana's with Emma, until Lara and her friend E were out running around and they went to Perkins to pick him up and bring him back to Stillwater.

I have no idea what either of them did on Sunday.  Honestly, I only know about Saturday from text messages from them or my mom.  This weekend, they were around, they helped support our "BigFamilyProblems," and they saw each other.  But I didn't see either one of them!

Maybe next weekend...

The One Where We Thought About the Future

February 15-17, 2019

Well, another weekend has passed and we are one step closer to high school graduation.  How can that even be possible?!?  But, it is happening, and I cannot slow down time.

Valentine's Day has come and gone - without much fanfare around here.  Evie was everyone's valentine!  Emma came to Stillwater and spent Friday night hanging out with her sister  - they got the distinct pleasure of taking Jake to the middle school dance.  And the girls did things that remind me the end of their high school careers is coming up quickly.

Lara's dad went to the parent meeting to learn about concurrent enrollment, and then Lara went tot the student version the next day.  So we now have a plan for making that happen over the next few semesters!

On Saturday, Emma went with us to Finn's game, while Lara stayed home and did homework. Its fun when she gets to come to town and spend some time with us, just doing "family" things.

 After we got home from the game, and Lara found a stopping place in her homework, Emma decided we should all go to town and do a little prom dress shopping!  Her date's mom has been hounding her about the color of her dress so she can get his attire taken care of, so off we went!

Super weird to be in the back seat of Lara's car with Emma in the front...  We had a fun time!  It started out with just Emma trying on dresses, but Lara got in on the fun as well.  In the end, we put a gorgeous dress on hold for Emma, and she was going to OKC the next day to try on a couple more.  She ended up going back and getting the one in Stillwater later int he week!  I can't wait to see her all dressed up for Prom in a couple months!

So, concurrent classes, prom dresses, and the fact that Spring Break is a month away all reminded me that we are moving fast!  Another weekend...