Ben is 8!

I can hardly believe that Ben is 8!  Where has the time gone?  Somehow overnight he turned from 

this

to this!  

Ben enjoyed his special day.  He opened up his cards before he went to school.  He was so excited about his $20 bill sent from Uncle Rob and Aunt Di (even more excited than the $50 check from Nana and Boo).  After school he opened up the rest of his presents before we headed off to Red Robin for dinner.  Perhaps his favorite gift of all was his handmade Harry Potter doll from Grandma Gillett.  It was a special request of his!  It was quite the task for her to pull off.....she would have been proud when Jacob yelled, "Harry Potter" the minute he saw it.  I made sure to take pictures and am determined to remember to share the story of his "doll request" for his 8th birthday at his wedding someday!      

After Red Robin we headed home for Ben's very first ice cream cake.  It was good!

After all the festivities were over, Ben told me I could now have the baby!  I'm still waiting.....  

It is truly a joy to have Ben in our home.  He is such a good brother and is adored by his little brother especially.  Here is one of my favorite pictures of the two of them...Ben and his little shadow.  Ben's math teacher summed up Ben's personality perfectly after only one week of school when she said, "Oh, Ben.  So sweet, kind, polite and oh so particular!"

Fall Soccer

Kate had a great time playing soccer this year.  She ran around the field (amidst the masses) with a permanent grin on her face.  Somehow she lucked out and got to be on the pink team.....every little girls dream!  

Ben was really fun to watch this year.  Things clicked and he was great at actually playing his position.  He is an aggressive player and never gives up.  As usual, David told me I yelled too much....I just can't help it!  His team did quite well, they made it all the way to the semi-final game in the tournament, but lost by one goal.  They were satisfied just to make it to the turf field under the lights.  

2012: The year of Harry Potter, the cheerleader and the frog.

Halloween went great this year.  Ben wanted to be Harry Potter (no surprise here).  He attempted to convince Kate to be Hermoine, but she told him she wasn't smart enough.  I was pleased when she decided on the cheerleading costume we already had.  And Jacob fit perfectly into our traditional frog costume....each of the kids have worn it now and I'll never get sick of it.  We started our celebrations with the ward Halloween chili dinner and trunk or treat.  I was soooooo glad when it was over....I was in charge!  Here are a couple pictures from the night.  

On Halloween, our neighborhood had a potluck dinner prior to trick or treating.  We have quite a group of kids in the neighborhood.  Everyone had a great time.  David definitely deserved an award for assisting Jacob the entire night while I watched from the street. 

 

Overdo Updates!

Judging by my complete lack of blogging skills over the past several months, you can guess how I feel when I am pregnant....not good!  Tonight, I am feeling the need to get updated on a few important happenings before this new baby comes!

Kate's 5th Birthday! 

Kate turned 5 on July 17th.  We celebrated her special day with a trip to Red Robin...her favorite place.  We were lucky to find Red there and even luckier to get a picture taken with him.

Among many special gifts, Kate received a handmade doll that looks just like her from her Grandma Gillett.  Kate especially loves the "I love you" stitched onto her doll's heart.

Kate requested a pool party and despite the rain on the original planned date, we managed to finally pull it off.  Kate shares a birthday month with her friend Addi Dalley so we joined forces and celebrated together.  Everyone had a good time!

Utah Bound!

During the first two weeks of August, we enjoyed time with family and friends in Utah.  We had a great reunion with our friends, the Eberts.  On our first Sunday there, as we walked into my sister Alison's church building Jacob started chanting, "Whoa, Whoa, Whoa" and squirmed out of my arms.  Since this was a new word for him, I was pretty puzzled.  Things quickly became clear as I watched him run down the hall towards Kristen (whose ward shares a chapel with Alison's ward).  He was so excited to see his 2nd mother!  The kids had a great time playing together again!

Michael, Courtney, David, Jason, Ben, Jacob, Kate, John

While we were in Utah, my sisters' Ruth and Alison ran the Provo Half Marathon with David and his brother Jae.  It was very hard for me to cheer from the sidelines this time around.  They all did a great job!  Thanks to Grandma Gillett for watching all 9 of our children (nothing new for her) while we spent the night in Provo!

Ruth, Alison, David, Jae

The kids loved the time we spent at the Gillett family reunion.  Cousins, Cousins and more Cousins! 

Cade, Zane, Madalyn, Ben, Harrison, Jayden, Kate

    

Kate, J.D., Jayden, Harrison, Ben, Samantha, Madalyn, Jacob

Despite all the fun at the reunion, the highlight would have to be the "Redneck water slide."  

David's 33rd Birthday!  

After returning home, we celebrated David's birthday with nothing less than a German chocolate cake! 

   

1st Day of School!  

The long awaited 1st day of school finally arrived!  Kate was so thrilled to go to school with Ben and ride the bus!  There was another Kindergartner at the bus stop in tears on the first day.  Kate looked at her like she was crazy! Kate boarded that bus with no hesitations and never looked back. 

Meet Your Teacher Day

Kate and Ms. Rahmaan 

Ben and Ms. Parks 

First Day

2nd Grade

Kindergarten

Kate's First Bus Ride

 Jacob loves to be big like Ben and Kate.  He is their perfect copy cat!

NFL Ravens' Game day!

On Thursday, September 27th, David took Ben to their first NFL football game!  David requested the tickets for his birthday gift last month.  Their seats were in the 8th row & the Ravens won.  They had a great time, despite the downpour of rain (they were both grateful I sent them with ponchos)!  Although it was a very late night for Ben, it was a night well spent with memories made.

     

 

 

              

Thumbs up from Baby #4!

We are so excited to announce that baby #4 will be joining the Behrmann home!  The expected due date is December 9th so we will be prepared by early November!  Ben and Kate are soooo excited.  They have been praying for another baby and somehow their prayers always seem to be answered exactly how they want them to be.  Kate really wants a sister, so we are trying to prepare her for another brother (we will find out in July).  Jacob has no clue his world is about to be turned upside down!  Here is our second ultrasound picture.  If you look closely you can see the baby is sticking his (or her) thumb up....the kids love it!       

Kate's Preschool Graduation: 5.25.12

My little girl is done with preschool!  Where did the time go?  Kate loved every minutes of preschool.  The week before her graduation she confessed to me while we were driving in the car, "I'm not sure if I'm ready to graduate!"  I told her I wasn't sure if I was ready to let her!  Here are a few of pictures from the big day!  During her introduction, her teachers said that "she won the smiliest student award hands down, she was a fantastic storyteller and when she grows up she wants to be a mom."   

Ms. Tracy, Kate, Ms. Leah

 
What will I do without Kate to keep me entertained all day long?  She is so excited for Kindergarten!  She can't wait to ride the bus and go to the big school with Ben.  She's ready!

Kids May 11, 2012

We took the kids for pictures to the Hampton Mansion near our home in Towson, MD.  All photos are courtesy of Stacy Ward Photography.  I loved so many of them and want to include them in our printed blog book, so here are my favorites!

Ben (7 1/2)

 Kate (almost 5)

Jacob (2)

Group Shots