Our Easter

We had a very nice Easter this year (like always!)

It started off with 8:00 church, so all I had time for is taking some pictures before we had to rush to church. Actually, I'm pretty impressed I had time to get myself and three kids ready, take pictures, and make it to church on time!

And I liked going to church first before we did all of the commercial Easter things. I think it helped my boys to understand the real reason why we celebrate Easter. As Hudson says: "Jesus died us." too cute!

The Easter bunny came during nap time and left lots of eggs.

Hudson discovered a chest with dress ups in it and that was the end of the egg hunt for him.

Porter found most of the eggs, but Hudson didn't care because...

"Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!" "I Fly!"

We headed to Grandma and Grandpa Hoopes' house for yes, another egg hunt, fishing for prizes (Grandma really spoiled them! It was more like Christmas!), and a yummy dinner.

The night ended just the way it should have, with Grandma and grandkids:)

I LOVE MY WIFE!!!

Brandon here:  I always see my wife doing blog stuff.  I love to get on and read all the creative/fun stuff she does.  I love how we have a fun little journal with this.  Well...I have hijacked her blog right now. She doesn't know about this but...I am having fun!  She probably thinks I am on Facebook or some wrestling website.  As you all can see...I AM NOT!!!  HEHEHEHE!!!!  I love doing sneaky things.  This could end up bad for me...but it is totally worth it!  Muahahahaha!!!

All you followers...I want you to know... I LOVE MY WIFE!!!  She is the most amazing mother, wife, friend, daughter, cousin, daughter in law, sister, mommy, sister in law, granddaughter, cook, shopper, coupon-er, wife, shoulder massage receiver, wife, Odyssey van driver, momma, preschool teacher, wife, cleaner, party-er, mom, cheerleader, hard worker, sleeper, snuggle-er, and did I mention... wife and mother.

Hope all goes well when she sees that I sabotaged her project/blog/journal.  Well...I am a part of her life so I guess she gets to deal with that.  If you all don't know yet...I want to be clear...

I LOVE MY WIFE!!!   

I AM A LUCKY MAN!!!

The Life of a 3 Month Old

The life of this 3 month old consists of:

Eating, lots of sleeping,

snuggling, a little crying,

smiling, cooing,

watching my older brothers, tummy time,

being held, discovering,

and loving Mommy, Daddy, Porter, & Hudson.

We love you, too, Brody! It's hard to believe you are 3 months old already!

Our Newest Addition!

We finally have a car that fits our growing family better! I never thought I'd be so excited to drive a minivan, but I tell you, with 3 little kids, it is going to be sooooo nice!

A Whole Lotta Stuff!

We've had a lot of things going on the past couple months. Here's a recap of what's been going on at the Hoopes':

A whole lotta going to the zoo

A whole lotta playing in the snow

A whole lotta silliness

A whole lotta preschool fun

A whole lotta burrito-baby sleeping

A whole lotta brotherly love

A whole lotta playgroup fun

And a whole lotta NYC & Philly sightseeing

There. I'm caught up! Now I can't wait for a whole lotta other stuff that we have planned to happen in the next few months!

2 Months

My little Brody Baby is 2 months old today! He goes to the Dr. tomorrow and I am interested to see how much he has grown. I LOVE how he will just sit and "talk" to me with his sweet little cooing. It just melts my heart! I just realized I can't post a picture because Brandon has our camera. Where, do you ask, is Brandon? He is on his yearly "man trip" with my dad at the National Wrestling Tournament in Philly, PA. He is going to be gone a whole week because they are spending a couple days in NYC. I am here holding down the fort by myself. Go ahead, you can feel sorry for me. Brandon's usually gone a lot between work and church, but what's going to be the hardest for me is not being able to hand Brody off in the evening when he gets home, or shewing Porter & Hudson into the playroom to wrestle with Daddy so I can have a break. I will probably get a few less showers this week, and I can guarantee the boys will get a few less baths, but we will survive!

Here is a video clip of Brody talking. (Luckily Brandon didn't take the video camera) I'll post pictures later.

~XOXO~

I can't stop giving these little guys hugs & kisses! I'm so lucky to have FOUR guys in my life that I love and that love me back!

We decorated Valentine cookies for preschool. Look at all that candy!

One Month

I can't believe it's already been a month since Brody came to our home. It's gone by quick, but at the same time, it seems like I've known Brody for so much longer than one month. He is such a sweet little boy!

He has even started smiling which just melts my heart and makes all of the hard work of taking care of a new born worth it.

His first bath. His umbilical cord was attached until he was 3 weeks old, so he didn't get his first bath until then. He loved it, of course!

We blessed our little Brody last Sunday. It was such a special day. My parents flew in for it, Brandon's parents came, and Aunt Kim and cousin Avery were able to come.

We weren't able to get a family picture because Brandon left at 5:45 am for meetings, and didn't get home until the boys were napping. The joys of having a husband/dad in the Bishopric:)

Better Late than Never, Right?

This is late, but Happy Birthday, Porter! Our big boy turned 4 years old on January 24th.  And boy, was he spoiled this year! His Grandma Perry was visiting to help with Brody, so we went to Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate. It was a surprise. We told him we were going to his Dr. appt. and he was going to get lots of shots. (I know, we were mean, but it sure made for a fun surprise!) When we drove up, he said, "Chuck E. Cheese! Mom, can we go to Chuck E. Cheese before my Dr. appt.?" Bless his little heart! He still thought he had to go to the doctor! When he found out, he had a grin on his face this big for every picture!

Hudson was not a fan of this ride. He plastered himself to the windshield! Like that could help him!

Porter sure had fun with his Grandma Perry that lives so far away!

And the entire time we were playing, this little guy was sleeping. (And don't you love the car seat blanket my mom made? It is sooooo nice! Thanks, Mom!)

Like I said, Porter was spoiled this year!

You can't go to Chuck E. Cheese without getting a picture with the mouse himself!

Porter has a friend that has a birthday the day after his. We did a combined party last year and that worked out well. We did it at our house, so this year, we had the party at Peyton's house. Tish did the whole thing (Thanks, Tish!) which worked out really good since I was trying to just survive with 2 little kids and a sweet bundle of joy!

Porter showing me his "Birthday Boy" badge. Peyton's in the background. I don't know why I didn't get a pic. with both of them.

Porter & Peyton are all boy and they wanted a ball party. So they got a ball party! Basketball, Football, Soccer, & Baseball were all played. I was impressed with some of the skills!

Hudson being his weird self!

Hudson's way of eating a cupcake.

Happy Birthday, Porter! We sure love you!