School pics 2013

David Franklin, age 5 in Mrs. Bogle's 3 day a week class. Nora, age 2 in Mrs. Gaddis' T/Th class. His last preschool picture and her first.

David Franklin played soccer at the Y this fall. Meet the Earthquakes!  He learned a lot and had a fun. 

Quick Tilly Visit

They only have eyes for Matilda, but Matilda wasn't quite so sure about these little invaders at first... She warmed up quickly and they had big fun after a short while.

Pajama party at the hotel!

The Morphew's have quite a busy schedule with Lauren's book tour. They are currently in Europe but the closest they were to Arkansas at a time we could see them was Jackson, MS.  We decided last minute to jump in the car and crash the tour so we could see them!  The Bass children are totally gah gah over their baby cousin, Tilly!  We all are; she is the cutest and sweetest baby!  Nora cried when we left.  If only California wasn't SO far away!!  We loved getting some time with them all, even if it was very short.

Fall Fun

More Fall Fun!  We went by to see Boo at West Shores and the kids loved the Halloween decorations there!  Next, we went to Lakeside Homecoming to cheer on Madelyn!  The kids were cheering for her with Lynny during the parade.  We had tons of Halloween parties and celebrations, and the kids loved the Country Club night with their buddies and a haunted hay ride to the tennis courts.  DF especially, Nora chickened out on that part.  Our Halloween night was pretty scary though. Nora had a fever so she and I passed out candy at home, but DF and F went to friends house for a cookout and trick or treating in a nice and safe neighborhood, but a lady who was severely under the influence, mentally ill or all of the above was driving recklessly through the neighborhood and ran over a lady and injured others.  She had her two kids in the backseat of the car.  Luckily, no one was hurt in our group or killed but it was a very scary event!  

DF and Kate Van Bebber at a friends pumpkin carving party.  These two have been buddies since they were babies.

Nora has the cutest little piggie tails ever, I almost died every time I looked at her she was so cute.

Nora in the "boys club" at the country club dinner.  

St. Luke's School Halloween Parade

This year was Nora's first time to participate in the St. Luke's School Halloween Parade.  It didn't hit me until afterwards that this is the last parade David Franklin will have at St. Luke's as a preschooler.  Whoa-  Her first, his last.  They both loved dressing up and are happy about their costumes and that they coordinate...I am surprised by that!  Every time Nora gets asked what she is going to be for Halloween, she says Tinker Bell and my brother is Peter Pan.  

We crashed story time afterwards in Mrs. Bogle's class.  Nora got to sit at the table by her brother.  He noticed she was there beside him and I overheard him say..." My Sister, I love you. And she said, "I love you too, Bubby."  I don't know if it's their ages, the new baby coming, or them sharing a room or what but they are bonding big time lately.  My heart melted when I heard them together.  I'm sure they will fight this afternoon, but there are tender moments in between and that's what makes them siblings :)

Big kid beds!

Getting bunk beds so they can sleep in the same room was good. Sleeping in the same bunk together is better. 

They don't do this every night and some nights they play musical beds but when I walk in and find this it sure is cute! 

The Magic/Magical Party

Maxwell Blade the Magician and his super star assistant,
The Magnificent DAVID FRANKLIN BASS!

Mammers had the great idea for David Franklin's party to be downtown at Maxwell Blade's Theatre.  Not many towns have a bonafide magician in them, which is a  reason I love Hot Springs and it's quirkiness and character that most small towns around us don't have.  Hello...Gangster museum!


David Franklin hasn't really seen magic before but he was up for it.  He had a magician costume that his good buddy, Hudson Choate got him and it was perfect because he wore it to the party and it totally set the tone for the day!  David Franklin loves costumes and so it really made him feel the part to wear his cape and top hat into the show.  You could see on his face the pride and excitement he felt when he walked in the the theatre.

As the kids came in they got popcorn and sprites from the concession stand and went into the Theatre where they had balloon figures made for them by the sound and light guy.  Both Max and the Theatre were super cool!  Then it was time for the show and all of the kids sat on the first rows and the parents sat behind them.  It was about 1/2 and hour long with sounds and lights and music and the kids were entranced the whole time!  There were lots of "whoa, wow, and awesomes" heard in the theatre!  The louder they were, the more Max liked it so it was perfect for them to hoot and holler.

At the end, Max called DF up on stage to help him perform a trick which really sent it over the top for DFB.  Thee crowd cheered and he ate it up.  Then they brought the lit cupcake out on stage and everybody sang happy birthday to him under the bright spotlight.  For him to be in the literal and figurative spotlight was a magical moment for him.  He got to finish the party by sitting on the stage and opening his presents.  We we got in the car, DF said that was "The most awesomest party ever."  As we pulled in our driveway he reached for his magic kit and said "Momma, I finally know what I want to be when I grow up, a magic guy."  I'd say it left and impression :)  (It's already changed to an army guy, so I'm not signing him up for magic classes just yet)

It was an unbelievable party, Maxwell Blade and his staff went above and beyond to make this a memory of a lifetime for David Franklin and our whole family.  Max gave him a magic kit and a T-shirt as a gift and made him feel very special.   It was a feeling that we could never have created ourselves for him and we are so grateful that we got to have this experience.  Max doesn't really "do" birthday parties anymore, and Mammers pulled some strings for David Franklin.  We are very lucky to have had this incredible and truly MAGICAL experience to celebrate our boy who brings magic to our lives everyday.

Mrs. Bogle, DFB's pre-k teacher came to his party.  She's the best pre-k teacher we could have asked for!

The boy is 5!!

How can it be?  He is so big now and so grown up, ok not exactly but he's getting there.  He woke up bright and early and wanted to know if he was 5 yet :)

We had birthday balloons and pancakes which has become a bit of a tradition at our house. I brought cupcakes and read his favorite book to his class. His good buddy, Avery got to come home from school with him to play and we ended the day with a family dinner at Purple Cow with a purple sundae. It was a great day filled with love for our gift of a child. He truly is one of a kind and an absolute treasure.