The kids had fun decorating Easter eggs again this year. It was Nicola's first time ever decorating eggs. I think they had fun because we got the monster kit and they were able to give them monster faces and hair after they were dyed.
Oh yes! Surprise, Surprise, Surprise! Baby #4 is due at the end of October. The 27th to be exact. My little bean is 12 weeks in this pic, 2'' long, and about the size of a small lime(so my phone ap tells me). We don't know the sex yet. I don't want to know because I feel like I wouldn't spend as much money on stuff for the baby if I didn't know what I was having. My husband, kids, and Mother-in-law act as if not finding out would be equal to the world ending so we will find out at the next ultrasound appt if baby is cooperative. (I think it would be funny if it kept its legs crossed) Being old and pregnant is way different that being young and pregnant like I was before. This old body just isn't taking things as well. I would stay in my bed and sleep all day if I could(with cereal breaks of course). My youngest is going to be 9 years old when the new one comes along and my other two will be 13 and 12. This will definitely be a change for us all. Brooklyn will be graduating when the new one starts kindergarten. Don't get me wrong, I am excited but I can't help but think about how much life will change for us. This baby is coming for a reason it will just take time to find out what that is. All babies are a gift from God. Once I start feeling better I am sure that things will look up.
It has been a whirlwind of a week. We were asked on Tuesday if we would be interested in hosting an exchange student, filled out the paperwork that night, and were pre-approved on Wednesday. We have found out that we will be adding to the family next month when we have a foreign exchange student come stay with us for a year. Nicola is from Australia and she will be coming to America to experience our culture. I wonder what she will think about our little rural town. It will be a great opportunity for her and for us. The girls are very excited to have her. Zach isn't so happy. He wanted it to be a boy since he already has 2 sisters but I'm sure he will get over it. Brandon and I will have to quickly learn how to handle a teenager. Are we ready for this? I don't know. We will take it one day at a time.
Just finished reading the book Heaven is For Real. It is written by Todd Burpo about his sons brush with death and his time in Heaven. It is a true story that takes place here in Nebraska. The story is amazing and the way a child can be so matter-of-fact makes you think about Heaven all over again. I don't seem to ever think about heaven is just is. I always think of it as beyond comprehension so why even try. This little boy just tells it like he saw it. Thank you Colton for the little glimpse. 
He is off. Brandon is heading down to Texas for the Big 12 Championship game. A bunch of men (no women at all) in a couple of RV's, tailgating, stadium food, and football is going to equal.....trouble, alot of gas, no sleep, and a bunch of good fun memories. That is my husband's Christmas present so he had better enjoy it.
My kids can't wait for me to get the presents under the tree. They can't wait to figure out the code. Each year, to keep the kids from messing with the gifts too much, in stead of putting there names on the gifts I use a code so that they aren't sure who gets which present. They have so much fun with this. As the kids get older we have to get more tricky. In years past we have used these codes....
Oh Well!! I have gotten a lot of Christmas shopping done. The lights are up outside and I am ready for some holiday fun. Hopefully the tree will go up tomorrow. Pics to come (if it looks good).
Love. I got so much wonderful ideas from those books. I highly recommend them. My Lobotomy is a different sort of book but I got it from a co-worker and decided to give it a try. It is very interesting book about a man who got a lobotomy when he was 12. Not quite in the same category as the other two but sometimes you need something different.
Do you ever look around at your family and get totally disgusted because someone is on the computer, playing the Wii, playing on the DS, Playing on their IPod, and the TV is on? No one is talking to each other or even acknowledging any ones presence. I am one of those people. I am not blaming anyone because I am usually the one on the computer but I had enough. After talking with Brandon we decided that Sunday would be NO ELECTRONICS DAY at the Brinker house. No TV, No Computer, No DS, No Wii, No Playstation, No IPod, and so on. You would have thought that it was the end of the world for the kids(especially Zach). We have now had 2 Sundays electronic free and it has been kind of fun. We have played games, read books, went on adventures at the lake, and just spend some good old quality time together. I think that it is going to be a good thing for our family. It is too easy to get sucked into the STUFF we have around and forget about the really important things around us. I am afraid that I am going to wake up one day and wonder way all the time went. I want my kids to have fun memories and great life stories. You can't make a great life story staring at the TV. So we are working on a better life story for our family.
Merry Christmas to all! We hope that you have a wonderful holiday with your families and take the time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. NO, it's not the presents.
