What's up with the V's?: Happy New Year!!!

I know it has been a very long time since my last post and I apologize for it! I have just been extremely busy with tons of events and tasks to complete! I decided to keep this short and sweet and just include a lot of pictures with short comments for you to enjoy! We are all doing well here and had a wonderful holiday season with Omi and Opa! We are in our 39th week and waiting for our new little angel to arrive late next week (if not sooner!) I did not think I would go this long, but I think the baby is pretty comfortable and plans on waiting until the 17th to make an entrance! Ben is the love of our lives and is such a joy to be around! He is such a big guy now and is quite a character! I am sorry I didn't send a Holiday Card, but I will send out one when the baby arrives! We wish everyone a Happy New Year and hope your year is filled with love and joy!
Take Care!
April, Jeff and Ben

We have a 3 year old! It is hard to believe that our little turkey is so big. He is so funny and is ready to be a big brother. I can't wait to see him with the baby! I love this picture!!!

Christmas was awesome this year! Ben was so excited and really got the whole Santa and presents thing. We loved watching him wake up and walk out to find the presents under the tree. His bed head really added to our fun! Having kids makes Christmas so much better!

We went to Jungle Village during the holidays for some fun! The Jump rope game has now become a family tradition. We go up there whenever my parents are in town and see who is the best jumper!! Autumn is the current champ and Opa needs some serious practice!!! We have too much fun and all laugh so hard!!!!

It was so good to see my cousin Jennifer and her husband Josh. We were happy they came down and spent the day with us! We had a blast sitting around and talking about our lives! Jennifer even got to participate in the jump rope game!!! She and Autumn were neck and neck! We love them both and look forward to spending more time with them in the future!

Ben had his first Drum concert at Ron Jon's Surf Shop. The band that was playing noticed him watching them and asked if he wanted to play. To our surprise he said yes and sat down and jammed out a tune in front of the crowd. He loves to play and took it very serious! We all clapped and cheered! We think he is a total Rock Star! Could this be his future????

Ben loves to ride the race cars. He is so into racing and going fast! Whenever Opa and Omi come to town they always take him to race! Opa and Ben always win the checkered flag! Omi and Daddy have too much fun riding together and often get lapped!!!

Ben and Omi made all kinds of cookies this Christmas. Ben loved decorating cookies for Santa. He used all the decorating tools to decorate the cookies....literally!! He is very creative!

Ben received lots of wonderful presents and was so excited about every gift! Each gift he opened he would exclaim "This is exactly what I wanted for Christmas!" and "I love this!" He had us all smiling and laughing! This Christmas was very special because we got to have Omi and Opa here with us! It was nice to be together as a family.

Omi taught Ben and I how to make our family tradition cookies "Rocks" and I was amazed how into the process Ben was. He really worked hard and listened to Omi. He loved every part of the cookie making and was so excited to be helping. Opa has a rock addiction and was very concerned with Ben being in charge of his precious Rocks. He hovered over us and he let us know if we were doing something wrong! They turned out great and Ben said they were yummy in his tummy. Opa enjoyed them too!

Ben and Lexi enjoyed exchanging presents together! They loved what they got each other. They have become so close over the past 2 years. They are like cousins and they get along so well! We are lucky to have such dear friends in our lives!

One of Ben's favorite things to do is to go to the airport and wait for Omi and Opa. He loves to wait by the glass windows and jumps up and down when he sees them. Then he races down the windows to the opening to give hugs, kisses and love! Omi and Opa always have a special surpise for him too! He loves them so much!

Opa and Ben hanging out watching a Movie! He loves hanging out with Opa!

We were invited over to the Pennington's annual boat parade party in Merritt Island for the 2nd year in a row. I brought the whole family. We had a good time hanging out chatting. eating and drinking! The boats were decorated so pretty and the weather was great! We enjoyed watching all the boats and trying to catch all the candy!

Autumn and Nick spent their first Christmas together as a married couple. It is hard to believe that they have almost been married a year! Autumn had minor surgery on her jaw on January 3rd and is doing well. Hopefully this will help her feel better this year. We got to spend a lot of time with them over the holidays too! It was a lot of fun!

Ben hurt his right eye in early December in a freak accident. It was very serious and he had to be put on bed rest for almost two weeks. It was a very scary thing to go through and he is a very lucky little boy. Jeff and I were nervous wrecks and it was one of the hardest things we have ever been through. Trying to keep a 3 year old quiet is not an easy job. He has recovered perfectly and we are so very thankful! It is so heartbreaking to watch your child in pain and not be able to do anything about it!

My Friends threw me a very wonderful and sweet baby shower. We had an amazing sit down dinner and lots of games and fun! I am so blessed to have such a strong and special group of best friends. I would be lost with out all of you!

Ben had an awesome birthday. Opa got to come and celebrate with us again this year! We had a small family party. It is hard to believe that he is 3 years old.

He loves to ride his scooter that Autumn and Nick gave him. He isn't to crazy about wearing the helmet, but he is getting use to it.

Ben adores fishing and loves to bait the hook. He can cast both his poles and has had a few bites. We can't wait for his first fish!!!

Lexi and Ben created their first Gingerbread house together on Thanksgiving day! I think they ate most of the supplies!

Opa and Ben are #1!!! They love to race and go fast! They haven't lost a race yet!

Another picture of the Queen of the Jump Rope Machine!!! Go, Autumn, Go!

Ben makes up songs all the time and puts on elaborate dance shows for us! He is such an entertainer and cracks us up!!!

Omi and Opa gave Ben his drum set for his birthday. He loves to put on Rock shows and the funny thing is he is really good at keeping a beat! He loves music so much and it is so exciting to watch him play.

We spent a day at the Oktober fest in Melbourne with Aunt Autumn. He had a blast doing all the rides on his own.

Jeff is doing great with his course and we love to go up and ride tractors at daddy's work! We are really proud of his new job and are pleased to report that he loves it!