Cornelius Chronicles

I heard John screaming for help while I was in the front room.  I went to investigate what the problem was and found him stuck like this.  Now, how in the world did he get up there??  :D Then I came home from the grocery store and found all of my kids up there!  Turns out they figured out a fun new way to make a fort.  :D 

It's that time of year for the 4th Grade musical and guess who auditioned and won a speaking roll?!  Xavier got the honor and fun of playing Bringham Young in the short musical "Go West!"  He did a great job declaring that he and his people were going to make that "dessert blossom as a rose!" and they sure did!  It's not often a cute little blonde Latter-day Saint boy gets to play the Prophet Bringham Young in a school play and Xavier's a distant relative of the famous Pres. Young to boot! Bringham Young is a 6 times great uncle to my little Xavier through Grandma Phillips' family line.  I'm so proud of Xavier for being brave enough to audition.  Working hard to memorize all of his lines and songs and for doing an awesome job at the performance.  Go Xavier!  Xavier's play prop was a golden Bible.  :D  Only our fellow Church members thought this was hilarious.  All the rest of the Southerners didn't understand what the problem

Painted Lady Butterfly Friend They emerged as butterflies!  For Maeve's 7th birthday our friends, the Archer Family (Doug, Dana, Wesley, Abby, Emily and Evan) got her a send away live butterfly kit.  We had so much fun waiting for our caterpillars to arrive in the mail, watching them grow fat and turn into strange chrysalises, and then finally emerge as beautiful Painted Lady butterflies.  Then we had even more fun keeping the butterflies in the house for a few days before finally releasing them into the beautiful Sunday afternoon.  It was so amazing to watch them fly away into the beautiful sunshine.  Perhaps the most surprising thing we observed was that most of the healthy butterflies chose to stay close to the house, even landing on Maeve and Xavier rather than exploring the beautiful, bright world right away.  However, one butterfly was born with a broken antenna and a bit of a jagged wing.  We thought this butterfly wouldn't be able to leave the cage or survive on

Since almost everyone got roller skates for Christmas we thought it was high time for a roller skating family party night at the local roller rink.  We all had fun eating lots of pizza, practicing our best dance moves while on wheels, playing silly skate themed games, and grooving out to the happening tunes.  Turns out that John's a pretty fast little skater too, and he isn't even two yet!  What a great way to roll into the new year! Happy 2020, even though it was February 1st! 

Don't let that face fool you, Rebekah asked to go to the 8th Grade Frosty Frolic dance.  She and I had lots of fun shopping for her cute outfit at the mall and doing hair and makeup just right before the dance.  Rebekah has a fun time hanging out with her friends and celebrating her final year of intermediate school.  We sure are enjoying life at Seabrook Intermediate!

 Beep, beep!  Look out world, here comes John driving the Cornelius Party Bus!  Guess who also knows where the car horn is located and isn't afraid to use it?  Silly John. I sure hope Loyd knows that I love him.  I got stuck making 300 small Brigadieros for World Cultures Day at Clear Creek Intermediate so Loyd could get 25 extra credit points.  Also, chocolate and sprinkles are always delicious. A couple of home projects getting done around the house.  I love my newly painted blue front door and I'm so happy to finally have French drains, a sub pump, and a mud free alley walkway in my backyard and between the new garage and house.  Yea for crossing things off the to-do list! I just loved this tender moment between brothers.  Loyd is such a tender big brother.  He is always happy to give a hug, a piggy back ride, or read a book or two to John.  What a lucky little brother to have such a gentle big brother to look up.  Love my boys!

Good news, someone told Owen he has his mother's eyes.  Bad news, it was the eye doctor.  At least he looks handsome sporting his new glasses.  Welcome to the four eyes club, son!

 Here is my latest crochet creation.  I made this fun birthday themed doily for my cute little sister, Liz.  Happy Birthday, sis!  Just a couple artistic creations from Rebekah.  It's so cool to see how she is growing and developing as a talented artist. 

 It finally happened!  Maeve lost her first! (We're not counting the one her brother's knocked out when she was 2 yrs old)  Talk about exciting!  We had to pull out the Tooth Fairy pillow, write an explanatory note (we accidentally swallowed it while eating an apple) and got a brand new dollar bill in the morning from the Tooth Fairy to honor this momentous occasion.  Congrats Maeve!  Love your new smile!

 We've been enjoying our new Christmas gifts.  Here are just a few pictures of some of our new toys.  John ADORES his new MP3 player.  He listens to his music all day long, and even sings along when he things no one is listening.  :D  Loyd got an indoor mushroom growing kit.  Guess what, it was delicious!  Thanks for dinner, Loyd!  Our dear friends, Ryan and Lyndee Lee sent us magnetic Catan tile connectors.  It was really two awesome gifts in one.  First the magnetic tile connectors are pretty cool, and second the super fun family game night was even cooler.  Thank you for the fun family time!

Bishop and Sis Norman gave us a wonderful Christmas gift of a yummy cookie decorating kid.  We had lots of fun creating lots of beautiful, yummy creations to enjoy.  What a fun experience and happy memories!  Thank you dear friends!

It's that most coveted time of the year in Southeast Texas, Winter!  We're taking full advantage of all of the beautiful, cool, sunny days by playing with friends and siblings as much as possible.  We just love being outside.  Owen having an awesome play date with his buddy, Preston.  Nerf gun party for the boys over Christmas break.  Even John joined in with all the fun.  Nerf gun party participants Park day!   Loving all this sunshine while we play at Clear Lake Park off NASA Rd 1  Can you believe how beautiful the water is?  It's almost as beautiful as my little Maeve.   Checking out the neighborhood park during a lunchtime walk.  Everything looks good.  :)