Princesses in Disguise

Bonnie recently asked for a post introducing all of our family members.  We hadn’t realized we had never formally introduced them, so we apologize for any confusion this may have caused.    We know there are a lot of us… even people in real life can’t keep us all straight!  I’m not sure I can fit all of us into a “nutshell”, but I’ll try! 

These are our parents… known to us as Dad and Mom.    We are so grateful for everything they have done and continue to do for us.  They have been the best parents we could ever ask for, and we wouldn’t trade them for a different set of parents any day.    Dad is extremely talented at making us laugh, whether that be through tickling us or telling us funny stories from his childhood.  He enjoys eating healthfully and likes to jog or bike when he has time.  Mom is always willing to serve others before herself and never turns away an opportunity to listen or sympathize.  In her practically non-existant free time, she likes to sew, play games with her children, and read biographies.

When myself, Stephanie, and Allison were 5, 3, and 1 1/2 (respectively), we got an adorable baby brother!

On this blog, we’ll call him Picasso.  He is now 12 years old, and an asset to our family.  He dutifully carries out his chores each day and week and also helps to take care of the little ones.  The artist of the family, he enjoys drawing, painting, and creating most anything.  Reading is one of his favorite hobbies and the reading light we gave him for Christmas last year has since been the cause of several all-night reading marathons.    He is also a skilled violinist who has promised to play at all of his sisters weddings, Lord-willing. 

Next comes our sweet 10-year-old sister, Ladybug.  Always willing to help others, she has the gift of serving.  Whether we need her to dress the baby or unload the dishwasher, she’s ready to get it done.  In her spare time, she loves to write letters to friends, play games with her siblings, and journal.  She played basketball this fall on a league for the 4th year in a row and enjoyed that very much.  Being fairly tall for her age (an inch shorter than her older brother), she had many opportunities to shoot and make baskets!  Ladybug is the punctual time-keeper of the family and likes to let us know when it’s time to get ready for something. 

This is our 8-year-old sister, who we will call Filly.  She is a nature-lover at heart and has a particular affinity to horses and everything to do with them!  She is a wonderful big sister to her younger siblings and enjoys making gifts for her loved ones whether it is their birthday, Christmas, other special occasion, or not.    One of her favorite things to do is read, and she has been known to devour mysteries in under 48 hours.

Tuffy is our 6-year-old little brother.  He is a car fanatic as evidenced by the picture above, and has been since he was very little.  He would often point out cars on the road that were the same as our Dad’s work car when he was about three years old.  He loves to go everywhere with Mom, and if he’s not able to, he waves goodbye to her from our front window and she is expected to wave back.    The nickname Tuffy was given him by us when he was a baby.  He would crawl around and pretend to be a dog, panting and everything.  For some reason, we named this dog Tuffy. 

 Peanut is one of our loveable 3-year-old twins.  At this age, he is constantly talking, asking questions, and learning about the world.  His best buddy is the little guy pictured below, but he enjoys the company of all of his siblings.  He can often be found loving on his little sister, even though she doesn’t always return the same affection.    Some of Peanut’s favorite things to do are ride his bike, run, and get good and dirty.

Biscuit is our second lovable 3-year-old twin.  He was nicknamed Biscuit as a baby because he was a “little brown biscuit”, with dark hair and darker skin than all the rest of his siblings.  A tad independent and somewhat of a wanderer, we have to constantly keep an eye on him in public places!  He is best friends with his twin and they can be found together about 90% of the time.  (It was hard to find pictures of them individually!)  Biscuit loves to be read to, is a talented color-er, and hums when he’s eating. 

I think most of you know Cherry, as we can’t help but share cute pictures of her frequently.    A little about her:  she is #10, the baby of our family.  She is now 14 months old and walking all over the place at home, but seldom for strangers.  She is very shy around people outside of our family, so if you happen to get a smile or moment to hold her in peace before she starts protesting, count yourself blessed.    At home, she is a spunky, happy, outgoing little girl who is adored by all!