The Dorman Family

Caleb's big day

2008-11-26T09:36:00.012-05:00

Caleb (our oldest) was able to take a big step and be baptised... he lucked out and was able to have his special day on his 8th birthday (Sunday, the 23rd). It was fantastic and he was SO happy. We were happy to have his Grandpa Wilson attend (he gave the talk on the Holy Ghost) and his Aunt Sara fly all the way from Boise so she could be there. It was a fantastic weekend. We were also lucky to have our awesome buddies Jessie and Tony drive up from Texas and COMPLETELY surprise us by showing up the night before the baptism. It was so cool. They were coming for Thanksgiving anyhow, but took off a few days early to make it here for Caleb. (They had, in fact, told us that they wished they could, but would not be able to be there - that's what the whole "COMPLETELY" was about.) All in all it was a great time for all. We are so blessed to have a son as wonderful as Caleb... I just can't believe that we are old enough to have an 8 year old! :)

Here are a few pics from the big day.

Finally... my EXCITING news

2008-07-27T22:33:00.010-04:00

For those of you who haven't already heard I recently started up my photography business and am now going public so everyone out there can have a piece of the action. I plan on getting my website up, but that is always a longer process than one hopes for. For now, however, I have my photo blog ready and every thing is a-go. I have a link on my sidebar for it, but go ahead and bookmark it and check it often... I will have periodic specials/deals/discounts so keep an eye out (currently 15% off a session fee as long as it is booked by July 31st). The address is http://jenniferdormanphotography.blogspot.com/... For now you can reach me to book a session or for more info via email at jenniferdormanphotography@gmail.com, or by phone at 216-225-1736. I already have a few sessions for August lined up and have a couple of more tentative, so the slots are filling (and all these before this "public" announcement - I LOVE it!). This makes me so happy, I cannot even describe it. I love photography so much. It is my passion. I'm more than thrilled to be able to capture a moment in time for you and your family.

I prefer schedule standard portrait sessions around 1.5 hours before sunset so the light is warm and the colors pop. Keep this in mind when checking your calendars (exceptions can be made, so just check with me). I am offering gift cards (great for the mother-to-be... check out the "Mommy {& ME}" session on my page). I have an online site for you to order your prints... we will go over all the details on that as well as various other info (type of session, location, clothing choices, etc.) when we set up your session.

As of recently (you may recall my last post briefly mentioned this exciting news) I upgraded my SLR. I am now shooting with a BEAUTIFUL Nikon D300. This camera allows me to provide you with excellent portraits of any size (well, perhaps not the 'downtown LeBron poster' size, but close) ;)

So, okay... I've covered a bit here... go ahead and check it out... you are always free to leave comments (I love to hear what y'all have to say), so bring 'em on! :) And, by all means, contact me if you are in need of some great photos. Spread the word too... I love referrals so much that I'll credit any of you "Dorman Family" blog readers a 5x7 from your session if you refer someone over to me (just make sure they tell me that you sent them) :)

The kids 1st concert... and, No... it wasn't the Wiggles

2008-07-21T12:19:00.012-04:00

Friday night we went downtown Cleveland to the Dew Tour. Unfortunately we got there too late for the actual events, but the Plain White Ts were playing a show. We were pretty excited about taking the monkeys to their first concert... they all liked it (except for Ben, perhaps, who fell asleep half way through - even Josh started fading). The cover band was some Metallica-type inspired band of kids (their website said 13 yr olds, but they must be older now) out of Oklahoma... They were actually pretty good... I'm still shocked to read that they are young... They sound like they really know their stuff. These guys were the typical loud headbanger type of band... Caleb came up to me after they were done and looked like he was considering something... he said, "Did you like them, Mom?" I looked at him (he was so cute and softspoken) and said, "Yeah, I did... I thought it was pretty cool." He smiled and said, "Me too." Too cute! :) Anyhow, after a LONG set change up the Plain White Ts came on. The kids were way excited to hear Hey There Delila (they listen to it almost every night in their rooms), but, alas, for some reason they didn't play it. We did, however, get to hear some great new stuff that is coming out in the fall... Looking forward to that album. We stuck around until about 11:05 (it was planned to end at 11) and figured the kids all looked tired enough... So, perhaps they did play Delila, but we missed the last song or two so we'll never know. The kids loved it. I'm glad we took them and now look forward to going to more shows with them. They love music so much - why not let them enjoy it up close and personal.

On to the annoying part... I just got my new beauty of a camera (EXCITING NEWS ON THAT TO COME... STAY TUNED) and lens in the mail that afternoon and was SO looking forward to bringing it downtown to catch some of the fans and athletes in action... Well, we parked and walked all the way down, bought our tickets and were then told that we couldn't have a camera with a detachable lens... UGH! SO stinking frustating! James took the kids in and I ended up taking the long walk back to the car to hide it under the seat so I could make it back for the show (all the while hoping beyond hope that no one would break into our car)... Half way back it dawned on me that I should have gotten my point & shoot out of my purse... Well, I was not going back (I already had a blister from my sandles - ones I wear all the time, I might add - which have NEVER given me even a hint of a blister)... I had my iPhone on me and those pics would just have to do (I mean, hey, our first digital camera was even worse quality than the iPhone camera - Crazy)... So, all that frustration out, here are a few (not stellar quality) pics of our fun night.

Hanging out before the shows...

(not a fan of this pic of me, but had to not only be the one behind the camera)

We had a nice comfy seat on the lawn with a good view...

And to top it all off - it was a BEAUTIFUL night!

Drugs anyone??? Hrmmm....

2008-07-21T09:54:00.002-04:00

We were on our way to a friend's house the other day and I heard a funny little quip from the back... Caleb noticed (seemingly for the first time) a "DrugMart" on the corner (like a Walgreens type store) and said...

"That says Drug Mart" he proceeds to give a funny little chuckle (think Bevis & Butthead) and then said "Drugs are bad and that store is a drug mart." Repeat the chuckle...

Hrmmm... not sure about that kid... Actually it was so funny because, of all our kids (I am knocking on wood right now as I type) Caleb is going to be the one that causes us the least amount of grief. He is really good and has his head on straight... it was just funny how it all clicked in his mind.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

2008-07-09T14:23:00.005-04:00

We hope you have a very happy day. We wish we could be with you - making sushi or something :) Maybe we can get you back up here for another visit soon... the kidlets miss you something aweful... they sure do love to play with you. I just got the pics off my memory card a couple of days ago, so I'll shoot those off to you soon... for now... enjoy this tidbit! :) We love you! Happy birthday!!!

Grandpa's visit

2008-06-27T21:42:00.000-04:00

Grandpa Wilson came to visit for a few days. We had a good time with him here. The kids LOVE having him around. They have so much fun with him and would love to see him more (*hint, hint*) We kept him busy by taking him to the Westlake Rec Center pool, the West Side Market (no pics of that :( - not sure why I didn't take any), playing out back, playing games, making Sushi, and watching both National Treasures. Caleb also had a baseball game while he was here... that was great... it was the first time in the two years that he has played sports that we have had anyone but us go see him play... he was beyond thrilled.

Always the entertainer... reading to the kids (one of the things the kids LOVE to do with him)

Memory

A cute one of Ben

Baseball with Joshua

Westlake Rec Center - 100% worth being a member of... there are tons of pools, it is often quite empty, and it is LOADS of fun... a great family activity

The awesome slides... Caleb is lucky enough to be tall enough... the other kids are still a few years off... the slides are great!

This is the tot pool... there is a pirate ship slide, the coconuts fill up with water and dump out, the ropes in the background open the shower-type spouts above, and all the other water that comes from the pipes can be adjusted with little wheel cranks... it is a fun little place.

First time on a Wii...

Watching the movies... Kate loves to cuddle with Grandpa.

Making sushi... Very tasty! :) First time for Grandpa... he LOVED it!

Good-bye hugs... Come again soon!

For Grandpa

2008-06-15T14:20:00.003-04:00

Happy Father's Day!!! Hope you have a great one! Love you!!!

Who knew...

2008-06-14T21:30:00.000-04:00

We were driving through Avon, Ohio to pass a little time while we were waiting for Caleb to finish up at a birthday party and stumbled upon this cute little annual festival... the Duct Tape Festival. We didn't have much time so we just walked around the entrance. They had these amazing floats that were in a Duct Tape parade earlier in the day. I think we'll have to check out the entire thing next year.

Baby Paige

2008-06-14T21:00:00.000-04:00

I did a photo shoot for this little 9 day old beauty today and (shockingly) already have most of the images edited... I'm almost caught up. Couldn't resist getting these past baby sessions up - a sneak peek for the parents. I really enjoyed this session...been a while since I've taken pics of such a tiny girl. She sure is a precious one... congrats again to the parents!

She reached over and touched the flower for a second and I was lucky enough to capture the shot... just love it!

Take a look at the little lady's hand... she is gripping her Daddy's finger (I didn't even notice that until I was editing)... SO cute!

This mom was so happy to have her little girl... I feel so privileged to have been asked to take some pics for them... Enjoy!

Brotherly Love...

Baby Grant

2008-06-14T20:30:00.000-04:00

I got to do a photoshoot last Thursday for baby Grant. As soon as I arrived his eyes popped open and he wanted to wiggle and stay awake almost the entire time (the first time this has really happened since his birth)... even through that, we got some great shots of him.

Love this one of his loving mom gently holding his oh-so-tiny hand.

With one of his older brothers... this lucky little guy has 3 brothers that he'll get to pal around with as they all grow up together.

Sweet feet... love the new flakey skin.

This is another of my favorites... it was a split second shot just as his mother was placing her hand on his head... to me this picture shows the love his mother has for him and the tenderness and protection she gives him.

Yawn...

Okay, so I loved this session... I did mom's maternity shots also, but am having some computer issues and those are not available to post right now... I will be getting some of those up soon.

Our Princess is 6

2008-06-04T21:54:00.015-04:00

Today was Kate's 6th birthday... where-o-where has time gone? I cannot believe she is already 6. She surely is our princess. She has a quick wit and sharp tounge - a real street smart kid (already). She already knows how to work her sarcasm and is (very unfortunately) quite the good little storyteller (AKA liar)... (Don't worry... we'll be sure to keep a good eye on her - and Caleb will help us - we are quite sure). She is also quite an actress. Kate is funny... no, actually, Kate is hilarious!!! She is the one who always makes us laugh. Kate can say the exact same thing (funny or not) as the next person, but the way she says it will crack others up like no other.

Kathryn is a wonderful addition to our family. She is very kind. She is always willing to share. She is a sweet sister - and though she'd love to have a sis of her own, she does a great job handling all the boys. She always has her brothers vying for her attention. She is fun loving and always up for an adventure.

We are so happy to have Kate as our princess.

We love you, little girl!!!

In the hospital with Kathryn - 6/4/02 - Boise, Idaho

Pretty little girl with a head full of hair (a couple of weeks old)

Kathryn's blessing

Her big brother loves her SOOO much!

3 months old

Christmastime 2002

Easter - 2003

1st birthday

2 years old

3rd birthday

3 years old... one of my all time Faves of her! :)

5 years old... (I know I missed 4 years old, but I can't find some of my picture disks... yikes!)

The weekend before her birthday we had a party with several of her classmates... it was wild. We had 11 kids show (plus our older 3). It was a royal theme. Everyone had a blast.

The girls making bead crowns... (the boys are in the other room painting shields)... loved these! Couldn't have done it without the fab Aunt Jessie helping out!!! Thanks!

We had a relay race with the girls putting on princess dresses and the boys knight costumes. They had to get it on, get their pics taken and then take off the garb and run back to tag the next teammate. It was a good way to hype them all up....

And then... when we needed to calm down, Awesome Tony stepped in and had them all meditate... he even taught them a real meditation mantra... the kids still love doing it - and it's a great way to grab a few seconds of peace.

The party came to and end, but for Kate and Sami the fun kept going until around 12:30 (at least, that's when I fell asleep). It was Kate's first official sleep over. The girls had a ton of fun. We put up the small tent in the front room and they got to "camp out" and watch High School Musical.

Here is Kate on her actual birthday... it was a nice day... At school she had her Kindergarten celebration (perhaps that will be another post) and then we did a family party at night.

My baby is 1...

2008-05-12T22:33:00.006-04:00

I can't believe how fast this past year has gone. Even though it seems as though it was yesterday that I was about to have Benjamin I can't remember life without him in our family. He (as crabby as he is so much of the time) is so cute and I am so happy to be his mom. Benjamin loves his siblings and I am excited for him to be a bigger boy so they can all cause havok together. He has recently started to wrestle with Joshua. Those two already seem to have a special bond which makes me so thrilled. So, though there aren't a ton of fun personality traits to write about for our 1 year old, we do have a ton of pics. I decided to post a few of his first few weeks and some of his birthday today.

Finally here...

4 little monkeys sittin' on a bed

Ben & Dad

Going home...

This is the only time this ever really happened... happened to catch it during one of our middle of the night bonding times.

So peaceful...

The blessing

Ben's cake (the one he gets for himself)

Ben's animal is a monkey (we pick one out for each kid when they are born)... here is his birthday cake I spend hours on today.

Happy Birthday, Baby Ben!!! We love you!!!

2008-04-29T09:28:00.006-04:00

Our favorite babysitter came home from college for the summer so James and I got to go out last Saturday night. We had a nice kid-free 7 hours. We actually found ourselves with a 3 hour gap between dinner and a movie, and really didn't have much to do... we felt kinda lame... It wasn't SO bad... we ended up just going to the store and picked up a few things. I have to say though, even that was nice... not having to keep track of 4 munchkins. For dinner we did Red Lobster and tore through some delicious crab legs. I got a frozen drink (virgin, of course) and the bar tender made more than she needed... they brought me a HUGE glass - perfect size for us to share. It really was a nice dinner. After that (and then the store) we took in a 9:50 showing of 21. It was a good movie... we'd both recommend it. Normally we end up going to the 6 or 7 o'clock showing (with a lot of "old" people)... it was great to be out so late and to have our sitter home who is willing to stay at our house late. So we could have proof that we went out without the monkeys occasionally we took a couple of shots with my point and shoot. I'm thinking this will be our summer of kid-free time... it's nice to get out.

A tasty drink...

Alone :)

At the movies...

2008-04-21T09:58:00.003-04:00

Saturday evening I finally finished clearing our junk out of one side of our basement so I can start using it as studio space for pictures. I have since gotten my stuff up (lights, backdrops, etc.) and all is a-go. Here are a few shots we took while adjusting the lighting, etc.

Pretty and Pregnant

2008-04-15T22:17:00.004-04:00

Last Thursday I had the chance to spend and evening taking some maternity shots for some adorable sisters who are both having babies this summer. It was a crazy windy and cloudy night, but we had so much fun. I loved seeing how close these sisters are. How fun it will be for the little cousins to be so close in age. I had a hard time picking only a few pics, so here are several. Thanks to both of you for spending your evening with me and giving me the chance to work with you. You're great! Enjoy! You'll be getting the rest next time I see you (I brought them by YW tonight, but you weren't around - I'll get them to you soon).

Nothing beats Mitchells

2008-04-10T11:27:00.005-04:00

I know that every different area has an ice cream shop that they claim is the best... well, for those of us who have been around our area and have tried Cleveland's own Mitchell's Ice Cream we know it's the best. Kate got Mitchell's bucks as a favor at a recent birthday party she went to so we decided to indulge for family night. It was excellent... as always!

Breakfast of Champions???

2008-04-09T22:30:00.009-04:00

This morning Joshua was having a hard time picking what to eat. After letting him think on it for a while I asked if he knew what he wanted... here's how it went...

Me: Did you decide what you want to eat?

Josh: Yes, I want tires.

Me: Tires?

Josh: Yes, tires.

Me: Tires like on our car?

Josh: Yes... (he pauses) but they are small (he's holding his fingers close together)... (another pause) and you can eat them.

Hrmmm... Nothing like a bowl of tires to start the day.

I am so far behind... St. Patricks day pictures and other fun

2008-03-31T09:19:00.008-04:00

Leading up to St. Patrick's Day the kids had been talking non-stop about catching Lucky the Leprechaun. This is no small feat since leprechauns are tricky and magical creatures. We decided to build a trap to attempt to catch Lucky. Here are some pictures of the fun (and a few other pics as well)...

While I was out one evening the kids got to cut pencils...

They had a blast...

Until...

That's Kate for you... Even after many instructions on safety she still managed to cut her finger (it really wasn't big, the blood just spread).

Luckily, we had a Spiderman bandaid nearby - then all was made right with the world.

On to the trap making...

While we were doing the work Joshy got bored and began running around in circles in the living room.

Everyone was so proud of the trap... the kids did a great job with it! It was wrapped in foil because (as the kids learned at school) leprechauns are attracted to shiny objects. We added a piece of fools gold in the middle to help lure Lucky in.

The next morning Lucky had, indeed, come... there were little footprints all over the lid and inside of the box to prove it. Leprechauns must be magic though... by the time we woke up he was gone. He knew our gold was fake, but thought we were very clever so he left us a treat of gold chocolates.

Here is a little video of our trap in action...

Okay, so, on to Easter pictures next... stay tuned... Maybe someday I'll be caught up.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2008-03-22T09:20:00.005-04:00

So the other day I was sitting on the couch talking to the kids when they got home from school. There is this kid on their bus... you know the kid... the one you have already decided you don't want to have in your house or let your kids play with - we knew him in Caleb's kindergarten class and thought that, but gave him a chance now that they are in 1st grade - lesson learned - never again. Anyhow, this kid - oh, lets call him Monster - told the kids something that was completely wrong. I said something to that effect and then Kate said that Monster's mom had told him and that Monster said his mom is "NEVER" wrong and that she knows "EVERYTHING"... ummm, yeah... okay. So, I said, "No one knows everything, Kate".... Much to my surprise I hear Caleb (who was standing there also) whisper very quietly, almost to himself (as if he was assuring himself - not to be some Know-it-all), "Except Jesus." That's right, Caleb... except Jesus. Glad he's learned those important lessons. Sweet child!

Snow/Ice Storm Pics - Finally :)

2008-03-17T10:33:00.009-04:00

I have so many pictures that we've taken this past month that I just haven't gotten around to posting. We've told family that we'd get them up soon ... so, though details may be sketchy, here are some happenings as of late...

Ice storm

The wild after the storm... some fun in the snow

So, that's the first set of recent pics... We've got many more we're working on getting up... Look for them soon.

The following slideshow is of the pictures above in the mosaics... not sure why, but they won't open up when clicked on, so, for family I decided to put them up as a slideshow also so they can pull out individual pics... Hope y'all enjoy!

lots of pics

2008-03-14T10:52:00.013-04:00

I am finally getting around to putting up some (a lot, really) pictures of my Brother's wedding. Rick and Janin got married the weekend Ben got sick, so I have been dealing with other things besides putting these up. They weren't planning on having much of a reception and had no real plans for the wedding (maybe just something in their house), so James and I offered to help put on the wedding/reception. We went ahead and got the LDS church in their area to let us use the building for both services. It turned out to be a wedding ceremony - short, but extremely sweet, and a great reception - everyone seemed to love it (and they all lingered, which I view as a compliment).

Making the boquet.

The kids before the wedding.

One of my favorites - Janin getting ready.

Kate (flowergirl) and Janin

The kiss

Mr. & Mrs. Richard Wilson

The Wedding Party

Beautiful rings

So much in love...

I do believe that I did mention in a previous post that we are stellar parents.

Josh liked his too (yes, folks... it's just cider).

James was so great - dealing with the sick & tired kids while I tried to get some pics.

Janin, Rick, & Rebecca Wilson

A few spontanious dance steps.

The Bride & Groom

Beautiful Bride

Janin & Rebecca

To my friend...

2008-03-11T21:40:00.002-04:00

M, I am glad we got the chance to talk a bit tonight... it's been too long. I look forward to hanging out sometime soon (really soon) - don't forget to think about a list! :) I'll be thinking... Reading A's post made me remember some of the good things around that often get put aside, so, here's y'all - good times, good friends.

Out of Commission

2008-03-05T13:08:00.014-05:00

It's been quite a while since I've posted anything new. Ben cut a top tooth on the night of Wednesday the 20th of February. Along with this came the usual fever, crabbyness, refusing to drink a bottle or eat, etc. We figured it simply had to do with the new pearly white so we, being the stellar parents we are, let it go and went about our business of preparing to go down to DC for Rick's wedding. We left on Thursday afternoon. By that time Ben was completely lethargic. He had hardly moved in a day and had maybe 1 bottle and no food. So, again, we thought "Maybe he's getting a little sick" (he also had a slight cough)... we were actually putting on the reception for Rick and Janin and I was playing photographer so we really didn't have much choice. Our kids had been sick (really sick) before, so Ben may be for a day or two, we'd give him some medicine and then he'd probably perk up a bit. No such luck. He was out the entire time we were in DC. Needed held constantly - not helpful when you are trying to decorate for a wedding and take quality pictures... wouldn't eat/drink... slept a TON! It was not fun. I'll do a whole separate post with some actual wedding pics, but here are a few of baby Ben over the weekend.

The car ride down to DC on Thursday.

Setting up the ceremony room Saturday. Ben is so super sick at this point.

During the reception... I did mention that we are stellar parents, right? :)

Couldn't resist...

Upset at having to be put down while we cleaned up.

Back at the house with the newlyweds... Poor miserable Ben.

Okay, so, with all of that explained, we left earlier than we planned on Sunday to come back home to Cleveland because Ben was so sick. When we got back to Westlake James took us straight to the hospital and dropped me off with Ben while he took the kids home to unload the car, etc.

This is Ben getting his chest x-rays... I know it's a horrible quality - it was with my cell phone, but I just had to get a picture... as sad (and wierd) as it was, I was dying laughing at this strange contraption. He is sitting on a very mini bicycle seat with his legs dangling below the table... then, with arms raised, he is sandwiched in tight by two plastic pieces so he can't move... I guess it was good that he was so weak - he didn't throw much of a fit... how's that for a silver lining!? :)

Ben in the E.R. Turns out he had Pnumonia in both lungs and RSV and some bronchial problem... Fun... Suppose it wasn't the tooth that was bothering him... hrmmmm... good to know.

We finally got a room... at this point I had no idea how long we'd be here (ended up being 4 days). He was very cuddly... wanting held a ton. It was a little nice since so often now he wants to always be playing and crawiling around being a monkey. His breathing was (without the oxygen on) hanging around 90 - they wanted it around 96 to let him go home with a nebulizer... should be around 100 normally.

We got released in the late afternoon on Wednesday. Ben's oxygen levels actually hit 100 on his own right before we left.

While in the hospital I got a call to come and get Kate from school because she was coughing and nearly falling asleep at her table. James ended up taking Kate and Josh in to see the Doc and, though he never did a test, he said it was likely they had RSV too... he said they need to share in the glory of the nebulizer we got for Ben. Here they are doing their treatments.

Clearly, just being home has made Benjamin feel better. He stole Joshua's pizza and seemed to like it.

Kate was exhausted.

Caleb was a trooper through all of this... he stayed free of any bugs... until the next week, that is, after everyone else felt better... then I got the call from school to get him... ugh... can a girl get a break?! :)

Kate was coughing so hard one night that she woke up with a broken blood vessel in her eye. A week has passed and it is just about back to normal.

Just liked this one - such pretty eyes... home from school sick this day.

For how much sleep all the kids got you'd think they be wired for a month, but they seem to still enjoy bedtime.

Another one I liked.

All better... at last, it seems like we are, for the most part, healed up.

So there you have it... a million pics later, the reason why we've been out of commission. Expect more pics soon of the wedding, Rick and Janin's infant shoot I did, and other happenings. :) In the mean time, stay healthy!!! :)

My mom...

2008-02-19T13:41:00.005-05:00

This past Sunday was the 10 year anniversary of the day my dear mother died. I wanted to put up a slideshow of some pictures I have of her and it took a while to get some slides and prints scanned in to the computer. I wish so badly that I had more pictures of her... I know I have had some get lost in my travels and some were taken with other peoples cameras... I just hope someday to be able to get a proper album of her life put together. I am at a loss for words to describe my feelings. My heart aches. I miss her so much. I was only 18 years old - I feel like I was robbed. Sometimes, even through my faith and belief in eternal families, I get so angry that she was taken so early. I have had to go through so many milestones that girls should get to share with their mothers all by myself... a wedding, pregnancy and childbirth, marriage, raising children. In some ways the past 10 years have flown by, but, at the same time, 10 years is SO long. I know she is with me always and I have felt comforted knowing that, but it doesn't replace having someone to talk to when I am having a bad day. So, I guess with that said, I want to put up this slideshow of some random pictures to help us remember and know the most wonderful woman I have ever known... a true friend, wonderful wife, and amazing mother... My mom.

Listen to your heartbeat and dance

2008-02-14T14:08:00.006-05:00

The title of this post comes from the inside of a Dove chocolate piece. Each of them have little sayings on the inside of them and I got this one on two of my pieces today... I won't say how many I actually ate to have two of the same, but boy were they good! I think they saying has a nice message. To me it says to be happy, find the good, and enjoy life. It's nice. I used to love to go dancing so reading that (while getting to enjoy a silky smooth piece of chocolate) put a smile on my face.

So, as much as I love chocolate, James does love it more - and, a VERY close second to him is our little Kate... in fact, I am thinking they may be closer to a tie. The other day (and almost this exact same scenario has happened before) we gave Kate a treat - I'm not sure why we still say treat... in our house they are more like staples - anyhow, we gave her a treat and when she saw it she got a kinda creepy smile (almost like that freaky guy in the Lord of the Rings movies - the creature who finds the ring), pulled it close with a death grip and said, " I LOVE CHOCOLATE!"

We just have to laugh now. It's constant. She is asked what her favorite food is and she replies that it is chocolate. Donuts - chocolate, Milk - chocolate, Everything - chocolate. She even asked for chocolate on her noodles the other day instead of spaghetti sauce. Hrmmm... She's not addicted, is she???

Now we come to this morning... the munchkins got their usual boxes of chocolate from James and me. Since Kate is in afternoon kindergarten she had several hours to enjoy her goodies. She had been playing in the living room (I was in the kitchen - where her chocolates happened to be) and she came in and said, "I want to eat a chocolate from my heart"... almost as soon as that was out of her mouth she continued and said, "I mean... a FEW chocolates!"

I can't finish a Valentine's Day post without putting up a picture of a special Valentine's treat Caleb made for us this year... He did this for James and me a couple of days ago... Such a sweetheart - always thinking of others.

PB&J hearts with Dad & Mom spelled out with crust

He's gone... just so you know...

2008-02-14T11:58:00.004-05:00

Last night Calvin (our pup) got a new home. The allergies and lack of dog-friendly space just made him impossible to keep. I'm just writing this so y'all know that we no longer have the sweet little guy. We loved him, but he is with a family who seem PERFECT for him. We're really glad that it worked out as it did. In the meantime, though tears were shed when he left, Caleb seems just fine. He got to go pick out his own laptop last night (the reward we thought of in the beginning - should've just stuck with that) and he LOVES it... he can't wait to play games and write stories and do homework on it. So, it all worked out... I just don't think we'll be bringing up the dog much for fear of dragging sad memories back to the surface.

Setting up Caleb's awesome new laptop - lucky guy!

FLORIDA - here she comes!!!

2008-02-09T21:28:00.000-05:00

Well, at least part of her that is... And a major part at that. Yes, our wonderful little girl decided to give her beautiful, flowing, bottom-length hair to Locks of Love (we need to mail the hair to FL). She is "going to help a sick kid." We've been planning on doing the deed for a few weeks now. Last night, after the boys all had their turns, Kathryn stood on the bench and gave up one of the things she loves the most - her princess hair. I'm proud of her. I'm sure she'll do it again too. Oh, and she LOVES it! She's had about 7 or 8 haircuts already (3ish inches each time), but until recently we never really thought about it all being chopped like that. I must say, as we washed it last night I remember why I love fresh cut hair... it feels so silky and healthy... hers is so light and flippy. It's great. Anyhow, she thought we were silly for taking so many pictures (close to 90 pics of the whole ordeal - is that overboard???)... I'm glad we did though - here are a few.

Before the cut...

She's so excited!!!

About 1 foot cut off

Moment of truth...

Maybe I'm partial, but I think her hair will help make a beautiful hair piece.

The haircut.

She LOVED using the blow dryer!!!

Turf Wars

2008-02-02T08:31:00.000-05:00

Who would have thought that Benjamin would have been a twin? I mean, he was born more than eight months ago and you would have thought we would have known about any multiples... It is becoming clear however, that Benjamin’s twin spirit currently inhabits a dog named Calvin. Let me illustrate this point through a list of similarities:

1. Both whine and cry when they are not being played with or held.
2. Both want Jennifer to hold them, constantly.
3. Both like to chew on dog toys.

Calvin got this toy that Ben NEVER plays with, so we decided he could have it...

---FAST FORWARD AN HOUR---

Suddenly (for the first time) Ben has a real interest in that rubber ducky. Is our little guy having some jealousy issues?!?
This has resulted in a series of fights over dog bones and rubber ducks in which both Calvin and Benjamin will take the toy, chew on it and the other will steal it away, thus precipitating a turf war over the object. There have been about a dozen instances, so far, in which Benjamin will crawl away with a dog toy, laughing, only to find himself tackled from behind or the toy snatched out of his hand by Calvin. Often, Ben tries to keep this toy out of Calvin’s reach by holding it away from him, but this only works for so long… then the process is repeated. (I am beginning to think that Benjamin is the aggressor here.)

Here is Ben scooting over and taking a look into Calvin's bed and finding a toy he wants...

... Benjamin continues to reach for the toy and makes sure the dog knows he has it by bringing it out of the dog's bed...

As soon as Ben starts scooting away Calvin comes and reclaims his spot on the bed... AND his toy... "Don't mess with my stuff, Baby!"...

Let's go back to the scooting away picture... Here is Benjamin... take a close look at his right fist... The whole bit before was a ploy to get the Calvin's bone without getting caught... what a sneak!

4. Both want to lay in Calvin’s bed. (This is funny because, after about ten minutes of being home for the first time, we got Calvin’s bed out. Ben immediately went over to investigate it. Calvin must have known it was his, because he went to Ben and put his nose on Ben’s face and nudged him off of the bed. As soon as Ben was off of the bed, Calvin laid down, put his head on the floor, and stared at Ben, as if to say “Try that again, Bucky…” Oh, yes, Benjamin has tried it again and again and again.
5. Both need constant supervision so as not to destroy the house or injure themselves.
6. Both move with surprising speed when intent on destructive behavior.
7. Both need to be potty-trained (I think that Calvin will achieve this first though.)
8. Both like to drink baby bottles.
9. Both like to eat dog food.
10. Both like to eat baby food.
11. Both need locked up at night (one in an open air cage (a.k.a. crib), the other in a room). (This is so that we can sleep without worrying what they will do to themselves or their surroundings.)
12. Both cry at night to get attention (come to think of it, they do that during all hours of the day…) So I suppose this one really is, Both wake us up at night to achieve their nefarious ends.
13. Both need constant correction from their determined, bull-headed, intentionally destructive behaviors.
14. Both require bathing on a regular basis.
15. Both crawl on all fours.
16. Both sit when you offer them a treat.
17. Both are teething.
18. Both like to bite everything they encounter because they are teething.
19. Both enjoy fighting with each other…
20. Both are extremely cute.

This list could go on and on. It is clear that they are starting to appreciate each other and I am sure that they will soon form a loose confederacy with the objective of terrorizing the rest of us and destroying the home. They are both adorable and make great playmates. While Benjamin, initially, was not a huge Calvin fan, they seem to have reached an arrangement where at least tolerate each other, if not their aggressive actions. When Calvin was purchased, we certainly did not anticipate producing a twin terror. What a happy edition!

"Calvin Dorman... He's a member of the Dorman family." - By Caleb Dorman

2008-01-26T19:19:00.000-05:00

Today was a wonderful day in the Dorman household. Just under one year ago (Feb 22, 2007) James and I gave Caleb the challenge to read the Book of Mormon by the time he was 8 years old and baptized. That gave him 21 months to do this. To our surprise he finished today (only about 10 months before he will be baptized). We are SO proud of him! He wants to read it again by the time he gets baptized in 10 months . Caleb is awesome!

As a reward for his amazing accomplishment Caleb is now the proud owner of a Bullbea (a Bulldog/Beagle hybrid). As a tribute to his favorite pleasure reading he named his cutie dog Calvin.

Here he is... Calvin Dorman. Without being biased (I'm sure) he seems to be a really smart dog. The kids (most of them - Ben's not diggin on it) LOVE him.

It was a complete surprise when we brought him home and we presented him to Caleb in a large lidded box that was wrapped in red and had a very big red bow on it.

What an exciting time!

Lighting and Editing

2008-01-25T16:39:00.000-05:00

What a good sport... always up for standing around smiling for me while I play around with camera settings.

We do have family... who knew?!

2008-01-18T13:53:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's already the 18th of January. Where is the time going? I also can't believe it's been so long since I posted on this thing... I think it may be because I was tagged and I am still trying to come up with things to write... Thanks again for that, Amy! - I guess that is my excuse, at least.

Last weekend James' brother, Eric, was in Columbus for a convention. He hasn't ever been out here to visit us before so he got his boss to let him stay through Monday and fly out of Cleveland. The convention ended on Sunday and we decided it would be a nice little mini-vacation to go down Saturday and go swimming. After hanging out in the hotel for a little bit we found our way to a Target to pick up a swimsuit. While we were there the kids found a Diego scooter on clearence. Between them they had enough to buy it... It was cute to see them all go in on something like that together. It's a bit small for the older kids, but they were good sports and decided to enjoy it (partly for Josh's sake) and that they'd all save up more for a bigger kid scooter. Cute. We got it together and they rode around the hotel parking lot for a while.

In the evening, after getting Eric and having pizza delivered we took the kids to the pool. We will definately be going back to that hotel soon. The pool was great! No life guard meant they could use their noodles and Ben could sit in his seat (we normally get told we can't when there is a guard). The water was SO nice, and the hotel was pretty empty. The pool had great hours and the staff were so nice. We all enjoyed swimming.

Caleb is a little fish.

Belly Flop - over and over to get a good shot - poor guy

What a good sister.

Fun with Eric... they loved this!

The water was so nice Ben had no problem just hanging out.

After swimming for a couple of hours the kids crashed.

Sunday morning we had until noon to check out and until 6pm before Eric was going to be done. We decided to swim until we had to check out. Kids were fed, suits were on, and suddenly James doubled over in agony. He kept running in the bathroom and throwing up. We called our "ask-a-nurse" through our insurance and they said we should go in to the ER. Great... Next we had to find an ER in Columbus that took our insurance and get him there while he was puking non stop. Well, we did, and almost immediately the great nurses and docs said it was kidney stones. I had no idea they were that painful! Poor guy.

Here's James in the ER room right after they saw him.

Luckily, after they moved us to a room the kids were this good the whole time. They played their games and watched cartoons and we didn't hear a peep out of them (we were there for almost 4 hours).

James felt a lot better after they shot him up with some pain drugs - though he doesn't remember any of it.

After we got out of the hospital we weren't sure what we were going to do. We were getting Eric in about 5 hours and James was in agony still. Finally we took them to the Galleria mall (really nice place) on the north side and they played for a couple of hours while James slept in the car outside - very fitfully, waking up to puke because of the pain.

The time finally came to get Eric - he even was able to finish a little before we thought - and we made the drive home fine. The kids loved having him here... even if it was only for a day.

Couldn't wait to show him all the Transformers.

Guitar Hero with Uncle Eric - Caleb actually did pretty well.

Taking in the sites of Cleveland.

Can't go downtown without seeing the giant LeBron.

Going to see the lake at Voinovich park.

Looking out over Lake Erie.

We are big Calvin & Hobbs fans... this is the Dino in the comicstrips when Calvin visited the Museum of Natural History (Bill Watterson is from here, so Calvin got to go to our sites).

Calvin and Hobbes - Augest 10, 1989

Another view of Lake Erie and Huntingon Beach.

The guitars are a cool site to see in Cleveland.

Eric leaving on Monday night.

We really enjoyed having Eric here... if only we could get them to move out to our area of the country (I know you guys will see this... hint, hint!) :)

Now, almost a week later, James is finally better... Thank goodness!

Fireman Ben

2008-01-05T11:12:00.000-05:00

A little bit of

photo editing,

a whole lot of

cute kid!

I get to be the cool aunt!

2008-01-04T09:08:00.000-05:00

The newest little addition to the Wilson family arrived last night around 9:30.

Rebecca Louise Wilson

I am so excited for Rick and Janin. It's their first child so there is a lot of fun, cute, new (and sometimes gross) stuff in their future. We get to go to DC next month so we will be seeing her shortly. As I was trying to get to sleep last night my mind wandered to my mom. We are going down there in Feb because it is the 10 year anniversary of her death. We have been going to Arlington for the past few years that date to put flowers on her grave. So, again we will go. I can't believe it's 10 years. Thinking of Janin having her mom there with her when she had her baby was hard because I've never had that, however, when I thought of little Rebecca, just as with my children, I know that my mom was able to be there when these precious children were sent down to us. She was able to teach them and help them learn and love them. It's neat to know that so recently our newest family member was able to be hugged by my mom. Lucky child... and lucky us to know that we really all can be together forever and that we are only separated for this earthly life.

So, I went off the original path of this entry a little, but that's the way the mind of Jennifer Dorman works. :)

Congrats Rick and Janin!!!

Rebecca Wilson and Mommy

(an 8.5 pounder to boot... not too shabby for petit Janin)

Star Kids

2008-01-03T21:22:00.000-05:00

I'm an aunt again!!! (almost)

2008-01-03T19:39:00.000-05:00

I got a few exciting phone calls from my (almost) sister-in-law today asking about labor and what my opinion was about her contractions and such. She started having contractions around 11:30 this morning/afternoon and called about 2 hours later to talk... about 2 hours later she called again and said, "Jen, if this isn't real I don't want to feel what real is"... :) Ahhh... the feelings of a pregnant woman. So, when Rick got home they headed to the hospital. He just called to let me know that she got her epidural, is at a 5 and all is going well! I can't wait!!! Little Rebecca will be here soon!

Cutting teeth

2007-12-31T20:42:00.000-05:00

Here's what we are getting to go through much of the time with Benjamin. There is a reason we don't remember much from when we are infants.

Poor child!

(and poor us!)

Actually I understand what the little guy is going through. With each of my first three pregnancies my wisdom tooth (I only had one) grew (and then recessed after the kid popped) and I got to go through that tooth cutting ordeal. It sucked. Luckily, after Joshua I got that sucker yanked. No fun... I really do feel aweful that he is in such pain! Well, two down and a mouthful to go. Fun times!

With Wondering Awe

2007-12-31T08:36:00.000-05:00

Last night our baby Benjamin showed us all how to find the beauty and wonder in the simplest of things. It was so cute I had to write about it and put up a picture of his adorable little face. It was about 8:30 and pretty dark in the living room where we were all laying on the floor. All of the sudden Caleb picked up one of his dart guns that has a laser pointer on it and pointed it on the ceiling just in Ben's range of sight. Ben looked up at the red dot and was truly amazed... I mean, mouth open, staring, moving his head to follow where Caleb moved it amazed. He thought that little red dot was the coolest thing. If he lost track of it or got distracted he'd look around again and find it (sometimes with a little help from Caleb who would point it on the floor in front of Ben so he could see it) and the jaw would drop again. I was laughing so hard that I cried. Such a small thing - a little red light moving around -

that would probably normally just annoy me after a certain point, made my night and now I'll always have that picture in my head whenever the kids use their dart guns.

How lucky I am to have baby Benjamin.

And... while the dart gun is taken... Joshy found another use for the darts...

Can't leave the others out...

2007-12-12T15:15:00.000-05:00

I was looking at how cute Ben's Santa pic looks on my last post, so I decided to put up the other kids pics... Caleb and Josh were both a month old and Kate is almost the same age in hers as Ben is in his (7 months). Too cute! :)

Caleb with Santa - 2000

Kate with Santa - 2002

Josh with Santa - 2004

That's right...

2007-12-12T14:56:00.000-05:00

I did it - I finally did it... I managed to have the car today and have nowhere specific I had to go with it while the kids were at school. I was finally able to take Benjamin to the mall to get his picture with Santa. We got the kids on his lap at Wal-Mart the other day (free 5x7 - not too bad), but our tradition is to get the kids "alone" pictures with Santa on their first Christmas only. Couldn't break with tradition, but, holy cow... 20 dollars for two 5x7 pictures! Yikes! I am starting to think that Santa's photo guys and the Big-time oil guys are in cahoots... hrmmm. Anyhow, Ben sure did enjoy pulling on the Jolly guys beard - good thing it was real! :)

2007-12-12T08:59:00.001-05:00

Well, you asked for it... blame yourselves :) Here are the pictures we took Monday night... not the greatest, but not bad for taking them ourselves. I have to admit, next time I'm going to have to burdon someone with coming over to be behind the camera - it was tough to get the kidlets to actually look at it - especially Ben... we even tried rigging one of his noise-toys to a rope behind the camera so we could pull it and make him look up... didn't work all that great and even just writing about it makes me laugh at how crazy the whole scene probably looked. Our neighbors we share our duplex with were probably completely annoyed... we must have said "wiskey" (our version of "cheese") about a thousand or more times - right in our dining room which is near our door for our shared basement stairwell. Oh well, I guess they knew what they were in for when they renewed their lease last October. :) Anyhow... here are the ones I'm acutally printing off to send to family.

What a surprise!

2007-12-10T11:45:00.000-05:00

So far the entries on here look like my journal... pretty empty. Yikes. I suppose I just don't sit down and spend enough time on one thing when I am online. Oh well... I'll just recap.

Friday I got a major surprise from James. I had a test downtown on Friday and when we got home he brought this gift bag out from our room. He asked, "Do you want a present?"... haha... as if anyone would say no to this. Sure I did. Opened it up and, lo and behold, my wonderful husband bought me a flash unit for my camera. He (when I thought he was working) went to DODD camera near Crocker and got the scoop on different flashes and got me one. I couldn't believe it!!! I mean, I know I've been hinting at it for quite some it, but it's also not something you would just expect to get randomly. So far it's been hit and miss on figuring it out. I think the morons who wrote the directions must think it's obvious... it's not though - that doesn't make me the moron, does it? ;) haha Anyhow, just was such a surprise and I love it! - thanks again James!

Friday night we were also able to go out... I know... crazy! We did, though, have the kids, so I guess it's not like it sounds. We went out with Brian (used to work with James at his old firm) and his girlfriend Beth. It was so much fun. We went to Nuevo Acapulco - James deals with them on some issues so we got Great treatment from everyone! We were there for about two and a half hours and hardly heard a peep out of the kids. Part of that was because the happen to have the greatest chips and salsa there, but, I have to admit... they are darn good kids. I love them - I am so, so grateful to be able to be their mother. I'm not sure what I did in another life to deserve such good, respectful children, but I'd love to keep doing it because it must have been awesome. James and I enjoyed the company of other adults - we don't see them every week at church either like most of our other friends, so we had lots to catch up on. I'm thinking that the whole "going out" with friends thing periodically is very worth it - good for the soul. :)

Here I Am...

2007-12-07T16:59:00.000-05:00

Alright... so it came to my attention last night at dinner that I am behind the pack in this whole blogging thing. Well, my friends, times are changing. That's right... Here I am! :) No promises on how interesting my posts will be to all of you, but I will do my best. It'll be fun to be able to keep you all up to date on our happenings here in Ohio. I'll even try to get a few pics up every once in a while.