things i don't give a second thought to...

but then realize later that it probably is a little strange. (but what is "strange" anyways??) I have walked past my girls' bedroom five or six times just today and the fan is going, so I have turned it off each time, but without even thinking, in fact, I have assumed that I have never turned it off since they woke up this morning (but I think this each time and think that I most certainly am losing it!). Until the last time, when I went in and turned it off while they were playing in there, and they LET ME KNOW that they need the fan on. I asked why and Jaeda replied, "Because our babies are sleeping, why ELSE would we have the fan on!??" (a bit sassy, I know)

You see, since the womb (b/c I sleep with a fan in our room as well) they have slept with a fan on in the bedroom for white noise. Our family is all about security blankets...fans, blankies, fingers in mouths, whatever soothes the soul (or babies screaming!). So they would NEVER put their babies down for a nap without a fan on! Oh, the monsters we create. (and I mean monsters in the sweetest way :).

Signing in to say Goodbye...

...just for a week. A week that I am hoping is filled with change, vision, new routine, clarity, and insight. I am taking a week off from things I rely on everyday... computer, Starbuck's, and books (my books that is, however I will be reading the Bible of which I have not been good at lately, and you can count on that I will still be reading Dr. Suess :). I will expound when I come back...and I will miss you in blogland! But I know the calling will be worth the sacrifice. Have a wonderful week friends!!

Mission Accomplished!

I made it my goal to have Christmas shopping finished before Thanksgiving this year so that we could relax and enjoy both holidays without having to be exposed to our indulgent "society" during it's peak time of year. I have succeeded and am relieved to have it out of the way! It makes me cringe when my kids see a commercial on TV and say, "Look, Mommy, I want that!" which is why we eliminated commercials a long time ago.
I read an article recently in a magazine that I receive from MOPS which talked about resisting the urge to go to toy stores with your children (including on focusing on toys, etc at everyday stores like Wal Mart) in order to allow room for the Lord to embed the real meaning of Christmas in their hearts and minds (my interpretation). We are still implementing and innovating Christmas traditions for our family, and being intentional about "living" the real reason that we celebrate is our goal this year. Have a great weekend!

Punkin Wunkin

Jaeda coloring her pumpkin

Brice is a pumpkin head!

Taylor very busy!

So much fun!!

Some results!!

What an amazing pumpkin carving day we had today! Our cousins came up and we made pumpkin muffins from scratch, and then colored and carved pumpkins together! It was very fun. Does anyone know of a pumpkin carving kit that is heavy-duty? I purchased one that we used today and it lasted for JUST that long! We do lots with pumpkins so it would be awesome to have a kit that lasts :) These are two of the patterns that are in the book we used...Aunt Stefi cut these out.

McDonald's has icecream?

AMAZINGLY enough, my four year-old son who knows everything DID NOT know that mcd's serves icecream...until tonight. We decided to surprise the kids and drive over to Morro Bay tonight for icecream after dinner. As we were walking in and we told them what we were doing, Jaeda clapped, Kaitlin said, "frice fream!," and Brice (who has eaten at mcdonald's several times) said, "I don't think they have icecream here." I couldn't believe it, but am so thankful for the fun and precious reaction of the kids when they discover something new and exciting! This is Addie wearing a bathingsuit that Aimee bought for her before she was born, but it is almost too cold to wear, so I had to snap a shot of her! Isn't she simply irresistible?

welcome to being 2, kaitlin jane

What is everyone up to?

Brice has become a HUGE football fan, watching ESPN headlines early in the morning and games in the evening...in particular the Louisville Cardinals (thanks Mamaw and Pepaw for the hat & tshirt!) and the Oakland Raiders (we did not encourage this, he has just always had a thing for pirates). He is doing incredible with his numbers so keeping score and number recognition is a big part of him watching the games. (And Addie just so happened to already be sitting on the couch :)


The girls have been obssessed with matching...and Addison is already in on it at such a young age! Jaeda gets mad when Addie doesn't have something to match her and Kaitlin. (I don't know why Kaitlin had to stuff a sandwich in her mouth right before the picture)


Brice and Jaeda are now in AWANAS and go to Cubbies on Thursday nights. They LOVE it and are finding it fun and easy to memorize God's Word!


Kaitlin is in gymnastics, and have I mentioned that she is part monkey? This is a fantastic outlet for her and the structure is much-needed for this girl as well! Now if she would just stop climbing on counters at home it would be completely worth it! For more Kaitlin gymnastics, click here


Addie's new favorite thing is sitting in the Bumbo in front of her toy with a big mirror, lights, and music (thank you Aunt Harrison!) She is getting good at pushing all of the big buttons. And her hands go straight to her mouth when she gets excited, which is like, all day long!
It's amazing how in the short while I have not blogged about the family, so much has changed! At such young ages, the kids change and grow so quickly!

read this...

and then go see this, released October 17th.


The book has been out for four years, and is excellent...laugh, cry, it's wonderful. But I always encourage people to read the book before seeing the movie even though this trailer looks pretty true to the story. Great read--one of my very favorites, really!

Hand-me-downs...

... and more hand-me-downs. As a mother of many, I have come to love and appreciate hand-me-downs---A LOT! My sister gives me all of my niece Leah's clothes, and I give my nephew Aiden (and now his brother Bo) Brice's clothes. My sister is the queen of fashion so the clothes are adorable, and since I am the queen of stain removing (a little obssessive actually)I have kept them in pretty decent shape. The outfits that my girls are wearing today have been worn by 4 of the girls now (Leah, Jaeda, Kaitlin, and now Addison!--very sentimental :). Thanks for the hand-me-downs Em! They save us a lot of money and we love them! It is like Christmas everytime we take them out of storage!

Seriously?

Has anyone else ever heard of these? They are a hoot and a half! But $35?? Don't get me wrong, I think I might have to chew on Addie's chubby thighs and take a lot of pictures of her cankles in a pair of these, but only for the crib? She would need a new dress to go with. They actually have a heel on the bottom!

Sweet Slumber

i like me a good deal

i have been looking for a playhouse for the kids for a while, refusing to pay the $300 ++ that they cost new. i am telling you the truth when i say that they are one of THE hottest items on craigslist "baby + kids" category (at least on the central coast of CA). they sell for dirt cheap at times, but you have to be the first person to contact the seller or you miss out. i have tried several times to beat the rush but have never been successful...until today! i hadn't checked c-list all day, but when i clicked on the page, it was the first item listed, so i called (they had posted it less than 2 minutes before i called!), and went to pick up our new little "cottage" style house this afternoon for $40! It is severely FADED and the phone is missing from the dial pad, but the kids love it! They had a blast cleaning it up with dishsoap and the hose (many a mudpie had been made inside of it before it came home with us!) and filling it with playfood after it dried. what a deal! **i will post a pic of it assembled after i take one!

WANTED: A MOMMY THAT WILL POTTY TRAIN ME

This poor girl's mommy is putting off pottytraining her until absolutely necessary. It is a sad thing, but her Mommy is nursing her baby sister every 3 hours, assisting her princess sister with dress-up and tea parties, making superhero costumes for her brother and rescuing him from seriously injuring himself due to his dangerous stunts, preparing snacks and meals for the family, and trying to conquer a mountain of laundry constantly...that she doesn't see how pottytraining is going to work out this month! Isn't her mommy reading books, working puzzles, and playing on the slip n slide with her WAY more fun than pottytraining? Her mommy really enjoys doing these things MUCH more with her than the potty thing.
However, if she persists to "sneak" onto the potty, she may win the battle.

job descriptions

today, i offered to mow the lawn, and Brad said okay, but only if I really wanted to. Brice quickly interjected that mommies don't mow the lawn, only daddies. Brad asked him, "If daddies mow the lawn, what do mommies do?" He said, "Mommies stay inside and go nuts." Smart boy we have on our hands!
Oh, and one more thing...while writing this post, we have been watching ladies volleyball and Brad has been cheering USA on. Brice just asked Brad, "Can they hear you?" We answered with a no, of course not. Brice then asked, "Then why are you talking to them if they can't hear you? That doesn't make sense!"

a little blood. no sweat.

That's Kaitlin Jane. She had her first nose bleed over the weekend. I was tossing (gently!) the kids down the slip n slide, and she FLEW and knocked into Brice at the bottom. She didn't even notice though (obviously from the picture). She is a tough one, and I am thankful that as the third, she is this way. She is very good at shaking things off, but still, the sight of it is very sad.

it is ridiculous that...

...Kaitlin sleeps with 6 blankies and 9 "friends"
...my children play in the snowsled in June
...I took a picture when Brice dropped this egg and not only did I take a picture of it, but I also let him play with it (yuk!-I think sometimes I tend to be a little TOO hands on)
...Brice has been in undies for 2 years now, but still insists on wearing them backwards (in order to see the picture)

I have been picking out photos for scrapbooks & ran across these and several others that were ridiculous or "what's wrong with this pic." They have kept me in stitches!

Happy Birthday, Princess Jaeda!

I can't believe you are three years-old! You are such a beautiful, funny, smart, and sweet little girl. You are the greatest big sister that Addison and Kaitlin could ever ask for. I know that we ask a lot of you being that you are the biggest sissy, but you carry yourself well, and are always happy to help and take care of the younger ones. You are also Brice's best friend...he loves you so much even though he picks on you to no end. Your love of singing at any given moment warms my heart, and your sincere compliments melt us all. You are fun, fun, fun, and you have lots of very interesting things to say. You are unbelievably nurturing to babies (both pretend and real), and are going to make an amazing mommy one day. We love you to pieces and as one of our favorite books says, "if you weren't my little girl, a piece would be gone, we just could not go one...the world would not be the same without you."

Lite Brite

I was so excited when our friend April gave Jaeda this ancient toy for her birthday! But of course, it has had a facelift since I played with my own LITE BRITE twenty something years ago. It is now advertised as having a "flatscreen" (when did it not??), and the paper is now shiny instead of dull construction paper. Anyways, we had lots of fun with that this morning. Brice and Jaeda are home from preschool for summer, so I have been trying to find some ways to keep developing their fine motor-skills and have fun with it, and this proved successful!!! I still felt excited about turning on the bulb to light up our creation after punching in the colors. It is for ages 4 and up, but if your child knows their letters and colors, they should have no problem, and it definitely helps to reinforce what they are learning or know. Brice and Jaeda worked really well together to get the job done, but I do recommend locking up any twenty-two months old before beginning the process! TROUBLE!!

BFFs

Had to post these. Here is Addison, her friend Viggo, and her BFF Madelyn aka Maddie (This friendship was arranged while the girls were still in utero :). I am also posting a picture of Brad and I, Addison while in my tummy at 38 weeks, Maddie, and her mommy Kate and daddy James. Brad and James have been friends since high school.
Addison is getting big so quickly...chubby as you can see! She is on a great schedule and sleeping through the night most every night. I love nursing her, but she has to be really patient a lot of the time because I have to intervene with her bigger siblings during her meals a lot of the time. :(
She is smiling TONS and just belly-laughed for the first time two days ago. Hope you enjoy the little update!