Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Wednesday Wonders

Today I am wondering why when I organize closets and drawers and kitchen cabinets and bathroom cabinets that they just don’t stay that way? I mean really. You would think that somebody around here would have caught on in the last 5+ years that if we would just put things back the way that we found them or throw things away when they are empty or out of date that I would never have to spend another minute of my life cleaning stuff out. We would all benefit from it because if mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy. You know it’s true.


Nice chair there, Sis



Now get out and let me try it



Or, I will just climb in with you

Friday, September 21, 2012

Our week day

We have finally gotten into a pretty good weekday routine around here. Finally. School started and I was trying to find my way and just about the time things were settling in the kids got sick. All of them. And they stayed sick for about 3 weeks straight. And having a doctor that is a good 45 minute drive away really throws a kink in the day or the week if you have to go more than once. Which I did. Any who, things are looking up and the last 5 mornings have been really good mostly because of the beautiful weather. It’s cool enough to go outside and stay outside with out getting attacked by mosquitos!

Olivia and I take James and Audrey to school and get home between 7:45 and 8:00, depending on what time I got out the door to take them. We eat breakfast when we get home, usually eggs or blueberry waffles. Sometimes both. And lately Olivia has been eating hers while watching Mickey Mouse, her favorite thing to watch. That gives me time to get something done that’s hard to get done with her at my heels. Then we go outside and play, play, play. She loves to slide and swing although the swinging only lasts for a few minutes, she’d much rather be running around moving than sitting still! Then we find birds and squirrels and kick her ball around. Then we walk to the front yard and go up and down the steps and try to pick the blooms on my impatiens and we hopefully look for a dog from across the street to come out for his walk. We scream at a few cats and scare them back across the street. All the while running around jabbering non stop. Seriously. She is never quiet!! Then it’s time to get in the wagon and go for a walk around the neighborhood. She has had to learn to like it and I have had to learn just how long she will ride. Again, she doesn’t not like to be sitting still! Oh how I remember pulling James and Audrey around for what seemed like hours. They LOVED to sit and ride in that
wagon.







I have got to work on achieving catch lights!! If her eyes weren’t
so dark this picture would be perfect. Or save up enough money
to buy PhotoShop!



Weeeee!!! Is her new thing to say. Along with Go!!
I had to teak the 1, 2, 3 GO to Ready, Set, Go
because when I get on to her and start to count, she smiles
and says GO!!!








After our walk we come in, get some juice and then she is content to play by herself while I get some more things done. Or at least try to! She eats lunch between 11:30 and 12:00, just depending on the mood. She eats in her chair watching Mickey. I have recently discovered that she eats MUCH better if she is sitting in front of the t.v. Believe it or not but it’s true. When she’s not watching the t.v. she’s too concerned about getting out of the chair and running around so she doesn’t eat much. But if the t.v. is on she will sit there and eat every last bite on her tray and then some.

After lunch she takes a nap. And since she has moved back into the twins old room, she sleeps longer. I think because it’s darker in there. She’s gotten back to taking at least 1 1/2 hour to 2 hour nap. You just don’t even know how much that has helped getting me back on track around here. Of course our days don’t always go just like this but when they do, the days are perfect! Again, I am enjoying being home with Olivia. Just me and her. And when James and Audrey come home in the afternoons, I feel like I am a much calmer, more rational mother to them. The Lord is blessing us!


Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Nekked

She is a ham. And she knows how to make you laugh. And she likes to laugh whether she knows why she is laughing or not. I love this little girl. We all do!!





Tuesday, September 18, 2012



The picture above is what our bed looked like last night minus the dad and instead of 1 baby it was 2 almost 5 year olds. Jon retreated upstairs last night because of his “funny sleep habits” but I think he just wanted to avoid this whole scenario. Btw, I can and will dedicate an entire blog post to my husbands “funny sleep habits” one day. He’s ridiculous.

Needless to say last night was rough. I had Jon check the baby at 10:00 before he went to bed but that was a mistake. He woke her up by pulling her blanket out from underneath her so he could cover her up. We had a lesson about all the other blankets that are in her room on a shelf just waiting to be used in moments such as this. I think he will remember next time. But we decided there wont be a next time. I will check on her from now on.

Somewhere around 1:30 Audrey climbed in the bed with me. Or should I say butted up right next to me. I knew it was her when her hair landed on my face. I turned and moved over a little in the hopes to have some personal space. Puh-lease. About 2:30 James came in. I knew it was him when he climbed up right beside me, curled in a ball with his bony behind poking my side and started very loudly saying “Mama!! I am cold!!! I’m cold!!!” Pull the covers on you, SON!! Was my grumpy reply to which he said “No. I don’t want to. You do it.” OH boy. Now the bible says we are to “Put off all anger and wrath” and “Put on bowels of mercies, meekness and forebear one another.” Well, it’s hard to do that when your son (how ever darling and cute he may be in the day light) wakes you up and demands that YOU put covers on HIM because he got cold walking from his bed to yours!! I pulled the covers up (like a good mama) but let him know that this was the last time he is allowed in my bed in the middle of the night. I got up 3 more times; 2 with Olivia because for whatever reason she kept waking up calling out. When I went in there I found  a bright light coming from her monitor. Apparently some things got moved around that had been covering the light up and APPARENTLY the child shares one of her fathers “funny sleep habits” which is she has to have her room completely dark or she can’t sleep. The last time I got up about 4 was to take the twins back upstairs. I couldn’t take the feet and knees and elbows any more. I am all for my kids getting in the bed with me when they are scared or just want to be near me. I wasn’t allowed to do that as a kid so that has caused me to be a little more lenient on the matter. But after last night, I am putting a ban on co-sleeping during the week nights! Fo’real.



Friday, September 14, 2012

In our house our Mom likes to take pictures of...

Funny faces





Boys with baby bonnets on their heads that makes
them look like they are Amish




Our distressing moments





Baby feet



But most of all she loves capturing tender moments of
our childhood that reflect who we are









Thursday, September 13, 2012

Ernie



 Ernie is the class mascot for James and Audrey’s pre-k class and yesterday was James’ turn to bring him home and take care of him over night. He was given strict instructions to not get him dirty and be sure to bring him back the next day so that some one else can have a turn. Oh to of had a picture of the boys face when he got in the van yesterday proudly carrying Ernie. He was sooo excited. I was happy for him but I must admit I was a little freaked out because it’s a stuffed animal and, well, lets be honest little bugs can live in those things. Thankfully James was the 2nd kid to take him home and the girl who had him before looks like a pretty “clean’ kid (but I mean that really doesn’t matter) but when Audrey gets to bring him home, you can bet that Ernie will be sprayed down and put in the dryer before he goes upstairs. Don’t understand? Good. You don’t want to.

Any who, James brought Ernie to the table for snack and supper. He sat with him while he got a breathing treatment. He even slept with him (trying not to freak here) last night. They were attached at the hip all afternoon and night. But guess where Ernie was this morning on the way to school? Yep, at home. Still asleep in James’ bed. So guess who did a U-turn on the highway to go get him? Yep, I did!


They kinda look alike here!





Tuesday, September 11, 2012



Olivia likes to:

Point out Teddy Bears in all the books we read

She finds all the small things on a page. A big, red clown face? She will bypass it and go straight to the tiny mouse in the corner of the page. Every time.

She loves to go out side. All.the.time. she begs to go out.

She loves to play peek-a-boo and patty cake. She laughs out loud with the best giggle while playing.

She LOVES the song If You’re Happy and You Know It and claps her hands appropriately.

She can stack a few blocks and put the rings back on her thingamajiggy.

She eats a half of an avacado almost every day for lunch.

Her juice cup is quite the problem these days. She must have it when she must or she can’t hardly contain her self.

She dances any time she hears any type of music. And that includes church songs at church :)

She can say Auda, Bubba, Mama and Daddy. But she says Mama and Auda at random moments all day long!

She can have quite the little temper if she is overly tired or sick and can’t have her way. She might have been known to slap a few of us in the face a few times when she gets irate.

For the most part, she is a very good listener these days when I tell her no, don’t do that. Well except for the times she climbed up on the couch and I told her to sit down. She chose not to sit down. And before I knew it she had gone over the side of the couch, face first. Scared us both to death.

She may have a temper at times but she is the sweetest, most loving child. I am enjoying my hours alone with her during the day. Even if she does wear me slap out :)


Thursday, September 6, 2012

Burn baby burn

At 4:30 this morning sweet Olivia woke up crying. It’s not unusual for her to cry out in the middle of the night just loud enough for you to think something is horribly wrong and then stop crying just as suddenly as she started. But this morning she sounded different for what ever reason so I got right up to check on her. When I picked her up the poor baby was burning with fever. She has only ran a fever a couple of times in her short little year and I just hate it when she’s sick.

I gave her some Tylenol and rocked her till I felt her fever go down a little bit. She was still restless after about 30 minutes so I got a cool rag and put it on the back of her neck. At first she didn’t like it too much but after a couple times of her swatting it away and me putting it right back she either gave up fighting me because she doesn’t feel good or decided that it really did feel good to her hot neck. Soon after that she was back asleep and I gladly crawled back in the bed only to lay there with my mind spinning with thoughts of having to get up in 30 minutes to start the day. Then I remembered that I had forgotten to go to the store for bread and drinks for school lunches and that was that on the ever going back to sleep. Olivia woke up a few minutes later any way.

I got her up and got back in my bed with her and she laid on my chest for a minute or two and would whisper “mama” every 30 seconds or so. Sweet, sweet girl. Jon said yesterday when he had her outside for me so I could finish getting supper ready (we were having company) they were exploring all sorts of things and every now and then she would whisper my name. Sweet baby loves her some mama. Jon gets so put out by it!!! I remind him though that in a few short years he’s probably going to be the favorite. It doesn’t seem to help much in the moment.


Olivia did fall asleep on the way back from dropping the kids at school but only slept for about 30 minutes. She has been attached to me all morning and even rode on my hip while I vacuumed upstairs. Which, by the way, is no easy feat to vacuum all that carpet with a 20 pound rock on your body. But, I did it. I figured it would be the only seriously productive thing I will accomplish to day. Her temp went up a little while ago and I gave her some more Tylenol and then she laid on the couch and watched Elmo while I started blogging. Something my very active 14 month old has NEVER done. Hers really don’t feel good.



On another note, Audrey did fine yesterday with James. Jon said he stopped to get her a biscuit but she didn’t eat a bite of it and didn’t make a peep on the way ride there. When they got there, she wanted him to walk her in so he did. But when they got to her door, she hung her back pack up and walked in her class room with out looking back. Now, had that been me dropping her off, you would of had to peel her off of me. Another example of why kids need daddy’s around. Ms. Amy (the parapro) said Peach was a little weepy most of the day but no major incidents!!


Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Not so Peachy


Add some tears, a lot of tears, and this would be the face that was staring back at me this morning as I was shutting the door to her daddy’s truck. Poor little Peach had to go to school with out her side kick this morning and she was broken hearted. I was broken hearted. Her daddy was broken hearted. I hated to have to send her off but she wasn’t running a fever and was all chipper and excited this morning. Until she found out she was going to school with out her Bubba. I hope she does okay. This is going to be the longest day for me; wondering how she is doing. This day I will be counting down the hours until it’s time for pick up. My sweet Peach. Being a parent is tough sometimes.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

She’s a little green today


This is the look I give myself (except that I don’t eat green marker) when I think about the terrible job I have been doing at blogging. Lets face it, I really fell off the band wagon. There for a while I felt like I needed to focus much more attention on the kids and the house than the blog. I am a slow blogger most of the time. And I can waste hours writing two paragraphs. But I do feel guilty for not blogging at least 2 sentences about Olivia every week over the last couple months. I didn’t even write her a letter on her birthday. Tsk Tsk.

Now that James and Audrey (the soul eaters) are in school every day, all day, I plan on being a blogging mom again. A real one. Ok, in all reality it will probably be part time but I did make a vow to myself that I will start recording her day to day activities just like I did with the twins. She is really a hoot these days and I don’t want to forget a moment of it!! And since the twins are in school all day, every day (did I mention that??!!) I feel like things are different and I can manage my time more wisely. I will devote a whole blog post to my feelings on the twins being gone all day in school.