Is that you, Corona?

Today marks 18 days that our family has been in self quarantine. 18 days since our children have left the parameters of our little corner of the world. 18 days since they last set foot on campus of their beloved school. 25 days since we last set foot in our church building to worship the Lord together. Now we just sit in front of the computer and watch Jon do a FB live from the back porch. It works and is so uplifting but we are ready to be back at the building with all our loved ones!!

 I picked the kids up from school on Friday, the 13th of March, and we came straight home. I didn’t leave all weekend because I knew it would be overcrowded at all the grocery stores so I waited until Monday, the 16th of March. Went to all 3 stores here in town and tried to stock up as best I could. But it's hard to really fully prepare for the unknown. I have prepared for so many hurricanes and “ice" storms that never amounted to anything, I guess I was somewhat reluctant to spend our entire life savings (kidding) on food once again. Not to mention the fact that I am an under reactor and not an over reactor so it was really hard for me to get my mind wrapped around the fact that I needed to buy food for HOW LONG??? How does one even do that? I got what I could think of without hoarding too much and came home. I have done one grocery pick up since then. I have also done a curb side pick up with a local nursery in Tallahassee, made a deposit at the bank and dropped off a package at the USPS. That’s it. NO where else.

The first two weeks were actually pretty good. J, A, and O were busy from 8-3 every day on their computers doing school work, connecting with teachers and classmates and even doing P.E. That kept their minds occupied and they never complained about being bored. And they actually haven’t even complained about not being able to go any where which is a miracle. I think that the fact that we literally can’t go any where has helped that. This week is their spring break and while we are lamenting the fact that our plans are canceled, they are getting pretty much un limited time on the xbox together and staying up to watch a movie at night. It’s not the road trip we had planned but it will do in a pinch! 

In an effort to keep a little journal during this time and give myself something to do other than stare at the four walls of this house, or be judge, jury and executioner over the amount of snacks my kids try to consume in a day, trot back and forth to the pantry myself looking for things that just aren’t there, looking at all the laundry that needs to be dealt with (why we aren’t going anywhere) and maybe slow down on the memes, I’m going to start actively taking pictures and blogging again. Hahahaha!!!

Hen Hen

I am not even going to say it. You all know what I want to say but I am not going to say it. It makes it not happen. So I will say this, this handsome little devil is 2 years and 6 months old as of yesterday!

A brief highlight of things he does and says. Theres so much more though. I’ve taken notes. Iv’e just got to write them all down.

Sing baby shark all.the.time. And he will even make up funny words to go with it! He’s very musical!

Streak around the house. We are in the middle of potty training. Sigh. He’s doing fairly well with it. He has good days, really good days, bad days and really bad days. But I think at least by the time summer is over we will have it down pat! He is obsessed with “flushing it out” and I have to keep the bathroom stocked with clorox wipes and paper towels though. The other day he came running into the room I was in and he was naked and I said, where are your undens wears (that’s what he calls them) and he said Ummmmmmm......dirty....old....wet....need to get new ones. And he pauses between each word that he says, too. It’s so endearing!!

He loves to come up to me and put his hands behind his back and say “Prize you, mom” and then pretend like he is giving me something.

He calls mosquitos skeedos.

And he has to have bandaids for EVERYTHING. And I do mean EVERYTHING!!! He calls them banaids.

He used to ask if he could hold the moon. If that doesn’t make your heart melt, I’ve got nothing for you here, friend.

He pronounces his F’s as S’s. So he says swip swops for flip flops, sish for fish and sider truck and sireman. Oh, the day he stops doing that will be a sad, sad day around here.

He used to refer to himself only as Hen Hen and it was the absolute cutest thing ever but over the last few weeks he has started to drop that more and more.

So far...

So far in the first 3 weeks of Summer vacation we have had the stomach virus, strep throat and a raging case of impetigo. Oh, and a teething baby cutting molars. That counts as a sickness, right?

Tuesday afternoon of this week it was nice and sunny out so I decided while the teething baby was napping I would go lay out on a towel and try to catch some rays so I won’t fry like a pice of bacon on our upcoming trip. The next thing I knew, a little girl with the cutest snaggle tooth mouth came out with her bathing suit on and plopped down right beside me! A few minutes later the others started trickling out and pretty soon this was the scene:

We had the best afternoon!!!!! Who needs a pool when you have a 5 gallon bucket, kiddie pool and a cooler???? And that teething baby slept 2 1/2 hours and was in the best mood to come join us!

Slowly but surely

7. feet

I couldn’t decide which one was the best/my favorite so I decided to pick both!!! I love how in the first one its like a woman having to look way over her pregnant belly to see her feet!!! And then of course the 2nd one is just so precious. Big feet, little feet.

8. things i cherish

Lazy summer mornings with my peeps. Especially when they are getting along, which, amazingly they were for a few minutes of fun in the rain yesterday morning!

On My Plate

I’ve missed a bunch of days and am going to make them up but for now here is yesterday’s prompt from The Bethadilly 365 Challenge Day 6, On My Plate.

Replace the Ezekial bread with butter for a couple pieces of bacon and this is my favorite Whole30 breakfast. Not only is it delicious but it makes a beautiful plate!!

Commitment

You read it here first, folks. I am committing, COMMITTING, myself to a Summer photography challenge. And committing to doing it right here on this blog and NOT social media. I am deactivating my social media accounts for the Summer. Yes, the whole, entire SUMMER. I’m scared y’all. Like really super, duper scared. But I am looking forward to it. I want to get back to blogging and the only way to do that is to cut that social media habit for a while and get back into the swing of this being my only outlet. I.can.do.this. I can. Wish me luck and check back daily for a new blog post and photograph!!!!!

 Henry is 18 months now, believe it or not! He can say: Mama, Daddy, Bubble, Bubba, NoNo, Uh-Oh, PawPaw and something really, really close to Mickey and Daniel. He’s got so many teeth now and just got finished cutting some molars. Took 14 days for those puppies to both fully break through and he was the crankiest, the clingiest little boy around. But it never interrupted his sleep so I will NOT complain. He could eat his body weight in blueberries and strawberries most days. He loves whole grain waffles (plain or blueberry) avocado, cereal, gold fish and pizza. He knows what a pizza box is and what leftover pizza looks like in a container so there’s no fooling him and he will eat 1 whole piece if not 2. In these pictures he was not interested in playing in the sprinkler or little pool as it was windy yesterday so kinda cool if you were wet. He plopped down in this spot and sat here watching a fly buzz around him for a solid 10 minutes until I got my camera out and then he sat there for another 10 at least. Just sitting there, laughing, watching flies and pretending to eat rocks so I would tell him NoNo and he’d laugh. Then Audrey came out and he started fussing for her to pick him up. He loves all his siblings so much and has started giving them hugs, especially when they pick him up.

The Day I Turned 36

I woke up to a noise around 4:30 and saw the light on at the top of the stairs and after a few moments had passed and it did not go off, I got up to check. When I entered the hall I saw the living room door was closed so I went in there thinking someone was confused at the day and time and was watching television. But nobody was in there. Making my way to the kitchen I saw James standing at the island and then he told me Audrey was in there, too. I didn’t even care what they were doing because I really thought they were confused about the time so, I didn’t ask any questions I just sent them back to bed telling them it was 4:30 in the morning and they must go back to sleep.

Two hours later when my alarm went off I hit snooze for 8 more minutes and then got up. I noticed that no lights were on upstairs so, thinking they were still asleep after their early morning, I went to go wake them up but no one was up there. I am sure you can imagine the look that came across my face upon the discovery of no children and no other noise in the house at 6:30 in the morning. I go back down to the living room and still didn’t find them. I was really curious at this point because I knew they had not gone outside (not that they would) because the alarm was set so where on earth were they and what the heck were they doing? I made my way to the kitchen once again through the dark dinning room and all of a sudden I hear 3 little voices yell Happy Birthday and then a light comes on and I see 3 little faces beaming with pride!!!

Those darlings had fixed me a birthday breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast with butter, a banana and a glass of water! (I guess teaching them how to make coffee is next, haha). The macaroon pictured above was also sitting next to my plate on the little napkin and it is with out a doubt the most wonderful, most beautiful birthday cake I have EVER or will EVER have!! And not just because it is a pistachio macaroon, haha!! It’s the precious thought behind it.

They put so much thought into their actions this morning I couldn’t help but cry and I may or may not be whimpering as I type this :) Olivia exclaimed she had been waiting for this day all week and was so glad my birthday was finally here! Their daddy had instructed them to make my birthday special since he had to be out of town for work and they did. They said they fixed my breakfast and wanted to keep it warm so they almost turned the oven on to keep it warm but decided not to. That proves that they really do notice the little things that I do but I am really glad they decided not to since they had my food on a paper plate! After they made the breakfast they put it on the table and hid in their spots waiting for me to get up. When they heard my alarm they got all excited and were like “this is it! shhh!” But then I didn’t get up for another 8 minutes!! LOL!!

Their daddy took them to the store after school one day last week when I was a funeral and they purchased me the Instant I’ve been wanting for months!! They had wrapped and they each had me a birthday card and my sweet boy gave me two of his own gift cards. I don’t want to keep them but the look in his eyes when he gave them to me was so genuine I could NEVER give them back.

But I can promise you that the monetary gifts they gave me this morning don’t matter, even though I’m super excited to finally get that InstantPot, the actions and the thought they put into those actions are the most precious, most wonderful gift they could ever give me.

SuSu brought these youngin’s a few  500 water balloons on their last visit. The next weekend their daddy was gone and we needed a good activity that didn’t require money or leaving, so, I let them fill all the balloons they wanted and we went out in the front to have a fight. It was a lot of fun and I am so glad I took my camera out with us. I captured some great memories and it was one of those nights that will be etched in my mind forever and hopefully theirs, too!!

This last one...cracks me up. Cant help it.

Baby Goat

How is it the middle of October already???? Pretty sure I blinked and this kid is now 6 weeks away from turning ONE YEAR OLD. EEEEKKKKK!!! I should stop blinking, shouldn't I? 

JH here is nothing but a little baby goat! He loves to eat paper, cardboard books, twigs, leaves, anything that he can chew on and try to swallow before I dig it out of his mouth, he will!!! You forget how time consuming having a newborn is. And then once you are over that shock of remembrance you get slapped in the face with the harsh reality of a not so new baby who can move around on his own. This boy here would explore the entire house with out stopping until he either A. fell asleep or B. got so hurt he couldn’t shake it off. That toilet paper tower in the background may or may not have come in contact with BoBo’s head a time or two yet, he keeps going back for more!! 

How many likes do you get?

One evening James’s little friend was riding home from church with us and I overheard James tell Cason: "Mama posted this picture of me on Instagram with a fish and I got 46 likes!!"
I’m still laughing. Love my boy!

Double-named

On our trip to New Orleans at the end of May, Audrey rode with me out there and Olivia rode back with me. Now, I need to take this moment to say that Audrey was an absolute dream! She is the one you want with you on long rode trips. N.e.v.e.r. made a peep. Never got frustrated with Henry. Never asked when we were going to stop for food, lol!!

Olivia was so excited to get to FINALLY sit next to Henry in the car! She did great for the couple hours or so. Tending to him, giving him his pappy and handing him toys and then it all just got to be to much for her and I heard her double name him and say yell:

JohnHenry!!! You have to stop spiting that paci out when I’m not looking!!!!!!

And then a little bit later, exasperated, she declares:

I’m tired of this. He won’t stop fussing and I can’t watch t.v.!!

The week of May 9th

You discovered your hands.

You started flexing your wrists and it’s the cutest thing in the world!

You like to chew on one finger, usually your index finger but sometimes your thumb.

You visited Birmingham for the first time.

The day we got back from Birmingham you found your feet! I had layed you down in your bed to go do something and when I passed by your room a few minutes later I saw you laying on your back holding on to those chubby little feet. Now, you are always holding those feet. It’s like there are no bones in your legs!

5 months with Henry (April)

At five months old, Henry:

You Bring our faces close to yours.

You give a little cough when you get excited.

You have started to be very ticklish.

You love to grab daddy’s hair and his beard (daddy had to trim his beard way back because of this!).

You smile at EVERYONE.

You wear 9 month footed pajamas and 6 month onesie’s.

You started getting your foot stuck in the slats on your crib. When it first started to happen you would just lay there quietly until someone checked on you but you’ve since changed your mind on that approach!

You had rice cereal for the first time this month and you cry out when you don’t get it fast enough.

You sort of like to take water from a bottle.

You kept waking up giving me an awful fit in the middle of the night so I put you on your tummy finally to sleep and you started sleeping all night!! Praise.the.Lord. Praise the Lord!! We also extended your feeding times from every 3 to every 4 hours. That was such a wonderful, glorious day.

Cant think of a title

I have been wracking my brain the last few weeks trying to figure out what has changed. Why can’t I blog consistently? Looking back over the last 8 years, I blogged about everything!! And I had fun doing it. It wasn’t a chore, I didn’t have to make myself sit down and do it out of guilt. Isn’t that funny? Blogging out of guilt. Have you ever?

Well, I finally have it figured out. The source of the inconsistency. The reason for the sheer torture of sitting down and trying to think of funny things to say about the cute things the kids have done lately. It takes to much time and I have 4 kids. Insightful, I know. But wait, there is more. That’s not the actual root of the problem. The root is actually a person and his name is....Steve Jobs. Yes, yes, that’s right. Steve Jobs is the real reason I don’t enjoy blogging so much any more. May he rest in peace.

He invented the iPhone, y’all. I know, real insightful but, do y’all see where I am going with this yet? 3 years ago I got my first iPhone and found Instagram and then Chatbooks came along and the rest is history (pun intended). It's so much faster to take a pic on my iPhone, open Instagram, do a few adjustments and add a fairly short caption to said pic and then press that share button. And then, after 60 photos are posted, Chatbooks automatically makes a book for me and ships it directly to my house. Hello!!!!!

I don’t know about you but I feel much better after my revelation. I am documenting just as much as I did a few years ago, just in a different way. A much easier way.

All that being said, I have tons of notes in my handy dandy iPhone about Henry and all he’s been up to the last few months and a few things the older kids have said that are just too funny to be forgotten. I am actually going to take the time TODAY and write up a bunch of blogs and set the automatic posting schedule thingamajig to post once or twice a week. Wow!!! Aren’t you all impressed? I know I am.