One More Year, One More Month

One more year until I have to say goodbye to my twenties! Weird.

One more month until I have to say goodbye to having a "baby" in the house. Ford will be one!

11 months suits him, although, I'm trying to convince him to go back to being my little guy who used to snuggle with me. He said something about having big brothers to keep up with. Boo.

Oh and my second born will be 5 in a few weeks! Yikes!

Life is flying by!

We Do NOT Put Chicken in Our Pockets

Yesterday lunch was a bit chaotic. We had a bag of chicken nuggets from the grocery store deli that we sat on the counter for the boys to pick at. Ford had just gone down for a nap so I was trying to get things done while I was baby free. I wasn't paying close attention to what the older three were doing.

A while later they were hanging out around me discussing things amongst themselves and as I cant multi-task I tried to tune them out. I still picked up bits and pieces of their conversation and I gathered that they were comparing who had the most chicken. I assumed they meant who had eaten the most chicken earlier, ya know, at the counter. As these discussions almost always go they began to argue and I was dragged into it.

Evan:"Mom, who do you think has the most chicken, me or Seth?"

Me:"Evan, I didnt see how much you had."

Evan:"Look."

Me: "What?"

Thats when they start pulling nuggets from their pockets. (Kane didn't have pockets so he was just standing there with as many pieces of chicken in his hands as he could hold, while chewing on the big bite he had just taken.)

Seth:"My pocket is bigger than yours Evan and look mom, its bery full!"

Me:"Oh my... Boys, we do not put chicken in our pockets, ever. In fact lets not ever put any kind of food in our pockets from now on."

Seth:"But mom, we want to save it for when we're playing and get hungry."

Me: "You can save it on the counter or in the fridge sweetie, do you see me or daddy saving food in our pockets?"

Evan: "What about gum and candy?"

Me:"Its in a wrapper."

Evan and Seth: "Oh, ok."

I'm glad we cleared that up.

Sweet

Talkin To Gamma

Necklace

Me: Seth what's that on your neck? (as I tried to rub away a black mark that hadn't come off during his shower)

Seth: Its gum.

Me: Why did you put gum on your neck?

Seth: When I had gum yesterday, I pulled it out of my mouth real long and put it around my neck to make a cool necklace, a gum necklace.

Me: Hmmm.

Seth: Is it PINK?! (rubbing his neck with pride)

Me: Nope its black because of all the dirt thats stuck to the gum, you shouldn't take your gum out of your mouth anymore.

Seth: Oh, ick. (rubbing his neck more vigorously, grossed out) Ok I'll keep it in my mouth next time.

Visitors

On Monday night Becky and London arrived! This was my first time meeting London and Becky's first time meeting Ford. So exciting! They're only here for a few days before they have to get back home so when I woke up on Tuesday feeling kind of icky I was disappointed. My stomach was a little weird and I was a bit tired but I felt I could push through. I did however decide to reign in our plans of going to the beach to making a trip to Target (my sister doesnt live near a Target so... yeah not even close to making up for it) and making a delicious dinner. We got home from Target and I was really tired/weak and then my stomach continued to get progressively angrier at me. I could not believe I was going to spend the entire afternoon/night on the couch! Ugh! Jed ended up bring home dinner, Becky was super aunt and hung out with the boys while I curled up on the couch miserable and exhausted. And just when I thought things couldnt get any worse, Seth threw up.

I felt much better this morning although very drained. Seth was sick all morning, puking a few more times however now seems to be on the mend. Tracy picked up Becky, London and Evan for a trip to the park while Kane and Seth napped.

Now I'm just hoping that we all stay healthy and can do something tomorrow! I also hope I can get some more photos in tonight and tomorrow of my lovely niece and sister!

She is a doll!

Uncertainty.

Hmmm, someone is an only child! :)

Thats better.

Homemade Baby Cereal

So I've been making my own baby food since Kane was a baby, when I finally discovered I could do such a thing.

I use baby cereal to thicken up baby food as my kids get older and prefer thicker food. I ran low on baby cereal the other day and was dreading having to make a special trip to the store for more. Finally it dawned on me that I could probably make my own.

I was right and its super simple!

I used Aldi brand old fashioned oats. I had also just made homemade noodles, hence the messy counter.

I put the oats in the small Magic Bullet cup.

I used this blade.

Then I ran it for about 5-10 seconds. Btw, they now make a Baby Bullet.... I wonder where they got that idea from. :)

Until it was pretty fine.

Then I poured it into my homemade chicken noodle soup baby food.

I stirred it up and kept adding more until it was the consistency Ford likes.

Serve.

Now I'm wondering why it took me so long to think of this!! Sigh.

Yalaha 2011

We made our first trip of the year to our favorite German bakery in central Florida. As usual, it was well worth the drive!

Jed's rhubarb, strawberry pastry, DELISH!

My apple pie. AMAZING!

The boys had massive bear claws. Seth's here is half eaten.

The live music was good too!

A Wee Ford Update

He celebrated his first ever St. Patrick's Day this week, wearing green of course! :) Also by saying his first word, "dada"! Followed by "mama" the next day.

And then there's this,

Someone is growing up way too fast!

Life's Not Fair

Last year when Evan was in preschool, he'd bring home projects he had done, or talked about painting that day or showed us the prize he had won from the prize box for good behavior. Seth rarely ever showed jealousy over the situation but a kid can only take so much, I mean Evan got to do a lot of cool stuff. After the whining died down I'd remind Seth that he needed to be happy for his brother, who had waited 4 years to go to preschool and that one day Sethy would have his turn and he didn't want Evan or Kane to be upset with him. He'd apologize to Evan and for the most part was a really good sport.

This fall I was so excited for him to start preschool. Unfortunately the way the schedule worked out he'd have to have a different teacher than Evan had but I wasnt too worried how different could things be?! Very, very different it seems. No prize box for good behavior was the first thing we discovered. Seth was disappointed but didn't complain. I figured it wasn't a big deal either because Seth is more of a free spirit than Evan and now the pressure to perform was off. Besides I knew he'd shine in the arts and crafts! So I was kind of confused when I asked him everyday after school if he had painted and he said no. I think Evan painted on the first day of preschool the year before. I decided to be patient. Finally, a month in, they sent home a piece of copy paper with scribbled crayon on it that the teacher wrote, "bouncy ball" next to. I was baffled. A few more lack luster projects were sent home and I got annoyed. I talked to Seth about it and he really didn't care, he loves his teacher and his friends (although he did mention he'd like to paint a bit more). So I let it go.

Sometimes life isn't fair. (Seth top, Evan bottom) Character is more important.

Thanks for having such a great attitude Sethy!

Best Buds

Pics from last week:

Unfortunately, Evan woke up sick again this morning.

He almost went to school as he insisted he felt fine however using my super mom powers I sensed he wasn't being completely truthful. Ok, well really I just noticed that he was white as a ghost with dark circles around his eyes, lethargic and hadn't touched his breakfast, not so super I guess?!

So after going back and forth with him for 40 minutes about it I finally compelled him to be honest by pointing out that if he was actually sick and went to school he might get his teacher and classmates sick too. He broke immediately admitting to an upset tummy and sore throat. Poor boy was so sad to stay home but I'm so proud of him for choosing to put other before himself! Obviously though we still have some work to do on the whole honesty thing... :)

Now he's chillin on the couch watching Shrek. Kane has fully recovered it appears as he is currently doing a weird gallop past me into the kitchen to get a drink.

I'm hoping Evan gets better soon as I'd like to get out of the house this weekend!

Another Day

Evan threw up last night.

Kane had horrible diarrhea this morning.

I put a can of Pepsi in the freezer last night intending to drink it but forgot about it.

I spent the morning cleaning throw up out of carpets, changing unfathomably, stinky, poopy diapers (and I've changed a lot of nasty diapers) and clearing out our freezer into our electric cooler so I could wipe out the exploded frozen soda, then of course putting it all back in.

I didn't have my first sip of coffee until 12pm.

The afternoon was better, Joy and Devan visited for a bit. It was nice to talk with adults.

However its now almost 9:30pm and I still haven't fully gotten over my frazzled morning.

So, I'm going to make a bowl of popcorn with this, watch an episode of Fringe and try to unwind.

I Love This Picture

For a couple of reasons, the first being that it is the first time all four of my boys took a bath together! Awe, Ford is growing up so fast!

Second, Kane's face. I took a lot of pictures trying to get one of all four looking at me and when I came to this one I almost fell off the couch laughing. Oh my goodness. What a nerd?! I love that kid.

Revisiting My Childhood

I love Netflix!

Saturday the boys and I had a She-Ra marathon! We also watched Pippi Longstocking and Rainbow Brite. It was AWESOME!

At the begining of each new show, Evan and Seth protested, "Mom, we dont want to watch this, its a girl movie!"

A couple minutes in I asked if they wanted me to turn it off, I got a resounding "NO".

Who would have thought girls could be more than pansy princesses?!

Not this kid.

Now he knows. See, education, thats what we're all about around here! Oh, that and justifying entire days spent being lazy in front of the tv.

As we watched Pippi I realized that I recognized the town the movie was shot in, turns out its Amelia Island!

Then I was curious about what happened to the actress,Tami Erin, who played the main character. Sadly, not much more than the standard scantily clad modeling photos. I was surprised, I expected some other movies or tv shows to her name! Oh well, Charlie Sheen has proven that "winning" in Hollywood isnt all its cracked up to be huh?!

Wow, thats quite the rabbit trail... Back to the original point of this post, sharing the glory of 80's movies and tv with my boys is a lot of fun. I hope Netflix adds more to their "Watch Instantly" category soon!

Cannibal?

Ford bit me and its not the first time its happened either! In fact its pretty common these days. It always happens when he's finishing his meal so I started breaking his latch a little early. However today I was feeding him and talking to Jed, therefore not paying attention and Ford bit me. I yelped and pulled him away, drawing the attention of my older boys. Here's the conversation that followed,

Seth: "Mom, I know why Ford bites you."

Me: "Oh really why is that?"

Seth: "Because he's not hungry anymore."

Me: "Maybe."

Evan: "No Seth its because he doesn't want to eat mommy's milk anymore he wants to eat her meat!"

Jed: "Bahahahahaha!"

Bikes & Planes

Jed went to Daytona for bike week today. He wasnt supposed to be gone more than a few hours but Jay's bike broke down and now 10 hours later I'm still sitting here alone.

Around 5:30, something snapped, the boys turned into wild arguing animals and I was losing it. We needed to get out of the house ASAP!

After driving around for a while we ended up at an airport. In between watching planes take off the boys ran around and wrestled in the grass. I took pictures.

World Events

This morning I was watching the news or as the boys call it, "boring big people tv". The older two quickly picked up on words like, "fire", "destruction" and "death toll". Before I knew it they were glued to the tv watching the videos coming out of Japan.

They began asking questions about the situation. As I tried to explain what was going on with the earthquake, the news changed to events in Libya. Prompting more questions for me to field including this one, "Mom, the guys fighting in Libya, are they so strong that they're making the ground shake?" The mind of a little boy is fascinating! So we turned off the tv and did a little geography and science lesson.

First we looked at diagrams of the earth (thank you google), we talked about the earth being round and having layers. Then we talked about earthquakes and tsunamis. After that we looked at a map of the earth and I showed them where Japan was in relationship to where Florida, then we found Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the US west coast and finally over to Libya.

Once we found Libya I explained to them a little about what was going on over there. Sethy proudly proclaimed, "If I were there I would beat up the bad guys for the people in Libya in one day!" Then he got off the couch and did some crazy kicking and punching ninja moves. My kids wouldn't make it in public school....

So that pretty much ended our little lesson time but I was pleasantly surprised when Evan said, "Lets watch the news!" He even sat through the Presidents address this afternoon while his brothers napped.

We've also been spending time praying for Aunt Cici, Uncle Ben, Judah, Gigi, Tiernan and Silas in PNG. They're on the northern coast which could have been effected by the tsunami. Their last update can be found here. I dont expect to hear anything else from them until tonight as our days are their nights so currently they're sleeping.

Um, no thanks.

Dude, have you ever heard of personal space?

Apparently not.

We've Come A Long Way

Due to unexpected circumstances our anniversary didn't go as planned. I spent the day before and part of our anniversary in the hospital with one of our rambunctious boys, however that's a different story for another time. Oh and no worries he's made a full recovery and is doing just fine.

The bit of time we did have together Jed and I spent eating German chocolate cake we picked up at Publix, relaxing and reminiscing over the past 8 years.

First we talked about our honeymoon. Years later, our fondest memories tend to be the silly fights and mistakes we made! Our time in Australia was amazing however we we're joking around that we should have put it off until now because after being together longer we'd be able to enjoy it more instead of freaking out about the little stuff. Plus as parents we'd now appreciate a three week vacation on the beach SO MUCH MORE. Not that I necessarily want to be away from my kids that long... Maybe just a week? :)

We talked a bit about our wedding too. I admit that I lament that we didn't just elope. Its not that I didn't want to share the day with friends and family its just that my discomfort with being in front of a large group of people is not conducive with being a bride. I get queasy just thinking about it and I know that I never have to do it again!!

Then my culinary skills came up. I married an Italian man so I was doomed from the get go! :) Seriously though my cooking abilities were limited to what I could put in a microwave, on a George Foreman grill or order off a menu. My awesome husband never complained. Fortunately over the years I've learned to cook mostly via the web, thank you Pioneer Woman! My number one tip, now that I'm not completely lost in a kitchen, is ALWAYS use fresh garlic when possible. YUM! :)

We cannot believe that we are the parents of four beautiful little boys! Neither of us would have said we wanted this 8 years ago, we wanted an easy life with as few challenges as possible. However God has been gracious in showing us the foolishness of our thinking. When I said I was done, he patiently worked on my hard heart until I admitted that maybe I was open to another child and then I'd get pregnant again! Finally we get it, its not about us! Its about Him and the amazing kids he's given us to love and raise for His glory. We're more than happy now to sacrifice for this honor! Whatever God's plan is for our family we're open to it! (We're still waiting for Him to give us a little direction in this area, so please pray for us!)

Our relationship has drastically changed as well. Its quite similar to the change in our view on kids. Instead of our marriage being all about us being happy we realize that its about learning to serve and love one another to the glory of God. Watching my husband grow in this area through spending time in God's word has been such a challenge and encouragement to me. I am blessed to have a wonderful husband who follows Jesus! I love you Jed!

Yay for 8 years of marriage! I wonder what is in store for us over the next 8 years?! I'm looking forward to finding out!

This blog has been hijacked!!!

I am hijacking this blog to tell you how wonderful my wife is. This day eight years ago, we were married and started this journey! Laine is certainly not the same women I married eight years ago. The past eight years have transformed her into the most lovely women, and most nurturing mother. She is so amazing with our boys, and her patience with me is mind blowing! It is really hard to describe in words how great Laine is, as well as how much she means to me.

Our culture today, throws around words like awesome, love, amazing.... so much that they kind of loose their punch. I guess I will have to make up my own word. I choose supamazinultralove.

Laine I am so glad we have stuck together all these years, I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!

1 Little 2 Little...

Most married couples get a lot of questions about their fertility.

If you don't have any kids, you're constantly asked when you will have a kid.

If you only have one you're asked when you'll give that child a sibling.

If you have 2 kids and they're the same gender then you're asked when you'll try for the opposite gender.

If you have 3 kids you're told to stop having kids and get fixed. Which isn't really a question but you know, the other questions aren't usually questions either they're more suggestions.

And if you happen to have 4 or more kids people stare at you like you're crazy and ask you if they're all yours.

The questions never really end and I dont really mind them even when they're meant as suggestions. Its only when the person is being out right rude that I take offense but even then they have a right to their opinion just as I do.

All that to say, Jed and I both appreciate this article on birth control. I decided after Seth that I wouldn't be going back on hormonal birth control. For now its breast feeding, barrier methods and keeping track of my cycle. When we decide that our "covenantal hands are quite full" we'll go with sterilization.

Life with a Crawler

Ford has been crawling for a few months but only recently has discovered true purpose in his direction and increased speed.

And what is that purpose? Well, its usually one of three things, to be with me, to be with his brothers, or to be with the big kid toys.

If I'm in the kitchen making dinner, he is there. He scoots himself up to my ankles, wraps his arms around them and yells until I pick him up. Then I have to take him into the living room set him down, run back to what I was doing and to get as much done as I can before he reaches me again. This is repeated until I'm able to give him my undivided attention.

If its naptime for the older boys, he's guaranteed to be found making his way, if not already there, to Evan's room. While he adores all his brothers, Evan is by far the most fun. Evan knows how to make the best silly faces, he rolls around on the ground with his littlest brother and when tickling or snuggling, unlike the other boys, he knows how to be gentle.

Then there is the baby mecca, the toy room. Not only is this where bright, shiny, new (to him) toys are located, but his brothers spend the majority of their time out there too!

Unfortunately, it's the only room in our house that has a step (and its tile!), a heavy door and there are small toys, toys with sharp-ish edges and of course, broken toy pieces.

Side note: Why are boys so destructive? I mean do they have to throw cars off the table as hard as they can into the wall? Is there some kind of little boy rule/guide book mandating this behavior that was given to my sons and not me?

Plus many toys out there wouldn't survive a play date with him (see above side note).

So we're gettin out the baby gates, moving breakable objects to higher ground and I'll probably spend some time this week going through the big kid toys, throwing out some things while putting others in storage.

With kids of any age there seem to always be adjustments that have to be made, now or in the near future!

But I think he's worth it!