Seasons

I love the change of seasons. Every single one of them. By the time I grow weary of the current season, it changes to new one. I guess I like change. So I don’t think I have a favorite season, just the start of each new one. There are exciting things that come with each one. The air feels a certain way. And it brings a refreshing familiar temperature. And Oregon has all four distinct seasons. They may not always come right on time, but they do come. But none of them are too extreme to be enjoyable. Something about the change of seasons brings joy to my soul. Fall, thanks for coming.


We literally cut ourselves in half this weekend. Peter, Dallin, Eden and Tanner took off for some Great Wolf Lodge fun while I stayed home with Carter, Lily and Luke. I think Peter got the better end of the deal. He called me last night and told me they were all in heaven. Even Peter was able to relax and enjoy without the more high maintenance people there(the kids, not me silly). Lots of water sliding, wand playing and cousin fun going on there. I even stocked them with the junkiest kid junk food to eat. I feel pretty guilty about that, but I am sure they are in hog heaven. I got to run errands with 3 little ones, take them to parent teacher conferences while they had crying fits and hyperactivity, and of course watched Thomas the Tank Engine. Add in all the breast feeding and things have been a real treat around here. I’m not bitter though (okay, maybe a bit).


Baby Luke started smiling the last couple of days! Be still my heart. What a gift that is for a mommy that has worked so hard for you in the last year.

ABC Fun

When the kids do things like this, I remember the method to our maddness of having our kids close in age:

Moments

It's always fun to download the pictures from my Ipod and remember those moments that might have been forgotten.  Here are a few things I found today:

The kids often ask me to take random pictures of them with things they are proud of. 

Cousins!  This was the first time that Luke met his cousin Wyatt who is 3 weeks older than him.  With my sister moving closer to us, I think they will be great friends!
My parents, my sister and I went to see the Green Smoothie Girl when she was in Portland a couple of weeks ago.  I have read a lot of her stuff so I didn't really learn anything new, but it was fun and inspiring to see her nonetheless. 
 And on the other end of the spectrum!!! For and FHE we went to Krispie Creme to watch them make donuts enjoy a treat.  Yes, even super heros eat donuts in case you were wondering!  We also consider ourselves doing pretty well when 3 out of 4 children make it with shoes.

Tooth Miracle

Last Week my little Eden had the cutest day.  When I saw her and Dallin walking down the street toward the house after school I opened the door to greet them.  Eden started running as fast as she could all excited about something.  As she got closer I could hear her yelling "I lost my first tooth!" over and over again. 

When she got to me she gave me a big celabratory hug and showed me a tiny little treasure chest with her tooth inside.  Apparently she wiggled it so much it came out and she didn't have a chance to tell her teacher before recess.  She told the recess duty teacher who sent her to the office where she was given her cute little chest to keep it in. 

After that we went on with our day and as Eden was doing her afternoon chores she came downstairs and told me that she had lost her tooth, literally.  She was "cleaning her room" and she sat down on her bed and opened the little chest and the tooth went flying..   So she and I set out to find it.
After a few minutes Eden said "Maybe we should we say a prayer or something."  My heart was so proud of her and I eagerly agreed.  I expected her to kneel down right there, but instead she ran out of the room and downstairs for a couple of minutes and then came back.  I didn't question her methods and we continued looking.  I kept praying in my heart that Heavenly Father would answer her sweet little prayer. We talked about listening to the promptings of the spirit as we looked.  She seemed very sure that her prayer would be answered.

 After a few more minutes, I stood up thinking of giving up because Luke needed me.  I was trying to figure out how to break it to Eden, when she flopped down on her bed on her belly and hung her head over the side and said " Oh, here it is!"  Seriously?  I had looked under her bed like 10 times and we had moved it twice to get a better look.  I could not believe it!  I suggested that we say another prayer to thank Heavenly Father for answering our prayers.  We knelt and said one together this time and I could see Eden's little seed of faith had grown. 

She immediately wanted to call her daddy at work and tell him all about how she lost her first tooth and how she misplaced it and her prayer was answered.  Peter told her to always remember this great experience.   What a good little person she is.

Kiddos

Here are a few facts about each of our kids lately (other than Luke, who I already wrote about).

   Dallin started his school year off very strong. He had his teacher for reading last year so they know each other well. That has made the transition into a new year very easy for him. After the first couple of weeks I emailed his teacher to see if there were any issues that we needed to trouble shoot. She replied that he is always on task, doing well socially and is a MODEL STUDENT! He is not using any extra schedules, or reinforcements so far, so I am very proud of his independence. As usual, this kid amazes me and continues to prove that there is no limit to how far he will go. Dallin is quite obsessed with Angry Birds on my Ipod which I use to my advantage as an incentive to do his reading, homework and chores. Dallin is doing great in soccer and chess club as well.

Eden is loving first grade. She has a couple of really good friends in her class that she likes to play with. She also loves to come home and do her homework. Her teacher (Dallin’s old teacher who we love love love) said she is always on task, is funny, contributes to discussion and loves her cute little voice. Eden is a soccer star, enjoys chess club, an after school drawing class and started ballet this year and loves it all. Lately I have noticed the shy side of Eden fading away as she has become more confident. This is wonderful to see. She has a great sense of humor and especially loves to joke around with her daddy. She holds her own with all her brothers and doesn’t let any of them push her (or anyone else) around. She is also a great big sister to Lily. They have a great little friendship going on.  I used to be a little sad that there is a 5 year space between the girls, but now I see that is is awesome.  Lily totally trusts Eden and does whatever she wants her to do and Eden loves to help her.  Sometimes I think Lily likes her big sister better than her mommy (who makes her take naps)! 

Tanner started Kindergarten! What???? I must say he is the cutest kindergartner that I have ever seen. Dallin and Eden walk him to school and I love seeing them holding Tanner’s hands as they walk down the street with their backpacks on. The bus drops him off at the end of our street after school and he is always so happy. He steps off the bus with big grins and runs to me with his outstretched arms to give me a big hug. He is just so cute I can barely stand it. He looks like such a big boy to me, but at the same time such a little guy. Then we walk home and he talks my ear off about all of his favorite things about school. He especially loves his “Alpha Friends” which is how they are learning the alphabet sounds with actions. Tanner is trying to work it out socially. He was trying to be friends with a boy on the bus named Patrick. The first couple of days Tanner came home talking all about how he sat next to Patrick. Then, one day he scrunched up his little face in a very Tanner like way and said that Patrick did not like him anymore. I don’t know what happened, but I tried not to make a big deal of it. The next day he came home even more frustrated and said that he sat by Patrick and he said that he did not want to be his friend. Then his scrunched up sour face turned into a mischievous smile and he said “So I scooted really close to him anyway.” Apparently he thought it would be funny to annoy the boy that would not be his friend. I tried really hard not to laugh and was just glad that he didn’t take things to hard. Now he sits by another boy that likes to be his friend instead.

Carter is an all out 3 year old. He has started to have a love for books and begs me to read to him throughout the day. It is so fun to have a child that is so easy to read with, he loves it. He is talking a lot and showing his cute 3 year old logic now and making hilarious facial expressions. I sense a lot of Carter quotes in my blogging future. I love this phase of finding out what is really going on inside their little mind. Carter is an affectionate little guy and often says “I love you.” and “You are my friend.” After Luke came he kept coming up to me and saying “Baby out your tummy?” and I would say “Yes” As he would look back and forth between my belly and Luke. Carter officially does not like to be called a baby and will assure you that he is a “big boy.” Lily is just as cute as a button. That girl has my heart. She is also a very busy girl and is quite a handful. Talk about a free spirit. She loves to dance to music and talks a mile a minute in her adorable little voice. A lot of what she says is jumbled but she really tries to get her point across. She can say everyone’s name now and I love how she tries to make the right sounds. Her disposition reminds me a lot of Tanner’s at this age. Very happy and playful but also really smart and observant. Her strong independent side also shows through a lot.

Journaling

Well, life lately has been pretty intense.  Can't imagine why.  I am in a baby fog still but slowly starting to feel like myself again.  I haven't really gotten myself into a personal daily routine yet...at all.  I am at the mercy of a cute little baby when he needs to be fed or held.  I am still just enjoying that.  I never know when I am going to get a chance to shower, clean, do laundry, blog or anything else yet.  I have barely touched my camera in weeks. I hope to find my groove soon. I keep reminding myself that he is only a month old.  I shouldn't really expect to have it all together yet (will I ever?).

I did finally make a meal plan and go grocery shopping for real after a couple months of living on the fly. That was a big accomplishment.  My latest trial is making double sized dinners and eating the left overs for lunch and freezing so that I don't have to think too much.  So far so good.  I just planned a handful of easy, healthy dinners, bought double ingredients and stocked the pantry with cereal and oatmeal for breakfasts.  I also bought lots of fruit and nuts for snacks and green smoothie supplies.  Its nice to be back on track with our nutrition. 

We have fallen into pretty good routine with the older 3 kids in school thank goodness.  It isn't perfect, but we muddle through well enough for now. The school kids are doing great this year(I have a kid update almost ready to post). 

Here is what the kids day typically looks like:
In the morning we see them off and I hang out with Carter and Lily.  They are double trouble lately with their favorite activity being stripping and running around naked. I have to make sure to catch it before someone has an accident. It seems like mostly damage control because they have so much fun making messes together and getting into things that they shouldn't.  Good thing they are super cute.

Then Tanner comes home from Kindergarten.  We have lunch and Lily goes down for a nap.  I enjoy this time of day because Tanner will play pretty well with Carter and entertain themselves.  I sometimes try to snooze on the couch in between taking care of the kids needs every few minutes. 

At 2:00 Dallin and Eden get home and we do their afternoon schedules with reading, homework and chores.  Then there is another afternoon lull as they enjoy their free time to play.  Then it is time for dinner, chores, sports or family time and bed time.  The night shift isn't too bad with only needing to feed the baby once and the occasional wakeful child.

Giving the kids this much structure is so nice.  For me personally though, it is a huge task to keep everyone going.  It is quite a thing to run the show and also spend about half my time with Luke.  I have learned how to nurse and walk around at the same time!  Did I mention that I have 3 kids in diapers at the moment?   

I am holding up pretty well, with a few trials.  The post partum migraines started coming about every other day but I have managed them okay. Luckily they seem to start in the early evening so it is close enough to bed time that I can sleep them off without medication.  I am taking a preventative medicine, but that hasn't helped much yet.  Nursing is not as easy as it was at first, but I am managing.  Just all the normal discomforts that one goes through.  I had to go buy several new shirts after becoming frustrated that I can't wear most of my clothing due to my "Dolly Partons" as I have nicknamed them. Ouch.  Oh, what our bodies go through as mothers.  I am determined to keep at it with the nursing though.  I have only made it for a year one time for various reasons, but I hope to do that again with this baby. 

I have been able to enjoy a girls night and Peter has given me plenty of breaks to get out so I am feeling really good mentally with all that is going on in life.  Not having Internet is one of the best things we have ever done.  Now it is more of a treat to go and have my little breaks.   I have discovered the comforts of the cushy chairs at Starbucks, along with sipping a caramel hot chocolate.  It's my new favorite way to have a little break and feel spoiled.  I also found that I can log on while I wait for Eden at her dance class.  Amazing how easy Internet access is even when you don't have it at home.  Love not having the distraction from my kids in the home.  It is just too easy to be checked out at home with TV/Netflix and Internet.  It was one of the hardest things to bite the bullet and get rid of these things but the blessings that have come are amazing and keep getting better. 

Baby Luke

I wrote this a few days ago am just getting around to publishing it:
  

Baby Luke has been with us for 3 weeks now.  It really amazes me that only 3 weeks ago I was still pregnant and hadn’t met my sweet baby yet. 

That seems like a distant memory now.

I can’t get enough of his sweet smelling little floppy head.

So small and helpless.

Finding comfort in my arms.

He loves to be close to me.

He never fails to calm down to the sound of my voice

And cuddling up on on my chest.

He knows me. 

I know him.

It seems like it has always been this way.

I love to feed him,

Stare into his eyes when he is awake

Watch him as he smiles in his sleep

Cuddle him all night

I never want to put him down.

He is such a content little baby. He rarely fusses unless he is hungry.  He just eats and sleeps most of the time.  He loves the constant noise of our full house and does not mind sleeping despite our happy chaos.  He has figured out his nights and days and gives me 6 to 7 hours of sleep at night already.  Not bad! 

 We are very gradually working into a three hour eat, wake, sleep schedule repeated throughout the day.  He seems to fall into that pretty naturally but I am not stressing it too much.

His siblings just adore him.  They can’t wait to visit him first thing when they wake, come home from school or before going to bed.  They love to hold him and kiss his head and sing to him.  It is so tender.  Even Lily really acknowledged him the other day and kissed him and as she looked at his tiny feet, repeated “This little piggy went to market” on them.  It was so cute.  She loves to give him his blanky and steal his binky.     

He has hit a growth spurt the last couple of days and is starting to change.  I can’t believe how quickly this time passes.  I wish I could make it all slow down for a while. 

I love you baby Luke.  I am so glad you are here.

I have been feeling so blessed to have all these little people in my life.  It is amazing how much love you feel for your children and how it grows more with each one that comes. Life is so rich and beautiful with them in our family.  I just can’t describe in words what I feel for them.  There aren’t any words.  They will always be my babies. My heart feels so full, literally.  Even for a little baby that I have only known (on the outside) for 3 weeks.  I can’t imagine life without any of them.