{hush, little baby}

Bedtime has long been one of the hardest parts of the day for me. It comes close on the heels of dinner time, bath time, homework time, grumpy time, and tired time, and I'm just plain ready to have a few minutes to myself. I'm ready to not have anyone touching me, pulling on me, asking for a snack, or having to clean up one of the seemingly endless messes. I'm ready to watch whatever I want on TV, and not hear one more episode of Max and Ruby. I'm ready to sit and have my favorite popcorn and be able to eat the whole thing myself, run a few errands alone, or even meet up with a friend or two.

I know something else about bedtime. Snuggling up to a child with damp, clean hair, reading a few chapters out of one of our favorite books, talking about "sports" (or whatever subject they request), and singing their favorite song (Hush, Little Baby) is one of the sweetest moments of the day, and one that is worth enjoying, even when (and especially when) I'm anxious for that alone time.

One day, when all I have is quiet nights, I know that I will be so glad that I did.

HUSH LITTLE BABY

Hush, little baby, don't say a word,
Mama's going to buy you a mockingbird.

If that mockingbird won't sing,
Mama's going to buy you a diamond ring.

If that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama's going to buy you a looking glass.

If that looking glass gets broke,
Mama's going to buy you a billy goat.

If that billy goat won't pull,
Mama's going to buy you a cart and bull.

If that cart and bull turn over,
Mama's going to buy you a dog named Rover.

If that dog named Rover won't bark,
Mama's going to buy you a horse and cart.

If that horse and cart fall down,
You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town.

So hush little baby, don't you cry,
Daddy loves you and so do I.

{henry b.}

We love our Henry B.!

{to cut or not to cut}

Fuzzy and Slick. That's how one of our good friends refers to our boys. And it's true--Henry's hair sticks down nicely, close to his head, while every single hair on Jack's head sticks out.

It is most definitely adorable--fuzzy, red, baby hair. It's also a little crazy looking, and a tiny haircut would probably make a world of difference.

Am I the only one who has a hard time cutting baby hair? Even though I know it would be an improvement, I feel like once you cut it, they just look so much older. I wouldn't even consider it until he turned one, but now that he is, I think I'm ready.

So...cut, or not?

{birthday cake}

A first birthday would not be complete without the cake...

• Jack dove right in--no hesitation at all.
  
• Henry was a little more reticent at first--then he made up for lost time!

The clean up? Not so fun, but totally worth it.

{1}

One year ago...

JACK:

• my cuddle-er, loves to be held
• sweet
  
• happy
• laid back
• curious
• loves to eat!
• easy to please
• 4 cute teeth, but 4 more coming soon!
• Jack Sprat, Jack-Jack
  

HENRY:

• a grin as big as can be
• wants to be EVERYWHERE
• loves to have what anyone else has
• momma's boy
• in charge
• full of energy, never stopping
• stubborn--knows what he wants
• 8 teeth by 10 months--this kid was born to eat!
  
• Henry B.
  

Sweet babies, I can't believe you are one year old!
I'm so incredibly grateful that my plan was not the same as God's plan, and that you are both here with me.

I love you! Happy Birthday my darling boys!

{spill}

Ever wonder what an entire gallon of milk looks like all over the floor?

Well, let me help you with that.




These pictures do not even come close to doing the actual damage justice. It's been an afternoon's project to get it all cleaned up, and I have a feeling I will be finding little droplets of milk for awhile. Poor little Miss Emma--it wasn't her fault. I was bringing in the groceries, and set the milk too close to the edge of the island.

Just another day in the life, right?

{snippets}

I have a riddle for you today.

If your little girl asked you, "I would like mustaches on my blinks", how would you respond?

She wanted mascara on her eyes. LOL.
That Miss Kate, I love the words she uses. She also calls Corn Flakes "Snow Flakes". I don't even try to correct her. She has the rest of her life to say it right!

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Rick was walking by Emma's room this morning around 6am. She was sitting quietly in her room, with the lamp on, reading the Gospel Principles manual. She kills me.

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{lunch conversation}

Let me set the scene around the table at lunch today...

• two sick kids, throwing up and with fevers (that had been up all night)
• one sick baby, wanting to be held, but not while sitting down; wanting to eat, but not wanting to sit in his chair
• one hungry baby, wanting food that of course needed to be spoon fed
• one big boy, needing insulin and lots of encouragement to get his chores done (including the dishes that were currently spread all over the kitchen)
  
• two girlies, both clearly making it know that they want lunch...now
  

The conversation:

Kate: Why do you have so many kids?

Me: (my harried, but sincere answer) Because we have so much fun together, and we love having you as part of our family.

...a small pause

Emma: I love staying home and having so much fun with you, Mom.

Kate: Dad's sure missing out on all this fun.

------------------

Why yes, he sure is.

{another milestone}

Well, I'm about to have a whole lot more money.

This is the last formula I will ever buy! (most likely)

HALLELUJAH! I swear, I could have put Ryan through his first year of college with what we spent on formula, so it really is a day of celebration.

On the other hand, I am still recovering from the fact that my baby boys are drinking milk from a sippy cup, and will be 1 year old in a couple weeks.

*sigh*

{4th of July celebration}

I look forward to the 4th of July all year. I LOVE it.

It was an especially nice weekend this year, because with the 4th falling on Sunday, Rick had both Friday and Monday off. It was wonderful. We went to the pool, to the beach, ate yummy food, and spent time with good friends. It was wonderful.

Sunday evening we went to watch the fireworks in our traditional spot on the church lawn. It is the best seat in town! It's the perfect place--lots of friends to see, plenty of space for kids to run and around and play, and not much traffic when leaving. We tried to give the four littles a nap that afternoon, and while the boys cooperated, the girls did not. Hence, the exhaustion (and hysteria) set in on our way home, but since the end result was them sleeping in until almost 9am, it worked out just fine.

Handsome boys.

Yep. Jack has a mohawk, and I love it. Since his hair naturally sticks up, I just help it along with a little gel. It fits him perfectly.

Just chillin'...

We had our traditional homemade ice cream, and my girls were two of the best customers.

I'm not sure what Emma is scrunching her nose about, but it made me laugh.

Okay. This picture was an attempt to be in front of the camera more, but you can see how successful that was, lol.

Happy 4th!

{improvisation}

What do you do when you have two boys being wild while you're trying to feed them lunch in the church kitchen during Sunday School??

Grab a bowl (for Jack), and a stew pot (for Henry)!

Now if that pot only had buckles, it would be perfect.

{camp}

It was off to Scout Camp for Rick and Ryan last week, and besides my excitement for them (it was their first year!), my insides were full of trepidation. They would be gone for 6 nights, and that, to be honest, scared me a little. The days would be no big deal--I was used to that. It was that whole dinnertime/bedtime part of things that I knew would be difficult.

It turned out to be a really good week, and I'm still alive! We actually had our own "camp" (the girls were pretending we were doing scout camp, too), and filled it with a lot of really fun things. We went swimming, to the splash park, on an adventure with some friends to another town, made yummy treats, and made dinnertime very low key. Thanks to some wonderful friends, I was also able to enjoy the week with chatting time, treats, and even a night out.

Did we have our moments? Absolutely. Do I want to be on my own again anytime soon? Not so much. But I realized that I can do it--that I can figure it out, and make it work, even if it's hard. My girls stepped up to the plate, and were huge helpers--I think it was a really good opportunity for them to have more responsibility.

Splash Park:




Swimming:

Why did I buy EVERYTHING pink when I had the girls?



As for the boys, they couldn't have had a better week. Rick loved being with Ryan, helping with all the boys, and hanging out with his friends that were there, too. Ryan had been looking forward to it since last year, when one of his good friends was old enough to go, but he wasn't. It was everything he wanted it to be, and more. He bunked with one of his best friends, ate SO MUCH FOOD (Rick used an an entire vial of insulin while he was there!), and learned many new things. He and his two friends earned the most merit badges of their troop, and they worked hard the whole week.

Ryan, writing in his nature notebook for the Fish & Wildlife merit badge--Rick sent this to me from his phone.


Rick and Ryan, home from camp!


I also learned a few things...

1. Boys do not put a lot of emphasis on changing their underwear or socks, brushing their teeth, or changing their clothes while at Scout Camp.

2. I cannot send any piece of clothing that I want back in the same condition as it left. If only you could see the pair of socks Ryan was wearing when he got home.

3. Boys are boys. Through and through.

We missed them terribly. I'm so glad they had a great time, but I'm also so glad they're home!

{lost}

I started this post a couple of days ago, and uploaded more pictures than usual. I wasn't sure why, but I had just been sorting through them to see which ones I wanted to use. Today I was really, really, thankful I did.

This morning, my laptop died. Well, allegedly died. All of a sudden (and I mean that literally...I was right in the middle of using it) a black screen appeared, with the words "operating system not found" written across the top. Not so good. I went through every troubleshooting idea I could think of, but still nothing.

The whole time, the fact that line item #4 on my to-do list hasn't been crossed off---"back up hard drive, and copy pictures on to a CD"---was haunting me. I do have someone coming to look at it tomorrow, but in the meantime, I'm preparing myself for the very real chance that these pictures might be some of the only ones I have of my babies. I know. I want to cry.

----------------------

Ryan & Jack

Ryan & Henry

Kate & Jack

Kate...we found her like this a few nights ago on our way to bed. She didn't want to be in her bed, and decided to make another one on the landing.

This summer has been really fun to see the boys experience grass, the swing, and the park for the first time. Neither one of them love the feel of the grass, but Jack especially dislikes it. Usually I can put them on the blanket and they will stay on it, but this particular day they both got adventurous.

The foot in the air? Cracks me up.

Henry loves the swing! And I love his huge grin.

One of Henry's quiet moments. They are very few and far between. :)

This is our FAVORITE. He does it all the time, and we always race to the camera to see if we can capture it. Rick was finally able to this past week, and it makes me smile every time I look at it.

My girls.

So, I'm praying for a miracle. I will be SO sad to lose so many pictures and video from the last couple of months. Lesson learned...back up your files more often than every couple of months.

{last day}

I {heart} this picture. It's Ryan's kindergarten picture, and it is still my most favorite. I can still picture him at that age, and how utterly delightful he was. He was my only child, and it was just the two of us for a really long time. I cherish those days I was able to spend with him.

Yesterday was Ryan's last day of 5th grade, and of elementary school. I can't believe it. He's totally ready to move on...but I'm not ready to let go. How can this be? He's still my baby! Plus, aren't I still the same age? :)

Kindergarten:


5th grade:

I think I need a support group, lol.

{memorial day weekend}

This was a great weekend.
On Saturday we finally got brave and went looking for plants, bushes, and flowers to landscape our yard. We've lived in our house for two years now, and haven't landscaped a thing, so it was about time. I just had no idea where to start! A blank slate can be good...but it's also a little scary. A good friend drew out a couple landscaping plans for us, and that helped immensely. We are definitely in a new territory, but I'm really excited about what we got. It's just a start, but it will be nice to not be the only house on the block without a little greenery.

When we were working in the yard later that day, I was cleaning off the front door and porch. I was going to spray it all down, so I took the wreath off of the door. Guess what I found?


It couldn't stay on my wreath, so we took it off and put it up in a tree. I'm so sad for the mama bird. I don't know what we should have done, but I know she's not going to be able to find her eggs. If anyone knows, please let me know!

That night we went to a professional baseball game, and had a blast. It's right here in our town, so we don't have to go very far, and the best seats in the house are the lawn tickets. You can see everything, and the kids can move around. Add in some ice cream and cotton candy, and it's even better!

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Sunday was just beautiful. Can I just tell you how much I love being able to grill, and eat outside on the picnic table? I just sat there, looking around, and realized it was a perfect moment. Of course the watermelon and corn on the cob helped. :) We built a fire in the firepit and had S'mores later that evening, and even Jack and Henry tried their first marshmallows. (Jack liked them, Henry didn't.) It was already feeling like summer, and I knew we would have a hard time going back to school on Tuesday.

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Monday we had great plans. There is a huge Memorial Day parade here, and we look forward to it every year. A big BBQ with all of our friends was scheduled for that afternoon, and all of us were anticipating a really great celebration. We woke up to a really big thunderstorm, and when we checked the weather, it was supposed to rain off and on all day long. The parade was definitely off, but the BBQ was up in the air. It was 9:30am, our whole family was dressed, and the car was packed. That doesn't happen very often at our house, and so we decided to take advantage of it. We hopped in the car, and started driving! There was rain forecasted for the whole state, so we knew we had to go somewhere indoors. We headed for a large city just a couple of hours away. We shopped, ate at our favorite restaurant, and stopped to see the temple. It was just so fun. The kids did really well, until we were about 20 minutes from home, when they all started having meltdowns. We made it though, and tucked them right into bed when we got home. It was perfect. We had a few bumps along the way (to be expected), but it was a really great family day.

(at the mall, after a very long day!)

I'll just leave you with this...

Quote of the weekend: (Emma) "You've got too many kids, Dad".