rain, rain don't go away

yesterday was nothing but a gross rainy day.  even though it was not a great day to do anything other than sit on the couch and watch movies the kids had a blast playing in the puddles and rain.  they jumped and ran, rode bikes, played basketball and so many other things.  they were so busy all day long i knew they would fall asleep as soon as they layed down last night.  once they were in bed i go ready for bed and snuggled in myself.  thing 2 was out within 5 minutes but thing one i heard more than a few times.  then boom my door slams open and he runs and jumps in my bed.  "momma can i sleep with you and hold your hand?  that lightening is awful!" 

ummmmm do i even have to think about that, "of course you can, climb up here."

i had the best time snuggling with him and talking before we went to bed.  i'll take rain anytime if i get sweet moments like that.

thanksgiving 2013

it’s been so long since i’ve updated our blog i almost forgot my password.  we had a fantastic visit with family in louisiana over thanksgiving.  once we got there everyone had a blast even with the heavy rain all but 1 day.  it was the getting there and getting home that was the pits.  we invested in a portable dvd player since the on in the van was on the fritz - which was a life saver for the older two.  granger ate and slept on and off wonderful the whole way, so it was only thing #3 who was the problem.  seariously, i told jason not to worry about the crying at first because i thought she would wear herself out.  i was so wrong it wasn’t funny in any way at all.  not only did she not cry herself to sleep she never went longer than about 15 to 20 minutes without crying for the ten hour trip. both ways people both ways!  she is not a good traveler.  she’s not even an okay traveler.  i’d be lying if i said i didn’t think about pulling over and having her shipped home.  just kidding (a little).

once we were there they all did great with only a few minor hiccups. we got to see lots of family and spend time with everyone and even found time to hit the local science center for an entire day - which was helped by 3 straight days of nothing but rain that never let up.

our trip in pictures....

                                                                                                           

why our swing has to go

75%

we've all heard those stories about hospitals when one patient has something and by the next day all the other patients on that floor somehow end up with that same problem or disease.  well guess what - it happened here.  first we had a sinus infection then next thing you know we are down and out all weekend.  i took the three sick kids to the doctor yesterday and here is where we stand.  3 sets or pinkeye, 2 ear infections, 1 sinus infection and a partridge in a pear tree.  we have since gotten all started on new meds, watched 10 episodes on mickey mouse clubhouse, 3 barbie movies and teen beach movie 5 times.  can't wait until the 75% of our house that is sick feels better!

is it friday yet?

getting to know you

10 things you don’t know about me....

1.  i’m not a huge breakfast person but two things i cannot pass on are blueberry scones and cheese grits.

2.  i only like even numbers, however i don’t like the number six so five and seven are acceptable.

3.  i always wanted to go to school for photography.

4.  i’m outgoing and loud but really i just like to lay on the couch with my kids and snuggle.

5.  i sometimes feel like i let corley get away with more than the others because i was the third kid and always got crapped on.  i know it’s wrong but i can’t help it.

6.  i adore all things from any era before the 70’s.

7.  i would love to be more organized but have no motivation to get there.

8.  every time i go to a craft fair i constantly thing “i could make that,” but have no time to do it so i buy it anyways.

9.  i love to read but have a hard time picking a book “worth” reading.

10.  i cannot under any circumstance watch scary movies. they always give me bad dreams.


  ** i will try to do these post more often either about me or the kids**

fall weather

so i know we aren’t in full full weather yet but but nothing makes me want a hot tub more than the beginning of fall.  seriously, a hot tub could change so much around our house.  plus there is a spot on our deck just waiting on a hot tub.

i’m almost certain i would stop biting my nails....

my dog wouldn’t get into people’s trash...



my kids would always get along and even form a little study group...
                            (they may have to slightly entertain themselves while i’m soaking)

my house would be spotless and clean...

i would get up and workout each and every morning...

......if i had a hot tub!

until then we will keep on keeping on and survive without one.

here’s to big dreams and raisin wrinkled fingers and toes.  dream big.

who is five months old?

this guy!!!!

more stats to come on chunkys grow habits

when did this happen?

is seems like just yesterday you were born

and changed mine and daddy’s life forever

i had never fully loved something so much

and now look at you

your first day of second grade

yes you still think we are pretty cool (wondering how long that will last)

and we think you are incredibly amazing!

we are so excited to watch you grow grayson.  you are a wonderful, sweet, compassionate, curious, SECOND grader.  wow time is flying by and you are growing so fast before our very eyes.  we love you!

"...let us enjoy ourselves with love!” Proverbs 7:18

wordless wednesday

what do you want me to know?

tonight i went to curriculum night at thing #2's school.  it was pretty typical..... what will be taught, how the carpool lane will go with a few changes since last year, uniform information (new to us this year since she is starting kindergarten), etc.  only there was something that caught me off guard a little.  in with all the normal forms i always fill out there was one question they snuck in on me.  now i'm not sure if i have never filled this question out before or if this is just such a big year with it being kindergarten.  or maybe since she is the second i just thought it wasn't going to be a hard as it was with the first starting kindergarten - well it is.  what was the question?

"what do you want me to know about your child?"

how do you answer that question?  do i write she is the most beautiful princess i know?  or maybe that she has made art skills?  she is a wonderful little sis to her big brother and a great big sister to the other 2?  hmmm i certainly can't leave it blank.  what about that she loves with her whole heart and you better watch out when she hugs you because she can and will knock you over?  oh maybe that all she want to be when she grows up is a mommy so that she can carry a real baby around on her hip?

yeah none of that even comes close to describing how amazing she is and there were only 6 lines so i had to show self control.  i went with "colbie loves to play and learn.  she is a very outgoing and loving child"  still it just doesn't seem like enough.

i know one thing for sure, the next two wednesdays morning will have tears both of sadness and joy all at the same time.  it is such a bitter sweet moment to drop them off at school and see them spread their wings even if only a little bit.

school daze

so we are all in a bit of a daze around this household lately.  finally coming to terms admitting that one starts school next wednesday and the other the following wednesday.  boo!  i am so ready for the routine, structure, and break yet at the same time i’m so not ready for the early mornings, rushing, yelling, and crying.  what’s a girl to do? i guess you really can’t have it all can you.  this summer really has been good though.  i was so worried back in april when granger was born.  just plain old scared about being home with all 4 by myself.  and while there are some thing i haven’t ventured out by myself with all of them to do (like the zoo - thank you hope) i think we are doing pretty good around here.  we may not have the cleanest house on the block but i feel like they would so they’ve had fun, at least the ones that speak anyways.  still working on the thing three.  she is up to about 20-30 words now and will try just about anything! :)

#2 is super excited to start kindergarten and #3 is supper not to start second.  he realizes he’s in for more work, harder work and less play/silly time.  who would sign up for that.  both are begging me to homeschool, which i have tossed the idea around but have no idea where to even start looking on how to do.  i mean how do you choose curriculum, schedules, work?  well see - there’s always next year right?  you know when i don’t have a newborn.  (does a 3 month old still pass for newborn?)   

since this is our last office weekend of summer we are planning so crazy fun.  pool, picnic, pizza, dirt bike riding, who knows we may go all out.

what 3 months?

my little ham hock is 3 months old yesterday.  i cannot believe three month have flown by.  and yesterday was a big day for my little guy.  he officially rolled over from his stomach to his back, not once but twice!  and up until yesterday he had never played with the toys that hang down from any of his little baby toys like the bouncy seat or the play mat.  well that changed too.  he reached right up and hit it about 10 times in a row.  then again about twenty minutes later he did it again.  during tummy time he decided he would actually play instead of just scream the whole time.  i guess he was just saving it all up for a big day - like his 3 month birthday!

granger you wear size 1 diapers and you go back and forth between disposable and cloth diapers, but always disposable at night.  you are sleeping pretty good going from about 10pm to 5 or 6am without waking up to eat.  you are starving in the morning though and you are very hard to calm down on the mornings that daddy has you, i don't have that problem too much.  every once in a while you throw me a curve ball but normally we do pretty good together buddy.  you are laughing and cooing all the time for me.

you love for your older brother and oldest sister to talk to you.  you love and tolerate your closest sister who loves to climb in your swing and bouncy seat even with you in them!  she loves you and loves to get you your fluff and blanket and clothes and anything else she thinks you might need.  you have wonderful siblings that adore you too.

you are growing so so fast.  can time just slow down a little so i can savor this last baby a little bit more?

i love you granger!  you are a sweet and precious baby.

for memory sake for baby c

how in the world are you 20 months old already my sweet corley paige?  pretty soon i'm going to start having to referring to you in "years old" instead of months.  seriously i just talkedd to someone about having you evaled for speech therapy and boom over night you went from only saying maybe 5 words to trying to repeat everything we say.  just in the past few days you have added the follwing words to your vocabulary
       dog
yuck
duck
quack
beep beep
go
car
and you even attempt to say granger, which is really pretty fun to listen to

you wear cloth diapers during the day and disposable diapers at night still.  i have yet to get brave enough to put you in a cloth diaper for over 12 hours.  of course the past 2 mornings i have woken up to you in your crip with you pajama bottoms off and your diaper off as well so at this point i'm not sure there is much difference.

you are hilarious to just stand back and watch right now.  from playing and psuhing your babies to feeding them.  you love to also try to play board games with your older brother and sister, which they just loooooove (said in the most sarcastic font)!  you are just as aweet as you can be right down to your inner most core.  you love your little brother and take very good care of him.  you give the best hugs and kisses.  i love you more than i could ever imagine.

you know you’re a mother of 4 when

you do this just to “pinterest” for a few minutes.

father's day photo shoot

at work jason has recently been made to cube share on certain days for a while, hence meaning the need to bring home all the frames and pictures he had at the office.  so for father’s day the kids and i decided to make him a collage to hang on “his” wall that wouldn’t take up any desk space.  so i took each kid individually to take pictures for daddy.  this way we got the pictures done while someone was watching the other 3 and i got to spend time with each one alone.  the older two were so funny.  they wanted to pose in whatever way they had seen before.  grayson picked a pose i’m certain came from his school photos this past year, and he also picked his spot (which was not great becuase the sun was right in the camera but hey it made him super happy).  and how could it turn out bad, am i right?

half pint knew right where she wanted hers taken.  she picked the spots, the poses, and her outfits.  yep, you bet ya....she demanded a wardrobe change with site change to match.  this was hysterical because the first place was someones backyard and the second was someones front yard.  i begged to just go to the park but she wasn’t having it.  we knocked several times to ask at the first place and no one was home.  so we snuck on the side yard and snapped a few quick pictures.  maybe a bit more zoom on her face but the posing she does cracks me up.

site #2 was empty as well.  let me rephrase that; there were no humans in site.  we again got everything ready jumped out she struck a pose and told me to “hurry up and get it."

after the first two i was preparing myself for a total fight getting tiny bit to smile and have fun but she surprised me 100%.  i got my dad to blow some bubble in his front yard while we were over there one afternoon (no strange request for her location of course it may help that she doesn’t talk much at all).  she had a blast and they turned out to be a perfect capture of her personality i think.

this little boogie was the hardest to get.  between the crying, pooping, and please notice the stream of pee in picture number 1.....we got 2 good shots of him i think.

on father’s day with all his littles

this one turned out better than her posed pics and it was just a random picture in our front yard.  she said i couldn’t use it though because she wasn’t wearing any of her “costumes”- no joke i see hollywood in her future!

first haircut

bloglovin'

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

for those of you who use bloglovin’ i’m there too!

a day in the life....

here is one very typical day in our house right now.

we wake up and cry when we realize our day has begun and mommy is still going without coffee (all for us, of course).  no appreciation i tell ya

while nursing thing 4 thing 3 take it upon herself to rearrange the diapers

                                                  

then she proceeds to search through all bags she can get to, looking for....whatever she can find

this time it happens to be an art project by thing 2.  corley rubbed all the glued on bird seed off which starts the crying from colbie because “it’s ruined now!"

with everyone feed and happy for the time being i take a few minutes to try an art project of my own.  it turned out bigger than i anticipated but cute none the less

thing numero 2 is upset again because i don’t know her “real” name and “how it goes”  forget the 10 minute convo between her and i trying to explain what a monogram is

with 3 loads of laundry done, one load of dishes and several books now read it’s time to feed the littlest one again.  i assume my seat on the couch and wait while she scopes out her target

this time it’s a package of wipes that has been left unattended.  saying no or stop only makes it worse at this point

one more pic of just how many she pulled out before she tired of the thrill

the oldest two found 2 bags of toys that were cleaned up and ready to be taken to goodwill or somewhere other than our house.  they decided dump all the toys out all over the floor and rip head and arm holes in the trash bags and get ready.  ready for what i ask?  well of course to get “pied in the face”....hmmm i think to myself and try to resist the urge

i really did try to resist the urge but just couldn’t.  win:win i get to throw cool whip in their face and they get to eat cool whip

everyone is happy at the end

and i should say it was only 3pm we still had at least 5 more hours before i could start getting them all to bed at this point.  

happy tuesday y’all!