Raising Four

Last Day of School!

2010-05-26T07:47:00.000-07:00

I have not been blogging much lately, as I've been feeling kind of blah. Today is the boys last day of school, already! Normally, each year I am really looking forward to summer and having the kids home with me all day... this year, notsomuch! I don't want to deal with all the fighting, whinning, arguing, and crying. They don't want to play outside that much, so I almost have to force them to. I am hoping to turn things around though. My mission for the next couple of days is to come up with a bunch of cheap/free stuff that we can do this summer, to keep us busy! Then come June 1st I'm going to get all the things we need to have a fun summer! Wish me luck!

Growing Up

2010-04-26T12:45:00.000-07:00

I got asked today if I was a little bit sad that Katy is growing up so quickly, and I am... just a little because she's my last. I LOVE babies and I love the newborn stage! I think I was a lot more sad when my oldest was little and I saw him growing up soo fast. Now, I'm at the point where I actually look forward to each new stage with the kids, and I am mostly happy that they are growing up.

This weekend my oldest made brownies all by himself! I was so proud, and so was he. He was able to read the directions on the package, mix them up, and put them into the oven and turn it on all on his own. Then I was sitting on the couch and Ryan came and sat by me and read a magazine article to me! I was shocked! I did have to help him with a few big words, but other that that he was able to figure out the rest of the words on his own. I just can't believe how well he is reading considering he just turned six and is only in Kindergarten. Andrew continues to amaze me every day with how well he is speaking, and the things that he knows. He is growing up too! Unfortunately, he has no desire to go potty in the toilet like a big boy. I asked him last night where his potty should go and he told me "in my diaper". LOL. Ah well, you can't have everything I guess. :)

I'm an Aunt!

2010-04-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

For the first time! My nephew Weston Myles was born last night!

Circus!

2010-04-12T07:39:00.000-07:00

We were given free tickets to the Circus that was in town, so yesterday we loaded up the whole family and went to see the Circus! We had never been to the Circus before, so I wasn't quite sure what we were in for - but over all we all enjoyed it, even the baby! She was very interested in the gymnast women who performed up near the ceiling on ropes and fabric. She also liked it when they turned down off the lights and you could see all of the kids' light up toys that they bought. Our boys were a little upset that they didn't get to buy any of those toys! We rarely carry cash, but we had a few dollars that we used to buy pop and popcorn. They also wanted to ride the elephants during intermission, but we didn't have enough cash to buy the special tickets for it and you couldn't pay for anything there with a credit card.

I really liked the elephant tricks, and the kids liked the clowns. There was one who had these stuffed animals that he was 'winding up' but it wouldn't work until he got to the elephant. So he gets the elephant to follow him around, but it keeps falling down at a certain point and he picks it up ... well it turns out that the stuffed elephant robot toy - is a little DOG in a costume! I was shocked! LOL. Anyway, it was fun and something new and different for us to do. They kids enjoyed it, but unfortunately my husband did not bring the camera so we didn't get any pictures!

6 years/4 months/Easter

2010-04-08T11:01:00.000-07:00

We had a very busy Easter weekend. Ryan turned 6 years old on Friday! I can't believe how big he has gotten! He has changed and grown so much over the past year. He is doing wonderfully in school! He really likes going to school, playing with other kids, doing puzzles, reading, math, running, playing, etc. He's doing great!

We traveled to the Twin Cities over the weekend to visit family for the Easter holiday. It was really nice to see everyone again. My grandparents are back from down south, and we got another 4 generation picture with my grandma, my mom, me and little Katy. I will have to try and get some pictures on here. The boys had lots of fun doing an Egg Hunt and playing with my cousin's kids. They also got to spend time playing games and doing puzzles with their grandparents. We went to the Mall of America with my in-laws and ate at the Bubba Gump Shrimp resturant which was fun, and then the boys got to ride in the Nascar race cars with Daddy and thier Uncle.

Katy turned 4 months on Saturday, but we've been so busy that I didn't get her in for her check-up until today. She is 24 in. long and weighs 14lbs.4oz. She's growing and getting stronger every day. She really loves being held and talked to, but she is also enjoying playing with toys these days. I set up the Exersaucer for her and she likes that for a bit too. She wants to sit up and play and be a part of everything. She's a very happy baby, and she traveled really well!

Pictures!

2010-03-29T14:30:00.000-07:00

We had some spring/Easter pics taken of all 4 kids over the weekend. I love them!

Spring!

2010-03-23T11:52:00.001-07:00

Well, spring is officially here... and we spent yesterday afternoon at the park enjoying the nice weather! It was so nice to get outside again, and the boys are loving it. I am looking forward to summer too.

You may have noticed I haven't been very active on here lately, just been busy with regular every day stuff. We did have one interesting incident though. Our van was stolen. Now we live in a smallish rural community, that has a very low crime rate. I never thought we would have anything like that happen. We all got up one morning and my husband was leaving for work, and our van was just gone. We called the police and they came and took a report. I sent an email out to everyone I know who lives in my area. My van had been in the garage, but our garage door is sort of broken and we had always (for the past six years since we moved here) kept our keys a compartment inside the vehicle. Not doing that anymore! Now we're making sure to lock everything up tight and bring the keys in the house. Luckily, the police found our van later on that day! It was parked in a near-by trailer court and my husband was able to go and get it. Everything was still there! So its almost like it never happened, but yet it did.

What I found this morning...

2010-03-14T10:09:00.000-07:00

A sock filled with popcorn. Not kidding. That is all.

Baptism

2010-03-01T11:37:00.000-08:00

We had Katy's baptism over the weekend, and it was quite eventful! She screamed the entire time! Ah, such is life... lol! She just was not feeling good at all that day. We had all of our families and a couple of friends over to the house afterwards for food and cake. It was a nice time, and we are glad that mostly everyone got to come. Katy wore the dress that I wore when I was baptised, and my mom also wore it as well. She looked beautiful even when she was crying! :) The boys all got new dress clothes and they looked very handsome as well! They had a lot of fun w/ all of their grandparents!

Glasses!

2010-02-19T10:37:00.000-08:00

Well, Lucas got glasses a couple of weeks ago! At first, I thought it made him look a lot different and so much older... but now its as if he's always had them. It's like, that is what he is supposed to look like! He is doing very well with them. He doesn't need to wear them all the time yet, just for seeing things far away like the board at school and while watching TV. He wears them most of the time though, just not when he's outside or roughhousing. He picked them out himself, and I think he looks very handsome in them!

Hearts!

2010-02-16T10:46:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend we had heart shaped pancakes, heart shaped muffins, and heart shaped brownies! Yum! Too bad I didn't get any pictures of our heart shaped food though. On V-day I used turkey bacon to make the letter "I" then I used a heart shaped pancake, and a pancake in the shape of the letter "U" to make up every one's plate for breakfast. I gave the kids each a new book and some chapstick. DH and I didn't exchange any gifts, we usually don't give each other presents for any holidays.
The boys wore their new I "heart" gaming t-shirts to school on Friday for their Valentine's parties. Then they came home and dumped all their candy out. Baby Katy wore a bunch of little Valentine-y outfits all weekend too. We had a nice relaxing weekend at home. We did go out to eat as a family on Sunday evening. The kids had yesterday off school for President's Day, and today they had a late start so my whole week is kind of off.

Check-Up's

2010-02-03T11:38:00.001-08:00

Today Katy had her 2 month check-up, and Andrew had his 2yr. check up (late). Katy is 11lbs. and 22in. long! I was concerned about her breathing because she has a cold, but the Dr. said her lungs sound great! Andrew weighs 29lbs. and is 36in. tall! He is doing great! They both had to get shots today, which is always so sad to watch but they are both fine now.
This afternoon I am taking my oldest to the Eye Dr. for the first time, as he has been having some trouble seeing in school. He always passes the screening that they give him, so we'll see what they say this afternoon. We figure that at least 2 of the 4 kids will need glasses considering both Erick and I wear them!

It's my Birthday!

2010-02-02T16:41:00.000-08:00

Today, I turn 30! I haven't thought tto much about it, been busy! We went out to eat and now I'm going to watch the season premire of LOST! Yay!

Meal Plan for week of 2/1

2010-02-01T11:31:00.000-08:00

I am late getting this up, and apparently I never posted a meal plan for last week... Only a month into the New Year, and I'm slacking already! Not good.

Beef Stroganoff
BBQ Chicken, w/ mac and cheese and carrots
Scalloped potatoes and ham
Tuna Noodle Casserole
Sloppy joes
Burritos and spanish rice
Pizza night

Home behavior vs. School behavoir

2010-01-28T07:56:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to write this post for the past few days, but due to sick kids and a busy week I haven't had time. My kids got their report cards last week... one was very good, and the other could have been better.

My husband was quite surprised by the comment that Ryan's kindergarten teacher wrote. "Ryan is a joy!" He thought she hadn't met Ryan and was talking about some other kid. LOL. It's funny because I remember going to Lucas first confrence in Kindergarten wondering if the teacher had confused him for someone else. She told me how quiet and shy Lucas was, and I was just thinking in my head 'are you sure you're talking about MY child?'. Lucas is the kid who started talking in sentances when he was 12mos. old and hasn't stopped talking ever since!

My boys are both very well behaved at school, which is great, but I wish they were so well behaved at home too. I remember my mom telling me when I was younger that if your kids are well behaved at school, you're doing something right. It's true that often our kids are better for others than they are for us. It means that they trust us, and can be their worst for us and know that we will still love them. So... I must be doing something right.

Mommy Confessions

2010-01-18T12:31:00.000-08:00

I read a post on another blog - http://chasingcheerios.blogspot.com/ and I could relate to a lot of what she posted! She started a confessions post that she got from another blog too. Years ago I started a blog called Confessions of a Stay-at-Home Mom but unfortunatley I didn't keep it up. Here is a link to it - http://confessionsofastayathomemom.blogspot.com/

Soo... my mommy confessions for today:
- I hate, hate, hate cleaning, and my house gets messy super fast. Sometimes I let it go all week and then just do a big cleaning on the weekends.
- My older kids still use sippy cups just so they won't spill on the furniture and carpets. (Yes, they eat in the living room!)
- My kids watch too much tv and play too many video games. They also eat too much junk food.
- I hate the cold and my husband hates the outdoors so we bascially 'hybernate' all winter long. We force ourselves to take them out once or twice to go sledding or something but that's about it. I do enjoy taking them out when the weather is nice though.
- Since I found out I was pregnant I have lived in pj pants and I'm just now finally getting back into wearing my jeans.
- On weekends, my oldest will wear his same clothes from friday all the way until sunday night when he takes a shower. Bad I know!

That's it for now! Feel free to share your confessions too!

Meal Plan for week of 1/17

2010-01-15T11:37:00.000-08:00

Got my meal plan for next week done!

Mexican Pasta Skillet
S & S meatballs - we didn't end up having these this week (we had Arby's instead), so I'll make them next week!
Creamy Chicken Pasta bake
Baked Potato Soup
Cheesy Beef and Macaroni
Parmesan Chicken
Tacos

6 Weeks

2010-01-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's hard to believe that Katy is six weeks old today. My baby girl is growing so fast already. She now weighs over 9lbs. and has grown 2in. since she was born. She's now fitting quite nicely into 0-3 clothes and size 1 diapers. She just started smiling at me this week too! I love those baby smiles! She hasn't been feeling well, and she still has a fussy period in the evenings but hopefully those things will be getting better soon. Some people think she looks like me and others say she looks just like my boys (who look a lot like my husband). I just think she's pretty cute! ;)

What's for lunch?

2010-01-13T08:47:00.000-08:00

I always seem to get in a terrible 'lunch rut' with the kids, so I could always use some ideas for cheap, easy, relatively healthy, kid-friendly lunches! Typically, we have grilled cheese sandwiches, soup, cheese pizza or mini-pizzas on english muffins, cheese quesadillas, or macaroni and cheese... that's a lot of cheese! LOL. Occasionally we have chicken nuggets, fish sticks, corn dogs, or hotdogs. They sometimes will eat a meat sandwich or a pb sandwich, but they don't like mayo, tuna, hard boiled eggs, or jelly. I give them cut up apples, grapes, or applesauce w/ lunch. Sometimes we have peas, carrots, or corn for veggies if it goes with what else we are having.

Last week we were running low on groceries and I came up with a neat easy lunch idea - a "dipping" lunch. They had cheese quesadillas with salsa to dip, cut-up apples with peanut butter to dip, and baby carrots with ranch to dip. Anyone have any other fun lunch ideas?

Meal Plan for week of 1/10

2010-01-08T12:24:00.000-08:00

Here is next week's meal plan to get me started on my New Year's Resolutions!

Homemade Chicken pot pie
Lasagna w/ salad
Sweet & Sour meatballs in the crockpot, w/ rice and stirfry veggies
Easy Southwestern Soup w/ dinner rolls
Farmhouse chicken dinner w/ rice and carrots
Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and peas
Pizza (either frozen or delivery)

So that's my plan for next week's dinners/suppers, whatever you want to call them. I never plan certain meals for certain days because I decide what to make based on what I'm in the mood for that day, considering I'm the one who has to cook it! :)

New Years Resolutions

2010-01-05T08:24:00.001-08:00

I've sat down to make this post about 3 times now, but every time I try the baby wakes up! :) So, last year I made a list of about 10 goals for the year and I've done okay on about half of them and the other half... not so much! So this year I'm just going to start with a few goals and really work on them until they become habits! So, my New Years Resolutions are:

1. Clean House. I often get behind w/ the house cleaning and things can get very messy very quickly! So, my goal is to do 2 loads of dishes, and 2 loads of laundry every day - one in the morning, and one in the afternoon/evening. To be sure and get the laundry folded and put away each time! I don't mind laundry, but I never like folding it all and putting it away and we end up living out of laundry baskets, so I need to work on doing it right away! The kids and I are also going to do a "10 minute tidy' each day when they get home from school and the whole family each night before bed! I'm going to start following this plan: http://www.justmommies.com/articles/home-organization-plan.php for home organization and cleaning today! I have tried flylady twice in the past and failed, but I think this plan is much more 'doable' for me.

2. Meal Planning. This I tend to go in spurts with... I'll do really good for a while and then I slack on it. I think that by keeping up w/ the menu planning I can be sure and get all the groceries that we need when we are at the store, and avoid multiple trips. Tied into this is eating out less and eating better... it's way to easy to have my husband pick up something on his way home from work when I don't feel like making anything. Plus, we could all stand to eat better all the time! So, hopefully this will save us a little money and get us to eat healthier too!

3. Figure out bedtime routine. This is something that I need to get figured out still... I haven't been able to read the kids bedtime stories much since the baby was born. Also, we do baths/showers every other night which has always worked just fine but then sometimes on the non-bath nights I forget to remind the kids to brush their teeth! So I want to make sure they are doing that every night, and find a way to read books again w/ out the baby crying. Our bedtime has just been soo rushed and stressed and I want that to change.

4. Friday Night Family Nights. This was something we started a few years ago, and actually we do pretty good w/ it but I wanted to list it here as a goal so that I can make sure we keep up with it. I know soon enough the big kids won't want to spend much time w/ us as a family, and certainly not on Friday nights! LOL. But what we do is on Wed. evening at supper we plan out what we will do for family night on Friday. We all get to make suggestions for what we will eat that night and what we will do. We usually will do something like play board games, rent movies, play cards, or go bowling. We will order pizza or I make tacos or something that everyone likes. It's fun once we are all participating, but its just the getting everyone to want to participate that doesn't always happen. The kids love it though!

Okay, so I'm starting my resolutions a few days into the new year but today is the kids first day back at school and so I'm hoping that will help me to get into more of a routine. Wish me luck!

Everything falls apart...

2009-12-31T12:45:00.000-08:00

Or when it rains, it pours. Things were going so well since the baby came home. Then we got about 14in. of snow in a short time causing my husband to have to work long, long hours and the kids got bored of their new Christmas gifts already, the baby got fussy, Andrew got hurt again and again, and now all six of us are sick! Not fun, and because Erick has been working a lot I have been having to deal w/ most of this on my own.

We all have bad colds which is par for the course in winter, but w/ a newborn I just hope that it doesn't become something worse for her. She has been gassy and refluxy about 2 or 3 nights a week I guess. It's not horrible, but it makes it hard to get anything done in the evenings. Bedtime is the worst. She's crying, I'm screaming, and the kids are running around! I need to come up w/ some way of getting 4 kids ready and into bed that works. Poor Andrew burned his finger on the stove one day, and banged his head really hard from falling off the table the next day. All while he is not feeling well either. :( The boys have been fighting pretty badly the past couple of days because the "newness" of their Christmas gifts has already worn off. Geez! Well, here's hoping things start to get easier for us in the New Year!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T19:03:00.001-08:00

We had a very nice Christmas, despite having blizzard-like weather outside. The kids and I have been shut-up in the house since Tuesday afternoon, so I've been trying to keep them busy with crafts, games, toys, and movies. We also baked Christmas cookies! Unfortunatly, Erick has had to plow a bunch but luckily he did get to spend a bunch of time w/ us today! I made a french toast casserole for breakfast and he made us a turkey for supper, and we just snacked the rest of the day.

The kids had a lot of fun playing with their new toys all day too! The big boys got dual action lightsabers, remote control cars, StarWars bedsheets and comforters, a 100 piece floor puzzle, a board game, a computer game, and a movie. Andrew got these magnetic building pieces that are safe for toddlers (Magnetos), Clippos building blocks, a toy car, some new bath toys, and a whole bunch of wooden puzzles. The baby got a play mat, a baby toy, a rattle, a new onsie shirt, and a comb and brush set. All in all in was a very fun day! I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!

2009-12-22T16:24:00.000-08:00

We took the kids to see Santa on Sunday afternoon at the mall. There was a really long line, probably since it was the last day Santa would be there. We walked around a little and looked at books and things and then the kids all got to sit w/ Santa and have their picture taken. They all told Santa they wanted remote control cars for Christmas this year.
Then we came home and I got some cute pictures of Katy in her Christmas dress, so that I could make up birth announcements to send out. Then I put the younger two down for a nap and Daddy took the two big boys to see a movie! We don't often go to see movies in the theater so I think it was a nice treat for them. They saw the Avatar movie. I don't really know much about it but they seemed to like it. They were gone for a really long time (its a long movie) but they did great, and they brought home supper when they came back! It was a nice day for everyone!

2 Week Check-ups

2009-12-18T11:07:00.000-08:00

Today Katy and I both had our 2 week check-ups! :) She now weighs 7lbs.5oz. and is 21in. long, so she's grown! She looks good and is a healthy baby! My c-section scar is looking good and I'm feeling pretty good too. Yesterday was the first time we really 'went out' since she's been born and it wore me out a little, but other than being tired I'm doing good. Kathryn sleeps really quite well at night, but she's been stuffed up so I'm not sleeping as well as she is because I'm constantly checking to make sure she's okay and sucking out her nose as needed.

We went to MOPS yesterday for our Christmas party and I put her in a little Christmas outfit, with a white hair bow, and little socks that look like black Maryjanes shoes. They are too cute! Then we had to run Ryan to school, and later pick the boys up. We got some packages in the mail so the boys opened up some of their gifts early and totally trashed the living room in the process. I haven't yet had the energy to clean it up!

One week old today!

2009-12-10T18:29:00.000-08:00

Katy is one week old today... its already going so fast! I'm starting to get a little sad that she's my last baby. She started smiling today! It's soo cute. I finally got a chance to go through the baby outfits that people gave to me so she can wear some of them.
My mom came last week and stayed with the boys while I was at the hospital. She had to go home and so my step-mom came and is staying with us now. They are both huge helps with the boys and doing all of my cooking and cleaning! I am so thankful that I get this time to just rest and focus on the baby. Tomarrow night my Dad, brother and SIL are comming out for the weekend so we can celebrate Christmas with them all. Normally we go home for Christmas and visit all of our families, but this year I decided it would be too difficult w/ the new baby and everything so they are going to come out here. We are all looking forward to it! The next week things will go back to normal - or the new normal rather - and I'll be on my own w/ all four kids. I hope it goes okay!

Pictures of baby Katy

2009-12-08T18:23:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of the new baby and her big brothers!

It's a girl!

2009-12-07T13:33:00.000-08:00

Kathryn Mae was born by repeat c-section on Thursday, Dec. 3rd at 7:54am. She was 6lbs.13oz. and 19in. long. We were all very surprised! I think my first words were "no way" and "are you sure?" LOL. Her brothers are in love as are we! Pictures comming soon.

Thanksgiving Week Review

2009-11-27T08:47:00.000-08:00

Happy belated Thanksgiving! We had a nice Thanksgiving yesterday here at home. We don't travel at Thanksgiving since we normally do at Christmas, but this year we will be staying home for Christmas too because of the baby. We didn't make any Turkey crafts at home this year but the kids made some at school. Yesterday we watched the parade on TV, watched a couple of movies, played a game, made some Christmas ornaments for our tree, and had a very good turkey dinner made by my husband!

This past week, Lucas had his annual school Holiday program - a bit early but it was very cute! They did a school version of 'A Christmas Carol' with a grumpy teacher and sang a bunch of songs. It is always fun for me to go and watch them. I had my parent meeting w/ Ryan's play therapist and he is making soo much progress and doing so well! We are going to be taking a break from now until Jan. since things will be very busy here soon. On Monday I also have a meeting w/ Ryan's speech therapist to go over his IEP for the year. I have one more appointment with my Dr. on Monday as well, and then my c-section is scheduled for Thursday! I'm getting really excited, nervous, and scared. I have a list of things that I need to get done before I go to the hospital! It's comming up really quick!

36 weeks and feeling it!

2009-11-10T15:41:00.000-08:00

Well, I've made it to 36 weeks with my fourth and last baby... and I am exhausted all the time. I was feeling really good up until about last Friday. Now I am in pain anytime I have to walk around for more than about 10min. or do anything other than sit or lay down. My back hurts, my hips hurt, my belly hurts. It all hurts. Thank goodness I only have a little over 3 weeks to go before my c-section. I'm getting nervous about that, even though I know what to expect.
I finally got out all of the baby clothes, baby toys, infant carseat, and other baby gear but now I need to wash everything. As of this weekend we might have a boy's name, but I'm still not sure about a girls name. So I'm kind of ready but not really!

We survived Halloween!

2009-11-01T05:46:00.000-08:00

Normally, I really like Halloween... but I'm hormonal and the kids were wild and I'm exhausted. We went to a couple of Halloween parties on Friday night, but skipped the Haunted Houses. Yesterday, my husband took the kids Trick-or-Treating and then we painted my belly like a pumpkin and watched The Wizard of Oz. The kids got way to much candy and the only one who will actually eat it besides me is the 2yr. old. Then they woke up literally yelling and running around at 6am this morning.

H1N1 and Halloween Fun

2009-10-29T08:24:00.000-07:00

Last week my oldest got sick, he had a fever up to 104F, missed almost a week of school, and has been coughing ever since. Luckily the high fever only lasted about 3 days, and he was better in time to attend the annual Cub Scouts Halloween Party. They played games and made crafts and ate lots of sweets! Unfortunately, my 2yr. old then got sick for a few days and he too has been coughing ever since. I'm hoping that their coughs will go away on their own within the next couple of days. When I had called the Dr. last week they said there was no need to bring them in, and that it likely was the H1N1 since that is really going around here right now.

I made a ghost bowling game for the Halloween party using pop bottles, white paint, and a sharpie. The kids used mini pumpkins as the "bowling balls". My husband made this cut out pumpkin a few years ago, and we use socks filled w/ beans or rice as the "bean bags" for a bean bag pumpkin toss. They also bobbed for apples, made a bat craft and a ghost craft, and got awards for their costumes. I made sandwiches cut out in Halloween shapes using cookie cutters and then I also made a veggie dip and carrots that look like "witches fingers" by attaching slivered almonds to them. It was really fun for everyone!

Winter came early this year

2009-10-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

We got our first snowfall on Oct. 9th and its been pretty cool ever since. We did have a couple of nice days this past weekend though. Prior to that we had snow and cold for 2 weeks. Usually we don't get snow until around Halloween or later. I do NOT like winter and I am not really ready for it to be here. Luckily I had just got out all the kids winter stuff and washed that so it was ready to go when it did snow. We spent the time staying warm indoors, making carmel apples, doing a few crafts, and drinking some hot chocolate and apple cider.

Soccer Monster!

2009-10-07T07:17:00.000-07:00

Well, Ryan has officially finished his first season of soccer and he loves it! He will play again in the spring on the same team. It is so fun to watch them when they first start out (age 5 here) because they don't know what to do, or which way to go. They get the hang of it pretty quickly though. He got his own soccer ball to practice with and he loves it when its his turn to hand out the snack after the game. He does really well and enjoys it which is what is most important!

First bee sting!

2009-09-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

Andrew got stung by a bee over the weekend! :( Our zoo hosts a Chilli cook-off every fall, and for a few dollars you can go and taste all the different types of chili. Then you get to vote for your favorite. They also have music, kids entertainment, and games so its a lot of fun - usually! This year, it did not go very well.
My 5yr. old is extremely scared of bees, I think its part of his anxiety and other issues. We walked over to the zoo and we saw a couple of bees on the way there, and he freaked out! I got him calmed down and we go into the zoo, only to be surrounded by bees! You could not get away from them at all, they were everywhere. Ryan starts trying to run away from the bees, starts screaming, crying, and shaking. It was awful. We got to the 2nd chili booth before I told my husband that I would just take Ryan home, and that he and the other 2 boys could stay as long as they wanted. So I bring Ryan home, and not 5 minutes later he calls me saying that Andrew got stung! Argh, I was afraid that was going to happen! Apparently he had given Andrew some pop, and a bee landed on his hand and then Andrew tried to hit it or get it away and it stung him. I drove over to pick them up, to make sure he was okay and he was fine. We brought him home and applied first aid and I gave him some Motrin for the pain. By the next day you couldn't even tell he had got stung. I'm very thankful he is okay, but sad that we had to miss out on the fun at the chilli cook-off this year.

I'm going to be an Aunt!

2009-09-18T07:25:00.001-07:00

I'm soo excited! I recently got the news that my brother and his wife are expecting a baby in May! My kids don't have any cousins yet, so they are excited too. My youngest and their oldest will be just a few months apart.

My "baby" is TWO!!

2009-09-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that Andrew is two already. We had a very nice birthday weekend for him. My mom came out for a visit, and we went to an indoor playground, had pizza, rented a couple of movies, and baked a cake. My mom got Andrew a couple of playdough sets which the boys really enjoy playing with. I attempted to make him a b-day cake that looks like Elmo, but I just am not a decorator. He knew it was Elmo though. LOL.

You never know what you'll find

2009-09-09T11:43:00.000-07:00

when you clean your house! So, we've spent the past 2 weeks giving our entire house a really good cleaning, organizing, etc. In our dining room we have this air vent that doesn't stay shut, and sometimes things can fall down in there if it is left open. My DH and boys took it off over the weekend and look what they found! All of this stuff was put there by the oh-so-adorable toddler with the devilish smile! Don't let his cuteness fool you! I was wondering where his shoes were! It's amazing what you can find when you clean!

Zoo Free Day 2009!

2009-09-06T09:10:00.000-07:00

Each summer our local zoo has a free day, sponsored by a local business. It's great because we can go and get in free, plus you get free pop and popcorn, and the kids get a little "prize" of some kind too! Our zoo is really nice for not being in a large city, and they have great kids programs, encourage "being green", and the people who work there are super nice.

It was really HOT the day we went there, but we got to see a bunch of the animals. There are two new baby bear cubs that are really cute. We got to watch one of the zoo keepers feeding the penguins, and the boys got to feed the goats while we were there.

Swimming Lessons

2009-09-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

I'm way behind on my blog posts, so now I'm trying to get caught up on stuff from August since FALL will be here soon enough! We always do swimming lessons in August because it is our 'least busy' summer month, and the most likely to have hot weather here. This summer my oldest had to repeat Level 2 which he wasn't too thrilled about, but he ended up loving it and did soo much better this time around. He is really proud that he passed this year and next year will be in Level 3. Ryan had been asking to take swimming all summer so we signed him up for the "WeeWaders" preschool level, because they either need to be 6 or already have some swimming experience to begin Level 1 here. He had soo much fun and will take Level 1 next year. I'm really proud of him because up until this past year he has been terrified of the water! Now he loves it and can't wait to go. He even jumped off of the diving board - with a life jacket on! Andrew is too little for swimming lessons but he had fun watching his big brothers and splashing in the water a couple of times!

A Day at the Beach

2009-08-30T09:17:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, my husband was out of town and so I took the boys out to the lake for a few hours. They loved it and had a blast! This is a 'end of summer' tradition that we started last year, and I hope to continue. Last summer a friend of my husband's invited us to spend the day out at their house (they live on the lake) and go boating. We had a picnic lunch and cruised around the lake. Lucas even went tubing for the first time. This year since my husband was out of town, I just took the boys to the beach. Andrew spent most of the time throwing rocks into the water, but the big boys got in and did a little swimming. They dug up a huge rock from the bottom of the lake and collected a bunch of smaller rocks and some bird feathers. It was a really nice way to spend the afternoon.
(The time/date on my camera is wrong, but I don't know how to fix it.)

Messy Sensory Play

2009-08-27T10:49:00.000-07:00

This is something we do every once and a while, and the kids really like it. I use cool whip, but many people use shaving cream for this activity. I just put it right on the table, but you could always use a cookie sheet or some other shallow container. Last time we did this I just had them play with the white cool whip, and had them practice writing their names, making shapes, doing math problems, etc. depending upon the age of the child. This time we did color mixing. Lucas started out with blue and red food coloring, and made purple. Ryan started out with blue and yellow food coloring to make green (his favorite color). Then they both added other colors and ended up with brown. I gave Andrew blue and yellow to make green because he likes to be like his big brother! It's a mess but it cleans up pretty easily and they have so much fun with it!

First Day of School!

2009-08-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that its the first day of school for my boys already! This summer has just flown right by! I wish they didn't start until after Labor Day like I did when I was in school. They were both excited and ready to go this morning, they even woke up on their own. Ryan was a bit disappointed that he didn't get to go until this afternoon, but he got over it. Lucas is in 3rd grade this year and Ryan started Kindergarten!

My little one is napping, so I have some time to myself. I'm making some cookies for when the boys get home - a first day of school tradition! I'm going to relax for a while and then do a little cleaning before I have to go and pick them up. I'm haven't been looking forward to this new routine, but I think it will work out well. I was thinking it would've been better for Ryan to go in the mornings like he did last year, but this way Andrew will nap while everyone else is gone and I should have some quiet time!

Tye-Dye Fun!

2009-08-20T07:02:00.001-07:00

Earlier this summer I bought a tye-dye kit at a local craft store. Then I got 3 irregular white cotton t-shirts at the grocery store for $1.00 each. I've been waiting for a nice day when we don't have much going on so that the kids could make their own tye-dyed t-shirts. I waited until Andrew was napping and took the boys outside because of the mess. We finally got to make them yesterday and they turned out pretty good! The boys love them!

p.s. I went back and added pictures in some of the previous posts.

You will never guess...

2009-08-17T10:31:00.000-07:00

what my toddler did today! Andrew is very "high needs" and he often will literally hang on my leg while I am in the kitchen making breakfast, lunch, snacks, etc. As you can probably imagine, this makes it quite difficult to get things done. So I just was making the kids lunch, and as usual he was hanging on me. I had my back to him and was preparing the food. He proceeded to pull my pants down! I am not kidding! I couldn't help myself and started laughing, which of course made him think it was a game so after I pulled my pants back up he again pulled them down two more times. That kid, I don't know what to do about him! LOL.

Weekend Fun

2009-08-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

We had a great weekend visiting family, and taking the kids to the amusement park! We stayed at my Dad's and got to visit lots of people there. we also saw my inlaws and my mom's side of the family. We played a few games, went to an indoor play park, visited the arcade, had way to much to eat, and Ryan learned to ride a bike without training wheels! Lucas loved all the rollercoasters and other rides at the park. He ran onto all of them with my brother, his wife, and my husband while I took the younger two on all the kiddie rides. We spent way to much money and ate too much fair food, but had a good time! Yesterday we were all exhausted from the park and staying up late all weekend long. Today I have tons of laundry that I need to get caught up on. I would love to have some down time, but the kids have their school and therapy today and we have an ice cream social at the park to go to tonight. We also need to go to the grocery store today! Hopefully I can upload the pictures tomarrow.

Another box of cereal wasted...

2009-08-07T12:53:00.000-07:00

Full boxes of cereal dumped on the floor: 3
Containers of powdered chocolate milk dumped on the floor: 2
Having a toddler: Priceless!

Off to see the wizard...

2009-08-07T06:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, not really. This weekend we are headed off to visit our families and go to the amusement park! I'm looking forward to it, but today I have to do some cleaning and laundry and then all of the packing. Why is it that moms always have to do all the packing? Our families live 3-4hrs. away from where we live, so its not too far and we stay with family which has its upsides and its downsides. We are getting together with my inlaws at a park on Saturday, and going to a family reunion for my mom's side on Sunday afternoon. Later on Sunday is when we plan on going to the amusement park. My husband and I met working there during college, and some of the people who used to work there are trying to organize a meet-up for Sunday evening. I thought it would be fun to take the kids, because we haven't been in about 5 years. Our oldest is now tall enough to ride on almost all of the rides - including the big roller coasters! Unfortunately, I won't be able to ride on many of the rides but it should still be fun and I can't wait to see what the kids think of the whole thing. We will have to come back early on Monday morning so Lucas can go to summer school and my husband can get back to work!

New Computer, New Game

2009-08-04T05:06:00.000-07:00

I've been neglecting my blog, along with my house, my husband, and my children... okay so maybe not the children. LOL. You see, my husband was kind enough to get me a new computer over the weekend. So then I had to start all over w/ everything, and... I got a new game. My old computer would not run Sims3 but this super awesome one runs it very well, too well in fact. If you've never played the Sims, it is a very addicting and time consuming game. I have spent waay to many hours playing the origninal Sims game, The Sims2, and well now Sims3. So today I need to NOT play and clean my house, my kiddos, and check on a bunch of stuff that I have going on. The big boys also have swimming lessons all this week, and Lucas has summer math at school this week and next. Busy!

Camping, Catapults, and Trebuchets, Oh My!

2009-07-28T10:42:00.000-07:00

So, we went camping over the weekend at a local campground. We have two lakes near-by and they have campgrounds. The boys got to go fishing, swimming, and play in the dirt! What could be more fun for three boys? We had a really good time sitting around the fire and making smores too. The boys loved the tent! Other than Ryan burning his fingers on one of the roasting sticks, and the whole sleeping on the ground thing for Mommy, it was a lot of fun! However, I can't believe that I forgot my camera!
Sunday afternoon I spent doing lots and lots of laundry, while the boys and my husband spent a good deal of time in the garage making a trebuchet. Last summer they made a catapult and so now they made the trebuchet, a castle and a bunch of little 'guys' and things to launch. It's pretty cool when they can get an idea like that and then make it happen.

Fun with chalk and pipe cleaners

2009-07-22T13:38:00.001-07:00

Earlier this summer I bought some pipe cleaners, intending to use them for art projects with the kids. However, they have had no interest in making projects this summer so I've just been following their lead. They wanted to use the pipe cleaners to make their own creations so I said sure! They each made themselves a 'hands-free cell phone' for their ears, and then they just started making a bunch of things... a headband, an alien 'costume', a DNA strand, and a tail. I love it when they are creative. We also were able to spend some time outside using sidewalk chalk. Ryan recently learned to write his name, so he wrote that a few times and then was drawing all over. I "made" Lucas practice some math and then he made a racetrack. Andrew loved scribbling on his big brothers drawings.

Smiley Faces

2009-07-21T14:33:00.000-07:00

I made a previous post about our new family rules, and since then we've been trying to come up with a plan for what to do if the rules get broken. So last week after some very bad behavior, I came up with a plan... happy faces. I made each of the older two children a chart with their names on it, and then on the side I listed some rewards that they can EARN. Right now the rewards are going camping, going to the pool, and going go-karting/mini-golfing. If they earn 10 smiley faces each then they get the reward, if they don't earn ten, then they don't go. They can earn the faces by following the rules, and/or by helping another family member. It seems to be working okay so far.
Ideally, I've never been one who was big on rewards, punishments, etc. but to be honest the kids behavior was getting out of control! We had even resorted to spanking on occasion and that's something I try to avoid. So for now we are going to use the charts, and hopefully if things improve we can phase them out later.

Vacation Photos

2009-07-18T18:45:00.000-07:00

Well, in better late than never fashion here are a few photos of our family vacation to Mt. Rushmore KOA/Palmer Gulch Lodge. You can see our cabin, the bandlands, Mt. Rushmore, a black bear that was next to our van at Bear Country, and lastly the big boys w/ their fingers up the nose of one of the President's on Mt. Rushmore in Wall Drug.

My toddler just dumped out an entire box of cereal...

2009-07-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

onto the floor. Oh yes, he did! And, its not even the first time he's done that this week!

Magnetic Letter Activities

2009-07-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

Once a month for the summer, the school sends my 5yr. old a "Kindergarten Packet" with some little activities in them. They aren't required, but they are a good way to introduce kids to what they will be doing in K. My oldest loved them when he was this age, and so far Ryan thinks they are okay. The most recent one had a bag of magnetic letters in it, along with some games and worksheets that can be used with the letters. One of the ideas is to put them on a cookie sheet and find the letters in their name and other family members names, make small words like cat, find all the red letters, etc. A few years ago I hung up a new cookie sheet w/ a piece of ribbon on the wall of the playroom. (You should be able to see it there in the picture next to the chalk board that my DH painted and then framed.) Then I just keep the letters in a bag and the kids can use them whenever they want. They also sent along a letter strip to hang up and letter cards to play a game with. Ryan knows all of his letters, and many of their sounds so he beat me when we played the game! LOL. Of course my little one couldn't be left out of any of the activities!

Family Rules

2009-07-13T17:25:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we made up a poster of Family Rules and hung them up, in hopes of helping everyone in our family get along better. They are as follows:

Treat others the way you want to be treated. Be kind to each other, respect each other.
Clean up after yourselves, help others clean too.
Spend more time together. Family nights are once a week. Spend less time watching/playing electronics alone.
Communication is important. Listen to each other. Answer if someone is talking to you. Don't walk away if someone is speaking to you.
Use your indoor voice in the house. No screaming inside!
Do as you are asked to do.

Today was Lucas' last day of Archery for this summer, and he also had a dentist appointment this afternoon. No cavities as usual! :) Ryan also had his weekly play therapy this afternoon and I think it went well. It's rainy out and I'm tired. My project for this week is to come up with some good consequences if the rules are not followed. I'm also trying to come up with a good cleaning schedule that I can make work so that our house is not such a mess all the time.

An evening in the ER

2009-07-10T07:48:00.000-07:00

Or, why my baby is crazy part 2... I forgot to mention in my last post that Andrew likes to jump, a lot. He started shortly after he was a year old jumping from one piece of furniture to the next, and off of things like the cough, etc. So last night the boys were playing upstairs and apparently jumping on the bed. I heard crying so went to see what happened and my oldest was bringing Andrew down telling me he fell off the bed and got a cut. So I grabbed him and brought him to the bathroom to have a look. He's crying and he's got a small but deepish cut near his eye. So I called my husband to come look and he says yup to the hospital. We all throw some shoes on and jump in the van and take off for the ER. They admited him and cleaned him up and used some Dermabond to seal it up and sent us on our way. He was running around and acting like his usual crazy self, and he's going to be just fine. He didn't like being held down but other than that he had stopped crying by the time we got there. Luckily they got us in and out of there pretty quickly too. Such is life with 3 crazy boys!

My 1yr. old is CRAZY!

2009-07-08T14:02:00.000-07:00

Why oh why does he do the things that he does? He's not even 2 yet but he thinks he is as big as his older brothers! He wants to do everything that they do, and he is extremely high energy and too smart for his own damn good, and has been like this since he was just over a year old. When he was about 15mos. he learned how to climb over the gate that I had on the stairs, so I just took it down and taught him to use the steps. Shortly after that he figured out how to open one of our doors to go outside, so we have to keep it locked at all times. One of his favorite activities is putting cat and/or dog food into the pet's water dish... then it becomes all gross and the pets can't drink their water. Oh, and he also pushes chairs up to the counter grabs the chocolate milk mix (its a powder) and proceeds to dump it all over the floor and play in it until he's a chocolate baby. He manages to do these things within minutes while I am just in the other room.

Lately he's been into putting things up his nose! By far the most annoying thing that he has been doing constantly is pouring things out all over the floor. If we give him a cup w/ a cover, he can sometimes take the cover off. Other times we've given him cups without covers because he wants a drink. He'll take a few sips, walk in the other room, and dump it out all over the floor. So I keep finding wet spots all over the house... on the kitchen floor, on the carpet, on the couch, and his newest favorite - in our shoes! It's driving me crazy!!!

Fourth of July Weekend

2009-07-06T14:44:00.000-07:00

We had a rather uneventful weekend, it almost didn't seem like the 4th. It rained off and on, so we didn't get to spend much time outside. The kids decided they didn't want to go to the parade in our town like we usually do, so we just stayed home and hung out. We did go and watch the fireworks on Saturday night though. We drive out to my husbands work and watch from a truck in a field. We get a good view of our town's fireworks and also the fireworks that people set off at the lake that way.
My husband got a new computer game so he and my oldest spent most of the weekend playing that, while trying to convince me to play it as well. I tried it a little, but a friend of mine got me hooked on play My Zoo on facebook so I spent a bunch of time playing that this weekend! That is pretty much all we did, nothing too exciting!

Vacation to the Black Hills, Part 2

2009-07-03T17:20:00.000-07:00

Day 1: So we headed out, and the drive was not near as bad as I had feared. Other than having to stop several times for the kids to go potty, it went well. We arrived to our resort in late afternoon, and found our cabin. It had a screened in porch, a small kitchen and seating area, and two bedrooms, plus outside there was a picnic table and fire pit w/ grill topper. At our resort there were two pools, horse stables, two restaurants, two shops/stores, a jumping pillow, a mini golf area, a large game board, basket ball court, splash park, water slide, and a large playground. So after we got unpacked we headed down to the playground and jumping pillow area. Then we ate dinner at one of the restaurants, changed into our suits and went swimming. After that we went back to our cabin, changed into warmer clothes, and had a little camp fire, roasted marshmellows, and then went to bed!

Day 2: When we woke up the next morning it was freezing in our cabin so we made a fire in our fireplace to warm up a bit. Then we got ready for our first busy day of touring. After everyone was ready for the day we headed down to the Pancake Tent for a pancake breakfast. Then we loaded into the van and headed towards Rapid City. We visited the Air & Space Museum at Ellsworth Airforce Base. When we got there it was HOT, and Andrew's face was a bit red but I figured it was just from riding in the van. So I get him out and put him in the stroller and Ryan throws a fit because he wants to ride in the stroller. It happens every time. So we go to look at some of the planes and I notice Andrew rubbing his eyes a lot and he's getting more red. So I told Erick that we should go inside, hoping it was much cooler. We went inside and Erick was bringing Andrew to the bathroom to was his face off w/ cool water and see what was going on when his nose started gushing blood everywhere. We tried to get it to stop but it just make him more upset, which made him bleed more. Then a nice Airwomen offered to take us to another room and get us some ice, cake, fruit, and pop. That seemed to calm him down and the bleeding slowed and eventually stopped, but his eyes and face were still really red and puffy. So while Erick kept him calm I ran over to a gas station really quick and grabbed some Benadryl. We gave him some as best we could but it didn't really help much. I was starting to get worried that we would need to bring him to the hospital on vacation. We walked around a bit and kept an eye on him, then decided to give him a little more Benadryl and head out. So we cranked the A/C in the van and let it cool off before loading the kids up and driving around a bit to make sure Andrew was okay, and find my husband a new t-shirt, since his had blood on it. We gave Andrew a bunch to drink and then he fell asleep. As he was sleeping his face cleared right up and he seemed like his usual self again. So we decided to head to Story Book Island, which is a really neat free park w/ fun play structures for the kids and a little train ride. The kids loved it!

After that we were all tired so we went back to the cabin to rest for a bit, but of course the boys wanted to go swimming! So we changed into our suits and headed to the pool for a bit. We also go to go for a little wagon ride around the campground. Afterwards we grilled hot dogs, ate chips, and drank pop... nothing like a little junk food on vacation! We decided we had better get ready and head to Mt. Rushmore since we hadn't made it the night before. I wanted to get there before dark, but not too early because they have an evening movie and lighting ceremony. It was very beautiful, and much more amazing in person than it is in pictures. However, I didn't get to see much of the movie presentation due to Andrew acting like a little crazy boy. By the time we got back to the cabin that night it was pretty late and the kids were tired so we went right to sleep.

Day 3: Today was our day to visit Bear Country USA and Reptile Gardens, plus we were hoping to tour a cave later that evening. We got to Bear Country and followed the line of cars through the park... it was pretty neat to see many wild animals up close. Several bears were walking around the roads and one crossed right in front of our van. Then we went over to "Babyland" where you can walk around and see smaller animals, including baby bears! They were soo cute, playing with each other and climbing trees. Afterwards we were getting hungry but headed down the road to Reptile Gardens. When we got there we ordered lunch, ate, and then decided to walk around a bit before seeing what time the shows were. In the afternoon we watched a Snake Show, and it was really neat. The guy told us all kinds of interesting facts about snakes and told a few jokes. Shortly before the show started a nice couple w/ a little boy a few months older than Andrew sat down in front of us. I warned them that Andrew might kick, but they were very understanding and started talking w/ us and Andrew. Andrew was just watching their little boy, and was being super quiet. Later in the show Andrew did get wild again, but thankfully it was near the end. Afterwards we walked around some more, and saw some Giant Tortoise's that were 160yrs. old! Then we headed back to the resort. Andrew was asleep and I was exhausted so my husband took the older two boys down to the pool and water slide while I took a nap with Andrew. When they got back it was supper time so we went to one of the little restaurants and got something to eat, but it started to rain! They only had outdoor seating so we took our food back to our cabin. After the storm was over we decided to go check out the cave that we wanted to tour, only to realize that it was closing in 10mins. So we didn't make it that night, but told the kids we would go first thing in the morning. It was still early so we decided to go explore the town nearest our resort, before heading back to the cabin and making a fire. The big boys and Daddy did a few little firecrackers and I began packing and cleaning up the cabin.

Day 4: Today was our day to check out and go home, which no one wanted to do but we did. First we headed to Rushmore Cave for a tour. I had brought along the Ergo for my husband to wear Andrew on his back in the cave. He tried it out the night before and Andrew loved it. So we go into the cave, and Andrew starts fussing... the tour goes on for a bit and every time we stopped the fussing turned into crying. He wanted me to carry him but I just couldn't do it. So we had to ask to leave. They sent another tour guide to lead us out of the cave a different way and all was well. They had a money back guarantee so we weren't out anything, but we were all very disappointed that we didn't get to complete the tour as it was something we were really looking forward to. Afterwards we headed for home, and the trip was uneventful.

Vacation: Part 1 The trip that almost wasn't!

2009-07-02T14:34:00.000-07:00

Back in Feburary I began planning our first family vacation in over 5 years. We decided that we should go and see Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills/Badlands area. I haven't been there since I was a child, and of course the boys have never been there. I didn't want to just camp in a tent, and we don't own a camper, so I booked a 2bdrm cabin w/ a kitchenette. We set out early on Sunday morning and got back last night. I would have loved to stay longer but we were trying to keep the costs down. The trip almost didn't happen due to the fact that I threw my wallet away! Yes, you read that right... I threw my wallet in the garbage. I guess that's what pregnancy brain will do to you. We got all ready to go and woke the kids up at 5am only to realize that my wallet - which contained the credit card we would be using to pay for the trip - was missing. We searched the entire house, van, backpacks, laundry, couch cushions, etc. No wallet. Finally, it was getting close to 6am and I was panicking thinking we would not get to go. I figured I would check the trash bag that I had threw out last night because I had been trying to clean up a little before heading out of town. You see we had just ran to walmart to pick up some last minute supplies for our trip. So I ripped open the bag and dumped the trash all over our garage floor. Sure enough, in with some paper wrappers and such inside a walmart bag was my wallet! Whew! We could go...

Back from Vacation!

2009-07-01T19:28:00.000-07:00

Well we made it back from our 7hr. trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota. Overall, it was a great time and we all enjoyed ourselves... just a few minor "bumps in the road". I'll blog more about the trip and hopefully get some pictures up in the next couple of days. We are super busy tomarrow w/ the kids activities and a Dr. appt for me.

Shape & Color Day

2009-06-25T09:38:00.001-07:00

I decided to have the kids help me make colored ice cubes this morning, and then later on this afternoon we can use them to make water color pictures and in a color lesson. I plan on having them put 2 different colored ice cubes (such as blue and yellow) together in a cup and see what happens when they melt. It's like 90* here today so I think we'll do this outside and they will melt rather quickly.
Earlier we played a little shape finding game where I pointed out something in our house that was a certain shape, and had the kids find something else with that same shape. For example the door frame is a rectangle and then Ryan pointed out that his paper was also a rectangle. Then for lunch I made grilled cheese and apples. I cut one grilled cheese sandwich into squares, and the other into triangles and had the boys tell me about the shapes. I cut up a red apple and a green apple and had them tell me the colors of each apple.
These were just some quick and easy shape and color ideas and my kids really enjoyed them more than I thought they would, especially my little one. He got a big kick out of his shape and color lunch!

I Survived Day Camp!

2009-06-23T12:13:00.001-07:00

Well I made it through two days of Cub Scout Day Camp. I was in charge of supervising a group of 10 boys and leading them to their various activities. It was a lot of fun, but it wasn't easy. The theme this year was Cowboy Corral! Lucas and his group got to do Archery, make leather horse necklaces, color satchels at attach beads to them, shoot BB guns, make little leather teepees, have their photos taken and make picture frames, make animal prints in clay, make their own rope and pretend to rope a bull, do an obsticale course, ride horses, do an egg drop and more!
Ryan and Andrew stayed with Daddy and went to work with him for a bit while I was helping out w/ the day camp. Then I came home and brought Ryan to his gymnastics and thankfully Andrew had a little nap. Now I have to get ready for our trip! I've got lots of laundry and packing to do before Sunday. We need to get ready for our little vacation to the Black Hills!

Busy Summer so far!

2009-06-19T10:22:00.000-07:00

It seems like every year after the kids get out of school June is very busy, and the summer just flys by! This year Ryan is taking a gymnastics class MWF for the month of June, and Lucas is taking Archery on Monday mornings. Lucas also took a 1 week pottery class, but that is over now. Once a week Ryan also has play therapy and Lucas has summer school for Reading. It's a lot of running around!
Right now I'm trying to prepare for Cub Scout Day Camp which is next week, and our family vacation which is the following week. I'm suposed to be helping out at day camp but I'm worried about leaving the younger ones with my husband at his work while I am there, since he can't take those days off. Last year he was able to help out at day camp and I stayed at home w/ the two littler ones. I'm also trying to figure out everything that we will need to get, bring, buy, clean, and pack before our trip!
Hopefully after we get back from vacation the summer will slow down a bit. The boys won't have as many activities and we should be able to just hang out, play outside, go to the park, zoo, and swimming, and get together w/ some friends. Just to relax and enjoy the summer while it lasts!

Welcome to my new blog!

2009-06-18T08:46:00.000-07:00

I decided to start a new blog today, since my last blog post was from 2005! I doubt that anyone will actually read this, but I thought it would be nice to have a place to write this all down. Just to introduce myself a little. I'm a married, 29yr. old stay-at-home mom to 3 boys and am due w/ my 4th child in early December. My husband enjoys his job, he works full time in his chosen career and we live in the Midwest.

My oldest, Lucas is 8yrs. old and he'll be starting 3rd grade in the fall at our local public school. He is a very talkative, bright, and creative child. He is enjoying his summer, as he doesn't particularly like school. Our second child Ryan, is 5yrs. old and he is our challenging child. He is very smart, and very sweet but he also is speech delayed, has sensory processing disorder, and anger, anxiety, and focusing issues. It makes it very difficult to take him places because he melts down. Ryan will be starting Kindergarten in the fall at the same school our oldest attends. He is a GREAT big brother to our third son, Andrew. Andrew will be 2 in September, and he is a little daredevil! He is super smart, really strong, and very, very daring! He is talking quite a bit and getting into everything! He wants to do everything his big brothers do! Our 4th and last child is still unknown - he or she is 'baking' comfortably in my belly and will be born by repeat c-section in late Nov. or early Dec. We won't be finding out if its a boy or a girl until s/he is born!