A Most Perfect Day

We had one of those perfect days on Saturday.
You know the kind?
Where it all seems to go right.
Where the weather is not too hot, and not too cold.
Where there is more laughter than fights.
When the kids are willing to cooperate, and don't complain.
Where there are enough snacks in the cupboard so that there is no negotiating for the "good ones".
Where you find the good deals at the garage sales.
Where you play baseball on the front lawn and frisbee in the street, and everyone has a good time.
Where you get to hold hands with your hubby just because you want to.
Where a dinner that could have been really bad, turns out really, really, good.
And where you get to eat that dinner outside so the spills and dropped food don't matter.
And then after dinner, you get to watch your kids enjoy roasting marshmallows...and eat a few yourself.
A day full of giggles, hugs, play, laughter, and family.
One of those kind of good days.

9 months

Nollie Pollie is 9 months now. He is crawling all over, and pulling himself to standing along the furniture. He has popped out 3 teeth on top, and I would love to never have to live through that week again.

Here is a sample of our daily routine:
8am: wake up, nurse
10am: snack, (or 2nd breakfast as we call it)
10:30am: change clothes, and nap
12:30: lunch
1pm: change clothes again (usually after a quick bath to get all the food off)
1:30-3:00: pick up various kids from school
3:00: nurse and nap
6:00: dinner
8:00: bedtime

I wish that I could say that I am FINALLY getting a full nights sleep, but so far its still not true. He will wake up usually once, but sometimes twice during the night. I am so. over. it.

We started letting him cry it out during nap times, and even if he wakes up at night more than his normal 2 times. I find that I grit my teeth a lot less now that I am not holding a squirming kid as he fights sleep.

He still eats stage 3 baby food, but really likes feeding himself, and I like a little bit of freedom from spoon feeding him as well. And he eats...a lot. At his last appt he weighed in at 19.9 lbs. And his stats were 75% for height and 50% for weight. I was surprised on the weight thing. We are constantly told what a big kid he is, but to see that in the percentiles he is average is a little surprising.

His favorite things to do right now are to go up steps. He can't go down, so he sits at the top, and pats his hand on the threshold and waits for someone to come and get him. He only does this because he has tumbled down them enough times to learn his lesson. Smart kid, I know.

The kids still love him, although when Maeve plays with him, she gets this crazy look in her eye, and she grits her teeth as she yells right in his face. We think this is normal? The good thing is that he doesn't seem to mind...

Caveman Camping

Guest Blogger: Rich (aka - Daddy)

I've done a couple of daddy dates with Brynn over the last year, and wanted to do something special for Cannon (and not have to call it a "date"- cause that's weird). Needless to say the girls didn't think this was fair, but we went anyways. Originally I planed on taking him to Pomo Canyon Environmental Camp, which was a half mile hike. Though it was a short jot we were prepped with all the essentials for backpacking. But when we arrived, to my disappointment, the park was closed due to lack of funding. Along the drive I noticed another "Environmental Camp" so we thought we'd try our luck. Their were only 11 sites, and they were all full. As we walked back to the car, I was racking my brain as to what we should do next, for it was now approaching dinnertime, and we had no where to go. Just as we were leaving I ran into a friend from church who said they had camped last night and were planning to leave soon. What a relief.
Before doing anything, we abandoned all responsibilities and hiked down to the river. We spent an hour or so skipping rocks and talking about super heroes. What an amazing part of the river. Not much seaweed, very clear water, and very wide. A great place to swim, fish, or collect rocks.
Though we were geared up for backpacking, the hike was only about 20-30 yards from our car. It was nice to not have to unload a lot of gear though. I had camp set up and dinner made in about an hour.
I had Cannon gather and sharpen our sticks for the hot dog roast. Several times the sticks just "happened to break", so he got to do a lot of sharpening. (Mommy here - What the heck where you thinking giving a 5 year old boy a leatherman knife?!?)

It was kind of a gross dinner, but the marshmallows and hot chocolate redeemed the meal. (Mommy again - *gag*, gross is an understatement).

After dinner we sat at the fire and I began my Pokemon training. Cannon brought his Pokemon cards and Pokemon ultimate handbook. I was instructed on the ways of the Pokemon legendary until the night closed in. By the end of the night I was only two pages away from achieving Legendary status (an honor I was sure I could achieve the following morning). But somehow when we awoke the next day, I still had a 100 pages to go. This is not a task for the faint of heart.
Our morning was a quick fire and oatmeal. Our bags were packed and we had left by 8:30 to be back in time for church.

I love this little guy. A lot of times I fail as a dad. For some reason I become like a child and antagonize him. I don't always love him like he deserves. I wanted to get away treat him like my son. I wanted it to be about just me and him, and not his brother and sisters as well. I wanted him to know that I love him individually, and not just as part of the group I call my kids. And I really do. He is the greatest little boy a dad could ever dream to have. I look forward to many more trips with my son. (Mommy here again - sniff, sniff, wiping my eyes, loving my hubby with even more of my already full heart!!!)

First Day of School

Tuesday August 16th

9am: Me - not ready for summer to be over
11am: Fighting starts, questions about watching TV, "there is nothing to do..." complaints flying at me right and left
11:30am: Me -ready for summer to end
3pm: Kids - fighting, bickering, causing trouble, etc
3:30pm: Me - praying for patience
6pm: Cannon - immature 30 min temper tantrum over something stupid
6:30pm: Me - "not going to miss this part of having him home"
6:45: Me- trying to salvage the rest of the evening, with a special treat made just for the kids....
8:25pm: All kids in bed, quiet house, and second thoughts about wanting summer to end
8:29pm: Fight breaks out in bedroom, #3 comes out for another ice pack and baby is crying in crib....
8:30pm: Me - ready for summer to be over

Wed August 17th

6am: Me and hubs up and ready to start day
8am: On our way to school...no parking, will walk the path with the cousins instead
8:30am: Prying my daughters hands off of my arm, finger by finger, pushing her into line, and wishing her good luck
8:35am: Introducing Cannon to his new teachers (2 this year), and sitting through a painfully long kindergarten orientation as he showed me every single "station" in his classroom
11:00am: End of day 1 for Cannon
2:35pm: Pick up Brynn with the 3 others in tow
6:00pm: Dinner with the cousins to celebrate the first day of school...and the fact that EVERYONE survived

Happenings

School starts tomorrow.
I have been avoiding the thought, but its inevitable. Tomorrow morning I will rouse my sleepy children, feed them, clothe them, dress them, and drop them off into the care of someone else for 7 hours.
I will then come home, and pray for them.
Pray that they make good friends this year.
Pray that they have a wonderful year in school.
Pray that they don't get hurt..physically or emotionally.
Pray that my older one will learn to love to read, and my younger one will learn that he has lots more to learn.

But in the meantime, here is what we have done for the last couple of weeks:
I have "officially finished" my craft station, and use it almost daily. Its a place of refreshment for me. A place for me to be creative, and get stuff done. Its been wonderful!
I finished a project that has been on my list for literally, years. A growth chart. Its nothing fancy, but I wanted something that can go with us if we ever move, and it meets our needs perfectly.
Although this is basically the only project that I finished this summer, it has been a summer full of great fun. One of the kids favorite things to do (which is not mine), is building these insane forts using every blanket, pillow, etc in our entire house. Here is a recent one.
One of the things I think I will miss the most about the school year starting are the days that the kids spend in jammies. There were quite evenings that Rich came home from work to find the kids still in their pj's. I couldn't tell from the expression on his face if he was surprised or just plain jealous that they managed to go through an entire day of playing without changing their clothing.....
Good bye summer...We will miss you!

Fair Time

Ah....
The fair.
Words can't describe how much I love it, and hate it all in the same breath.
This year there were rides to be too short for, animals to pet, pets to imagine, gadgets to dream about, flowers to admire, and photo booths to shove ourselves in.
And, as usual, we did it all!

Dancing Queen

She is getting taller and taller...and her personality seems to be growing by leaps and bounds too! She will be the queen bee at home soon when bro and sis are at school all day. Its an exciting time for her...and me!

Summer is a Fadin'

Sniff sniff.
Summer is almost done.
10 more days until school starts.
Cannon already has his room and teacher assignment for Kindergarten.
His backpack is picked out, and all ready to go.

My little buddy is going to be leaving me for the day....

I am interested to see what Maeve is going to be like during the day without big bro directing her in every task. Will she thrive with the freedom, or just mope around and be bored?

Excited and nervous about this whole set of "firsts".

Toys R Us

We had our annual garage sale a few weeks ago. The kids were awesome about going through their toys and getting rid of the ones that they were done with. Cannon basically discarded about 1/2 of his toys, and Brynn willingly went through her stuff as well. Maeve even got into the spirit and donated a few of her thing to the sale as well.
As the toys sold, the kids watched quarter being dropped into their bags and dreamed of the new toys that they would buy.
We took them to Toys R U to pick out whatever they wanted (and could afford with their new earnings). This, by the way, is their first experience with the massive store!

The girls eyed every aisle before deciding on things, and Cannon was set on what he wanted before we were out of the car. Typical.

I was proud of my kids. Proud that they could willingly give up the thing that they don't use. Proud that they didn't demand a lot of me at the amazing Toys R Us store. Proud that they didn't spend all they had on the first trip. Proud that when we asked them to put some in the offering they were more than willing to do so.

Maeve came home with a doll and some some sunglasses. Cannon came home with a new beyblade (just google it...) and a Lego set. And Brynn came home with....a beyblade too. Random, but perfect none-the-less.

Nolan just survived trip in the stroller.

Big Cup of Chocolate

My my Maeve.
That is a big cup "o" hot chocolate!
You go right ahead and enjoy every last drop!