Must. Eat. Cake...

I guess that the words said right before this picture was taken were "Nolan, should you ask your mommy if you can have another piece of cake?"

Fishing in the Rain

Rich took the kids fishing.

The guy is crazy. 

6 kids. 

Fishing poles. 

Mud

Lake water. 

Rain. 

You couldn't pay me to do this...

Shopping....

...with the kids is never ever ever fun.

Ever. 

The End. 

37

This guy right here deserves way more then I could ever do to show him how much he means to me. He deserves a big party, with all his friends, and amazing food and everything.

But instead he worked all day, had family over and a dinner of all his favorites. And he was *loudly* serenaded by 8 kids as they shout/sang happy birthday to him, and who then tore into the ice cream cake before he even had a slice. 

And he said that everything was perfect. 

I'm blessed with a husband who works hard, plays with out children, and loves me even when I'm a hot mess. He's a man I will gladly follow as I've watched him lay down his own desires as he sacrifices for us. Happy birthday to you sweetheart! 

Notes

Cannon had to write me an apology note the other day. Don't tell him that I took a picture, or that I kept the note....

And Maeve started a note the other day. I'm still kinda curious how this one was going to end...

Body Parts

It's still funny to me that I open drawers and find things like Lego heads hidden in them. I'm glad it's funny...cause it's pretty much an every day occurance here. Between the drawers and the dryer, I've got quite a big stash of Lego dude body parts.

Laundry

I thought if I lined up all 9 baskets of clean laundry I would be inspired to fold it.

Nope. 

Not. At. All. 

Trapping those Leprechauns

We *almost* made it through St Patty's Day without having to do anything "green" related.

Almost. 

And then the radio reminded the kids, so Rich took one for the team and helped them build a trap. 

And of course it failed...but they had fun! 

Maeve Series

I was looking back through my old pics and found this series from a trip to Home Depot. My favorite part is watching Maeve's expressions in all of them.

She makes me laugh!!

 I guess that maybe she learned it from me....? 

We're dorks. 

Notes to the Tooth Fairy

It's been awhile since any wiggly teeth, and brynn just wants to keep the conversation going with her tooth fairy....

Church Changes

I'm not always fond of change, but this one was for the best.
We left our church of 16 years after lots and lots and lots of prayer.
I don't like being in limbo, not knowing what is next, but God will open and close doors as He always does.

AM cuddles

Honest "Maeve"

{at a party}

Maeve: Mommy.
My tummy hurts.
I think I *might* have had too much juice. 

{pause for a second} 

Actually.
I think I'm gonna go poop.
That will work. 

*blink* *blink* 

Cannon is Awesome

Rich told me this story:

Driving to school this morning the DJ on the radio says, "next we have one of America's greatest hits!"
On comes the 80's pop song "She Drives Me Crazy".
About 30 seconds into the song....
Cannon: dad, is this a boy or a girl singing?
Me: its a boy that sounds like a girl.
10 second pause....
Cannon: the DJ should have called this one of America's most embarrassing hits.

Kill Me Now

No. Seriously. 

Someone buy me earphones. 

Or a soundproof room. 

Or just shoot me. 

That's probably easiest....

Suessed Up

I'm always grateful for dr suess and all his fun, cool books! 

And that I get to make cupcakes for the kids class. 

But this year I was ESPECIALLY grateful that I could re-use the Halloween costumes for the "dress up as your favorite book character" day and the schools' annual Book Lovers Ball. 

{here's me killing three birds with one stone} 

Brynn even won first place for her costume, and got $10 to spend at the book fair! 

Mass Production

I pretty much hate making school lunches. 

It's the dreaded task for me in the morning. 

I know there's got to be a better system then the one I use. 

{the one where 15 min before the kids leave I'm scrambling to find stuff to throw into their lunch box...you know....that system} 

The worst part for me is the sandwiches. 

They could eat PB&J every day. 

And I'm not kidding. 

So, every once in awhile when I've got my act together, I will mass produce their sandwiches and freeze them. 

It works well, and it saves me my sanity in the morning. 

And isn't that really what it's all about....

Treks Cuddles

I heard some humming from the corner and found #3 singing Treks to sleep. 
He actually stayed that way, covered in her favorite green blanket, for a few hours until it was time for him to go get in his real bed.
Best. Dog. Ever.

Soup's On!

On a day like this, all I want to do is curl up with a good {real} book. I want to lie down and read, and read, and read.  

{sound of record scratching} 

But let's get back to reality. 

4 kids, all trapped indoors. 

It's not gonna happen. 

So instead, I made soup. 

Here's the deal though. 

I don't even like soup. 

I just needed a dinner that was hot, and easy, and where I could throw in a bunch of stuff from the fridge. 

{cue the dreaded "casserole of leftovers"}

But for whatever reason, this turned out great. 

And by great, I mean, I liked it, 3 of the 4 liked it, and the 1 who doesn't like most things, didn't gag as he ate it.
Plus, when its served with grilled cheese pull apart rolls....you can't really go wrong.

 

I didn't follow a recipe....but here's what I put in.

Sausage browned, white onion diced, carrots peeled and cut up, fresh thyme, chopped garlic, chicken stock, celery salt, bay leaves, parsley, frozen spinach.  Simmer together, until carrots are semi soft, then add a small bag of dried lentils. They only take 20-30 min to cook, and I'm scared to add them too early in fear they will turn to unrecognizable mush (blech).  Right before serving, I added some cream.  

Because you know, cream makes everything better. 

Playing Hooky

How to play hooky from school.

1. Schedule a dentist appointment for all 4 kids during normal business hours.
2. Decide to get all the kids haircuts instead of returning them back to school.
3. Celebrate with lunch afterwards that you all survived the day.

Bring It On!

Nothing better then rain. 

Especially on this dry thirsty land! 

Bring it on!