It's not every day you get a new cousin you know!

The kids aren't quite as excited as I am to see my sisters new baby girl.
I'm dying!
I want to be there holding her, instead of blogging about a baby I havent even seen yet!

I caught the look of love on S's. face when she saw the picture grandpa sent of baby M.
I can't wait to see her for real!
Congrats to Aunt Andrea!!

Going to the ball with nothing to wear,.....

.....sounds so pathetic!!
For some reason though,(maybe because I cant stand shopping or dresses in general!) when I heard little 7 year old Z. whine something similar, I just had to laugh.

She was serious though.
At least she started the whining with our budget in mind, asking "Do we have any cousins with fancy dresses they could give us?"
You see, the Elementary school has a Valentine Tea, a formal Tea.
Her personal criteria was that her outfit had to be red or pink, shiny or with hearts, oh and of course New.
Being such a resourceful kid she not only used her powers on mom(she needed a ride to a store) but then also on the options she found(Christmas clearance rack, Valentines ribbon).
End result was a beautiful outfit and a very happy TeaParty- goer.


Did I mention she bought it herself with her own allowance savings?!
Did I mention also that for the same event N. wore a wrinkled polo and some khakis(his version of dressed up, overdressed in fact)?!

Inspired reminder

Our church service starts at 9:00am for this year.
9 is nice if you don't have half a dozen people to feed, clean, dress and transport to the Chapel before the prelude music ends.(Okay actually all but 1 can easily feed and dress themselves, and the building is not even a block from the house. Morning always feels worse than it really is though!)
For some reason we park on one side of the building and walk across the chapel to the entirely opposite side.
The Chapel is actually not a huge room but when you lead 4 kids in their dress up duds across a room filled with smiling old people it feels stadium-like.
Too much smiling, too much staring.
But, as I was leaving on Sunday I received a comment that I truly needed.
"Enjoy those cute kids of yours!"
In all the hustle and bustle of "preparing" for the Sabbath I had forgotten to be there.
As mom.
Funny how we (me especially in the mornings) forget to look at what is right in front of us.

How could I not enjoy this little darling?!
Without the reminder I would have napped, rested, chilled, made some dinner, cleaned it and then slept. (yes, there is a reoccurring theme to my Sundays)
All the while I would have told the kids to quiet down, use inside voices, calm down, that kind of thing.
Instead I enjoyed them.
Really enjoyed them.
Uno.
Memory.
Chess.
Talking.
One of the great side effects was how well they played together when I was resting.

Normally there would be screaming and fighting going on with all 4 in 1 room. Instead it was enjoyable!
I couldn't help but add these cute picts too.
We got into the habit of letter writing when Great Grandpa died and Grandma became a lonely widow.
Also when Auntie Roo chose to serve her 18 month mission in Missouri and Kansas.
Missionaries are actually easier to write to, they dont mind if you use slang, misspell words, or write so illegibly that it takes a decoder to figure out what the letter says.
They just like letters.
Anyways, the kids are used to writing every week and T. especially gets into it.
He is so loving and shares it.
He recently figured out IheartU.
Sweet!
He was trying to figure out how to tell GGma he wished she would have a good Christmas.
It doesn't matter to him that Christmas isn't for another 10 months.
He will be thinking about it every day, wont she?!

I found the younger 2 kids happily reading the other morning. It's not unusual really, but this time they had some new library books, so they were really into it, taking turns between Dora and Spiderman.

N. has always had an issue with what I like to call "after school socks". Have you ever sat down to comfortably read wearing the same socks that were stuffed into sweaty shoes all day? For some reason taking off just one and depositing it somewhere, anywhere, seems to cure N. Hence the 1 sock companion on the couch.( I am a both socks off kind of reader myself.) By the way his book may have a drawing or two included, but the page you can see is actually his bookmark, idea sheet. Good to keep it handy for new ideas.
Z. makes my eyes hurt just watching her. She chooses to read with a small reading light although she has a perfectly functioning bedroom light. I remember the days. After a few chapters she usually ends up in a brighter spot or next to mom complaining of a headache she cant explain.

I love that they are readers and that they love books. It makes me not feel as guilty when I absorb half of a paperback in an afternoon. Sunny windows were made for reading, and not a one of us would pass it up.

Picky Puppy

Harley has a problem.
She Loves to play outside.
No that isn't the problem.
All the play makes her sleepy, like any puppy, and she isn't happy with the kitchen floor as a rest spot anymore.
She has to be out stuffed into the chair.

Now that she has outgrown the slide landing she has graduated to the tramp too.
Silly puppy.
I wondered how all of those chewed up ball remains ended up strewn on the tramp.

Of course her most favorite spot is anywhere in the LivingRoom.
We are all slowly getting used to the idea.
Some day she may even be grown up enough to be let up there alone, but not for now, and certainly not without a chew toy in hand.
Or mouth, whatever.

P.S. I love her camouflage. If it weren't for her high powered tail movements and the constant jaw action we might not even see her laying there. Sometimes when she is stalking the daycare kids behind our house she blends right into the fence.

2yrs old point of view

It seems like every time download my camera pictures onto the computer I find a few surprises.
What seems like a string of random pictures on my hijacked camera is a glimpse of a toddlers viewpoint.
I love that in half of these she is standing up on the highest point mom allows, to take her pictures.
What I don't love is the fingerprint in the middle of the newly replaced lens.


Looking through the broom at brother on the other side.
Eyes begging to be allowed through the gate and up the stairs.
Up close it looks like brother has some early balding issues.
"Where are we going?" (Dora voice here) Table. Tramp. Bean Bag.
Sisters special stuffs.
Every other picture was so blurry it was too hard to make out.
Now, where can I hide the camera from chubby hands, that I will be able to remember where is when I need it?!