Bowl.

We received a coupon in the mail for some deal on bowling for the whole family. And even though we're not great bowlers, we have a good time. Bumpers are always a good thing!


Abbie and Anna would approach the lane and almost LOB the ball. I just know if someone was tossing bowling balls on my hardwood floors, I would NOT be happy.


I foolishly didn't think that Lucas would be all that interested in bowling. Really. His favorite word is "ball". Duh.



So, Matt sacrificed a couple of his frames (although, lets be honest... not the best bowler) to Lucas.




And Miles, well... Miles is of the age where he wants to do it all himself. Hefting the 6 pound ball out there, and shoving down the lane... which takes about 2 minutes to reach the pins. But what he lacks in ability, he makes for in enthusiasm, right?


No pictures of me. But you can imagine the stares an 8.5 month pregnant woman might receive at a bowling alley. (Insert joke about smuggling a ball here.)

And for the record... I totally won.

36 Weeks and Counting.

Fancy-ing it Up!

Four years ago, when Miles brought all things boy into my life, my mom awesomely dyed some burp cloths for me. Reds, Blues, Greens, Oranges... Boy Colors. I was prepared for the onslaught of baby boy spitup. Except Miles almost never spitup. And my awesome burp pads went largely unused!

And then two years ago, when Lucas was born, these burp pads were at the ready. And Lucas did more drooling than spitting up. Isn't that how it goes?

Now I have no idea if this child will be a "gusher" or not, but I was feeling badly that all my best burp cloths were "BOY". So, I set about fixing that.

Aren't fat quarters the greatest?

The tree fabric is my absolute favorite.

Hi! and Thanks!

Welcome to everyone who might be filing in here via Ucreate or CraftersFileBox or any of the other awesome blogs who are featuring my Valentines from last year. Totally didn't expect all the link love. Fun times!

I promised the closet transformation.
You recall the before:

Let me add that this was after I'd removed ALL their toys, shoes, and sorted out everything that was non-fitting.
First things first: Remove those hideous wood-colored bi-fold doors! BUH-BYE!
We removed the wire shelving (which will probably go up in the garage), puttied, painted the closet and trim (just white), and installed these shelves.

Ta-Da! Everything fits. Now I'm comtemplating whether to put a curtain on it. Any thoughts?

Coming Soon: Transformation

We have a three bedroom house. And (soon-to-be) five children. It goes without saying that our children share rooms, right?

In our attempts to make everyone fit, it was decided that all of the girls' clothing needed to go into their closet. No room for dressers, really. And so began the great closet transformation of January 2010.

The project is almost done, it just requires a few more items. But this is just to whet your appetite.

We're going from this:


Adding some of this:

And this dresser FULL of clothes that has seen much better days:


Will it work? Your guess is as good as mine at this point.

Everyday...

Just a picture from our everyday life. And so, a haiku.

Blurry running kids,
Laundry waits to be folded,
A common chaos.

A Pleasant Surprise

If you're a mom, you know that when the kids get too quiet it can mean only one thing: TROUBLE. This is when you usually find that your children have escaped from the backyard carrying all the grapefruit from our tree that they can manage and are selling it door to door. TRUE STORY.

However, on this particular day I was met with a very pleasant surprise.

Phew!

Project #3

Newborn Longies & a Newborn Sweater


I'm severely giddy over them.

And a scale picture... Anna's American Girl Knockoff.


It might be time to put down the knitting needles for awhile and pick up my rotary cutter. But first... I have a tiny bit more yarn left... matching hat or matching booties?

Impending...

I will be honest with you. I'm not expecting good things from Lucas when this new baby arrives. He gets jealous when I hold other children. He screams hysterically when we attempt to leave him in nursery, which is why at 22 months old, we have yet to leave him the entire time. It's just not fair to those sweet ladies.

And last week, he tried to bite the fingers off a sweet four month old baby. It was unprovoked. I cried. I cried for that sweet boy and for how awful his mother must think I am. I cried for my new little girl and the impending doom Lucas is sure to bring upon her.

I love this kid. I'm just terrified of him.

Project #2

I'm definitely in a yarn phase. I'm loving all things knit and crochet. I'm a very beginning knitter, but decided to try something ambitious.

I joined the fabulous community of yarn artists at Ravelry.com where there is a plethora of expertise, information and FREE patterns.
Some other great learning to knit sites:
Knitty
Knitting Help
YouTube

There is a video or picture tutorial out there for every single thing you might have a question about. I love it! I could never have learn to knit before the INTERNET.

I am not a cloth diaperer. I wish I was. I will explain. I didn't own my own washer/dryer in my home until just before (about two weeks before) Miles was born. There's NO WAY I'm using a coin op to wash/dry cloth diapers. For a long time after Miles was born, we thought we were done having children.
Then we had Lucas. I really was sure that he was our last and figured, "why bother cloth diapering now? the costs won't be recouped in cloth diapering just one kid!"
And then we decided to have another. But really folks, last baby.
Part of the reason that I would have loved to cloth diaper is just for the cuteness factor. Admit it, disposables are UGLY! Cloth diapers have a much higher cute quotient.
So, when I was looking for a cute and simple knitting project, I decided on a wool soaker/diaper cover for my new little girl. After much head scratching, and under-the-breath swearing and literally tearing out 1/3rd of the project when I could have called it complete... and learning a bunch of new techniques, I call it finished.



And for scale:


Because it's TEENY. Just like babies.

Divide and Conquer

I have to admit, bathtime is one of my most dreaded activities. Especially with this ginormous belly. It used to be that everyone got baths on the same night, but I just can't handle that much "helping" at once.

So, the kids' bathtime is split up. The girls shower (which they still need help with getting all the soap OUT of their hair) one night and I laboriously slave over the tub with the boys on another night.



Miles generally hates all manner of bath/shower activities so it's a labor of patience. Call it a boy thing. Lucas, on the other hand, will come bookin' it at the mere sound of water running. His futile attempts at stripping his clothes from his person are laughable. He can't get naked fast enough. Perhaps his opinions will change once he realizes the purpose of baths, such as it did with Miles.

Getting Ready

As I already have two daughters, and can't manage to throw or donate the mountains (literally) of baby clothes I had for them, there isn't a whole lot that we need in preparation for the coming of our new little one.

That's a good thing. There is one thing that Matt lets me get with each new kid we have: an adorable coming home from the hospital outfit. Lucas's outfit still makes me all giddy inside and he still uses that blanket.

So, I went out on a search for an adorable outfit for a little girl. Sounds easy enough... but I'm incredibly picky (also the reason she doesn't yet have a name). I did, finally find what I was looking for:

It's from a company called Daily Tea which I'm absolutely in love with and am now tempted to buy one of everything in their collection. Alas, I will refrain.

So, now we just wait. Kidding! I've got a good 6 weeks until this girlie's going to make an appearance. There's a ton of cleaning and organizing to do!

The Boys.

While the girls are in school, I really do enjoy the time I get to spend with my boys. Lazy mornings. Staying in our jammies until the last possible moment. Naps. *Sigh.*

Lucas, at 21 months old has finally "mastered" the use of utensils. I use the word mastered loosely. He can spear things with his fork and transport them to his mouth with it. He can also eat a cup of yogurt semi-successfully with a spoon. We call this mastered.



And this little guy... well, not so little any more, but still my baby. Every afternoon, after Lucas is down for his nap, and we get a couple quick chores done, Miles and I will settle in for "Snuggle Time." At first, it was my way of getting to lay down and take a nap and hope that Miles would also fall asleep. And it worked! But now, as a creature of habit, every single day, Miles requests his Snuggle Time. Who am I to argue? Usually, I'll fall asleep for a quick 20 minutes and he'll blissfully sleep for a good hour or more. Love this boy.


So blessed. So. Very. Blessed.

Project #1

Whenever the weather gets cold (did I mention that we had frozen precipitation? can't really call it snow...), my mind turns to all manner of yarn-related crafting.

Bring on the needles and hooks!

I've started my very first afghan. I've never crocheted anything larger than a hat, but I was feeling ambitious, I guess.



I'm about 25% finished with the "blocks" and then I'll have to seam them all together, which I am imagining is going to take just as long as making the blocks themselves. But gosh darnit, I'm making an afghan!

Mmmm....

We're not coffee drinkers. But sometimes, I wish we were. Both Matt and I love the smell. And frankly, the "morning wakeup" it promises are alluring. And yet we refrain.

Instead, especially during these colder months weeks, we enjoy a daily cup of hot chocolate. Must have marshmallows. Our current favorite: Ghirardelli Peppermint Hot Cocoa. Yum.


It actually reminds me of when Matt and I were dating. We were living in Utah where there is a much longer cold season. From about September through February or later, we would get together every single evening with some good friends and enjoy all manner of hot beverage (barring coffee). We had herbal teas, hot cocoa, and even the ill-fated Postum that Matt loved so dearly.

So, every morning when I sit down with my hot chocolate, it feels like a trip back in time. A much skinnier time.

So Wrong!

There's a reason that Florida is considered The Sunshine State. It's warm here. Or, that's the theory anyway.

For the last week or so, we've been NOT enjoying freezing temperatures overnight. This does not bode well for me or my electric bill. It's also less than pleasant for my poor children who don't have proper winter clothing and have to walk to catch the bus every morning.

Anna is wearing: A long sleeve shirt under a short sleeve shirt. The pink fuzzily lined sweatshirt. Gloves. A wool hat I crocheted her for Christmas 2008. Jeans. Sock & Sneakers. I'm fairly certain there are underwear under there, but I can't promise anything.

Matt, who dutifully walks them to the bus stop EVERY SINGLE DAY (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!) told me that Anna walked to the bus stop while crying, "My face is SOOOO COLD! It hurts!"

Yeah, I'm not the only one who doesn't enjoy this weather. Bring on Spring already!

A Change of Heart

Matt decided, after much research, that he wanted a bike trailer. You know, to tow the kids around in. Enter: Craigslist. There's no way we were about to pay for a brand new one. We just don't have that kind of fundage. Plus, we're much happier buying something like this second-hand. So, for $60 we found ourselves the new owners of a sweet little bike trailer that seats two, came with the front wheel to make it a stroller and is just another fun toy in our efforts to transport our entire family. (This is a blog post all its own.)

The 3 older kids LOVE it.
Lucas, however, hated it. HATED.

It was all I could do to just get him strapped into the thing without him trying to tear my face off. He can be quite vicious that way. But, guess what... I was right.
As soon as Matt took off down the street he was nothing but happiness and joy.

And then, of course, he didn't want to get out. Another face shredding experience.

But it was worth it. Look how darn cute he is?!

An Impossibility:

Getting a good picture of 6 kids, most in their pajamas.

Matt's sister Audrey and her awesome little family decided to make the spontaneous trip down to Florida from Virginia for the week between Christmas and New Years. They left on January 2nd, and in my lack-of-picture-taking-guilt, I snapped this right before they walked out the door on their way back.


From left to right: Hannah, Anna, Emily, Abbie, Miles & Lucas.

Most of the kids are out of focus, 50% aren't even looking at the camera. I took about 12 shots, this was the best one. Yikes! Looks like we'll have to come for a visit this summer, Audrey and Marshall... see if we can get a better one.

Fixed!

And now I can admit to one of my resolutions...

Take a picture of SOMETHING every day. You see, in the last year or so, I've taken significantly fewer pictures of the stuff going on around here. I didn't pick up my camera even once during our Christmas festivities. I am ashamed.

So, in the spirit of Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven." and with the fear that if I don't USE this talent that the Lord has blessed me with, it will be taken from me... I am taking more pictures. Something. Anything. I will NOT be posting them here everyday. I am nothing, if not realistic. But you'll probably get to see a good majority of what I've chosen. The hope is that at the end of the year, I can have a Blurb book or the like printed and it will be a decent representation of our year.

So, where to start... I'll be doing some catch up posts for the next couple of days if that's alright with you all.

Day 1:
Lucas eating breakfast on New Year's Day. Honey Kix. He won't let us put him in the high chair anymore. He wants to sit at the table. Fortunately, his high chair pulls up to the table nicely, but sometimes it's just easier to plop his tiny heiny in a chair and let him go at it. I love morning light.



Also mentioning our lack of New Year's Tradition. We don't have a fancy breakfast. We don't eat sauerkraut, or anything else normal. We just eat like it's any other day. A shame really. What do you eat on New Year's Day?

Broken!

= my camera's card reader.
= no pictures.
= no blogging until I get a new one.
= sorry!
= old picture share?

I picked up this old tiered basket from my mom's house when I was there in November. It was quite literally in the trash. I brought it home, cleaned it up, and spray painted it RED.

Now, I just need to find a use/purpose for it. Any ideas?