There are so many parts and pieces that make up our days around here that I know will never make it into story form, but I don't want to forget what each person is like right at this very moment. So here's a little glimpse into our family at the start of this new year...
Caroline is on day 8 of 30 with her "No More Thumbs!" chart. She is working on breaking the day time habit (we leave nights well enough alone until they figure it out for themselves) and has a big girl haircut waiting for her at the finish line. She was all excited about the Locks of Love idea until I pulled up the website and she suddenly got cold feet. I realized that she thought the sweet little bald girl that came up was a donor and not a recipient. We got it all squared away and now she's back to loving the idea.
Benjamin loves knights. Seriously. He loves them. He was the first person downstairs a few Saturday's ago and when Jimmy was making his way into the family room he heard a little voice saying, "Whoa. Das awesome." He found Ben alone, looking through one of our school books called Medieval World, practically drooling over all of the knights and swords. I don't even bother putting that book back on the bookshelf anymore.
My two big boys wear their favorite pajamas even though the knees are holey. They have drawers full of jammies, but their favorites win almost every night. On the off nights (or when I confiscate them on laundry day) they wear Jimmy's t-shirts.
Caroline loves it when I put foam rollers in her hair and calls them her "sleeping curls".
Jack has learned to play peek-a-boo and it completely melts our hearts when he lays his face down and chuckles to himself over the fact that we "can't" see him. He pops up with his sweet (three toothed!) smile like he's just totally fooled us, then starts all over again.
Jimmy wants to start running again and I think he'll actually do it this time. I'm contemplating it but making no promises.
We're realizing that it's time to make the transition from being a family of all littles to a family with some full-fledged big kids. Part of that is tough (rest time isn't always two hours for the big people), but mostly it's fun (playing grown-up games on weekend afternoons).
Sam is working on losing his top two teeth. They've been loose for months now but he's never in a hurry. Ever.
We haven't been doing so well about getting to church on time so Jimmy's instituted a new family game-plan. We leave at 9 and bring a book to read together in the car until it's time to go in.
Caroline tells me all the time that she can't wait to be a mother and is forever requesting that I write down recipes so that she can make her favorites for her family. She said she's going to ask her "father" (which means her husband - the father of her children) to build their house right in between our house and Uncle Ron and Aunt Jenny-Lynn's house and she's going to bring her babies over to our house every day for tea. But the dogs will stay outside.
Travis has joined in on the inside jokes that Jimmy and I will make regarding the kids. He gets them now and will even initiate them himself. And he's funny.
Sam has become a hard worker. He really loves to organize things and does a great job whatever the project may be. His reading is exploding and he's very quick to pick up new things in math.
Whoever said that babies in big families get left behind never met Jack. This kid can't get a break! Maybe that's why he loves his naps....
Travis is considering being a writer when he grows up and told me the other day that he wished our last name was Tolkien.
I've been complaining about our dishwasher's less-than-stellar performance lately but then I realized that it's been run every single day for almost four years now. And sometimes twice a day. So I understand why she's feeling a little tired (but I still get annoyed when my "clean" dishes are nasty).
Ben talks really clearly now and says very funny things. I try to talk him into saying things the way he did even just a month ago (like "I go HUGE foops in the big foyee!"), but now he says, "No Mommy, it's poops in the potty and that's all you get."
Travis and Sam tell what they call "Roach Stories" to Ben every night in bed. They crack themselves all up and they're in the process of writing their stories down now 'cause they know their kids are going to want to hear them.
We've reclaimed our nightly family time thanks to the Advent Season. It had gotten pretty pathetic for a little while but we were reminded of how much we love that special time together and are glad to have it back. Jimmy just finished reading A Dangerous Journey, which we all really enjoyed.
Sam let me in on the trick he uses to remember his right from his left the other day. He said, "Remember that time I got poked in the eye with a pencil? It was in my left eye." So much for those formal lessons I gave him a few years ago.
School is so much fun. It really is. Logistically some days are better than others, for sure, but we're all learning so much and genuinely love our days. Hot tea over bible and snacks during reading time don't hurt either.
Jack is in the running for the "Sweetest Baby That Ever Graced The Planet" award. Jimmy and I fight over who gets to wear him when we're out.
Caroline and I are making a quilt together for her bed. It's really great to be able to do big girl things with her.
I guess that's about enough for now. We're really looking forward to 2010. This past year was a rough one for us and consisted mainly of living in survival mode. I suppose it happens that way sometimes and we are all still alive, though we're taking a deep, cleansing breath and are excited to do more than just survive this year. These are good days and I want to remember the little details along with the big memories. They're going by too fast!
Caroline is on day 8 of 30 with her "No More Thumbs!" chart. She is working on breaking the day time habit (we leave nights well enough alone until they figure it out for themselves) and has a big girl haircut waiting for her at the finish line. She was all excited about the Locks of Love idea until I pulled up the website and she suddenly got cold feet. I realized that she thought the sweet little bald girl that came up was a donor and not a recipient. We got it all squared away and now she's back to loving the idea.
Benjamin loves knights. Seriously. He loves them. He was the first person downstairs a few Saturday's ago and when Jimmy was making his way into the family room he heard a little voice saying, "Whoa. Das awesome." He found Ben alone, looking through one of our school books called Medieval World, practically drooling over all of the knights and swords. I don't even bother putting that book back on the bookshelf anymore.
My two big boys wear their favorite pajamas even though the knees are holey. They have drawers full of jammies, but their favorites win almost every night. On the off nights (or when I confiscate them on laundry day) they wear Jimmy's t-shirts.
Caroline loves it when I put foam rollers in her hair and calls them her "sleeping curls".
Jack has learned to play peek-a-boo and it completely melts our hearts when he lays his face down and chuckles to himself over the fact that we "can't" see him. He pops up with his sweet (three toothed!) smile like he's just totally fooled us, then starts all over again.
Jimmy wants to start running again and I think he'll actually do it this time. I'm contemplating it but making no promises.
We're realizing that it's time to make the transition from being a family of all littles to a family with some full-fledged big kids. Part of that is tough (rest time isn't always two hours for the big people), but mostly it's fun (playing grown-up games on weekend afternoons).
Sam is working on losing his top two teeth. They've been loose for months now but he's never in a hurry. Ever.
We haven't been doing so well about getting to church on time so Jimmy's instituted a new family game-plan. We leave at 9 and bring a book to read together in the car until it's time to go in.
Caroline tells me all the time that she can't wait to be a mother and is forever requesting that I write down recipes so that she can make her favorites for her family. She said she's going to ask her "father" (which means her husband - the father of her children) to build their house right in between our house and Uncle Ron and Aunt Jenny-Lynn's house and she's going to bring her babies over to our house every day for tea. But the dogs will stay outside.
Travis has joined in on the inside jokes that Jimmy and I will make regarding the kids. He gets them now and will even initiate them himself. And he's funny.
Sam has become a hard worker. He really loves to organize things and does a great job whatever the project may be. His reading is exploding and he's very quick to pick up new things in math.
Whoever said that babies in big families get left behind never met Jack. This kid can't get a break! Maybe that's why he loves his naps....
Travis is considering being a writer when he grows up and told me the other day that he wished our last name was Tolkien.
I've been complaining about our dishwasher's less-than-stellar performance lately but then I realized that it's been run every single day for almost four years now. And sometimes twice a day. So I understand why she's feeling a little tired (but I still get annoyed when my "clean" dishes are nasty).
Ben talks really clearly now and says very funny things. I try to talk him into saying things the way he did even just a month ago (like "I go HUGE foops in the big foyee!"), but now he says, "No Mommy, it's poops in the potty and that's all you get."
Travis and Sam tell what they call "Roach Stories" to Ben every night in bed. They crack themselves all up and they're in the process of writing their stories down now 'cause they know their kids are going to want to hear them.
We've reclaimed our nightly family time thanks to the Advent Season. It had gotten pretty pathetic for a little while but we were reminded of how much we love that special time together and are glad to have it back. Jimmy just finished reading A Dangerous Journey, which we all really enjoyed.
Sam let me in on the trick he uses to remember his right from his left the other day. He said, "Remember that time I got poked in the eye with a pencil? It was in my left eye." So much for those formal lessons I gave him a few years ago.
School is so much fun. It really is. Logistically some days are better than others, for sure, but we're all learning so much and genuinely love our days. Hot tea over bible and snacks during reading time don't hurt either.
Jack is in the running for the "Sweetest Baby That Ever Graced The Planet" award. Jimmy and I fight over who gets to wear him when we're out.
Caroline and I are making a quilt together for her bed. It's really great to be able to do big girl things with her.
I guess that's about enough for now. We're really looking forward to 2010. This past year was a rough one for us and consisted mainly of living in survival mode. I suppose it happens that way sometimes and we are all still alive, though we're taking a deep, cleansing breath and are excited to do more than just survive this year. These are good days and I want to remember the little details along with the big memories. They're going by too fast!