To Remember

Yes, he gets up on all fours now. He's ready to crawl!

This is just a post of odds and ends that I want to remember...

Samuel calls the street a parking lot. :) When he's racing someone he says, "I'm going to beat you up!" instead of saying he's going to beat them. That one cracks me up.

I wrestled with his car seat strap today and called it stupid. He went on and on about me saying a bad word and I apologized. We then got to the playground at school where other parents were. He said from the top of the playground, "Mom, you have to stop saying that bad word."

I went to the moms' prayer group at school this morning and afterward I told Samuel that he did such a good job being quiet. He said that I didn't do a good job being quiet. Ha! I told him I would have to work on that and he said, "Yep.". :)

Hunter and Lily both say science is their favorite subject to learn about. I made them pick something besides recess and lunch.

I told Lily that I really liked the new principal. She said, "Yeah, but, I like Dad better." Ha! I agreed.

I know there are a ton of more things to but I can't remember them. I may add more to this post as I think of them. Such funny kids!

Samuel and Dance

Now that Hunter and Lily are in school full time, I thought this would be a good time to work with Samuel on some preschool skills. He'll be in 4 year old preschool next year and I am not worried about him knowing tons before that. This just gives us something to do! He's been loving it. He calls it his "homework" and as soon as we get back from dropping the twins off, he asks to get his homework out. I have let him paint every day so that's the big excitement for him! Hunter and Lily like to hear what he's learned and they think he's lucky that he has Mom as his teacher. Ha! I was surprised at that but I think this full time school thing is more work than they thought! :)

*I got the majority of his worksheets and printables from Confessions of A Homeschooler*

In other news, Lily started her new year of dance classes last night. This year, it's tap and ballet, without the tumbling part. Her class is BIG but she has a classmate from school in the same class so that was exciting.

Nathan's New Tricks

Nathan has some new skills he has been working on. He loves to frown at you--I think he does it on purpose because we frown back. It's funny! Also, I've noticed him getting more attached to his thumb. He actually put his thumb in his mouth when I laid him down this morning. I wasn't sure for awhile if it's because of teething (I see his fangs shining through but no top teeth yet) or because of soothing. Finally, I have noticed that he likes to lay down--I found him on a pillow the other day and we managed to get these pictures of him on the floor:

*This is Hunter's baby blanket from Grandma Hill*

And here's a frown to make you smile:

What to do?!

Day 2 of school and we are trying to find our groove. What to do with all this time and no older kids? Well, I say that for Samuel because I, obviously, could find a ton of things to do and all of them sound like housework. Today, Samuel got out a thousand puzzles, served us ice cream out of shopping cart, asked me to watch a "spooky" movie with him (and yelled at me when I nodded off), we learned Nathan is now afraid of the vacuum,and...oh yeah, he filled up the toilet with a WHOLE ROLL of toilet paper.

You know, he's very independent. He desires zero help in the bathroom and he likes his privacy and we give him that freedom because he's just been super at the potty training. So, when he was in the potty w/the door closed, I really didn't think anything of it. Bad move. He came out and asked to show me something. So, I have had to do what no person on earth should have to do. My hand/arm will just never be clean. I know it. Brian called me (I had texted him a picture) and I broke down in hysterical laughter and begged him not to tell a soul. And then I post it here. :)

1st Day of 1st Grade

Today was Hunter and Lily's 1st day of school! This summer just flew by. They weren't super thrilled leading up to this day but they woke up feeling excited for the day ahead.

I knew the Grandparents would want to see this pic so I posted it regardless of the blurriness. We snuck in the school to get a picture. Apparently, only kindergarten parents follow their kids inside the school. I could barely stand not getting a peek so thank you to Brian for going along w/me. :)

Okay, so at home w/a few hours to kill. Nathan's face says it all: What do we do now?

Strip down if you are Samuel. He actually tried taking his shirt off outside during the morning prayer/pledge of allegiance that we all did as a school.

After school...got a picture w/the backpacks since they didn't have them this morning. They left them filled w/supplies at their desk on Monday. Plus, this picture shows the 2 giants holes in Hunter's brand new shirt. Grrr. Both the kids said recess was their favorite part and both said it was a long day and they were starving. :) It was actually only 3.5 hours so I wonder what they will say tomorrow after being there 7 hours??!

Priceless

Today, I got to spend 4 hours with one of my most favorite people. Sally and I met before she was even married and now she's married w/3 kids!! How is that possible? We were in Bible study together and I always enjoyed her sense of humor. Shortly after I had the twins, we started really bonding. I still remember when her and Curtis showed up at my condo without notice--I was not looking my best! Ha! But they sat w/the twins and played with them--it was so sweet. Then, we got spontaneous pedis when she was BIG and pregnant with Evie. :) We have kept in touch through my move here and her move there but hadn't seen each other in 2 years!! She surprised me for my 30th birthday and I did not return the favor. :( Anyway, I so loved getting to see her and it was like we had never been apart. We laughed, cried, shopped (did you know silver flats are a must?), ate @ Chili's (for sentimental reasons!) and she felt perfectly free to chastise me in an area where she thought I needed it. Ha! Friends like her are priceless!!

Haircuts!

All 3 of the big kids had haircuts today to get ready for school. Well, Samuel isn't in school but he needed one. :) Hunter was very disappointed that he had to get his hair cut at home while Lily got to go the ever fancy Cost Cutters. :) Lily and I actually had a fun morning out getting dance shoes (and one cute outfit!), her hair cut and then groceries. It was good girl time!

*This is the best picture I could get of all 3 kids together. They weren't feeling cooperative. Samuel is only in it because Brian told him not to be. sigh.*

Another day...

...too filled with busyness. This morning, my sister and I took all the kids to Donutland for breakfast. Then, we all went to my parents' house so that Andrea could watch all the kids while I got my hair done. Isn't she nice? :) Samuel doesn't really not like Andrea, he just doesn't want to spend time with her. Ha! To be fair, he feels that way about most people. But, today, as soon as she walked in the house, he said, "You're watching over me!". It was so cute. Maybe someday he'll call her by name instead of "Henley Mom".

All the kids at Donutland. I thought the employees seemed alarmed but Andrea thought they seemed excited to see us with all our children.

After I brought the kids home, we got some rest time at home before Brian got back from work. Then I was out the door again to meet my friend, Nichole, for her birthday. We had so much fun! I told her I was going to blog about it. She took me to see her new classroom, which was really fun. Then we headed out to try a new restaurant, which is a big deal. We kind of have a thing about always going to Granite City. But, Nichole wanted to try something new so we went to Graze. I think we both agreed we were cooler for having gone there. We then got to do some great people watching while having Cold Stone. Then, came time for the following picture. She insisted on taking a picture of my hair from every side so that she can show her stylist and have it redone to her hair. So, I took her picture just to be even. We then hit some stores at the mall and headed home, exhausted. My favorite part of the night was when she said that she would get chacos (?) if she had money and I thought she meant a chocolate taco. Seriously. What in the world? Apparently, she meant shoes. I am so relieved because I will buy her a chocolate taco if that's her greatest want. :) Happy Birthday to my oldest (not in age!) friend!!

*This picture is from my phone but I figured out how to email it so I am proud!*

Adventureland

We had a some-of-the-family trip to Adventureland today. My brother, sister-in-law, sister, brother-in-law, 2 nieces, 2 nephews, my Mom, Brian, the 3 older kids and I all roadtripped it there today. Nathan was able to stay w/my Dad, which I was so thankful for today as the heat index surely hit the 100s. Ugh!

This was our vanload on the way there. My 3 kids and Cali. The trip home was the same except Grandma took Cali's place. Uneventful trips...the kids watched movies (we took my parents' van for that luxury). This was about the last time I saw Cali--she's too old to hang around the kiddie rides so they did their own thing.

Where to go 1st?

The infamous Frog Hopper. Hunter and Lily talked of little else since going last year. They did this ride ASAP and showed Samuel how it's done. Samuel enjoyed it a lot more than I thought but he seemed to think it should be over after the 1st few drops. That didn't stop him from riding it over and over...

I got sick after this tea cup ride last year so I skipped it this year. Dad took one for the team, though. :) He rode more things this year and that's always exciting for the kids.

Ice cream sundaes in the air conditioning. So needed!! And, no, they did not eat all that ice cream--wow, big servings!!

My favorite picture by far. I talked my Mom into going on the ride w/me and the kids (all 3 kids rode w/us--you can't see them well in this picture). Just a water slide, I said. Ha! We were twirling uncontrollably. It was hilarious and a little scary.

Isn't this precious? Uncle Jamie is dripping water on Samuel's head at the last ride of the day--as he eats his giant pickle. We are h-o-t and tired. This was Samuel's 1st trip to Adventureland and I think it was successful! Everyone had a really good time--even in the heat. Hunter was 1000x braver with rides compared to last year. Samuel was 1000x braver than I ever expected. He loved the log ride (which neither Brian nor I will ride!) and I was so nervous about him going on it. Lily was brave last year and was about the same this year. All these kids who loves rides--what will Brian and I do?? Neither of us care for rides, especially roller coasters. I guess we'll always have to go as a group so they have an adult to ride with!

Today's Plans

Hunter and Lily had a birthday party today. It's an army-themed party so they were supposed to go in camouflage or similar colors. They also took items for a care package for a soldier so that led to some great conversations about what soldiers do for us and we even had a rabbit trail discussion about the President. Anyway, the kids are still at the party but were wearing dog tags and bandanas when I left. It looked like fun (for them)!

Back at home...Nathan is up and having a bath. Getting too big for his baby tub but he doesn't sit up well enough for the big tub (for my comfort level). Like his little tuft of hair sticking out? He was rubbing his mesh feeder all over his face/head and it was filled with sticky melon. It kept him busy while we ate, though. :)

Samuel fell asleep while him and Brian were picking up his requested supper. It's almost 6:30pm and he's asleep--that doesn't sound good!

Also, this weekend...I made some homemade baby food and froze it. I felt very proud. It's an effort to save $ but also because I always liked the idea but never did it. I started with just the fruits/veggies I had on hand to try it out. It was super easy and kind of fun, actually. We'll see how it goes...

Old?

Samuel was messing with my hair and we had this conversation...

S: Momma, I found your white things.

Me: My white hair?

S: Yep. Why do you need white hair?

Me: I don't need it but I am getting old.

S: No, you're not. Daddy's old already.

Me: Ha! Is he old?

S: Yep but you're not old yet.

*You can see why Samuel is my little sweetheart. But I obviously need to get my hair dyed again. :)*

Splash Pad

Today I took the kids to the splash pad. We had not been to this splash pad since I was pregnant with Samuel and it's less than a block from my house. Ha! Well, it's always crowded and I just can't stand that. I have a sprinkler at home, you know? :) Anyway, the kids had a ton of fun today. There was a playgroup there from a local church and one of their classmates was there because of that. Samuel had a lot of fun at 1st but hung around me when it got a little more wild and busy. Nathan was pretty patient but was getting hot and sweaty by the time we left. A little boy did dump his cup of water into my diaper bag, but he was maybe 2 (or younger), so that was a bummer... Still, it felt like a fun thing to do in these last days of summer...