Our Thanksgiving

To start, I would like to thank our cousins, the Maloney's, for having us to their house for Thanksgiving and taking us site seeing. We even had our own tour guide (Cindy).

This was actually our 2nd day trip to DC.

The sun may be out but this was a COLD day!!

That's the whole crew. 12 kids and 4 adults at the Washington Monument.



Julie on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial

Our Tennessee crew at the WWII Memorial.

(Hannah's asleep under the purple blanket.)

This was our first daytrip into DC. We got caught in a short, cold and windy rain storm as we walked from the Air & Space Museum to the Capitol. It felt like little shards of ice were hitting us in the face. But we HAD to get a picture in front of the Capitol Building. Todd didn't even turn Spencer around for the picture.

Mount Vernon across the bowling green.

In front of the Potomac River.

We rode the Metro into DC the 2 days we went into the city. Christian had to sit in a seat where he could point to the map and count down the stops (There were about 12 I think- You'd think I'd remember having a 5 year old tell me after EVERY stop how many were left.). The morning we left our cousins's house, Hannah woke up and the first thing she asked was if we were going on the "big train, again?".

This was where I thought we lost Russell.

Russell lost his balance while walking on a raised part of the sidewalk and stepped in a muddy mess on the grass (The grass that has signs on it that say, "Please respect our Veterans and stay off the grass."). Julie found him scraping the mud and junk off his shoe onto the bushes.

I think you would agree with me that we Conquered DC!!

12 kids (ages 6 months-14 years) with 4 adults.

We also saw the Air and Space Museum, the Museum of Natural History, the American Indian Museum(we ran back to this building to get out of that rainstorm), the Vietnam Memorial, and the Korean War Memorial.

Hannah slept both days we were in DC in the stroller. I'm not sure she actually saw a whole lot.

Spencer LOVED running everywhere at Mount Vernon. I had to cut my tour of the house short because he had HAD it and wanted to be outside.

Christian liked being able to ride in the stroller and NOT having to walk the whole time. (I liked that part, too. Not as much complaining.)

Russell had fun playing video games with cousin Robbie and DS downloading with his siblings on the 9 hour drive to Fort Belvoir,VA.

Julie liked playing with Faith and MiKayla but didn't like NOT being a part of the "big girl" group.

Rachel liked staying up late talking to cousin Celeste and having late night snacks.

Janelle liked having someone as obsessed with the Twilight series as she is to talk to about it.

Todd and I decided that just the 2 of us need to go back so that he can have all the time HE wants in the Air and Space Museum and I could go see whatever I want to see while he is there.

(You know I didn't get to see the Hope Diamond.....)

Update on Spencer's "stash"

In my last post, I reported that we haven't found out where Spencer's "stash" is.

We have now.

1 of the missing measuring tapes have been recovered.


We were driving home from church on Sunday.

I happened to glance down into the little "cubby" compartment on the side of the car door by my feet.

It drives Todd crazy that I put things in those cubbies. Like the school coupon book I feel obligated to buy from all my children who are currently at the elementary school level, an extra diaper or two, or the empty coupon carrier. It also houses the windshield scraper (on the driver's side).

As we drove down the street I glanced down and saw something shiny.

When I reached down, I started to laugh.

I had located one of the missing measuring tape.

How Spencer got it there no one knows.

Daddy's Shadow

Spencer is a craftsman in training.

Since we started our addition project, he has followed Todd around wanting to help and do what Daddy is doing.

He loves to be outdoors and if it's with a hammer in hand he's even happier. When Todd took a week off to work on the house, the first thing Spencer said when he woke up every morning was: " I get dressed and hep (help) Daddy.".

In the last 6 months, Spencer has walked off with 2 metal measuring tapes and Daddy's carpenter pencils. Who knows where they are???

We haven't figured out where he keeps his "stash".


Spencer actually got this piece of siding to stay put. He went and found his own plastic hammer and a scrap of siding. He then put a handful of tar paper nails in his pocket and proceeded to pull the nails out one at a time and nail them into the holes in the board. (I found the leftover nails in his pocket that night when I got him ready for bed.) Spencer calls the 2 step ladder "his ladder". He goes and gets it if Daddy has his ladders out.

I think Daddy helped him find the holes in the existing siding to hold it in place. But Spencer put in several nails to make sure it held in place. He even holds the nails between his fingers (like Daddy) so that he can hit the nail and hold it in place.

When Daddy moved around to work on the garage siding, Spencer decided he would just help nail the siding up that Daddy was putting up and I ended up with roofing nails as high as Spencer could reach between my garage doors.


It sure makes Daddy proud.

Even if he has had to replace his measuring tapes and pencils.

When the Cat's away the Mice will play

When Todd & I go out for the evening our kids play with the camera.

Taking all sorts of pictures of themselves as well as things in the house.

We're not informed of the photo shoots. They just show up on the camera after a night out.

But we figured it's not the worst thing they could do while we're gone.

And they all seem to get in on the act.

There wasn't enough room to get a picture of Spencer in.

Janelle is the one taking all the pictures. She would much rather be behind the camera than in front of it.

The Case of the Missing Silverware

What might you ask is this??



It's a picture of my silverware drawer after Hannah & Spencer decided to help unload the silverware from the dishwasher.

This one comes with another story though:


We had guests ( a new family in our church) over for dinner one night. When this occasion happens we bring out the "Sunday" dishes and silverware. These dishes and cutlery are stored separately from the everyday things. (At least they used to be until we started tearing the kitchen apart).

The next time we went to set the "Sunday" table, we noticed we were missing not just a little bit of silverware, but A LOT of silverware.

We couldn't figure out where it could have gone.

We had it all when the company came for dinner but it wasn't all there now.

The only thing we could think of was that perhaps it had gotten thrown away with the dessert plates.

This mystery went unsolved for several weeks.


Until one Sunday I went to choose a table cloth to put on the table.

There between two table cloths, on the bottom shelf in the pantry, laid the missing silverware.

Just where the 2 year old hands had "put it away".

Don't let the smile fool you

We have a ritual at our house on Sunday afternoons.

We call it our sacred Sunday nap.

The youngest ones usually don't even make it home from church before they are off to dreamland.

This ritual comes with some rules though.

1. If the babies wake up before Mom & Dad, the older kids are to take care of the babies.

2. Don't let Mom & Dad sleep past 5:00.

3. Keep the noise down because if you wake up the babies..... refer to #1.

One Sunday when I got up, the older kids didn't know where Hannah was. The light was on in

the pantry but the door was shut.

When I opened the door this is what I found......

Hannah had found a bag of powdered sugar and decided to help

herself.

She had the stuff everywhere.

Hannah has this really mischievious streak in her.

She's gotten into my purse and found my makeup bag and been

caught red-handed with mascara on her face.

She unwinds the toilet paper off the roll if the bathroom door isn't kept shut.

She puts her hand on Spencer's carseat in the car just to hear him squeal and scream.

She will hit or scratch Spencer and then smile about it. But if Spencer happens to retaliate...

she's the first one to cry.

She's probably the most mischievious child I've had. I wonder what she'll find to do next?

What kept me busy all summer

This year I took on the job of swim team manager for our neighborhood swim team. I spent literally hours at the pool.

Too bad the only good tan I got this summer was a flip-flop tan on my feet.

One funny story.....

On the first day of practice I went down to the pool to help set up lane ropes and make sure that everything was ready for the first day. Our meet manager was also there to help. We decided to get the lane ropes in the water. We rolled out the big spool that holds the ropes.

We got the first and second lanes in without any incident.

The meet manager headed down to the far end of the pool with the last lane rope. She didn't hear me when I yelled to stop (too much noise from the swimmers), since the last lane rope was attached to the spool and needed to be unclipped so the whole big thing didn't end up in the water.

It didn't end up in the water.

I did.

Fully clothed.

When she didn't stop and kept pulling, the spool shifted and pushed me into the pool.

It was a great way to start the season.

All four of the oldest swam again this year. I realize there isn't a picture of Janelle. She has a great talent for evading the camera. She would rather be behind it.

Russell turned 8

A week ago our Russell turned 8!!

This was his year to have a friends party and after some thought he decided he wanted an Indiana Jones party.

So I started to surf the web for some ideas.

I found out how to make "treasure rocks", Indiana Jones pouches, and what to hide in a pile of sand for an archeological dig.

I put Todd in charge of an Indiana type obstacle course. He does much better thinking outside the box than I do and he turned out a winner for the 12 boys at the party.

We gave each boy a Holy Grail journal with an alphabet code and some messages to decode. There was also some Indy trivia to answer while they waited for everyone.

Todd's obstacle course included swinging water tubes (the swinging swords from "The Last Crusade"), a swing over a snake pit, a pass over a bridge of faith ("Last Crusade"), natives armed with ammunition in the form of small plastic balls ("Temple of Doom"), and a dig for treasure in a huge pile of sand.




















The boys decoded a secret message to find The Lost Ark with it's hidden treasure and had punch in coconut cups with lunch with funny names.

It was great that Russell got to have his party on his actual birthday. I don't think that has ever happened in our history of parties.

He is such a sweet boy. I can't believe that he is now 8.

He will be getting baptized in a week. We are expecting his grandparents this week and look forward to spending some time with all of them.

Besides all the gifts from friends, a new DS game, and scriptures with a scripture bag (from Mom & Dad) Russell got his summer buzz cut for his birthday.

Don't you think he looks handsome?


Some things that make Russell who he is:

*his laugh. No matter what I'm doing, if I hear Russell laugh it makes me smile (I'm smiling just thinking about it)

*his love of video games. Right now he's all into his Nintendo DS that he purchased with his own money.

*his love for music. He plays the piano and actually is enjoying it now. He also loves to sing. His favorite church song is " I Believe in Christ"

*his drive. Russell played baseball this spring and is now on the neighborhood swim team. He loves to improve himself.

*his smile. Russell has a deep set of dimples and when he smiles, he lights up the room.

*his sweetness. He always makes sure he gives me a kiss after family prayer (he also makes sure he gets one in return.)

It makes me a little sad to think my boy is growing up but I can't wait to see what he becomes.

When Russell was younger he loved to have me sing "Puff the Magic Dragon" to him at bedtime. The phrase "Dragons live forever, but not so little boys. Painted wings and giant things make way for other toys" always choked me up when I sang it to him.

It does even now as I think of how Russell's growing up and moving on to "other things". That song will always hold a special place in my heart and I will always associate it with my Russell.

Happy (late) Birthday sweetheart!!

Previous Post

Sorry about the layout of the Memorial Day post.

I could not get it right for some reason.

Hope you can still read it.

Memorial Day Campout

Before we moved to Tennessee we would make at least one pilgrimage to the great outdoors every year.

Since we moved to Tennessee we have yet to spend a single night together as a family with Mother Nature. The oldest girls have gone to church camp. I've gone to church camp as a leader, and Todd's taken Russell & Christian on the Fathers and Sons campout every year but we've never gone as a family.

So for Memorial Day when our neighbors invited us to join them for a weekend camping trip, we accepted.

Here is where the fun begins.

When we would go on our previous camping trips, we only had 2-4 children. Now we have 7! Add Todd & I into the picture and we had to figure out where to put bedding, bags, food, chairs, and other miscellaneous camping stuff for 9 people to get it to our camp site in North Carolina.

This was not an easy task.

We ended up borrowing a travel topper for our car from some other friends. That was after we had tried to purchase one from Amazon but because it was so big, they couldn't get it to us in time for the weekend trip. So we put all the bedding and the 2 tents (oh, minus the pillows-everyone had to hold their pillows for the 2 and a half hour drive.)into the borrowed travel topper. We stuffed the back of our vehicle to the point that we couldn't have seen out the back of it had we wanted to. And we still had to send a card table and our camp chairs with our friends in their trailer.

Now you are probably thinking, "Why didn't they send more things with the neighbors if they had a trailer." The answer to that would be because they had planned to stay until Monday and we were coming home Sunday afternoon.

Upon arrival we found out that the 2 campsites that had appeared to be side by side on the website were in fact separated by another campsite and the public restrooms. (Yeah for flushable toilets!!) We also discovered that we were only allowed to set up our tents on the gravel. We had a 7 man and a 3 man tent to try and squeeze into that spot since it also had to be parking for our suburban, the firepit, as well as the dining area.

We made it work.

On Saturday, we packed everyone into the cars and drove to this place called "sliding rock". It's a place on the river that is like a waterfall but it falls down over the rocks and creates a waterslide of sorts. The pool at the bottom in some places is 8 feet deep. So people come to slide down the rocks.

The water is FREEZING!! (Not that I know that from experience. I opted to be the keeper of the little kids.)

Todd told the big kids that if they went down he would give them each a quarter.

He still has to pay up.

But the surprise of the day was when Spencer announced that he wanted to "go down with Dad". We put a lifepreserver

suit on him and Todd took him to the top of the rocks. He put Spencer's feet in the water before the top so he could see how cold it was but Spencer still wanted to go down. What a daredevil we have in that boy. He did it and not once did he cry or whine. Even when they got to the bottom and he got wet.

I woke up around 4:30 Sunday morning to the sound of rain. By 6:00 it was really coming down and we had our whole family in our 7 man tent by 8:00. That's where our friend, Ms. Rachel, found us when she came with rain ponchos for everyone and to tell us that breakfast was almost ready at their "place".

We broke camp in the rain and we all ended up leaving late Sunday morning as it was suppose to rain all day that day.

It's not very fun to camp in the rain.

We found out on this trip that we forgot a lot of things about camping and so we made a list of things to purchase for our next trip and things to not forget. We also found that Spencer likes to roast the marshmallows for S'mores but he doesn't like to eat them. The kids love to play games. Chess was a favorite on this trip. Afternoon naps are still a good thing and even if it does take a little bit longer than normal to make the food, for some reason it always tastes good.

My Mother's Day

So maybe if I get my Mother's Day post in before the end of the month does that still count??

I realize that it's past Mother's Day and I'm just now writing my post about it. I've put some thought into this and what I wanted to write.

Here's what I came up with....

"The Ways my Children Show Me They Love Me"

Janelle: She folded 2 loads of laundry, made sure the house was picked up, and had the dishwasher running one night while Todd and I were out late. I was so surprised it literally took my breathe away.

Rachel: By sharing her musical talent. She loves to sing, play the piano and occasionally will practice the violin where I can hear it.

Julie: She takes the younger kids outside and plays with them after she gets home from school so that I can start on dinner, clean up the house, or just relax for a bit.

Russell: His love/hate relationship with reading. He'll sit down and read if he's asked to but he doesn't like to do it without being reminded. He surprised me when I showed up at his class's Mother's Day program. The class was reciting a poem about the school year when I got there. Russell and a girl from his class later took turns narrating the book "I'll Love You, Forever". There is one part toward the end when the mother calls her son to come and see her because she's getting old and she starts to sing the song to him that she's sung to him his whole life. "I'll love you for always, I'll love you forever". Russell did a solo here and finished the story. He loved reading that day. What a sweet young man I have!

Christian: He plays my favorite game (Ticket to Ride) with me while the babies take a nap. Out of the 2 games a day we play, he beats me at 1 out of those 2 games. He's such a smarty-pants. The game says for ages 8 and up and he figured out how to play it.

Hannah: Her request for kisses and hugs before I leave the house. She also likes to hand me clean clothes out of the laundry basket to fold. Sometimes faster than I can fold.

Spencer: He shared his favorite snuggly blanket with me. One day I was taking a nap after the kids got home from school. One of those, I have a headache and just need to lie down for a few minutes nap. Spencer came to find me shortly into my nap. When I asked him what he was doing, he asked me if I was going "nigh-nigh" and then handed me his favorite blanket to sleep with. Breaks your heart doesn't it?

My Mother's Day wasn't filled with gifts and goodies.
It was filled with LOVE.

When "no" means "yes"

Question: When does "no" really mean "yes"? Or vice versa??

Spencer was the first one to use the words "yes" and "no". In fact, I think he used "yes" before he used "no". He would nod his head when in agreement. It was the cutest thing.

Then one day he suddenly stopped nodding and everything became "no". We then had to determine if he really meant "no" or if he meant "yes" by the way he said it or if he smiled when he said it.

Hannah on the other hand started with "no". And not just any "no". There were times when she was pretty forceful when using that word. And if she didn't say "no" when asked something that was her way of saying "yes".

But now Hannah & Spencer are getting to the point where they are communicating with their words (a lot of words). Sometimes they even come out in full sentences. But there are those times that what they say comes out more like gibberish than actual understood English. And when they aren't understood or are told "no" that's when the temper tantrum happens.

When the temper tantrum occurs I try to explain why. You're probably thinking, "yeah, right, reason with a 2 year old. Don't make me laugh.". But it does happen sometimes that I can get them thinking about something else and the temper tantrum dies down and they stop. This happened just yesterday.

Sunday afternoons at our house are quiet time. Everyone under the age of 8 are to nap while the 3 older kids have the option. But if they don't nap they have the responsibility of getting the babies up when they wake up so that Mom & Dad can take a nap.

So yesterday afternoon, I had woken up before Todd and was trying to get Spencer to leave Daddy alone so he could rest some more. Todd had gone to a midnight showing with "the boys" on Thursday night and then we went to Nashville on Friday night and got home around 12:30am. He needed the naptime a little more than me. Anyway, Spencer was NOT budging by the bedside. He was even trying to pull the covers off his Dad so Todd would get up.

This is where my tactic comes into play. I ask Spencer if he wants some cookie dough. (It's almost a ritual at our house that during naptime the older girls make cookie dough that we later bake for an after dinner treat.)

Spencer didn't respond.

I then ask if he wants a cookie.

He turns to me and yells "YES!!" so I think I've got him. Then I tell him he needs to come downstairs with me to get his cookie.

He looks at me with his face all scrunched up and yells, "NO!!"

Did he really want the cookie?? You bet he did. He just didn't want to leave Daddy to get it.
So the answer to my question would be: When you're dealing with toddlers.



PS: I DID get Spencer to come down and get a cookie. He even got a spoonful of cookie dough while he waited for the cookie to bake.

The Family Calendar

Yesterday, I decided to pull the family calendar off the wall and add all the things that are now a part of our schedule for the next month.

I could not believe the things that we have going on. One day alone included, play practice, colorguard, preschool, a doctor's appointment, and baseball practice. Just about everyone had something that day. I can't wait until summer gets here.

Wait, did I just say that?? Because with 7 children all at home, all day long..... UGH!!!

It's not that I don't love my kids, I just get tired of all the mess that come with having everyone home.

All day.

Everyday.

I get tired of the fights over whose turn it is to play the computer, who hasn't practiced their piano, who's watching TV and shouldn't be, and the biggest one: "Mom, I'm bored".

This phrase at our house isn't said often because with it comes an "I'm bored job". What is an "I'm bored job"?? It's all those jobs that don't get done on a weekly basis at our house. It could include, washing walls, scrubbing baseboards, or vacuuming the cars.

Although, this backfired on us one time.

Janelle, our oldest of the oldest, one day said she was bored. So I handed her a cleaning rag and told her she had to wipe down all the baseboards. It wasn't too long after that she came to me and said she was done and that "that was easy". Well, her dad heard her comment and gave her another job: vacuuming the cars. So, she went at it. And after she was done she made the comment that " it was fun".

I guess if Janelle says she's bored this summer, her "bored" job can be watching the youngest ones.

Outside. (I think it has been confirmed that this is her least favorite thing to do.)

My husband suggested that maybe instead of the office size calendar that we currently have on the wall that we should invest in making our own wall size one. Then maybe on those crazy days when it seem like everyone has something going on, we can at least mark it all on the calendar. Along with that, maybe we can make a running list of all the "I'm bored jobs" that could be done this summer.

Please let me know if I'm not the only one whose calendar is overflowing with activity. I'd also welcome any ideas on those "bored" jobs.

Construction Zone

We decided a while back that we wanted to add on to our house.

For the most part our house meets our needs with a few exceptions. The biggest one being our kitchen. It is not functional for a family of our size. There is very little counterspace and few cupboards. With a family like ours that likes to bake, cook, and hang out playing games at the kitchen table, the kitchen is our hub. We needed to do something that would make our kitchen more workable for me and for our family.
So my husband, the engineer, came up with a design that would add a 14x18 addition to our kitchen. Along with that we will be bumping out our garage by 7 feet. We are taking the back 6 feet of our garage and enclosing it to make a food storage room (an expanded pantry). That will necessitate us reconfiguring the back entry. So we'll make a mudroom complete with "locker" like cubbies for the family.

No more having to climb over backpacks and coats in the laundry room to get to the laundry equipment.


We are also widening the driveway to allow us some more room to park the boat during the summer months and still have access to the garage so hopefully we can actually put cars in the garage. (What a novel concept, huh?). These 3 kids have been pretty good at staying out of the way while construction has happened. The day this picture was taken, the cement was being poured for the expanded driveway and they came out to watch "the show".

And finally, we are adding an attached storage room. Although for right now it will only have outside access. We are hoping to clean out some of the stuff from the garage and put in this place. With 9 people in a 4 bedroom house, there's got to be some place to put all the "stuff".

I've been told that the hope is to be completed by Christmas. By Christmas!! you might be saying. Well that's what happens when you have a husband who wants to do it himself. Although about a week ago, my wonderful father-in-law took 10 days to come out and help us. That's when the walls started going up and the sawdust began to fly.

Spencer loves it all!! It makes me wonder what he will be when he gets big. (I can't say grow up because his daddy says that boys don't really grow up they just get bigger.) Spencer wakes up every morning wanting to go "owside" and asking where daddy is. He's carried around the tape measure, (We're still missing one.), written notes on scrap pieces of wood with a carpenter's pencil (I saw him try to put it behind his ear the other day.), and he loves playing in the rocks and sawdust that come with the construction.

As of today, the walls are almost all up and there's only 1 more roof to put up, it finally looks like we're doing something instead of just making a mess.

New York, New York

Last month I got to go with Rachel and her middle school choir group to New York City. I admit I was a bit anxious about going to the "Big City" (It was the small town girl in me coming out.). But what an experience we had while we were there.


We stood in awed and humbled silence as we looked out over Ground Zero. This picture was taken from what is called the Winter Gardens. The roof of this building is all glass and when the towers went down the glass fell onto the marble floor below. A polyurithane coating was put on the floor after 9/11 to show the damage the falling glass did to the floor.


We saw 2 Broadway plays. This one was by far my favorite.


We walked through Central Park. This picture is in a part of Central Park called Strawberry Plains. It is maintained by John Lennon's widow. This is Rachel at the memorial just inside the park. Also on our walk through Central Park we saw a guy get a ticket for not having his dog on a leash. Just thought it was funny.
We also got to see the city at night from the top of Rockefeller Center, tour Radio City Music Hall and meet a real Rockette dancer. We took a boat tour on the Hudson where we got to see Lady Liberty from the water as well as the place where the plane was landed on the Hudson after losing both engines.

Some interesting things I learned while there:

• The 7 spires on Lady Liberty's crown represent the 7 seas as well as the 7 continents.
• There is a church that sits right across the street from Ground Zero and when the planes crashed into the towers not a single window in that church was broken. There also was no structural damage to that church. And it was right across the street from the towers!!
• New Yorkers call it Grand Central Terminal because it's said that all tracks "terminate" their run there.
• Wall Street was once called Canal Street.
• Never pay full asking price when shopping in Chinatown.
• The Lincoln Tunnel sits 80 feet below the Hudson River. (We went through this tunnel everyday to get into the city)
• The Giants football stadium appears to be in New Jersey.
• The dock where the Titanic should have docked upon arrival to New York City is still there along the Hudson. No one uses it.

I got an official I "heart" New York t-shirt, bought a name brand knock off purse in Chinatown(ask me about that another time), ate in a pizzeria that was once a church, sat in a pew in St. Patrick's Cathedral, and froze my hind end off on the boat tour. But I loved it!!

Next time, (if there is a next time) I'd prefer to see New York a little later in the spring so it hopefully would be a little bit warmer. But that's all part of the experience, right?

The Mastermind

This is the face of the Mastermind
of the April Fool's joke.

Retro post to April Fool's

I'm still new to this whole blogging thing and really need to get better and blogging things when they actually occur rather than looking back thinking I should blog it. So there may be a few more that will be a "retro blog" so please bear with me.

This one I remembered after reading a friend's blog and thought I should share it because it is one to remember.

For several days leading up to April 1st, the infamous Disney Channel (which my kids would watch all the time if I let them) would have mini commercials and give ideas for April Fool's jokes. Since the house rule is that the TV is NOT suppose to be on after school during the week, I'm still not sure how the idea was hatched. But anyway on to the story.....

Todd gets up around 5:15 during the school week so he can exercise and shower before 6am. I however, am NOT a morning person and love to lie in bed in that semi sleep state just enjoying the warmth of the covers a little longer while he goes through his morning ritual. So I was lying there half asleep when Todd comes bursting out of the bathroom doned in a towel grumbling quite loudly how the last child to use our bathroom took the body wash out and didn't bring it back. So he has to go find another bottle (in his towel). He came back with one and proceeded to shower.

At breakfast the truth came out.....

Russell had snuck in the night before and removed the bottle of body wash as an April Fool's joke from the shower.

He was so happy that he had pulled one over on us.

I thought it was funny as well.

This all from the mind of a 7 year old.

36 and I'm on FIRE!!

This last weekend I celebrated my 36th birthday. Several people asked me how old I was going be I told them I was 35 and holding. One person said they would hold at 23. I said, "No way. 36 works for me. By that time I had had all my children and we are getting closer to little ones being out of diapers, those little ones talking, the older ones being involved in many things, etc, etc, etc.

You get the point.

Life may be crazy but I wouldn't have it any other way right now. There will come that time when I wish for crazy days cleaning up continually after the 2 hurricanes we call Spencer and Hannah. Or for the days that Todd and I have to "divide and conquer" to make it to all the appointments, lessons, meetings, and concerts that on occasion pop up on the same day around the same time.

But despite the fact that the actually birth day was something similar to any other Saturday I did have a great birthday (which ended up being more like a birthweekend. Let me explain.

On Friday, Todd and I went to one of my favorite restaraunts, Wasabi. It's the kind of place that you watch them cook everything right in front of you. They throw rice balls at you from the grill to try and catch in your mouth, and every chef there does the silly train with a sliced onion and oil. We went with our good friends, the Bryners, and we talked so much that we felt like were literally pushed out. We were the last ones sitting at the table even after they came to clean the grill and set new place settings. But the evening was so young still (only 7:30). The kids weren't even all in bed by that time. So we ended up going over to the Bryner's to watch a movie and came home more around 11:00.

On my actual birth-day by husband had to go finish a service project. I hear him tell the kids that for Mom's birthday they needed to keep the little ones quiet and let me sleep in. Can't argue with that one. So I slept in. Until almost 9:00. But when I came downstairs to find some sustenance, I was quickly shooed back upstairs so that my children could present me with breakfast in bed. (A quickly growing favorite for birthdays at our house). So I complied. But when Todd came home about an hour or so later, I was still in bed. Reading and talking to my kids. He couldn't figure out what I was still doing in bed. My only response was...."It's my birthday.". And it's not like I hadn't done anything. I had washed a few walls that I noticed had little black fingers marks, put the 2 whiny hurricanes down for a nap, and had supervised some of the kids' chores. But I got out of bed, (and here's where it becomes more like a Saturday) sorted and started the laundry and got dressed. It was very peaceful in that despite the fact that Todd worked in the yard all afternoon, he had all the kids outside with him. They worked hard and played hard while I read, did the laundry, and kept the house in some semblance of order.

You'd think easy right, everyone is outside. But those little bodies come in with red southern dirt all over their feet (it was 75 here on Saturday) and faces and want drinks, use the bathroom and so on. And just like the two little hurricanes, the older ones leave a wake as well.

But that evening before family prayer we had presents. My loving husband spent some of his allowance to buy me a new board game, which is also fast becoming a new favorite (Ticket to Ride USA). I don't know who was more excited. Me or the kids. We didn't do cake and ice cream on Saturday because the cake wasn't frosted. Who can eat cake without frosting??(Besides my sister-you know who you are). So we postponed that event for after Sunday dinner.

Sunday arrived. Early morning meeting for me. Church. Sunday (sacred) nap. Dinner. And then cake. Remember how I said I was 36 and on fire??? Well, I was quite literally. Here's the story.....

Rachel made the candles in a 36, although she was a few short and her 6 was backwards (just adds to the moment don't ya' think?) Anyway, the kids turned off the light, grabbed the video camera and started to sing. When the singing was done, they were all telling me to make a wish. Oh, what to wish for??? Health for every one of those little bodies around the table, health for myself so I can watch those little ones all grow up and become something great, of maybe that the work on the addition will go smoothly, or for a getaway with my sweetheart??? Oh, the decisions. Well, I think I decided on something and went ot blow out the candles determined that I was going to get them all.

And that's when it happened.

I blew the candles closest to me and moved to the opposite side of the cake to blow those candles out. When I realized it wasn't going to happen with one breath, I leaned back to catch another breath, when Russell yelled out, "Mom!! You're hair is on fire!!!". Luckily, Todd was standing right next to me and put it out for me. You see, I was styling with a new haircut I had just gotten a few days before and I now had what was called: long layers. Some of those long layers draped themselves across a candle I thought was out and I was now on FIRE!!

But despite the smell of burnt hair, the chocolate cake was very tasty and we all had a great laugh about it.

I hope you do, too.

P.S. I don't think we got pictures of the actual fire on my hair, but I think they got other pictures that I'll try and post later.

Spring, Where art thou????

I know in posting this blog I will receive several groans from you out there who are still sitting under inches if not feet of snow. But I have to say if the air is cold I would rather have snow on the ground to remind me that it is still winter. And also so my children know that it's cold outside. They think that if the sun's out that it's warm enough to go out and play, (sometimes without a coat) even if the thermostat only reads in the mid 30's.

Today was one of those days. Where the sky is a beautiful blue that makes you long for spring. But without the "Utah" winter coat and a sweater, you end up freezing on the trip between the house and the car. Ironically, by the end of this week Mr. Hinken, our favorite weatherman, says that temps will be more like spring. Does that mean that I can put away the turtleneck sweaters and knee length socks for short sleeve shirts and sandals???

Don't hold your breathe.

In East Tennessee it is not uncommon for the weather to show 3 different seasons in one week. So, I'll keep those sweaters close by and look longingly at the sandals that my feet can't wait to get into. And keep telling my kids that if the weather says 70, THEN they can wear capris. I just hope spring hurries, as all the kids are either wearing out or growing out of their winter things. And my outdoor loving kids are itching to play outside without jackets, coats or shoes for that matter. Spring needs to come and stay.

I'm sure you all feel the same.

Help Wanted?

I have the best little helpers (when they want to be). But I had to share this moment that I thought was pretty telling as to how much our little ones watch their elders.

This last Friday I made my bi-monthly trip to the grocery store. You know the one where after you get everything put away the shelves and fridge are full and the kids think life is good again because they have their favorite cold cereal and snacks to choose from.

Taking the babies to the grocery store is always an adventure. I usually end up being the mother that everyone is looking at because my child is screaming at me or the mother who can't wait to get out of the store so that we can all have a change of scenery. Between the babies pulling each others hair, hitting each other with items they find in the cart, or screeching at me because I refuse to open the box of crackers until we pay for it we usually don't make it out with everything. But this time we did and it only took an hour to do it!! We did have some wailing and gnashing of teeth because even after he figured out how to open the cardboard box and pull out the bag of crackers, I refused to open them for him until we paid for them.

But here's where the story really begins..... We get home and usually Spencer wants to help carry bags in from the car. He wanted to just sit in his carseat while I unloaded this time. But Miss B. (Hannah) followed me back and forth between the house and the car making sure the door was always open wide enough for me. We unloaded the car (including Spencer) and I proceeded to put the groceries away. While I was putting things away in the pantry, Hannah started dragging grocery bags over to me so I didn't have to come out of the pantry to get things. But then I noticed that Spencer was picking up all the empty bags and was placing them in the recycle bin in the laundry room. I finished the pantry things and then they both helped me drag bags outside to put things in the freezer. And once again, as I unloaded bags the 2 of them took them and put them in the recycle. Who could ask for better help?

Oh, and just for an update on the whole big boy bed.... I was right on the money. Spencer spent his first night in his own bed for the entire night but that was the ONLY night that he's slept through in his own bed. Daddy & I split time putting him back to sleep in his own bed.

This morning it was 4am when I heard the pittar-patter of his little feet. But that was the only thing quiet about it after that.

At least he still takes a nap!!!

I've done it!

I've finally done it!! After reading others blogs and feeling a bit like a stalker doing it I have finally created my own. I still have mixed emotions about it. Does that sound funny?

My husband wanted me to just take over the blog that he created but I wanted my own outlet and my own name. So here goes nothing, right?.

The sun came out today and it actually felt a bit like spring after the rain went away. But to my utter dismay, tomorrow will bring back the startling reality that it's still February and it's still winter even in the South. I'll have to send my kids to school in hats and coats and scarves where as last week they were in short and capris for a few days. (The rule at our house is that if the weatherman says it will be 70 degrees then you are allowed to wear shorts, capris, etc. My kids would love it if I allowed it to be dropped to 60 degrees but much to their dismay this mother believes that 60 is still spring temps and a jacket and long pants are required. Here is one point for me toward winning the "meanest mom in the world" award.

Today also marked a milestone for our youngest. We had to put him in a "big boy" bed as he has figured out how to get out of his crib. Yesterday, one of my older girls went in to get the babies out of their cribs. A few seconds later she hollered to me to "come and see". Those words at our house usually means that somebody is either doing something cute or wrong. I'm not sure what category this would fit under but child #7 was trying to climb into his twin sister's crib since he had successfully gotten out of his. At naptime I snuck a peek from the door to see how he did it but never saw anything. Until today.

Once again I snuck a peek before I barged in to get the babies out of bed to see if I could discover how he had done it yesterday. I saw him lift his left leg over the railing and then bring the other leg over to sit on the side of the crib but he never went out. He always fell back into the crib. So I walked in and sat on the floor and asked him to show me how he got out. It was one of those moments I don't think I'll ever forget. He threw both legs over and I had seen him to before, sitting a bit vicariously on the side of the crib and then like the daredevil that I now know him to be..... he let go and fell to the floor on his bum. I think my reaction scared him more than the fall because he came over to give his momma a reassuring hug that he was okay. But I wasn't.

My babies are growing up way to fast for me. I know they are my last and I can't believe that in a month's time they will be turning 2!!! They are mobile, agile and sometimes a bit hostile but I love them!! So today one crib came down and a "big boy" mattress was placed on the floor until we can go to the store to find mattresses for both babies. He fell asleep great tonight without once trying to sneak out. I had to check on him to make sure he was still asleep in the bed. His sister may be a little more sneakier when it comes time for her "big girl" bed experience.

There goes my full night's sleep again.