Winding down the school year

It's just about May, and our children are almost finished with their school books for the year. They've both done incredibly well this year and I'm very proud of them! Next year Jaxson will enter 3rd grade, and Ellie will be somewhere between Kindergarten and 1st. This is because technically, she wasn't supposed to be in K until next school year, but since she was so ready to start we went ahead and did Kindergarten this year. So I'm just not really sure what to call next year. We may call it K-5 or we may call it 1st.
I'm planning on continuing Phonics through the summer with Ellie, and Math through the summer with Jax. Since we do a year around schedule, we'll take probably only a 6-8 week summer break before starting up again. We're really excited for next year, because we have some fun new subjects to do! We will be starting our first year in Latin, and we have found a really neat Art curriculum we'll be using as well that encapsalates both art instruction and art history and appreciation. We're also beginning our History rotation so we'll be studying Ancient History through the fall of Rome. What could be more fun? :P Okay, so I may be just a little more excited about it than the kids... but I still fully expect them to enjoy our next year.

How logical are you?

I stole this from my friend Deanne's blog...
It's supposedly a logic test given to Japanese job applicants. The goal is to solve it in under 7 minutes. The first time took me about 9 minutes and the second time 6 minutes. Once you get it the first time it's pretty easy to do it again. Anyway, it's kinda fun. :) Enjoy!

Rules of the Game:

The object is to get all of the people across the river on the raft.

• Only 2 people on the raft at a time.
• The Father cannot stay with any of the daughters, without their Mother's presence.
• The Mother cannot stay with any of the sons, without their Father's presence.
• The thief (striped shirt) cannot stay with any family member, if the Policeman is not there.
• Only the Father, the Mother and the Policeman know how to operate the raft.

I really didn't think I'd ever say this....

But what is going on with kids, nowadays??

Evidently I'm officially old. Because only "old" people ask such questions, right? Only "old" people experience such culture shock.

But more and more I find myself saying these things that only "old" people say... and I have to wonder if it's me.... or PERHAPS it's just that society has deteriorated so much that "old" now just means "still having a sense of propriety and decency".

I am continually appalled and saddened especially when considering how "unladylike" young ladies are now. Since when did it become okay nay, normal for a young women to spout obscenities like a sailor? Do they honestly not realize how unattractive it is?

I've recently had a couple of experiences that have raised these questions in my mind.
One of which we were subjected to in the middle of the night when two young ladies (I use the term loosely) had a screaming match across the street.

It's as if we've decided that neither femininity nor masculinity is of value.
Instead of embracing the differences that are an essential part of being either male or female, we develop entire schools of thought that are meant to tear down one gender or the other. It becomes a battle of "patriarchy" vs. "feminism". (I use both those terms in their most negative sense) We continually draw parallels and comparisons between two things which cannot be compared. And while neither gender fits into a perfect little box- it's quite true that there are essential differences between us. And often those differences can be strengths.

I hear a lot about the devaluing of masculinity in "christian" circles and -having two sons- I believe that this is extremely important. I believe with all my heart in teaching my boys to be MEN.
However, I also have two girls, and I hear much less about the loss of femininity.

So those of us who have little girls... let's commit to raising our daughters to be young ladies. To somehow find a way to pass on to them the beauty of womanhood and the gift of femininity.

Don't ya just wish..

....that you could go back to that time when everything was so innocent and simple? Vance made me think of how simple a child's life is yesterday. When all you had to think about was what you were going to play... and what good things you were going to eat! 

I had to take Jaxson into my room after I put the boys to bed to have a discussion with him about going straight to sleep at night and not playing. A few minutes later, Vance came into the room 

"Mommy? What's Jax getting?" he asks. 

"A talking to" replied I.

 "Can I have some?" says Vance. 

I was confused.  "Huh? Some what?"

 "Can I have some talking to?"

I tried to explain to him what a 'talking to' was, and that it wasn't edible. But he wasn't buying it. For the next 10 minutes I could hear him in the room, begging Jaxson to share his 'talking to'. 

"Let me have a bite, Jax!"     "Let me smell your talking to!" 

I don't think I'll ever be able to give one of the kids a 'talking to' again without laughing... 

One Sweet Thing

Brady is out tonight, which means I had to do the whole 'bedtime routine' alone. This can be a challenge. 

Now, the girls are always angels. They both go right to sleep. And sometimes, the boys are sweet and wonderful too. Sometimes. And sometimes, they talk, play and generally misbehave and drive me crazy. This was the case tonight. So, now that they're all finally quiet, I have determined to calm my spirit by picking up my laptop and writing something sweet and adorable about each of my children. Because in spite of the fact that they some nights make me crazy, I can't help but love them with all my heart. 

Jaxson.  He's such a good big brother. He loves his baby sister so much and they have such a special bond. She loves to play with him! She often goes over to him and lifts up her arms for him to pick her up to play. At night, when we go in to tuck the boys into bed, Lilah just won't stop blowing kisses to Jaxson. He's so smart and intuitive. He's so helpful to me with the other kids. He's got such a good heart. 

Ellie. She's such a sweet thing! She's a total clown. She loves to make us laugh. She loves to dress up in hilarious outfits. She loves to dance and sing. She's so smart! She's learned to read so quickly I can barely keep up with her! She helps me with the baby so much. She's always fetching diapers and sippy cups. She gets Lilah up in the morning and plays with her to keep her happy. She's just a natural little mommy. 

Vance. What a sweet, amazing child. Every day he makes me laugh. Every day he makes our lives great. He says the greatest, funniest things! He's so loving. He's such a great cuddle bug! When you need a squeeze, he's always happy to oblige! Usually you can get an eskimo kiss from him too! He's an absolute doll. There isn't another kid like him in the world. 

Lilah.  She's growing so quickly. She's probably the sweetest, cutest baby ever! She's such a daddy's girl now! It's so cute. Every time Brady comes in the door, Lilah runs (which is really funny, because she just started walking) up to him, arms in the air saying "Dada! Dada!". Then she won't let him put her down again. She's so in love with her daddy! 

Ahhh. Much better. Sweet dreams, babies!

Monkey Business

Ya gotta love my little monkey!! Yes, she climbed up there all by herself....

Needless to say... I moved the highchair that was being stored up against this counter. She's just as proud as can be, isn't she?

Back to life

I think that everyone is finally better! Lilah is her normal self- if perhaps a little crankier than usual- and Vance is pale, thin, exhausted- but actually talking and no longer puking. Believe it or not that is actually an improvement! 

We are taking Spring Break this week to recoup and refresh- then back to school next week. School is going very well, Jax is down to his last three subjects of the year and Ellie is reading like a champ. She amazes me every day with how quickly she's picking it up- I can't teach her fast enough! I'm working on collecting all of my texts and books for next year already, since we are now doing a year around schedule we'll be taking a shorter summer break.

I hope you all enjoy a few of Lilah's 1 year photos. She's such a sweetie! Every day she's doing something new and fun. We are so blessed by all of our amazing kiddos!

Dat Dat?

Yay! She asked for "dat dat"! "Dat Dat?" is, of course, food. Yes, Lilah is feeling better. She hadn't taken a bite for two whole days so I was very happy to hear her sweet voice asking for something to eat this morning. She's pretty weak, she's finding it hard to keep her balance while walking. :P But she's definitely doing better. Thank the Lord! 

Sweet- and yet not so sweet

Lilah's sick. She has a stomach flu. I feel so badly for her and there's just nothing I can do (except to lend her my shirt to throw up on every hour or so..... ) She woke up with it around 12:30 in the AM and I was up with her until 5 AM. She just can't keep anything down, and I'm just waiting for all the other kids to get it too. 

I guess I can't complain because we've gone quite a while without getting a stomach bug around here. 

And so begins a bout with yuckies..... oh the joys of motherhood..... 

*Sigh*

My friend Deanne wanted me to tell her what it was like to have a night away from the kids. Deanne, this post is for you. :>P

It was so relaxing! We had a great time. We soaked in the jacuzzi and swam in the pool then watched the Office with a bottle of wine and some dark chocolate. It was incredibly freeing to just have a night OFF. Just to be able to relax a little. It was so needed. Now, y'all know that I tend to be just slightly neurotic. 

Well.....

I put the blankets on the bed without tucking in the bottom and doing hospital corners. I left towels on the floor overnight. I left the toothpaste lid off the toothpaste. 

Okay, I made that last bit up. I thought about leaving the toothpaste lid off the toothpaste.

Anyway, by the time we picked up the kids this morning, I was ready to enjoy them again. So the whole "night off" thing comes highly recommended by me! 

What's that word.....?

What's that word that starts with a 'd' and means ''getting to spend time alone with your spouse''?  Oh, yeah- a "date"! And guess what? We get to go on one! Like actual time alone without the kids! Now, don't get me wrong. We LOVE our kids. But honestly, free babysitting for four kids is difficult to come by. So we rarely get a chance to go on a date. But mom's Stoneridge Condo week is this week and my sister has selflessly offered to keep the kids for us overnight so that we can have a quick getaway. So, break out the wine and the chocolate and get that hot tub ready for my sore, aching back! I get to sleep through the night! (although I'm afraid I can't say the same for my sister...)

And by (1) request, here are a few pics of our new place.

Playing Catch up

Yes, we're still alive. We're all moved and unpacked and Gosh- I hate moving!


We're playing with the idea of not getting internet at home in order to save money- since we're close to the studio now- so blogs will be posted once a week and will probably be a bit random.... but I'm sure you will enjoy it just as much, right?

Lilah's birthday party was sweet and fun, Brady already gave you cute pics of the cake eating. My mom gave Lilah a rocking horse and she just loved it! So does Vance, of course.



Speaking of Vance, that kid says the funniest things! At Lilah's party, Vance was sitting next to our good friend, Rich. Rich happens to have a mustache and Vance looks at him and says "You....... have a really pretty mustache." It was hilarious.

And yesterday he was fussing about something silly, and I sternly told him to stop fussing. He sat at the table crying for a minute, then he says "Well, God still loves me!" Of course, I had to snuggle him and tell him that I loved him too. Too funny.

Jax finally lost a tooth!!! He was so excited! He's waited so long to lose a tooth and all of his friends and cousins started losing theirs long ago. And so we begin the toothless years.



My mom came up for over a week to help with the kids while I packed and moved. It was such an amazing help! I don't think I would have ever survived without her! She got a hotel room and took the kids to stay with her for 5 days- I just dropped off the baby in the am and picked her up in the pm. The kids had such a blast playing in the pool and spending time with gramma!

Well, the kids are starting get impatient with being here so time to head out.
Until next time!

Our grand finale's? first birthday

On 2/22 at 2pm last year, a beautiful baby girl was born into the house of chaos. If you step back from our life....you know....get a bird's eye view of it....it looks pretty great. We are so so so blessed. Go ahead, look around those marital disputes, peer through the selfish flesh of those kids. Now shove our materialism and pride aside. Do you see it yet? The life and lives that God has graced our presence with for the short time we are here on this earth are more precious than anything else on this earth. Next time you see me take this beautiful little girl for granted, please slap me:) Happy Birthday Lilah! We love you so much and can't hardly wait to see what God does through you!

Dad

The Proof is in the Pictures

Here Lilah is, taking her first steps! See how excited she is? 

Also, she has gotten really good at climbing up into the rocking chair, and once she gets up there you can see how proud she is of herself. She sits there like a big girl and grins. 

And one final note- My mom is a lifesaver. She is actually FLYING up on Thursday to keep the kids for me while I pack and move. Isn't that just sweet of her? The kids are so excited- and I am eternally grateful. 

First Steps

Lilah's 'tolally' walking! And I can't post the pictures!
Brady has my computer with him at a Photography conference in Vegas- so as soon as he comes home I will post pictures of my little baby taking her first steps.She took about 10 steps in a row tonight, and walked clear across the kitchen. Ben took some great action shots.
My baby is growing so quickly. She has changed so much in the past couple of weeks it's unbelievable. In the past two weeks alone she learned to give kisses, learned to wave, started saying "ticki-ticki-ticki" when she wants you to tickle her, became attached to her fuzzy pink blanket, learned to go down the stairs backward, learned to clap her hands and now has started walking.
How quickly they grow....