flashback friday: an adventurous june

in our family, over the last 7 years june has proven itself to be a big month for our family.

i wouldn't say good things or bad things, just life-impacting/changing things. 

for instance...

in 2005 we got married

in 2006 we got pregnant with ben

in 2007 we moved into our house

in 2008 we got pregnant with gabe

in 2010 matt traveled to nepal & we got the scary news about the twins

in 2011 we put the house on the market & became minivan owners

and i'd say those are just the highlights.
phew! i'm tired just reminiscing.
so as you can see, i wasn't just mincing words when i said life-changing things happen.

and as today is the 1st day of june,
i'm anxiously awaiting what this month has in store for us. 

one thing i do know for certain is that ben graduates from preschool tonight. 

i'd be content with that for our life-impacting occasion of june for 2012.
that...or my bestie {who was also born in june} has her 1st baby!

HAPPY SUMMER!

raising boys: fighting sleep

when you're a little boy

you're days are full of:

running

jumping

climbing

wrestling

playing cars/trains

drinking milk

and you fight sleep...

until that moment it just overcomes you. 

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beach adventures: embracing routine

wow! it's been a crazy couple of weeks full of visitors, a getaway to the beach & even some sick buddies in the mix. and this morning as we fall back into our normal, our routine, i find myself at peace.  because as nice as vacation is, the lack of routine nearly breaks us all.

i can honestly say that i never thought i'd get to this place in life. i've always bucked schedules. i personally feel they're too restrictive. BUT i have found a place in my heart (& life) for routine. in fact, i've come to see that not only do my boys thrive on routine, but so do i. now i'm not talking about a daily schedule laid out by the minute. i'm more referring to the outline of a day, things to be expected...there will be meals, naps & picking {ben} up from school. i do think it was having twins that created this need in me...that and having 4 kids.

but it is still my goal in life to never be tied down to a schedule. although, i'm sure that will ebb & flow as {ben} enters kindergarten next fall & the others start preschool. i mean i can only be in denial of the inevitable for so long, but i'll enjoy it while it lasts.

but i guess that also means i have yet to figure out how to get regular posts up. still working on that new year's resolution. until then, i leave you with some shots of our little getaway at the beach house.

dear paci adventures::it's time to go!

its official folks, we are leaving the baby stages behind.

there are no more paci's in our house! and while i am thrilled about it...part of me is sad to no longer see a paci simply because it is a visible sign that they are still babies. cause people, i've only ever had babies in my house for the last 4 years. and it's the end of an era...

we have truly loved the pacifier in our house. all the boys have had one. {matty} liked his the least & only took it for the first few months. while {ben} being the first & all loved his tremendously & had his til he turned 3. 

no i have no real magic tricks that keep a child from screaming bloddy murder at night or nap time the first day. or even an occasional night weeks later.  that being said, there's never "a perfect time" to do it. just decide to stick with it. i've done it 2 ways...a planned intervention with {ben} & just plain cold turkey with {sam} & {gabe}.

both have their pros & cons, although i'm a glutton for punishment and would say i prefer to just make the transition after i've lost every paci in the house. and this last time i did it while {matt} was away on a trip in january. i'm crazy like that. i didn't have time to stress about the process because let's be honest, it's always harder on us moms. i'm not entirely sure why. maybe it's the crying we know will accompany or the lack of sleep & grumpy babies. or maybe its the fact that it is a visible mark which loudly proclaims, I'M NOT A BABY ANYMORE! *sigh* 

and usually about the time you decide to take away the pacifier, there's always some other baby item that is getting transitioned out as well...diapers, bottles or maybe even a crib.

a few things to remember...

* once you start, just stick with it
* they will cry...and scream

* it will end...usually much sooner than you expected

* make sure there are no secret stashes of hiding pacis...cause they will be found, by you or your child

* PRAISE THEM! as humans, we all want/need to know that the pain we are enduring is worthwhile in the end!

sidenote: i'm pretty sure i'll still find a paci hiding in some long forgotten place in months to come

Our family fishing adventure

With Matt's new and consistent work schedule, we have truly found our weekends to be more precious...and actually available! So we are trying to do some sort of family outing, ya know explore & take advantage of our new town.

We skipped going to church this week. It's had it's ups & downs but that's a story for another time. instead we packed up the boys and ventured for a fishing trip. Yeah, we're crazy like that. 4 little boys+water+hooks can be a scary combo.

And while there are probably a million & 1 fantastic fishing spots down here in the "redneck riviera" as my father inlaw calls it, we just don't know them yet. So we set out to a place that we knew would be great at our first attempt. The park that sits across from {matt}s grandparents old house.

yes, it was really that foggy.

{gran} & {pop} have both gone to be with Jesus and we haven't been by the house since new owners have moved in. It was a little strange. But this trip was different. We had 4 little boys that are so full of life & adventure that the memories here were sweet & full of excitement to have our own kids there. Digging in the sand. Running down the pier. Squealing as they ran around the playground.













While the day was full of fog & no fish. We all were worn out by lunch. I've come to learn that the success of these trips isn't about whether or not any fish are caught, but that we are all enjoying our time together...even if it's spent untangling fishing lines. It's about giving my boys a chance to do little boy things.

{ben} loved the worms.
i definitely heard him say to a worm, 'come here, ya slimy jerk!'
what?! haha!

Give boys room to explore & the possibilities become endless.
So what if their pants are soaked because they didn't wipe the slide off first...they were enjoying the moment.
Or their clothes & shoes get muddy...they were running & playing.
Maybe they're hot & sweaty & smell like outside...they're doing what boys were made to do!

{matt} said he used to play in this same spot for hours.
i. love. this!

- Posted from my iPhone

single parent sundays :: fresh fall air

bed hogs slept in the middle of my bed all week

when {matt} was sick a few weeks back, i said it would be better to have a sick kid than a sick spouse. well turns out i got my wish...we all minus {ben} & including my parents got the stomach bug last week. karma just kicked my butt! it was terrible. not as bad as when we got it back in march, but still bad. my mom drove up the day i got sick. and my dad dropped by during the weekend...and they still got it. it's the kinda bug that lingers even after you aren't feeling sick. the worst! so we stayed home. inside. for days! did i mention i'm currently in a 2 bedroom condo?! cabin fever is an understatement.

{grammie} & {matty}

on sunday we were all feeling pretty much back to normal, but knowing that my parents had just gotten sick, we didn't want to chance taking this nasty bug onto church. so we stayed home. sure that meant no rushing to get out the door in time or arguments over outfits, but i was still doing it by myself. nothing had changed. the monotony of the week was digging in deep under my skin. thankfully, sunday brought beautiful fall weather here in southeastern virginia & i knew that if i didn't get out of the house we would all pay for it. i dressed my grumpy self & my grumpy tribe of boys and off we went to explore the great outdoors. ok, maybe not so much explore, but a walk to the park.

not sure why, but i feel like they look a lot like me here.

{gabe} wanted a ride back

 and getting out just once just wasn't enough, so we went for another walk later that afternoon. {auntie kate} came to the rescue again and took the little guys & i took the big ones. i tried to make them sit on this bench and act like they loved each other. this is the look i get from {gabe}. ha! shoulda known, we were all still a little on the grumpy side.

and turns out, that both {sam} & {matty} were cutting molars too. no wonder i feel like my hearing has been compromised.  i mean, there's a lot of crying that happens in this house normally we warn all those who dare to enter the door! but put sick AND teething buddies....yeah we reached a whole new level. 

thankfully the majority of us are on the up & up. {matty}s gums are still getting torn to pieces and he is more than sufficiently reminding us of this, but the bug has passed and we are enjoying the 80 degree weather. 

so last week was full of plenty of things to be grumpy about but like i said before, i'm trying to be thankful for something every day...even if it seems that there's nothing but baby puke filling it. and since all the days last week just got jumbled into one, i'll just be generally thankful. that's good enough right?!

• a husband who literally gets his hands dirty to help out at home
• that {ben} made it through without so much as a sneeze
• my husband that takes the day off to watch the kids & take care of me
• that same husband can get more done on his day off at home than i usually can 
• for parents who come to help...and get sick in return but wouldn't have it any other way
• for new windows to open & air out the house
• this amazingly gorgeous fall weather
• the colorful leaves that make looking out my window a little more enjoyable
• checking BIG things of a to-do list
• watching that to-do list get shorter & shorter

thankful november adventures :: day 2

{sam}s new found love for books...and being without pants apparently

i can sit him down with a book & he'll stay there for a few minutes. 

coffee after another night of being up with coughing babies. 

and morning snuggles & art with my big buddy.

little helping hands that actually helped clean. 

i take out the middle 2 poles of my swiffer and let him go to town 

& he actually gets the floor somewhat cleaned.

***

sipping on a decaf pumpkin spice latte while thumbing through some design magazines.

and {auntie kate} for watching the boys last night so i could do so in peace & quiet.

what moments...things...people are you thankful for today?

- Posted from my iPhone

A parent/teacher conference adventure

Yesterday was another first experience. We went to parent/teacher conference at {ben}s preschool.

Not sure when I became old enough to fall into either category of people who attend these parent/teacher conferences, but it's happened. And I still felt awkward.

But I learned there's nothing bad about them when you're kid is a rock star. {ben}s teacher was impressed & excited about everything he was already accomplishing just a few weeks into school...ever! And of course it was great to hear that my boy, my baby boy, is excelling in every area. So I guess we are doing something right and hopefully that will trickle down. From us as parents to the other boys & from {ben} as he learns how to be a big brother & grows into the big brother shoes.



{ben}s teacher gave us a copy of his assessment so far for kindergarten preparedness checklist. And of course he is rocking that too. I myself had felt unprepared about what was expected of him in kindergarten. And now knowing he's well on his way...huge burden lifted. And now I feel more confident and have better direction on what to make sure {gabe} knows.




And as {gabe} sings all the songs I sing to him unlike his big brother I have a better estimate of where he is. And he's doing good.

doing his 'homework'.

Thankful for these easy-adapting, quick-learning, song-singing, tender-hearted boys I get the chance to raise into brain-using, God-fearing, gospel-sharing, momma (wife)-loving men.



- Posted from my iPhone

it's about that time again...or is it?!

{ben} was 15mo when we found out that {gabe} was on the way.

{gabe} was 16mo when {sam} & {matty} were born.

today the 21st. today, the twins are 15mo...

so what you ask?!

A. i love seeing all the boys at the same age. it lets you see all the similarities & differences more clearly.
B. well here's a bit of a confession...ready...
i have a slight case of baby fever...
there i said it. no taking it back now.

i know. i know. what am i thinking?! it definitely is NOT time for me to get pregnant again.
and yet i can't help myself. seeing all these new little babies everywhere...it melts the mommy heart in me.

hear me out for a sec!

to try or not to try for a girl?!
i only truly have the slightest inclination, like 15%, for a baby girl. and the 85%...deathly afraid it would be another boy. i mean just the thought of 5 boys...scary! and as of late, {ben} has told me that he wants a baby sister. it freaks me out when kids say stuff like that cause so many times they are right on point. i'm just thankful he didn't ask if there was a baby in my belly!

the whole 1 baby vs. 2 babies thing:
also, the last pregnancy was twins people. i won't say it was terrible, but it was hard. my little body worked in over drive. i know that i could totally handle another pregnancy with less gripping and more action. that belly wouldn't hold me back!

and just having 1 newborn. solo bebe. that would be awesome. yes there would still be lack of sleep and diaper changes. but what i have to compare it to now...i mean i'm already changing diapers so nothings really changing in that neighborhood anytime soon.

and the breastfeeding...ha! once you've tandem nursed twins you've climbed the highest mountain. although, i might just miss snuggling 2 babies then...might...maybe...ok, probably. cause who doesn't love double the baby snuggles?!

we're young. the boys are young. 
yes, we both are only 28 & i have several more years of prime childbearing years ahead of me. and while we do have age on our side, i also don't want to look or feel as though i've aged 20 years overnight. there are some days that my personal space limit was reached and crossed as i became a human jungle gym to all of the boys. but we also have time to sit on it and wait. these twins may literally break me. and think on this, i would have...a 5 year old, a 3 year old & 2-2 year olds...then plus a newborn. now doesn't that sound like fun?!


and while all of these are great and valid points...

i don't see that any of them are a good enough reason to have another. i'm trying to enjoy my boys. i feel as though i've missed out on the 1 year old stage with both {ben} and {gabe} so now i'm doing it double time with {sam} and {matty}. we've talked about it. continually. i think it's an evolving decision. we have given ourselves a couple of years to finalize the decision.

and the decision is...

for now it is that our quiver is full with 4 boys. sorry to disappoint the few of you who were hoping i'd be making a different kind of announcement. sorry, no little beauty joining our tribe at this time. i'm learning to accept the fact that the twins were more than likely my last pregnancy. my last baby experience. my last set of firsts. and while i barely remember most of those times, i will not selfishly fulfill my need to excel at being pregnant. and in that, my mind & heart find peace. and excitement for a new season. one that is no longer full of babies and feeling left behind to tend to the little one(s).


so here's to me & my 5 guys!