Back to Reality

It has been so nice having my husband home the past two weeks for dinner and bed time routine, but the vacation is over. I am back to being a football widow and boy did it start with a bang. Tonight Emmeline managed to lock herself in the bathroom, Caden refused to eat dinner, and Jackson had his fingers smashed in the door while I was filling up the bathtub. It was a FUN evening. I was ready for a drink after Emmeline locked herself in. I was very proud of myself. I remained calm and managed to talk her through it and didn't have to take the door down. How many weeks of flying solo until the Championship game in December?

Candy Land

The party turned out very sweet and cute. The very little sleep that I got was well worth it. The kids all had a good time and the weather was beautiful.
I am going to post a few teaser pictures, but I am excited to write a up a post for our new craft, cooking, party, and project blog.

Opening Ceremony

I have been counting down the days for the opening ceremony and the start of the Olympics. I realized during the Olympic trials that I missed out on the last Olympics. We had our hands full with a couple cuties that decided to make their appearance early. Spending our days and nights in the NICU meant we got Olympic updates from the day old newspapers and the from the nurses that were coming in for shift change. It is still hard to think that it has been four years since we were spending our days and nights in the NICU.
Yay,  for the timing of the opening ceremony and the start of the games.  It will keep me company as I am going to be up late finishing the decorations for the BIG Candy Land party. All I have to say is thank goodness for coffee and painter's tape.

Happy 4th Birthday

Happy Birthday to my beautiful, smart, funny, inquisitive, and energetic Caden and Emmeline. I can hardly wrap my mind around the fact that two of you are four years old. I remember the day the two of you were born like it was yesterday. Every little detail is still cemeneted in my memory. I can still hear the beeps from the NICU monitors and picture the dimly lit rooms. And I can still remember the creaking sound the rocking chairs would give off. We spent so many hours in those chairs; staring, crying, sleeping, and our favorite holding the two of you.

The weeks we spent in the NICU were difficult, but we learned so much. We learned we had a long road ahead of decision making and the decisions we had to make impacted two beautiful, little babies. Talk about the weight of the world on our shoulders. We  learned we are much stronger than we thought and we learned so much about the two of you.

We love watching you grow. We love how we look at the world differently now because the two of you are in it. We are so proud of the two of you and love you both so much.

Happy Birthday!

Birthday Boards

We have just about finished the countdown to Caden and Emmeline's birthday. The birthday boards were a fun addition. We started the week of activities by hanging the birthday wreath on the door and tomorrow we will finish with taking their photos at the time they were born.
Dinners this week have been interesting. We enjoyed mac & cheese, nuggets, spaghetti, pizza, steak (thank you, Emmeline), breakfast for dinner which included a donut for Caden, and burgers.
I am still wondering how it can be that tomorrow I will have 2 four year olds?

Busy Bees

We have been busy bees at our house. We are down to one week left to finish our bucket list and finish house projects before FOOTBALL consumes our lives. Did I mention there are only 38 days until KICK OFF?!?!
Today we stuck around the house to work on projects. It seemed as soon soon as I finished something or cleaned something 3 little ones were behind me undoing it. Daddy worked really hard to finish up a fun playhouse area for the kids and Jackson, yet again, found a new hiding place.

All Aboard

We took to the city for our annual train ride at Tilden Park. Besides our normal partners in crime (Wesley and Aunt Tiffi), Wesley's Grandma, Aunt Katie, Uncle Mark and the HEAT came along. What a fun group!

We had a great time on the train and then we enjoyed a picnic and a ride on the merry-go- round. The veterans to the area that were with us told us all about the farm. I don't know how we missed it all these years. The farm was precious and we learned a lot. We will know for next time to bring celery and lettuce to feed the animals and not carrots.

We had such a good time despite how hot it was. We can't wait to go back.

Jackson signing "more"

Daddy discovered a fun little trail at the farm.

Super Fun

Today we had a super day at Super Franks. We invited our friend Wesley to join us for some bubbles, bounce house, video game, tumbling, slides, and zip line fun! Caden did the zip line for the first time. So proud of him.
Super Franks really is the perfect place to tire kids out and great place for parents to hang out. You have to love a place with free wifi, comfy recliners, and a Starbucks counter inside. They really did think of just about everything.

Movie and Camping

I love that I am looking up at the stars, swatting away Mosquitos, and snuggling in our tent with two of my cuddle bugs all while writing this post. You have to love camping where you have power, a clean bathroom within feet, and a comfy bed in the middle of night, if needed.
We love backyard camping. Our poor kids don't know any other kind of camping and I kind of think it may stay that way for awhile.
Tonight Dad hooked up the Wii on the projector. Our lucky neighbors were serenaded to bed with Disney Sing Off. I am sure they are loving us.
Here is a photo of the kids enjoying karaoke in the tent.

House Guests

Today a few hundred house guests arrived at our house. I was so excited to add them to our garden and Emmeline had different plans. Looks like they will be staying with us for awhile.

Blast from the Past

What a fun evening! Tonight the family got together for BBQ with 4 of my oldest and dearest friends. Between the 5 of us the kid count tonight was 12 with one in the oven! I can't wait to meet Kiwi Caswell.
Jen, my partner in crime since 6th grade brought some hilarious photos from back in the day. All I can say is WOW! There was a lot going on in those photos... A LOT of hairspray, shoulder pads, acid washed denim, and Fun! Thanks Jen for the trip down memory lane. I will be sure to dig up our music single we cut at Great America after 6th grade graduation. Whitney had nothing on us.

3 Little Monkeys Jumping On The Bed

One fell off and bonked his head. Jackson so badly wants to be big. He tries so hard to do EVERYTHING his big brother and sister are doing. Good thing he is a tough one and bounced right back after the tumble.
The kids are LOVING the mattress in the living room, post office remodel. For my sanity I am EAGERLY searching to find it a new home.
Here is an action shot of my crazy kids!

Makeover

Phase one of the office makeover complete!
We (okay I) decided it would be a great idea to get rid of the HUGE bed in the office. It was taking up a ton of space and ultimately I would LOVE to put in a crafting table or take out our build-in and turn it into a craft space. Today we did baby steps. We managed to put in a love seat(Thanks Tiffani and Katie) so the kids could still have movie night in the office. We moved around an air hockey table which has sadly turned into my craft table and did some organizing.

My Little Helpers

Caden and Emmeline are two of the best little helpers. They play so well with Jackson. They always worry when they don't see him and love checking in on him at nap time.
Today we had a special guest while his Mommy was at the dentist. And my older two went into action watching over Wesley. Caden and Emmeline did a great job of distracting him. Yay, for no tears!
Jackson finally woke up and joined the group for some race car, playing in the Tupperware drawer, and walking fun.

Pearly Whites

Today we took the kids to the dentist. We LOVE the dental office. I wish I went to a dental office like this when I was a kid. When you walk in there are video games in the waiting rooms and the cleaning rooms have televisions mounted on the wall playing movies. I secretly wish I could go there.
Emmeline was such a big girl this visit. She sat in the chair all by herself and even tolerated a cleaning. Caden still sat in our lap, but I am confident that next visit he will be ready. Even Jackson was able to take part in the action. He did a super job on my lap letting Dr. Nutter count his teeth.

Here is a picture of my big girl getting her teeth cleaned. So grown up!

Little Miss Independent

Today was a super busy, but fun day. Today I got a little taste of what my life is going to be like in a few years. Emmeline and Caden both had playdates scheduled within a half hour of one another and of course they weren't near by one another.
After dropping off Emmeline and almost all the way to Caden's destination I realized that Emmeline got dressed all by herself today and I didn't double check. And sure enough when we got home Emmeline informed me that she forgot to but on panties. And of course she was wearing a dress. Yes, today I became on of those moms who I once thought "how can your child show up at school with no underwear on?"
After she fixed her first issue she went and got the mail to discover an American Girl catalog. Talk about timing... It just happens to be a few weeks before her birthday. After pointing to just about every doll, I realized the days of inexpensive dolls for Christmas and birthdays probably just went out the window.

Breaking My Heart

I have always said that if I knew baby number four would be like number three that we would have another. Suddenly something has gotten into our sweet Jackson. I know we have been very spoiled. He would lay right down and take his naps and at bedtime not fuss and go down after nursing him or later after a story. But this week someone new has emerged. Bedtime is a nightmare for him and me. I am a wreck with his crying and jumping in his crib calling for Mommy. And of course he is holding his arms up in the air for me to pick him up. Ughhh...breaks my heart. I do have to say this week my break him of his "money". The past two nights every time I have walked out of the room he has chucked his pacifier across the room. We are on night two of pacifier on the ground. I am hoping we will get back to our sweet and calm bedtime routine soon.m

Ribs

Over the years Chris has tried really hard at getting his ribs just like our dear friend Mr. Feld. We have enjoyed Mr. feld's ribs for about 10 years. Whenever Chris was asked what he wanted for a special meal or for his birthday dinner - his reply was always RIBS. He would ask Ken his tricks and secrets and he would try at home, but still couldn't get it exactly right. Last year, our dear friends The Felds moved and since then Chris has been on a mission. After, several tries I can say he has come a long way. He is getting closer to competing with Ken. After manning the ribs for over four hours we invited the DeTars over to try them out. I wish I would have snapped a picture. The ribs were picture perfect. It was a delicious meal with great company.

Napa

Today I had a special treat that I don't get very often. In fact I can't remember the last time I went on a lunch date with one of my besties without kids. I met up with Heather at the beautiful Glen Eagle Golf Course in Napa. We enjoyed a delicious lunch and had some great girl time all while looking out at the beautiful Napa Valley. I can see why people come from all over to vacation in Napa and I LOVE that it is just a short drive from home. It was a perfect start to the weekend.

Welcome to the neighborhood

The for-sale sign came down a few weeks ago and since them we wondered who was moving into the neighborhood? And then we saw it... A mini-van. We were so excited when we then saw a small swing set in the yard. We put together a small basket of goodies for our new neighbors. Unfortunately they weren't home, but they came by later to say thanks and meet us. The poor family is still probably trying to forget process their visit. Chris was gone at football, Caden came to the door in his underpants, Emmeline kept lifting up her shirt, Jackson was pantless and just in a diaper. Caden was not shy. He was very persistent and the poor little girl just looked at him like he was crazy. I am pretty sure they are still talking about the "crazy family" down the street.

Downward dog

Jackson continues to crack us up. Who would have thought that I would have a 16 month old yogi? He has gotten very good at a lot of things including yoga!
I love that I captured this picture of him in his pose. He thinks it is hysterical to look upside down between his legs. It is even funnier when your sister surprises you when you look. They are too cute.

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to the love of my life! It is hard to believe it has been SEVEN years. My how our lives have changed. In seven years we have a few stamps on our passport, moved to a new house, 3 beautiful kids, and survived some major house remodels without killing one another. There were a few highlights of our anniversary. One, was watching our wedding video with kids while Daddy was at practice. The kids refer to it as "Mommy Princess Movie." They loved our first dance - I am still pretty impressed with ourselves. I can still remember Chris at dance class referring steps to football moves and plays. Of course he found a way to get X and O's into our wedding day. Gotta love him. Second highlight, was making his Gram's sauce. After seven plus years of hearing; it's too sweet, too thick, too bland, gross, not the same, etc.... I went straight to the source. I spend the afternoon with his Gram getting all he secrets. After simmering on the stove for 5 hours I was on pins and needles. The verdict was I finally in and he said it was just like Gram's. So it only took me 7 years. Happy Anniversary! I look forward to many more wonderful years ahead!

Sprinkles

Today we had a fun day. We had a playdate with an old high school friend and her two girls. Emmeline was loving not being out numbered and was relishing in girl power. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it didn't even phase Caden that he was outnumbered. After a lot of fun in the sun, my little helpers and I whipped up some jello cookies for the 4th. I think they have found a new favorite cookie to make. I am pretty sure the floor was covered in more sprinkles then the cookies.

Hide and Seek

This morning I had a brief moment of panic. Two of my three children were accounted for and eating breakfast. Well, I should say Emmeline was eating, Caden was just sitting, and Jackson was no where to be found. After searching his favorite hiding places( bathroom, behind the curtains in my room, and the shower) still no Jackson. Little Man managed to close Emmeline's door and climb up on her bed. Here is a photo of how I found him. I love how he is just hanging out like it is no big deal. Ughhh... this new found freedom is going to keep me on my toes.