What a Sweetie.

Bryan put Selah to bed tonight and I, Micah. But, as is common, Selah was up to no good making a bed for herself in the hallway when I came out of Micah's room. So I put her back to bed...which is a simple 10 minute process. I cover her up with her sheet and two blankets and she professes to be "FREEZING." She needs another blanket...like that one, on the floor. Turns out she has a pile of 7 or so beach towels on her floor. And she continues to be "FREEZING" until all 7 are piled on top of her and her blankets. I finally escape, only to see her light on a few minutes later. I yell up for her to go to bed. And then 15 minutes or so later, I trudge up the stairs to find this. The "FREEZING"until child is sleeping with just a sheet, with the light on, obviously having fallen asleep reading the book, "Go, Dog, Go!" It's hard to feel anything but love for that precious child-at least when she's asleep!

Guess what this is, Mom?

Me:That is a soldier.

Selah:Nope. It's an Army guy.

Me:Right, they're called soldiers.

Selah:Nope. They're called ARMY GUYS.

Why argue? I'm sure I'll never really win. I guess we have a houseful of Army guys!

Warning: Child Missing Pants!

I'm sorry, I sometimes have to give in and take pictures of her without her pants because it is very rare that she is wearing any. Her reasons vary, but they're never very good. Funny, yes. But good reasons to walk around without pants? Not so much. Things like,  "my legs hurt," "I lost my pants," "I don't want to," "I'm too scared," and "I don't like them," are all commonly heard often.

But even with a pants-less child in the shot, it was very cute to see them all huddled around the photo frame a couple nights ago. When we decorated for Christmas the frame got moved into our bedroom and was just unearthed as we cleaned up for the dresser delivery. Since we have 2, yes, 2, pictures on our walls, the kids don't often see pictures of themselves. They have spent hours watching the 30 or so pictures in this frame over the last couple of days. It's both sweet and sad. Someday we'll find the time and money to put some pictures up. Thankfully, with the invention of the digital camera we have lots of pictures, they're just on memory cards or in computer folders...patiently awaiting the day someone has to look at them.

Banana Boats for Breakfast!

I promised them Banana Boats for dessert last night, and then we didn't have dessert. (I'm actually not sure why, perhaps because I went to vote in the primaries.) So...I told them they could have them for breakfast. I'd probably be inclined to argue that they're healthier than most cereal so I don't feel that guilty. (Not that I let them eat cereal but once a week.) The boys loved them. Selah and Micah were too hungry to wait for them as we had already taken Bryan to work so it was 8:15. They just ate their bananas plain, then begged for handfuls of chocolate chips and marshmallows. Not surprising at all.
They did follow their bananas with waffles, yogurt, and even rainbow salad with feta (Jonah). Don't worry that all I fed them was bananas.

What happens when Selah leaves the classroom

Red Sauce on Everything!

It is quite amusing to us that we spent about 8 years trying to convince Jonah that red sauce wasn't gross. And now look at him. He ate it when he was really little but then quit and wouldn't even try it. And now that he tried it a couple of months ago- at Bryan's urging that homemade red sauce is one of the best things on Earth- he can't get enough of it. He and I usually have pasta for lunch once a week or so, and it's the one thing he never complains about getting from the freezer in the basement. In fact, most of the time he doesn't even have to be asked to get it, he just runs down to grab some. So today, he's eating it on a quesadilla. Not totally strange but we are definitely sour cream on quesadillas people. Never tried anything else. And im sure he'll drink what's left in the bowl when he's done!

New Dressers!

I'm ridiculously excited to have new dressers as we've never had enough space to store clothes. When Micah was born we HAD to buy another dresser, and it had nowhere to go but the living room /hallway in the condo. Actuallly, now that I think about it,  I believe the changing table dresser was in the living room/hallway and the dresser went in the kids' room and that's how Selah ended up in the closet,  perhaps? I don't remember clearly. But it still wasn't nearly enough extra space and things improved when we moved into the new house since we bought Selah a whole bedroom set with 2 dressers and 2 nightstands. And she has a good size closet. That meant Micah got both the changing table and the dresser plus a GIANT closet that is simply storage at this point. And the boys have 2 dressers, which isn't enough, especially since we made one of their closets into a fort. So they're next on the list since Micah will be moving in with them very shortly. (EEK!) But it's kind of a relief that Bryan and I got new dressers yesterday. After a mere 11 years of marriage, we just might have room for all of our clothes to have a place! We bought a new bed shortly after Noah was born, and a dresser to go with it. But we couldn't afford more than that (or even that, really.) So then when we moved into this house, be splurged on nightstands! 3 more small drawers each. Sweet! Our closet, however, is so bad I didn't want to buy this house because of it. Seriously. Our house in GA I can honestly say I chose because it had a great yard and an awesome master closet. Especially after I got it organized. This house? The yard and master closet are both terrible. So we bought some new chests and we are going to start redoing our closet this week. YAY! Not much is more exciting than demolition, paint, wood, and power tools! I just can't wait. I have a really strange love for an organized closet. I LOVE opening closets to see then all nice and neat and organized. As in, I've, on occasion...and I refuse to acknowledge the frequency of such occasions ...been known to open closets just to look. Bryan wants to build a house someday and I think he may be a bit disturbed when he sees just how many square feet I intend to devote to closets. But we can deal with that when the time comes. So here's our new dressers...they don't match in color or style but they're very practical. The big one is way taller than I am, I can barely see in the second drawer and can only pat around in the top drawer. So I guess if Bryan wants to hide something from me, there's a good place to do it! And the kids are LOVING the door part. It opens and has shelves (which are yet bare) and a mirror on the door. So they like the full size mirror, we've never had one before (I'm very excited about this! I will no longer have to rely on Bryan's opinion of my outfit nor stand on my bathtub to try to see as much as possible. Yes, I do that.) I keep catching them looking in the mirror or climbing in and hiding on the shelves. And Jonah did shut Micah in there once, but I do hope there won't be a repeat of that. Once again, I wonder why we buy toys...

More Decorating.

When you walk into the kitchen and the two year old turns and hands you a highlighter, you know it's time to start looking for new artwork. And they just LOVE to color on doors and trim...which of course doesn't come off fully. Here's his doorway decoration this time around...and he got the window and the chair as well as his hand, too. But I did find some paper colored on...so I guess he started off well?

Ears, again?

Someone's been up since 5, crying for a myriad of reasons including being thirsty, having cold feet, needing something to snuggle, being hungry, and being afraid of her room. I finally just let her get up at 630. And then she says her ear hurts. Actually, she cried that her ear hurt. Pull out the otoscope, and sure enough, looks infected. Seems everytime she get anything, she gets an ear infection. Guess we will be hitting the doctor at some point today...

Snow Dino!

Bryan and the little two had some fun in the snow while the big two and I went to co-op this morning. "They" were forecasting 5-8 inches, but sadly we only got about 2. The temperature was just a wee bit too high, I think. We hovered just above the freezing mark pretty much all day. So the snow was wet, and mixed with some hail and sleet (or is it freezing rain) and while not pleasant, wasn't the 8 inches we were hoping for. But they did manage to make the dinosaur as well as a chair and a traditional snowman. I was just too hungry and cold to trample through the yard in my skirt to snap pictures of everything. So enjoy the dino!
(Jonah was trying to sneak into the pictures and wrongly claim responsibility, hence the half of a kid in most.)

Aha!

Earlier this week, I came into the dark kitchen, as usual, and made a cup of coffee. I have this down to a science, as I am usually holding a grumpy 2 year old and he doesn't like bright lights in the morning. (Who does?) So I hold the sugar over the coffee cup in the light of the night light, and count to 4. Add some half and half, stir, and take a sip as we mosey back to the bathroom for a shower. Hmm, either I forgot to stir, didn't count very well, the sugar is empty, or....something. back in the kitchen, we turn on the offensive lights to find it was the "or something." The pour spout on the sugar is clogged. I assumed this was just from the steam from the coffee building up sugar on the spout. Silly me. Yesterday I watched Selah grab the baby wipe container and tear off into the kitchen. I've lived with her long enough to know this ALWAYS requires investigation. And I entered the kitchen to find her drinking from the just-cleaned sugar spout. Which was now , once again, clogged. She ran away, but you can see her how she used that baby wipe container to climb up on the counter and get the sugar from the cupboard. Looks like I need to lock even more upper cupboards, since I can't hide everything in one. Never boring with this one around.

Failed Already!

But I'm not giving up yet!

For Lent,  I've given up Facebook-like many people do. I gave it up while the kids were awake last year and vowed to only be on when feeding Micah during the night. (It helped me to stay awake!) Giving it up not only gave me many opportunities to pray for others and grow closer to God, but also to care less about what was going on on facebook when Lent was over. So,  for me, it's been a good thing to give up.

I've also vowed to pray first thing every morning, read at least a devotional everyday (but spending time with the Bible is even better when I can. Doing the daily readings with the kids is probably the closest I can come to daily reading the Bible right now, but I'll take it.) Writing weekly to my friend in prison, and extra days of prayer and fasting. It's enough to be almost overwhelming but still doable for me...and I think that's exactly what I need this year.

Oh, and one last thing. The thing I failed at. Posting on the blog everyday. I tried to do this last year, too. And I got so much positive feedback, I was shocked. Why is this something related to a Lenten sacrifice? Well, because we have quite a few family members not on facebook who really enjoy keeping up with the kids. To the point that this brings them joy and gives them something to look forward to. I'll be honest, when our kids are grown, you can bet I'll be all over any blog or such of my grandkids...even though they're going to live next door! (Well, we can dream, anyway.) Hopefully they won't be 4 hours (or more) away at least. (Driving time to our closest relatives right now.) So, while not so much a sacrifice, it's a bit of a servant's work in trying to bring joy to others. And someday our kids will have this blog to look back on. Okay, someday Bryan & I will have this blog to look back on!

I'll get on with it...sorry I failed to post yesterday, I did take a bunch of pics, so i'll try to catch up this morning...though troops are making their way out of bed now and breakfast time is looming...

Here's Selah, being Selah. Just a simple picture to show what we have to deal with when Selah is sick. We have all had the flu here...lovely, eh? Selah got it first and has had it almost 2 weeks. And she's still being a drama queen about it. Her legs wont work. She can't get in her chair for lunch. Someone is going to have to carry her. Ignoring her does one of two things. Gives you a lump to trip around as you prepare lunch or gives you a screaming, flailing monster who continually repeats she can't walk, her legs don't work, and she needs someone to carry her. Sadly, Jonah is not acceptable for this position of someone, it can only be Bryan or I. And when Bryan's at work, that leaves....me. Even better, one you get her in her chair...she needs you to sit with her. And she wont eat until you do. Of course, if you're not done making lunch, she has to wait. So finally everyone, besides the pregnant lady, has food and you sit down to hold the 3 year old incapable of sitting alone. And what happens? The 2 year old gets an extreme case of jealousy and HAS tp sit with you, too. But the 3 year old doesn't want to share you with the 2 year old and the 2 year old doesn't want to share you with the 3 year old. So, of course, a fight ensues. On your lap. At the lunch table. This can be messy, I speak from experience. And the pregnant lady still hasn't eaten. So her blood sugar is low and she's feeling a bit fuzzy headed. And just wants a nap. And realizes that soon, there'll be a 2 & 3 year old. And a newborn. And still, only one mom. I need a grandma next door.

And yes, Bryan and I often walk around telling "If You Give a Selah a..." stories ...likened to "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie." I don't know if I've ever posted one. I'll try to next time. She's quite a source of entertainment around here.

Lunch Date!

Noah and I had a lunch date last week! It was very nice. The little two are sick, and I teach two classes at our homeschool co-op so Bryan ended up taking the day off to watch them. And then Jonah went home with a friend so that left Noah and I to run a couple errands...and we took a rare opportunity to eat lunch out together. Now, since we don't eat meat on Fridays year round around here...there aren't a whole ton of options to choose from, especially since I have a shellfish allergy (and a limited budget) so places like Red Lobster are pretty much out. We ended up at IHOP. I'm not sure Noah has ever been there, and I know he hasn't that he can remember. When 3 of your kids have food restrictions, eating out is virtually impossible unless everyone goes to a salad place. Every kid's dream, right? Anyway, Noah is back on gluten and dairy right now, so we can have a scope done and just make sure he doesn't have EE like Micah. Long story that I haven't had a chance to write about, I hope to this weekend. But if you know us well, you know Noah has always had huge issues with food and I've been to a ridiculous number of doctor appointments trying to figure out what's wrong. Sadly, no one has been overly concerned and has simply tried to treat the symptoms instead of find a cause for his problems. While I don't want him to have EE, I'd be so relived to finally have a diagnosis and work toward a cause for the poor kid. Back on topic, he was thrilled to go to IHOP and get a make-your-own-funny-face pancake. And a HOT CHOCOLATE! Sadly though, this is Noah and he was gushing the whole time about how wonderful it was and ate probably 3 bites. He did finish his hot chocolate and water, though. And it only took an hour. I admit, I was falling asleep (literally) waiting for him to finally admit he was done. But it was a good time!

This 2 Year Old...

Needs a nap. I think we are going to try naps again. He doesn't seem to get up earlier when he catches a nap in the car or on the floor. He just seems to like to get up early in general! And I could use the break Micah napping provides. It makes it easier for me to give the older boys attention in their lessons. And Selah will happily play with playdough or paint, affording some quiet.

Like mother, like daughter

And like father, like son. 

She dressed herself

To play in the snow. I think she may be a bit cold!

Someone...

Has been spending too much time in the tattoo parlor!

Micah's New 'Do!

Micah finally sort of sat still for a haircut. A month or so ago, I tried to trim it some with scissors but he screamed the entire time. (He was sitting in a chair, eating a sucker, but every time he heard the snip of the scissors he screamed. I finally gave up, but it looked bad. Somehow I convinced him to get it cut with the clippers while I was doing Jonah's and Noah's on Thursday. He kept telling me no, but he let me do it. Not perfect, he moved a lot, and seriously an inch is way too long for Jonah but my goodness it's short on Micah! Perhaps next time I won't cut it so short. But he sure does look older now! And still cute!

Such a girl

I went to a mom2mom sale this morning. What's a mom2mom sale? One of the best inventions ever. It amazes me that it's still primarily a Michigan thing. It may be the best thing to ever come out of Michigan. Okay, perhaps not. But it's a fabulous idea. 
When we moved here, people kept talking about them. So finally I asked what it was. "It's like a giant indoor garage sale," I was told.

Hmm, not really my thing, I thought. But then, a friend told me they were totally worth going to. So we went to one. Oh.my.word. Awesome is hardly accurate. It's a garage sale of 100 families or so in one building (usually a school or church) all selling kid stuff. Now, just like garage sales, you have people trying to make money. But you also have those who understand the concept and sell everything for a dollar or two. Score. Now that I've learned this, I can tell just by looking at a few items if I should even look, or if there is no way I'm paying that much. Some people seem to think they should get what they paid for it. But my favorite tables are the one that are posted "Everything's a dollar." I'm talking brand name sweaters and dresses for a dollar. (Sometimes two or three.) But stuff that I know I can pass down, because the quality is high. Makes it virtually impossible to pay retail for anything, even on sale!

The point is, I got quite a few things for Selah today. And boy was she excited. She was squealing and kissing me and kissing her clothes. It's absolutely hilarious. And she just kept asking me if I washed them, yet. Finally, I gave in and put them in the washer- here she is watching them wash. Such a sweet child. It's amazing what a new wardrobe will do for her. (Of course, I would be pretty excited about a new wardrobe, too! Too bad they don't have mom2mom sales for the moms!)

Tired, Tired Micah

He was awfully quiet during dinner today. I kept peeking around Bryan to see if he was doing okay. And then Bryan got up and I looked over...and saw this. Perhaps he really does need those naps? He still sleeping on his daddy right now. I think we need to wake him but he's so sweet. And tends to be a bear when he wakes from a nap.

Super Food for the Super Bowl

We made almost allergen free buffalo chicken strips and onion rings tonight. No gluten, dairy, soy, peanut, tree nut, or shellfish, but there was an egg in the onion ring batter, but I think it would work well substituted. They are FABULOUS. We make the chicken often, but hadn't attempted the onion rings yet-they take forever to make. Sadly, I doubt there will be leftovers of any of it to enjoy tomorrow.

January 2012

No surprise, I am behind again. But as I dump my memory card, I figure I will give you some pictures. I'll try to spare you the narration. (But we all know I like to narrate, so be forgiving. Or just don't read it!) Here's a random assortment of pictures form January.

Micah appears to be nicely drawing a picture on PAPER on the stairs.

But then I see this.

And this.

And he was happy to show me this...on the wall we painted the day before!

And this. Looks like someone has been giving him some lessons!!! (SELAH!!)

Loading the weapon...

Getting it all right...

I hear an enemy chopper!!! Time to take him out!

There he is! (In front of Jonah's knee.)

I'll get you...just hold still!

Almost got it....

Hold it right there...

PERFECT!

Selah caught sleeping on her floor. Love the foot peeking out!

Nothing like 1/2 of a 4 pound bag of quinoa spilling on the way home from Costco. Thank Heavens it was in the tote bag! Last time I dumped about 1/2 a bag in the kitchen and I am STILL finding it, 8 months later!!

The sink's teeth were feeling dirty?

Hey, my arms were cold!

More??

Blueberry cream "cheese" crepes- Gluten and dairy free. They were delicious. (Admittedly, Bryan, Jonah, and I used real cream cheese. But they were good with the fake cream cheese, too!)

I loved them!

So much I painted myself with them!

My brother is my slave.

He closes doors for me and everything.

We have so much fun!

Micah's first BLT. He was a little confused at first. But he did like it.

If you leave a ladder out, the kids will play on it.

Jonah helping Micah shoot the sniper rifle. It's hard to see here, but it's over 3 feet long. A bit big for Micah alone.

I have no idea what he was doing or why I took this picture. He probably wanted someone to carry him down the stairs. Sometimes he just decides he doesn't want to do it himself. I do know he did NOT fall down the stairs here!

Fell asleep watching Jonah play Wii. Selah's checking him out to see if he's faking it.

The only real snow we had this winter. It was still a bit dark for a good picture. How can you not love fresh snow?