Belly pics week 29

Well, here's another pic for kicks and giggles. Even with the twins people always thought I was carrying small--I guess this really shows the differences in pregnancies! You can imagine after carrying James, who really was small born at 36 weeks and 4 lbs 14 oz., I thought I was huge with the twins. In this pic with the twins I was measuring 37 centimeters--or about 8 weeks ahead. Baby #4 seems a bit more the norm, as along as I can keep him baby in awhile longer!

My first Gingerbread House!

I don't really have a lot to say about my first gingerbread house I made from scratch, except I'm stinkin' proud of myself and totally ready to make another! It was so much fun coming up with a design and decorating it. Those are syran wrap stained glass windows--yeah, I cheated. Maybe next time I'll be up for real spun sugar windows. Merry Christmas!

To Clear My Good Name

Having been maligned viciously by my dear, sweet cousin, I must clear my good name. I am not and have never been an OVERACHIEVER. I am simply my mother's daughter. This means I was raised to do exactly the projects that interest me and to put aside everything else. It's all about picking my battles.
Making two little girls dresses interested me enormously. On the other hand, I have precisely ZERO interest in protecting a Christmas Tree from 2 tree stripping toddlers and 1 tree toppling preschooler. So, I gave the tree over to them this year. I got a fake tree at Target for $6 after Christmas last year and we've decorated it with (hopefully) child friendly ornaments from the dollar store. The tree spends most of the day naked in a state of dismemberment, as you can see in the collage.
Now I have freed myself of the worry of keeping a Christmas Tree whole and decorated for the next 3 weeks, I can focus my time on things that interest me--like making Gingerbread Houses!!! I'll post pics soon--but I think this may be a new addiction for me!

2 Dresses Done!

Here are some pics of the dresses I made for the girls for Christmas. They're not exactly "Christmas" dresses since I wanted them to be able to wear them for all the next year--Yeah, I made them a little big on purpose. You can't see it very well, but they have a tulle under layer--which gave me no end of grief. I'm already sick of gathering and I have years of girls dresses to go! I added the tulle and bead flowerettes for a bit of retro bling. ;) So much fun! So glad they're done!

26 weeks preggie pics

I think it's fascinating to compare belly pics from one pregnancy to another. I couldn't find a 25 or 26 week belly pic from my first pregnancy--honestly, I probably wasn't even showing at that point--I had to use a 30 week shot. It's pretty interesting how different each pregnancy is--in every way. This baby #4 is sitting really low and he loves to roll around in the evenings. He gave me quite a kick yesterday when we were out showing the girls some horses on a nearby farm. Maybe he was just trying to tell me he was excited to see the horses too! And he definitely loves sweets. OK, so I just tell myself that for some justification for the weight I've put on. ;)

Now that we're ALMOST 18 months old. . .

Mom made us write down some of the things we've learned in the past 18 months.

We've learned that we still LOVE our bottles. And snuggling with sister. Ok, we don't actually like to snuggle that much, but you just might catch us giving each other loves if you watch closely enough.

We've learned who to go to for candy and ice cream.

We've learned how to be mommy's bestest little helpers in the kitchen!
You sweep everything into a pile so you can stand in it, right?
We've learned how to load the dishwasher.
We're especially good at unloading the knives and glass cups.

We've learned how to test the weight capacity of the dishwasher door--

apparently it's over 50 lbs.

We've learned how to comprimise so that everyone is happy. Look--We even shared our sleep sack with James! Man are we gonna tease him about this photo in a couple years!

Mom wanted to add a couple things. Guess we'll let her.

Clara

Can say:

ba (bottle), wa (water), ni-ni (night-night), ju (juice), da-da, ma-ma, g-ma (grandma), g-pa (grandpa), ju (james), na-na-na-na-na- (no, no, no, no, no--she's really good at this one), up

She loves to:

Play ni-ni

play on tables

Blow kisses

give high-fives

make funny sounds with her lips

Give mommy raspberries on her arm

Play with mommy's belly button

Loves to cuddle with mom, dad, Grandma

Feed herself

Put socks, clothing on (well,tries to)

Dance

Read books

Charm everyone sitting behind her in church

Roar like a lion

Clara is finally starting to walk on a consistent basis.

She's very sensitive and gets easily frustrated if she falls down.

Kate

Can say:

up, wa (water), ba (bottle), ma-ma, da-da, g-ma, g-pa, ca (car), hot, dog,

She loves to:

pet dogs

play ni-ni

dance

jump with 2 feet

play on the table

run in circles

find snacks in the kitchen

read books

snuggle with wolfie

drink from her bottle

put shoes on

help mommy sweep the kitchen

take toys from Clara

distract everyone at church by running down the aisle,

and on the stage,

and un and down the ramp.

Ok, so she might hate me when she's 16 . . .

Here are the girls with some of the latest tricks they've learned. Unfortunately, they did their best "wheels on the bus" before I got the camera, but Kate did save some good finger to nose action for the lens!

Awesome November

Today the kids and I enjoyed a warm, beautiful November day in the garden with Grandma. Kate did a little raking, Clara tried out the big kid swing, but decided the baby swing was more her style, and James generally caused mayhem pulling up lights and stealing baby swings. Eventually we had to go inside so Grandma could get some real work done, but we sure to cherish nice days like this in the North West!

CSI Vancouver

As a mom, I daily double as a crime detective. Someone's crying . . . Why? Did someone else hurt them or did they hurt themselves? Are they even physically hurt? or was it just their feelings? Today's dilemma was particularly complex.

The Victim: Kate
Status: Surface injury to the forehead

The Suspects:

Clara: Bewildered twin sister
Alibi: With Grandma
Bunny: Fluffy playmate.
Alibi: With Winnie the Pooh
Mom: Meany who won't give victim the WHOLE bag of skittles.
Alibi: I'm the mom. I don't need an alibi.
James: Brother who looks like he's trying a bit to hard to look innocent.
Alibi: None. Found at the scene of the crime.

The Plausible Weapons:

Wimpy Toothbrush
Flowery Sunglasses
Menacing, fire breathing Dragon

Possible Scenes of the Crime:

While the Victim was found on the 3rd step of the stairs, it is unknown whether is this in fact the scene of the crime.

Possible crime scene 1: Very messy playroom
Possible Crime Scene 2: Jump house
Possible Crime Scene 3: Basement Stairs

The conclusion of the momma detective is:
Mr. James
with the Dragon
Down the Stairs

Punishment served.
Case Closed.

Halloween 2009

Here are some pics from Halloween. The kids were pretty sick all day, but they perked up in time to make it the ward's truck-or-treat and for a quick trip around the cul-d-sac trick-or-treating. Kate and Clara's favorite part of the trunk-or-treat was seeing the dogs people brought. Funny story--two of the dogs were white with black patches. When Clara saw a kid dressed up as the grime reaper, his face painted white with black patches around the eyes, she kept calling him a doggy!

***

When we got home, James helped me make sugar cookies. He really got into it. He did NOT want to stop to smile for the camera!

Here are some pics of us trick-or-treating. If you can't guess, I went as a speed bump. ;) Kate and Clara really got into trick-or-treating, especially the candy part! Although, Kate didn't get that we don't actually go into peoples homes; she tried to walk into every house we went to!
Happy Halloween 2009!

Feed the Monster

Ok, NOW I'm a real mom. I had my first "oh, crud, it's 9 pm and I have to have a game for Jame's preschool party tomorrow morning!" moment. I'm sure this will be the first of many last minute, late night school project's I do over the years. As it turned out, James is sick today, so he missed his party. All that work for nothing! Well not nothing. The kids had fun "feeding the monster" the bean bags, and Clara got a kick out of hiding inside of it.

Ahhh! My sweet boy!

So, it doesn't happen very often, but just when I needed it, James popped the most adorable pose for me. I needed a photo of my kids folding their arms for family prayer for my church lesson on Reverence the next day and James played along beautifully! This is going to be one of my all time favorite photos. I knew there was a sweetie inside that whirling dervish (sp?) of chaos!

New Recipe!

Hey!!! Check it out! I finally updated my recipe box. This is an awesome recipe for chocolate cookies I made up after stealing tips from various family members. Definitely a keeper!

Anyone seen Poltergeist lately?

So I figured once he had touched 90% of the jello castle I had made, I might as well let him have the whole thing. Because, honestly, who wants to eat something a 3 year old boy has touched, breathed on, sneezed on, and licked? In the background, you can see my various (abet unsuccessful) attempts at getting him to eat that day. The only thing he wanted to eat was jello, and when he was done eating it, he wanted to smash it. We'll just call it sensory play, right? What a happy boy!

My little Cookie Monster

You have to love a girl who knows how to appreciate her cookie! Or, at least knows how to keep her siblings from stealing it.

Can you get the WHOLE cookie in your mouth, Clara?

YES, I CAN!

Bi-Zi Farms Field Trip

So, James' preschool picked the RAINIEST day ever for a field trip to the pumpkin patch. Luckily, my mom could watch the girls, so it was just James and Mommy, and 100 billion other kids at the farm. We had a very fun, very WET day! James loved the tractors and feeding the goats. I normally don't add all the outtake photos in my collages, but I thought it was so funny how determined James was to NOT to look at the camera. What can I say, I have a 3 going on 13 year old!

Are we having fun yet?

Summary of photos (counter clockwise):

Kate crying because she didn't get her way.

Clara on a table causing mischief; her favorite place to be.

James crying because he wants to ride in the stroller, girls happy/indifferent.

James happy because he gets to ride, girls unhappy and kicking brother.

Ok, so this week I get an A++++++ for effort. I had a childhood friend, Zina, visiting her sister up in northern Washington. She invited me up to visit, and I just couldn't pass it up. I entreated my mother to come along as a helper and we made the trek. It really went pretty well, except for the 40 minutes of screaming from my girls at my aunt's house before they fell asleep. And the moment Zina opened the door and Kate greeted her by throwing up all over the carpet. James screaming and wailing at the ice cream store because he wanted mommy's "big" ice cream. Oh, and then we stopped at Jack-in-the-box to let the kids stretch as eat dinner on the way home. While I'm trying to order: James is pushing the stack of highchairs into random people's tables, Kate is running barefoot around the restaurant, Clara is on the table dumping my purse out on the floor, which Kate later dumping a FULL glass of water onto. My mom placated James by pushing Kate around the restaurant in a highchair, putting her in "time out" in random locations--his favorite? He wanted to put her in the toilet.
I'm pretty sure in the midst of all of this I got a chance to visit with my friends, see some gorgeous scenery, and do something other than sit around the house all day long.

Am I a glutton for punishment??

So, I try again. Justin went up the the cabin to go hunting this weekend. For various reasons, he was going to be by himself, so I decided to take the kids up and keep him company. Any of you with kids know how much work it is to pack for vacations with kids. But I made it! The kids and I got up there during daylight hours with enough time for a trip to the lake. I was totally prepared for the rainy weather any everything. Kids were in bed by 7. I got some solo time to read and eat brownies before Justin got there.

Everything seemed okay.

I should have been warned.

It never goes this simple.

About 12 midnight James starts talking in his sleep about being cold. We can't seem to warm him up. We move him in the bed next to me. Next thing I know, in the dark, I hear gagging sounds. NOT GOOD. James throws up ALL OVER HIMSELF. 3 times. Needless to say, when Kate threw up a bit the next day, and I wasn't feeling so hot, I bailed. The kids and I came home the next day at 10 am. All that work for nothing. But hey, I get an A++ for effort, right??

There are MANY, MANY, MANY moments when I am over whelmed by the thought that I will have another baby to add to the mix in 5 months. That EVERY LAST THING I DO FOR THE NEXT 4 YEARS WILL BE PHYSICALLY EXHAUSTING. I dream about the day when I can get out of the house and go back to school or go to work or go anywhere but crazy. It's not the cleaning up after kids that I mind--it's the cleaning up the SAME &%$@# THING 4 TIMES IN 6 MINUTES while one kid slips in it and cracks her head and other one tracks it into the living room before I can get it cleaned up that I mind. It's not how hard it is to do anything with 3 kids, it's how hard it is, and then it doesn't work that gets to me. Really, I dream about going back to work, and getting to hire someone else to change diapers, and clean up messes and argue with nonsensical 3 year and 16 month olds. I would love going to school just so I can sit down for more that 15 minutes straight.

I KNOW! I KNOW! I KNOW!

If I was back at work I would be dreaming about the moments I was missing with my kids. When James gives his sisters hugs and kisses and offers them toys, when Kate does a head stand and then looks up to make sure you clap for her, when Clara offers to share her sucking thumb with you. I know there are so many rewards and blessings right now from being home with my kids. I know I dreamed of these days for years when I couldn't have the family I wanted. It's all a great blessing in disguise as a tornado right? I just have to weather the storm.

Where's my poncho?

20 week preggie pics

On the left is me now, 20 weeks pregnant with baby #4. On the right is me 20 weeks pregnant with the twins--not counting the 10 extra pounds I had when I started this pregnancy!

Halloween 2009 costumes Done!

Here's James in his Halloween costume. He LOVES it!! I had to find something with wings so he wouldn't try to steal his sister's fairy wings. He is so adorable it in. I actually got a smile for the camera!!!

Just some cute pictures!

Ok, so after a day like today I need some reminders that really my kids can be adorable. Today I decided to try out story time at the library. Hum. Kate was in the storyteller's chair and out the backdoor twice, Clara was face down on the floor (not idea why), and James was spinning around and screaming. That was the first 5 minutes. When I looked up and realized more kids and adults were watching my trio than the story teller, I decided we needed to make a quick exit. Gotta make a mom feel great when you not only have the worst, but the first, second, and third worst kids at story time!! ;) To their credit, they actually LOVE reading and spend quite a bit of time everyday reading/fighting over books. So, here are some cute photos to remind me of how sweet they are.

Clara playing hide-and-seek in the cabinets.

I don't remember why, but James decided all three of them needed to be in timeout.

I don't think the girls get the idea of time out.

Here my mom is, doing the tedious work I have ignored because I wanted to be sewing fairy princess costumes, not making new covers for couches . . . She got a few helpers along the way!