The Last Half of February!

There’s this corner of my bedroom by the window that has great light in the afternoons.  I try to keep it cleared out so I can take pictures whenever I see something really adorable.  Like this:

The baby gate ended up propped on a tray, and the boys enjoyed climbing the ramp.

Toddlers get bruises and bumps a lot.

On Ash Wednesday we were able to get our ashes imposed after Young Mom’s Bible Study.

Aren’t they adorable. :)

I’ve actually started to enjoy a little time at the library with all FIVE! I know we create more work for the librarians with all the reshelving of books that Thomas pulls off.  BUT the big kids especially enjoy it. And we’ve gone at times that it’s pretty quiet in the back of the children’s section.

The tables and chairs are just the right height for toddlers climbing.

Joanna got to spend the night and next day with some friends (who also homeschool). They went to the Science Museum and the Zoo.

So fun!

It was one of the longest times I’d gone without seeing her though.  I missed her!!

Aren’t they just the most adorable snack buddies ever?!!

These two can play make-believe with anything.  And they do.  Here, they’re using sandwiches and fruit to pretend something about a boat and some animals. It was adorable.  I’m getting rid of all their toys.

Under crib fort! (Remind me to look here if I can’t find a baby.)

It looks like he’s kissing the flag, but I think he was just putting his face on it.

Please note that this training potty hasn’t been used in a very long time and was very clean.  It ended up in the babies’ room for whatever reason, and Michael really enjoys putting in and taking out toys.

Again with the dress-up.  I just love it!

I called him something like super spider fire man.

On Wednesday mornings my kiddos all spend time in the nursery while I attend Bible Study (with NO CHILDREN). It’s rather lovely.  And I’m just so so so thankful to the amazing women who care for my children, even my big ol’ school aged ones. The teachers worked with them on a mission project this semester.  They collected toiletries and brought them to Mission Northeast.  While there, they got to see how it all worked. My girls loved it!

Joanna is such my little bookworm.  This particular shot was obviously staged, but I find her reading in just about every spot you can think of.

From another trip to the library:

Those boys:

One afternoon last week the sun came out and the temp was lovely so we all went to the backyard. Michael doesn’t love the backyard yet.  He’ll like it better once he’s walking.

I thought this exchange was rather adorable:

Michael has managed to cruise around the house from over by the side window but now can’t open the door.

Thomas, seeing his distress, goes over to help.

Isn’t that precious?!

Later, he locked him in.

I decided to trim the hedges while we were out there.  They needed it!

Michael got wet and grouchy before I was finished, but his sweet biggest sister took him inside and got him changed into dry clothes.  Then she carried him around for a few more minutes so I could trim the last few stragglers.  It would have really bothered my OCD to not get it all done. :)

In the front yard I saw some pretty shadows so I grabbed a kiddo to pose for me.  It had been a few days since the sun caused any shadows around.

I saw this guy yesterday and needed to take a picture.

Natalie had made a swing for him.

I took James out to the deck to grab a picture of his ensemble.  He was being a turkey and kept sliding out of the frame.  He’s adorable.

And now we’re caught up on the goings on around here! Goodbye February!

The First Half of February

I have been a blog slacker lately, and I don’t see that changing very soon, but I’m trying to keep things posted here as much as I can.  I love looking back on the blog!!  I went through all of my February pics from the camera and iPod and found a few (um, eighty something) that I want to post. Here are the first half or so.  :)

This was one morning after Sunday school.

I love this one!

This boy was looking so handsome in his purple shirt that I had to take a few pictures of him when we got home as well.

Amiright?

This kid and his dress up.

Brother snack time!

Natalie wrote a letter to her buddy Emma.  I just love how her writing has taken off!

One day we stopped at my mom’s house for lunch but didn’t have the baby high chairs with us.  My mom tied them to the chairs.  :)

All the kids had the stomach bug a few weeks ago.  I lovingly refer to that time as PukeFest  2015.  Whenever I snuggle children who are throwing up, I always wear a towel.

I’m really enjoying my Project 365, where I make sure to snap at least one picture every day with my Canon 6D. I try to be thoughtful about the pictures, but sometimes I’m busy/lazy/tired, and I just take one to take one.  On this day I was in the kitchen working on dinner, and the light was fading fast when I remembered I hadn’t take a picture.  So I sent Joanna out to the side yard – I snapped this through the window from my kitchen.  :)

One Saturday Matt took all the kids on a long walk while I cleaned the house.  It was pretty lovely, and the babies had a stroller nap.

Adorable tiny human, yes?

The girls were the last ones to fall victim to the stomach bug.  It was so sad!

I opened up a little notebook by my bedside table and found this note from Joanna.  Love her!

That little thumb-sucker is so adorable.

I love this action shot! Michael does not look happy.

One Monday I decided we needed a walk, but I really wanted a reward (for myself!) in there.  :) So we walked to Sonic for lunch.

Then we went across to Kroger for a few things before walking back home.  Thomas didn’t quite make it.  Thankfully he stayed asleep after we got home, and I put was able to put Michael down for a nap in his bed.  I live for nap time.

I looked over one day and saw this:

I couldn’t believe my tiny Mike had climbed all the way up!  I helped him down but didn’t move the gold bin.  When I looked over later, he was kneeling on top of that!

James… slippers.

As soon as I took this picture, I thought “You shall not pass!” He seemed very Gandalf-y.

Matt and I celebrated our 9th anniversary, and my sweet girls made cards!

Natalie’s says “Dear anniversary girl. I hope you are having…”

Frequently on Wednesday afternoons we find ourselves wanting to leave the house quite early for dinner at the church.  Sometimes we go to the library.  On this day there wasn’t enough time for that (it’s quite an ordeal), so we played for a bit on the playground at the church.  They have one that is pretty toddler oriented.

Sadly I had forgotten shoes for the boys.  Michael is disturbed by the mulch on his feet here.  :)

This picture looks like nothing, but it reminds me of something cute.  Thomas is pretty obsessed with my bluetooth headset that I use to talk on the phone.  Here, he had put a Barbie crown on his ear and was pretending to talk on the phone.

Joanna earns tokens when she completes her Math work each day without THROWING A FIT, and when she gets enough, she can redeem them for Gran time.  On this day she and Gran went to have their nails done.

Then they were going to head back to her house for a little sewing lesson, but Grandpa David suggested going out on the boat.

David and mom were both taking pictures, so there are A LOT.  She was extremely excited to drive the boat!

That same day apparently there was a nap on me by Michael.

Is there anything better than a big sister who will push you around?

We have quite the baby corner at enchilada night these days. I love that.

The Vandenberges left us tickets to Cirque du Soleil on Valentine’s Day. We took the girls and were able to leave the boys with the very fabulous Aunt Gail and Uncle Steve.

It was such a cool show, and we had a great time!

I’ve found a shelf on my bookcase that is a pretty good height for taking a selfie.

Here is some more writing from Natalie.  It says “I hope you are having a good time with God. If you are having a bad time, remember that God is always with you.”

She’s always writing things about God and Jesus, and I just love that.

Next up, the rest of February!