For home school this week we have been focusing on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yesterday we made crosses using flour, salt, and water. We baked them and let them cool. Today we painted them, added string and gave them away to our neighbors as a reminder of Easter. We also watched the Easter Story this morning which opened our eyes once more at the Grace of our God and the wonderful Gift he gave us.I am so blessed to teach this in school and seeing Easter through my child's eyes is an even bigger blessing.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Ceiling Fan

Recently if you want to get a smile from Raegan point her heavenward toward the ceiling fan. She thinks it is so funny. She will smile and coo. It is so sweet. One of these days I will try to upload a video or at least a picture. But for now use your imagination. She is precious!

What happens when daddy walks out the door

When daddy walks out the door mommy tries to sit down with her Bible and Beth Moore. Within seconds a child comes running screaming, "there is poop on the floor!"

I pause Beth Moore and head to the bedroom all to find poop on the floor. I clean up Nolan and the floor, then explain we will not do that anymore.

We will continue our day and I am sure there will be more. Maybe a mess or fight among the four, but at the end of the day daddy will once again walk through the door.

After dinner there will be toys galore, we will clean them up all to do it all over again tomorrow when daddy walks out the door.

Case of the missing makeup

Tonight it was my turn to do bedtime while Bert took care of Raegan. I had noticed in days past that my makeup was slimming down, mainly the lipsticks. I just assumed I had put them in the diaper bag and I would find them there. After I got all the kids in the tub I opened the drawer to get the toothbrushes out and what did i find...? Yeap I found 5 tubes of my lipstick and my mascara. Now you ask who would have done such a thing. In the children's tv show Dora the Explorer she calls him swiper the fox, as for me I call him Nolan. Thankfully none of the makeup was destroyed, but who knows what would have happened if I hadn't found them.

Raegan Joy

Here are a few pictures of my sweet little girl. She is growing more and more beautiful everyday and is also becoming more alert.

Once a monkey now a sneaky fox....I live in a zoo!

Before I explain the picture I have to set up my title. I have been calling Nolan a monkey in recent days because he is always climbing something. Last week I took the LEGOS away from the older two boys because they were jumping on their beds and broke the wooden frame under Cohen's bed. As their punishment the LEGOS went into my bedroom and were not allowed to be played with until the weekend. One afternoon this week Nolan went missing again within the house. So I went looking and found him in my bedroom with no pants or underwear on (he had used the potty) sitting in the LEGOS he had dumped everywhere. So that is why I referred to him as a sneaky fox; he had managed to get into my room that has a child lock on it, open the LEGOS and dump them on my floor. I could not resist taking a picture. Please excuse the fact he is without underpants.

An afternoon at the park

The kids needed to get some energy out so we took them to a playground here on base. It was very nice out,a little windy and cool, but still nice.Raegan Joy and I joined them for a few minutes before having to come back inside. I think we all enjoyed the fresh air.

The monkey strikes again

I am using my blog as my "safe place" for the moment. I am at my wits end with the monkey living in my house. In case you don't know I am referring to my third child, Nolan. He is climbing everything. We have already taken down the bunk-beds and rearranged his room. The other day my neighbor came over at 730 am to tell us Nolan was standing in his bedroom window (which is on the second floor over looking the driveway). This past Monday I had the base send someone over to put angel guards on the window but the don't do that anymore, according to them they are to expensive and damage the window. They assured me it is impossible for him to fall out a closed window. I now have baby gates in the window (very tacky). He climbs on the kitchen counters and anywhere else he can find. All morning long I have been getting him off his dresser. GOODNESS! I need a rock wall in my house. I am thinking today is a good day for me to do school quickly and get to chick filet as soon as possible and let him climb til he can climb no more. It is cold and poring rain today and it is only 9 am....if I don't do something this monkey is going to run me out of my mind...hahaha!

Potty Dance!

We have been doing a lot of potty dances around here today. Nolan has not had an accident yet and has gone 5 times on his own. I think we may have a potty trained toddler in our house!!!! I am so proud!

Spring is for showing off cute baby legs!

I bought this outfit for Raegan and have been waiting for a warm enough day for her to wear it. Isn't she precious!

Mystry Trips

Growing up a favorite childhood memory of mine are mystery trips.Mom and dad would take us somewhere and we didn't know where we were going til we got there. So keeping that going Bert and I now take our kids on occasional mystery trips.We give hints every 30 mins or to keep the kids thinking.In years past we have gone to the beach, Ocean City MD, Washington DC, NYC, and many other places. Yesterday we took the boys to the Naval Academy in Maryland. The hints were:
*They fly in the air and dive under the sea, all to keep our country free.
*We will visit something old and see something new, their favorite color is
navy blue.

(Bert laughs at my hints but I enjoy thinking them up and the kids love trying to guess). We had a wonderful time walking though museums and around the base. We even saw a sailboat race on the water at the base. What a beautiful day! We ended the day by surprising the kids and taking them to the mall that had a lego store. A little boys dream! All and all it was a wonderful day of creating new family memories.

Excuse me Miss.....

After co-op today I needed to run into Wal-mart for a few things. I had all four kids in tow and was in the craft section. A man said excuse me and I realized I was blocking the isle, I said sorry and moved my cart. I continued to shop going from isle to isle in the craft section and the man came up to me again and said, "Isn't it a pretty day to go shopping?" I responded by saying, "yes it is" and moved on to the next isle. All of the sudden he approaches me saying, "Excuse me ma'am, are you married. If not I would love to take you out to dinner sometime?" WHAT! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I was shocked.I quickly held my hand up for proof (as if the 4 kids were not enough) and said yes I am happily married and walked away. I was so shocked all I could do was giggle. Did he not see the kids? Was he all there in the head, surly not. Then I thought to myself I should be flattered that a man thought me to be attractive even with kids all over the place. No sooner than that thought entered my mind it left with me feeling a little scared and wanting to leave Wal-mart as quickly as possible.So I grabbed the last of the items on my lest and left. Oh the things you will see and hear at Wal-mart!

Sunshine breeds new kinds of trouble

Today was a beautiful day. So after naptime we went outside to play and enjoy neighborhood friends. I am constantly doing headcounts to keep tabs on all the kiddos. At one point Nolan was missing. So all the neighbor standing outside with me began looking. It was not long (maybe 2 min) when he was found inside our house looking out of Raegan's window (which looks out over the driveway). So I went into the garage to go into the house to bring him back outside and the door was locked. My two year old dead bolted the door and had locked us outside! I knew if I tried to call him to come unlock the door he would realize he was in the "power position"so I tried to act like it was no big deal and just waved as he looked out the window. I grabbed my cell and called Bert to come home and let me back in the house, but my neighbor was smart enough to go around back and good thing he did. Brasen had unlocked the back door at some point and my neighbor was able to walk through the house and unlock the door for me. Like I said...NEVER a dull moment in my house...NEVER!

Helping hands

Today I gave Raegan Joy a both and had some help from big brother Nolan. She didn't seem to mind having her head washed over and over..haha.

Milestones and Blood Pressure

Today Cohen and Raegan had well child visits. Raegan and I went at 11 for her 2 month check-up. She weighs 11 pounds and is 21 inches now.She has done a lot of growing since she was born weighing 6 pounds 8 ounces and measuring 19 inches. She looks perfect according to the doctors. Then we all went and got the boys hair cuts, something I need to learn to do myself for financial reasons and because I have yet to fins someone who can do what I ask them to do. Anyway, at least it grows back. At 2 we went back to the same doctor for Cohen's well visit. He is measuring 3 feet 8 inches and 44 pound. He is in the 30%, still a little guy The doctor guesses he will be around 5'7 when he stops growing. He is otherwise healthy according to the doctor. According to himself, however, he may have blood pressure issues:

Cohen (as the nurse places the cuff on his arm): "I may have high blood pressure because I love to eat salt, but I will cut back"

His blood pressure checked out fine, but everyone got a good laugh at a very mature and aware child.

Daddy date day, and Mommy play day

Bert and I have been talking and we both feel it is important to have family time but also individual time. Having four kids makes that difficult to do, but this Saturday we made our first daddy date day and mommy play day. Bert took Cohen and Brasen to Lowes and did a wood craft while Nolan and Raegan stayed with me. The older two boys had a blast and both said it was the best day ever(I am sure the added bonus of daddy spoiling them with a new lego set added to the fun).




Nolan and I made a poster using shapes and he helped glue it down. Then we watched Dora, which is a new favorite in our house. Raegan slept or rode my hip, which is her new favorite thing to do.

Rain, Rain it is ok, we will camp inside today!

So today it is raining and we need something to pass the time in a fun and stress free way. In trying to include Nolan in playtime we decided to go camping inside. First we set up camp then made a list of things we were going to do on our camping trip. We had fun hiking up Mt Staircase, fishing in Tile Pond, roasting marshmellows and even telling silly stories around the fire. The boys have had fun all morning and all three have played nicely together.




our to do list

climbing the mountain (they were not allowed to use their feet, I tried to make it challenging)

WE DID IT!!!!!!!!

Fishing in Tile Pond

Marshmellow roast

Silly boys telling silly stories

If love were measured in "duckies"

I am one lucky mommy to get a shower AND get my hair done any day of the week.Now that I have gotten a shorter haircut I have to blow dry it and fix it or I will scare the entire neighborhood away, including my hubby. Today was a smooth morning and I was able to shower uninterrupted. I decided to wear a towel on my head until I could get a few minutes to dry and style it. Quickly the day passed and finally during nap time I was able to get a free moment to get my hair fixed. Reagan had another plan she began to fuss. Cohen came into the bathroom where we were and "babysat" her for me so I could get rid of my crazy hair as he called it. I look over and this is what I see:


For any of you who know Cohen well know that his ducky blanket is gold. It goes everywhere he goes and has been everywhere he has been. It has ripped apart and been repaired and no one is allowed to touch it. No one except Raegan Joy that is......he loves her and according to Cohen, "it makes her feel safe and comforted"

Raegan Joy is growing up!

So Raegan is getting more and more alert as the days go by. We went and bought her an activity mat so she would have something other than her swing to play with while I teach school. She liked it for about 3 minutes but then her brothers came over and honked and rattled every toy causing her to be quite overwhelmed. We will try again another day.

Welcome sunshine and warmer weather!

Finally a break in the cold weather. Weather man says it may be a tease but we are glad to see it for now. We were able to enjoy our driveway and outside toys for most of the afternoon!

Cohen riding his scooter

Brasen doing what he loves best, coloring

Nolan pushing Cohen ....shouldn't this be the other way around?!

She's the boss, he gets the smiles

A funny thing Cohen said the other day:

Cohen was playing on the floor with Raegan and talking oh so sweet to her. He leaned in as he kissed her he said, "One day you will grow up and be the boss of your own house too." HAHAHAHA! So Cohen thinks the girls are the boss, should I tell him different?!



Meanwhile this is what Raegan saves for her daddy:




I am still waiting for my turn....

Smiles to be seen and sorry notes to be written....

Well I am still anxiously awaiting my smiles from Raegan Joy. She doesn't hold back from her daddy but she teases me daily. I suppose me holding the camera in her face makes her bashful...haha!So I have caught several "almost smiles" this week week, but yet to capture the true gummy grin she flashes when she is in her daddy's arms.







On the flip side of always looking for a happy smile I have had my share of frowns and hurt feelings. Over this past week I have really been working on my older boys to be mindful of how powerful and hurtful words and tone of voice can be. At my witts end this morning I made them not only hug and makeup but write a letter to each other saying they were sorry. I was impressed how they really took time to do it and it made them think about what they have done.


This is Cohen's letter to Brasen Thomas. (age 6 -kindergarten)


Brasen Thomas' picture letter to Cohen (age 4- preschool)Mommy wrote the words but he did the picture all by himself