Why hello

I can't believe it's been almost 6 months since my last post.  So much has happened in this time!! 

First, here's a picture of Little Bit - she joined us in late April and has been nothing but a joy.

 

 This was taken while we were still in the hospital.  She arrived safely and perfectly and we even got to go home early because we were doing so well - yay!!

The first two weeks at home are kind of a blur.  My mom and husband were AMAZING during this time.  My mom took the two weeks off to help out with the older kids - getting them fed (at least three times a day), doing a little bit of school work, and making sure they were having a good time.  They did a LOT of yard work, played outside, and helped to keep things running (ie - laundry, dishes, keeping things clean).  What a blessing.

I've chronicled her first months of life on my Facebook page, but want to document them here for the future.

2 weeks old
Likes: milk, Mama, the boys, "Goodnight Moon"
Dislikes: diaper changes, baths, waiting more than 5 seconds to be fed

One month old
 Likes: mama, papa, brothers and sisters, lamps, black and white pictures
 Dislikes: dirty diapers, having to wait more than 30 seconds to eat

Six weeks old
Likes: her mama and papa, brothers, sisters, eating, good night moon,
Dislikes: cold baths, waiting more than 30 seconds to be fed, the dark

Eight weeks old
Likes: playing, kisses, watching people
Dislikes: the dark, dirty diapers, sleeping through the night
Milestones: turned on to her left and right sides, had her first bottle, staying awake longer and longer

Ten weeks old
Likes: her siblings, lamps, ceiling fans, mama, papa, her thumb
Dislikes: mama going back to work

Three months old
Likes: milk, monkeys, hair, family
Dislikes: caffeine, gas
Milestones:Got to swing for the first time (and enjoyed it)




Four months old
Likes: smiling, grabbing toys (especially rattles), watching people, lights and fans
Dislikes: shots and poopy diapers
Milestones: Rolling from front to back and back to front, found her feet


Five months old
Likes: putting things in her mouth, rolling over, the cats and dog, her siblings, mama and papa, reading books, flashing lights, bath time
Dislikes: things in her face, being alone (or thinking she is alone actually), being tired
Milestones:  Sits up with support, first solids (loves oatmeal, rice is OK, tried bananas, pears, and applesauce), saying "Mamama" and "Aba" (with no association to Mama and Papa yet), sits by herself for a few seconds, loves finding her feet and hands









I made a photobook of the kids during Little Bit's first 6 weeks.  It's a treasure of wonderful photos (like the one below), memories, and "favorites" of each kid.  Funny thing is, if you asked the kids what their favorite food was a week after we made the book, their answers had already changed. :)  Gotta love it.

 Little Bit at 6 weeks.  The rose on her tummy is from our front yard. love.

The kids finished up 5th, 4th, 2nd, and Preschool before I finished maternity leave.  They all did SO well last school year!  It was nice enjoying a few weeks of summer with no real schedule before I headed back to work.   

 

Here's a photo of all of my babies from June.  Love them!

Little Man, Buddy Boy, Doodle Bug, Little Bit, Lulu

Counting Down

With less than a week left until #5 makes her debut, we are definitely in the countdown mode.  I made a weekly countdown calendar (out of post it notes, I'm so resourceful) for Buddy Boy to take down each Monday evening.  I think it's become his favorite day of the week.  Each time he takes down a post it note and sees the number getting smaller, he gets SO excited!

A few days ago, I made another countdown (also from post it notes - thank you 3M), this one counts down the last 10 days.  So every night, Buddy Boy gets to take down a post it and right now we're at 5 days and counting.  SO exciting!!

In preparation for almost a week in the hospital, then another week trying to adjust to the sleepless newborn nights and active days with four other precious children, I've put together some worksheets and assignment sheets for the kids to complete over the next two weeks.  With a combination of my mom and hubby overseeing them for this time, it should make it easier for the kids to stay on top of their math and writing and for the adults to verify what they've finished.  I have a few extra (blank) copies ready, just in case by week 3 I'm still an incoherent zombie and can't remember what I have lined up for the kids to complete. 

It's definitely going to be interesting, trying, exhausting, etc.  But I CANNOT wait to introduce this little one to the family.  There are going to be lots of changes for all of us, especially for my baby boy, but each time we've welcomed a little one into our family, we've all changed for the better. :)

Ryan's blog (http://boardgamegeek.com/blog/3281/the-inquisitive-meeple) is doing amazingly well.  He has posted 30 interviews to date, and has at least another 10 in process - if not more.  He's interviewed some big time board gamers and is making great connections with various publishers and designers. He's really enjoying this project and is doing a great job of balancing the kids homeschool, family life, and the blog (he works on it after school and then in the evenings when I'm going to bed).  It's great to see him using his creative juices to keep things rolling.  Great to see him passionate about something and to have an 'outlet.' 

Probably won't update this again until #5 is here.  So praying you are all doing well.

Godspeed.

It's almost spring - right?

We're busy gearing up for #5's appearance (in less than 7 weeks - eeeeh!) and I'm having to relearn patience.  I'm ready for her to get here, but I know that she needs to bake for a little bit longer, so I'm trying to be patient and enjoy life with only four kiddos - it'll never be like this again.

The kids are coming right along with their school work.  We only have four full months left (we go through the end of June) and while it seems like a long time to go, I know that with #5 making her debut and then having about 8 weeks of school left will make for an interesting end of year push.  Thankfully, they're all doing pretty well in all of their subjects and are thoroughly enjoying the units that Ryan puts together for them.

One really cool thing he did a few weeks back was having a week all about the "Importance of Play."  Book work and worksheets were not allowed for the week, only playing.  So for math, the kids played store (and had to create real receipts with the proper amounts), played board games, and played math bingo.  They spent a lot of time outdoors playing in the yard and some afternoons with some friends.  It was a LOT of fun!!  At the end of the week, they talked about why playing is so important and also why doing some worksheets or book work is important.  I think they all learned some valuable lessons and that learning is indeed fun!

I'm trying to come up with some fun things for us to do for these last six weekends before #5 arrives.  I would LOVE to take them to the Zoo, but not sure that's a great idea for an 8 month pregnant lady who was on modified restrictions for four months.  Whatever we do, I want to make some great memories with just the four of them.  Especially since Doodle Bug and Lulu are now 11 (and a half) and 10 - they're growing up quickly and their days of wanting to spend time with us are limited.

In preparation for my maternity leave, I'm starting to shift my duties to my co-workers (who are AWESOME!!) and it's keeping me quite busy. 

Ryan's been staying busy as well (on top of being a homeschooling dad and devoted husband).  He's started his own blog where he interviews various board game designers, publishers, and artists.  His interviews are very in depth (they're not just surface questions) and he's been putting in a lot of late nights to get them posted online.  He's posted a lot of really good interviews already and is preparing for probably a dozen or so more to post between now and the summer.  It's been a great project for him and he's been receiving a lot of good responses for 'board game geeks.'

Seems like that's a recurring theme in our family "busy, busy, busy."  But I know that one day we will not be so busy, and we will not have all five children in the home.  While it's very stressful and trying at times, I'm trying to enjoy it. Watching my oldest two girls growing up makes me realize how time really does fly by.  In 7 years, our oldest could be out on her own, with Lulu right behind her. Makes me want to tear up!  But, as I'm reminded by a very wise and dear friend, this is what we prepare them for their whole lives - to be separate and functional human beings, who are hopefully adding love into the world and following the Lord with their whole hearts.  That is my prayer, that they do follow Him with all of their hearts, minds, and souls.  Can't wait to see how it all unfolds.

Memories

I want to capture this past Christmas break for a few reasons: 1 - I have a pretty bad memory at times and may forget what we did by next week; 2 - it was an awesome break and I want to relive it through here; 3 - it was the last Christmas with four children, next Christmas we'll hopefully have our newest member of the family with us. :)

So here goes.  I had the blessed pleasure to be off from Christmas Eve through yesterday.  It was fantastic!!  Nine days (excluding Sunday) of sleeping in - no alarm clock needed.  Nine days to spend with my children, husband, and family.  Nine days of no work - school or office wise.  Wish it could always be like that! 

During the first part of the break my mom and the girls did a bit of baking - praline crackers, sausage balls, cheese crackers, etc.  Lulu made a mint chocolate chip birthday cake for Jesus - it was DELICIOUS!!!!  The kids cut out and decorated sugar cookies to give to our siblings as presents - we had some leftover to enjoy, too and they were wonderful.  We were sufficiently sugar over loaded for a few days.

Our family really enjoys playing board and card games, so over the break we learned to play new games such as Swat, My Happy Farm, Barnyard Buddies, and more (I've already forgotten the names of most of them). 

We only played Swat as a whole family, the other games were broken up between 3 and 5 of us.  Even the youngest, Buddy Boy, could play most of the games (or help out by drawing cards or being the 'banker').  It's so much fun to watch the kids strategies and see them plot out their turns and get so excited when they can make a big move.  I love it!


We also watched quite a bit of TV shows and movies: America's Funniest Videos, Up, Looney Tunes, Tweety Movie, and the list goes on.

The kids spent many late morning and early afternoons playing outside, which allowed me time to read or watch a girly movie that they would not care to see.  It was very relaxing.

My mom took the girls and I to see Frozen at the theaters (first time I've been to the theaters in a year or more) and it was SUCH a good movie!!  My in-laws gave Lulu the Anna and Elsa Barbie's for Christmas, so of course they came to see the movie with us. 

We also played many games on the Wii: the new Super Mario (WiiU), Wii Motion, Wii Play, rhythm Heaven, Wii Sports, and Wii Sports Resort.

I tried to have lots of time with the kids as well as allowing them to just play together (and for me to get some quiet time). 

I think I took a nap every day except for two days and am really going to miss that - they really helped me to feel more energized in the afternoons.

The next time I'm off for more than a few days will be for maternity leave in April - cannot wait!!

Hallow's Eve

It's fall, which means it's time for three of my kids to have their annual check-ups (Lulu is the only odd ball not born at the end of the year, so she has to wait a few more months for her appointment).  I'm always amazed at how quickly they change and grow.  Doodle Bug is now 8 inches shorter than I am - 8 inches!!  She's only estimated to be 5 feet 3 inches tall, shorter than I am (thanks to not growing for over 6 months after her battle with Kawasaki)  - but still, the gap is getting shorter every year. 

Little man is only six inches shorter than Doodle Bug. He'll tower over her in just a few short years. I didn't get a chance to see Buddy Boy's measurements, but he's up to Little Man's shoulders already and is only 11 pounds lighter.  Buddy Boy will be my biggest kid by far - in the sense of "he's just a big kid - tall and has his daddy's wide shoulders".  

Now that I've updated on my oldest and two youngest, I'll update on Lulu.  Her soccer season is already coming to an end and she has grown SO much as a player this year.  She scored her first goal, during a game, a few weeks ago and was SO stunned!  She's been more aggressive (in a good way), isn't afraid of the ball, and is building her confidence up.  Her coach wants her to play again in the winter and spring leagues - I don't know if our schedules can handle that - so we'll see.

School is going smoothly.  Little Man has four pages left in his 2nd grade math book - he's a math whiz.  Where the girls excel in reading (Doodle) and writing (Lulu) - he's a math man and it really amazes me.  The girls are doing well in math as well.  I've instituted a new math notebook called a 'toolkit' where the kids write down math tricks, definitions, examples, etc.  It's something they'll start building this year and will continue building it as long as their are pages in the notebook - if it runs out, we'll buy a new one.  This has really helped the kids with geometry (area and parameter calculations of shapes, fractions and decimal equivalents, prime numbers, rounding, etc.).  I found it on a blog this summer and wish I'd known about it years ago.  SUCH a huge help.

We're in the middle of a constellation unit and the activity the kids have loved the most, so far, is making constellations out of marshmallows and toothpicks.  I'm sure it's because they all love marshmallows, but it has helped them form a connection with the single stars and the creative pictures they make.  Lulu made a model of the constellation Lion and when we went out to view the stars that night, she found that very constellation in the sky and was SUPER excited. 

That's what it's all about - being excited about learning and hopefully instilling a life long love for it.

Football Season

School has been in session for a few weeks now and I am still amazed at what Ryan did with the school room. 

I casually mentioned painting the school room next summer, next thing I know Ryan is hunting down paint chips from Home Depot, Lowe's, and Walmart.  After pasting them on the wall for a few days, we finally narrow down the color and get the room painted.  It's an aqua blue color - would be GREAT for a beach house - and is so invigorating and refreshing - I absolutely LOVE it!

After the paint dried, he spent an entire weekend rearranging the room - making it more organized than before - carving out space for each child and each subject/topic.  He spent days creating and printing wall art to hang up.  One of my favorite's is the "Weekly Schedule" wipe off sheet that lists the days of the week and what to look forward to for that day.  The kids look at it every Sunday night and get SO excited for the week to come.

He also has "Question of the Week", "Number of the week" (for Buddy Boy), and "Book of the Week" sheets that keep the kids minds churning all week long.

Ryan is SUCH a creative man and is really putting it all in this year with the kids.  It's paid off too, the kids have looked forward to school almost every day this year.  There has been an occasional "I don't want to do anything today" attitude, but after someone missed out playing an awesome new board game after lessons were finished - the attitude was nipped in the bud.

Lulu has started soccer practice (or football as some call it) and says she has the BEST team ever this year.  It's hard believe that this will be her third year playing.   She spent a lot of time playing soccer with her siblings this summer and I was surprised at her aggressiveness and drive.  I'm hoping they carry over to the soccer field with her teammates - 11 girls and 2 boys. We shall see.

Since my last post, we said goodbye to a wonderful woman - my grandmother.  We saw her in April for my grandparent's 70th wedding anniversary and she was doing fabulously.  Shortly thereafter she found out that she had jaw cancer.  The cancer was successfully removed, but unfortunately the surgery took it's toll on her 89 year old heart and she just didn't make.  After spending just over 2 months in the hospital, she passed away on August 16th - one month ago today.  She was an amazing woman, always loving, always giving.  She epitomized what it was to be a Christian woman, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother, great grandmother, and great-great grandmother.  I only hope I can be 1/10 of the woman that she was.

Christmas in July

Ryan and I are preparing for another wonderful school year and are full of anticipation and excitement.  We've purchased our curriculum and have it neatly organized on the book shelves (which won't last very long.. we know...).  We've checked the state standards to see that we're preparing grade-appropriate materials and lesson plans.  We're finding awesome arts and crafts to go along with special units.  I'm preparing recipes for yummy snacks and desserts to help reinforce special units.

It feels like Christmas is coming!! 

Seriously.  It feels like we've put energy into the perfect presents for our families, like we're making all of those wonderful Christmas cookies, cakes, and desserts.  Like we're making homemade Christmas tree ornaments and cards.  I can almost smell the pine needles and cinnamon!

Well, actually this weekend at Hobby Lobby I DID smell pine needles and cinnamon - they have their Christmas and Thanksgiving decorations in full swing.  I love it! On top of that, Micheael's is setting up all of their Thanksgiving displays and Christmas will be just around the corner...

Going back to the school year, we've decided to make this school year a lot more fun than previous years.  We'll still have workbooks and worksheets, but we're going to implement a lot more hands-on learning in the forms of more board games, more experiments and baking, and more field trips.

I cannot wait!

I just wish I could bottle up this excitement into a little perfume bottle.  Then, during the year when I'm tired, worn out and thinking "Ugh, just three more months to go" I could squirt the bottled aroma  on my wrists and voila!  I'd be pumped and ready to go. 

If only it were that easy.

Since it isn't, I decided to blog about it.  In hopes of coming across this posting in the months to come and remembering just how excited I was right before school began.

Here's hoping it encourages you, too!