A little weekend project...

The boys love picnics, and for the past 6 years that we have lived here, we have talked about getting a table so that we could enjoy eating outside. But, we never got around to it and outdoor furniture can get pretty pricey. So, I had a great idea (if I do say so myself). I found some instructions online, and luckily I am married to a pretty handy guy with a pretty handy father and they were able to construct the cutest picnic table ever! They built it with a little help from the boys (in 100+ degree heat no less) and the following weekend the whole family trekked out to the patio armed with paint brushes and we painted that little table. I love it! I love that it is homemade and that everyone worked on it together. We have already had 2 picnics on it (which would have been great if it weren't for those darn flies, but that's another story) and the boys had dessert out there the other night! I love that I can send them oustide with their sticky, messy treats! Thanks Brett and Jed and boys....it really turned out great! Now who's ready for a picnic?!


Primed...


and painted!
Maybe someday we'll actually put the paint tarp away!

JOY....

Baby's first smiles! Look at those dimples!

My little Ethan is 8 weeks old already! He is such a sweet little guy and without a doubt, he has brought so much joy into our home!

Challenge

I love to watch the cake challenges on the Food Network! Secretly I wish that I could create awesome cakes just like they do...but I can't, so I just enjoy watching others who can. Anyway, today they were creating Sesame Street cakes and I made the boys watch it with me. They grumbled a little at first and reminded me that they are too old for Sesame Street (when did that happen?), but they watched it anyway and truth be told they liked it. We all made a guess to see who would win and Cameron picked the winning, Big Bird cake. After the show, the boys thought that it would be fun to have a Lego challenge. It was quickly decided that I would be the judge. So, I gave them three categories to build from and off they went to create their masterpieces. The categories were: Hot Rods, Space ships or Robots. Here are the entries:

Erik's hot rod



Cam's robot



and

Austin's Spaceship loaded with mini figures (so Austin)



Each boy won first prize in their category (because that's the way it works when mom is the judge) They were all awesome!

So, what did they win you ask?

COOKIES!!!

The birthday boy

It was a weekend celebration in honor of Austin. On Sunday (July 19), this little man turned three years old!

The cake...

Austin loves Lego mini figures, so it is only fitting that his cake should be decorated with a brand new set just for him. Erik and Cameron were in charge of assembling the mini figure set and decorating the cake...good job guys!

Blowing out the candles...

One by one!

The presents...
A package from Grandma and Grandpa M



A specially wrapped present from Grandpa Jed and Kathy



A water table from Mom and Dad



3 things I love about Austin...

*Your sweet smile. You are the happiest boy. You always have a smile on your sweet face.

*Our little conversations. Austin you say some of the cutest, funniest things.

*You are so helpful to me. You help me out with Ethan, you help me clean and I love that every time I get the vaccum out, you pull out your popper to push along side me.

I love you Austin and I am so glad that you are in our family!

Mother's have many jobs...

Sometimes we're a nurse, a cook, a taxi driver, a maid (you've heard the saying) but it seems like more often than not I am the referee of a fighting match.

So...
In this corner we have Cameron measuring 3' 9 1/2" and weighing in at 40.4lbs. He's lean, he's loud, he's rowdy, but don't let his sweet smile fool you, he is one tough kid. Watch out for his "tattle tale" move...it will get you every time!



His opponent is Austin measuring 3' and weighing in at 28.8lbs He's small, He's fast and he's fierce and he usually gets his own way, but don't let his size fool you, he can definitely hold his own. Watch out for his "I'll sit on you move". It will make you laugh so hard that you won't be able to get up until you scream and the referee comes to remove him.



This fight may never end, we are on round 50 (at least) with these two!

Where is my first-born, little fighter? Erik measuring 4' 7" and weighing in at 60.2 lbs is quietly playing Bionicles in the playroom after a long round one (while cleaning the playroom) with Cameron..



My fighter in training....
He may look sweet and innocent now, but it's just a matter of tme before he jumps into the ring with the others.



But at the end of the day, they're brothers and they really do love each other and that makes me a happy Mom.



Epilogue: My boys were wondering why I was measuring and weighing them and taking their pictures. I told them I was writing a story about them and that I would read it to them later. Well, I just read them their story and they laughed and laughed and then 3 of the 4 boys ran off to the`playroom to play happily ever after...
until the next round begins...
which should be starting up here in the next few minutes.

It's a new day...

It's amazing what a little medication for me and baby can do! Things are much better today. I am on a course of action to being pain free, the boys were "angels" today and we even managed to make it to Costco...yes, me and all 4 boys and we've lived to tell the tale!

This too shall pass...

Remember this comic I posted awhile back? Well, today was one of "those" days.

The kids were loud, messy, fighting, rowdy, bored, hyper, restless, hungry, laughing, crying, yelling, teasing, hitting, whining etc. Sounds like any normal day at our house, but for some reason it seemed so much worse today thanks to a lovely little infection that I've developed. My poor baby is fussy today (thanks to the above mentioned infection) and not napping well (thanks to the above mentioned rowdy brothers) and my house is a disaster (sigh). Well, tomorrow is a new day let's hope its a better one!

Ruby Blue

I love this dance from So You Think You Can Dance.... Check it out!

An indoor picnic....

Just the way I like it...free from bugs, and the heat! The boys worked hard to get the house clean, so we decided that it would be fun to have a picnic. So we got out the blanket, and I grilled up some hot dogs and we had a nice little picnic in the family room. We had a great time and some great conversations.

A snippet of our conversations:

Boys: Who was the best sleeper when we were babies?

Mom: Cameron

Boys: Who cried the most?

Mom: Austin

Boys: Who talked the most?

Mom: Austin...he'll talk your ear off.

Boys: What kind of toddlers were we

Mom: Erik- stubborn, Cameron- mischievious, Austin-adventurous, and Ethan is yet to be determined

Mom asked the boys:

What makes me happy?

Erik: Your boys and when we behave

Cameron: Marshmallows (he said as I was stuffing a marshmallow in my mouth)

Austin: Ethan happy

Mom asked:

What do I always say

Erik: No! (very funny)

Cameron: "excuse em moi"

Austin: Good night and you kiss me

Our picnic was great, but we decided that it wasn't complete without....SMORES! So it was out to the grill to roast some marshmallows.





We love summer!

Somethings gotta give...

I knew this was coming, and yet I still hoped that somehow I would still be able to hold it all together, do it all, you know keep going at the same pace I did pre Ethan. But as always, babies come and they shake life up for awhile. I knew this, after all this is my 4th child and it has been the same each and every time. My schedule is determined by Ethan and if he could have his way, which he does, he would be held and cuddled and loved 24/7. So while I am trying to meet his needs as well as the needs of the other 3 boys, I realize somethings gotta give and that something right now is my house. There are baskets of laundry waiting for someone to fold them and more baskets waiting to be washed. I have a sink full of dishes waiting for someone to wash them and carpets begging to be vacuumed and bathrooms that desperately need to be hosed down (you get the picture) and yet, they will have to wait their turn. Little by little I will get to each of these tasks and someday soon my home will be back in order, but in the meantime, I am going to sit here and cuddle my baby, play Lego mini figures with Austin and take time to enjoy having Erik and Cameron home during their summer break because they are growing up way too fast and soon these days will just be a memory and in those memories, it won't matter that our house was a little messy. But, before we have a little play time, I am going to put these boys to work...because my house is driving me crazy!!! (And don't you think that working together makes for happy memories?!)