Friday, October 19, 2012

Family Update!

Well, this is way overdue, but here is quick update on all the monkeys in the zoo!

Jude's face cracks me up in this picture!


Cole-5 years 2 months
The boy has boundless energy and a very large vocabulary! He goes from the moment he wakes up to the moment he falls asleep. Some days I'm convinced he chugs a 5 hour energy when I'm not looking. He often just lets out a scream (and yes, I mean scream) of joy randomly...wherever he is. Makes me NUTS!!! Though he never stops, he has a sweet and tender heart. He loves his momma, daddy, brothers and sister something fierce! We all get unsolicited hugs and kisses throughout the day just because he has to get "the love out." He loves to read to Jude, loves all things electronic, loves to play with Cooper and will have a tea party or two with BK (when he thinks no one is looking.) He loves to learn and is amazing me every day with how much he is learning and remembering. Currently he has mastered his doubles facts, is flying through 1st grade math, is getting quite good at reading 3 and 4 letter words, is working hard on NEAT handwriting, knows 1st, 2nd, and 3rd latin declensions, knows the timeline from the ancient world into the first week of medevial times (if you are in CC you know what I'm talking about) and has memorized tons of info about science, history, and geography. He also, can "blob" the world, which considering I had no idea what the 7 continents were when we started homeschooling is a big deal! He definitely fills my day with opportunities to practice patience, but he also fills with with SO much joy!

                                                                       Typical!

Cooper- 5 years 1 month
Cooper has quite a bit of energy too, but is able to control it a bit better! He also loves all things electronic, but has learned how to "work the system" quite well. We have certain times in the day when they are allowed to play said electronics and cannot ask for a turn...they have to wait until mommy or daddy say it is their turn, but if they do 1 minute will be added to the time they are able to play the game. Well, Cooper knows all of these rules and regularly will say, "I know its not time to play the ds right now mom,"but he does it with his charming smile hoping I will cave....He will also say, "I'm not going to ask if its my turn mom." So sneaky, yet so smart! He tends to get lots of ouchies and definitely can turn on the drama card. Yesterday he had a tiny blister on his foot and told me he probably needed a cast for it (thanks Doc Mcstuffins). I told him I thought a band aid would suffice. He is so sweet and gentle with Jude. Loves animals, is very patient with Bk, loves to giggle and snuggle with mommy, is quick to change his attitude when needed, and is SO smart. Lately he asks me every time he eats if its healthy for him. He tells me all the time that it is important to eat really healthy things so that he will grow strong and fast like a cheetah. It is so cute and I think he might just have a future in nutrition. He also has an amazing leaning towards spiritual things. He asks a lot about heaven and what it will be like, what makes Jesus happy and says these amazing, deep things to me all the time. I know the Lord has amazing plans for my boy! He has an amazing strength in math...it blows my mind every day! He is learning all of the above things Cole is and it is so fun to teach them together becase I'm convinced that they are thriving because they have eachother.
Bailey Kate - 3 years 5 months
Oh miss Bailey Kate! She is a hoot! The temper and OCD seem to be calming down a bit, I don't know if that is due to consistent discipline or moving out of this super challenging stage...either way I'll take it! She is her own woman. She has quite the fashion sense. Currently she will only wear dresses...no pants, no skirts, no shorts, JUST dresses (if anyone needs tons of girls shorts and tshirts I have 2 drawers full!) She is constantly playing some game or make believe. Today it was a paper plate she colored on, covered in happy face stickers which was her plate of cookies she handed out to everyone. Yesterday, on the way to ballet she informed me,"mommy, I'm going to talk to myself now." Um, ok! She is loving ballet class once a week, but would prefer home "dool" instead of going to preschool. She still loves babies, loves al things princess, loves the color pink, loves to do whatever mommy is doing, loves to color and do crafts. She usually is content to sit and cut and glue the WHOLE time we are doing school. She keeps us in stitches constantly with her antics. I can't wait to see what kind of woman she grwos up to be.

Jude - 16 months

My sweet baby Jude. He is still such a sweet, silly baby. He has mastered walking and has moved onto running. He can also go up and down the stairs with no trouble. He LOVES to eat and eats all the time. He weaned himself at 15 months (made me sad ), thinks he is one of the big kids and as a result has no fear! He is definitely my most adventerous and mischevious baby. He has quite a temper, which we are trying to work on so it won't be as fierce as BK's, is quite the momma's boy, but is SO excited when he sees daddy walk through the door. He LOVES books and animals. We recently went to the Alligator farm and he was in awe of all of the animals. I love this stage of discovery and joy. I'm savoring the last remnents of baby. I still have yet to cut his baby mullet and have no intentions to =) My friend aske me the other day if he was going to be a redneck for halloween. He is so sweet and cuddly and chubby and I love him to the moon and back!

Thursday, September 13, 2012

running thoughts

So, I've started training for another half marathon....before you think I'm wonder woman, DON'T! I only run to eat =) I love to eat and the only way I've found, with our busy schedule, to stay in shape is to run...so, I run! This morning during my run I decided to forgo the trashy music I usually listen to (though it's not my taste all the time it sure helps because the beat helps me run at a more consistent pace) I decided to listen to a little Phil Whickam. It was a nice change.

Lately, mostly through homeschooling, I have realized that 1) I'm a closet control freak. I love to have control and order. 2) I care a lot about what people think of me. As I have embarked on this new journey I have to relinquish a lot of control (my days often don't go as planned) and I have to be comfortable with the choice Clay and I have made and not worry so much about what others think of me. God is gently reminding me that the only approval I should be working for is His. I love to make people happy, I love to serve, I love to have people think I have it all together, I love to have people like me...I love myself! As I was running this morning God gently reminded me that He chose me, before the foundations of the world, not as a woman who has it all together, but as the wretched, filthy, sinner that I am. He loved (loves) me when I don't have it all together, when my children are acting crazy, when my house is a mess, when I choose to "try" and control things and get angry when things don't go my way, when other people don't like me. I've been a Christian since I was 6, I know the story of salvation in my brain, but I often don't know it in my heart. I'm quick to forget...He loves me no matter what! I debated if my morning musings were bloggable (yes, I just made up that word =), but I figured maybe some people who read this need to be reminded of this just like I did. He chose you...He loves you, just the way you are! You don't have to have it all together, he still chooses you (mind boggling)! Maybe one day I won't forget this so easily!

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Observations from the first 2 weeks of home schooling...



  • My kids are hilarious
  • Cole CANNOT hold still or stop talking (I hear it is hereditary =)
  • Cooper is amazing at blending sounds...until he is tired, then he just says whatever sounds come to mind...makes me crazy!
  • I'm loving the curriculum we chose and Classical Conversations. The kids are learning a ton and so am I!
  • Bailey Kate didn't want to go to preschool today becuae she wanted to stay at home and go to "home dool!" She is quite the party animal so I was shocked she wanted to stay home with me!
  • I love structure and so do my kids!
  • Cooper told me yesterday that I was the "goodest" teacher. Melted my heart (and I took a mental note to work on a little grammar =)
  • My sister (who is living with us for the year) is a HUGE help with Jude in the mornings. I don't know how moms do it with little babies without help!
  • I'm so blessed to be able to teach my children at home. I love being with them, and though some days I want go hide under the covers in my room, I really have enjoyed my intentional time with the kids the past 2 weeks.
  • At the end of the day I'm EXHAUSTED!!! It is so much work, but so worth it!
                                                            A little break at the park
Breakfast the first day of school...YUM!!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Sesame street live!

So, we get to take all the little people to watch sesame street live. I remember watching sesame street while my mom taught Trey. I loved it because I knew that when it was over it was snack time =) Yes, I love to eat! A little fun to celebrate a great first month of school....pics to follow!



Sunday, August 19, 2012

Let the adventures begin!

My Sweet Baby Boys!

So, tomorrow we start a new adventure with these two little men! How can they be 5 and going into kindergarten!?!? I am so blessed to be able to stay home with my kids and home school them. I'm not going to lie, I'm a little scared, but I'm super excited too. I was homeschooled from 3rd to 12th grade, and though it may not be a great fit for everyone, I LOVED it and know that it was fundemental in forming me into the person I am today. As Clay and I embarq on this journey with our little zoo I pray that we would be worthy of this high calling. I know that this adventure will "educate" me more than my kids, and by the end of this my hope and prayer is that, above all, we are more like Jesus. Pray for us as we start...we'll keep you posted on how things go =)

I love how my boys love each other and I am so excited they get to go on this journey together!

Thursday, August 9, 2012

The Library and Adventures

So one of these days I'll get around to blogging about Jude's birthday in June and Cole's birthday on August 1...one day =) But today I'm going to blog about our afternoon. I have been promising the kids a trip to the library (you can walk to it from our house) for a few days, but since it has stormed every afternoon we haven't been able to go. Today when everyone got up from "rest time" I told the kids we could go to the library if we hurried because it looked like it was about to rain. I was praying it would hold off long enough for our little outing...it didn't! Torrential downpour just as we pulled in.  I told the kids that we were going to wait in the car for a few minutes and see if the storm would pass. Currently, we are driving in a car with no A/C...long story =) so as I sat in our steamy car grumbling in my head about the rain, my car full of crazy, noisy kids and wondering why we didn't just stay home...it would have been much easier for me! But the Lord gently reminded me of how I constantly scold the kids about complaining and tell them to "change their face" to reflect a "happy heart". Clearly I was not obeying the family rules =) So, with a quick prayer for patience I told the kids to get ready for an adventure! We all ran into the rain, got soaked, and went to the library as promised. We read books, played some computer games and picked out our books for the week. As we were walking back out to the car it started pouring again, and by the time we got to our house the flood gates opened. We ran, screamed and giggled through the rain, got inside, put on our warm, dry pajamas and looked through our loot. As they were sitting reading Cole said, "mom, that was a great day, I love you!" Makes all the work, mess, and chaos worth it! Though my afternoon didn't go quite as planned the Lord is so gracious to remind me that I am what my children watch and learn from. I'm so grateful He is patient with me as I am slow to learn. What a treasure my little people are and I'm so blessed and grateful for the adventures i get to have with them each day.
 Jude making a run for it!
Reading through out new books in our dry pj's (BK wanted to wear one of my shirts with her frilly pink skirt...crazy girl! And apparently Jude is doing yoga with his bear =)

Monday, June 4, 2012

Vacation!

So we went on our first family vacation this past week! We had a great time! We went to a close family friends wedding in Virginia, headed to Williamsburg and Yorktown, then headed to one of my best friends house to stay for 5 days. We ended the trip with Clay running a crazy trail marathon. We packed tons in and had a great time! Here are some highlights! Thanks Christa and Darrell for the great time at your house and your wonderful hospitality!

First family hike!
 BK carrying her baby on the WHOLE hike =)


Strong girl. That baby didn't leave her sight! (Thanks Nina!)
 Learning how to pull apart the wool to make a tool
 Learning to make bricks
 My little colonial princess
 Best friends, Bailey Kate and Kezia (Christa and I have known each other our whole lives and our girls have known each other there whole life =)
 We took the metro to DC and spent over 12 hours sight seeing. The kids were amazing and we had so much fun!
 We had yummy cupcakes in Georgetown
 Pizza overlooking the river in Georgetown
 Future husband and wife =) Jude and Kaelyn, just 3 weeks apart =)
Daddy getting to run his race
 Waiting for daddy to finish his marathon
 silly baby
 passed our from an amazing vacation
our last stint was 5 hours without stopping...this is how we made it =)

Bailey Kate turns 3!!!



 She is so fun...and ALL girl!
So, for Bailey Kate turned 3 on May 15. Since she LOVES all things princesses we decided to go to Disney and meet the princesses instead of having a big party. So, Nina, Mimi, Jude, Mommy and Bailey Kate packed up and headed to meet all the princesses. I got her a sleeping beauty dress from Target (I couldn't bring myself to spend 65.00 on a dress at disney.) She dressed up, did her hair and make up and we were on our way! It was a really busy day, but we ended up in the fast pass lane by accident and luckily the attendendent was super nice and let us through. It took all of 10 minutes!!! We headed into the room and as soon as she saw the princesses she kept saying, "it's not peetend (pretend), they is not peetend!" She was in awe!!! As mom and I video taped and took pictures Bailey Kate danced, chatted, and generally worshipped each of the princesses. It was a forever memory!!! As I watched my little princess in her own little heaven and marveled at how much I love that little girl, I realized how much my Father in Heaven must loves me. My heart was so full it almost brought me to tears. At that moment I got it! He loves me so much that He would send His only son for me! John Pipers quote, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him," kept repeating in my head, making that day even more special.

If that had been all we did that day it would have been just fine, but we still had lots to do. Bailey Kate danced around the whole park, rode a few rides, saw the castle, and then we ended the day with tea with the princesses. She had SO much fun (but probabley not as much fun as the Grandmas and me =)
It was the perfect birthday for my sweet girl

3!!!
 
Family party at home...homemade pizza and pink cupcakes...All the princesses requests! (don't mind the bandaid, it's just for looks =)
Yum!
Diva!
It's exhausting being a princess!
(the rest of the princess pictures are on a different camera, I'll post them eventually)

10 and 11 months

 Easter 2012...Almost 10 months old!
 Jude loves his "Bubbas"
Practice cupcake for BK's birthday
Stuck in the toy basket...i love those chunky thighs =)

So, by the time I got around to posting about Jude being 10 months he was almost 11 months, so i decided to combine them. I can't believe that in a few short months my baby will be one. The more babies I have the more aware I am of how fast this all goes by, and the more I savor every minute. Here are some stats for the last 2 months
-he is a master crawler...super fast!
-LOVES to climb the stairs (the gates are in full effect!) a few weeks ago I brought him downstairs to start making dinner and the next thing I knew he was at the very top of the stairs. 
-He cruises on all the furniture (and any human around)
-he could walk if he wanted to, but he is my cautious child (we'll see how long that lasts) so when he realizes he is standing by himself he slowly lowers himself to the ground
-can stand for a really long time by himself
-LOVES to wrestle....he thinks he is one of the big kids and gets right in the middle of the chaos
-he can say bye bye, mama, dada, pop pop, papa, Mimi, bubba (what he calls the boys) 
-waves bye bye to everyone
-is developing a bit of a temper (oh dear)
-smacks his tongue when he wants more to eat...or more of anything 
-weighs about 23 pounds and wears 12-18 month clothes.
-is sooooo easy and laid back
-LOVES daddy so much...when clay walks in the room Jude lights up, calls his name and waves. It is so precious!
-eats everything in site and is down to nursing 4 times a day
I'm so blessed to be his mommy and can't imagine my life without him. 

Friday, May 4, 2012

Our Foster Care story

So, May is Foster Care Awareness Month. A sweet friend, who has adopted 3 children from the foster care system, asked me to post a little something about our journey. A few months ago I posted an abridged version of Cooper's story. To see that post you can go to gotcha day. So as I pondered and prayed about what to post...here's what I came up with.
     I have always known I wanted to adopt. I LOVE children! When I was growing up a family who went to our dance school were foster parents. I watched as this mom (of i think 3 biological children and 2 or 3 adopted children) walked into the studio with precious little babies every week. Some were tiny, some were toddlers, I'm sure they had some with "issues", but as a child I remember watching this family and knowing I wanted to be like them. I remember watching the children, the adopted and biological kids, love on their foster brothers and sisters as if they were their own. I remember thinking what amazing missionaries these people were, they were willing to sacrifice ease and comfort to love and provide for these children who had no one.
    So fast forward 10ish years. Clay and I had talked before we were married that we wanted to adopt. I had gone to, and completed nursing school, was working on a pediatric unit. Clay was in seminary and I wanted a family SO badly! I got pregnant and miscarried. I was devastated. As a struggled through the next few months watching, what felt like, everyone around me getting pregnant I thought maybe this was God's way of showing us we needed to be foster parents and adopt before we had biological children. We signed up for the classes, jumped through all of the hoops and became licensed. During that time I got pregnant again, miscarried again, was able to diagnose why I was miscarrying and got pregnant with Cole. We were over the moon excited about having a baby, but Clay and I felt like just because we were going to have a biological child didn't mean God didn't want us to continue with foster care and adoption. We continued to move forward. When I was about 4 months pregnant, Susanne (my sweet friend who was also Cooper's foster mom) called and said she had a baby she thought would be going up for adoption, would we be interested? We prayed about it and decided we did. We went and met Romeo, a 3 month old sweet, chubby, beautiful Hispanic baby. We fell in love immediately. Long story short, after months of caring for him, the system decided we weren't the best choice for him. It broke our hearts. We weren't sure why God would bring this sweet baby into our lives only to take him away. Clay and I prayed and grieved, and trusted that God had a bigger plan for this sweet baby.
      So, after an emergency C-section and surgery to remove my gallbladder 5 weeks later it was time for re-licensure with the foster care system. We decided with a new baby and 2 major surgeries we should not get re-licenced until things settled down a bit. As it turned out, the sadness over losing Romeo (who we were going to name Logan), all the work we put into becoming foster parents, and only fostering 2 children, paved the way for us to adopt Cooper, the perfect addition to our family.
     Now, with all of that said, I want to be clear. When we were presented with the opportunity to adopt Cooper we had to do some serious praying. On paper Cooper had a lot of issues. Clay and I had to accept that their could be some challenges ahead. In God's great sovereignty I was blessed to be in a family that had some "strugglers". The prospect of a child with some "struggles" didn't scare me to much because i was able to watch my parents raise some amazing children despite their struggles. But I also wasn't entering this new stage of life lightly. We were ready! We felt like God had led us on this journey to that point, and just because it may not be easy, that was no reason to throw in the towel. We were confident Cooper, just the way he was made, was meant to be ours. I tell people often that if they are called to foster care or adoption, their may be heart ache and frustration, but the child God has for you will be yours. We have been able to watch God do a mighty work in Cooper's life. Cooper is a perfectly healthy, spunky, brilliant, sweet, gentle, caring little boy. The funny thing is when people ask us which one of our children are adopted all of them raise their hands and scream, "I'm the adopted one!" We are so blessed God called us to be a part of growing his kingdom this way and are so excited to adopt a few more children one day soon.....yes, I know, we are crazy!


Thursday, April 12, 2012

Thoughts....


Warning: this could be a long one....

Ok, so lately I've had some people comment that I have it all together, or they don't know how I do it, or I make this "motherhood" thing look so easy. Let me start by saying, I'm the chief of all sinners, my kids disobey, my house gets messy, I snap at the kids, there are stamps and coloring on my walls, I often wonder what it would be like to sit, by myself, at the beach (or anywhere for that matter) without children crawling on me. With all of that said, as I ponder these remarks and try to figure out why they make me feel so uncomfortable I realized a few things.
Growing up I was homeschooled from 3rd grade to 12th grade. I was 1 of 5 kids, the second oldest (oldest girl). I had a lot of responsibilities and chores. I remember, OFTEN, being told, "if you don't work you don't eat" or "go to the ant you sluggard." One of my best friends growing up was 1 of 9 kids, she had a lot of responsibilites too =) I remember that a lot of my friends didn't like coming over to my house because I was still responsible for all of my chores or taking care of my brother and sisters, but when Christa came over (or I went to her house) we would make a game out of it, pretend to be "mommies," and get our work done while having fun. I also remember watching my mom and dad work. They work hard. I still marvel at their work ethic. They demonstrate a servants heart and servant leadership. I had amazing examples. So, with all of this said, I was talking to my mom the other day and she said something profound. She said that her goal in raising me (us) was that she wanted us to be 10 steps ahead of where she was when she got married. When my parents chose to homeschool all of us their main concern wasn't that we go to Harvard or become a neuroscientist, their goal was that we have a heart for Jesus and what He loves. That we would learn to be servant leaders, that we would learn to run a household and raise children who love and serve the Lord, that we would learn how to die to self each day and think of others as more important than ourselves. That we would desire to bring glory to our Savior and make an impact for His Kingdom. My mom also said having children and homeschooling is probably used more for the parents edification and sanctification more than the child's =) I can truly say, in my case, they have succeeded. When people look at me like I have 7 heads when I tell them we are planning on homeschooling our kids I quietly think about what my parents have said and demonstrated to me in my life. (This is not to say their is anything wrong with sending your children to school! I have always wanted to homeschool and love teaching and seem to thrive in chaos =)
So, yes, because of my amazing parents (and my amazing husband who contributes immensely) I feel like, right now, where God has me, I am good at what I do. I love being a wife and mom. I'm excited about the new challenge of educating my children. I love the challenge of seeing if I can accomplish everything on my to-do list (never happens!!!). I love hearing my sweet girl (who makes me more like Jesus everyday) tell me she loves me, out of the blue. I love Jude's drooly, slobbery wet kisses and claps of delight over the most random things. I love the hilarious stories from my oldest, and I love watching my handpicked little boy take initiative and pick up Jude's toys "to help mommy so she will be happy." I want to be able to help my children be 10 steps ahead of me when they grow up. So, I will work hard at equipping them to work hard (and find joy in it), to serve others expecting nothing in return, to die to self, to desire to bring our Heavenly Father glory above all else!

Pantry Overhaul

So, the older I get and the more children I have the more I CRAVE order in my chaotic life. I feel like I am constantly organizing, decluttering and cleaning only to turn around and have it all over to do. So when I decided to re-organize my pantry I was excited because this is one area my children are not allowed (can't reach) to get into, therefore it has a better chance of staying organized.
I saw this idea on Pinterest, and though I don't have the time to make is as "pottery barn-esque" as the pinterest photos, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. I also wanted to do it as economically as possible, so I started shopping! I found all the glass containers, buckets and baskets at Dollar General. They cost me 40.00 total. I had the ziploc tupperware containers from BJ's, but I'm thinking they cost me about 10.00. I "re-purposed the lazy susans, but i got those at Walmart when we moved in a year and half ago. My favorite part...I found these AMAZING labels at Micheals....they are chalkboard!!! (They cost 6.99) You stick them on the containers, use the pen (cost 8.99, but used a 40% off coupon so it was 5.oo) (but I'm sure it would work with regular chalk though) and label! It turned out really cute and when the food in the container changes I just wipe off the label and write what the food item is! The total cost was about 60.00. I keep walking by to admire it...sad, but true =)
Before The magic chalkboard pen from Micheals Up close of the chalkboard labels

...After!!! I'm in love!!!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

1/2 Marathon...I did it!!!


Well, I did it!!! I ran a half marathon! If you would have asked me 4 months ago if I would ever run a half marathon I would have said HECK NO! I realized that running would be the fastest way to get in shape so i gave it a whirl.
Clay and I went to Jacksonville last weekend and ran in the Tour de Pain. Clay ran a 10k Saturday morning and a 5k (with Mary Bodo...our awesome babysitter =) at 7pm that evening and then did a little carbo loading at Cheesecake factory. Sunday morning Clay and I woke up super early and started running. It was hard, but it could have been much worse. My sweet husband ran with me the whole way even though he could have run much faster. I told Clay at mile 11 1/2 (while running up a steep incline) that I was in hell (a little over dramatic =) and I snapped at him at mile 12 ish to stop talking to me...other than that it was pretty smooth sailing. My goal was to run it in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I wasn't sure if I could do it because that works out to being just over a 10 minute mile the whole race. We finished in just under 2 hours and 15 minutes! I'm so glad it's done, but I will definitely do another one soon.

Just before the race
We did it!!!

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

9 months


My little monkey is 9 months old!
-crawling like a pro
-pulls up on everthing
-has stood up by himself for a good 15 seconds
-LOVES to play with his basket of toys
-thinks his big brothers and sisters are hilarious
-gives the best open mouth, drooly kisses
-eats and eats and eats and eats and eats everything!!!
-growls at me if I don't get him food fast enough
-weighs in at 21 pounds and wears size 3 diapers and 12 month clothes
-is a chunky monkey
-has the most beautiful big brown puppy dog eyes
-has hit the stage where he clings to me and wants "mommy snuggles" all the time
-had his first "daddy wrestle" time tonight
-has 2 bottom teeth that he gives the cutest little grins with
-will be walking before I know it....moms of multiple children know the more you have the more you want them to stay where you put them, not beating all his siblings records for walking!
-Such a blessing to our family
-

Friday, March 16, 2012

March Happenings

Clay and I ran in the Gate River Run (9.3 miles) last Saturday. It was my first race and I was SUPER nervous. It turned out that I ran it by myself (Clay is a lot faster than I am), which ended up being kind of nice because I cranked my music and ran. I ran it in just under 1 hour and 37 minutes and Clay ran in in 1 hour and 30 minutes. It was so windy that day so it made running over the bridge quite an adventure! It was so fun to get my medal and know that we did it!
My family was up for about a week. We got to go to the beach one day. It was really windy, but tons of fun. It was Jude's first "mobile" trip to the beach, he was very busy crawling around and eating lots of sand. I LOVE living so close to the beach! I can't wait for many more beach days this spring and summer.


Jude loves Uncle Trey
Snuggles with "Uncie"
"Date Night"
Wednesday Cole decided he didn't want to go to Kid's Praise (a little choir class at Nina's church) so Nina took Bailey Kate and Cooper and I took Jude and Cole. I needed to go to Jacksonville to do a big grocery run at BJ's (yes, we are now a family that consumes so much food we buy in bulk) and I also wanted to go to Once Upon a Child to get Jude some new clothes. He is so chunky in the waist I had to get him some new pants that didn't give him a terrible muffin top. As we were sitting at dinner and Cole and I were chatting he told me, "Mom, we're on a date, you are my date." It melted my heart and made me so grateful for these sweet moments I get with my kids. I also realized that night that Cole NEVER stops talking, moving, yelling, etc. I decided that he easily contributes to 85% of the chaos in our house.
We have been working a lot on keeping a routine and implementing chores with the kids. In the evenings one of Cooper's chores is to "babysit" Jude while I make dinner. He does such a good job and is so sweet and gentle with Jude. I'm so proud of my little people!