May Roundup

Oh May.  I loved you and loathed you all at the same time.  We had SO MUCH RAIN this month.  Truly, it was rainy and chilly and overcast about 22 days this month.  We were stuck inside far more than I wanted to be.  It did start to warm up this last week, but only off and on.

For some reason these pictures uploaded in random order...certainly not chronologically.  On one of the supposed to be warm and dry days Sarah (Jacob's sister) and I took the kids to the splash pad.  It was beautifully sunny and warm when I loaded kids into the car.  By the time we got to the park it was overcast and raining...

We decided to do it anyway.  I guess that's what you do when the whole month has been a rainy mess. You just get tired of not doing anything so you do it anyway.  The kids had fun and it cleared up pretty quickly.  It was a chilly first splash pad experience of the season though.

We also went to the park with the Bills the day before they moved on to Arkansas.  I'm so sad about that.  This day was actually really warm and sunny, until all the sudden it wasn't.  We had ominous clouds and a few sprinkles but overall it was a good park day.  And certainly noteworthy because Ben climbed the mammoth for the first time and I hadn't even gotten pictures of Isaac climbing it.  Ben was so proud and I think Isaac was too because he helped Ben do it.  I was scared about it.  It's actually really big and I don't like climbing it.  Luckily I could get Ben to slide down a little ways and then I could grab him.  He really was that smiley about it and said proudly "my doing it!" over and over.  Then when I got him down he said "Again, again, again."

I think Isaac was equally as proud having helped Ben achieve the accomplishment.  Maybe even more so than Ben.  It was adorable to watch, though a little frightening.

We also attempted a little miniature golf the other day.  We thought we might have to pause and let some showers pass for a few minutes as it had been sprinkling now and then that day and the days prior to golfing.  Well, we made it to hole 10 before a down pour set in.  It was a good ten holes while it lasted.

These boys really did love it.  We'll have to go again some time.

And that is what I look like these days.  Feeling large!  Just two more months before this baby girl arrives (I'm personally hoping for more like 6 weeks rather than 8 but it will probably be 9 or 10...don't you wish you could just know?)

These next few pictures are more what the month actually looked like.  These were from the beginning half of the month.  Lots of playing inside, trying to stay busy without killing each other.  Seriously, I did not realize being the referee would begin so early.  They are only 4 and 2 and are at each other all the time.  I get the rough play from boys just is a fact.  But, it ALWAYS ends badly.  I'm trying to set some good rules and help the boys realize limits but it's a work in progress for sure.  They just do so much better when they can burn off some steam playing outside.

I resorted to pulling out a new toy.  I picked this magnet board and metal pieces up at a thrift store and have been saving it for an appropriate time.  This seemed like it.  They loved it for a few days so it worked okay.

We also worked on a Father's day project.  The kids drew pictures on fabric and I sewed them to a pillow case.  It's cute.

In between rain and workers putting up siding on our house we also did a little biking outside.  Ben took a handle bar to the eye and ended up with this nice shiner.  Poor thing. 

More coloring and crafting.  We burn through a lot of paper at this house.

And that, folks, is our May in a nutshell.

30 Weeks Pregnant

Poor third child.  Already totally neglected.  I haven't posted or written much about this pregnancy at all.  So, in hopes of making up a little bit this post will be entirely about this 3rd little bundle of joy we are expecting.

I've had a lot of mixed feelings about this pregnancy and baby.  I feel totally overwhelmed, a good chunk of the time, with the two wild boys I already have.  Thinking of throwing another babe in the mix terrifies me.  I don't know how I'm going to manage it all.  But, I rely on the knowledge that this is the right thing for our family at this time.  I know we are supposed to have this baby.  And when I put my fears aside I'm really excited to cuddle with a newborn again.  This will most likely be our last baby (I'm feeling really old and tired, we'll see if divine inspiration changes my mind later on) and when I think of that I wonder if I'll ever put the baby down.  I'll probably just want to hold and rock this baby all day long.  I'm excited to watch another baby grow and learn.  Child development is so fascinating!

But as I think of all the really fun and cute things about a newborn I also start thinking of all the hard things.  The long nights, the labor and delivery, and breastfeeding.  Yes, those are in order of least to most frightening.  I worry I'll have another really difficult baby.  Ben was so easy going it's hard to see getting that lucky again.  I worry about a hard delivery with complications.  I've had a really good one and a really bad one and I don't want a repeat of the bad one.  I worry about all the pain and challenges I've had with breastfeeding in the past but know I want to at least try again.  Terrified of it though.  It is the subject of nightmares...truly.

I think in some ways I've had a harder time getting excited about this baby without knowing for sure the gender.  That seems silly, but it's a little true.  I guess maybe knowing the gender for me helps make it all seem real.  So, we are going to find out this week.  Friends gave us money as a gift so we could pay for an elective ultrasound.  I want to be able to decorate a room (I did paint it!) and get clothes ready.  I want to settle on a name.  (By the by, it's a girl!  And I've already begun purchasing stuff for the room)

I also wonder if I'm gearing up for post partum depression again.  I feel more bluesy during this pregnancy for some reason.  I am tired all the time and starting to get pretty uncomfortable.  I feel huge.

And in the same breath, I love feeling the baby move.  I love the little (and not so little) kicks and turns.  I love it when the boys talk to the baby in my belly.  I'm excited for them as big brothers.  I'm glad Isaac's a little older and, hopefully, a little kinder.  I'm slightly nervous about how Benj is going to react.

I guess, all in all, I'm a mixed bag of emotions.  Certainly not ready, but getting more excited as the weeks march on.

Dumping and Documenting

I'm going to dump a bunch of photos without much commentary.  So it goes these days, I guess.

But, we were having preschool at our house the other day and Ben was driving me to "king soopers" and "Sam's" with his little steering wheel he got from my parents for his birthday.  The other mom's thought it was so cute when I was telling them about Ben's driving patterns and told me I needed to make sure and write it down.  And they are right.  I'm needing to write down a few things about these fun boys of mine.

Ben always drives to "Sam's" (as in Sam's club) or "King Soopers" and it's almost always to buy "MacCheese," decidedly Ben's favorite meal.  This particular day of driving when I asked if he brought me a treat he said "no." And then quickly changed his mind and held out his finger for me to eat the "candy cane" he brought.  Adorable.

His new favorite word is "sure."  That doesn't sound all that fascinating, right?  But the way he says it makes it incredibly cute:  "Oh, yeah, shore."  Or sometimes just a straight up quick "shore" with a little 2 year old voice and trouble with the r.  I don't quite know how to describe it.  I guess I'll have to get it on video, or try, at least.

Isaac...Oh sweet Isaac.  We were walking down the block to see how our neighbor's yard sale was going and I made the boys hold my hand to cross the street.  Ben immediately wants to let go but Isaac kept holding on and said "Mom, I'm going to hold your hand for the rest of my life."  Fine by me Isaac, fine by me.  So much of what he says these days is over exaggerated "my whole life" is heard a lot.  I kind of love it.  Unless it's "You're ruining my whole life."  That kind of drama is a little less appreciated.

I do love these boys of mine.

And now...on to the pictures.

Oh these boys, so adorable and so mischievous.  Seriously, this was the 3rd time they'd totally emptied the linen closet.

Loving the spring rain!

Easter with Diana and her family visiting.

Conference cinnamon rolls.  Yum.  Somehow I was convinced to make 2 dozen rolls and we had all the Easter candy and dinner and dessert...we ate too much.

Hunting eggs.

Even Emma got an egg or two!

Love Brinton and Isaac.

Watching conference.

These are just funny.  Trying to get a picture with all four of these kids still proved to be impossible.  I guess my camera settings weren't right...

Isaac pushing Ben on the car.

Isaac has spent a lot of time pouring over this lego catalog and talking about which kits are his favorite and which fit into the Birthday budget and which he could buy with his money and just looking and longing.

Oh yeah, I'm pregnant.  Have we forgotten that.  This baby is growing, as evidenced by my growing belly.  Isaac told me every day my stomach is bigger.  These pictures were at 26 weeks or there abouts.

We've had a warm few days and I even let the kids play with water.  They were in heaven.

We also had our neighbor's daughter to play with while her mom and sister were at the ER.  A foot injury that proved to be nothing...thank goodness.  The boys call Lauren a baby and want to pick her up and carry her around and generally maul her.  She tolerates it fairly well.

More water the next day though the weather wasn't nearly as warm.  It all started with watering plants.  And that turned into playing in the hose.

These are Isaac's and Ben's flowers.

"My like it, getting myself wet."

He doesn't love it when Isaac is the one getting him wet.  Just to be clear.