Addie

I am so excited because I am watching my friends granddaughter, Addison, today and tomorrow. She is such a sweet doll. She fussed a little when Michelle left for work today but was easily entertained by the kids. She really loves Ashley and knows her best because Michelle's daughter played volleyball with her last season. Addie has also taken quite a shine to Joseph. Everytime he walks in the room she says "Hi, Joe!" and is all smiles. She shares Ashley's love of blueberries and the two took out quite a few this morning as a snack with some Cheerios. Addie watched "Dora The Explorer" and played with Ashley's stuffed Elmo doll. Then we had lunch. Addie is a great eater. She had grilled cheese, apple and mixed veggies. She seemed to pick out the corn mostly. Then we took an after lunch swim. She was so cute in the pool with her Little Mermaid swimsuit on. Then she went down for nap. She told me "no" but I just told her it was night, night time and closed the door. We haven't heard a peep since. I just love having her here. She reminds me of Ashley when she was little. I feel so bad for her knowing how her parents are and why my friend has custody of her. But I know that she has lots of people who love and care about her so, hopefully all will work out right for her. She is so smart and sweet, I only want the best for her. I am going to enjoy our 2 days together!

Let's try this again....

Okay well, it has been over 2 years since my last post and I vow to get better at this. I reread some of the previous stuff and barely even remember it happening. So, that tells me that blogging all of these random happenings is very important. How nice it could be to look back at it all and see what all we did!

Well, lots has happened in the last 2 years so I will never be able to catch up. But I will start where I am, as they say and move forward. The biggest thing is that we moved from our long time home in Blue Springs to Independence. Ironically we are about 8 miles away from our old home but in a new city and school district. The kids were not thrilled about leaving the only schools they have ever known but dealt with it and made a smooth transition.

Lauren is now 17 and will be a Senior this fall. She is excited and nervous about starting her last year of high school. She isn't driving yet, but has her permit and is taking Driver's Ed class at the local community college. She loves volleyball and is hoping to make the Varsity team this year. She has started a small photography business and loves it. It is called Magnifique Photography. She is unsure of her future major but knows she wants to do something she loves.

Ashley is 14 and will be a Freshman this fall. She is very excited to begin high school. She is taking Geometry and a Biomedical Science class. She also, loves volleyball and is hoping to make the JV team this year. She loves hanging out with her friends and texting on her phone.

John Michael is now 13 and will be in 7th grade. He is happy about moving up to the upper middle school (grades 7-8) and is looking forward to having a locker of his own. He played basketball and baseball this year. He is returning to soccer this fall after taking a year off. He is looking forward to playing for a new team.

Joseph is 9 and will be in 3rd grade. He can't wait to work on his multiplication tables and learn to write in cursive. He loves school and has made lots of new friends. He played soccer and basketball this past year. He is looking forward to playing soccer again this fall.

They have all been busy with school and sports. The oldest 3 took summer classes. We are so busy all the time, but it is very fun.

I promise to be better at updating this!!

What a weekend

I am not sure what my deal is lately. I think I am funky from being sick all Memorial Day weekend. The weather was beautiful and we had plans of finally dejunking our Living Room and Dining Room. Then Friday morning Lauren comes in to tell us that Joseph is throwing up "again". Poor baby had already thrown up once and sis helped get him cleaned up and back to bed without disturbing Mom and Dad. So, he stayed home from school and missed his picnic with Mrs. Lee for turning in all his STAR reader's this year. He slept on and off most of the day. Then Saturday was feeling a little better, but still threw up a little. He went to T-ball practice in the evening and we grabbed McD's on the way home. Later that night I got sick and around the same time John Michael threw up all over the bathroom. John had to clean it up. I couldn't deal with it. Sunday JM was feeling better but Joe and I were still down for the count. I cancelled the plans to go eat dinner at my parents house that evening. Monday we all felt better, but not 100%. We cancelled plans to eat and swim at John's parents house.

We got nothing accomplished at the house. I wanted to have flowers planted and the rooms cleaned up, but I couldn't even keep up with dishes and laundry. I sent Joe back to school on Tuesday. He seemed to be fine. Then early Wednesday morning he threw up again! What is the deal? So he stayed home from school on Wednesday, missing his first Field Day and a friend's birthday party. I took him to the doctor's but, as I suspected, there wasn't much they could do about it. John had to take John Michael to his appointment down at Children's Mercy for his warts. So, everyone is back at school today and we will see how that goes. Tomorrow is the last day and a half day.

Next Monday starts our summer routine of camps, workouts and hopefully, some fun. Our summer calendar looks as busy as our school year calendar. Every day almost has something on it. I am still hopeful that my parents will make good on their offer to take us to Branson in July. I just hope it fits in between the summer camps that the kids are signed up for. I miss lazy, sleeping in summer. But they are all doing things that they love so I am sure it is good for them.

My babies are growing up!

Well, Joseph went and turned 7 on me! I can't believe it. It seems like only yesterday I found out I was expecting my 4th (and final) child. How can it be that he is a kid now and no longer a baby? He has already lost 3 teeth and is reading and tying his shoes. His birthday was May 8.

My oldest, Lauren, will be 15 on Sunday. Okay, how the heck did that happen? A year away from a driver's license. She will be a Sophomore in the fall!! I remember my Sophomore year! Was it really that long ago? How does the time fly like this? I remember asking my parents last year as she turned 14 if it went this fast for them. They said "yes, it did ".

Even Ashley hit a milestone this past week...she lost her last baby tooth! She is 12 and now has no baby teeth. I remember when she got all those baby teeth. John Michael is coming up on his 11th birthday in June. He will be entering his last year of elementary school! I remember him starting Kindergarten! I remember sending Lauren to Kindergarten!

I remember when I had 3 kids under the age of 4 and wondered when they would grow up. I was always waiting for the next stage to hit...weaning, teething, eating, talking, walking, potty training, preschool, kindergarten, etc. Now I wish time would just slow down for a bit. I feel like it is going by much to quickly. Part of me would love to go back to being at home with them...Lauren running around in a tu-tu watching "Blue's Clues", Ashley chasing her sister around and John Michael just being a peanut lying on the floor. Most days I was lucky to get a shower before my husband made it home, but now, in a weird way...I miss it.

It is amazing how quickly it goes. I miss the baby days., But a part of me is glad they are bigger.We can go do things without a diaper bag! No stroller for us! They are all big. I hope we can do some fun things this summer. The summer always seems to fly by and we don't get to do everything we set out to do. The girls are going to busy with volleyball camps and the boys have some camps too. But I am hoping to get some fun things...some good memories in there before another year goes by and they are all a year older!

Well, it's been awhile

Has it really been this long? I am a terrible Blogger, apparently. Let's see, not too much going on around here. I am once again trying to get to the YMCA on a daily basis. I made it 4 out of 5 days so far this week. I really need to intensify my workouts. I am so mad at myself for putting all this stupid weight back on and undoing all of my hardwork. Well, what's done is done. John has been home because he hurt his back and that is trying to get me off schedule. My eating has been okay at best but I am eating a decent breakfast once again.

Volleyball is over for the girls. Well, club (competitive) volleyball anyway. Ashley is still taking a skills clinic on Tuesday evenings. Lauren is working out with her school team to get ready for the upcoming season. She will be playing in two summer leagues. Ashley will be playing in one. The boys are both playing soccer and will start baseball/ T-ball in May. They are all very busy and doing pretty well. I am just trying to keep the schedules straight.

I can't believe school is coming to an end. It seems like I just sent Lauren off to high school and Joe off to kindergarten. How can it almost be over? With the possibility of moving coming up I am a little worried about the girls and their social lives. I am not sure what we are going to do yet. There are so many good reasons to move but I think there are equally as good reasons not to do it. We are torn, for sure. We will have to come to a decision soon.

Well, that is it for now. Hopefully, I will get better at this!

Why I am here...

Well, not in the philosophical sense but why I started blogging here. I was inspired to blog here after reading the blog of Jody Ferlaak. This woman is just amazing. She is a phenomenal scrapper, too. How can I resist? I am completely addicted to her blog and hope to create something even half as insightful.
I have a lot going on today. I celebrated John Michael's half birthday with him at school today. He is 10 and a 1/2 years old today. Since he is my only child with a summer birthday, I decided to give in and let him celebrate it. We can't start doing every one's half birthdays...that would be 8 for the kids, 12 if you include the parents! I hope he had a good time. I brought up Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies (we can only bring store bought treats to school) and I brought him lunch from one of his favorite places, Culver's. They just opened up on Monday. He ate a Triple ButterBurger with cheese, some onion rings and a chocolate shake. The kid ate it all. I don't know where he puts it. We call him "bones" and I just don't understand his metabolism.
I also got to sit with my kindergartner, Joseph as he ate lunch. He is so cute and sweet. He was so happy to see me up at school. I also picked up Christmas books for both boys. I hope they like them.
Tonight is a typical night in a house with 4 kids. We have many exciting things going on. First, both girls are staying after school. Lauren until 3:45pm for Forensics and Ashley until 4:30pm for Show Choir auditions. Then Joseph is having "Family Learning Night" in his classroom from 5:30-6:45pm. It is an Open House sort of thing where we get to see what he has been learning about in class. John Michael earned "Honorable Mention" for his Reflections entry on the topic of "I can make a difference by...". He will receive a ribbon and certificate tonight at the PTA meeting. Lauren has a vocal concert at the high school. Both girls have a mandatory ref-ing clinic for volleyball tonight. Ashley is riding ahead with a teammate and I am meeting her there with Lauren later. John is taking JM to his thing and keeping Joseph for me. Plus, our new dishwasher is in and ready to be picked up.
This is my life. It doesn't stop. It doesn't slow down. I know all too soon, the kids will be driving themselves to activities or not wanting mom around so I have to savor it. It is hard sometimes when you are in the middle of it, to stop and actually enjoy running in four different directions. I remember when I had three kids under the age of 4 and wondered if it would ever get easier. I remember wanting everyone to be potty trained and walking as soon as possible. I barely remember JM being a baby. I tried to savor every little bit of Joe's babyhood. I held him more than I probably should have. I waited patiently for each stage of development to come. I was so happy he got teeth pretty late (11 months) compared to his brother (5 months). I was okay with the fact that he didn't walk until after his 1st birthday, as compared to his sister, Ashley, who walked at 8 months. I wanted him to grow, be healthy and hit his milestones but I didn't rush it. I held him out of Kindergarten because of his late birthday so I got an extra year with him too. I wouldn't trade it for anything. It was so hard to put him on that school bus this fall. Not because I love him more than the others, it is just knowing that he is the last one.
Well, I should probably get back to my busy day instead of just writing about it. The chaos should begin in a couple of hours...until then there is dishes, laundry and getting dinner ready for the troops!

First Blog

Well, here I am...my first blog. I am not sure what to say so I will just get going and see what happens. Right now the Christmas season is upon us. Each year we hope to be in a better position financially and for some reason it just never happens. It seems we struggle every year. The kids aren't getting any cheaper either! Sometimes I wonder how we will make it through. I really don't care for Christmas as much as I did when I was a kid. Yes, the presents make a difference, but it isn't just that. I mean, now we are the ones pressured to buy our kids the newest and greatest toys and gadgets. But I am also referring to people's attitudes. We were at the grocery store and it was super crowded...I mean really crowded. They were predicting bad weather so everyone ran to the store to stock up. Anyway, there is a HUGE line (we waited over 30 minutes) and these two guys start fighting because one guy cut the line. The man who was cutted had a valid point. I mean, we all waited and did our time who does this guy think he is that he can just cut in front of everyone. Luckily, it didn't escalate much more than a shouting match, but geez, I just wanted to yell, "Merry Christmas!!". People should be concentrating more on being nice, giving to those who need it and getting to know Jesus a little better. Instead, we are all frazzled and pressured and stressed out. It hardly seems right.

Well, that was a little tangent. Anyway, my life is pretty normal and ordinary, I guess. I have 4 children that keep me very busy. This is the first year that they are all in school full time. It has been an adjustment for me. I miss having someone here watching "Blue's Clues" or "Little Einsteins". I miss running errands with my little Joe and having lunch. Now his teacher gets to be with him all day. I hope she is enjoying him. He loves to talk. It used to drive me nuts but now I miss it. This fall my oldest "baby" went off to high school and my younest "baby" started kindergarten. It was quite a change. My oldest, Lauren, has changed so much in the past year. She is in great shape from volleyball. She lost over 20 pounds and is so muscular. She is just gorgeous. It seems like only yesterday we moved into our house and she started kindergarten. We have lived here since she started kindergarten. I want to move. I want a bigger, newer house, but there are a lot of memories here. Joe was brought home from the hospital to this house. All the kids started kindergarten from here. There have been birthday parties and holidays here.

Well, I guess I will end my first blog here and think about something to write for next time.