To be continued, or not??

I know, I'm pretty terrible at blogging. I can read a bunch of 'em daily, but when it comes to mine, I have little desire to do it. I can't decide if I should continue or not. One thing I'd love to know (if anyone's still checking in) is how to mom blogger's who update frequently--as in almost daily--do it? Where do you fit it in your schedule? Does having a laptop solve the problem?

I'm not a good photographer, in style or in remembering...I probably have 5 pictures to document our wonderful summer, so that's another problem. I'm not clever enough to blog without a picture as my subject.

I'm debating heavily whether to keep this up or not. Let me know how you do it!

Field Day

Doesn't tug-of-war bring out the competitiveness in everyone??

There is a homeschool mom and daughter here in Cincinnati that organize a home school field day every spring. It was Ben's second year participating and Lauren's first. The morning was spent in individual events, competing against your own age group. In the afternoon, it was the team event, which was amazing! Each team had members from kindergarten through 12th grade, and it was wonderful to see the teamwork--watching those big senior guys carry the little kindergartener's through the obstacle course, lifting them up to reach the basketball goal...my SIL Rachel says it's one of those things that reminds you as to why you homeschool. I have to agree! Lauren had an amazing buddy in Ben, the senior on her team. Our Ben was his usual competitive self, and did a great job. His team placed third in the team events. Fun day!

Carry This Family to Jesus...

We awoke this morning to the sad news of the death of Steven Curtis Chapman's daughter, Maria. Not only are they grieving the loss of a child, they're also comforting a son who was at the wheel of the car that struck her. Mitch and I have always been big fans of his--not only his music, but his devotion to his family. Please remember this family in your prayers.

http://www.stevencurtischapman.com/

But we know we're all at the mercy of God's higher ways
And our ways are so small

But I will carry you to Jesus
He is everything you need
I will carry you to Jesus on my knees
--Steven Curtis Chapman

School is finished!

Thanks to Mitch, who bravely took upon himself the task of testing Ben, Kayla and Daniel--our niece and nephew. Now we have the time of year where public school mom's love to have their children home with them for a few short months where as homeschrool (Rush Limbaugh always says homeschroolers and it's always cracked me up...) moms re-evaluate just why their children are home with them 12 months of the year...admit it, you homeschrool mommies!:)

Summertime fun, though, begins this week. Ben began camp this morning, Westpoint Academy for Boys, in fact. It's a wonderful week of a mini boot camp of sorts...BB gun shooting, marching, calesthenics, rope tying/climbing, and a little bit of history class, too. He participated last year and it's a ton of fun if you have an outdoorsy boy who thinks living in a neighborhood is the biggest punishment on him ever.:) We're still working out the details of camps for the girls, not that they have to do something, but I did find a $10 drama camp for Lauren! $10!!! I'll keep you posted...really, now that school is finished I will!!

Luke looks ready to nap, doesn't he? If you're reading, please post! I'd love to know who reads!

Handsome Baby!!

Here are a few shots from Luke's photo session this morning. Granted, it's his first "real" pictures in six months....sorry, fourth baby.:)

Luke loved the trip to Georgia...

What? Your baby doesn't love 8-9 hours in the car?

Getting ready for baseball practice...

Easter

Yep, it was cold (mid March is a bit ridiculous for Easter!). It flurried both Saturday and Sunday nights. Thankfully, though, Sunday morning was sunny and even with the cold, the kids were great at picture time. Ben cannot look straight ahead for a picture to save his life...his eyes start to water and he scrunches up his face, but it's who he is right now, and he's precious! And how cute is my husband???:) I hope it was a blessed day for all who are reading this.

Sorry that I'm a sorry blogger. Just. Can't. Find. The. Time!!!

More hockey...

He shoots...he scores!!

This is what brothers do...

...right? Watch hockey? This is a perfect representation of the male members of my family this winter--THE WINTER THAT IS NEVER GOING TO END!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I really love Valentine's Day...not for the gifts, though Mitch never fails ( I love you!). I love making homemade cards with the kids, making cookies, making a special meal for dinner. But I really love telling and showing my family how much I love them. I'm so blessed and so thankful! Here's what's for dinner tonight, minus the chocolate pie (I'm making oreo pie).

http://www.thepioneerwomancooks.com/

The Girls

I wanted to share a few pictures of the girls. Lauren has lost both of her top front teeth now, which always cracks me up--I tell her to say "super silly string" 5 times in a row. It's cute, and yes, her hair almost always looks like that--hairdresser I'm not. She'll be six in a week!! I think I've mentioned before that Erin salutes Mitch and I often when she's told to do something. Who knows where it came from, but it's hilarious!

Lukey, Benny and poor baby...

First of all, a big Autryville welcome to Nana and Pop!! We know you're out there now, so send us a message!:)

Poor, poor Luke. I'll resist the tempation to call him Lukey, becuase it makes Ben cringe. For some reason at every sporting event Ben does, I call him Benny when I holler from the various sidelines. He played indoor soccer this weekend and I just can't help it...it comes out before I know it. So, I know he doesn't want Lukey--uh, Luke, to suffer as he does--"Mom, could you please not call him Lukey??" Anyway, back to poor, poor Luke. As Ben and his buddies were settled into a major Star Wars party in the basement to celebrate Ben's 9th birthday, Luke instantly fell ill with the worst nasal congestion and cough that any of my babies have ever had. It really scared me, which doesn't happen often. I spent a sleepless night with him while Mitch manned the party in the basement (it was a sleepover), and as soon as the sun came up, Lukey (oops), Aunt Mo (who had come over in the middle of the night because I was so worried about him), and I headed to the hospital. Thankfully, it turned out to be a bad baby cold. Bronchiolitis. After 4 rough days, he's all better.

Nana Judy came over on two different nights to sleep with him so I could rest, for which we're all so thankful for! Pictures are of Benny's (oops, did it again) party and of Nana Judy and sick Lukey (oops).

Sweet Sleep

According to my clock, it's 6:53 AM, who knows what blogger's clock says. The good news about 6:53 AM is that Luke is still asleep! That makes 2 days in a row that he's slept later than my alarm clock...ahhhhh, sweet sleep! I think the last two nights are my first full night's sleeps since the summer(I didn't sleep well during my pregnancy, which is unusual). Yesterday, when my alarm went off, I'm sure it was record time that I got to his room to check on him. It really is a little frightening at first...until you see that sweet profile with a little fist by the mouth, and hear the nice, even breathing. That uncertainty quickly changes to, "hallelujah, they slept all night!" It's taken Luke longer to sleep all night as a bottle baby than it took my other three breastfed babies, but he's forgiven.:)

One milestone down, many more to go--though I know we're not in a hurry this time!

Today is the first day of a new session of ballet for the girls and Ben's Birthday Week continues with a sleepover (do boys call it that?). Ridiculous. He's never had a birthday in his entire life. It always ends up being more like a week or two.

Luke picture coming soon, along with ballet and birthweek.:)

**edited 2/2/08: Luke had a rough night last night and had some difficulty breathing, enough so that this mom who's normally the "oh, you're fine" type took him to the ER this morning. Diagnosis is bronchiolitis, which is basically a cold, but he's miserable. He really can't breathe comfortably, and he's pitiful. Nana Judy is staying with us tonight so I can rest some (thanks, Nana!).

Birthday in Autryville

Today is Ben's 9th birthday! It's been another blessed year with and for him. I'm thankful for him and what he means to our family. He's so tenderhearted, which I love, and he's a lot of fun for the girls. It's been a blessing since Lauren was born to watch him as a big brother, and that certainly remains true today. Luke has a great big brother to look up to, as do the girls. We love you, Ben! Happy Birthday, and may God bless you abundantly through the next year!

What's Goin' On

So much since I've posted last! I wish I had a better memory, but not sleeping all night is keeping me from remembering and doing and writing all that I'd like to do. Not that getting up with Luke is all that bad--he's still the most precious baby, and a smile from a sweet baby at 4 or 4:30 in the morning makes everything ok! Besides, he always falls back asleep until 9am, so who am I to complain?? He's drinking anywhere from 5-6 oz. every 3-4 hours now, and he's in size 2 diapers. Growing like a weed. He's had a couple of baths lately that were fun!! No tears!! My baby is growing up.

Ben and Lauren are still doing well in school. Ben and I have finally gotten to the Revolutionary War and other parts of early American history and it's going to be fun. We've started reading Johnny Tremain together and it's great--I've noticed Ben enjoying it, but don't tell him that.:) We have a lot of books on our plate and we're just going to take our time through this amazing part of our history.

Spring sports sign-ups are complete and though it will be busy, I think it will be a memorable one. Ben's ready to go for baseball, and the girls--yes, both of them--are signed up for soccer. Lauren played in the fall, but this will be the first for Erin. Mitch says she's the most athletic, which she gets from her mama, of course! When I told Erin that she'd get to play we were talking about how she'd have her own uniform, her own soccer cleats, her own shin guards, etc, and she piped up with, "and my own soccer snack!!" Those of you who know Erin know that comment suits her to a "T". My girl has her priorities in order, doesn't she?

Here's to a week between entries instead of four!

Lauren's Letter in the Snow

A few weeks ago, we had a couple of inches of snow. One day I noticed a piece of paper on the back steps and of course my first thought was irritation-who threw a piece of garbage out there? However, I wasn't going to open the back door to get it. Brrrrr!! A few days later, the snow had melted and it was warm enough for the kids to go out back and play. They called me outside to show me some great discovery, and as I walked back to the house, I saw a piece of paper blowing away from the house. I had to run and catch it in the wind, but I'm glad I did. The paper was an envelope, with the word GOD written on the back(no, not the front). Inside the envelope was a simple message--My God I Love You. I recognized the kindergarten handwriting right away, it was Lauren's. Words won't adequately describe the way I felt that moment. How precious! I called Lauren to me and asked her about it. She told me that she wrote it on the snowy day and thought if she put it outside that God would see it! Again, just precious. I told her so, and we left it at that. She was very shy about it, so I didn't want to ruin her humble spirit. It was a very thankful moment for me. Sweet Lauren!

What??? A new post???

We had some beautiful snow again and it was as cold as, well, as it looks in the pictures! I really, really don't like the cold anymore. Used to not bother me, but after 9 years in the south, my mind has changed!

The kids had a great time in the snow, but as you can see in the first picture, the girls couldn't figure out why Ben wanted to spend so much time on the cold, cold ground! Crazy boy. I'm sure every northern mother could agree, as soon as you get them bundled-up, they're ready to come back in! Ben can get bundled-up himself, so he's free to go out whenever!

Luke is doing so much better. He's weighing-in at 9lbs. 2oz. at 7 weeks, which is what Erin weighed at 1 week, but who's keeping track?;) Poor guy is finally getting some nourishment, gaining 2lbs. in 2 weeks, but aren't formula fed babies supposed to sleep longer at night??? He gets breast milk during the day in his bottles, but at night I give him formula in the hopes of more sleep. So far his longest stretch is 11-4, but that was only once. Sleep, baby, sleep. Do it for mommy! He is a precious, good baby, who makes me forget the lack of sleep during the daytime.

We're back in the swing of school, and Erin has decided that she needs to do math. Every paper I give her to trace, count or color is math, apparently. Probably because she hears, "You better finish your math NOW!", about 15 times a day. Ben and math. That could be a whole entry to itself! The picture of Erin is when she had a short-lived stomach flu(thankfully!).

For all of my friends who thought it would never happen, the picture of me is to show off my highlights. I like them very much. Plus it's more time at the salon, by myself, where it's quiet!