Either no time or no energy... or both.
3-weeks-old
And just in case you were wondering... my other 3 children are still here.
Now I'm off to... zzzzzzzzz...
Posts categorized "Camden"
Simple, Sunny Saturday
The kids and I went to the farmers market Saturday morning for some goodies. So excited that it is open again for the summer! I love being handed my food straight from the person who planted it, harvested it, or baked it. Here are just some of the things we came home with...
When we got home it was so nice outside that the kids immediately jumped on their bikes or grabbed a piece of chalk. So, I brought the food in, grabbed my camera, and headed outside. We had so much fun just playing around. I'm trying to just spend time playing with them as much as I can keep up (I'm a lot slower these days) before the babies arrive. I know I will be busy nursing for a while and just getting in the groove of having two newborns to tend to. I'm feeling a little sad about that. Wondering if I will have enough time and/or energy left over for Camden, Ella, and Maya in the day. Let's just not think about that for the moment and share some photos instead.
Can you see the locust on the training wheel? That nasty thing freaked all of us out. Haha! Ella shot off of that bike so quickly when she noticed it. Eek!
We went inside after a while and as I was putting some things away in the kitchen I heard the kids giggling in their room. They were all playing under the blanket in their room with flashlights and I just had to capture the moment. I LOVE those giggly moments and I will remember them forever.
See a few more in my photostream. Soon, pictures of some adorable onesies!!
Pure Awesomeness
I SO can not wait to have 2 more of these. Seriously.
Camden, you are the COOLEST. You are my heart-face.
Everyday Stuff
*Quick note to my Facebook friends: Feel free to comment directly on my blog instead of FB. Just click on the "Comments" link underneath each post. Thanks!
Aside from getting ready for the newest munchkins' arrival (less than 5 weeks away!) and taking photos, not much else is getting done around here. I can list off a hundred things that I WANT to do, but all I FEEL like doing is napping. I've actually been so inspired to start all sorts of projects lately, but I can't possibly get around to it (due to putting off stuff that needs to get accomplished first). I really hope I can at least create some sort of art to go above the twins' crib before they come. Is that too much to ask?
These are from Monday, but better late than never. Right?
The kids and I decided to just have a fun afternoon out of the house, since I'm not sure if I will be able to do much more of that. First, we made a stop for a not-so-good-for-us lunch at Sonic.
Then we set off to fill up on pure sugar at Baskin Robbins. Mmm mm mm.
We went to the library after that to pick out a fun selection of books, CDs, and DVDs to borrow, but I left my camera in the car for that stop. I knew I would be too busy repeating myself the entire time ("we have to be quiet"... "we can't run in here"... "leave the stuffed animals over there") to take any pictures. ;) I sure do love our new library though. The kids' area is so magical! I might just have to bring my camera in there next time.
Well, I'm off to finish my frappuccino and mull over baby names before hitting the sack. I hope you have an inspired and productive weekend!
Changes All Around
Changes are plentiful around here lately, and I have to say that it feels really good. I have always loved New Years. The beginning of a new year feels like such a fresh start. A clean slate. There are always a few things that I want to start doing differently, or just start doing period. Changes...
Camden's hair.
This was a big deal. Camden is so not fond of hair cuts. That is putting it mildly. He really likes his hair short now that it's all over with. Honestly, we were all fine with it long (even with the in-between-awkward-growing-out stage)... but the grandparents just could not seem to stand it any more. One thing that didn't thrill me and Jeromy was how often strangers thought he was a girl. He is our little man and it kind of stunk how often we heard "your 3 girls are precious!" Ouch. It looks super cool, but at the same time if he would tell me he really wants it long again, I would absolutely let him grow it out. He is awesome... regardless of his hairstyle.
My Belly.
Photo by Camden
This is me about thirty minutes ago. 14 weeks pregnant. Is anyone else nervous for me? How big will my belly be at 24 weeks? Or 34 weeks? Oh my. I really love having a sweet, beautiful belly again though. I always loved that part. Only 6 weeks until we find out if we will have a little girl or little boy in there! Yay!
New Family Member.
Beautiful. Isn't she? A pure bred Cocker Spaniel. She will be joining our family in February. She will be about 8 weeks old by then. Ella is insisting that we name her Darlin' (her version of Darling), but I'm trying to come up with something else that she will agree to. Any ideas?
The House.
No photos as of yet, but my Mom has been majorly helping me organize my house. Mom, I can't thank you enough! She knows how I really want my home and she is great at lighting a fire under my butt. Haha! I will take photos of the wonderful new playroom the kids have now. Hopefully I will post those in the next few days.
New Project.
Emily Falconbridge is leading a really cool project called 52Q. Throughout the year, she will post a question every week. Then we will answer the question on whichever type of "canvas" we choose. She is using little shipping tags like these and I thought it was an adorable idea, so I am doing the same! I struggled at first with trying to be creative and thinking of some out-of-the-box little canvas of my own, and then I stopped acting like a perfectionist and just went with her idea. It's so fun! I will try my hardest to post my tag each week. If you decide to join in, please share it with me! Leave a comment with a link to your picture or blog.
One last change to note... one that has yet to happen. I am finally seriously thinking of dreading my hair. It feels like just the right time for me. I will definitely share my journey with you if I go ahead with it.
I am thanking God for the wonderful things He has done for our family in the last year and looking ahead to the amazing things He has in store for us this year!
Coolest People Ever
How awesome is it that I get to hang out with these kids every day? Being a stay-at-home parent isn't something that everyone gets to do, much less homeschool their kids. I'm so blessed to be able to do it. I love having them with me day in and day out, although we have our stressful days. Trust me! I just love that I get to prioritize what they are learning about. They can watch the ins and outs of how to run a business (as I learn myself). They are learning to socialize with a lot more than just their peers. We talk to cashiers at the store, the clerk at the library, other homeschooling kids at playgroup, a grandpa at the book store. They also aren't told when they can and can't use the restroom... that was always one thing that "irked" me about school. Ha! We were met with concern and questions when family learned that we wanted to homeschool, but I think it's pretty apparent as they are getting older that it's working out just perfectly. They are intelligent, thoughtful little people and I can't think of anyone cooler to hang out with every day.
Speechless Friday
(pictures from our day yesterday)
Oh my.
This is the face Camden gives me lately when I try to take a quick shot of him. Silly boy! When he's older we may wonder if he had turned into an alien for a year.
My little creature has begun taking piano lessons from the sweetest little lady. He's had two lessons so far and is doing fantastic. He seems to really be picking it up easily! I'm so excited to watch him learn and grow musically now. It's neat to see him interacting with another teacher, too. Another cool thing about him taking lessons is that I get to learn right along with him! I have always wanted to learn to play. Ella is already talking about wanting to learn to play the guitar later on. Makes my heart soar!
Last fall, Ella took dancing lessons for a couple of months before we decided to take her out. The big group of girls (and all of the sensory stimulation that went with that) was still a bit too much for her. Well, she has been talking about going back to dancing ever since November. She finally started again this week and she did so amazingly well! I was peeking in through a hall window and was beaming with pride. My sweet babies are growing up. It's so exciting watching them spread their wings a little.
The Red Letters
I am so proud of Camden Parker! A main thing we have "worked" on as far as schooling goes is his handwriting. Almost a year and a half ago, his fine motor skills became an issue that needed much improvement. He worked with an excellent occupational therapist up until this past February. I still was not seeing what I thought Camden was capable in his handwriting, but I continued to let him work on it at his own pace. We actually backed off of it almost completely for the past month or so. Then he asked for his workbook a couple of days ago. He worked on it alone for a few minutes and called me to see it. I was so excited!! This is the first time he has done the entire alphabet on his own, and he did SO well! It's much better than he has ever done. It just confirms what I believe when it comes to helping children learn... give them some freedom and room to grow, and they will excel in their own time. And by the way, this experience reinforces the decision to homeschool. Being here to experience the joy in his little face and voice, to see how proud he was of himself, is priceless!
I asked Camden yesterday if he knew just how awesome he really is and he responded with a confident, "Yep!" I smiled from ear to ear, and then had to laugh when he added "...and I wear cool shirts!"
Young Musicians
I walked into the kids' room today (they were being suspiciously quiet) to see this! All three of them had keyboards and were playing together. I was amazingly thrilled, and surprised, and I ran to grab my camera! They do have musical genes, from my side of the family and Jeromy has as much passion for music as I do. They are 4, 3 and 1... imagine us looking at this and laughing when they are in their twenties! Music has always been such a big part of my life. I wrote my first song at the age of 9. So seeing my kids into music in any way makes my heart soar. I'm seeing Camden become more musical, singing a lot and mouthing drum beats, lately. I hope to be able to really nurture that and help them tune into their musical creativity even earlier than I did. Creating and just enjoying music is such a fulfilling aspect of life, even if you only do it at home or in the car. Of course, if music isn't their thing... that's fine, too. Personally, I think music makes life richer for everyone... whether you like to perform it or just listen to it.
Camden, mixing it up a bit
Maya experimenting with sounds
Ella, workin' it out
