Benjamin Mister

I was going through some pictures from awhile ago and I found so many good ones of Ben! I didn't want to forget about them, so here is a small batch... 

Clementine Cutie

Our amazing neighbors from our old house bought us tickets to go check out the Botanical Gardens outside of Lonejack, MO. It was really beautiful and the kids were such good troopers. 

Yogurt Monster

Ice Cream!

:)

Mother's Day

I had a lovely relaxing Mother's day, thanks to my awesome hubby and sweet little munchkins. Yes, the house is still not quite done and put together as you can tell in the photos, but we are getting there!

Myla and Dustin designed a bouquet and crafted up some beautiful flowers for our dinning room table. The boys bought me a KC shirt and hat and I was so surprised. We are not really big gift giver people and tend to lean towards homemade items or baked goods. So I really felt extra loved that they all thought about the things I might like and made the trek out to actually get them! That is not easy with four kids! Haha.  

I feel very blessed and so grateful to have these precious children in my life. I am very lucky indeed that I have gotten to be a new mommy four times over and I wouldn't change it for the world. I am also so thankful for Dustin and all his hard work that he puts into providing for us so that I can stay home with my kiddos and do what I love doing. Every day is not easy and sometimes it can all be overwhelming, but we are learning as we go. We are really trying to be diligent and make sound choices for our family and as any parent knows...it is tricky! I am trying to let God lead me and my family and feel such peace when I can do just that. 

Cuties

Me and my brood. Ben is winking at Dustin :)

We are really enjoying our house with all the space we now have and are starting to work on little projects here and there. Dustin is actually working on the sub basement right now...it is his new workshop. This fireplace is on my list. There is nothing wrong with it, but I would LOVE to lighten it up and even remove or paint the stone title. We have white doors in the house and lots of wood trim. I think we may be able to pull off painting the fireplace white and then do something different with the surround. Hmmmm. Still thinking. And pinning ideas.

We also need to decorate it somehow. We just put these photo frames up there to get them in a safe place, but the scale is all wrong and our colors clash with the dark fireplace...it is a good dilemma to have though. We haven't had a fireplace until now. I am excited to tackle a fun project...when I can find some time!

New House!

Well, lots has happened since the last post of mine. We sold our little yellow house in the Spring (rather easily and by owner, yay!) and bought a newer, bigger home in a different city!  It has been a bit of a whirl wind and now that we are feeling mostly settled, I wanted to catch up on here.

Eli is getting so big and is just the cutest, sweetest chubby guy. We love having him around and almost daily one of the kids says they are so glad they had another baby brother. Aww. :) He says mama and mom, dada and bababa. Pretty darn adorable. He also started saying woooooooo and weeeeeeee while he swings outside on the swing set. haha. It is so sweet!

Ben is hilarious and ornery and was getting quite good at escaping ever so quietly out the front door of the new house. We have spent much time reasoning and negotiating with this little mister. He is so darn cute when he flashes his smile that it is hard to stay mad for too long. He is getting better about listening when I mean business (thank goodness for love and logic) so we are a little more at peace lately. He has been talking about going camping and will stuff as many clean clothes from his closet that he can fit into his backpack and carry it around the house, saying "I'm going camping. What?" Also, when he is explaining something to me he will say "you got that?" at the end and give me a half wink.

Myla is growing up to be such a beautiful lady who is really great with Ben when we need a distraction or another way of reasoning with him (gotta love the 3 year old way of doing things!). She has blossomed into a great reader and she really loves writing and it is so fun to see her creative side go to work when she is painting or doing a craft. Her hair is getting so long and she doesn't like me to cut it. Sometimes when we are side by side on a walk or out and about, I just look at her am reminded of when I was little myself and it is so fun to watch her.

Oliver is getting really independent and tall! He is also really strong...you don't want to get into a tangle with him! He is so amazingly sweet with Eli and loves to help him when he needs consoling or needs to be stopped quickly from going down the stairs. ;) He loves being kind to little kids that are friends or total strangers at the park. Oliver likes to lead the group and likes to make lots of rules for the neighborhood kids to follow when playing a game. Haha. He is growing up so fast. It has been a little hard for me to let him have more independence, but I can see he is ready for it and generally makes good choices. He is sensitive and social and it can be fun to chat with him about meaningful things in life. He grasps a lot at the young age of 8 and is really observant.

Big sister and baby brother

Morning snuggles

Cutie pie

Showing off the pretty wild flowers that she picked on the trail behind our house

Pretty lady, love the watch on the outside of her jacket:)

Adorable Benny

Eli crawling fast to get me

Gotcha Mama

Woooooo

Sweet bothers

Little Eli

I finally plugged in the computer in the new house and was working on an updated blog post, when I realized I hadn't posted much in the way of pics from when Eli was born last July! Things have gotten really busy with 4 kids and moving!

We are approaching Eli's first birthday so here are some photos from his birth last year (ever so fashionably late;)...

 Myla walking into the hospital with Dustin and the kids. She was so excited, as were they all, to come and meet our new little addition. We were waiting to tell the kids whether or not we had a baby boy or girl until they came to the hospital and got to meet the baby. 

Can't you just see the excitement in her face?

After she found out that the baby was a BOY!

She was slightly disappointed we didn't have a girl and then resolved "Well, its still a baby!"And promptly sat down and asked to hold him. Oliver was happy either way and Ben mostly just thought he was so small and cute.  

brotherly love

Proud Papa

Thankful Mama and Baby 

Me and my cute kiddos

Recent Photos and A Baby

Here are a few cute pics of the kids. It has been so long since I blogged, oh my! I put the blogger app on my phone...so hoping this helps me capture what is going on in our crazy, busy lives!

Also, our Baby Eli was born at the end of July! We love this little guy to pieces and are so happy he is our little side kick. The kids can't get enough of him and are always cooing at him and trying to hold him. 

Christmas is almost upon us and it has been quite adorable to hear Ben get really into what Santa's job is and who he leaves presents for. He is at such a cute age, but let's not talk about how much he currently wakes up at night. ;) Maybe if I pretend like it doesn't drive me to the complete brink of insanity (for Dustin too) then it won't. Maybe. 

Oliver and Myla are loving school and really have become good friends. I have a little known secret that I tried homeschooling them for 2 1/2 months this semester. And as you can read, it was too much for me and them. Having a new baby and a toddler doesn't quite equate to "peaceful learning environment." Much less "very present, prepared, energetic teacher."

I still dream about trying it again, when all the kids are older. Call me crazy, but I think it could be wonderful. However, we are very fortunate to have such a great school and community in which I am happy they get to participate. And I really enjoy shopping with only two kids in tow. ;) 

Sweet Summertime

Sooo, it has been awhile! Ben was laying here with me scrolling through old blog posts, looking at photos, and I remembered how much I enjoy reading and seeing these pics on here. Yes, it takes a bit of effort, but since I don't really keep a journal or anything, this was as close to it as I came. 

I laugh when I read some of these posts when I am really sentimental...it's always a result of pregnancy! I otherwise just am not a real sentimental person, as Dustin can attest too. Whenever we are going through our stuff and sorting out donation items, I am always saying to "get rid of it!". He probably thinks I'm so cold and heartless. ;) 

So, here I am, pregnant with baby #4, with 7 1/2 weeks left until we get to meet this sweet baby. Since we decided on a surprise baby this go around, I have to admit I am getting a little excited to see what we have cookin' in here! We are terrible about picking out names right now and pretty much have nothing. We really better get on it too, because they won't let us leave the hospital without a name, which I kind of think is lame. What ever happened to getting to know baby and seeing what fits? 

The kids are also getting antsy to meet this little one already. Right now we are in full summer mode and enjoying all the freedom of not having a school schedule. Daily walks/ bike rides, park play dates, gymnastic class for Myla, time playing at Aunt Elisha's (while I have baby appointments, bless her!), and fun pool time with our whole family. Dustin worked with the two big kids on swim lessons today while Ben and I floated around in the baby pool. The weather is so nice right now, cool in the mornings and hot in the afternoons, but not too hot, yet. 

We have a lot to do, buy mostly, in getting ready for our new arrival. I thought a mini crib in our bedroom might be nice and we need another dresser to store this kiddo's clothes. We are definitely trying to get creative in our small space, and while I initially balked at the thought of living in this little yellow house with FOUR kids, it is growing on me. Kind of. ;) We have been looking for a new, bigger place, but with how quickly the good houses sell, it just hasn't been our cup of tea. We are slower movers and Dustin likes to think things through longer than an hour or two, so we just need to wait until the market is not so nutty. Maybe this fall, once we are all settled from having a new baby, yeah right, I know, I do remember hardly having time to do much of anything besides the necessities with a young baby. We shall see what unfolds. When the time is right everything will align. I hope! 

If anyone even reads this...have a wonderful summer!:)

P.S. I will try to get a few recent photos on here soon. I have been super awful about taking pictures this pregnancy. Things have been so busy, I just kind of forget to get out the camera. And maybe a little lazy too. Hah! I know I will regret not having good pics of the kids at these ages so I will make it a mental goal. 

Quiet Afternoons

I am sitting in my little green chair staring outside watching the sun drenched leaves fall off the neighborhood trees. I love fall. The autumn air swirls around you, calling for a jacket, the dappled sunshine everywhere you look...it's just so crisp and renewing. 

I appreciate all of nature this time of year so much. I LOVE the pops of bright color everywhere you look. 

The fact is I haven't had much time to sit and really reflect on very much for too long because I have been so busy for the last few years. As I type this, I am on my second day with my oldest two kiddos in school FULL day. My youngest is asleep taking his afternoon nap. I cannot get over the fact that my house is silent. I mean, really really quiet. I am honestly not sure what to do with my time. I know I should stop eating these chocolate chips for one, but no one is pulling me away to do something else, so I just kind of want to sit here and not mop the house. 

I know after a few days I'll get used to having Myla and Oliver gone all day with this gap of time to do something on my own. Maybe I can conjure up some energy and do some afternoon yoga or clean. I'm definitely a morning person so, the afternoon is usually my time to chill out. My morning has been very busy, but without the constant clock check, because we had to pick up Myla by 11:05, I feel a little without my priorities. 2/3 of them are at school! It is weird. 

It's like my job suddenly got easier, but it didn't really. There was always stuff I wasn't doing because I was talking with or doing some activity with Myla in the afternoon. Now, I'm kind of just stuck. It will come to me, I know. She is loving full day kindergarten, btw. It was a really tough decision, but I felt like she was ready and I am really glad I focused on her and I think it was a good choice. Time will tell. 

When Oliver started first grade a few months ago, I remember feeling this same way. Like a lost dog in the afternoons. I only had two kids at home for the first time in the afternoons in practically forever. So, I remember I got used to it and even liked having him at school. He would come home telling me all about the fun activities they got to do and recess and lunch. Basically Myla is now getting to experience the "enrichment" portion of school, and it sounds pretty fun. 

So, even though Ben is only two, I think I have a bit of a license to figure out a new afternoon routine. Something just for me, during nap time. I almost feel guilty that I have time to sit down. Seriously. I know I need to remember that this is good for me to get a real break. It's been 5 years since I have had just one child to watch at a time. I love my kids so so much...but it is nice to have a very quiet break right now. :) 

M

P.S. I am actually watching my neighbor boy today, who is 2 1/2. So technically, one day a week I have two kids at home and two at school. It makes for a very busy day, but they nap at the same time, so the quiet afternoon still counts. ;)