Look who's eleven months old!

Looks like she's in a bit of denial about it herself....

Those chompers just won't deny it though.....Ashlynn only had two teeth at this same age!

Here it is:

Albeit, a bit wilted by the time we were able to get a picture of it.

I thought Ashlynn was teasing me and holding two together to make it look like four leaves, but it was real!!

My friend and neighbor Gretchen told me she collected buckets of these when she was a kid, apparently there are some perks to growing up in the midwest! It was cool to see and we decided to dry it in a heavy book for fun. Good times people, good midwest times.

A bit under the weather.

Addie, Gage, Ryde and I spent last week feeling pretty gross. Fevers, lots of drainage and general aches and pains have plagued each of us. Seriously, I could have just kept tissue up mine and the kids' noses to try and keep up with the snottage. That was probably more than you wanted to know. But sadly, all too true. We are all on the mend now and playing catch up, i.e., laundry, housecleaning, grocery shopping,....the list goes on and on.

We did manage to get out for a few garage sales on Saturday. Our motto for garage selling is perseverance. You press on through the nose blowing and flem induced coughing, never knowing what treasures might lay ahead. I'll be sure to update you on what we found sometime this week!

Oh, and Ashlynn found a real four-leaf clover yesterday. Totally cool, first one I've ever seen in my life, promise to post a pic of that too!

Attention - Distraction =

Sunday, I was making chocolate chip cookies and Gage decided to make a creation of his own. This happened right under my nose, mind you. Apparently, he really wanted my attention and let's just say he definitely got it. The real bummer in all of the distraction was this:


My precious cookies were a tad overbaked. Maybe I have issues and too much love for chocolate chip cookies? Oh well, the paste washed out and the crumbs will be used for ice cream toppings. Never a dull moment around here. Never.

Lost in Translation.....not always.

Gage: "Mommy, Outside for shoes on. Outside for shoes on, outside for shoes on...."

Translation: Mommy, put your shoes on and come outside.

So glad I can speak two year old....most of the time.

Some good tunes we're lovin' right now:

Ashlynn and I are crazy about this album. Our favorite is track 6, but 5,9,10,11 and 12 are awesome as well. Ok, so the whole thing is awesome. If you're a fan of Hillsong United you'll recognize her voice (think Hosanna) and will thoroughly enjoy her solo debut!

This could go so many ways.

This picture could have so many titles, feel free to chime in:

• "Child Labor at a Glance"
• "How to Clear a Room"
• "How to Keep your Children Entertained"
• Finally, the Answer to all of that Extra Energy"
• "Vacuuming 101"
  

Some kids just hate the vacuum cleaner and either cry or try to be as far away as possible when it's running. Not my kids. They love it, I mean love. it. Maybe it's because of my obsessive vacuuming nature (instant gratification, anyone?) and the fact that even as wee babes I was running the thing right beside their sweet, little heads as they slept peacefully on the floor. Maybe it's just their nature for thrills, but they make a game of it every chance they get. Addie and Gage are by far the craziest. Gage, as a baby, and Addie now literally chase it while I'm trying to cover the room. I must constantly remain one step ahead in anticipating how they are going to "attack" just get the job done. The smile on Addie's face as she closes in on the bright light and whirling of dirt and debris on our bagless model is ginormous. Though I'm not sure what they plan on doing when they catch it, I'm more than happy to let them burn copious amounts of energy trying.

Mimi and Papa's

Aside from all of the great food, we had a wonderful time at Mimi and Papa's last week. It was nice having mom, Paula and Lisa with us, it was like a mini girls weekend at times! Here are some more pics:

The kids start asking to see Marilyn's goats the moment we turn into the driveway! This trip they were able to bottle feed the babies.

Ryder was very focused:

Gage wasn't as thrilled to feed as he was to watch!

Ashlynn, a natural goat rancher:

Randy caught fifteen or so fish and kept these three, the kids loved it! I personally like to step in the other room when they get whacked over the head. I know it's the quickest death, but it sounds pretty gross :-). They tasted mighty fine though!

Mom, Grams and Gramps!

The kids with Mimi and Papa!

Ran, the kids and I with Mimi and Papa!

Happy Birthday Ran!!!

As you've probably noticed, I decided not to blog birthdays this year for various reasons. First, my immediate family includes thirty-two people; this does not include grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles. So as you can imagine, I would spend half my time on birthdays alone, and, not that I don't love every single one of you, it's just the time factor. Second, I'm afraid with that number I would miss someone and I definitely don't want any hurt feelings. Today however, I am making an exception for my dear, sweet husband.



I know, I know, the cake has pastel m&m's on it, but fortunately I know my guy is confident in his manhood. Plus, the guy was born on Easter Sunday, so it's sort of appropriate!

Randy's parents waited five years after they were married to have him and they still brag about what an awesome baby he was, I think they even use the word "perfect". They said every moment of waiting was worth it, especially for the nursery with the shag green carpet and orange walls. Wish I could have seen that.

They raised him and spent twenty birthdays celebrating with him before we met. Now fifteen birthdays later we are all still celebrating him and the amazing man he has become!

Son, Husband, Father, Best Friend in the whole, wide world.

Happy Easter!

Hope you all had a wonderful day! We had a fantastic church service and lots of fun with the kids! For all of you anxious to see how our dresses turned out, here are a few photos:

The Fam in their "Easter best"!

The girls....we like color!

Ashlynn sitting pretty for the camera (no, she does NOT have make-up on, just a slight sunburn).

Ashlynn posing how she really wanted to :-)!

Addie on the run!

More to come of the past few days (and weeks) around here! Praise God for the glorious gift of His Son, Jesus, and praise Him for conquering sin and death for us all! HE HAS RISEN!

How to Gain Five Pounds (or more!) in Five Days:

First, hang around when these are being made (you can drag out hanging curtains in the next room for a good while!):

Second, you must "taste test" each kind (yes, that is my hand up there!):

Hmmmmm, the glazed or the chocolate?

The raised or the cake? Better try just one more....

Then have some of this (that would be chocolate torte cake with buttercream frosting):

With a slice of cherry and apple pie, heavy on the REAL whipping cream, please.....

And you might look like this when you're all done:

Stand by......to stand by.

Home from Mimi and Papa's, had a great time! will post pics as soon as I get el timo, lots brewing around here!

An Open Letter

Dear Ants,

Where do I start? Wish I could say "long time no see", but now, winter and your subsequent hibernation does not seem long enough. Opening the laundry room door yesterday and spotting your rough draft of a trail did not cause my heart to skip a beat for joy, but rather knowing the dreaded battle has begun. As I watched, I could almost hear your scouts alerting the family back at the nest with glee, "we found the mother load, boys!". If we could just work out some sort of arrangement, like, you guys stick to under the stove and refrigerator, there would be plenty to keep you busy and add to your 09/10 winter food stores. But no, like most species, you get greedy and that isn't enough to keep you satisfied.

Last year, I'm sure you remember, I gave up by mid-fall. I fought so hard to keep the counters wiped, the boric acid "available" to you, the floors mopped, and the food put away. Alas, it was to no avail. I could not stop you and conceded two-thirds of my kitchen to your colony. Yes, you happily gathered and I'm pretty sure chuckled each morning when I woke to see hundreds of tiny black specks moving furiously over my counters, knowing full well I had exhausted my ammunition....and my will.

Not this year. This year will be different, I will not and cannot give up. I will be triumphant, I will be victorious. You will not win. You will not win. You will not win!

Sincerely,
Lizzie, a.k.a. The Ant Victor

Ashlynn's take on Murphy

Around my house, I am forever referring to good old Murphy's Law. Ashlynn finally asked me the other day what it meant, so I explained away. She looked at me and in shock and said:

"Well, why didn't he also say 'What can't go wrong, won't go wrong!?!'"

There you have it, my daughter the perpetual optimist, we'll just refer to it as Ashlynn's Law. So glad to have a "glass half full" around me all day!

Complete, total and utter nonsense....

These are some thoughts that have been "weighing" on my mind lately.....

• Have you ever taken a big whiff of something and really wished you hadn't?
• Why is it that when I'm upstairs in my sewing room, I can hear everything that is going on downstairs and they cannot hear me? And yet, when I am downstairs and they are upstairs, I can hear them just fine...
• Why is it the days we choose to keep our jammies on, the doorbell always rings?
• How can a two year old remember where you put his ball and bat, when you said he could have a piece of gum (and where you "hid" it), take apart and put together fifteen puzzles, recognize various cartoon characters, but cannot manage to be potty trained?
• Why do I, more often than not, procrastinate until 4:30 to decide "what's for dinner"?
• How come my car only makes a funny noise when no one else is around?
• Why does the mail come late on days you don't care, but early on days when you had to get that bill sent off?
• How can so many "mates" of kids socks get "lost" in the laundry.....where do they go, really?
• Why do I continually turn on the light switch of a bulb that I know is burnt out?
• Why don't I just change the bulb?
• When I go to a salad bar, something (usually spinach) always gets stuck in my teeth and I inevitably run in to someone I know.

So these are not life's greatest mysteries, just mine, surely you all have some too!