Totes are not FOR toys...they ARE toys!

This post is for you, Jenny. After seeing your pictures of the "tote races", I thought you might appreciate this.

We love it when Levi comes over. It's nice to see James interact with someone his own age, especially since they have so many common interests...trains, helicopters, running around, cars, playing outside.

At our house, the kids call James "the king of the kids", because everyone obeys his commands and gives him whatever he wants. I think it is very good for him to occasionally play with someone who isn't beguiled by his cuteness.

Well, James and Levi thought it was a shame that all of these colorful totes were just sitting on a shelf, wasting their potential by keeping toys organized. Toys belong on the floor anyhow, and the totes were put to much better use as a makeshift train.

At Christmas-time I was very tempted to buy James a ride-on Thomas Train. Thank goodness Tony was there to calm my shopping impulses, because I'm sure they still would have preferred the totes.

The Big-Belly Update

I'm starting to actually count down (we're finally getting that close!), so I thought I'd post an updated preggy picture. The absolute best thing about this picture is that Tony thinks the shirt I'm wearing is totally indecent.

I tried to wear it to church once and he said we didn't have time to fool around before getting dressed for church. It isn't that lingerie-y! I must have some rebelliousness left in me, because it only makes me like the shirt even more.

Maybe Tony knows that and only complains to make me happy? Thanks for the great shirt, Rachel!

My Little Sister...who doesn't want to be pictured on my blog

I love my sister!...and it's so fun to go places with her. If you're going to be a freak show, you might as well embrace it and double the kids you normally take out! When we take the kids out to eat, it looks like we're having a birthday party (but who does that at the McDonalds in Walmart?).
This week, we met at the half-way point between our homes to return the kids we had traded. I was hoping for something really fun to do in Chehalis, but...there isn't much. Apparently they have an awesome hot air balloon festival...in August. And they have a steam train that runs on an old logging line - perfect for our train-obsessed almost-three-year-olds. The problem being that it only runs on weekends, starting in May. I couldn't even find a decent movie theater.
So, we ate at McDonalds and herded the kids around Walmart...I'm sure that would have been a close second to our other options anyhow.

This is Why I Never Nap!

Well, to be completely honest, I normally sleep in long enough that napping would really be overkill. Now you get to find out why I would rather sleep until nine (with all of my kids snoozing as well) than have a little cat-nap in the afternoon.
Frankly, it's because sleeping in doesn't make me want to hurt my children; whereas, trying to nap makes me want to sell them all to the nearest gypsy.

Here's how today's attempt went:
Before laying down, I let the boys turn on their Nintendo 64 (an oldy, but a goody) and the girls turned a movie on the computer. Everything is calm. I go lay down.
Immediately, I hear the loud thump that children make when jumping off of furniture on the second floor of a building, followed by loud Jonny crying. No, he wasn't hurt - just mad (about who knows what?) I tell him that he can either be cranky and take a nap with me, watch the movie, or play his game...he has three seconds to decide. He chooses the game, and I go back to bed.

The neighbor girl immediately rings the doorbell. I hear Annika run down the stairs and yell up to Sofi that she can go play with her friend.
When I'm "asleep" (which I'm definitely not at this point), the kids aren't supposed to be answering the phone (that's what voice mail is for) or the door (anyone who really needs to come in has a key). I yell, "No, she may not," through the door, hoping to resolve the matter in this lazy way. No such luck.
The doorbell rings three more times in quick sucession. I go down stairs and explain to our little neighbor that the kids may not play, because their mommy is trying to take a nap...and please do not ring the doorbell more than once per visit.

Back to bed, and this time I think I may have gotten fifteen minutes of actual sleep. It wasn't worth it. I woke up to Annika yelling (again), "Boo is in the bunny's cage! Help me get him out!" Apparently Anthony (not being woken from sleep) was faster than me, because Boo had been extricated from the bunny cage and was having his hands washed when I stumbled out of my room.

Movies and games were turned off. A new seven o'clock bedtime was declared. Everyone was thoroughly chastised (although I'm sure they took it with a grain of salt). So, that is why I don't nap. It's too frustrating. It makes me want to cry and spank my children. I didn't do either, but they may not be so lucky next time!

Now She Knows I Love Her....

....more than her beautiful hair.

Little Annika has the prettiest hair color, and I just love it when she wears it long. Sadly, she doesn't feel the same way. For Annika, long hair just means painful brushing (tender-headed!) and unwelcome hairdos. "But I brushed my hair yesterday!" doesn't fly at our house.
Well, Annika knows the solution to these woes, and although she had yet to talk me into a pixie cut, I finally did relent to the bob. ...and she was right, it is adorable and oh-so-easy to brush!

Stolen Pictures

The hooligans have clearly been using my camera again. They actually "borrow" it on a fairly regular basis, although the outcome is not always as artistic (thus the post). Usually I end up with pictures of kids dancing around and making silly faces. Sometimes there are pictures of Pokemon weddings or Bun-Bun (who James tried to feed some coconut hard candy to today...we quickly intervened and let him give her a carrot instead).
Annika usual ends up taking the most interesting pictures, so I suspect she is the culprit here. Once, I came home from my Mom's house and found about twenty pictures of Annika's favorite things in the garden. They were lovely, and I kept most of them. Drawing may not be in her comfort zone yet, but she is very creative in her own way. She can hunt down a beautiful image or arrange things (like flowers from the garden) in an interesting and attractive way. It will be interesting to see what all of that natural talent develops into...if it ever makes it past the debilitating perfectionism.

My Absentee Daughter

Sarah and I recently did a swap...children, not crafts. She has Sofia, and we are borrowing Chloe.

Poor Chloe. I think the only thing we've done since she has been here is babysit kids. Not super exciting. Maybe we can redeem ourselves over the next couple of days, so that she'll want to visit us again some day. I owe her for last night anyhow. She came into the kitchen as I was making dinner (Cashew Chicken from Costco) and said, "Mmm, it smells like Panda Express in here!" My own children said something a little more negative, so Chloe got the favorite child trophy (metaphorical...but I should get a real one) for the night.

I hope Sofia is having a good time, because it really is a sacrifice for me to let her go. Sofia is my helpful, clever little girl. I'm dreading the day that she becomes a teenager and decides she doesn't want to spend any time with me for the next five years.

Well, I'm posting these pictures in her honor. Can you guess whose name she was drawing when she made that face? (She knew the prize was a purse. :)

And the winner is...

I'm sure you all thought I was never going to make good on my give-away, but, yes, we did draw a name. And the winner is....Paige. Nicholas got runner up, in case Paige can't fulfill her duties, but I think we'll send him a consolation prize. Paige, leave me a comment with your current address (Yes, I promise not to publish it...as if that many people read my blog anyhow) and I will mail you your winnings.

The real reason for the delay was those dang curtains! I ended up getting the olive bell acanthus fabric for them. I love it, but it has a huge pattern on it...quite a challenge to match up. Now I'm trying to find a complimentary fabric, so it could be years until these dumb curtains are finished! I will definitely put up a picture as soon as they are...ten years from now.

The prize was one of these little purses I've been making from Bend the Rules. I've made six or seven, but now that I've figured out that they're just the right size for a standard set of scriptures, I have to make two more....one for each of my not-so-little-anymore girls.

Our Valentine's Day Party

Since the kids don't get to participate in school Valentine card exchanges, I feel like I have to make a special effort to keep Valentine's from becoming a non-holiday. (I don't want my boys growing up to disappoint their lovely wives every year!) So, I decided to make a nice Valentine's breakfast. Lucky for me, it wasn't especially hard to wake up before all of the Saturday sleepy-heads to wrangle some balloons and stuff. Kids are so easy to please.

Innovation

When I went to iron the other day, I found this makeshift clothes line underneath my ironing board. Sometimes the trails that children leave behind them are insanely messy and annoying, so you have to enjoy the cute ones that give you a glimpse of their innovative personalities.

Peanuuut, Peanut Butter and Jelly

A few times a week, depending on the other craziness going on in our house, we do some fun little preschool activities geared toward James and Jonny. They usually center around some little nursery rhyme or song, which James totally hates. (For some reason both my singing and flute playing really irritate him, and he spends most of the time telling me to be quiet or just yelling at me. The other kids think it's hilarious, since he lets them play their instruments in peace!) The older kids, on the other hand, are only too happy to take a break from real lessons to sing silly songs and do crafts/cooking activities.
Well, the peanut butter and jelly song was a hit with everyone. (I think it almost beat the Hokey Pokey.) The kids all shelled peanuts, while I tallied up how many nuts were in each shell. Then we made some peanut butter in the blender. When the blender failed to get it smooth enough, the kids drug out the mortar and pestle (we aren't really "crunchy" people). You can see Jonny, looking lovingly at the final product (which he refused to try, but was eager to show off).
I hope my kids remember some of the fun things that we do as they look back at their school years, instead of all of the tears over math! We'll see.

This is a the lovely needle case I made for part of Annika's Christmas present.

The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you.This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year. (might be a little while)
4- You have no clue what it's going to be.It may be a story. It may be poetry, shoes, bags, or a little invention of my own! I may draw or paint something. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5- I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. Believe me... it may blow your mind!

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

Sounds like fun, right? So, let's play!
WARNING FROM ANNALIA: IF YOU ARE A BOY, IT WILL PROBABLY BE EITHER FOOD OR SOMETHING YOU WILL WANT TO REGIFT. :) SORRY.

And since I'm going to do this, I guess I'd better finish my last give-away first...coming soon!

The only kind of marathon I'm capable of...

We had a very busy day today, but it was all voluntary...and relatively fun (except for the trapped in the car with the kids moments).

By noon, Tony had decided not to go into work after all, that he would rather go to the zoo with us. Our membership has been collecting dust for most of the year, so, with only 3 more months to go, I decided we had better start getting our money's worth! I waddled around the zoo (yes, I'm already well into the waddling stage of my pregnancy) and was very grateful that Tony was there to help me prevent BooBoo from falling into the aquarium, keep Annika from wandering away, and herd children in general. The downside was that Tony clearly had other (undisclosed) plans for the day, because he rushed us out of the zoo without riding the carousel or feeding the goats. (Sometimes I am the sucker parent.) I thought the kids would freak out, but we bribed them with oreos. Surprisingly effective.

After the zoo, Tony's plans revealed themselves. He drove us all of the way to Port Ludlow to take a look at the vacation shack I've been contemplating. Luckily, it was right on the road and not the size of lot I would want (and, honestly, way too long of a commute for my hubby). I'd rather have my dreams crushed by an undesirable property than by the cold, hard fact that we don't have any money saved to purchase a vacation home. Time to start that fund!

On our way home (or so we thought), we replaced my non-functional camera with a new little point-and-shoot Sony. It took us five stores to find one in stock! How sad is that? Don't people want my money? I resisted the urge to buy a nicer camera until 1)I have enough money for it in my bank account and 2)I actually know what I want (instead of randomly purchasing something more expensive). Besides, it's also nice to have a camera small enough to put in a pocket or throw in your purse. Result: my next post should be replete with pictures (in addition to the usual rambling).

Did our evening end there? Of course not, because, by this time, we were all starving and still in Silverdale, about an hour away from home (Tony denies it's that far away, but that will always be my travel-time estimate). Eating out in Port Orchard is so much nicer. Maybe people there are poorer, so there are more free tables? Maybe they all go up to Silverdale to eat out? Whatever the reason, we had about as much luck with the restaurants as we did with the camera shopping. Finally, we settled on Sharies (Woo-hoo! for immediate seating and kids eating free!)

By the time we were finished eating, what do you know? that 9pm showing of Bedtime Stories on the Navy Base (that we thought would be way too late) was about to start. The kids were right. I was wrong. It was the funniest movie I've seen in a long time. Even James was entranced and kept up his 2-year-old commentary, "Gumball..marshmellow...motorcycle."

That was our 11-hour outing. What a marathon. It reminded me of driving cross-country, only the stops were more fun and the kids fought MORE in the car than they do when we move. (Lack of preparedness on my part. No books for entertainment...only siblings to tease.) According to my calculations, now we shouldn't have to leave the house again for at least a month. Aaahh. Home Sweet Home.

Together Again

Amazing. You almost forget how wonderful it is to have your family all together. I think I'm accustomed to having Tony away, but when he comes home, it's easy to see that there was a gaping hole where he should have been the entire time. Everything falls into place. Everyone seems a little more content...secure.

I'm still not sure if we'll be staying in the Submarine force this next time around. Tony says he feels like he's giving up so much in exchange for so little. ..and hey, if my narrative about our trip to Chuck-E-Cheese's makes him feel that way, imagine what else he's been missing out on!
Not to be too random, but while I was thinking about time passing us by as our family grows up, I dug out these pictures of Jonny and Annika pal-ing around three and four years ago. They're still thick as thieves (or, alternately, fighting like a pack of disgruntled thieves). When I think of my children, I think that these will be the sweetest days of my life.
Man. I need some anti-depressants - blogging should not make me cry!