12.19.13

We're busy.  But we are all well!  There are many little moments I want to write about, but time is short.  Tons of pictures of the boys and Christmas fun, but tomorrow might be a better day for all that.

But for now, we are all well and having a great holiday season.  The big grief storm is beginning to brew, I can feel it deep down.  With my grandma being gone, there have been many moments when tears have reached the surface, a few escaping out.  I miss Lucas and Caleb on a daily basis, but I have honestly been too sick to embrace the hard grief that is due.  This is Christmas number FOUR without them.  How has that much time passed?  And we've survived every one of them. Some have been harder than others, but none as hard as that first one.

The boys are out of school for Christmas break now. Simon LOVES it when they are home.  I don't have Luke next week, so it'll be a vacation for all of us. He's a really good baby, but with the big boys home, it's tougher.

A quick confession: We haven't seen Santa yet or been to SDC this season.  I have only half our decorations up.  With all the crud we've been passing around, I am happy for my tree to be completed and shopping mostly done.  SDC probably won't happen, and it may be the 23rd before we see Santa.  And I am mostly okay with that.

Busy, just plain busy

I really don't have a great excuse for not writing here. I've written a couple of posts, then saved them.  But never came back to post them.  Trust me, there's a lot of tears poured into them during the dark several days after Grandma passed.  Now that I am back to feeling "normal" again, I, we, are just plain busy.

I'm watching a friend's precious baby boy, Luke, 40 hours a week right now.  He is almost 11 weeks old and just adorable.  But he keeps me more on my toes, and yet I still a on board with having a little brother or sister for Simon some day.

With the holidays coming up, my mind is swarming with to-do lists, guest lists, and activities that have lined up.  I'm on this kick of not eating dinner out, which means I am spending more time in the kitchen....which is consistently the cleanest it's ever been for almost a week now.  Top that off with a walking running 14 month old, I am wiped out most evenings. 

Colton and Ethan are doing great in school.  I am such a proud momma!  They really enjoy school, and are great at it.  I love hearing the new things they learn, and new knowledge also surfaces at the funniest times. 

And since Simon is walking, they have officially welcomed him to the pack.  I love love love to watch the three of them wrestle on the floor together.  It is the just amazing to watch.  And if Ethan and Colton are messing around on the floor, Simon will come running across and body slam on top of them. 

And my Scentsy/Velata business is booming big time.  I can finally really see the possibilities with this company!  I am having a great time, meeting more new people, and making some real money. I love it, and can't wait to see what lies ahead!

Here are a few pictures, we haven't taken many.  Simon had his first haircut a week ago.  It went well, and we all went swimming afterwards.  That first haircut is always hard.  It's that last step between being a baby and a toddler.  And there are always a couple of tears to wipe away.

 

Bye bye to the curls.  I couldn't get a good picture of the really curly curls on the other side.

 Simon likes to cuddle after he wakes up.  I love the time with him!

 

Simon on his slide.  The rash on his face is from the pineapple he tried at lunch.  Poor kiddo.

 

 Simon and his favorite book.

 

 Thought I would take a picture of Simon sleeping with a different train book, then realized he was sleeping with his eyes OPEN.  Creeped me out a little.

 

Just have to share the warmer of the month for December.  I love the lampshade collection, and this warmer is just gorgeous.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are the Moments

I love the changing of seasons.  Summer to Fall and Winter to Spring.  I love the crispness of the air and the leaves under my feet as Fall begins.  And the promise of new life as the leaves begin to grow in the Spring.

Every year we spend an evening playing in the leaves out at Mike and Dru's.  We capture the fun in pictures, and the memories in our hearts.  There is something so innocent and childlike about being in pile of leaves.  Everything bad seems to disappear, and the world around you is shut out for that time.

These are the moments that I treasure and hold dear.  The moments when there isn't a care in the world, and all the sadness is brushed away while I embrace all the amazing blessing that surround me.

Here are a few an abundance of pictures from our moments yesterday.  There are a ton, though I've really narrowed them down.  Hang in there and enjoy!

 Simon is the only boy so far not to scream when put into a pile of leaves his first time.

 

Though he enjoyed being in the leaves, he didn't want to touch them.

 

Simon wanted to rake like the big boys

Those baby blues are going to break some hearts.

A new favorite family picture

And then the leaf fight.

 

 



Halloween 2013

Halloween this year was so much fun!  The big boys are still having a blast trick-or-treating, and Simon just wanted to hold onto his pumpkin.  We decided to do a family costume this year.  It creates awesome memories, and we really just love Halloween.  We chose pirates, mainly because I bought a pirate costume for Simon last year on clearance. 

We made everyone else's costumes.  The big boys and I made ours from one outing to the DAV thrift store.  Aunt Jamie found these beautiful curtains for $4.00 and transformed them into a skirt for me.  We then found some white shirts,  a couple pair of baseball pants, a brown chair cover, a vest for me, and a red stain pillow case.  We had a great time making the costumes.  Willy just used stuff from his closet that he doesn't wear anymore.

Here are some pictures from the night:

 Aunt Jamie totally ROCKED this skirt!!

 

 We found Jake and the Neverland Pirates pajamas for under S's costume.  They were perfect!

 

 All my pirates!

 

 Simon would not, for any reason, let go of his bucket the ENTIRE night.  It was kind of funny the fit he would throw when he would have to let go for a few seconds.

 

 I love how his hair curls in the back!

 

Oh my, we are in trouble.