Don't Worry. I'll Catch You.

Our new slide is super fast and has a drop-off at the end. Little Sissy was a little hesitant at first until Daddy reassured her that he would catch her. Here's what happened.

A Park in our own Backyard

Nana and Papa surprised the kids with a "new" swingset as an early combination birthday present. They LOVE it (despite the snarl on Little Sissy's face in the first picture). It needs some new stain and weatherproofing, but it's otherwise in perfect condition. Big Sissy keeps saying, "Mommy, we have like a park in our very own backyard!"

The Prodigal Lamb Has Returned

Apparently April May, Jr. was too embarrassed to face us, because I found her hiding in the kids' hamper when I (finally) did their laundry Saturday night. She must have hocked my cell phone for a few nights of fun, though, because it is still nowhere to be found. It was quite a celebration when Big Sissy woke up Sunday morning to find April on the kitchen table! The lost has been found!

Missing Persons Report

Help! April May, Jr. is missing! Seriously, we have scoured the house. My new cell phone is missing, too. I think they might be together. If you see them, can you let them know that we forgive them and just want them both to come home?

Firecracker Firecracker Boom Boom Boom

I was just having a discussion with Hubby about the appeal of firecrackers. I love fireworks--the kind that light up the sky and are immediately followed by the oooohs and aaaahs of the crowd. But firecrackers don't do anything but pop loudly in your ear. There is not aesthetic value that I can tell. Am I missing something? I've been pondering this as my neighbors continue to light theirs every night right after the kids go to bed. In this county there are fireworks tents on every corner, so you have to start celebrating early to get your money's worth, I guess. I feel like an old woman, but really...do people like this? Hubby thinks it's kind of fun, so I guess some people do. Is this a guy/girl difference, or is it my sensory overload problem? Any feedback?

Mourn With Those Who Mourn

Who made that rule: "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn"? Oh, yeah. It was God. Specifically it was Paul, who was inspired by God to write this in a letter to the Romans. I think God had Paul write this because it does not come naturally. Mourn with those who mourn. I have a friend who is finally pregnant after a long and arduous journey. Thankfully I get to rejoice with her, but I was seriously already psyching myself up to join her in her mourning if she didn't have good news. And this is a friend. A very good friend. And I am familiar with the struggle. What about those on the fringe of our lives? Definitely harder, if not impossible. There was a time when my marriage was in shambles and I was an emotional wreck. I had a wonderful friend who called me knowing that all I could do was cry. I thank God for her and think of her often as I pray for strength to do this. I don't know if she was practicing to be a pastor's wife (we were all in seminary at the time) or just being a great friend, but I know plenty of pastor's wives and great friends who wouldn't sign up for the job.

I always thought I could at least rejoice with those who rejoice. After all, I'm all about the celebration. Bring on the party. And then I started giving bridal showers for friends when I was still single and didn't really want to be any more. And then I started giving baby showers for friends when I was desperate for a baby. And I realized I was thinking more highly of myself than I really should have. (Interestingly, Paul addressed this in the same chapter.) I'm all about rejoicing with others when I too have reason to rejoice. I can even mourn with others when I have a need to mourn. I'm pretty sure that's what they call a pity party. But to be empathetic when I am not feeling it...that takes God's mercy. Paul may not be my favorite guy to read in the Bible, but he definitely listened to God. God knew we wouldn't always be feeling it. That's why the whole chapter begins with this phrase, "In view of God's mercy." That's the only way we can be that kind of a friend.

This week I have friends who are struggling with depression, friends who are rejoicing over a long-awaited pregnancy, friends who are happily married, friends who are unhappily married, friends who are unhappily unmarried...you get the picture. God, help me to be merciful to others as you have been merciful to me.

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Romans 12:15

Look Alikes

I think Little Buddy looks a lot like both girls at different times. Here's a picture of Little Sissy at 5 months and one of Little Buddy.

No, Not One. No, Not One.

This is an old song we used to sing at church, but it's also the number of pounds I've lost in the last 3 months. No, not one. Everyone keeps telling me to be patient, this is my 3rd, yadda yadda yadda. but I gotta say I am tired of buying new clothes (b/c I have to) and tired of my back hurting. The chiropractor keeps telling me to strengthen my ab muscles, of course. I've been set on going to the YMCA because I love it there, but you have to have a whole family membership in order to keep the kids in childcare. That's a little expensive, so tonight I checked out another gym that is much closer and much cheaper. Just watching people work out made me feel better. I know. I won't lose weight by watching people work out. Trust me. I've tried this many times with my aerobics videos. It doesn't work if you sit on the couch eating ice cream while Jane Fonda works up a sweat. I still haven't signed up, but I'm getting closer to a plan. I can at least visualize exercising now. I think I'll start "dieting" on July 1st. I'm late for everything, so why not start a New Year's resolution in July? Dieting for me will mean cutting out my bedtime sweets and drinking water. I could start now, but why waste 2 boxes of Little Debbie brownies?

So Big!

Little Buddy is only 4 months old still, but last night we were giving him a bath in his baby bathtub, and he did not want to lie down! He can practically sit up on his own already (even though he's still not close to rolling over...weird), so tonight I tried the "big baby" bath ring. He just seemed so big!!! We let the girls join him. It was a bit crowded with 3, but the girls liked having a new friend join them. They might change their minds the first time they get sprayed...

Our Fun Kids

Wow, Where Am I?

The past couple of weeks have been a blur. We went to one night of Vacation Bible School at our church. This was Big Sissy's first year being old enough to go. She seemed a bit overwhelmed at all the activity but had a great time. She had one tear-filled one moment when she briefly lost April May, Jr. Thankfully she was quickly rescued, then immediately afterward was snacktime. That's the area I was working in. Of course when I saw her crying I wanted to quit my job in the kitchen and hold her hand the rest of the night. I didn't, of course, and she did fine. This proves to me, however, that I'm not ready to send her to preschool in the fall. This is a good thing since it's so stinking expensive that we probably couldn't anyway. At least now I have another reason to make myself feel better. She's not emotionally ready, and neither am I!

Big Sissy at VBS with 2 of her best buddies--Tirzah and April May, Jr.

Little Sissy at VBS. Thank you, wonderful Baby Beakers teachers!!

The second day of VBS we left to go on Daddy's business trip with him. He actually asked us to come, and I think he only regretted it once or twice. He had to be at work at 3 a.m., so he went to bed before the kids some nights. That was weird. I took a flashlight. I haven't been to sleep before 8:00 since I was about 8 years old, so I knew I'd go crazy. I spent a lot of time in that tiny corridor area outside of the bathroom doing Sudoku puzzles. The flashlight came in handy, though, since I had to keep the other kids entertained during naptimes. Big Sissy made shopping lists on all the free hotel paper. She's getting quite good at spelling things out. Our shopping lists were things like pig, cup, bag, etc. She gets mixed up on the vowels, but she could figure out the first letter and last letter. I think academically she'll be fine without preschool. I'm such a proud mama! We also got to use our Silver Dollar City passes again, which was really fun. It was "Kidfest" there--this is a real thing--so we got to do some different things from last time. Oh, best of all, I got to go to Lambert's. I love that place. So what if I can't actually catch a roll. The fried potatoes are worth the drive. We got back from our trip just in time for Big Sissy to catch the last night of VBS. Daddy and the little ones were fussy, so they stayed home and went to bed early. It all worked out.


Then this weekend we celebrated by cousin's graduation, I got to have a "girls' night" with my oldest friend (she's not oldest in age...longest-lasting friend? Most enduring friend? Most patient friend, perhaps???) Anyway, you get the idea. We went to Bella Milano in Edwardsville, IL...yum. It might rival Macaroni Grill for my favorite pasta. It's not everyday that you have a friend so comfortable that you can share a dessert right off of the same plate. I love that.


Last but definitely not least was Father's Day. My poor hubby was definitely under-celebrated that day. Why does Hallmark make all of their holidays on Sunday? I struggle to get a shower in the agenda, much less a celebration. As soon as church was over we drove to IL to celebrate my father-in-law. By the time we got home it was time to crash. So he just got his card from the kids today. I will say publicly, though, that I can't imagine any greater daddy. I know I don't say it enough, but I appreciate his willingness to give them baths, change diapers, cut food in tiny little pieces, and even attempt to fix the girls' hair. There's nothing he won't try to be helpful and involved in their lives. They love you dearly, Daddy, and so do I!

Hot Minivan Daddy. He never even complains that it's not a truck or sportscar. We love you!

New Camera

Happy 4 months, Little Buddy!

Little Buddy is 4 months old today. I thought about making a cake to celebrate, but if I made a cake every time we celebrated someone's "birthday" in our house, we'd be doing it every day. I'm pretty sure yesterday was April May, Jr.'s birthday. She didn't get a cake either. To celebrate we bought a new camera. Our old one bit the dust before Little Buddy was born, miraculously started working again for his birthday and the first few months of life, then bit the dust for good. It was a nice temporary reprieve while we waited for our tax return. I think I'm going to like this camera once I figure out how to use it.

Also to celebrate, we took Little Buddy to the doctor. He's in the 75th percentile height and 94th for weight. This is really no surprise to anyone who has seen him without a shirt. Although he's huge and has a major spit-up issue, the nurse practicioner affirmed that I am probably not over-feeding him. He also got 4 shots and an oral rotavirus immunization for his birthday. I feel nearly sick every time he gets more immunizations with all the media hype linking them to the rise in autism. Just this morning Jenny McCarthy was leading the march in Washington protesting the number of immunizations on the schedule. "Too many too soon," they were screaming. I tend to agree, but my pediatrician insists it would be much worse for my child to contract the diseases we're trying to prevent. I can't describe the angst I feel when I allow the trained professionals to take over because I don't have enough information to argue. 1 in 150 children now are diagnosed with autism. This is pretty staggering.

It's Wednesday

No signs of disease yet. Maybe she's built up her immune system with all the colds she had this spring. Maybe I'm all freaked out for no reason. VBS starts next week, and we're all going on a business trip with Daddy to Springfield that will include another visit to Silver Dollar City. I just want us all well.

Waiting for the Signs...

Monday I took the girls to the library to sign up for the summer reading program. They get free baseball tickets out of the deal and some other stuff that makes them happy. Afterwards I took them to Burger King thinking that we would have some fun playing on the outdoor equipment. I already was feeling slightly guilty about the fat-loaded french fries and hormone-injected chicken nuggets, then we went outside. I was talking to a friend on the phone when a random kid set his soda at our table. Before I realized what was happening, Little Sissy had the drink off of the table and the straw in her mouth. Eeeewwwww. The germs get to me more than the idea of my baby drinking soda. When the mom finally came out, I explained what had happened and suggested she might want to get a new straw for her son. She said she wasn't worried about him. He had just been to the doctor and was diagnosed with strep throat.

Are you kidding me? Why did you bring him to a public playground? Why don't you just give yourself hepatitis and offer me a home-cooked meal? Of course it wasn't her fault--it was mine for not watching my child. I'm just a little freaked out now. She kindly told me where I could get free antibiotics. I mentioned the baby, and she said, "Oh, he won't get it unless she (Little Sissy) puts her fingers in her mouth and then touches his toys. " Which is exactly what Little Sissy will do. Can anyone say FREAK OUT. Now I'm just waiting for the signs...