Here ya go Honey...

Aaron casually mentioned that I hadn't posted for a while and asked why not. I'm still amazed that our tiny, little house can become such a wreck in such a short amount of time. I guess up in Iowa, even though there were more kids, there were more adults too, so cleaning up happened a bit easier! :) So since Aaron asked...here are some pictures.

Oh alright. You caught me. I'm just procrastinating the inevitable late night cleaning session!!!! *sigh*

This is just for you Jeremy! It's all Papa's fault. He's the one that dressed Bryce!

Neither Papa nor Bryce seemed to notice (or care) that the poor child's pants were hiked up to kingdom come!

I got a few pics from the water park this time. Jacob had lots more fun this time, too. He wouldn't go very far into the water, but he LOVED the fountains! Here he was standing there waiting for the water to shoot up. Right on the back!

I was so proud of Kaedyn! She went and bought some lemonade all by herself (well, Anna walked over there with her). Mom, Cara, and I had 5 kids there, so we were outnumbered. Even though the concession stand was only about 30 yards away, I had to stay close to the pool to keep an eye on Jacob (Cara had Bryce and Anna, Mom was with Mia on the slides). Kaedyn really didn't want to walk over there by herself (which surprised me since she's so outgoing and doesn't seem to shy away from anything!) She would walk about 5 chairs down, then turn around and shake her head. Anna wandered over and said she'd go with her. I could see them the whole time from where I was sitting watching Jacob. I told Kaedyn what to say and here she came with her very own lemonade! :)

Oh Bryce! This just makes me laugh. Wanna know what else makes me laugh? This is a good one...

I was sitting in the kiddie pool/fountain area keeping an eye on Jacob and Bryce. Bryce is around water a lot so he's not timid like Jacob. I was watching Jacob do something and then scanned around for Bryce. I saw him on the cement by the fountains. He was bent over looking at something. I watched him for a minute, wondering what on earth could be so captivating. Then I looked to the ground between his legs. I saw something round...and dark. Oh no he didn't!!

Mind you, this boy hadn't had an accident in days! I had forgotten to bring swim diapers and just happened to have one in the van. But since Bryce had been doing SO GOOD, we didn't think it'd be a big deal. Obviously Jacob couldn't be without one!

I hurry over and sure enough, he'd pooped on the sidewalk!!!!!!!! I couldn't leave b/c I had Jacob, too so I yelled at Mom. She brought a towel and picked it up. The wonderful people at the park were so great...she said "You'd be surprised how often that happens!" They cleaned up the sidewalk (luckily it wasn't messy!!) and we paid $2.50 for ONE swim diaper!!!!! The lesson?

Entrance to water park: $40

Bottle of lemonade: $2

ONE swim diaper: $2.50

Seeing my nephew poop on the sidewalk: PRICELESS!

Getting ready to go to the VBS program and watch "da guhls" :) Everyone there thought they were brothers. So handsome!

Here's the video of Bryce getting on the toilet. Have you EVER seen a kid do it like this?! I can't believe he hasn't fallen in more (I think he's only done it once)! Sorry for the little flash at the end...

Prayer Request *UPDATED*

Please pray for my cousin's wife, Amy. She is due in September and I just found out she has the "h1n1" virus (swine flu). That's all I know right now (and since it's pretty well just family that reads this....)

*I just talked to Scott and Amy is doing good. They caught it early enough that she didn't have to be hospitalized and she and Daniel (their 1 yr. old son) are on some medication. They're watching her closely, but praise God that it was caught early!*

It Didn't Work

You know, that whole "take them to the water park and wear them out good"...it didn't work at all. We thought for sure the boys would fall asleep on the way home. Mia did. The women needed to run a couple errands before we leave tomorrow, so Papa did baths and bed. Well, that's what we thought. When we came back about an hour later, the house was quiet...for a second.

So it was a bit later before they got to bed and even then, it took everyone but Bryce an hour to actually fall asleep! Everybody was happy in bed, just not asleep! We're going to miss the Floridians :( We've had so much fun playing (and fighting! haha)

I've noticed...

...the more kids there are, the more pictures I take!! :) It's been a really fun week up here with all the kids. Bryce is now pretty well potty trained during the day (still diapers during sleep times). I don't think he's had an accident in a couple days. And he'll even go to the bathroom all by himself! I have to post the video of him getting on the big potty. I've never seen a kid do it like he does!! Anyway, with budget strings tightening in our house, I thought I'd start on Jacob. He's gone a couple times and he seemed really interested in it seeing Bryce do it (and see all the praise he got for doing it!). So one evening after he pottied a couple times in the potty chair, I decided to put him in "big boy pants" and see how it went...

Uhhh, maybe he doesn't quite get the concept yet! haha

There we go! Big boys!!
Well, he would potty and then have an accident almost right away. I know, that's how it goes the first few days. But I decided I didn't have the energy or the attention to give it right now with all these kids around and being so busy. So maybe I'll start when we get home. I'm just so tired of spending money on diapers!!!



Crazy kids playing in the tent. CRAZY!

Puh-leeeze Anna! Bryce weighs like 10 lbs...buck up!!! ;)

I love this picture. Bryce is such a sweet boy. Aunt Jenni loves this little guy!

This just makes me laugh!

I mentioned Jacob had some tummy troubles. Well, they're still not over. He feels fine but his diapers...well, they're not pretty. And for several nights in a row, he would dirty them either right before he fell asleep or after he was asleep. I would go in and check on the kids (Anna, Kaedyn and Jacob share a room) and it would just reek in there. I'd check and sure enough, YUCK! Here's the crazy thing...he didn't wake up!!! I'm talking massive proportions, 6 wipe jobs and he snoozed right through the changing.

Blue-eyed cowboy :)

Jacob doesn't have the coordination to pedal yet, but he sure enjoys pushing the combine around!

I love this picture of Anna. It's just so Anna!

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Tomorrow we're headed to the water park now that VBS is over and well, let's be honest...we're hoping to wear them out good for the long trip home Saturday! Papa & Binga are driving the Floridians home and Aunt Cara and I will head home, too. It's been such a fun week! We miss Daddy though!!!!

Buddies, Lemonade Stands & Camping Out!

Okay Jeremy, here are some more pictures of the boys! Bryce only had one or two accidents today and yesterday, Jacob followed him to the bathroom every time and even pottied three times!!! Unfortunately, Bryce's talking has not rubbed off on Jacob! Just now, Bryce was imitating Jacob's pointing and grunting routine. haha

Watching Little Bear before the girls got home from VBS.

Intent on the show!

The girls and I slept in the tent last night. It was a bit chilly and Anna didn't sleep very good (I think the humid air made her allergy cough worse). I ended up bringing her inside at 6:30am, Kaedyn followed soon after, but Mia wanted to stay out there even though she was by herself! I think the fact that it was light outside helped ;)

Mia wanted to have a lemonade stand today, so the girls had one. Well, a Kool Aid stand technically! Every time a car drove by, they yelled "Get your Kool Aid!! Only 25 cents!!!!!" It started out slow, but they got quite a few people to stop. I think the fact they were 3 adorable little girls didn't hurt anything! :)

Watching for cars so they can yell their slogan!

Their first customer!! It was the neighbor 2 doors down.

We kept Jacob and Bryce out of the street and away from the Kool Aid (mostly!) with some sidewalk chalk.

What a cutie!!!

Mom said the other day they were outside and Bryce just went and laid down on the sidewalk. Mia had to tell them that he wanted them to trace around him! Jacob quickly followed Bryce's lead. I can see these two getting in a LOT of trouble in a few years!

He always has known how to relax! :)

Playing in the tub

Silly Boys

While the girls were at VBS last night, Bryce and Jacob had a good time being able to play uninterrupted! This is the first time these two actually played together. It was hilarious!

Camp Out

Somebody promised the girls a camp out this week, so a tent was procured and the set-up ensued. And boy, what a set-up!

Mia said "I need scissors!" So off Kaedyn went for some. Until Aunt Jenni said "Oh no you don't! I'll get them for you."

My poor boy. He was sick yesterday. Really sick. But thankfully it was just some kind of 24 hr. stomach bug b/c after a gigantic blow out sometime between bed and morning, he is back to his old self today! Whew!!

Mia got tired of waiting for a pair of scissors, so she got it open herself!

Papa finally asked "Why is that I have all these kids down here and none of you (adults)?!" Anna said "Because, Papa...we want to HELP!" There are very few pictures of this now that are not blurry. Those girls were SO EXCITED they didn't stand still!

Bryce even got in on the set-up action!

Anna was ecstatic. She talked 90 mph!

Oh the excitement!!

I can hardly stand it!!

Mia & Kaedyn "helping" out :)

Dancing with joy :)

Oh the joy!

Bryce and Anna helping Binga

Question of the Day: How many adults does it take to set up a 6-person tent?

Answer: More than one!! haha

Mia and Anna

The girls and I took a nap in the tent this afternoon and I think tonight we're going to sleep out there (we'll see how that goes!!). Should be an adventure!

I'm Tired

We've had a fun week with Kaedyn! We made the trek back to Iowa yesterday so the girls can go to VBS up here. They are EXCITED! And I am TIRED! :)

Aunt Cara has been sewing! :) She made all the girls dresses. One set of them were matching. Aren't they cute?? We'll have to get one this week of Mia, too.

One night I found Anna in Kaedyn's "bed". I asked Kaedyn in the morning if Anna kept her awake. She pinched her fingers together and said "A little bit" ha!

At supper, Jacob refused to eat the chicken I cut up on his plate. I figured he was just being picky. After 30 min. of sitting there not eating (but not whining either), he got down. And while no one was looking, he snatched a whole piece of chicken off the table!! I guess he thought it was more appetizing than the little pieces on his plate! Crazy child.

Anna and Kaedyn running down the alley, coming home from the park.

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The other night/morning, Jacob had some tummy issues (read: nasty gas). He wasn't cranky unless I put him in his bed. So we spent from 2:30 am to 6am trying to get him to sleep. It didn't dawn on us that it was his tummy until 4. So it was not a good night.

This is how he felt. He was happy, being silly, and taking turns bouncing on Mommy & Daddy while we tried to sleep.

This is how I felt. Bleary-eyed and tired!!!

Smoothie Time! *updated*

*update* Aaron's meetings got postponed...I'll let you know to when! :)

A few weeks ago, I won a giveaway on MoneySavingMom's blog (a great blog with tips on saving your family money, mostly on grocery shopping)! It was for a smoothie kit, which included a mini "smoothie" blender, several smoothie recipes, and 3 t-shirts! I couldn't believe I'd won...there were over 1200 entries!!! The girls and I were excited...they couldn't wait to make their own smoothies!!! So after naps, they got to make some. I had some bananas that were getting pretty ripe, so we used those and some strawberries and blueberries. They weren't half bad! None of the new recipes were for fruit that I had, so I just made it up:)

Kaedyn chose bananas and blueberries for hers.

She had fun making it, but didn't like the taste! :)

Anna chose bananas and strawberries (shocking, I know). I had to get a picture of her outfit. She picked out the new dress Aunt Cara made her and then since she couldn't find her flip flops, she decided to wear her cowgirl boots to the store! So cute!!


Very serious about this blending business! I made waaaay too much in hers, but she liked it. A really cool thing about this blender is that you can take it on the go and drink your smoothies right out of it! Very cool. Kind of big, but cool :)
So thanks to Crystal at MoneySavingMom!!! I can't wait to try all sorts of recipes for smoothies and use up almost expired fruits and yogurt!

This afternoon the girls and Jacob played very nicely together in their room. Jacob was having a ball with all the bracelets and necklaces ;)

Bath time last night got a little wild! :)

Daddy has a big day tomorrow...prayers would be wonderful! And Grandpa gets here tomorrow!! AND we just might get to go to Daddy's last softball game (it's not until 9pm, so we'll see!)