I love this time of year! The temperature is perfect, the air is crisp, the leaves are gorgeous and there's a hum in the air as we hustle about harvesting and preserving. Experiencing this time of year at the acreage for a second time has been perfect! We love being near Gramma and Grampa, the space to play outside, the ever-giving garden, and the colorful eggs.
The kids are all growing so fast! Sometimes I wish I could bottle them up and keep them forever. I do enjoy all of the stages and watching them all interact. When the big boys read books to the little boys or I watch Camilla snuggle a sleeping babe and grin as she listens to his sighs and coos, it melts my heart and makes me feel grateful for all of the ages and stages.
Our afternoons are often spent coloring, playing outside, or biking around the acreage. When we are all together huddled over coloring books and pencil shavings, laughing and talking, my heart is filled to the brim. Sometimes I have to remind myself to slow down, ignore the mess, and soak in the moment.
It's really great having extra arms close by to help out! I feel as though my house is in a constant state of neglect. I've gotten really good at moving and stacking dirty dishes to make room for more dirty dishes and making due when there's not many clean things left. We've eaten jello out of cups with giant serving spoons and sipped our soup with straws then no clean spoons could be found. I really do try to keep up with it all, but this is the reality of life with this many kids.
At days end Ollie will ask, "Mom?" and I'll smile, "Yeah, bud?" ....."I just love you SO bad!" And these are the lines that make it all worth it. All of the mess and chaos and tantrums and dirty bums are all worth it for the "I love you's" and the hugs and the sneaky smiles. Lately I've been woken by the sound of coughs echoing through the night. We've played a lot of musical beds. After being woken countless times in the night, the comfort of my bed holds me tight.
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