Little Boy

 The air conditioning is busted and I had a terrible nights sleep. We peeled open the windows and some of us have the luxury of running around half naked. This little guy was a huge day brightener. I love his zest for life and curiosity. 

Piles

 We all woke up ready to tackle Monday. Oliver especially looked ready with his ball cap and rubber boots this morning. We ventured to the store to buy everyone new underwear because it seems to disappear around here for some reason. Joe has been so excited about them that he tells everyone (even complete strangers) about his new underwear and how it looks. He thanked me no less than 100 times today for the comfy new undies. There are piles all over my house. Piles of toys in my kitchen to take down stairs. Piles of laundry that need folding on my couch. Piles of dirty clothes to take down and wash. Piles of things to pack. Piles of things to giveaway. Piles. Piles. Piles. Mr. Stannix and I are off to Europe soon and I am busy getting the house ready this week! I also managed to squeeze Joe and Ollie into the chiropractor. They always have magical sleeps after and I am hoping it will be no different this time. They have both been off and definitely needed adjustments. We love Dr. H so much! Happy Monday!

Welcome May

May crept up on us in a blur of sleepless nights. The grass is turning green, the buds are getting ready to pop, and the sun stays with us for the majority of the day now. Most of the house was quiet and still this morning. Finley sprawled out on his bed and fell asleep while the wind blew outside. Joe wanted to be near me and curled up on my bed for a snooze while I cleaned out my closet. With both boys asleep I closed the bed room doors and wandered downstairs to soak up a goofy Ollie who was feeling much better!

In the late afternoon I was exhausted, and hungry. Everyone was feeling better and moving around so we loaded up in the van and enjoyed a quick drive. We stopped at A&W on our way home because I've been craving Onion rings so bad. Just before we reached the drive through window, I heard a puke in the backseat. The poor boy had it all over himself, the carseat, the floor mats and the back of the seat in front of him. There wasn't much I could do given the situation. I looked in the rear view mirror and caught a glimpse of Joe plugging his nose and had to laugh at the insanity of our week. I offered my condolences to the poor boy who puked (and was now feeling much better, and asking for onion rings) and then we drove home with every window rolled down as far as it could go. I definitely did not enjoy my onion rings as much with the lingering scent of puke as the wind blew through my hair. 

When we got home I put the pukey kid in the tub, tore apart the nasty car seat and wiped out and disinfected the van. By the time I had finished, Joe was super cranky and begging for my attention in a loud way. After dressing and tucking in the pukey kid, I belted Ollie up to the table for a snack and excused myself to my room. When I heard Joe picking the lock with a butter knife I ran into my closet and hid like a child behind Mike's dress shirts and cried. It bought me an extra five minutes of not having to deal with life at the moment after Joe managed to break into my bedroom. I desperately needed a few moments to collect myself. 

Camilla and Daddy went off to a fun Daddy daughter Mexican feast at the church and I mustered up all of my strength to make pancakes for dinner. Most of the boys were feeling better and ate well. Poor Fin went to bed super early and didn't wake up until the next morning. At days end I put my back out vacuuming the kitchen and I could hardly walk come bed time. I slowly tucked in each of the remaining children and then put my feet up on the couch for the night. Camilla came home and told me how well she and Daddy rocked the dance off. I am pretty sure May is going to start looking up soon, because we can't go much further down!

The Pukes

This month has been a busy one and we are finishing it off with a bang! All of the little boys have the pukes and I have spent all day cleaning up barf. It started with Joe early this morning. He spent the entire day on the couch with a blanket and barf bucket begging me to snuggle him just a little bit longer. While I have been rubbing heads, kissing feverish cheeks, and snuggling sick boys I have been crossing my fingers that I won't get it! 

The boys were all extra sleepy today which allowed me to get some baking and cleaning done in the quiet of the afternoon. I made a double batch of apple sauce muffins to be enjoyed by the big kids after school and froze for later. Ollie ended up throwing up apple sauce all over my kitchen, under the stove and on the hardwood. At this point I had run out of paper towel and was forced to use left over take out napkins from the cutlery drawer to wipe up the mess while my sweet babe bathed. While the big boys rest and sleep when they are sick, not much changes for a toddler. I enjoyed a few cuddles, but most of my energy was spent trying to keep him still and nearby as I watched for the signs that a puke is on it's way. We managed to hit the bucket the second time, and the toilet the third, but I've had to be on my toes.

Just as I sat down to dinner a boy who I thought was on the mend excused himself to his bedroom to lie down and threw up all over his bedding. I stripped his bed for the third time in two days and cried all the way down to the laundry room. Later that night as I talked with my mom on the phone I told her how I felt "useless and lonely". Hyrum over heard from his pile of lego and piped up, "You're not useless, you're my mom! You work hard and I love you!" I could have cried tears of joy over that sweet statement. The rest of the night was filled with boys running to my bedside on the verge of puking and very little sleep. Thankfully Mom's have super powers and don't get sick!!

Hyrum Turns Seven

 Today our sweet Hyrum turned seven! The years are just flying by! The past seven years with this boy have been pretty easy. He's always been a pretty awesome sleeper (probably because he is ALWAYS growing). We speak the same language and enjoy similar things. He is quiet and soft spoken. Even on the phone today when grandparents called to wish him a happy birthday he had one worded answers and soft responses. He is a pretty deep thinker and a quiet soul. 

 He reminded Daddy that he needed to be measured today! We measure all of the kids on their birthdays and then spend the next few minutes commenting on how much they've grown. Hyrum by far grows the most each year! He is going to be tall I think. 

 His humility and gratitude about brought me to tears today. The weekend played me out and I barely had enough energy to put together a birthday dinner. Hyrum helped me make a homemade ice cream cake while the frozen pizza's cooked in the oven. The whole time I was thinking how lame I was doing as a mom and he was telling me how grateful he was that I let him help and how cool his cake looked covered in sprinkles. I love his quiet gentle ways and his understanding heart.

The other day when he and daddy went to buy a new tire for his bike, he was eyeing this beauty pretty good. Apparently he almost left the store in tears, longing for this new bike with gears and hand brakes. His old bike was a touch to small for him last season and the seat had been raised as far as it could be. After cake Daddy carried his new bike inside from the garage. He was shocked! His reaction wasn't quite as animated as I was expecting it to be. He walked around the bike quietly and said, "Wow! Thanks Dad!" He ran his hands over the handle bars and sat on the seat for a few minutes with that sweet Hyrum smile of his. Then he begged us to let him take it for a spin around the block in the rain. He is looking forward to taking it out tomorrow afternoon for a big ride! Happy birthday dear boy! We love you and the special spirit you bring to this family!

Family Bike Ride

 We were blessed with another outstanding day! The littles were all up super early begging to get on their bikes. I didn't want to be the first house to wake up the rest of the neighborhood so I made them wait. Soon we heard children playing at the park and people mowing their lawns and I gave them the okay. They left home at 8:00am and came back a gazillion times so that I could fix a couple of bike chains. The boys put cards on the back of their bikes again so that the spokes would hit them and make them sound like dirt bikes. The plus side to this is that I can hear exactly where they are all over the neighborhood.

 Dandelion season is officially upon us! Ollie enjoyed picking the few we had along the side of the house and stashing them away in the seat of his ride-on car. 

 I loved hanging out with the little boys in the backyard all morning! Oliver wanted to be outside the entire morning and would shake his head no when I asked him to come in. He toddled around the yard, discovered how to get on the trampoline with the help of his ride-on toys, and did about a million bum drops while he jumped. We enjoyed a picnic lunch on the trampoline and soaked up as much sun as we could.

 When Daddy got home from the youth temple trip he fixed up the last few bikes, hooked up the trailer and lead us all on the first family bike ride of the season.

 He hauled the little boys while I took up the rear with my rickity old blue bike. The chain slipped everytime I started peddling and it only has like two gears that actually work. So while they are all slowly peddling along and enjoying the scenery, my legs are working ten times as fast just to keep up.

 These two boys are best buds and I love it!

 We stopped half way at the new park to check it out! The kids had red faces and tired legs, but still managed a few rounds of monkey bars.

 We were pretty happy when we finally reached our destination! We used flyers to fan our red faces and enjoyed sitting down and catching out breath!

Tired, but happy!

 After a long day in the sun there is roller blades, bike helmets, and shoes strewn all over my entry way. Oh, and did I mention that one of my kids filled an entire rubber boot with diarrhea? Being a mom is certainly it's own kind of glamorous. The children were exhausted come bed time and went to sleep without a peep. I am already dreaming of more days like these! 

Bein' a Kid

 Today was flex Friday which meant there was no school! We started the day slow with cartoons and breakfast. Then I gave the house a quick tidy before a couple of Hyrum's friends arrived. He wanted to keep his party super small this year. He is a kid after my own heart. He doesn't like attention or standing out in public and has a handful of friends that he feels close too.

 This year his only birthday request was a donut cake with a number 7 sparkler. Luckily I scored a dozen boston creams the night before and he was super pleased with the results! It was the easiest birthday cake I've ever made, and I was feeling a little bit guilty about it. Ha!

 The party was a success! Just the right amount of time that no one got bored or argued. His friends are all super great and they had a fun time together! He was even nice enough to include all of his siblings! (Fin was feeling much better at this point and even downed half a hot dog and half a donut).

 I hardly saw the big kids the rest of the day, except when they came home for food. There was rollerblade tracks from my front door to the water cooler and cheeto finger prints all over the house. 

Lest you think I had a relaxing afternoon, Oliver here kept me on my toes all day! He likes to sit on tables, stand on chairs, scale my banister, and crawl across my counters. It's a good thing he's cute!

The kids all came home with dirty faces and shirts, skinned knees and huge smiles. Daddy pulled the bikes out after lots of begging and spent the evening replacing Hyrum's tire that he popped last year. When he was finished his hands were black and his brow had a light glistening of sweat. Hyrum was super grateful though! Even though it was crazy late we let them do a lap around the block. They went right to sleep after they came home, exhausted from the extra fresh air and exercise!

Morning Adventures

 The weather was too perfect to stay inside this morning! Joseph was dying to put on his rollerblades and go somewhere far, and I needed some fresh air. Fin was complaining a bit of a sore tummy, so he opted to ride in the Thule with Ollie. We walked up the block, around the pond, and down by the golf course where the path is wide and the trees are big! 

Joe took over pushing for a while and was pretty fast with the little boys! When Reese and I finally caught up we were all pretty pooped. 

 When we turned around to head home, Ollie desperately wanted out to explore. We were in no hurry so I obliged and smiled as I watched him run around pointing excitedly to everything and chasing the robins. 

 A few minutes later I heard a timid, "Mom, I barfed..." from the stroller. I quickly scooped Mr. Finnegan out of the stroller and let him finish up on the grass. His side of the stroller was untouched by barf, but Ollie's belt was covered in it. I had no choice but to let Oliver walk home. It took us for-ev-er. He would run in circles, turn around and head back the other way, leisurely observe his surroundings. I was impressed that his little legs made it all the way home and he still had a smile on his face!

 

When we got home Reese and Fin curled up on the bed together and went for a nice, long nap while I cleaned and disinfected the stroller. The afternoon was rather quiet!

Evening Light

 The weather this week has been incredible! The snow is all melted and the puddles are all dried up. We have enjoyed the blue sky and sunshine so so much! We are loving the longer hours of daylight and the warmth of the sun. I am grateful that the kids are still in smaller grades where there is little to no homework and they can just spend time outside when they get home. I have loved the fact that the TV hasn't even been touched this week. The littles would rather run around the neighborhood and play grounders at the park with their friends than sit inside. The last few nights I have let them stay out until the sun starts to dip down behind the rooftops because they are having so much fun. It's wonderful watching them run and jump around. Sometimes exercise is more important than sleep.

I spent a lot of time cleaning our poor neglected house today, so I treated myself to an evening out in the backyard with these two cuties while the big kids ran around the neighborhood. The sun was warm and wonderful on our faces and I loved watching the light catch their hair in just the right way. They bounced and bum dropped and giggled for a whole hour on the trampoline before I finally called it a night.

We are so happy that Spring is finally here!

Pysanky Eggs

 Today I had the rare opportunity to volunteer in Camilla's class and learn all about pysanky eggs. My friend and I swap baby sitting to volunteer at the school with our kids, and it was so nice to be able to go! They had a super presenter who showed us all of her fabulous eggs and shared her talent with us. The kids loved writing on their eggs with wax and a special tool called a kistka. Working with kids, and candles and hot wax can be quite adventurous. Along the way the eggs are put in different dyes and then drawn on again with bees wax.  The kids learned all about the different symbols and their meanings and how special these eggs are to people. It was so fun spending the morning with my girl and her class, and watching her interact and cheer her friends on. I can't wait to see her egg after the wax has been melted off and it's been all shined up!