Last weekend was pretty toasty, and it was the perfect day for us to be at the cottage! We spent as much time as we could in the water, and it was wonderful. With all the warm weather the water temp is great, and Jackson loved being in the water, too. Each of my boys did great in the water, and we had such a fun day! Levi kept wanting to swim out to the raft, and Logan and Caleb got into jumping off the pontoon boat in the middle of the lake. (Levi swam out there with us, but didn't want to jump off the boat.) Logan was brave enough for jumping right away, but it took Caleb a while to work up the courage. It was pretty funny: we were about to all get on the boat and get going back to shore, when Caleb all of the sudden said, "Alright, I have one more thing to do..." and it jumped right in! Then there was no stopping him. And then Alyssa decided she wanted to jump in, too, so the kids really got going and had a good time. It was even hot enough that I was jumping in - I know, imagine that! ;) It was so much fun that the kids begged to do it again after supper, and so we just had to go back out.
It's been a busy week here just managing day to day life. Tending the garden, mowing the lawn, cooking, laundry, getting groceries, keeping a teething baby happy... On Wednesday I got an oil change in van. It's been overdue, and I hate doing it, but finally decided I shouldn't wait any longer. I purposely chose Wednesday, so that we could walk across the street to the farmer's market. The boys had fun walking around a bit, and for the most part things went fine. The whole thing took almost two hours, and we were getting a little antsy at the end.
Looking forward to a fun weekend as my sister is in town and we've got lots of family activities planned!
Friday, July 29, 2016
Wednesday, July 20, 2016
keeping busy
We are enjoying summer, but it does seem to be going by somewhat quickly. Mike has been having a pretty good harvest season so far. The usual ups and downs, breakdowns, employees coming and going, and lots of after-hours phone calls in Spanish. :) Yesterday he got home an hour earlier than normal and it was so unexpected it had me flustered! Getting through the long days with four little boys is a huge mental battle for me, and I've got myself pretty well conditioned for his normal arrival time.
Last week Caleb was able to attend soccer camp at Unity Christian and he loved it! The first day was cancelled due to storms, and the next few days were quite warm and humid, but that didn't seem to slow him down. I have no idea if he's any good or not, but he sure plays hard and I love to see that. He seems to always have a great attitude (not getting upset when his team loses, or when he can't do something), and that is going to serve him well.
Logan had another craft time at Michael's this morning. This time we took my niece Alyssa along (and left Caleb and Levi with Harold), and I think he really enjoyed having that special time. Logan has lost EIGHT teeth now! (Caleb has lost four.) A few of his adult teeth are coming in pretty good already, otherwise his mouth would be quite empty. The other night both Logan and Caleb pulled out a tooth within minutes of each other. Logan is our thinker and always has questions about something. Love that he's so observant and inquisitive, but I have a really hard time dealing with all the questions! SO. MANY. QUESTIONS. How things work, why things are the way they are, how things were made, etc., etc., etc...
Levi. My sweetheart. Did you know it's entirely possible for a child to skip over Terrible Two's and Thunderous Three's, and have Ferocious Four's come in without any warning?? I was so lulled into complacency with his easygoing spirit that this shift has been rather shocking. I KNOW the sweetheart is still in there, he sneaks out from time to time, it's just hard to find in the midst of the craziness of big brothers being home for the summer, and baby brother requiring lots of my attention. I gave the boys haircuts last night, and I'm pretty sure Mike wanted Levi's shorter, but I just couldn't bear to cut that beautiful hair off. He gets the perfect blonde highlights in summer. I'm pretty jealous of Caleb's hair, too.
Jackson is scooting around a fair bit. I really need to work on gates for the stairs soon... He's still very vocal, especially during meal time - we're working on not talking/spitting while he's eating. He has been sleeping well at night, and mostly doing decent for naptimes. Last week we had to work on him being okay with Mike putting him to bed, and thankfully it only took one night of lots of crying, and the next night he did much better. I went to a friend's softball game and Mike said Jackson cried for about an hour at bedtime. It was Mike's suggestion that he put Jackson to bed again the next night to see if he'd do better. I couldn't be home and listen to him cry for me, so I went out again, but he went to bed much better! Love it that he needs me, especially as I know it won't last for long, but I've gotta be free to be separated from him sometimes!
Friday, July 8, 2016
State of Jackson
Jackson recently passed the 8 month mark (wait...what?!), and we are just having too much fun with him! He is so interactive and vocal, he fits right into this family. :) His big brothers can sure get him laughing, and that warms a mothers heart to watch. (As long as big brothers aren't doing their super annoying baby talk with him...) He laughs, squeals, squawks, and growls a lot - I can't get enough.
After weeks of struggling, Jackson is finally doing better taking solid foods. For a long time he just wasn't interested no matter what I tried - he would maybe seem excited before starting, but then barely eat anything. But now he actually gobbles up what I give him! We've tried several different fruits and vegetables now, and I think we'll just be careful with the bananas thanks to a not so fun constipation incident. Poor guy. :( Jackson generally nurses four times a day now. Boy, that's a far cry from the newborn schedule!!! Hardly seems like anything compared to the first several months. And, he generally doesn't take as long as he did for the longest time either. Phew! Ain't nobody got time for that! :)
Overall, Jackson is sleeping well. He almost always sleeps through the night, and there's been some times that he sleeps until 7am, which I much prefer to the 6:15/6:30 wake ups. :) Just that little bit of extra time helps my perspective of the day. Also, the last few days he has taken a solid morning nap, and a solid afternoon nap! Up until then it had kinda been a morning catnap, decent afternoon nap, and maybe another evening nap. This morning I put him down for a morning nap around 9:30am, and I had to wake him up at 11:45am to go visit Mike at work - that's completely unheard of for him!
Jackson has been pulling himself forward the last few days. Watch out! Baby on the move! He is ALMOST ready to sit up on his own, so close. He has two bottom teeth and looks pretty cute when he smiles. :) He is mostly in 9 month sized clothes. He likes being outside, and actually likes laying in the grass.
We sure do love our newest addition, and can't imagine our family any other way!
After weeks of struggling, Jackson is finally doing better taking solid foods. For a long time he just wasn't interested no matter what I tried - he would maybe seem excited before starting, but then barely eat anything. But now he actually gobbles up what I give him! We've tried several different fruits and vegetables now, and I think we'll just be careful with the bananas thanks to a not so fun constipation incident. Poor guy. :( Jackson generally nurses four times a day now. Boy, that's a far cry from the newborn schedule!!! Hardly seems like anything compared to the first several months. And, he generally doesn't take as long as he did for the longest time either. Phew! Ain't nobody got time for that! :)
Overall, Jackson is sleeping well. He almost always sleeps through the night, and there's been some times that he sleeps until 7am, which I much prefer to the 6:15/6:30 wake ups. :) Just that little bit of extra time helps my perspective of the day. Also, the last few days he has taken a solid morning nap, and a solid afternoon nap! Up until then it had kinda been a morning catnap, decent afternoon nap, and maybe another evening nap. This morning I put him down for a morning nap around 9:30am, and I had to wake him up at 11:45am to go visit Mike at work - that's completely unheard of for him!
Jackson has been pulling himself forward the last few days. Watch out! Baby on the move! He is ALMOST ready to sit up on his own, so close. He has two bottom teeth and looks pretty cute when he smiles. :) He is mostly in 9 month sized clothes. He likes being outside, and actually likes laying in the grass.
We sure do love our newest addition, and can't imagine our family any other way!
Sunday, July 3, 2016
boy mom
We have lots of everyday adventures around here with four little boys - some have become so normal that I forget about them! And, when it's always on to the next adventure, it's easy to move on and lose track of past events. :)
This past week had a bunch of crazy things. Monday was a day of Levi eating dog food (I've caught him snacking on it different times...); Caleb, Logan, and Levi getting a toad stuck in the spout of my watering can; Caleb and Levi both getting stung by a bee; and Levi cutting his finger pretty bad on a toilet from the cottage that Mike was breaking up to put in the trash... Rough day for Levi! Tuesday Logan got bit in the finger by a shrew, and then he and Caleb killed it for me.
On Thursday Logan lost yet another tooth. His mouth is getting pretty empty!
Friday our nephew, Luke, had open heart surgery. I was able to spend a little time at the hospital with Tom and Tera while they were waiting. Then Saturday afternoon Mike and I were able to pay a visit. He is doing well! Also, Friday evening Mike and I took the kids out for ice cream for our anniversary. :)
Today we went up to the cottage for 4th of July activities. Mike is staying overnight with Caleb, Logan, and Levi, but I came back home with Jackson. So much I want to get done in the peace and quiet!! But, sleep is starting to win out...
This past week had a bunch of crazy things. Monday was a day of Levi eating dog food (I've caught him snacking on it different times...); Caleb, Logan, and Levi getting a toad stuck in the spout of my watering can; Caleb and Levi both getting stung by a bee; and Levi cutting his finger pretty bad on a toilet from the cottage that Mike was breaking up to put in the trash... Rough day for Levi! Tuesday Logan got bit in the finger by a shrew, and then he and Caleb killed it for me.
On Thursday Logan lost yet another tooth. His mouth is getting pretty empty!
Friday our nephew, Luke, had open heart surgery. I was able to spend a little time at the hospital with Tom and Tera while they were waiting. Then Saturday afternoon Mike and I were able to pay a visit. He is doing well! Also, Friday evening Mike and I took the kids out for ice cream for our anniversary. :)
Today we went up to the cottage for 4th of July activities. Mike is staying overnight with Caleb, Logan, and Levi, but I came back home with Jackson. So much I want to get done in the peace and quiet!! But, sleep is starting to win out...
Thursday, June 30, 2016
wild and free
Wild and free: that's my kids on these summer days... I'm trying to provide a little bit of structure (a few chores here and there, regular meals, and afternoon quiet time as long as we're home), but they're getting plenty of unstructured playtime, and as long as they're not fighting and no one's getting hurt, I love it! :) It's so fun to see them use their imaginations and see what they come up with to do.
A couple weeks ago we spent the afternoon at a pool with some school friends. They have a membership at a country club pool, and it was so nice. The boys had so much fun. Jackson really liked the water, too. And the next week I was able to take them to a friends house to swim, so they are getting plenty of opportunities for swimming. Caleb, Logan, and Levi all did great in the water - they all went down the slide, but Caleb loved it the most. Levi did a lot of swimming with his floaties on (he was too embarrassed at the pool the week before to wear them, even though tons of kids were wearing them) and kept saying that he wanted to stay there forever. :) Of course, last weekend we were up at the cottage again, so there was lots more water fun. Logan and Levi swam to the raft. Caleb went tubing and kayaking.
A couple weeks ago a friend who had preemie twins a month before Jackson was able to come over. What a blessing to see those two little boys!! They were sooooo teeny-tiny when we first visited them in the hospital (under 2 lbs, and almost 4 lbs). One of them is having some health struggles, but it's amazing to see how far he's come.
I've been able to take Logan to a couple craft times at Michael's lately - he didn't want to do the soccer camp that Caleb is going to in a couple weeks, and this is more up his alley. This last time I ended up letting Caleb and Levi go, too, as Logan didn't want to be alone (he was the first time), and that did make it easier for me to just wander the store (and spend some $$$...).
The garden has been keeping me busy this year! Fun to be back at it after taking a hiatus last year. Overall things seem to be doing well - keeping a close eye on the tomato plants right now as they just don't seem to be growing much, but they aren't dying either. Broccoli and brussel sprouts are getting huge, cucumbers growing well, some peppers coming. Might be able to pick a few strawberries tomorrow.
Mike started full swing with harvest this week. Boy he works some long days! So much better than last year with everything we had going on, but still tough.
A couple weeks ago we spent the afternoon at a pool with some school friends. They have a membership at a country club pool, and it was so nice. The boys had so much fun. Jackson really liked the water, too. And the next week I was able to take them to a friends house to swim, so they are getting plenty of opportunities for swimming. Caleb, Logan, and Levi all did great in the water - they all went down the slide, but Caleb loved it the most. Levi did a lot of swimming with his floaties on (he was too embarrassed at the pool the week before to wear them, even though tons of kids were wearing them) and kept saying that he wanted to stay there forever. :) Of course, last weekend we were up at the cottage again, so there was lots more water fun. Logan and Levi swam to the raft. Caleb went tubing and kayaking.
A couple weeks ago a friend who had preemie twins a month before Jackson was able to come over. What a blessing to see those two little boys!! They were sooooo teeny-tiny when we first visited them in the hospital (under 2 lbs, and almost 4 lbs). One of them is having some health struggles, but it's amazing to see how far he's come.
I've been able to take Logan to a couple craft times at Michael's lately - he didn't want to do the soccer camp that Caleb is going to in a couple weeks, and this is more up his alley. This last time I ended up letting Caleb and Levi go, too, as Logan didn't want to be alone (he was the first time), and that did make it easier for me to just wander the store (and spend some $$$...).
The garden has been keeping me busy this year! Fun to be back at it after taking a hiatus last year. Overall things seem to be doing well - keeping a close eye on the tomato plants right now as they just don't seem to be growing much, but they aren't dying either. Broccoli and brussel sprouts are getting huge, cucumbers growing well, some peppers coming. Might be able to pick a few strawberries tomorrow.
Mike started full swing with harvest this week. Boy he works some long days! So much better than last year with everything we had going on, but still tough.
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
summertime
What a fun and busy several days we've had! Just keeping this household running is busy (and fun...) enough, but we've had some extra activities as well. Mike had last week Thursday and Friday off of work (his last break before harvest begins...cue the "Jaws" music...). On Thursday his brothers came over and helped with some landscaping - we put edging and stones down all along the back side of the house. They got a lot done and it looks so much better than the weeds we had growing there! Tom's wife Tera even got suckered into helping me in the garden, and the kids had fun playing. :)
Friday morning we headed up to the cottage for a couple days of sun and fun. It was great weather, and we had a great time being together as a family. I could have handled Jackson napping better, but he at least did decent overnight. :) Our time there was filled with fishing, swimming, tubing, skiing (my 40 year old husband has still got it!), kayaking, paddle boarding, and just plain hanging out.
On Sunday we celebrated Mike's 40th birthday! I had asked friends and family to send him birthday cards, so he's had a lot of fun reading all the cards that have been coming in the mail each day.
This week Caleb and Logan are going to Vacation Bible School at our church. They were very excited to see some of their school friends there. :) Yesterday morning Levi, Jackson, and I stayed busy mowing the lawn; and today we got groceries. Gotta make the most of my time with only two kiddos!
Last night was a fun dinner at my parent's house. My mom had invited my brother Mike's co-worker, Hugo, and his family over; and also my brother Eric's co-worker, Nabor and his wife. So, we all gathered around the table and had a fun evening trying to converse. Thankfully there were enough people there that are bilingual (Hugo and his wife, Nabor, and my Mike) to keep things going. :) It was a very enjoyable evening. I've got some tired boys today thanks to being there a little late, especially considering VBS, but I think it was worth it.
Jackson is a little on the cranky side. Possibly his other bottom tooth? Or maybe that it's difficult to get regular naps, or maybe the cereal I'm trying with him, or....who knows! :)
Friday morning we headed up to the cottage for a couple days of sun and fun. It was great weather, and we had a great time being together as a family. I could have handled Jackson napping better, but he at least did decent overnight. :) Our time there was filled with fishing, swimming, tubing, skiing (my 40 year old husband has still got it!), kayaking, paddle boarding, and just plain hanging out.
On Sunday we celebrated Mike's 40th birthday! I had asked friends and family to send him birthday cards, so he's had a lot of fun reading all the cards that have been coming in the mail each day.
This week Caleb and Logan are going to Vacation Bible School at our church. They were very excited to see some of their school friends there. :) Yesterday morning Levi, Jackson, and I stayed busy mowing the lawn; and today we got groceries. Gotta make the most of my time with only two kiddos!
Last night was a fun dinner at my parent's house. My mom had invited my brother Mike's co-worker, Hugo, and his family over; and also my brother Eric's co-worker, Nabor and his wife. So, we all gathered around the table and had a fun evening trying to converse. Thankfully there were enough people there that are bilingual (Hugo and his wife, Nabor, and my Mike) to keep things going. :) It was a very enjoyable evening. I've got some tired boys today thanks to being there a little late, especially considering VBS, but I think it was worth it.
Jackson is a little on the cranky side. Possibly his other bottom tooth? Or maybe that it's difficult to get regular naps, or maybe the cereal I'm trying with him, or....who knows! :)
Monday, June 6, 2016
doe
Our devotional after supper tonight was about deer. Mike tries to throw Levi a soft ball question since his listening skills are....well....not that great yet. (I think if he actually listened he would get a lot of it.) So anyways, here's how things went tonight:
Mike: Levi, what is a fawn?
Levi: *no response*
Mike: Okay, Levi, what is a doe?
Levi: A kind of bread?
Oh, bless my heart!! We laughed, and he felt bad, so I spent some time on the couch with him apologizing for laughing, but telling him I was actually impressed that he was thinking and trying to answer the question! He just came to the wrong conclusion, and it was awfully cute. :)
Jackson started working on his first tooth last week. CRANKY. We are having so much fun with him as he becomes more interactive. He's been liking to 'blow raspberries' for a while now, and since last night we've tested him a few times and he'll do it in response after you do it first. Pretty fun to have a back and forth with him like that. He's been sleeping fairly well lately - I think we've slept the whole way through for a few nights now. He'll usually (I use that term loosely) take a short nap in the morning, a bigger nap in the middle of the day, and maybe a shorter one again later. Now today was slightly different because he dropped a feeding. Big news: over the last week or so his spitting up has been greatly reduced. Can it be??? Holding my breath on that one. I've tried some more solid food here and there (cereal and applesauce), but it's still not going all that great. At first he seemed pretty into it and ate good, but then at subsequent feedings he would refuse it or gag on it. Hmmm.... Maybe we'll just take a break again for a while, we'll see.
So far summer break is going pretty well with Caleb and Logan home. I'm trying to have some structure, but not too much. They get PLENTY of free play time, but I also have some chores for them, and give them a few worksheets to do during quiet time.
Thursday evening Mike and I did something very neighborly and put an old toilet with a pot of flowers in Mike and Emily's driveway. :) When you come across an old toilet you can't just let it go to waste! We thought it would be a nice addition to Natalie's graduation open house decor. (The party was Saturday, and we were nice enough to take it back Friday night.)
Friday night Mike, Jackson, and I enjoyed a beautiful drive up to Newaygo. Unfortunately, our reason for going fell through, but at least we had a nice couple hours together! We went up there to buy some aluminum edging that we found on craigslist, but the guy didn't show up. A while after getting back home I got a text from him saying he was sorry - he had been working outside without his phone and lost track of time (we had texted, emailed, and called...). Nice.
Mike: Levi, what is a fawn?
Levi: *no response*
Mike: Okay, Levi, what is a doe?
Levi: A kind of bread?
Oh, bless my heart!! We laughed, and he felt bad, so I spent some time on the couch with him apologizing for laughing, but telling him I was actually impressed that he was thinking and trying to answer the question! He just came to the wrong conclusion, and it was awfully cute. :)
Jackson started working on his first tooth last week. CRANKY. We are having so much fun with him as he becomes more interactive. He's been liking to 'blow raspberries' for a while now, and since last night we've tested him a few times and he'll do it in response after you do it first. Pretty fun to have a back and forth with him like that. He's been sleeping fairly well lately - I think we've slept the whole way through for a few nights now. He'll usually (I use that term loosely) take a short nap in the morning, a bigger nap in the middle of the day, and maybe a shorter one again later. Now today was slightly different because he dropped a feeding. Big news: over the last week or so his spitting up has been greatly reduced. Can it be??? Holding my breath on that one. I've tried some more solid food here and there (cereal and applesauce), but it's still not going all that great. At first he seemed pretty into it and ate good, but then at subsequent feedings he would refuse it or gag on it. Hmmm.... Maybe we'll just take a break again for a while, we'll see.
So far summer break is going pretty well with Caleb and Logan home. I'm trying to have some structure, but not too much. They get PLENTY of free play time, but I also have some chores for them, and give them a few worksheets to do during quiet time.
Thursday evening Mike and I did something very neighborly and put an old toilet with a pot of flowers in Mike and Emily's driveway. :) When you come across an old toilet you can't just let it go to waste! We thought it would be a nice addition to Natalie's graduation open house decor. (The party was Saturday, and we were nice enough to take it back Friday night.)
Friday night Mike, Jackson, and I enjoyed a beautiful drive up to Newaygo. Unfortunately, our reason for going fell through, but at least we had a nice couple hours together! We went up there to buy some aluminum edging that we found on craigslist, but the guy didn't show up. A while after getting back home I got a text from him saying he was sorry - he had been working outside without his phone and lost track of time (we had texted, emailed, and called...). Nice.
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