Do you ever?

Want to post all the ridiculous things that happen to you as a mother over the week, but each day's insanity pushes out the previous day's?

Today I got home from taking Roland to the bookstore.  He HAD to have the Mark of Athena, and he bought it (all 42 copies in the library system were checked out.).  That was a nightmare, as expected for any after school outing.  I even followed through on the threat not to buy Lillian the Curious George book she'd picked.

We got home, the big kids helped get the littles inside while I finished up dinner, and they stayed outside to play.  Roland comes to tell me that Lillian is down the street.  (when supervised by her older siblings, she is expected to stay in the yard)  I come out to deal with it, and she is fighting with Molly, on her bike.  She is definitely not allowed to tool around on that without asking!  So I drag her inside, to discover Molly has found a new malfeasance.  Jack took the taco sauce from the table and poured a goodly amount onto Anthony's tray.

It just doesn't stop!

What's keeping you so busy?

Yesterday my dad came and installed locks on the door to the garage and the front door.  I'd spent tons of time dragging the little guys out of the garage, and Jack could leave through the front if he wished.  I was so grateful.

This morning, during family scripture time, once all the kids and Wesley were ready for the day, Anthony came lurching in from the garage (he'd been able to get in because the older kids had been going in for their shoes and backpacks).  In horrible slow motion, we realized he was covered in cat poop.  Wesley commented:  "Now I know why monsters in movies walk the way they do.  It's after babies."

Has it been a month?

We've been trucking along.  

More soon!

What is that saying?

Adventure:  Something you'd rather be telling the story of than experiencing.

I feel like that applies to parenting, especially in the Summer.

This Summer, most days haven't been truly terrible, but each one of them has had at least one hour that I would just love to run out on, and tell the story of later, without having to get through it.

Like yesterday.  It wasn't too bad a day, but by 3:30, I'd kicked the kids out to the back yard for 'outside play time'.  Things went downhill from there.  Jack turned on the hose.  I turned it off.  Lillian and Jack played in the mud created by the hose.  I bathed them, asking Roland to take Anthony to his room and play with him.  Roland soon yelled that the baby was poopy and leaking on the floor.  I called for Molly to watch him in the tub, making sure that Anthony didn't drown while I cleaned up Roland's room.

Anthony threw up a little after being cleaned up, which I attributed to him eating soap.  It was a precursor however, of things to come.

We managed to have dinner (Wesley had to work late), and get out the door.  I left Roland behind, and instructed Lillian to not let Jack fall asleep on the way to the library.  By the time I looked back 2 minutes later, Lillian herself was asleep.  We woke her up to go inside the library.

We met a friend, and Jack soon started playing in the sensory table in the Discovery room.  He has played in this rice filled box with 'dinosaur bones' underneath a lot, so at this point he has just started throwing the rice.
I realize, we have to leave, because I cannot make him stop doing this, and when I pick up Anthony, I realize he has a fever.  (Which really explained the vomiting).

Later that, I saw my friend at church, and her baby had a fever (they'd inadvertently shared a bottle).  Nothing like spreading the joy around!              

How old is Anthony?

Yesterday my littlest turned one.  We just did a little song for him...He was amazed by all those voices directed at him.  The camera got left at church last week (Please please be findable!) so I don't have a photo, though some sisters took pictures, so maybe they'll be forthcoming.

Anthony and his cousin Will have been so cute to watch together...we'll miss him so much now that he is returning to VA.

At one:

Anthony is taking several steps, falling, then standing back up and walking again.  So he is making that transition from toddler to walker.

He is in the 22nd percentile for height and 33rd for weight.  He is not one of my bigger babies!

He says some words...Hi, dad, uh-oh, Lillian, ba *(sometimes means 'bye').

He opens and closes his hands when we do 'Sunbeam' or 'Popcorn popping'.  He is very excited by his musical contribution.

He loves to clap and laugh.

He drinks only cows' milk, and lots of it!

He likes to eat our table food, and in the tradition of my kids, loves sweets and fruit.

He is completely essential to us.

What about a nature hike?

 Our cub scouts went on a guided hike through Minto Brown.  I saw parts of it I'd never seen.

 Roland wasn't there, he was at Track practice, and so was Molly.

Here we are walking over a pond on a fallen log.

What's the down side?

So we're pretty much having the summer I dreamed of for years...i.e., one with the money for gas, and some modest summer activities.  I've been driving to swim lessons, Molly's in a summer theater camp this week, and Roland and Lillian started football last night (track wraps up this week).

The downside is that I am exhausted!  Summer days are SOOOO long.  Last night, when we all got home from football (some of us went to the library since it was so wet at the park) we ate dinner.  Then the kids turned on the movie while I was bathing Anthony.  I made my feelings clear that I did not want everyone to stay up.  But Jack was cuddling his dad (whom he has been ignoring lately), and I was overruled.  So I said 'fine' and went to take a bath.  But Jack heard the bath running, ran upstairs and commandeered the bath.  He ran out almost all the hot water, I took a lukewarm bath after Wesley put him to bed, and then we stayed up late (to me now) to chat, since we still hadn't had much of a chance.

Jack dumped the contents of a bottle of soy sauce into the formula container yesterday.  It'd be a lot more fun to just burn the money.

Some people who live at my house are pretty cute!