Things I'm Loving Right Now

1. Double Dates. We were invited to a double date, which turned into a triple date when we ran into another couple. This is my jam right now. John and I don't have many opportunities for adult conversation without kid interruptions. That's fine. It's a short season, but we enjoy the opportunities when we get them. Now, we find ourselves going on as many double dates  as regular ones. 

2. Running. Running is going well right now and I'm so thankful that my body is working enough so I can run every other day. Schedule, ability, weather, stamina, and desire all have to line up for me to go for a run. So far, I've been able to stay consistent and it feels great. 

3. Citrus. This time of year offers so much sweet fruit. We are all loving cutie oranges (Lark goes crazy if he sees them) and there's always a pineapple on the counter waiting to be cut. (Ridge ate so much pineapple yesterday his tongue was raw-he kept asking, "Why it hurt?")

4. Hat. Wearing a hat is NOT my norm but I finally bought one. Inspired by one of my babysitters and another friend, I made the choice for a spunky beanie for some of our colder days. When I wear it, I always get comments. No flattery, just different versions of, "oh you're wearing a hat." Yes. I'm wearing a hat. The end.

5. Hot tea. When I talked to my doctor about a healthy diet, she mentioned that green tea was good for us. In my effort to be healthier, I've switched from "quit eating so much food" to "what can I put in my body to help me feel good." It's a switch from no no no to yes yes yes. There's a list of things, but mint green tea has been a calming addition. I brew a cup every afternoon as the kids get out of school. I either take it with me for carpool or sip it while I wait for carpool to come to me. It warms me up and it calms me down. It's not as fun as a brownie, but I feel better!

Writing this list helps me see that there are things going well in winter-who knew!? It's not summer, so I need all the practice I can get on focusing on happy/good things. I don't usually get comments, but feel free to tell me things going well for YOU.

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Valentine's Decor: Printing With A Potato

To my surprise, I tried a random craft over the weekend that turned out well. I pulled my inspiration from every place except from pinterest. It was a combination of high school art and things I've heard in passing over the years. 

The kids enjoy decorating for all the holidays. A.L.L. While I tend towards "less is more," they lean towards "less is sad, more is more is more, can't stop, won't stop." I like to find a happy middle of ways I can decorate for little to no money. 

I made a potato stamp (cut in half, carve out a shape) and used the kids squirt paint. They all got into it. Burl was into the carving part. Fern was into the coloring part. Ridge was into the mess part. 

I stamped them on watercolor paper and taped them above the currently naked mantel. It was way too easy and I love the mismatched uniformity to it. Next up is a big yellow piece for Fern. 

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A Great Story

"Mama, can I please give Lark his bottle tonight PLEASE?" Burl asked. Lark couldn't care less who gave him his goodnight bottle as long as there is perfectly warmed milk in it. 

The four ounces went by too quickly for Burl (they always do for me too), so he went for the books. John and I spied from the crack in the door, and John insisted that I take pictures. 

Their faces were precious. The big and the little. Fresh from dinner and baths. Doing their best together. We know it's special, they know it's special, and all I can see is Burl's dimple and Lark's little mouth. This is a good story. 

Suns Out Tums Out

The trampoline we got for Christmas has already earned it's worth several times over. Thank you to John's parents! My FIL asked the kids if they've been playing on it, then answered his own question, "well I guess we haven't had the weather for it, really."

Au contraire mon frère. They're out there almost everyday unless it's wet. The neighbor kids (who have a trampoline 50 yards away from ours) come over and they have a big time. I took these pictures on a beautiful sunny day with then temps reached into the upper 50s and they were "burning up." Suns out/tums out.

Today it's even nicer and warmer! The doors are open, the heat is off, and to top it off school was cancelled because of the flu! Fern is in her bathing suit. Burl just ran inside, grabbed is glove and baseball, and yelled "it's the perfect day to play outside!" Ridge is keeping up with the big kids after a short nap in the car. Lark is taking a big ole nap. We're living large and making it just fine this winter. 

Lark's Little Party

Lark dismantled the title of Baby Of The Family when he was born, weighing a solid 12 pounds. Hours after he was born, John was googling gigantism. During my pregnancy, I would ask my friend if I was going to have another 10 pound baby, to which she always jokingly said, "no-he's going to be 12 pounds." We would laugh because we thought it wasn't possible. 

And here we are. One year later we have a big, happy boy. On Saturday we had a little brunch with our family to celebrate him and to give him cake. He liked the attention and received it well. 

He had one little overwhelming moment when we gathered in a semi-circle around him. (Just like Burl did at his first birthday.) He hid his face in John's neck, but came right back out when he saw his cake with candle. 

He dug into his cake and enjoyed it to the max. 

Then, we opened gifts. By WE, I mean WE. He had a lot of help opening and playing with his toys, and he loved them almost as much as his cake:

We could all tell a little bit of difference with him. He new that he was getting some special attention and he responded with open-mouth, tongue-twirled smiles. We tried to get a family picture, and how poignant that with four children, this is the best we got...

It was a sweet morning for our sweet boy-we all know what it is to love a child, and celebrating them comes easy. 

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Lark Is 1!

Our sweet baby is one today! I'm ending my night by staring at pictures at him from today and from a year ago. What a trip! I'm about to head into his room and hold him. First, I'm going to post pictures from our simple family celebrations today. 

Before school we went for doughnuts. It was Burl's idea because he's almost 8 years into this family and he knows how we like to celebrate. Sweets-adventures-mama won't say no policy. 

And more doughnuts after school drop off. Duh.

We had a few simple gifts for him that we gave to him past his bedtime. 

Hopefully we will get to play with them more fully tomorrow. The rocker is going back to the store if he doesn't giddy up already. 

Fortunately/Unfortunately the popcorn popper is here to stay. He got the hang of it very quickly!

We gave him some ice cream and sang happy birthday while he smiled at each of us. Tomorrow we will have a family brunch for him. For tonight, John and I are hugging and high-5ing because we made it with four babies this year! Lark-attack, we adore him!

One Year Ago Today

One year and 70 pounds ago, I took this picture. It was the day before Lark was born and the peak of my discomfort. No one knew that the next day would bring forth a 12 pound baby, justifying all the pain. He was worth all of it and I remember that day with so much joy, but it sure is nice to run/get things off the floor/and pee less than 12 times a day!