New Addition

Work is progressing nicely on our new master bedroom and bathroom addition.
On October 8th the floor joists were completed.


By October 19th we had two exterior and two interior walls!

The kids got in on the action of knocking out an interior bedroom wall.

They are very much looking forward to each having their own rooms. Cooper says his is going to be a Dinosaur room!

Henry didn't get to help, but he sure is cute!

Gimme Six Harvest

One of the many advantages of living at
Grammie & Grampa's house is the amount of time the kids get to spend with their grandparents. The beautiful land is also a bonus!
Yesterday while the girls were doing homework and I was doing chores around the house, Grampa came home with some guys to pick the Gimme Five vineyard. Cooper jumped at the opportunity to hang out with Grampa, especially when he heard that Topas was out there. Cooper loves Topas and says "he's a nice guy".

Cooper supervising Topas.

Sampling the grapes to make sure they are just right for Gimme Six
Checking out the harvest

Relaxing after a hard day's work

Thanks to Grampa for letting Cooper help and for taking such great pictures!

One of Those Days

Today was one of THOSE days. Yes, one of those days when everything was just about perfect.
I woke up to a quiet house. It was 6:30 (I never sleep that late). There was hot coffee and all the kids were still asleep. It would have been better if Jason was home or the kids slept long enough for me to watch Private Practice, but it was pretty good nonetheless.
Then I got everyone up and ready and there were no fights. We got doughnuts for breakfast and even though they didn't have the kind the kids requested (chocolate twist), everyone was happy and said "Thank You".
We watched Grace's soccer game and then came home with our friend, Halle, in tow.
Once home the kids played nicely together blowing bubbles and riding in the "Golf Jeep" (golf cart).
After lunch I took all the kids (including Halle) to Emma Jo's game. By then the sun was out and Jason was able to meet us there. Henry slept and I was able to watch the whole game. It would have been better if Emma hadn't been hit in the face with the soccer ball, but at least she was fine by the time the game was over.
On the way home from the game we got ice cream (and Starbucks) and brainstormed Halloween costumes for Emma and Halle.

All in all it has been a great day. The kids have been fabulous, I got all the dishes and laundry done and Jason did the grocery shopping! The only thing that would have been better is if Henry would have taken a bottle. I'm really stressed out since I'm going back to work in a week and Henry is now refusing to drink from a bottle. I'm hoping Connie is more patient than I am and that she can get him to take one!

These Toys Crack Me Up

In the last week or so, Henry has started smiling and laughing. He loves to lay on his playmat and "talk" to his toys. This morning while all the other kids were sleeping and I was watching the news Henry was enjoying a little morning time with his toys.

Lucky Charms

Grace is playing soccer for the second year. Her team decided to be called the "Lucky Charms". We were blessed with a great coach who ensures that all the girls have FUN. In fact, he reiterates at every practice and game that the number one rule for his team is to have fun. In addition to the fun, the girls are learning the very basics of soccer.

Grace scored a goal in the first game of the season, unfortunately between Henry and Cooper I didn't have a chance to take a photo. Last Saturday I was able to catch a quick video of Grace playing since it was just me and Henry watching Grace's game (Jason and Cooper were in Cloverdale watching Emma Jo).

I'm going to try to remember to charge the camera and bring it to both games on Saturday to take some pictures of both Grace and Emma Jo.

More Changes

Just when we were all getting used to life with a family of 6, we've changed it up again. NO, we are not adding to the family, but we are adding to the house. We've decided that a family of six needs more than 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. We have begun a major remodel/addition which will result in a 5 bedroom, 3 bath house. Each of the kids will have their own rooms, and I will finally get my soaker tub!

In order to make this go as smoothly as possible, Jason, the kids and I have moved up to my parents. They graciously offered their house to us for the duration, and have moved into the back cottage in order to give us more room. I'm still in awe of their generosity and the kids are still trying to figure out how exactly this is going to work. "Will Grammie have breakfast with us everyday?" "Can I ride on Grampa's forklift?" "Are they really going to sleep back there?" "Are we going to our house today?"

Last night was the first night in this newest reality and for the most part it worked pretty well. I'm sure by the time we have it all figured out it will be time to move back home. I have a feeling when we do leave there will be withdrawal pains, for the kids... and the grandparents.

New Reality

I think I'm starting to adjust to my new reality of being mom to four children. But I had forgotten just how busy life can be with a newborn. Although it seems like I'm busy all the time, it also seems like I don't get anything done, except feed Henry.


My typical day goes something like this:

~ 6am - wake up and get a cup of coffee, nurse Henry
~ 6:15 - Cooper comes out to family room and we turn on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
~ 6:30 - Grace joins us in the family room
~ 7:15 - wake up Emma Jo
~ 7:30 - Emma finally gets out of bed and heads towards the shower
~ 8:15 - out the door on the way to school
~ 9am - Henry and I arrive back home - he is hungry and nurses until about 10am
~ 10:15 - shower and get dressed
~ 10:30 - start laundry
~ 11am - pump milk so we can try and get Henry to take a bottle
~ Noon - Henry wakes up and wants to eat - realize I'm famished
~ 1pm - finally get lunch after Henry falls back to sleep
~ 1:30 - fold and put away laundry, try to pick up the house, clean the kitchen
~ 2:30 - Nurse Henry
~ 3pm - Head out to pick up girls from school
~ 3:30-6pm - either hang out with the girls and help them with homework or take them to soccer practice
~ 5pm - Nurse Henry
~ 6pm-7pm - spend time with Jason and all the kids, eat dinner
~ 7pm-8:30 - nurse Henry
~ 9pm - Bedtime
~ Midnight - Nurse Henry
~ 2am - Nurse Henry
~ 4am - Nurse Henry
~ 6am - start all over again

In addition to the above, I try to fit in everyday life necessities like grocery shopping, doctor's appointments, banking, sewing on Girl Scout patches and buying diapers. Not to mention the baby announcements that are sitting on my kitchen counter waiting to be addressed or the Thank You notes that have yet to be sent. Then on top of everyday life, we are gearing up for a major home remodel and addition. That involves cleaning out closets and cupboards, determining what we can give to charity, what we need to take with us during the move and what can be put in storage for the next six months. It also involves trips to the Building Department and excursions to the Bath & Kitchen store and visits on-line to try to pick out a new soaking tub, shower and bathroom fixtures.

Since my day seems to be full now I wonder how I will manage in a few weeks when I go back to work. I'm going to need to figure out how to shower in the morning before I leave the house. The major obstacle I'm facing is worrying that Cooper will wake up while I'm in the shower and he will accidentally hurt Henry while he is trying to help. Maybe I could leave the family room TV turned to a cartoon and Cooper will migrate out there on his own? Then I'm going to have to figure out how to get us all out of the house an hour earlier than we leave currently. Henry is going to have to start sleeping better for that to be a possibility. And actually with the temporary move we'll need to leave the house about 20 minutes earlier than we did last year since we will be living further away from daycare and school.

I guess we will continue to take it one day at a time and figure it out as we go.