EmJ's Party

We celebrated EmJ's birthday last Saturday in a combined party with her cousin, Maia. She had a great time playing with her cousins, eating, and of course, opening gifts. (Yipee, now she has a zillion art projects in the works...I keep stepping on crayons, open glue containers, and still-wet painted masterpieces.)

EmJ is not a big fan of the way the family sings (if you can call it singing...see Bon Jovi post) Happy Birthday. She kept her composure, though. I did catch her tearing up, but she fought it off! Her cake was yummy and she loved the pink frosting.

Emmeline and mom!

Happy Easter!!

Unfortunately for our Easter pictures, we have 9 am church...hence, even while waking up at 6 am to make sure everyone was ready, there wasn't much time for pictures. The kids were adorable, though, in their Easter best! Benjamin's fake smile is my favorite...say cheese!

As soon as Benjamin saw that there was candy in his basket, he was happy. He plopped down in front of the candy and started chowing. Every time we tried to get him to go look for eggs he said, "NO, don't want to!" (It's his new FAVORITE phrase...along with "doo-pid," as in, "'Benjamin called me 'stupid'!' 'Stop being a tattle-tale, Joshua.' 'Yeah, stop tattle-tale, doo-pid!'"

The Easter Bunny brought Samantha a Mariner's hat!

Awww! She's one month old today!

Bon Jovi on the Sabbath

This is my family...

Haircut!

Here is Benjamin...last Friday playing at the beach. (We went to the Loveshack up on Hood Canal for the weekend. It was a nice getaway, and the kids loved spending some quality time outdoors. They needed it. I think we all have cabin fever...sick of winter!) Luke said, "Do you want to go to the beach and throw rocks?" Benjamin replied, "Yeah, Kachow!" I posted this picture so you can get one last glimpse at his shag.

I've been imortalized by seashell graffiti.

And here's Benjamin Monday night! He finally succumbed to having his hair cut! Woohoo! Luke held him on his lap, and as soon as the lady started cutting he stuck out his lower lip and got big crocidile tears in his eyes, but he never protested. When they got home, he hid his head in shame (I think he liked looking like Tommy Boy), sat down to dinner, pushed his plate away immediately, and unwrapped his lollipop! Whew! No more haircuts for us until September!

Quote of the Day

"Phasing out the human race will solve every problem on earth, social and environmental."
--Dave Forman, founder of Earth First

I'm speechless.

Note to self....

In the future, do not mention to my six year old that her hair may be long enough for Locks of Love.

Oh my.

Spiky 1/4 inch bangs are not, nor have ever been, in style.

"I cut it so that we can make a wig for people with no hair!"

Three Cheers!

Three cheers for neighbors that have saved my life (on more than one occasion), and for online grocery shopping!!!

(If anyone has any coupon codes for free delivery, feel free to pass them on....I'm on a mission to see how long I can go without actually going to Safeway!)

Here's your Samantha fix for the day. She'll be two weeks old tomorrow...at her doctor's appointment this week she had surpassed her birthweight and the nurse said, "Well, she'll never be this small again!" Oh, what a sad fact! This adorable red outfit was given to EmJ before she was born (we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl) and all the kids have worn it. It's kind of a rite of passage...and for the girls, the hideous headband is a necessary evil! What kind of mother would I be if I didn't allow frills, if only for a day...okay, just for the picture...for posterity! (And actually, this is the second time I've subjected her to the headband. I also put one on her when we left the hospital! Only once more, Samantha, for your blessing...but that one is pretty cute!)

So, today is my first "real" day with four kids. I laughed this morning as we got into the car to take Luke to the bus stop...the kids and Luke were all fed, clothed, clean, etc. I was wearing my jammies, sneakers with no socks, and my clashing red (maternity) jacket...YIKES...I swore I'd never become that kind of mom! Needless to say, as soon as we got home I showered and put on some real clothes. Now I feel better. I even got a few things done today--the dishwasher is going, the boys' room is clean, grocery shopping is done, and the bright pink spot of paint got cleaned off my chair. (Watercoloring is simply not a suitable activity for a two year old, okay?!) Maybe getting into a routine will be easier than I think. (Knock on wood.) Even as the sleep deprivation increases, and the money drain continues, (I swear, if this house doesn't collapse on us, it'll be a good year) I feel pretty good!