It's been a while!

I do have good reasons for not posting for close to two weeks but I still hate to go that long.  There's been a lot going on around here, some good, some not so good, and it's been a bit all-encompassing.  The not-so-good was the inevitable bout of sickness that hit a week ago.  Audrey was nailed the hardest with a nasty cough, sore throat, fever (only for a day), and a few throw-ups (just at the onset).  She was bone-tired all week, definitely not her usual spunky self, doing a lot of laying around on the couch and a few times disappearing all together only to be found sleeping on either her bed or ours.  David was the initial alarm ringing in the storm when he threw up in the nursery at a church function last Thursday evening (I felt so bad!).  But he's been almost symptom free since then.  A bit more tired and grumpy than usual (and very feisty!), and maybe a low-grade fever for the first day but nothing more.  Samuel had a mild cough but not much more than that.  So, overall we really can't complain for our first round of illness, but regardless it wiped us out for a week and made for some long days at home.

On Saturday evening we dressed up and attended the wedding reception for a good friend of Zack's from flight school who we've kept in touch with over the years.  We knew it was risky taking the kids, as it was hard to assess their symptoms, but they did great and enjoyed dancing and chasing each other around.  Audrey did have a cough fit that lead her and I to the bathroom and caused her to vomit all over me, but what's an outing without drama?!

Zack and I have been able to remain healthy but are both pretty worn down.  I'm doing my very best to take care of myself but it's really hard!  David continues to give me hassles in the morning (although today he let me sleep until 6:20, nearly an hour longer than yesterday!) and this can make for long days (and mornings since he's not typically a happy camper for the first 30-60 min. of his waking - very hard for me!). 

Zack had Tuesday morning off and I was able to attend my biblestudy solo which was a real treat, especially since Audrey still was in no state to attend nursery.  I snapped this on my way out the door.  I thought it was so cute that everyone was looking at magazines (Zack's breakfast activity of choice).

Pregnancy-wise I still can't complain.  I'm almost 34 weeks and still feel blessed to have "easy" pregnancies.  I've had a hard time sleeping lately and remember this with all the kids, mostly hormone related I think since I'm not super uncomfortable physically (although I do prefer sleeping on my back and can't wait to do that again!!!).  We are so eager and excited to meet this little one but still very much up in the air about our names, which we felt more sure about a month ago than we do now. 

Dressed up for the wedding reception.  Poor Audrey got a nice shiner on her cheek, which moved to her eye, when she was jumping on our bed during naptime - maybe she learned a lesson??

A lot of the good going on around here has been some timely visits from friends and family.  Last week GG (my awesome mother-in-law, Trish) came to help out for four days and three nights while Zack was away.  It was such a special time to spend with her for both myself and the kids.  I spent one day subbing while she was home with the kids, one day we went to the Children's Museum together and then a Bunco fundraiser at my church in the evening (when David got sick), and another day was spent tending to sick kids (and giving each other extra times of rest).  She was also able to attend two of Samuel's swim lessons which was special for both of them since she and Allan had given them to Samuel for his birthday.  Unfortunately my camera had issues and erased all the pictures from her visit so I have none to post ;-(

At just about the time I was ready to pull my hair out from exhaustion and frustration with the kids a UPS truck arrived in our driveway with a package from Grandma Irene full of wonderful homemade quilted goods.  It cheered us all SOOOO much!! This is Audrey's new butterfly quilt for her bed.  It's gorgeous!  Also in the box were placemats, hotpads, aprons for the kids, and two mats (airport and construction site) for the kids to play on.  It seriously changed the tone in our house from glum to joyful.  Thank you, Irene!!!!

Yesterday, after an especially challenging morning with David, Nancy, a friend from church, came over with her 11 year old son, Seth, and their adorable bunny rabbit, Sophie, to give me some relief.  We all had such a nice time together.  Nancy has generously offered to help out in any way possible with the kids when she can and I'm doing my best to take her up on that offer.  I'm so horrible about asking for and accepting help (a very real character flaw) and I'm really trying to work on allowing others to help. 

The kids enjoying Sophie the rabbit and Nancy monitoring to be sure poor Sophie didn't get too much love, especially from David who LOVES animals!

Seth helped Samuel with some Legos he got for his birthday.  Seth also brought his guitar which he played as we were getting lunch ready.  It was amazing the calming affect it had on everyone.  The kids just sat transfixed as they watched him play.  Samuel now wants a guitar!

There is always more I'd like to write but for now I need to end this and get us all fed.  Today we are venturing out to Costco to do some much needed grocery shopping!!

Happy Halloween!

After dinner our family ventured out into our neighborhood for some trick-or-treat fun.  We were curious to see how the older two would do this year now that they get the concept a bit more.  They were definitely more timid than most other kids but did a good job of saying "trick-or-treat" and "thank you" at most houses.  Our neighborhood is pretty hit and miss with participating houses so we got a nice little walk in.  After our initial loop Samuel was ready to come home but Audrey was just getting warmed up and asked to continue on.  She and I ended up staying out about a half hour longer and she was pretty excited about all the extra candy she was able to collect (definitely a girl after her dad's heart!).  She would have continued on but we were out of houses and it had been close to an hour and a half of walking and it was time to head in for bed.  We by no means have a ton of candy but enough to last the kids a few months on dad's one-a-day rationing!  David was allowed to walk up to two houses and was pretty delighted with the candy he received.  We thought he'd put up more of a protest about being caged in the stroller the whole time but there was so much to look at that he stayed distracted and happy most of the time.  Next year we'll have our hands full as I have a feeling the kids will be sprinting from house to house, and it wouldn't surprise me if David is the instigator!  Well, it's off to bed for me because with young kids there is no such thing as an extra hour of sleep when the clocks are turned back!

Precious!

Samuel and Audrey have both shown more interest in feeling the baby and Audrey especially has wanted to kiss and hug my belly quite frequently lately.  They have both talked about watching me deliver the baby and although we've tossed around the idea we're not sure they are really ready for it.  But it would be pretty special to have them there to greet their new sibling!  Regardless, I think they are going to be pretty involved (both good and bad) when we bring the baby home.  Audrey has been going through a tough spell lately and I almost think it will be good for her to have the baby to distract her.  Mostly she's just getting up too early and the exhaustion is causing some negative side-effects (imagine that!) that equal multiple melt-downs, irrational responses to requests, lots of flat out ignoring my directions, and some not-so-nice behavior towards her brothers (who often dish it right back and she ends up in tears).  All this to say, I think a baby might be the magic she needs to snap her out of her spell.  Good thing this little girl of mine is so adorable because it really makes it hard to be mad at her for long.  Plus, she really does have a precious, tender spirit and frequently asks for "lovin" after being chastised.  Something I gladly give her regardless of how frustrated I am because, frankly, I need the lovin too after all the nagging I feel like I'm doing!

31 weeks

I had Zack quickly snap this shot of me in the midst of sweeping because I realized that it's been quite a while since I've taken a belly shot.  As you can see, the baby is growing nicely and I have my typical beach ball belly.  Physically I'm still feeling good with the exception of being pretty exhausted which I know is due to chasing three little ones around all day and not ever getting to sleep in past 5:30 or 6am.  I am also pretty anemic.  I was early on in my pregnancy, which is very normal especially since I was nursing for the first month or two, but typically by now my blood work comes back good.  Yesterday I received the results in the mail and I'm actually more anemic than I was early on which really surprised me.  I had been taking extra iron but stopped about a month ago because I thought I was fine, needless to say I started again this morning.  Emotionally I am all over the place!  It really depends on the hour of the day.  I can feel completely on top of things and then lose it over something seemingly so small.  I am very excited to meet this precious new baby of ours but I am also very overwhelmed with the reality of what it will mean for my day to day life.  I already feel overwhelmed quite often, especially during any form of transition (getting the kids dressed, eating a meal, getting in the car, getting out of the car, etc.) and adding a baby to the mix is going to be a challenge to say the least!!  But I'll do it, just like so many ahead of me have, and in a few years it will be hard to remember what this stage was like (or so everyone says!).  Any guesses on the gender?  Neither Zack or I really have a good hunch either way.

Wet!

Since the Internet is finally working I had to sneak inside and post these pictures.  The kids are so happy to be outside after a very wet morning of being stuck inside.  Although I knew it would mean dirty, wet clothes I also knew it would mean much higher spirits!

I'll share a few more photos from our week since I can.  We've be homebound the last two days, mostly because David has been napping so well and it's limited our activites, but also because it's been pretty yucky outside.  We hope to do the Children's Museum again tomorrow but we'll play it by ear since we have a birthday party in the afternoon.  Zack's had a pretty poor schedule all month and is basically gone 5 days in a row each week with the exception of two short evenings home.  The kids and I are definitely having withdrawals and can't wait to have him around more - he feels the same way!!

More art.  Samuel's been wanting me to make him a spider web for quite a while now and I finally found a good picture to copy.  David got his first try at Play Dough, he didn't eat too much of it!

After making the spider and web Samuel wanted me to draw some pumpkins.  He put the faces on all by himself!  He also wrote his name at the bottom which you might be able to see if you click on this picture.

David is finally starting to "read" books on his own.  I've found him in all sorts of places and positions looking intently at various books.  It's always a happy day when they start to enjoy books on their own!

I've been taking the kids to story and craft time at a local elementary school most Wednesdays.  A librarian puts it on and she does a great job of choosing a theme and incorporating songs, books, and crafts.  This week's theme was bugs (the airplane book is from the week before, we were bringing it back - she lets us check out books from her selection).  David found this chair early on and literally sat in it the whole time (45 min.).  It made my job so much easier!  Typically he is all over the room and in to everything!

The other morning while David was napping and Audrey was too (not normal for her!), I decided to mop the floor.  Samuel was eager to join and we had a fun time together.  I broke my last mop a while back and now just do it Cinderella style - a rag with warm, soapy water on my hands and knees.  I seem to get all the grime up better this way and it's a good workout (at least for a pregnant woman!).

For his birthday, GG and Allan purchased Samuel swim lessons at our local pool.  He had his first two lessons this week and never lost his enthusiams throughout either of the lessons.  It's very basic but he's doing great!  The day before this picture was taken he had his 4 year well-check appointment and got a few rounds of shots.  I waited until about an hour before the lesson to take off his band aid and this is what his arm looked like.  I didn't think twice when the instructor asked what had happened but later when I observed it again I realized that with the two band aid marks on top of the red, swollen shoulder it looked a lot like he had been grabbed really hard.  Yikes!  It looks much better now but I was surprised it took so long to go back to normal.

Fall activites

Lots of leaves to play in - and clean up!

More indoor crafts - Samuel displaying a pumpkin made out of tissue paper from his birthday

Bundling up for chilly walks

Walks in warmer weather - and the kids' Sunday best

As many park visits as we can squeeze in when the weather allows.  David is getting pretty independent and daring these days!

More layers of clothing to wear at home as the house "cools off"

Our first vist to the Portland Children's Museum!!  Many thanks to my sister's family for a year membership for our family.  This will come in very handy on cold, grey, stir-crazy days!!!

The kids had a blast exploring the children's museum and really got into each activity

Trying on costumes we've accumulated over the years from various sources.  It was hard to get them out of these in order to get PJs on!!

Peace & turmoil

Isn't that the life of a parent!  I feel like I've been especially up and down all week.  Much of this I realize is due to all the changes my body is undergoing as it enters into the last trimester of this pregnancy and I begin emotionally to prepare for the arrival of our new child and all the changes it will bring.  Not getting the sleep I need and crave adds another element to the puzzle and unfortunately there isn't much I can do to control this area except get to bed as early as possible - easier said than done on most evenings!

Right now David is down for his morning nap and Samuel and Audrey are peacefully working on art.  We'll have some friends over in an hour or so and I look forward to the adult interaction as well as the chance for my kiddos to play with some of their good friends.  We are hoping the clouds clear and the sun pokes out so the playground dries enough to enjoy it for a while too.  A bit of sun will do us all good!

Peacefully working on art

Samuel received this awesome wood train set from our neighbors, Mr. Lee & Mrs. Gladys, and he has already made quite a few creative designs all on his own.

We are still plugging away at our homeschooling.  We are in week 6, with a week off when we were at the cabin.  Overall it's going really well.  Practicing writing letters is still hit and miss but I figure the desire to do that will come with time.  We did add two more elements, a Bible story for the week and an insect for the week because we got some great resources from family for these.  I feel like mealtimes have been much  more interactive and meaningful since having our white board in the dining room.  Not that we talk about school every single meal every single day.  I try to designate breakfast as our main focus time and lunch as review.  Dinner is whatever comes up.

Three guys working hard.  I think having a farm might actually be realistic some day if these guys continue to be as hard of workers as they are showing themselves to be currently.

Now that he's mastered vacuuming with Dad he is ready to start mowing as well.  It was adorable to see him trailing Zack and Samuel!!

Ever the tomboy, Audrey had to wear a hat too!

Zack snapped this while I was subbing on Monday.  He said that David literally sat on this bench for 30 min. sporting these bunny ears that Samuel put on him.  So precious!