Goodbye for now.......

Grandpa passed on Sat.

He was an Honorable Man

Served his country

Served his Heavenly Father

Served his family

Always sharing laughter, and tears

Always having fun

until the end

He suffered

But not for long

God is Good!

I love you Grandpa. There will always be a place for you in my heart!

Selfish??

So I just read a blog about a wonderful mom, who after six weeks of pumping milk for her baby, decided to quit. I think She might have felt a little bad about her choice but regardless, it was HER choice to make and I hope she is confident in herself. Anyway it got me thinking, about my reasons for nursing. Obviously I believe that breast is best and it seems so much easier than cleaning bottles and warming milk. If I really think about my reasons for not quiting though, I always come back to my own gain. I loose my pregnancy weight faster from all the extra calories I burn. It is also so convenient. No matter where I go I always have milk right there ready to go. It is less expensive as well. I am not spending extra money on all that over priced formula. And if I did switch, I would want to use bottled water because our tap is nasty. Nursing keeps me conscious of the foods I put into my body. "Keep the caffeine to a minimum, get plenty of vegetables and fruits." And "oh, I can eat this chocolate cake because I will burn it of anyway." Of course there is always the size and mass of my breasts while they are full of milk. I'm sure my husband appreciates them. And did I mention the lack of a menstrual cycle? Wow, What a break! I'm sure there are some things I have not mentioned, but this seems so beneficial to me. Is that selfish? If it is, I'm sorry baby.

Age the goof

Ben is getting ideas!

He is always kidding around.....at home that is. For the most part, A.J. is reserved. But when he gets going..........

sissa- 7 wks old now!

Always smiling...

Singing With Daddy

All of my children sleep this way. I think they get it from me. I have woken up in this position several times. Andy should get a picture of that.

Benny-pie

There is a little Man in my life that brings me much joy. His smile and laughter is contagious. He has a sweet disposition that often hides behind aggression and power. He will be busy and successful and fun~! He brings a tender touch and an overflowing heart as well as much testosterone. I adore him!

We live outside for now. That's his favorite place to be.....

I was trying to get him to look directly into the camera and for some reason he thought he needed to get lower for me.( Please pay no attention to the icky sticky toddler goo on my walls. Fresh spring paint is in store.)

Look at these big browns will ya?

For some reason, this little guy has a wild streak. I wonder where he gets it from?

"Mommy?Mommy?Mommy?Mommy?..........."

As much as I love hearing this, I am that busy. Sorry, too busy for pictures, blogging, reading, anything fun and relaxing. I use my "Me Time" these days to find things. At some point in finding my way on my own with three kids, I lost control of any organization that I might have done pre-baby. A.J. insists on repeating my name over and over and over until I actually look at him and give him my full, undivided attention. Regularly, he just wants to know where something is. He doesn't believe I am listening until we make eye contact. Which is true. He totally got this from me. I always make him look at me so that I know he is listening. Great skills, really! The problem is nobody else gets it. Most adults just think he is being irritating or stutters a bit. That is when I get defensive for my children and feel that the world needs an explanation so not to be irritated with us. Why do I do that. Should I really not care? Anyway back on topic.
I spent so much time preparing for the arrival of our new addition and the post pardum state only to give it all up while re-learning how to nurse an infant, making sure that I showered every other day (at least) and getting my feet back on the ground. Now, I get to re-do all that organizing and obsessive cleaning. It is amazing how dirty and dusty my house got in just a few weeks!! Once I am finished, I can get Micah's nursery done. Then I can post pictures. Then I can blog and read and have fun and relax!

She is 5 wks old

and gettin cuter!! I will try to talk myself into taking some good pictures soon. I just don't have the time or energy to put into it right now. I will be trying to get Micah's schedule figured out soon. As soon as I do, I will be able to plan a few more things. Like potty training Ben. We plan on going to Colorado in March so maybe in May we will potty train. I think Ben will be ready before then and I don't want to pass up that window of opportunity.

Pied Piper where are you?

I went to a neighborhood party Friday night and heard several of the people down at the end of the street were having a problem with mice!! I decided those mice need to stay down at the end of the street. Saturday morning I woke up to some gifts that my cat left on the back porch (if you know what I mean.) There were two of them about the size of my thumb. Today, Ben went out to play. I heard him giggling and running across the side yard. I thought, " How cute, he is playing with Naya." I went out to see and there was this rat running the fence line with my little guy. I think we will be calling the city today!