Too cute for words!

His first ride...

Since we don't live in an area that is tricycle friendly (sloped driveway and hilly neighborhood) we took Conner on his first ride with his tricyle to some nearby walking trails. We are guessing he rode nearly 2 miles which was pretty impressive. Of course when we got in the car he said "I biked about 5 miles". He worked up a sweat and so did we keeping up with him. The other 2 enjoyed their ride in the stroller watching their big brother lead the way.

Watching the world...

The weather has been gorgeous lately. We've been leaving the windows open all day with a cool breeze blowing through the house and it's even gotten a little chilly at night. Unfortunately the hot weather will be here in full force tomorrow. What better way to enjoy the last cool evening than having a fire and make s'mores? We got the 2 little ones to bed and then told Conner about the "surprise". He couldn't have been happier. And 3 smores later we need to burn some of his energy so he played around the backyard with his tricycle. After the tricycle he snuggled and we watched the fire while he talked my ear off. When I suggested we'd better go inside he said "I just want to relax. I just want to watch the world". He continued to say "watch the world". I loved it! Just those words coming out of a 3 years olds mouth. So innocent and sweet. When we went inside to get cleaned up he asked Nathan if he wanted to watch the world. Nathan said he'd been watching it for 30 years and Conner's response was "I've been watching the world for 3 years dad".

Here are a few pics of his chocolate face and his new wheels.

The things we do for love...

Where to begin, where to begin....

Well I'll start with 2 years ago at the farmhouse when Nathan, for whatever reason, did his first monkey impression. I'm guessing it had to do with Conner talking about monkeys but I don't remember the specifics. Anyway, since I thought it was so freaking hilarious, I have since requested "monkey impression, monkey impression" from time to time. And we aren't talking about just any monkey impression; we are talking FULL BLOWN "if you don't believe in the theory of evolution you will now" crazy monkey man. If you are not in the room but close enough to hear the sounds, you would swear there was a real live monkey in our home. That's just the sound effects, I can't describe how accurately he leaps across the room with his "monkey" arms doing all sorts of crazy shit. Meanwhile, Conner and I laughing until we are in tears.

Fast forward to this morning when we were all sitting around the kitchen and I realized I hadn't seen the monkey impression in quite some time. Come to think of it, I'm not sure Biruk or Landon had ever seen it. So I did my "Monkey, Monkey" chant hoping I could convince Nater to bust it out. And being the sweet hubby that he is, we saw a full blown monkey demonstration. And let me tell you, I have NEVER heard Biruk laugh so hard. Which, along with Conner & Landon's laughter, I was in stitches. The monkey business ended when my little sister (visiting from Indiana - we love you Kirst) came up the stairs with a somewhat frightened expression on her face. I had thought she had already left for her run. Ooopss... We laughed it off and she went on her way.

A little bit later I was making dinner while Nathan entertained the boys in the basement. When we bought this home, the basement had a room that was designated as a weight room with the padded foams (that fit together like a puzzle) over the concrete. We've used it as a toyroom for the boys. (this information will come in handy is just a moment). So anyway, I came down to hang out briefly and one thing led to another and the 'monkey man' came out for entertainment. As I stated earlier, Nater doesn't just do the "eeewww, ewwww... ahhh, ahhhh". His arms were a flapping and swinging around while he's squatting and jumping all over the place. And all of the sudden I hear "Ahhhhh.... ". Nathan has his right hand gripped between his legs and says "I think I broke my knuckle". I was hoping he just gave it a good ding on the floor and ran up for ice. He said he couldn't really move his finger (pinky edge of his hand). After 30 min of some frozen vegetables on his hand he thought maybe it was going to okay. Then he showed me his hand (ughhhh... grossness). It looked like he had an enlarged knuckle, next to his pinky knuckle. Very creepy and definitely more than a bump. Thankfully he decided something just wasn't feeling right and headed to urgent care. Less than an hour later I got a text saying "it's broke, be home shortly". That's right, he broke a bone in his hand playing with his kids. The doctor wrapped him up, told him he needs an ortho surgeon (hopefully no surgery) for a cast that he will wear for 4-6 weeks. That's right folks. My sweet husband did his monkey mania for his crazy wife and now has a broken hand. This is all my fault.

I'm sorry Nater. Thanks for making us laugh today and I promise to return the favor while you are in a cast for the next 4-6 weeks. Of course it's going to be a little hard to laugh with all the baths I'll be giving, dishes I'll be doing and diapers I'll be changing. Your hand will be missed.... dearly. I love you! And you are the cutest damn monkey I have ever seen!



At this moment he was thinking "how the hell am I going to explain this?"

My 3 boys

A memory to hold onto forever...

Tonight, while putting the kids to bed, Nathan entertained the boys, all of them laughing so hard their bodies were shaking and their squeals filled the room. Myself, smiling so much my cheeks hurt and my heart was about to burst. And I couldn't stop staring at them. Little Landon, his shoulders rising and falling, as he let out this loud belly laugh, never taking his eyes off his dad. And then pouting when Nathan would say "no more" and so dad would do it "one more time". And Biruk, our busy body, running around the room the whole time letting out a loud laugh and climbing all over Nathan. He would try to mimick what dad was doing and then watch everyone to see if they were paying attention to him. Meanwhile, the biggest of the three, just set back, laughing with dad and watching his brothers. Not too worried about whether or not he had our attention, but enjoying all the fun. And my Nater, while watching him from across the room, so enamored with his three little boys, knowing they have the perfect dad for them. And the boys, so enamored with him. Absolutely adorable. And me, absolutely in LOVE!

Roll me away...

It's 10:45 pm and Nathan & I just got done bringing the boys down to the basement since there was a Tornado warning in the county next to ours. We figured better safe than sorry after the last set of storms that blew through. Not to mention the main level is in the 80's where the basement must be in the low 70's if not 60's. We decided we will camp out down here tonight (one perk of having 2 kids that sleep in pack n plays). Conner will sleep on the couch and Nater and I in the guest bed. A reminder of how fortunate we are to say the least. I know it's wrong of me to enjoy this kind of weather since most people don't have the comfort of basements and other means of protection, but I do love me a good thunderstorm.

Off to get some sleep and hopefully wake with electricity in the morning. For the record, our renters still do not have electricity. Our tree did some serious damage to the power lines. Nathan hooked up our generator for them on Monday so they are getting by for the time being.

Can't get enough...

These boys have been cracking me up lately. While eating dinner tonight Landon was amusing himself (and us) with this plastic spoon. The picture of Conner includes a worm in his hand that he was playing with today. I kept suggesting he put him back on the ground so he could bury himself and Conner's response was "but we are just having so much fun hanging out". He was also worried about the ants getting his buddy worm. Finally he determined he would be safe under a tree.

What's mine is yours

Firewood for Sale

We had a storm blow through Friday morning. It uprooted one of our big, old hardwoods at our rental property (aka - the farmhouse we completely gutted and remodeled and then tried to sell). My old neighbor called to tell me it took down a power line on it's way down and half of it was in their yard. I couldn't believe it when I looked at the pictures Nathan took with his phone. And then to see it with my own eyes was even more unbelievable. Thankfully it wasn't one of the trees that sits right next to the house. I can't imagine the damage they would have caused. Anyway, yesterday was spent loading and unloading the trailer full of tree limbs and taking them out to the fields. It was a mess. They are still without power out there.

We live in city limits but somehow are still without power. But if you remember the ice storm last Jan (click here) resulted in us buying a generator. And boy are we glad for that purchase now. We have been turning it on every few hours to chill the freezer/fridge. And today I even did a load of laundry. I had wet towels that had been sitting for a couple days and I feared the smell would ruin them.

There is a never a dull moment around here (not that I'm complaining). We have running water (clean water no less), a fridge full of food and electricity when we need it. Not to mention the fact that I have so much appreciation for a candle now. I forgot how relaxing and soothing it is to sit in a dark room and read a book by the light of candle. I've decided I'm going to see how much money we can save in electricity by using candles in the evenings instead of turning lights on and off. My mother in law had given me this candle a couple years ago and I didn't know how awesome it was until 2 nights ago. It was still in it's package and when I lit the wick the how candle illuminated. Very, very pretty! Thank you Jeanne!

Well I need to put away groceries and do some housecleaning.

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful mother's I've had the pleasure of getting to know via the internet.

Shhhh.....

They are ALL asleep. So this is what "nothing" sounds like at 3:00 in the afternoon. I'm not going to lie; I'm loving it!

They will be greeted with hugs & kisses when they wake up but for now, I'm taking it all in. Just finished a swiss cake roll and thinking about something else.

Wishing you all a peaceful afternooon.

Kitchen Katastrophe's

Exhibit A
The pea I had just removed from Biruk's nose last night after dinner. I had brushed his teeth, washed his face, changed his diaper and was putting on his jammies when I thought 'what the hell is that'. Thank goodness I saw it. I wish I'd taken a picture b/c that baby was seriously shoved back far.










Exhibit B
The pan I just destroyed while trying to steam some fresh green beans. Which leaves me with 1)an incredibly stinky house, 2) ruined green beans that I was excited to eat and 3) a damn pot to clean.

Road Trip 101

Here is a glimpse of traveling with very young children.

Monday morning
11:20 a.m. pulled out of the driveway
11:45 a.m. stopped to pick up Biruk's security doll "buddy" (we aren't real creative with names)
12:20 p.m. Conner had to poop. From previous experience I knew this was bound to happen so it came as no surprise. We did the deed and then I managed to drop him while putting him in the carseat and gave him a lovely shiner under his eye. Tears were shed and both babies (who had just fallen asleep) were now awake. I continued to apologize while Conner kept saying "it's okay mom, you didn't mean to".
1:20 p.m. Conner had to poop again. Found another spot to pull off and everyone still awake.
2:20 p.m. Landon crying, stopped to feed kids.
3:20 p.m. Pulled off to pick up "buddy" again for Biruk
5:30 p.m. pulled off to take pictures of the rainbow and point it out to Conner.
5:55 p.m. stopped for a rather long "dinner break" which included baby food for the boys and fast food for Conner and I. I pulled into a large church parking lot to feed and change all 3 of them. While I'm doing this some lady pulls up in a car trying to snoop in my van (from her vehicle) and parks up by the entrance of the church. 10 min later a cop pulls up and runs my plates. I opened the van door and asked if it was "illegal to sit in a parking lot" and he said "No. We just got a call on a suspicious vehicle". LOL. Another cop was pulling in as he left, they talked and then they all left (including the lady who called me in). Just my luck. You'd think a minivan with out of state plates and a mom and kids in it would be screaming "pulling off to take a break".
7:05 p.m. back on the road.
7:15 p.m. Tried nursing Landon again since he was still crying.
10:45 p.m. arrived at destination.

Spent the next 2 hours getting the boys to sleep in a hotel room. Visited sister at college and then continued on to my parents (and in-laws). We were gone 5 nights. I slept with at least one of the boys every single night, most nights at least 2 of them. They woke up at 5:30 most mornings and 2 of the days we were home Landon decided he didn't need a nap. By Friday night they were all ready to get home so we left at 8:00 Sat morning with approximate 670 miles ahead of us.

8:09 a.m. pulled out of my parents driveway
10:30 a.m. lunch break for the kids. Took me 10 min to find the park, another five min to figure out how to access it (via side roads) and then another 10 min unloading the kids and doing my best to make sure none of them got squished by the slamming van doors (thanks to the nasty wind). Finally found an area protected by the wind and tried feeding the kids. None of them were hungry (of course) and Conner was the only one of actually ate. Most of the time was spent yelling at Biruk (who ignored everything I said) and holding a squirmy Landon on my lap. Didn't even end up playing in the park because of the wind. Cleaned banana and cereal out of Biruk's carseat and strapped the kids in and tried feeding the younger 2 again and managed to spill sweet potatos all over the carpet. Feeling extremely stressed at this point.
11:45 back on the road. Went only 30 miles and needed gas. Pulled off, filled up and somehow got back on the interstate in the WRONG DIRECTION. Drove 24 miles out of my way (equiv to a 48 mile penalty in my eyes) and fighting back tears. Babies crying off and on. Biruk developing a high fever, Conner right behind him. 5 hours into the trip and not even 160 miles traveled. Also make note that I had forgotten to put the cap back on the gas tank during this "brain fart" stop. I figure that out 290 miles later when I fill up my tank a second time.

Over the course of the next few hours I continued to stop for diapers and leg breaks. Conner and Biruk had high fevers and Landon was pissed off at the world. Finally we were less than halfway. It was 4:30 by this point and we had 280 miles left. 4 hours @ 70 mph right? WRONG. Any parent knows that you still have a LONG way to go. I have no idea how many times we stopped after this point but it involved several attempts to feed the kids and trying to calm Landon down. Finally I called Nater to meet me anywhere to give me a break. 60 miles from home we met up and all the kids had finally fell asleep. He just followed me in his car and a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. He was there if I needed him.

10:40 p.m. WE MADE IT. And a new record was set for longest trip ever. Our previous record was 13 hours. Needless to say we will not be traveling anywhere for a while. We had a great time seeing the family and I am glad we went BUT I have no desire to do it again any time soon.

The boys were troopers considering the circumstances. I am HAPPY to be home! 2 older boys just have coughs now, I am getting sick, and Landon still no signs of illness. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Have a great week! I'll try to post pics soon.

Better than Lucky Charms!

I am hoping this will make up for the lack of "daily photo's" the past five days. We saw this rainbow yesterday (Conner's first one) and I don't recall ever seeing such a vibrant, colorful rainbow in my whole entire life. It was absolutely beautiful and it was a full rainbow with nothing to break the arc. It made my day! I watched Conner's face in the rearview mirror to see his expression when I pulled off the side of the road for him to see it. His entire face lit up. It was priceless!

Makes my heart go pitter patter...

This morning I enjoyed my breakfast while observing the 3 boys watching their dad mow the the lawn. Landon sat in his high chair on the back deck, Biruk in the swing and Conner chilling up in his fort. At one point I looked out and every one of them had their eyes glued on Nathan. Three little boys watching their father with such intensity and three little voices shouting out "Da.da.da.da, daddy and dad". As I sat there watching them, it occurred to me; this is just the beginning. The start of the rest of their lives. They will always be looking up to their dad as their role model, teacher and friend. And I know he will be there to walk them along, hold their hand when they need it and carry them on his shoulders when they get tired.

These are the days that remind me of just how lucky I am. And how much I love this crazy life of ours.

Brushing his teeth in style

Change of pace...

Big thanks to Gma & Gpa for a wonderful visit! It was lovely to see you and we were sad to see you go. Thanks for your help with the boys and for all the meals!

Since I can hardly keep up with my blog I've decided to change things up a bit. I never post because I never find the time to actually sit down and do it. So instead I'll try to post a new picture every. single. day. Some may be of the kids, some of the scenery or some of ME. Some will be old, some new. Some sad, some glad. You get the idea.

Grandparents to the rescue

ETA: this afternoon. I can't wait!! Help is on the way :). Woohoo!
For those of you who forget this, we have NO family within a 2 state radius. So it takes at least 3 states to get near any of our family. The closest sibling living 7 hours away and our parents nearly 12 hours away. We are super excited for Nathan's parents to get here this afternoon.
See ya soon Gma J & Gpa T!

Kicking it old school

Taebo is back baby. This past month I dug out the old VHS and I'm getting my butt in gear. I've only been exercising 3 x's a week but I swear I can tell a difference. I've combined this with some pilates and I feel wonderful! I had forgotten how motivating exercising can be and not to mention how much it has done for my mood. Tonight was a late workout but after eating a cheeseburger, fries and chocolate shake I felt it was in order. And I would have done it earlier but it took a couple hours for my stomach ache to go away.

I will sleep much better :)

Sportsmanship

Conner had his first soccer game tonight after 2 practices last week. After the game they had the players give each other high five. Here is Conner's reaction to a boy hiking up his shorts when he went to shake his hand. Below that is a video of him dribbling the ball down the field. We had a great time watching him play.
edited to add: Conner is in the red shorts.

Memories...

One year ago yesterday we met Biruk for the very first time. 5 families from our agency had to wait in a room and one by one we got to meet your little babes. Of course, we were the last one picked. They video taped the meeting and took some pictures so that is why we had to do it one by one. I still remember walking into the room and meeting him for the first time, in the arms of a nanny. He was so tiny. I knew he was little because his weight was only 12 lbs but he looked so proportioned in his pictures. You could hold him on the upper half of your torso and his petite body would snuggle up on your upper chest and shoulder. Which actually worked out quite well since I was nearly 6 mos pregnant at the time. He was breathtaking. Such beautiful features and the tiniest nose I'd ever seen. Everything about his was tiny (except his eyes). When he smiled his whole face lit up. And I'll never forget seeing and touching his gorgeous, dark, smooth as silk, skin for the first time. I had never felt such soft skin in my life. It was such a different experience then seeing Conner, or Landon for the first time. We were finally meeting this little guy that I had been thinking and praying about for over a year.

And the nannies were so in love with him. It was so evident. We only got to see him for an hour and Nathan and I just kept passing him back and forth. It was so hard to say goodbye that first day. We were not allowed to have our camera in the care center but here are some pics from later in the week. My brown eyed Birukee beauty...

Not my normal post...

Today I read an article on ZRecommends.
Click here to read it. This article really got me thinking about how I was before becoming a parent. How little I knew about what it took, how hard it was really going to be (even though I had 10 siblings) and how much I would struggle. Pre-children, I remembered hearing other moms in the ladies room saying things like "Ugh..I just needed to get away from the kids" or "I just need a break, my kids are driving me crazy". Whatever, typical mother comments. But I didn't know that back then. I heard them say these things and in my head I'd think 'that's awful. Who says that about their children? When I'm a mom I can't imagine wanting to be away from them.' Fast forward 12 months. HOLY SHIT. This is what these women were talking about. Conner had colic and I would literally have to lay him in his bed to scream and shut myself in a bathroom just to gain composure. Fast forward to 3 kids. I would love nothing more then to have a sibling or grandparents live nearby so I can get a break from my wee little ones. SO, one of the first lessons I learned after having a child. Judgement is a waste of everyone's time and accomplishes nothing. That's not to say I still don't find myself questioning decisions people make in their life whether it's in regards to carseats, vaccinations, food they eat, how they spend their money or other day to day things. But when I do, I try to remind myself that it does ABSOLUTELY no good for me to judge that person. It's stupid really. My husband is really good at keeping me in check in this department. He's a good man and a much better person then myself in so many ways. I love that about him. It's nice to be reminded from time to time, when he says "Chandra, judge not, lest ye be judged".

Okay, okay, he's right. So anyway, I read this post this morning and thought I'd share. My mom always said "It's amazing a child makes it until they turn 18". She's right. Biruk knocked over my night stand. Conner came and told me Biruk knocked over the dresser. My heart stopped and I sprinted up the stairs. It was my little nightstand but it could have been a large dresser. We can't always protect our children. We get out of bed in the morning and do the best we can and for every day we all survive I say thanks! I read someone's blog where a woman had forgotten to strap her daughter in her carseat. I've done that twice. I let Conner climb up, strapped the 2 little ones in and took off. From the backseat I hear "mom, you forget to strap me in". Sometimes as a parent we have so much on our plate we can't keep everything straight. So frequently, when showering, I can't remember if I've shampooed my hair. So I do it again and then maybe it occurs to me that I had already done it. I still have to subtract my birth year to come up with my age. And I find I am getting more forgetful by the day. And I know I'm not alone with this. There are a lot of busy parents out there that are doing the best they can. And for those that have had to endure such an awful tragedy, I feel nothing but sorrow for them.

Quality Photo

This was taken with the self timer and the camera setting on the foot of our bed. Nothing but the best :)