Norm's Lake

We went up to Lake Allatoona today to visit the Coheleys!  They took us out on their pontoon and the boys loved it!  The weather was nice; a little cloudy, but not too hot.  We made our way out to a quiet spot, anchored and swam for hours.  The boys liked swimming under the boat and all around it.  Charlie is a little fish and just loves the water.  It was so cute to see all of them playing together.  We had snacks and Aiden was so excited to get to drive with Norm, but he pretty much did it on his own.  Of course he was more focused on all the gauges and depth finder than where he was going. ;-)

 I swam to shore with each of the boys individually for potty breaks, they both had to go and sometimes you just do what you have to do.  I was happy to get the exercise.  We all had a great time getting to spend time with friends and relax on the water.

 

 

Sitting!

This little cutie just learned how to sit up . . . and he's pretty excited about it!  He is still learning how to keep his balance and falls down a lot.  We usually put a pillow behind him to cushion his fall.  He likes to fall forward and maneuver his legs behind him so he'll end up on his belly.  Sitting up makes bath time with brothers a lot more fun too!

 

Pool Play Date

We met up with the Dove family for a pool play date today.  We got to the pool and as Emily and I were setting up our chairs and unloading, Braden decided he wanted to crawl right in the pool- I snatched him up just as he was at the edge.  Turns out, he is such a little fish and wanted to be in the pool the entire time; screamed when he was taken out even if just for a minute.  The boys squirted and splashed the girls and they screamed.  I encouraged them to splash back.  Aiden and Ty got them to jump in; Sadie was so nervous, but finally did it.  Mark is very content in the water and the kids took turns dragging him along.  We had lots of potty breaks; I think they timed it out where one child asks to go about every 10 minutes. :-)  Having 6 kids 5 and under is always a good time!

 

7 blonde boys

Kelsey and I now have 7 blonde little boys between the two of us and we are so blessed to have their family as a part of our lives.  Our boys are great friends and love spending time together.  Today we spent some time with them at their super awesome pool.  Aiden has been anticipating this since the beginning of summer.  Mark and Kohen had a great time in the pack-n-play in the shade.  The 5 older boys played in the pool for almost 2 hours jumping in, splashing each other and playing like boys do.  They all ate lunch while we were there and I snapped a picture. 

 

8 months

Our sweet baby is 8 months old!

 

Mark . . .

 

eats 3 solid meals a day and loves to eat.  He hums while he eats and gets upset if its not coming fast enough or if its all gone and he wants more.

 

usually takes 3 naps a day. 1-2 hours each.

 

loves to be held or sat in my lap.  He is very content being with someone.

 

is still not sitting up on his own.

 

lays on his belly and can spin the full 360 degrees to get what he wants.  He can roll around, but he usually doesn't because his brothers will bring him toys when he whines.

 

laughs at Ty the most.  Ty will spin or jump and just be silly to make Mark laugh.

 

has his front two bottom teeth.  (the second one came in a few days after the first)

 

 

 

 

Third Child

There are just some things that come along with being a third child . . .


We were headed out the door after scarfing down dinner to baseball practice.  Aiden had his cleats on and his glove in hand.  I grabbed the diaper bag, put Ty's shoes on and asked Jeff to grab the baby to put him in the car.  We pull up and Jeff and Aiden went ahead to practice so they wouldn't be late.  I pulled out the stroller and opened the car door to get Mark out and I realized he wasn't wearing any pants!  I'm not sure how, but Jeff said he didn't notice that when he picked him up and put him in the car.  I think Mark can get away with this at his age, but probably not in a few years.  I'll check to make sure he is fully clothed before we head out the door from now on.


I had dinner in the oven and we were waiting for Dadda to get home.  We went outside to ride bikes until he arrived.  I put Mark in his bouncy seat by the front door so he could watch his brother ride.  I sat in my chair and a few minutes later Jeff drives in, I tell the boys to put their bikes away and wash their hands for dinner.  I hugged my husband, pulled dinner out of the oven and served dinner at the table.  We prayed and started eating and discussing the events of that day.  About 5 minutes into dinner, I realized- We left the baby outside!  Sure enough, he was right where I left him bouncing away enjoying the summer breeze.  Maybe we should do a head count before dinner from now on.


It was raining and we needed groceries desperately.  I avoid taking all 3 to the grocery store whenever possible, but sometimes there is no getting around it and this was one of those times.  I had my list and a reward in mind if they behaved in order for me to get the essentials I needed that day.  I put 3 boys in my grocery cart and pushed the cart quickly into the store.  As I'm shopping I'm hearing the thunder and heavy rain, hoping it will let up before I have to make that trip back to the car.  Now, with my cart full of groceries (lodged around the boys), I double check the list and head to the check out line.  Just then I realize I left the money (grocery envelope) in the car, and my wallet as well.  I have no way to pay for these groceries!  I stood there for a few seconds contemplating on what to do; the cashier in front of me was a middle-aged woman (a mother I had hoped) and as much as I hated to do it, I asked her to watch the kids, while I ran out to the car.  She looked at me strangely and asked, "will the baby cry?"  I said "no" and literally sprinted to the car, praying the whole time that God would protect my kids.  I ran back in and they barely knew I was gone.  I still can't believe I asked a complete stranger to watch my kids in a public place, but I was desperate, and thankfully, they survived.  

It's only been 8 months, I'm sure I'll have some more stories to tell in the future. 

Summer Time Fun

On Day 2 of our Summer break, I realized that I have to soak up this time I have with the boys while they are young and make the most of it.  I committed myself to playing, crafting and having fun with the 3 blessings God has given me.  In turn my laundry may get piled up and my house won't be as clean as I would like it to be, but this time is too precious to waste!

 

For yesterday's activity, we made a Rocket Ship with an old box!  The making of the rocket took a couple hours; it has a steering wheel, a speedometer, a gas gauge, a gas tank, a key hole and of course lots of buttons.  The boys loved making it and they loved playing in it.  They had snacks in the rocket ship and even watched TV.  They were very creative and "drove" it many places.

 

 

 

Today's activity was an alphabet game!  Aiden drew all the letters individually on pieces of paper and we found objects that start with the each letter.  Ty loved finding the objects.  X was the most difficult- I had to print an X-ray off the computer, but it was good practice for both of them.  When we were cleaning up, I realized we did two "U"s and didn't use "N", because Aiden's "N" got turned upside down. :-)

 

 

If anyone has other suggestions on activities we can do please let me know.  My creativity my run out before summer's out. :-)

Bath Time

(Jeff calls this his "skydiving" pose)

Glasses

Our big kid got his glasses today and I think they just add to his cuteness!  They match his personality as a super smart boy!  Doctor says he may grow out of his near sidedness, but we'll have to wait and see. 

 

Panama City

We spent this past week in Panama City, Florida with my family.  The entire week, we had great weather and enjoyed our time in the sun.  Our condo had a great porch where we spent a lot of time playing, eating and enjoying the view.  The boys had a blast playing with their cousins; they were entertained the whole time because there was always somebody to play with!  Mark was a great beach baby- he took lots of naps under the tent and enjoyed watching all the people.  Chief, Dadda and Uncle Marcus built sand castles, mountains, and holes in the sand.  They even made Mount Rushmore!  The big kids loved riding the waves on their boogie boards and swimming in the ocean.  Aiden was curious and a little nervous in the water.  He loved going out "far to the big waves" with Chief.  Ty only played at the edge of the water and was more interested in sand.  Ty never wanted to get in past his knees, even when he had to go potty.  He loved the idea of going in the ocean, but he stood with water only up to his ankles and let loose right there.  Mark got in a pool for the first time and he loved it.  He floated around and watched his cousins play for a while.  He was very content in the water.  The ocean however, made him upset; he didn't like his feet in the water and he didn't like getting close to the waves (even being held).  He preferred to be under the tent at a safe distance from the ocean.  The big kids (Aiden included) went to play putt-putt with Dads and Jeff said Aiden played as well as his older cousins!  While hanging around the condo, the kids played cards and played "Doctor" on Uncle Marcus.  We had a sand castle contest and I'm still not sure why mine and Payton's turtle didn't win.  It was a great time to relax, play and enjoy family.