too cute

Hunter has decided this is one of his favorite places to be. He can see himself in the mirror, there are usually lots of fun things to grab and he can do it all by himself. The funny thing is he can't get down by himself. I hear him yell out and I find him standing on the stool stuck.  Sam doesn't appreciate this invasion of her stool, but she is learning to deal with it.

first day of school

School started today! I can't believe the summer is over already. It went by way to fast. The boys were excited to go back. We walked to school this morning and Max kept saying "I love the first day of school. I just can't wait." I think Kye was a little nervous. Max is in the 3rd grade and Kye is in the 1st grade.

walking (sort of)

Hunter is in the phase of pushing everything around. He pushes this little car all over, until it hits a wall. He barely keeps up with it and sometimes ends up walking on his knees. He loves it though, he always has a big smile when he is walking.

he's back

Trevor got home late last night! YEAH!!! He was gone for 5 weeks of training in Alabama. I needed to run some errands so we made it a family affair. I'm sure that isn't exactly what Trevor wanted to do on his first day back, but he is a good sport.

climbing

Hunter loves to climb! Anything he can find to climb up on he does... stairs, chairs, dishwasher, stools, bunk bed ladders, tables, boxes. I have to keep a close eye on him because most of the time he can't get back down.

treasure chests

We painted these treasure chests today. We seem to have painted a lot this summer. The kids really enjoyed all our crafts this summer.

trouble

Hunter is a very early riser and no one else in the house is. So lately in the mornings I have been bringing him in my room, shutting the door and letting him crawl all over and play while I "sleep". That way he won't wake up the other kids. This morning when I got out of bed this is where I found him. He had been busy!

hippos

We got together with some friends for crafts and painted these hippo banks. I think they are so cute. The kids came home and put all their money in them. Sam has been carrying hers around like a doll.  She did drop it once and, lucky for her, only the leg broke off. Nothing a little super glue couldn't fix.

eight

Max is 8 today! I can't believe how much he has grown up. He is great kid and sets such a great example for his younger brothers and sister.

copy cat

Hunter loves to sit on the counter and brush his teeth when the older three brush theirs. I started putting him on the counter so he could see and learn. He loves to watch them and copy what they do.  Now I try to put him on the floor and brush but he always cries.  He wants up on the counter.

the partiers

Another picture from yesterday. Here is the party gang.

the party

This year Max wanted a magic birthday party. So instead of me trying to entertain 8 year olds with my magic skills, or lack thereof, I decided to hire a magician to come to the house. After it was over, Max told me this was the best birthday ever. And that right there made it all worth it!

the cake

We are having Max's birthday party tomorrow, so I made the cake tonight. He is having a magic show birthday party, hence the bunny popping out of a hat cake!

silly bands

The new craze at our house are these silly bands. They are rubber bands in a variety of shapes and colors. We have hearts, puzzle pieces, animals and some we can't figure out. We have glow in the dark, tie-dye and sparkle glitter ones. My kids are crazy about them.

just playing

I love to watch the kids playing when they don't know I am there.

loved it

The kids have been begging me since we got back to make lasagna. So tonight I did and Hunter went to town on it. Thinking back, this may be the first time he has had lasagna, but I can't remember. He went straight to the bath.

accessories

Yesterday while we were waiting for Kye's glasses to get done we did a little shopping. When I saw this dress I loved it with the purple and the silver. When Sam saw it she only noticed the belt. She could have cared less about the dress, she wanted the "shiny belt".

new glasses

We went and got Kye new glasses today. He picked them out all by himself. They are similar to his old ones, but this year they are blue!

friday the thirteenth

Today a friend called and invited us to go to McDonalds for lunch with them. We went, played and I gave the 10 minute warning when Sam comes screaming down the slide that she couldn't make it. It took me a second to figure out what she was saying but when I did we were in the bathroom lickety-split. It was too late, she had already peed in the play place. So I go tell a manager, then go back in to collect the rest of my children and try to exit as quickly and quietly as possible. There is an emergency exit door in the play area that when the door opens it dings a few times like a doorbell but stops when the door shuts. I have gone out this door before so I didn't really think about it. Sometime since the last time I was there they changed the doorbell ding to a full on fire alarm in the entire McDonalds. I am pulling my kids through the door so I can shut it to stop the alarm, but when the door shuts the alarm doesn't stop. Now I have the entire restaurant staring at me, a daughter with wet pants who is now screaming because her feet are burning on the sidewalk because she doesn't have shoes on and I can't get to the car fast enough. As I was loading the kids in the car I saw the same manager I talked to earlier resetting the alarm on the door. I'm sure he hopes we never come back.

shoes

Sam loved Elise's shoes. Last Sunday after church she paraded around the house in these shoes all afternoon. It surprised me how well she could actually walk in them.

heading home

We packed up and flew home today. I can't believe how fast three weeks has flown by. Elise came last Thursday to help me get home because Trevor still has 2 1/2 more weeks of training in Alabama. I needed to get back and get the kids ready for school and flying by myself with 4 kids made me a little nervous. Thanks Elise!
Everyone was excited to get back to their own beds, especially Hunter. When I put him in his crib he looked at me, looked at his fish tank, looked at his woobie then smiled and went right to sleep. We had a lot of fun on our trip to Mississippi, thanks Mom and Dad for everything!

New Orleans

We went to the aquarium in New Orleans today. This was a great aquarium! They had tons to do and see. The kids didn't want to leave. This tank was at the end of the exhibits and I was trying to round everyone up so we could exit. I looked around for Sam and found her laying there just watching the fish. I don't know how long she had been there, but I love this picture!

fresh shrimp

My mom went to the seafood store and came home with these little guys. The kids all touched them except Hunter, he didn’t want anything to do with them. Max and Kye ate them and loved them!

ten years

Today is our 10 year wedding anniversary. I can’t believe it; 10 years, 4 kids, 6 moves in 4 different states and 2 countries. Time really does fly!

second attempt

We went to the beach again today. Trevor came down from Montgomery to spend the weekend with us and it was his idea. This time we had more adults and less kids, my mom traded the canopy for an umbrella, Sam said she wasn’t afraid of crabs anymore (even though we saw more this trip than last time) and Max only got stung by a jellyfish on his big toe (he must attract them or something.)

Mobile

We went to the Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center in Mobile, Alabama today. The kids loved it! Some of the highlights that the kids said they liked were a reptile planet exhibit, an under 5 play area (which Hunter loved), a news broadcast center, an entire exhibit about the human body and a build your own rollercoaster center.

hula hooping

Max figured out how to hula hoop!

rainy day

Today we woke up to a storm. We all just sat and watched the lighting over the ocean. It was really cool to see. It rained almost all day, so we just stayed inside and played.

free food

Today it was Whataburger's 60th birthday. So if you wore orange they gave you a free hamburger. I didn’t pack any orange so we had to get a little creative. Sam has an orange bead bracelet that I made for her in the car on the way there. My shirt was more pink than orange and Kye had to wear a sweater in 100 degree heat. But we got free hamburgers!

Gulfport

Before we went swimming today I made the kids walk down and get a picture by the sign. They are good kids.

computer time

Erika came yesterday to get her boys. I don’t know how it came up, but she made her boys “computers” from boxes. My kids thought that was so cool, they wanted me to make them “computers” also. So, not to be outdone, I made three, one for Max, Kye and Sam. They played with them all day and told me they are all taking them home.