{weekend}

Mother's day is one of the two days a year where I feel completely justified in doing...well, not much. I do not want presents, I do not need breakfast in bed. what I want/need  is to sleep till 8am and just walk casually through the day...well as much as possible as mothers day is on a sunday and sunday means church and church means 3 little ties, lots of shoes, belts & buttons & in Presley's case...a pretty dress and flower on top. But My wish was granted...I slept in (anything past 6:00am is sleeping in around these here parts!) & even though my hott stuff hubs had worked a night shift in the ER he still came home & turned on the morning cartoons and cooked up a storm for the whole family.  Juggling 4 kids while cooking when your not acclimated to such a task can be tricky. He took it on! After church it was just the 4 and myself. We entertained each other. The children presented me with all their projects made at school and in primary.

 good little pumpkins. 

{vacuum}

For 7 years now I have done the same thing every single night. When my wee ones are dreaming I find a spot at my computer & I look at pictures for 5 or so minuets..nothing excessive...of the day,of a year ago, of the day one was born. I look at faces & I feel moments.  Tonight was no different...except maybe that I got sucked into a vacuum of nostalgia. It was 8 when I sat down & now almost 3 hours later I am overwhelmed with pretty memories, favorite pictures clicked & dragged to my desktop in a big messy heap. & scribbled on a piece of paper in almost illegible form is a list of things I have experienced since the day T was born.  I have been pregnant 8 times in my days as a mother. We have lost a few much further into pregnancy than expected. But we always moved forward with hope knowing that there was another babe waiting to see our faces. Motherhood has given me purpose. Motherhood has given me inspiration in abundance, a hobby, warmth, a greater connection to my heavenly father & a perspective on life & eternity I would not trade for all the chocolate in the world. & with this also comes a weighing sense of gratitude for my own Mom. She is beautiful. Have you seen her? She's charming & sweet & thoughtful & guides with love. I can call her at midnight in tears. She is there to listen & support me. She has never missed a birth or a birthday of her grandchildren. She is deeply devoted to her family & the woman I seek to model my own mothering after. I love her & her way of making things lighthearted. I love her & her way of making my children fall head over heels for her. I love her & the way she has become my best friend & dearest confidant in my adult years. I love her.

{a hat}

Presley wanted to wear a hat today. & because I am her mother and think every itty bitty thing she does is just darling....I took pictures.

 and then Maddox took the hat...

 but we recover quick here...

{life according to my phone.}

what usually happens when I go to church solo with the 4. (Rod's schedule is ugly right now. we don't get him on sundays often. I guess people still get sick on the sabath.) We find a quiet room with a speaker so I can listen & they can color. believe it or not it is tricky to keep the younger ones happy and still & quiet completely on my own. 

Guess who is getting her Momma's curls after all? Im rather pleased. 

lots of this pool side these days. yum.

Maddox owns our electronics by day. my phone, my iPad, Dad's iPad, Tre's kindle, Tre's iPod. 

its all his...or so he thinks. & we don't fuss at him about it. he's a good fella. 

Presley is bananas about puzzles. she sits for an hour at a time & has her own way of completing the puzzle over & over. each time the same way. clever girl.

Britt is not a fan of car washes. too loud. 

this activity days rock star mom & daughter dinner has consumed my last 2 weeks. It was a fun karaoke filled night. I was sure grateful Rod was willing to sacrifice sleep before a night shift in the ER to care for the 4. He is a good man.

May is packed. My calendar looks crazy. Ill be one happy camper when summer vacation starts & my chicks can stay in the nest. 

{my waiter}

Today I went to  a restaurant & reserved a table for ONE, Yes, ONE. My name was called & I was lead to a nice little table in the corner of the room. My waiter handed me my menu. I noticed he was kind-a cute. Good looking even. Adorable. I may have even sighed a time or two at the sight of him. He asked what I wanted for a beverage. I placed my order. He said that in order for him to put in the order I would have to first pay him in a bear hug. So I did. I squeezed that waiter with all my might, in fact he had to tell me to stop hugging him as he looked around to see who was watching. Lets stop there for a moment. My husband was perfectly okay with this scenario....me going to brunch alone, hugging my waiter. Mostly because my waiter was none other than our first born, T.  His 1st grade class was hosting a "Reading Restaurant." Each child lead there guest to their decked out desk & handed them a menu. this menu did not have real beverages or foods, but rather different things that the child could read. Each with a price. for example, as stated above...a "beverage" reading required a bear hug. So cute! T is & has been for a long time a strong reader. I always enjoy hearing him read to me. Usually while at home we are interrupted by little hands grabbing at pages, but here in his classroom it was me & my cute waiter/chef, Tre. & I loved soaking him in. He's getting big you see, & I worry he doesn't get mommy time enough with his increasing independence & busy schedule. My table for one was perfect. I drank some orange juice and watched T swallow donut holes whole. Then I took my carryout bag with the chef's finest work & carried it home to my husband & little ones where we marveled at T's work. He is exceptional if I may say so myself. (His absolutely fantastic teacher seems to agree!)

{1st}

I took a few deep breaths, & told myself I could do it! I pulled out the swimsuits from everyones bottom drawers. We picked up some Taco Cabana & Orange Juice. Then we walked through the gates to the pool for the first time since last october. I was relieved to see my neighbor, Gabby there with her two. T & A had races & made canon balls over & over. Britt made his way from 1 foot to 5 feet with no hesitation at all. Maddox splashed about & through diving toys for S. My eyes were glued to the girl. Presley on first sight of the pool, looked very pleased. Like she had hit the jack pot. But as we stepped closer & closer to the pool she decided that maybe she was not as ready for this as she thought. So, even though I brought my camera to take pictures of the kids...it ended up being all pictures of Presley...as she was the one I was most concerned about falling in.  We ate our takeout pool side & headed home tired & ready for bed. The youngest 3 are already sweetly dreaming. I love nights when they fall asleep quickly because of happy exhaustion.

hello self...change your settings for an action shot. duh. I guess i was still in worry mode about drowning children. but still fun to see T all smiles. even if fuzzy like woah.