Hershey vs. Nestle

I didn't realize there was much of a difference between Nestle and Hershey chocolate.

This week, I made the wrong choice...sorry Nestle, you've lost this battle.

..

Happy Halloween

It was cold and rainy today, but that would be no deterrent to the kids when it came to trick or treating this year. With the weather being poor it made for a short time out with Jayda and some pretty cold and wet little boys (and one big boy).

Jayda is at the stage where she is just constantly moving. She doesn't like to sit or be contained for any reason. So, getting her to stand still so I could get a cute picture of her for all her west coast family was near impossible, so I hope these will do...

Completely by accident, but it does make "Yoda" appear to really fit her name. She jumped just at the last second of me trying to take her picture. The boys and I laughed for a really long time about this picture, so of course I have to post it.

This is our neighbor and one of Micah's little buds. She came trick or treating with us.

The Four Amigos

Micah: Optimus Prime Noah: Clark Kent

And they have already started talking about next year...oh goodness!

Parenting is hard

I don't understand boys. I always thought I was a good "boy" mom, but I really don't get them. I can't understand the way they like to play and I certainly don't know why they think it's funny to punch each other. I have talked with lots of moms who assure me that grade school is the time that kids are really learning what it means to be civil to one another. But, it still doesn't help when the principal calls home.
Additionally, I am taking a class at church called "The Peacemaker"...a biblical approach to resolving conflict. It's a constant reminder that each and every thing I do is being watched by little ones who are eager to learn how they are supposed to behave in this world. No pressure, right? Good thing we have a gracious God who helps all of us along this path.

It does my heart good, however, to look back through all the pictures that we have saved on our computer and finds one like this of my boys.  Even if the road can be rocky in their relationship, I know they love each other and deeply care about the other one.
I sure do love them with everything I've got...which reminds me of why parenting is so hard - because we care so much!

This one is just cute.  She won't let me put anything like this in her hair anymore.  She just rips it right out.  That's okay though.  She's cute without it too...

Social Media

They say that if you are going to start doing something on social media, you really need to stick with it.  That seems like a really good idea, but life seems to keep going and I haven't been able to stop with it so I can post something online.  So, I will get better.  I will...
Here's what's been going on for us....
The weather in Wisconsin has been great!  It's been warm most of October and only in the past couple days has it started to get cold.  The kids still love the trampoline and even Jayda has begun to enjoy it.  The boys are good with her and don't bounce "too high" when she's in there with them.

 I was trying to get them to have a fun picture together.  This was about as good as I was going to get.

 She likes to take her brothers down whenever possible.

 You can't read her shirt very well, but it does say "Daddy's Princess"

 This is not our new puppy,but our neighbors also got a new puppy about a month before we did.  This was at one of Noah's football games. I captured how Jayda is with our puppy (Yoda) all the time.  She is so happy whenever she is around them.  Definitely got that trait from her mama!

Until next time....blessings on your day!!

Moments like these...

When Micah woke me up this morning at 5:30am because he couldn't swallow, I wasn't that patient. I kept thinking forward to the only day of the week that Chris and I both have to work. I kept thinking about what I needed to get accomplished today. Chris got up with Micah. He took care of him and I laid in bed trying to figure out how this was all going to work. He has a classroom full of students that are waiting for him.

As I sat thinking about this, I remembered the Mentor Moment that we had at MOPS this last week. Of all the things that I need to get done today, being there for Micah is by far the most important. So far, I've done some dishes, but I've also watched a few episodes of Phineas and Ferb, Kick Buttowski and Kickin' It, taken Micah to the doctor, snuggled on the couch, and the best, snuggled down for a nap which took all of six minutes for the boy to fall asleep.

It's the moments like these that I haven't gotten as a working mom. Even though I still am working, I am learning to find myself again...this time, finding myself as a mom to these three amazing kiddos.

One Already?

Little did he know how much this bundle was going to change his life...

I don't think they realized it either...

And I certainly had no idea either...

These pictures are in no particular order, but just some that I took of Jayda over the past week. I've been having so much fun with my change in jobs getting to be home so much more with the kiddos. I love it! I forgot how much I love being home with them. (Even when I want to pull all my hair out)

Our water isn't just amazingly blue. For her birthday Jayda was given some "Bath Drops"...the first of many bath things for a girl... This picture just caught her perfectly. She is pretty sassy, especially when it comes to her brothers!

Micah adores his baby sister and she got this new princess car for her birthday, so he was taking her around the driveway on it last night.

One of our days of just her and I hanging out while the boys were at school. We ran a few errands together. It's amazing how much easier one kid seems after having more.

This was her birthday cupcake. Chris was a brave man to hold her during the process. She and He were a mess when it was all said and done.

Happy Birthday Cupcake

We had a little party at our house on the actual day with our neighbors. This picture is awesome of how Jayda often reacts to her big brothers. She loves them, there is no question about it, but she will always work to get her way.

I'm pretty sure she's laughing at Chris in this picture. This was the first present she got to open on her birthday.

Brew Crew!

We were given tickets to the Brewers Baseball game this week. It was a fantastic day! Casey McGehee hit two home runs. Not to mention, we were just eight rows up from the field! It was so much fun!

My babies....

Yep, super close...

Emmaleigh

I miss my friend. I started looking through old digital photos this week. Found a few, but there are so many more that I could add. I loved our sweet dog and I will truly miss her. The pet store up the street had a Santa come and you could bring your dogs. Emmaleigh does not look amused to be in this picture. To be honest, neither does Micah.

This is what she had to deal with. She was our original pillow pet.

This was just funny. Noah used to give Micah rides on the tricycle. It was really cute to watch.

She was happiest outside with us

Before we had kids Em used to snuggle in bed with us on Saturday mornings. She was pretty spoiled.

She was always there for me. It's weird, but dogs know when something isn't right. She would just come and be with me. And, she also thought she was a lap dog.

She was under two in this picture

And, I think Noah was under two in this one

Rest in Peace Emmaleigh.

The best dog anyone could ask for.

Baptism Day

On May 22 we had the joy of having all three of the kids baptized. We asked our friend Jan to take a few snap shots of the day.

Sweet Jayda, 8 1/2 months

Noah is growing up so much. 6 1/2 years old. He is a great big brother. He is so helpful to us and loves his sister and brother.

I love the back of her dress, so we made sure to get a picture of the cute bow.

I love this picture of us!

Micah is growing up so much. He's going to be in Kindergarten next year. He's almost 5! He adores his sister and loves playing with Noah.

After Pastor Tim baptized Jayda, he turned to the boys and said "Who's Next?"

This picture caught them both raising their hands saying "Me!"

Jayda loved watching Pastor Tim.

This is another one I love.