Mamma Mia!

Harry and Charlie spent the afternoon at their good friend Briggs's birthday party. The theme was Mario Brothers, so of course, these brothers went as the Mario Brothers. It was not a costume party, but that didn't seem to deter them. I thought this picture was funny....Harry was trying to convince Charlie to make the same face he's making. Apparently, it's the Mario face. Charlie was having nothing of it. On a milestone-note, John got his first haircut this week. Just a trim...don't worry...the curls are still intact. He was beginning to look a bit like a child who wasn't being taken care of, so we decided it was time. He sat very nicely for the cut...a bit perplexed by the whole process.

And lastly, although I don't have any pictures of this, Maggie got her ears pierced this week! (Can you believe I forgot my camera when my one and only daughter got her ears pierced!?!) Her friend Ashlynn got hers done last weekend, and apparently, the beautiful pink "diamonds" in Ashlynn's ears was enough to make Maggie relent and face the pain. I honestly thought she'd never get her ears pierced. She says having her teeth cleaned at the dentist is painful, so I was sure the thought of sitting voluntarily in a chair and having someone poke holes in her ears would never fly with her. But she did great! There were a few tears afterwards, but she recovered quickly and is loving her new accessories! I'll try to post some pictures of them soon.

Soccer, Biking and Hill Rolling

Well, we've finally settled into the routine that is Fall (school, soccer, piano, cub scouts, homework, seminary, etc..). Each day for me begins with a prayer and a deep breath, as we set out to do all we have to do. I find as busy as I am, I actually enjoy the routine that this time of year brings...Here is a sampling of what we've been up to...

We celebrated my 32nd birthday (sans cake thanks to the diabetes). I realized that I've spent 5 of my last 10 birthdays pregnant, and a 6th bringing a new baby home from the hospital. I think that's a pretty good accomplishment, and at the same time, feels like a good time to end the era. A decade of having babies seems to be enough!

Harry started his first year of soccer. He's the only one this year who wanted to play, and with everything else we've got going on, I decided not to push it. He had his first game last Saturday and really enjoyed it. It's fun to sit and watch him on the field, a huge grin almost always on his face. Here is an action shot of him kicking the ball.If we get homework and piano done before dinner, I've been taking the kids on a nightly bike ride while Joe does the dishes. I find this really helps with my blood sugar, and the kids love it. I borrowed a friend's bike trailer and tow around Charlie and John while the three older ride behind me. (Because, you know, I didn't think I was looking quite crazy enough in my neighborhood just being the lady pregnant with her sixth child....I think the pregnant lady riding the bike, towing two children and leading three others looks much more appropriately crazy :)) Invariably on these rides we end up at the local park, where I introduced the children to a favorite activity of my childhood - HILL ROLLING. This is great...I sit at the top of the hill and they lay on their backs with their arms crossed. I give them a gentle push and off they roll. By how much they enjoy this, you would have thought I took them to Disneyland....they roll to the bottom and then come running back for more. This is a total win/win situation for me, as I SIT at the top, and they ROLL and RUN all their energy out before bed. I wish I could have gotten my camera to focus better, but I think you can still appreciate the joy they seem to find in this activity!


That's about it for us....we hope you're all enjoying your Fall as much as we are ours!

Life

I was shopping for a birthday card for my dad, and came across this one. I couldn't pass it up...it seems to be how I'm feeling about life right now...of course, in my case, it's one SUGAR-FREE cupcake at a time!

Charlie is Four!

Yesterday was Charlie's Birthday. He turned four. This was a fun one for us because it was the first year he's actually anticipated his birthday...instead of just waking up one morning to find presents like in years past. He counted down the days and was so excited about turning four. The day started off with a bang at 6:15 when everyone woke up, but then deteriorated a bit as we had to wait until Dad came home from seminary at 7:45 before any presents could be opened.



Luckily, the teeter-totter was to big too wrap, so the kids got to enjoy this for a while during the wait.

Finally, dad came home and presents were opened...everything was enjoyed...especially the Luigi costume (worn throughout the rest of the day).

Then, off the three older kids went to school, and Charlie and I stayed home and decorated his cake. (I got this edible and personalized cake image from an ebay seller for about $8.00 with shipping. Definitely the least work/biggest reward type of cake to decorate. We just frosted the cake and stuck the image down. My kids were SO impressed.



With the 6:15 wake-up call, "quiet time" turned into nap time, and while Charlie took a birthday snooze, everyone else took full advantage....

Harry accessorized with Charlie's Indiana Jones whip and gun,


And John hungrily eyed the cake....

But finally, everyone got home from school and work, and we celebrated with Charlie's favorite dinner of Pokemon Mac and Cheese. (His first choice was cinnamon rolls, but I explained that that might be a better choice for a birthday breakfast celebration). More presents were opened, candles blown out, and cake enjoyed. Birthday success!