goodbye winter

We ended winter with crafts (so many crafts), books, and games. Adam turned a rad 5, Paige and Dustin danced the night away with buddies, Noah napped well, and Seth began mastering paper airplane making.

Noah has not cared much for bicycles - he prefers scooters. Then one day Adam asked Dustin to put the training wheels back on and "gave" Noah his old bike. Now he likes riding bikes.

We have put away the fleece jackets and started breaking in this year's Crocs. There is a bunny living in the ornamental grass and so many new bugs to catch. The kids' Colorado shows when they expect to jump straight from winter to summer each year, and I had to relocate all the swimsuits to a top shelf as cries of, "Let's go swimming TODAY!" rang throughout the house. Allergies have been a real downer, but oh, how we love the green everywhere we look outside.

two blurry months

December was quiet - the 3 smallers got strep at the beginning of the month (lucky tonsil-free Seth!).  I got a rapid test kit a while ago, to spare myself multiple dr visits - so glad.  It was easier to call and say, "Yeah, pretty sure she has strep.  Oh, and that one.  Oh, and that one too."  Noah got really sick the week of Christmas and didn't really recover until February (which means I don't remember much of January).  The gallery on my phone is a nap collage of Noah.  I didn't remember we got a smattering of snow until I saw the photos - was it a few inches?  No idea.  Paige played and played in it, everyone else was happy to stay warm inside.

Thankful for the season of rest and togetherness, though admittedly it was too much togetherness for me at times (hah!).

seth turned 9; it was a while ago

These are all from November; I'm a *little* behind. The camera had an unfortunate meeting with the sidewalk (little hands, heavy camera) and it is still functional, but well, you have to coax it to work now. It's been broken for a rather long time, but has become bothersome and more often than not I leave it behind. I should consider getting a new one! I will. I'm also not really on a computer much, so I've gotten away from dumping photos with any sort of frequency. 

Our November was sweet. Adam planted and tended the peas and was the right-hand man for applesauce this year. He and Noah love to paint, and to make messes.  We'll figure out the mess thing someday. 

Seth had a birthday around Thanksgiving. He is a solid little dude and we love that - and so many things - about him. Sometimes I look at him and still see this, though...

a cat with stripes

We saw a neat tractor parade a while back.  Lots of old men, driving their beasts about with such nonchalance - surely they've been doing it all their lives.  Some of the machines sounded and smelled just like all my tractor riding childhood memories with my Grandpa.

Seth and I pulled out the WWII aircraft puzzle that we got a few years ago.  I tried putting it together then - Paige wasn't quite 1 - but it didn't work out well (big surprise!).  Adam and I stayed home from a camping trip a few weeks ago (he was unwell) and had such a stretch of quiet that I sat and worked through most of it that evening.  It was a big surprise that we weren't missing any pieces - and the only mangled one was a piece I remember prying from Paige's 10mo old teething gums.  Are we really old enough to have a puzzle table going?!  They do puzzles often while I read to them, but those are easily completed and reboxed afterwards.  I told Seth that Sarah and I used to work on puzzles all day long with movies on, eating potato chips with french onion dip...I think he now has plans for his Thanksgiving break; he has started asking if there is a puzzle of submarines...

We hit the Mayfield corn maze with friends and had a great time.  Adam had some sort of allergic reaction afterwards (I still think hay), but he was a happy boy while he was there.  Paige convinced him that there was a harvester (Cars is his reference point for this) on the other side of the corn maze, coming for them...needless to say he freaked out.  Someday she may regret starting this you-scare-me-I-scare-you situation.

Noah is in on the card games these days.  Reverses in Uno really frustrate him - all that waiting for his turn! - but he happily pulls out the maniacal laughter whenever he unloads a draw two or draw four.  He still finds it super exciting to give someone his cards during Go Fish - I think he considers himself an accessory to their success.  Makes me laugh.