June In The Rearview

Sometimes looking back makes me realize we did more than I thought and somewhere in the crazy there were memories. Here's a look back at June since the calendar pages turned and I barely recall all the moments until I look back at the photos.

Take a look, shall we?

Earlier in the month was a mommy-son date Saturday. Months ago, Jonah and I signed up for a 4H photography class that was held at a local state park. We spent the day learning simple photography tips and tricks, analyzing photos and taking walks around the scenic landscape to see what beauty we could capture. It was a good day with my boy and we both had an enjoyable time learning.

June we became determined potty trainers and set into full potty training mode. Heck, we even survived! It must have finally been time and the little Miss was ready. Having started and stopped a couple times in the last year or so due to issues that came up, I was hopeful this time around. We're now wearing big girl undies without issues, but we're still working on that #2. It takes time and this one has some constipation issues at times as well, so it will take more effort. Having gone through this three times already, I've had to accept it can take a while before perfection is attained. I'm just so excited to have her eager to go, knowing when she needs to do it and getting there in time. 

From the Baby Files, I'm currently 29+ weeks, but last week's doctor appointment had me measuring at 23 weeks. No, this is not a miscalculation leading to an October birth, but confirmation that I've got another low settled baby. Here's some photographic evidence from a week and a half ago:

From the Cuteness File, my Gianna all smiles and letting me catch her in one of my favorite toddler phases of sweetness. 

As for the big kids, they've spent the last month wandering around wondering how to fill their days without schoolwork. ha! That was part truth. I guess more like they've been enjoying their new found freedom which I happen to think sits on the brink of laziness at times. At least the first couple weeks it was that way and now we're settling in a bit more. Or maybe I'm too tired to care half the time and have adjusted to their lack of schedule. 

They did both have their first round of community ed classes last week and both participated in an Art Class. Being that I'm not really good at the arts nor painting, this is the first class for them to follow the knowledge and instruction of a local artist. They both enjoyed it and it was a good creative outlet for four mornings last week. 

They each did a canvas at first that was guided by the teacher, adding in details as they went along as a class. The last day, they each brought in their own photos from home to do a freestyle painting themselves. Both of them chose photos from our trip to Duluth last fall to recreate. 

Lily's:

Jonah's:

Lily is now eager for her second painting/art class in August and Jonah will be a part of a Lego class then as well. What was I thinking making plans in the last weeks before baby?? Oh well. I won't be going that early, I can guarantee it. 

With the big kids at classes, the little girls and I kept busy with other things like errands, trips to the park and a walk along the bike trail while we waited for the kids. It gave us opportunities for extra girl time and selfies. 

We also took in a movie matinee last week as well. It was our last outing as a family (minus the tween who wasn't feeling up to it at the last minute) with our parish priest and it was his suggestion. We went to see Inside Out and it was Gianna and Margaret's first theater movie. You guessed it, they (and we all) loved it! I think I only took the newly potty trained gal to the bathroom three times during the movie. I highly recommend the movie. I'm kind of sentimental and like Margaret with the memories. I'm also a big Pixar movie fan, so it was another good hit and the outing created another memory of time with our priest for us to lock away.

Just this past Monday, Reed took the day off work for us to take a short day away. We've tried I think three or four times in June to make plans and each time didn't get to do what we'd planned due to uncooperative weather. So off we went on Monday to Brainerd, which as any Minnesotan would know leads to Paul Bunyan territory. We enjoyed the day with its own sets of highs and lows as any family day has, plus I had a couple kids with nuisance colds bugging them. 

On the way home we stopped by Camp Ripley and the military museum there since the big kids seemed intrigued as we passed by on the way to Brainerd. Camp Ripley is a 53,000 acre military and civilian training facility where many National Guards train and enlisted MN military go periodically or monthly for continued training. 

The end to our June came with the saddest part which was our parish priest's official last days. It's been a tough month as we prepared our hearts for his leaving. While change and a new pastor are inevitable, this one is a little more difficult because he wasn't set for a move this year and only recent diocesan developments even put his name on the list. We're also having a tough go of it since he was near and dear to each member of my family's hearts, even down to the toddlers. I wish you could hear how the kids talk about him and the girls draw pictures of him, color him pictures and always wanted to talk with him after Mass. Hopefully we'll be able to make the effort to plan visits (he'll be over an hour away in his new parishes) with him and remain in touch.

Now we're sailing into July and the calendar slots are more full than I anticipated. Part of that is just life activities and added to that is my now every other week prenatal appointments. We're full steam ahead!

On schedule for this month:

* piano lessons continue every other week with a new teacher for a trial period over the summer

* two prenatal appointments with my new midwife (my regular doc recently stopped delivering babies, so I needed to switch for now leading up to and including baby's delivery)

* baby's 32 week ultrasound to check growth and development

* 16 new baby chicks are set to arrive at our house in less than two weeks

* library story hour for the toddlers

* VBS for Jonah and Gianna, plus Lily will be a helper this year

* a parish festival or two that we hope to attend at a couple of our priest friends' parishes

* a farewell/We Love Jamie party that Christine and I are putting together

* patron Saint name days for Lily & Jonah

* 4H project prep for the county fair next month

I hope that your summers are going well and you have a great 4th of July weekend!

Weekend Scenes: Spring Play, A Birthday & Weekend With Boys

I'm tired, my friends. How about you? It was one of those good weekends with family time, crazy time, but at home time. Semi-busy, but it still feels wearing. These are the type of weekends that begin to fill the calendar as the snow melts and the sunshine lingers. The memory maker weekends.

As I mentioned last week, we had planned that the weekend would be for celebrating Jonah's tenth birthday. While I had plans to be intentional about making a big deal over his turning double digits, he ended up just wanting to keep it simple. He wanted to have two of my brother's boys over for the weekend, so that's what we did. 

Which, if you are a mom with three girls and one boy, turns out to be a revealing weekend. One in which I thought many times "I get it now why I'm a 'girl mom' and wasn't blessed with a treasure trove of boys." Not that ya don't love 'em, but they are busy. And loud. And slightly destructive.

The boys came on Friday afternoon so they were able to join us for the kids' spring musical play that evening. Both sets of grandparents were also able to venture out to join us in watching the kids' first ever performance. It was a musical timeline portraying parts of American history. It had nearly 30 kids from our home school group that played historical figures from Christopher Columbus to a 9/11 survivor. Each of the characters lines were actual words they spoke or those wrote in their journals. Sprinkled within the musical were catchy short songs that even my toddlers and myself can now sing after hearing them practiced so many times in rehearsals. It ended up lasting only 30 minutes, but the cast did amazing performing and the historical costumes were great. I wish I could post more photos for you all to see. After the musical, several of the home school students also participated in a variety show/musical performances for us. So much fun.

A quick photo with my nephews before casting call:

Lily as Clara Barton (she was so excited since that's who she was hoping to get cast as) and Jonah as William Bradford (the first governor of the Plymouth colony):

After all the hard work and two weeks of rehearsals, we all enjoyed the final production:

While the work was grueling and the drives to rehearsals 20-50 minutes away, in the end we were happy with the outcome. With this being the kids' first debut in acting and working with other cast members, I'm pleased to say it was a wonderful experience. We are already looking forward to more theater opportunities in the near future.

Saturday turned out to be at-home day. The weather was misty and gray in the morning, but thankfully cleared up enough for the kids to head outside. Thank you, Mother Nature. While our plans had been to take all the kids out for pizza in the afternoon, turned out that wasn't their plan. They just wanted to hang out, run around like hooligans and play like crazy people. 

We gave in and scrapped our plans.

I needed to run to town for groceries and ended up also picking up pizza for supper. Gianna joined me on the outing and it turned out to be a good time away for the two of us. It's rare that I have just one kid along for an errand and she seemed to really enjoy herself as well. I labeled her my new 'errand girl' and she called herself 'a good reminder girl' since she kept track of the things we needed that I didn't have on my list. I look forward to more outings like this now that I know it turned out to be kind of a big deal to her.

Thankfully, Reed is a trooper and held down the fort with all the other kids. They ended up staying outside burning up energy at the park next door and walking in the woods. Everyone survived despite several mishaps and boyisms that seem to happen with more males around. 

Finally, on Sunday we went to Mass in the morning, had my parents join us for brunch and then both sets of grandparents celebrated Jonah's birthday along with us. The kids took advantage of every moment they could to be outside running around. It was glorious outdoors. 

My parents drove my nephews to meet up with my brother and go back home. I think I managed to get the house back in order and now this week we'll be back on track with schoolwork. My mom will join me for my 20 week ultrasound on Tuesday since she's never seen an ultrasound in person as it happens. That should be kind of fun and a chance for grandma to experience some of that same excitement we get each time we see our babies.

May your spring week be beautiful, the sunshine bright and life in full bloom wherever you are. 

Easter Is A Season

We just love our liturgical seasons, don't we? Some of us who are super behind on photos that felt like they were cute like say, two weeks ago, still feel the need to post. But heck, we've got our liturgical seasons and it's still EASTER. Catholic seasons for the score!

Truthfully, I don't even know if anyone cares or wants to see the billionth post with photos of my kids...move on if not. In case you do, I'm wrapping up our Easter weekend that followed the Seven Churches Visitation from Holy Thursday.


Good Friday was a bit more quiet, somber and at home, besides going to Good Friday service. We did make pretzels again, which were delicious. Perhaps too much so for Good Friday?

Holy Saturday it was a bit chilly, but we still had our annual family Easter egg hunt with some of Reed's family. Another successful one that resulted in sweet treats and many smiles.

In the afternoon we did some baking and food preparations for Easter Sunday at our house. This year I didn't forget and the big kids helped make the Empty Tomb Rolls. Last year I forgot, all Easter season long, and had some disappointed kids. Mom fail. It's funny how they remember seemingly 'small' things that are a really big deal to kids. Interestingly enough, I find that a lot of those things are food related. That's SO my family!

Speaking of, my grandma used to make and create so many homemade goodies when I was a kid. Since her passing, I find myself longing to keep those tradition and recreating her recipes. I hope to keep on recalling those special moments and holidays where she poured so much love into creating a feast for her family. Slowly, I am trying to continue on with those things for my kids.

One of her goodies was a soft molasses cut out cookie with a marshmallow pastel colored frosting at Easter. It might sound funny, but even recreating it so that it's the same shape (a simple rectangle cut out from a Spam or coffee creamer tin) is essential to complete the memory. It's just one of those things. The recipe for these cookies is in my recipe box and handwritten by my grandma the Easter after I was married. I've used the recipe each year for Christmas molasses cut outs, but this was only the second time making them for Easter. Thankfully, Reed was willing to help out so the frosting, which is a little tricky, could be made just right.

They were perfect and left my family asking for them sometime again soon.

Following a (seemingly) sometimes long-ish Lent, good eats and treats taste even better. 

Easter morning came with early risers prepared for the Easter basket hunt. As always, this has to be done quickly before dressing up and heading to morning Mass. Mission accomplished and happy morning bed-head kiddos.

For posterity....the four kids after Mass in their Easter finery.

The whole crew. No matchy-matchy like some of you amazingly talented fashionista moms, but something that worked just right for each of us. Hello, maxi dress that works with pregnant belly (For now).

How's that for an Easter wrap? 

I've enjoyed seeing all of you in your Easter pastels and reading your springy posts. 

Keep on celebrating the season and enjoy the sunshine whenever it comes your way.

April Days {Spring Daybook}

Outside my window... the perennials are uncovered and the flowerbeds show promise of a blooming season ahead. Now if we could just get more rain, that would help the buds pop out on the trees as well.

Thinking about... summer plans. With baby due to arrive just as we've finished summer and started school up again, I'm trying to figure out how much we can pack into the summer months. I don't want to overdue it, but I do want to make some plans for small special day trips/projects/fun things together and separately with the kids. I'd like to get in a little retreat/getaway for myself, perhaps a day or two away with Reed, some time with Lily (she'll turn 13 later in September, just after baby arrives), plus Jonah time (being he's the only boy stuck with all the girls), in addition to the other family outings and little things with the little girls too. With half a pregnancy left to fit it in and the usual summer busyness, I'll really need to be intentional about my planning and start getting things penciled in on the calendar.


I am hearing... Reed in the kitchen making pizza for supper (I'm writing this Sunday evening) and the little girls skittering about gathering up items to head outside.


Praying for...  moms and their families who need prayers: Annie and her family; Ann Coakley and her new baby Blaze; the Rogan Family; healthy baby and pregnancy; those who have asked for my prayers.


What I'm reading... following Sarah's recommendation and review, I picked up this book heading into Holy Week. I haven't had near enough time to pick it up and read, but I'm nearing the end. I wasn't sure if I'd be a good candidate for the Biblical historical fiction, but thought I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did. I'm really enjoying the author's writing and look forward to checking into the other books in the series.

From the kitchen... I'll be winging it again this week since I neglected to menu plan. The pantry and cupboards are well stocked, so I should be able to pull together a few meals. The crock pot may be my best ally again this week with a heavier schedule and cooler outdoor weather temps.


From the schoolroom...we're heading into the homestretch and our last six weeks of the school year. We'll be doing the CAT testing mid-May and I'm hoping that will help us best assess how to proceed with curricula for Lily as she heads to seventh grade in the fall.


Around the house... the windows were open last week to send out the winter air and bring in the springtime freshness. In a fit of crazy, nesting pregnant frenzy, I cleaned out/sorted and organized some of the girls' toys. I may need to do some more in the coming months, but at least for now I feel like there's less 'stuff' where I don't need so much stuff. Reed is working hard and plugging away at that basement bathroom each weekend he can. With the help of the resident interior designers, a paint color was chosen and we should be able to get it on the walls soon. The next tough part for Reed will be tiling the shower and putting down the faux tile linoleum squares. We're hopeful that the project won't hit a complete standstill once the weather turns really nice and outdoor work demands more of our time.

Baby belly... we've made it to Week 19. I'm able to feel more baby movements now and the little girls are eager to feel baby move too. Margaret seems to be most fascinated by my growing belly and pokes at it while asking me baby related questions. Gianna is also full of questions, but mostly wide eyed at the size of my belly, especially after suppertime. Jonah just keeps on mentioning that he really hopes baby is a boy and Lily is mostly concerned with logistics like arrival date, baby names, Godparents, etc.

Coming up this week... Lily and Jonah are in a short historical spring play/musical with our homeschool group which means another three days with two hour long rehearsals. Jonah turns double digits (10 already!!) on Tuesday and we'll have my older two nephews overnight on the weekend. Play performance is on Friday evening, so that will kick off our weekend.


Photo to share... My brother's family welcomed another little boy just before Easter. We were happy to join them and share in little Lewis John's Baptism last weekend.

Have a wonderful Spring week!

The 12 (Or So) Photos Of 2014 {link up}

I decided to hop on the bandwagon of top photos from the past year with House Unseen. It's always fun to look back at the year and remember certain things or be reminded of those forgotten moments.
2014 was a year of growth, sadness, trust, and blessing. Clicking through the photos of the year reminded me once again of the growth of my children in the span of a year. It also showed the beauty of family, the tenderness of loss, and the joy of friends of the heart.

Let's get started.

January:   Winter days, hazy days, nothing but inside days. This is when we rely on the craziness of toddlerhood to keep us laughing and grace to keep us going.

February:  When baby turns two, but still has a paci and it's the cutest thing ever. We got out a bit more, but winter threatened to rob us of our sanity.

March:  The hope of spring was in the air and the journey through lent kept us looking on toward a new season. Our parish held the annual Winter Carnival and the Olaf pinata is still one of my favorite memories from the year. 

April:  Easter arrived and the air was fresh and crisp. I remember it vividly, as if it were my first spring. It felt glorious! When my heart kept nudging me to visit my grandma on her birthday, I followed its command. It was the last time my kids saw great grandma and I saw her happy. It was a good day and I'll treasure that visit in my heart always.

May:  We continued on with our steady school days. It also began a season of field trips and family day trips enjoying the great outdoors. So too began the days of short sleeves, flip flops, and silly girls.  

June:  One event that clouded the year was the loss of grandma, just six months after grandpa. This photo is most of my memory of that day. As in life, so in death, she was surrounded by people and it was beautiful. 

July: The kids were making their final preparations for the County Fair while we were taking in our summer days. We again hosted Vocations Camp, enjoyed some time with grandpa and grandma, and decided to begin the adventure of raising chickens. 

August:  The days were warm and the garden continued to be bountiful. A visit with friends proved to be just what I needed. Many days were spent out and about as a family enjoying life and I finished a 5K walk/run with my big kids. 

September:  School was in full swing and the weekends were for adventure. Lily celebrated her birthday by getting her ears pierced, we took in the fall colors, and enjoyed a few days away. 

October:  I took my first solo airplane ride and lived to tell the tale. On the other side I met up with two amazing friends and had one of the most memorable trips ever. That weekend was one of my favorite memories from 2014. 

November:  Winter began with a big snow dump when I was least prepared. The snow gear was pulled out and we began settling in to another season. More days at home, but with holidays on the horizon we had the fun to look forward to.  

December:  My favorite season (Advent) was upon us and the days were marked with prayer, baking, memories, and traditions. A laid back, peaceful Christmas was just as it should be and our bellies were full and hearts content. 

Here's to looking ahead to 2015 and the days that will shape the new year.

Click on over to catch a glimpse of other 2014 recaps with Dwija. 

Everybody Needs A Little Time Away

 

Photo Dump Ahead

Did you miss me? You probably didn't even know I was away with me being the sporadic blogger I have been as of late. That's okay. Let me catch you up on our few days away last week.


First, I must say that it was a most beautiful time to be away. Even with our little trip happening only due to the fact that poor Reed had a conference out of town, it was a good time indeed. The bonus for us is that we can take the time as a family to go away and be with him when his schedule allows. Thank you, homeschooling.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we headed out of town on Lily's 12th birthday.

A quick snapshot before everyone was dressed and ready to go.

We were all packed up and ready to head out on the road to Duluth, MN by 8:30 am. If you have ever been to Duluth, you'd know why it's one of our favorite spots. EVER. I've spent many a vacation there throughout my life and Reed and I spent our honeymoon there too. While it's simple, in-state and not exotic by any means, it's just a few hours from home and has always been intriguing for our family visits. 

Conveniently, my grandma lives in a city that we pass through on the way to Duluth. A quick visit was in order as it only seems right, but also because she and Lily share birthdays. We had to let the birthday gals spend a little time together and take a photo or two.

After arriving in Duluth and getting settled in, we dropped Reed off at his afternoon meeting. The kids and I then hit the waterpark for a bit before drying off and finding out all the other cool attractions at our hotel.

We then headed down to where Reed's meeting was being held and met up with him for supper. 

It was the birthday girl's choice where she wanted to eat. 

She chose an exciting place, which is a revolving (slowly) restaurant atop one of Duluth's tallest buildings. It was a meal that was out of our ordinary "plain" Midwestern tastes, but it wasn't too bad. We mainly went for the experience and the memories. The outer ring part of the restaurant revolves slowly while you enjoy the exquisite views. In our time there, roughly 1 1/4 hours, we were able to make one full rotation, to the delight of the birthday girl. 

To add to the adventure of our trip, my parents ended up joining us for one overnight and day. It was planned so that they could enjoy the one full day with the kids and I (ahem, and help relieve mom a bit), while Reed was in classes/meetings that day.

We awoke Monday morning to gor.ge.ous. weather. In Duluth, at the end of September, it is almost unheard of. To plan a trip at that time of year, you seriously could be freezing your little hinders off. No lie. We've been up there in September and worn winter coats! We were blessed with this glorious, 70 degree weather every day we were there. Some of the best weather we've ever experienced in Duluth, especially since a lot of times you get caught in a lot of wind coming off Lake Superior. 

We enjoyed time down in Canal Park walking along the boardwalk, enjoying the views, watching ships far off, searching for agates and throwing rocks in Lake Superior.

Relaxing and Peaceful.

This was created by Jonah, the artistic and creative one. He asked specifically that it be showcased on my blog. I (heart) Jesus.

Sweet boy.

Precious moments and time just enjoying. *bliss*

We spent the rest of the morning walking, playing at the playground, and a having a picnic lunch.

Then we headed to a place I had never been in all our visits, Enger Tower Park.  I cannot believe we've never found this spot. My parents found it earlier in the summer when they were up in Duluth visiting and wanted to share it with us. 

The little girls fell asleep on our drive to the park, so my mom stayed back and hung out with them in the van. The big kids took the adventure up the trail to the tower with my dad and I. 

We climbed up the nearly 100 stairs to the very top of the tower and beheld scenes like this:

With the autumn leaves turning and the blue sky, it was the best time to see the beauty.

Looking at the famous aerial lift bridge in Canal Park.

The park also has some nice gardens and walking trails high up on the hill as well.

And many more breathtaking scenes to behold.

The following day we were just the kids and I again in the morning. We had planned our "splurge" destination while in Duluth for the Great Lakes Aquarium.  (We ended up not spending as much on admission, thanks to our hotel having discounted tickets for us. Score!) We also used it as our "school"/field trip as well. Before the aquarium opened, we headed back to enjoy Canal Park and hang out for a bit in the morning. 

Every trip we are in Duluth, we make a point to consult the ship schedule so that we catch at least one ship coming in or going out. It's kind of a tradition and one of our favorite parts of the trip.

The ship schedule usually has a window of anywhere from 1-3 hours of when a ship may be departing or coming in. If you hit it right, you could catch one. If not, you may have to hang out a while until you do. Ships do not come and go every day. It just depends on what's being loaded and unloaded, if they are on time, etc. 

That morning, we happened to be at the right place and heard the lift bridge announcement before it begins to lift. We were going to see a ship!

This one was coming out and was nearly 1,000 feet. 

Afterward, we drove just a little ways to hit the aquarium when it opened. We were some of the only patrons in there that morning and it was ideal. As we looked at the many exhibits, one corner faced the harbor where the ships dock and load/unload.  It also had an observation deck outside that we stepped out on to see the view. 

To our delight, another ship was beginning to make it's journey out of the harbor toward the lift bridge. 

It was a great vantage point to see the 1,004 foot ship head out. We also had a few other people on the deck with us as we watched. One of the guys who volunteers at the aquarium is from Duluth and very knowledgeable about the ships. The longest ship that comes in to Duluth is 1.013 and this specific one we saw is the second largest. Pretty cool, huh?

Inside the aquarium, they even have a ship simulation. Here the kids can pretend to steer the ship while also seeing and hearing all that a ship captain would when he is in command of a ship. 

That afternoon, we had a picnic lunch with Reed before doing more walking and sightseeing. 

We made an effort to find another place we'd never been, Lester Park. With more trails to adventure on, a playground and more rocks and water to splash in, it was another hit. Again, with warm weather, it made the fun even more enjoyable.

It was a great few days away. We had many things to fill our days, down time in the waterpark, and oodles of free things to explore within a short driving distance. We didn't even hit some of the bigger things like Gooseberry Falls or Split Rock Lighthouse. Those will be for another time, perhaps when the kids are just a bit bigger and daddy can be with us the whole time. 

It was a good time, a very good time, to be away. To reconnect, enjoy, cherish and have fun.

As always, it was good to get back to home and routine.