Deodorant Rash

P.S. Braden got a massive rash on the side of his torso from using too much deodorant.

Shill Kids Activities

Braden had his Band Spring Concert
this week. It was fantastic! Braden plays the french horn and is really good at it. His teacher, Mr. Lucas, has called me to personally tell me how talented Braden is. Of course, I already knew that.

Collin had a fun time this week flying his kite. He was so excited that he could let all of the string out.

Lila and I had our daily tea party. She loves setting the table and getting all the snacks out. She's so cute.

Caleb has figured out the stairs this week. :( He is growing up so fast. I was hoping to go a little longer, but he is on the go.

House on the market!

Wow! What a week it has been. I had NO idea how stressful it was to put a house on the market - especially with four children! On Thursday we had our realtor and her photographer come and take pictures of our home. I thought I had done a good job cleaning, but the second they came in the door, somehow I saw fingerprints and dust everywhere I looked! Even with that, I figured this was the cleanest it will ever be and so I thought I would take my own pictures to post as a remembrance of our first little home. We have had a love/hate relationship with this house, but all in all we have very tender memories. The past five years here have been difficult and triumphant. Talmage has worked like a slave and I have been treading water. We are SO grateful to finally be at the end of all of this training (14 years to be exact!) and live a little more "normally." Actually, this year has been great. Talmage's fellowship has been wonderful and we have seen a lot of him. We have been so blessed and we really appreciate all the prayers and support from so many. Thank you! Here is my top 5 love/hate memory list:
LOVE HATE
Love 1. Memories of two children's births and my children growing up.
Hate 1. Ladybug plague in the spring. I still can't figure out how they get in the house. aaggh
Love 2. Watching my boys get on the school bus and waving good-bye out the window. :(
Hate 2. A squirrel tormenting me in our vent system for an entire day scratching and running through the house. FREAKED ME OUT!
Love 3. Warm, humid nights with the kids chasing fireflies or "Tinker Bell" as Lila would say.
Hate 3. Spending two summers regrading our entire property. Mud everywhere. Seeding and watering on a strict schedule during blistering hot days.
Love 4. BBQ's and roasting smores out by the firepit.
Hate 4. Long, grey winters.
Love 5. Salt of the earth neighbors and friends.
Hate 5. FIVE people in line to use our ONE bathroom. What I would have given for a "Pittsburgh Potty"

Easter

I think today was the first Easter we have had by ourselves ever. It was quiet and nice and I had fun cooking in the kitchen. I tried a new way of making asparagus and it was yummy. Even Collin ate one, well ... half of one.

This morning while I was curling Lila's hair she said, "Mom, you don't have to make my hair curly because I am already pretty in my heart" So sweet.

Braden has officially stopped believing in the Easter Bunny. This morning after they got their baskets, he came and said, "Thanks, Mom, for the toys" I just told him I loved him and nearly wanted to cry.

Collin has been so helpful this week. He has been quick to ask if I need any help with anything and play with Caleb when he is sad. Collin absolutely adores Caleb. They are going to be great buddies. Collin is especially excited to (probably) share a room with Caleb when we move. Last night he had the "growing pains" and so I had to go and rub his legs several times. He thinks the pain is worth it though and is excited to see how much he "grew" in the morning. So cute.

Caleb is getting so big and cute. My heart nearly bursts evertime I even look at him and then I have to smother him with kisses. He is crawling all over, does pat-a-cake and is even practicing moving his head back and forth as if to say "NO" We are in for it! We love our Peanut!

Alas! Dying Easter Eggs

Saturday was quite a busy day getting the house ready to sell. Talmage had the weekend off - the first in a long time - and so we worked hard organizing and cleaning. We took an entire trailer load to Goodwill. What a great feeling that was, but at the same time we were totally disgusted in ourselves for having so much junk! Getting ready to move has been very good for us in terms of simplifying things at home. We are determined to take only necessary things with us this time! Well, the kids played and had fun, but all day they were itchin' to decorate Easter eggs. Finally, at about 7:00 pm we decorated eggs.
I remember when I was a little girl, we just put an egg in a color and that was it. Now dying eggs has become a sophisticated art form. It was fun to watch the kids come up with their own ways to decorate each egg. Collin named his favorite egg, "Fireball". It looked pretty cool.

Spring Break

Today was Spring break for Braden, Collin and Lila. It was the only full day they got off and then they will go back to school on Monday. They think it's totally unfair. We started our day out with a yummy breakfast and a little R&R. After taking it easy for a little while, I put us all to work on the house. We are trying to get our house on the market and so it seems like all I have been doing is cleaning and organizing for months! Well, next week our realtor is going to take pictures and so I wanted to get the house in tip-top condition. The boys did not agree and.... rightfully so considering this was their only day off of school. They seemed totally down as they cleaned, so I told them to all get ready because I had "an errand" to run and they all had to come with me. Now they were even more bummed. We all got ready and I started driving to Wild Wood Highlands - which is like a glorified Chuck E Cheese. They kept asking where we were going and I told them on some errands. Finally I came up to the park and the boys still didn't get what we were doing. It was so funny because they both said at the same time, "We're going to Wild Wood Highlands?!?" Everybody was so excited and we all ended up having a great time. Later on tonight, I recieved an e-mail from Braden. (Braden now has an e-mail account that goes through our Wii) Here is what he wrote:

Dear Mom,
 Thank you for takeing Collin,
Lila, and me to "Wild Wood
Highlands". It was a great supries. I
was having a bad day untill we pulled in to Wild Wood
Highland's parking lot.
From;
   Braden


Needless to say, my heart was touched.  Sometimes it is
so easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day activities.
I'm glad this time I chose to ignore the pile of things
waiting to be done around the house and focused on the
real priority - my children.

Deodorant

Last week Braden came home from school and said, "Mom, next week at school we are going to watch a movie about, you know, THE TALK". Thankfully, Talmage and I had already had "the talk" with Braden in great detail a couple of years ago. Really, the school was just going over a few of the changes that occur as they start puberty. So, Braden came home with his own bag of goodies - one of which was a stick of deodorant. That night before bed he put on the deodorant and WHEW was it strong! We had a little talk about when we use deodorant and now he very proudly puts on his deodorant everyday. The house smells like cheap aftershave. I'm not sure I am ready for this, but it is cute to see him trying to be so grown-up. I just feel sorry for his school teacher who probably has a room full of stinky 11 year old boys!

Princess Heaven Feb 2008

Walt Disney World Feb 2008

Walt Disney World IS the most magical place on earth! We had so much fun visiting all of the theme parks and staying in our own little cabin. It was like having two vacations in one. Braden and Collin had a blast riding all of the big rides and spending time on the beach with Talmage at night. Lila was in princess heaven! She met: Cinderella, Belle, Jasmin, Arial, and Sleeping Beauty. Talmage and I made sure to take turns so that we could hit all of the rides too. My favorite ride was Tower of Terror. SO MUCH FUN! Caleb was a trooper through it all. We are all anxious to go back and have already set a tentative date of September 2009! We're hooked!