In Celebration of Snow

  Yesterday we woke up to a dusting of snow. It made the sky so clear and bright...I love the way the reflects off the snow and streams in our windows and makes our home so bright. I was busily making omelets when I heard Finn crying...the distressed "what's happening?!" type cry. I heard Zac laughing and found him holding Finn, the back door open and these little teeny footprints outside. Bug had figured out how to open the backdoor and went out only geared in a diaper and long sleeve shirt - he wanted to know what all that cold stuff was. I'm sure it felt rather offensive on his little bare feet.

  In celebration of the snow we cut out snowflakes and hung them. This week I'm taking a more relaxed approach to homeschooling - and it's working marvelously so far.

  What could be more relaxed then a cup of spiced tea and a gingerbread cookie and a game of "sight words" go fish? Trinity's reading is coming along splendidly but those blasted sight words that you can't sound out are giving her a run for her money. It's fun having fun while learning.

  The game was taken very seriously - she won if you're wondering.

 And then...since snuggling up on my bed and reading isn't an option for me on cold days (or any day for that matter) - I clean. I clean and clean and clean and move furniture and sort things and ... just clean. We changed the squirrel's room around and wouldn't you know it?! Right after I had put her bed under this window a real life squirrel peaked in from a neighboring tree. We were delighted.

30 degrees and October

  So yesterday was cozy and fallish...just long sleeve shirts and leggings and cozy sweaters. I put together a little spot in the dining room for Trinity to express what she's thankful for this season. The cost? 1 dollar. Yes siree, I'm super impressed with the Dollar Tree here - they had that lovely brown paper that comes in rolls, which i will NOW be using to gift wrap presents this year. It worked really well as a type of "bulletin board" for us - we're going to add green construction paper leafs with words written out on them of what she's thankful for - maybe Brady will join in too. I know I know, I should be a teacher....oh yah - I am. :)

  Then we monkeyed around outside for a bit while our landlord came and *blew out* the sprinklers. Brady translated this as "blow up" and was a little freaked out - he thought they were going to bomb our back yard or something. Still - sweater weather and bare feet...a great combo.

  My lovely felted acorns came yesterday as well - a lovely little surprise for me and they look so cute in our nature cubby on the bookshelf. They are definitely a little treasure.

  And then this morning...waking up to snow. Gee, they weren't kidding when they said fall around here is gone in a blink!

  Tristan was quite taken with the snow...still in barefeet.

  This evening it's mostly melted but supposedly there is going to be another dusting this evening.

 And before grandmothers have a heart attack...I did dress him warmly for the rest of the day and made a rule they had to wear shoes to go outside - they thought I was nuts.

Hello October

  My morning started off at 6:45 am - Tristan's nose pressed against mine, sippy cup in hand...begging me to get up and get him a drink. Instead I turned over and handed him the Ipad...then got up at 7 as he was still watching PBS cartoons. Bad parenting? Nah. I pads are life savers.
 Then I was at it...making oatmeal and getting Brady dressed and ready for school. It was drizzling out and I thought we may have to drive to school this morning but just as we needed to leave, the rain stopped and it was a perfect time to get out the ol' boots and enjoy the cool weather. I collected leaves all the way home from the school...I'm sure I looked hilarious walking along the street, my hands full of gold and red leaves...I MAY have picked a few off a neighbors tree here and there....but you didn't hear that from me. I mean...leaves ARE free.

  Trinity and I had a lovely morning of school. I'm starting Bible Memory with her this week because I realized that I have never, ahem, made this part of her education these last few weeks. For me, that realization was a little sad. I mean, I keep her home for now so that I can train her up in the way I think God wants me too...and I know it is so important to hide His word in our hearts...and I totally haven't been teaching that to my squirrel. So, we started off with a verse on thankfulness and she was able to cut out pictures of things she loves - these varied from a rabbit, suede shoes, a picture of hair (because she says she's thankful for long hair) and a tea pot.

  Then we worked together framing the leaves I had found -such a simple craft and it cost a total of three dollars after my steal of a deal on this Target frame. :)

  And we put together an "appreciation of fall" cubby on our bookshelf. I ordered a little set of felted acorns off of etsy today - they will look so adorable scattered among the dried leaves. :) Have I mentioned that I love the fall? Brayden came home and told me that part of our house was really starting to look like a school - I'm going to take that as a compliment.

  While we were doing all this my Koala was jumping around the house pretending to be a super hero. He also enjoyed learning Trin's four new spelling words this morning - he can't spell them by himself yet but he is great at following along. Trin took a little photo shoot of me and Tristan snuggling.

  Isn't he so cuddly? He's one of my favorites.

  When we picked Brady up from school I took the kids to the grocery store on a "gluten free" shopping spree. Tristan has had eczema over the last couple of weeks and this morning it was really bad...all red and bumpy all over his back. He also takes....ahem...frequent trips to the restroom and I'm just wondering if there is a gluten intolerance there - he's always acted like he has a food allergy I've just never been able to pick out which.  Not only that, but Zac hasn't felt super great for quite sometime. He complains constantly of being bloated or his stomach just aching...he is also lethargic a lot and feels "fuzzy." So, I think we are going to try to cut out gluten for awhile - this is not good for me. I mean...it will be - but for now it feels a bit daunting. And on top of all of that...I've also read numerous books about how cutting out gluten is really good for children with autism. So...we're starting.

  And as a reward for my precious littles who were PERFECT in the grocery store - we bought our first jug of apple cider of the season (here's hoping that was gluten free??)

  And to finish off the day - a tray full of pumpkins waiting to have little faces painted on them...

  And one already adorable perfect pumpkin and all of his * buggish*  goodness.

  And a superhero running through my yard at dusk, loving the feel of his satiny cape trailing behind him in the breeze....

  And a princess in search of "Peter" who also seems to be the before mentioned super hero.

 And the most perfect little basket of fruit I ever did see - the basket was a gift from my mom, handmade by one of their Tarahumara friends. Isn't it perfect?

Happy Monday.

A Lovely Day

  It's a been a day of climbing...up poles and stairs and over couches (not loved by me) and over little emotional mountains and happy mountains and just lots of climbing.

  It's been a day of blue eyes and big bottom lips and wispy blond hair...little words like "mama" and chocolate chip cookies and apple sauce and blueberry smoothies with vanilla soy and flax oil - yum. It's been a day of great food.

  It's been a day for pirates, half day of school, and afternoon quesadillas (on corn tortillas...Brady's preference.) It's been a day of early meetings and good teachers, kind smiles and willingness to work with my little lovie.

  It's been a day of getting rid of things(what day isn't around here?) and making things. It's been a day for chai tea and an afternoon show while kids were semi resting. It's been a day for blue jeans and a t shirt...and accessories. It's been a day for taking pictures of simple things and beautiful faces. It's been a day of singing lots and lots of songs and playing hide and seek with the 3 littlest littles.

 It's been a day for sight words and penmanship, it's been a day for studying on the bed while listening to birds chirping outside the window (Trin has the BEST window that looks out at limbs full of birds every day - I'm a teeny bit envious of her window.)
 It's been a lovely day.

A Look Back...

This was a year ago(June 5th 2010 to be exact)....I can't even explain the emotions running through my head and heart right now looking at this picture of my sweet SMALL littles. Somedays I need to have a glass of water thrown in my face (don't you dare) and be told to WAKE UP...SMELL THE ROSES...CHERISH EVERY MOMENT - before I know it they'll be driving off to college and I'll be old (ok...not techinically...I think I'll be 46 when my youngest child is 20.) This wasn't going to be my post today...I was going to give updates and share funny stories about the day...but this picture found me first and I can't think of any other thing except "where is time going?" So...today's goal - cease the moment and love em' up.

Tis the Season

It's that time of year again....pink toenail polish weather, endless trips to the refrigerator for something *cool* to drink, higher water bills due to hours of fun in the sun with kiddie pools.....ahhhhh, summer is upon us. Oh, for those of you judging my toe nail painting capabilities....this was just the first coat OVER old polish (oh PUHHHHLEASE...like you've never done that before...a girl doesn't always have time to remove the old stuff.)

Zac discovered that slip and slides cost only a mere five bucks at the local Dollar General...who needs a water park?! Our yard is starting to resemble a redneck water fun zone though...seriously. We have two kiddie pools, a slip and slide, sprinkler, and a big plastic play house. Not the most attractive yard decor - but super fun and cheap entertainment is hard to beat.

Zac has to demonstrate to Brady just *how it's done* at least 20 times a day before Brady really "gets it." When he does do it correctly and makes it all the way down to the end of the slip and slide...joy is felt by all. :)

The other nice thing about hours in the sun is the kids are totally exhausted when they come inside and they take super great naps. It's just so fulfilling being in the sun and soaking up all that good vitamin D, drinking lots of water...craving fresh fruit. Ahhhh....I love being warm.

Today is special for our family on two counts. One...baby Finn turned a month old and is doing wonderfully. His belly button is all healed up, he's gaining weight (I have no idea how much since we kind of ...errrr....skip doctor's appointments)and he's letting me get a little more rest these days. The second part of our life that is fun/different is that zac is coaching his very last soccer game this afternoon and won't be getting another team for quite awhile. He is at least taking the summer and fall off to just have a change of pace and to be around here ALL THE TIME on his off days. Listen folks....four kids is a lot of work at present and I'm SOO happy to know I'll have him around even more for help, emotional support....and just to enjoy our family. Also, it wouldn't be fair to his team if he was set up to be there coach for the fall with us potentially moving. This will mean a little less income for our family but it'll work out. I'm just happy about a change.

Stop the Ride

I know that the Bible tells me that God will give me nothing in my life that is to big for me to handle...with Him. I know that He brings people and circumstances into my life to grow me up...to make me a better person - a more serving person. I know this. I'm not finding that this knowledge is comforting to me on a daily basis though...it just isn't - that's honest. Everyday...every second, minute, hour seems like an emotional roller coaster in our house. Some days I'm happy to go on the ride...some days I just want to scream for the ride to stop and for the ticket man to give me my money back...this wasn't the kind of ride I payed for.
Living with a child with AS (Asbergers) is not easy in any way. Zac and I were talking yesterday about how it seems like Brady is doing worse then ever. I don't actually think that HE is worse...I just think that all of his little differences are more noticeable and harder to take now that he is older...they just stand out more. He is louder...he yells at me on a daily basis(but now that he has a huge vocabulary his words can be quite...well...shall we say "bold"),he is more hyper than ever before....he is ALWAYS bored. Always.
When family was here for the last couple of weeks he was a little better just because there were a lot of changes and people to keep his brain occupied. There was actually only one screaming meltdown while grandparents were around...I believe Mama C was here for that. :) When he's home with me all day he is easily frustrated because there is just NO WAY that I can ONLY be his mother. He wants me to do everything for him all day...listen to him all day long about whatever is in his brain....play with him, watch him play his computer game...only cook foods that he likes. If I dare do anything that is contrary to what he wants (and it happens often since he can't run my life but the fact is that he doesn't KNOW he is) then there are huge struggles. Something as simple as him asking for a glass of water can be frustrating because if the water isn't cold enough he won't drink it...he gets REALLY made because he says that water is suppose to be "fresh" and he equates "fresh" with "cold." I'm forever filling up the water pitcher and keeping it in the fridge just to make sure that he doesn't freak out if we are low on "fresh" drinking water. Today I was exercising and he ran past me at 100 miles per hour (remember that he is actually Cheetah man) and his head smashed into my eyebrow bone. Well, I was the one that got hurt - not him. I mean it hurt BAD and I had a headache for at least a hour...not to mention that I was super hot from exercising and my heart rate was already escalated. He became IRATE that I was upset about being hurt. I mean he was mad...screaming, crying, completely out of control. I was definitely not in control of myself either so I asked him to go into another room so mommy could cool down. This took 45 minutes. The point is that his brain just doesn't know how to respond to pain or emotions. Sometimes I'm very understanding of this but when I have one bad moment of being impatient out of 3 days of BEING patient I feel like a complete failure and like I'm screwing up this precious gift of a child. Grrrrrrr. Sometimes I don't understand why God gave ME...Alyssa...a child that takes 100% MORE patience to raise on a daily basis than a *normal* child. Someday...in my 50's...perhaps I will know. One thing for sure...when Tristan cries a little or is upset...or a child in a grocery store his throwing a tantrum - it doesn't affect me AT ALL. Yes, someday I will have the patience of Job - I will be known as the Patience Queen. I'll write books and give conferences....sell little stuffed bears that are embroidered with a giant "P"...I may even have my own fragrance line "Patience X 4" or some other catching name. Watch for it peeps...watch for it.
I love Brady more than words could ever express....I would do anything for him - I'm just tired. Tomorrow will be better...but today I'm tired and I'm glad it's bedtime and my ears and heart can have a break. :)

There have been happy times though...here and there...that's how our life is. There will be a hour of unruly craziness where the family feels like it's just a MESS, and then there are sweet times and lovely memories made. Tristan and Trinity are in love with the pool ever since the sun decided to show itself on a daily basis. Trist would be out there for hours and hours if we let him (his skin is super fair so I have to bring him in for breaks often.)

I know that God gives me sweet moments to even out the rough ones. These little kids are just WORK yall...they just take up every part of your being. They just exhaust you emotionally and physically...my heart breaks and then....chocolate chip cookie making in the kitchen, or forts made out of the dining room table and blankets...or hugs and kisses and funny little words start healing all of those hurts and my heart becomes whole again...I'm refreshed and ready for another round. Being a mother is so fulfilling. It's what I've always wanted to be and what I decided to make my life about - I never imagined what it was that I was asking for and at the same time...a small part of me thinks I knew exactly what it was that I was asking for - and I wanted it anyway.

The kids were stoked about having pancakes for dinner the other night. My *silly face cakes* were inspired by Ihop except mine have faces made out of fruit stuck on with cream cheese...theirs were all cool whip and chocolate chips. :) I also made turkey bacon and the kids used that as hair and kept biting off pieces to give their pancakes a *trim.*

And this little Snuggle Bug...he just takes it all in. I wonder what he thinks about all the noise and chaos - I'm guessing it comforts him since he's been part of it ever since he was conceived. The nurses told me that they thought he was probably just cranky at the hospital because it was so quiet there. One lady came in and said "don't you have other children?" I told them "sure enough" and they said that Finn was use to the noise from when he was in utero and that's why he was upset...and he needed more food than just colostrum since he was such a big boy. :)

Another Day, Another Thought...or Two

The last couple of days have been warmer....allowing us to let the kids run free (well...not really free as in naked free or run into the neighbor's yard free) and crazy several times a day. This happens MORE when Zac is home though because I'm having a hard time chasing Tristan all around while trying to take care of Finn..take care of Brady...take care of Trin - you get my point. Yes indeed, I'm definitely feeling the proverbial *pulled in all different directions.* These days two sets of hands are totally better then one. :)

And speaking of TWO sets of hands...I'm so thankful the other pair belongs to this hunk (the man...not the baby.) He is the most helpful husband anyone could ever desire....he makes me smile everyday, he's been so encouraging to me - even on days when I'm feeling a bit of the *baby blues.* He's a keeper.

This afternoon I ran to the store to get some supplies and when I came home Zac was on the porch slicing up a cold watermelon...all the kids came running to me dripping with sticky juice. It made such a beautiful picture. Moments like these...hot sunny days with refreshing treats, bible stories at bedtime, warm bubble baths, new comfy pajamas, surprise *suppers* out on the town....I hope so badly that my kids will remember these good times. I know that I will cherish them, sometimes I need to be reminded to just stop for a moment and take it all in and see it as good. I feel like sometimes I focus so much on the water on the floor after baths, or the sticky hands instead of the sweet smiles, or I see the "unhealthy suppers" instead of the "surprise" - I'm really trying to change my focus and see the sweetness in the day.

Speaking of sweetness...I'm glad the kids got their watermelon fix before I came home because i bought a box of ice cream sandwiches. Yep..it's that time of year. I think an ice cream sandwich is just about the most perfect treat....compact, not overly messy...you get your *creamy fix* and your *chocolate fix* all at the same time. Heaven.

Zac coached three soccer games today. In between seeing him I did two loads of dishes, mopped the kitchen, organized and organized some more...prepared meals and cleaned up meals - and then tonight...thanks to Toy Story 3...I was able to have a hour and a half of uninterrupted cooking time. I made a big batch of pico de gallo to be eaten on fish taco's this week and on top of beans and rice, then I made a bowl of fruit salad and finished off with Peanut Butter Oat Muffins. It was feels so fulfilling to have accomplished all of that today and to feel "prepared" or "one step ahead" for the next couple of dinners around here. I think tomorrow I'll try to cook two more things to freeze or just have in the fridge for this week. zac is working tomorrow so I like to stuff projects into my day...makes the lonely time a little less lonely.

Cute Photos Not Happening

I'm not sure what emotion Trin is expressing here...I think sheer joy that she now is the owner of a big girl bed....courtesy of Ikea. I found the duvet at a thrift store for a dollar a year ago and have been waiting for it to find a home/bed...let me just say that I am a HUGE fan of duvets and their inserts. I LOVE the fact that a top sheet isn't necessary .... this really helps little kids learn to make their beds without being overwhelming to them. And then there is the *oh so good* feeling like you are sleeping under a cloud....ahhhh. I still don't have a nice down comforter but this will change someday...I'm sure of it.

And this expression I think is suppose to resemble a pirate? I was taking a picture of his new shoes ( Old Navy...picture below) and he posed and came up with this face. I think it's because of the skulls or something...he calls them his "pirate shoes." Brady has gotten some really great new duds here lately...I think that since I now know that his clothes can be passed down TWO times I don't mind shelling out a little bit more for some of his clothes...

Yes...that's right..I paid NINE dollars for these...gasp...compared to my normal 3 dollar budget for kid's shoes. I've had a really hard time finding used clothes or even dirt cheap clothes for the kiddos here recently - I think it must be their age or something. Perhaps I shouldn't try to find clothes dirt cheap? Anyways...my philosophy though has change dramatically in the last two years that I will LOVE what I wear, that it WILL be comfortable, that I will have LESS but BETTER. So far I'm liking it...and am using the same thinking for what I find for the kids.

So, my really great blog with lots of photos isn't happening AGAIN because my computer is acting up and I'm unable to upload photos. Grrrrr. I just found out that Zac is also having a class next week too - bringing my grand total of alone time, without a vehicle to 5 out of 6 days. yeehaw. I will definitely be using Sunday (his off day) to buy some groceries and take a LONG shower...sheer joy. I love the feeling of a well stocked fridge and a good long soak (those two things have nothing to do with one another.) Today I've been surviving on basmati rice with butter and salt and walnuts - not having a car really messes with a girl's meal plan yall.

Anyways, hopefully on Sunday Zac can fix the ol' computer and several of my other *isolation issues* and I'll feel all refreshed for Monday and Tuesday. Hope everyone has a swell weekend.

Thinking Back...

I can't believe that this was *us* just about a year ago. My babies...what babies?!!!! Brady looks totally different....Trin has grown and matured leaps and bounds and Tristan is a full on toddler. Ahhh...thinking back to that day and our crazy cookie spree makes me remember more "productive" times.
I tried today to get stuff done and know that I definitely did just a *tad* too much. "Oh well" I told myself "Zac will be home tomorrow and you can take it easy.' Well, he will be home tomorrow but then I found out that on Thursday (his other off day) he will be taking a class and then he will also be gone for 48 hours on Friday and Saturday. Me...alone...4 out of 5 days...vanless. I'm really trying not to freak out here. Normally this scenario would be managable...it's a lot harder when you are 33 weeks pregnant. I'm going to get a lot of homeschooling done though i can tell ya that. Today I switched our furniture around in our bedroom trying to "make over" the space and then I vacuumed the baseboards...gross. I honestly just don't understand where the dust comes from.
So....be looking forward to blogs on Friday and Saturday...it will be rainy and I should have lots of time on my hands. :(