happy birthday grandpa...a.k.a "the 'lustrous potentate"

The best way to celebrate grandpa's birthday? Go out to eat and let him be in charge of all the grandkids...thanks dad! Also, a special thanks to the three grand babies who managed to blow out of their diapers within the same 30 minute time period, each of the family groups were covered so no parent got to sit back and gloat...at least not for long. Amazingly we had the whole side of the restaurant to ourselves!

summer days....

cousins, popsicles,
giggles, splashes,
tickles, squabbles,
cuddles, kisses,
tired little babies!

Monkeys and musical dinosaurs....

My little monkey has recently discovered that the limbs of the pecan tree are low enough that he can pull them down and climb on up....his little heart was satisfied until sweet Uncle David saw him climbing and decided to shimmy straight up the trunk of said tree. Now his life will not be complete until he can do the same. But hey, at least it keeps him busy outside for long spans of time....















Gavin loves music. Loves it. He has figured out which button to push on my moms keyboard to make it play all the demos(over 100 songs). Then he stands at the keyboard "playing" and dancing and quite honestly looking something like a cross between a mad conductor and an inspired concert pianist. Today he added a slight variation...he only conducted the music...













....And the dinosaurs played it!

Jane

Jane in a nutshell: I give all of the kids an oatmeal cookie. Jane is Miss Efficient and even without any teeth methodically eats hers. Atticus on the other hand takes his sweet time, playing with it, sucking on it, shoving it in and out of his mouth. At some point Jane notices that Atticus still has half a cookie. As soon as she realizes this she is as focused on him as a bird dog. His left hand has her unswerving attention. She tries just taking it...Atticus screams. She grunts back fiercely . They repeat this several times. Finally Atticus gets tired of this so he pulls up on a chair to try to get away from her. First, she tries wrapping her arms around his legs and shaking him...nothing, his grip on the chair and the cookie remain solid. Next she tries grabbing his clothing and tugging on it violently. Still his grip holds. Finally she pulls up on the chair beside him. He is no fool and immediately sits back down on the floor. Jane carefully studies the situation and plans her move. Cue the "Mission Impossible" theme music...She lets go of the chair, dives for the cookie, gets the cookie out of his hand and into her mouth...all before she hits the floor. She has the cookie eaten before he even realizes that she has stolen it. Don't mess with Jane when it comes to food.

invaded

We have an infestation of bed bugs lately...or to be specific, one bed bug. He comes late enough at night that Kenneth and I are not lucid enough to make him go back to his own bed. He is not the easiest creature to sleep with(do you see his funky sleep position in the picture?)...and he is very insistent on snuggling up to...













...ME! I have tried just pushing him over to Kenneth's side of the bed where it would be completely appreciated! (it is Kenneth's dream for our children to want to snuggle with him) Consequently I wake up cranky from poor sleep and with back pains from not being able to shift position. Funny thing, we have never given any encouragement for our children to sleep in our bed(maybe someday when we can afford a bigger bed, but even then probably not...I mean I already spend at least 12 hours a day covered with children)....it is not like we let him sleep with us all during his infancy and are now trying to make him sleep alone.

Atticus

He is so proud that he can pull up on things...to celebrate he pulls up on his portocrib during nap time and as he is conveniently placed by the widow, rips down the blinds so he can peek outside.


























How sad....Mommy has to get her bow fix on the little dude cause the little lady has such limited follicular resources.

















The first lemon experience....

hmmmmm....

I have been doing a horrible job updating lately...sad! Especially since I am going to print this out later. I feel like I am stockpiling it all up and it will come out in one big volcanic eruption of a blog.
Yesterday Gavin rammed his head into my belly.

Me: "Gavin! You have to be soft, there is a baby in mommy's belly!"
Gavin: (looking confused) "Baby in belly?"
Me: "Yes, there is a baby growing in my belly...you need to be nice and soft with the baby."
G: (lifting my shirt and looking skeptical) "Mommy eat baby?"