Currently...

The current goings on around these parts:

E - school, swim, pretty standard operating procedure. She's been super helpful around the house... loading the dishwasher, giving A a shower for us last night

R - school, tee ball (rocking it out), reading (rock on), swimming (just started and supposedly loving it), first grade is bringing out the best in her except in the math department (thanks Common Core) 

M - school, soccer, sickie - as of yesterday. Tiny Tim came out and has been endlessly watching Lego Friends on the iPad, desperate to start the Reading Book but I'm not quite ready

A - school, soccer (hilarious), semi-interesting in pottying, busy as can be, paw patrol loving, sneaking cake with Mama at lunch time - LOVE HIM

C - warring over NOT putting hands in the dishwasher and NOT putting hands in the toilet?!?!?, like seriously child, the TOILET is GROSS and yes we happen to forget to close the lid and close the door to the bathroom but for the LOVE of good things keep your nice, pretty clean hands OUT of the toilet. 

Papa - maybe work is slowing down?, bible studying, state fairing (with us this weekend), Lego coaching, deaconing as usual 

Mama - working, trying not to yelling, soccer coaching, swimming - on friday a few other moms are swimming in a relay. I'm super excited and kind of nervous because when's the last time YOU dove off a swim block? I got our team cap (since I'm the brains behind this operation) - which I have modeled for the girls and they think it is hilarious. R asked me today - SO MOMS CAN RACE?!?!?!?!? 

Yes R, moms can race and moms want to win. 

More on the relay later. 

Happy Birthday Boy!

He blew out the candles a little early in the song

With every birthday I think - it is hard to believe (child) is (age). Cliche but true. But not really when I get to thinking about all the adventures and activity that as gone by. A is no different. Today he is three! Which is hard to believe, but kind of not. 

Currently he is loving preschool and playing soccer. Yesterday when I asked him what he did at school his answer was - I sit on my bottom! - small victories, people. He is a busy busy busy guy. He goes a million miles a minute - unless he is sick - and he loves playing outside (and inside too). He is quite the enthusiastic soccer player even though most of the time he is running without the ball. 

On tap for his birthday is a haircut. He got one last year on his birthday and he loves getting his hair cut so I think it is a nice treat (and it is on the way to school). A is still an avid drool-er though we think he might be getting better. He has caught the Paw Patrol bug and we are trying to leverage Paw Patrol underwear to help speed things up in that department. 

A can be a shy but one he find his groove he is quite the talker and the singer. He would like to think he is part of the big crowd now because the girls will occasionally let him go play upstairs with them. Also he can get very concerned that C is going to knock his Legos down if they are playing together. 

Happy Birthday little boy!

We love you!!!

And just for kicks...

7QTs - Sickie, School Pics, Turtles

Linking up with Kelly ... catching up from Flo', Spain and the week or so in between

---1---

So we survived the hurricane without any problems and I was already a little on edge with life because we were leaving for Spain and stuff and stuff so just to make things interesting...

The Sunday before we were leaving A woke up for church ate breakfast said his tummy hurt and proceeded to have no breakfast left in his tummy. 

Insert freak out... 

We can't leave sick kids. All the kids are going to get the stomach bug. We are doomed. 

I had all morning to mull over this stuff while Lee was at church with the big girls. C was stuck in the pack and play because I couldn't bear the thought of her crawling around and getting contaminated with the funk. A watched a few shows. Fell asleep. Fell off the couch. Woke up and proclaimed himself all better. 

No one else got sick so I don't know what that was about but it sure put us on edge. 

---2---

R finished her reading book!

I am super proud of her. That means she's keeping Pony forever - instead of just on the nights she'd do her reading book. 

Next on the chopping block is M - who the next day announced she was ready to start - which we haven't yet 

---3---

Just to prove that she's mine...

E hates wearing her hair down and this was picture day. I told her she HAD to wear her hair down with a hairband for her picture - hello arguments from my childhood. So she put it in a ponytail to go to school and I told her she HAD to wear her hairband because she 'forgets' to put it on for Friday Mass which is the only other required hair down time. 

---4---

R on picture day... 

With her crazy scratch on her head from running into the wall a few days before... I did put a put of make up on it but then I took it off because I think it made it stand out more. 

---5---

R had her first tee ball game - finally - after we got back from Spain

Lee took her so I had to snap a pregame pic. The game was called after 3 batters because of lightning. She was really annoyed. 

---6---

While the teeball game was getting canceled I was at home with this group

Who that is was wildly funny that A was brushing M hair. They were cracking themselves up. As much as it is crazy to have different sets of kids going in different directions I do appreciate the time with them in pairs. 

---7---

Now onto the turtle adventures...

Last week we were driving home from school and there was a turtle crossing the road. I a turtle person I guess so I stopped and snagged it. As soon as I picked it up that turtle was out of its shells air-crawling. Totally fearless turtle. One the way to our first stop he turtle was in the passenger side of the van and he was actively trying to get to the back. Fortunately a shoebox was found and the turtle hung out in that for the rest of the ride - but not without a weight to keep the box closed. So crazy. 

So we finally got home and the turtle happily and quickly crawled out of the box and went on his way. An hour and a half later I saw him at our neighbors house in the back. That was cool. 

Then on Friday we dropped E off at swim and took the MooCow way home and we came across another turtle. I was a bit traumatized from my overly-active turtle from the day before plus this turtle was twice a wide and it had really long claws. I scooped this one up using a Lidl bag. This one was your stereotypical turtle and didn't really move until he was on our grass and was there for a while. He was SUPER fast once he did get going and we lost him when he went in the front bushes. 

72 hours in Espana - with the little accent on the n

Yeah so Lee and I went to Spain over the weekend for a friend of mine's (from middle school - crazy I know!) wedding. I think we were there for maybe 74 hours but 72 sounds better. I have a knack for short trips. 

A short while back when going was just a - hey, that'd be cool - thought; we really got to thinking. Hey maybe we should go? How many times are we going to be invited to a wedding in Spain? It's a few weeks from our 10 year anniversary so we should do it right? Shouldn't be a super heavy work schedule because summer is nearly over? But then there was, well what about the kids? What are we going to do with the kids? We have 5 kids, what should we do? 

Our trip would not have been possible had Jibbe and my parents stepping up to the plate and taking care of the kids. Monumentally huge because there is probably only one other person I'd feel good about leaving them with and that wasn't in the cards. So, many kudos and thanks to them for making it happen. And then there was the village of friends who helped cart people around, took kids on playdates, checked in, made sure everyone was doing okay and made the main keepers of our kids lives just a little bit easier. To the village - Gracias. 

A side note, but an important one, aside from the multipage chronological list of EVERYTHING and every single phone number in my phone - one of the last things Lee and I did together before leaving town (aside from praying we'd be back safe) was to sign our wills. It was weird.  I felt like I was fossilizing as the ink hit the page but it was important and necessary. If you have kids, you best have a will. 

ANYWAYS, on to the fun stuff... 

After the nearly 8 hour flight (that I slept through) we ended up in Madrid early Friday morning. We dumped our bags at our hotel for Sunday and got out and did some walking... 

Not too bad for 12+ hours of travel 

The Crystal Palace in the Retiro Park

The sculptures in the park are amazing

And the architecture too

I knew as soon as I saw the boats I wanted to go on one, Lee of course said yes

It was a bit hot but not humid. The water was definitely greenish 

We used to take pictures like this all the time before there was the double-sided camera

Then we walked to the Hard Rock Cafe - yeah, yeah, yeah - we collect a pin from the HRCs that we visit TOGETHER. It is funny because we were remembering the few that we had been to and then we  got home and I put the Madrid pin with the others - we had realized we forgotten the one we got in New Orleans 8 years ago. Anyways, I thought this was a really neat sink/dryer. Under your hands get watered, on top they get dried. 

Then we headed to the hotel to grab our stuff and walk to the train station. The hotel was in a super perfect location to Independence plaza and everything we did in Madrid was walkable. So we got our tickets in Toledo and lined up with a mountain of other people to take the quick 30 minute ride to the fort city. 

We did NOT walk to our hotel when we got there : ) we checked in, cleaned up and headed to the welcome party. Which was great seeing a few friends from middle/high school. Amazing views, amazing food, amazing times. 

Now it was late - or at least for us - so we cut out pretty early by Spain standards. People, we slept for over 11 hours that night. I don't know if it was the jet lag or the lack of kids or a combo of both but it was glorious. Uninterrupted sleep. 

We went into Toledo mid morning and wandered the cobblestone roads and tried to stay away from the tourist groups - there were a million. We went to a few churches and you have to pay to get in? Which is odd but I understand why payment is required (to help keep up the churches and to maintain some order in the sacred space) but it is weird to me as a practicing Catholic. Like why are people wanting to tour a church like a museum. Yeah they are beautiful and there's a reason for that beauty - so stop paying to tour a church and spent an hour sitting in a pew a Mass and take it all in. Which is what I would have liked to have done but even at Sunday Mass, when the sign said for Mass-goers on the side entrance because the main entrance was locked, people still milled around and came and went during Mass which so odd to me. Like you are kind of being disruptive so sit down and stay awhile. Anyways, I digress. 

We talked and walked and talked some more. So good for our marriage to have some time and space without kids interrupting thoughts and conversations. In the beginning it was just us and then they came along...

This was from a church/monastery we did pay a few euros to go to (the above one is from a church we found the side door unlocked and we were the only people inside except for a nun in the cloister). It is truly amazing these churches and the time and effort and beauty went into creating them. 

A view from one of the sides of the city. 

Okay people. Let's talk food. A. those are Lee's olives B. the Spanish ham - they cut it right in front of you - is amazing. That and some fresh bread. Done. I think I tried to eat that as often as possible. 

I meant to have us talk another pic without my sunglasses on BUT it didn't happen. Now the wedding was in an olive grove and couple is amazing - they seriously know how to entertain all the while looking fabulous and not to mention, you know, like getting married. It was a wedding for the record books for sure. 

I will say probably my single favorite food for the night was dumplings during the pre-feast appetizers - but there wasn't anything that wasn't super yummy. We made it back to our hotel Sunday morning at a time that we will sometimes set our weekday alarm clocks for - that made me yawn just thinking about it. We got up mid morning hit Mass and then headed back to Madrid 

We lugged (okay we rolled it) our luggage back to the hotel and thank goodness our room was available early and was upgraded ?!?!? so we could squeeze in a siesta in our 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, kitchenette and massive living area suite - before heading to the Prado. We had an express time at the Prado and saw some really fantastic art. Then it was off to find some tapas for dinner and retiring early to bed. 

Monday brought an uneventful trip to the airport - Lee said our taxi we took when we arrived nearly hit a moped. I did some work on M's stocking and didn't have the thread or beads to do the true final touches on it so I knew I packed A's for a reason. But somehow I didn't grab the pattern so I was super annoyed because what was I to do with 9 hours on a plane and no cross stitching to do plus I really didn't need/want to fall asleep on this one. So Jibbe came to the rescue and found my pattern and I paid way too much for internet just so I could go on and download my pattern and work on A's stocking. The day was saved!

While on the trip I read a good chunk of Love Does - which is insane and an entertaining, worthwhile read. Lee watched Three Identical Strangers so I listened to that while I worked on my cross stitch - that's definitely worth a watch. Lee left my copy of The Grace of Enough - which I don't even think I've mentioned - on the FIRST plane from RDU to JFK so I was bummed (as was he) because that book is super thoughtful and thought provoking. 

So anyhow, we made it back - Praise the Lord! Our trip was short but so fun and so great. We could not have done it without grandparents and the rest of the village - again we are truly grateful. 

7QTs - Books, Leaves, Soccer

Linking up with Kelly ... surviving Flo

---1---

We had some fun with C last Friday

Getting ready for that hairband

And thinking about walking

---2---

Outside

A and C need their outside time. NEED IT

---3---

Soccer:

The games have begun. M and the Grasshoppers were victorious in their first game. I love game like this because we were winning pretty handily and M and another girl on the team had not scored yet so the second half of the game, the goal was to help the two girls score - and that goal was met. It was great. 

Sunday the big girls went to a soccer clinic in the afternoon with the local professional team and college team. It was long and hot but I was proud of them for seeing it through - especially R who doesn't even really play soccer. 

A had his very first soccer ever. He is the second from the left - me and C are the first to the left. A's team has a really good player who 'gets it'. This is really important for 3 yr old soccer because you need a good leader of the pack around the ball. A and his friend had a ball. They kicked and they ran and they sat down but they were on the field for the full 16 minute game. No goals scored but he wasn't super concerned. 

---4---

M had to do some work for her family tree

She got tried of cutting leaves out... sorry kid, you got a bunch of peeps in your family

---5---

A is wild

He is currently sporting a black eye after running into M's bed. He cried. Put some ice on it and then RAN to the mirror to check out the tattoo. He never slows down and he doesn't realize if he'd slow down just a bit - he'd get hurt less frequently. 

---6---

Friends...  

Love them!

---7---

Hurricane Flo 

It has been an interesting week here. The early part of the week it looked pretty bad for us in the Mount. The hurricane path was coming for us. Well that changed and instead of getting pummeled with a hurricane we got rain, wind and one tornado warning that required a quick trip to the little bathroom with my favorite people. 

There was no school Thursday or Friday. Thursday was more of a prep day so E had swim practice - yay for out of the house activities and A tagged along. Then we shot to the library and picked out a few books. 

Lee made coffee cake on Friday morning. It was awesome. The power flickered one or twice and then I filled up the bath tub a bit more (hello flushing toilets with a well) and wondered if Lee would be hooked up the generator that he rented Wednesday afternoon. Tuesday things didn't look good here so on a whim I called our equipment rental place and they had generators! Who knew?!?!? That was a big wife win but thank goodness we did not need it. 

There's a LOT of people who are in really terrible positions so prayers for them

We've done lots of reading (R is almost done with her reading book!), work booking, Lego building and playing. We ventured out today for a short walk to nix the cabin fever. 

Hasta La Vista Summer

We had a pretty fun Labor Day weekend which I guess is the unofficial end of the summer. 

End of the summer? 

: ( 

We headed to a baseball game 

With some friends which meant the kids had extra wiggle room to roam around with their friends - which was great. 

After the game there were fireworks - which I think was A's first fireworks up close that he can remember 

Typical E

It was a gorgeous night and as the fireworks were going off it kind of hit me that it was really the end of a great summer. (insert tear)

R really enjoyed the show even though they were loud. 

Monday we went to the pool for one last dip

and popsicles

There were some crazy bee/bug things buzzing EVERYWHERE

Oh and there were hotdogs too

No teeth!

The last dinner of summer we had Jibbe and Grammy and Grandpa Joe over for Lee's grilled goodness. It was a great end to a great summer. 

Oh and s'mores too

We had a really fun summer. I was playing tug-o-war with myself of ready to dive into all the school stuff and summer. It is an awkward couple weeks between the start of school and the end of summer. So I guess we are all into fall but swim team, beach trips, late nights, lazy days... we will miss you!