It's Gettin' Cozy Up in Here...

So hey.  Hi.  Guess what?

Yep.

Baby Boy Number Four is going to be making his grand appearance early in January!  

Here's how the boys are feeling about it all.

And though this was NOT our plan, we are pretty excited to have a little caboose on his way.  

Isn't life completely ironic?  But really, though.  I mean, in my twenties I sat in a Fertility Clinic and got the devastating news (again) that our efforts to conceive were unsuccessful.  I put on my brave face and vowed to myself that even if it never happened for us -- this whole precious gift of family -- I would be a happy camper.  I specifically remember our non-religious case manager came in to meet with RyGar and I and said, "You guys, it feels like we are messing with the timing with the Gardners.  We can't find a single reason you shouldn't be able to conceive, and yet it isn't happening.  We have no answers, but I feel like I'm playing on a chess table and I don't control the pieces.  It's frustrating for me, so I can only imagine how it must feel to you."

Fast forward to now, when in my thirties, I am the most fertile woman on the planet!  :)  And I have all these adorable men around me that He has entrusted me with.  I'm in the throws of motherhood and I'm expanding my repertoire of "wifery skills" and I just love it.  Not every moment of every day, but by and large, the miraculous nature of this incredible journey is not lost on me.  That is the gift that our journey with infertility and adoption has given me... perspective.  I know the days are long and hard, but the years pass all too quickly.  I know we can plan, then plan some more, but we are not the ones who ultimately make the call.  And I'm good with it.

Are we accepting donations of entire sides of beef?  Yep.  Are we feeling a little surprised and overwhelmed?  You betcha.  But the underlying thread that binds all of this together is LOVE.  So much love for all that I've been given and the big gent I get to go through it all with.  And these three little rascals that have all been promoted to "big brother" status.  

Good thing blue is my favorite color.  :)

The Firsts...

There have been a great many firsts here this past week.  I've been oddly calm and fine about the whole thing.  Probably because we held the two older boys with the summer birthdays back which gave me a little more time to get in the right state of mind and made them RARING to go!  Win Win.

Kaelster started Kindergarten and let me walk him across the field to school exactly two times before he was too big and could do it with his friend.  (Tear)  He has Mrs. Whittle for morning Kindi and loves everything about it!  

When I picked him up after his first day, he said, "That was WAY easy!  It took only like ten minutes AND we had recess and I'm STARVING!"  We celebrated with Happy Meals at McDonalds and then the hungry little learner requested two apple pies and an additional order of nuggets which he promptly devoured.  Voracious appetite for food and learning at this point in time... and I love it.

Dax Man started his third year of Preschool and was a complete champ.  He wasn't even a smidgeon nervous and when I picked him up he reported, "I love Preschool!  I have three new friends named, Tate, Thomas and Isaac and I already got a treasure out of the treasure box!  Oh and we had chocolate muffins for snack time and they were gooooood!"

 Dax is our little politician who makes friends easily and has no problem accepting new routines, rules or challenges.  The only thing he wanted to commemorate his successful first day was a Light Saber.  No joke.  So we bought him a glow stick light saber at Partyland and all is right with the world.  Please let it always be this easy!  :)  And please let Dax always be such a complete stud.

Ace Face started his very first year of Preschool today.  I thought he might have some last minute nerves which I was fully prepared to deal with, but nope.  He hung up his back pack, put his shoes in his cubby and RAN like the wind into the class room!  I had to snag him by the elbow to even get a little hug!

 

 Ace is fearless and confident and funny with a tiny helping of crazy.  He will use his "life of the party personality" to his benefit for the rest of his life and being so independent at the ripe old age of three is something to be marveled at.  At the end of the day he remembered no one's name, but he did recall that he played with an awesome tiger toy during play time and read a book about a "little raccoon".  And I remember his proud little face.

I have a pretty sweet gig at the present moment.  I have two hours each day where I get to revel in one-on-one time with either Dax or Ace depending on whose Preschool day it is.  Then when Kael gets home we eat lunch together and head out to play before I get to sit at the table and do homework with the big man.  No complaints here.

They are learning and growing so fast!  We've definitely received a promotion in parenthood with the onset of Elementary school and we feel so lucky that they all seem to enjoy school and are blooming where they've been planted.  Go get 'em boys!  And also, fingers crossed for you, teachers!  :)

You Say Tomato...

I have a few gardeners on my hands.  In more ways than one.  Especially the big guy. We've joked and sung, "The Farmer that's in Kael, the farmer that's in Kael, Hi Ho the Dairy-o, There's a farmer inside Kael."  He is serious about checking his crops first thing every morning.  :)

Yesterday, while I was mowing, they set up a system for collecting their harvest.  It was pretty adorable and efficient all wrapped into one.

Kael picked.

Dax washed.

Ace dried.

They were proud as punch.

Sure, I had to mop the floor afterwards thanks to the superfluous water from the sink that dripped from hither to dither.  Which led to tiny black footprints smudged from the sink to the back door.  And yes, I had to remove a sliver from Kael's foot.   But still, it was worth it.

It's fun to see the three main things I'm trying to grow up good and sweet (with just enough tang) spend their morning teaming up to pick the other things we're trying to grow up good and sweet... 

Love them.

The Last Few Drops...

My kids suck on Otter Pops all summer long.  Well, Kael and Dax do... Ace has a serious aversion to all things cold.  I watched them the other day at "The Red House", their red cheeks slowly cooling to pink as their core body temperatures came down with the aid of the AC and yet another frozen treat...  They lift the little plastic sleeves and suck the very last drops of sticky cold juice from the packets every time they polish one off.  It's their ritual.  And I whole heartedly relate at this time of year.

It's the end of summer.  My mind is going through dual lists:  What's left on the summer to-do list and What's left to do on the prep for school list.  Both are good.  Both bring growth and adventure.  And both run simultaneously through my brain these days.  This week is our last of summer.  And that means I'm sucking the very last drops of marrow out of our summer days.  We're enjoying slow mornings with no where pressing to be and long afternoons in the sun.

Also Enjoying...

Making mud pies at Grandma's Bakery.

She embraces the mess and tells me,

"She's raising grandkids and memories and NOT the perfect back yard."

His daredevil leap off the high dive x forty-nine.

His unusual trepidation this go around, "But what if I fall?  Oh darling, but what if you fly?"

Lazy pool days with cousins

Sweeping the ladies right off their feet. 

There are two months that separate these two and they have a hot/cold relationship to say the least.

But man, he likes to be the big brawny one, for sure.

Parades... with Paddington.  :) 

They all yelled out and waved to "Paddington" so it would seem the National Forest Service needs to up the ante in their Smokey the Bear education department.

Parade Shenanigans...

Shooting with Daddy-o.

And those proud faces after shooting a few rounds.

Waiting Like Gentlemen

Which is harrrrrdddd!

And more scenes like this... 

Red, White and Blue All American Summer 2k15 --

You've been dreamy.

World's Fair...

We spent another weekend in Wayne County and these tough little cowboys entered the "Small Fry Rodeo" where they busted their very first mutton, had stick horse races and chased after a chicken and a "bunny" which we REALLY wanted to bring home.

(God bless the speedy kids that actually made it to the animals first!)

The Small Fry was also where Grandpa bought them each a blue snow cone... obviously.  :)We prepped for the evening by watching a few YouTube videos of other little cowboys and cowgirls riding sheep.  My little hombres were downright excited.  Not scared a bit.  Ready to ride!And dressed to kill, might I add.  Oh, wee little Wrangler butts and dusty boots -- You have my heart.

 Kael rode first.  Please note the size of this giant ram and it's HORNS!  What the?  This was my only picture in focus because I was so nervous for them!  He did great!  Landed hard (as do most little mutton busters) and walked off unscathed.

 This was Dax's dismount.  After this moment there was a few whimpers and a limp out of the arena.  I was beginning to doubt the whole thing.  But don't worry... I threw Acey up on a giant beast of a sheep since he was ready to ride and not about to pass up a chance to do what his brothers had already done!

Zoom in and you'll see the tiniest boots poking out from a sheep's butt... yep.  That's Ace. 

(Insert swear words here)

Meet Ace, the boy crying and bleeding profusely in the middle of the arena!

It should probably be noted that he had the longest ride of my three little amigos.  So there's that as a silver lining Ace Face.  As your mama, I'm sorry!

 

And here we are... me and my hard headed little cowboy who was the youngest to ride that evening with his trophy:  A bloody nose and a deep hatred for all things sheep.

Poor little cowboy!

I was so proud of them for even riding!  There were many a kiddo that scoped out the size of those "Infamous World's Fair Meanest Mutton in the Land" and passed on the entire experience.  These guys were tough despite the betrayal of those damn sheep rode on to another day.  And a more pleasant riding experience entirely...

 See?  We support riding domestic animals in this family too.  :)

 

It was an epic weekend for us.  A perfect way to tie out summer and squeeze the last few drops of adventure out of one of our favorite seasons.   We made some new memories in the fresh mountain air with our tribe... the whole clan on the Albrecht side.  

And some bonus stray kittens, of course.  :)

Homework, Oh Homework...

I've broken out the summer workbooks maybe five times this summer?  Far less than I hoped for, but better than nothing at all, right?!  Sundays kind of count as double duty since they have to practice holding still and remain relatively quiet with just crayons for entertainment for three hours at a time... or so I tell myself.

I always feel as if I'm channeling my mama, the teacher of all teachers, when I get my homework game face on.  Just a girl carrying on Grandma Gail's torch of enlightenment and education...

You know, no big deal.  :)

The other day I got on a little manners kick.

Which led me to teaching the boys how to properly set the table.  I almost keeled over and died at how seriously they took this little exercise.  Kael was baking a cake for desert, Dax set the table, and Ace was "making his bed" (which is a work in progress to say the least).  

They may not have it yet, but dangit... future wives of the Gardner guys, we be workin' on it!  :)