Current Obsessions..

I adore healthy babies.  

And amoxicillin.

I adore the fact that Dax thinks a kiss really makes things all better.  

(When it is actually amoxicillin).

I adore paper towels.  And the fact that you can buy them in bulk.

I adore the changing seasons.  

The spring weather actually makes me want to get out and reacquaint myself with the pavement.  

The alarm clock is another story.

I adore going out with my babies one at a time.  They are so very aware that they have the spotlight and they say and do the funniest things that really showcase their personalities.

I adore chicks and bunnies.  (Possibly more so than my kiddos) 

I can't wait to go see them at the "cowboy store" under the guise of doing it for the boys.

I adore our once a week babysitter, Ashlie.  

Ever met someone who is freakishly good at something?  

Me too... it's Ashlie... and she is freakishly good with kids.

I adore polka dots and stripes at the moment.  

Not together and preferably in nautical colors.  

Looks so crisp and fresh and clean.

I adore watching my little artists practice their new medium...  Spray bottles on sidewalk.  They are enamoured and I love it when they are busily enamoured.

I adore talking to other people that have "spirited" little boys.  If you have a man child or two you can guarantee that you have thought, "This can't be normal," whilst said man child was banging his head on the glass door or something equally strange.  

And come to find out... it kind of is (strange and normal).

I adore this one guy who has one prominent dimple and works his heiny off to make a sweet life for his girlfriend and his rug rats.  

We are lucky and he is stellar.  

(And I'm mushy... but whatev...)

I adore my car... Despite the outrageous gas prices. 

Do you know how lovely it is that no one can reach any one else to inflict annoyance?  

Inexplicably lovely, I tell you.

I adore my little big man Kaelster and the way he urgently yells for all to hear when he needs a "toiwet". That boy is trained.

I adore my tulips that are close to bearing color.  Is there anything better than tulips after those long winter months?  

Maybe Cadbury eggs... but we are choosing to focus on the tulips here.

I adore watching Ace roll the entire length of a room to get to the action.  If we leave him in the living room and travel the yardage to the kitchen you can bet he'll locomotive himself there in a flash.

I adore that feeling when you fold the last of six or so batches of laundry.  

I wish it wasn't such a fleeting little victory, but I love it nonetheless.

I adore hearing my kids regurgitate what I so frequently say to them.  Things like, "Oh my Goodness!" or "Honey!" or "Good Job" or "No, No, No!" or "Oh Man!"  

It cracks me up the way they have the inflections spot on.

I adore birthday surprises and I'm happy that we have one in mind that will make my soon to be SIXTY year young papa smile!

I totally adore anyone who made it through this crazy long list of current obsessions.  You know, you don't have to feel obligated to read blogs with so much text.  

That is probably on a list of "what not to do online" somewhere, but guess who adores breaking the rules from time to time?  :)

LoVeY Milestone...

Just days ago he took his very first breath and he looked like this.

He was ever so sleepy and warm and content to be swaddled and still.

He had butterfly wing soft hair and tiny bird legs and he could barely guzzle an ounce.

And then I must have blinked.

Because now, half a year later, he is big, and he looks like this.

He is mobile and strong and he wears his feelings on his little moon face and his blue almond eyes sparkle with knowledge and curiosity.

He has peach fuzz hair and chubby legs and the boy likes his milk and blowing raspberries.

And us? Well, we are in love. Every last one of us including the big littles. We smother this one's cheeks with kisses and watch him smile with delight in the chaos that surrounds him.

Yep, consider us smitten with this little man who makes our cup runneth over.

Our Ace a' Spades... THE one and only... Six Months going on God Father. :)

Some Morsels...

So I am just gonna say it...

Today sucked.

And should you feel inclined to visit this little war zone, you'll want to pack a HAZMAT suit.

RyGar had a man cold this weekend... I insert the word "man" because that implies that he was on death's doorstep and could barely function. Love you babe. :) Daximus is on the mend but has been a snotty mess and Ace has the great unfortune of being congested AND needing a binkie all at once, and now, today, Kaelster had multiple visits from the puke police.

And so it goes.

Boo.

I even called in the back ups... Grandma Jan had Daximus this afternoon and while he was lovin' it, and she was dutifully going through the Kleenex boxes, I was feeling like the mama Polar Bear that bid farewell to one of her triplet bear cubs because I didn't slay enough seals and there just wasn't enough to go around. (OK, Yes, I watched Frozen Planet last night on Animal Channel and I feel like one of Nature's failures at the moment).

Double Boo.

The irony is that yesterday went so swimmingly well. My kids loved on the Easter bunny at the mall and shared treats with perfect strangers while we got an oil change and smiled on command for photographers as we captured more milestones and we ended the day in a fit of giggles on the living room floor with daddy-o. I even said to my own Mommy on the phone last eve, "I think I'll just be a professional baby maker now.... I mean, mine are all so good and adorable and smart and now it seems we figured out the missing ingredient in our baby-makin' recipe thanks to Mini Medicine Man, Kael" and then, BAM, life done opened a can of whoop ass on me and served it up this fine Wednesday in generous portions.

I was reading one of my favorite blogs and this woman wrote a post just for me today...

"Regardless of how good or bad life presently is, tear reality apart into vibrant morsels and reassemble them into a meaningful pattern. I believe good begets good, but I also know that it is inevitable that life will come with challenges, sad days, rain storms and heartache and we'll need to make a beautiful pattern with those morsels too."

So, I know - big picture - it is the flu. Or something like the flu. And my Kaelster will be up riding Coop and playin' dirt and coloring on the sidewalk in a day or two...

And Ace a' Spades and Dax Man will be snot free and breathing clearly in mere days just like their papa bear...

But for now my vibrant morsels of life are not creating the most breathtaking vista and I'm having a helluva time assembling something meaningful out of these nasty little puzzle pieces.

Ah well. Perhaps the spring rain clouds that are virtually hanging over our house despite the gorgeous sun will bring us a rainbow?

Mama Bear's prayin'. :)

Yoga Baby...

I love that he sucks on his toes.

I love that his little self is totally immodest and he doesn't care.

I love that his lashes are growing long and thick just like his thighs.

I love this little Yoga Baby...

Useless Facts...

Fact... I just paid to have someone wash my windows and you know what? It was worth every red cent. (What exactly does that saying mean? Is it a reference to pennies? Weird.) Anyway, instead of feeling like we're going cave spelunking (Real word... Real awesome that I worked it into this post) I feel like dancing a jig in my well lit home. Who knew that those horizontal sleet/snow/rain storms that our home town is famous for could paint our windows with such a thick coat of nasty. Nastiness... be gone!

Fact... I hate backing up photos. HATE.IT. Here I sit typing while my computer is burning a zillion pics onto DVDs and it is a good thing I have this blog as a little distraction or I might just go ape sh*&. For real. NOTHING is harder than sitting here in the middle of a sunny day during nap time. Are you impressed with my dedication? Don't be... if I was dedicated I wouldn't have to catch up on six months worth of photos. Dang.

Fact... I love and loathe having the boys play so well together. LOVE it for obvious reasons. They giggle and crack one another up and entertain themselves for far longer than I ever imagined was possible. Loathe it because they are teaming up on me... those sneaky little suckers! They are proof positive that two heads are better than one for making mischief. My only saving grace is that they aren't both silently sneaky. If Dax Man is out of sight and silent.... RUN. He has likely climbed atop the roof and is prepping to do a Spiderman stunt. But Kaelster? He is my own personal siren. He busts a gut every time they are about to make trouble and then I know to come running. Thank you, Big K.

Fact... Ace is currently sporting the "Bib of Shame". Poor little dude is a drooling mess and if those dang teeth don't pop out soon his little red chin will get wiped off of his face completely. As a strange side note... his favorite toy of the moment is a whisk which he discovered thanks to his big brothers who hand him random stuff and then proclaim that they "Are a Good Boy". Yes, a wire whisk from the kitchen. He even has that sweet little "Sophie the Giraffe" that is supposed to be THE teething toy, but it pales in comparison to his beloved whisk. Strange I know. Maybe he'll be a chef someday?

Fact... My favorite meal/snack is apples and peanut butter. I know that makes me sound like a Kindergarten student, but I love it. That, along with Diet Coke, wholeheartedly sustain me on a daily basis. They aren't great together, but alone, they work wonders in this gal's day. If you are currently hungry I highly recommend you go slice up a red delicious.

Speaking of my boyfriend, Diet Coke... it is a fact that I love Sonic. I don't know how they stay in business though, because no lie, one out of every two visits I get a "Talk to Sonic" survey and if I complete it I get a free drink. Duh. I get a free drink ALL the time. Also, (and this is a sacrifice to share this information, but I'll do it because I am a friend) Sonic offers "Window Stickers" on Black Friday. A Window sticker gets you any beverage, any time for $1.50 with tax. I have a window sticker this year. Each location gets limited quantities of window stickers. But there you go... on Black Friday 2012 don't go to Target or Old Navy... RUN to Sonic. There I said it. I shared one of my most coveted secrets. No one can say I am a selfish girl.

Fact... I love my Dad and he is super generous with his toys and homes and tickets and nice things like that BUT good old Grandpa HeeKoo has left me to the dogs and has teamed up with the little men (and the big man). He gave us Jazz tickets the other day along with instructions that went something like this, "Here Ryno, take one of my boys to the game." What the H? If you're going to give a gift you don't put stipulations on it that involve me not getting any part of the gift, do you? Rude. It's like I am no longer the apple of his eye... he likes my big littles too much. Let's be real, I don't blame him.

Fact... Smith's was out of "car carts" the other day and I avoided a near meltdown by pointing out the mini carts and suggesting that the twiblings push one of those around. Big Mistake. Huge. Daximus lost his mind when after our very quick grocery run he had to return said cart. I have never seen him throw quite a fit. It was epic for my mellow little Daxi. It may be a while before I return to Smith's to avoid seeing the mini carts.

Fact... RyGar is one tough hombre unless A) He has a cold or B) He opens the door and is greeted by someone selling something. Particularly little neighbor kids who have a fundraiser or are selling cookies or suckers or "pretty rocks". If it weren't so adorable and predictable, I would have a long hard chat with him about this little chink in his armor. But it is just who my tough Ryno is. And the neighbor girls have his number. They bake up a little batch of something and come running on a random Saturday to the Gardner Res... where the Mister will buy them out every single time.

Fact... I still love blogging and I'm fairly certain I'm nearly alone on this one. I love that it makes me keep an account of our collective life no matter how menial. I love that it keeps me taking pictures. I love that it makes me write and string words and thoughts together. I guess, no, I KNOW, I am sappy, but some day I think I will lovingly flip through our blog books and pat myself on the back for this. And probably for backing up photos as painful as it may be.

Happy Trails... ;)

Springy Thingies...

I could and very well should write a long diatribe about how I loathe Daylight Savings.

But, as luck would have it, the dreaded time change was outdone by the lovely spring weather we had this weekend.

It was perfection.

Like, open windows, fluttering spring breeze curtains, naps on the couch perfection.

Plus, I threw in some new Gardenia scented plug-ins that took my fresh spring air "buzz" right over the top.

The downer was, of course, the time change coupled with 1 pm church to celebrate the blessing of our little niece. That is THREE little boy babes that missed their regularly scheduled naps on a time change Sunday. For the record, that equates to a mess. Tear stained cheeks and little fists rubbing tired eyes. It was not our favorite evening.

Alas, we survived. And today, Mother Nature continues to brag. The big little boys have been "playing dirt" while Ace and I peruse around the yard looking at tiny tulips making their way through the spring soil.

Spring rocks.

Correction, Spring rocks my socks off.

Literally.

My feet stink from wearing flats all day sans socks. Oops.

And now for some of my favorite little expressions of all time brought to you courtesy of my little chatter-boxes....

"I Yuv This Song!" Proclaimed loudly as ANY new song starts on the radio or the TV.

"Fi-Oh Twuck.... Woo Woo Woo" We yell this when we see any emergency vehicle.

"Tank You Mom" We're very aware of manners all of the sudden.

"You OK?" This is one of my favs... I love hearing them ask one another if all is well.

"Beanies" This is the name of green beans, kidney beans, peas and raisins. We love 'em all.

"Cwazy!" They love to call Daddy crazy after he tickle tortures them.

"I Shay-Ow Candies" Kaelster has ALWAYS been a good one to share candies with Dax Man.

"I a Good Boy?" They ask me this twenty times a day. They LOVE to be praised and I dig dishing it out.

"Yum dwink and caw-cown?" Making a smoothie and popcorn rivals a trip to Disneyland here.

"Sun shinin' out seed.". That equates to let us out there already.

And so... We're off. "Out-seed" Because the sun is shinin'.

Mamahood...

Papa Bear has been working late this week. He warned me. I knew it was coming. So it's all me... Playin' mama 24/7, missing my evening dishes partner and my late night chats and thinking a lot about how to do it all a little bit better in the therapuetic suds of the tub. And I think that this trip I'm on... the one that is my most exciting voyage ever... the one I call mamahood - This is one of the phases of life that I shall treasure the most... but not for obvious reasons... for reasons that are hard to put into words.

I shall give it a meager try...

Mamahood...

Makes me feel fierce and small.

Makes me laugh with tears and cry out of worry.

Makes me strain to make the ordinary extraordinary.

Makes me speak more clearly and leaves me feeling confused.

Makes me see beautiful in the most basic.

Makes me hurry up and pause.

Makes me feel alive and dead tired.

Makes me stronger and leaves me feeling weak.

Makes me feel unkempt yet adorably accessorized.

Makes me wise and leaves me dumbfounded.

Makes me savor small moments and plan for big events.

Makes me elated and overwhelmed.

Makes me play like a child and work like a dog.

Makes me on point and totally befuddled.

Makes the days feel long and the years fly by.

Makes me happy.

Crazy, stupid, lovely, giggly, over-the-moon happy.