Service with a smile

Connor's former nursery leader at church recently had a hysterectomy for uterine cancer. I asked her if we can do anything to help her, and she said bringing Connor over for a visit would be great medicine. She has always LOVED Connor. So, he and I made this card to bring to her. He loves squishing the tissue paper into little balls. He's very proud of his card; I'm sure it will bring her some cheer!

My boys

There is something very sweet about brothers. Connor is so excited to have Lucas here. He waited and waited for him, and now he's so proud of his baby brother. He's constantly telling strangers at Target, the grocery store, or wherever, about Lucas. He loves to hold him (even though he's done after about 2.5 seconds). I hope they have fun growing up together. I like being mom to 2 boys (and Isabel, of course!).

Keeping cool

Our city has a fanastic "sprayground" conveniently close to our house. I love taking the kids there when it's hot. They can run around and I'm not worried about things I'd worry about at a pool, since they don't know how to swim yet. Here's a few pics from our sprayground outing earlier this week.

Riding in cars with Connor

Connor is currently obsessed with stoplights. I have a real back-seat driver on my hands. Here is an actual conversation in my van the other day while driving with the three kids: (M is me, Melissa or mom; C is Connor: I is Isabel. Lucas was simply a silent observer).

C: What color is the stoplight?
M: Red
C: I'm not asking you, I'm asking Isabel. Isabel, what color is the stoplight?
I: Red
C: Good. That's right, Isabel. It's red. And what does a red stoplight mean?
I: Yellow
C: No, it means stop. What does a yellow stoplight mean?
I: Silence.
C: It means go slow. Mommmmmmmmm - stooooooooooooooooooooop! The light is red!!!!
M: Connor, the stoplight is a half mile away. I don't have to stop until I get there.
C: But the light is red!
M: Yes, but we aren't at the stoplight yet!

And round and round it goes. I can't even begin to describe what right on red does to him. We're also working with him on understanding when we follow the color of the arrow and when we just need the regular circle light to change. It can be rather exasperating.

Music & Lyrics

I am a HUGE music fan. I love reading liner notes, learning lyrics, finding out what songs mean, how bands form, etc. I even have two "voice crushes," on Billy Joe Armstrong from Green Day and Tom Petty. Their voices make me weak in the knees (yes, Brian is aware of this). And I will fully admit that neither is particularly attractive to look at. So, it's no surprise that I find the new show "The Singing Bee," while somewhat cheesy, to be quite entertaining. I play along at home. And it's made me think about misunderstood lyrics. I'll never forget when a certain friend told me what she thought the chorus to the Genesis song "Invisible Touch" was. She thought the words were, "She takes her hat and puts it on the top shelf." When in reality, it goes, "She seems to have an invisible touch yeah." So I'll confess one of my misunderstood lyrics. For years, I thought the chorus of Jimmy Buffett's "Margaritaville" went, "Some people claim that there's a WARM BLOOD to blame." I never understood what a warm blood was and why some people would claim that it's to blame. And then this spring I was watching the Today show, and Buffett was doing a concert. I saw a woman in the audience holding a sign that read, "I'm the WOMAN to blame." Suddenly it all made sense!

The Green Team

I am SO not a matchy-matchy person. So it was entirely by coincidence that these outfits happened to go so well together. I couldn't resist dressing the kids in their green clothes for church yesterday and snapping a pic. And did I mention how extremely challenging it is to get all 3 looking good at the same time? I also took a close-up of Lucas. He's 6 weeks already, and such a sweet, good little boy. He's already sleeping for 5 or 6 hour stretches at night, eating once, then going down for a few more hours. What a nice turnaround from a couple of sleep-deprived weeks ago! I'm totally a believer in putting babies to bed when they are semi-awake so they learn to go to sleep on their own.

The older two continue to adore him. Connor calls him," li'l li'l Lucas" and Isabel calls him "Bucas." I find myself on occasion slipping out an accidental "Bucas" myself!

Camping trip

Connor and Brian had a great time camping in the mountains. Connor says he even prefers to sleep in a sleeping bag (on the ground no less!) than in his bed. He learned how to fish, and caught 2 fish. One he caught almost entirely on his own. However, when the fish started flopping around (as fish tend to do), Connor was terrified that it was going to bite him. So, Brian had to settle for a picture of the fish next to Connor's pole. Isabel, Lucas and I did fine on our own. When Brian and Connor got home, Brian asked me which combination of two children I think is the most difficult. He was totally expecting me to say "Lucas and Isabel." But I answered "Connor and Isabel." It's peaceful when they're separated! I don't have to hear "mine" a thousand times a day. They go from best friends to worst enemies faster than I can keep up with! But I know Isabel missed her partner in crime b/c she asked about him constantly. Must be SOME love there!

Painting party

Last night some girlfriends and I got together to paint these super cute flowers on canvas for our girls' rooms. These are for Isabel's wall. I think they turned out great! I am SO not artistic, but my friend Kristie (who is artistic) had painted some similar ones and showed us how to make them. I took a close up to show the absolutely exquisite detail I was able to paint into the flower ;) Can't wait to get them up on her wall! It will have to wait until Saturday, as Brian is the master hanger and he and Connor are camping until Saturday. Wish me luck alone for 3 days with a newborn and a toddler!

Boy of summer

Connor had his last T-ball class today. They even played a "game" at the end. He looks so old in his hat and glove! Connor says he liked T-ball more than basketball; he really liked hitting the ball, and was pretty good at it. You might wonder why he's wearing a Cubs hat. Well.... when Brian was young, he always wore a Boston Red Sox hat because he thought the "B" stood for Brian. So Connor wears his "C" hat for Connor. And, Brian now wears a Detroit hat. He and Connor say the "D" stands for Daddy :) Two peas in a pod, those two.

Miss Potato Head

Isabel loves playing with the Mr. Potato Head toys. However, it seems lately that she wants to become a Potato Head! She will wear these glasses and earrings for hours sometimes. I don't know how she can stand wearing those glasses, but she thinks it's great fun. She loves to look in the mirror when she's "in costume."

Hoops fun

Brian and Connor are spending some quality time together this summer. They have been taking some parent/child sports classes through our city's rec program (we have a great rec program). Last week was basketball, this week is T-ball. Here is Connor learning to shoot the ball.

Surviving summer

Adjusting to life with three children has made summer zip by. With the arrival of child #3, I have realized even more: a) a sad fact: a baby's time as a newborn goes very quickly and b) a happy fact: a baby's time as a newborn goes very quickly. Especially with two other little ones, my days are filled with work, laughter, tears, dirty diapers, laundry, cooking, cleaning, nursing, playing, and more. I went into this summer with the goal of simply "surviving it." I set a small goal, and therefore I think I'm accomplishing it! Life as a mom is something I never could have imagined, in so many ways. I love those three little faces, even when they are filled with dirt, spaghetti sauce, ice cream, play-doh, spit-up or whatever else, and even when they are giving me dirty looks or sassy remarks. I'm really trying to savor this crazy time, while hoping we settle into some kind of a routine before long, as I'm a routine girl!

Getting started

I've been inspired, so......................................I'm diving into the world of blogging!