Sister Love

I love having sisters, and I am so glad that my girls have each other. There is something about the bond that sisters share that is so priceless.

Toes

Do you see her little toes?? They are sticking out the side of the crib...she is seriously so, so cute and I love her so, so much!

Running Adventures

I really enjoy running. Three kids and little sleep make it hard to run for two reasons: I am tired most of the time and there are three kids involved. So, I have been trying to motivate Hannah to ride her bike next to me while I push Kate and Rachel Lee in the stroller, and after 6 months of talking about it I finally found the right motivation: a fancy bike.

Hannah said she would like her bike if it had a bell and a basket. Done. And now I get to run with three kids in tow. It's great! Sometime challenging since the hills are hard for Hannah and I end up pushing the stroller up the hill, put the brake on, run back and then push Hannah up the hill. But I'm running, and I'm spending time with my girls, so it's great.

And since it's hard to a get a picture of me running with the three girls, here is Jeff walking the three girls while I snapped a few shots so you get an idea of what I look like.

A Toother!

Tonight I was eating dinner with two college friends when I noticed something scrap a little on the spoon as it went into her mouth. I stopped, felt her little bottom gum and yep, there was a tooth! In shear excitement I yelled, "I have a toother!"

For those who don't remember, my girls have been late teethers. My dentist actually said late teething is a good thing since milk on a babies teeth can cause decay. No problems there - my girls didn't get teeth until almost a year old.

But baby Rachel, she's a toother and had her first tooth. Now off to Target to get her a tooth brush! I'll try to get a picture tomorrow if she cooperates :)

Moving Sklls

Sisters

At play...



At rest...





Okay, one little monkey did not rest. She's the one that just keeps going, and going and going!

I love my monkeys!

Baby Spud

Kate loves baby things. She loves dolls and diapers. She LOVES when her sister poops and is eager to clean up spit up. I probably can be turned in for child labor law abuse for all the tasks that I have her do for the baby (and me!) but she love doing it and so it's a win-win.

Until baby spud. Kate loves this baby potato head. She cradles it, sings to it and puts it to bed. The other day I asked her to get some wipes for the baby's diaper change and she said, "Not now mom. I'm rocking my baby." She was just so cute I had to smile and get the wipes myself.

Peek-a-Boo

Room Swap!

Ikea furniture and a crib make for switching rooms very complicated. We had to dismantle the large white bed in our room, the bunk beds and the crib and then reassemble it in the new rooms. But the end result is a larger room for the girls, which also allows them to dress up and play in their room a little. The girls love it, and therefore I do too.

Family Picnic Day

On the way to Jeff's work to participate in Picnic Day I was asked a million and one questions almost all starting with "WHY?"

Why is there a biker?
Why is it called picnic day?
Why are we having a picnic?
Why is it free?
Why is there a clown?

Ah, yes. The clown. Aunt Tilly. This year Aunt Tilly was in a very bad mood and although we waited for the girls to have some face painting she told the kids that there was not enough time and sent them away. Lovely Aunt Tilly. So, I stuck a few stickers on the girls' faces and sent them happily onto the bounce houses!!

Such a hit!

The lemonade was "Not quite right" as Kate explained. I only mention it because she is so expressive and says what everyone else is thinking. She cracks me up!

Animal Game Part 2

H: I'm thinking of an animal with big ears.
K: A elephant?
H: No. It's really big.
K: A elephant?
H: (with irritation) NO! I already told you it's not an elephant! It's gray and has long tusks.
S: Hannah, it sounds like an elephant to me...
H: Well, it's not. It's dumbo.
S: Well, Dumbo is an elephant so Kate you were right! It's your turn.

K: I'm thinking of an animal with giraffe ears.
H: Is it a giraffe?
K: YES! You got it!

At least she's venturing out.

Guess My Animal

We spend a lot of time in the car these days. So, to make car rides fun we play guess my animal...here is how the game usually goes:

H: I am thinking of an animal that lives in the heart of the ocean (Yes, those were her actual words).
S: Is it a shark?
H: Yes! You're turn!

S: I'm thinking of an animal that is white, large and lives in the artic.
H: Is it a polar bear?
S: Yes!
H: Your turn Kate!

K: I'm thinking of an animal with sharp teeth.
H: Is it a shark?
K: No...
S: A lion?
K: No...
H: A tiger?
K: Yes!

H: I'm thinking of an animal that lives underground.
K: Is it a meerkat?
H: No.
S: A groundhog?
H: No. I mean under water...
S: An alligator?
H: No.
S: A crocodile
H: Yes! Your turn mom!

S: Oh no, I'm out of animals...Kate you go.
K: I'm thinking of an animal with sharp teeth (Yes, she says this every. single. time. and I love it every. single. time.)

Life with my girls is constant attention, constant activity, constant...you get the idea...and I love every single moment.

Play Time!!

Shhhh...

...I should be sleeping...but look at how cute I am!

Spray Park!!

Bath Time

Bath time for Rachel Lee continues to be a highlight in our house. The girls help gather the gear: towels, diapers, pajamas, wash cloth, soap, bath tub, and then watch the entire process laughing and adding commentary. Rachel Lee is enjoying her baths now and likes trying to pull herself out of the water so now we have to bath her on her tummy. She smiles all the time. I just love this girl!

Waking up with my Girls

Looking Older

Hannah loves her independence and every day she is trying to do more and more on her own. As I saw her looking in the mirror brushing her teeth with her hair detangler on the side I realized, she looks four and a half. She had dressed herself, combed her hair, put her headband in and then brushed her teeth all by herself without me asking her to do it. Preschool is approaching and these sweet days seems to be passing so quickly.

Literally

Jeff is Mr. Literal, not in an obnoxious way but in a sweet and enduring way. Sometimes it surprises me that he does exactly what I ask rather than what I implied. For example, the other day I asked him to put new toilet paper in the box next to the toilet . Being a great sport and always willing to help, he did.




What I should have asked him was to get some toilet paper from the garage, take it out of the wrapper and stack each roll in the box. The toilet paper was there though, and for that I was grateful. I was also grateful to have the help of my sweet husband, and to have a chuckle in the middle of my morning.

Little Laughs from my Little One

4th of July

Independence. Totally worth celebrating and remembering each year. Praise God for the freedom we have to worship Him without persecution, speak our minds openly, and pursue the dreams and passions that He has given us.

Fireworks are truly a great way to celebrate our freedom. Hannah jumped up and down with each firework, Kate covered her ears and said she didn't like them, and Rachel Lee fell asleep. A fun night to remember!

6 Months Old

Wow. Seriously, wow. My baby is 6 months old today. She is still so much a baby, but she is so different from a newborn or a 3 month old. She is sitting up, eating rice cereal and some basic baby food, taking 2 naps during the day and waking only ONCE a night at 2am and then going back to sleep until 6. Rachel Lee adores her sisters, and will laugh along with them when they are being silly. She now notices when I leave the room, and I'm only mentioning it because it makes me feel loved. :) There are a million and one things to do in our house at any given moments: dishes, laundry, sweeping, mopping, dusting, food prep, food clean up...you get the idea...but I always have time to rock my baby, sing to her and just enjoy the snuggles and cuddles that she and I both crave at this stage in our lives. Rachel Lee smiles an chuckles all the time now and has the cutest belly laugh EVER! I can't believes it's been 6 months, and I can't imagine life without her.



My dear Rachel, I often find myself singing to you during the day a song that goes R-R-R-Rachel, radiant Rachel, you're the only girl that I adore. When the m-m-moon shines over the mountains, I'll be waiting at your kitchen door. It's a simple ditty and we substitute different names in the song, but radiant is the word that always describes you. You radiate so much joy and happiness and I love watching you grow and change into a radiant baby. I love you so much and can't wait to see what the next 6 months brings us!
Love,
Your Mama

A Safe Space

Now that Rachel Lee is getting older she enjoys being part of the active playtime with the girls. The only problem is that she gets bumped over or toys often hit her. So, when my friend offered us this tent I was so excited...she could sit up and be apart of the playtime with the safety of a tent around her. She loved it too!











That was until Kate started throwing toys into the tent for Rachel Lee to play with and one hit her on her head. So, maybe the better solution would be to put Kate and Hannah in the tent. But then we would miss sweet moments like this kiss.

Rub a Dub Dub, Three Girls in a Tub

Padres

We took the girls to their first baseball game thanks to the library's summer reading program where the girls were given two free tickets each. We enjoyed a nice cool San Diego breeze and got to see a home run! Jeff tried to explain the rules to the girls, but the girls seemed to enjoy people watching: Kate was busy pointing out cotton candy sellers and the guy in front of us who had a band-aid on his thumb while Hannah asked about the kids behind us (as if they couldn't hear us) and the bubbles that were coming from some unknown place.

A Bible Story to Remember...

We have two great Bibles that we alternate reading to the girls every night: Jesus Storybook Bible and The Big Picture Bible. They are not the type of Bibles that tell every story, but rather they tell the overall story of God loving and pursuing His people from Genesis through Revelation. It's great. The only problem is Hannah and Kate don't know the story of Jonah and the whale. They don't know who Samson is and why he never got a haircut. Until now...

After enrolling in the summer reading program and reading 10 books, each girl was able to select a brand new book. Hannah choose a Fancy Nancy Sticker book and Kate chose My First Bible by ZonderKids. She loves her Bible. She reads it all the time. Here is a story I heard her telling Rachel Lee:








Hello. This is my son David.














This is David putting on his monkey suit.

















Oh David, what a lovely monkey suit.
















OH NO!! I'm mad I lost my monkey suit! (throwing her hands up in the air just like the picture)


I cracked up laughing. The Bible has never been so funny!! We are now reading this book and hopefully it will enrich her understanding of how God has worked on the large scale and the small scale to rescue his people, us, from sin.