watching a little baseball

What to do when your watching your brother play baseball?

Listening to dad's tunes

Play some Wiggles

Keep those shades up

Play some more wiggles

One last box to pack...

As I clean and prepare the condo to be rented by someone else, I felt a twinge of sadness.  Even though I will not miss the condo, leaving it was a little bit hard.  For the past year, it has been our home and change is always hard.

I have always wanted to live by a lake.  To be able to look out my front window at the water.  To watch the sun setting over the mountains and reflecting into the water.  Living on Hunter's Glen lake fulfilled this desire.  I will miss the views, the sunsets, the water.

And, as I pack our last few items and say goodbye.  The boys entertain themselves.

Playing "How to Train Your Dragon"

Playing "Army Men"

Playing "Spiderman"

That twinge of sadness disappears as I drive to our new home in Thornton.  I love our new home.  I love living in a house and being surrounded by our things.  I love watching Bridger running in the back yard.  I love putting the boys to bed in their own beds.  I love the basement that Bryan calls his "man cave" and my big kitchen. 

We are so blessed to have such a wonderful place to live.  Today I am thankful.

guess who lost their first tooth?

 

In this pocket you will find
A teensy, tiny tooth of mine.
So while I sleep where
dreams are made,
Let's see if you
can make a trade.
In this pocket I will lay,
the little tooth I lost today.
Please, dear fairy,
tonight as I sleep
leave me a coin.
My tooth you can keep.

Changing the world

Five Beautiful children.  Five precious souls.  Forever connected by love and family.

A gift given to us by God.

  We are only asked one thing in return.

To love.

A promise from Exodus 20:6. He will show love to a thousand generations to those who love him and obey his commandments. 

My children will take their love for each other and share it with the world. And, in this way, we will change the world for thousands of generations. 

All we need to do is capture the moment and fill it with love.

Today, this is the source of my joy.  The gift that has been given to me to change the world.  

Eli and the horses

One of my favorite things to do at Grandma's house is to play on the swing set by the back fence.  I love to toddle out in the back yard and run across the grass to the back fence.  Bridger and Wallace always come out back with me and I love to watch them run after the ball.

This morning as I was playing outside something caught my attention.  I walked over to the fence and saw Pop's horses.  I love watching the horses. Soon, I will be big enough to ride like my big brothers.

A picnic in the park

The boys and I decided that we would leave the busyness of the city and to go back home for a week.  And, what better time then to return home for Vacation Bible School.  Owen just loved VBS last year.  He loves the music, the crafts, and meeting new friends.  So, three boys, mommy, and Bridger loaded ourselves up in the Subaru for a Wyoming filled week.

Every morning, Amaya, Gabe and Owen jumped out of bed and got ready to head down to the Methodist church for VBS.  From 9:00-12:00 they sang, played, and heard bible stories.  Lauren and Noah (Amaya's cousins) also were there and the boys were very excited to see their friends.

After I picked the kids up from VBS, we headed to Marshall park for a picnic.  We had a good time eating peanut butter and honey and running and playing while little Eli slept in the car.

Then it was time for Eli to wake up and join us.  Stephanie also brought baby Addie down to play and we all had a great time in the Wyoming sunshine.

I put the babies in the swing and they looked so cute.  Unfortuatly, Eli doesn't like to swing and he was very grouchy until I got him out.  Addie, on the other hand, loved swinging!

A Strawberry in the Sunshine

Summer.  There is nothing that says summer like the red, sweet, juiciness of a strawberry.  A strawberry enjoyed in the warm sunshine with wet green grass beneath your feet and a soft breeze blowing in your hair.

A strawberry summer moment captured in time when you are 18 months old and not a care in the world.

One on one

I love being the mother of three boys.  I love the energy.  I love the excitement.  I love the physical activity involved.  If my three angels are not running through the house chasing each other, they are on the floor wrestling each other.  Add in the light sabors, light up swords, and guns and the noise can be deafening.

There are days that I will just stand in the kitchen listening to all the noise and smile as I continue making lunch.  Other days, I can't take the noise any longer and I will yell into the living room.  "You guys, stop running, stop yelling, stop being so loud".  And some days, I will bribe them with a cartoon, just to have that extra hour of quiet before dinner is ready.  It all depends on the day and my mood. I have just learned that this mother can only take so much on any given day and I try and be flexible.

But, I fondly remember those days that I would sit quietly with Gabriel in our backyard swing, without the chaos of two other little boys.  We would throw the ball for Bridger together and eat Popsicles just enjoying the quiet together.   And, I so cherish those moments when both Owen and Eli are asleep that Gabiel and I get to spend some time together.  During these quiet times now we like to play go fish and read our "chapter books".   

When Owen and I get to spend time together one on one.  We snuggle up together and get lost in a good book.   Owen's favorite books are Mercer Mayer books.   He can read "When I Get Bigger" over and over.  Owen and I also love to play with play dough.  We can make snakes and cookies together all afternoon.

And, my precious Eli.  Well, he just loves to play ball.  Basketball mostly but, he also loves to sit on the floor and throw the ball back and forth.  Most of the time, he demands my attention by pulling on my shirt and screaming until I put down whatever I am doing and play ball with him.  It is a good thing he does this because there are days when I won't sit down and play with him unless he demands it.

As I sit here, I longingly dream of more quiet time with my boys one on one.  To concentrate on just one without all the distractions that come with three.  To be able to devote more time to each one.  This just sounds heavenly.

This is not my reality.  My reality is having all three little boys at once, all day, every day.  How I react in each moment throughout my day of chaos is the task set before me.  If Eli is screaming because he is hungry and tired and Gabe and Owen are both trying to get my attention because they need something also....how do I react?  With loving patience?  Or do I start screaming and yelling also?  Well, it depends on the day.  I do both.  But, I can honestly say....I am learning.  Learning to be more loving, learning to be more patient, learning to be more kind.  All of this is actually forced on me but, I am so thankful for it.  It makes me a better person.  It makes me who I am.  The mother of three precious boys who I get the privilege of spending every second of everyday with.   I wouldn't trade it for the world.

And when those rare moments do come about where I get some one on one time....I take advantage of them.  And cherish each moment.

Pop and his horses

If I close my eyes and imagine my childhood, I am sitting in a 1978 brown bronco next to my dad.  Him and I are driving east of town to the pasture where he keeps his horses.  He has his old white cowboy hat on with his chaps. I have on my gray roper cowboy boots with the flower sewn in the side.  We have the windows down and the wind is blowing my red hair all over the place but is keeping us cool.   On the floor at my feet are the halters and other tack that we need to catch the horses and spend time with them.  This is my favorite thing to do.  Spend an afternoon with my dad and his horses.  When we arrive at the pasture we jump out of the truck and he starts whistling.  The horses come running.  We brush them.  My dad cleans out their feet.  We saddle Poncho and Dippy Debbie and ride for an hour or two before it is time to go home.  Time seems to stop when my dad and I are out there in that pasture with the horses.  Time that is long gone but, always in my heart.

Spending time with my dad and his horses is different today.  Instead of riding around the pasture talking about our day we all head out to the polo field to watch him play polo.

And, I am anxious to see my dad and his horses.  To watch him play a game that he loves brings me so much happiness because it reminds me of the hours we spent together horseback so long ago.

My hope for my children is that they will find the one thing that brings them as much happiness as horses do for my father. And, that I will be able to share in that passion just as my father did for me all those years ago. To share with them the passions of life that make us who we are.

And, today, they get to enjoy the beautiful Wyoming weather and watch their Pop and his horses.   Here they are.