County Fair and Parade

My cousin Greta came to visit again for the fair and parade. We always have a great time when she's here and she really makes my life easier. She entertains the kids, helps out and even changes stinky diapers! Too bad she lives 4 hours away. She was here for four days and we had something big planned for each day. On Wednesday we went swimming, my dad came up too and even Jeremy was able to go. Since the fair was going on there were very few people there and we enjoyed the shallow end all to ourselves.

Thursday was parade day. The John Deere float was pretty far back in the hour and a half parade so we watched at the start until it came along and then hopped on. Actually Samuel and Thomas rode their bikes, Julia and Greta rode on the float and I pushed Philip in the stroller.

Friday was fair day. We looked at everything, including Samuel, Thomas and Julia's entries. They're too young to win ribbons they just get participation ones.

Then we rode the rides! Julia of course wanted to go on everything but we told her she'd have to wait until next year for the roller coaster. (It's just a little one.) Samuel decided he was too big for the tractor ride :( but he enjoyed the rides he chose. Thomas even happily rode some rides.

Saturday the kids just played until Greta, Philip and I left for Lynn's family shower. Greta stayed with Lynn and Logan over night and then she headed home.

Somewhere in the mix Greta helped the boys make this nest for project time and they ran through the sprinkler. They also played lots of games and generally had a lot of fun.

While we weren't doing kid things Greta and I enjoyed each other's company and she read my entire 160 page blog book. (Yes, I actually did it, I turned my blog into a book and it turned out really nice!!!)

Thanks for coming Greta!

Awesome!

Jeremy found this and now we're never going out to eat without checking it first!
http://www.kidseatfor.com/

Play Date

Samuel is on his first ever school friend play date. We haven't heard much about Alex but I could tell in the two minutes he and his mom were here to pick up Samuel that they would get along just fine. They were looking at a big fly and Alex's mom commented "That's a big fly!" "Well Mom," said Alex "I think it's actually a Tiger Beetle." Could have been an exact conversation between Samuel and me. (Especially because it was just a big fly.) Glad I'm not the only mom who doesn't know more than a six year old!

Whose Pony-Loving Child is this?

She's Only Got Brothers

and yet she has to take fixing the doll crib into her own hands!

A Beautiful Morning

for a walk across the lake.

Vacation Fun

We aren't too much for big vacations but we do like to get away once in awhile. So we headed to a nearby state park with my old roommate Robyn and her family. It's not far but we've never taken the kids there so we might as well been a million miles away. We arrived Sunday afternoon about 3:30 and left Tuesday afternoon about 1, so it was short but fun. It wasn't unbearably hot (Praise God!) but there was a big thunder storm Monday night and some quick showers Tuesday morning. If it hadn't rained I think we could have filled one more full day with fun, but as it was we were happy with the length.
The highlight of the trip was that instead of cabins this state park has CABOOSES to stay in. Really, what boy under the age of ten wouldn't be thrilled by that fact alone? The downside is that bedding and kitchen stuff is not provided like in the cabins at other state parks so we (well, mostly Jeremy) felt like we were bringing everything but the kitchen sink. I took tons of pictures so I collaged each activity. I like my world in nice, ordered boxes. :)

The kids had tons of fun just hanging out in and around the cabooses. We had picnics for every meal and grilled everything. (There's just two burners inside anyway.)

Our first excursion was a fishing trip. It was blessedly cool because of some rain clouds that were kind enough not to rain on us! Robyn and Darren's kids have been fishing a lot with their Grandpa but this was our kids' first time. We bought two little fishing poles so they wouldn't have to wrestle big ones. After a couple of quick (hook-less) casting lessons at the caboose, they were ready to go. The lake was stocked with 4000 trout some time at the beginning of summer; apparently they have all been fished out or gotten too smart to be caught. All we caught were the little minnows in the green bucket! The kids lasted quite a long time fishing and when they got bored they played with the minnows and the Dads got a little time to try their hand with their poles. Still nothing. The bright side of not catching anything is that you don't have to clean any fish! Neither Jeremy nor Darren had cleaned a fish in years and weren't exactly looking forward to it.The afternoon warmed up quite nicely and we enjoyed swimming at the "beach". The kids all had a blast. Samuel made rivers that Jeremy poured water into. Oh, Samuel says he just dredged out the paths that were already there. Thomas played in the sand and water and Julia splashed around happily. I just waded in a little so I could keep Philip company. He got to lay on a blanket on the sand and enjoy watching the big kids play. The water was pretty nice and not even very gross!

Back at the tracks the kids rode their bikes a ton! Cement is a novelty for our boys and there's lots of it around the cabooses. We also had a nice green space behind our two cabooses where we played, ate and roasted marshmallows. Melissa, Doug, Max and Katherine T. joined us for exploring and dinner our first afternoon. Jeremy brought his remote control Gator and even let the kids play with it! (It's officially a Daddy toy, not a kid one, but he's pretty good about sharing.) Julia and Philip enjoyed baths in the kitchen sink and the big boys did pretty well in the shower. (Another novelty for this tub-only family.) The boys got to sleep up in the top of the caboose and even played a little Uno there during one of the showers Tuesday morning.
Robyn and Darren and company headed home Tuesday morning but we went down to the river and walked along the beach, had one last picnic and then headed out. Once we made it through the soggy, mosquito laden grass to the sand, the river was really beautiful. Down there in the bottom right corner Jeremy is rinsing Julia's feet off, not dangling her in the river for fun. I told Jeremy he had to take five pictures with me in them over the three days so I could prove I went on the vacation too!
I love how Julia has her little arm around Daddy in this one.

We came home tired, mosquito bitten and rather bruised up but happy. (That concrete will get you eventually when you run and bike around as much as the kids did and I have two mosquito bites by my eye that make me look like I got in a fight!)

We had so much fun we're thinking of making it an annual trip...maybe we'll even stay longer than 48 hours next time!

Question

Does anyone know why some of my Picasa collages get bigger when you click on them and some don't? All the ones in my vacation post are the same basic thing but only the swimming one enlarges for me. Frustrating!

What Philip's Been Up to

Watching a little Jeopardy

Getting buried with work, just like Daddy.

And...drum roll please...

learning to roll over!

Four Month Comparison

I blotted out the dates even though guessing who's who isn't hard. *Clue I used to dress Samuel in pink when Jeremy wasn't home. :) I'll put the answer in the comments.

At four months here's the stats I found:

Samuel 16 pounds 9 ounces

Thomas 17 pounds 4 ounces 27 inches (apparently I made cream for him)

Julia 13 pounds 7 ounces (hers must have been skim milk)

Philip 16 pounds 4 ounces 25 inches

A Blessing to Remember

Eight years ago today Jeremy and I were blessed by Venerable Pope John Paul II. Amazing.

Rained Out but Fun Anyway!

Jeremy took Monday off and we were planning to go to the zoo but it rained all day. Even though there are lots of indoor exhibits we would have gotten too wet in between. It's hard to replace a whole day at the zoo but we went to Lost in Fun and had a good time anyway. We went for a couple of hours in the morning, went to rest at Lynn and Logan's and then went back for the afternoon.
Hopefully we'll make it to the zoo some other day.

Kitty Cats

We have cats again. Jeremy and I are not big fans of cats but we like mice even less and we had a lot of mice last fall and winter. Jeremy's co-worker had 4 adult cats and 20 kittens so we went and picked out three. Well, less picked out and more took the first three we could catch. They all look pretty similar but we're not sure if they are siblings or cousins or what. Samuel's is Tanner and has tan stripes, Thomas's is Coconut Tree and has white stripes (I had to talk him out of naming this one Apple Tree after the last one so it was a compromise) and Julia's is Sweet Pea, it has long hair. I picked that name because it's just what I was calling her and Julia didn't understand the concept of naming it. We kept them on our enclosed porch for a week so they would learn we give them food and not run away. Yesterday we put them out and they seem to be doing fine. I think we'll bring them in tonight because it's supposed to storm and we don't want them freaking out and running off. That would be tragic.

I'm Going to be "Famous"!

At least to punctuation nerds! Remember the sign I wanted to submit to The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotations? We happened to be driving by (Jeremy was driving by the way - not me) and we had the camera so here it is! I love that whether or not he is handsome is not in question. Just if he is actually on duty now or not. I submitted it but it will probably be a while before it shows up on the blog- if at all. But I'm happy!

Eight Years

Happy Anniversary Jeremy!

We haven't celebrated yet but I think we'll be able to get away tonight. Raleen said she'd take the kids. Thanks!

Finally One Who Looks Like Jeremy!

I feel like a blogging dork. Seven posts in six days. I really am playing with my kids too! Cleaning is a different story...

A Non-Diaster Project!

But what do you do with springy spoon folk when they're done?

Happy 4th!

I've gone a little collage crazy! Did you know Picasa lets you move the pictures around now ? I may have to pretend you still can't... Anyway that's my Aunt Sharon in the corner. She has to write her name with a sparkler for the 4th to be official. You may notice Thomas' sparkler isn't lit. He likes to just watch fireworks. You may also notice Julia's not in any of the pictures. It's because we finally found something that scares her- fireworks!

Aren't they cute?

I didn't quite get all the way in this picture, but everyone else looks good!

Our Family's Litany of Saints

*Note* Catholics do not worship saints. We ask them to pray for us from Heaven just as we might ask a friend here on earth to pray for us.

St. Joseph - Both Jeremy Joseph and Samuel Joseph's patron saint.

Dear St. Joseph, ask for Jeremy the graces he needs to lead our family, as you lead the Holy Family. Be for him an example of holiness as a husband and a father. Guide him in his vocation and help him to be the man God our Father wants him to be. Help him to bring our family closer to God and ultimately to Heaven.

Dear St. Joseph, be for Samuel an example of a holy worker who labored for God. Ask for him the graces to know and love to Jesus, to learn his faith as a child and live it out faithfully as an adult. Help him to know God's Will for him and give him the courage to live that Will out in love. Show him the path to Heaven.

St. Therese of Lisieux - My Confirmation saint

Dear St. Therese, guide me in your Little Way. Help me to complete my tasks with love, to offer them to Jesus and to happily work for Him. Remind me that I need not do great things but only little things with great love. Help me to be the heart of our family, to stay close to Mary our Mother and guide our family on our path to salvation.

St. Thomas Aquinas - Thomas Leonard's patron saint

Dear St. Thomas, help Thomas channel his strong emotions into passion for our Lord. Guide him as he learns and grows so that he may choose holiness and the path God has made for him. Show him how to love others as our Lord does and lead him on his way to salvation.

St. Rose of Lima - Julia Rose's patron saint

Dear St. Rose, pray for Julia as she grows. Help her to love Christ with all her heart and offer her life to Him. Guide her as she discerns her vocation and help her to live it out in joyful love. May she live as you did, serving others in order to serve Him and someday be with Him in Heaven.

St. Francis Xavier - Philip Xavier's patron saint

Dear St. Francis, watch over little Philip as he grows. Help him to come to know and love Jesus, especially in the Eucharist. Guide him as he chooses his path in life, that he may chose the road God wants him to follow and be the man God wants him to be. Show him the way to Heaven that God has planned for him.

St. Catherine of Siena - Jeremy and my Goddaugher, Emily's patron saint.

Dear St. Catherine, bless Emily with your love. May she be close to God as you were and offer her life to Him as you did. Help her parents give her a strong love for Jesus and His Church. May God bless her as she grows and discerns her path in life. Guide her on her journey to Heaven.

St. Maximilian Kolbe - my Godson, Max's patron saint.

Dear St. Maximilian, give Max the courage to live for God as you did. May he give his life to God as you did. Help his parents to teach him know and love our faith. Show him how to be a holy man and guide him to our Lord.

St. Michael the Archangel - the saint I pray to for my Godson Corbin.

Dear St. Michael, Corbin needs your protection. He was not blessed with a strong foundation of faith, he does not know our Lord well. Somehow bring him to Jesus. Protect him where ever he is from both physical and spiritual harm. Keep him from evil. Put good influences in his life and help him to be a good man. I pray that with your help I may someday see him again in Eternity.

An as yet unknown saint - the patron of my newest Godson who will be born in August.

Dear Saint, I don't know who you are yet but I have faith that you will help my Godson on his path to Heaven. Guide his parents as they raise him to love Christ and our Catholic faith. Keep him safe in his mother's womb and bring him safely into this world at the time God has chosen. Protect him in his childhood and help him to be a holy man of God in this world and the next.

Zoo Fun

Even at seven weeks to go Aunt Lynn was up for an adventure. We had a good time but the train was definitely the highlight.

Big Girl

We've been working on potty training for a week and Julia's doing pretty well! She actually does best without underwear but when you're going outside you don't want mosquito bites on your bottom! She had no accidents yesterday but wore a diaper from 11:15 when we left for the boys' swimming lessons until she woke up from her nap at 3. She doesn't tell me when she has to go she just runs over to the potty chair and does it. Good for at home, not so good for going places. I haven't attempted a diaperless adventure yet, hopefully we'll get there before it gets cold out. :)

Bubbles!

Super fun until Julia took a handful of the super concentrated bubbles and smeared it in Philip's face, including his eyes. Screaming baby, slippery floor, two year old in time out, older boys fussing about bubbles in their hair, worried mommy -not fun. Philip was fine after I washed his eyes out but washing them out was just as traumatic as having soap in them. We're on a disaster project roll. Here's hoping today's art project doesn't go bad!