{PHFR}

Whew the last two weeks have been busy. Once we made the decision to try and sell the house it was action time to pack and clean and paint etc...We pretty much have taken an extended Spring Break to get the house in order. The weather has been warm and lovely and the kids have helped me by staying out of the way and playing outside...

{pretty}

The girls have been playing dress up too. Sara loves dress up more than any other so far and I have just said WTH, wear whatever you want just let me finish this X,Y,Z...And you know I am glad to have had this opportunity to just let it go because I have realized you can only get away with the princess tu-tu and hello kitty rain boots football cheerleader look for a few years before people call in the men with the white coats.

{funny}

I'm also trying to finish up this darn lovely afghan for my dad. I am so lucky to have a little helper. Nina loves the yarn balls! She is like a kitty and plays with them and yes, tries to eat it. The afghan will have a bit of Nina sweetness crocheted right in, literaly. Ahem.

{real}

We were able to get out Tuesday evening and walk down to the neighborhood playground. Some of my kids are just so coordinated and naturally athletic.

{fun}

Luke can actually run down the balance beam and he's fast!  

{fun}

I typically hat pushing kids on the swing. I don't know why, it's just one of those mommy duties I dislike. I'm always hoping to get them to be self-pumpers ASAP. I actually enjoyed it the other evening though. I think maybe because they were so into it. Lots of giggling and smiles!

{happy}

 I love this action shot of my sweet snaggle tooth girl!

{happy}

My two oldest boys are away this week at a farm camp. They are learning new skills and having fun. I was so surprised to see this on FB! That's my Jake on a tractor! It's a crazy sight for this suburban mom.

{real}

Meanwhile back in the suburbs... Today we've been working on our little Lenten family project. The Missionaries of the Poor are in town for some fundraiser concerts and we've been helping in small ways stuffing pamphlets and making display boards. Do you know of this wonderful group? We are so happy to help them and I encourage you to check out their website and learn about their ministries. Talk about real....

{real}

Thanks for stopping by!

Sunday Wrap Up 2

Well I'm liking the Intagram a bit more. It does take some time to get used to. I haven't joined the social network part, I just use it for myself ;) These two shots are my faves so far...

I just love how she sucks her two middle fingers. Both Luke and MaryClare were thumb suckers, but this is the first finger baby. 

Dear MaryClare takes a beginner ballet class at the local Baptist church. Her teacher is so sweet and gentle and MC is just made for ballet. She is extremely flexible and just innately graceful. 

Nina is still army crawling. It's been two months and though she'll get up and rock on her knees she won't do the real crawl yet. I love this little side pose she does...

We said goodbye to the chickens last Saturday in preparation for the sale. We are all pretty sad, but I hope the house will sell quickly and we can get back in the chicken game soon.

I love this vignette. I so hope for my girls to have a close and loving relationship with their Dad. 

Well today was a gorgeous Sunday and I was able to work on my crochet afghan outside on the deck. I am almost done! There were a few blessed minutes where I was able to crochet with Nina sitting on my lap. It was so peaceful.

This was such a busy week and I was so thankful for the rest of Sunday. Tonight I'm enjoying a glass of wine and movie with my husband and this coming week will bring more house prep and hopefully listing paperwork on the weekend.

{PHFR}

Oh the Legos! My 3 boys love Legos, and they are such a great hobby, but (insert the myriad of annoying things about legos here).

Sigh.

{real}

I installed instagram on my phone and tried a few shots. The Lego one is neat, but night shots -ehh. Maybe I just need to get the hang of it. Anyway I had a willing model to practice and be cheesy for me!

{pretty}

A couple of weeks ago we went to a fun father/son flag football game with our homeschool group. The girls got a bit bored and I finally persuaded them to wander around the fields and do a 'nature walk'. We found a a patch of clover and enthusiastically explained how to search for a rare 4 leaf clover and went back to cheering my boys.

No luck that day ;  (ba-dum-cha!)

but just this week old Eagle Eyes found one right out in our very own cul-de-sac! How neat! We have stuck it in a book to keep it. I am not surprised really by this find, the girl has like better than 20/20 vision and she has just always been so very observant. 

{happy}

We're enjoying this weird balmy winter weather.  The kids love jumping on the trampoline with Lee and it is so cute when their hair gets full of static.

{fun-ny}

I also wanted to ask if anyone has read Happy Are You Poor.? I am reading this and it is just life changing for me. I'd love to discuss with someone else, so let me know, ok?


Thanks for coming by!

Yarn Along: 6

Well I'm getting closer! This will only be 4x4 squares so I am piecing it together now and then just the edging woo hoo! I'm sure my Dad won't mind his "Happy St. Patrick's Day!" gift that was originally meant to be a Christmas gift....

{not quite done!}

The colors are much prettier IRL, this was just snapped on my phone and it's softer in person. It looks a bit garish here though...

Reading...Happy Are You Poor - it's very good and very tough. It's taking awhile to absorb and but it is changing my life. Wow. I would love to discuss this book with others who've read it. Please let me know if you have.... or if you will! ;)

Chicken talk

 I am so happy we did it. Just going ahead and doing the backyard chicken thing has been so good for us.

{Tiffany-Black Cochin)

I told the kids we'd do it, ordered the coop kit, bought the Idiots Guide to Chickens...and then we just did it. We just went and got chickens! Crazy!

I tend too overplan for stuff like this. Research and plan, plan and research and then, maybe, maybe actually do something. This time I started in that same old mode, but the kids kept on pestering me and finally I just threw my hands up, cause sometimes you just have to jump in the pool and not ease in. I mean how hard could a few chickens be?

{Amy-Buff Brahma)

Turns out I was right-not hard at all. Really they are not much trouble at all and they are just the silliest things.

{Isabelle-Barred Rock}

Also, having chickens turned us into neighborhood celebrities. Well, we kind of already were what with the homeschooling and seven kids and all. Not to mention the small black dog who thinks he's a greyhound and continues to escape and chase the Fed Ex man all around the block despite both the regular fence and the invisible fence ... Yes, I would wager everyone in the subdivision knows us pretty much. I would guess we are more like notorious celebs than the idolized ones though.

And so we learned about the origins of the phrases 'hen-pecked', and  'pecking order'  and  what a 'broody hen' is like. We learned some about fertilization and where baby chicks come from and what a rooster is for. Heck MaryClare ran up to me breathless and wide-eyed and described, hands waving,how she just watched an egg come right out of Isabelle!

It's been amazing to be able to witness the cycle from chicken feed, table and garden scraps to the delicious little egg on your plate in the morning.

{dirt bath}

Did you know chickens love to bathe in the dirt? They will just roll in it like a dog and they fluff out their feathers and throw it all around, just luxuriating in it. Fascinating and hilarious to watch.

{Ryan and Nina making me smile}

Sadly we will be saying goodbye to our 3 sweet hens this weekend. And you know what? Now that I think about it it's kind of their fault! 

We have decided to try and sell this house (again) and move to a bit more rural place. I honestly don't know where or what we'll end up with, how far out of town or how large a homestead, but we do know we want to try for something. We have an itch and desire to do some more of this chicken stuff and maybe some other small farm-y things. There's more to it than just that of course, but having these three girls around has given us suburban folks a boost of confidence to jump. 

{PHFR}

{fun}

So we're back around to Lenten season again.  Last spring was kind of nuts for us because I ended up on bedrest at the hospital before Josephine was born. I spent much of Lent at the hospital, and Easter, and missed my Grandfather's funeral and also my Nana's 90th birthday celebration. It was such a crazy time for my family. Lee was very stressed and there was so much upheaval, but we made it through and after all of that uncertainty, Josephine was born healthy, teeny tiny, but healthy.

{more fun}

I am so thankful. Seriously, my heart is just more full than I ever imagined when I think where we were last year and then this year.

Anyway, Fat Tuesday I made a king cake. I make one every year, but it seems every year it turns out differently. That could be because I use different recipes! I just can't settle on one. They all are good! This year we almost didn't make it. The dough exploded during the rise and was all over the fridge. It was delicious though. We ended up having bacon and cake(and wine for Mom and Dad) for dinner. A very Fat Tuesday indeed!

{happy}

 My boys have been so close lately. Jake is looking so teenagery, getting pimples and growing so fast. He is not really acting teenagery just yet. I have been following Auntie Leila's advice about teenage boys... so far so good.....

Ryan (on the far right) is maturing quickly too. They are only 14 months apart so they are going through this puberty stuff together. Luke adores his big brothers and the three of them are still tight.



                                                                       

{pretty}

My sweet Nina is growing fast. Two new teeth poked through this week up on top. She is fantastic at army crawling and finding every small item of fuzz/dirt/leaf on the floor and trying to eat and choke on it. It drives me crazy and she has all of us on edge trying to keep her safe.  The legos are a nightmare!

{real}

                                                                                                                                                                                         
       


                                                                                                                                                       
My best friend gave me this cute sign! The kids line up their mugs and keep them there above the sink.

Yarn Along:5

I am in the middle of the biggest project I have attempted. I am making a blanket made of different 12x12 squares for my Dad. I got the original insiration from a picture of the Chain Reaction project.  


Some of the techniques used in that project were too advanced for me, so I didn't follow their guide, but I really loved the idea and so I began this. I really intended it as a Christmas gift, oh well! I was able to find lots of ideas from this book.

My Dad has pancreatic cancer.  I guess I thought the blanket was a way for me to offer comfort although he lives thousands of miles away. He's begun treatment and things seem positve right now, but pancreatic cancer is a very deadly diagnoses.  Nevertheless, we are hopeful. I'm going to see him in April with my sisterand I'm determined to finish this 'Christmas' gift before then!   I have 2 more blocks to make and then I have to finish putting them together and the edging so I'm getting close.

I just read Organized Simplicity on my kindle and was very inspired. There's nothing revolutionary in it, just the same idea that less=more, but it's presented well and has given me a good kick in the pants!