I’ve really needed updated photos of my kids for my mantle since, well, I think the last time I had pictures taken was 2 years ago.  I’ve got lots of snapshots of course, but I needed portraits.  The thought of making an appointment, getting everyone clean and dressed and somewhere on time has been giving me hives.

 I have big windows and lots of natural light in our family room, so yesterday I hung a big brown sheet at one end of the room and snapped away.   Most of the pictures I took turned out like this:

Out of focus, fake smiles, silly faces, or Ian in the Buzz Lightyear costume he found in the dress-up bin about a month ago and hasn’t taken off since (I had to bribe him with chocolate chips). Click here to see the out takes bigger, if you’d really like.

But the beauty of digital photography is that I could take LOTS of pictures.  I decided to go with black and white pictures so it didn’t matter what color the background or clothes were.  A few clicks in iPhoto, the Costco photo printing center, and $8 later, I’ve got these lined up on my mantle:

Not bad for a day’s work.

Barry’s aunt is a sock monkey making aunt.  Every new baby gets one, and they are well loved.  Even though they’re made from the same brown, white, and red socks, each one is unique– and they’ve got the kid’s names embroidered on them just in case.  The thing that amazes me is that Ian can look at the letters and figure out whose is whose!

 We’ve definitely got the 5 cutest monkeys ever.

The sock monkeys are pretty cute too.

Today I should be grocery shopping since the big kids are at their one day a week of school, but Logan and Ian are playing so well together and I finally got the fussy-fuss-bucket to sleep, so I’ll show you all what I finished during LDS General Conference this weekend.

I started this while I was hanging out in bed right after Hunter was born and have worked on it a row at a time since.  I was worried that it would have to be a hat for the cold weather next year since we had such a warm February and beginning of March, but the weather obliged my winter hat knitting and gave us some snow this weekend.

I got the pattern from ravelry which I was totally addicted to right before Hunter was born as I tried to find the perfect baby hat and booty patterns.  This pattern is the Rib-a-Roni by Jane.   I knit it up in super soft malabrigo kettle dyed yarn which I totally love.  The blue I got just for this hat.  The yellow was used for Julia’s hair.

I’ve got another homeschooling post or two in my brain, so that’s probably what the rest of this week’s post will be about.

Wishing for spring!!

Did a week and a half really just go by since my last post?  How did that happen?  I better get on the ball and finish posting about our handmade Christmas gifts before it is way too far past Christmas.

For weeks and weeks before Christmas Logan would say, “When I get the teddy bear you make me for Christmas then… (fill in the blank with things like “I’ll always wrap him up in my mimi.” or “you can make him a little dresser and fill it up with jammies and a swimming suit.”)   So, I had to oblige.  Brenna has been totally attached to Buttercup for 2 years now, but the boys had no mama-made toys to snuggle.  I haven’t got that swimming suit made, or any clothes for that matter, let alone the dresser, but they are the perfect night time snuggle companions.  Here’s where I found them this morning:

Jonah’s Teddy

Logan’s Chubby Wubby

making… bread with my littles.

laughing… at Ellie helping Brenna fold the laundry.

loving… that 15 minutes of quiet scripture study has become a consistent part of our daily routine.

using… my craft space just a minute here and there– right in the middle of the action, just like I had hoped.

It was one of those days I just needed.  Not totally smooth and predictable, I think it will be many, many years before I have a day like that, but the time flowed and we flowed with it, and I’m happy.

We have a new reader in the house!  There’s nothing like a new set of BOB books to inspire this 4 year old to read, read, read.  It did help that Brenna and Jonah were at their one day of school this week, so Ian and I were a pretty captive audience for Logan’s new found confidence and skill.

And, it is only natural to document your reading triumphs with stickers and drawings.

They never cease to amaze me, these little people I get to live with.  They learn so readily, so naturally.  It always seems that when I’m up against a wall I can’t see over or around someone just makes it dissolve all on their own.  The job of patience that is mine is often so hard– but it always has its rewards.

The best kind.

(building a rolly-polly house)

“Hey Logan, today is going to be a ‘Jonah day’ for you. You know why? ‘Cause I’m going to play with you all day long and be nice to you and make you breakfast and get you your me-me if you get sad.”

“I love you, Jonah…”

(spring hike at Charleston Falls)

There’s been some awesome photo projects finding beauty in everyday life out in blog land. Today I’m summing up our school week with these photos and joining in with the mamas at six one way.

Here’s some more lovely finds of art in the ordinary.

Soule Mama is posting a photo a day for 30 days. (This is my very, very favorite. I just can’t get over all the emotions it floods me with.)

the noticing project

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Wishing you all a wonderful weekend. Try looking at the gray skies with new eyes. There is beauty all around…

Barry is in Reno this week doing academic engineery things. (Oh, and skiing. A nearby mountain is giving free lift tickets to active duty military members.) Miracle of all miracles is that I got to 9 o’clock church, with 3 children dressed in clean clothes, on time! Though I tried to get the boys’ hairs into acceptable postition, it was in vain. But– not one of them had dried milk or snot anywhere on their faces!! Logan only ran up the aisle of the chapel once during Sacrament meeting, and though he is not officially 18 months until next Sunday, I got to leave him in the nursery while I sat through all of Sunday school. Ahhh… it was nice to sit and breathe.

Conducting Relief Society was like herding honking geese. The room was packed. The women were chatty. What do I do, shhhhhush them? 99.9% of them are 10 years older than me!! It was nice to feel the fellowship and friendship, but our poor teacher had a hard time keeping everyone’s attention. It was all very nice in the end. Church was good. Testimonies were shared, Sunday school was very inspiring and thought provoking, I left feeling good.

And all was well until bedtime. Barry does bedtime (except on Wednesdays). But he’s fresh and not quite as tired as I am by that time. He’s fun, but authoritative. Me– I just get bugged and mad because I am tired and I want everyone to go away already! In family prayer I even pleaded, “Heavenly Father, please help the kids to be nice and obey and help me to be patient and not cry or yell while we are getting ready for bed.” Well, I didn’t cry or yell. Nothing of note really happened or went wrong. But for some reason bed time just stresses me out with the undressing and the dressing and the teeth brushing and the VERY HYPER BABY and the one-last-drink of water and the going potty and the VERY HYPER BABY and the stories and the picking of stuffed animals to sleep with and making sure we have me-me’s (blankets) and the VERY HYPER BABY climbing on me while I’m reading the next story…

But Logan’s cute. He gets very hyper when he’s tired. Silly hyper, laughing and running and pulling the dog’s tail and climbing on siblings and on Mom’s head and pulling all toys out of their proper places hyper. He makes me tired. But when I put him to bed he tries to sing along as I rock him and “bap up” (wrap up). He lays his head on my left shoulder and sings in my ear.

So, I like that part.

Dish towel aprons–I just couldn’t resist. My kids needed some art aprons, I needed something to keep dinner off my pants (even though my shirt is usually covered in baby snot), and Martha dish towels were on super clearance at K-mart, so the price was right. Aprons for all! (Well, 3 aprons and a bib.)

Amy has a monthly party at her blog dedicated to aprons

and this month’s assignment was so easy I had to join.

It has been a busy week. Well, it has seemed busy, I guess, but come to think of it, there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary to do. I just felt busy. I think because I was sick. I had a fever on Wednesday, felt yucky all day yesterday and had to go grocery shopping anyway, didn’t sleep a wink until about 4:00 this morning, and I’m trying to wean Logan–once a day would be good. That’s why I didn’t sleep last night. My teeth hurt, my nose was stuffy (so I had to breath with my mouth open which made the metal/ rubberband contraptions in my mouth that much more uncomfortable), my throat hurt, my ears ached, I had horrible menstrual cramps, AND I hadn’t nursed a baby since nap time early that afternoon and consequently couldn’t lay on either side or move my arms. Blissful? 800 mg of ibuprofen helped once I reached the point of desperation.

Funny things:

We had a “Girl’s Night Out” craft night at church last night–just bring something to do and sit and gab. I got home a little after ten and as I was heaping my load onto the counter I looked in Ellie’s food bowl right there under the counter. It was FULL of rabbit food. Was there a reason for this? I went and nudge Barry to ask about it and he just grunted. I was grinning so hard that I just broke out laughing. Silly, silly.

Barry did the obstacle course with his group yesterday for PT–you know, climbing walls, jumping logs, balance beams and ropes. Well, he was very proud of his monkey bar performance. I guess he was the only one to make it all the way across–and he even did a “skin the cat” to get off at the end. Now, you know who’s been practicing at the playground!