Maren's Turn

 This little monkey started kindergarten this morning:

She was so excited, and I've gotten over my back-to-school blues (mostly) so I was excited for her too.

A little apprehensive?

She'll be great.  I'm looking forward to hearing about her day.

Other photos from the last week:

Daisy is a sweetheart.  And she has her dad's hairline.  ;)  Thankfully though, unlike her daddy, her hair will grow.

 With a baby in the house, Lainey has taken a new liking to baby dolls.  She likes to put them on a pillow, smothers them with blankets (or dishcloths or burp clothes, whatever's convenient) and then 'pats' them, very enthusiastically, like so:

 My favorite is when I catch her with her shirt up, nursing her babies.

 She has a beautiful smile, that girl.

And, do you want to see what trouble looks like?  Here it is:

 I know, they look so innocent, huh?  Believe me, these two girls can get into stuff and make a mess in fractions of seconds.  They've become pretty good buds too, which is lots of fun.

Back to School

 I know, two posts in two days?  Wow, friends, I'm really on a roll now.

Ellie started Second Grade this morning.  Wow.  Second Grade.  I was reading through my journal last night about the day she was born.  Those years fly by (and yet, some days will never end?) and I don't think it's fair at all.

 And speaking of flying, this summer went by entirely too fast.  Being hugely pregnant for half of it, I feel like I wished it away.  I guess you sometimes get what you wish for.  I hate this time of year.  Sure, it's exciting, but I hate sending my kids off to school.  I enjoy spending every day with them.  I know they are learning good life skills at school, but I sure wish I could just keep my kids at home with me forever.  I'm selfish that way.  This is the time of year I always consider homeschooling.  Not seriously, but my mind wanders there, I'll admit.  It's a good thing my kids are excited to start a new school year, because otherwise, we'd all be in tears around here.

But, that's enough about me.  Ellie was all smiles this morning as she headed off to school.

Second Grade, here I come!

 It will be good, I know it.  Maren is excited to be starting kindergarten next week.

This one won't be starting school for several years (and I'm going to hold and snuggle her 'til then), but I had to drop this in here too:

I love it that her pacifier (or plug, as we call it around here), fills up half of that tiny baby face.

A Trip to the Lake

 First of all, this little lady is a month old now:

See that hint of a smile?  I have yet to catch a good grin on my camera, but she is smiling and responding to our voices, sweet girl.  Also, our girl is chunking up - look at the beginning of that little roll on her thigh!

 We went up to Silver Lake over the weekend to take 5 year old photos of this girl:

But we also just had a good time.

 Look!  I have my ducks in a row!  The kids were imitating ducks, and they looked pretty funny:

 Our first family photo where you can see all 7 of our faces:

 I love us.

 More ducks:

 Doesn't Everett's face make you laugh?

And if not that one, how about this one: 

 My kids, they are so stinkin' cute.

Here are some other random photos that make me smile:

 Ellie is growing up.  She can be such a huge help to me, and a great big sister.  Tomorrow she starts Second Grade.  I can't believe it.

The Party and Other Happenings

 Maren had a good day.  She is one spoiled girl.

She requested a rose cake.  I have very amateur cake decorating skills.  The important thing is that the cake was delicious.

I love the look of her cousin's face in that photo.  :)

 She was pretty excited to get her very own box of envelopes (I think she's used at least half of them already).

And a dream lite and pillow pet.  All her dreams have come true.

For her birthday, we also had a friend party in the afternoon.  I didn't take a single photo.  I was too busy trying to keep kids entertained, presents from blowing away in the wind, and making sure my other babies weren't crying.  The kids had fun, though.  We also went to McDonald's for dinner.  Party all day long!  Birthdays wear me out, and apparently wear the babies out too:

Other photos:

 Sweet Daisy.  That photo was taken right before she puked all down the front of Ellie's shirt.  :)

 I have good helpers around here. 

Watching some morning cartoons:

 We finally moved up to a flat screen tv.  It's big (of course, anything would be 'big' compared to our old tube tv).  You can see it from any spot in our living area, but the kids still prefer to watch it from the floor because that's the closest you can get to the screen.  Funny kids.

Big 5

Missy Maren,

Today you are five!  You have been looking forward to this day pretty much all year.  I hope all your expectations are fulfilled.  Girl, you are full of spunk and you bring a lot of energy into our home.  You love to get a laugh and make the best faces and tell the best stories.  You give the best hugs too.  You take good care of your siblings and are a fantastic help to mom.  You love to sing and make up your songs as you go along.  You want to be a "Popstar" when you grow up.  Your teachers have always raved about you and your wonderfulness.  You were my happiest baby, smiling at only a few weeks and you haven't stopped since.  You are our sweet Maren, and we love you.

Happy birthday, girlie.

Love,
Your Mom

Lucky

 I can't seem to find time to post these days, go figure.  Right now I've got Daisy on my lap and Lainey is screaming because one of her bigger siblings is teasing her.  Maren is "playing" the piano and Ellie is supposed to be cleaning her room (I'm fairly certain she's not).  What a beautiful, chaotic life.

Anyway, here are the photos from the last week or so.

Back in the day, Nick just wanted a girl...now he's got five of them.  ;)  Lucky guy:

I celebrated my birthday last week:

 I like that photo with all seven of us (and an additional two).

We had a picnic up the canyon with family.  It was a beautiful evening.  Thanks to all who came to help me eat my delicious cake.  :)

 That photo turned out a little fuzzy, but I love all those cute faces!  Oh, and if you were wondering, we had a tie-dye party with my sister, which explains all our fun shirts.

We all love Daisy, yes we do.

 Isn't she beautiful?  What a sweet, perfect baby.  Now, if we can get her to sleep for more than 3 hours at night...

 Aaaahh, summer days.  Two more weeks to soak it all in.

Other highlights of the week:

*Daisy had her two week appointment.  She was 7 lbs. 13 oz. and 21 inches long.  Growing too fast, in my opinion (although she is healthy, thank goodness).

*We went "camping".  We did hot dogs and s'mores over a fire up the canyon and then Dad slept with the kids in the tent in our backyard (coolest dad, ever).  In the morning, breakfast over the camp chef.  Yep, our kind of camping.

*Took all five kids to Walmart on my own.  That will not be happening again any time soon.  The big kids did fine, they were obedient and helpful, it was the sweet newborn who hates her car seat that caused the problems.  I think I've nursed a baby just about everywhere now, including the tupperware aisle in Walmart.