Poolside

 Summer is in full swing around here.  We had a full weekend last week and this one is looking about the same.  Last week the weekend calendar was filled in with a carnival, time with extended family, and swimming/dinner/playtime at the home of some friends.  This weekend Silas is going to a "Backyard Campout" on Friday night and we have a wedding most of the day Saturday.

Today the children and I had our first visit to our local pool.  It's where we spent a good deal of time last year and we were all looking forward to it, especially after we've had such great swimming experiences so far this year.  They have the best zero-depth play pool for kids.  It was a world of difference from last year when our three were not quite sure about the water.  This year they all jumped right in and played the whole time.

I couldn't go to places like the pool without help and this summer one of our favorite girls, Ashli, is helping me out a couple days a week.  It doesn't hurt that she is also a lifeguard!  I can't imagine trying to do all we do without her.

My friend Trisha took the pictures today.  I didn't even take my camera.  As she said, the bigger kids were on the move too much to get a good picture.  Silas was Worn Out when it was time to get changed and head home.  Shane and I were laughing as we lunched because Silas kept closing his eyes and continued eating.  Tired and hungry...that was my kids after a morning in the water and the sun.  I wasn't surprised that Silas fell asleep during rest time today!

C.U.T.

Someone got a good haircut to start the summer...

Their Language

Simeon and Lieren are going through a really fun stage with language.  As a speech-language pathologist, their language development has been fascinating to me.  With them, I have gotten to watch two children acquire language at the same time, and a boy and a girl nonetheless.  I have also gotten to see the differences in their language skills as compared to Silas.

Simeon and Lieren have two big life circumstances that make their language unique:  they are twins and they have an older sibling.  So there are things they talk about that Silas never did.

Right now I am seeing them really use language to figure out who they are, where they belong, and what belongs to them.  You can imagine the "what belongs to them" is not spoken in kindness at times!

So here are some of the interesting things they are saying...

1.  They know our family member's middle names.  Every now and then they seem to want to push each other's buttons and one will say they are their twin's middle name.  Simeon will say, "I Noelle!" and pat his chest.  To which Lieren will reply with a pout, "No, I Noelle!"  And he will then state, "I Simmy Nash!"

2.  They do a similar thing with boy/girl.  Lieren will look at Sim and say, "Am a girl." He says, "Am a boy."  Then she, "Am a big girl!"

3.  We hear the following phrases way too many times a day from these two:  Is my turn now!;  Is Simmy's?;  Is Yeyen's?;  Is Si-si's?;  Is Baysie-boy's?;  I want it!;  My_____ (insert any coveted item)!;  and a new favorite, I need it!


4.  Simeon loves characters and people in general.  He is always asking where people are.  This week he is asking continually where Grandma Great (Shane's grandmother) is.  He has also been asking about several different Ignite kids and our friends Layton and Haley.

5.  We are not sure where she got it, but it has stuck and now Shane and I say it as well:  when Lieren hears Blaise start to fuss she says emphatically, "Oh Blaise!"

Sweet Birthday Weekend

This past weekend was my birthday.  Birthdays are a hot topic around here because Silas is all about having his birthday this year.  He knows once he turns 4, he gets to take swimming lessons and soon after will start school.  He is so excited!  So it was fun to have our first birthday of the summer.

On Friday we all went to a soccer game.  The girls in our town were playing in the postseason and beat one of their big rivals.  It was fun to be out, even though Shane and I were playing with our kids most of the time and didn't see too much of the game.

On Saturday evening Shane and I went out to dinner.  Our littlest man, Blaise, went with us.  It was nice to be out, have a good meal, and shop a bit for some summer items we're looking for.

On Sunday we were all just about ready for naps when Shane surprised me with a little family birthday party.  I've mentioned before that Sundays can be busy around here, so I felt really special that we got to take the time to celebrate.

On Monday we all went out to Judy and Lee's house for an afternoon of swimming.  It was a blast!  The kids ended up being in the pool over 3 hours and were going non-stop the entire time.  Silas has grown in his confidence around the water and after swim lessons this summer, I think we might have a swimmer on our hands.  Lieren has a gentle love of being in the water.  And Simeon has absolutely no fear!

We swam all afternoon, right through naptime.  So toward the end, Simeon started to get tired.  I broke down and let him have his paci...

Hahahahahaha...

And no trip to the pool is complete without a cool, yummy snack...

Such a sweet weekend celebrating with family!

On a side note, toward the end of my pregnancy with Blaise, Shane was at one of my appointments.  As we were about to leave, he grabbed the bill sheet we were taking up to checkout.  He noticed that one of the options for the doctor to select was "Pregnancy, Elderly - 35 and older".  Whew, I made it without getting thrown into the elderly category by just 6 weeks!

The Stuff Grace is Made Of

I took all four of our children to the library for story time yesterday morning. They have one at 9:30 and one at 10:30. I needed to feed Blaise about 9:30 so the timing worked perfectly for us to get to the later one.  

As it was all unfolding before me (the story, the songs, the musical instruments, the finger plays) and I realized how absolutely in heaven Silas was, I couldn't help but think that days like that happen around here by grace alone. 

We had never been to the toddler story time before. Honestly, I never wanted to attempt it. I had visions of craze and disaster and children running amuck. So how is it that now I have a 5 week old and decide it sounds like the perfect way to spend a Friday morning? Grace. 

Blaise was awake for the first half. I held him so he could watch all the children then snuggled him into the sleepy wrap when he started to doze. Simeon cried briefly when we started toward the room. I am sure he thought I was dropping him off. He sat in my lap with Blaise for the beginning then slowly got drawn in by the animated librarian. Silas wanted to sit up front but didn't want to go by himself so he grabbed Lieren's hand, pulling her to front and center. She was fully engrossed the entire time. Playing ring-around-the-rosie was a highlight for the 3 big kids, as was the shakers and a random song I had never heard during which they were given teddy bears to throw in the air and put on their heads. Interesting but cute, and delightful to a preschooler, I'm sure. 

When it was over we stayed to play in the children's area then picked out some books and videos to bring home. I was so thankful we went. Silas, Sim and Lieren talked about parts they liked on the way home and during lunch. Silas is already asking to go back. 

At the end of story time, a mom who I had never met asked if all four children were mine. She said she was sure the "little girl" was a neighbor. When I explained our kids and their ages she asked how I did it. 

It's grace, I said. 

I really don't want it to be about me. I don't do this the way I would naturally. I don't do it alone. I read a lot. I ask a lot. I watch those who parent well. I pray for patience. 

After lunch, Silas and I read library books while Sim and Lieren played and Blaise ate. At 1, I put Sim and Lieren down for naps. Blaise fell asleep soon after and he got swaddled into bed. Silas retired to his room for rest time at 1:30. Then the house was quiet. 

I am not naive enough to think every day will be like yesterday. But I hope I am wise enough to remember on the other days that Grace is still sufficient.

M.E.S.S.

Someone's really loving all the treats people are bringing us recently...

What Was On My Phone

Summer has officially begun in these parts.  Yesterday Shane got a call from one of our students saying that school was getting out today and they had nothing to do tonight so could he plan something.  We had to smile.  The first night and they're already begging for plans.  But we love having them over and I love that Shane gets to be with them and with us at the same time.  I anticipate lots of nights like this one this summer:  kids outside playing basketball, kids inside playing video games, lots of noise, and lots of food.  Thankfully our four sleep through it.

I had to clean pictures off my phone because the memory was getting full.  In the process, I found some sweet moments from the past 5 weeks since Blaise has been part of our family.

I took this when he was just 13 hours old.  Hard to believe so much time has passed since then...

Silas has been infatuated with Blaise from day one.  I just love this of the two of them...

I sent this picture to Shane when he was gone to Harvest U in Chicago as a "we miss you" text.  Blaise was one week old (and Lieren was still sleeping)...

That same morning (Silas looks a bit sleepy still)...

And then later that day, Lieren loving on her littlest brother...

That night I took this picture right after Blaise had a bath...

One morning while my parents were still here, I left Blaise at home with them to nap and took the three big kids to the park to play.  They so wanted to interact with the ducks and geese.  But what you can't see very well in the pictures is that the geese had babies.  And I wasn't sure the geese would trust Simeon to be kind to their babies.  So I made our littles keep a good distance from their littles...

Just last week it got so hot here we pulled out the water toys.  I set Blaise up with a blanket and a tent to keep him shaded and safe...

And then this was today.  The one picture I could take before the phone memory gave out, it shows how you might have felt if you were me taking your four children to Walmart.  I was going to wear Blaise in the Sleepy Wrap, but decided to just leave him in his carseat.  You can barely see it behind Lieren.  Everyone did great on our outing and we were there almost an hour!  It felt great to get out and know we weren't stuck inside for the rest of the summer.  I was thanking the Lord for His grace...we can actually go places!