Holy Six!!!

 Somehow six months have passed since the birth of this beauty.  And I honestly cannot wrap my tiny little head around it.

 Six months!!! 

A fact that is suffocating me in sadness.  

 This was an interesting month wherein she ceased rolling and sleeping.  

The rolling part...angelic. 

The sleep part, obviously much the opposite.

 But that has since been rectified.  And determined she likes the 5:30am hour.  And she is stubborn.  And I am way too smitten.

 But I mean, those cheeks.

Someone figure out how to bottle this baby up, STAT.  

Pretty please. 

Ridin Derby

They see me rollin'

They hatin'

 Patrolling they tryin to catch me ridin dirty

 Tryin to catch me ridin dirty...

 Sometimes I rap.  And it's awesome. 

The End.

A couple weeks ago Ryder legitimized his place in boyhood.  

He ranked 5th of 12.  

Not bad for his first time and only discovering the derby date one week prior.

That said, there was much sadness and despair.  Befuddled by what went wrong when he had done everything right.  Determined for a marked improvement next year.

Ryder was a little disappointed as well.

 Ladies and gentlemen, your future.

Howwwl Wonderful

This weekend marked our fifth anniversary of Great Wolf going- and it will go down in history as one of our favorites.  

We convinced awesome friends to join us, increasing the enjoyment for the children and the adults alike.

Which is extra remarkable, because I forgot some key items.  Like my camera.  And a stroller.  Again. I'm pretty sure I forgot more, but I can't remember.  

And that's my life.

Luckily cell phones suffice in adequately capturing memories, and my arms are completely capable of cuddling my baby for eternities.  

Plus, eliminated was the opportunity for me to baptize my camera.  By immersion.  Because, let's recall, that has happened. Twice.

Lemonade. 

The Robinson's made for great company.  The kids were off happily playing, the adults were happily conversing, and ample slide-time was enjoyed by all.

Tess continues to prove herself as The Adventurous Child.  This was the first year she was tall enough to ride the Toilet Bowl, and she couldn't get enough of it.  It's a little refreshing to not have to resort to bribery and the pulling of teeth.  

However, she also got lost 800 times.  

There is no winning.

This year also found Linley tall enough to ride every slide.  Except she refused.  I managed to get her to go down the Double Barrel Drop with me, wherein she repeatedly screamed with clenched fists and eyes closed, "I am never doing this again" the entire ride, and ceased to speak to me for hours after.  

And then there's Ryder.  It may have taken five years, but the kid can finally say he loves every single ride.  

And that is just plain awesome.

There's not much else to say.  It is such a pleasure seeing my kids in complete heaven.  Playing with friends, feeling confident and big and responsible and even a little bit reckless.

And it is so rewarding to experience all of that while indulging in grown-up conversations and a little splashing adventure of our own.

Good Times.

Good Friends.

Good fun.

One great little getaway.

Five Months and Feeling Fabulous

 Baby girl is no longer itty bitty.  

Her cheeks are getting perfectly puffy...to the point where her little lips droop from the weight of it all.  So scrum-diddley-umptious.

 She also began her forays into the world of food this month.  I mean, of course she's had a wide variety of ice cream flavors over the months (how could I deny those cheeks???), but she just recently enjoyed her first taste of age appropriate fare.

 And enjoy rice cereal she does.

She's a gobbler this one.  A messy, adorable, gummy little gobbler.

 As if advancing into family-time feedings wasn't enough, she has decided she refuses to see the world on her back.  

This child was born eager to sit.   

No really. 

 She had a six-pack by day three of life. 

 Perfected the V-sit by one week.  

Her neck strength dumbfounded doctors. 

 And yet, I have refused to concede. 

This is all happening much too fast, and there is little more I enjoy in life than exercising my grand mommy powers.

 But the children. 

 The children regularly have contests to see who can get her to sit the longest.  

Oh rebellion!

 Evidence that my mommy powers are neither grand nor powerful.

At least I will always have bribing.

Then This Happened.

Again.

Six weeks before her third birthday, Tess chopped off her bangs.  And not in a cute recoverable way.

I was devastated but certain she had learned her lesson.

Fast forward to last Friday.  

When she progressed to mullet-hood.

Locking up my scissors simply isn't good enough when big sister (she's grounded for the rest of her life) is home and mom is nursing/preparing her Relief Society lesson.

I may have had a fully weak moment and told her she looked like an ugly boy.

And she may have cried for hours.

But again???  Seriously???

Luckily, this coif can be hidden in pigtails.

Here's to hoping I appropriately scarred her this time.

Eyes of an iPhone

Here is a little of what February has looked like via my phone:

Creepster Tessa sneaking into my room at 6am and snapping photos.  

Love this thumb-holding snuggler.

Valentine's Day celebrations.  

Not pictured: our awesome Family Fondue Feast.

Best. Valentine. Tradition.

Ooey gooey fancy feasting for all.  It really makes for one of my favorite nights of the year.

                                        Love this love day and love loving on my lovies.

The framing on the casa is complete!!

Date night with 3 other couples featuring a delicious dinner and babe-a-licious bowling.

Matching LBDs to church.

February is (mostly) flying by.  

Which is wonderful.  

One month closer to a season where smiles come naturally.

January is Junk

 Pretty sure every single January this blog adopts a most negative spin.  

Because, simply stated: January sucks.

 It's like, let's ring in the new year and get you all excited for what's to come and make goals and feel centered and confident that this is your year and you're going to rock it...

 ...then surely what was a full eternity later is actually only January 6th.  And it's cold.  And the only thing I am certain to rock is my sweats.

How does this occur?

 And yet it does, every. single. year.

 If only I was strong enough to not give into the social pressures to have my kids involved and active in life.  You know, like if I could drop them off at school, come home, watch movies, pick them up from school, then proceed to watch more movies.  And on days I am feeling extra motivated, get dressed and throw in a load of laundry.  Basketball and scouts and gymnastics and swimming and friends....that is all so overrated in the hole of a month that is January.

 Still, I do my darndest to hunker down and leave this dwelling as little as possible.

  For the baby's sake, of course.  

Like I mentioned, it's wretched cold out there. And diseased.  Small children and their uber responsible mother's need not be exposed.

 Speaking of small children, this one is 4 months old.  Someone explain to me how January moves slower than cold tar in, well, January, and yet she continues to grow faster than Obama can spend my money???  It's obscene (her growth and the leader of our free country).

In happier news, our house is humming along (Does humming infer speed because that's just not going to work???).  Our house is crawling along.  But progress is progress and progress in January feels extra progressive.  

And that baby.  Again.  Just look at that baby.  Life is perfect when I'm smooching on those lips and chomping on those cheeks.  

Take that January shmanuary.