Ryan is five now....

Our happy faced, endless ball of energy bounced out of bed on the day of his birthday yelling "I'm five now". As he glanced down at his 'now age five' legs, he became apparently upset. I asked him what was wrong and he replied....my legs are suppose to be long now but they aren't. Suppressing complete laughter at his comment, I assured him that God made him just the right size and Mama wasn't ready for him to be as tall as her yet.

In celebration of his birthday, I agreed to take the kids to Chuck E. Cheeses after lunch. As we all piled in the car, the excited voices grew with each mile we got closer to the long awaited funland. Once we got our hand stamped, everyone started taking off in their own direction. I thought to myself, what in the world made me think that this was a good idea. Think about this.....Mom in tow with newborn, two year old, five year old, eight year old and an eleven year old to a land of excitable, hyper children of all ages....and lots of them. I quickly told the two older ones to watch their 'buddy'...yeah, right! As each one scampered off to their own destination, I thought to myself....you are one crazy lady!

Needless to say, I spent the whole time chasing after the younger ones while the older ones were scattered here and there. How in the world do you keep track of your kids in a place like that and keep your sanity? In one of my laps around the room, I ran into an old boyfriend. Let me add....very weird introducing my children to his children. He was there having 'dad's day out' with his kids. I find it very funny that out of all the places I run into someone from my past....it had to be there. Ryan told me later....he liked that nice man. He was his friend. Ughhh.

Later, we fixed Ryan's choice for dinner...hot dogs, chips, pop and no vegetable. Grandpa and Grandma came to visit and share in all the festivities. I wonder sometimes if perhaps all this excitement that exudes from this house is too much for those who are past toddler years or haven't as yet embraced this season of life....I can only imagine getting into my car to leave a household such as mine, and hear the complete silence...along with a sigh of relief that I actually could hear myself think...again, I can only imagine....

As I kissed my spiderman clothed, little 'I'm five now' boy goodnight, he promptly tells me how much he loves me and how very glad he is finally five. Maybe when he is six....he'll be big!

Welcome to the Nut House!

As you begin to read my posts, you will suddenly be taken back into a world of complete and utter chaos, a world where boys run, scream, laugh, joke, and girls join in and try to outdo them. A world full of ups and downs and all arounds. A world where we live life alive and free to be us.

So our story begins.....

I'll begin with our youngest. Her name is Kara. She's three months old, isn't ten full pounds yet and let's you know how she's feeling. She has the bestest smile and the greatest grin that will melt your heart at one glance. You have to watch her though, she already knows how to flip over on her tummy especially when she is letting you know how unhappy she is. She's a keeper!

Then there is Aaron. He's two and a half. Where do I begin....he's adventurous, challenging, aggressive and has his own mind made up. His "No, Mama do it" or "uh oh, problem" rings throughout our home. I wouldn't trade him for anything.

Ryan just turned five. He is a sweet, sweet, boy. He's got enough love to go around except for his brother, Aaron. He will share anything and everything with you but not for his brother Aaron. He loves life and has so much curiosity. He reminds me daily that he loves his mama and that he also has a mind of his own.

Then there is Grace. She's a lively eight year old who loves art. She eats, sleeps and breathes art. We have her art work in the upstairs closet, in the downstairs closet, on top of the microwave, on top of the entertainment center....any open space....we have a sampling of her art. Oh, and most definitely on the refrigerator door......

And on to our oldest....His name is Brad. He is eleven. He is entering the world of puberty. A world of leg and armpit hair. A world he hopes will go away. He is not wanting to take on this adventure but feels it is being forced on him. He is swaying like the wind, I might add, between wanting to make decisions for himself and wanting no responsibilities. He loves to read, hates Math, loves his baby sister, Kara, and loves loves loves video games.

We recently were planning a vacation up North and realized just how much money that it was going to take to stay in a hotel. So we decided to buy a camper. First we stopped at a pop up camper. Mama bear stood inside with all five of her baby bears and she said to herself....oh no....no way. We promptly left before the you break it, you buy it rules applied. Next we visited an RV...cost $211,000. Sorry, can't buy one that cost more than our swinging pad that is definitely not on wheels. Then we visited the travel trailers. From the moment I discovered it had it's own bathroom with a shower and toilet and air conditioning, I was hooked. This was the one for us! But what kind of car do you need to pull a home away from home trailer? You guessed it....a big, red beautiful Suburban. The banks and the gas stations will love us!

And so our adventures in camping, car payment, camper payment, insurance and all the fixin's that go along with life begins....

Welcome to the Nut House!