close call

we thought we lost clementine to a hawk. 

andy was working outside, watering plants.  i was inside, changing a diaper - again.  even inside i heard the commotion of alarmed chickens squaking, wings flapping, and large birds running through bushes.  andy came to tell me to get outside.  he knew he had seen the hawk, but he wasn't sure if it had gotten any of the girls. 

feeling old

i can pinpoint the first moment i felt old.  

it's easy because it just happened.  i don't know why, but it was sort of stunning.  i've always felt young.  actually i guess i've just never felt like a "grown up".  regardless of the husband, house, job, 3 kids.... in my mind i'm still a kid myself, just playing at these adult things.  i've joked "wow, we're getting old" dozens of times, but always with disbelief. 

it started with Christmas this year.

happy new year!

happy new year!  did you eat your black eyed peas for luck?  we did.  though i had to force three of my family members to swallow a spoonful, i'm pretty sure that still counts. 

today, the second day of the new year, i'm going to enjoy at home with my family.  this is our last day together before everyone starts back to work and school.  so far, we are still in our pajamas and the older two boys are logging hours in front of the video game they got for christmas.  i'm about to call a stop to it so i can take them with me to the grocery store to pick up ingredients for this amazing soup.  i made this soup several times last winter (which is short in houston)  but forgot about it until i was looking for something to make today.  of course, every one of heidi's recipes i've tried has been yummy.  this is unexpectedly delicious.   it's so good that i am willing to get out of my pajamas on this lazy day and go to the store.  you should probably try it.

freeloaders.

Quinn and venus

first, a quick hello to my grandma (my fancy grandma, mary nell, who my chicken nellie is named for). Grandma got her own ipad for Christmas and i hope she has figured it out enough to be reading this.  hi grandma!!
 
my oldest chickens are 20 weeks and 5 days old today.  the transformation from tiny baby chick to strutting hen has been amazing to witness.  they change and grow overnight.

according to all my books about chickens, all of my breeds should begin laying eggs between 16-20 weeks.  which means mine are overdue.  their combs and waddles are growing and turning red, so i know they are close.  we are anxious to finally see our first egg in the nesting box!

update on the headaches...

just to keep you laughing with me, here's the news since my last post-

i was complaining about quinn's constant fussing.  well, it is very likely that he has a broken leg.  and has had it for about a week.  a hairline fracture, but still something to fuss about.  we won't really know for sure until he can see an orthopedic doc - which according to all of their secretaries may be another week.  i'm really racking up the mommy points.

and do you know what i found inside the apple juice soaked bag?  the iphone that i was sure i had lost.  i was so sure it was lost that i had already replaced it with a new (nicer, fancier) one.

and this morning when greyson and asher were fighting, instead of getting upset with asher for throwing punches i scolded greyson for not ducking.

and i got asked twice in one day "how far along are you?" - (when will people learn not to ask that?!)  i'm totally not pregnant, i just need to make it to yoga more often and never wear that shirt again.

do you ever have the feeling that you are treading water and still slowly sinking?

at least i can still laugh about it.  i hope to find some calm and peace before the holidays.  i'll wish the same for you :)

asher loves beer and other headaches

i packed school lunches today with more enthusiasm than usual.  i'm not typically one of those moms that jumps for joy when kids go back to school.  but yesterday gave me cause to celebrate school today.

oh, yesterday.

happy birthday greyson andrew

and just like that, my baby is Seven.

greyson, 17 days

greyson, 7 years

Greyson: son of wisdom, judge

Andrew: manly, strong, courageous, warrior (or, oh my God, he is just like his dad!)


the thing we most often say about greyson is that he is a Challenge.  he has been pushing us and requiring more of us from the very beginning.  he made me rise to the challenges of pregnancy and motherhood.  he made me and andy a family.  he made all of our parents grandparents and all of our siblings aunts and uncles.

he surprises us daily and i couldn't be more proud to be his mom.

we love you greyson andrew.

happy birthday asher able

my once tiny asher is four.  and he is beautiful in every way.

asher, 4 weeks old

asher, 4 years old

asher: fortunate, blessed, happy

able: having sufficient power, strength, force, skill, means, or resources of any kind to accomplish the object

we love you Asher Able.

thanks, 3 is my limit.

when you are the mom of 3 boys, people in grocery stores don't stop to tell you how awesome your little dudes look in their captain america t-shirts.  they do stop to ask: "are you ready to try for that girl?"  as if there is a girl out there for me, i just haven't hit the jack-pot yet.

halloween 2011

nico admiring our giant squid and turtle

i realized this year that my own picture of an idyllic family halloween comes from the movie E.T. .