Lonely Boy

Hayden has a cough and a runny nose. Nothing too major, but enough that I didn't want to take him to church this morning. Jerry and Roz were in charge of Children's Church today so I stayed home with the baby and Hayden.

First of all...shhhh! Can you hear that??? No?! That sound is quiet! I can't exactly say silence but I don't think Hayden is the offender in the LOUDness (is that a word?) of our household. Anyway, he is always sad to be left behind when his brothers leave without him. So, in an effort to cheer him up I got out a toy he hadn't seen in awhile. He has now been playing quietly for over an hour! I think he has a really long attention span for his age! Well, the plan worked...I don't think he misses his brothers at all right now. A "fresh" toy all to yourself! What fun!

Little Cubbies

The twins have been enjoying AWANA. Let's just say it is going WAY better than swimming lessons. I didn't buy their vests and books the first week just in case it didn't work out. Since they have been doing well I did buy them this week. Today you get a special prize if you wear your vest to church. So here they are on their way out the door this morning:

And just in case you think they aren't learning anything...this week when I caught him doing something he wasn't supposed to be (I can't remember what at the moment) Wesley reminded me it was okay because "ALL have sinned". Can't argue with that!

Speaking of sinners, when Justus prays at dinner he always ends with "...in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen." When Wesley prays he usually just says "Amen" at the end of his prayer. Justus doesn't like that so he tells Wesley every time: "Duh Wesley! Don't forget Jesus Christ!" Words to live by!

Not just for trash!

Saturday Dad was in charge all by himself. Mom was out earning money! Hah! Really, I was...it was the semi-annual Green Bay Area Mother's of Multiples resale. I sold a few toys and clothes we didn't need anymore and put a little money in the bank. It was a fun, successful day. It is always fun to hang out with friends while working too.

When I got home the twins had not taken a nap for the third day in a row. Ugh! I am NOT ready for them to be done with naptime! We took the boys out to play. Wesley had a brilliant idea. Dump all the balls out of the big trash can we use for storage and climb in and roll down the driveway. Oh man! Mom ruins the fun: "STOP! You're going to hit your head on the cement!" But don't worry Dad saves the day by suggesting you wear your helmet. Great idea, Dad!

Safe trash can rolling demonstrated by Wesley (above)

"Here Eli, put this on for your turn." (below)

Wesley rides!!!

Here is the video I said I would post of Wesley riding his bike (with a few bonus seconds of the other kids!). Remember this was his second day with no training wheels!

Score: Sidewalk 1, Eli 0

Tonight while we were waiting for Dad to come home from work, I let the boys ride up the "hill" a few times. They love to go to the top on their bikes/trikes and coast down. Eli was the last one to go and took a spill at the bottom just as he was finishing up his ride. He scraped his face pretty bad and also his knee. He cried but not as bad as he could have considering his injuries. Of course, he could only see his knee! So he was crying "It's bleeding! I need a bandaid!" and I was thinking "What are we going to do about your face?!" I carried him home while Wesley rode the trike. We cleaned him up and he was happy to get a soccer ball bandaid. It must look worse than it felt! Here's a picture of him right before bed (the shiny stuff is antibiotic ointment). He was disappointed I didn't take a picture of his knee to include as well!

Speaking of bikes...this week Wesley learned to ride with NO training wheels. It was so fun to watch! His training wheels were bent and he was riding leaning over anyway so Monday night I told Jerry just take them off and we'll see how he does. It was the usual running behind the bike holding the seat thing. He crashed into the grass a few times and got frustrated with himself. He didn't really try again for a few days. Wednesday we were playing outside in the morning and he rode out of the garage right past me down the driveway saying "Hi Mom!" I didn't even think twice about it until I remembered the training wheels were OFF! That night Jerry pulled the other boys in the wagon and Wesley rode his bike all the way past Abby's and back! He has been riding up and down the street with no problems ever since. Guess we could have done that sooner! I took a little video and will try and upload it here this weekend. Now he loves to ride his bike (he wasn't all that interested in it before)!

AND THEY'RE OFF!!!!

After 2 long years, Roz finally had her braces removed today! She has been counting down the days and was super excited. She looks great! I can't believe how different she looks now without them. She won't stay completely free of metal though, Friday she will get a retainer to hold things in place so her teeth don't move around. Just in case you don't remember. This is how she looked before. It really is AMAZING!!

First Night of AWANA...

or as Wesley likes to say "iguana". Wesley, Eli, and Justus will be going Tuesday nights to church for AWANA. Which stands for Approved Workman Are Not Ashamed from the Bible verse: Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. II Timothy 2:15



The classes are divided by age so Eli and Justus are with the little ones ages 3-5 in the Cubbies and Wesley is with the K to 2nd graders in Sparks. They memorize Bible verses and play games. Wesley, of course, did awesome. My friend Sara is the Cubbies leader and she said the twins did a really great job too. I was a little worried...remember swimming lessons!? On the way home Eli said he "loves being a Cubbie!". When I got there they were playing a game and having a blast. Justus was a little worried because his class "is full of girls!" and that's true!

Speaking of Justus...he's come up with some really funny stuff lately. Yesterday he was running around the living room saying: "I'm rich! I'm rich! I'm a healthy child!" At first I was impressed thinking to myself how true that is...but then I asked Wesley where he heard that. Wesley informed me it was from an episode of Arthur. Oh well! Justus also told me the other day: "Mom, I need to tell you something. Me and Dad are the boss." I set him straight saying, "No, Justus, Dad and Mom are the boss." To which he replied, "No, you're the parent. Me and Dad are the boss." Crazy kid!

We will have two problems with AWANA. First, it gets over late (8pm) so I have a feeling we'll have some crabby Wednesdays. Second, Hayden won't know what to do with himself. He was crying "out" when we got to church. He got over it but only because we went shopping instead making him sit at home.

Well, I better get going...it's almost bedtime and the baby is crying. One last picture for the road. Here's (JD) looking at you!!!

Safety First

Just a quick photo...Hayden put on Wesley's helmet and climbed on his little bike. What you can't tell from this shot is once on the bike he doesn't move so he doesn't really need the helmet!! I guess he could still fall (or get pushed) off! Maybe he's trying to protect that cute head of curls!

Friends from Afar...

We had a busy Sunday this week. We had our first house "showing"...they didn't cancel this time! So we had breakfast and then got things ready. We modified Hayden's lunch and nap schedule and let the twins skip nap since the showing was at the unfortunate hour of 1:45pm to 2:45pm (aka naptime). Those of you who know me well...know how hard it was for us to deviate from our regular schedule!! It worked out pretty good and we were all (including Buck) out the door and across the street at Grandma's at 1:30pm.

Just as the people were leaving our house our visitors arrived! Jerry's longtime friend Eric and his family (from Arizona) stopped by to spend the afternoon with us. It was so great to have them! We tooks the kids to Bay Beach for a few rides. It was cool and the Packers were playing so Bay Beach was dead and we could get on any ride with no wait. In fact, my kids were riding alone on most of the kiddie rides. Wesley went on some the bigger rides with Eric's boys. He tried the Scrambler and the big swings. I about had a heart attack when he was on those swings...he was so HIGH and looked so small!!!

We got a couple pizzas for dinner and then went outside to visit while the boys played. Our boys sure enjoyed the Scharpf boys. They were very sad when they left. They weren't even out of the driveway when Wesley asked when they were coming back!

Wesley...just one of the big boys! (above)

The Shown and Scharpf Children (below)

Painting

Here are few pictures I've been meaning to post since last week. The boys were painting on those special papers that have the paint already on the page so you just need a wet brush. Let's just say this activity didn't go over as well as planned. Hayden didn't understand why he was in his high chair but not getting any food! I finally had to give him some crackers. Wesley was mad because he didn't like the color the company had chosen to color his character. He wanted to choose his own colors. Eli drank his water. Then Hayden spilled his water and went on to chew up his cup. Justus actually did alright. But I think we'll stick with crayons!

Learning Spanish with Wesley...

No picture today...just a funny story. Actually, I don't have much time...I have a lot to do before we have our first "showing" this morning at 11am. When they called yesterday to set it up the lady asked "Can we show your house at 11am tomorrow?" to which I brilliantly replied "In the morning?". Thankfully, the lady was nice and didn't say..."No, you idiot 11 at night!" I was just really surprised someone was coming in the middle of the day on a weekday. I expected evening and weekend visits. Optimistic Jerry says the person can come at that time because he/she probably doesn't have a job and won't be able to get a loan if they like the house.

[Update: The people who were supposed to come to look at the house canceled. Bummer.]

Anyway, on to the funny Wesley story... We were having hot dogs (Italian sausage for the grown ups) for dinner last night. Sr. Wesley was kind enough to explain to his hermanos Justus and Eli that some people call hot dogs "weenies" and some people call them "hot dogs". Then he told them, "So that means 'weenie' is Spanish for 'hot dog'!!!". Jerry and I thought that was pretty funny. Speaking of Wesley, I've been meaning to write that he has his first loose tooth! Last week when they asked for a "big, juicy apple" for snack (that means they want an apple, but not cut up) Wesley said his tooth was loose. I thought it was too early for that but sure enough one of the bottom teeth is wiggling. He is very excited about it and can't wait until it falls out.

Off to get things in order and make breakfast!!!!

A few more photos...

Here is a new picture of JD taken yesterday. He is getting chubby cheeks! I'll take him in to get weighed next week but I am guessing he is well over 8 pounds!


And here is one of Roz as she was heading out to the football game last night. She had on some guy named Jed's home jersey (it was an away game). I asked why he let her wear it and she said "they share a love for the number 19". Alrighty then! At least she was showing her school spirit!! As they say: It's a great day to be a Redbird!...Go Birds!....and all that. (They did end up winning 26 to 25!)

A Post about Hayden

I had a few good pictures of Hayden to share so I thought I would make this post all about him! I always tell Jerry if all babies were as sweet as Hayden people would have more of them!

Days are busy when you're almost two! Hayden is such a sweet boy. He has a head of curly strawberry blond hair that everyone LOVES. He actually needs a trim right now but it kills me to cut off those curls! When he gets out of the bathtub it looks like he has a perm and Jerry says he looks like Art Garfunkel. Hayden loves to get his picture taken and usually has a funny smile on his face in pictures because he says "CHEEEEEEESE" until you put the camera away. See what I mean:


Hayden doesn't know that he isn't one of the big boys and tries his best to keep up. He hates when he is left out of any activity. Sometimes he plays quietly by himself...mostly with cars or trains, but he also gets along well with his brothers. Justus can really get him giggling! He loves to read his books and has one favorite book memorized (Old, New, Red, Blue).

Having older brothers to show him the way has helped him learn things sooner than the others. He talks a lot! He helps clean up the toys or put his clothes down the chute. He loves to brush his teeth and take a bath. Maybe he'll potty train early!! A mom can dream can't she?! Now that he is sleeping up with the big boys he doesn't even want to stop to kiss Mommy good night because he is afraid he'll get left behind and have to sleep downstairs. He gets up those stairs as fast as he can! Sleeping with the big boys is hard though...Eli gets him up before he's ready. That combined with the fact we are trying to eliminate his morning nap leads to scenes like this during lunch:

Poor kid! Yesterday, we started the day out with a downpour. I let the big boys go out to play in it after they ate breakfast. (See picture below). We hadn't gotten dressed yet so they just went out in their pajamas. Of course, Hayden couldn't be left out and wanted "owsh" of his high chair to join his brothers. As you can see Hayden had the most fun! Eli actually liked it a lot too. He is off running out of the shot. Justus pretty much ran from the back door to the garage. Wesley played a little but not as long as Hayden and Eli who cried when I made them come in to get dressed.


[Theresa, I used the medium size photo setting just for you!!]

Five Brothers and FOR SALE

Here is a picture I took yesterday of the boys in matching shirts. Baby JD's shirt was a little big but with shorts on you couldn't really tell. I hope you all appreciate it...it was not easy to get everyone looking at the camera all by myself.

Roz has her official first day of school today. She went yesterday, but not as a student, as a Link Leader for the freshman. Today she had to go to her classes. I know she is glad to be going back but we will miss having her here with us. Grandma Linda is here this week to help ease the transition and to babysit for a few appointments I have later in the week. Today was Wesley's official first day of kindergarten too. He has been counting down the days. We read this morning, actually he read four beginning readers to me! During nap we worked on a special memory "All About Me" page that we will save to show him as he grows. We are starting slow and working our way up to bigger and better things!

It is official...we have a FOR SALE sign up in front of the house. The sign went up on Monday. We went in the evening yesterday to look at several houses with the realtor. They were all very nice but one really stood out as great to me. It was the one I was least expecting to like. It is a ranch and I usually like two stories. For those of you who know her, it is kind of over by Roz's friend Emily's house. [Not too far from you, Nora!] It is on the edge of our price range but has been on the market and vacant since May so maybe they will be willing to negotiate. If you want to see the house click HERE. It is a 3,000+ square foot 4 bedroom, 3.5 half bath with a large, FENCED yard on a cul-de-sac. The basement is finished...that is why it is so huge. The family room in the basement is about 3 times the size of our current living room. Also in the basement is a bedroom with attached bathroom and walk-in closet...perfect for a teenager who wants a place away from her five little brothers. The other 3 bedrooms are on the first floor. It is fairly new, only 8 years old or so. A few things I didn't like...casement windows (for you AZ folks that means they crank open instead up slide up and down), I wish the table area was just a little bigger (it is big enough but not huge), and too many toilets to clean!! :) Please pray that this whole thing works out for us....that our house sells and that we end up with something we like when this is all said and done.

Due Date

Today is the day JD was supposed to arrive. Instead he is over one month old! He had his one month well check yesterday and is up to 7 lb. 5 oz. I wonder what he would have weighed had he been born today?! We are still working on breastfeeding. JD is doing better with it but still no where near where I would like him to be. Even though he was earlier, Hayden did much better breastfeeding. I know you're not supposed to compare...everyone is different...but I compare anyway!

We are meeting with a realtor this morning to just discuss our options. We had considered selling the house last winter but then when we found out a baby was on the way we gave up. Jerry didn't want me to be packing and moving while pregnant. So we are going to talk things over and see if it is something we want to do right now. I'll keep you posted.

We continue to play the "where to sleep" shuffle with the boys. Hayden, Wesley, and Justus have been sleeping in their room at night while Eli has been on his mattress in Roz's room on the floor. It has worked out pretty good and everyone has been sleeping past 6am. No more night awakenings either....so far. Then at nap Hayden sleeps down on the first floor and the twins are in their room. JD has to move to the bassinet in our room. It gets a little confusing but it seems to be working our for now. I know where I sleep at least!

Just had to include this photo... It is Justus "breastfeeding" a baby doll while wearing his Bob the Builder hat. He sat there the whole time I fed JD the other night feeding his "baby". He did look for the little plastic baby bottle for awhile but when he couldn't find it he gave up and decided to do it himself!!