the temple

Paul and I had the chance to go to the temple this past week. With free babysitters it's a lot easier to sneak away. Although, even with them, Lulli wasn't too happy about it at first. (She was fine seconds after we left)

I had to nurse Solace right before leaving and then the minute we got back he was ready for me. The trouble with being a stay at home mom and nursing on demand is that there is no set time he likes to nurse throughout the day. There are a few common times, like right when he wakes up, and goes to sleep, but other than that, it changes day to day.

The temple in Houston is TINY. It was our first time there, and it was a lovely day. I love being able to spend that time, alone, with Paul. I love him so much, and it's SO nice that we both believe so strongly in the benefits and blessings that come from attending the temple. We are grateful for it, and the opportunity we have to go there.  Thanks Lee and Stacy for watching the kiddies for us!

full

With Lee and Stacy and Colleen and my dad here, in addition to the 6 of us, it's a full house. It reminds me a lot of the Home Alone house. I love it. It's a good kind of crazy. :)

Second Christmas

We had "Second Christmas" with Lee and Stacy and Colleen up at Dale and Vanessa's house. It was our first day seeing them on their trip, and SO hard for the kids to share their grandparents with their cousins. Realizing that Grandma Stacy and Papa Lee were just up in Spring, but that we couldn't hog them all to ourselves how we usually do, was hard. So it was nice that at least we got to sneak in this extra day with them.

The kids got lots of sets of books, which I somehow managed to miss getting any pictures of, but they are awesome. They are like little kid encyclopedias, full of information about everything, written in a style that is easily understood by kids. I love it.  They also got tons of other things too, which they all loved. Thanks!

After presents and naps, we went over to a playground. It was a nice day, full with family, and lovely.  Pizza picnic for dinner, ducks in the pond to watch, trees with squirrel holes, a play area and a ride back to Dale's house in the back of Grandpa's truck. Like I said, lovely. :)

gifts!

That Auntie Robin is at it again!  The kids got Christmas presents from her and Uncle John a little while after Christmas.  Lullaby got a purse and little fairy princess, which she was very pleased with.

Matix and Hawk both got super heroes and villains, which they were very happy with. In fact, Matix opened his so fast, he was out of the room playing with it before I could get a reaction picture.

Solace got a cute hooded bath towel, which I will get pictures of soon. Plus they all got candy and a cute little Santa Elmo.  Thanks Robin and John!!

happy

All four kids are in pure heaven with Lee and Stacy and Colleen here. Sweet Solace has stolen Grandma's heart. He is SUCH an easy baby to be in love with.

The stairs!!

Our second to last house project was our stairs. It took us a while, since we had to do a few stairs at a time, to make sure that everything was dry before putting in the next set.  Plus with Paul's busy work schedule and the kiddies many activities and nap schedules to work around... it took over two weeks.  They were the only thing left in the house with the original (nasty) carpet. I was so happy to get it out of the house. Here are the before during and after pics. Before:

During:

After:

They look SO good. They still need caulk to make the lines look really nice, but still a million times better than before. LOVE! We got lots of help too. Lee, Matix, Hawken, and Lullaby all helped, but it was mostly Paul and myself that did them. Good job US!

outdoor movie!

On Friday, I took the kids to Discovery Green to see Despicable Me 2. They do a free outdoor movie in front of their ice rink. It was VERY cold (for us), but we were prepared and brought blankets and hats and had the best time. Texas in January is cold, but not unbearable. I kept it a surprise from the kids, and after dinner, I told them to put on their coats and get ready to go. They were SO excited. I wish Paul could have been with us, but he was working. On our way into the park, we stopped to see some of the artwork they have hanging everywhere.

There were also lots of sculptures and fountains too, but no pics.  We watched the movie all snuggled up together and loved it. We sent Paul these pics.  So fun. I have the best kids. I love taking them to things like this because they are always so good and so thankful afterward.

New Year's Eve fireworks

New Year's Eve was spent up at Dale and Vanessa's house. I have come to learn, that if it's a holiday that involves fireworks, it will be there at their house. :) They like fireworks. Paul's parents and little sister are here in town too, visiting them first and now they have come down and are visiting us.  We're so happy they came! Laurel came to the party too, and it's always lovely to see her.

We ate lots of yummy food, and talked, and shot off fireworks. The kids ran around with sparklers and I experimented taking pictures with different settings. I figured it out just before my battery died, so next time we do sparklers, I should have some good pics. :)

It was a really nice night. We didn't stay until midnight, in fact, we left around 8pm, since Paul had to work early the next morning. But it was just right for us.  No watching the ball drop, no midnight kiss, but we all woke up happy that a new year had begun. A video too, as is tradition...

nice

Hawken is always including Solace in his play. I thought maybe the big boys wouldn't be interested in the baby, since there is SUCH a big age difference, but it doesn't seem to matter. They love him just the same.

edible.

I just cannot stand how incredibly much I love this baby girl of mine. Trying on my shoes and giggling until she can hardly breathe. Lullaby, you are perfect.

good bye 2013!

Happy New Year!  2013 was SO good to us. At the beginning of the year, we found out baby #4 was on his way. We moved from Georgia to Utah for a few months while we waited to hear where Paul matched. He matched in Houston, much to our surprise. We moved again, stayed in Arizona for a bit, then with Dale and Vanessa in Spring for a bit while we got all moved into our house, and while Paul and his parents worked on fixing it up. We moved into a house that we will live in for three years. THREE. Paul started residency and is already half way done with his first of three years.  Some rotations we love, some... not so much.  Our sweet Solace was born, completing our family.

Lullaby turned two, Matix turned five, and Hawken turned four.  I got called into the primary (again) as a Sunbeams teacher.  It has been a busy year for us. I am looking forward to having a slower year ahead of us in 2014, but really, does it ever really slow down? Matix will be starting kindergarten, I will turn 30, Paul will start his "easy year" of residency... Lots of exciting things in the future. Happy 2014 to everyone!