Long Time No Posts...

So between a vacation, having family in town for two and half weeks, and 95 degree plus weather (I stop functioning when it gets over about 87 - that's why I live in Seattle), I haven't found time to update the blog. Trust me, it's not the only thing I've let slide. It's amazing how gross carpet can get when it hasn't been vacuumed in 3 weeks and you have 3+ children and twice that many adults running around on it. Yuck. I've been feeling guilty about my lack of attention to cleaning, blogging, etc. I was encouraged today, however, when I found this post by one of my favorite bloggers:

http://www.biblicalwomanhoodonline.com/2008/08/having-it-all-together-i-think-not.html

I liked Crystal's post because I can relate to her feelings of wanting to do so much and sometimes being able to accomplish very little. Oftentimes, I feel like I'm accomplishing very little because I'm so busy just feeding and maintaining the relative happiness and cleanliness of 3 little girls. During the times when I feel overwhelmed by what needs to be cleaned, folded, washed, or swept, I can get down on myself for not doing EVERYTHING well. Not keeping everything perfect.

Like Crystal, it has been hard for me to come to terms with the reality that this is a season of my life when some things I'd like to do have to be put aside while I focus on the things I need to do. There is always going to be a Cheerio or two under the kitchen table needing to be swept. That same kitchen table will usually have a smudge of yogurt or peanut butter needing to be wiped up. Some toy - ok, I'll be realistic - MOST of the toys will be left out and need to be put away. The ironing pile may never be conquered and I can't forsee a day when there isn't any dirty laundry that needs to be washed or clean laundry that needs folding. This is simply my reality and I'm learning to be okay with it.

I'm trying to include my girls in some of these homemaking tasks in an effort to spend more time with them while teaching them responsibility and the importance of work. Hopefully, they're having some fun along the way too. I am. For example, yesterday morning, Hannah, Emma, and I dumped five loads of laundry on my bed, turned on the Olympic's Women's volleyball match and folded while we watched the game. While folding, we talked about how to play volleyball and we got very excited about all the great blocks and spikes. The laundry got folded and we had fun. Today, they asked if we could watch more volleyball! Maybe some of you have been able to find ways to get chores done with your kids and have fun together at the same time. If you have any ideas or suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

So, I will be posting more pictures on here soon, but not today. I've got some vacuuming to do.

How We Roll

One of the many reasons I love my car is that I can fit three car seats across the middle row.

The girls enjoy sitting together and making each other laugh. Hannah reads stories to Emma and Miriam and holds in the pacifier when Miriam's crying. She also mops up all the spit up that inevitably erupts from Miriam during every car ride. I like having all the girls close to me so I can reach them and pass them Kleenex, drinks, books, etc.

Looking at all these car seats makes me think I should buy Graco stock. Hmmmm...

We Can Boogie

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Mango-a-go-go Madness

A new Jamba Juice just opened up in our local grocery store. Now, we can get Starbucks and Jamba Juice with our bread and milk! Starbucks doesn't tempt me, but, oh the smell of Jamba Juice makes my mouth water. Anyone who's ever walked through the Wilk at BYU knows what I'm talking about. Well, if you love Jamba Juice as much as I do, visit http://www.jambajuice.com/ to get a printable buy one get one free coupon! Look for the link on the right hand side of the screen.

As with any deal like this, you might want to call ahead to make sure your store is participating in this promotion.

Thanks to the Centisible Sawyer, my favorite deal finder.

An Afternoon at the Water Park

Last Saturday we spent our Saturday afternoon at the local water park. Ryan swam with the girls most of the time while I hung out with Miriam in the shade.

Diaper Diva

Hannah, resting in the sun.
Emma doing the same.

Hannah showing off her new smile. Her front tooth *finally* fell out... in her bed... while she was sleeping. That's how loose it was.
Miriam's tummy time.

Ryan and the girls in the pool.
Emma working on her jumps. Ahh, floating in the pool on a hot summer day. It doesn't get much better than that.

4th of July Camping Trip

For the 4th of July this year we traveled to the ocean to camp. It was Emma and Miriam's first time camping... and Ryan and my first time camping with 3 children. Vacation? Not so much, but we had fun and the girls had a blast. As always, click on the pictures below to enlarge them.

Even in July, the coast in Washington is pretty cloudy. Hence, the coats and hoods. Here's me, Emma, my Uncle Curt and Aunt Diane, Teddy, Ann, Hannah, and Ryan.

Ryan loves to build sand castles. Here he's working on the moat.
Hannah LOVED the waves and ran in and out with Aunt Diane.
Emma wasn't so sure about the waves or water, but she liked building sand castles.

Miriam slept through our beach adventure, snug and warm in a sling.
Hannah skipping in and out of the surf.
After the beach, Grandma washed the sand off. Ryan's holding a stick with a huge beetle bug on it. A camping treasure.Before dinnertime, Hannah ("look at my LONG legs!"), Teddy, me, Emma, Grandma/Mom, Miriam, and Ryan.

Hannah, Miriam, Emma - during a Miriam diaper changing.

Hannah jumping on a tree branch.

Grandpa snuggling Miriam.
Here's how we found Hannah one evening: sitting by Grandma's Yurt, reading a book. I think Emma's trying to convince her to come play. I think she has a squirt gun in her mouth. Yup, this picture captures their personalities pretty well.
Ryan and the girls eating breakfast one morning.
This is what they looked like after visiting the beach on a drizzly morning.


Fireworks over the ocean! Washington's best kept fireworks secret, if you asked us. We love it, but Hannah covered her ears and cried. Too loud for her.

Miriam's chillin' in her car seat covered with a bug net to keep the mosquitoes away.
Ryan cooking biscuits over our fire. He takes his biscuit cooking very seriously.

Emma and Hannah playing in the top bunk of our Yurt. Yurts are sort of like a tent cabin, in case anyone is wondering.

Saving Their Pennies

Today I went to Boeing Employee's Credit Union (BECU) and opened up a savings account for Miriam. Hannah and Emma already have these accounts which we use to save for their college expenses. When I opened Miriam's account, they gave me a piggybank for each of my girls. The banks aren't anything super fancy - they're just cardboard, but what I liked about them was they had three compartments: Save, Share, Spend. We think charitable giving is important and we usually do this in the form of tithing. This little bank can help remind the girls to pay their tithing and "share" their money. The banks also came with a check register-like booklet that can help the girls decide how much of each deposit they will save, share, and spend. AND, they got some BECU post-it note pads, keychains, and a booklet for parents to help them guide their children's financial decisions. Free stuff is so fun! Thanks, BECU!

If you'd like to open an Early Saver Account for your kids, check out http://www.becu.org/ You don't have to be a Boeing employee, all Washington State residents are eligible to become BECU members.

Keeping Emma at Bay

Here is a typical interaction between Emma and Miriam:

Miriam is smiling, laughing, cooing or otherwise being cute and fun.

Emma comes over to investigate why Miriam is getting so much attention. Notice Emma's smelly marker-covered hand on Miriam's arm. Too bad we didn't get a picture of Emma pinching Miriam's cheeks or giving Miriam a "pig nose."

I try to encourage Emma to play with Miriam by talking to her and not touching her face.
Emma resists my attempts to contain her always-moving arms.
So, her busy arms find a book to keep them happy...
...until the next time Mom and Dad aren't looking and she can give Miriam a pig nose.

Magical Miriam

There's something magical about a baby that can keep even an active 3 year old entertained. We love to just sit and stare at her. She's smiling and laughing now and it's great. Hannah and Emma love that they can sort of interact with her now by getting her to laugh and smile. We've now survived Miriam's 6th and 7th weeks (when my babies tend to cry the most and I tend to bottom out). She's 2 1/2 months old and very easy going. She'll sleep for 6 hours at night and takes good daytime naps.

You'll notice her chubby cheeks and arm and torso rolls. She weighed 12 pounds at her 2 month check up. She may have started out much smaller than her sisters were at birth, but she's quickly making up for lost ground.