R & R

This morning, I was in some serious need of a little R & R. We took Grace and Caleb to play a little soccer this morning and I grabbed the R & R that I needed.

A Few Stories

Grace and Caleb have been playing pick-up soccer on Saturday mornings this summer. They have enjoyed getting out and running, but they have not always gone the full two hours. I have asked them about their endurance and stamina. Grace told me that she is working on her "stanima."

So, if you hear us talking about "stanima," at least you will know why.

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My cousin, Brigham, visited us this weekend. We had an enjoyable visit and the kids really like playing with him. Oliver has always pronounced "Brigham" with a hard guttural sound. Joshua decided we needed a new pronunciation. He has decided to call him "Brig Ham." (You need to wait at least a full breath to get the Joshua effect.) He spent the last few days saying "Brig Ham" at least 20 times a day.

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The other day, I cooked up some Trader Ming's Joe's Mandarin Orange Chicken. Mary suggested I cut up some zucchini and cook it with the chicken. I did so, much to the chagrin of our children. The did not take to the zucchini. After a bit of complaining, we decided that Grace should start a rock group called "Death by Zucchini."

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Rebecca loves to assert her two-year oldness. She is always coming up to me and telling me that she needs a "pop" (lollipop) or that she does not like how something tastes even though she has not tried it yet. You need to keep an eye on that one.

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Last week, we took the traveling circus (our family) to the grocery store. It was going to be a big trip. When Grace and Caleb took Rebecca to look at the lobsters, we thought that would be a good distraction. Why wouldn't Joshua go with the other kids? He had found a store circular and was walking around the store behind Mary with it opened like a newspaper. Can you imagine this four-year old walking in and out of other customers while reading out loud the price of sale items and commenting on whether or not it was a good deal? That was exactly what was happening.

"Mom, corn is 5 for $1.50. That's cheap."

"Look Mom, the peppers are 2 for $1, that's not a great deal."

I don't know how he decided what was a good deal and what wasn't, but it was certainly funny. And who would want to look at live lobsters, when you could give you mom the play-by-play of the sales in the circular?

And if that is not funny enough, guess what ended up in Joshua's church box last Sunday? If you guessed the store circular, you are right. I did tell him that he had to leave it on the bench and could not hold it up like he was reading the paper in the middle of the talks and musical numbers. (At least he wasn't upset, when it "disappeared" from his box before church this morning. No. Wait. He remembered his circular and was upset that it was gone.)

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By the way, why are there only two doors on a chicken coop?

I Love It!

This sign was posted outside of a stairwell entrance at a local educational institution. I am not sure what a close stairwell has to do with using other entrances. Maybe someone else can explain it to me.

Hungry?

Joshua, Mary and I were talking in bed this morning. Mary asked Joshua if he had eaten breakfast yet. Joshua looked at Mary and said, "No, Mom. I'm fasting."

Mary and I started laughing with Joshua. Then he said, "I'm just kidding."

Coming Home

Mary and Ruth came home on Monday morning, August 8th. I forgot to post some pictures from leaving the hospital.

I love how Rebecca is trying to help out in this picture. Also note, the nice male pattern baldness going on the guy! Mom and all her daughters before leaving the hospital. Dad and all his precious little girls. Rebecca has been very watchful of Ruth from the time she came home. Here she is holding Ruth.

Because This is How We Roll

Rebecca and I are in the same fan club.

Like a Baby

Last night, Ruthie "slept" at home for the first time. She had a good spell of sleep to start the night. She stayed awake for the rest of the night. That it what it means to "sleep like a baby," but that is not what people mean when they say it. But it is the truth. At any rate, here is a picture of her sleeping for the first time in her crib:

First Day at Home

For a family activity tonight, we went and got ice cream. This was Ruth's first trip out and about. I think everyone had a good time. (Ruth is in the stroller.) After ice cream, we came home and I helped Grace and Caleb work on math problems. Joshua took advantage of the situation and spent some time with Ruth. Rebecca spent the time hopping around the family room in a bunny rabbit costume. Unfortunately, the picture of Rebecca turned out even worse than this one.

Meeting Ruth

The children got to meet Ruth for the first time today at the hospital. Here are some pictures from the trip. Rebecca could not have been more excited to meet Ruth. She kept asking if she could have another turn holding her. Joshua was patient in the beginning, but he demanded that he had a turn holding Ruth. Caleb loves to hold newborns. We have a nearly identical picture to this one of him holding Rebecca. Grace told me that I needed to leave her at the hospital so she could hold Ruth. Here are some different group photos. A trip to the hospital would not be complete without someone having fun. Caleb had to try on Mom's bathrobe. The star of the show is little Ruthie Jayne:

Little Ruthie

Mary was fortunate enough to take a nap today. When she woke up, her contractions started to pick up. So we dropped all the other kids off at a friend's house and headed to the hospital. We checked in at 6:15 pm. At 7:22 pm, little Ruth Jayne was born. This was taken right after she was born. Mary was elated to finally meet this precious little one. Dad was excited, too. (We called to let the other children know that they had a brand new little sister and you should have heard the wild rumpus in the background! I think it is safe to say they were excited, as well.) Ruth weighed in a 7 pounds 9 ounces. She is 20 inches long. I love those tiny little hands! In this picture and the previous one, you can see that she has dark hair. Will Caleb have a sibling with the same color hair that he has? Only time will tell. Love a sleeping baby. Here she is in her isolette after her bath. I can't wait for her to meet her siblings.

Devotion

Each night, I check on the kids before I go to bed. I like to tuck them in and give them a kiss good night. I found Joshua sleeping like this last night. He loves his blanket.

Cousins

We had a lot of family in town for Caleb's baptism. I need to put up more pictures from the event, but I thought I would start with this teaser. That way, if I never get around to posting more, there will be reminder of what I intended to do and never could. At any rate, here is a picture of Chase, Jayson and Caleb. Chase and Caleb got baptized together and Jayson came to visit all the way from California. We had a great visit with all of our cousins!

The Adventures of Hucklebetty Finn and the Grillmistress

This is what I found last night when I came home from work. Becca was running around and Grace was ready to cook some burgers.