The Moser Fam

58 degrees

2012-01-31T18:24:00.003-05:00

Who'd have thought we could ride bikes and play outside in January without hats and scarfs? Weird. These three sure had fun (most of the time) running off some energy this evening.

Some people think my little people look alike. I really don't. I think they are each really unique looking and cute in their own ways.

This dude's smile makes me happy.

The not so happy version. Just trying to be honest in my documentation. :)

Goodbye two-year-old. Hello Kitty.

2012-01-23T23:03:00.002-05:00

We celebrated Nat's 3rd birthday this past Saturday (her real birthday isn't until the 28th). She LOVED every minute of her special day! She loves Hello Kitty and wanted to wear every piece of Hello Kitty clothing she could find (sweater, necklace, bow, slippers, and even undies!).

Before I had kids, I thought I wanted all boys, but boy did she change all of that. She is sometimes a handful (ok, a lot of times), but I ADORE this girl. I love my boys with everything in me, but she is just special. A spunky, wild, crazy, dramatic, silly, funny, sweet, special little girl.

She's been talking about her Hello Kitty party for at least six months. When I say talking, I mean literally bringing it up at least once a day. She was SO excited about every little detail.

She ate a whole plate of food, four giant chocolate covered strawberries, a piece of cake with ice cream and AT LEAST four cake pops. I was getting physically ill watching her go back for more. She kinda likes sugar. :)

I love these pictures. This was the best part of the whole day. We were singing happy birthday to her and she was so happy. She was looking around the room at everyone and giggling and smiling. She was just soaking up every minute of getting the full attention of so many people that love her. She is definitely a middle child...craves attention. I just keep looking at her face and smiling.

Presents! (Notice all the Hello Kitty accessories!)

Some of the party peeps...although I failed to get pictures of some.

I love you, Natalie Alison! Happy 3rd Birthday!

Just call me Mountain Mama...

2011-07-24T21:08:00.009-04:00

Over the Fourth of July weekend, we traveled to West Virginia for a family reunion and some relaxation with Papa and Nana. We stayed in a hunting lodge in the middle of nowhere/up the side of a mountain. It was very nice and so peaceful. We all loved it!

Beauty...

View of the cabin from across the lake...

We were on a hunting preserve, so we saw a ton of wildlife during our stay. Elk would come out and swim every morning and we would sit on the cabin porch and just watch.

Don't worry, we didn't actually hunt for any wildlife, although Benny did shoot a vicious bear that was about to attack. Good thing Papa brought along the bb gun...phew! :)

The boys did A LOT of fishing. Ben, honest to goodness, caught at least 30 fish (mostly little blue gill) over the course of a couple of days. He even caught a pretty good sized bass and was so proud of himself. He is definitely our little outdoorsman!

Two of my favorite pictures from the trip...they love animals (like their Daddy!).

This was Max...he roams the property and is the owner's dog. He was such a good boy and Nat and Ben couldn't wait to play with him each morning, as soon as they woke up. Ben cried when we got home and looked at the pictures because he said he missed Max "soooo much!" He asked for a picture of Max to go on his bulletin board in his room.

I'll title this series of pictures...Hillbilly Baby. She took off her shirt and was sitting at the side of the dock throwing rocks in the water one evening while the guys were fishing. I look over and she is dunking her whole head in the water?! I said "What in the world are you doing?" and she replied, "I just takin' a bath, Mommy." Ummm...ok? She also gave herself a little mud facial...who needs the spa?

There were lots of antlers to go around....and we couldn't resist (Ok...it was mostly just me.). You definitely wouldn't want to stay here if you had a problem with animal heads staring at you all day. There were heads and skins and all kinds of animal parts everywhere. Taxidermy heaven!

Nana with two of her favorite people...she hasn't confirmed this, but I'm willing to go out on a limb with this one. :)

Family reunion!

Sparklers...clearly Benny was in his glory running with fire in his hand....real safe, I'm sure.

What would a trip to West Virginia be without a ride on an ATV?!

Finally, an attempt at a family photo. Unfortunately, we were looking into the sun and this is way overexposed, but I like any photo that contains all five of us looking in the direction of the camera...so I'll take it!

What a fun weekend with people we love!

Dad's Day, etc...

2011-06-27T16:06:00.008-04:00

This post is way overdue...when I feel stressed I'm not a very good blogger...and lately I've been stressed, resulting in a bit of a blogging hiatus (at least compared to my previous track record of excessive posting!). To my loyal readers (Mom and Nana!) who expect to see new pictures of my children weekly, if not daily, I apologize.

Moving on....Nat and Ben had fun giving Daddy his Father's Day gift before church. It was an extra special day because Mike was baptized that morning during the church service. I love you, Mick! You are an excellent daddy! Our kids are blessed to have you.

We spent the afternoon at Papa and Nana's celebrating all the dads! Ben was excited to give Papa his gift...a fishing pole and some fishing supplies! My kids LOVE Papa (and we do too!). We missed you, Dad/Pops, but we are glad we'll see you soon!

Nattie and Pappy...we are so glad to have Paps in our life!

Ok, I know this post is about the dads, but we can't forget the grandmas!

Moving on from Father's Day....just some random, but cute, pictures of my little people.

What these three have been up to lately....playing with pirate ships, "texting", and climbing stairs like a wild man!

A rare picture of just us... :)

Pardon my unpedicured feet...but isn't she cute? Her wild hair fits her personality.

We did some serious chalk art on the driveway this weekend, so I took Nat's picture with her name. I love that little smirk.

I know I'm always talking about what an angel Andy is...so this is just to prove that every once in awhile he does get ticked. He was mad because I set him on Nat's towel and he couldn't go anywhere due to the fact that he HATES touching the grass. The good part is that I could just leave him there and didn't have to worry about where he might end up...the bad part is that he screamed bloody murder and I started to feel like a bad mom...go figure?

It has been absolutely perfect weather this week, so we played in the sprinkler for a bit...well, mostly just Benny. Nattie was more concerned with turning the hose on and off to irritate her brother.

Daddy took Benny fishing this evening and Ben actually caught three fish. He was so excited and proud. I was glad Mike took his camera!

I saved the best for last. I was making Nat lunch earlier this week and she kept saying "Mommy, look at Andy!" I was busy, so I just brushed it off. As I walked to the kitchen table to bring her her lunch I looked in the living room where Andy had been playing with toys to see this! He wasn't crying or upset...just kicking his legs and looking for a toy in the bottom of the basket! I pulled him out (only after taking a picture, of course!) and he had a big smile on his face. I love that kid.

Goodbye unrealistic expectations...hello summer!

2011-06-20T00:00:00.008-04:00

I've kind of felt out of sorts with life these last few months. God is teaching me a lot these days about my expectations for everyone and everything. These expectations of mine are often so lofty that I usually end up disappointed because, let's face it, perfection is impossible...for me or anyone else in my life. God is basically showing me, little by little, that I am not in control...He is. What I want, what I think I need, what I think I deserve, what I expect of others, etc...none of that really matters. Most of these expectations I have are "of this world" and have been so ingrained in me that it's hard to break free. All I can do is trust Him and obey His word...and that's what I'm trying to do. Such a weight is lifted when I realize that I don't have to be in control...because He is!

He knows the plan for my life and it's better than any dream or plan or idea or expectation I could conjure up in my own little head. I am trusting in Him more daily and each step I take in faith draws me closer. Don't get me wrong...I screw up all the time and will until I die, but I know God is at work in my life, that I've already been forgiven, and that He loves me.

So, now that I got all of that out, here are 9,000 pictures of our summer so far. I love my little family and just don't know that there is anything better than getting to spend time with them. God blessed my life in so many ways when He allowed me to be a mama...that is for sure. I'm lucky to be on this journey with a husband who loves, nurtures, and cares for these little people so well.

Since Nat was asleep when the family picture above was taken, I thought I'd post a cute one of just her. I ADORE this picture. She looks so sweet...and she is...but let's face it, two seconds after this picture was taken she was probably whacking her brother upside the head or getting into some kind of trouble.

We've already spent quite a bit of time on the deck playing in the kiddie pool. Andy took his first "swim" last week and loved it. I didn't even add any buckets of warm water to the freezing cold hose water that filled the pool and he STILL loved it.

These pictures are a more accurate representation of my two-year-old's typical behavior.

Nat and Andy were in bed early one evening, so Mike, Benny and I played a fun game of Pirateopoly (like Monopoly only everything is pirate themed).

He was so proud of the army man set-up he created on the coffee table. The army on the left side of the table was quite the eclectic crew. I believe there were not only army men, but also cowboys, Indians and a few alien space creatures. :)

Benny drew a lovely self-portrait on the left. Daddy was a good sport as Ben traced him on the right. It looked like a crime scene when all was said and done.

Dad took off the training wheels and Ben is starting to learn to ride on his own. They practiced on the hill in our backyard and then moved out front to the sidewalk. He hasn't mastered it just yet, but I'm confident he'll be an official two-wheeler pro by the end of the summer.

On Saturday we headed to Rittman Orchard to pick strawberries. It's becoming a June tradition. It was a PERFECT day and the kids had fun running up and down the rows of strawberry plants picking away. In Nattie's case, it was more like illegally eating any strawberry she picked. I tried to stop her and well, it didn't work.

Andy hung out in the stroller just watching his big brother and sister like a good boy. Nat's face in this picture makes me laugh...notice the half-eaten strawberry in her hand, the stains on her shirt and the red drool on her chin. Sorry Mr. Orchard Owner, but I think she only ate maybe 10 strawberries and they were the really, really little ones.

On Sunday we attempted our first bike ride with all three kids in tow. Mike pulled Ben and Nat in the bike tent and Andy rode in the seat on the back of my bike. We got on the tow path in Akron and rode about 10 miles. Nat and Ben started getting a little irritated with each other towards the end (a little too close for comfort), so we knew it was time to call it quits. I think Andy loved it and seeing him in that big ol' infant's helmet made me smile.

Finally, just a few pictures of Andy and Nat that were too cute not to share. Andy is rarely seen without a smile on his face. He makes me so happy.

My spunky monkey....I've been putting her hair in pigtails/ponytails lately and she's pretty cute, if I do say so myself. How do you like the sock/Croc combo in the middle picture? We are all about fashion over here.

Oh and just had to highlight a funny Nattie comment...Sunday morning as we were giving Daddy his Father's Day present, I told Nat and Ben to go tell Daddy "Happy Father's Day!" and she said, "Happy MOTHER'S Day, Daddy! I love you!" We all corrected her, but she INSISTED on wishing him a "Happy Mother's Day!" all day long. She did the same for Papa, Pops and Pappy. Pops even has an official voicemail with her little voice wishing him the best Mother's Day ever! She's a nut!

I heart my IL family...

2011-06-13T00:05:00.008-04:00

I hadn't seen most of my Illinois family since late August of last year when I snuck to Michigan for a family vacation against my OB's orders...since I was just days away from delivering Andy. I missed them all so much and it was high time I got to visit and introduce them all to the newest Moser babe (who turned nine months old on May 29th). Grammy was kind enough to make the seven hour drive across OH, IN, and IL with me. It's always nice to have an extra set of hands on a road trip with three kiddos. She was the official referee between Ben and Natalie, who really enjoy annoying the crap out of each other in the car. "Mommmm! Nattie has her feet on my seat!"...."No, Benny..that's my blankie!"...."Nattie, stop touching me!"...."Can't see movie!" and so on and so on and so on....luckily, Andy didn't make a peep! :)

Jackie and Courtney...two cousins who I love a whole lot. We have 10 children between us (well, almost...Jackie is due with her fourth in August). I can hardly believe that...10 kids!

Julia (Courtney's oldest) and Claire...you'd be hard pressed to find two girls who are nicer than these two (or cuter!). I wish I had pictures of all my fam, but this blog isn't big enough and I, for some reason, didn't take that many photos during the weekend.

Here are six of the 10 I mentioned (missing Julia, Andy, and Lana)...even though I don't get to see these little people very often, they hold a special place in my heart because they belong to two people who I love so much.

In addition to getting to visit all my fam, one of the main reasons I was longing to get to IL was to visit with my Grandma and Grandpa. Both of them are in a nursing home now and a lot has changed, in terms of their health, since I had seen them last. My Grandma has Alzheimer's Disease and it has been progressivly worsening over the last several months and years (significantly so since I'd seen her). It was very hard to see how much she had changed. She was happy, friendly and talkative while we were there visiting, which made me feel better, but it's still difficult to understand why this had to happen to her. I am thankful that she knows Jesus and I pray that He gives her peace in her heart. I pray for my family who daily love her and visit her and have to experience the changes in her first hand. I know it is extremely difficult for all of them. I know she is loved and so is my Grandpa.

Earlier this week, I was digging through some old letters and cards I'd kept...I found two poems Grandma had written for me years ago. They seem extra special now. I'm so thankful I kept them.

When we arrived back in Ohio it was Grammy's birthday, so we surprised her with an ice cream cake and a lovely round of "Happy Birthday to you!" Thanks for staying some extra days and making the trip to Illinios with us, Mom! We love you and miss you!

Thanks for a fun and relaxing weekend IL fam and for making me and my kids feel so special and loved! We miss you!

My little swashbuckler is six!

2011-06-09T13:12:00.004-04:00

We celebrated Ben's sixth birthday on Memorial Day with lots of family and our good friends, the Hurrles. I was so glad it was a perfect, sunny day since the month of May had way more rainy days overall. It was an extra special birthday for Ben since his Grammy, Pops, Uncle Adam, Aunt Jenny, and cousins, Emma and Audrey, got to come to his party too! We celebrated...pirate style! Happy Birthday, Matey!

Red bandanas, cheapy pirate eye patches, and $1 swords from Target transform any kid into a pirate...they were the cutest little swashbucklers I've ever seen!

I found cardboard treasure chests online that I thought would make perfect holders for the pirate cake pops I planned to make. I purchased some gold coins and jewels for treasure. The kids had fun playing with the coins and wearing the jewelry all day.

I mean, seriously, is there anything cuter than a baby with a skull and cross bones stuck on their head? I don't think so. :)

Every pirate gal needs a baby doll to complete her look.

Nate and Ellie...two of Benny's favorite pals!

Presents!

I didn't get pictures of most of the party people (other than the kids)...and once again, I took the most pictures of Andy...

Cute cousins...Emma, Nattie, and Audrey! Emma and Nattie were cake pop eating machines. I bet they each had five!

I know this is Benny's birthday post, but I couldn't resist highlighting this picture. I just love the way Andy is looking at Paps.

Happy birthday to the best six-year-old I know! Love you, buddy!

Everything but the kitchen sink...

2011-05-16T23:57:00.010-04:00

The rain stopped for one whole day this month, so we took advantage of it and headed to the Akron Zoo for the afternoon. We took a carousel ride, in which I held Andy with one arm, while standing guard of Nattie on her giraffe, while photographing Ben and Nat, all while spinning in circles. Bad parent? Good multi-tasker? Both?

Nat loves her shades...and, unfortunately, her paci too. It's really only for naptime these days, but, in my defense, we were at the zoo right during her typical nap...so, I let her have it. I will take it away for good one of these days.

Miss Independent (absolutely nothing like her big brother in that regard!)

These pictures were taken right before Nat wiped out on the concrete, resulting in all kinds of scrapes and bruises and a bloody nose...poor thing! After about 30 seconds of crying...she was back to running around like a wild thing.

This little dude sat like this for the whole outing. He makes me want to have another (they all do, really!).

The graduate! Benny "graduated" from Pre-K this past week. He loved the three years he spent at WCP and kept saying all week that he was sad that it was over. I love how he is walking down the aisle waving both hands at everyone like he's some kind of celebrity! :) He did a great job during the program. His class sang "We Want to See Jesus Lifted High" and recited Ephesians 6:13-18.

At his end-of-the-year party, his teacher, Mrs. Capper, gave each of his classmates a Bible character award that described what character in the Bible they were most like (based on her observation of them this year). It was a really neat idea. She told Ben that he was most like Nehemiah, because he was the official "toy clean-up supervisor" this year (a self-appointed role, no doubt!). Anyway, I didn't really know much about Nehemiah, so when we got home, I looked him up in the Bible. He led an effort to repair and rebuild Jerusalem's walls (and left a prominent position in the Persiean government to do so!). He saw a problem and he wanted to fix it, instead of complain about it. He motivated the Jews to help him in this effort. Nehemiah's life was an example of leadership and organization. I think Mrs. Capper definitely had my bud figured out. We sure will miss her, Ms. Murphy, and all the WCP staff!

I swear I didn't pose this picture. It was one of those weird moments in time when they all three sat in the exact same position and looked right at me. Weird...and funny.

Benny's soccer season was supposed to start almost a month ago, but it's been so rainy that every game and practice has been cancelled. He finally had his first game (with no prior practice!) on Saturday morning. He met his teammates and coach...and the game began! He did a great job for his very first ever attempt at a new sport! He even scored a goal!! He was pretty worn out from running so much, but he had fun!

Little sister was in Heaven watching her big brother play. She wanted out there too. Everytime he came off the field, she was right by his side hugging him. I think she will be his biggest fan!

Who needs a dog when you have this guy? His new favorite thing to do is crawl into the kitchen and under the table to eat scraps that have fallen on the floor. Here he is eating potatos that my messy eater Nat dropped. He was happy as a clam under there just snacking away.

We headed to an Indians game on Saturday with Papa and Nana. We watched about 20 minutes of the game and then a torrential downpour began and didn't stop. We hung out at the ballpark for a couple of hours before they ended up cancelling the game for the day. It was still fun getting to spend some time with P & N sans three crazy kiddos! Thanks for inviting us!

Andy LOVES his big brother. These two are funny together. Ben has all of a sudden started to show more interest in his littlest sibling. I think it's because he is realizing that Andy thinks he's really funny...and, of course, that makes for a fun game of "what weird thing can I do now to get you to laugh!"

The crazy people I love! Nat discovered the Goodnight Moon game today and loved matching all the pictures. Oh...and a funny Nat story...I told her yesterday that we were going to go get flowers for the porch. I said, "Do you want to get pink flowers?" She said, after thinking for a second, "How about polka-potted flowers, Mommy?" :)

Lots of mamas to love...

2011-05-09T16:41:00.003-04:00

We love all our moms and grandmas and great-grandmas! We are so very blessed! I wish I could have celebrated with my own mama too, but we will see her in just a few weeks!

We did a whirlwind grandma tour on Saturday and went to visit each of the old people we love so much. We could not be more thankful for these wonderful, loving, grandmas who watch our babies every week for us.

Even when our purpose in visiting is to love on them and honor them for Mother's Day, they are still finding ways to bless us...Angy made us her AWESOME biscuits and gravy. I think I ate seven biscuits and I'm not joking. Granny made us chicken and dumplings to take home and Mamaw fed my kids lunch! I don't think these three have a selfish bone in their bodies when it comes to our family and kids.

I had high hopes of going to church on Sunday for a good Mother's Day service, but all of my kids has snotty noses and Nattie actually ended up sleeping until 10 am...unheard of! She was up for two hours or so and then slept for another four! When she finally woke up she seemed much happier and had a fun evening with the rest of us.

Nattie and her buddy Kailin :)

Nana and Papa stopped by on Sunday evening and we got to eat ice cream and give Nana her gift. My kids go nuts when Nana and Papa come over...it's like they turn into crazier versions of themselves. I think Nana and Papa should take that as a compliment. :)

Finally, just a few of my littles...love those smiles.

There is nothing in this whole world that I love more than being a mom. I feel so blessed to have these three little people in my life to love on. I pray I am a mom who honors God in my actions and words.

La La Land and other random stuff...

2011-05-06T22:47:00.009-04:00

I really love this kid. He is such a good boy. If I have any complaint about him it's that he spends a good chunk of each day in "la la land" and doesn't pay attention to what's going on around him (at least it would seem that way?!)...like when he's focused on something and someone asks him a question and it's like he can't even hear them or the fact that he spills his cup of water at almost EVERY SINGLE meal we sit down to as a family because he is just not paying attention or that he'll just be walking along and all of a sudden I'll hear a thud followed by a yelp and an... "OW! I just crashed into the wall on accident!" What the what? See...he's in la la land!

BUT...I'll take the occasional "la la land" behavior if I can keep the rest of him! At almost six years old (less than a month away now!)...

he is very helpful - in fact he LOVES to help me with any and every task around the house, which is awesome! he'll empty the dishwasher, help me sort toys, collect the trash, etc. he loves helping me organize or sort anything!

he has a very tender heart- he will randomly tell us that he loves us and it is the best feeling in the world

he is a people pleaser and is very sensitive when he thinks he's done something to upset you or make you mad

he loves Jesus (and has already asked him into his heart!) and often prays about different things without prompting from us - usually he is praying for the healing of some injury he's caused himself during time spent in "la la land"

he is friendly and loves being a leader on the playground or at school

he still LOVES all of his toys and plays with different ones daily

he is a lover of movies - even those that are way beyond his years...like Pirates of the Carribean, Lord of the Rings, John Wayne, Dukes of Hazzard, and Ghost Busters

he's smart - he loves school and to learn and amazes us with the random knowledge he's already stored away in his five-year-old brain

he's really funny and oh so cute

I can't say that this picture is in any way, shape, or form attractive of me (or the rest of my fam), but it gave me a good laugh. I was attempting to take a silly self-portrait of us and cut off a few family members in the process...all you can see are a few curls on the top of Nat's head in the bottom left and I like Benny's face and Andy is sporting his favorite pose...thumb in mouth...and Mike and I just look weird.

I liked these pictures because they showcase the lovely array of random teeth Andy is sporting these days...plus I can't get enough of his face. :)

Nothing like a little wagon ride at 6:30 pm in your pajamas...I'm sure our neighbors think we're real classy. I did decide it would be a good idea to put on real pants...but I was half tempted to wear my flannel, plaid, holey pj pants out with a hooded sweatshirt. I know some of you won't be surprised by this (If it would help me be chosen for the show "What Not To Wear"...I would TOTALLY do it! It's always been a dream of mine to go on that show. Anyone else??! I think I could suffer through the embarrassment for the $5000 and the chance for Stacey and Clinton to make me over! I digress.).

The Littles...

2011-05-02T23:45:00.009-04:00

The two littlest Moser people...

There is really not much in this world that is cuter than this face...in this mama's opinion!

I wasn't joking...he's just a joy...even with a case of croup (poor wheezy little guy!). He turned eight months old on the 29th. He is chunky, and smiley, and pulling up on everything!

And this one...well, she's just as spunky as ever. I was reading a friend's blog and she was talking about her two-year-old saying that everything was "mine." Well, that is definitely Nat these days. If there is any question as to who owns what in our house...have no fear...Nattie will clear it up...it's HERS! "MY MOMMY!" "MY SHIRT!" "MY BABY ANDY!" "MY CANDY!" It's fun to argue with her and see what she'll do..."No, Nat...he's actually MY BABY ANDY!" I know, I know...that's mean. :)

Oh...and I don't typically try to color coordinate every item of my child's clothing, as this photo might suggest. She was "helping" me do some yard work and it was chilly out...this was the best ensemble we could come up with at 9:30 am on a Thursday.

This is pretty much what she looks like after every meal. I sometimes remember the bib...but some days, well, I just don't care! The bigger concern might be the fact that she's still in her pajamas at dinnertime...but, like I said, some days, well, I just don't care! How is it possible that she could get spaghetti up and down her arms and in her hair?? I actually even found a piece hanging out the side of her diaper. :) Crazy woman!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-26T22:45:00.009-04:00

This is the best I could get out of the three of them on Easter morning before church. I thought that by tempting them with their unopened Easter baskets I could pull off the perfect shot...not so much. I still think they are three of the cutest little people around. :)

The whole fam...

Nat thought she was something else in her Easter dress (and I thought she looked adorable too, if I do say so myself!). Once I had her all dressed she said, "I show Daddy. Daddy says gorgeous!" She loves showing Daddy when she's all fixed up because she gets lots of compliments. Thanks, Nana and Papa, for buying Nat her outfit (so sad she decided to rip off a bunch of the "feathers" at the bottom of her dress while she was contained in her carseat on the way to church...it was too big of a temptation!!)

I think this is an adorable picture...Granny, Nat, and Nana. I think these three pretty much adore each other.

Easter basket treasures...thanks, Easter Bunnies (Granny and Angy!), for all the fun treats!

Uncle Brad and Aunt Christina!

People we love...

We spent Saturday evening with Papa, Nana, Brad and Christina. 1 - Uncle Brad is fun to wrestle. 2 - Aunt C and Uncle B love Andy. 3 - A common sight at Papa's house. 4 - Uncle B making Andy giggle.

Nana in her glory!

Love...

Finally, a couple of random pictures I liked. Nattie looks SO old to me in this picture. She is so tall that I'm afraid people are going to think she's older than she really is and expect her to act accordingly. Hopefully she'll be able to charm them with her spunkiness and cute personality! I just love that big ol' grin. Oh and Andy gets all over the place now, but has never attempted to pull up on anything until yesterday. I looked up from something I was doing in the living room, to find him standing at the fireplace all proud of himself. I ran and got my camera and he stayed put long enough for me to capture he cute little pose.

It was a great weekend of spending time with family that we love, but we are most thankful for Jesus and his sacrifice. What a gift He gave us when he took on our sin and died on the cross. We celebrate his victory over the grave! He's alive...and we're forgiven.

I love...

2011-04-21T13:29:00.004-04:00

chalk covered knees...

our sweet neighbor Kailin who Nattie LOVES and looks up to...

my big boy who got this kite up in the air all by himself...

watching my little man enjoy his first ride in the swing on our deck...

snuggle time...

watching Benny grow into a funny, sensitive, smart, and loving little boy...

sweet smiles and silly faces...

new teeth and the funny things A-dub enjoys chewing on...

watching Nattie create lovely scribble art...

laughing at Andy while he eats bubbles and kicks like a wild man in the tub...

the cute relationship between Ben and Ellie...

spending time with people we love (Sesame Street Live!)...

seeing Benny all decked out in his new soccer uniform and watching him get so excited to try out a new sport...

I love my life!

Meet Me in St. Louis (5)...

2011-04-15T01:21:00.002-04:00

Finally, just a mish mash of other pictures I liked...

Night out without the kiddos...

Fun with Uncle Eric!

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for such a fun week! We love you and miss you...can't wait to see you, again, in a little over a month!

Meet Me in St. Louis (4)...

2011-04-15T01:05:00.004-04:00

Coloring Easter eggs!

Wish Nat was looking, but still kind of cute...

Easter egg hunt in the backyard and our attempt at getting a picture of Grammy with all the kids...ah ha ha!

Wish Andy was in this one...

Nat and Emma got bunny ears in their Easter baskets. Jenny might kill me for posting these pictures...especially the ridiculous one on the right. It makes me smile though. Love you, Jen Jen!

Andy boy got lots of attention...

Grammy and Pop's neighbors probably wondered if they opened a daycare. I love the faces of my children in the pictures below. I don't have weird kids or anything.

Candid...makes me happy...

Meet Me in St. Louis (3)...

2011-04-15T00:40:00.002-04:00

For as many times as we've traveled to Missouri to visit, we'd never taken Benny up in the Arch. We promised him, this time, we'd do it.

Pops stayed down below with Andy and Audrey, while the rest of us ventured to the top.

How many people can you cram in a tiny little cramped elevator? Glad nobody was TOO claustrophobic!

View from the top...

After the arch, we headed to a Forest Park to mess around. Nattie was loving the swings.

It took Ben about one minute to make 15 friends at the playground. I heard him telling them all kinds of stories. I love that he is so friendly.

Another park...another day...we had a picnic lunch of pb&j and chips!

Andy cut his third tooth while we were in MO. He has two on bottom and one on top now. He's also doing a funny little army crawl all over the place now. He's very close to mastering the REAL crawl.

Meet Me in St. Louis (2)...

2011-04-15T00:20:00.007-04:00

We visited Great-Grandma Schweiss in her new apartment one morning. She is the sweetest and, of course, made me my favorite meal in the whole wide world...her home made noodles, ham/beans, stewed tomatoes and corn bread...YUM! I am amazed at how sharp she is at 90 years old. I just love her.

Nat, Emmy, and Ben spent a good chunk of time during the week messing with all of Grammy's "art" supplies. One evening they COVERED her in stickers and thought it was hilarious. :)

We spent a lot of time at different parks during the week. Nat and Emma were especially cute together during this outing.

My pretty girl...

Look closely...he was sleeping and I turned around to see him checking things out!

Little explorers....

Andy couldn't do much exploring just yet, so he took part in one of my many photo shoots. I love this kid. He is precious to me.

Meet Me in St. Louis (1)...

2011-04-14T23:34:00.011-04:00

I've been in a bit of a funk over the last month, but the funk did not hinder my use of the camera. :) So, if you thought you missed seeing my kids these last few weeks...have no fear...after the next few posts, you'll be hoping for another blogging hiatus on my part! We headed to Missouri on April 1st to spend Spring Break with my family. It was a great week! My brother, Adam, and sister-in-law, Jenny, and their two cute kiddos, Emma and Audrey, are currently living in my parent's basement, as they just recently moved back to our hometown. It was nice for us to be able to spend extra time with them, since we were all in the same house for nine days! My other brother, Eric, was home from college for part of our visit, as well. We always love spending time with him too (We missed you, Erin!). Five kids...ages 5, 3, 2, 1, and 7 months...under one roof, for that many days in a row, made for some craziness at times, but the craziness was worth it!

Pops and his two youngest grandaughters...

Always a highlight...bubble baths in the whirlpool tub! I'm guessing, in the not too distant future, Benny will no longer think it's cool to take baths with his sister and girl cousins!

We arrived just in time to celebrate Emma's 3rd birthday! She had a Beauty and the Beast birthday party and Jenny went ALL OUT...I've never been to a kids party like this...ever! I helped Jenny make Mrs. Potts cake pops for the party. Emma loved them...mission accomplished! We are so glad we were able to celebrate with you, Emmy!

I especially like Grammy and Mike in the birthday crowns!

Lately, I've been feeling sad about how much he is growing up. I love my bud.

Collecting pine cones in the backyard! This was one of many attempts to entertain the kiddos one morning...hence the lovely pjs. They were having a blast racing to see who could collect the most.

I know he's my husband and I'm biased, but I think he's really cute and I love these pictures of him with his littlest buddy.

I can't wait until Nattie's hair is long enough to play with! I had fun braiding Emma's hair a couple of different times during the week. I am no professional, but I thought she looked cute!

More fun...coming right up...

Deja Vu

2011-03-15T00:59:00.013-04:00

My posts are all the same these days, but I figure there are at least two people out there who don't mind looking at these faces over and over again...Grammy and Nana...so, this post is for you two! :)

I like these people.

This is probably the more realistic shot of the two though. Let's face it...I have 20 of these for every one of the picture above.

Benny lost his second tooth in the bathtub this week! He really wanted to take the tooth to show and tell at pre-K. He asked me if I thought the Tooth Fairy would leave him money under his pillow, but NOT take his tooth. Luckily, the Tooth Fairy is cool like that.

Poor buddy had to eat green beans AND wear his sister's pink bib...but he's still smiling!

The many faces of A-Dub...

This girl is cracking us up more everyday. Her speech has really started to improve and she is talking in sentences more and more. She still throws in a few words here and there that we don't recognize at all, but she's getting there!

One of the funniest things she is saying now is when she's looking for something or someone...she'll say..."Paci are?" or "Daddy are?" As in..."Where is my paci?" or "Where is Daddy?" I try not to compare her to Ben who, at her age, was telling us complete stories and perfectly pronouncing every word. She is figuring it out in her own time and I'm fine with that.

Today, I was helping her put a diaper on her baby doll and she did NOT want my help. She said, "No, no, Mommy! Don't ever do again!" Apparently, she's heard me say that to her one too many times!

She insisted on wearing this ugly hat that Benny got the other day while hanging out with Papa at the muffler shop...

Benny was really sick with the flu for the better part of last week, so by the end of the week, I was really tired of cleaning up puke! I felt so bad for my buddy, but if I had to clean up another pile of vomit, I was going to flip out!

One evening, he threw up all over the kitchen floor for the third time that day...so, I took all of my kiddos upstairs to bathe them before anyone walked through the mess. I bathed them quickly and put them in their respective rooms and told them to play quietly while I went downstairs to clean up the mess.

Sometimes Nat will play nicely in her room and other times...well, not so much. Apparently she wasn't in the mood this particular evening to play nice. I came back upstairs to find several drawers emptied, bows dumped, toys thrown haphazardly everywhere and just general chaos. She basically decided that if she was going to be locked in her room for 20 minutes alone, she'd SHOW me. She did a good job smoothing over the whole thing by flashing me her cute little smile. I just left the mess and put her to bed...I had dealt with enough messes for one day!

Finally, here are some short videos of Nat and Andy. This is Nattie's lovely rendition of "Jesus Loves Me." Don't ask me what the random screaming of some of the words is all about. She's a nut, but I love her.

Goofy girl....

This is a few weeks old...he makes me smile.

Mixed Bag Monday...

2011-03-07T14:32:00.011-05:00

I said it a week ago and I'll say it again...I need spring to get here. I've had enough indoor time to last me until next winter. I need temperatures that are in the 60's....not 30's. I need some sunshine people. When we can't go outside, we do dumb things...like take pictures of ourselves making ridiculous faces.

Poor buddy got the flu on Friday night. It's awful watching little people throw up and not being able to help. The puking transitioned to really icky diapers on Saturday night...but I think he's almost kicked the bug now. Unfortunately, he gave it to his Daddy and big brother (who are both currently sleeping in my bed...ick!). Just waiting for it to strike poor Nat and me. :(

Well, you can't tell one bit from these pictures that he hasn't been feeling well. He's such a dreamy baby...I am very lucky.

I changed Andy's diaper after a blowout and ran upstairs to grab him another outfit. When I came down, this is how I found him. Precious!

Apparently, Nattie wanted to go out in the snow. She came into the office the other day sporting this lovely ensemble. Hat...one mitten....and her brothers old boots. I'm just impressed she could get the boots on AND on the right feet. :)

Benny's pre-K class had a field trip to the Great Lakes Science Center this past week. He couldn't go without an adult chaperone. Well, the adult chaperone (ME!) couldn't go without taking her other two kiddos. Andy was great and sat in his baby seat in the stroller from 9 am to almost 3 pm without crying once! He made chasing Ben and Nat much easier.

Sleeping in the stroller....

Fun at the Science Center!

Babies in a basket...

Babies in a basket gone bad...

Happy mixed bag Monday!

It's sunny in my head...

2011-02-26T12:02:00.022-05:00

A day or two of blue, sunny skies mixed in with mostly gray, snowy skies was like a breath of fresh air this last week. Gives me hope that maybe...just maybe...Spring will be here sooner, rather than later. For now, it'll just have to be sunny in my head...

This little guy makes me happy when skies are gray...

Ben hates to eat...I think I've shared this before. Anyway, after trying a million and one things to get him to try new foods, I decided to go back to the basics. I printed off the food pyramid for him and explained the importance, again, of eating from all of the food groups and VOILA...it worked like magic. The kid is trying anything and everything...it's CRAZY! Chili...stirfry....vegetables...oatmeal...you name it! He even declared his LOVE of broccoli this week...what?! He's been letting me know if I've missed a food group in his meal... "Um, Mom, you forgot to include a grain in this meal." Now, if I could just get him to eat a meal at a pace that is reasonable (i.e. under two hours) we'd really be on to something. :)

Silly boys...

Dad and his buddies...

Sunshine boy...

Andy is starting to sit up on his own for longer periods of time before he slowly tips to one side and lands on his belly.

A few days shy of hitting the six month mark...

He devoured some peach banana oatmeal for breakfast this morning and he was all smiles! (I'm so excited for toothy grins now!)

I tried to pull down Nat's tutu, but she insisted on hiking it up..."No, Mommy! I dood it!"

And finally...a typical Nat face...silly, but cute.

That's what the promise is for...

2011-02-14T00:20:00.003-05:00

Mike and I have been married eight and a half years and I can say with confidence ...marriage is hard, but it's so worth it. Our marriage is far from perfect and there are days when it's more of a challenge to LOVE than others (come on all you married people, don't act like you can't relate!). It's a choice....a promise we made (and make each day) ...to LOVE each other through all of life's ups and downs. It doesn't always come naturally, which is why I am so thankful that God is a God who forgives (when I don't love like I should) and is continually refining us to be more like Him (He is LOVE!). I look at the life we've created together (all by His grace) and I am truly thankful. I look at the faces of my three babies and I can hardly imagine ever choosing not to love their Daddy...even on the bad days. Marriage is hard, but that's what the promise is for (line stolen from an awesome song...see below).

Me and my Valentine...

I'm wearing my pajamas and we both look tired, but that's pretty typical these days...so I'll just go with it!

Since it's the day of LOVE, I wanted to share a couple of songs that have encouraged me in my marriage (you may already be familiar with them). My friend, Heidi, recently shared the first song below with me (by Andrew Peterson) and the words just really made sense and rang true for me...marriage is about a PROMISE.

So when I lose my way, find me
When I lose loves chains, bind me
At the end of all my faith
to the end of all my days
when I forget my name, remind me

Cause we bear the light of the son of man
So there’s nothing left to fear
So I’ll walk with you in the shadow lands
Till the shadows disappear
Cause he promised not to leave us
And his promises are true
So in the face of all this chaos baby
I can dance with you

And we’re dancing in the minefields
We’re sailing in the storm
This is harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise is for
That’s what the promise is for

I love these words...what love has tethered...I pray we never undo.

We are stitched together
And what love has tethered
I pray we never undo

God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
For when I think I’ve lost my way
There are no words here left to say, it’s true
God gave me you

Happy Valentine's Day!

(Oh...and for the record...I kind of think this holiday is dumb, but I figured I might as well use it as an opportunity to tell my best friend how much I love him.)

Love is in the air...

2011-02-12T21:37:00.014-05:00

My little Valentines...

We (mostly me) spent a good chunk of our day making sugar cookies. Here are my little "helpers"...and yes, Ben is wearing Santa jammies...wrong holiday. I think Nattie ate at least four cookies herself...sugar overload!

The finished product...who wants one or ten?

Totally random picture...but I thought it was kind of cool...

My typical two-year-old...

2011-02-09T22:28:00.013-05:00

1 - Ok, so maybe this one isn't so typical. She was just doing a little pumping...that's normal, right?
2 - Every Snow White needs a cowboy hat (x2) and a maraca to complete her look!
3 - She refused to let me help her eat her chocolate pudding. Her favorite response when I offer to help..." ME DOOOOD IT!" (aka "Back off, Mom! I am doing this myself and if you try to come near me again I will scream and possibly hit you.")

Finally, here she is in full blown meltdown mode because I wouldn't let her get down from her seat at the dinner table and run around the house carrying her food in her hands. :) She's still cute...even while screaming bloody murder.

Snow!

2011-02-05T16:50:00.012-05:00

See the pretty snowflakes
Falling from the sky;

On the wall and housetops
Soft and thick they lie.

On the window ledges,
On the branches bare;

Now how fast they gather,
Filling all the air.

Look into the garden,
Where the grass was green;
Covered by the snowflakes,
Not a blade is seen.

Now the bare black bushes
All look soft and white,

Every twig is laden,

What a pretty sight!

Falling Snow by Anonymous

A medley of Mosers...

2011-02-04T21:22:00.003-05:00

Princess Nat..she would find the matching princess in her book and point to herself and the picture and say "same! same!" :)

Mostly a medley of Mosers...but I had to throw in a few of Grammy and Pops! We will miss Grammy when she heads back to Missouri tomorrow.

She doesn't like Elmo or anything.

Ben did some serious playing with Grammy this week....Daddy too, since he had two snow days!

Cute little Mo...

Andy makes an adorable princess, don't you think?

Nattie girl is two!

2011-01-31T02:10:00.010-05:00

My spunky, silly, cute, funny, sweet little girl turned two years old on Friday. After having Benny I thought, for sure, I'd be the mom of all boys. So, when God gave me Nat I was pretty surprised, but so excited for the adventure of raising and loving a little girl. She is wild and has given me some gray hairs already (who else could be responsible for the growing gray taking over my head?!), but oh how I love her. I just think she is so precious....even when she does things like take her bowl of half eaten mac-n-cheese and smear it all over the TV and carpet in the living room (last week)...or when she climbs in Andy's crib and totally traumatizes him by sticking her fingers in his mouth when he's sound asleep....or when she locks the garage door for fun and I don't realize it until I'm locked out with no key at 9 pm and all three kids are asleep, ALONE, inside. She is crazy...but I love it and I'm so happy she's been in my life for two whole years.

Can you tell what the theme of her b-day bash was? Ah ha ha... The cake pops were a lot of work because of all the detail, but Nat's reaction was worth the effort. When she saw them she squealed and shouted "cake pops! eat it!" (and then she screamed bloody murder because I wouldn't let her have one until her party...mean mom!). The good thing is, any pops that I make from now own should be a breeze in comparison!

The pops are displayed in tins I purchased from the Target dollar bins. They were the perfect primary colors. I had the last minute idea to buy Nat her very own goldfish...appropriately named, Dorothy! She saw her sitting on the table and yelled "Dorfeeee!"

The best family picture we could pull off...

I LOVE the look on her face. This was when we were all singing happy birthday to her.

Party animal!

Just had to throw in a few of my little buddies. Andy was pretty darn cute in his party hat! I heard Ben yell for Kaylee..."Hey...let's go play unicorns!" Very creative use for your party hat, Benny!

Grammy and Pops gave Nat a wooden doll bunk bed that was mine when I was little. Grammy made the cutest bright colored bedding to go along with it (in true Grammy fashion!). Nattie seemed to think that the bunk bed was for HER to sleep in and she was way past her naptime, so she climbed right in. I think if the room hadn't been filled with family, she might have actually fallen asleep. :)

Some of the party people...Nat is very loved.

More family...I took more pictures of people with Andy than with Nat...but I think by this point she was fast asleep in her bed!

A girl can only party so hard...

Love you, baby...so glad you are MY girl!

Lazy days and some party prep...

2011-01-30T22:41:00.007-05:00

I somehow started randomly getting Parents magazine (not sure who ordered this for me, but thank you?!). Anyway, there was an insert this month that kids could color...it was a lot of work, but Benny was determined to color every last image on the page (with a little help from mom and dad!). It is now proudly displayed on his bedroom wall. :)

Nat loves carrying her babies and stuffed animals around in her backpack.

I love this picture. I hardly ever get pictures printed, but this one is already printed and hanging on my fridge because it makes me happy.

Three amigos...

The thumbs (he sucks both) never leave his mouth. :)

A lover of rice cereal...he's a real neat eater.

A little behind the scenes look at my party prep for Nat's 2nd birthday this weekend (I make a real mess in the kitchen!). I spent many an hour making Bakerella's Sesame Street cake pops. This picture was taken after midnight by my mom who stayed up to provide moral support (and tissue paper support...thanks, Mom!). More to come on my two-year-old...

Little people...

2011-01-21T22:59:00.004-05:00

Sweet brothers...they are five years and three months apart in age, but I hope they will be good buddies as they grow older.

Ben's school hosted a "Family Night" this week for the parents and kids to come eat snacks and play games. Dad had to coach a basketball game, so it was just me and Benny. Ben LOVES school this year, so he had lots of fun playing games with his pals and teachers. Speaking of school, I have to go to an informational meeting about Kindergarten next month. I can't believe my buddy is going to be going to school five full days a week this upcoming fall. I'm starting to get a little sad about it already.

Nat loves to eat bagels with cream cheese for breakfast...this is what she looks like as a result. It's so fun to clean cream cheese out of your kids nose every morning. :)

Andy was going WILD in the tub tonight. He was flailing his arms and kicking his legs...splashing water all over his own face and his mama.

Andy will turn five months old at the end of next week, so I went back through my pictures to see what Nattie and Ben looked like at the same age. The three of them really don't look much alike, in my opinion. I think there are more similarities between Andy and Ben, but they are each pretty unique. It's so crazy how two people can create three kids that are so different...in more ways than one.

Munchkins...

2011-01-18T00:00:00.010-05:00

If I could describe Andy in one word, it would be pleasant. Does this mean he's going to be a total hellion when he's older? I sure hope not! It is pretty much impossible to think that I will ever get mad at this little dude.

If looks could kill...

I fed A-dub rice cereal for the first time this week. He DEVOURED it. My other two weren't so sure the first few times they tried it, but not this guy. He acted ravenous and gobbled up a whole bowl full on several occasions.

Nattie, Ben and Daddy were cracking each other up at dinner the other night. I don't know how the whole episode started, but they were screaming at the top of their lungs (for fun) and Nat found it very amusing. :) Dinnertime is always very peaceful at our house?!

She's just getting so cute (at least to her mama!)...I love having a girl.

Ben and I finished reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, so now we've moved on the The Chronicles of Narina. We are half way through The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. He begs me to read him "just one more chapter" every night. :)

I threw in the food picture below just to prove that occasionally Ben will eat a balanced meal. He ate everything on his plate, with the exception of a few bites of carrots. I let him stop eating when he started to gag. I swear it's a fake gag just to get out of eating, but he's done it before and actually thrown up, so now I'm cautious. I think meal time is the WORST part of being a parent. I so wish I could leave that task to someone else!!

A fairy with a gun...

2011-01-13T00:23:00.006-05:00

Fairy wings and a tutu over pajamas + hot pink, sparkly princess shoes = C-U-T-E

Since Nat was "dressed up", Ben decided he should be too! Mr. Space Patrol...

My favorite look of the evening...a fairy with a gun! :)

Photos of the day...

2011-01-10T23:12:00.003-05:00

Watching a little Elmo's World...there isn't much that is more exciting these days!

Happy man...

This is what your face looks like after you've been playing in the snow with Daddy...wet, red, and cold!

Little brother and big brother...

This is a repeat story for my Facebook friends, but I don't want to forget because it's too funny! Earlier today I told Ben I would make a deal with him (a tactic I use to get him to do things around the house). He responded (before I even made the deal) with..."Stop making deals with me, Mom. Your deals are so annoying and they are getting in the way of my relaxation time." WHAT THE HECK?! Yet another shining example for my parenting resume!

House arrest...

2011-01-08T15:30:00.008-05:00

I often feel like I'm under house arrest these days...confined to my home by the authorities...aka Ben, Natalie, and Andy. Don't get me wrong, I love these little people, but it would be nice to occasionally take a shower and go somewhere. :) Oh well, leaving the house for any fun reason was not in the cards this week (other than for work..but that's not all that fun)...it's cold out, loading three kids into the car with coats, shoes, diaper bag, etc is like a 45 minute process, and I have an ugly case of pink eye...so, we stayed indoors.

The most recent weird Ben comment...as I was getting him ready for school one day this week, he was singing "If You're Happy and You Know It" as loud as he could. He decided it would be cool to insert the word butt in place of the word hands. Nattie thought it was hilarious. "If you're happy and you know it than your butt will surely show it. If you're happy and you know it clap your butt!" I don't know where he gets this stuff...Mike and I are never weird like that. :)

He is really into coloring lately and trying to stay within the lines. He is getting much more patient and creative with his artwork and it's fun to watch. We played "grocery store" in the basement this morning and he was having fun filling his basket with stuff. I checked him out and he said, "Mom...you didn't say cash or charge?!" :)

Cute girl...

I love watching Natalie play with the toys in the basement (which, at this point, are still mostly boy toys). She is into all the "helmets" (anything that goes on your head is a helmet) and she really likes Buzz and Woody. Most almost two-year-olds probably aren't into them yet, but when you have a five-year-old brother, you learn what's cool fast. :)

I forgot to mention in my new year's post that Mike ran seven miles on new year's eve morning to reach his 1000 mile goal for 2010. Craziness...but a pretty cool accomplishment and goal to achieve!

And now, a stupid amount of Andy pictures. I'm sorry, but I actually have more and decided that I was reaching the point of diminishing return. I think I have successfully established the fact that I think he's cute and I love his face and smile and little chub. At his four month check-up this week he was in the 50th percentile for everything. He's 14 lbs, 7 oz and 25 1/4 inches long. Mike texted me at work this week to tell me that Andy was sucking both of his thumbs at the same time...love it! He is the first of my kids to suck his thumb (fingers too...and sometimes even his whole fist) and it's really cute (just hope he doesn't need braces later on in life like his mama!).

Ok...I just had to let this one stand alone...it could probably use a creative caption, but I'm too busy laughing to think of one.

Finally, both of my littlest sleeping this afternoon. I LOVE when Nat falls asleep "reading" one of her books. I laid Andy on the living room floor for a minute to do something and when I walked back into the room this is how I found him. :)

Good fruit...

2011-01-06T00:05:00.009-05:00

I’ve been feeling awfully convicted lately…I’ve been in a bit of a funk…a spiritual funk. I’ve let other things in my life trump the ONE thing that is most important…my relationship with God. It’s been affecting lots of areas of my life in subtle ways and I don’t want to be in this place anymore. There are a handful of “things” that have brought me to this point, but ultimately I am feeling awfully inadequate, lazy and just plain, icky. My motivation and devotion to living a life that reflects Christ has been lacking…big time. I’ve definitely been lukewarm lately and I’m disappointed in myself for neglecting the ONE who has blessed me beyond all measure.

It’s hard to actually admit these things…I look at the life God has blessed me with and I am truly thankful. I love and adore my husband and three precious babies so much. The problem is, I have taken those blessings and allowed them to take higher priority than my relationship with Christ. It seems totally acceptable to say “I put my family first”, but when I take time to think about it, I realize I’m not being the best mom or wife by putting them first …in all actuality, I’m failing them by not putting Christ first (and let me be totally honest here, I don’t always put my family first either…there are LOTS of times when I waste too much time on other things that are of far less value than my family OR my relationship with God!).

Benny got a new Bible for Christmas and we’ve been reading stories from it every night and talking about how God worked in different people’s lives (Noah, Jonah, etc) and how much He loves us. It’s so fun to talk with him about his faith and watch him grow in his knowledge of the Bible, but how long has it been since I’ve opened my own Bible and read something for my own spiritual growth? Way too long! I’m ashamed to admit that…but I’m on an honesty roll here. I want to be an example for my children in my actions and not just my words.

Ok…all that to say... my heart, my focus, and my priorities have got to change…I want them to change. I have total faith that God can draw me closer to Him if I allow Him to. Tonight, before I sat down to write this post, I prayed that God would help me focus on the areas where I can do better. I was reminded of Galatians 5:22…the fruit of the Spirit…

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”

I recently worked with Ben to help him memorize the “fruits” and I feel like spending some time reminding myself of what it looks like to “live the fruits” is a good place to start this change in my own heart and actions. I pray that God will use his Spirit to control my life and that over time my allegiance to Him will become more and more evident in the things that I say and do.

...Every healthy (sound) tree
bears good fruit [worthy of admiration],
but the sickly (decaying, worthless) tree
bears bad (worthless) fruit.
A good (healthy) tree cannot bear bad (worthless) fruit,
nor can a bad (diseased) tree
bear excellent fruit [worthy of admiration]...
Therefore,
you will fully know them by their fruits.
- Matthew 7:17-20

Thanks for listening (or reading)…bring on the good fruit!

(On a seperate note, can you believe I hit publish without attaching ONE picture to this post?! That took a lot of self-control. :))

Ringing in the new year....

2011-01-01T22:00:00.010-05:00

with cake...on a stick....covered in candy and sprinkles....YUM! I spent the final hours of 2010 in sweatpants in my kitchen making cake pops (I'm wild like that!). Mike was in bed at 10:30 pm...my kids were sawing logs....and it was just me, Ryan Seacrest, and a kitchen covered in cake and sprinkles! I really was just looking for an excuse to practice making these little treats before I attempt them, again, for Nattie's birthday at the end of this month. They were kind of a lot of work, but they tasted good and I thought they turned out pretty cute for my first attempt. We enjoyed eating them today with Papa and Nana.

I made a strawberry cake and used chocolate cream cheese icing (kind of like a chocolate covered strawberry)...yum-o!

A-dub turned four months old this week...he's growing like a weed! He has his check-up on Monday, so I'm anxious to find out all the new stats. He is, honestly, an angel. He eats like a champ, goes to sleep so easily (I lay him down awake and he rarely even cries...just sticks his thumb in his mouth and goes to sleep!), and spends the rest of the hours of the day smiling and yelling (a high-pitched, really funny scream...just for fun!). I love his laid-back little personality.

Here is wild-woman...poor thing has had a fever for almost three days. She slept until 10:30 am this morning and when she woke up she asked for "meddies" (medicine). Once the Tylenol/Motrin kicks in, she's back to her spunky self!

She got a boy babydoll for Christmas, and I guess the Christmas story must have made an impression on her... she's been calling him "baby Jesus" all week. :)

I can not believe she is almost two....only a few more weeks. We've been talking about her birthday for awhile now and I've been asking her what kind of party she wants. I throw out ideas and she responds with an "uh huh" or "un uh." She is in love with Sesame Street, particularly Elmo, so when I asked if she wanted an Elmo party, she got super excited. If I make any other suggestion now, I am quickly corrected with a loud..."ELMO!" Ok, ok, Nat...Elmo it is! (Luckily, I've been there, done that. Ben's second b-day was Elmo too...already have the cake pan!)

We all look tired and grubby...but it's rare that I get a picture with all three kids kind of looking...so I'll take it!

Silly boy.... Tonight, Papa and Ben were playing with Walkie-Talkies. Ben was upstairs and Papa was downstairs and they were pretending like they were policeman trying to catch bad guys. Papa told Benny that there was a criminal on the loose who had robbed a liquor store. He described me and told Ben to find me and check my breath for liquor (you know, to see if I was guilty!). Ben found me and I had just eaten a cake pop, so I had candy breath. Ben looked at Papa and said "Did she rob a candy store?" :)

I could really go for a Hawaiian vacation with cool bendy palm trees right about now. Although, shortly after I took this picture, he drew a shark in the ocean right in front of me...so, maybe not.

Just a few pictures of Papa and Nana playing with the kiddos this afternoon...

Happy 2011!

And there's more...

2010-12-26T23:04:00.005-05:00

After we opened Santa gifts, we headed over to Papa and Nana's house to open presents and eat breakfast with them. Papa and Nana are great gift-givers (my favorite gift was a Cake Pops book by Bakerella that I can't wait to try out for Nat's b-day next month!)! Nattie got the cutest baby doll stroller and little boy baby doll. Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to find a boy baby doll? 99.9% of dolls are girls...it makes no sense, since half the babies in the world are boys! :) Anyway, the Christmas story must have made a big impression on Nat, because all day today she has been playing with her new baby...calling him "baby Jesus." It's really cute. :) (Also, I love how she is sporting her new Elmo slippers OVER her footie pajamas...such a trend setter!) Of course, Benny made out like champ with Papa picking out some extra fun and cool toys...Woody and Buzz legos, PlayMobil pirate ship...fun, fun!

Later that afternoon, we made the trip to Columbus to visit with Uncle Brad and Aunt Christina. Here is Nat sporting the new tutu and fairy wings they gave her...love it! (It is really fun to have a girl. I never thought I woud like it this much!)

Benny loved his presents too!

Andy looked extra cute in his new sweater! Thanks Uncle Brad and Aunt Christina!

We are blessed to have such a generous and loving family. I could say that, even if we never got a single present to unwrap. Merry Christmas!

Christmas morning...

2010-12-26T22:34:00.005-05:00

This was the first year that we, I mean Santa, put some goodies in the kids stockings. We have grandparents and great-grandparents who spoil our children, so we try to be reasonable on the Santa front. This year Santa was pretty practical...books, underwear, slippers, crayons, and a game or two (Guess Who? for Ben...I used to love that game and can't wait to play it with him!). I found a great deal online on a 24x36 magnetic whiteboard that I purchased for both Ben and Nat. I thought it would be fun to use magnetic letters to practice reading/spelling words with Ben and I bought some magnetic animals and shapes to use with Nattie.

Santa brought Andy one little ol' gift..a Monchhichi. When Andy was born, Mike thought he looked like one. I think he meant it as a compliment...they are kinda cute. I LOVE watching my kiddos open gifts and get so excited over everything. It doesn't take much at all to get Ben excited...he was even excited to open his SpongeBob underwear and Nattie loved her Sesame Street books from the $1 bin at Target. :)

Daddy saw this little tent at Target and wanted to get it for Nat. She was so excited! It's up in her room and looks really cute with all of her owl decor. :)

Does your living room look like this after all the gifts have been opened? I can't remember who said it, but it sounds about right..."It looks like Christmas threw up in here!" :) Andy kind of blends in.

My mom's side of the family celebrates the first Christmas for each new baby who is born that year. This year there were FIVE firsts! Since we can't be there for the celebration, they all sent gifts for my little guy. Santa didn't need to bring him anything, because he already had a stack of presents under the tree! It was so fun to open the gifts on Christmas morning and lay him in the middle of all of them. Thanks IL fam! We love you and Andy loves his presents...can't you tell?! :)

Christmas Eve...

2010-12-26T22:21:00.003-05:00

We spent Christmas Eve with the Moser family, Granny, and Angy/Paps at Mamaw's house. I've never known a more generous bunch of "old people" in my whole life. I give the great-grandparents $25 calendars every year (each month displays a collage of pictures of our family) and they give us free babysitting all year long, money, and giftcards...doesn't seem like an even trade, does it!? They are a blessing in SO many ways and I thank God for them.

The Moser men and gals...

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T15:10:00.001-05:00

Love, The Moser Fam

Hap, Hap, Happiest Christmas...

2010-12-23T21:22:00.015-05:00

I ran into Target yesterday for a roll of wrapping paper and walked out with a gingerbread train kit and a bunch of other stuff. Target has a way of sucking me in and causing me to buy more than I really need!! Anyway, I thought the gingerbread train looked like something fun to do with Benny (once Nat and Andy were in bed). We'd never done this before, but Ben decided that "ours turned out even better than the picture on the box!" I don't know about that, but it was something fun, festive, and cheap to do with my bud.

Ben wanted me to showcase his little tree on the blog (it opens it's eyes and mouth and sings some annoying holiday jingle). It's displayed proudly on the nightstand in his room and he decorated it himself with ornaments he got from his Mamaw...if you look closely you'll see Santa's bare butt right next to baby Jesus in the manger...lovely.

Wrapping presents while watching one of the dumbest movies ever...The Other Guys (Mark Wahlberg/Will Ferrell)...don't rent it!

My poor big guy is sick. He has an ear infection, nasty cough, and sinus stuff...just in time for Christmas. Luckily, he's on a an antibiotic for the ear infection, so hopefully he'll feel like a new guy in a day or two. I've been reading a chapter book to him every night before bed...Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He loves it and begs me to read him "just one more chapter" when I tell him that's all for the night.

We headed over to Angy and Pappy's house tonight to check out their Christmas decorations and visit with some of the fam. Words can not adequately describe the amount of holiday decor Angy displays in her home. I tried to capture some of it below because it always makes me smile and feel a little claustrophobic all at the same time. We loved hanging out with the Adam's family, Granny, and, of course, Angy and Paps!

Mike's Uncle Rich gave him a "Moose Mug"...remember Cousin Eddie and Clark drinking their eggnog out of these in Christmas Vacation? I love that movie...even if it is a little crass. :)

Clark: "Can I refill your eggnog for you? Get you something to eat? Drive you out to the middle of nowhere and leave you for dead?"

Eddie: "Naw, I'm doing just fine, Clark."

This is the small and simple (ah ha ha ha) village that Angy creates in her basement every Christmas (she starts working on it in October!). Have you ever seen anything like this?! It takes up about 50% of the floor space! Ben loves it! Angy has a bunch of cats and, apparently, they wreaked havoc on the village this year, knocking down a bunch of trees. I can't imagine how frightening it must have been for the little people living in this snowy little town when the giant, man-eating, tree-stomping felines attacked!

Benny and his good buddy and cousin, Ellen, checking out the village!

Here's some more holiday decor on display in Angy and Pappy's house...it's something else!! I said to her, in a sarcastic tone, "Wow, Angy, you really cut back this year on the Christmas decorations." She said, "Oh, I know, I didn't get much out!" Whoa! :)

As fun as it is to be with family, decorate gingerbread trains, watch silly holiday movies, and give/receive presents this time of year, we believe that the TRUE meaning of Christmas is SO MUCH more! Happy Birthday, Jesus! Thank you for stepping down from your throne to become the least for me. Thank you for loving me when I don't deserve it. Thank you.

I'll leave you with this video...I shared it last year, but I just love the words and how it depicts what matters most...

Benny the sheep and a hodgepodge of other "stuff"...

2010-12-19T22:16:00.006-05:00

Benny's pre-k Christmas performance was cancelled last week due to bad weather, so they had a make-up performance on Friday morning during their classroom Christmas party. They all had on their pj's for the party, but it was still so cute. They sang "Happy Birthday, Jesus" and "Friendly Beasts." They also memorized and recited Psalm 150...not an easy task...it's pretty long!

Here is Ben, aka "the sheep", during their performance of "Friendly Beasts"...such a cute song! I love how his sheep ears are making his real ears stick out even more than normal. :)

"I," said the sheep with curly horn,"I gave Him my wool for His blanket warm; He wore my coat on Christmas morn.""I," said the sheep with curly horn.

Ben and Mrs. Capper...he really loves her. He loves Miss Murphy too, but I failed to get a picture of her this time. I am so thankful for teachers who love my kid and appreciate his silly personality. :)

Post bath photo shoot...I love jammie clad, lotion covered babies...

Happy boy snuggled in the cozy carseat cover...

1 - "Mom, save me. I'm stuck inbetween the bed and footboard again."

2 - I put Nat down for a nap the other day and after several hours, I went to check on her. She wasn't in her bed. Found her sound asleep on the floor with her bootie up in the air.

3 - Nattie has offically learned how to throw a real fit.

Dad and his little buddy...

Date night!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

2010-12-16T23:05:00.003-05:00

Mike turned 32 years old today! Ben and I spent the afternoon making Peanut Butter Kiss cookies for him to enjoy when he got home from work. I was very glad to have Benny be my Hershey's Kiss wrapper remover (I hate that job!). The cookies sure looked good when we were all done...too bad they didn't taste good. My recipe was written down incorrectly and I added 2 tsp of salt, instead of a 1/2 tsp (I have the worst luck in the kitchen!). Mike took one bite and that was it. So much for a happy birthday treat! Luckily, I had purchased a few cupcakes earlier in the day, so there was a backup dessert! :)

Ben jumps on any chance to help open a gift! We gave Dad a Terrelle Pryor jersey and The Wisdom of Wooden book. I think the gift was a hit!

I think Nattie liked her cupcake. :) We love you, Daddy! Happy Birthday!

Finally, what's a post without more silliness from my baby girl?! I walked into her room one morning this week to this (apparently she had been awake for awhile!)... She had unbuttoned her jammies, put on a hooded sweatshirt upside down, emptied her dresser drawers, dumped an entire sippy cup of water all over her bed, ripped apart a small flower arrangement, dumped a bunch of books, etc....and she was standing in her second dresser drawer (with a poopy diaper on, I might add!). She smiled at me and said "mess, mess." Ya, Nat, I think I noticed. :) Oh..and later that day (under Daddy's supervision!)...she ripped every petal and leaf off a small Poinsetta I had and dumped the dirt all over the couch. Awesome!

Crayons in my pants, blueberries, and giggles...

2010-12-10T22:27:00.010-05:00

Just another day and more fiesty behavior from my wild woman (see countertop). Apparently, I need to watch more closely when Nat is using crayons. You'd think I'd have learned after the whole wall incident. Doesn't she look proud? :)

This afternoon, after another attempt at coloring, I picked Nattie up and felt something funny poking me. I lifted up her shirt to find that she had a collection of markers and crayons down her onsie. You just never know when you might need one.

Small, medium, and large...

I love him...

My handsome snowman... Oh and in Benny news, he and Natalie were playing with their Little People nativity yesterday afternoon and I heard Ben scold the angel for "going off looking for blueberries and getting stuck in a tree." Hmmm...I don't recall that part of the Christmas story?? :)

We went to watch some Grizzly basketball tonight (Mike is one of the coaches) and Nattie was the cutest little fan in the stands (at least according to her totally unbiased mother)...

I can't help but kiss this face everytime I'm near it...

Finally, the little giggle box for your viewing pleasure...

:)

2010-12-06T22:14:00.006-05:00

I've really been struggling with blog titles lately, so I'll just go with the smiley face...it works well enough.

This little dude turned 14 weeks yesterday. He is getting chunkier by the minute and I love it. He has started chewing on his hands and sucking his thumb a lot (he takes a pacifier sometimes too). It's really cute. He also rolls from belly to back like a wild man (and I've witnessed back to belly once). He is a pretty easy going little guy, which is awesome, because his older sister is not...

Which leads me to the story behind the photos below... If I do not keep my eye on little Miss Nattie every moment of the day, she is doing something irritating (but usually funny upon reflection)...like instead of eating the handful of barbque chips I set in front of her (after she screamed for a "nack, nack, nack!" -- that's a snack in Nattie speak), she thought it would be more fun to throw them on the floor, along with handfuls of dirt from my poinsetta. I didn't notice that she had "hidden" a few chips in the actual pot until hours later when I went to water my poor abused plant. Gave me a little chuckle. She's a nut.

Oh...and yesterday on the way home from church she was yelling "Milk, milk!" from the backseat and I told her I didn't have her cup with me and she'd have to wait until we got home. She responded with a big sigh and said "Oh man!"

Silly people...

A-dub's first Christmas....kind of nice because we don't really have to buy him anything yet...he doesn't know the difference. :)

About a year and a half ago, someone shared the CaringBridge site for Kate McRae, a little 6 year old girl from Arizona who was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer. Benny has been praying for "the little girl with the hurt brain"ever since. He asks me about her a lot and prays that "God will heal her brain and allow her to live a long life on the Earth." He is so sincere. Anytime he prays, she is part of the prayer. Anyway, her family is amazing and this is the second year they have sponsored "Kate's Crazy Cool Christmas." They ask people to send them toys and other items that they collect and distribute to other kids (and their families) who are battling cancer. It's really awesome how they are giving back when they are in the midst of their own struggle. We decided to send Kate some toys to share with others this year and Ben had fun picking them out, writing Kate a card, and putting stickers all over the package. He was SO excited and even told the worker at Target that we were buying gifts to send to little kids with cancer. I love my tenderhearted big boy and I am so thankful that my kids are healthy. I can't imagine what it would be like to have a child struggling with a life-threatening illness, but I am in awe of how Kate and her family put all their trust in God.

Oh..and here's another Facebook repeat story, but it's too good not to share here. This week Ben came home from pre-K with an incident report. It said, "Ben was acting like the crazy raccoon from the movie Elf and hurt his lip. He was hugged until he stopped crying." Wow, I'd like to personally apologize to his teachers, who must have the patience of Job. For a little reminder of what the raccoon was like...click here. :)

Back to work...

2010-11-30T21:25:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was my first day back at work after 13 weeks off with my babies. I always have a pit in my stomach the morning of the first day back. It's just so hard to walk out the door and leave the sweet faces you have spent every hour of the day with for weeks on end. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the occasional break from the chaos, just like every other mom in the world, but the initial heartache kind of stinks. It will get easier though...I can say that with confidence...been there, done that. I'm only working 24 hours a week now, so I really don't have it too bad (and I love my co-workers)!! I'm just very relieved that Andy took his bottle (and didn't starve!), Nattie took her nap, and Ben got to and from pre-K without a hitch! I came home to three happy kids and lots of hugs. :)

I am so deeply grateful to the great-grandmas (Granny and Mamaw) who, for five and half years now, have driven down to my house (40 minute drive!), sometimes in treacherous conditions, to love on my babies, so I could go to work. I also really appreciate Papa, who watches my kids every Friday. There are not a lot of grandpas who are willing to manage three little kids at once...and we aren't just talking play time here. He has mastered the art of changing diapers, cleaning up blowouts (you know what I'm talking about!), feeding little ones, and the list goes on! These grandparents are such a blessing to me and my family and make it much easier for me to go to work. The biggest blessing in my whole childcare situation is the fact that my kids are truly LOVED by the people who are caring for them each week...that makes me feel so good.

This weekend we made one of our first attempts at going out to dinner with all three kids in tow. We've taken one or two at a time over the last several weeks, but never all three. It actually went pretty well. Mike and I didn't really talk because he was busy playing tic-tac-toe with Ben and I was trying to keep Nattie from dumping her water all over the table and herself. Luckily, Andy slept the whole time!

I tried to get Ben to take a nap one day this last week and he just wasn't in the mood. I heard some thumping going on up in his room, so I went up to investigate. Upon entering, I was told that I was not allowed to come inside the "secret clubhouse fort" he'd built on the floor next to his bed (he's really into secret clubs lately??). Buzz, Woody, his puppy, a monster truck, and his Pillow Pet were all club members, but apparently Mom wasn't cool enough. :)

Nattie's hair has really been growing lately (finally!) and it's really cute and curly when she's just out of the tub. However, when she wakes up from her nap each day it has transformed into a rat's nest and requires a little fixing. I usually just splash some water in it and she's good to go. The other day I gave her a mini-mohawk and she thought she was so cool. :) She is Ms. Independent these days...doesn't want our help with anything. I really wish it would rub off on her much older brother! Oh and as we were walking through the mall on Saturday evening, she kept randomly shouting from the stroller "awesome" and "cool!" I love my funny, little munchkin.

Here's Andy sporting Ben's old winter coat and hat. It's a little big on him, but will work for this winter. He is getting some cute chipmunk cheeks.

I love the moments when these two are being nice to each other (kind of rare these days). :) Here they are watching some cartoon together. Last night I was reading both of them books in Nattie's bed and Ben asked if he could sleep with her. I asked her if she wanted Benny to sleep in her bed with her and she said "uh huh" and nodded her head (she never says "yes"..it's always "uh huh"). So, I decided I would let them try and see how it went (fully expecting them to bug each other and/or talk and not fall asleep). I was wrong. I went to check on them about 20 minutes after I had turned out the lights and Nattie was sound asleep hugging her blankie and doll and Ben was humming some song that was, apparently, stuck in his head. :) I took him to his bed, so he wouldn't wake her, but I was impressed that Nattie fell asleep so quickly!

Here's Nattie's latest antic. I think she's a budding artist...don't you? :) Anyone know how to get crayon off a painted wall without actually repainting?

Finally, if you're my friend on Facebook, you've likely already heard this story, but I have to share it here for my family. As I was grabbing my pizza from the pizza man at our front door the other night, he said "good luck" with a strange look on his face. Maybe it was the fact that Nattie was completely naked and yelling "peetsee, peetsee" (that's pizza in Nattie speak), Andy was screaming bloody murder because I had to take him out of the tub to answer the door, and Ben was doing wind sprints around the kitchen table?? Life is never dull around here. :)

A thankful heart...

2010-11-25T23:47:00.005-05:00

I know there are likely people who read this blog and think that I'm all ooey gooey and lovey dovey about my life. If I'm being honest, there are times in the past when I've worried that people might think I'm being fake or trying to make my life appear to be all sunshine and lollipops. I actually found myself, at times, trying to think of things that happened during the day that were "bad" or "unhappy"...just so people wouldn't think I was fake. After thinking about it for awhile, I decided that I really shouldn't care what people think (at least I should try not to!). I decided that I would just be who I was and I would post what I really, truly felt and thought about my life and my family. If people thought I was too ooey gooey and lovey dovey, well then, so be it!

The truth is, I am blessed and most of the time I do feel like life is sunshine and lollipops...I can't help it...I'm an optimist. :) Don't get me wrong, I have my share of bad days, but I thank God for giving me all that is good in my life... a cute, loving and funny husband, three unique and adorable babies, friends who share my ups and downs, and family (on both sides) who we could not love more and who love us in return. God is good and I have a thankful heart.

We spent the day with the Moser clan at Papa and Nana's house...

Everybody loves a baby...

Benny LOVES his cousin Ellie. They have so much fun together. They took all of the toys in Nana and Papa's basement into their "secret clubhouse" in the bathroom. Sorry to anyone who had to pee. :)

My kiddos love Granny and Angy too...and I'm pretty sure Granny and Angy love my kiddos.

Finally, some random shots from turkey day. I especially like the awesome tattoos Christina and Michelle are sporting...very classy. By they way, anyone looking for a fun and funny game to play with family...try this one. It's great for a crowd (even the kids can join in...if you keep it G rated) and doesn't require too much brain power...my kind of game!

Happy Thanksgiving from sunshine and lollipop land! :)

It's not even Thanksgiving yet...

2010-11-23T17:53:00.010-05:00

and we've already celebrated Christmas with my family, but it sure was fun! With Mike being a high school basketball coach, it's always been challenging for us to get home to Missouri in December (because of his practice and game schedule). Since we have three kiddos now, it was virtually impossible for me to find a way to make it work this year without his help. I couldn't picture myself flying (do they let you fly with two lap children...ha?!) or driving (10-12 hrs) with three kids by myself...especially considering the ages they are right now (maybe I'll be brave enough in a year or two). Anyway, it was so nice to have my whole fam make the trek here to Ohio to celebrate...even if it was a little early! There were eight extra bodies in our house, but the chaos was fun.

Last week, in preparation for their arrival, we put up our Christmas tree. Ben LOVES helping with the tree, so I let him stay up extra late with me to help put on all of the ornaments. Nattie is not quite as helpful as her big brother, even though she thinks she is! My mom and dad shipped all their presents to me in advance, so it was fun to immediately have lots of pretty packages to put beneath the tree (especially since I didn't have to do the wrapping!).

I asked my mom if she would make us some new stockings this year, since I didn't have any that matched for Nat or Andy. I sent her some links to different ones I liked online and she made me the ones below. She is amazingly talented and I LOVE them. She even kept extra material in case we decide to have more babies someday (always thinking!).

Present time! Natalie got a kitchen from my parents and some play food and Ben got a cash register, so now they can play store together. Emma got a medical kit and my mom made her a pair of scrubs to go along with it (her mom, Jenny, is a nurse). Audrey and Andy were little enough to not really give a hoot about presents, which was a good thing (you can only deal with so many kids opening gifts at once!).

Mom also made aprons and chef hats for Nattie and Emma to wear while they "cook" in their kitchens (Emma has her own kitchen at home). I thought they were so cute...even Ben liked the hat.

I love my family...

An attempt at getting a picture of all the kids in their Christmas jammies...I took about 50 other pictures that were hilariously awful just to get this "not even that good" shot...oh well! Grammy had to make her way into the picture to try to control things a bit. After this, I'm pretty sure Ben, Nattie and Emma got naked and chased each other around the house (don't ask?!). :)

Just hanging out...

The big kids. We got out of the house on Sunday evening and went to Winking Lizard. What's a trip to Ohio without going there, right?

Ben got a box full of old costumes that my brothers wore for Halloween over the years. He tried them on one time while we were visiting my parents and has talked about them ever since. Grammy cleaned them up and VOILA...they made a fun and special Christmas present. The glasses and "stache" below came in the box. Looking good, Benny!

This just makes me smile...

Finally, here are a few pictures of my boys from yesterday afternoon. Andy is 12 weeks old already...crazy! Ben got some MagnaTiles as one of his gifts and loves them already (so do Nattie and Mike...cool toy!). He asked me to come check out his church and all of its "steebles." Hey, at least he knows what a steeple is, right? :) I was kind of impressed.

Mom, Dad, Adam, Jenny, Emma, Audrey, Eric and Erin...thanks for coming! We loved celebrating with you! Love you and miss you already! (Surprisingly, my house actually seems quiet now (kind of)). :)

What I am...

2010-11-15T22:55:00.009-05:00

Lately, Nattie, Ben and I have been addicted to watching Sesame Street songs/episodes/clips on YouTube. I ran across this song that will.i.am recorded with all of the characters and I can't stop listening to it. I've even been listening to it when the kids are asleep. It's just happy and catchy and the message is awesome. Those people over at Sesame Street are geniuses.

Impromptu family photo with my camera timer...not too terrible for the end of the day...at least we're all looking!

Ben has been watching all of our Christmas movies lately. The other afternoon he watched Elf and afterwards, he turned a big cardboard box into his sleigh. He piled some toys and books on the back and "flew" around the kitchen shouting "Merry Christmas!"

I really like the fact that our middle baby is also our only girl. I just think she'll always be something special. This age is so fun and she has the funniest little personality.

Look at my big boy! He does a great job of holding his head up and he has rolled from tummy to back three times now. I keep thinking it's a fluke, but then he does it again.

Nattie and Ben glued to Sesame Street on YouTube. A couple of times I've heard a foreign language coming from the computer, only to find that they are watching SS clips made for other countries. Apparently, they are just as entertaining when you don't understand a word Big Bird is saying. :)

Finally, a little story time with Dad (I like how Nattie has her arm around Andy)...

I'm putting up the tree this week...crazy, I know...but my WHOLE family is coming to visit this weekend and we are celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas...so, the holidays have officially arrived at our house. Woohoo!

Our Hoosier friends...

2010-11-14T14:46:00.004-05:00

Our very good friends (from our college days at Taylor) came to visit this weekend. It went too fast, but it was fun just to hang out, talk, and eat (a lot).

Ben and Will...great buddies! They had so much fun together...watching Scooby Doo, having a sleepover in their Lightning McQueen sleeping bags, making a disaster of the basement and going on imaginary adventures together. It is neat to watch the start of what, I hope, will be a lifelong friendship for the two of them.

Mike and Josh went to watch a Malone football game yesterday afternoon and to visit with their old TU coach...Coach Wilt...who is now one of the assistant coaches for MU. Last night, the guys grilled out in the dark...I'm sure the headlamp was super helpful?! :)

Me and Karrie after an entire day of lounging on the couch...

We love you guys! Thanks so much for coming to visit.

Same faces....

2010-11-10T23:50:00.007-05:00

and more of the same stuff from our days at home. This week has been a super lazy one...but that's ok with me, becuase the next three are going to fly by.

Me and my girl this morning...

I know these pictures of Benny aren't really anything to write home about, but I just love his face. I love his droopy eyelids, long eyelashes, pouty lips, turned up nose and sticky-outie ears. I can hardly believe he is five and half years old. He is still a big ol' baby in a lot of ways, but amazes me everyday with the grown-up words and thoughts that come out of his mouth. We've had many discussions lately about why God does what he does. It seems like he is constantly asking us questions like...Why does God make bad people? Why did God make mosquitos? Why do I sin?...etc. On the way to pre-K last week we somehow got on the topic of Heaven and having a new body/new life. I looked in the rearview mirror and he had big tears rolling down his face. I asked him what was wrong and he said "Mom, I don't want a new life. I like my old life. What is wrong with this life?" It's so hard to explain this stuff to him, when I barely get it myself. Oh...it makes my brain hurt just thinking about it.

My daily outdoor photoshoot with Nat...

When I went into her bedroom this morning to get her, she had her boots on. I've always liked the boots with pj's look. :)

A close up of A-Dub...I've never called him that until now, but I think I kinda like it (you know, for Andrew Walter).

I just had to post this picture. I love when I walk into the bathroom to find the toliet paper roll looking like this. I'm pretty sure Nattie unrolled the whole thing while Ben was going to the bathroom (she likes to hang out with us while we "go") and he tried to fix it. Lovely.

Finally, here is little man's video debut. This is as much action as I could get out of my 2 month old (I love the smiles!). Oh and please try to ignore my really annoying baby talk. I can't help it. :)

Hourglass...

2010-11-08T14:00:00.009-05:00

I'm in love with a song I recently heard by Mindy Gledhill called "Hourglass" (love her song "Whole Wide World" too!). It's kind of sad, but so sweet. It's a reminder of how life is like an hourglass and how we should cherish the moments we are experiencing right now. I feel that way about my kids and wish I could just stop the sand some days....makes me so thankful to have had these weeks at home with my babies.

On that note, my maternity leave and time as a full-time stay-at-home mom is flying by at record speed. I technically only have two weeks until I'm supposed to be back at work. I decided to take some vacation hours and head back the week after Thanksgiving instead...giving me one extra week at home. I'm only going to be working 24 hours a week (reduced from 30) when I return, with a half day from home each Friday, so I am still looking forward to spending lots of time each week with my kiddos. The part-time schedule really makes it easier for me to go back, so I'm thankful for that!

Last week, Papa and Nana took the week off from work and asked if they could take Ben and Nattie to Great Wolf Lodge (a really cool indoor waterpark) for a little getaway. They were only gone for a little over 24 hours, but I think they had a blast. It was SO quiet in my house without them here, but Andy and I lived it up by spending many hours at the mall shopping in peace. :)

A few pictures from their camera...

I was watching Nattie play one morning last week and was pretty amused. She was treating Buzz and Woody like she would her baby dolls. I guess she thought they'd like a little ride in the bouncy seat.

I can't believe this little guy is 10 weeks old already. He is an angel (except in his carseat...hates the darn thing). He sleeps a ton...feels like way more than my other kids, or maybe I've finally figured out how to do a sleep routine right?? He is just precious and we could not love our littlest buddy more.

"Um, hello!? Mom, can you not see that I am slowly sliding off this chair?"

Snuggle time with Daddy on Sunday afternoon...

Ben has a wide variety of interests...one minute he is playing with Duplo blocks and the next he's watching a little Dukes of Hazzard. I know my parenting skills are being questioned right now. What can I say? He likes whatever Daddy likes! He even went and found his car that looks like "The General Lee". :)

Little sunshine girl...

I've titled this one..."Glowing Ears"

Just had to showcase her cute leggings and boots...

Some random snuggle shots. We love pajamas at our house and would stay in them 24/7 if we could.

A Benny prayer... "Dear Jesus, I pray for the little girl with the hurt brain. Please heal her and help her to be healthy. (Kate McRae for those of you who follow her) Thank you for Mommy and Daddy and Natalie and Andy and everyone in the world. (So nice of you to be thankful for everyone in the world...wish I could say the same!) Thank you for all the wonderful food we have to eat. (Interesting, considering you LOATHE and DESPISE meal time.) Please help me to not have anymore nightmares and to only think good thoughts. In Jesus name we pray. Amen."

On the nightmare note, if anyone has any advice on helping to eliminate nightmares, I'd appreciate it. He has all of a sudden become very afraid at night and I'm at a loss. We are praying about it together, but he has such an imagination and it results in some pretty elaborate dreams. He was sobbing the other evening when I put him to bed because he knew he was going to have a nightmare and kept saying "Mom, why am I such a scaredy cat? I don't want to be a scaredy cat." It made me so sad. I told him that we all have bad dreams sometimes, but that they are not real and just in our heads. Poor buddy...I'm hoping they end soon!

Blue sky...

2010-11-03T10:50:00.008-04:00

Yesterday was one of the lazy days at home where I only left the house to take Benny to pre-K. I looked outside at about 2:30 pm and the tree in our backyard looked so pretty against the bright blue fall sky. Since Natalie and Andy were both sleeping soundly, Benny and I went out in the yard to play in the yellow leaves for a little while...and who am I kidding...I thought it was a good photo opportunity too!

It was a little chilly, so I told him he had to wear a coat. He wanted to wear his new OshKosh coat that we bought this past weekend (at Sam's Club, of all places) because Daddy told him it looked like something an Ice Road Trucker would wear. He thinks he's pretty cool now.

I never get tired of leaf throwing pictures. :)

When Nattie woke up from her nap, Ben and I showed her the pictures from the backyard and she kept saying "tree, side, shoes, tree, side, shoes." Meaning, "Mom, I want to play by the the tree outside. Go get my shoes." I have mastered the art of understanding baby speak. :) Well, she didn't really need shoes because she still had on her jammies (remember, it was a lazy day!). So, I let her go outside in her pj's. :)

Apparently it's supposed to snow this weekend, so we will enjoy playing in the leaves, in our pajamas, while we still can. :)

On another note, Mike ran in the "Run with Scissors" trail marathon with his buddy, Brandon, on Sunday and did a great job. Due to his recent surgery, he hadn't been as dedicated to keeping up with his running the last few weeks, but he ended up finishing only three minutes slower than his time last year (and he didn't get sick this time!). Way to go, Mick! (Oh..and he normally doesn't wear two hats at once. He's wearing the one he ran in, and the one he got for running the race. I'm not sure why...guess he needed a place to put it!?)

Trick-or-Treat!

2010-10-30T11:19:00.004-04:00

It's been a week of Halloween fun...carving pumpkins, making pumpkin chocolate chip bars, trick-or treating, and going to Boo at the Zoo. Here is, yet another, picture-filled post to document our fun!

Firefighter...

Pumpkin fairy...

Little cow...

It was really cold on Thursday for trick-or-treating, so we put a sock cap and mittens on Nat, which only added to the cuteness, if you ask me (notice the candy in both hands)!

Last night was Boo at the Zoo in Akron with Papa and Nana...it was fun, as always!

A little Nattie bootie...made me smile.

The Moser fam...

A clear sign that it was time to go...the one-year-old was getting restless. It's always nice to have grandparents around to wrangle the kids. :)

Pumpkin carving + some other stuff...

2010-10-27T22:30:00.007-04:00

For the last couple of years we've made it a Halloween tradition to carve pumpkins with Benny, and now Natalie. Since Daddy is still recovering from surgery on his wrist, we recruited Papa to come help out...Nana too! Papa did a great job and I even attempted one of my own (the less fancy of the three below).

Ben picked the first, Natalie picked the second and I guess Andy is stuck with my lovely work of art on the right. :)

While Papa was slaving over the pumpkins, Nana played with Nattie. They watched a little "Nightmare Before Christmas", which is always a favorite at our house around this time of year, and they pretended like they were going shopping with their fancy purses. Nana is nice and let's Nattie dig in her purse and put on her lipstick and perfume (which she still smelled like this morning). :)

This morning was one of those rare moments in time when my two oldest actually played nice together. While Andy was napping, we spent a solid hour and a half upstairs in Natalie's bedroom just reading books and playing with Natalie's basket of babies and stuffed animals.

I love this one of the two of them. :)

Finally, just a few random pictures from the last day or two. I made pumpkin chocolate chip bars today and Ben and Nat were loving the batter.

Just another attempt in my quest to obtain a cute picture of the three of them...

Tomorrow night is trick-or-treat time in our town and Ben is VERY excited to debut his costume. I think I'll have a hard time keeping him from wanting to put it on at 8 am. Thanks, again, Papa and Nana for coming to carve pumpkins with us...we love you!

This is the post that never ends.

2010-10-25T23:36:00.015-04:00

Yes, it goes on and on my friends. You started reading it not knowing what it was and you'll continue reading it forever just because. This is the post that never ends. Yes, it goes on and on my friends.

Ok, ok...so I couldn't think of a better title and I realize that most of you will probably get bored and quit reading before forever comes...but whatever. I blame Blogger and Google for the length of this post. The upload feature from my photo editing program to the blog hasn't been working the last three or four days, resulting in photo backup on my end. Lord knows I don't stop taking pictures just because the Internet is being stupid. Oh..and He also knows that if I've captured a remotely cute picture, I must post it. And that, my friends, is the reason this is the post that never ends. Yes, it goes...

The littlest Moser turned eight weeks old on Sunday. He is, by far, my most smiley baby at his age. I love that about him. He is quite the little chatter box too. He has been an excellent sleeper for me and is only getting up once in the night and has even slept through the night a couple of times...yahoo! I find myself calling him "Walter" a lot (his middle name...after his Papaw who passed away a year and a half ago) and every time it comes out of my mouth I laugh a little. We just LOVE our little buddy.

I had the camera on timer and was trying to get Andy to smile. Ben was being a goofball in the background. I love the combination of their facial expressions (click on the photo to enlarge it).

I know I am extremely biased (feel like I always need to preface with that), but I think Nattie is getting cuter by the minute...not just in looks, but in personality too. It is just so fun to finally start to be able to communicate with her verbally. She does NOT stop talking/screaming/yelling (mostly at her big brother). Her speech is becoming more recognizable and she is starting to put two words together more and more. In addition to "luh you" and "tank you", she started saying "touch it" this week after Daddy let her touch his hurt arm (from his recent surgery). She has said "touch it" no less than 9,000 times since then.

When Ben is at preschool and Andy is napping, I get some alone time with Nat. I just can't keep from taking pictures of her cute face.

While we were playing in the front yard, she spotted the mail truck coming down the street and sat down in the middle of the driveway to wait for it to arrive at our house. She kept saying "mail, mail, mail" over and over and proudly waved to our mail lady. (Doesn't the sky look cool in these pictures? I didn't modify the color at all!)

She is the spitting image of her Daddy.

On Saturday evening, Mike and I took Benny on a date to the circus in Cleveland. It was a first for all of us and it was SO MUCH FUN! I'm pretty sure Mike and I enjoyed it as much as Ben did. He was, seriously, jumping up and down and smiling for the entire two and half hour show.

I think he was really in need of some alone time with us. As we were walking in to the arena (we were on either side of him holding his hands) he looked up at us and said "I love you guys!" I got to thinking how much his world has changed over the last year and half. He went from being the center of the universe for three and half years, to sharing his mom and dad with not one, but two siblings. It's good for him to learn that the world doesn't revolve around him, but it was fun, even if just for an evening, to let him feel EXTRA special.

Yet another example of how we go all out fixing ourselves up for family outings. We really like to rock the hooded sweatshirt, holey jeans, baseball cap look.

I was trying to make Nat and Ben lunch today and Nattie was driving me bonkers, so I came up with a new way to contain her (she's sitting on top of the refrigerator, in case you can't tell). After I took her down, she asked to get back up. Please don't judge me if you stop by and she's hanging out up there. It works for both of us. :)

That's it, you made it...congrats!

Leaves

2010-10-20T17:52:00.006-04:00

How silently they tumble down

And come to rest upon the ground

To lay a carpet rich and rare,

Beneath the trees without a care,

Content to sleep, their work well done

Colors gleaming in the sun.

At other times, they wildly fly

Until they nearly reach the sky.

Twisting, turning through the air

Till all the trees stand stark and bare.

Exhausted drop to earth below

To wait, like children, for the snow.

by Elsie N. Brady

Friendship and a sugar high...

2010-10-18T17:49:00.013-04:00

These are the faces of my best friends. We spent our college days at TU together and we've made it a priority to get together every year, even if only for a short weekend. It's just a special kind of friendship we have....one based on loyalty, commitment, and sharing the ups and downs of life. We're not really a bunch you'd hand pick to be friends, but somehow God brought us together and has allowed our friendships to grow over the last 13 years. We spent this past weekend together at my house and I LOVED having my friends around.

April, Abby, Me

Heidi, Jenny

This is why I love these people...they make me laugh. I'm pretty sure Mike thought we were total weirdos. I couldn't really disagree.

We made and ate an obnoxious amount of food in a 36 hour timeframe and I'm pretty sure I'm still on a sugar high... apple crisp, pecan pie, pumpkin chocolate chip bars, monkey muffins, white chili, baked ham sandwiches and a meal out to eat at Winking Lizard. It was good fall food and so YUMMY (Why did you all leave me with the leftovers? I am STILL eating!)!

The littlest babies of the bunch hung out with us too. Doesn't Reese have the cutest little smile? (Thanks to all the daddies who watched the big kids and to Nana too!)

Natalie holding the babies. How is it that she is the big girl already?!

We spent most of the weeked in our pajamas. We did manage to get dressed around 4:30 on Saturday and head to TJ Maxx for a three hour shopping spree. It was the only time we left my house (other than Winking Lizard on Friday night after we picked Abby and Jenny up from the airport). It's so fun to be lazy and just talk and laugh...oh..and did I mention...eat??

Thanks for making the trek to Ohio, friends. I'm so thankful for each of you! LOVE you!

And the ordinary stuff continues...

2010-10-15T00:47:00.004-04:00

They love their little brother and both really like to hold him (even Ben, as of late). Ben talks to Andy in a high pitched baby voice that makes me laugh and calls him "Andster". Whenever Nattie wants to hold Andy she says what sounds like "toon" and I have no idea why. :) I have discovered that this is, perhaps, the only time during the day when she sits still, so I'm all for it.

Ben can read! He is doing a GREAT job sounding out words and has been showing more of an interest in reading lately. We have a LeapFrog video and book set that he is practicing with. It is so fun to watch him get excited when he figures out a word!

I don't have any idea why these two would be interested in taking pictures?? I gave them my old camera this week and it's been a hit. Nattie walks around saying "cheese" to everyone and Ben takes pretend pictures of Nattie and says things like "Oh, what a great photo!" (Jenny, when I read your blog post about Emma and her love for the camera I realized we must both be a little picture happy!)

This is what my almost 7 week old was doing this morning at 7 am...even after I had to WAKE him from his slumber so we could take Daddy to the hospital. He slept through the night for the very first time last night (total fluke...I'm sure!). Mike had a minor surgery done on his wrist this morning (to remove a cyst).

I'm sure I will get yelled at for putting this picture on the blog, but the blue surgical hat thing made me laugh...a lot. The surgery went well and hopefully he'll be using his arm again soon!

Finally, because I love their faces...here they are again, my kids.

Just some ordinary stuff...

2010-10-12T20:36:00.003-04:00

Making pancakes with Daddy on Saturday morning (notice Elmo on TV in the background and Big Bird and Cookie Monster on the counter...she LOVES her Sesame Street friends right now!)...

My cute, blue eyed, shaggy haired, five-year-old...

I love the little flips in Nattie's hair now. People still think she's a boy (mostly the elderly...why is this??)...but I think she is beautiful (I'm not biased or anything...ha!). I told her this morning that she was gorgeous (because every one-year-old needs an ego boost) and all day she has been saying "gorgeous" in her cute baby voice.

Playing outside this morning waiting for Benny to get home from pre-K...I love how she is waving to her own shadow in the bottom left picture.

Another attempt at getting all three of them to look and smile at the same time...we are slowly but surely improving! :) At least nobody is crying in this one!

Just wanted to document this one mostly for myself...but one of my favorite things about Nattie right now is how her speech is developing. She still isn't putting a lot of words together yet, but she is starting to more and more. For the past month or so, whenever we say "love you" to her she responds back with a "luh you" to us. It is the cutest thing and makes me smile every time. I also love when we get a "pease" (please) and "tank you" (thank you).

Finally, a Benny story...the other night he and Nattie were taking a bath together and I walked out of the room to put jammies on Andy (don't worry...I check on them frequently and Ben would tell me if anything bad was happening...trust me). Well, I heard water being poured OUT of the tub (which is a common occurrence with these two). I yelled in there and said for them to STOP splashing water out of the tub. I walked in to find about 10 gallons on the floor and Ben said "Mom, I'm sorry, but Nattie encouraged me to do this." I asked him how so, and he said "She dumped a whole cup of water on the floor first and that encouraged me to do it too." Nice...well then, I guess that makes it ok....and what five year old uses the term "encouraged" anyway?

October evenings...

2010-10-09T11:09:00.003-04:00

I love fall evenings. I love the colors and the smell and the cool air on your face. We went for a short walk one evening this week at a park near our home and it was so pretty. Fall colors aren't even at their peak yet and I still thought it was beautiful.

Crazy, lazy, happy, busy, tired...

2010-10-06T19:13:00.013-04:00

I feel like all of those words describe life these days...sometimes we're lazy, sometimes we're busy...sometimes we're happy and tired and crazy all in the same moment...but I wouldn't have it any other way. I've never been happier than I am right now. :) Life feels full and I feel blessed.

Just as a warning...since I'm home all day, every day, with my munchkins I take an obsessive amount of pictures (like you hadn't figured this out yet). I pretty much just carry my camera around with me all day. Anyway, this post is just another example of my addiction to documenting life with kiddos. I will never wonder, later in life, how we spent our days!

Doesn't she look so innocent and sweet loving on her little brother? Well, she is a sweetie one minute and a little devil the next...but that's what makes her so cute (and funny)...in my humble opinion.

In case you didn't get enough of Andy's smile in my last post...here's some more! This morning (at the crack of dawn before Nattie even woke up!) his big brother was making him giggle out loud. Andy was making some cooing sounds and Ben got so excited because he SWORE Andy's first word was "Ben!" :)

These next few pictures are for my sweet friend from work, Lynne . She made each of my kiddos these warm fleece blankets. We love them and we love her too!

I promise Andy likes his blanket...but, alas, the stars did not align and allow me to capture three kids smiling and looking at the same time...oh well.

We stayed in our jammies most of the day today and played in the basement. Doesn't cowboy Ben look tough with his gun and hat and doggie pj's?? :) Then there is cowgirl...who preferred the Mickey hat over the cowboy hat. :)

Ben decided to line up all of the doggie stuffed animals we own (insane!). If you are someone who frequently brings my children gifts (hint, hint...great-grandmas)...please notice that we DO NOT need anymore dog stuffed animals...or any type of stuffed animal, for that matter...ever again...ever. Your love is all we need...for real...I'm serious. :)

Nattie (and Ben) have a new love for Nutella and the top left picture if proof all over Nat's face. We had never tried it before but saw it by the peanut butter when we were grocery shopping. I had read that it was a healthy treat that kids like, so we gave it a whirl. All this week Ben has been asking for the chocolate peanut butter sandwiches...if it tastes like candy and it's healthy...I'm all for it!

Have I mentioned that I love him? He is the calm during my day (except for when I'm trying to get ready...then he decides to scream bloody murder...go figure?!).

I know this is ridiculous...pigtails on my little girl when she still barely has any hair. It is FINALLY starting to grow though and she is all about looking pretty, so I convinced her to sit still long enough for me to try this. I don't think she'll be wearing this look out yet...but it made me smile and she thought she was hot stuff. She walked up to Ben and said "pretty"...like, check me out! :) (By the way, she isn't naked in this picture...she has on a diaper...it just doesn't look like it!)

Only as a joke...I saw this devil mask (see below) in the $1 bins at Target and had to get it (and a Frankenstein mask for Ben). Like I said, she is a sweetie pie one minute and a little devil baby the next. Just a few examples of her crazy devilish behavior over the last day....

- As I was writing an email to friends yesterday, Ben yelled from the kitchen. Nattie was standing on the kitchen table swinging the light fixture and simultaneously dumping her milk all over his plate full of food.

- When I was on the phone yesterday afternoon, for literally two minutes, I heard Nattie doing something in the laundry room. I found her squirting Windex all over herself (including her face!). She smelled like a shiny, clean, window. Wonderful parenting, Ali!

I realize most of this stuff is normal toddler behavior (hitting Ben, getting in the crib with Andy, and the shenanigans above)...but Ben was SO different...so I feel like I'm experiencing and dealing with this stuff for the FIRST time! Oh...and her favorite word....you guessed it...NO! I bet she says it at a minimum...100 times a day.

Finally, just wanted to share a few of Ben's recent funnies/accomplishments. Yesterday, we were talking about his Halloween costume and I told him I thought he should wear the hat that went with the costume. He disagreed and replied by saying, "Mom, I am not wearing that helmet. If you make me wear it, I will personately remove it from my head!" Yes, you read that right, PERSONATELY (he meant personally). I love when he tries to talk like an adult and gets it wrong.

Oh..and in terms of Ben's most recent and severely delayed accomplishment...he's finally wiping his own rear (sometimes). He, apparently, has had a phobia of getting poo on his hands...even his own. I'm glad we are slowly but surely overcoming this fear because the yelling from the bathroom ("MOM, COME WIPE MY BUTT!") was really getting old.

Wow..this was long and probably a bit boring...but it's my life and I love it. :)

Say "cheese"!

2010-10-04T15:10:00.007-04:00

Ok, so he didn't say "cheese"...but he definitely smiled and I finally caught it on camera! I love this little boy...a whole lot.

An apple a day...

2010-10-02T14:39:00.003-04:00

This morning we took a little trip to Bauman Orchards to pick apples. It cooled off a lot in the last day, so it's perfect fall weather. I loved spending the morning outside with my little family.

On the hayride out to the orchard...

Nattie girl picking some apples...it's hard to believe how old she seems (and is!) when I look at pictures from our trip to the orchard last year.

Just because I thought this was cute... :) (Thanks for the cutest socks ever, Ann!)

My big boy...

Just a couple of my littlest man sleeping in the carrier...he liked it.

The view we have of these two crazies most of the time...

Now the two littlest are napping, Benny is watching the movie Nightmare Before Christmas (gearing up for Halloween...he's pumped because he got his costume last night!), and Daddy is lounging on the couch in the basement watching the Ohio State football game. The sky is cloudy and it looks like it might storm...definitely a cozy, fall day in Ohio and I love it!

Walsh Farms!

2010-09-29T19:18:00.006-04:00

Today, the kiddos and I headed over to Walsh Farms for some fall fun! It's not even October yet, but I am really getting the fall itch and wanted to do something outdoors for a change! I LOVE FALL!

Andy slept the entire time we were there...made it much easier to manage three kids! :)

We checked out some farm animals...

Played in the dried corn "sandbox"...

When we got home, I took off Nattie's shoes (see below!)....she walked around the farm for several hours like this! :)

Went on a hayride...it was SO bumpy...poor Andy looked like he was getting whiplash! Nattie and Ben had fun, but I had a hard time taking clear pictures it was so rough! The farm dog came for the ride with us!

What a fun afternoon!

Wild woman...

2010-09-28T18:19:00.004-04:00

I need help! What do I do with this crazy girl of mine? You know that poem about a girl with a curl and how when she's good, she's very good and when she's bad, she's horrid. I think that's Nattie. I have one big fear in life...that something bad would happen to one of my three kids...or even worse than that, that something bad would happen to one of my three kids and I COULD have prevented it. Well, today, I feel like I came a little too close to realizing this fear...and I bet you can guess who was involved in this drama...yes...Nattie!

Andy's crib is in our room (since we don't have a fourth bedroom)...I fed him and laid him down for a nap this morning and I snuggled Nattie in our bed (and locked our bedroom door). I put on an Elmo movie for her, since I was planning to take a quick shower before Ben got out of pre-K (this routine has taken place many times over the last four weeks...by the way). I jumped in the shower and figured everything would be fine, as always (aside from the fact that Nattie usually gets down off the bed and empties a few of my dresser drawers for fun). :) Uh...not today! I got out of the shower and opened the bathroom door to make sure everything was ok. I didn't see or hear Nattie....weird. I looked around for a second and THEN I SAW HER...she was sitting quietly next to Andy IN THE CRIB. She had somehow managed to climb up into the crib and had even pulled in several extra blankets along with her. I panicked and ran across the room hoping Andy was not buried under blankets and praying that he was still breathing!! I have NO IDEA if she stepped/jumped/landed on him or what, but he was sound asleep, looked perfectly fine, and didn't even seem to notice that she was there. She was gently rubbing his head and smiling at me like it was a good idea or something. She loves him so much, but, as you can imagine, she is still learning what it means to be gentle. I am so lucky she didn't put blankets over his head or break one of his bones or try to pick him up out of the crib (the list of possibilities could go on and on!). Thank the Lord that nothing terrible happened because I would NEVER forgive myself...ever!

Anyway, after everything seemed to be ok, I had to do what every mother would do...snap a photo (ok...maybe not EVERY mother, but the camera just happened to be in my bedroom!). I then promptly removed Natalie and raised the crib rail! What am I going to do with her? (P.S. Please don't report me to child protective services...I promise Andy doesn't sleep in a crib filled with children and blankets...at least not intentionally and I won't be taking anymore showers...ever.)

On a much lighter note...I thought this picture was REALLY cute. A rare moment when Ben actaully smiles normal and is willing to sit still long enough to hold Andy. :)

Trying to put on Ben's football jersey tonight. Crazy woman...

Ben took these pictures of me and Andy this afternoon. Andy is getting so BIG already. He will be a month this week...whoa! He is such a good boy and has given us his first smiles the last few days. I am definitely in love with my littlest man.

Another 26.2...

2010-09-26T19:10:00.003-04:00

My hubby did it again...he finished his fifth marathon yesterday! This was his third year to do the Akron Road Runner Marathon. He set the bar kind of low for himself this time around, since he didn't feel like he took his training as seriously as he had in the past, but his finish time sure didn't show it. He finished in under four hours! There were 12,000 people running in the race, so it took him three minutes just to get to the starting line once the marathon actually began. I don't know if all marathons do this, but Mike had it set up so that my cell phone would get text messages at different points in the race, so I would know how he was doing. It's really neat and very convenient for me...I simply showed up (with all three kids and Nana in tow) about 25-30 minutes before he was set to cross the finish line...perfect timing. :) Poor guy gets very nauseous and sick after almost every marathon he runs. Luckily, after a few hours, he is back to normal. He's tried everything under the sun to figure out why this happens, but it just seems to be what his body does. Way to go, Mick...you rock! Benny is excited to have yet another race medal to claim as his own. :)

Papa ran on a marathon relay team and caught up with Mike at the end of the race to help him finish strong (moral support!). :)

Oh...and here's just a few pictures that were on my camera from the last few days.

These are a few from after church today...this little girl took a short nap and then decided to get out of bed and terrorize her room. She pretty much emptied every drawer out onto the floor...lovely. Plus, upon entering her room, I was hit in the face with the wonderful scent of poopy diaper...awesome! She's something else...luckily, she's cute. :)

Speaking of my little lady, today Mike burped and Nattie looked at him and said "pig." :) I guess she's heard me call Daddy a "pig" one too many times when he decides to burp or toot (can you tell I have kids?). Oops! :)

Insanity is hereditary.

2010-09-22T21:43:00.004-04:00

You get it from your children. :) I read that quote somewhere once and it gave me a little chuckle. There have definitely been moments of insanity this week, as I try to do this whole "mother of three" thing by myself...my mom is gone, Mike is at work...it's just me and the kiddos. I have actually been looking forward to the challenge...just because I wanted to see if I could do it (like I had a choice). Overall, we've had a really good week so far and I've actually felt like I was maybe even doing a decent job!

In an effort to shed the 15-20 extra pounds I'm carrying around, I decided it would be a good idea to push Nattie and Andy in the double stroller a mile and half to and from Ben's preschool each day this week to pick him up. I'm SO out of shape and that stroller is heavy! They were great on the walk and Ben loved pushing all the crosswalk buttons on the walk home...so, I guess it was a good idea. :) (AND yes, I know I should take Nattie's pacifier away...but I just haven't felt like it yet!)

Getting a good picture of the three of them together might be impossible, but I'm on a mission to make it happen...stay tuned. :) (The bottom right picture just makes me laugh...Ben just wants to get off the couch, Andy is miserable, and Nattie is wondering why the heck she has to smile when everyone else is clearly not up for it!)

Can you find the real babies?

Natalie has been a bit of a challenge these last few weeks. She is very loving to her baby brother for the most part, so I'm grateful for that. She only gets jealous (at least overtly) when I'm nursing him or when I can't physically hold her or do something with her. The biggest thing I've noticed is the way she's been treating her big brother...which I think is kind of interesting since he has always been around. She has been letting her frustration out on him as, I guess, some kind of attention seeking thing?! She has been downright mean to him, actually. She will, out of the blue, walk up to him and whack him upside the head with a book or toy...for no reason at all. If he's playing with a toy on his own, she'll come up and kick it or mess up what he's doing (getting a BIG reaction out of him! I try to tell him that the less he reacts the less she'll do it...but that is NOT easy for an expressive five-year-old to do!). She's just been a little stinker and, of course, it's the worst when I'm nursing or she's tired. I've been struggling with how to discipline her when I'm in the middle of feeding Andy. I feel like she needs immediate discipline, but I can't justify interrupting him to do it and then by the time I'm done I feel like she won't understand why I'm just now putting her on timeout or reprimanding her. I know it's very frustrating to Benny and he handles it pretty well...most of the time...but I need to figure out how to handle it! Any and all advice is welcome. :) She is definitely my feisty child...not used to this!!

Here is the crazy woman... I just love her...despite the wild behavior lately! She is definitely getting her own, unique personality.

Happy Birthday, Pappy! (and some other stuff)

2010-09-19T22:54:00.008-04:00

Mike and I got to go out on a date (kind of) on Friday night. My mom was still in town and stayed home with Ben and Nattie, while we went out on the town with Andy. :) It was heavenly and quiet. We ate Mexican, got Starbucks, and walked around the mall for a couple of hours. As you can tell from the photo below, we like to get really dressed up when we go out.

Here's Grammy (also known as "Gangy" according to Nat), Ben and Nattie doing a little art at the kitchen counter. It was so great to have my mom here for the last two weeks. She bought us groceries, cooked dinner every night, did the laundry, cleaned the house, entertained my kids, let me sleep in while she got breakfast ready, ironed about 25 shirts that had been sitting on top of my dryer for, literally, months, made curtains for Nattie's room, and the list goes on! She was like Superwoman or something! Mom, thank you so much for everything you did. You made my recovery and the transition to three kiddos much easier! We love you and really appreciate you!

My little buddy...three weeks old today!

Yesterday, we celebrated Pappy's 8oth birthday! Paps has Parkinsons and has his good moments and bad moments throughout each day, but yesterday he seemed to be doing wonderfully and really enjoying all the fun. He had sisters in from West Virgina, friends from church, and of course, his Ohio family at his party. I hope he felt loved.

Here 's the happy couple...Paps and Angy. Angy is a wonderful example of a loving wife...in sickness and in health. She takes such good care of him and loves him unconditionally.

Pappy with his grandkids and great-grandkids!

Ben and Papa having a cake eating contest! About three bites into his piece of chocolate cake, Benny started to make a funny face and rub his belly...he said "Ooohhhh, I think I've had enough sweets today!" and that was it...the contest was over. :) It was fun while it lasted, but lets face it...Ben will NEVER win an eating competition. :)

Just a few other random party pictures...

Here's to many more happy birthdays, Pappy!

A tooth, the park, and a "new" room...

2010-09-16T00:15:00.002-04:00

Yep, it's another one of those mish mosh posts.

Benny lost his first tooth this week! Last time we went to the dentist she said that he was just a few months away from losing his bottom two and she was right. I thought five seemed a little young to be losing teeth...but I guess it's normal. I guess he'll be the only Kindergartner next year with big guy teeth!? He lost it during his flag football game and he yelled from the field "Hey mom, did you see what just happened? I lost my tooth!" and then he had to have Coach Daddy find it somewhere in the grass! The tooth fairy was pretty generous this time...but she'll defiinitely be cutting back for all future teeth (in order to avoid going broke!). :)

Here is the cute guy holding his tooth and showing off the "hole" in his mouth.

Sweet, sleepy, snuggle bug...

We headed to the park today and had some fun. Nattie shut her eyes while Grammy was pushing her on the swing and honestly would have fallen asleep (it was nap time) if we hadn't moved on to something else.

My little tree huggers. :)

I mentioned awhile back that we had moved Natalie into a big girl bed in preparation for Andy's arrival...since he is using her (and Ben's) old crib. I really didn't feel like repainting her room, so I tried to find bedding that matched the current wall colors and then just added a few other cheap touches to make it work. I found her bedspread on clearance at PB Kids (it was the last one and didn't even have a single matching sham left...so it was a great price!). Grammy made a sham and some curtains for under $20 with material I picked out to match (pink with white polka dots) and I purchased a few inexpensive "accessories" from Target...the owl picture , pillow, and wall stickers. Everything else in her room stayed pretty much the same, but I thought it turned out cute for my "big" girl.

Here she is snoozing in her bed right after she fell asleep tonight (at 6:45 pm!).

Take another picture...

2010-09-13T19:10:00.004-04:00

with the click, click, click, click, camera. What? You haven't heard that one? It's a song on my iPod...not even sure who sings it...but it's catchy and gets stuck in my head. Anyway, it's a good title for this post that is chock FULL of pictures....more than normal, if that's possible.

I realized we didn't have ONE picture of all five of us together yet...so we tried. Not the greatest attempt, but it'll have to do. :)

Daddy and Andy watching the Ohio State game...Go Bucks!

A morning picture...I know I look kind of scary and extremely tired...but at least my kids are cute, right?

Cute brothers...

Grammy and her Moser grandkids...I'm sure the Schweiss grandkids are missing her by now...but we've got her for another week. Don't worry, Emma, Grammy is coming back and she got you a cool present today. :)

My sweet little girl (at least she looks sweet in this picture...I'd say fiesty is a better description of our middle munchkin!).

A Nattie photo shoot...love that little face.

Finally, we got out of the house yesterday...yipppeee for me! We headed to Szalay's and ate some roasted corn. It actually felt a little like Fall...so nice to get out!

I need to get out...

2010-09-10T08:58:00.005-04:00

...of my house! I've spent lots of time at home the last two weeks, obviously, and I'm going a little stir crazy. I'm feeling almost totally recovered from the delivery of my little guy, so hopefully we can get outside this weekend and feel a little more normal again! I tried to take some pictures a few days ago of all three kiddos together. The picture below was the best in the mix. Nattie's bow looks weird...and they both have forced smiles, but I still thought it was kinda cute. Thanks for the big brother and big sister shirts, Aunt Jenny and Uncle Adam! :)

Some of the other lovely shots...Ben's not weird or anything. :)

I woke up one morning this week to find every square inch of counter space in my kitchen covered in completed puzzles. Benny and Grammy had a busy morning...but it looked like fun! (Grammy is probably thrilled that I'm posting a no shower, still in robe, no makeup, picture of her for the world to see!)

Uncle Brad stopped by one evening and got to hang out for a bit. :)

Daddy and his littlest buddy. I love the picture of them looking at each other.

Family time...

2010-09-07T17:39:00.004-04:00

We've had lots of family together time this past week.

Nana and her three grandkids

Grammy and Pops arrived to meet their fifth grandbaby. Pops left yesterday morning and Grammy gets to stay for a couple of weeks. It's nice to have an extra set of hands to help out and Ben and Nattie are loving all the extra attention. :)

Just a few shots of my oldest baby. I have no idea what Grammy and Ben are doing in the bottom right picture, but it made me laugh.

My littlest baby...such a sweet boy. I guess I'll forgive him for having his days and nights mixed up right now. I am currently walking around like a zombie, thanks to him...but he's cute, so it makes up for it. He had his one week check-up today and he was 8 lbs 9 oz. He'd gained a whole pound since he left the hospital last week! :)

Love...

My middle baby...she's had a fever the last two days and has been up during the night as much as her little brother. I am only one person, so Daddy has been tapped to help quite a bit more in the night. He is currently walking around like a zombie now too thanks to this little munchkin. :)

Finally, a funny Benny comment.... he was eating his grilled cheese a few nights ago and I heard him tell his water... "Stand back, water. It's Benny versus this massive grilled cheese. Who will win?" I think he's watched one too many Man vs Food episodes with Daddy. :)

The Greats...

2010-09-03T19:40:00.002-04:00

Over the last several days the great-grandparents have come down to meet baby Andy and hang out with our kiddos. Andy is blessed, like Ben and Nattie, to have LOTS of "old people" to love him (don't worry...they aren't offended...they refer to themselves as "the old people"). :) We wish we lived close enough to stop by and visit my grandparents too!

Mamaw

Angy and Pappy

Granny

Just a few random shots from today...Nattie was in desperate need of a nap, but wouldn't let anyone but me put her to sleep. I was busy with Andy, so she joined me in the rocking chair and fell fast asleep on my lap. It really is heaven snuggling with two sleeping babies. :)

Sweet siblings...

2010-09-01T13:25:00.003-04:00

Somedays you feel like this about your brother and other days you feel like this (see below)....granted it's a different brother and he's not purposely trying to annoy you, like your older brother was (at least not yet!). I LOVE these top two pictures and have to find somewhere in my house to frame them. Nattie sat still in my hospital bed for at least 20 minutes yesterday just holding and kissing and snuggling her littlest brother. She is so tender with him (or at least she tries) and VERY interested. It's really cute to watch.

Just a few more of Nattie loving her baby brother. Look how big she looks next to him?! I picked her up this morning and couldn't believe how heavy she felt...sad.

Benny loves Andy too, but is far less interested in him. He is more of a "drive by" kisser and hugger...then he wants someone...anyone...to pay attention to HIM and play with HIM. We had to have a heart to heart this morning. He told me that soon he was going to be grown up and not live in our house anymore and Andy would still live here and we would love him more. I had to remind him that HE was the reason that we wanted to have more babies...because he was so special to us and that we will always love him lots and just as much as his little brother and sister. I had to remind him that Andy is brand new and is going to be getting lots of attention and that's a good thing...because we love Andy! Benny, Benny...you are SUCH a firstborn!

This little family makes me very happy...and kind of tired too! :)