I heart my IL family...

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!

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...

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...

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...

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...

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!

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.