Our summer in pictures

 My boys in their element

beauty queen

 my girl

 In-N-Out with Grandmommie

 Catching some rays

 Father's Day...B is very loved.

 Beautiful night for baseball

 Wilderness explorers

 Love.

 Three generations of mountain women

 perfect.

 yum...summer treat.

 5 years old...such a stud.

 90 and 16 months...precious

 And they are off.

 Our little love.

Words

It is now time for a listing of random things my children say.

Jackson: Mom, is "work in" a vitamin?
Me: What?
Jackson: That lady said she put a lot of work into her body and doesn't want to mess it up. Is that a vitamin?

Me (working in yard): There are so many weeds out here!!
Char: It will be ok boo.
Me: Did you just call me boo?
Char: Yes. It will be ok boo.

Me: We need to pack for Midland and something to wear to the wedding.
Jackson: Yeah, I have to look sharp so I can dance a lot.
Me: What will make you look sharp?
Jackson: Handsome shirt, handsome pants, handsome boots, handsome socks. You know.

Brandon: That was really good Jackson.
Jackson: Thanks. I have skills!
Brandon: You have been hanging out with your mom too much.

Oh and my current favorite words that are made up and/or mispronounced by my children:

lellow = yellow
actuadentaly = actually mixed with accidentally to mean actually
mawning = mowing the lawn

Let March Madness begin...

Watch out! We are moving up in the world. This month, Charlotte will turn 3, Kendall will turn 1, and we will be purchasing our first home. We close on the house on Charlotte's birthday as well, so she can hold the permanent record for most expensive birthday gift for the rest of her life. But Kendall will not be forgotten either. She will have her very own CRIB. That is right people. It only took our 3rd child reaching her 1st birthday for us to finally have a crib in our house for the "baby." My children are so deprived. Yeah right. Of course we still have never had a nursery, and my guess is that we never will. Oh well, seems like they never missed anything either way. So let that be a lesson to anyone who feels like they cannot go all out and decorate a nursery and get coordinated baby stuff to fill it and have a crib for that matter...your children will turn out just fine. And I will say that I felt a tiny bit guilty when Jackson only had a baby corner in our apartment and Kendall's room in the house was my office and a multipurpose room. But honestly, God has shown me that impressing other people or trying to keep up with how other people think you should do things is a complete waste of time. So onward we go. For all I know, Kendall won't want to sleep in the crib anyway and I will end up pulling back out the port-a-crib. Isn't that always how it works?

So, now I start planning birthday parties, finalizing paint colors, etc. I am telling you, when you buy a house or have children, it is a constant battle to keep from comparing how you doing things or how your home looks with others. But in the end, you just have to take one decision at a time and try to keep focused on the right things...Heavenly things. And enough of my soap box.

Bring it on March!

The Daily Grind

It is crazy to try to work when you have 3 little kids and no nanny or family in town...just plain crazy. I have to develop some kind of system to accomplish all the various tasks each day or eventually the adrenaline rush will wear off and I will crash.

Kendall is not a problem. She is in a word: content. But Jackson and Charlotte are showing more of their strong personalities each day. And Jackson has been informing me in the past week that I can simply put a movie on for Charlotte and him, so I don't have to listen to them talk! What?! When did that message get sent? Like I said, I need a good system and fast!

The things Jackson says...interesting how a 4 year old can be so perceptive and so ridiculous at the same time. His latest idea is to pray that God will turn the entire world into candy (furniture, trees, cars, everything) so he can eat candy whenever he wants. He doesn't get sugar very often because honestly he doesn't need any extra "energy," but it is all that is on him mind. Sometimes I just want him to go ride his bike instead of cooking up these elaborate plans to consume as much candy as possible. My biggest challenge with him is going to be deceitfulness. He has a tendency to hide things which is exactly how I was as a little kid. I have my work cut out for me.

And Charlotte. She is the sweetest most affectionate little girl and then flips a switch and an iron clad wall goes up. You cannot help her, touch her, or in any way reason with her. Hmmm...Brandon is going to have to deal with that action!

It is fascinating to me how children change and each year reveals more nuances to their personality. I love having conversations with each of them, but it is hard to have them testing and challenging what I say and mimicking what I do. One more reason to get organized and prioritize my time because the last thing I want is for them to in any way feel as if they are being put on hold while I take care of everything else in life. If anyone has a solution to this problem, feel free to share!

2012 Begins

Obviously I settled into to having 3 kids, or at least have survived. The first few months were a bit tricky, but Kendall is incredible and in many ways my saving grace. I have never been around a baby this content in my life. Watching the kids interact and incorporated Kendall into our family has been wonderful. Siblings are a blessing.

And here we are at the end of another year. Kendall Wynn is 9 months, Charlotte is 2 1/2, and Jackson is 4. They are fabulous and challenging everyday. But probably the best part of being a mom is seeing their little personalities revealed...or I guess I should say BIG personalities because none of our kiddos are lacking in personality.

Jackson and Charlotte have been going to KDO two days a week which has been good for all of us. They love the social interaction and school environment, and I enjoy the one on one time with Kendall. Jackson is smart and energetic. He comes up with the craziest lines of conversation and questions (LOTS of questions). He loves his sisters and is very protective of them, but he also wants to be just like Brandon. He informs me daily that he and B are the same, do everything the same way, and like all of the same things. Very sweet. And even though he is stubborn, he definitely wants to make us happy. A bit of a people pleaser like his mom.

Charlotte looks a lot like B and acts a lot like him too. She likes alone time but is very friendly. She is extremely curious, has to touch everything, will eat anything, try anything, and say anything. Her independence is asserting itself all the time these days and she likes to do things her way in her time. But she also is extremely loving. No one gives hugs like Char...except maybe her daddy. :)

Kendall Wynn...I have no words to fully describe my precious baby. Daily I wonder how she can be our child. She is a good sleeper, eater, and content to be in my arms just observing the activity in our house. Lately she has shown more strength though, letting her brother and sister know that she can defend herself! Basically my biggest challenge with her has been making sure she gets a couple naps each day in the midst of our daily schedule and the high noise level in our house. Lucky for me she is very adaptable. Here are a few pics to bring this blog up to date.

Mr. Cool.

Precious Kendall Wynn

The 3 Amigos

Sweet Charlotte...she is quite the princess.


2012 is going to be full of a lot of changes for us. We are planning to buy a home in March, so we will be moving a few blocks from where we live now. I am excited to be a home owner and to settle in for a little while and the kids are excited to move to a house with stairs! It is two story. Brandon is working hard and enjoying his job. There are many challenges for him as he has moved into a manager role, but he continues to be humbled by where God has placed him with LMI. I am trying to keep our day to day running smoothly and will begin a part time job this month as well, so time management will be of the essence. I always do better when I have a full schedule though, so hopefully it will help me prioritize my time and energy. The past year, my focus has been on adjusting to life with 3 kids and supporting Brandon in various transitions at work. But now I think it will be good for me to work as well so I can drop some habits and time wasting activities that have crept into my days. Going to be an exciting year!