he turned one today.

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it’s really pretty hard … but i’m ignoring all the updated posts that are showing in my news feed.

must.post.first : )

my fingers are thawing out while i type – jacky went with me on a run this afternoon. it was rain not sweat that was dripping off my nose by the end of our loop around fields & orchards.

don’t be impressed …. it’s only the second two miles of the year.

he rode his bike & talked my ear off. he spider webbed conversations like a girl would, barely finishing a sentence before he was on to the next. then interrupting himself noticing shot gun shells or old tires in the bottom of the canal.

i wanted to record the whole thing – it was beautiful.

so hi! do you miss us? i miss us : )

i’ve gotten the ‘hey you should post sometime’ text from amie …. so that means it’s been awhile.

the other day i wanted to sit & post – monday was a holiday. rex was home. the kids had the day off school. it was a ridiculously gorgeous winter day. they were all outside, working & playing even little chady … cause he’s that big now.

he turns 1 next monday. one whole year.

so he’s big enough to cruise around in the walker. it’s especially thrilling when the little sister friends push him from place to place or benny ties ropes to the front & pretend he’s the wagon or the horse or the pirate ship.

i was inspired to take pictures …. even though the post never happened. i found my lost lens, too. that was a bonus.

these are all from other members of the family from last sunday morning when we rallied to make it to the donut shop before church.

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i love this one,  she’s singing at the top of her lungs les mis …. ‘do you hear the people sing, singing the song of angry men – it is the music of a people who will not be slaves again!!’

she carried around one of the pipes rex was working with in the field, skipping & singing away.

i love …. love.love.love 5 year old girls. her especially.

more working with dad – they even loaded chad, walker & all, up into the truck for a ride out back.

he humors me, when i sit like a wallflower & snap pictures while he works.

i’m still slightly aghast at the color my hair looks in these pictures – molly said she wanted to take my picture.

i also cut bangs last month – in case you hadn’t noticed ; )

 

she’s a beautifully, hilarious little fire cracker – with a personality unlike any of the others before her.

she told me the other day ‘you not we mother, you is we mom!’

i cannot bring myself to correct her misuse of pronouns yet.

‘we go to we house.’
‘to babysit we, mom?’
‘we not make we bed, mom?’
‘and daddy bring it home for we!!’

‘well death is another word for dying’ molly explained to regan as the ambulance passed our car with is sirens blaring

‘i’m done with school, mom. farewell!!’ ben proclaimed.

‘i’m temperature-ing the water, mom. i filled it wiht cold water & now i’m temperature-ing to see if its getting hot. maybe i should put a heater by it.’ ben, the wanna be scientist said.  mom, the detective now knew why the carpet was soaked.

jack told rex ‘dad i think ben will find a girl ‘wildy-ish’ or he won’t get married’

he also asked me ‘mom were you 71 when you got this house or 17?’

we’ll come back & do some birthday posting soon. he’s no longer 7.

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rex told me the other day it was probably ok & that we didn’t need to read about this part of our lives ten years from now …. ‘i’m sure we’ll just remember’ he said.

that was his not so subtle way of bringing up the lack of updated posts here : )

seems to me it’s either have something to read about in 10 years but not be able to read it or not have it to read & be able to read something else!

ie – school started : )

but here we are with a bit of time, so we’re going to give ourselves something to read about.

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it was back last summer when chad called & pitched this invitation to come to texas for christmas.
he had selling points like …..
“think how great it’d be’
‘i’ll cover the yard with inflatable blow ups’
‘we’ll get a big tree’
‘you can just buy reindeer antlers for the dogs & nothing for us’
‘lisa will bake enough sugar cookies for your kids to get sick on’
‘chad & amity can celebrate their 1st christmas together!’

we smiled & nodded over the phone to be polite, said it sounded like lots of fun – but really didn’t plan on even giving it a second thought.

but my mom was all over checking for great flights & mapping out routes from here to there. my dad was even willing to make a road trip of it …. like drive in a big van with all of us all the way there.

‘it’d be an adventure!’ he said

and we thought …. sure til about bakersfield : )

amie could just fly straight there & we’d all be together.

just like that.

just like that, we decided to go!

 

everything’s bigger in texas, they say, so this post is texas sized : )
some of my favorites …..

she wore boots & he carried the sign & we completely overwhelmed their baby & i almost cried ’cause already it was so totally worth it. 

we rented the biggest vehicle we were legally allowed to drive so we could all be together, brother boy made it extra festive with his santa hat.

we went to matt chandlers church – it was one of my favorite parts

so was the christmas eve service a couple nights later.

everyone got new christmas pants : )

i’m not sure how they could have been more armed – quite the christmas for 6 & 7 year old boys!

it SNOWED! it seriously snowed on christmas day.

she played santa clause on chrismas morning –

my favorite family picutre : ) ’cause it’s loudly colorful & there was still snow & ben doesn’t have a shirt on & chady looks like a christmas elf & it was freezing & we were together.

little cousins on the gym floor – it still slays me that there are two little babies in our family.

she’s fiercely competitive, my sister in law – we played one handed with babies in the other arm …. i won

we stood on a piece of history, on the x right out in the center of elm street where jfk was shot.

at the memorial

well i just like this one ….

my littlest boy ~

they really are great –

ahh, it really was that cold! i know, the rest of you are rolling your eyes at that – amie did too. snow & cold temps are common place when your from places like ohio, but! when you’re not … and you only have to be in them for a day : ) they make already great trips even better.

a family picture –
mom likes it when we do the ‘same pose’ & since a few years ago amie suggested we all stand like dorks lined up tallest to smallest, we’re now obligated to repeat it every time : ) little chady was especially excited.

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us all getting together means there will be a family picture. and a family picture is always an event : )

we missed the great overcast lighting in the morning, certain ones had no idea what to wear, it was cold, we didn’t have a tripod, etc, etc ….

but we still all group up, look when we’re suppose to look & smile …. or at least some of us do.

good times : )

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when you just can’t beat the timer -

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by the time we got to ‘let’s take a rodgers picture’ it was pretty much over ….

it looks like i’m ready to death grip one of them, doesn’t it …. really it was a you stand here motion, honest : )

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we forgive you for not having your yard covered with inflatable blow ups. thank you for an incredibly wonderful time.

  

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i feel like i’m jumping into the middle of life to stop in here real quick. we have way to much catching up to do.

we will go back and fill in things like christmas & vacations & texas & new years & life – but tonight we’re going to give a little press to dolly.

she turned 5 today. i’m sure when she turned one i thought the whole ‘i can’t believe she’s one already’ thoughts.

but i honestly don’t remember thinking that when she turned 2 or three or 4 – those ages just seemed appropriate & she fit into them nicely – but 5!

oh my …..

5 is like half way through kid age, like she’s well on her way to 10 now : ) i know huh, i don’t overreact or anything.

she’s beautiful, our dolly.  she likes fancy & flair & zebra stripes. she’s dramatic & emotional & slightly irrational.

we made muffins & read stories, we got the oil changed & picked out party plates, we went to the library & at fish tacos. she got a bike & a booster seat.

i was going to take her picture along this great white wall by the library ….. and she sat there all darling & smiling & my battery was dead.

and then tonight when i decided her candle blowing out needed more than just phone pictures i went & got a little point & shoot in my purse and after one blurry picture that battery died too.

she sat super excited waiting while rex wheeled in her bike.

so this is what we have ….. instagram snaps of her lighted birthday brownies, her happy birthday song & her blowing out her candles.

happy birthday dolls, i love you.

we’ll be back soon : )

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