Go Fish

It is so cute watching my children play games together.  (Especially when Britta is involved bc then no one plays to win which means no tears or fighting when someone else loses!)

Just look at how cute they are together!!

Sweet Times with My Ju Ju

With such gorgeous fall afternoons, Juliana and I have gotten to spend a lot of quality time outside together while Britta naps.  Here are some of the highlights of our times together--

Playing with her baby doll (the sweetness is just overwhelming sometimes).  Juliana and I played house and fed her baby and then took her for a walk.

 We swing out front and then climb the tree while we wait for the big kids to come home.

 So silly and beautiful!

Ju Ju wanted to take a picture of me too :-)

 Another afternoon she was Tigger and we went out on the trampoline to goof around.

 

And some days we bake cookies and make frosting for them.  Juliana loves to be a helper when I bake!

I have truly enjoyed my one-on-one time that I've had with each of my children.  They are such sweet, curious, and fun little people and I am truly blessed to be able to be at home with them.  While my days aren't always sunshine and roses, the good outnumber the bad and the bad days make me appreciate the good times that much more.  I certainly wouldn't trade this time for anything else in the world.

One More Park Day Before the Trip

 Before we were going to be in the car for two days, we took one more trip up to our school's park to enjoy the nice day!  The little girls just loved picking flowers, Christian eventually got over whatever was bugging him, Emily loved jumping and swinging, and Britta, well, Britta just loves being outside so she had fun too.

A bouquet from my loves.
Even sweeter than long-stemmed roses in my opinion!

 And a picture of all five where they're actually looking at the camera and smiling!

A rare moment, indeed.

A Bike Riding Metaphor

 Can it be that Kari is really old enough to ride a two-wheeler??  Yup.  Time's not slowing down!  (Just look at those cute little red shoes though.)

But back to bike riding...

Learning to ride a bike is a lot like growing up.  All kids start with a parent lovingly following (and panting) behind them.

 Little by little, they gain momentum (and independence)...

 Sometimes they veer off course (and crash into the lawn).  But, parents are always there to steer them back and get them going again.

 And, oftentimes there's a younger one following along, just wanting to be big too.

At last, with a lot of hard work and determination, our little ones are off and running (or riding) on their own, ready to find their own way!

(I may, or may not, be just a little teary-eyed while writing this post.  Sniff, sniff.)

Great job, Kari!  We are so proud of you!

Puppet Show

Our kids are so creative and fun!  

They colored and cut out pictures from a coloring book and put on a puppet show one evening.

You Know You're a Mom of Girls When...

You have an entire load of laundry that's pink.

Big Kid Love

These little girls sure love having their big siblings around!

Taking It Easy in the Summertime

As I'm writing this (Feb 1, 2016), we are in the middle of a blizzard warning.  Makes me excited for the warm spring and summer months that will eventually come our way again.

Ju Ju Enjoys Her Water Table

May had some gorgeous days so we were excited to get out an enjoy them!  Juliana wasted no time in enjoying her new water table.

Getting our hands wet just wasn't good enough though.  I told her she could climb in with her clothes on (they were already pretty wet), but Juliana was excited to get her swim suit on so we went that route instead.

Testing the waters with her tummy....

And she fits!  (Kind of)

 A couple of bum shots--they just capture the "essence" of being three, don't you think?

So content.