St. Patrick strikes again...

Okay this post is a little late but better late than never right?
Last year the boys were surprised to learn about St. Patrick and this year, Dad and I were surprised to learn that Gabriel and Michael still remembered him.  So on  this year's St. Patrick's Day morning when the boys awoke, they immediately started looking for traces of St. Patrick the Leprechaun's visit.

Unfortunately, there were none.  Turns out St. Patrick forgot to visit...

Well at least he forgot to visit on St. Patricks eve.  That didn't stop all of us from celebrating on the lucky day.  We proudly put on our finest bright green shirts and pretended to be Irish.  In fact, Gabriel has decided it is so much fun to be Irish, he still randomly shouts out, that he wishes he was Irish.  We went on about our day and wished many people a Happy St. Patricks day. 

But as the day went on, Dad and I quickly learned that the boys were disappointed to see that St. Patrick, the Leprechaun had not come to visit them.  We reassured them though that maybe it wasn't that he forgot them, instead it was that he just hadn't been there yet and would stop by later that evening..

And what do you know, turns out Mom and Dad were right.  On the morning after St. Patricks Day, the boys awoke to signs that in deed the great St. Patrick the Leprechaun had left them a few of his special coins...

Outside the boy's bedroom was two piles of coins placed in a circle with a heart in the middle...

Showing off their proud collection...

And even Isabelle was given a gift from the generous Leprechaun

Here she is holding the Leprechaun's heart in her tiny little hand...

 And she celebrated by wearing the cutest green onesie and clover socks her uncle Nolan brought back for her from Ireland.  Although I can't post a picture of her in the onesie, it reads, "Probably the best baby in the whole world"  We completely and whole heartedly agree with it.

And here is a picture of her super cute booties... Thanks Uncle Nolan!

and Happy St. Patricks Day (belated).

Until next time,
Angie

It is July? Nope its still March...

but that doesn't mean it isn't swimming season for the boys.

Just this past week, Jarrett's aunt and cousins from Chicago came out to visit for Spring Break.  Although it was in the mid-80's, for Katherine and Claire (Jarrett's cousins), they thought it was the perfect time to take a dip in the pool.

And as soon as the boys heard about the tiniest chance that swimming was being discussed, they were all in, and begging to go.  So swimming they went, even though the water was just about 70 degrees.  Although the girls insisted it was 70 degrees, I think it may have been a little colder than that but better to just say 70 degrees, rather than 60-something right?

Here are few photos from the fun they had...

Thanks for coming to visit Claire, Kathering and Annette, it was great to see you and we sure had a lot of fun!  Come back again soon!

Until next time,
Angie

Bubble Baths, Bubble Floors, Bubble Walls, Bubbles all around...

Recently the boys asked if they could take a bubble bath in our bathtub.  The truth is that it has been ages since the boys have gotten to take a bath.  It seems we ran out of time for baths probably more than a year ago.  They just took too long, so we quickly replaced them with a 5 minute shower.

As a child, taking baths is one of life's greatest enjoyments.  So when the boys recently asked, I couldn't help but say yes.  They'll only be kids once and we all know as a parent, the only baths our bodies see are on the ones our kids are taking. 

And a short 20 minutes later, my list of reasons why we no longer take baths had grown, actually multiplied.

See now with Isabelle they only get about 1/2 of my attention they previously got.  I started the water and added the bubbles, put the lid on the bubbles and set them on the counter next to my tub. While I turned my back to pick up Isabelle and grab them their towels, someone who shall remain nameless and insists it wasn't him, decided to open the cap and squeeze what must have been 1/2 cup of more bubbles into the tub.  I quickly realized we had many more bubbles than what should have been produced by the amount I added.

We had bubbles everywhere... the tub was overflowing, the walls were lined, the floor glistened with a film of bubbles all around.  It was a scene out of the movies and yes it was in our bedroom bathroom. 
But as I watched the boys swim in bubbles and completely cover themselves in fun, I realized that to them this was probably the best bath in the whole world.  And so for 20 minutes I let our bathroom be overcome with bubbles.  

After rinsing them off in our shower and beginning the lengthily process of wiping everything down and trying to dilute the bubbles in the tub, I tried to remind myself that soon enough the extra work they create for me will be gone and before I'll be ready, they'll be big enough and grown enough to handle their own messes.  Now  I am needed and although it is a lot of work, I like to feel needed.

I never would have thought a bubble bath that went a muck would cause me to reflect so much (perhaps it is just being so over tired that my brain doesn't function as it use to), but I think it is good for me.  I admit that I often get caught up in the hustle and bustle that daily life brings and feel I'm constantly telling them that we have to go faster.  Although a rarity, for one night in a really long time, the boys weren't told to rush through their bath or hurry up because we had someplace to race to.  They got to relax, play and enjoy a bubbly bath.  They deserve this more often.

Until next time,
Angie

Taking matters into their own hands...

Life has changed for Gabriel and Michael in more ways than I think they realized it would.  Just a few shorts weeks ago, when ever they yelled "Mom"  they received an almost instantaneous response.  These days, when they yell "Mom" they never know what they are going to get.  It may mean they get an immediate response or it may mean they need to wait.

Thankfully they've approached this change with a great attitude and so far haven't had any complaints.  In fact, on many occasions, they've decided that if their shout of "MOM" is returned with a "Just a few minutes, I'm busy", they take matters into their own hands.

For example, the other day, they yelled my name and followed it up with a "We're hungry, can we have lunch?"  I responded, "I'm busy right now but I'll make you lunch in a little while, it is only 10:30 a.m."  As I finished bathing Isabelle and then changing the load of laundry, I walked out into the kitchen to see the refrigerator door wide open, the ketchup, mustard, and mayo on the cupboard and the bread sack on the table.  Seated next to the bread sack, were two boys proudly chowing down on their handmade sandwich. 

Walking further into the kitchen Gabriel announced, "Mom, we made our own sandwiches, look, we did a good job!"  and then Michael contributed, "Mom, they are really good, do you want me to make you one?"

After investigating a little bit further, I did realized, in deed they had done a good job.  Not only was there ketchup, mustard and mayo on their piece of bread, but also a slice of meat and a piece of cheese.  I congratulated them and said, here let's take a few pictures so we can remember this...

And as I cleaned up their cooking ingredients, Michael turned to Gabriel and said, "Gabriel, we're good cookers, just like mom."

Until next time,
Angie

Michael, Michael, Michael...

It is hard to believe in a few short days, my baby boy (okay I never knew him as a baby) will be turning 5.  It is crazy to think that almost 2 years ago, this happy-go-lucky, funny, energetic and caring boy walked into our lives. 

In just under two years, he's grown from a toddler to a real boy (I know it sounds like he's Piniocio or something), but it is true.  When we met him, he had just turned 3 and it was obvious he was still in the toddler stage.  He was little and I have the pictures to prove it.

The first whole day he was with us.

He's not little any more...

He's full fledged boy.  He likes to do things on his own, explore the world like there's no tomorrow, and well, all doing it while trying to look handsome.  That's one wonderful quality about Michael, he always wants to look good.  Every morning before school, we have the same conversation.  "Mom, today can I wear my adoption suit to school? The girls will think I'm handsome."  "No Michael, you can't wear your suit, you can wear it to church on Easter though."  "But Mom, the girls won't want to kiss me if I don't look handsome."  "Well, than pick something else out Michael." as I walk to his room and help him located the next most handsome outfit, that I don't care if it goes in the wood chips.  After after spending more time in his closet picking out his outfit than I do, he goes back to the bathroom to style his hair.  He spends more time "getting ready" in the morning, than I think I do, and yes, he's only 4. 

But he likes to look nice and if that's what he likes to do, I'm not going to stop it.  I'm just hoping the trend continues through his teenage years and beyond.

Not only is Michael special in that he wants to look nice, but he's the one that makes us laugh many times a day.  Just last night when I was reading the boys a book about dinosaurs and the words "carnivore and herbivore" were included. I asked the boys what each word meant and Michael told me that the word "Herbivore" means you only eat plants and chicken.  It is situations like that, that happen multiple times a day, to make us laugh. 

And he has many special talents too. I've talked before about his ability to balance things on his ears.  He's also able to balance things on his head.  See below...

Look mom I can turn all the way around and it stays on my head...

and  don't have to use my arms.

But it isn't just silly tricks or funny stories that make Michael who he is.  There is so much more.  Michael is smart, caring and very very loving.  He lights up a room when he walks in and he lets you know how he feels because he always wears it on his sleeve.

So Michael, on the eve of your 5th birthday, we want you to know we are very lucky to call you our son.  We are very proud of you and look forward to what the next year may bring for you.  Always believe in yourself and know that even if you are dressed in your everyday, old clothes, you are always handsome.  Happy birthday my darling Michael, we love you very very very much. 

Your proud as ever mom,
angie

6 Weeks already...

Isabelle is six weeks old.  It is hard to believe that 6 weeks have already gone by.  In some ways it feels like we just brought her home from the hospital and in other ways it seems like she has been with our family for years. 

It has been amazing watching her grow and change.  People said she would grow right infront of my eyes, and they were right, she is.  Each morning I wake up, I feel like she has changed.  She is now 23 inches long and weighs 9 lbs 2 oz.  She even has a double chin, just like me. :-) To think she was once 6 lbs 6 oz and only 20 inches long, it is hard to believe she is getting so big.

Two weeks ago on Monday, March 5 Isabelle smiled at me for the first time, a real smile.  I had just changed her diaper and she was lying on the changing station.  As I button up her onesie, I was talking to her.  She, as normal was staring very intently at my face, when all of a sudden she smiled.  It took me a minute to realize it wasn't a gas smile but a real one.  It melted my heart immediately and being that it was just her, Jack and me at home, I had to call someone to share the news.  When Jarrett didn't answer my call, I called my mom and with my eyes welling up with happy tears, I got to share the news that made my day, well actually my entire week.

Since that day, the smiles have become a regular thing and now when I say, "Isabelle will you smile for Mommy?"  Most of the time she smiles back.  Infact, one of my favorite smilies of hers, are her full gum grins that take over most of her little face.  She crinkles up her face and has wrinkles on her forehead when she does it.  It make me laugh becuase she looks so darling but yet makes me wonder what she'll look like when she's really old.

Another major development for her is that she is starting to coo and likes to hear herself "talk."  Usually the talking comes with a lot of smiles so it is one of my new favorite times of the day.  I think she's going to be quite the talker because she can coo and make noises when we are listening and even when she is lying in a spot, while we try to get something done, she talks to herself.  I love listening and sometimes when she talks, she talks so loud or makes a noise that even surprises herself.  When she does that her eyes get really big and she makes an "o" face with her lips.  So precious.

She also likes to be held.  It would be fair to say that for the majority of her life, she's been wrapped up in the loving arms of her family or friends.  In fact as I type this, she is lying in my arms.  I think the rythym of me typing is putting her to sleep. She doesn't mind if I'm trying to put a load of wash in, or trying to wash her bottles or make dinner, as long as she is in my arms she's good.  She can be sleeping very soundly in my arms and if I put her down, I know less than 2 minutes later, she'll be calling for me to pick her back up.  Jarrett and I've talked about this and he encourages me not to hold her too much so she doesn't get use to being held for when she goes to day care.  I also know it is becuase on Wednesdays, when he stays home with her while I go to work, he can't hold her all day.  He still has to get his work done.  I agree with him but I've also realized that our time with Isabelle is currently an unknown so I'm going to take advantage of holding her as much as I can.  And if that means several months or years down the road, I have consequences for my choices, well then I'll take them, becuase that means she will still be ours. Looking down at her now in my arms, I smile, becuase she's back to sleep, even though my arms moves constantly as I type this.

And speaking of sleep.  I can't remember if I've posted before, infact most things I can't remember.  I blaime it on the lack of sleep.  Isabelle eats pretty much every three hours whether it is daytime or nighttime. So our sleep, or lack there of was making me feel like a zombie.  However, on Friday night Isabelle gave me a great gift.  She slept for 7 1/2 hours straight!  It was amazing.  Now, I still woke up every hour to make sure she was still breathing and wondering if she had been crying to eat and I didnt' hear her, but sleeping she was and so I was able to fall back asleep right away.  And if Friday night's gift wasn't enough, she did it again on Saturday night and last night.  I'm not sure what the trick is, but I'm trying to repeat everything exactly as we had done on those special nights.  I think part of it is giving her a bath with some special nighttime bath soap, Nana had picked out.  She seems to really like it and so I will continue with it.  The other special tricks seems to be wrapping her tighly in warm blankets and then giving her a bottle.  Less than 1/2 hour later she is in a deep sleep.  I've always liked my sleep, but man have I enjoyed the last few nights of sleep.  I even told Jarrett, I'm back to feeling like a human, not a well-rested human, but at least a human.

The last six weeks of my life have truly been the happiest days of my life.  I feel so blessed with two wonderful boys, an amazing husband, and now her.  If you would have asked me on Feb 6 if my life was complete, I probably would have said yes.  But now that we have her and our family has grown by one, I know now my answer would have been wrong.  I can honestly say that my life will be complete on the day we get to finalize her adoption and know that she will be ours forever.  I truly believe God will make our prayers a reality and allow her to be our daugher and us her parents. We will continue to take one day at a time, celebrating her newest milestones, showering her with love and praying we will get to write about her accomplishments in our family for a lifetime.

Until next time,
Angie

Grandma Dorie...

Several weeks ago, right after Isabelle came home, Jarrett's Grandma Doris came from Iowa to visit.  She came over and spent time with the boys and with our newest addition.  It was wonderful to see her and she always reminds me that age is just a number. 

See, Grandma Dorie, the boys and their cousins along with Papa and the dads went to the park that afternoon to play ball.  Several hours later, they still weren't back and after finally coming home around dinner time, we learned that Grandma Dorie kept up playing baseball just like the 4, 5 and 6 year olds.

I won't reveal Grandma Dorie age, but as she put it, she's reaching a big milestone very soon.  Just one of the many things she's taught us that is getting old doesn't mean you don't get to have fun.  She's shown us that with age comes ever more fun!

Papa Joe with his mom and the boy's Great Grandma Dorie!  Photo courtesy of Michael.

It was great to see you Great Grandma Dorie!  The boys look forward to seeing you next time were in Iowa.

Until next time,
Angie

Grandma and Grandpa came to town...

and they brought the boys a new toy...

Gabriel was the proud recipient of a new set of foam drums.  Even though they are foam, they make the same amount of noise as a real drum set.  Jarrett and I are so thankful for the gift.  Our house was just too quiet.

And Michael, he was the recipient of the following...

and who knew, Michael can actually play it...

I have a feeling the Bieber Band may be back in business performing in a place near you very soon.

Until next time,
Angie

The Nursery...

We didn't have very much time to prepare a nursery for Isabelle.  Given that she came home to us less than 48 hours after finding out about her, it is fair to say, her room was not ready.

All of that changed this past week, when my parents came to town.  One of my good friends has shared with me that when her parents come to town, she makes a list of projects she needs her parents help with.  This time, I decided to follow in her footsteps and make a list with several projects.  When my parents arrived just over a week ago, the list of "things to do"  was lengthily to say the least.

The first matter at hand.. turning our guest room into Isabelle's room.  With the help of another one of my close friends, who just happens to be an interior designer, the plan for what Isabelle's room would look like, came together beautifully.  She came over, looked at the room, asked me a few questions and before I knew it, she had sketched out a layout and design that in my opinion, couldn't be any cuter.

So on Tuesday, the very next morning after my parents arrived, they began the task of turning a completely blue room into her perfect girly room.  Three and a half days later, more than 8 gallons of different paint, 3 rolls of blue painters tape, and hours and hours and hours of love, Isabelle's room is complete.

Here are some photos that show the transformation...

A basic blue room...

had to be painted first with kills, a basic white paint that gives you a clean and fresh canvas...

Mom making sure everything is white.  No that's not paint in her hair, that's her natural color. :-)  Just teasing Mom!

And then they painted rows of light pink and bright pink.  Here the boys are helping Grandma take the tape off.

Meanwhile Grandpa Chip practiced making polka-dots. We all practiced and determined he was the best at making dots.  Therefore, he was nominated to paint more than 240 polka-dots in her room.

Mom and I gave Dad exact directions of where to put each dot.  He thoroughtly enjoyed getting bossed around by two women. :-)  He originally thought we were only going to make around 20 dots total because that was in the drawing.  We quickly corrected him.

Many hours spent on the ladder.

And when it was almost finished we let the boys in to see the final look...

Both Gabriel and

Dad gave it great reviews!

And after getting the crib set up (thanks to another wonderful friend who shared it with us), Isabelle's roomis now complete.

She loves staring at the bright colors on the wall and has spent a good amount of time enjoying her room already.

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for ALL the help and for putting in so much love and time to make it perfect.  Isabelle LOVES it!

Until next time,
Angie

Update

Thank you for the prayers and responses that so many people gave us after posting "Worried."  Although we do not have too much to update, I did want to share that all of your support means a lot to us and we believe in the power of prayer.  All of this has helped us find a sense of peace and reminded us to cherish each day.

I've been talking with several case workers to try and gather more information and understanding about how this process will move forward .  As always more information is always helpful and for now, we continue to hold out hope and faith that Isabelle will be ours forever.  We thank you for your continued prayers and support. 

Until next time,
Angie

Worried....

It is amazing how much we all have fallen in love with Isabelle.  It isn't just me, it is all of us.  Jarrett, Gabriel, Michael and even Jack.  We've got it...Isabelle fever. This little girl has all of our hearts wrapped around her.  I've stopped counting the number of times each day, we say we love her.  The boys can be busy playing with something and all of a sudden stop, walk over to Isabelle, kiss her softly and tell her they love her.  It happens multiple times a day.  And each night for the last several days, before bed, Michael professes his love again.  "Mom Dad, I really love Baby Belle." 

And the love for her stretches farther.  Our extended family members and friends have shown her a great amount of love and it is obvious this little 8 lb bundle of wonderful, has some magic power that makes everyone enchanched and in love from the moment they meet her.

And that is why, tonight I'm worried.  Jarrett and I are asking for your prayers tonight.  We knew from day one that nothing with her coming to live with us, was certain, 100% set in stone, until after the judge declares her officially ours and seals her adoption complete.  We knew that going in, there could be a chance an extended family member could come forward and ask to raise her.  And although that has not happened and we pray it doesn't, we did receive a call today from one of her many case workers telling us that they have to do their due diligence and try to find any extended biological family members.  Immediately my heart sank.

I keep asking myself why they have do to this and I'm not trying to blame them.  It isn't their fault.  They are just doing their jobs.  But the selfish side of me thinks... "Can't you see how much she is loved, how much she is thriving, how wondeful her life will be if (when) she gets to stay with us forever?" The case worker tried to be reassuring, but to be honest, it has made me a nervous wreck.  I can't stop staring at her and I continiously pray that God will help us get through this and allow her to be with us forever. I can't even imagine what the alternative ending of this story could look like, it is too painful for me to think about, so when it comes into my mind, I try with all of my might to push it aside as I wipe tears of worry away.

So tonight I ask for your help.  If you would please say a prayer for us and for Baby Isabelle that we can and will remain a forever family.  We can't imagine out life without her and we need for her to stay with us.

We believe in the power of prayer and thank you for your continued support.

We love you Baby Isabelle.  Your entire family does.

Mommy, Daddy, Gabriel and Michael

His most recent decision...

Gabriel LOVES sports. I think it is clear within the first few minutes of meeting him.  If there is a ball within 100 yards of him, he immediately spots it, seeks it out and claims it has his own (at least to play with for as long as he can). 

Most afternoons after school and homework is done, Gabriel goes to the backyard and practices playing some sort of sport that involves a ball. In fact for the last 8 months to a year, Gabriel has repeatedly been telling us that when he grows up he is going to play sports in college and then become an Arizona Diamondback followed by an Arizona Cardinal football play and then he'll play for the Suns. Jarrett and I smile and secretly hope he actually does it, we may be able to retire before we are 110.

So back to the backyard.  In the last few weeks we've noticed that Gabriel has been adding in some unique exercises to his normal routine.  Usually throwing the ball up and then trying to run and catch it himself, the other day I looked in the backyard to see Gabriel hula-hooping and holding a ball.  I watched for a few minutes and smiled as I then saw him begin to hula again, followed quickly by tossing the ball up in the air, while still hula-ing and quickly move across the yard to catch the ball.  Honestly, although he didnt' see me watching him, I have to admit I was impressed.    No more than 15 minutes later after several practice attempts, Gabriel burst through the back door and declared that I needed to come watch him perform his new trick.

I obliged and to the back yard we went.  Moments later I was bursting out in laughter as I watched my son hula-hoop and throw/catch balls in his baseball glove all at the same time.  Then later that evening when Dad came home, he insisted on putting on a show for all of us again.  We thought it was pretty funny and impressive.

And just this past weekend, all of us were in the car driving, when suddenly and out of the blue Gabriel confessed, "Mom and Dad, I'm not going to go to college and play sports, instead Mom and Dad, I'm going to join the circus so I can do my tricks and make people laugh." 

Until next time,
Angie

Some of the many things I love about her...

In the last three weeks of bonding with Isabelle the list of reasons why I love her is just as long as the many reasons why I love our boys. 

Some of my favorite things about her are:

• The funny faces she makes.  She has the pirate look:  which is when she opens one eye while keeping the other closed and then makes a 1/2 smile/smurk with her lips that makes me think she is about to say, "ARRRR mateys"
• The way she smells.  Although it sounds strange she smells like complete innocence and 100% love.  I know, you've think I've gone crazy. Innoncence and love do not have a smell, but if you could smelle her, you'd soon find out, they actually do have a scent.  Her smell is sweet and clean and well, perfect. 
• I love her cry.  Although she doesn't cry all that often, I love how it can be so loud, even though she is so small.  I love how even though I can be in the deepest sleep, I awake and the instant of her first peep. 
• I love that she knows how to scream.  She started it at about 9 days old.  Although she still has a newborn baby cry, she has decided to show us that when she speaks, she like her mom, wants a response immediately.  She yells out a screech that sounds like a cat meowing in her highest octive possible.
• I love that she has big feet and long fingers.  I think she's going to be very tall, given the size of her baby feet.  Now I picture her as a teenager towering over her 5'3'' mom. 
• I love her eyes.  I love the moments when we are sitting in the rocking chair and spend minutes staring into each others eyes.  I've studied them.  They are a beautiful blue with a darker color around the outside and a lighter blue in the center.  When she is wide awake, her eyes seem as big as the moon. 
• I love how she reacts when the boys love on her.  It melts my heart as Michael sings songs to her and tells her he loves her.  As he talks to her, she can have her eyes closed and then immediately look at him and star into his eyes with complete admiration.
• I love how she gets the hickups two, three even four times a day.  And as she gets mad that she has them, she clamps her fists and puts them up my her mouth as if to say, "stop it"
• I love how she looks at Jarrett.  He curls up into his chest and snuggles with him as if to say, "I love you daddy and when he talks she admires his facial features and is completely mezmorized.
• I love when I have her so close to me as I hold her that I can feel her each and every breath. 
• I love that to me she will always be a miracle.  She is truly a gift from God and a miracle to us in every way.

I love her.

Until next time,
angie

MaeLyn and Aaron came to town...

Last Friday night my youngest sister MaeLyn and her boyfriend Aaron came to visit and to meet Baby Isabelle.  It was wonderful having them here and we all had a lot of fun playing together. 

The boys LOVED playing in Aaron's chair...

 And spending time with Aunt MaeLyn...

 It wasn't even 12 hours after MaeLyn and Aaron arrived that Gabriel insisted they play baseball with him.  Here, Aaron is at bat...

 Pretty good if I do say so myself...

 Aaron showing us where the force behind his swing comes from...

 And then it was Gabriel's turn to bat, I think he called all time batter, because I never saw him change positions after this...

Meanwhile Michael filled his shoes with rocks and dirt...

and although I can't post pictures, there was a lot of time spent bonding with Baby girl Belle.  I think she fell in love with them as much as they fell in love with her. 

We can't wait for MaeLyn and Aaron to come visit again.

Until next time,
Angie

Welcome to our "chaos", oops I mean "home."

When we told people about Isabelle coming into our lives, the overwhelming comment we received was, "Wow, you guys are going to be busy."

Now that we are officially three weeks into our life as a family of 5 plus one dog, I can officially say, everyone was correct.

The truth is Isabelle has been eating about every  three to four hours.  For newborns, I understand that that isn't really that bad.  In the last two days even she's been spreading out her feedings to be almost 4 hours.  During the first and second weeks, I honestly felt like all I was doing was feeding her, burping her, changing her diaper, trying to squeeze a load of laundry in between and then scrambling to figure out what meal to make for the other members of my family.  My to do list continued to grow as the number of items I'd cross of it continued to shrink.

As I sit here, holding Isabelle and typing this, the laundry is piled high, the dishes are waiting patiently to be unloaded and reloaded from the dishwasher, the dust bunnies are turning into full grown rabbits and the floor... well, lets just say I'm telling everyone to keep their shoes on when they visit.  The house in my terms is a disaster, even though Jarrett says it isn't that bad. :-)  I think he's trying to be supportive at any cost, even if it means he has to tell a little white lie.

We are still in the beginning stages of putting together Isabelle's room.  If you'd visit our house, you'd wonder where her room is going to be, because looking at it, it still looks like a guest room, only with a few boxes of diapers in the corner on the floor and girl clothes spilling out of the closet.  And although her room doesn't look like she lives there, the rest of the house does.  Isabelle's stuff is scattered in every room.  Who knew someone so small needed so much stuff. 

Now that I've been honest and upfront about how things are looking around here, you might be thinking well that's not so bad.  I'm just explaining what the house looks like when everyone is gone for the day.  After school, this house turns into something out of the movie from "Cheaper by the Dozen."  The boys come flying into the house with their shoes still on, because I forgot to remind them to take them off in the garage.  Only to then kick their shoes off, one which is full of sand and the others' which is full of wood chips spills onto the floor.  Then, their the trail of destruction they leave, almost like the bread crumb trail Hansel and Gretel left in the old fairy tail.  As if the boys would forget how to get from the garage to the bathroom to the kitchen to the living room to the back yard and then back into the house.  With jackets, school papers backpacks, snack wrappers, gloves, bike helmets, toys and clothes... it is a trail that repeats itself each day.

Oh and let me not forget to add in the noise level.  While it is just Isabelle, Jack and I here at home, the noise level is pretty quiet.  Upon the door opening and the boys walking through the threshold, the noise volume quadruples.  They have only one excited level of volume as they blow into the house... loud.  "HI MOM, I"M HOME!"  "HI BABY BELLE!"  "MOM I"M HUNGRY... CAN I HAVE CANDY?"  and so on.  After a quick snack, we delve into homework which I attempt to assist with while making dinner. 

From homework to short playtime, dinner time, reading and bed, the few hours we are all together as a family are completely 100% chaotic and you know what...

I love it.
I love it.
I'll say it again, I love it.  As the craziness spins around me and it feels sometimes like we are in a windstorm being sucked one way and then the other, I am reminded that God has granted me the life I've long to have since I was a little girl.  Honestly, I love it.

Don't get me wrong.  Sometimes I get overwhelmed. When it is 5:30 p.m. and the boys are both needing my help with homework, the dinner is boiling over, Jarrett's calling me to help him look something up in the office and Isabelle has decided she wants to eat 5 minutes ago and is letting me know she's not happy, it can and is overwhelming.  And although I'm far from perfect, I make a million mistakes a day, I have to admit that I'd be completely disappointed if I never got to experience the wonderfulness that our chaos brings us.

So when I was trying to decide what house cleaning task to tackle first, I decided instead to just blog about our mess.  Because I've decided I could spend 30 minutes wiping the fingerprints off the glass end table, dusting the living room and bedrooms, and tackle cleaning the bathrooms, but probably by tomorrow morning, I'd be sitting back looking at the dust, fingerprints and toothpaste covered sink staring me back in the eye.  Instead, I'll just take 30 minutes for myself and recount just how wonderful chaos can be.

Until next time,
Angie

Valentines Day...

Although Isabelle is what we are considering our Valentines Day gift, I must admit this year I was spoiled and received multiple gifts.

Michael was very excited to come home from school on Valentines day with two presents for his mom.
In fact he was so excited he couldn't wait for mom to open the gift, he decided to do it for me.  And when I opened his card and gift I was very happily surprised.

Here is Michael showing me what he made...

The front of the card reads, "If I could be anything..." and the inside says, "I'd be your valentine!"
Isn't that so sweet.

I love you too Michael!

Gabriel admiring the nice picture and frame Michael made for me.

And then to top it off, Michael gave me flowers in a homemade vase/cup.  On the cup he wrote, "I love you Mommy!"  I can't wait to take my flowers to work so I can proudly display how affectionate and loving my youngest boy is.

It was a wonderful Valentines day!

Until next time,
Angie