Saving my Strength

This will be very short as I am saving all of my energy for this weekend.

Including Adrienne, we will have seven children at our house from about 4:00 this afternoon until about 4:00 on Sunday afternoon.

Our dear friends, Mike and Jenny, are presenting an Engaged Encounter weekend and we are taking care of their children. They will be doing the same for us at the end of April. We have done this before many times, but these are the first weekends that will include the youngest child in each family. 

Seven children. Two one year olds. A four year old. A five year old. A seven year old. An eight year old. And a fourteen year old. Thank goodness for the fourteen old!

Pray for us :)

And if we are still alive on Monday, I'll tell you about it. Or maybe Tuesday, depending on how exhausted I am.

Hope you have a great weekend!

A Year Gone By

Very pregnant almost exactly a year ago at Joshua's 6th birthday party.

Snuggling and resting with Noah and a very swollen belly.

There was an eclipse the week before she was born and I was definitely hoping that somehow the alignment of the stars would force the baby OUT! :)

And then after about 30-40 hours of labor (who knows when we should have started counting), she was born.

She definitely has a great pair of lungs which she still likes to prove with her velociraptor screech.

Peace and Joy

A full year. That's how long it's been since my daughter entered the world.

Time absolutely flies, and especially so when you are falling in love with your baby. When Veronica was first born, I was asked over and over if it was different to finally have a little girl. Many found my answer to be surprising, for the answer when she was an infant was, "No, not really."

I mean, what is the real difference between a girl infant and a boy? Well, really it just comes down to diaper changes. Other than that, they pretty much do the same things: eat, sleep and poop.

Veronica all dressed up for her first Easter with her two brothers.

Some would argue that there are the clothes, clothes, clothes! And yes, while dressing a baby girl is lots of fun, we have been so blessed to have two families give us all of their girl hand-me-downs. So I could literally count on one hand the number of clothes or accessories that I've bought for Veronica.

I love being a girl. Always have. I grew up with three brothers and my little sister, but she wasn't born until I was ten. Throughout my childhood, I developed a balance between my natural feminine instincts and the influence from my brothers. I loved Barbies and princesses and dress-up and doing my hair and wearing pretty dresses. But I also loved playing army, Legos and mud-gushing at camp.

I like that balance and it is something that I have always hoped to pass onto my daughter someday. I love being a woman and feel honored that I will have the chance to teach a young girl how to be a woman. And not just any young girl. But my little girl. My daughter. My Veronica.

A few weeks ago, I spent part of my Mother's Day Out at Toys 'R Us buying birthday gifts for Joshua and Veronica. This might seem like an odd way to spend part of what is supposed to be my day of relaxation. But shopping without three children in tow will now always seem like a vacation :)

And it was so fun! I took my time and browsed each isle, really thinking about what to buy each child. As I've done so little shopping for Veronica, I wanted to buy her everything! But I had a difficult time, because she is obviously too young for about 99% of the things in the store. And I don't want to rush and buy her things that she will have no appreciation for. I want to wait. I want to buy her a beautiful, porcelain tea set when she absolutely loves having tea parties. I want to savor her childhood and make it last as long as I possibly can.


Walking through those isles, I saw much of my childhood laying behind me and in a more real way than ever (and yes, in the isles of frickin' Toys 'R Us), I saw the childhood of my daughter laying before me. And yes, I almost started crying right there in the midst of all the Pepto Bismal pink.

Now when people ask me if it's different having a girl, I have begun to answer yes. She is definitely more chatty than the boys were at that age. Even though she only has a few words, she is very conversational. Whenever the phone rings, her hand immediately goes up to her ear. She is definitely more cautious, sitting right down if she knows you are trying to get her to walk. And she just loves to hold and hug and pat her baby.

She is so snugly and so sweet and my best afternoons right now are the ones when I lose track of time and forget my chores and get down on the floor and crawl after her as she squeals in delight.

Happy Birthday Veronica!

Getting So Big

Birthday Photos

There are no words. This past weekend was one for the books. Couldn't possibly write about it all. I'm too exhausted! All I can say is that my family rocks. Absolutely rocks. And I am very, very grateful. Take a scroll down and witness it yourself. 

Party Bus!!!

Pretty sure our bus won't look quite like this :)

So tonight, I will be experiencing a first: the party bus. As my little sister, Kristen, just turned 21 on Tuesday, my family and some friends will be celebrating tonight in high style - touring some of the Seattle bars on a party bus.

Very excited. A little bit scared ;) And wondering what on earth should I wear? No matter what, I know it will be a fun and memorable night. Wish me luck!