Selfies

I rarely end up on the lens side of the camera.  Really, I'd rather take pictures of the kids and (as anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis can attest) pictures of me are rather few and far between.  It is easy to imagine then that I rarely take 'selfies.'  That changed last week when I got my hair cut (it's much easier to clean up short hair than long when it starts to fall out).  Logan and I decided we needed to text a picture to Daddy to 'prepare' him.  Of course, Logan stole the show!

 My little ham...

Since I'm not overly familiar with how to take a selfie, most of these pictures don't even show the haircut.  Did you know the phone has a button that makes it so you can see yourself when you take a selfie instead hoping you're both inside the frame!?!

You did!?!

Oh.  Okay, so I'm phone camera illiterate.  Ryan gave me a quick tutorial when he got home and finally saw the haircut!(:

Oh, wait!  There's some more hair!  Or less hair...depends on how you look at it. Ha!  Logan's getting into this selfie business!

Oops, hardly any hair...but my personal favorite.  Man, I love this kid!

And They're Off!

 School is now in session.

Our big 2nd grader.  You know what he was most excited about with school starting back up?  He doesn't have to tag along at the grocery store until next summer!  If we're being totally honest, I'm kind of looking forward to only having one kiddo to keep track of in the store too!  On the first day of school, he didn't even say good-bye once we hit the main doors.  He had places to go, people to see, and things to do.  His mom has dropped significantly down the priority list.  Boohoo.

Do we have to take pictures, Mom?  We're going to be late for SCHOOL!!!!  

Morgan was super excited to (finally!) get to use her pretty pink back pack.  She waved a couple of times but then crossed her arms and closed her mouth around a big pretend marsh-mellow (the standard hall walking pose of all Kindergarteners at this school) and marched off with nary a look behind.  Man, poor mom was feeling it!

But never fear!  This little munchkin (who was happy to jump in front of the camera!) was quite pleased to have his Momma all to himself.  He played happily in his room with all the trio blocks he normally has to share.  But after a while, I heard from the back, "MOM!" 

"Yes, Logan?"

"Oh.  Just checking where you were!"

"Right here, Logan!"

And he'd play for a little while before hollering again, "MOM!"

"Still here, Logan."

"Okay."

Finally, he made his way to my lap and we hung out together.  A sure way to melt his Momma's heart!

My munchkins.  I'm so glad they're off to a good start!  I miss having them all around but am looking forward to settling into our new routine, hanging out with my youngest and getting in to volunteer a bit in their classrooms.

Kindergarten! At Last!

We have another school-aged kiddo in the house.  After a year of waiting (Morgan thought she would get to start Kindergarten the day after she turned 5 last September!), the first day of school is finally just around the corner.  

So, my sweet little munchkin,

turned into an impish little toddler...

who welcomed her little brother with a great big hug!

Morgan is my artist...

who tackles everything at a full on run.

And it sounds like it's a good thing she's used to being sandwiched between boys...

because her class of 21 has only 6 girls!

Morgan and I went in to see her classroom, drop off her supplies and meet her teacher.  She's excited.  Actually, that's an understatement.  She was so excited she bounced her way around the room, followed by reminders to "settle down" and "remember, we don't run in the classroom!"  It will be fun to see how she handles it all.  I expect she'll do just fine!

Kids Say the Funniest Things

We've been trying to explain to the kids about mommy being sick, trying to help prepare them for what lies ahead.  Lane is old enough to understand a fair amount but it's hard to judge just how much Morgan and Logan understand.  So, we explain in simple terms.  

Me:  "Mommy has a bad thing in her breast and the doctors are going to make it go away."

Lane:  "Oh."

Me:  "But it's kind of funny.  Not only does the bad thing go away, this goes away too."  And I pointed to my head.

Lane:  "Your memory?!"

Ha!  No kiddo, pregnancy took care of that!

Me:  "No, my hair!"

And 3 kiddos collapsed to the floor in a heap of giggles.  

Glad I can provide comic relief.

Adventures

This week is done.  All the scans, poking, prodding and associated bruises and new scars were necessary and worth it.  And they all point to the fact that we caught this cancer early, before it had a chance to move into the lymph nodes.  Cue BIG sigh of relief.  Now we can focus on starting treatment next Wednesday and getting rid of this uninvited guest!

While we've been making the rounds, the kiddos have been having a huge adventure at Bumpa and Grammy's.  They might want to relive this week even if I'd rather not.(=  Grammy texted a few pictures to assure us the kids were well taken care of.  Translation - spoiled like crazy!

Case in point:

2 hours in and already digging in!(:

Looks like the pool was highly entertaining!

They couldn't decide who should get the beds so they all camped out on the floor with Logan in between.(=

Looks like they're ready to settle in for the night!

Thanks Dad and Mom for all your help this week and for taking good care of the kids.  They're wondering when they can go back!

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And I'll leave you with a little chuckle...I saw this on the wall in one of the offices:

"They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger...

in that case, I should be able to bench press a Buick!"

Alas, I'm still stuck with my 'rubber' muscles! Ha!

Have a lovely weekend!

Evenings at the Lake

The last few weeks have been an emotional roller coaster.  Some of you likely have not heard that I have been diagnosed with breast cancer.  So we've had a whirlwind of doctor's appointments and tests to try to get everything figured out and a treatment plan in place.  In the meantime, we have spent an evening or two 'distracting' ourselves at the lake.

The lake is a pretty good distraction, but it's the kids who help the most... 

We're going to have to save this picture for her senior year!(=

My right-hand man and his sidekick.

Fishing helps too!  I love these four...

Our new motto:  "Walk softly and carry a big stick."  The better to whack fish (and cancer) with!

Hunters 2014

Sun, sand and family.  Once again, we had a great time and a billion pictures to prove it...

 Brad and Char spent the first weekend with us.  Maizie and Morgan had a great time being goofy together.

 Fish on!

The fishing wasn't spectacular but it did start picking up later in the week.

 A parade of cousins on their bikes.

 Buddies.

Grammy and a few of her grands.  She's hitting Jake's shoulder now and Lane is hitting hers.  It's only a matter of time Grammy!

 At least Bumpa's smiling!(:

 I love those eyes!

 A beautiful view from our campsite.

Auntie Laurie called this "Grammy and her rebels."  They posted this line to mark out a fire camp for firefighters fighting a wildfire in the mountains.

 I've been photo bombed!  There they are, Sydney and Morgan playing dominoes.

 Busy builders.

Sweet Aislyn.

 Lane and Morgan got pulled behind the boat on the ski trainer.  Logan settled for Jake.(:

Lane felt brave enough to try skis with Auntie Kris' help.  He was almost up but a face full of water put the skids on that!

 The tube got a work-out!

Even Grammy got on it with her granddaughters.  There she is instructing the driver (me) that there would be no Christmas gifts if the ride was a crazy one.  Hmmm...by the look on her face, I might have coal in my stocking!(:

Love those smiles...

And a parting shot of the cousins...

Happy Summer to each!