7QT

Hey there friends; happy weekend!  I thought I'd combine some last catching-up with some of our latest news here in a few quick takes.  Here goes...

--1--

So, C's birthday was kind of a week-long celebration.  Her actual birthday was a Sunday so we were busy with all of our usual church and singing commitments.  We managed to stop by Barnes & Noble to get her free birthday cupcake courtesy of the Kids' Club, and I made her requested dinner of mac n' cheese from the box.  :)

Google also reminded me of the day of her birth with this collage, and I definitely spent what free time I had that day in a lot of reminiscing.  What a blessing she has been to us these five years.

--2--

The celebration continued later in the week when the girls and I all visited C's preschool to deliver her birthday snack (coconut banana bread-- the perfect healthy preschool snack!  C said her friends all loved it and several Moms asked for the recipe... little pat on the back for me and Elise there :).

I snapped a few hasty, blurry pics while trying to wrangle a toddler and keep her from climbing the ladder to the loft.

Such a fun day-- it was so great to get a sneak peek into C's day with her little friends, and C was thrilled to have us celebrate with her!

--3--

I had chatted with C about what she wanted to do for a birthday party-- a celebration with friends, a special trip... the one thing that she kept requesting was a pinata.  After several chats about it, when I could get her alone and bigger sisters weren't putting words in her mouth, I deduced that she didn't really want a big party with lots of friends (not surprising-- she has been fearful of birthday party crowds since she was very small!) and her request was "just my family".

So we took the opportunity of a Zach and Piper visit over MLK weekend to have a small celebration with cake, presents, and her requested Paw Patrol pinata (or Papa Troll, as both Uncle Zach and Daddy mistook her meaning, until the actual pinata was purchased).

Thank you, Party City!  These days I'm allllllll about spending $20 on a pinata when I could have made one at home for less than $1.  Convenience is worth every penny!!!

I wish I had a few more pics of this lovely celebration, but I think you get the idea from all the smiles :)

Z&P really spoiled me that weekend, by the way, watching the girls while I had my eye exam AND got a haircut.  It's the little things when you're a Mama.

--4--

Speaking of eye exams, this past week I FINALLY got new glasses after being without them for about six weeks following our gale incident.

I actually got THREE new pairs since I knew I never wanted to be without my glasses again, and I found two websites where you can order super cheap glasses.

Two pairs I got from Zenni Optical-- really cool site where you can upload a pic of your face and try on different frames.  Here's the pair I settled on:

The other pair I got from Zenni were prescription sunglasses, something I have never had!  Now I can drive in the bright sun without wearing my sunglasses over my actual glasses (L was quick to point this out when I told her about the prescription ones... here I was thinking nobody noticed!!).  The eyeglasses and the sunglasses were $39 each!!!

The other pair I bought from Warby Parker, and while they were slightly more expensive (still nowhere near the $300-$400 I usually spend) I really enjoyed the at-home try-on service.  You can pick out five frames to try for a few days.  I was able to text photos of myself in the different frames to a "personal stylist" who helped me decide which ones looked best.

Thanks, Google, for the gif.

Anyway, sorry to sound like a commercial but I would highly recommend both of these sites for eyewear purchases!  I got THREE pairs of glasses for less than I paid for one last time I purchased (at BJ's at a discount price).  AND I got "personal stylist" help and a huge selection of cute frames.  Yay!!  So yes, you should totally click on over and treat yourself to new glasses if you've been thinking about it.  Like now.

The girls and I have all been singing The Wiggles since they came.

--5--

This reminds me that J is currently OBSESSED with the Wiggles.  She gets a little more screen time than I feel comfortable with, but... fourth child... homeschooling... winter.

16-month-olds are hard work, are they not?  I think even we Mamas who have already been through life with three 16-month olds before this one... well, we forget.  We quickly forget.  I know in my head that it will be busy, but actually living it day after day after day... you just kinda forget what that feels like.  It's all day long chasing.  Keeping hands out of the potty.  Keeping her away from stairs.  Keeeping her from climbing on the chairs and tables.  Trying to load the dishwasher while she carefully unloads it for you (at least she does it carefully, right???)  And of course, she knows that when Mom is busy doing school or dishes or laundry she has to get my attention somehow, right??  Climbing on to the table will get my attention every time, fo sho.  She's a smart girl.

And then this morning we were looking back on some pictures and I noticed that, in the pictures, L is wearing a pair of shoes that now fit J.  And it seems like those pictures really weren't taken that long ago.  And now L is big.  Really big.  And there are wonderful things about your children being big, but... it just all goes by so fast.  SO fast.  You forget that, too.

One of the reasons that I felt that pull to have "just one more" before J came was that I felt, being a more experienced Mama, I would relax a little bit more and truly be able to enjoy the baby phase with her.  I am enjoying her LOTS, don't get me wrong.  But there is much less time for enjoying now that there are four.  The day flies by me and I feel like I've just tread water... and without my even noticing, they are all a day older.  Even when I was a more anxious new Mama and I "wasted" more time worrying about things, I think I still had more time to enjoy my kiddos than I do now.  Sometimes that makes me sad, I'm not gonna lie.

I do think the Lord reminds us in this way that our time is short.  As I watch my children grow rapidly into young ladies, it reminds me daily to make the most of things-- to bloom where I'm planted, to show kindness, to be helpful, to not hold that grudge or succumb to whatever the petty urge may be.  I'm far from perfect but it's a good thing to keep in my sights, eh?

6

As Mama is getting pretty good at sleeping in most mornings (I used to be such a morning person until the fourth child! I'm so old and crotchety!), L is usually the one to go into J's room when she wakes up and get her out of her crib.  It happens so often that J has come to expect it.  Many mornings I'm faintly aware of her shouting "L!!  OUT??" from her crib and then hearing the pitter patter of L's sprinting across the floor above my head.  They play together for a while and then usually make their way downstairs to find me.

I was also only faintly aware of them finding my phone on the night table the other morning as they played beside my bed.  From the pictures I found later, it seemed that J was schooled by L in the art of the selfie.

--7--

The cookies have arrived.

And I have eaten waaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy too many.

M said to me today after we had both over-indulged yet again, "You're not allowed to be Cookie Mom next year."

Who can resist the Thin Mints?  It's downright alarming how quickly a box of those things disappears.

Seriously, I feel like crap after so much sugar, and so the improved eating starts tomorrow.  After those last few peanut butter patties are gone.  ;-}

For more quick takes, visit This Ain't the Lyceum!