My sister's kids.

After our mother/daughter trip, Jolie and I got to spend a night with my sister Heather (Aunter) and her sweet family.  It was so fun to be able to have time with just the girls.  Well, Uncle George was there but he just took care of us. 

Now I have very special feelings for all of my nieces and nephews.  They are precious and I love them all.  I have gotten a lot of joy out of getting to know them and in watching them grow. 

But there is just something about my sister's kids.  I remember when Ava, the oldest, was born.  I loaded up my 3 kids and drove 3 hours to get to the hospital.  When she finally made her appearance, I was just amazed.  She was beautiful and chubby.  I just couldn't believe that my little sister was a mommy! 

I got to spend a little bit of time with Heather before I had to take my kiddos home.  It was her first baby but she was a natural.  I spent my last few hours there kissing and squeezing and rocking and smelling my new niece.  I admired my sister and the way she took to her daughter.  I knew it was love. 

But when it was time to leave, I felt a bit of panic.  I couldn't understand it.  I wasn't worried about Heather or Ava.  I just didn't want to leave them.  Leaving my niece was like leaving very own flesh and blood.  It was a feeling I had never had before.  And when I finally did leave, I cried for a bit and then kept feeling like I had forgotten something.  

It is still that way for me.  Maybe it's because we don't get to see each other very often.  Or maybe it's because I still feel protective over my sister so I feel protective of them too.  Either way, I love Miss Ava Grace and Miss Liv Marie. (Livie Lou!) 

Jolie and I had a great time with them and can't wait to see them again. Thank you Heather and George for making them such sweet and wonderful girls to be around!   

Silly little girls!

Ava is 5, Jolie is 10 and Liv is 2

Have you ever seen such a sweet face?

We brought the girls a sweet treat from Ruidoso.  Livie Lou was giving it a taste.

This is the big thing to do at Aunter and Uncle George's house.  The jacuzzi tub!


We had a wonderful weekend.  Thanks to our boys at home for letting us go!

Mom and daughter road trip!

Matt and I know that having a large family means that each kid get less of mom and dad's time.  While we make an effort everyday to give moments of special attention, we also have made plans to have "coming of age" trips for each child. 

We want to make each trip a special one-on-one experience with each child.  Our hope is to start with local trips for younger kids and then progress to bigger trips as the kids get older.  We pray these are times where each child gets a chance to be who they are apart from our herd. 

Our first trip was with Jolie.  She turned 10 this year so we did an out of town trip to Ruidoso, NM.  I grew up in Roswell, which is an hour and a half away from there, so I knew a bit about the town.  The drive was about 4 hours to get from the prairie to the mountains.  It was a long drive but it was worth it.

We didn't plan anything special.  All I had on the agenda was spending time with my girl.  That is just what we did.  She got to choose what we did and when we did it.  She had a blast and I treasure that time we got to spend together. 

Being the oldest child is not always easy.  She has a ton of responsibility but is held to a higher standard because of her age and ability.  Then, when she tries to take care of (or boss) her brothers, she gets in trouble.  It's a hard station to be in.  So I pray that all of the time we get to spend with her, whether it be a trip to the grocery store or a trip to the mountains, will reinforce how special she is to us.  I pray the same for our sweet boys. 

Here we are in our lovely hotel room.  I have a little bit of a hard time relaxing in hotel rooms. (I'm just never sure of the cleanliness factor)  Jolie however was so excited and rolled around all over the beds and used every amenity they offered.

She just had to practice her ballet on the beds.

Little monkey.  (Every kid has to do this at least once on a hotel bed!)

The best part of our stay was the pool. 

There were many tricks preformed.

My sweet girl heading back to the room for some cookies and a movie!

Here we are starting our day of shopping and lunch.  It was so fun!

We finished shopping for treats to bring home to our boys and had lunch.  After that we got to visit a museum which was very cool.  Then, we left Ruidoso and went to Roswell to spend the night with my sister Heather and her sweet girls.  I will post more about that later!

Asher's birthday camp-out!

In November we celebrate my sweet Asher's birthday.  He turned 8 this year.  Like very other year, he wanted a camp-out party!  There was a fire restriction at our local state park, Palo Duro Canyon.  That is our normal camping spot.  So that meant no roasting hot dogs or marshmallows.  We opted to camp in our own backyard. (That meant if it got REALLY cold outside, the kids could come and camp in the basement.)  Fun was had by all!  Did I mention that my friend Michelle and I sat inside where it is warm, ate Thai food and watched Project Runway?  It's good to be mom.  :)

It's a room full of boys!!!  (and my daughter who is always the only girl)

The 2-year-olds got into the action.

Presents are always amazing!

This was the morning after.  The crazies went outside in freezing cold weather to wrestle on the trampoline. 
(Don't worry, safety precautions were followed.  I just made them all get on the trampoline for this picture.)

This was the camp site.  It was pretty cozy.

Happy birthday my buddy.  I love you lots. 

So sorry to be so absent.

The past few weeks have been tough.  I have been sick with my new little one and have been very overwhelmed by my household responsibilities.  So when I had a free minute to blog I would normally fall asleep, with my mouth open, probably drooling.

I am in a better place now.  Not so sick and happy to be back to a bit of normal.  My house is getting cleaner and my kids are being fed more regularly.  I still fall asleep sometimes but I am pretty sure there is less drool now. 

Sooooooo, I am planning on getting my blog on.  Until I get caught up, here is is photo teaser...

Don't you just love these sibling moments? And those baby feet!

And another shot that does not belong to me.  I found it on Pintrest. 



The caption on the photo is, "Relax!  I was just kidding."

That makes me laugh.  I will be catching up on some of my blog reading and seeing what the rest of you have been up to since I have been incapacitated.  More of our life on the prairie to come!!!