Shaving cream and food coloring. (Because I can't think of anything more creative than that.)

         I'm editing a photo session from last night, and I took a little break to upload and look through 54,000 photos I've taken since March which, in the craziness that has happened since then, got abandoned. Sad. But I found these! And since I told my friend I'd post this, oh, 2 months ago or so, I'd doing it now. Plus they're fun, and I think a little fun is needed around here...

This is my friend Beth. She's great-creative, funny, and waaaay more organized than I am! So when she showed up at my house the day before we left on our grand adventure with a kiddie pool, shaving cream, and food coloring; I just grinned and said "Oh, yeah!!" 

We stripped the kids down, and kid bliss commenced. Except for Blaise, who stayed as far away as he could...Beth put some on his walker and he freaked out. (Seriously, the kid wants to climb the rock wall of the fireplace, but shaving cream? Too scary, people. I love toddlers.)

 The big kids all looked like Easter eggs by the time they were done; it was a great lesson in color-mixing, too. (Science class!) Pax and Charissa (Beth's oldest girl and Pax's buddy) decided to jump in the pool after we'd hosed them off; and swim season was officially opened-in March. Yes, the pool was about 65 degrees. Nope, Pax wasn't about to come out!

  This was SO fun to watch, so easy to set up, and-best of all-a wonderful brain break from packing for both the kids and I!

Beth, you can bring your organized creative-ness to my backyard anytime ;)

An epic journey...in many, many parts.

*Disclaimer* there are no pictures in this post. Yes, I know this makes it somewhat boring; feel free to skip it if you want to. I promise there are pictures coming very, very soon...
We knew when we moved to the Valley (as they call it here...) that this wasn't going to be an "easy" move, in terms of we'll-have-a-house-and-everything-will-be-peachy-as-soon-as-we-get-there kind of easy. And it hasn't been; but still, it's been good. Lots of growing, adjusting, changing. My father-in-law is helping us buy a home down here, which is amazing...it also means the timeline of that happening isn't exactly in our control. So I'm readjusting my thinking, and we're moving tonight into a 3 month rental (furnished, thankfully, so we don't have to move EVERYTHING out of the storage units), with the hope that we can be in our own place by the end of the year. And this is good. It's moving in the right direction. It's moving towards stability for our family; towards some semblance of normal again.
This move has been crazily parallel to our move from D-town to Ft. Collins 2 years ago, in so many ways. The uncertainty; things not working out anything close to exactly like we'd planned...
and finding out days before we moved that another little addition is on its way.
yup. I'm pregnant. #3. almost 11 weeks.
Shocked would be an understatement. Ok, to be totally honest-I cried for about 30 seconds when I first saw the 3 little flashing lights on my LadyComp that signifies a pregnancy. Please hear me-we are thankful for this new little baby. We love our 2 bigger kiddos, love being parents, and believe with all our hearts that children are indeed a blessing from the Lord. It's just that..well...this wasn't how we planned it. Which I know sounds completely silly & selfish & believe me, we've been 'round and 'round with all this. Anyone else know what I'm talking about? This little baby just so wasn't on our radar for at least 2 more years. In fact, I'd told Adam I didn't even want to THINK about having another one until he was done with PA school. The thought of a being pregnant and having a newborn with him studying llike crazy and doing clinicals stressed me out. So the timing of it all kinda knocked me us on our seats. 3 surprise pregnancies. And we're so not the we-don't-plan-our-kids-we-just-let-them-come-when-they-come kind of people. We actually have been actively trying NOT to get pregnant with all 3 of them-which I'm pretty sure makes us that percentage they put on all  forms of birth control-you know, they're 99.9 percent effective or whatever? We, apparently, are the .1 percent.
This pregnancy has been-well-not super easy so far. Not that ANY pregnancy is a walk in the park, unless you're just amazingly blessed like that. My morning all day sickness has been much, much worse this time around; throwing up only once or twice a day makes it a really really good day. It's actually the first sign I had of my pregnancy-I was feeling nauseous for about 2 weeks BEFORE I found out I was pregnant, and couldn't figure out why-ha! The health insurance thing has been crazy, too. Since we don't (well, until tonight) have a permanent address, I can't apply for health insurance here. But I had it in Colorado, still. So for a while there we were seriously considering me flying back and forth for a few months to start my prenatal care...but then we realized that to pay for my visits out of pocket for the first month or two would cost just as much as the plane tickets to Colorado for the kids and I. So I did some research and  had my first appointment last week. I'm seeing a midwife (well, several of them really) this time, and so far I think I'm going to like it a lot except for the part where you see someone different every appointment & don't know who will deliver you till the day you have the kiddo. I think if it was my first baby, this would be a real issue for me...I've had the luxury of family practice docs with both the others, which means the doc who does my OB care is also the delivering doc AND the baby's pediatrician. Loved it that they knew my baby so very well. So this is taking some getting used to...but then again, so is everything about being here :) Like the 115 degree heat of last month (it's cooling down now-only 100 today!) which our car overheated in and the crazy hugeness of the city and driving so much and all that comes along with the Big City. But we've had some fun adventures, too; We stayed in a fancy-schmancy hotel one night that had a water park, just for fun; and went to the free admission night at the Children's Museum (and waited in line for an hour and a half before we even got in...everyone else apparently had the same idea), and have explored some of the indoor play places here, and eaten In-N-Out, and visited my aunt & uncle in the cooler desert down south, and gone swimming every single chance we've gotten-which is a lot since there's a pool in the backyard. We're looking forward to exploring more of the mountians/desert around here as it cools down, and I've gotten some great tips from my USA-travelin' friend Sarah about how to do this whole big city thing (She and her husband, along with their 2 kiddos, travel around the country in a 5th wheeler for her husband's job-have been doing it since their oldest was about 1. So cool!) All in all, we're settling in and it's gonna be good. I'm learning, again, that God gives us grace for the moment-for the situation we find ourselves in-and I just need to accept it & live in it. Which, I admit, is easier said than done.
Now the kids and I have to go pick up Adam from school..the whole 1-car family thing doesn't work quite as well in the Big City. Oh, that reminds me, we're gonna need a bigger car...

Cookie Monster is alive and well...and living at my house.

So, I have this Small Son. He has a vivid ( oh boy is it vivid!) imagination which, among other things, brings him running to our room and flying onto our bed at LEAST twice a week because there are "scaries" in his room. We (being loving, if not sometimes rather tired) parents escort him back to his room (usually we take turns...a good nudge gets Adam up if need be), where we pray to Jesus to take the scaries away, give Pax sweet dreams, etc. Last night was no exception...well, except the Small Son had actually taken a nap yesterday (swimming 2 or 3 times a day will do that to ya!). I'm pretty sure that's where the trouble started...so, he'd already come in, been taken back, etc. At about 5am he came in again-he's pretty sure the day is old as soon as the sun peeks over the horizon-soi escorted him back to his bed.
"mama, look-can you just get those off?"
I ran my hand over the sheets and felt something...crummy. I immediately knew what had happened, but since it was 5am I ignored it, went back to bed, and knew I'd be hearing an interesting story later. An hour and a half later, both kids were up (thanks to the non-sleeper) and I headed out to the pool for a quick swim while Adam started the morning routine. Upon coming in, I found the sweet little angel sitting at the kitchen table with a bowl of outmeal, and began the questioning.
" so, Pax...where did those crumbs come from in your bed?"
"oh, I just got a cookie,"
"you mean you got out of bed and came downstairs to get a cookie last night?"
"yes! It was sooooo yummy...I just sneaked down quietly, and got the cookies, and went to my bed and ate them alllll up! Yum!" (picture cookie-monster-ish noises and miming chomping on cookies)
"wait...cookies? How many did you have?"
"two! And then they were all gone," he shook his head sadly. (luckily...or else there would've been one sick little boy!)"and I just took them to my bed and ate them ALL UP and I was quiet and didn't wake up sister!"
Well, that's good at least...I'm still trying to figure out how come the kid can't stay in his bed cause of the "scaries"; but he can get out of his bed in the middle of the night and go downstairs in the dark by himself without a peep. The cookies were calling his name, apparently. So, you see, Cookie Monster DOES live at my house....and yes, Adam hid the cookies tonight.