I'm a pushover.

 Olivia had to have one of her top front teeth pulled the other night.  She had developed an abscess above in on her gum.  We think it's from getting hit in the mouth when she was playing with Soren.  Don't know for sure.  She was throwing a fit about having to have shots to numb her mouth.  I was trying to calm her down when she started to negotiate with me.  She told me that she would be still for 20 bucks.

What?

I owe her 20 bucks now.

This is what Ella and Anna do when I tell them to clean their room.  I must say, that Ella has the funnest hair to play with.  But still, just clean the dang room!

It's hard to get mad when they do things like this.

Side note-  Olivia picked out a pair of sunglasses from the toy chest at the dentist office.

It's gloomy and raining outside, but she sure does know how to rock those sunglasses.

Spring Fever

 The first signs that Spring is coming to Custer!  Between the endless days of rain that we seem to get here, there have been some lovely sunny days.  I take full advantage of the sun, and spend as much time out side as possible.  I still have to bundle up, but the suns warmth feels so good!

 I spend my time taking walks, watching for wildlife and listening to the world around me.  I think a beaver had tried to work on this tree.  I wish I could spot one!

 Getting excited to see these beauties.

 Ted loves the sun too.

 Mt. Baker is covered in snow. 

I miss living in a neighborhood, but nothing can compare to living out in the country and being able to just Breathe!

My Valentines

Happy Valentines Day to my wonderful family!  

I thought I would say a little about each one on my special loved ones on this "Love" day.

I snapped this shot of Anna and Logan as they were heading off to school yesterday.  I find the mornings exasperating and hilarious at the same time.

Logan-

   He wakes up about 40 minutes before he has to leave and proceeds to yell at everyone he comes across.  Anna, get my lunch made.

Anna, where are my socks?

Anna, where's my coffee cup?

Grumble, grumble, grumble is his morning routine.  He takes after me!

Even though I want to smack him up side the head most of the time, he is an amazing kid.  He works so hard at school and his job.  I am so proud of him.  It warms my black little heart when I see him playing with his siblings.  It's been funny to see how protective he has gotten over Anna.  I love to watch their friendship develop.  Most of all, I love his sense of humor.

Anna-

Anna gets up very early to get ready for school.  Makes her lunch and Logan's.  Get's herself ready and most of Logan's stuff put together.  Most often than not, she is helping me with the other kids lunches in the morning too.  She is a loyal friend and Sister.  Animals have a special place in her heart except when she's eating a bloody steak, then it's in her stomach.  Anna is turning out to be an amazing cook, a very sloppy cook at that.  I know it drives me crazy, but the One Direction obsession thing she has going on is hilarious.

She's so smart and caring.  Slobby, bossy and caring!

 Ella-

My Directioner Daughter.  She's worse than Anna.  Ella is in that pre-teen stage that scares the living daylights out of me.  Most of the time I don't know if I should treat her like a little girl or an adult.  Of all my kids, she has got the biggest heart towards people.  She wants to be happy, therefore everyone else should be happy.  How hard is that?  All my girls sing beautifully, but Ella has a knack for it.  As with all my kids, Ella is so smart and amazes me with what she can do.  I have to say though, she's a coffee snatcher in the morning.  I could be dying, taking my last breath and she still wouldn't save me any.  She's not a morning person either.

 Soren-

Talk about strong.  Yesterday he was home with another migraine.  He has suffered from these for years.  He puts up with the food restrictions that he has, without too much fuss.  It's hard for a nine year old to not be able to have candy, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, orange soda.  You know, all the good stuff that is so bad for you.  His heart is bigger than him.  He's still my little boy who loves to be held and have his back rubbed. There are still kisses at the bus stopped allowed and hands to be held.  I see him maturing into a young man already.  His imagination is astounding and his talking incessant.  Yes, we will be happy when the voice changes!

 Olivia-

Um, this picture says it all.

Diva.

Attitude.

Style.

I own the world.

There has to be something said for being the baby of the family.  She knows how to get her own way and has Mommy and Daddy wrapped around her little finger.  Having two older sister's that are obsessed with a certain boy band, it's a given that she's going to act older than she is.  Only when it suits her.  I've seen her swoon at the sight of "The Boys" on TV.  Heard her scream like a teenager.

Then she turns around and is playing with her babies and trying to snuggle with me in bed.  She's dancing in her ballet clothes, then playing Karate with Soren in the Do Jo that they made.   She's made out of Sugar and Spice and Puppy Dog Tails!  What's amazing as a Mother, is watching my little girl grow up to be a kind, loving person.  She just is having a few set backs when she's punching or hitting her siblings.

 Troy-

This is mostly why I love Troy.  He finally went and got his CPAP stuff done and is taken so much stress off of me! I'm finally sleeping.  He makes me laugh.

He makes me laugh alot.  Troy can take the stupidest things and make them funny.  Most of all he's patient with me.  I know I'm not the easiest person to live with.  He's embraces my love of animals and birds.

I love how he has amazing relationships with each of the kids.  Each one different.  On the 11th of this month it was the 21st anniversary of our very first date.   There are still phone calls during the day so we can chat.  He still holds my hand.  Most of all, after all these years, he doesn't grumble when I put my cold feet on him when I crawl into bed.

 My Poppy, Ted and Izzie.  I can't imagine my life with out pets.  Each personality different.  Right now, it's my Ted who loves to snuggle and love.  He instinctively know when I need some loving.  He instinctively know when to climb up on Troy and irritate him.

Each of my loved ones bring a certain dynamic into our family.  We work together, fight, cry, play and laugh.    

I'm an extra lucky girl on this Valentines day.

That hair is the Bomb!

 The girls and I have spent some time on Pinterest looking at different hair styles.  Not to be confused with Harry Styles.  They spend a lot of time looking up him too!

Anna's hair is really hard to work with because it's so fine and straight.  Plus there are a lot of layers in it.

Ella's hair has got a slight wave to it and the perfect texture.  Anna spends tons of time playing with Ella's hair.

Ella has passed her big sister in height.

Troy photo bombing.

This is what I get when I tell him to behave!

What I missed getting is both the girls are wearing Rio Rancho High school shirts.  Thinking they were a little home sick for Rio Rancho!

Sleeping Beauty.

 It's been almost a year since Olivia started sleeping in her own bed all night.  Every once in a while she'll sneak in between Troy and I, cries a little, then ends up staying with us.  

She loves her sleep and she is not a morning person.  This is how our morning looks.  I get her up to get ready for school, she grabs a blanket and goes back to sleep on the couch.

 Do you know how hard it is for me to wake up this precious little thing.  Mostly I just don't want to listen to her whine.   But seriously, how sweet is that?  I can't stand that when I hold her, she takes up the length of the couch.  I can't stand that I can't pick her up anymore.  It's so hard not to have a kid on my hip while I'm working.  I try to carry Ted around like that, but he's just not built right.

It's almost been a whole year since Olivia started sleeping in her own bed.  I'm not sure I'm liking it.

Never mind, I'm liking it.  Just not liking how fast she's growing.

Dunow kids and Shelby sing Little things.

Town Mouse, Country Mouse.

 Several weeks ago a storm blew down several more trees.   It's an amazing sight to see such huge trees broken to bits.  The first thing I did was go out and check to make sure there were no nests, squirrel or bird, that had been smashed.

 I can just imagine a little bird family being displaced by the storm.

That's what I get from watching too much Little Bear with Olivia.

Or by myself when I have no kids at home!

 I am very aware of my skewed view of how animals live and think.  Troy and the kids would see Ted and Poppy outside and not have second thoughts.  I on the other hand, have the story of Town Mouse, Country Mouse running through my head.  I see Ted and Poppy, being the mean cats on the hunt for the poor helpless mice.

Mice that are living in their little holes in the ground, with a fireplace to keep the little mice feet warm.  Mommy mouse cooking veggie stew for the family while the little kid mice play checkers.  Daddy mouse is off collecting wood for the fire when all of a sudden a HUGE cat named Ted pounces on him!  Those poor little mice no longer have a Daddy or a Husband.  

 Troy is forever teasing me about my denial of the real world.  I want all animals to be vegetarians, not hunting mice and little pretty birds.

That's just what Poppy and Ted were doing.  Off they go to the corn field to find a little field mouse and bop them on their head.

They got one.

I know that because I stepped on it when Poppy left it on the porch for me.

Those poor little mice out there with out a Mother or Father.

Who is going to knit the little winter sweaters for them or gather seeds for their dinner?

Running for cover

 I was so sad when these pictures didn't turn out.  This morning as I was walking out the door to the bus stop with the kids, there were a pair of bald eagles in our front yard.  One of them flew just feet from Soren and I and dove to the ground.  I think it got a mouse.  Soren ran in the garage screaming.  I ran screaming.  It was actually a little terrifying having such a large bird come at you.  After I got back from the bus stop I was able to sit out on the back steps and listen and watch them.

 For such a big beautiful bird, they have a really annoying chirpy, screechy call.

 What a magnificent way to start the day!

Grease Monkeys

 Can I just say how lucky I am to have a Husband and Son that know how to change brakes?

Well they kind of did!

Good thing we have the internet.

 It amazes me every time they fix our cars.  I get so proud of them.
There's always the occasional swear word and always blood.

Last time Troy worked on Logan's car, he hit his head and split it open.  This time he put a hole in one of his fingers.  

The brakes are fixed, the guys learned something new and no trips to the ER.

Mission accomplished.

Date night for the kids!

 I'm going to embarrass Anna just a little bit.

Last night she had her first dance night date.

 IT was TOLO, which is a girl ask boy dance for Ferndale High school.  Anna asked a very nice young man to go with her.  Troy met him at the door with his shot gun.  Anna and I were horrified   I have to give it to Paul though.  He put a smile on his face and laughed.  Hope he wasn't scared!

We asked the kids to stand together so I could get individual pictures of the couples.  Just as I was snapping this shot Logan jumped in.  He was feeling a little protective about his sister.  There was no need to worry because Paul was the perfect gentleman.

 So cute!  See, I'm embarrassing her.

 I can't get over the fact that Anna is dating.  What a gorgeous girl Troy and I have!

 Big Brother and Little Sister.  I'm so glad they have a good friendship.

 The group of kids that went to the dance together.  I have to say, they were a really good bunch of kids.

I'm glad that she had a really good time.  The thought of her dating gave me an ulcer.  After meeting her date I was fine.  It's just hard for us Mom's to let go of that control.  Anna's growing into a responsible young adult.  We are so proud of her!  I have to say, I had an old person moment at the Safeway store earlier in the day.  I'm standing at the register buying a corsage for Logan's date and a boutonniere for Anna's date, it hit me hard.  I am old enough to have two kids in high school.  

I am old enough to have two kids going to school dances.  I am old enough to have two kids driving.

Yikes!

A foggy morning with Mr. Darcy

 For about a whole week, the fog was so thick.  It's finally cleared out know and the rain has begun again in earnest.  Washington, I have learned does nothing in half measures.  If it rains, it pours.

If it's foggy, it's as thick as pea soup.

If it's warm, it's paradise.

I grabbed the camera walking out the door taking the kids to the bus stop.  I had been hearing the Bald Eagles lately didn't want to miss my chance at a picture.  I wasn't thinking about the fog at the time!  Duh!

The kids went off to school and I walked back up the lane, my mind started to wander....

Mr. Darcy.

I could just imagine him striding toward me with his black great coat billowing in the wind.

I'm thinking of the moment in the Pride and Prejudice movie with Kiera Knightly, when Mr. Darcy comes to proclaim his love for Elizabeth.  They both are out walking in the early morning, with mist all around them.  Off in the distance Lizzy spots Mr. Darcy coming toward her.

Except in the movie it wasn't freezing cold.

Lizzy looked much better in her pajamas than I did.

She didn't just get 5 kids off to school.

I have to say, I like my "Mr. Darcy" aka Troy, more than the ones on the screen.

I do believe that Troy will be getting a black great coat next year for his birthday. 

A girl can dream, can't she.