Wanna-be Hepheastus

As I mentioned before Bronson's class was doing a unit on Greek Mythology. They each got to pick a God to do a project on and were given a box. Bronson came up with this idea all my himself after learning Hepheastus worked underground by the volcanoes, etc.

(tired face.......this was last night @ 11 and he STILL wanted a picture. Notice I did NOT want to be in it!)

A project, is a project. He'll have plenty, but he had to attach an "opinion" piece on his god to the back and THIS is what I was impressed with the most that he came up with himself.

It says, "To me, Hephaestus is the greatest greek god. He's the best! I mean, who wouldn't want to learn about the famous greek god Hepheastus, the god of fire and forge? Even when his own mother threw him of (whoops, he meant "off") Mt. Olympus, he forgave her. Hepheastus is a good example of kindness and forgiveness. I wish more people would learn from his example. I chose Hepheastus for this reason."

This really gives you an insight into Bronson's sweet heart.

You know, like the same kind of kid that spends 45 minutes in the backyard with his baby brother helping him hit baseballs to make him giggle.

Come to think of it, I'm kinda a Hephaestus wanna-be now!

Love me some boys

There are VERY few faces that make me happier then this one.........

Seriously, this kid just LIGHTS up.....especially for me. His WHOLE FACE smiles and his eyes shine. I LOVE going in after his naps because I get the Mom-you're-my-everything smile each time. Royce is just so sweet.

Look at this sweet innocent face!

Ok, ok, not SO innocent as he is SITTING ON THE TABLE!!! He's such a climber. Table, computer table, beds, bunkbeds, you name it. He's just so limber and teeny that he just throws his leg up anything and pulls himself up. Grandma will have her hands full keeping him off of stuff.

Have I ever mentioned how helpful my kids can be? Well, they can also be bought. Camden and Bronson REALLY wanted to stay up past 9:30 and keep watching the NEXT NCAA b-ball game until Dad got home. hmmmmm, I thought about it. Then I had a brilliant idea. I told them they COULD if they hand-scrubbed my kitchen floor first.

And whaddya know......they did it!

Might I add, they did a REALLY good job too. They're definitely hired.

Then they enjoyed the game. :)

My "chest" is filled with love

When I found out I was pregnant @ 4 weeks, I KNEW that if this pregnancy was anything like the past um.....4, that I would start getting sick around 6 weeks.

That meant I had at least 2 weeks to get everything done I needed to.

(Remember that post where we showed our house, spread mulch, painted, power-washed etc.? That was the weekend before my 6th week when I was still healthy. Coincidence? I think not. Heavenly Father had my back on that one.)

In those 2 weeks I went to work on projects on the home, did stuff for my church calling, but most importantly (in my mind) I needed to get some meals in the freezer. So I cooked and doubled and tripled recipes. I conned my 2 friends Rachel and Allison to do a freezer meal swap w/ me, so I ended up w/ 9 meals from that. All in all, I think I had about 20-ish meals.

And at 6 weeks and 1 day, I got sick. Amazing. Do I know my body or what?

Even when I went for the ultrasound and the lady was showing me the baby and the "yolk" sac thing next to the baby she said, "You see this yolk? That's what is releasing the hormones and making you so sick!" My baby was a raspberry-sized thing at the time and the yolk was maybe 1/4 a size of my baby. So this 1/4 a size of a raspberry made me so sick. Incredible. (and if you think I wasn't cursing the yolk all the time after that day, then you would be wrong!)

Then on those sick days that I was done w/ being sick, I couldn't help but think, "Would I rather have my health and NOT have this baby?" This answer was an OBVIOUS NO WAY!!!! So I would just smile spiritually and think, I was taking one for the team so another one of Heavenly Father's spirits could get a body and come to earth.

Anyway, last week there was a baby shower and before the shower my visiting teacher, Kim said she wanted to stop by really fast, visit and then go to the shower. For dinner that night I pulled out my 2nd to the last freezer meal out and was a little sad to see them almost gone. My freezer was basically empty except for a few things on the bottom.

I heard the door and knew it would be Kim. I came to the door and saw a WHOLE PORCH FULL OF WOMEN!!!!! And they were all carrying freezer meals for me.

I was so overwhelmed and couldn't help but think that there were SO many others out there suffering more then I was and going through a harder time. I felt a little unworthy. I COULD HAVE made my family meals, yes. I was able enough for sure. And of course I didn't NEED them. But as I led them down to my freezer (by my big ol' pile of laundry, yikes!) and saw them fill my freezer back up to the top, I couldn't help but just sit back in awe.

I had a great time @ the shower, but by the time I was in the car home, I was feeling like I was ready to crash. I walked in, sat on my couch downstairs, because I just didn't have enough energy to walk up the stairs. Later I decided I had enough energy to walk out to the freezer to check out all the meals (Because I didn't really get to examine them!!!!).

I sat there looking at them and just cried a few tears of gratitude.

Tears of knowing I have the best friends who teamed up to lighten my burden just that much more. I feel so very lucky to know people like these women.

Just call me Athena

Why you ask? Well Athena is the Greek Goddess of wisdom.

Bronson came home a week ago and invited me to a parents/students Greek party in his classroom because they just finished their Greek History/mythology unit.

Cool, I thought. I found a babysitter for the younger 3 and I was good.

Then Bronson came home the day before yesterday (THE DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY!!!!!) and gave me the flyer. On the flyer, it said "Olympics btw. the students vs. parents on their knowledge of Greek history/mythology". WHAT?!?!?

He never said ANYTHING about a competition! You mean I could've been studying this whole week?!!?? I mean, I've read the Percy Jackson books, I've eaten a gyro once and Greek/Roman mythology was my favorite class in 8th grade, but that's really all I had goin' for me. He told me he would bring me home a book yesterday to study. Here it is:

I happened to stay up until 11 last night studying it (even after 11 years from being in college of still have some MAD cramming/memorizing skills) and then as you see from the picture above, while I was stopped @ red lights on the way to his school.

I get there and they're all eating the foods that they used to eat in ancient Greece before the Olympics. Stuff like goat cheese, feta cheese, figs, grapes, honey, olives and Capri Suns. (Pretty sure the champion of the chariot races was ALWAYS The guy who downed the most Capri Suns before the competition)

That's Mrs. Coles, his teacher in the tunic above. Bronson goes from his awesome hispanic teacher (who teaches in spanish) who calls him lovingly, "Bronsito" (meaning "cute little Bronson") to Mrs. Coles class ( 3-5 graders ) where she calls him the manly nickname of "Bronsonian". I just love his teachers.

And here we are eating. Surprisingly the little peanut in my belly didn't gag up any goat cheese like it did w/ my pregnancy with Aleeya. Phew.

Then it came down to the MAIN event..........the students on one side and the parents on the other.

(To be quite honest, I was a little nervous because Bronson has come home talking about all these topics that I REMEMBER learning about them, but couldn't recall any facts. These kids knew EVERYTHING like the back of their.....well.....fig newtons they were eating.)

It was jeopardy style and the students were PRETTY much ahead the WHOLE stinkin' time. We parents missed the question on the year of the first Olympics (ARG! I skipped that chapter!), but got everything else right. Bronson and I kept signaling back and forth with a thumbs down sign telling the other that THEY WERE GOIN' DOWN (the same sign we give Dad when we're racing him to church in the other car).

And I HAAAAAAATE the brag or boast or have this be permanently in my printed blog book forever that Bronson's mom wanted to rub it in his face that we won................but...........who am I kidding, OF COURSE I'm documenting this! Check out that score people!

(think I embarrassed him enough posing by that?)

Ironically enough Athena was also the goddess of "just warfare" and I HATE to say it, but

the parents JUSTLY won, fair and square.

But don't try asking me any of those facts come next week, as I said, I'm a master at memorizing/cramming for a test. :) Bronson however, will remember this stuff for a long time. He loved this unit.

No surprise

I realize this post will NOT surprise some (as in my mom and family), partly because I have a history of getting injured in the lamest of ways.

So to add to that extensive list I'll add these feet:

Not sure if you can see but my right foot has a bruise mark/circle under my first three toes and it's a tad swollen. (don't you hate those injuries that feel horrible but don't have much to show for it? It's like you want your toes hanging off to prove your pain or something! hahaha)

Anyway, I got the boys off for school and at a hour that I usually feel great, I started feeling, well, not-so-great, and it seemed REALLY out of character. At literally 8 o'clock I thrilled the girls by telling them we could watch a movie this morning (they were so happy) while I curled up in a blanket downstairs and watched it with them. I still didn't feel right. Then I got the watering mouth, and well, we all know what that means, I had VERY LITTLE time to make it to the toilet before I puked.

So I jumped up and started to run (my only chance of making it on time) but I was caught in the blanket. I kept on running anyway and my feet got caught. Well, more specifically, my toes. I went to run and my first three toes folded under my foot before I stepped on them to run up the stairs. I was a baby and made a scene (not enough to get the girls vision unlocked from Belle though) but I am HAPPY to report, I MADE IT TO THE TOILET IN TIME!!!!!!! Success!!!!

But really, WHO DOES THAT?!?! Ugh, me. I've hobbled/limped around like a loser Monday/Tuesday and actually by Wednesday I was feeling quite a bit of relief. Apparently my first diagnosis of "I totally broke my toes" to "I sprained them" ended up being what? I lamely bruised them or something? Who knows, but it sure made driving and getting a house ready for a showing a little tricky.

Good thing the girls were entertained during the day though w/ the lizard

Those are Iris' hands feeding the lizard a worm that they spent 20 minutes digging up to find. Seriously people, if you want your kids entertained for hours and days, catch a lizard and tell them to catch bugs to feed it (which the lizard DOES eat). I'll even loan Camden out (for a small fee) to catch them for you!!!

St. Paddy's Day

Jellybean race time. All day the kids were talking about it and in my mind all I could think of was, "Camden will probably win again" and "Bronson better not win, because he wants to go someplace w/ Lobster" ;)

We broke it into heats. The older two aren't allowed to use their hands.

This picture makes me laugh because Royce has his eye so set on Bronson's jellybean that the whole trick this year was moving the jellybean fast enough so Royce couldn't get it.

Camden smashed his nose into the carpet and pushed the jellybean as he slid along the carpet. It is NOT cheating, but also a tactic I have never seen (and I've seen them all.......)

Ah, yes, THAT'S why no one does it, because it leaves a good ol' red mark on the side of your nose!!!! (the picture doesn't do it justice)

But heck, it was worth it, Camden won.

Next heat, w/ hands: Iris, Emerson and Aleeya

Here is Aleeya FREAKING out because Emerson is in the lead.

In the above picture that actually is the last time you will SEE Iris' jellybean. Now you see it.....

Now you don't.

Then it was me and Brooks...........and literally, it came down to 1 maybe 2 split seconds. And well, I HATE to brag, but heck, I won. And CLEARLY was excited.

Okay, now the "WINNERS" heat. It consisted of Camden, Emerson and myself. And shocker of ALL shockers, Emerson actually BEAT Camden!!!!!

He was sooooooo happy, he couldn't hold still, His celebration was more of the break-dancing level at this point.

Then I asked him where he wanted to go..........and here is what he said. (Mom, you actually have to click on the video to watch it. :) love you)

So we were off! And to be quite honest, it's actually one of my FAVORITE places to eat. I was thinking of roast/potatoes/carrots, chocolate fountains all day. On the way over there, I started feeling like something was just NOT right. I assumed it was because I was hungry and just needed to get something in my belly. Once we got to the restaurant, I just wanted to double over. We waited in line until I finally told Brooks I wouldn't be able to eat ANYTHING or go get the kids food, let alone sit up. So I took Iris and Royce and we went home. Here is the picture I took of them waiting to get their trays as we walked out. (I know, it REALLY looks like they care that I'm leaving, huh)

I promise they were all in green at one point, they just kept getting dirty and well, we can't take homeless looking children there, especially in such a large quantity! :)

Iris was NOT and I repeat NOT happy that we were leaving, so I sat in that darn McD's drive-thru basically laying in my own lap so she could get a Happy Meal w/ a toy to possibly entertain her and keep her happy. Here they are eating (I love that face)

I crashed on the couch. Later when I saw the boys one of them asked me if I was going to die. hahaha. Not sure what "tender/loving" comment I shot back, but the question still makes me laugh as I type this. (During times like these Camden always says , "Man, I'm suuuuuuuuuure glad I'm not a girl!")

Here's hoping that maybe NEXT St. Patrick's Day the Irish luck might actually be with me to go out and eat with my own stinkin' family. (Who by-the-way had the best time.......they were even giving out cotton candy that night and my kids came home w/ blue faces from multiple helpings!)

Match Day

From the FIRST day of medical school........


(Yes, Camden WAS born on the first day of medical school while Brooks sat studying in the chair next to me afterwards)

The Biggest Day you look forward to is Match Day.

It comes during your 4th year and tells you WHERE you will go for residency.

And each med school makes a HUGE GIGANTIC deal out of it. It's a WHOLE day thing w/ sometimes family in town, a big fancy shmancy luncheon where everyone opens up their letters all together.

(the only picture I can find from Brooks' match day @ ETSU, I had to borrow it from our friend Elizabeth.....and yes, that's baby Aleeya)

It was SO fun to find out where we were going and you end up being on cloud 9 all day long.

Since Brooks is doing ANOTHER residency come this fall, he had to enter the Match again, and yesterday happened to be Match Day.

Let's just say it was a liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiittle different then the first time around.

Brooks went to work

I stayed home

He said he would get an email around noon (AN EMAIL??!?!?!?! Whatever.)

Then I get an email from him saying he has a Pathology conference @ noon so he'll call me after. (CLEARLY the Pathology department could give a RAT'S BEHIND about his Match Day)

I went outside w/ the girls and we manually stabbed the grass around the mailbox to aerate for a good 45 minutes

(a glamorous thing to do on Match Day, might I add)

During my lawncare episode Brooks happened to call, but I was outside and missed it (seriously, I have a life!)

So he forwarded the "EXCITING" email to me and this is what it was:

Congratulations, you have matched!

Program Code: 1683120CDX
Program Name: Family Medicine
Institution Name: (yadda yadda this is a public blog), So Carolina

I was THRILLED obviously because it's where we wanted and then I just started laughing.

4 years ago this was the biggest day EVER EVER and this time around he gets a 4 lined email.

The kids were glad to know as well because they like change/moving (like their mom), but that was it.

So there you have it, we're moving to South Carolina (can you tell we like this part of the country?)

Oh wait, the day WASN'T a totally normal day w/ a 4-lined email. We DID have something EXTRA happen to make it memorable. Camden caught a lizard!

Wait, now that I think about it, Camden catching ANYTHING really DOES mean it's a normal day around here........... Oh well.

Restful Perfection

We (and the kids especially) are super excited to announce #7 coming early October!!!!!!

(and I know some of you will NOT believe me that I went to the doctor during 1st trimester, but I really needed some meds people, and you can SEE my name up at the top! So there is your proof that I occasionally will suck it up and go to the doctor!!! )

Brooks' reaction was priceless. I don't remember him looking that excited for the others as he was this time. When I showed him the test when we brought him lunch @ work he was all smiles and then said to me,

"You know, in the Bible the number 7 is a symbol of PERFECTION!"

To which I replied,

"Huh, that's weird because the only thing I remember about the number 7 in the Bible is that someone GOT SOME REST!!!!!!"

So here's to some perfect rest.

Here. Here.

Family Love

Sunday morning love..........it was ever-abounding yesterday.

I was in the computer room getting things ready for church on a chair and Brooks was in the kitchen by the dining room......when we HEARD the conversation from the dining room.

It went something like, "I don't want you sitting by me." "I want to." "I don't want you to." or something like that. Then I heard Aleeya ask "Why?" And Emerson told her,

"BECAUSE I HATE YOU!"

(words from the song "Love at Home" came to mind at this point)

Before I could say anything Brooks got there, talked about never using that word and sent Emerson to his bedroom until he could come up w/ 5 things to say to Aleeya that he LOVES about her.

Aleeya couldn't WAIT for him to get back!!!!!

So I decided just to stay on my chair there and try to act invisible while I documented the whole thing. Emerson came back in and said he was ready to tell Aleeya the 5 things (her face in priceless in all these pictures. She just looooooooooved hearing what someone loves about her!)

#1- I love when you go on adventures with me.

(good, I thought, he's got this, but then he stopped and thought and couldn't think of the next one forever)

#2- I love it when you let me "oompa" you

(which I wasn't going to let slide because "oompa-ing" is when they stand in front and push back their bum to knock you over. But Aleeya giggled like she LOVED that compliment so I let him go on.)

#3- I love it when you stay away from me

HOLD ON EMERSON! That won't work, try again.

#3- I love it when you sit by the fire with me and Camden

(giggles from the couch)

#4- I love it when you don't sit by me

Sorry buddy, NOT going to fly....isn't that what GOT him in this situation to BEGIN WITH?!?!

#4- I love it when I pick you up and spin

#5- I love it when you don't go pee

(which I ALMOST made him try again, but that is SORT of a compliment because if she DOES go pee then she goes in the "baby's" room in the toddler bed and doesn't get to sleep in the room w/ her brothers. And since she loved that one, I'm assuming she took it as, "He likes it when I get to sleep in the same room as him." BABY STEPS PEOPLE!!!!)

Then from the other room Brooks said, and give each other a BIG HUG!!!!-

(which just Aleeya did, while Emerson's hands stayed in his pockets) So once again we parents intervened and told him HE had to give HER a big hug.

Which as you can see, she seemed to enjoy more then anything.

Yes, I feel the love around here!

THANK GOODNESS

for THIS snowsuit!!!!!!! We had another showing today (she emailed last night and wanted to know if she could come today....um, okay) and I had been cleaning, taking stuff out to the Yeti all day. But this is good because we have a few more next week, so I'm getting the routine down.

Why is this snowsuit so awesome you ask?!?!!? Well, I had ALL the beds made up, rooms cleaned, etc. before naptime. The couple called while they were still sleeping and said they were in town and on their way. Perfect, I thought, because I just finished the last spot on the ground to clean. Then I went into Aleeya's room (who was sleeping in the snowsuit.........not sure why), and she was standing up by her bed and said, "I PEED THE BED!"

My first thought was, "How does it smell in here?" because they were within a mile or two of our house. It was fine and still smelled like the plug-in I had in the wall......hmmmm, then I inspected her sheets/blankets and they were crisp/clean and dry. I thought she really didn't pee at this point, but she took off her snowsuit and she was soaked, and that BLESSED SNOWSUIT KEPT ALL THE PEE IN AND SAVED THE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hey, maybe this could be a good marketing idea.......