The birthday party....

...was fun. HOT, but fun! Great friends having a blast with balls, bats, goals, and swimming. What could be better than that!? Pizza and cookie cake were consumed as well. Summer parties are so easy when they can be done outside, and out of 5 children, I only have one that can do this! Boys are great when given a variety of sport equipment. They can play traditional games, or make some up. Never dull, that is for sure!
Now typically this mom will post great pix of such an event as this, but alas, I took not a one! I know, what kind of a loser mom doesn't take pix at her son's 10th birthday party but well, you're looking at her! I TOOK the camera but it never left my bag. Between corralling a 2 year old, taking care of the baby and the needs of the party goers it just didn't happen. Now, I had plenty of help, but there seemed to be something I was always needing to do(chasing blowing trash, keeping said two year old from stealing drinks and food, etc) .
After the party was a sleepover and an impromptu game of flashlight tag outside before forcing them inside for the night. The rumor is, the last kid to crash went to sleep around 4ish. No wonder the 11 year old didn't wake until noon! They didn't keep me or the wee ones up at all, so I guess it was all good. They can nap today if needed.
Now onto the aftermath........

Just go outside....

....is what we told the kids after a VERY hot day was spent inside. The temps declined and the humidity plummeted so it was actually quite nice outside. You'd think we were trying to kill them by expecting them to entertain themselves outside of the house. Fresh air just might burst their lungs, you know! Well, we did insist and after much bickering they actually found something to do. The 126354654312 toys in the back yard that typically sit dormant got recruited this evening! There was a safe shelter, and a sand castle, complete with moat and tiny draw bridge. Then there was Shorty 'texting' on his phone! It is amazing that when FORCED to play outside, kids can still find things to do. Will miracles ever cease!?
All kidding aside, they really did have a good time. It was fun to observe. I remember all the time I spent outside as a child and all the strange things I thought of to do and actually am surprised my kids don't invent things more often than they do. They had parents that did. From their father's mock baseball games where he alone played every player on the team, to their mother's antics with an old lidded garbage can, they were destined to be outdoor geniuses. Where I'd love to share my old stories with them to encourage them to think outside the box, I am a little afraid of encouraging them to do really stupid things like I did! Picture this, a garbage can with locking lid, a garden hose and a sloped front yard. Water fills can half way, I get in it, my brother so loving locks the lid in place 'just so' and then he and my friend(Shannon, I hope you are reading this one!) tip it on its side and roll me down the hill into the street! What an amazingly fun time that was. Safe? Not really, but wow, was it a blast! Yes, that is one story I think I'll keep tucked away until they have their OWN children and then I'll tell them in private away from the curious ears of my impressionable grandchildren!
I just wonder what stories of outside fun they will have to NOT share with their children until they are old. I cherish them in their youth for I know it will pass all too quickly, but why must they enjoy tormenting their parents!? To all a good night....

The Baptism

Little Princess Pea was baptized today and what a wonderful thing it is. I teared up this time for some reason that I can't explain. Maybe it was because it was the last time to have one of my precious children baptized, or maybe because I felt the spirit move within me, but it was amazing all the same. She looked gorgeous in her frilly dress(gotta put her in them now when she doesn't have a say in it!)yet was hot and slippery, too with the slick fabric. She was happy, cheerful and didn't even so much as blink with the water touched her head. She took it all in. I am so proud to be one of His chosen ones and to know that my husband and children are as well.
We had a fine gathering afterward with tons of food and excellent company. The little princess ate to her heart's content. I made her some beautiful cupcakes the looked like they had pink roses on them and pink ice cream just for her. She devoured it all and seemed to want more!
I must give praise to my oldest child for taking over at the grill. I had put the meat on to cook and when I cam out to flip the burgers, he was already there with the flipper in hand flipping and adding more to the grill that didn't fit before. I am so thankful for a boy who LOVES to cook the way he does. It looks as though I have a grill master in the making! It was such a hot day that I was grateful to hand over the spatula! Thank you, son!
As with all gatherings, the festivities wore us all out. The honoree was first to drop, with #2 second. He at least made it until the guests had gone home! All the kids were ready for bed without being told and I would bet if I peeked in on them, I would find them passed out already! Granted, it is nearly midnight now, but this IS summer vacation AND a weekend, you know so they keep later hours these days!
Thanks to all who made it special for her(and us!) Now if I could just come down from this Mt Dew, caffeine high....

traveling with a small army...

...sure isn't easy, but so rewarding all the same! Between the "stop touching me"s, and the "get your feet out of my butt!"s, there are those moments where I see them doodling together and laughing at their creations, and the precious moments where they are entertaining the wee ones. Car trips are memory makers for sure!

The real fun begins once we get OUT of the van, however. The hotels(painstakingly chosen to accommodate our massive crew) are full of excitement as the kids are allowed to jump on the beds(shh, don't tell!), have the best pools and the food isn't bad, either! We were fortunate enough to have found a real gem this time. Stoney Creek Inn served us VERY well. The room was HUGE, had bunk beds, plenty of space, and rustic log cabin looks. The kids loved it. They came to the rescue when the dvd player wouldn't work on the tv, so they wheeled in a huge tv on a cart for us to use instead! At 11pm, even! My only complaint was that we couldn't have stayed another night do to it being booked for a golf tourney. That certainly couldn't have been helped.

You may think, 'what is there to do in Iowa?', but we had a great time! There was the Channel Cat water taxi that we rode on the Mighty Mississippi, the River Bandits minor league baseball game, the John Deere Museum(okay, that is technically in Ill.) and some good eats for sure! I managed to take well over a hundred pictures in one weekend in Iowa, so there must be enough to do, right!? Just getting away from the normal day-to-day of home is all we needed, but got so much more! Spending the whole weekend with my family with no one going off to play with a friend, or begging to go do something fun. It was ALL fun!

The Wee Ones are good travelers and only really fussed at us in the car a little bit. Packing for a weekend with all those people was no small feat, but I didn't expect it would be! Getting it in the van is a whole 'nother story! The pack-n-play for the baby as well as the stroller take up most of the space, so the luggage has to be collapsible and forgiving. The packer must have good spacial-relations abilities as well to make it all fit. I had a good teacher with that, but I am still never going to be as good at it as he is! Now for the next trip out of town for TWICE that long....well, that will be a little more extensive and I may have to rely on the master-packer himself to get it all loaded in the van!

You never know how the little people will adjust to sleeping in a big room with a lot of other bodies, but they did surprisingly well. The first, night we had all the room in the world to spread out, but night #2 offered much more cramped accommodations. Somehow, I managed to find a closet the pack-n-play fit in for the baby that worked wonderfully. It was near the a/c which was great for the white noise it provided BUT shielded her from the cold blast. She would have been a popsicle had it not been for that closet! We gotta do what we gotta do sometimes!

Now to deal with the aftermath with the UNpacking and the laundry that goes with it! Off I go.....

Five's company, nine's a.....

...complete lack of judgment(and sanity) on my part! No, all kidding aside, I wouldn't have it any other way, but 4 extra kids sure adds a lot of craziness. Between two girls, um, I mean CATS, tethered together at the NECK, and a pick-up game of mud soccer in the swamp-like back yard and the drumming from the basement it is never dull around here! Somehow, Shorty is sleeping through all of it!
I am so thankful my children all have friends that feel comfortable here and want to play often. Not all moms can or WANT to have a thousand children at their house at any given time, so I know I am truly a rarity in that, but I figure I already have 5, what's a few more!? There are already stains on the carpets and walls in dire need of paint, so what really could any one do to make it worse, right!? There will be time for paint and new flooring when my kids are older and no longer here to mess it all up, so for now, I'll keep it like it is so all are welcome. As long as I know how many are here for dinner BEFORE I start to cook it, in most cases I'll feed them. Unless its Wednesday, because I shop on Thursdays and there's not usually enough food left in the house to feed too many by Wednesday. Or even Tuesday for that matter. Monday might even be a stretch some weeks!
So with that, I'll say, "Welcome to my home, one and all and bring your raggedy kids with you!" I love 'em all, and they'll fit right in with MY raggedy kids!

He's BAAAACK!

Soccerbug has returned. 5 days is a long time for this momma to be without one of my children. He had a fabulous time and did things he's never done before. There were fireworks and boat rides along with some tubing and fishing. What more could a a guy hope for? I know it sounds silly, but it was only 5 days and he looks older to me. Just like he'd been gone for a few months. It is strange, I know but the hubby agrees with me. I am sure he looks the same as when he left, but it took him being gone a few days for me to really SEE him. He is nearly 10 now and looks where before he still seemed so young to me. How does that happen?
Of course, he was home only a few minutes before he was downstairs with his siblings catching up and then I just barely got him to put his stuff away before he was heading over to play with his buddy next door. Clearly we missed him more than he missed us! I guess it should be that way, shouldn't it?
He is full of energy(or is he running on adrenaline?) and is wound up like a wild animal, but nothing that a good night's sleep can't fix. I am looking forward to the next few days hearing the tales of his adventures. He isn't a 'tell-it-all-right-now' kind of guy, but rather more like a 'let-it-come-up-in-conversation' guy. I am so glad he is home...

someone's missing...

My soccer bug went to the lake with his buddy on Wednesday and I am missing him so. None of my kiddos have ever been away from home for this long. Both sets of grandparents live in town so they haven't gone away for any reason so far. They have had overnights here and there pretty regularly, but FIVE days is a LONG time! I made him promise to call a few times while he was gone and he has. He does miss us(which I am happy to hear) but is having a fabulous time, so I am happy he got to go. I, on the other hand, am missing him dearly. This is my little guy that used to velcro himself to my leg upon dropping him off at Sunday School, and freaked out when a stranger passed through a room he was playing in. For him, this is a really big deal.
My momma duck instincts have been on hyper-drive, though with a duckling missing. My auto scan that runs a constant tab of my kiddos keeps getting hung up where he should be, and I have to remind myself he isn't here. Constant reminder for this momma. He is due back on Monday but I am secretly hoping he returns tomorrow! I am very proud of him for taking this big step into freedom and trust.
The other kids miss him bunches, too. Especially First-born. They are buddies and roommates, so having him gone really makes the biggest impact on him. Shorty keeps asking where he is when he remember big brother is missing. I think that makes a guy feel good to know how much he is missed, but I will wait until he gets home to tell him that. Don't want to make him feel bad about not being here. It just isn't the same when one of the ducks is missing. Two days and counting.....