Swinging and Sand

And spider. And worm. Joseph is very into insects and things....he picks them up without hesitation and likes to go looking for them. Unfortunately his excitement sometimes leads to the end of said little creature, which was the case when he pulled a spider out of the sandbox this weekend. I'm pretty sure the worm survived though....they're pretty indestructible. The girls had their first swinging experience, and as you can see they enjoyed it. The kids are all playing together more. Leah tried to suck on Hannah's foot the other morning, and while Joseph was napping this afternoon the girls entertained each other sitting on the floor playing with all kinds of toys they'd never seen before (aka "Joseph's toys" which he sometimes needs to be reminded to share). In the mornings the girls usually wake up first, and then Joseph comes into there room after he's up and keeps them entertained while we get ready. Sometimes this includes hugging and kissing them and other times it entails him taking whatever it is that is in their hands No real problems yet though, since it's all one way and they can't really take anything from him unless he gets close enough to let them. Just wait until Hannah and Leah can go to him!

Hats, Hats, and Helmet

We had some outdoor fun last weekend....Sunday was super hot so instead of going to the zoo (Joseph had a field trip with his class to the zoo this week anyway) we went downtown to Discovery World and walked around a bit by the lake (was a much cooler 75 by Lake Michigan). You may be thinking....huh...that doesn't look like water or scenes from the aquarium....and you would be right. That is our front yard. I didn't bring the camera with me that morning, but I did run inside to grab it after seeing how cute the little ladies looked in their hats that afternoon (Joseph would have looked cute in his hat too but he did not want to take off his helmet, and by 4pm on Sunday I had had enough of arguing with an extremely moody three year old).
Amazingly it looks like we're going to have more hot weather for memorial day weekend...though the extra day off work is way more important to me than the weather. And I have to say, I actually prefer the 60s and 70s to 80s and 90s (crazy right?)

This is How We Roll

A few favorite pictures

A few favorite pictures from last weekend. The girls are almost 7 months in these pics, just a few days shy. Leah's eyes are sparkling in her car seat.....I think all of the kids have Jay's hazel eyes. And Hannah continues to look a lot like Joseph did as a baby, though with the purple hat and shirt it's easy to tell it's her. Joseph is learning about spheres and prisms at school, and likes pointing them out everywhere we go. He actually gets to go back to the zoo next week with his class so he's already asking when that is (is that today? is that tomorrow? is that after nap?) He is also learning before and after and what comes next. And so I have told him he can play games on the computer (nick jr) after I finish what I'm doing. It doesn't always work but for now he is standing patiently next to me eagerly awaiting his turn.

Sitting Ladies Hidden Diapers

They look a little wobbly here, but Hannah and Leah are both getting pretty good at sitting on their own. You never know when they may topple over though, so you still have to be ready to catch them (or on squishy carpet, which for us is only in the basement) You can also see that their 3-6 and 6mos pants are getting a bit short. We busted out the 6-9mos outfits today. And if you look close enough you will also see that we store extra diapers under the cribs. Running out would be catastrophic.

Happy Mother's Day!

We celebrated mother's day by doing a quick photo shoot of me and the kids (the first one I think), and then we headed out to breakfast at one of our favorite spots. It hadn't even occurred to us that we would need reservations, but since we arrived at 8 there wasn't anyone to fight for the two unreserved tables. Everybody had breakfast, and to top it all off they were handing out roses and champagne to all the moms (there was no mistaking that I fell into that category). The bill arrived just as Leah was deciding she'd had enough of the place, so off to the zoo we went. With latte in hand, girls in stroller, and Joseph just short of a sprint we did a few laps around to see all the animals and even squeezed in a stop at the fish and reptile house on our way out (though Joseph's sprint had turned into a slow crawl by this point). Despite his exhaustion it is Jay and the girls who are napping now and not the little man. Hopefully that won't be the case for long or the afternoon might not be nearly as enjoyable as the morning was. ;)

Head, Shoulders, Toes, and Socks

The girls are getting bigger, but their socks are still pretty tiny and disappear on a regular basis. We've found them tucked inside of sheets, stuffed in sleeves, and most recently, coming out of our dog's behind. That sock has been appropriately bagged and tossed, never to return.