My ''Ducklings"

Treyton had his first shots this past week. Jenny and Rissa having had theirs the week before, were flinching for him.
I have not ventured out much by myself with all the kids yet, but my girls, like me, were in the shopping mood. After the doctor, I planned to make a couple stops, including the old faithfuls, Wal-Mart and McDonald's. What could have been a quick trip ended up taking all day. Till I load and unload my brood, take time for bottle feedings, diaper changes and potty breaks, time slips away!
I promise you everywhere I go, at least one person says,"My it looks like you have your hands full"! I don't look at four kids as being a lot, and they are not bad, so I came to the conclusion it must be because I have four ages five and under!? Even the young guy running the register at Old Navy asked if I have my hands full. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Amber and Jenny had wandered over to the very real-to life looking mannequin family modeling swim-wear and Amber was patting the mom's rump to see if maybe she really would move and Jenny was lovingly holding the hand of the little boy. Whatever the case may be, my suspicions that I am always told that because of how close in age my kids are was confirmed at a stop I made for David. The man offered to carry the item out since I ''have my hands full enough" and as we walked out across the parking lot, him at the end of the line, he says,"for some reason the term 'mother duck' wants to come to mind"! I found that pretty amusing, it probably does look that way with them all trailing along!
Oh well, we made it back home at supper time. The girls happy they got to go shopping and me proud of my bargains and my little ducklings! (:

Treyton giving one of his big smiles

The girls playing their new fishing game

Treyton is starting to enjoy his toys, he bats around at them, but doesn't grab them yet.

The fruits of our labor;

Yummy!!

Here is a little clip of Treyton in action. He of course did not 'talk' as much once I started to record.

Smiles

It was a busy week this week, so my camera got neglected. I fear the next couple weeks will be worse! Our corn we expect to be ready this week, and my green beans and lima beans are blooming.

Treyton anymore has a ready smile for anyone who talks to him. He usually will coo also, when he is really happy, which is most of the time.
As you can see, he is getting quite chubby, eating and sleeping is still pretty much his life. I tease him about his "man-sized" appetite!

Rissa after a meal of one of her favorite foods, " Pizza Hut", which is what she call pizza in general, it was actually out of the freezer (:

Jenny recently learned that she likes to feed Treyton too.

Amber taking charge of clean-up time, a dreaded chore for the girls. She does a good job making sure everything gets put where it belongs. She still takes initiative to help me. The other day at lunch, she told me to stay out of the kitchen for a little. When she finally called me in, she had made them all peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and had them all in their chairs eating. Jenny and Rissa didn't seem to mind the jelly oozing out of the holes that were torn into their bread. (:

Another Week Gone By

I think we are all about feeling healthy again. Treyton still has fussy times like something is still bugging him. David also managed to get the sickness too. Yesterday he got a very bad earache. Desperate to find him some relief I got on faithful old internet and found quite a few interesting ideas! (: I decided to try the simplest one, please don't laugh; I heated an onion in the microwave till it was starting to sizzle, then I put it in a sock and he held it on his ear for maybe ten minutes. If he was not in such misery, I would have had to laugh at how it looked with him holding a stinky onion on his ear! (: Within half an hour though, his ear was popping and draining. It could have been a coincidence too, I don't know how an onion could make your ear pop?
I think the days are just flying by! It is now getting hot out usually in the nineties every day, but the humidity has not hit yet.

My sweet little blessings who make me proud!


Treyton, not used to the bright sun, quickly got tired of it, this is his cute little pout that we all have to laugh at when he does it.

Shelling the last of our peas

I got a little camera happy this week with Treyton; I figured the Grandmas and Aunts would not mind! (:

I managed to get a small smile. I think it is cute, when he hears his sisters come in a room and they are talking, he gets the biggest smile, even if he does not see them.

Little John Deere man.

After his bath.

Happy Mother's Day

Hope all you Mother's had a great Mother's Day!
I took the youngest three to the doctor on Saturday. Jenny and Rissa have double ear infections and Treyton has a single ear infection. They are all on antibiotics now, so hopefully will be feeling better soon!

I have been blessed with wonderful kids, and I am so thankful for them! Amber is holding the flower they gave me. (Treyton was not in the picture mood, I am holding in his paci, not holding his mouth shut as it looks like (: )

The following is a poem my Grandma sent to me. Says it perfectly;

Before I was a Mom

Before I was a Mom I made and ate hot meals.
I had unstained clothing.
I had quiet conversations on the phone.

Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted.
And never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.

Before I was Mom I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to lullabies.

Before I was a Mom I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom I had never been puked on, pooped on, spit on, peed on, or pinched by tiny fingers.
Before I was a Mom I had complete control of my mind, my thoughts, my body and all my feelings.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom I never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a Mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important.

Before I was a Mom I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was OK.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much......
......before I was a Mom.

Jenny enjoys entertaining Treyton

"Going on a trip"

Rissa doing her favorite puzzle

Getting big. He is up to 10 pounds now!

Firsts

Seems like the last week has had quite a few 'first' things. We are enjoying Treyton's first smiles and coos. ( I have not manged to get it on camera yet). I also tried to start potty training Rissa. I gave that up for now. I think she is ready, but she doesn't think she is and she gets frustrated and I get discouraged! Plus it will go easier when Treyton is more independent, I hope!
We are also getting the first results of our labor in the garden! We are getting peas and strawberries. The girls the other day took the initiative (without my knowledge) to pick some beautiful red strawberries. Instead of giving them to me they had fun making "strawberry juice" with them, and mushed them up in a bucket of water! I tried not to think of the strawberry pie I had hoped to make!! (:
All the kids are battling croup AGAIN! Thankfully Treyton does not have it too bad, so far. I am suspicious that Rissa also has ear infection again too.



I thought I should get a picture of this side of him too! (:

I have been amazed at how Amber has kicked in to help me! It is rare that I do the dishes alone, she likes to sweep the floor after meals and one of her favorite things is to give Treyton his bottle.
I am going to miss her when she goes to school!! ):

For David's birthday cake, I decided to let the girls do it. I divided it into three sections and they each got to decorate a section. They enjoyed doing it plus it saved me figuring out what to put on it!

Finished results

Happy 31st birthday!

The cooler weather this year has really been a blessing for our garden! The peas have outgrown their fence and the corn and potatoes look really great!