Summary

It’s all I seem to do around this blog.  Sorry.

Ryan, hopefully, had a fun Father’s day.  I’m so not as good as he is at celebrating events.   Gabe carried this tray up the stairs, to our room, for a breakfast in bed surprise. 

(He probably didn’t realize that for his Keep-Things-Pristine Father, the fact that he didn’t drop the tray was the biggest present of all). 

It’s so nice when he doesn’t have meetings, so besides that and the dinner of grilled sandwiches, chips, and banana pudding dessert, it wasn’t much of a day.

We sure do feel lucky that he’s the Dad around here, despite our laid-back efforts.

Jessica, takes pictures of the food on her dates with Ryan.  Look at how pretty it was:

We’ve had a few fun evenings out:  to Shock games with the Nebekers, to dinner at a local French cafe, to SYTYCD get-togethers (wasn’t last week’s kind of lame?). 

I also got to hang out with blog friend, Andrea, for a day and a half.

 (Jessica A., also blogs with Andrea and wanted to get in on the fun.  Why do I look so shiny and tired?) 

It was so fun.  I dream of that kind of visit with all of you blogger friends—SO fun to ask all the questions that I always wonder about and get lots of back story.  She was a champ—mostly because she let Seth crawl ALL over her during the entirety of Sacrament meeting.  And ate my 4000 strawberry dishes (post about strawberry picking to come).

Emma and Gabe, had the THRILL of setting up this fort (see “shanty town” in the background):

and having a Late Night of games, treats and keeping up the neighbors in the Hunter’s backyard.  Who officially win as Funnest Neighbors Ever.

Remember last year’s photo at Silverwood?

The sad faces were a result of me (pregnant) and Jane (too short) being left off the Big Rollercoasters at our local amusement park.

Well…replace it this one:I was happily un-pregnant and Jane was more the 42 inches tall, so we took this picture on our first Big Kid ride.  She was truly scared out of her mind, but determinedly went on a few more…even ones Emma was a little too chicken for.  When asked later what her favorite part of the day was, she replied:  “Riding the Big Rollercoasters with Emma and Gabe”. 

Seth, who a friend dubbed Perma-Grin yesterday:

 

seemed to have a great time hugging people at Silverwood.  Here with Odie:

 

and Jane (who wanted no part of the Little Kid ride situation, but was cajoled into accompanying him on the helicopters):

 

Faith, was a trooper at Silverwood, despite her refusal to nap in her stroller.  (Side note:  isn’t that so the problem with sleep-trained, Babywise kids?  They sleep like crazy at home, but have such a hard time doing it in your arms, carseat, stroller, etc.)  She loved the water at the wave pool:

Today, she apparently sat herself up (as opposed to being plopped down), in her crib today, because this is how we found her after her nap:

(I know.  So cute.) 

Okay, now we’re caught up.  I promise some deep essays, hilarious personal foibles, and recommendations sometime soon.  Especially if some of these kids that seem to require parenting 15 hours a day would disappear.

Saturday Summary

(I’m so glad I actually take pictures once in a while because that’s the only way I have any memory of the stuff we do.  So according to my camera, this is what we’ve been doing:)

 

  We went to Jane’s Kindergarten Center BBQ.  (In our area, our schools are so overcrowded that our kindergarteners are bused to a center.  There are actually a lot of plusses about it.)  In the background you’ll see Jane’s teacher, Mr. McCaslin leading the sing-a-long room.  She loved him.  All of the other kindergartners were jealous that Jane’s teacher played the guitar in class everyday.  And had a soul patch.  For real.  Lucky for us, we have a CD now, so we can listen to Mr. McCaslin for the rest of our lives!

 

 

 

This is, as you can no doubt tell, despite the lack of black-face, Sacagawea.  Emma’s awesome school puts on a wax museum program.  They freeze, like wax figures, and then the parents walk around and animate them.  They tell the story of their historical character.   

Note to future 4th grade parents:  You really like listening to YOUR child’s presentation, you kind of like listening to the kids in your neighborhood and then you spend the rest of the hour animating the kids that you feel bad for, because they are just sitting there frozen, staring at you.

 

 

 

 

 

This is Seth’s preschool graduation.  Yes, we were very relieved that after the dismal assessment showing, he was allowed to graduate preschool after all.  Phew.   I made some graduation cupcakes but they a) tasted yucky and b) looked no where close as cute as the picture on the website I copied.  I hate that.

 

 

 

 

 

This is Faith’s newest toy:

 

What?!

(I wish I had the guts to just leave it at that, but for the 3 of you out there who might be horrified:  she was on the counter in her Bumpo, while I was cooking 2 feet from her.  I heard a crash and saw that she’d successfully removed the knife from the knife holder.  I had the camera close and took a picture.)

 

 

I made some awesome chicken satay the other night.  I remembered that our friends, the Seligers, make really good Thai food. The entertainer/cook in me couldn’t help but organize Asian Night.  We had Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese and this awesome Chow Mein cake (courtesy of Jessica A.):

and LOTS of fun.

 

 

 

 

 

This is our Last Day of School celebration, at Doug and Marcy’s pool.  It was lots of fun till the HUGE lightening strike.  At which point we scurried the kids out of the pool and huddled under the deck, hoping it would pass.  It didn’t.  Ah, Spokane in June.

 

 

 

 

This is Gabe, post MRI, yesterday.  Looks like the Valium was talking, here.  His arm that had the bone infection is bugging him, so we’re taking precautions.  My mother’s intuition tells me it’s not a recurrence, but I wish I knew why his back, arm and neck have been bugging him so much.  Any ideas out there?

 

 

 

 

 

And for the grandparents in the audience, this one could be labeled either What Happens When We Don’t Feed Faith Fast Enough or Why It’s Awesome To Be Born Last and Have An Audience:

So that’s what the camera says we’ve been doing.  Summer’s here and for the first time ever, I’m a little terrified.  I usually look forward to lazier days and vacations, but the mess and noise of 5 kids is really freaking me out.  Wish us luck. 

Move it

**by guest writer, Ryan

Today Seth went to Chuck E. Cheese's for the 1st time. He wasn't sure about the place, but he seemed reassured when I promised him that it was a place where "a kid can be a kid." I then told him that a giant mouse lived there.

"Does it squeak?"

"No he just talks."

"How does a mouse talk like?"

I made a lame explanation that didn't even really make sense to me. After arriving and losing the obligatory change as it lodged itself in the token machine we began to scout out the place. Catching a glimpse of the animatronic Chuck, I excitedly dragged Seth over.

Seth gawked at him in utter amazement as Chuck sang some song I'll never remember, moved his arms robotically and batted his humongous eyelids. He sat and stared for a minute and then noticed something.

"Can his legs move dad?"

"Guess we'll have to see."

"I want to see his legs move."

"Come on ... let's go see what else there is here."

"I'm staying here until his legs move."

Chuck's legs never did move, but lucky for me Seth's finally did.

I should be charging you for this…

 

*from Real Simple magazine

Seeing that I’m a published writer, and all.

Babies don’t keep

Faith was 6 months on May 1st. 

 

Some 6 months (okay, almost 7 months) stats:

15 pounds (and more importantly maintenance of the 20th percentile)

28 inches

Champion sleeper, down to 2 naps a day and 13 hours at night.

Not so good eater—a combination of breastmilk (thank you alfalfa, fenugreek and a good hospital pump), formula, baby food and lots of crusts and crackers shoved in her hands to keep her happy.

Sitting well, finally

EXTREMELY happy…if entertained.

Can blow raspberries, fake cough and do this high pitch scream on command.

Not-so-good with babysitters and holders at church.  We’re working on it.

Loved and super fun all the time.

 

Before she was six months, I was up all night, training her to sleep, Baby-Bjorning, wiping spit up, nursing, trying to retain my milk supply, shielding her from over-loving siblings, attempting to run errands in that infinitesimal space between baby’s naps, feedings and kindergarten drop-off, bemoaning and working off the baby-weight,  keeping up with the lives of her 4 other siblings and, of course, kissing, biting, nuzzling, rocking, lullaby-ing, tickling and strolling.

         

And I was really really really trying to appreciate, enjoy, soak in this possible last baby.

And then she was 6 months.  What? …6 months is one half of a year.  An actual age.  How did my newborn become an actual age?

I promise I did not soak it up enough.  And, still, it’s here.

I was kind of wishing I’d feel more relief or something.  Not this achy, where-did-it-go and am-I-really-not-going-to-have-another-perfectly-yummy-looking-smushy-baby-who-thinks-I’m-the-greatest-thing-that-ever-lived feeling. 

I commented to Ryan the other day:  “If someone could invent a Have Your Child At Any Age For A Few Hours machine, I would pay thousands of dollars for it, in a second.”  Don’t you agree?

Lucky for me, my friend Randi (here for her family blog, here for her photo website)takes these kinds of pictures, so I can remember exactly how sweet she was.

Quick Quote #33

Gabe to Emma: "If I HAD to choose to marry Girl A or Girl B (names changed to protect the innocent), I would choose Girl B. Girl A gives me too much back talk."

Elements of an Awesome Third Grade Titanic party

This is what you’ll need:

a costume:

a cute face to use it on:

delicious, fancy looking food, that 8 year olds will eat:

 

pretty place settings:

a classroom decorated like a boat (notice the portholes, the life preserver and the captain):

superb wait staff:

a maitre d’ that also sings “Danny Boy” for entertainment:

and

a hot chick to waltz with (I use the term “waltz” very loosely):

And maybe, if you do all of these things…you’ll get a thank you note that goes something like this:

Dear Mom.  Thank you for coming and severing (sic).  I did not think I would like it when you severed.  (Well, who would?) But I liked it.  And That’s the way Ah-Ah I like it.    Love, Gabe. 

(The third grade does this every year and it is incredible.  The kids get so excited and really learn about the Titanic, etiquette, turn of the century history and dress, and their individual persona.  I’m grateful my kids go to such a great school.)

Checking the Summary off of my list

It’s time to bite the bullet.  Has anyone noticed that I write a long catch up post and then do a ton of little ones, and then take forever to get back?  That’s because I never feel like I have the quiet I need to really compose something, and so I put it off and it just seems bigger and bigger and once I finally do, I’m freed to do a bunch of random posts. 

Man.  That last paragraph was boh-oh-ring. 

So here I am, tasked with a big catch up post, with kids not due to wake up or get home for 20 minutes.  Can I do it?  Oh, yes, because I am nothing if not fast.  (Ask Ryan.  My bathroom clean-up times are legendary). 

Here we go…one super speedy catch up post:

  

Here’s a picture I took with my i-phone, while I was driving one Saturday to the grocery store.  If you look closely, you’ll see Emma and cousin Mallory, biking to Albertson’s with a wad of cash in their hands.  You and I are equally surprised to see my daughter miles from home all on her own.  While a little jarring, it was fun to see how big and capable she is, and she and I are dreaming of a summer of independence, because she’s so super responsible and old.

While I looooove Faith’s bumpo chair, I would not recommend it as a bath apparatus.  As the water filled, the bumpo floated and quickly dumped Faith over the side.  Lest you call the cops on me, I was closely supervising and provided a quick rescue.

For everything else though, that thing works miracles.  She is so much happier in it than anywhere else.  You just have to stay close by when she’s on counter tops, because, like other Romney siblings, she is a) strong and b) super wiggly and can work her way out if given sufficient motivation.

 

Here are some pictures from cute Jane’s 6th birthday.  It was kind of a dream come true because it included:

a) crepes for breakfast

b) presents

c) a bike (that she rides constantly and looks super teeny on and LOVES because she can go as fast as her siblings and has resulted in the most torn-up set of knees that keep getting reinjured over and over.)

d) a pool party at Aunt Marcy’s house (she’d actually been begging me to take her to Aunt Marcy’s pool and, no lie, Marcy randomly called and invited us to come for a pool party ON JANE’S BIRTHDAY.)

e) a huge Costco cake (okay that was a dream come true for me, because I didn’t have to make it)

f) a evening on the rides at Riverfront park with just the big girls

Here’s Emma with her cute piano teacher after their recital on Saturday.  She was the last one on the program…and you all know what that means, right?  As any self-respecting daughter of a piano teacher (moi) knows, you put the best players last.  And she did very well.

This what happens when I tell Seth, “Go get ready for Meghann, she’s coming to pick you up for preschool.”  That’s him, on his big wheel, with his backpack on and hair slicked down.  I watched him big wheel right up to her car door as she pulled toward our house.  Apparently, despite his not-so-impressive Home Co-op Preschool Three Year Old Assessments Given By A Bunch of Moms, he’s excited to participate. 

These pictures are proof that we

a) are fun parents

b) are beyond excited that a super warm spring has arrived to the Inland Northwest. 

We’ve been taking bike rides and hikes and drives to the Lilac groves and long evening walks every chance we get.

Here’s reason #811 that I love my i-phone: Super sly pictures of my kids giving talks at church. 

Here’s proof we (as in the adults, Ryan and Jessica) are still cool.  Last night, we sat in our friend’s (picture above) cool living room, watching a cool sunset, drinking cool soda, while listening to cool live music.  I know.  You’re wishing you were as cool as us.

And lastly, here’s Faith sucking her toe.  Like it’s her thumb.  Does that affect my orthodontia' bills?

And my kids just got home and of course someone’s crying and someone’s arm is hurting and someone’s asking me if she can darken her face for her Sacajawea costume, so I’m done trying to form coherent sentences for awhile.