just checking in

Well, the twins are two now, Josie turned six and school has started. Abi has a birthday right around the corner. Halloween was crazy I got no pictures of my kids. I don't like it when it falls on a school night. There is too much to do. I am going to have them all dress up again just so I can take their pictures. I will post some new pics later this week. I can't find my cords for my camera. Anyway, there is laundry to fold and children to care for so I will write again later wen there is more time. HUH! Will that ever really happen??? More time... I think that is a contradiction of terms.

what a crazy summer

I haven't been able to post in a month. What a crazy summer it has been with spending so much of it at the pool with my kids it has left little time to blog. I have pics from so many things we did this summer but I just need to find the time to sit down and post them. Today was the twin sale and man do I love the twin sale. It is going to be very buisy now on Saturdays with Voley Ball and Soccer for Abi and Josie. Abi did great today at her VB game. She made it over the net quite a few times. She really loves VB. I think this si something she is going to be doing for a long time. There is no running involved so I think it is good for her. Not that running is bad for her but she hates to run. She has to run a lot in soccer and she does really well with it too it is just not her favorite. I have some pictures from her VB ternament that I will post next time. I need to get some soccer shots too. Both of the girls are doing so good in school this year. Josie is not crazy about being gone for so long but is still doing good in class. I have been meeting them for lunch a few days a week at school. It's nice. The babies go with me and we all get to eat lunch together. We started doing this for Josie becasue of the difficult time she is having being at school all day. Next year Char and Cara will be going to Notre Dame! That is going to be exciting! I think we might take a visit over there and say hi to the sisters and Mrs. Barb. They are going to be so surprised by how big the girls have gotten. They haven't seen them in a year! Anyway, I am enjoying my quiet time at home with the twins and they take a great nap everyday of a bout 3 hours so I get a lot done durring the day then. It is actually quite nice. I need to get the kids ready for bed so I will blog again maybe tonight after bed time if I have time to. I would like to post some pictures.:)

Jakers has returned to his family

The girls were so happy when we got the call that someone had found our Jakie. We gave a $50 reward to the family who returned him to us. I got him back on Sunday so he was only gone for about 3 days but it was a very sad 3 days. Everyone is very greatfull for his easy return and glad too that nothing happend to him while he was gone. When he came home the first thing we did was put his raibies tag on him and we are going to get him some tags with our address and phone number on them too. Anyway it can now be a happy summer again with our "whole" family back together again. :)

Our Jakers has run off...

We miss you Jakey boy. Abi has been so heart broken since yesterday when Jake got out of the yard. He went MIA on Thursday night. We spent all night Thursday looking for him and all day Friday looking for him. We have put up flyers all over Affton and South County looking for him. How sad this is for my kids. We are going to keep looking for him everyday at the shelters as much as we can and for as long as we can. He was not chipped and wasn't wearing any tags. Just the black collar in the picture. Our home just isn't the same with out him. We aren't going to give up. I have posted lost dog adds in the paper and on petfinder.com and some other internet lost dog sites. This is so hard. You can see from the pics how much of a part of our family he is. I say IS because he WILL be back. Prayer is needed for the return of our fanily member to our home. WE MISS YOU JAKE!!!
Man, just writing this is killing me. Not for me but for his girls. Boy do they miss him.

bath tub no no's

I can't get the picture to show but if you click on the red X it will forward you to the page where there is a short video. Bathtub time with Char and Cara. The nono sisters.

David wants to send this into AFV. Our million dollar winner.

Peaceful Parenting for a Peaceful World

I get a lot of grief about my pareanting chioces so here is an article I wanted to share.
Little Amanda Peterson wouldn't stop crying. From 1 until 11 p.m., the infant wailed despite every effort of her worried mother, Amy Peterson.But when a child has colic, there's not much a mother can do but let the baby cry it out.Or so Amy thought.Desperate to calm her daughter, Amy sought advice from a breast-feeding support group in the California town where the Petersons lived before moving to Jerome. And that, Amy said, is where someone gave her a book that forever changed her family.It was a text by William Sears -- a pediatrician who coined the term "attachment parenting" to describe a child-rearing method that advocates strong parent-child emotional bonds.In a nutshell, attachment parenting encourages responsiveness to children's physical and emotional needs. When a baby is hungry, feed it. When a baby wants to be held, hold it."It's a common sense approach," said Summer Stout, leader of the Twin Falls chapter of Attachment Parenting International, an organization founded in 1994 to advance the movement's ideals.Common sense or not, Amy said she'd always been told to let babies cry and feed them only at certain times. But when she took the advice in the book, little Amanda suddenly stopped fussing."If I carried her in a baby swing or nursed her when she wanted, she cried less," Amy said. That's all the evidence the mother needed to buy into the attachment parenting tenets -- which include sleeping in the same bed as baby."It's the traditional style of parenting," Stout said.Perhaps. Attachment parenting promotes breast-feeding, co-sleeping and avoiding prolonged separation -- all practices common years ago."People get caught up in trends," said Stout, whose API chapter of about a dozen families is one of only a handful in the Pacific Northwest. "We're being trained out of our intuition, and it's tragic."But sleeping with infants is not exactly mainstream today -- or intuitive to many parents, especially older moms and dads.When Amy's mother heard baby Amanda was sleeping in the master bedroom, she was shocked. What are you doing?"Just wait," Amy said. "There's a method to this madness."On the next visit, Amy's mom bought in, too. Amanda hardly fussed at all anymore. And Amy and her husband, Arnold, seemed more rested and relaxed.Still, doesn't sleeping in the same bed with infants seem, well, dangerous? A recent American Academy of Pediatrics report warns that bed-sharing with infants can be harmful -- even fatal.However, that doesn't deter attachment supporters, who cite other studies that show breast-feeding -- which API encourages mothers to do while co-sleeping -- reduces the risk of sudden infant death syndrome."Parenting doesn't stop at 8 in the evening," Stout said. "Babies aren't projects. They're people. And they don't have wants -- they have needs."Another tenet: If parents allow babies to cry themselves to sleep, they're not teaching them to sleep -- they're teaching them to give up, Stout said. By nurturing children when they need it, parents teach them that they're loved and cared for.And that, say attachment parenting advocates, makes all the difference. API claims research shows that babies who sleep in rooms away from their parents and are left to cry are more prone to social and behavioral problems later in life.That may be, but the Petersons practice attachment parenting because it seems natural. "I can't imagine parenting any differently," Amy said. "Our house is so peaceful."Since reading the Sears book about 10 years ago, Amy and Arnold have had three more children: 8-year-old Ryan, 4-year-old Cody and 7-month-old Steven -- all raised under attachment parenting principles. Amanda is now 11.But does holding them whenever they cry or feeding them whenever they're hungry produce needy, indulged children?No, said Stout. When children know they're loved and supported, they're more independent and social.Amy agrees. She said her children are more mature and better behaved than their peers, and she hears it from teachers and friends.There are times, however, when a crying baby isn't all bad."If we hadn't had a fussy baby," Amy said, "we wouldn't have got into attachment parenting." And that, she said, would have been a shame.Times-News features writer Matt ChristensenWanna know more?To find more information about attachment parenting, log onto Attachment Parenting International's Web site
http://www.attachmentparenting.com
Don't knock it till you've tried it. Amy :)

school picnic 2006

School picnic 2006. Caitlynn and Joise has fun in the boxing room with the gloves. Abi and Josie had fun with the gladiator fighter things. I am not sure what they are called. Then Abi on the dragon rollercoaster and Abi again on the feris wheel. A good time was had by all.

New addition to our family

This is Buddy. He is our new addition. We found Buddie in the park last weekend. He has been pretty good. He has a lot to learn. He is a very messy eater. He and Jake are warming up to each other quite nicely. They are still trying to figure out who is going to be the boss. I keep telling them not to worry because it is not either one of them. It is ME. lol. They still think it is going to be one of them. Buddy is a Pug. He is about 2 years old so he and Jake are about the same age. This picture of David feeding him fries was because that was what we first feed him when we found him in the park. He also likes bologna. That was how I got him to come home with me.
We have already taken him to the vet and had him checked out and he got shots. He is not fixed but will be very soon.:) I hope that helps with accidents.
He was not chipped but that will be done when we get him fixed. He is loving it here and all the kids love him too. Char and Cara still are calling him Jake but they are learning. His name is not permanent. We are just having trouble comming together on something. Abi wants to name him Pokemon. Umm, NO.
Any suggestions?

laundry day

This basket was their Easter basket.

 

Sunday at the Shriners Parade

We spent Sunday in St. Charles at the Shriners Parade. David played the drums in the pipe band and I and the girls sat on the side of the street under a great bid tree with lots of beautiful shade. It was a really nice time and Grandpa was happy to see all of his girls there. After the parade they were handing out free hot dogs to the paraders and there families. The twins waved to the clowns till there little arms were worn out. Abi and Josie are old hat at these parades but this is the first one that the twins could actually enjoy. Every time one of those little cars would drive by they would just about jump right out of there skin. It was a really great time.

Easter Pics

These are Easter pics taken at our house Sunday monrning with Grandpa Bill and Uncle Billy and my group.

YEAH!!! For teething tablets!!!

Char has been very fussy for the last couple of evenings and even at nap time during the day. Lastnight I gave her teething tablets before bed time and she only woke up once. It was a miracle! They are both not sleeping through the night again. That was a short lived thing a couple of days ago. I know it will return again but for now...Sleeping with Mom and Dad and Josie is the way to go I guess. We will also be putting up a new bed this weekend for Abi and Josie. They got a nice large wooden set of bunk beds from Aunt Liz and Uncle Dave. The bottom is a full and the top is a twin. When we decide to put the twins into big girl beds I was thinking of just getting a full or queen for them to share since they sleep together now and I am sure they will always want to sleep together. Maybe when they are older they might want to sleep in there own beds but I think this is what we are going to do for now. Anyway, It is a beautiful Saturday morning and I am going to go play with my girls.

Abi's Ninth Birthday in Feb.

Mom and her girls. AKA "The Sandbach
Harem. "

pics of Char and Cara

 

pics 4-21-06

 

more babies???

David and I were talking tonight right before we were going to bed about more babies. I had said that if we had four boys instead of four girls and it was me asking to try one more time, would he still be wanting to try again.
What if the tables were turned and we had four boys and I was saying..."Please Hunny, can't we just try one more time for that girl?" I wanted to know honestly what would be his response and he said that yes, if i wanted to try one more time for a girl when we had four boys he would go ahead and try one more time.
I think he is full of crap. That is the honest to goodness truth. I just don't want him to be dissapointed because he didn't get his boy. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have more children. I am not sure if we could afford any more. But I love having kids and who wouldn't want to have a dozen more. I always wanted to have a big family but I just don't want him to be dissapointed.
I know he loves his children. I want him to have his boy, but not at any cost.
I have my limitations. He says it is all about wanting to pass on his family name and I know what guy doesn't want to have a boy. He has these expectations of what it would be like to have a son and so do i but we can't keep having babies just to keep trying for that boy. I will be praying a lot about this in the months to come. We have come to a compromise on the cirumsision issue. Our pied said that it was strictly a cosmetic thing. So I think having her say that to him just helped my case on that issue.
I know he will love the baby(s) just as much as he loves the others. That is not the question here. I just want to make sure that his heart is in the right place.
I am going to make him do some major soul searching on this one. He says he has already made up his mind but I have been living with this man for ten years and I think that i know better.
I guess that it is not really that big of a deal since I know that he will love the baby(s) with no question. I guess i am just questioning because i am not sure how I feel about having more. I always say I want more but the truth is i am not sure. I am leaving it up to God. He knows what I can and can't handle. God never gives you more than you can handle. I never thought that I would be able to handle having twins but I think that I have done an okay job. I love being a Mom. It was what i always wanted to be when I was a little girl. I love my job and i woudn't have it any other way. I say job because raising four kids is a full time job. It is the most rewarding job I have ever had and don't ever want to do anything else. David is the best Daddy and Husband a woman could ever ask for and I am lucky to be a part of this family. Right now I am just thinking of my Mom and how she showed me how to be a great mom. I want to thank her for that. Now that i am thinking about my Mom I am thinking about David's Mom, Shirley and how I would like to thank her for being such a great Mom. I don't know her but I see her work as a Mom through her son. I tell my Aunt Sue all of the tme when she is complaining about her boys not picking up or helping her out around the house that by her not setting them straight and getting on to them she is making them to be bad husbands. Some pore girls some day are going to have to work there butts off for the first couple of years to mold these boys into good husbands. That is not the way you want to spend your first years of marriage. Am I right ladies? Well, I got off topic again. I am a talker. I can't help it. It is my ADHD.I have things that I feel I want to say and what beeter place to say it than in your own journal.
PS. I miss my sister. I don't know why I am thinking about her right now but I am and I would just like to say HI to my sis. Missin you in TX. I wish I could just take a few days off and just come see you. Maybe I will talk to David and see what he thinks. You, Me and the great state of Texas. (no kids) :)
Just us. I think I deserve it. Especially since my trip to DC was cancelled. :(
Oh well there is always 2008. Also I think the bag pipe band is wanting to take a trip. That would be fun again. They are a great group. We went to NYC in 2002 I think? I can't remember if it was 01 or 02. Anywho it was a lot of fun.
We are going to the parade in St. Charles on Sunday. That will be fun. The kids love the parades.

Co-Sleeping with twins+

I am not going to post a picture with this one for now because I would like to leave this blog G rated but the twins have been sleeping in there own bed for the last couple of days and last night they both woke up at 1:30. I brought them to bed with me and they BFed ALL night long. My neck is killing me this morning.
I was used to this before and could sleep through it all night long but it has been a couple of days where they went to bed at nine and woke up at seven. It was wonderful. I should have known it wouldn't last. Char is suffering with allergies along with me. I am going to go to teeter creek herbs web site today and order us some allergy and asthma herbs. I have every thing under the sun right now in my herb cabinet but no allergy and asthma. I got off topic here.
I woke up at 5 this morning to josie laying on my head because when she came to my bed in the middle of the night, like she always does, there was no room for her. So she decided to lay across the top of our heads. Yah, she needs her own place to go in our room. Maybe a pallet on the floor or something. My room is not big enough for much else. I love Co-sleeping, I would just like to be able to move in my sleep too. My neck is killing me because they each slept latched on in the crook of each arm and I didn't get to move at all. Every time I would try to break them off and lay them next to me they would cry and root. Lastnight was a needy night. I am not complaining, just stating the facts. If we get prego again right now David is going to have to start lactating. If we have needy nights with three babies I am in deep dodo. If anyone IS interested in a picture of this say so and maybe I could just label that article MA. Some of my family will be reading this and I am not sure if they would want to see my boobs anymore than they already have. Especially since I get so much slack from them on my extended breast feeding. (different post, different day)

first post

April 19, 2006

This is my first post to my new journal. This is going to be alot of fun. I hope everyone enjoys reading it as much as I will enjoy writing in it. I thought I would put this picture of my girls in here because they are going to be what this journal will mostly be about. It is time to put the babies to bed here so I will try to do this again later tonight. :)

PS. This picture was taken at Bee Tree Park in South County just a couple of weeks ago while the girls were on spring break.