Spring has Sprung!

So far our Spring has been beautiful!  The weather is prefect: sunny and warm with a light breeze.

Our boys live outside.  They spend the days riding bikes, digging for worms, helping Daddy in the yard, and going from one game of make believe to the next.  Some days, usually the ones where daddy is out there too, I can't even get them inside before the sun is going down.  But when they do come in, they are hungry, filthy, and happy.  I love the slow pace of their childhood.  I love that they can just enjoy being little.  I don't even mind the dirty feet (they never wear shoes) or the bowls packed with worms and dirt (as long as they stay in the "homekool" room).  The are just signs of a great day of boys being boys.

I don't mind them being dirty as long as I get to clean them up once in a while for pictures :-)

Then there is our Scarlett.  Her personality is blooming as bright as the spring flowers.  I am genuinely a little obsessed with her!  I mean, have you seen those cheeks?!  There is just so much personality in that little body of hers.  She is never still and she wants to be in the middle of whatever is going on and has such a desire to connect and engage.   There is very little of the day that she isn't on my hip or in her moby (aka the womb - "b" is pronounced) so she doesn't miss a thing.  Before she was even three months old she was ready to carry on full conversations.  I guess she came to the right family for that because, boy, she has a LOT to say!  

My favorite is when she will lock eyes with me and her bright eyes light up and the sweetest smile spreads over her face.  In those moments, I am reminded that being a Mommy is the most incredible blessing I could ever hope for.  

Let is SNOW!

When I think March, snow is definitely not what comes to mind.  But here we are, the second year in a row with snow in March.

Snow is rare here, and when it sticks people tend to get a little excited...okay, they freak out!  The schools are closed, the roads are empty, and the very mention of potential snow or ice leaves the grocery aisles bare.  However, there was no complaining at this house!  My boys, with the biggest one as the leader, couldn't get get their snow gear on fast enough.  And before I could even say "breakfast" they were saucering around our yard.

They were all having the best time!  I couldn't resisted going out in my PJs (complete with matching slippers) to snaps some pictures of their obvious joy.  I think the happiest moments in life come from embracing the small and simple things.  So here are my boys embracing the crazy weather and the extra time together before Arthur left for a month long training.  

I love how these boys capture my boys personalities so perfectly!

Jake:

committed....

but cautious.

James: 

silly...

and fearless!

The boy team :-) 

Daddy: You can take the boy out of Tahoe....

But you can never take Tahoe out of the boy!

As for our precious girl?  You guessed it!  She was curled up, in her favorite place, in front of the fire. :-)

The Cutest Cat Naps

Born just days after the first official day of winter, Scarlett quickly found her favorite spot in the house: right in fount of the fireplace.  Between the warmth of the flames and the soothing white noise of the fan (it is a gas fireplace), our little princess snoozed away much of the winter like this:

Pictures from 2/12/14

1 (month), 3 (and 2 months), 5 (and 10 months)

I have three (amazing) reasons, why I am too tired to come up with anything cute or witty to say in this post...luckily, even intense sleep deprivation won't prevent me from stating the obvious. :)

This sweet girl couldn't be more loved!

She gets countless kisses and cuddles each day.

The second her eyes open (and sometimes before) , sweet high pitched "I love yous" and "hi, pretty girl!" fill her ears.

James loves her so much, that sometimes his sweetness can turn sour when it isn't his turn to hold her.

So, like with most things in their life, we have even had to come up with ways to share.

They never get jealous of her and they don't even lose their patience with her when she cries...and unfortunletely, she does that quite a bit.

They could not be more proud to be her BIG brothers!  And I know that they will love and protect her throughout her life.

Their love for her is unconditional!  Before we started our family, Arthur told me that we had to have a boy first, now I see why.  Big brothers might be a little girl's greatest blessing, and this girl gets 2!

You make my heart sing

When I am pregnant, I seem to take on part of the personality of the baby I am pregnant with.  Some might say it is hormonal, but I think it has more to do with two spirits sharing one space.  Jake heighten many aspects of my personality, and now his intense type A personality often rivals my own.   James made me anxious...not because he is anxious, but because I could sense his eager daring nature.  But Scarlett, she was more specific.  From almost the very beginning of my pregnancy, I started to really miss singing.  It has been years since I really performed, but suddenly its absence felt like a huge loss in my life.  I literally bawled through an episode of Nashville one night.  Watching others sing became almost physically painful and I felt like a part of myself was missing.  So I started to sing.  And while I may only be belting show tunes with my boys in kitchen, it makes my heart happy.

But I don't think I do it just for me anymore, I think Scarlett wants to sing...will sing...and she will be wonderful.  So for now, I will sing for both of us, until, before I know it, she is singing with me...just like I use to do with my mother.

Princess Girl

There are no words for this "Hello"

 

Our Forever Family