What Color Do You Think His Eyes Are?

I ask this question of someone at least once a day. The color of Eli's eyes has become my new obsession. His eyes have changed color quite often since his birth. They started out that same dark blue almost black color that all newborns have. Then they started to lighten to a beautiful shade of blue. And then they began to slightly change depending on what color shirt he was wearing. Sometimes they were more blue, sometimes more green. I thought he might get my Dad's hazel eyes that truly change color according to his attire.
And then one day we were at the doctor's office. I had to give Eli his very first breathing treatment. He was not happy with me AT ALL. I had to hold him down for nearly ten minutes.

That is nearly a lifetime for a two year old. At one point during those ten minutes he turned and looked at me and his eyes were the greenest I've ever seen. I thought hmm his eyes must change color with his mood. Wouldn't that be nice? A mood ring!

But lately I've noticed his eyes are more often a green shade. I still can't quite pin point the exact color. They aren't quite green. Not quite blue. And most assuredly aren't anywhere near brown. So my obsession continues. It bothers me a great deal that if he was lost and someone asked me for a description of him, I wouldn't be able to tell you his eye color.

He has the most unique eyes I think I've ever seen. I'm hoping that just maybe he will eventually have my eyes. I have green/brown hazel eyes. I love them. I know that's conceited but they are my favorite feature about myself. And it would nice for Eli to have something of a physical nature that shows he belongs to me!

So I leave you with this...what color do you think his eyes are?

Evelyn's 1st Birthday

Wednesday my friend Jennifer, who just happens to be Ainsley and Evelyn's Mom, asked us to meet her at the Wiggle Room to celebrate Evelyn's First Birthday. We were more than happy to enjoy the day with our good pals. We headed over after nap time with the plan to leave around 3pm to pick up the older kids and head back with them. We were excited that our other friend Jennifer met us there with Sameer and her twin baby girls. It was a nice afternoon with lots of crazy kids!!

Here is a picture of the Birthday Girl with her new pierced ears!!
Love the concentration in this picture.

"WEEEEEE" to quote Eli.

He really enjoyed these magnetic thingys. (Very technical term "thingys.")

Sameer at the top of the house. (Ainsley is in the window.)

I think this is Gloria. I'm terrible with their names. Please forgive me Jennifer.

Mr. Handsome.

Miss Up to No Good

It's hard to see, but he is cross eyed in this picture. I took about 20 shots to get it, so you better enjoy! ;-)

Girls will be Girls and will dance around in tutu's and swing ribbons around.

Two Best Friends

And this is Grace....I think. She doesn't like to leave her Mommy's side.

Thank you to Jennifer, Evelyn, and Ainsley for inviting us. We all had a great time and look forward to hanging out again!!

That %#$@ Cat!!!

Wednesday I decided it was time to cook another pot of spaghetti sauce. (I use my Mother's recipe to cook a huge pot and then freeze individual meal size containers of the stuff for future endeavors.) I began by getting out my large pot, putting in some olive oil, and placing the pot on the stove. I then turned to the opposite counter to start chopping the onion. After a moment I turned back around to find Sky, that #$%@ Cat sitting next to the pot with her head inside the pot. (Thank goodness the burner wasn't turned on.) I of course, being the weirdo that I am, ran and grabbed the camera. Well, by the time I made it back to the stove I found this.
She had her front paw IN THE OIL. Oh yes she did! I started to laugh out loud. What a crazy thing for a cat to do!

Then I thought how funny! The oil doesn't smell like Tuna or anything. I wonder what made her decide to dip her paw.

And then it clicked that now I would have to dump out the oil and clean the pot since she put her PAW in the oil and that's just nasty and then I started to get aggravated. My anger began to simmer over once I realized I would be wasting Olive Oil which is not a cheap commodity by any measure.

And then I snapped this picture of Sky with her tongue hanging out and I started to laugh again. If my kids are doing something to drive me completely batty, the animals are. It's amazing I haven't been institutionalized yet.

Eli's Favorite New Thing

I'm pretty sure Eli did not enjoy the past week's vacation. He didn't sleep well, he didn't eat well, and he whined a lot. But, I think the one thing he loved was spending so much time with his sister. My hunch came Tuesday when I asked if he wanted to go outside and wait for the bus and he said, "BUS!!!" and ran for the door. The enthusiasm didn't stop there. He ran all the way to the end of our yard and said:
"BUS??" Translated to "Where the hell is the bus??"

"BUS!" Translated to you said the bus was coming!

Just a nice shot of him looking down the street for the bus.

And here he is running down the middle of the street towards his sister who just got off the bus. And no, there weren't any cars coming...I checked. Honest!

This is Eli's newest favorite thing. Running down the road to see his sister get off the "BUS!" I love it! Of course Hannah couldn't care less. I sure hope for a day when they both like each other........at the same time. Sure is a nice thought, isn't it?

On Going Project

Ben and I have been debating over swing sets for over a year and a half. I realize that purchasing a swing set is not a monumental decision, but somehow it turned into that. At our previous house we had purchased the swing set they sell at Sam's. It was a nice wooden swing set with a slide, playhouse, and swings. Not overly fancy, but definitely bigger than your average swing set. (If you are asking yourself why we didn't take the swing set with us when we moved, let me add that it was too large too move, and too much of a pain in the butt to take apart.) Once we moved here we started looking again. We weren't sure we wanted to spend that much money on another swing set. We looked at many stores, and on line, and each time we saw something we thought was ok we would compare it to the swing set at Sam's. (Which is similar to the one we owned previously, just a different model.) Finally I broke down and told Ben I really needed the swing set. Yes, I said needed. The weather is about to get warm, and the kids really need something to do outside at our house so they aren't inside so much. I agree that I can take them to the park, but that is simply out of the question for an every day event. The swing set would allow them to play, get exercise, and stay out of my hair in the evenings. So when we received our tax return money we headed to Sam's and made the big purchase.

It was four boxes and one slide. The set almost didn't fit in the back of Ben's truck.

Then Ben went out of town. Then the kids and I went on vacation. And the boxes sat. They sat for about 3 weeks.

Finally, Monday afternoon after cleaning out the car, the kids wanted to play outside. Now I am not a person who can just stand or sit around and do nothing. I have to be doing something. So after I cleaned the car I started taking the wood out of the boxes and checking it off on the parts list. (Hannah helped with check mark part. So cute!) I sorted each piece so that all the like pieces were together. It took me a couple of hours to accomplish this, and almost the entire garage was filled with wood.

My back was killing me, and I just hoped Ben wouldn't be upset that I jumped the gun without him. Lucky for him, YES I said for HIM, that he was thrilled with my enthusiasm. He said that checking the pieces was one of the most time consuming parts and he really appreciated my help. He then added that he didn't want me to put it together. He said, "I want to put it together." I took offense. "WHAT! You don't think I can do it! I know how to use a screwdriver and wrench!" Frowning at me he said, "No, I know you can do it, but I want to do it." I hushed and moved on.

So hopefully this weekend, since Ben is home and the kids and I have two soccer games, and three birthday parties to figure out how to attend, Ben will get the swing set put together.

I'll keep you posted on our progress.

Just Brilliant

After our week long road trip my car was disgustingly, terribly, and completely trashed. There were Cheetos, pretzels, fruit snacks, puke, and I'm not sure all over everywhere. My initial thought was to take the car and seek professional help. But, being the good, thrifty wife that I am, and seeing how Monday was such a beautiful day, I once again ignored my logical side and dragged the vacuum cleaner outside. (You see, we don't own a shop vac. I have to use the regular vacuum cleaner.) Of course Eli offered his services....he sat in the front seat and played with all of the buttons while I vacuumed. What more could I ask for?

Well, while I was slaving away sucking up all remnants of the frat party he and Hannah threw in the backseat of my car Eli was up front having the time of his life. He was putting the change I had in my cup holder into my CD player.

Just freakin' wonderful. Now, instead of paying someone to clean the car, I get to pay someone to fix my CD player (which will still play the CD it just won't eject the CD).

The next time I even so much as begin to question my logical side I'm going to pinch myself really hard.

The Trip Home From Gatlinburg

For the trip home from Gatlinburg I decided to listen to my logical side and split the drive into two days. Friday morning we woke up and headed to Memphis to visit with my Mom and Dad. Hannah was so cute during the drive. First she was concerned that I wouldn't know the way to my "old house." (She seems to think that I used to live there.) Then she wanted to call Grandpa to make sure he knew we were coming. Then she asked about every 20 minutes if we were in Memphis. I think she was excited to see her Grandparents.

I don't really have much to report about the time we were there. I was pretty exhausted from the trip and the kids were just happy to be at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We did brave taking the kids to get a haircut. Hannah was an angel, but Eli was not too happy. It took three of us to hold him down. I really need to find a way to make him be ok with getting his hair cut. Or I guess I could let it grow....but that just makes my stomach turn. I'll ponder that.

Here are the only pictures I took while we were there. Hannah with Grandpa's dog Delilah.

Cute, right?

Anyway, Sunday morning we headed home. It was nice to get back. I missed my dog and my cats, and my bed. Maybe Eli gets his need for routines from me. I'm a home body.

Gatlinburg, Thursday, Day 4

Thursday was a day just for Mom's, even though we had six kids with us. We decided to be brave and head to the outlet mall. What can I say, we're warriors. I found some great buys, even buying a couple of things for my husband. Yes, I'm nice like that.

And that's all to report about Thursday.

I'm not sure when the below two pictures were taken, but I love them, and had to share them.

And that was our trip to Gatlinburg. I think Hannah enjoyed herself, but I'm sure Eli would have rather stayed home. He really is a routine kind of guy. I enjoyed getting to spend so much time with my best pals. They really are great women, and I enjoy every minute I get with them.

Thanks to Amy for the idea. Thanks to Andrea for sticking it out. And thanks to you for enjoying our disasters, uh, or adventures. Sorry for the slip up.

Gatlinburg, Wednesday, Day 3

Wednesday rolled around faster than expected. Eli still wasn't sleeping well, but seemed to be realizing that we were staying for awhile. He woke up that morning MUCH later than everyone else, and Delaney helped him wake up with a smile.
To me, this was one of the cutest things on the trip. Kids can be so sweet when they want to be.

After getting everyone up and dressed we decided to head up the mountain via cable tram-way car thingy to Ober Gatlinburg. I was VERY excited about this trip. I envisioned sitting by the window of this wonderful car, enjoying the beautiful sights of the mountain in all its winter glory. And then reality set in. They crammed 120 people into this little car. We had two strollers, and were loaded about mid way, which means we were stuck in the middle of the car surrounded by a bunch of strangers, not windows. And Eli was not enjoying it at all. I do believe he may be claustrophobic. He cried the entire 15 minute ride up. I couldn't get to him to get him out of the stroller because there was barely enough room for me to breathe. Needless to mention I was disappointed.

Here is Eli waiting to get on the tram car. He's blowing me a kiss cause he loves me. I'm not sure he still loved me after the trip up.

Once at the top we decided to take the big kids ice skating. Since Andrea is pregnant (Yay!) she was elected to watch the three smaller kids. (Something I don't think she will ever volunteer for again.) So Amy and I passed off all the strollers, bags, and small kids and headed to the rink. Hannah was a natural. Honestly, I couldn't believe how well she did. She skated around once with me, then sat for a few minutes while I went around once, and then she skated around again. And each time I made the circle around I could hear Eli's screams getting louder. Finally on the last circle Andrea began making gestures implying that if I didn't come get my child now she was going to throw him over the rail. Hannah and I exchanged our skates for our shoes and went to get the screaming Boy.

Here is a picture of Hannah at the rink. We weren't allowed to bring cameras onto the rink...sorry.

After Eli finally calmed down, we spent a few minutes trying to figure out what to do next. Here we are discussing and passing out whatever it was the kids were begging for now.

After much debate we decided to head to the wildlife exhibit. Of course it was outside. And of course Eli wouldn't wear his gloves. And of course Hannah wore her regular mittens, played in the snow, got them wet, and took them off. SO, of course, after minutes outside they both started screaming because their hands were frozen. I was at my whits end. I dragged them both into the indoor exhibit and sat them in front of the little heater. I was embarrassed, aggravated, and ready to leave. Slowly the kids began to warm up and their spirits picked up a bit. I calmed down to a low simmer, and we went on through the indoor exhibit and checked out the animals on display.

Here are family pictures we attempted to take on the side of the mountain. Not great, but at least there is one picture of each family with all members, right?

The three Goobers, oh, I mean amigos.

Here is the black bear whom Eli scared by screaming and the bear ran back into his house.

After the wildlife exhibit, we headed back inside, attempted to snow tube, but they were sold out. The older kids were really disappointed by that. Guess we'll have to back another time to snow tube and ski.

With that Wednesday came to an end. I'm sure there were other exciting things that need to be told, but I can't remember. If I think of them I'll let you know.

Gatlinburg, Tuesday, Day 2 the extended post

More Snow Play and Sledding

As mentioned in my previous post, Amy was bound and determined to find a good place for the kids to experience sledding. Since we were at a resort, in the mountains, there really weren't many really safe places. She tried one hill and hit a fire hydrant, picture in previous post. Then we decided to head up a small side road that hadn't been plowed or driven on. It seemed steeped enough to sled, but the cliff to the side left me a little concerned.....so...the pictures aren't the best. I was counting children every few seconds making sure no one had gone cliff diving.

And we're marching up the street.
Amy decided to test it to make sure the slope would send the kids toward the mountain and not toward the cliff.

Definitely toward the mountain. The children are all yelling, "Is it our turn now?!?!"

"Mrs. Amy! Is it our turn now??"

"PLEASE, Mrs. Amy!" "Yeah, please Momma!"

Ok, Hannah's turn.

I think she liked it.

Xander's turn! Yep, he liked it too.

And Aiden! Serious concentration.

Of course, Eli fell, and did all he could do to keep his hands from touching the snow. This is a Yoga pose I do believe, or maybe Pilates. Either way, the boy has skills.

Eli's turn....he wasn't too sure.

Amy testing another hill. She was very concerned about our kids' safety. Look at the concern on her face. Such a great role model!

I just like this picture. Mommy and Son.

Amy tried to get Eli to go again. He's still not sure he likes it.

Look out Mommy! I have a snowball!

And that completed snow and sledding Tuesday.

Wednesday, Day 3 Coming Soon!