Day 91

Rain rain go away ruin someone else's day! Egg hunt was rescheduled for Tuesday since this morning it was pouring rain. Heather, Adam and Sarina came over and played anyway. We went out to lunch at a Mexican restaurant, I found a thin wire in my rellano but found it before it hurt me. Ended up with a free lunch. Then heather and I went to see Hunger Games while the guys babysat all three youngens. Jax fell off the swing but didn't hurt himself, Adam put him down for nap in his room and he slept for almost 2hrs. The girls had a great time til we told them to clean up and of course that was met with whining, fighting and more mess. The rest of the night has been calm and quiet. Hopefully Jax will sleep as well as he did last night!

Day 90

After another miserable night Jax and I went and picked up Gran this morning for our usual day of shopping til we drop. Gran got to pick up Freyja from preschool. We had gone to the mission before hand and found a Cinderella Barbie for $0.25 and bought it for Freyja for a prize, turns out its a 1966 one that has a light in the middle I her chest that flashes when you push a button and plays a little tune. She was very pleased with her prize and of course seeing Gran. After coming home this afternoon we played outside until sunset then upon coming back in Jax had a 30minute screaming meltdown. Still don't know what caused it but after I exhausted all my tricks daddy took him back to his bedroom and played Dino's with him and that finally soothed him. Then the kids splashed around in a purple bathtub and now it's time for bed! We have a community egg hunt in the morning, festival on the green at the university and then friends over for the afternoon! Fun fun!!

Day 89

Jax decided the squirrels needed fresh corn today so we changed out the cobs and I'll be darned if the greedy buggers didn't eat it ALL in one day! Other than that, I made 12 jars of strawberry jam and one 8oz jar of strawberry purée. Now I'm going back to my book, I MUST finish tonight!!

Day 88

This is probably going to come back and bite me in the butt...Freyja learned last year that the dew berries (black berries) in the back yard are edible. Today Jax learned this as well...though he kept trying to pick the red ones too, but after eating one he realized why i kept telling him no. I had two kids stained purple by the time we quit playing this afternoon! But the good news is, they'll never go hungry in the backyard again!

Day 87

After a night of very little sleep we went with DJ and kids to pick strawberries today. Between the 8 of us we picks 86lbs!! We brought home around 25lbs and shared a few with mom vh and now have a dining room table swimming in strawberries! Tomorrow Jax and I will be washing, freezing, pureeing and jamming strawberries galore!! Jax ate his first one today, it's hard to believe considering they are Freyjas all time favorite fruit but she's never shared with him nor has he shown interest, but after one bite he double fisted strawberries the rest of the day! We went to see Freyjas school and purchased graduation pix, will be able to pick them up next week :-)

Day 86

Lil man has wheels now!! Yep, scored the lil guy a 4wheeler after he played with the next door neighbors yesterday and had such a good time. He was more cautious today than yesterday but he still loved riding it around today! Freyja and I played frisbee for nearly an hour tonight, she's getting much better at tossing it! Both kids polished their dinner plates tonight so were rewarded with ice cream...Jax looked like he wore more than he ate but they both loved it! Tomorrow we're skipping school and strawberry picking!! Speaking of school, Freyja got a "Great Job" certificate for behaving so well in Circle time!!! And i get to buy graduation pix tomorrow!! Don't know if I get them same day but I will have proofs to share via email tomorrow night!! Yay :-)

Day 85

Bugg and I went to the children's opera today. They did the three little pigs. It was super cute and we both loved it! Came home played with the next door neighbor for a while, had ice cream, another game of checkers then bed! School starts back tomorrow!!!

Day 85

Bugg and I went to the children's opera today. They did the three little pigs. It was super cute and we both loved it! Came home played with the next door neighbor for a while, had ice cream, another game of checkers then bed! School starts back tomorrow!!!

Day 84

It has become apparent that my daughter is NOT nature walk material! The four of us went out to the water reclamation boardwalk today so daddy could see where we've been going lately. Daddy spotted a HUGE turtle right away, then we found LOTS of baby snakes in just barely a city block of walking. Jax melted down first because he wanted out, the moment we let him out Freyja wanted in his stroller which of course made Jax mad so of course that made Freyja upset because she wanted to ride...so we finally gave up and went home! Next we went to Opa and Granmama's and had lunch, then the kids played with the water table. Finally we came home and set up their water table here and had a blast drowning themselves! Once thoroughly soaked and muddied, I trekked them into the shower. Freyja and I played checkers tonight and she actually beat me one game! Yes...I helped a bit but constructively not just giving away the win to her. Tomorrow we have the opera! Yay!!

Day 83

It's been a wet and lazy day. Jax and I braved the weather for yogurt this morning. Buddy drank his last one before bed last night and today would not have been a good one of buddy didn't have his drawer full of yogurt! We brought Freyja home a tub of strawberries which she promptly ate half of. Tomorrow will be laundry day and putting the house back in some sort of order before school starts back on Monday. It's been nice to sleep in but can't wait to have a schedule again!!

Day 82

Wanna know how you entertain EIGHT kids at one time? Bake cookies, give them icing and kiss your dining room table goodbye! It was supposed to be a rainy nasty day but it just ended up cool and windy. DJ and I split the cost of a cookie party and let the kids go nuts with a ton of icing and a few cookies. You can see the complete damage in the March Picasa album. Afterwards we freed them all into the backyard for an hour to run off some of the sugar. Just as they left it started sprinkling on us so we timed it perfectly! The amazing part is, by the time they left my house almost looked better than when they came! I love DJs kids, they do a great job of cleaning up after themselves! Poor Jax has not napped all day...I have a feeling both of my kids will be out in no time to it! Yay :-)

Day 81

Grocery shopped with Gran then played Lalaloopsy for the rest of the evening with Freyja. Gran bought her "Rosy Bumps and Bruises" so we played doctor with all the dolls and pets. Shes getting quite an extensive collection of these toys! Jax had his first taste of chocolate pudding tonight and LOVED it! He sat in my lap and ate the equivalent of half a pudding cup! He has one heck of a sweet tooth! Tomorrow we're supposed to have rain...I think we might invite DJ and kids over and just have an indoor day and play. We're super late on bed tonight, time to knock out some kids!

Day 80

Quiet day on the home front. Laundry, reclaiming the garage for the cars, cleaning Jaxs room, baking a cake with Freyja and then dinner with friends. The kids pulled out the Dino box this afternoon and figured out one was remote control. Jax has mastered the control and loves chasing sister with his Dino. Even though it growls on its own, he made sure to throw in a few grrrrrr's of his own :-) Grans grocery day in the morning!

Day 79

First day of spring break! Dj and I took all of our little minions out to Arcadia Mills in Milton, it's supposed to be a archeological dig site, historical site and awesome nature trail...it severely lacked any appeal to all of us and we left within and hour of arriving. Only bonus was this cute shot that I snagged of the kids. We then headed out to the water reclamation strand walked the boardwalk there again. Wildlife spotted included two snakes (I found one and Freyja spotted the other), a handful of lizards and a baby bunny that was not where I cod take a picture of him. Lesson learned today...taking 6 kids on a nature walk is like herding cats...I think it's safe to say we'll leave nature walking to the days we only have Xander and Jax to deal with! Tomorrow we will be hitting the beach! We're thinking of the one near the butterfly house though it's not open itself, they do have a nice beach, park, restrooms and ducks to feed! And I can test out picture taking at the beach!!

Day 78

Yes he's holding cabbage...yes he won...I will be a granny nursing my 25yr old son...my breasts HURT! I'm a wuss when it comes to pain...we'll try again in a few months. Exhausted now. Good night!

Day 77

I had photography classes today! They were very informative, hopefully Monday when DJ and I take the kids on a picnic to the archeological site in Milton I can apply what I learned and have a little better pictures. The kids behaved for David today and all but broke down the door when I finally came home around 330. We took burgers and hotdogs to mom and dad vhs tonight and grilled. Tomorrow one of Freyjas friends is having their 5th birthday party at Chucky Cheeses. We've avoided the place for 4.5yrs. But I guess it's time to give in and god play. Jax turned 19months today, last night unbeknownst to him was his last night nursing...it's gonna be a long night tonight but if there was ever an ideal time to do this, this week is perfect since Freyjas on spring break and I can sleep in a bit if we have some bad nights. Wish us luck!!

Day 76

I'm blogging early and calling it a night! Jax and I cleaned house this morning, he went to Opas to play and I went to school for a party with Freyja and then played the rest of the afternoon with the kids. Sadly out of 17 kids only 3 parents showed up today. Tonight could've ended better but at least it's over. Bugg through a tantrum over dinner and finally passed out...I think she was just over tired this week. Jax drugged on Benedryl, busted his lip while riding his vacuum and is finally out for the night...I repeat...thank goodness tonight is ending early!

Day 75

Another day in the yard with the boy. He dragged me out the back door as soon as we came in the front from taking sister to school and didn't let me back in til I said it was time to pick up sister. I have a feeling lil man won't be in the house much this summer! Freyja took cap and gown pix today, she promised she smiled a beautiful smile for the camera. We get pix back on the 27th!! Tomorrow is her school St Patricks day party and parents are invited up to do a craft with the kids and have party snacks. We're taking rainbow cupcakes, when I saw the green ones at the store I changed my mind...teacher doesn't need a bunch of wired green goblins tomorrow! And then begins spring break...yay...

Day 74

It's hard to pick a picture today! Jax and I spent the morning playing in the backyard, he used Freyjas swing for the first time and LOVED it!! He's not quite ready to give up his swing but now he's had a taste of what's to come. After we picked up Freyja from school I took the kids for hair cuts. Freyja has preschool cap and gown pictures tomorrow so I wanted her to look her best! Both kids sat very still and patiently while being snipped. Both received high praises and suckers for their wonderful behavior! Tonight Freyja and I put together another 100piece puzzle. Thank goodness the dollar tree has soooo many to choose from! David had an interview today...we'll know something soon. Will miss him being home but will be nice for him to be able to separate work and home again. I am neither here nor there on the job, I just hope for the best fit for our family. Two more days til spring break...oooooh boy!

Day 73

It's been a busy day! Took Freyja to school, took Jax to Walmart for milk, then DJ called and moved our weekly walk to today. We went to the water reclamation plant, they have a boardwalk over their marsh lands that stretches roughly 3miles. We saw tons of lizards from hatchlings to some that were at least a foot long nose to tail! Saw at least 3 different variety of snakes out sunning themselves and even saw a woodpecker creating its new home. I made it back to pick up Freyja with barely 5minutes to spare! Then we ran some stuff to Gran and had a playdate with Freyjas friend sarina. Jax passed out for a nice long nap then we all went outside and Freyja and I planted some pepper seeds then blew and chased bubbles. The kids wrapped up their day with a fun time in the bathtub and cuddling in the recliner with me eating popcorn. I have blisters on both feet from wearing flip flops on our walk...dummy!...but it's been a great day!!

Day 72

Can you find the Bugg in these pictures? Daylight savings played havoc on my kids today. By 3pm today both kids were beat, Jax went down for a nap and I went with him. Freyja was told to play quietly in her room if she didn't want to nap. After an hour David came to wake up Jax and I then I went in to stir Freyja so we could go to Barnes and Noble...upon entering her room I thought she was hiding or in another room. I finally looked behind the stuff on her bed only to find her curled up and cocooned in a blanket taking a nap! Freyja hasn't napped since she was two!!! (unless in the car) After the bookstore we came home and played video games for a bit. It's been a good day!

Day 71

Jax has had another ROUGH day...he napped for about 5hrs today, we didn't have the heart to wake him because the little guy is miserable! After lunch at mom and dad vhs we came home and popped in a movie, within 30min Jax was asleep. After the movie Freyja and David commandeered my iPad and played checkers for almost two hours. She did a wonderful job and picked up on the game quickly! Jax finally woke up around 6pm and we had a "whatever" dinner...whatever we found we ate :-) Now Jax is running around like a mad man and driving daddy nuts while Freyja and I read our bedtime stories...I have a feeling it's gonna be a late night!

Day 70

Never would've thought I would be less than 5ft from a LIVE rhino and the only thing between me and it would be a truck gate and a camera lens!! I can't even begin to put into words how awesome today was or what it meant to me! I can't wait til next month and find out what animals I will encounter and have a chance to capture on camera!!
David made it home late last night. The kids and he survived without me just fine this morning. However they were all lined up in the window jumping up and down waving as I pulled into the driveway!
Time to go dream of my rhinos :-)

Day 69

Well garage sale day was a flop, the rain killed our sale, we had one whole customer and made a whole $1.25 in the two hours we had the garage open so we finally gave us and closed down. I took mom home around 1pm, came home and prepped for another mom swap, found lots of cute stuff for the kids and even scored a couple pairs of jeans for myself this time! Hubby will be home TONIGHT!! Will be nice to get back to normal again! Tomorrow I'm taking a zootography class at the zoo in Gulf Breeze, the first class is about a safari and close up shots. I can't wait to go play!!!

Day 68

We survived the garage! Now to survive the garage sale!! Bugg got a road rash from falling off a bike at school today which went diva drama for the rest if the day...except for the hour she played with the neighbor boy in which nothing hurt, she wasn't sick or dying and everything was roses in her world. We wore poor Jax out today and when he finally conked out I put him in Freyjas bed so he could easily hear/find us in the garage when he woke. Apparently her bed agreed with him because he didn't move for a long time! No sitter for Jax in the morning so keep your fingers crossed he behaves for the sale! Will take mom home around 2ish tomorrow and I'm sure after this she will croak for several days! Not been bad but sure glad we don't do this often!!!

Day 67

Oh yes, we are teaching my children WONDERFUL habits while daddy is gone!! Day two of Gran here and we've decluttered the house of garage sale stuff but now the garage looks like a bomb went off...we can't win! Good news, we found a lamp!! Bad news, both kids are running temps!! Other news...wildfire is under control, no fatalities but fires not out yet. At least the roads are open again! Tomorrow we tag and organize...if you don't hear from us, bring a bulldozer and dig us out please!!

Day 66

We've kidnapped Gran and we are not returning her! EVER!! Ok...well maybe Friday but not willingly dang it! Day 1 of Gran being here has consisted of running her in town errands and finally finding her a lamp. Tomorrow I purge for the garage sale, Thursday we organize and price stuff and Friday we make money!!! Keep fingers crossed for good weather and great sales!!

Day 65

How to enjoy your Fruity Pebbles...face first in the bowl!!! He sounded like a horse in a feed bag, but a very happy horse!! Jax has had a bad last couple of days...first the bus accident yesterday and then today I dropped him on his head! Literally!! Just not on purpose :-( I tripped while carrying him and a laundry basket over a baby gate and we all went crashing to the floor. I hurt my wrist and buddy has a pretty Nasty goose egg and bruise right next to his bruise from the bus. Poor buddy looks like the loser in one heck of an evil fight...almost as bad as when Gran killed him in the garage the last time David went on a work trip! Hopefully tomorrow will be bruise free!!

Day 64

Nothing sweeter than watching lil man feed his daddy! We spent the afternoon at the in laws, played outside with their neighbors, came home and bathed Bugg and now Jax and I are off to an early night!

Day 63

Well if there's one thing a rainy day is good for, it's catching up on the DVR! Between pretend meals prepped by children, breaking up fights, providing snacks/drinks, nursing heads wounds and various other tasks we managed to watch a couple of shows and a family viewing of Bambi. Jax brought his little pink bus to the living room today, was sitting down to ride it and somehow flipped head first into the floor...he narrowly missed the ledge of the raised floor to the hallway and ended up with a chicken egg sized bruise on his forehead. The bus has been black balled from his playlist for the rest of the day, when offered to him, he yells at it! Freyja and I bought Bambi yesterday at SAMs, neither she nor David have ever seen it so we sat as a family and watched it. Jax appeared to be the most impressed by it...but at least that's another Disney classic for our collection! Freyja and I put together a couple of puzzles before bedtime. Another 100 piece and a 150 piece one. Her problem solving skills and patience really shine when she works on puzzles! I can't wait to buy a BIG one and see how we do with it!! David is currently reading books on the iPad and putting her to bed for a change, Jax conked out early so I'm crashing early with him! Another bonus of rainy days...a good nights rest (barring storms!!).

Page 62

It's been a busy day! Went household shopping with Jax, then went to the mall with some coupons...free Bath and Body Works stuff, $off at Gymboree and $off at Victoria Secret...found some cute turtle clothes for Jax, and a much needed item for me. Then we picked up Freyja, went to SAMs, came home and cooked up 10lb of hamburger meat for the freezer and then had dinner with Adam, Heather and Sarina, then a fun time of Sneaky Snacky Squirrel. We're late winding down for the night...hopefully that means mama might get to sleep in a bit tomorrow!

Day 61

Grocery day with Gran! Took Bugg to school then Jax and I picked up Gran and went to the children's consignment sale. I found a few very much needed items for the kids and summer, shorts and pjs!! My best buy today was a Radio Flyer scooter for Freyja, it has two wheels in front and one in back so it's age/skill appropriate for her. She ADORES it!! We cruised around the cul de sac several times this evening! Gran bought Jax a little dump truck that talks and makes noises, he's run it all over the house tonight. It's been a busy but fun day!