Splashin Saturday

Ahh a day at the pool. It sounds relaxing.... Maybe not. The day started off very well. I made a delicious hashbrown casserole, shoved it in the oven to bake for about an hour and took the older girls for a quick swim. Today it is going to be close to 90 degrees. Even though its quite windy out its still HOT HOT HOT. What better way to spend a saturday. I lounged in the chair and read recipe books as all three girls (and an extra friend because somehow we are just not enough) splashed away. It was peaceful and serene. We walked back home, had our lunch which was done and waiting for us. I figured once the babies woke up from their nap we could all go back and have some more fun. Word to the wise. When you have a wonderful moment. DON'T TRY TO HAVE IT AGAIN. It just won't work. We packed up the babies and met Emma and Hannah by the pool. (they were already there with friends) Noah cried because he can, Molly does not play well with others so when she noticed little kids that did not belong to her family she just sat and stared at them (Im sure she was secretly giving them dirty looks in hopes they would run off in fear...didn't work) and Abby who was so cute... sporting her new ruffly pink GAP bathing suit courtesy of Auntie Megan who loves us so...does not like  being wet and sticky.  So our nice outing turned into a huge screaming cranky mess. We jumped out of the pool, threw everyone in the stroller and ran home. I think the other pool-goers were very happy. All in all the trip was worth it. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this picture of me. I hate all pictures taken of me for typical reasons. My tummy looks big,my hair looks small, blah blah blah but this picture is awesome. I might just blow it up and hang it on my wall. Ahhhhh......

House of Cards

For those of you that grew up in a big family, you always know that at any given time there are  several things going on in the home at once. That pretty much sums up my house. This afternoon I had 9 children running thru my halls. No, thats not a typo... you didn't read it wrong. The number NINE! 5 were mine and 4 were a friends. She had an appointment and I happily volunteered. I love her kids. They are so cute. Anyway back to my story. It was about 5 p.m. and I started cooking dinner. Emma had come back in from playing outside.  "Im hot mom and I don't want to play outside." So she sat at the table with the UNO cards and her creations began. Her goal was to build a huge house of cards. In between chopping onions and stirring garlic Jason and I watched. It was interesting to say the least. Soon Hannah came to join and tried her hand at it too. Before long everyone was watching. How big can the house get? AHHH who turned the air on? The vents are blowing right on the table. We were all holding our breaths!!! Kids imaginations are awesome! So, here are the pictures of her house of cards!!! Enjoy!

HANNAH ELIZABETH

I want to start out saying I love all my children and have no favorites... but this blog is dedicated to my #2...Banana...

 Where do I begin? How do I start describing my Banana head? I guess from the beginning. Hannah was a complete unexpected surprise. Emma was 9 months old, I was happy being a mother of one and then Jason came home from a long deployment. 9 months later I welcomed a baby girl. Our first 3 days were not good ones. She screamed the entire time, threw up all over and screamed some more. She was bald and teeny-tiny and I loved her! I later found out she was allergic to milk,switched her formula and life was a pleasure. She was an extremely independant baby. At 4 months I could no longer hold her while she ate. She insisted in being propped. Im serious!! I would try to feed her and she would scream and yell and thrash around. I would then place her in her carseat, pile up the blankets and she was thrilled. At 9 months she suddenly decided she didn't need the blankets or the car seat. From that second on she would not tolerate a minute in that seat. She would demand my attention...not by screaming but just saying my name deep and loud. "MAMA." Thats Hannah. She knows what she wants and gets it. I attended her field day today. She was so happy to see me and the babies. She ran over and just hugged and kissed everyone. She scooped Abigail in her arms and went to show her off. Pretty soon the field was empty and I had a sea of 3rd graders swarming my stroller. Hannah's love for her family is contagious and everyone wanted to see the special people that Hannah always talked about. Hannah is the best big sister any kid could dream up. She has endless hugs and kisses, she sings for them, dances for them and reads them stories. The moment I bring a new baby home...it becomes hers. I sometimes kid around and say If I should die the kids might not miss me because they will have Hannah. She gets straight A's in school and always is the first to get ready in the morning. She is up with the sun and before I can wipe the sleepyness out of my eyes she has Molly and Noah at the table eating breakfast. "HI MOM" is how I get greeted. Always a smile and always wanting to help. She showers me with love notes and always asks if I need her help.She is getting so big so fast. I was staring out at her playing today and realized pretty soon she will be grown up. I almost started to cry right there in between the 3 legged race and the egg toss. How can I ever say goodbye to my Banana? It would be like saying goodbye to the sun. I will tell you one thing though, whoever married her is one lucky guy. She has it all and I will make sure he knows that the moment he enters her life. My Hannah will be a wonderful friend, woman, wife and mother hands down. She tells me all the time she is never leaving me, she says she will build a home right next to mine and come eat my dinners every night. I know that won't happen but deep down I pray it does.

Memorial Day Memories

                                                            Molly digging in sand
                                                       A very happy Muffet
                                                 My three princesses...
                                                     Pre-bonfire
                                            You know your in the country if...a tractor blocks traffic!

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY! What a beautiful day we had in the Upstate. Our morning was pretty uneventful. We played and I spent too much time prepping for the afternoon events. Give me a break. I have a small army and we need certain "equipment" to attack and invade properly. When strategically planned our missions are successful! Within five minutes of arriving Molly was covered in dirt and the kids were off. We found perfect shade...yet again and were able to enjoy the company.  Our hosts live out in what I consider the country. A beautiful house they literally built themselves on 5 acres. In one corner they have a play area for the kids and then on the other side is where they had a huge bon-fire pile. A nice pot-luck gathering with friends and fun. We chatted with Susan and met her husband. She just got back from camping. She has 4 BOYS!!! I could only imagine the stuff that goes on in her home!!! Our neighbors were there as well. A very brave pair who decided to spit out 4 kids in under 4 years. They win a medal HANDS DOWN!!! I look at them with all there cute kids, bags,coolers,blankets,strollers and just think...they are nuts!!! I would NEVER have all those kids so close together. I then turn around and see my five dirty faced screaming snot nosed blondies and think..."oh yeah... Im like that too." LOL!!! The kids ate too much Jello and not enough veggies. They played on the playground and jumped thru the sprinklers. I usually love BBQ'S but country outdoor cooking brings a whole new dimension to things. I would never consider myself a city girl. I always thought I could hold my own with the best... But im starting to re-think my theory. I think EVERY specie of BUG landed on me in a matter of 4 hours. Im not kidding!!! Small winged things, large winged things, spiders with wings, ants with wings. I felt like it was the LIVE version of Miss. Spiders Sunnypatch. YES, I had bugspray but I hate the way that smells and makes your skin feel sticky. I had really nice body spray on and the two would clash!!! All in all it was a great afternoon. We had to leave before the start of the fire but we left with full bellies and smiles!!! Thanks Chris and Amy for opening your home and your bugs to the WYLERS!!! =)

A "Room" with a view...

                                               

   NO! We are not being attacked by aliens... This is the last picture of our fun and unexpected day today. For the last 3 days we have seen beautiful hot air balloons being launched from Heritage park in Downtown . Around dinnertime at the Wyler home we gathered on our front porch to see around 20 amazing Hot Air Balloons floating in the sky. This picture can't capture how beautiful it really was. The kids just loved watching them and Jason and I were just as amazed. Tomorrow is their last day in our little town. We will absolutely be watching them one last time...

Freedom Fest with "CHASEN"

                                                                  CHASEN LIVE!!!!
                                                         The girls enjoying the music
                                                      Miss Molly and I
                                                            We really had a great time!!
                                                   Yoko-Ono!!! 

 

What an afternoon. This 3 day weekend started out being a huge bust. The most horrific stomach bug has been jumping around from person to person. Laughing and torturing us. We had to cancel one small gathering and say goodbye to the pool for just a bit. The other night as I was walking down my block to take care of some mini-taco dogs, the girls and I noticed a bunch of hot air balloons floating in the trees. Freedom fest has come to Simpsonville once again! How exciting. Festivals and fairs for a family of 7 are usually a big No-No. Do you have any idea what that would cost? My curiosity got the best of me and I did a little research. It was free admission and only $5 dollar parking. But CHASEN was performing free on the great lawn. How could we not go? They are a new and upcoming Christian rock group from Greenville!! We HAD to go and support the locals. Our local christian radio stations play their music all the time. We packed up the kids, diaper bag and van and went. AT first we thought it was a bad idea. We might have to park far, it was hot... but God is so good. We got front parking and found the most perfect shady spot under a tree to relax and listen to the music. We had a blast. They were great live! They sang, we clapped and sang along. The company was perfect. A clown stopped by for a quick juggling act. If you don't already know I am a huge people watcher. I was glancing around taking inventory of who was at the concert and thats when I spotted HER!!! YOKO-ONO!! Fine, don't believe me, thats ok. I KNOW what I saw. I grabbed my camera and started snapping away. Her male companion and her started line dancing right there under the trees!! Can you believe that? I quickly twittered what I saw and took some more pictures so I could show you as well. let me know what you think. Im off now. Its time for the hot air balloon launch. I need to step outside my front door. You can see all the balloons from our front porch. How beautiful! I'll be sure to post more pictures later!!!

Its getting better!!!

See! I added pictures. Not bad. It only took me 9 months!!! Im liking this...I used to blog on myspace quite frequently and had a faithful following. My poor fans will miss me dearly. I must let them know I moved. I can add this to my list of hobbies now. I have always kept a journal. Thats nothing new. I swore I would NEVER start online. Even back when the internet was just starting. I swore I would never forsake the pen and paper. Nothing could be better that old fashioned muscle cramps and smeared ink. Like Joe in Little women, ink stained hands were my trade mark. I also swore off digital cameras. We inherited quite a few and I quickly hid them under the couch along with all the other junk I owned. Out of site out of mind. Jason would forget we had them and I could continue using 35 mm film. Don't be quick to judge. I spent years in the darkroom nurturing negatives. My hands were burnt and chapped from spending hours in developer and fixer. I was going to travel the world capturing exotic moments on good ol fashioned FILM!!! But that theory went out the window as well.A year ago ... almost to the day.... I became a digital ADDICT! The photographer in me has emerged but instead of taking photos of african tribes dancing thru fires... I take pictures of my five beautiful children who at times (especially after playing outside and eating ice cream) do resemble the strange people I longed to photograph. So there you have it,  a quick background on why it took me so long to start this page and why. I know you were just dying to know. I will be posting many pictures in time. A few weeks ago we were driving thru the country and I saw so many beautiful sites only seen on movie screens. I vowed I would capture them on film. I decided to make a photographic journey of the South. A state Jason and I have loved for many years but never realized. This placed crawled in our hearts back in the mid-nineties and nestles herself there quite nicely. Enough for now. I am house sitting two toy taco bell dogs and they need some TLC. Until next time.....

Well I did it! I finally started my blog. I created my account almost a year ago but have not attempted to even start. Im not good with new technology,equipment or things. Im just not new-ness savvy. I prefer old, comfortable and used. Like an old shoe. So please pardon my boring page. It may take another year for me to be able to make this pretty and unique!!