When you're a busy mom...

...you get really behind on blog posts.  I've not forgotten about this blog, and I want very much to keep it updated.  Every time I'd think about sitting down to update, I felt intimidated by how far behind I am.  So, instead of diving in, I avoided it longer and became more behind.  I always hate the feeling of being so overwhelmed that I don't know where to begin.  Springtime.  I'll start there.  Here goes...

Vera had her 1st grade musical in March.  Vera was lucky enough to be selected for a speaking part--a clown fish, and she was pretty excited.  The weather was really snowy right before the program, and school was cancelled.  I think the students, and especially Ms. Tipton, were nervous about missing a day of rehearsal.  It came together beautifully, and Vera had so much fun.  I was especially proud of her because she didn't cry about being nervous.  She was excited and ready!

All of Vera's fan club was there....

It was past the littlest fans' bedtime, and they were photo-disinterested at this juncture.

The kids & I were excited to celebrate dad's birthday.  Adam never makes much of a fuss for his birthday, but the kids love celebrating it!  Vera had an eye doc appointment right after school that afternoon, so dad, Vince and Annie met us at the Mexican restaurant, which is presently referred to as "Bell" at our house, for dinner.  ("Bell" because the restaurant is next to Taco Bell, creatively named by the always-working mind of Vinners.)  I also need to document that Annie must've told Adam "Happy Birthday" fifty times.  It was pretty hilarious.

Such a great picture!

Easter, as usual, was filled with family get-togethers and egg hunts.  We hosted the Pearsons at our house this year; it's always fun to host a party.  The kids, like last year, raked in candy by the bucket-fulls.  The folks at Midmark and my students may or may not have enjoyed our excess.

Listening (attentively?) to grandma's egg hunt instructions.

Restless natives.

Egg hunting in this (adorable) sweater jacket when there's snow on the ground = Mom Fail.
Annie was freezing.

Action shot.

I just love her hat.

Sisterly.

Too cold and excited to look at the camera.

The kids colored eggs with Grammie and Mindy on Good Friday while I attended the church services.  Thanks to Mindy for these pictures.  She's always so good about sharing them!

Paint shirts and smiles for everyone...almost!

Gang's all here!
It was also Opening Day, can you tell?!

Brinley is such a happy babe!

Easter Bunny made a stop throughout the night, and these surprises were left on Easter Morning.  Rain (actually, Mud) boots for the oldest two and flip flops for Annie.  Perfecto!

Our guests arrived around mid-afternoon and it was all but calm and quiet after that.  We had good food and good company with the Pearsons that afternoon. 

Kids table upstairs = no messes on the carpet (theoretically) 

This boy never has time to smile for a picture.

Missing Brinley but managed a good picture of everyone.

Still too cold and excited for a picture.

And finally, a few weeks after Easter was the Bertke family gathering. 

Egg hunt anticipation...err...chaos!

Annie wore a winter coat this time.

Most of the great grands.  L to R: Vince, Cohen, Eli, Blake, Scarlett, Amelia, Vera, Audrey, Nora, Beau and Annie.
Aubrey in the foreground.

Annie and Beau

Nora "Monkey" Homan and Vera

Turning 7 for Vera was also a highlight of springtime.  I love how the excitement builds for the kids' birthdays each year.  Vera had trouble deciding what she wanted to do for her special day.  She elected to take her friend Jenna to see Anything Goes!, the school's musical, and then a little play date at home afterwards.  It was a success.  I was pleasantly surprised at how much I didn't have to entertain the two girls.  Vin and Annie had an outing with dad, which meant Vera and Jenna had the run of the house.  They played and played so well.

Vera had an awesome cake.  I was sad to lose my old cake lady, but my replacement has stepped up nicely!

7 candles & Barbie says "touchdown!"

Some crazy faces with grandma & grandpa.

Around mid-April, softball practices started.  When it was time for the season to start, it just felt so early.  Spring was so chilly this year!  Vera was excited for another season of softball.  Adam coached her team again this year, and that made it all the more fun for Vera.  

Coach Dad

For most of the softball games, this is how it looked.  I had a bag full of toys that Vince & Annie played with during the games.  They usually did pretty well, but there were certainly weeks when they tried my patience.  I love this picture, because it captures their age and behavior perfectly.

 I bought a Giant Jenga set for an event at school.  Since it shipped to the house, I decided to get it out and give it a try.  Surprisingly, Vince & Vera caught on to the concept quickly, and they  had a lot of fun watching the tower wobble and grow.  At the end of the game, the tower was taller than Vera's reach.

At the end of April, I went on a field trip to Victoria Theater with Vera's class.  It was a rainy, dreary day, but the show was cute.  It's always fun to visit Vera's classroom and meet some of her classmates.

At the end of March, we bought a new camper.  It was so cold when we brought it home.  We wore hats and winter coats as we cleaned out our old camper and loaded up the new one.  After taking the old camper from storage, we had it sold within 3 days.  I always get a little sad when we sell things.  That camper housed many memories for us.  I am really excited to have our new one though, and I'm sure it will be filled with years of camping memories!

The storage compartment houses two kids.

 We went on our first camping trip the first weekend in May with the Millis family.  We lucked out with pretty nice weather.  It was free fishing weekend, so Adam took the kids fishing with their new poles.  They each caught one fish, which worked out perfectly.  Vince caught on to the concept of fishing quickly (no surprise there) and was elated to catch his first fish.  His smile in the picture captures his excitement perfectly.  He still remembers that he caught a crappie. 

We enjoyed going to a few of Kurtis's baseball games when we could.  Vince loved watching the Tigers.  The girls were mostly interested in eating snacks, and all are still too distracted to take a group picture.

We celebrated Mother's Day at Uncle Brian's house...

May was a busy month.  We attended the Dragon's Game one Saturday evening.  It was fun to start out, but the kids quickly lost interest.  It felt like herding cats toward the 5th inning, which prompted us to hit the road. 

 And at the end of May, we did lots and lots of yard work.  We mulched the flower beds, which is always a dirty, sweaty job.  Vince could hardly wait to get started.  He worked and worked filling and dumping his wheelbarrow loads.  This boy just loves to work.

It's always exciting to have farming in our back yard.  Vince, especially, was completely enthralled.  He watched from the swing set tower while the girls ran their water stand.

Adam planted the garden.

Annie's telling us she's 2.  Can't leave her out of the photo-taking.

And when the work was done, the kids played in the water and enjoyed popsicles. 
Summer is just around the corner!!

A New Look

In January, Vera's eye doctor suggested she patch her eye in an effort to make the left eye stronger.  We had a pirate in our house every evening for about 6 weeks.

The patch seemed to do what it was supposed to, so we began the journey of selecting new glasses.  It was quite a process.  We must've gone to the eye doctor 3 times before we found a pair that both Vera liked and fit nicely on her nose.  She really wanted plastic frames this time.  It's slowly getting harder and harder for Vera, mom and dad to all agree.

Here were some of the candidates...

...and we decided on none of them.  We wanted this frame in purple, but realized it was on back-order for 2 more months, so we had to start the selection process over again.  Picking out new frames for Vera has never been a short, simple process.  Vera begged for Transition lenses, and Adam and I were reluctant, but the optician shared that many young kids wear them and like them.  So, Vera won and we're giving Transitions a try.  So far, so good.

Everyday Funnies!

I've written down some funny conversations and comments I've had over the last months with the kids.  I need to publish them here for memory's sake.  

We were having a conversation about why we don't have to work when we get really, really old.  We started talking about how it'd be awfully hard for great grandma Otte to go to work everyday.  

Vince:  "Yeah, great grandma has that scooter to help her walk."
Vera:  "Yeah, and she wears that helium in her nose to help her breathe."

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Vince:  "Mom, I want some orange juice.  But not that kind.  It has fingernails in it."
My kids don't like juice with pulp.

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Our power flashed through the night, so when we woke in the morning the microwave and stove clocks were flashing.  I found Vince standing on the table screaming, "Vera, look!  Look at the clocks!  Bad guys did it."

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On the note of bad guys, Vince often gets scared at nighttime.  He's been frantic that the shadows on his ceiling (created by the blades of the ceiling fan) are bad guys.  I've had to go in his room at night, calm him, and show him why the shadows are there.  "Mom!  There's a bad guy!  And there's another one right there!"  He's also afraid of the Big Bad Wolf blowing our house down at night.  Thank goodness our house is made of brick because the Wolf cannot huff and puff that down.  

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Vince:  "Mom did you know that Luke has a long drive to Patty's house because he lives on Long Road?"

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Me:  "Vince, get your shoes on.  We're going to the bank in a few minutes."
Vince:  "No we can't go.  Parker lives on that road."  (Parker lives on Banks Road)

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Annie came home from Patty's house and reported that Patty has fish in the bedroom where she naps.  And she said she kisses the fish when she takes a nap.  Patty has no aquarium or pictures of fish in this room.  None of us understood what Annie meant.  Patty had to peek in the bedroom to watch Annie when she laid down to see what her "fish story" was about.  The bed spread has small leaves on it, which in Annie's mind, must look a lot like fish.

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Vince:  "Mom, can we get the ball pit out?"
Me:  "I don't know.  Ask dad what he thinks."
Vince goes to Adam, who pretends to be asleep.  "Dad, we get the ball pit out?"  Adam does not respond.

Vince promptly turns to me and says, "He said yes."

A Tale of a Groundhog

In mid-March, Adam came home from work (before me, thankfully) and noticed a groundhog lying by the garage door of the house.  He attempted to get it away from the house, then quickly pulled the truck inside & closed the garage door.  I cannot even describe the kind of excitement and commotion it created for the kids. 

Vera went to work collecting data about groundhogs in her notebook.  This "nonfiction" book is her reference for all things groundhog.  Her notebook reads "Grondhog.  Speed sloe."

Meanwhile, Vince removed all of the pillows and blankets from his and Annie's bed, and then fashioned this "step" so he could climb on his dresser and see out the window.  The groundhog made his way near the flagpole and the kids couldn't see it from the front window.

Annie, his true sidekick, came to his aid.  He sat at the window and screamed, "Hey groundhog!  Look at my teddy bear!"

We phoned our trusty neighbor, Jeff, who came over to get rid of the groundhog for us, as we don't own a gun.  I wouldn't let Vince watch, and he was not happy to come down from his perch at the window.  After the incident, Vince was so sweet and concerned by asking, "Where him family?  They miss him.  Where him mom and dad?  Him sister and brother?  He lost."  We assured Vince that by putting the groundhog in the field, his family would find him and take him back to his home.

Winter Months Indoors

The winter months can seem so mundane here.  I often feel like our life is on repeat.  Get up at 5am.  Get self & kids ready.  Daycare drop-offs.  Go to work.  Come home.  Scurry to make supper for hangry kids.  Do dishes.  Help with homework.  Give baths.  Have snack.  Kids to bed.  Pick up house.  Crash.  Start over.  With cold weather and little daylight in the evenings, we are often unmotivated to get anything extra done during the week. 

We spend so much time downstairs during the winter months playing, watching TV & hanging out.  Here's a few pictures as proof.

Tiger gear for everyone in these pictures.

Most recently, Vera's favorite pass time has been playing school.  She likes to read to her class and teach them lessons.  When she does so, she talks at the top of her voice, and often isn't so kind to her "students."  She likes to play office, and she also likes to help me in the kitchen.

We were without plans on a Saturday evening, and after several uneventful weekends in a row, I promised Vera we'd do something fun.  We met the Thobe family very last-minute for an evening of bowling.  It turned out to be a really fun evening!

Tweedledee and Tweedledum.  Pete & Repeat.  Mutt & Jeff. 
I often say that I can't imagine who Annie would be if she didn't have someone to copy.  She really is Vince's sidekick, copycat and nemesis.  Just tonight he was so happy that she was leaving with Adam so he could play tractors by himself without her interference.

Annie's definitely in the midst of Terrible Twos.  She cries on a dime when something doesn't work out just her way.  When we cannot find her, she's often up to some sort of mischief, usually emptying a box of wipes or playing in my nightstand.  She's pretty good at matter-of-factually telling us no when we ask her to do something.  More than once at nap time, I've caught her in her bed removing all of her clothes, including her diaper (albeit dirty) to avoid sleeping.  Recently, I've heard her correctly count to about 8, and she knows a few of her colors.  (Yes, Patty is still awesome!)  She's been fairly successful at potty training, though she's not 100% there just yet.  

Surprisingly, all of the kids have enjoyed Barbies this winter and have spent hours playing and pretending.  It was a good decision to have them put away for a year or so.  Now they are new and exciting again.

This is about the same age that Vera started to constantly play dress-up. 

Vince is always asking to color or play Bingo Dotters.  I must admit that his creativity and coloring skills are pretty impressive, left-handed and all.

He is always wanting to help me.  I shortened the mop handle and let him do his thing.  He was so happy.

Here we are playing beauty shop.  Vince is busy styling my hair.

Maybe Annie needed a styling more than I?

He was so cute measuring.  He diligently tried to read the numbers as he measured objects.  This boy is nobody's dummy.  I cannot believe his abilities.

Aubrey came to play for an afternoon, and she received plenty of attention from the Pearson Trio.

We visited the Arts Evening at school in early March.  Here Vera is posing with her watercolor owl.  (Upper right)  Her siblings enjoyed running a muck in the hallways and cafeteria that evening. 

It's Been Rough

The New Year hasn't been so good to our families.  It seemed like January was filled with bad news after more bad news.  Grandma Otte passed away.  Karen & Riley lost their baby.  Adam's mom had some setbacks with her cancer.  Many of my coworkers experienced accidents, illnesses and sudden loss of family members.  

February was no better.  The day of Grandma Otte's funeral, I started to run a fever.  I fell ill with influenza and hardly got out of bed for 3 days.  Shortly thereafter, Annie was quite sick with a fever for 6 days.  To follow suit, Vince and Vera both tested positive for influenza and strep.  Adam also had a terrible cold.  It took him & I nearly 2 weeks to feel completely better and normal again.  The both of us missed several days of work due to kids' illness and our own.  I went to the doctor's office 5 times in 15 days.  It felt like all we did was dispense meds, take temperatures and go to the doctor.  I went on a rampage of disinfecting the house and spent 3 or 4 days deep cleaning and washing everything I could in hot water.  I must've done 15 loads of laundry to wash every blanket, pillow, coat, towel, bedding, stuffed animal...  I ran the diffuser and applied oils constantly.  As of this moment, we are all healthy, and I hope we have taken our turn for the winter.

While we were in the thick of illnesses, Adam's mom had an appendectomy and spent 6 days in the hospital.  And to top it off, Vera came home from school with a broken tooth one day.  We are so thankful that Rosie is out of the hospital and on the road to recovery.  I am also thankful that Vera's tooth was an easy fix at the dentist.  To be very honest, I'm ready for life to settle down for a while.

I saw this on Facebook while all of this was going on.  It was perfectly timed, and a great reminder for me!

Though I was healthy while the kids were sick, we wore masks at the doctors office so not to pick up any other nasty bugs crawling around.  Poor Vera felt so lousy (and looks equally lousy) in this picture.

Antibiotics and smiles for everyone in this picture.  Oh, the snuggles aren't so bad, either!  :)

Grandma Otte is 60 & Papa is 65!

To celebrate Mike's birthday at the end of January, everyone went to Marian's Piazza on a Sunday afternoon.  It was a fun afternoon together.  The kids enjoyed running around the restaurant and eating cake.  Thanks to Mindy for taking and sharing these pictures!

Mom turned 60!  Unfortunately, we weren't able to get everyone together to celebrate.  Between illnesses and busy schedules, it was hard to pull off.  Vera, Vince and I made a short visit to drop off her birthday gift.  Annie had to stay home because she was sick.

The following week, we made a girls trip to see The Sound of Music at the Schuster Center.  The weather was dreary and wet, but it was a fun afternoon out.  I came home from the performance and watched The Sound of Music on DVD.  Consequently, I had the songs stuck in my head for 2 days.