Sharing the Love

I love that the exersaucer Lily is currently using is borrowed from my dear friend, and has been used by her three girls, my three girls, and a few other babies in between.

I love that I bought a fabulous cradle swing on craigslist for half-price (that was practically brand new) for Gracie and then my same friend used it for her daughter a year later, then back to me for Lily and now to another family.

I'm glad that when Miss Rose received some clothes, I was able to pull out a few horse-themed items for her friend who loves horses.

I'm blessed that thanks to her big sister, her friend Avery and other friends too, that Gracie honestly has more clothes than she will probably be able to wear before she grows out of them.

I love that when I recieved a LARGE bag of items for Gracie, which contained two and three sets of the same clothing items, I was able to pass the uneeded items to our neighbor, who has a daughter the same age.

I'm thrilled that I have a new niece, and so Lily's clothes can go to a family member.  As will some of her baby gear as she grows out of it.

How do you share the love?  What do you have in your garage, or closet that can be a blessing to another?  Sure, I save the special items and some stuff I lend out, asking that it be returned.  But it is such a blessing to me to be able to use someone's loved item or clothing and I look for how I can bless in return.

Share the love.

Shopping with a 3-ring circus

Today Bean and I decided to pack up the whole family and head out to get the few clothes and shoes Miss Rose needed for school.  Certainly one of us could have stayed home with the little ones, but what fun is that?  When we have the opportunity, I like going out as family and teaching the kids how to handle themselves and behave in public.

But, you know it was a 3-ring circus.

Starting with the van ride.  Miss Rose has a booster seat that is in the car at times, especially when we have had someone else with us.  Gracie wanted to ride next to Miss Rose, so we buckled her into Miss Rose's carseat.  Of course they had toys back there, that they immediately began to fight over.

We had to drop something by Grammie's house first, at which point I put Gracie back in her carseat, which is on a different bench in the van. 

Then Bean decided he was going to need a McDonald's Diet Coke if he was going to last the trip.  So we shared one!  Yes, we often drive through McD's just for an 86cent large beverage.  It's how we roll.

The first store was a bust.  The second store had much more to offer.  But Miss Rose detests shopping and getting her to try on clothes is the equivalent to wrestling a bear.   While I coached Miss Rose through the trying on of clothes (my Kindergartener wears a SIZE 7 in girls), Bean watched Gracie run around clothing racks while bopping to the music.  By then Lily decided she was done waiting around and was in Bean's arms and the stroller simply served as a great place to hold our purchases.

For Miss Rose, choosing tshirts is as bad as eating brussel sprouts, and slightly painful for us too.  She is still obsessed with all things boy, which eliminates many options.  Finally we found a few tshirts, in her size, that were designed for a girl, but satisfactory for her.  Like this one.

Shopping with a potty-trained 2yr old means many bathroom trips.  The first was suggested by me, while Bean waited in line.  Of course Gracie has to touch every nasty thing in the bathroom, no matter how many times I say "don't touch the trashcan, don't touch the floor."

While I made our purchases, the girls were dying to visit the mannequin display they saw when we entered the store.  And Gracie found her new best friend. 

Seriously, did they use my child as a model?  Bean said Gracie started hugging on the mannequin and caressing her face.  She was quite enraptured.  You can even see in the photo how her hand is cupping the neck.  We couldn't stop laughing!

Finally bag in hand, we headed out in search of shoes.  Lucky for us, we found some a few stores down.  10 minutes in, Gracie has to go the bathroom again.  So I run her to the nearest bathroom.  When do kids learn to pee and poop at the same time?  We often make multiple trips to the bathroom because the coordination just isn't there yet.

Miss Rose was thrilled with her classic Vans.  Although now we really need to teach her to tie her shoes.

Gracie like the shoe store for the full length mirrors it offered.  She was caught dancing and shaking her booty (a recent favorite activity and phrase of hers) in the mirror.  When I tried to snap a photo of it, this is what I caught her doing.

My exhibitionist daughter.

Clothes and shoes in hand, we made our exit before any major meltdowns or catastrophes occured.  At one point Bean looked at me and said "I love this, it's hilarious."  And it was.

I highly recommend shopping with a 3-ring circus. 

Winners & Tidbits

And the winner of my recent giveaway is....MomBrose!  (I went to random.org for an automatically generated number.)  You get to try the Vanilla soap from Ecostore USA!  Enjoy your no nasty chemicals soap.

So many tidbits--that could actually be entire blog topics--but no time to develop them!

I am in the midst of a blessed 5-day mommy-cation! That's my own word--meaning I have 5 days off to focus on mommy and home related stuff.  Like cleaning and organizing as always.  And getting Miss Rose ready for Kindergarten. 

I realized today that this is the last Friday that Miss Rose will have before she's a student.  From here on out, any other Friday she is out of school will either be because it's a vacation or summertime.  We are more than ready for school to begin.  Miss Rose is so full of energy and wants constant interaction and activity to use that energy.  Being that she's already 5-1/2, it's time for full days of school!  She's quite excited and not nervous at all.

We had some excitement in our family this week with the birth of a new niece!  Bean's brother and wife welcomed their fourth child.  Their hands are quite full with a middle-schooler, kindergartener, 19-month old and newborn.  Thankfully we live near each other and are able to help each other out quite a bit.  I've decided that perhaps one NEVER stops wanting more babies.  Although my sweet, still quite young, 7-month old was home with Bean, as I cuddled this precious newborn, I could easily imagine adding to our family.  I'm glad there's always new babies in our family!

Gracie is experiencing a bit of the terrible 2's.  She likes to be contrary just for the sake of it.  She yells and does whatever it takes to get the attention she wants.  Gracie loves watching movies!  Miss Rose wasn't really into movies until she was closer to 4yrs old.  The current favorites (so thankful for DVR!) are Chicken Little. Cars and Finding Nemo.  Every morning when she wakes up she says "Maybe Chicken Little?" or whatever the choice of the day is.  (Ususally she doesn't watch the entire movie, I promise.)

Finally, Lily is eating solids.  Basically she just didn't like cereal.  We skipped it and went to veggies and she's eating like a champ.  Not quite pooping like a champ though.  But prunes helped us through that issue.  Poor Bean bore the brunt of that when the prunes kicked in on a day he was with the girls.

We've also had success with sleeping longer at night.  Getting Lily out of our room was real key for that.  (Read: pack and play in the living room).  I notice that she sometimes wakes during the night, but usually just fusses and goes back to sleep.  Sometimes she sleeps until it's a reasonable wake-up hour.  Other mornings she takes an early nursing and goes back to sleep for a while.  Either way--I'm getting more sleep, and that's wonderful!

We are SO close to being done with construction.  In fact, the 3rd bedroom is finally ready for use.  We can't do things the easy way and will be moving everyone to a new room.  Hopefully by the end of the long weekend Lily will be sleeping in a crib for the first time, in her own bedroom; the changing table will no longer be in the living room, and everyone will be set.  The 2nd bathroom has a little further to go...but I'm thrilled with the use of the bedroom.  By the end of the month my parents should be moving in to the addition.

Hopefully I'll get a few more blogs done during my mommy-cation.  Because blogging is one of my outlets and I definately enjoy it!

Homemade in Red

Brace yourself for a photo blitz!

My sweet little Lily is 7 months old! I can't believe how fast this year is going by. It's probably that way with most 3rd and beyond children. I tell myself to cherish the moments as much as I can knowing I may not experience a new baby again.

Last week I had some professional photos taken that I have at work waiting to scan, I just haven't had time yet. I was pleased with how they came out. Want a preview? Here she is in the same dress after church on Sunday.



Check out the length of her tongue.



But, sometimes the best photo sessions are homemade. Certainly they are cheap! And someday, if I ever learn photoshop, I'll have fun editing the home shoots I've done with my kids.

So, I present

Miss Lily Cate

a study in Red

(homemade headband bow to boot!)





Her favorite lovey,



Which usually results in this, as soon as she's laid down. I'm hoping it will be her comfort item since she won't take a binky anymore.




These baby blues melt me




Oh, how I love this baby girl in red.

Dear Binky

Dear Binky,

You have been a staple in our lives. A most treasured item. By these parents and our children alike. You have provided comfort and calm. You were there in sickness and in teething and in health, until about 2yrs old, did we part.


"don't you dare take this out of my mouth"

Miss Rose loved your green Soothie version. As she got older, we'd put two of you in her bed at night, just in case one fell out. By 6 months old, you mostly a sleepytime item.


comfort with Mama in Mexico

Then the fateful day came, when it was time to bid fare-thee-well. For some reason, this mama thought your absence would be solidified if Miss Rose dropped you in the trash herself. In retrospect, perhaps a bit traumaitc. And perhaps why it took a few days and many minutes of crying for her to adjust. But she did.

With the arrival of Gracie, we welcomed you back into our home with open arms. She chose one of your Playtex variety. It was a beneficial relationship.


trying out the soothie at 3 months with mama in Ireland


slinging with the binky

Especially when the new baby arrived and Gracie was a bit confused. There were many times we told her to fetch you from her bed, and sit on the couch to calm down. And then again it was time. Postponed several months by many changes. We took a different approach and told Miss Gracie what a big girl she would be. Shock of all shocks, she took your absence so well. Not a tear was shed.

Earlier this year when Lily was born, I expected your steady presence once again. In five years so much changes and we had the pink and purple versions of the Soothie and even the Gumdrop. Once again we used blankets and burp clothes to prop you in her sweet mouth. She readily accepted you.

Until that day. That Lily found her fingers. First it was her thumb. Playing traitor to you. Lulling her to sleep. Then it was her two middle fingers. Still is actually. Providing comfort. Just like you did.


those fingers



slinging with mama

And now weeks later, versions of you are found throughout the house, collecting dust. Growing brittle from lack of use. And it's me who's having a hard time letting go. I've accepted that this is the end of our journey with you. But yet I don't want to separate. There are no promises that those middle fingers will comfort for as long as you would. That when Lily is making noise in a place we need quiet, getting her to suck her fingers is not as easy as popping you in her mouth.

Dear Binky, we've loved you and cherished you. We've searched high, but mostly low, under couches and beds for you. But I think this is the end. It's time to gather you up and perhaps give you to another family, where you are more welcome.

Thank you for your faithfulness to us. For being there when we needed you. I'm surprised and saddened that this goodbye comes so soon. I had hoped we had a few years left. But eventually this day would have come.

We'll always have fond memories.

Love,
The Bean Family

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

We recently took the two older girls to their first real baseball game. Both Bean and I are sports fans and enjoy a good ballgame. We went last year and sat on the grass, but the game is watched on a large screen from there. This year we decided it was time to get some regular seats and our church purchased a large block of tickets so it was a great opportunity. Being there with many friends made the experience even more fun for the girls.

I realized it was the first time, since Lily's birth, that we purposefully did a fun activity with Miss Rose and Gracie, leaving Lily with a babysitter. It was a good experience and probably something we need to do every now and then until Lily is older. Oh and the man-to-man defense was so much easier too!

Bean & I had fun, and our team won!!



Gracie loved cheering for the team. Although sometimes she yelled out a football team name, but most of the time she got it right. Miss Rose said her favorite part of the night was Gracie's cheers.




Can you find Miss Rose in this photo? A friend took it and emailed it to me when she saw Miss Rose. Rock on!!




Miss Rose loved the fireworks after the game.




Gracie did not.



All in all, we had a BLAST! I can't wait until Lily is around 2 and we can all enjoy a game together.

Not My Children!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

This week it's the "Not My Child" edition.

And may I remind you, you can't make this stuff up!

Yesterday while celebrating a special occasion at a friend's home, my children were invited to swim in the pool, which also has a slide.

It was not my risk-taker of a 2yr old who decided to walk down ALL the stairs into the pool, chasing after a toy, without any floaties. She did not begin to go under the water, causing me to walk right into the pool after her, in my clothes, wetting myself to the hips, to pluck her out of danger and place her back into safety, just as she was going under for the second time.

Nor was it my other risk-taker of a 5yr old who decided to go down the rather steep slide on her knees, not five minutes after the stair incident and promptly hit her head on the end of it. Hard. Hard enough to be heard by those around.

It was not this same daughter who wore the same clothes two days in a row after spending the night at Grammie's house. She did not play outside with cousins the first day and then wear the clothes to church and a school BBQ the next day. Not my child. She is very amenable to the decisions I make for her, such as what clothes I pack in her bag.

And now for my favorite moment that couldn't have happened this week...

My 2yr old is not talented enough to shoot a stream of urine right onto her father's crotch, as he lifted her from the toilet to see if she was actually going. Apparently she was. This was not at a baseball game, where Bean had to return to his seat, looking like he had urinated on himself.

Not my children, friends. They practice pool safety, wear clean clothes every day and would never urinate on a parent. No way.

Don't forget...I'm having my first (albeit, small) giveaway. You have until Thursday to enter by posting a comment here.