it's simple . . .

there is a lot that i could want (ok . . . that i do want) . . . but there is nothing that i need! and that is why i'm thankful.

happy thankgiving!

it's always something . . .

sean is replacing a big roof . . . on a big house right now. well this big roof that is old and being replaced . . . decided to leak while we were at the super dome for the saints game. the roofer that is working on the job is already out of town for thanksgiving . . . so that means sean is the one that is up on the roof right now trying to temporarily fix the leak and try to prevent any other leaks from occuring. our plan was to leave last night for missouri and arrive today . . . probably about now. well because it's supposed to rain for the weekend . . . and this roof is causing some major stress for my husband . . . we decided it would be in our best interest to stay in new orleans for thanksgiving. so now if the roof decides to leak again . . . we won't be 675 miles away from it. unfortunately . . . we will be missing out on a camping trip with my parents and my 2 big brothers and their families. but . . . we will get to spend christmas in missouri and this will allow us to stay for a lot longer than if we were going for thanksgiving. (mike and heather . . . i think you should make another trip across the country for christmas too!) i'm bummed (do people still say that?) that we don't get to see my family today but i'm so thankful that sean has work that is throwing us for a loop . . . and i'm thankful that we have wonderful family in new orleans to spend thanksgiving with. and now . . . let's pray for a white christmas in missouri! it would be the absolute greatest gift for the girls!

another sunday in the city . . .

the weather was beautiful . . . there wasn't a saints game to watch . . . so we did what everyone should do when you live in a city with so much to see. we spent the day downtown . . . uptown . . . and at city park.

we started out in the french quarter with lunch at cafe pontalba.

the food was great and the view was even better!

in new orleans . . . you never know who (or what) you might see. everyone has to eat right?after lunch . . . we finally took the girls on a streetcar.

this was the 2nd time for little miss. she was only 6 months old the first time she went . . . so to here this was the first time! shrimp actually went for her first time a couple of weeks ago with our next door neighbors . . . but she still was very excited to go again! and this was brown eyes . . and of course little mans . . . first time!

like i said . . . you never know what you might see in new orleans!

there is always something beautiful to see on st. charles avenue.

so many great things to look at . . . the girls kept forgetting the rule about keeping your head inside the car!so . . . we got off and went to borders.

and i gave into the peer pressure . . . and got the book that everyone is talking about.then we went to city park so the girls could play. little man and i stayed in the car because he was starvin' marvin. and that is why there are not any pictures from the park!

last but not least on our funfilled sunday . . . big sister got to give baby brother his first bottle!

it was a perfect day!

dreaming . . .

do you think she is dreaming of when she was still the baby?

i spy . . .

a very cute (and sleepy) baby boy

we had a wonderful day yesterday in the french quarter and i have tons of pics to share! but . . . i have been doing loads . . . and loads of laundry today because we are leaving tomorrow night for missouri! and tonight the saints are playing at home for the monday night football game . . . and we are getting ready to head downtown for a fun night . . . without our 4 children! so . . . you will just have to wait to see the fun we had yesterday!

friday night fun . . .

2 budding little chefs in the kitchen . . .

mixing . . .

and kneading . . .

the perfect pizza dough for a super yummy pizza . . .

to provide lots of energy for a game of charades!

can you guess what little miss is?

no, it's not a trapeze bar . . .

yes, it is a fun little corner in the playroom for the girls to let their imaginations go wild and pretend to be who or whatever they want to!

that little space isn't quite done . . . so i will share more pics when (who knows when that will be!) it is finished!

it's not easy . . .

preparing dinner with a 2 year old, a 3 year old, and a 5 year old in the kitchen isn't an easy thing. they seem to want to take over and not let me actually get dinner ready.

so i distract them with some pots and pans to 'cook' with . . . but i'm sure you can guess where this is going. empty pots . . . spoons . . . forks . . . can you say major headache?! they decided to form the naked sisters band and i'm sure neighbors 4 blocks over could hear their lovely percussion skills!

when i confiscated the instruments band practice was over it was time for a little body art!it was such a loud lovely night in our house . . . and i'm so glad to say these crazy girls are all in bed sound asleep and most of the blue marker washed off!

apparently . . .

this is how a funny clown smiles!

(and i think she would know . . . she is definitely the clown in this family story! and from what i understand she is quite the clown at school too!)

role call . . .

well sorta! i don't know whose name to call . . . but i want to know who all visits this little corner of the blogging world. my little feedjit thing shows people from all over the world and i want to meet you! so . . . leave a comment and say hello!

i'm happy . . .

because he's happy!

i'm doing it . . .

as much as i wish my girls would just let us tuck them in, snuggle for a couple of minutes, and then drift off to dreamland . . . i really do love sitting with them for the really long time that it actually does take them to go to sleep. i love it because that's when they talk the most. that's when they talk the most about what is really on their mind and what really matters to them.

and last night was no different. little shrimp is the one with the 100 million questions every night.

"do you know where pink lemonade comes from?"
"why is pops your dad?"
"why is nana your mom?"
"why do carrots have grass on the top of them?"

last night i had an aha moment (isn't that one of oprah's catch phrases?). little miss wanted to know which room was mine at nana's house when i was a little girl and what kind of toys i had when i was a little girl. so i started telling them all the things that i loved to play with the most . . . barbies . . . a barbie house . . . a pink barbie corvette . . . cabbage patch dolls . . . a play kitchen . . . baby stroller . . . a memory game . . . and that's when i realized something.

they really do not need to have all the toys that they have! i have been wanting to get rid of a lot of the toys they have but have been feeling really guilty about it. so they are still here . . . all over the floors.

so it's decided . . . i will get find new homes for the extreme amount of toys in this house! my plan is to keep the toys that require them to use their imagination . . . only their imagination. i want to keep the toys that they will remember the most . . . like the things i told them last night that were my favorites. what is so funny . . . all the toys that i told them last night . . . the ones that i remember playing with all the time are all the same toys they love the most and they play with everyday.

i'm sure i will keep a couple of toys that i would rather not keep . . . because i don't want them to be the kids with no toys when they want friends to come over and play.

to me the most important thing is a happy house . . . a house that is easy to keep clean and picked up even with 4 children . . . a happy dad who comes home to a clean house and good dinner . . . happy children that have a lot of one on one time with mom because she isn't constantly picking up toys every singe moment of the day . . . and when dad and kids are happy . . . you know that mom is happy!

just some monday jibberish . . .

why are sean and i the crazy people for not allowing our children to overload on sugar? i'm very proud of the fact that my children don't drink soda . . . and actually ask for water at meal times and throughout the day! i'm proud of the fact that they eat what we at mealtimes. i'm proud of the fact that they eat carrots and hummus, apples, broccoli, etc. because they choose to for a quick snack.

i did good at the grocery store this morning and only spent $138 for a week of groceries . . . for 5 people . . . and that's for cooking 5 meals . . . not to mention the snacks . . . breakfast stuff . . . and lunch stuff. just to let you know . . . i do like this so far.

what kind of dishwasher soap do you use? right now i am using this . . . but it just isn't doing the trick. i like not using detergent with all the yuckies in it . . . but it just doesn't clean as well and leaves lots of cloudy spots/residue all over my dishes.

my best friend from high school and college is going to the hospital at 6 a.m. tomorrow to have her first baby! i'm so excited for her and her husband . . . and can't wait to see him. unfortunately . . . she is in nashville . . . i am in new orleans . . . so that means i will get to see him in pictures. hopefully it won't be too long until we are both back in missouri at the same time!

i already have dinner cooking and it smells really good. my mom's chili recipe is the best! how can it not be . . . it has chocolate in it!

love this . . .

'forts' were a common thing around the house when we were growing up and it's fun to see that my girls are really into making 'tents' for themselves now!

i don't know any child (or adult for that matter) that wouldn't absolutely love this!

(image from gardenymph)

this idea has definitely been filed in the 'to do' folder for that special treat for the little ones!

just a minor emotional breakdown . . .

today, i'm afraid, is the first of many more emotional breakdowns to come! i am in denial that my little miss will be starting kindergarten in the fall.

i really don't know where the past 5 years has gone. really! i feel like we blinked and our sweet baby girl had turned into a beautiful little lady overnight. wouldn't it be great as adults to have the same concept of time that a child has! maybe the days wouldn't fly by so fast. i am very excited that this milestone is approaching (way too fast) . . . but at the same time it means that our baby girl is getting so big!

it is only november . . . so i'm sure you are wondering why in the world i'm already thinking about all of this today. well . . . when you live in a city that you don't just go to the school that is in the district you live in . . . you have to start thinking about school very early. this morning i went to an open house at one of the schools that we are considering for little miss. it's time for us to fill out applications and take tours and all of this kind of stuff that makes starting kindergarten way to nerve-racking for me!

tomorrow we will be taking a tour of the school that i visited today. i saw a small glimpse of it this morning as i made my way into the cafeteria to listen to the principal speak and it truly was a beautiful building . . . inside and out . . . the halls were lined with outstanding student artwork, the classrooms were bright and colorful . . . perfect for a young mind's creativity and knowledge to fluerish, the old wood floors and the gorgeous floor-to-ceiling windows . . . have seen many children pass thru the halls the past 91 years.

i never would have thought that my children would be going to school in new orleans. but life is what it is. when you are married to someone who has a construction company . . . you do what you have to do and sometimes that means you have to go where the work and opportunity is. especially in today's economy. and you do with excitement and enthusiasm for your children.

i just have to keep telling myself that little miss is beside herself that she is starting kindergarten next year . . . and maybe by the time she is finished with kindergarten i will be able to accept that she is growing up . . . but probably not!

with a face like this . . .

how could i not want to keep him next to me at every possible moment? and not to mention . . . the fact that there are 3 other demanding little ones in the house that make the use of my 2 hands greatly needed! and 1 of those 3 demanding little ones (ahem . . . brown eyes . . . ahem) is a little more on the rough and what can i do to make my baby brother cry side than on the sweet side so i have been searching and searching for that perfect baby carrier to keep my little man out of harms way. i had a baby bjorn for the 3 girls . . . but now i'm ready for a change. i am thinking a pouch sling is exactly what i want. i thought i had found it but realized that little man needs to be a little bigger before this will work. then after a little more searching . . . i came across the perfect sling! the fabric is gorgeous . . . and from 1 of my favorite fabric designers. i mean it is named the emily baby sling . . . it must be a sign that is the one i need to treat myself to! the only thing . . . i have never used a pouch sling before and i would love some recommendations before i make the plunge. do you have a recommendation for a pouch sling?

i read today that it is international babywearing week . . . funny that i am in the market for a new baby carrier right now!

you would think . . .

that with 4 children . . . that 1 (just 1 is all i'm asking for) would look like me.

this wild thing might be my only hope!i can definitely say:

she has inherited my cheekies (is that a word?). and by cheekies . . . i mean cheekies on the face . . . and cheekies on the backside!

and the big brown eyes definitely came from me.

and i think that might be the extent of it!

now . . . the personality is definitely from her daddy! my little brown eyes doesn't know a stranger. and if you knew me 'back in the day' you would know that i was (okay . . . probably still am!) shyer than shy!

it's a good thing i have a cute husband . . . because now i have 4 little ones that look pretty much just like him!

eyebrows . . . messy house . . . and festival fun . . .

pops . . . you would be proud of your smallest grandson! he is a 1-brow raising little man! (and aren't these the cutest little jeans?)

this is the reason my house is messy . . . this little vacuum elf won't leave my vacuum on for more than 2 seconds at a time. which means . . . this small foyer took about 30 minutes to vacuum this afternoon!

little man experienced his first festival yesterday . . . and had a great time strolling around in his stroller at lakeview fest. and of course i didn't have my camera with me. i took a pic on my phone but i have no idea how to get them from my phone onto my computer. so just imagine a picture of little man in his stroller looking super cute with his saints shirt and stylish blue jeans on and his big blue eyes!

(insert pic here)

friday night fun . . .

with 4 little ones that were all awake before 6 a.m. this morning (gotta love the time change) . . . it was a very easy bedtime tonight! at this moment i am the only one awake in the house. i could be doing laundry . . . but i did 4 loads today and i think that was enough for 1 day! i could clean bedrooms . . . but everyone is asleep. i could clean the dining room . . . but i don't want to. i could clean . . . well there is a lot of cleaning that could be done . . . but how fun is that for a friday night?! so i'm enjoying the very quiet house and getting my blogging fix before i join the others in dreamland.

i think this is fun . . . so i'm going to do it too!

Where is your mobile phone? kitchen

Where is your significant other? bed

Your hair colour? brown
Your mother? survivor

Your father? greatest

Your favourite thing? beach

Your dream last night? ???

Your dream goal? lots

The room you're in? messy

Your hobby? creating

Your fear? loss

Where do you want to be in 6 years? settled

Where were you last night? home

What you're not? musical

One of your wish-list items? house

Where you grew up? Missouri

The last thing you did? tuck-in

What are you wearing? jammies

Your TV? conan

Your pets? cute

Your computer? fingerprints

Your mood? sleepy

Missing someone? family
Your car? huge
Something you're not wearing? makeup
Favourite shop? online

Your summer? fast

Love someone? absolutely

Your favourite colour? every

When is the last time you laughed? tonight

When is the last time you cried? ???


now it's your turn!

watching and waiting . . .

and learning about politics in a preschool kind of way!

warning this will melt your heart . . .

this wasn't the little man's first smile . . .
but the first one i was able to capture!

little buddies . . .

(the dorothy shoes haven't come off since we bought them on halloween . . . except for bath, bed, and school!)

the big guy's turn . . .

there are a couple of members of our family that don't get the same amount of attention on here as the cute, little ones! the really hairy one in the family . . . and the biggest one in the family.

all of that hard work during the day (read as i'm so lucky to have a husband who works very , very hard so i can stay home with the cute, little ones) . . .

and the playtime (aka wear them out before bed time) in the evening . . .

can wear the big guy out!

(they were both snoring!)

just a little change of plans . . .

the covered deck project that we (or i guess i should say sean) started in the spring has had a little change in design . . .

and it became a room addition . . .

and is almost complete and ready to be a new playroom for the girls . . . and course little man too!