Pumpkin Olympics.

i guess it's fair to say that we live in the country,

here in atglen, pennsylvania.

and it helps to have creative people (jeff and rhonda)
around to give us country folk some good 'ol

fashioned unique ways of having a good time.

sunday was the pumpkin olympics at one of the 

 neighboring pumpkin farms.

this is the first year that i have actually made it there.

 i usually stay home with a napping child or children,

but this year, we just skipped naps. :)

well. besides karolina. i mean.

she slept the whole time in the front carrier i was wearing.

a highlight at our neighborhood parties,

is always the barrel train. matt drove the train most of the

day. it just never gets old for the kids...even the older kids...

you can't see this real well. but on the above left side of the pic,

is a giant sling shot...slinging potatoes into the field. and the right

is the 'pumpkin chunkin' machine. 4 people actually sit on a high swing,

and the momentum and weight of the people,

swinging down on the swing, sling a pumpkin

f.a.r. into the field, and you watch as it smashes to pieces...

(none of my family took part in this...)

pumpkin basketball...seriously there is every kind of game you can imagine.

just with pumpkins encorporated.

kaycee on lower right,

our neighbor, and friend, courtney, front and center,

and campbell left...

kaycee and courtney putting together a large wooden

pumpkin puzzle...

a piece of sunshine for this rainy day.

4 year old campbell...

a group shot watching the pumpkins roll down the big hill.

with some friends...

a glimpse of truckloads of extra pumpkins from the season,
being "let go" down the hill. they smash into pieces,
and then the cows get to eat them.
very much sounded like a stampede...

and well.

i had to throw this in for good measure,

since she slept the whole time.

 karolina grace at 3 1/2  months old...

a visit.

kaden and kaycee had the day off school today.

was wondering what we could do that was fun.

debated. debated. debated.

i have one friend whose grandma just died. :(

i have a cousin who lives in colorado who just came in for a visit,

and probably has more pictures with my grandparents and

her baby, in her couple day stay, than i do with mine,

over a lifetime...and i am the one who lives c.l.o.s.e.

(that made me feel kinda bad)

so...

we went to visit grandma shank.

(my mom's mom)

she lives at fairmount homes now, and

has moved recently into the dementia unit.

that is a hard thing to watch.

when it's someone you love.

hard. hard. harder to understand why?

we had fun.

i am beginning to get the picture...that i look like a circus.

me and my 5 kids. :)

i live in this dream-world.

that because my kids are ~fairly~ well behaved,

that we look like an ordinary family when we go places.

but the more pictures that i look at,

the more i realize, that ~my~ normal, is

anything BUT other's normal. :)



grandma was actually having a very good day.

the last time i visited, it was very clear that she did not know who i was.

she has ~always~ loved my husband, and the fact that we are farmers,

and didn't remember we lived on a farm last time...

but today, she got a funny look of recognition on her face.

we spoke of family. potty training. farming.

steers and chickens.

(my grandparents raised steers, pigs, and chickens on their farm...

my grandmother worked very, very hard...)

we visited for awhile.

walked the kids around...those people love.love.love.

to have children visitors...

especially a smiley, quiet baby like karolina. :)

then i asked my mom if she would like to take me to cosco. :)

ha.ha.ha.

she obliged, and my dad even came too.

sure they are glad they don't have to grocery shop with me everyday. :)

we had fun.

thanks for a great day.

wonder when their next day off school is. ;) 

and for anyone who cares...
i did not get my bathrooms cleaned yesterday, OR
my laundry folded. :)
looks like that won't happen again today either.  :(

maybe i can put it off a few more days,
so we can fit in a visit with my other grandparents. :)

niagra falls.

so we went to the king cabin this past weekend.

missed all the snow here.

for no snow there.

was kind of a bummer...

oh well. ya can't win em all, can ya?

matt's mom always asks me what the highlight of my trip was.

this time, it was seeing a bear.

in my 11 years at the king cabin, i have never seen one.

this time one big bear ran out in front of us,

in the middle of the night,

on the way to the cabin...

the kids were all sleeping, which was a small bummer,

but not really. :)

he sure didn't move very fast...

i had just got done telling matt he was driving too fast.

we were seeing deer everywhere,

and i was sure he was going to hit one.

he said, "if i hit one, i want to hit it right."

sounds like my man, right? :)

and then we see a bear right in front of us.

eeeeekkkkk.

arrived at 1 a.m. sat. morning.

and then it rained/wet snowed all day sat.

nothing stayed on the ground, so it was a

coloring/polly pocket/play dough kind of day.

sunday we took the 3 hour car ride to niagra falls.

and 3 hours back to the cabin too... :)

did stay on the american side because we had no passports, etc.

which was totally fine with me.

that helped the kids with missing the snow.

at least they got to see a big waterfall. :)

we had a great time just being a family of 7.

eeekkkk. doesn't that sound crazy...

here's some pictures of our time at the falls.

calli is not looking real happy in any of these pictures.

she had a good day.

just pulling some three year old attitude i guess?

we had these people we didn't know keep coming up to us,

asking if we wanted them to take our pictures...

so they were always trying to get her to smile.

i guess she didn't like that. :)

so that was pretty fun.

we then left around 10 a.m. on monday morning, to come home...

(i am usually NOT a proponent of missing school,

but the kids had a half day on monday...)

and on our way home we ran into the weigh station for those

who had shot elk...

it was amazing.

these animals are monsterous HUGE...

for real.

if you are faint of heart please don't look at the pictures to follow.

there is blood...

and large dead animals.

enough said.


*******************************************

do you see that huge crane?

this elk weighed in at 574 lbs.

and that is gutted...before they weighed all his "insides"...

guessing an elk might weigh between 900-1000 lbs.

holy moley...

now on with today.

my little angel of a girl, karolina, has decided to get up 4x

for the past 2 nights.

trying to chalk it up to a growth spurt?

not sure what's up.

but. i am over it. already. :)

thankful for a baby who has  ~almost~ slept thru the night

since the day she was born.

party on at my house today.

as some of our cousins are here to play.

and do their school work. :)

karolina and my niece rae, are sleeping now,

so i can finish my post, and pay my bills, and fold some laundry.

all before i tackle the showers,

which are DISCUSTING,

and  red up before small group arrives tonight.

makes a girl tired, ya know? :)

have a *great* thursday.

kids have off school tomorrow.

don't know what we might do...

something fun? :)

david's song.

you will have to press pause at the end of my blog, to be able to hear this song.

it got at my heart.

at the end of the day.

i may not have all the laundry folded.

shoot. i may not even have my bed made, and i insist that my children do...

there is always dirt on the floor and more toys to put away.

always.

but how did i love?

how did i love my husband?
how did i love my kids?
how did i love on my friends and family?

how is my heart?
really.

how is yours?

a day in pictures.

i can always figure out when it's been too long since i have posted.

my mom calls, and leaves me a message...

saying she doesn't know what's going on in my life anymore,

because i haven't blogged. 

:)

( she is rolling over and sucking on her fists ~all the time~
cooing and laughing....loving it.) 

(everyone is toting her around these days. hmmmm. :) )

(would love to know what big brother is thinking right now...)

(happy days, wouldn't ya say? :) )

 

(however, kaycee did go to the nurse today for a tummy ache...

i guess it got better, because i never got a call...just in time for our

mountain trip for the weekend...)

and can i say i don't know how in the world single moms do it?
i have been feeling a lot like a single mom these days.
i am very thankful for a husband who has a strong work ethic. i am.
but that doesn't mean that i don't miss him, even when
he is working so hard for us.
i guess i should just shut my mouth and be grateful.
but it's still hard.
he is very, very busy...with chickens (who thankfully aren't here now),
real estate, and a fixer upper house, we purchased
with a business partner
 (to sell again...)
and then fills in his fun things,
like playing hockey and hunting.
makes a girl tired, that's all...

looking forward to a quick trip to the moutains.
to reconnect.
yay.

i haven't ever carved pumpkins before.

i am not a big halloween fan to be honest.

but i helped in kaycee's classroom and the kids had so much fun,

i thought we should come home and try it.

they loved it.

i even roasted the seeds tonight.

and get this.

forgot i put them in the oven.

yep. they totally fried. totally.
did i mention i can't find time to exercise or sleep? :)

and just look what matt brought home for dinner.

we were tickled. :)

his first ever bow kill...

( i LOVE how calli is "petting" the dead deer...poor guy.)

and tell me that i will miss this...

because quite frankly it's driving me banana's for the time being...

why in the world is it so hard to keep the butter in the middle of the

butter dish?


and Good News Club started at the PLC last week.
there were about 60 kids.
this week there were 72.
awesome.
but i need more helpers...
anyone???  :)

randomness. and catch up.

so. if i haven't mentioned before, i will mention it now. this 5 thing is really kickin' in full gear here. i can't seem to catch up on anything. except laundry. and that's a really good day. :) most of the time it has to sit a day or two before it's either a) folded, or b) put away. still trying to enjoy the here and now, because i know it's flying by me faster than ever before.

and no wonder i keep up on the laundry. do you see the cuteness i found in my laundry basket this weekend?

is karolina sleeping thru the night, you ask? no. not really. she really likes to get up and eat at 3 a.m. sometimes 4:30 a.m., but mostly 3 a.m. i have decided it's most of the time okay with me. she's only ever gotton me up once, since she's been bitty...and before i know it she'll be one, and nursing will be gone forever, so...i enjoy. and when i get up in the wee hours to nurse, that means i don't get up for real, when it's still dark outside. yea. that's called sleeping in for me. the 7 or 7:30 a.m. get out of bed. pretty glorious. :)

so, she may not be sleeping thru the night, but she did graduate to a bumbo this weekend. yay karolina. she was watching the eagles...

i am nursing myself back from a horrible case of poison ivy. i guess i thought since i didn't get it ~at all~ this summer, that i wouldn't get it now. so. i pulled some out of my flowerbeds. ooops. and did that in short sleeves and flip flops. ooops. i take calli to the doctors tomorrow for her 3 year check up, and am going to try to pay the doctor off to prescribe me something. we'll see how that goes... it's really bad on both forearms, so everytime i hold karolina, to nurse, or burp, or anything really, it gets irritated all over again. it's very gross.
enough said.

and what happens when your 3 year old doesn't want to take a nap...you ask?

she draws pictures of people on her wall.

like the real wall. not the painted chalkboard side of the wall.

 i actually think they are pretty good.

well. and then she loses the fight.

and can't even stay awake to read the bunny book.

and i will leave you with this.

mainly for my sis, meg, because she makes fun of me for dressing

them "matchy" on sunday mornings. oh well.

i love them.

maybe a family picture soon?

matt was in the shower. and i was still in my jammies.

unwilling to put a smile on because of my poison. :(

i am off to bed. good night.

calli turns 3!

calli turned 3 on tuesday.

she is the fourth child. the third daughter.

she is spunky. full of attitude. she has a lot to say, although we don't

always know what that is. :) she is loving. determined. outgoing.

precious. creative. she loves to color. and paint. and play play dough.

she loves her sisters and brother. will wrestle like a champ.

and will dance too. she loves to sing...although may have inherited her mom's

singing ability...she is a bit sneaky. and tricky.

oh. and she loves. loves. loves to talk on the phone.

our house will be so interesting come, say, 10 years or so? :)

we love you calli ann.

we cannot wait to see what God has in store for your life.

we are thankful we have you.

 



life.

some are wondering where i have been. why the lack of blog posts?

well...i can honestly say, that having 5 children has settled in. not in a bad way. just it is normal now, and i am whizzing around on a daily basis. i haven't hung out laundry on the line, since karolina has been born, nor used a single coupon. hmmmm. don't know that those are good things, but i am not taking the time out to do them, as i used too...i finished my coffee from breakfast time, at 4:00 p.m. this afternoon, and realized i never had breakfast at all this morning. one would think i could be skinny, acting this way...always takes me awhile... :)

(i had to laugh...i love this picture of campbell. she is sandwiched...

on her left is a pregnant belly, due in 2 wks, and right, is me...post pregnant belly... ;) )

karolina will be 3 months old next week, i don't know how? i don't know where in the world the time went, but yeah...she is up more and more each day, (which means less time to get things done), but with that comes being more alert, smiling, and cooing and laughing. very fun. still a snuggler which i love.

 school is back in full force and i am finding my evenings are sucked up by homework, dinner, and caring for my family...



(campbell is 3rd in from the left. standing beside her friend molly.

molly's sister, lily, is in kaden's class at school...)



i am feeling very, very busy, just keeping up with the mundane tasks a stay-at-home mom deals with daily...that would be cooking, cleaning and laundry...

and then add in all the other stuff that fills my life, and well, blogging is getting squeezed out. there just isn't enough time. that's all.

these are all pics from campbell's field trip, that i went along on...

thanks rhonda...

campbell standing beside the scare crow they helped to make.

 hope to post some more pictures soon, as calli turns 3 tomorrow.
 did i mention how fast time is moving? :) ~mk.

just another day.

you know they say, that by the 3rd and 4th kids, there are never any pictures.
hmmm. i have tried to be intentional with this...i have tried to keep baby books for my kids, and have nice photo albums for each of them...to document life. and stuff.

i get kind of funny. i know life isn't fair, but i do try to make it as "fair" as i can. :)so because i went on kaden and kaycee's preschool apple orchard field trip, well, it would only be right that i went on campbell's. when i asked her if she wanted me to come, she politely said, "no mom. i would like to be brave. you don't need to come." well. hmmm. i almost cried. :) (you know i am always on my high horse about letting my children go...this might have been a good time for me to practice, what i preach...) so then i told her that i really wanted to come, and that i went along with both kaden and kaycee on their field trips...she thought for a minute, and then decided i could come along. yay. for me. (thanks mom for watching karolina and calli, so i could go...)

so, i was prepared. directions out, wallet out, cell phone out, camera out. coffee ready to go. and off we went. and i left the camera on the table. can you believe it? i got my coffee, and left my camera. ugh. so...hopefully one of my friends will pull through and send me some pics...so i can document ~her~ first field trip, just like i documented her other siblings field trip to the orchard. :)

all that to say. here are some pics i took today...when i got home of course.

 (karolina grace...11 wks old on sat.)

(calli- 3 next wk. eekkk. with karolina...)

so fun.

isn't this so fun?

can you totally see me running down to check this out as i get ready in the morning? i totally will. just me. love.love.love some of them.

what did we do without the internet, anyway? :)