a little something to start your day off right.

my ada madeline is a graduation girl.

we had the first of many graduations this morning. i knew it would happen. everyone told me. i am so proud of my little ada madeline. my first born, my little girl. she was so excited she woke up the crack of dawn and sat on the couch until i came down. then, she proclaimed "today is my last day of preschool. i am a graduation girl!" yes, she is. she sang beautifully, ate brunch, played on the playground, and never looked back. her preschool years are over. now, off to "real school". she is ready, i am just not sure if i am.

CONGRATULATIONS ADA! WE ARE ALL SO PROUD OF YOU!

in other news, this is what my house looked like yesterday afternoon. yes, ada is naked. and yes, lias is alive.

after about seven doctors appointments this week, we are all finally on the mend. ada's eye is healed, and her ear infections are getting better. elias' eye and ear infections are improving and his big broken thumb is, well, still bloody and broken. the good news is that he doesn't seem to mind. hanna is still under the weather with a cold, but sleep is a good healer, and she is sleeping as i type.

HAPPY THURSDAY!

some serious cuteness.

all captured on my new fancyphone (aka. iphone)

my baby. she has become quite a piece of perfection. she likes to sit on my hip all day and snuggle and coo. *sigh* i couldn't love it more.

mother's day snuggles for shannon and lukie.

my man-child. part superhero, part baby. couldn't be a better mix.

happiness.

pirate girl. what does a little lady need more than an eye patch and four baby frogs in her hand (i think they were still alive at this point!) not only does she have a big scratch on her cornea but she also has a terrible ear infection. poor kid!

li trying to catch frogs. he mostly got large clumps of mucky sand.

now-- time to start the weekend!

HALLELUJAH!

you read that right! look at what my little fellow did:

it only took him 2 years, 6 months and 13 days. he has pooed in diapers, swim diapers, rocks, cribs, garages, rugs, but never in the potty.

potty training has officially begun!

unfortunately he also hit ada in the eye and terribly scratched her cornea. poor little girl. we put her to bed with a swollen red face, lots of kisses, $100 eyedrops and tylenol; and promises that she would look prettier in the morning. please keep your fingers crossed- otherwise back to the doctor we go.

oh, and look at this little one. almost sitting up like a little lady! that's what three months of pure crying buys you, strong core muscles!

and for good measure, and fond memories

my ada's first poo.

and then, i promise, no more poo pictures (until hanna pooes in the potty for the first time!)

duke gardens.

yesterday we packed up and headed to duke gardens. somehow along the way the kids thought the name was "poop gardens" which made for major disappointment when we got there and there were actually flowers everywhere. what could be more exciting to kids than a garden filled with poo?

that aside, everything was so beautiful. the flowers were in full bloom (which makes my heart so happy- have i mentioned how much i love blooming flowers! i can't wait to show you mine later this summer!) the kids had so much fun running through the trails, exploring, and climbing trees, that is, when they were not WHINING. my almost-five-year-old is have a serious whining problem. have i told you? whew, patience is a virtue (too bad i don't have much of it.) ada caught a cute little frog when we first arrived and when we made her release it, we didn't hear the end of it. she told reza, when going to bed last night, that the frog was the highlight of her day. who knew?

the source of our day's strife.

mission completion.

and just in case you needed some serious cuteness in you life. take a look at this kid.

on mother's day.

i have vivid memories of mother's day growing up. one of four children, we definitely took the day (morning) seriously. we woke up extra early to ensure that my mom had a seven course breakfast in bed by about 6:30am. and i am SURE that we never did the dishes afterwards. by i always remember my mom being grateful. grateful that we all got up and cooked our specialties and placed them on a tray and brought them to her bedroom, along with coffee, milk, orange juice, water, fresh cut azaleas, homemade cards and presents. even if it was before the sun came up.

i never really dreamed of being a mother. really, i didn't. now i am the proud mother of three. three. its a magic number, yes it is. but it is also A LOT. some people make it look easy. i do NOT. all the more reason to celebrate, right?

today was quite lovely. my wonderful mom and dad drove up to have mother's day brunch with me and my beautiful baby sister, who now has her own beautiful baby boy (and only a month postpartum can fit into her cute skinny jeans!!!). my kids were mildly well behaved at breakfast, and even allowed my to quickly browse through a few stores and look for a case for my new iphone! yes, i have joined the 21st century and now have a smart phone- if only i were smart enough to use it. we then fished in the pond behind my house, went to the playground, went for a family walk, had a delicious dinner of kraft macaroni (with sides of blueberries and pistachios) and played outside until the sun set. wonderful huh? it really was.

i remember when i was working (outside of the home, that is). if you were a smoker, you got to take a smoke break every hour and go outside and enjoy a cigarette. i was not a smoker (although my mom can attest that a few times i tried to be) but i was jealous. i kind of wished i was as i watched the same crew of people leave the office and go outside and stand around enjoying the breeze (and their smoke) while i sat at my desk. today i had a little of that jealousy. as we walked around our subdivision we passed mom after mom going on their mothers day solo run. i wished i was a runner. i wanted to be alone. on mother's day! am i a bad person? on the day that celebrates that fact that i birthed three marvelous wonders of the world, i wanted to spend the day without them. i wanted to peruse anthropologie for hours, finding something more fashionable to wear than seven year old jeans and ribbed tank tops. i wanted to listen to jeff buckley really loud and not care about the fact that the songs may be inappropriate for young ears. but really i wanted to remember why i have children, because after a few hours alone, i miss that insanity and chaos of being surrounded by them.

but my children are thoughtful. they don't want me to miss them. they wanted to remind me that i am lucky to have them, and i am lucky to be able to stay home with them every day and make them the people that i want them to be. and i am grateful. really i am.

happy mother's day to all you special mothers out there. i hope yours was as good as mine!

love really is all around.

this must be my early mother's day gift. i uploaded pictures from the past few days and this is what i saw...

li's half-birthday hug.

ada reading books to li. he sat still for longer than i have ever seen him.

sisterly love.
a kiss for hanna.

we may not like each other all the time, but we sure have some love in our home.

four months.

yep. this little girl was four months today! i can't believe it. people always say that that happens with the third. you blink your eyes and you miss a milestone. not that i have read any books about milestones lately (i have been too busy painting my kitchen!) with ada i read every sleep book, every "what to expect" and worried through every second of her first two years. elias, well he kept me too busy to worry and was generally happy so i left well enough alone. with hanna i have no idea was she is supposed to be doing.

i do know what she is doing though.

- she can roll over from her tummy to her back, if and only if, she is not screaming and grinding her face into the floor over distaste for doing "tummytime".

- she poops about every 8 days. and generally cries on day 7.

- she is crying less. more than a normal baby, but less for miss hanna.

- she smiles at everyone and everything. she looks like the happiest baby on the block to an outsider!

- she giggles at lots of thinks, including her siblings (even elias!)

- about three days ago she decided nobody could hold her except for her baba and i.

- she has the arms of the michelin man.

- she hates the car more than any kid i know.

- she loves to ride around in the baby bjorn.

- she tends to pee on me alot during diaper changes. i swear she knows what she is doing (i think i heard her giggle.)

- she is getting better at sitting. i think it has to do with her strong stomach muscles from crying. i give her a couple weeks and she will be a perfect sitter.

- sleep. ah, what can i say. hanna tait stinks at it. really and truly. we are tired, actually, just me. she takes four little naps during the day and is up about 6-7 time between midnight and 6am. i wish i was joking. really i do.

and here she is! chubby and plump with one cute squinty eye that make my heart melt every time she smiles.

HAPPY FOUR MONTH BIRTHDAY MISS HANNA TAIT!