Mini construction crew

After living in our house for 4 years, we've decided to make a few changes (while maintaining the character and style of the house). We've found that having the kitchen and living room at opposite corners of the house is rather inconvenient, especially with so many children here all the time who treat the rooms in between as an awkward hallway where they can dump all their stuff.  The kitchen is also quite narrow and closed off from the rest of  the house so we'll be making it a bit bigger.

Phase 1 of the project is putting in a new bathroom so we can expand the kitchen into the area used for the current bathroom. The kids all came in to help my dad, who has been doing the brunt of the demolition work so far.

I couldn't help but laugh at their choice in work clothes.

For Elena: winter boots and a pair of pajamas that are 3 sizes too small

For Charlie: pants, winter boots, winter hat, no shirt (as a bonus, he has a diapered "plumbers butt") 

For Sam: boxers and women's boots, nothing else

Here they are at work:

Check out those lashes!

"Shhhh...I'm talkng"

Quotes from Charlie

Charlie: (upon seeing Seth shoveling snow onto the lawn) Hey! Don't put the snow on the grass!
Seth: You don't want snow on the grass?
Charlie: Yeah. Say sorry.
Seth: Sorry.
Charlie: Nicely...
Seth: Sorry.
Charlie: That's better.


Charlie: Sammy, are you playing Yourcraft?
Me: He's playing Minecraft.
Charlie: No, it's Hiscraft.

Welcome to 3, Charlie

Age 3.

The age when kids start misbehaving on purpose: "Mom! I'm sitting on the baby!"
The age when they get frustrated and angry over the littlest thing: 'Don't call me a brother!! I am NOT a brother! I am Charlie!!...Sammy is the brother."
When their cognitive and motor skills increase in helpful ways: "I can get my boots on by myself!"
...and not so helpful ways "I can put this stick of butter in the microwave and set it for 17 minutes!"
When the can be as stubborn as a mule and as demanding as a diva:"I will only go to Christmas Eve Mass in my footie pajamas - anything else you try to put on me I will immediately rip off in a screaming fit of rage!"

At the same time, it's the age where kids carry around in their back pocket a ray of sunshine that they frequently whip out and share with the world around them: "Did you pee in the potty, Mommy? You are a Big Boy!!!"

Charlie is 3 and he is very, very good at it. Here's a glimpse of today:

The first thing Charlie did upon waking today was scold me for saying "Hi, Charlie!" instead of what he apparently considered the only appropriate greeting for that time of day. His immediate response was, "No! You're supposed to say 'Good Morning'!"

A few minutes later, after I put on a new sweater, which I guess is his new favorite, he ran over to me, jumping up and down with a big smile, and gave me a hug saying, "Pretty! Pretty! Pretty!"

And it continued in that pattern the rest of the day. If he's like the older two, the mood swings should taper off in about a year....only to start up again 8-10 years later.

Frankie's first laugh

We got it on camera!! Poor Charlie wanted to try to make him laugh, too, but he has a tendency to underestimate how close he is getting to the baby, which basically results in him head-butting Frank.

Charlie's 3!!!

3 years ago we welcomed this sweet little baby into our lives, and he has brought immeasurable amounts of laughter into our home ever since. Every day he says something (usually several things) that crack us up. Unfortunately it's rarely something that we could explain on here because it's usually his delivery that is so funny more than what he actually says. 

Remembering his arrival always brings back memories of our "two Charlies."

 Looking all grown up. He looks even more like a little man when he wears this outfit and carries his "backpack." He's taken to carrying around a shoulder bag when we go out, which makes him look like a miniature business man.

Happy birthday to the boy who can even make me laugh while he's asleep!

Guess Who: Take 2

When Frank was first born, we thought we finally had a baby with a different look from the rest.

Now we're not so sure.

Here are our four kids' baby pictures. I think one is easier to distinguish from the rest, but they are quite obviously siblings! Our friend Adam hit the nail on the head when he met all of Seth's brothers. As he put it: "The Myhres don't reproduce; they clone."

See if you can guess who's who. I'll put up the correct answers next week (or so) for those who are curious.

Christmas 2015

One of the highlights this year was having 2 new babies around. Here are Frank and my sister's little girl, Gabriella. 

I think Charlie was more excited than anyone to be a big brother and cousin. They were covered in his kisses: Frank is used to that by now, but he  was probably a bit overwhelming for Gabby. 

 Admiring the babies:

Elena spent much of Christmas Day sporting her new "headband":

Sam took a few selfies when I left my camera unattended:

Matching Christmas sweaters!

 On the annual hay ride with Seth's family, our newest tradition:

 And what Christmas would be complete without a yoga lesson from Grandpa? Here is Charlie joining in on the downward dog...

and attempting a bridge pose: 

Merry Christmas everyone and happy new year!!!

Frankie's first acting role

Frankie played Baby Jesus in last night's Nativity play at Elena and Sam's school. I thought he might be a challenge as he is not always the calmest baby in the evenings. He was starting to arch his back and fuss right before it was time to go on, and then he calmed down and looked adorable for his whole "performance." Elena and Sam also did a great job singing their songs with much enthusiasm. We have yet to witness one of our children who does not love being on stage, but I guess that's appropriate considering that is where Seth and I met.

As you can see, Frankie was pretty popular with his fellow cast members:



Seeing our own baby up there made me appreciate in a new way the sacrifice that God made by sending his Son to us in the form of a precious and innocent baby, knowing the price he would pay for our sins. At the end of the play, one of the angels talked about how this baby would go on to undergo great suffering for our sake. At that moment, I felt like I had a teeny-tiny glimpse of the immensity of God's love for us when I contemplated how extremely difficult it would be to offer up my baby - my baby! - to endure a future horrific death for the salvation of others. It was paralyzing for me to even imagine it, and God actually went through with it.