They came in the mail yesterday

But, what are they? These dolls are made by a friend of mine. She has just recently started an Etsy store and is selling them. I think they are so cute. Some people get them as just a doll. Others use them for something more special. I got the yellow on for myself to celebrate baby wearing and breastfeeding. (There is a little removeable baby in the sling.) I got the green one to donate in my church's silent auction that should be coming up soon. And, it's a secret. but I got the orange one for Lyn. Shhh, don't tell her. I may break down and order other ones for my other girls. Go check them out.

To the rec center again

What to do on a Saturday morning with my girls? Head to the rec center for a swim of course! They all had fun. One thing I like to do while I am at the rec center is to weigh myself on their digital scale. Guess what? I lost another pound. I am now 4 pounds away from what I weighed before having Ben. I gained about 42 pounds with him. I am sure I can get there before he is 9 months old.

Volleyball season has started...

Lyn has been patiently waiting to start playing volleyball again. First practice finally rolled around.  There were quite a lot of girls playing this year. I brought Annika, Evan, and Eliot with me to watch her first practice. I brought some of mu work toys in to keep them busy. They had fun playing in a corner for a while. When they got a bit more rowdy we moved to the foyer. They each found a wooden ring from a stacking toy and had a blast rolling them back and forth. It is amazing how kids can invent their own play when you just give them a chance.

Where has all my time gone?

I know I have not posted much lately. With school starting and work life has been very busy. Lyn is enjoying getting back in the groove with volleyball. Annika is such a big girl now in 3rd grade. She is doing so well. She still has a few seizures each month but they still aren't really affecting her life to much. Connor is repeating 3rd grade at the moment but if he does well they may promote him on to 4th if he shows he can keep up. Danny is so big now. I can't believe I have a child in high school! Evan and Eliot are doing well in preschool. Baby Ben is growing so fast. He is sitting on his own about half of the time. He is experimenting with some baby food and some table food. Life goes on and what a ride it is!

Flower kids

Milestones

That's my big boy sitting up all on his own. He is able to manage it for about 2 to 3 minutes. He will be 7 months old on the 18th. We have tried some baby food but he doesn't seem to know what to do. But he does fine when I give him small bites from my fingers. I was having some cantaloupe with dinner and he was sitting next to me practically drooling. I broke off small pieces and he ate them up. He ate them fine.

Trying ranch chips this time

It was Lyn's job to make dinner tonight. She made buttermilk ranch chips. She cut corn tortillas, dipped them in buttermilk and sprinkled dry ranch mix on them and popped them into the oven. While those were cooking she put together the rest of dinner. She warmed up some beef hot dogs and cut them into bite sized pieces. On the side we had blueberries, canteloupe, cheese, and baby carrots. Yum yum!

Homemade chips

The big girls made homemade chips today. They cut corn tortillas in forths, brushed with olive oil and avacado oil, sprinkled with a little cheese and fiesta seasoning and voila! We had hommade spicy chips. We baked them at 350 degrees till crispy. I think we will try a ranch flavor next.

Dried herbs and flowers

Our homemade drying rack works well. The geraniums turned out the best looking. All of the moisture was removed. I will try a larger quantity next time. The basil is growing great. The rosemary is still my favorite.

Asleep at the laptop

Evan has a few games that he likes to play online. The other day he fell asleep playing them in the recliner. When we tried to pull the computer off and he pulled it back half a sleep saying "my covers". We just left him there and turned the computer off. I wonder what he dreamed of.

Short hair?

I have been meaning to cut my hair for a while now. I want the color I put on it to grow out instead of just coloring it again. Besides I need something easy to take care of. And, frankly change is good. Well, here it is. Short and sassy. I'll play around with styling it a little. I think it turned out OK.

Home from the beach...

Before school starts for Annika and the big boys we planned a trip to the beach. Thank you Granny for inviting us. Danny and Connor opted out and stayed home with their dad. We missed them the whole time. It was Ben's first trip to the beach. He did really well. We had the chance to swim in either an indoor or outdoor pool. The beach looked great. We saw a little bit of oil but other than that the sand and water was clean. Evan was braver than we thought he would be in the water. He isn't swimming like a fish like Eliot but he is getting better. The weather was great. It was hot though. We were out to the beach at sunrise to take advantage of cooler temperatures. We saw crabs, clams, sand fleas (I think that was what it was), salt water catfish, porpoises, and plenty of birds. Hubby and I even were able to go for a night swim.

World Breastfeeding Week!

Yeah for boobies!! It is World Breastfeeding Week. Check out my post on my breastfeeding blog.

Celebrating the first wheat harvest...

What is Lammas?

In our modern world, it's often easy to forget the trials and tribulations our ancestors had to endure. For us, if we need a loaf of bread, we simply drive over to the local grocery store and buy a few bags of prepackaged bread. If we run out, it's no big deal, we just go and get more. When our ancestors lived, hundreds and thousands of years ago, the harvesting and processing of grain was crucial. If crops were left in the fields too long, or the bread not baked in time, families could starve. Taking care of one's crops meant the difference between life and death.




By celebrating Lammas as a harvest holiday, we honor our ancestors and the hard work they must have had to do in order to survive. This is a good time to give thanks for the abundance we have in our lives, and to be grateful for the food on our tables. Lammas is a time of transformation, of rebirth and new beginnings.
 
  (These words were borrowed from: Lammas History: Welcoming the Harvest


                                  By Patti Wigington, About.com Guide)

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Today to celebrate the history and importance of wheat we baked some whole wheat bread. Evan, Eliot, Lyn , and Annika each helped and made their own small loaf. I also checked out some bread books to learn about the history of where wheat came from. I am actually not eating wheat right now and I am trying to stay away from grains all together in order to loose weight. I am also trying to determine if some of Annika and Evan's health problems might be related to their wheat so I am trying to eliminate wheat from their diet. But wheat has a huge cultural importance to the world we live in. We learned where wheat came from and all of the different kinds of breads that are made from wheat.