January & February 2015 - NEW BABY!

We've had lots of playtime with these friends over the winter - they are so sweet :0)

"Mr. Squishy" aka Mac arrived the first week of January....just 11 days "overdue"!  5th baby, 3rd at home w/ our midwife - but my first water birth.  I recommend it & would do it again (although I am 42 so not sure how many more littles will come our way!)

Honey Bunches acted as doula for our midwife - she did an amazing job & is the perfect picture of calm & comfort during birth.  She also kept me from drowning myself!

Happy Mama J!

Tweeters & Jam had an uno fest for about a month - reinforced colors for him & he picked up numbers fast, while Tweeters seemed to enjoy making up different rules & teaching Jam how to play!

Everyone is enamored with their new baby brother/& at 10 wks he has never been short of snuggles :0)

Plenty of snow this winter, and the littles go out every day no matter the weather.  I could call it Forest School but I'm not out with them really teaching anything ha ha - but - I know they are learning tons by just being outside with each other exploring the woods around the house & the beauty all around us.

Bandit violin - aka just listen to the notes without looking & make sure you are playing them in tune

HB did an art project they all enjoyed: sharpies on ceramic tiles, then dabbed with alcohol to make a shiny effect!

Jam is so into learning to write & read these days, always catching him writing something.  Tweeters is even teaching him cursive....

We had some old playdough so made a land for the dinosaurs & some baking soda/vinegar volcanoes! Been awhile since we've done this but they love it every time!

Finally tried that corn starch/hair conditioner dough & it is really so so soft!  One day play though - isn't as soft after about an hour of play & is pretty messy.  Henna by HB before she went to visit the Ginger in Montana again...

The beach is still fun even in the winter - here is a sandy ice castle

HB & the Ginger

Sweet Papa J enjoying storytime with his young uns

Flash, just relaxing :0)

Tweeters doing some 100 chart work.  First I cut the numbers into rows of 10 (she knows how to count by those) & she put them in order; then we cut them in half & she practiced counting by 5's (she's getting pretty good at that, especially since we watched the Schoolhouse Rock skip counting video!  Ahh, brings back memories...).  Next we'll do 2's or 3's & finally 1's.

Snow painting with spray bottles & colored water!

Colored salt from eons ago when Abbie was little!  We made pretty layered jars.  Winter is such a good time for crafts.

Oh those first sweet weeks with a tiny little new bundle from heaven...and they go so fast....

It is now the 3rd week of March & we are in Florida for our yearly snow bird escape with Gma & Gpa L!  It is so beautiful & warm & we love the extended time with family :0)  The Ginger joined us again this year & HB is planning to move to Montana to be closer to him when we return...2015 is already becoming a big year of change for our family!  A new one in the nest & an older one flying...bittersweet but part of life & so far I am adjusting fine (now ask me how very much I miss HB in a month or so....)!