The morning began over coffee with Brady before he headed out for the workday.

Then, I lay in bed a little longer. Because this week is off of school.

I went into the kids rooms and snuggled everyone for a couple of minutes, letting them know it was time to get up. About half of them had sore throats.

Kids ate breakfast and we talked plans for the day.

Kids left for VBS, and Cher and I had a short coffee.

Cher studied downstairs, and I crocheted in my room while I watched my smuggler show.

Cher and I ate a snacky lunch.

Four of the kids came home for lunch. Dekker went to the school to work on Frozen Jr sets.

Kids ate, and the two youngest went down for naps.

Laela and Rowan folded origami and sipped tea together, like the sophisticated children they aren’t.

Cher brought me a coffee upstairs 💜

Laela bailed on origami, and Rowan struggled, so Cher ducked over and helped him fold a spider. A very loving auntie.

Dekker and Laela were both invited out with friends.

Solly played lego.

Wavy had a bath.

Cher went back to studying, and I’m hanging out in the living room with the two littles. Rowan is having some sibling-free playtime downstairs.

It is peaceful here at the moment. I really hope it stays that way 🤞

I don’t know if you remember, but Solly got his glasses and lost his two front teeth in the same week. He was SO CUTE!!!

This has been my lock screen since mid-February, haha! Man. He is basically a cartoon character.

It didn’t take long at all before his teeth started growing back, and I’ll admit, I had some mixed feelings, lol! I LOVE that gappy face, and the lisp that came with it. He was just hilarious. But in the last week or two, those teeth are really coming down, and he has that same air of confidence in his smile! Somehow, Solly just keeps getting better and better!

Oh! He also colours better now that he can see, haha! And he reads better. Works harder on things. Understands more. Gets overwhelmed less. Its pretty cool how well he’s doing. The smile speaks for itself 😁

And it rubs off on others.

He’s a happy dude, and I’m loving how much it shows recently.

Happy Keister Easter, everyone!!

We’re having a really nice day together here at home 💜 My mom and Cher have joined us, so we are a group o’ nine. Cher is spending much of her time studying (Keister Easter is smack dab in the middle of finals!) and the rest of us are spending a slow, restful day together. We watched church this morning. Cards have been played. Forts have been built. Paper is being coloured. And yummy food is cooking. We didn’t have as many potatoes as we thought, but its gonna work out.

The carrots are prepped, courtesy of the lovely Miss Laela.

Mom and I prepped the turkey earlier this morning, and its been smelling good all afternoon!

Unfortunately, a handful of us aren’t in perfect health, but we are still enjoying our time together, taking it super easy 💜 celebrating Keister Easter.

We praise God for coming, dying, and rising. More than ever, He is evident in our lives, and we are excitedly anticipating what He has planned for us!

Happy Keister Easter, friends! 💜 I hope you’ve enjoyed the weekend!

Christ is risen!

In March, I began to test a pattern for a designer I came across online. I met her because I was impatient, hahaha!

That story goes like this:

I found a really beautiful baby blanket pattern, and while I don’t have a baby, I thought it would make a beautiful gift, so I bought it and made it.

Awesome, right?? The link is available here 🙂 I really really liked this pattern, and I ended up making a couple of these to have on hand for gifting. But, I messaged the designer to beg for the rest of her alphabet. Lettering in mosaic crochet is a little bit tricky, because its not as simple as just graphing out a letter and crocheting it. Its hard to explain, but the counts are specific and its just not that easy. So I contacted her a couple of different ways, and we got to talking. She was super sweet, and we had good easy banter. Very quickly, we decided I would test her next pattern!

It was released earlier this month, and I want to show you guys!

Bethany Moore created “Homecoming” and released it on April 1st!

Homecoming is a really nice, smaller throw blanket. Its a manageable size but it still covers the toes!

If you are a crocheter yourself, I can vouch for this pattern! It has the charts, as well as step by step written instructions. If you are unfamiliar with the “special” stitches that are slanted/diagonal, this is a great blanket to learn them on, because you learn to predict what is to come, and they will become more natural as you go!

Anywho. I know I have a vested interest in this pattern because it was my first tester, but I also just really really liked making it! Its not complicated, and it creates a really nice piece! I say again, it also is a nice size. I like how not huge it is. It doesn’t stretch or get in the way. Its compact and cozy.

So, I’ve linked both patterns above, but Homecoming was the blanket I had the pleasure of testing 💜 I have another one I’ve tested for Bethany that isn’t released yet, and I’m on the books for her next one that should be in hand this weekend! Eek!

I’m having SO much fun, and part of me feels like I’m paying my dues to someday maybe need my own testers 💜

Thanks again, Bethany, for letting me join the fun and be part of your tester group! My hook is burning for the next one!!!

I had an entirely different post in mind for today, but when I looked at my Facebook memories this morning, there were just too many gooders to pass them by. They need to be shared, starting back at the beginning!

Eleven years ago today, we were in Winnipeg, visiting my sister and brother-in-law, and we fed Dekker mashed peas, mostly for our own entertainment.

The next year, we have another one of Dekker, looking super fly in his car seat and shades.

Then, there were two breakfast pictures from eight years ago. Laela is still jazzed when she gets corn pops, and Dekker is still a messy eater, hahaha!

Same year, same day, Rowan made an appearance on Facebook. He had some tummy time, which Dekker closely supervised, apparently.

Again, the same year, I changed my profile picture to this: Laela, at my moms house, wearing Brady’s glasses.

The year after, seven years ago, we were renting a little place by Lawson while our house was being built. I was largely pregnant, and my little Rowan wanted a bite of my pop tarts pronto! Poor dude had to wait, haha!

Oof. Solly took a nap on me on April 7th six years ago. Could he be any softer?? Oof. That belly.

Five years ago, I made a side by side comparison of Laela and Rowan. Or, as we often call them, the twins.

And friends, ONE YEAR AGO, we walked on mostly clear streets, with somewhat clear yards through the town, and celebrated the slushy chilly mess that is the start of spring!!

Hopefully today holds some good as well. Our day off all together. Some productive work. Some outside time. Some rest. Some music. Some coffee. Lots to do, but time to do it 💜

Many of you may remember that Rowan has been treated for ADHD for the past several months. It’s been going really well, but we’re learning that things will need to be tweaked here and there to learn the ideal setup for Rowan. Recently, we went forward with some change, and its been a beautiful shift. For him, and for all of us.

Rowan is expressing himself in SUCH clear language. About his “engine.” About his “sparks.” About the bell in his brain! I will have to talk more about these things in detail soon, because they are SO cool and come SO unprompted! But for now, I just want to share some cute things that make me happy that pertain to Rowan 💜

Yesterday, Ro came home from school happy and energized! He had made a craft at school – a little paper bunny – and he was insistent that I make one with him. He wanted to teach me. So, we got to it!

Colouring next to a leftie, tho! *click click click*

The result was pretty cute. This is Rowan and the one he brought home from school.

I loved that he had it in him to do his reading and a craft after school! He did beautifully!! And then before bed, he asked to read part of our devotional. Leave it to him to get stuck with the one that is teaching us Spanish! 😆

He rolled with it and giggled and struggled and didn’t get upset. It was funny, and he didn’t get flustered! We could all just enjoy it.

Yesterday ended peacefully, with everyone happy and friendly. The kids slept well and were in good spirits in the morning! I, however, had another wakeful night! Ack! I’m so ready for bed 😅 And to sleep IN!! Because Brady has the stat off!!! Thank you, Lord!! 💜

Since Brady worked this last weekend, he has a couple of earned days off to take advantage of, and one of those happened to be today! It is ALWAYS nice to have him home in the morning 💜

There is a lot going on around here these days, so the day off hasn’t exactly been a deeply restful one. I had a meeting at the school first thing, and then he and I had a meeting for the rest of the morning and into the afternoon.

I took Wavy to and from a babysitter’s place, and we lunched her and put her down for a shorty nap.

At that point, it was about 1:30 and we still hadn’t eaten. I texted Cher, and she hadn’t either, so we invited her over and we all enjoyed some leftover honey chicken on rice. It was really nice, despite the fact that we were all somewhat dead on our feet. Or, our wheels. You get it.

We parted ways shortly after we finished eating. Brady headed straight for the shower, and I’m here, in my bed, pants-free, getting the blog up. I am completely beat, but I’m also somewhat energized in my brain after all the busyness this morning. I feel some motivation, anyway. So I’m going to try to roll with that once the kids are home.

Which will be pretty soon!! Gotta jet!

Yesterday was a very challenging day for me. I don’t feel like blogging in the slightest. So rather that pouting, I’ll share a few good moments from the day 💜 Hopefully that counts.

The top three wins.

Win number one. Making granola bars with Rapunzel Dracula Zorro Waverly.

We whipped up a super fast batch after naps but before everyone got home. She likes to help measure the dry ingredients, and she does a good job 💜 And yes, she uses her hands, lol! Its just us. We know where she’s been.

Win number two. I took a bubble bath.

I’m very grateful that Brady is happy for me to take breaks when I need them. And I’m grateful for my big bathtub.

Win number three was a nice laugh 💜 Vulnerability alert 🚨 Brady is in his gitch and our room is messy, lol! We know.

Brady uses FES (functional electrical stimulation) as part of his maintenance. He hooks it up to multiple spots on his legs, and it contracts his muscles so they continue to work, even though he can’t make them work himself. Remember, if muscles aren’t used, they disappear. So this is an important exercise. He does this most evenings. Last night, while all wired up to his FES, he had a contact malfunction and fold in his eye. Contact wearers get it. It just happens out of the blue sometimes, and it hurts like crazy. You can barely open your eye, yet you need it open to take out that contact. So that moment hitting Brady is like the perfect storm because (in case you missed it) he doesn’t walk especially well anymore, and needs his eyes to be open for him to successfully move about. Add to that the fact that he was legit tied to an electrical device, and there were just WAY too many moving parts. So while I went to our bathroom to retrieve his contact stuff, I definitely had to take a picture along the way.

Don’t worry, he was laughing, not crying.

Don’t worry, I helped him when he lost his contact in the blankets.

Don’t worry, I asked before I posted this.

Fun fact about this picture, also. It contains so many things to assist us, haha! Its mess that we try to tidy before we take pictures. Meds. Melatonin. Zoltaren (pain reliever) that Brady is always afraid people will think is lube. Glasses. Brady’s FES case and wires. His indoor shoes that hold his right leg brace. Popcorn. Lol! What a mess. Still a good laugh, though.

I’ll admit I’m still having a bit of a hard time this morning. I’ll coffee with Cher this morning and try to let down a little. I’m sure there are more laughs to come 💜

It was good that we stayed home yesterday. Not because the kids were SO bad or anything like that, but we had a really nice day at home. The kids played outside for most of the morning, and then a few of them even went for a walk during quiet time. ‘Twas a success! Kids got clean. Boys got buzzed. Many of the things I wanted to accomplish got accomplished. Not everything, of course, because that would’ve been too perfect. But, lots.

Today, at the very least, I need to make play-doh. I’m on the calendar for preschool play-doh this month, and I’ve never made it before! So, I’ve got a recipe and I’m gonna do that this morning with Wavy. Wish me luck!

I’m grateful that next week is looking like a warm one. Talks of camp are in the air. So much excitement for the upcoming season for our family! Though apparently some still appreciate winter a little…

Snuggling with a Christmas tree like a boss 😎

Happy Monday, friends. I hope your day isn’t chaotic, but that it doesn’t move painfully slowly either. I’m basically wishing you perfection. You’re welcome.

We’ve had a series of challenging days over here with the kids. Has anyone else been feeling especially full moony recently? Its tough here! So unfortunately, with Brady working this weekend, I didn’t feel up to the challenge of taking the kids to church on my own. Normally, it would be no problem. But after so many days like we’ve had, I opted for a home day. I felt bad, because they all really wanted to go. But they accepted the change pretty smoothly. Everyone likes a jammie day!

Solly is a pretty nervous little guy, but he excitedly poured cereal today, even though he was unsure about amounts and scared to spill. He said over and over again “I will just try it!” And he did a great job! Look at that little tongue!

Once kids had eaten, they went outside to play. Some of them were even happy about it! Lol!

While they played outside, Cher and I coffeed and got supper prepped. It was very relaxed and peaceful until a certain middlest kid whacked himself in the forehead with a croquet mallet. He came in bawling, understandably. He cried some very crooked nipples onto my shirt, which helped morale a lot! 😂🤣

Auntie and Rowan ducked out for an errand after this point, and I finished up supper stuff.

Now, kids are lunching and chatting. The Frozen II soundtrack is going. Cher is working on some stuff, and I’m blogging beside her. Its very relaxed at the moment.

The afternoon will hold fresh buzzes for the boys, baths for all the kids, and hopefully not a whole lot else! The week ahead is another full one, though not even half as bonkers as both February and March were. April feels like it might be a little bit slower. *knocks on forehead* We’ll seeeee!