Shamp Camp Monday

So my Aunts last name is Shamp and every year during the summer on Mondays she holds Shamp Camp. It's really a great idea. She has for the past several years done it at her house, but with all the kids getting so big and the success of turnouts she decide to move it on the road this time around. My boys are too little to stay unchaperoned, but I went with them yesterday. I am so glad we did too! I think I found my new favorite spot. It's out by Mote Marine which is our little local aqaurium and down by the water. The view is awesome. You look to your left and there are sitting sailboats. Directly in front of you out in the distance is our beautiful new bridge. And of course the water in general with the boaters going by. Anyways, the tide was perfect it was about 1 1/2 ft deep for probably 45 -50 feet or so. The boys were able to splash and play without the waves knocking them over. Overlookoing the little water area we had shaded picnic tables a grill and a playground right behind us. The best part was off to our left was a huge shaded tree area! The boys played, we ate and then I relaxed while they played some more...yes I actually relaxed. While I was sitting there, Jaxon walks up to me with nothing other than a small fish in his hand. I couldn't help but laugh! I sent the picture to Steph ( I think) and she summed it up perfectly...."It's in his blood" :) All in all a great afternoon, next Monday the Shamp Camp hits up Lido Beach, I'll see them there!

Sunday Sunday

Not alot of new news to report. Everyone is doing realyy well. Today was just another crazy , fast paced ...loud day in the Smith household. We got up for church this morning (after I was able to drag myself off the couch and brew a cup of coffee). My mom invited us to go with her to her church which meant I had to get myself and the four kids ready in 25 minutes! I propped the bottles up to feed the babies and rushed to get the boys clothes on. Next I burped the twins, chenged their diapers and clothes then quickly pooped them in their carseats. Last but not least I threw on my trusty black cotton dress and slip on shoes. I re-heated my coffee for like the fourth or fifth time and rushed out the door just as my mom was pulling up. Church was nice. It's message was about keeping our spiritual tank full. Like with our as tanks, sometimes we only put in enough fuel just to get to our destination. That in turns leads to the stress if we will make it to our next stop. The more filled our "tank" is the less stress we have. Atleast that was the basic concept. After church, we came home, I fed the twins and the boys (teaching Maddox how to eat a ham and chesse sandwich like a man:). NAPTIME!! Speaking of "re-fuel" ... I laid the kids down, ate my lunch and then woke Arik up. By now it's 1:30 and time for us to switch. He stays up for me during naptime and a little after so I can catch up on some sleep. ( I'm still averaging about 4-5 hours a night...broken:) Then we are all up. Time for a little outdoor play. This usually consists of us filling up the pool and draggin' out the yard toys. Today Arik worked out in the yard filling in mud holes!Meanwhile I stayed inside fed the little guys and tidied up....you know, laundry, dishes, wiping poop off the toilet seat. Around six or so the boys came in for dinner. This is also the twins "fussy time" I honestly think Olivia may be a little colicky. She will cry and fuss for about 2-3 hours at this point.....every night. Arik got a little taste of it tonight. He ran out to get himself Taco Bell and no sooner did he leave then all chaos broke out. I had raw chicken on my fingers...Olivia and Ty started throwing a fit...Maddox wants out of his highchair and Jaxon couldn't wait for me to help him out. I look over and couldn't stop it. Jaxon leaned too far over in his highchair (which is strapped to the kitchen chair) and tipped forward. He crached onto our tile floor. I rinsed the chicken off my hands and ran to pick him up...Calmed him, reasurred Maddox I'd be right there and pooped the pacis in the babies mouths...meanwhile glancing out the front door praying Arik would be back soon!!! After dinner we read stories. The kids got a few new books for their birthdays and really love to read, thank goodness. So we read for a while and then it was bedtime. Ahh peace and quite.There did I wear you guys out?????

MESSY MORNING

Whose great idea was this??? Oh, it was mine:) I decided to let the boys fingerpaint first thing this morning in their highchairs. I think more got on them than on the paper. But you know what, they had fun and cleanup actually wasn't so bad. Anyways, here are the pics from the art session. As you can see Maddox wasn't too thrilled by the time his shower was over. He was mad that he had to rinse his hair out. I told him red hair just didn't suit him. I have to say, it was hard not to laugh a him while he was crying at me. He just looked so funny!

Jaxon, Jaxon, Jaxon

So I'm sure he'll love me for this story one day, but it just cracked me up. This morning, I was changing Jaxon's diaper and he kept wiggling and telling me, "pee pee pee!!" "Okay Jax." I replied. "You want to go pee in the potty?" .... "yes." he tells me matter of factly. Now, we are trying a different approach while potty training Jaxon. I wasn't even going to introduce it for a few more months because I didn't think he'd be ready. But he had other plans. He's pretty good about letting me know when he has to go. I don't force it, he is still wearing diapers, but if he wants to I let him and it's usually success....Okay,back to this morning. So I set Jaxon down and say, let's go. He looks up at me and says, "Pricey" I glance at him, my head cocked to the side, confused to this new word. "what buddy??" ..."Pricey, pricey!" He get's louder and more demanding. He continues to yell what I hear as pricey and I continue to try and decipher what he could possibly be saying. I ask him, "potty seat, you want to use your potty seat??" "NO!" with a glare. I reach for his hand and say, "well, just show me." At this point he reaches towards me with both hands and shoves me away. "PRICEY!!!" he yells one final time. " OHHHH " a lightbulb clicked..."you want privacy?? I ask. He smiles and looks up at me, "yes." at which point he clumps off to the bathroom. I actually laughed out loud a little saying, "Oooo-kay" .

Birthday Party

Believe it or not, I have actually been too busy to log and and catch up these past few days:) Just a brief on the party....we had a really good time. We somehow avoided the rain for the duration of the party, which was a good thing b/c I only had outdoor activities planned. We had a slip and slide, water sprinkler and a small pool for the kiddos to play in. After pizza and cak we opened gifts. I think the theme this year was bubbles, bats and balls! All in all a fun time, I was whipped at the end though, I have to say!

Family Reunion

Well, we just got back from a weeklong vacation at the Thunderbird on Treasure Island. Gram ( Arik's grandma) has been planning a reunion for two years now and it finally was here! What a perfect time we had. The weather was great and the kids behaved. We couldn't have asked for more. We beached it a few days and spent others soaking up the sun around the pool. Maddox and Jaxon are officially waterbugs. They hardly wanted to get out. And my Maddox, who not too long ago was petrified of waves, was going so far out, I had to go out and catch him! We just got in, so I am going to attempt the dreaded task of unpacking while the boys are still snoozing, but a HUGE thank you to Gram and PaPa for organizing and getting us together for such an awesome time.

Birthday Boy!!!

Oh my, it's been 3 years!! I can't believe Maddox is 3 today. It's like a switch clicked and he's already transitioned from toddler phrases to big boy phrases. Such as, " I'm finally done, holy cow!" That was last night when we were out to eat. Or, "Maddox get off the bed now!" with a response of, "O - K, dangit" ...yeah, not a little boy word...I quickly corrected him. I could write a book on the cute things he says or does, as I am sure most mothers would be able to, but there's not enough time:) My guilt today is my lack of planning for a birthday party, as this year is one he would recognize. Instead I am throwing together a last minute Outdoor Pizza Bash on Sun for a few buddies I can round up. In the meantime, maybe next year!