7 Quick Takes Friday (#3)

Wow, long time no blog. My intentions were certainly not to delay this blog, especially because I hate those blogs that are not maintained and publish posts like once every couple months, but life has been very busy in the Kingston household. With eight kids, eight and under, my days are so full that I can never find time to blog, let alone use the bathroom! But, honestly, I miss blogging. I know I only posted a couple of times, but I enjoyed being creative and writing about my family. So, i've decided that that blogging is going to be my "me" time from now on. A couple times a week i'm going to take some time, whether it's late at night or early in the morning or during quiet reading time for the kids, to blog. Wish me luck!

To resume blogging, I'm going to start with another edition of 7 Quick Takes...

 

1.  Maya is now onto her third pair of eye glasses in the last year. She's seven and I can understand that glasses are a new concept and responsibility for her, but seriously, three pairs of glasses? And glasses aren't cheap, either! The first time she left them on the floor and I stepped on them (ouch!). The second time she left them at the park and when we went back they were no longer there. So when we got her new glasses this week, Wren and I sat her down and explained to her how important it is to be responsible and treat her glasses like a prized possession. We gave her a list of rules and decided to do daily checks to make sure her glasses are either on her face or on her nightstand, do not touch the floor, and are not in reach of her younger siblings hands... or the dog's. Here's to hoping this new pair lasts!

2. This week Maya began piano lessons. Wren and I feel extra curriculars are an important part of our children's development. Only the four oldest are at an appropriate age to really benefit from extra curriculars; five being the magic age when the children can begin participating in out-of-home activities. Music is a different story, though, and all of the kids will wait until they are seven to begin playing an instrument. Well, Maya is now seven and she is absolutely thrilled to be playing the piano. For Wren and I it is necessary that our children receive exposure in all different areas of the arts, so each child is encouraged to participate in one art, one music, one sport, and one religion activity. It may seem like a lot, but we space it out throughout the year so that the kids are not overwhelmed. Plus, they enjoy every activity! We let them pick what they want to do as we know it is something they are interested in and will stick to. The four oldest are in soccer (during the spring), the boys are in year-round karate, the two oldest girls are in year-round ballet, all four are in art, and they all participate in Sunday School. We love our tiny little community that has so many extra curriculars for our kids!

3. Fourth of July is a few days away and we are busy preparing for the celebration. This is a huge holiday in our house. It is so important to honor the United States and for my kids to get an understanding of how lucky they are to live in such a great America. In the morning I serve a red, white, and blue breakfast. Red, white, and blue pancakes with red (strawberries), white (bananas), and blue (blueberries) fruit salad. After breakfast everyone, dressed in their red, white, and blue outfits, goes to the annual 4th of July parade in our town. It lasts for three hours and is fun, fun, fun. After the parade we go home and host a barbecue with all our family and friends. There's barbecue food, swimming, lots of laughter, and great memories! Around 9pm we head over to the park to watch the fireworks. When they are over we go home and go to bed. It will be a great day!

4. It has been so hot lately. Every year I look forward to summer because it means no school, but a couple weeks into summer I look forward to fall for the cool, crisp weather. Temperatures have been at an all-time high here where we live, with 100, 105, and 110 temperature days. Hot temperatures only means two things: a cranky mama and eight cranky kids. So we've been spending all our time, and by all our time I mean all our time, in the pool. We literally wakeup, eat breakfast, do chores, get in the pool, eat lunch, get in the pool, eat a snack, get in the pool, eat dinner, shower, go to bed, wakeup, and do it all over again. I'm not complaining, though, because the kids love the pool and are always happy when they are in it. It distracts them from the heat. Oh, the heat. Did I mention how hot it is? Oh, I did. Did I mention how much I can't wait for fall? Oh, I did.

5. Gabriella is nearly four months old and I cannot believe it. Where has the time gone? I know three months may not seem like much to some people, but to me, her mother, it is shocking that she is already through one-fourth of her first year of life. Gabriella is my best baby yet. She is so chill and mellow, sleeping through the night (already!) and only crying when she needs her diaper changed. Gabriella loves her siblings and gets the biggest smile on her face when she see's them. She eats like a professional eater and already weighs 16 pounds. I cannot believe Gabriella is my daughter, I feel so lucky!

6. It may be summer for the kids, but for their homeschooling mama there is always work to do. Because I am their teacher also, it means that I have work to do to prepare for the upcoming school year. Lesson planning. Curriculum planning. School calender planning. Classroom planning. School supplies planning. Planning, planning, planning! Good thing I love planning, or else I'd go crazy! I generally plan while the younger kids are down for their naps and the oldest kids are having quiet time, about three hours of uninterrupted time to myself each day. I guess people are right when they say a mother's work is never done.

7. Speaking of summer, on Friday the kids, Wren, and I will be disembarking on a two-week long road trip. My cousin has a wedding we are going to, so we thought why not drive and make a trip out of it. The kids are super excited and can't wait for the trip. We'll be hitting seven states, with about two days in each state. Not only does homeschooling involve a lot of planning, but so do road trips with large families. I've had to make a driving schedule, plan our hotels, make homemade snacks, pack for eight kids, and more. Wish us luck! I mean, woo, I can't wait!

7 Quick Takes Friday (#2)

 

1. Well, I have officially hit the 38th week of pregnancy. Wow, how time has flown! This is the time where everyone begins to be on alert for any signs that the baby is coming. This basically means that every time I make a sound that merely resembles the sound of pain, everyone- children included- will run to me and say, "Is it time? Is it time?" The same goes every morning when I wake up. The kids run into my room to see if i've gone to the hospital to have the baby. It is so precious to watch my babies excited for their sister to be born. With all three of my previous pregnancies, I gave birth between 38 and 41 weeks, so there is really no telling when this baby is going to arrive. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, maybe in two weeks. There is just no way to be sure! One thing is for sure though, I cannot wait to meet my baby girl, whenever the time may be.

2. The Tooth Fairy has made FOUR stops to our house this week. Wow! Maya (7) has lost three of her teeth this week and Kenyan (6) has lost one. The little kids think this is the absolute coolest thing ever and keep trying to pull out their own teeth! I'm not sure what they like more: the idea of the tooth fairy or finding money under their pillow. Hmmmm! One thing is for sure, though: the Tooth Fairy is going to be broke with the amount of kids in this family!

3. Wren and I are obsessed with Downtown Abbey! For a long time people told us we should start watching the show, and, probably after the 20th time of being told, we finally watched an episode. AND WE ARE HOOKED! Right now we are beginning season 2. We're not big television watchers, but this is one show that we definitely take time to watch. Wren and I make a date out of it, too. When we aren't totally exhausted and out of energy from raising 7 kids and being 9 months pregnant, Wren and I will lay on the couch at night and watch an episode or too. It is a great way to spend time together!

4. Kenyan and Amari love soccer so much. They have been playing since they were little boys, so every soccer season I sign them up to play on a team. They have already played for two years now and love it every year. That time of year came again where the boys were asking if they could play soccer. Of course my immediate answer was yes, but then I got to thinking about how soccer is just falling at the worst time for us this year. The league begins in March, this is when the baby is due, when we're expected to move (separate post coming soon), and when Wren has to go on a business trip for two weeks.  After I had already said yes, I thought about possibly telling the boys it wasn't going to work out. But then I imagined their little faces and having to disappoint them; plus, it is just not worth it. We can make it work. It is more important to me that my kids are happy than not letting them participate in extra curricular activities for my sanity. Yesterday I took the boys to meet their team at a pre-season party and they were SO happy and SO excited. It is so worth it!

5. Maya has been interested in helping me in the kitchen lately. Each night when I cook dinner she is right by my side, helping me and learning. It is so much fun and such an amazing way to spend time with my daughter. She has graduated from observing and doing a few small tasks, to completely making side dishes on her own. Looks like I have a future chef on my hands! Of course she isn't cooking or baking anything too complex, but Maya makes some delicious cheddar biscuits. She is learning so much and she told me this morning that helping me cook will make her a great future wife and mommy. Awwww!

6. Yesterday, when Wren was at work, I called him saying I was having a rough day. I spent 30 minutes cooking a delicious lunch for the kids, only to find that none of the kids felt like eating what I had made. Arlet and Elaina would NOT go down for their naps. Amari scraped his knee and thought he needed to be hospitalized... literally. One of the kids broke a vase. Basically, the craziness of yesterday was insane. Thirty minutes after I called Wren, two of my sisters showed up at my door saying they'd take over the fort while I went out for a couple of hours to have some time for myself. Wren had called them and asked them to come over since he was at work and couldn't. Wow, I have the best husband and sisters ever. With four (magical, relaxing, peaceful, quiet) hours to myself, I felt like I had gone on vacation for a week. First I bought a new book from Barnes and Nobles and spent an hour reading it in my car (I needed absolute quiet), then I went out to lunch, got my nails done, and lastly, I went to fulfil my daily hourly craving of frozen yogurt and decided to bring some back for the kids. When I got home, the kids were excited to see me and I was excited to see them. It was amazing what a couple of hours of "me" time can do to a person! By the end of my day, I felt refreshed and ready to get back to regular life.

7. Guess what?! Wren and I picked a name for baby #8 last night! We feel it is absolutely perfect for our baby girl and cannot wait to put a name to the face in the upcoming weeks. It is a name that we both equally love and it has a very special meaning. Just like our previous pregnancies, we're not sharing until her birth. But a couple weeks isn't bad, right? It's better than nine months!

7 Quick Takes Friday (#1)

 

1. The weather is FINALLY starting to warm up around here! And i've got to tell you, I am thrilled about this. I've never been a fan of cold weather; it coops us up in the house for months at a time, the kids get colds and coughs, and it's just no fun. It's not like there's snow for the kids to play in or rain for them to splash around in, it's just cold and yucky outside 24/7. But alas, there's sun and blue skies! The first thing we did after waking up on Monday was walk to the park, and I think we've gone every day since. It's just so beautiful outside, and the kids love running around... plus it is a major energy burner!

2. My four oldest children had eye appointments yesterday. It was definitely time to see whether Maya and Gianna have poor vision like me or great vision like Wren. While we were at it, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to take Amari and Kenyan to get their vision checked. The appointment lasted three hours and I was definitely worn out by the end. The appointment was during their usual snack time, so they were all cranky and in need of a snack; and by the time their exams started (45 minutes after we checked-in!) they just wanted to run around and play! Amari also had a difficult time, he was so scared of all the machines. (Ever since we brought him home from Ethiopia, my little boy is very scared of things he's not used to in his normal environment. We've been working with him, slowly but surely, and we can definitely see an improvement in his ability to adapt to different situations, though.) After three hours, a few tantrums, and lots of crying it was determined that Maya, Gianna, and Amari do not need glasses. Wow, I thought for sure the girls would need them! Unfortunately, Amari does. And I say unfortunately because he's definitely going to have a difficult time adjusting to them.

3. I've been a reading fanatic lately. I've always loved reading but am finally getting to the point where I can find time to read each day... even if it may be at night before I go to bed. I love, love, love memoirs and biographies. Some of my favorites are Bloom, Heaven is Here, The Obamas, Tolstoy and the Purple Chair, and The Freedom Writers Diary, though I could go on and on about my other favorite books! My love of reading has definitely rubbed off on my kids. Seeing Mommy read encourages them to read and they think its cool when they see me reading... I love that! We've gotten in the habit of having "Mommy/Children Reading Time" at night before bed. I sit with the oldest four and we read together for 30 minutes. It's a great way to spend time together and educational, too!

4. The oldest four are home schooled, but their curriculum is based through the school. Every Monday they go to school and interact in a regular classroom setting, with other students, and learn everything kids of the same age learn; their work is assigned on Monday, throughout the week they work on it, and on Friday they go back to school to turn in and have their work graded. It's great for their social skills (not they have any social issues, they have six siblings after all!) and they love that they have a teacher and friends. Since there was no school on Friday, the kids went to school on Thursday, which also happened to be Valentines Day. Maya, Gianna, Amari, and Kenyan all got to participate in the Valentine's Day festivities the school had to offer, including giving each of their classmates a valentine. It was a great day!

5. Speaking of Valentine's Day, Wren and I went on our first date of the year on February 14th. We usually try and go on a date every two weeks, but lately we've either been too tired or too busy to go to dinner and a movie. Instead we have been waiting until the kids go to bed, then stay up talking and laughing over dinner in our home (which is equally as special), but it was Valentine's Day and Wren thought it was the perfect excuse for a romantic night out. He surprised me with dinner at my favorite restaurant- The Melting Pot- and a trip to the bookstore for a couple of new books. My husband knows how to make me feel special: fondue and books! Then we went home and, even after a delicious dessert of chocolate fondue, I was craving chocolate covered strawberries and Wren whipped some up for me. I just love my husband!

6. This probably isn't newsworthy, but I feel like I need to write this down. My 4-year-old daughter, Ira, is currently obsessed with frogs. And by obsessed, I mean addicted. She has at least ten stuffed frogs, frog pajamas, frog slippers, frog bed sheets, frog books, and a frog beanie. None of my children have never been this interested in something, but Ira is truly committed to her froggies! She has a birthday coming up and I have a pretty could idea of what she wants the theme to be. Can you guess? FROGS!

7. I cannot believe in less than one month another Kingston baby will join our family. This baby has technically already joined our family, but it will feel more real when she is actually here. Wren and I are finishing up all the last minute preparations we need to complete before baby: install the car seat, pack my hospital bag, make childcare plans for the kids, etc. One thing we still have to do, though, is come up with a name. We've gone back and forth between our favorite names, but cannot seem to agree. This has never happened to us before, and with our other pregnancies we came up with a name by the sixth month. Oh well, she'll have a name sooner or later!