Cousins Playdate

Michelle, Nathan, Ashton, and Cara all came over for a playdate and lunch today.

These two are growing so fast already!

These two enjoyed some movie time after lunch in an effort to get them calmed down for naptime. 

 I was on the couch with this sleeping beauty when the bus depot called me to say that the bus driver was outside and couldn't wake Ryker. I ran out to the bus and had to pick him up out of the seat and carry him in.  I laid him down backpack and coat on and all.

He never even so much as moaned!  He eventually woke up, but dude, this kid sleeps like a log!

1st Trip to Kentucky

Dave and Kate have been in their new house since the beginning of January and we were long overdue for a visit.  We had a free weekend and decided it was the perfect time to head down.  Robert is in the middle of his final class for his religious studies certificate and is training for a marathon.  He decided to stay home and try to get as much homework done as possible and get his run in.  He helped his brother with their nursery some too.  I picked up Ryker from school and we hit the road!

Ryker was pumped and ready to go! I held Cam's nap off so he would sleep on the way down.  Worked like a charm and he fell asleep while we waited in the pickup line. The drive down was smooth as could be.  We pulled over once with about an hour to go so Ryker could pee.  Camden woke up at that point and rode happily the rest of the way.  Riella only stirred once and calmed back down very quickly.  I couldn't have asked for it to have gone better.  

This is one of the little boys we greeted upon our arrival.  Cord and Riella think they need to be twins and have both started sucking their thumb. 

Friday night we unloaded the car, had dinner, and the boys played and played until bedtime.  Dave, Kate, and I stayed up really late talking and catching up.

The boys were up super early and anxious to get out with the cows.  We got all ready and headed out to help David feed.  He has 6 calves in the barn and corral by the house.  The boys loved getting up close and helping out.

Up until this morning, 3 of the calves were in one area and the other 3 were separate.  David turned them out so they were together today.  It was fun to watch them getting used to their new environment.  They were running and jumping like crazy.  It was pretty cute and the boys loved it.

Ryker has no fear of the animals and was just so happy to be right in the middle of it all.

Camden definitely loved every minute of it but he had a harder time navigating the super muddy pen.  

He was a great fence climber though!

It was a gorgeous day!  It got up to 68 degrees and it felt glorious!  The property is beautiful and the rolling hills spotted with cows are just like a picture.

Camden and I came in for a bit and Ryker went to another nearby farm to feed, etc. with Uncle Dave.  Lots of the heifers are calving right now.  One had just given birth out in the pasture.  Ryker was able to go out on the ATV with David and bring in this brand new calf.  It was the highlight of the trip for him. 

He had fun exploring the barn and playing while David finished up some other chores before they came home for lunch.

I laid down with Camden in hopes he'd actually take a good nap.  We both fell asleep in record time.  Thankfully, Riella was asleep in the family room too and Kate didn't mind keeping an eye on her.  She woke up and started crying to eat a while later and I got up. 

After Hudson's nap he hung out with Ryker while he drew pictures of the world's most dangerous animals.  

Camden slept forever!  The past few weeks of little to no sleep finally caught up with him.

This little lady was showing off her tummy skills and rolling over.

Then it was time for a cousin photo shoot. Yay!

She did this pose all on her own...such a natural model!

Aren't they just precious??

Riella has started having some cradle cap.  I tried baby oil and all it did was make her hair super greasy.  Kate had tried coconut oil on Cord's and it worked like a charm.  Problem is, I'm allergic to coconut.  Kate was gracious enough to do Riella's treatment and bath afterwards for me. 

While she did that I played with this stud.

Camden loves him.  He calls him "Cor".  For some reason he can't get that d on the end.

Then it was bath time for these cuties.  They love each other so much.

I caught Uncle Dave reading to all the boys before bed.  :-)

Hudson and I had some quality Mamy and Hudson time Sunday morning. I love this sweet boy so very much!

My mom's birthday was Saturday so Hudson and I spent some time practicing the birthday song.  This might be the funniest video I've ever taken!

Sunday morning after breakfast we bundled up and drove into town.  They have a really nice park with a pond.  We brought some bread to feed the ducks.

These ducks were crazy and had no fear at all.  One of them ate out of David's hand!  The boys loved it!

Up next was the playground.  

These boys are ready for spring!

I had to help Hudson stay on for the picture.

And then Camden decided he needed up too.

We recorded this for my mom and sent it to her in Arizona where she enjoyed her birthday. 

David and I took my kiddos over to Kate's aunt and uncle's farm to see the chickens.  The boys thought they were pretty cool.  David even got us some fresh eggs to take home.  Ryker wanted to put them in an incubator and hatch them of course.  We opted to eat them instead.  Ha!

Next up, we had to check on the calf Ryker helped bring in from pasture the day before.  That mama was not super happy to see us so we didn't stay too long.

After a delicious lunch, the boys played while I packed up the van and fed Riella.  Cam made himself right at home.

We tried for one picture with all the cousins...this was the best we could get.  What a crazy crew!

This is what the majority of our trip home looked like.  In fact, Camden was still asleep when we pulled in the driveway!  

We had such a great weekend and can't wait to go back for another visit soon. 

Back to the Doctor

Camden complained of his ear hurting last night and ran a low grade fever but was fine this morning.  We went to the grocery store and were back home in time for lunch.
                                    

Riella was being ornery at the grocery store.  I've been trying to get her to take a paci instead of sucking on her fingers or thumb.  I kept putting in a paci only to look back down and find her like this.  This is the face she gave me when I said, "What are you doing with those fingers in your mouth?!?"  Rotten thing!

Once we were home again, Camden started complaining about his ear again and his fever came back much higher (101).  So, I called the doctor and got us in this afternoon. Thankfully, Robert was working from home so he could be here for Ryker to get off the bus and we headed to Dr. Anderson's after Cam's nap.

Sure enough, he has a double ear infection.  That cold was a doozy and I'm sure all that fluid built up in his ears and just sat there.  Antibiotics here we come!

We made it home in time to throw some dinner together.  Robert put Riella in the high chair for the first time tonight. I don't feel like she's big enough for that at all but she was much happier to be on our level and part of the family.

Shopping

We had a warm spell today.  And when I say warm, I mean 49 degrees.  Ok, so that's not really warm, but when you're used to subzero temps, 49 is positively balmy. ;-)  

I joined plenty of other crazy people in Indiana and dressed like it was in the 60s.  I'm ready for cropped jeans and loafers again.  I'm over boots! 

We headed up north to do some shopping.  West Elm was having a sale and I wanted a few new pillow covers for the couch.  I stopped in at Gymboree and they had the cutest swimsuits on sale.  I couldn't resist picking up the set below for Miss Riella.

I can't wait to get some 6 month pictures done in this set.  

After a massive blow out in Old Navy and 15 solid minutes getting her cleaned up in the van, it was time to head home and take a bath.  This was her first time in the big tub instead of the infant one.  She really liked being able to move and kick around more.

I laid her down for a nap and found her like this.  Girl is really getting attached to her thumb. :-/ She's awful cute though!

Jogathon and More

Today was the Jogathon at school.  All the kids run laps around the gym to promote fitness.  They get a t-shirt and they do some other fun activities.  I didn't really receive much info on it because of the early dismissal and delays at school their folders haven't been coming home like they should.  A friend of mine was there volunteering though and sent me a picture of Ryker enjoying the activities.

He had a great time and ran 10 laps.

Then it was home and time for homework.  Riella has been sitting up in the Bumbo with us more often now. She proved to be quite the distraction for Ryker today.  I was trying to get dinner going and kept turning around to hear him talking to her instead of doing his homework.

After dinner we decided to start practicing for baseball.  I taught him how to field a grounder tonight and he did a great job.  He even relayed the information and taught Cam (or tried at least).

Camden wanted in on the action big time.  Both of the boys got baseball gloves from my dad the day they were born.  It's so fun to see them finally being used.