Miss Naomi's New Do!!

A friend of mine gave me some teeny, tiny rubber bands (smaller than a dime) to use on Naomi's hair and I was finally then able to gather enough hair in the center to put her hair up! My mom bought some cute little ribbon clips to then put over the rubber band and "wa-la" (not sure how to spell that correctly, but you get the idea) she has a cute little new do! My mom said when she would do her sister's hair this way, they called it a "wiggy." :)

This is Naomi before we had the little bows all dressed up in one of her new cute outfits and the sweater that my Aunt Sandy made for her. Isn't it gorgeous? I just LOVE the color and it fits so nicely and is so soft!

Naomi LOVES her mashed taters and had a blast teasing her brothers the other day with her messy hands. They would run by her chair and she would try to grab them. It was great fun until Caleb got the idea to stick his hands in his potatoes and come enact some revenge! Josiah also took some and rubbed it on her nose before this game was put to a halt! We have a cute video showing the whole thing on our youtube channel should you want to view it! :)

Jumpin' Jacks!

This last Saturday, we went to visit my parents in Lacey for the day and they took the kiddos to this place called "Jumpin' Jacks Family Fun Center." It had a bunch of bouncy houses and video games for the kids to play on. It even had a small bouncy area for little ones 4 and under that included little vehicles and a small slide. Naomi had a BLAST climbing up the small ladder and sliding down backwards and walking around the bouncy area. She got pretty tired though towards the end, however! I really liked this unit for the little ones as you can see them at all times and it is very safe as long as the bigger kids don't rough house too much in it!

Daniel was jumping as I took this picture and he really didn't stay still long enough for me to get very many pictures of him. He and Caleb both jumped and jumped and they both went on all the bouncy houses as well. They had a big slide for the older ones and Daniel kept doing somersaults at the end of the slide as well as one to get off the unit. We have some video of him doing just that on our youtube channel as well.

Josiah paused briefly for me to take his photo. I asked him what he liked best about Jumpin' Jacks and his comment was, "It was really fun, but the hardest part was getting me cold." This to say that he worked up quite a sweat and was too hot most of the time. I should have dressed them in shorts and that would have helped. We can remember that one for next time I guess!

Caleb always finds places to hide or creative things to play with and here was no exception. The snack bar was decorated with this hula skirt kind of decor and he was hiding behind it and I told him to peek out for the picture.

I put my camera in one of the bounce houses to capture this one. It is hard to get a shot of jumping twins though, I tell ya! We had a good time though and the kids fell asleep on the way home and then transferred to their beds as well for a nice long nap, so that was good! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for the fun time!

Rare Sunny Days!

This last spring has been pretty sparse in the sun department, so the days that have had sun we have been sure to get out and enjoy it! I have had the kids in shorts only a few times this year so far and haven't gone so far as to put away all the pants yet and switch out to shorts. Maybe I can hope for this sometime in June? We will see! Caleb's new thing that he does quite frequently is to take the baby washcloths, towels, or other fabric like items and puts them on his head like this as he plays. Sometimes when I ask him why he says, "I'm the Momma!" so I think at times he is pretending it is hair perhaps? Or at least I think so because to my knowledge I haven't walked around with washcloths on my head! :) I LOVE Daniel's expression in the background there as if to say, "What are you wearing on your head, dude?"

Most of the time I think Naomi's life verse will be "A brother is born for adversity," but here is a rare moment where Caleb and she were playing nicely together and it didn't result in some kind of injury or a loud baby girl cry. They were sharing the Pooh chair and the blanket and had a nice time together for a little bit!

Josiah isn't always willing to pose for pictures anymore, but once in while I can still catch him!

Caleb is as handsome as ever sporting his camo here in our sunny backyard.

Daniel is enjoying a ride in the bee swing and is pleased as punch! (How pleased CAN punch be really though...you know, being a liquid and all. )

Naomi liked her swinging too and had a cloth to hold on to while she was riding. I tried to take it away from her for the picture, but she got really upset and wanted it back.

The other day, we had Sarah and her kiddos over for a visit and then as we were getting ready for church the next day I was taking pictures of them and they all got in on it and were cheesing it up for me! The only two missing here were Josiah and Naomi, but I got them in some of the other shots I took.

Katie & Hailey's B-day Party

We had the privilege to be invited to Katie & Hailey's b-day party again this year and as per usual it was a fun time for all the kiddos! Miss Katie girl is three now and is dressed up in her pretty dress. She had a cute little dolly with the same dress as well, which was also very cute! As you can see, the kids enjoyed playing with a bubble machine outside for a little bit.

They are trying to stomp on all the bubbles here.

Daniel was trying to catch all the bubbles in the hula hoop apparently and he framed himself and his brother very nicely in the process. You might notice the shirts...."I'm definitely up to something." Isn't that the truth!

Here are the birthday girls hearing their birthday song from all the guests.

Katie's aunt got her this little set of pretend hair styling equipment and Melissa got treated to a "new do" from Katie and the twins. As you can see she is cautiously optimistic about the results!

They had a pinata for the party too and each child got to pull a string to see if it was "the one" that would trigger the candy shower. I was helping Miss Naomi pull her string here. Naomi had a funny thing happen to her at the party. She was rummaging through the garbage (while we weren't paying attention) and she found a pop can. She was chewing on it and started crying really loudly. We saw a bunch of brown stuff on her face and we thought it was cake, but thought perhaps the crying was because she had cut herself on the pop can. As it turns out, the brown stuff was coffee grinds....yuck! I would cry too...nasty! After some milk and Mommy comfort though, she was all better!

Grandma's Plenty-9th Birthday!

Grandma always tells people on her birthday that she is turning "plenty-nine" and this birthday did not fail to disappoint when she told the waiter this fact as well. Here all the girls at the table are posing together. One interesting fact about the evening though is that Grandma tried something NEW on her birthday! She got a different menu item at her favorite restaurant (Red Lobster)!

Grandma is telling Naomi all about the princesses on her cup.

Upon being given a straw, Naomi started chomping on it in this fashion and had us all laughing.

Josiah of course did not lack for attention either when he was waving a straw in my face making very poignant boy noises to let us know he was there!

Caleb and I are posing for the camera now.

Grandpa was having all kinds of fun with Naomi, like having her try on his hat. She kept taking it off, but then wanting it put back on again. Grandpa was also teaching her how to make a blubbering sound with her lips when she moved her fingers back and forth on them. I got a short video of her doing that, which I hope to post on youtube soon.

Grandpa is also notorious for having each grandchild (and child of his too I might interject) try a lemon to see their reaction. All the Carpenter kiddos have had their share of lemons from Grandpa and all have had their unique reactions. Naomi did a little shaking of her hands and pulled back a little from the table as well as puckered her lips a little bit.

In order to entertain Daniel, Daddy taught him how to play a game on his Droid. Daniel who is normally our "bottomless pit" didn't even notice when the salads and cheesy bread were served, but kept on playing until Daddy pointed out that he might want to eat something. A Droid game is greater than food in Daniel's book we discovered!

After dinner, we ventured home for some cake with Grandma. Naomi naturally was given a pink cupcake to match her shirt and is as cute as ever with her face decked out in hot pink.

Caleb was given an orange cupcake, but you can see just a hint of pink here too where he swiped some of Daniel's frosting as well. He kept calling it his "pupcake." And as a side note here....that neon-colored frosting is just NASTY! Hard to clean and just is not that appetizing! The adults had ice cream cake instead (thankfully!)

It was a nice time with Grandma and I think she had a good time too! Happy Birthday Mom, I love you!

Pt. Defiance Zoo Trip

Daddy was able to take the day off and we headed out to the zoo with my friend Sarah and her kiddos for the day. It was a beautiful day to hit the zoo and that is saying something considering what the weather has been like usually of late! We went through all the exhibits first and saved the kid's play zone area for the last. I somehow managed to catch them all playing with the same thing! Rare spawn!

Josiah enjoyed climbing on the play structures....so much so that he wandered back over there when we were feeding the goats. With the loads of kids on the playground, it took a few minutes before we found him again. Thankfully, I hadn't reached panic mode yet, but was working myself up to that if he hadn't turned up! I also happened to run into a teacher that I used to work with at my school in Lacey. We didn't get to talk much because we were both in charge of watching kiddos, but it was neat to see her. She and another teacher from my old school were there on a field trip with their classrooms. I did see the North Thurston buses on the way in, but didn't think they would be from Olympic View Elementary, however! Fun, random coincidence!

Naomi wanted to get out of her stroller almost the whole time we were there, but when we saw the sharks she was a little intimidated. I love her serious and some-what petrified expression here.

At the beginning, the kiddos were playing in the area near the ticket counter. Colin and Taylor are in the foreground and Daniel and Caleb in the background.

Caleb & Daniel posing with cheesy zoo grins.

This shirt says it all, does it not? Little sisters ROCK!!

Josiah was the navigator apparently for the group of kiddos. He promptly took one of the maps and began using it to guide everyone around the zoo. It was fun seeing his enthusiasm and how all the kiddos shared in the fun as well.

Caleb paused for a moment on this bench and I just LOVE all the vibrant colors! A very cute centerpiece for the picture too I might add!

Naomi loved trying to climb up on these little mushrooms in the goat tent.

She also absolutely LOVED the goats. She squealed with glee every time she got near one and tried to kiss one of the goats too. We have found she really gets tickled with most any animal that she encounters.

We only ended up staying at the zoo for about 2 1/2 hours as the kiddos got really worn out. This was the first time that the twins were hoofing it around the zoo, (instead of getting a stroller ride) so I am sure it was quite a workout for them! Caleb had to be carried for the last part of the tour as his little legs were pretty beat! He fell asleep in the car almost immediately after being buckled in. It was a nice outing and it was fun to enjoy with friends as well. Thanks Sarah for letting us be your guests at the zoo. :)

Mother's Day 2011

That look of mine about says it all for Mother's Day 2011! A memory I am sure I will look back on years from now and wonder how I kept all those wriggling bodies under control! Josiah was very cute though and in the morning (as said in another post) "Mommy it's your special day!" And I said, "Yes it is, thanks for remembering!" He then said, "There are other Mother's Days coming up too! Like Valentine's Day, that's for mothers, right?" I replied with a smirk, "Yes, well Valentine's Day is for mothers, but it for other people too." Then he added, "But not Halloween, 'cause that's too scary." And indeed, mothers everywhere I am sure do not consider Halloween like another Mother's Day! :)

David got a picture of just the girls of the family as well. I put Naomi in her Easter dress again to get some use out of it before she grew out of it.


Here is my little princess trying to get her headband off. She won't wear these for any length of time anymore, so they are really just for photo opportunities rather than general wear these days!


And for a good laugh, here is Caleb making creative use of the recycling garbage....a peanut butter holder shirt and a paper towel wrapping for a hat.

1st Lost Tooth....No It's REALLY lost!!

Josiah finally lost his first tooth as he approaches his 6th birthday here in June. It was getting really wiggly and then one morning with a pancake breakfast, he apparently swallowed the tooth with all the pancake goodness. Thankfully, we do not do the tooth fairy scenario here and so I didn't have to go on a "treasure hunt" for said tooth later on! Josiah was really excited to lose his tooth and now likes to put straws there in it's place. When we went to the dentist this last time in May, the hygienist showed me that he had 3 other loose teeth as well, so I am sure they will be soon to follow. They were all on the bottom row though. She said that either they usually lose them all on the bottom or the top first.

I thought I would also take this opportunity to post some recent "Josiah-isms" as we have been collecting quite a few of late! He likes to stand on a chair and say, "Daddy I am 40 too 'cause I am taller than you!" or for me "Mommy, I am 35 too!"

The other day Josiah had his friends Colin and Taylor over and they were dressing up at superheros. He put on a Lightning McQueen blanket for a cape with his Ironman glove and called himself, "Superpunch." I then heard as he was going up and down the hallway, "If you wanted me to save the galaxy, get out of the way Daniel!" Needless to say, Daniel wasn't super helpful on that point and I suppose the galaxy has been subsequently doomed, unreachable by the mighty Superpunch!

When we were practicing for one of Josiah's verses at Awana one week he said, "Oh how I love your law. I 'hesitate' on it all day long." Yup, meditate fits much better, but hesitate was OH so funny.

And just for me on Mother's Day Josiah said: "Today's your special day Mommy!"
Me: "Yes, it is thanks for remembering!"
Josiah: "There is another Mother's Day coming up too."
Me: "What's that?"
Josiah: "Valentine's Day is for mothers, right?
Me: "Yes, Valentine's Day is for mothers, but for other people too." (chuckling to myself)
Josiah: "But not Halloween, 'cause that is supposed to be scary."

Speaking of Halloween, that reminds me. One night Josiah prayed and thanked God for all the holidays.....except Halloween. Upon further questioning, I asked him more about his prayer and he said, "God doesn't like Halloween 'cause it is not a praising day." I liked how he was able to put in his own words something we taught him. Now mind you, I realize that other people redeem the day in their own ways, but we have chosen not to celebrate this one as a family as a personal preference.

Every time Josiah's friends Colin and Taylor come over (my friend Sarah's twins), I always hear some great conversations. As they were watching the movie, "Oceans," Josiah said, "These animals are extinct." (Even though technically the animals in question were really not extinct as it turns out.) Taylor (4) says, "Why do they stink?" Josiah did the "teacher Mommy" thing and insisted, "NO....they are ECK, ECK, stinked!!" Later during lunch when the kids were discussing protein, muscles and energy, Taylor said, "What happens when you don't have energy?" Me: "You will want to fall asleep 'cause you are tired all the time." Josiah, "But if you drink Pepsi, you will never fall asleep!" Clearly we don't drink coffee in this household to stay awake, but I bet you can guess what we DO drink around here!

Sleeping Parents = Fun With the Camera

This morning I woke up to what sounded like someone using some castanets clicking together over and over. This alerted me that somehow I had managed to sleep through my normal alarm clock...baby girl waking up OR twin boys roaming the house. After I got up quickly to assess the damage, I was informed by Josiah that Daniel had been using my camera. Ugh....well, I discovered that he knows how to use it properly at least and didn't damage it. The first shot is of the camera man himself going in for his close-up!

I was clued into the fact that it was in fact Daniel at the helm (as if I couldn't have already guessed that) due to the couple of shots of his feet and the many attempts to take a picture of Caleb as well.

This was the best picture of Caleb that he managed to get, but there were lots of mid-sections, feet, blankets, the floor, and various other locations around the house as well.

When all was said and done he had taken 43 pictures! Thankfully this was a digital camera and not real film, right? Looks like Caleb is saying, "HEEEY" here!

And lastly, I had to throw this one in 'cause it was just too funny. He took an upside-down picture of "The Lord's Supper" that we have on our wall. We got this piece from my Grandma Betty. I was told it was the first piece of artwork that she purchased for her home when she and Grandpa got married. Daniel's "rendition" of it is rather interesting, wouldn't you say?