In Case They Ever Wonder

Warning: If you hear a deep voice behind you quietly growl, "Hey, Humpty Dumpty," the next thing you know you will be on the ground, courtesy of Will's straight-arm shove. Just ask Sophie. 

The greatest thing she learned is that there is no way to be a perfect mother, but a million ways to be a good one. Tomorrow is Mother's Day. I come from a long line of amazing mothers. In fact, I am named after my great-grandmother, Carrie Vickers, who was the mother of nine, eight of them being girls! I try to remember her on days when my girls seem like they are made of very little sugar and too much spice! I knew my great uncle (her oldest) the very least, (though I can tell you he was one adored fellow), but I can attest to the fact that she raised eight steel magnolias - beautiful, strong women that she must have been incredibly proud of. Her ninth child - Carrie's baby - is my grandmother. I will celebrate Mother's Day with that grandmother this year. She is the matriarch of our family - a legend in her own time. She has taught the younger women in our family enough to fill volumes about motherhood. I've learned all kinds of lessons from her, but maybe the m...

Oh, my precious Lulu. You are five months old already! I love my time with you, getting to know you better with each day that goes by. You are very alert. You've already been to two plays, and you watched both with interest. You love to be read to. Your favorites are poems or stories that rhyme, and you love for me to stretch you out with your head on my knees so you can see my face while I read. You like to vocalize. You don't do it all the time, but when you do, you "talk" loudly (I think you know it's all about volume around here), and you know exactly what you are saying, even though we're not sure yet! You don't cry often, and your needs seem to be pretty simple. I would say it boils down to the three ms - mama, milk and music. You definitely like to have one-on-one time with me, and you don't mind staying up late to get it. You recently made it clear to Patti-Grams that you had no use for either a bottle or formula. Thanks, but no than...

I can be a whole lot like Alexander. You know, Alexander from the children's book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day . There are just some days when, from the very beginning of the morning, I am, as Will used to say, "done done." And I know there are days when, like Alexander, I would rather be in Australia, and I'm pretty sure there are days when the kids would rather I was there too. In fact, most days around here are not easy. I still think moving from two to three was the biggest transition for us, but having four children just makes us a four ring circus vs. a three ring circus, and there are still only two people manning the rings! I am tired in a way I didn't really know I could be. It's part physical, but it's not like I've done manual labor. It's part mental, but it's not like I've written a thesis. And it's a lot emotional, but I am not dealing with any "real" problems that I hear abou...

This year rather than have a big birthday party to celebrate Lillie's second birthday, Tori suggested that Lillie might enjoy a trip to the circus. So we decided to have a family dinner on Lillie's actual birthday and then celebrate with a special trip to the circus the next week! Lillie's special day began with the traditional Roden doughnut breakfast and a special poster made by Daddy. And we also gave our Lillie a lily of her own! Even though she wouldn't eat her doughnut, ( she just stroked it like it was a fuzzy kitty), she was so excited that the focus was all on her! After a day eating in at Chick-Fil-A, (a real treat for us) and an outing at Brilliant Sky picking out a birthday treat(a wooden apple pie set for our Lilie Pie), she was ready to come home for a quick nap and a big birthday dinner! I can't say Lillie ate much dinner, but I've never seen a child light up anymore over a birthday cake! After cake, she was more than ready for presents, and ...

Well, "the boy" has turned four, and though his birthday began with him waking up with a stomach virus, we finally had the big Cars party (more about that later) yesterday, and I believe, in the end, his fourth birthday was a great one! Actually, Matt says that if I understood guys, I would realize that his actual birthday was a dream come true because even though he threw up right after he woke up, because I felt so sorry for him being sick on his birthday, I gave him unlimited screen time and let his stay in pjs all day! He raced Mario Karts, raced on the ipad with his new Cars Appmates, and got to watch his beloved Jungle Junction whenever he tired of the racing! It was not the day I had in mind for my boy, but it may have been the day he's always dreamed of! Will has matured so much in this last year. As Patti-Grams likes to say, he has really "come into his own." Not only is he more off the growth charts physically, than he was at his three year ol...