We went up to Graveyard fields yesterday to hike and pick blueberries and my Aunt Teresa came along with us. Being with her reminded me of how I haven't blogged in about a month. She lives on the coast of NC and says when she misses her mountains or feels homesick, she reads the blog for comfort. And that was the first and foremost reason that I started to blog.....for my out-of-town friends and family.

and to keep a journal/scrapbook.
and because I have a lot to say at times.
and because I like to read other blogs so much.

So there you have it. I am back on board and will spend less time on facebook and more time blogging in the months to come.

Here is the latest on the kiddos:

Caleb:

8 years old, snaggle-toothed with all 4 top front teeth in different growing stages, loves riding bikes, ripsticks, scooters, or anything with wheels, passionate about legos and playmobiles, as outgoing and friendly as ever, has a love-hate relationship with baths, pickiest eater EVER (lives on air mostly), better in math than reading, despises handwriting, LOVES a good story at the end of the day and would listen to me read for hours on end, still pretty darn emotional, dotes on Annabelle endlessly (so much that I have to stop him from spoiling her)

It seems to be the story of Adams life for me to say ditto to a lot of what I wrote for Caleb, but you know, it is alright. I think it builds character in a way (the earlier we learn that it is not all about me, the better) So ditto on the Legos, wheels, and playmobiles. He will be 7 years old in a few weeks and has requested all Legos as gifts. Adam continues to be the easy-kid and merely goes with our flow around here. He is doing pretty well in school---same as Caleb as far as likes and dislikes though his handwriting is so very much better than his older brothers. I have found that telling him that I really don't care how neat it is, as long as it is done, works wonders and produces less tears and YES, just as neat work.



Then there is Annabelle. My oh my, she is almost 3 and proving that the terrible 2's can come on later in children and may last into the third year (this is what my Mom has warned me about). She loves all things girly from lip gloss to dolls to high heels, but it usually just as dirty as the boys. We have an ongoing battle each day with clothes. (FYI: it is not as easy as it may seem if you have never raised a finicky girl) She has a love/hate relationship with shoes and prefers to be barefooted when going out yet spends hours trying on and changing shoes in her room. Her best friend is still her cousin Lucie and they scream with delight when they see one another which is pretty much every day. She is a psycho irrational little thing when tired or hungry but sweet as pie when rested and fed. Let me see, what else..... she dislikes water and being wet.

And she is as smart as a whip.