The Ladies

We have some new ladies here at the Hunter House. We have had them since late March, and they were about 2 weeks old when we got them.

Lina and Audrey thought they were great when they were little chicks. We kept them in a box in the play room. But soon, they got too stinky and had to be moved to the garage.There are 6 of them and they are all Rhode Island Reds.  Now they live outside in the chicken coop.

Audrey still really likes the chickens.

Since they were handled A LOT as chicks, they are pretty friendly.

Their names are Cinderella, Snow White, Tiana, Woody, Buzz and Zurg.  They all look identical.  So it is almost impossible to tell them apart.

Except Cinderella.  She was Julie's favorite when they were chicks, so she got held all the time. Now, she practically follows Julie around the yard.

The chickens have caused words that I never thought would escape my mouth, come flowing out without reservation. Things like, "Keep the chickens out of your bed!"  "Chickens don't like chicken nuggets" and "The chickens are already asleep, they don't need a kiss goodnight."

They are quickly becoming part of the family and we are even more excited about when they start laying, which should be by late July!  If the weather stays warm.

We have also had these lovely ladies visiting.....they are a little bigger, there are more of them, they are louder, and I am so grateful we don't have to feed them!

Eyes!

I was unloading my camera and found this....

Julie Bess must have helped herself to my camera.....or Andy did and he got up close and personal with Jules....Stinkers!!

6 Months...as in, Half a Year!!!

I don't know how it happened, but our baby Sadie is already 6 months old. It seems like she was just that floppy baby who slept in her swing all day. Now, she is watching everything, screaming and straining to be involved.

She is sitting up on her own! She uses her sitting position to lunge from side to side to get her hands on things. I wouldn't call her "mobile" but she can get what she is after. Things like her brother's trains, Sissy's dolls or Feather.  Yes, she loves Feather.  That is who she is smiling at in this picture. 

I made her a hat last night.  She liked chewing on it more than wearing it.  She hasn't gotten any new teeth, just has the 2 bottom ones, but she chews on everything, so I am sure it won't be long until she gets a few more.  She has drool constantly and will even bite on her own thumb. Ouch!

Sadie has also proven that she is a great eater.  She has had rice, banana and squash mostly. But tonight she had some prunes and she thought that was fantastic!  I know it is hard to tell from the picture below, but she did get a lot in her tummy.  She is so interested in food.  She tries so hard to get a hold of whatever grown ups or her older siblings are eating.  So when it is her turn to eat, she gets really excited!

Julie and Andy are still amazing with her. They are happy that she is able to play with them more, sit up and watch, interact. They also love to make her laugh. They will fall down over and over again, or make silly noises or play peek-a-boo to get her going.  Its hysterical because the second she starts laughing, they start laughing and most of the time, John and I start laughing.  Kids laughter is contagious. Especially our kids laughter.

The other night she hugged (wrapped her arms really tight) around Julie's neck.  Julie said, "Mom, Sadie's hugs make me feel special inside."  I know the feeling Julie. She makes us all feel pretty special inside.

My Birthday Fun

 Ok, I can't deny it any more. I am almost 30! But not yet.  My 29th birthday was wonderful, everything I could ask for!

First of all, my wonderful husband took the weekend off work! That was the best gift since we don't have a day off together these days.  So I took Friday off and we had 3 whole days off together as a family.  The kids were so confused by it! They kept asking what day it was! So funny.

Friday we spent the day at Santa Barbara Zoo with Christina, Brian and Everett. It was so much fun. It gets more fun every time we go because the kids understand more, they love each other more, they want to stay and play and run around on the grass and hold each others hands.

Andy is so hard to photograph in front of the elephants. He loves them and doesn't stand still!

 

Sadie really liked the elephants too, she was looking at them and kept looking around to us and the big kids like she was asking if it was ok that there were huge wild animals right there!

 

Everett was just plain adorable.

Look Mom! I'm a giraffe!

Julie was kind of hard to get pictures of, she was so busy and had her own agenda. Shocking, I know.

That is a really big fish!  One of the fish flipped their tails and splashed at Julie.  She screamed and ran, so funny!

Cute family shot!

My two hams! Love these boys.

While reading the news Friday morning, I discovered that my birthday was also National Train Day!  They were having a special train ride from Grover Beach to San Luis and back again on the Amtrak.  We knew we had to do it because Andy is obsessed with trains. And Julie really likes them too, so we knew it was win-win.

We didn't tell the kids were we were going, but we did persuade his wardrobe a little.  When they found out we were going on a train (we were already at the station) and was in shock.  Then he got VERY excited.

Sadie liked the train too!

The kids were being goofballs while we were waiting to get on the train.  No, it was not moving in the picture.

They had a few little model trains set up. Andy thought they were pretty cool but they weren't the kind you could play with, so he decided to play trains the second we got home.

Julie had so many questions about the train. She had a great time.

The scenery was great. This is what John and I saw of them for most of the ride.

Julie shared her hat.

 When we got back there was yummy ice cream. What a great way to end a fun new adventure.

Yup, this is a happy boy!

I got some amazing gifts this year! I would love to share every one, but this blog is picture heavy as it is. But I couldn't resist showing this off. My beautiful, smart, amazing oldest daughter wrote this for me. She is 5 and not even in kindergarten yet. She amazes me every day.

Julie also decided that now that Sadie has a pony tail, she also needs a crown.  Sadie didn't seem to mind.

She also has a new trick! Look at her sit all on her own! She balances herself so well, she can sit for a long time.  She can't get herself into a sitting position yet, but once she is there, she can do it!

After the train ride, we all went home and had wonderful naps! Then we met Anne and Dave, my dad and Becki, Jus, Audrey and Lauren, Christina, Brian and Everett at Sylvester's for my free birthday burger! Dinner was so much fun! We were getting ready to head out and Christina had to mention the big hat.

Oh well, at least it made for a fun picture. Julie couldn't stop laughing long enough to take a picture with me.  Sadie's face is hysterical.

It was a wonderful birthday. So much fun with my great family and my wonderful friends.

Andy Sweetness

Our little man has the biggest heart. He thinks about everyone before himself. Wants to make people feel good and loves to give complements.

Last night I threw together dinner so that we could walk over to Grandma Hazels.  While Andy was eating his hot dog, strawberries and tomatoes he said, "Mom, you always make the best dinners!"

Then, on the walk over to Grandma's, there was a big bush with pink flowers all over it. He looked at them and said, "Those flowers are so pretty they make me cry."

This morning he woke up and wanted to cuddle. He climbed in bed with me and I said, "Who is my Snuggly Bear?" (a nickname given to him by his Grammy Anne). 

He said "I am! And Julie is your Snuggly Bunny." I asked what we would call Sadie when she wants to snuggle. He said, "She can be Snuggly Beautiful!!"

Watch out ladies. This one is a charmer!

Proud Mommy

I am proud of my kids every moment of every day. But, there are those moments that make you feel like you are going to burst at the seems. Like tonight, when Andy said, "look, I can write my name!" and proceeded to do this with chalk on the sidewalk.(the Y is a little off. It is above the D heading to the right)

I had no idea he could do it. I know it should not surprise me, he is a smart little man. And I am so, so proud of him.

Pretend Professionals

While Bess and Veda were here, we wanted to get some shots of the cousins.We tried to find a professional to take the pictures for us, but timing just didn't work out.  So I grabbed the camera and gave it my best shot.

I was lucky to have adorable, willing models!

Even if the do like to eat sticks in the middle of our photo shoot.

They loved each other and the big kids begged to hold the little ones. It was so adorable.

At the end, I set the camera and Anne took a family shot for us.  I love this picture.  I love Julie's silly face and Andy's kissing lips.  I love that its not perfect, but shows our silly personalities.

That photo shoot went so well that we tried to do the same thing with Lauren and Memere for Mom for Mother's Day.  The kids were a little less cooperative, but it was still fun.

Andy was proud to sit on Memere's lap.

I love this snap of Andy and Memere.  The look on his face is so funny!

My little loves. 

And then they were done. Julie and Andy just wanted to go on a hike.

They definitely aren't professional, but it was fun.