Wow.

I know we've been busy this summer, but didn't realize it has been 2 months of no updates. I'll do a brief recap of events and try to stay on top of the blog the rest of the summer. Cameron had her first nights away from home over Memorial Day weekend while Mike and I went to Indianapolis, we went to Hilton Head, we've been to countless parks and playdates, celebrated 4th of July, and enjoyed all of the All-Star events around town.

Strawberry Fields Forever

I've had this song stuck in my head all day since we went strawberry picking today. I've been apple picking countless times, but I've never made it over to Eckert's for strawberries. We decided to take the kids over there for the day and I'm so glad we did! We got some yummy strawberries, cute pics, and had a great time. I could have done without the screaming, crying, and screeching from Owen the entire ride home, but that's ok. He's going on a week without naps and I'm hoping this trend doesn't last! He turns into a major crabbypants and any little thing can set him off.

Poor Cam

This is what happens when daddy's left alone with the baby:

Once Upon a Bash

We checked out this new place in Maplewood with the kiddos and they had a blast. It's basically a big playroom with different "stations" around the room. Owen, Rylynn, and AJ had a good time destroying the place while the babies spent some time socializing.

Happy 5 Months!

These past 5 months have completely flown by! It's hard to believe that Cam's already 5 months old, it seems like I was just finding out I was pregnant. She's 15.4 lbs and about 25 inches long. Mommy and Big Bro Owen are definately her favorite people, she loves watching Owen play. She's really into playing with her toys, much more than Owen ever was at that age.

Yum, Ted Drewe's

We spent the morning at Grant's Farm with some friends, feeding the goats, checking out the animals, the usual fun stuff. As usual, the highlight of the trip was the tram ride. We were able to see some buffalo, deer, and some other animals really up-close and personal. It's probably the closest I've seen them that I can remember. Unfortunately we didn't get any pics. Owen's been so many times and Cam just slept or hung out in the stroller, so not much to photograph. I did however promise Owen a trip to Ted Drewe's and got some cute pics of that. Owen insists on eating his ice cream out of a Cardinals hat now even when we just have ice cream at home. Poor Cameron was just sitting there watching enviously as Owen ate.

Branson

Carrie and Joe invited us to go to Branson with them for the weekend for a little getaway. We stopped at Arby's in Sullivan, MO and I had my first encounter with an anti-NIP'er. It was pretty humerous actually. A little old lady actually turned her chair around, stopped eating, and gave me the evil eye the entire time I fed Cam. Aside from that and the constant rain, it was a good trip. We went shopping, out to dinner, and Owen got to finally go fishing. He finished off the day with a bubble bath in the big tub.

Plants and Popsicles

It was a beautiful day today so we headed out to get some flowers and plants for the yard. I was going to plant and Owen and Mike were going to wash the cars. Owen ended up having more fun carrying his little watering can around the yard. His favorite part of the day was the popsicle though. Miss Cam just sat and enjoyed a little fun in the sun. We now have a pretty yard and clean cars (I'm sure that won't last for long though).

Cuteness

Just some random cuteness of the kids before our walk/bike ride today.

Belated Egg Hunt

Our meetup group had an egg hunt planned for the week before Easter, but because the weather was so crappy all week, we rescheduled. We ended up doing it the week after Easter, but it was still fun and the kids didn't know the difference.

Happy Easter!

My kids are so incredibly spoiled by all of our family! I'm not sure when Easter turned into a mini-Christmas, but Owen and Cameron got a ton of gifts. Owen was actually into the whole Easter bunny thing this year, so we left out some carrots the night before. He was excited to see that the Easter bunny stopped at our house to eat the carrots. We went over to Grandma and Grandpa T's house for lunch and an egg hunt. After that we headed out to the Lee's house for dinner and another egg hunt. It was a long and exhausting, but fun day.

Breaking my heart

So Owen started running a fever after we left the doctor's office yesterday. He was acting fine at the office and by the time we got home, he was sleepy and feverish. We hung out at home and watched tv, cuddled, and napped on the couch most of the day. He woke up from his nap crying, "Mommy, Owen's belly hurts!" It was breaking my heart hearing him cry. He's never really been sick before, so this is all new to us. So sad.

My poor baby

I think we probably gave the people at Olive Garden a heart attack today. There were 6 adults and 11 kids (all under the age of 2.5) eating lunch. Poor Paul and Mike did a wonderful job of dealing with all of us and the kids' antics. Miss Cam started screaming in pain and didn't stop until I got her in the car and started driving. After a quick call to the pedi, we were on our way to see the dr. Turns out my poor baby has an ear infection. Looking back, she's probably had it for a while because she's been playing with her ear, but had no other symptoms. Don't I feel like a jerk for not taking her sooner?! 10 days of meds and hopefully we'll have a happy baby again.

She's Rolling!

Miss Cam decided to finally roll back to tummy today. She's been sooo close for the past couple of weeks, but couldn't quite get it. She was playing on the floor on her back when I left the room and when I came back she was on her tummy. I attempted to get some video of her rolling either way, but all I got was her enjoying some tummy time which is a rarity.

Cam's New Toy

We decided to get the Exersaucer out of storage for Cam the other day. She got to try it out for the first time tonight, and had some fun while we ate dinner. She was pretty entertained by the spinning ball thing.

Singing in the Rain

Owen has been obsessed with his rain boots lately and was dying to go play in the rain today. It was cold and rainy all day, not my idea of a fun time. Once Mike got home and it had stopped raining, I took him outside and so he could jump in the puddles. He had such a good time and had a mini-meltdown when it was time to come in for dinner.

Of course he dressed himself, so the beloved brown jacket had to be worn and he threw in the train hat for good measure.

Insanity

Last Thursday was a little crazy, but today was just insane. We are participating in a diaper study and had to go to a 30 minute meeting child-less. Instead of trying to find babysitters, Mary, Rachel, and I just decided to take turns watching the kids. Ok, it's bad enough when they're all together and their respective parent is present, but we were completely outnumbered and I guess they knew it. They were into the closets, bathtub, sinks, there was biting, hitting, scratching, and a few tears. I think poor AJ had the roughest day though.

I'm not sure how they learn these things so young, but they're already blaming the other kids for things. I asked Owen where he got this flower from and he turns and says, "AJ got it!" Rylynn was throwing clothes from AJ's closet and when I walked in she said, "Owen got them out." It's hilarious and a little scary that they're already doing this.

We tried to get a good picture of the babies together, but took what we could get.

When we were getting Owen ready for his bath tonight, we noticed some marks on his back. He had his first bite experience, but was no worse for the wear.

Happy Birthday Ben!

Wow, I can't believe that Baby Ben's already turning 1! I guess it's time we stop referring to him as Baby Ben, especially since there are two other babies in the family younger than him now. Owen has been talking about going to Woot (Luke) and Ben's house and was so excited the day of the party. He had such a good time playing on the swingset and running around with the other kids. He was definately in rare form today. Juice boxes, cake, cookies, icing from other people's cookies, suckers, and no naps made for a fun Owen. And a not so fun Owen later that night at home.

Happy Spring

Supposedly today was the first day of spring, but it sure didn't feel like it! We went to Watson Trails for a "spring fling" and it was chilly! After a quick walk on the trail where I learned that I'm severely out of shape, we headed over to the playground. Unfortunately we had to leave because my child wasn't listening. Shocking, I know. I didn't have the camera, but I'll try and get some pics from Stacey.

3 Kids =

a little craziness at our house! Rylynn came over for a few hours while Rachel went to an appointment. Overall the kids were great, but it was a little crazy at times. It was a nice day, so Rylynn and Owen played outside while Cam took a nap. There were a few arguments and scratches, but Owen's doing fine now. When Mike got home from work he got the full story from Owen, complete with scratching demo.

Seriously?

I can't believe how red Cam's hair looks in the pictures that I took this afternoon! Her hair does have a reddish tint to it, but it doesn't look like this in person.