Part 3: The Feast

We have started a new tradition of having "family feasts".  So on this coast trip we thought we should definitely have a seafood feast.  We picked up some fresh scallops, prawns and crab....mmmmm.  The house we rented was right on the beach so the view was perfect for our seafood feast.  The kids each received a letter and a new book.  Just so they know they are special, part of the tradition. 

Part 4: The water

Part 5: The sand

Blue skies...

We had beautiful blue skies and sun at the coast last weekend.  Mason and Sierra take after their Dad.  If the sun is out they are in swimsuits in the water...yes, the water at the Oregon coast.  Half of the family wear jackets the other half wear swimsuits.

My favorite child...

I hope someday my young adult child or teenager does this.  This is not someone I know, just something from a "famous" blog.  I laughed a lot and hope my kids have that much confidence, spunk and creativity when they are hitting the teen years.

I would also love it if one of my kids said this to me someday.  I think there will be some really great times ahead.  Maybe when I have a houseful of teenagers I won't think so but the teenagers I know are pretty cool.

You keep going and going...

Allie likes to be noticed
She likes attention, when she approves of getting attention
She is sassy and can be moody
I have to remind myself she is her own person, she is not Sierra, she is not me, she can and will be Allie
I need to let her be Allie
She is smart and perceptive and asks questions
She is good to Garrett and is his best bud
But she is hard to figure out at times, hard to please
I want her to be herself and be happy, that is what I want for all of my kids
But my oh my, sometimes I don't know what to do with her

She does say things like this that make me smile.

Yesterday she asked me this:

"Mom, do you like being a kid better or a Mom?"

I told her I liked being a kid when I was a kid but I always wanted to be a Mom so I like being a Mom too, probably more.  Her response, " You'll be a Mom for a long time because you will keep going and going until you die."

True.

Eden...

Eden was a name I had on my list for baby girls.  I don't think Eric liked it.  Eric's sister is having a baby girl, her middle name is Elise, which is a name Eric wanted for a baby girl.  When I saw this spoon at The Vintage Pearl it seemed familiar.  I still love the name Eden.  Confusing, it doesn't matter I just love the jewelry at this shop.

I also saw this necklace, I am pretty sure it has just enough space for my four children's names.

Potty...

I don't think Garrett thinks this is a great idea yet.  We're giving it a go but if it fails he'll still have to pee so we can try again.

All of the other kids started at his age and had it down in a week or so.  I am just not feeling it this time and neither is Garrett.  Such is life, a potty kind of life. 

What he does love are BIG books with pictures of trucks and tractors.  We picked one out at the library today and he was so happy. I couldn't help but smile and love him more because he looked so cute carrying that big book out the door at the library.  It's a moment I want to remember.  Such a small thing but something as a Mom I tend to forget while doing my daily thing.  I need to remember the joy in the little things.  There is a lot of joy sitting around me waiting to be felt.