the mind of calvary...

calvary has a very interesting perception of the world. he sees things that i see on a daily basis yet he always seems to see those things in a very different way. he continues to call a sneeze a "bless you" and he calls the skin of chapped lips "sweaters" and he does all of this with complete confidence that he is completely correct. so, we were not too taken aback when calvary took a look at a logo for Fox's Pizza Den and saw something that we never would have seen if were not for his interesting point of view...

we see a fox with a silly yellow hat....

calvary sees a yellow egg reading a red book with white pages...


"look at that egg reading a book!"

wardrobe malfunctions...

harper has been dressing herself now since she was 20 months old. she likes to flex her independent muscles and show me that she does not need an overbearing mother hovering over her trying show her how to do what she already knows how to do....calvary on the other hand has just recently started putting on his own clothes. while i am proud that they are making these steps towards independence and appreciative of the time it (sometimes, well truly, almost never) saves me, i secretly enjoy the moments where they have to come to me for help---it shows me, and maybe more importantly them, that they still might need me around every once in a while---even if it is just to remedy a wardrobe malfunction...
calvary came to me saying, "this shirt is not working..."
harper came to me asking, "is this right?" she was serious, and i believe my laughter gave her her answer...i believe all the men in her life would rather not live to see the day where this is her suit of choice...

monday's masterpiece...

harper and calvary love to draw and my mom gave me a great idea to take pictures of their artwork so that i could keep more...we only have so much room in the house and it is heartbreaking when we get "caught" down sizing. more than once i have had harper and calvary come to me saying, "THIS IS NOT TRASH!" i try to keep as much as i can, but at some point things just have to go in order to make room for the new. my mom encouraged me to take pictures of the kid's artwork and then use snapfish or something similar to put together a book. the idea itself is great; my discipline in the areas of ordering pictures is not so great...so i thought putting them here would help me maintain their art in an appropriate and chronological way that we would all enjoy...

today's work is one that harper just recently finished. she brought it to me and told me that she wrote "love" multiple times because she "loved me more than just one love"...if that is so, i wonder why her ice cream cone gets two cherries whilst i only get one...that is not ingratitude; it is a legitamate question.

coming soon is a dinosaur, squiggly lines, and a cow with almost vulgar attention to detail...

oliver jack is 4 months old....

this has been a busy month for all of us; between easter, the beach, calvary's birthday, granddaddy's birthday, and oliver jack's 4 month check up i have been overwhelmed with excitment. i keep thinking that oliver jack is so big compared to harper and calvary, so i decided to look back and see how they all compared at 4 months...

oliver jack's stats at 4 months:

height 26 inches
weight 16 pounds

calvary reid's stats at 4 months:

height 25 inches

weight 15 pounds 3.5 ounces

harper faye's stats at 4 months:

height 24 inches

weight 13 pounds 9 ounces

the statistics do not lie; jack jack is indeed chins and grins. he is incredibly active and is enthralled by harper and calvary. sometimes when i am reading to the kids at night i take him along for the ride. he loves laying in the bed with his big brother and staring at his face. calvary always begs to have him stay in there while i go and read to harper and he diligently watches over him while i am gone.

he has started teething and i am not ready for him to have teeth. to be honest, i do not like it when my babies get teeth. i guess it beats the alternative...that toothless grin is cute now but i suppose it would be a bit more unattractive at 8...

does this look like a problem???

oliver jack has an uncanny ability to squiggle and wiggle himself out of his swaddle and down until the blanket, still wrapped, rests snuggly around his face. thankfully, we have worked through this issue and i have no longer gone into his room to check on him and found this panic inducing sight.

calvary is 3!!!!

it is difficult to imagine that today i would be two days out from recovering from the most heinous labor of my life. after passing out i went on to pass an almost 9lb baby boy. he seemed so huge laying on that little table! before i had him in my arms i wondered if i would be able to love him like i loved harper; i wondered if there would be enough of me to go around; i worried if harper would feel like she had been cheated---but of course i can hardly remember harper without calvary or my life without either. the day i had to hand him over to an anesthesiologist when he was just 5 weeks old i knew just how deeply i love him. now that he is 3 i wonder where my life would be without his irresistible charm; i mean what other little boy can spit game like this: "mommy, i like your boobies."

"thanks....?"

"but i like your eyes the best." that cannot be taught. you've either got it or you don't, and calvary has it.

today, at 3, calvary is filled with passion. he would give everything he has to make sure that someone he loves is happy. his first inclination is to be sweet, but if provoked, watch out. he has had harper cowering, looking for cover, and begging forgiveness on more than one occassion. he knows all his letters, can count to 16, write his name, and stealthily hide out in the hallway and watch tv instead of going to bed. he has a dramatic side that reminds me of growing up with my little brother....one night i woke up to the sound of his screams and i ran to his room to find his face covered with blood (a sinus nosebleed). as i ran in he looked at me and wailed, "LOOK AT ME!!! MY PAJAMAS ARE RUINED!" he has the craziest hair, but i guess we should have suspected that with his natural mohawk.

he let me swaddle him until he was a year old and i am hoping that he will let me hold him as long as my arms will allow...

to the rescue...

my cletterkin once again came to my rescue and i can finally put down some of the thoughts that i have been keeping for quite sometime now....



harper and calvary have loved the arrival of spring and i have loved watching the innocence of childhood through their eyes. what we, as adults, sometimes see as ugly and unwanted, our children see as beautiful and cherished. day after day harper and calvary come to tell me they love me with a handful of weeds. they see our wildly untamed yard as a beautiful meadow full of wildflowers...as the collect their bouquets i laugh to myself knowing that i will soon be showered with their treasure...how sweet it truly is to be loved and showered with such affection! i am sure i am not the only mother in the world who has proudly displayed their center piece of weeds with unabashed confidence...

(note the nasal aspirator....never a better place to clean a nose full of goodness than the dinner table)

i am searching...

for the camera cord thing so that i can upload pictures...

my husband usually finds everything that i lose without any problem, but for some reason he hasn't gone at this task with the same drive that i have come to love (and expect :) ). sure it may seem like it is my job to find the keys, the match to my shoe, or the camera cord that i lost, but if i lost them, how am i supposed to find them?! plus, i have 3 kids to keep up with. it is either the keys or the kids, and so far we have kept with the mindset that the kids are more valuable. however, the more we have they might begin to appear a bit more disposable-- not seriously of course...i'd lose a thousand keys, cords, and shoes to spend time with those little people...and i probably have already...just ask kyle.

The Battle is OVER!!!!

calvary, as with all things calvary, just needed us to wait until he was ready. once he was ready, he mastered that potty like matador masters a bull---sometimes he was gored and ultimately defeated by his opposer, but other times he stood victorious!
since my last entry, calvary has mastered not on the little potty, but has moved on to the big potty with a little seat, then the big potty all by itself, then public restrooms, and has now even started peeing standing up! all of this before his 3rd birthday!
i am so proud of him, and sometimes i still get a bit nostalgic for his baby days...because truly most of those are now behind us...he's grown up in so many ways since oliver jack has come along and this huge step in independence makes me fear the last days of hand holding on the couch, hugs after a nap, out of the blue "i love you"s, blankets for the car rides (and everywhere else), and....dare i mention it..., pacifiers at bedtime...

the potty has been conquered and the message has been sent to the pacifier enemy...

harper and calvary on love...

harper to me: "i love you so much i could die."

calvary to me: "i love you so much i could throw up."

now that is love.