Spring Break

It's so wonderful to have the kids out of school and actually have beautiful weather to enjoy. Since it's a Tuesday, the first thing Claire did upon getting out of bed was politely ask me while I was deep in slumber if she could turn the tv on.I had planned ahead for this question the night before by setting our new digital box thing (I still really don't know how it all works) to PBS so the kids could be entertained while I got a couple extra hours of sleep. I happily told Claire she could watch tv as long as she kept the volume at a 5 or 6. One by one the kids arose and upon hearing the familiar sounds of PBS they quietly pitter pattered out to the living room.

I LOVE having older children. Jane came in at one point and asked permission to give Hank and Kate cereal. I have banned her from pouring cereal without permission because she is often too generous and bowls of milk and soggy cereal have to be poured down the drain. I'm so cheap that I hate wasting food. I reminded her to only pour small amounts at a time and thanked her for her help.

Around 10:30 or so I finally made myself get out of bed....I know....GASP!!! Walter wakes me in the middle of the night with his sweet little grunts and squirming body. I groggily check the time on the clock and upon realizing two or three hours have passed since his last nursing, I pull him over and lay back down on the other side and fall asleep while he fills his belly once more. This goes on all night for about 9 straight hours. AHHHHH! I love sleep. I've been spoiled to have a husband who gets the kids off to school and in his absence my fabulous mother has taken over. I'm so glad she gets up at 6 am so she can get to my house by 7 and get the girls off to the bus on time.!!! What can I say, I'm a mother of a brand new baby boy who sleeps so well for me and I take full advantage of it.

William left on Thursday, spent two days in Florida and then flew around Cuba to the Dominican Republic. He is a pilot for Bass Pro Shops and flies them wherever they want to go. For some reason he's at a resort on the beach near La Romana (I think) kayaking, scuba diving and walking the warm sands. He'll come home burnt, tired and missing his own bed. I know you ladies are thinking this sounds like the perfect vacation...All alone in a resort with a 24 hour buffet and miles of beaches with sunny skies and solitude. Poor William though, he misses his kiddos and lovely wife and says that after the first couple of days he really just wishes he was home. You know what? I believe him, it's no fun by yourself. Too bad I couldn't be there with him. We could boogie board, snorkel, play horseshoes, build sandcastles, rent seadoos, and go for romantic walks on the beach. Oh gag me, you say? Alright, enough of my daydreaming and wishing. I just hope he comes home soon. Too bad he'll miss all of spring break. I think I forgot to take any pictures of Easter Morning too. Sorry Willum. I did however get some fun pics of Walter's first bath (which he loved!) and the kiddos trying on hats at Grandma B's Easter get together on Saturday.

Back to my day....around 11 am we turned the tv on and it stayed off the rest of the day. The kiddos played outside jumping on the trampoline, sucking nectar from clover in the garden and putting their new jump ropes to good use. I had a friend stop by with her little girl and we visited while the kids played. At 4:30 we packed up all the kids and headed to our favorite park Ritter Springs. It's this fun park in the woods with lots of trails leading to a small river and pond. Yesterday when we were at Ritter Springs it was so muddy and wet when we walked down to the river and pond so today we just stayed at the playground. For 2 hours the kids ran and climbed and played. I LOVE it when my kids play. It's son gratifying to see them just being kids.

At 6:30 we packed up the van and headed home. Somehow between 7 and 10 my mom and I got all the kids fed, bathed and asleep. Thanks Mom for making dinner. It's wonderful to have an extra set of hands to help out...especially at feeding times. Claire and Jane are in charge of getting the table set, Hank and Kate are in charge of making sure their hands are washed and Walter is in charge of being comfy and cute in the sling. Thank You Auntie Di for the wonderful sling by Hotslings. I love it sooooo much and so does Little Wally!

I think tomorrow we'll head for the local zoo. Spring Break is so much fun!