August

August flew by...that last month of summer always seems to. We have had a full last few weeks. 

Miss Robin dropped off some Monarch Chrysalises and a caterpillar. The kids had fun feeding them milk weed and watching them change. The morning we were planning to head down to Kirksville, two decided to emerge from their cocoons. We had to leave before the last one came out. Tanner came home from work to find it at the bottom of the enclosure with crumpled wings. Apparently they can get a parasite that makes them weak and they can't hold on to their cocoon long enough to allow their wings to straighten out and dry. Mariah christened the butterfly Marge and has been faithful in feeding her sugar water. The kids even made her a palace one day full of blossoms from my planter boxes, but that seemed to distress her. She is now almost four weeks old and seems to be going strong. 

Our other two caterpillars stayed busy eating and finally decided to make a J. We missed one turning into a chrysalis and right when the other was in the middle of changing Eliza opened the lid it was attached to. And then it didn't change anymore; our theory is that it had a heart attack. Once again Tanner found the butterfly after it had emerged on the bottom of the enclosure but he was able to get it back on the ceiling and its wings were able to dry straight. I wasn't too sad to say goodbye to that butterfly and is it bad that I'm just waiting for Marge to kick the bucket? Call me insensitive, but the sticky sugar water all over the countertops is getting old. 

Watching the butterflies emerge

Eliza loved the butterflies and was so gentle with them. She was sad to see them go.

Mariah's pet butterfly Marge. 

The kids and I were able to go down to the Hilton's for Brittany and Jack's birthday. 

Eliza was exhausted from playing hard with Jack.

We brought Bethany back up to our house for a few more days. She mopped my floor the night before my birthday and I couldn't think of a better birthday present. 

The next morning the kids got up and made me breakfast. Mariah and Chet made pancakes all by themselves. They were hoping to make whipped cream but when they saw we didn't have any they decided plain greek yogurt with maple syrup would have to do. It was a unique breakfast but I felt very loved. 

Grandma and Grandpa Crossley came up with Brittany and her kids and we had a fun day watching the Olympics and playing games. I decided that I wanted a cheesecake from a local lady who bakes from her home. It was so delicious and it may have to become a new birthday tradition for me. 

Because my birthday fell on a Wednesday Tanner didn't have to go to work and made a delicious dinner for everyone. The kids ended the day playing in the hose and Bethany got some great shots. 

If these pictures don't scream summer, I don't know what does. 

The next week Mariah and Chet got to be in a parade and play the piano for a talent show. They took their job of throwing candy during the parade very seriously and they both did so well on their piano performances. It always amazes me how they can walk right up in front of a bunch of people and perform. It was a super humid day and this is what I looked like after wearing Vivi for several hours. 

We wanted to end the summer with a bang so Tanner and I decided we would let the kids have a "Yes Day". We set some parameters, and the kids were so excited coming up with ideas. 

We started out the morning with Crepes, Lucky Charms and cartoons. I played basketball with the boys and then we had to go to the dentist, which wasn't something the kids picked, but when you schedule a year in advance, you can't really cancel. The kids left cavity free and after a lunch of Top Ramen and Mac and Cheese we all headed to the pool. Vivi took a good nap in her car seat so Tanner and I were able to play a lot with the older four. Tanner and I even went off the diving boards and tried to impress them with our cool tricks. Their laughter made us rethink how cool we might actually be... The kids got popcorn from the pool concessions (they ask for a treat from there almost every time we're at the pool and I always say no). Then we stopped for ice cream on the way home. Tanner made a big fort in the boys room and I ordered pizza for dinner. The kids got to watch two movies  (The Music Man and the second Harry Potter) while I was at activities and I read books to Eliza and Austin while Mariah and Chet watched the end of Harry Potter. They all slept in their fort, Gus included. It was a fun day and I think they're already planning out next year's Yes Day. 

And I got to get on a horse at activities; it was wonderful. 

At the end of the month Tanner had his race that he has been training for for the last few months. It was called the Three Legged Monster and was located in Steelville, MO. Tanner biked 30 miles (10m on a trail and 20m on gravel) and his friend James ran 13 miles. They then met up and canoed 12 miles to the finish line. In typical fashion, Tanner got sick right before his race and felt pretty miserable. But after a last minute negative COVID test, he headed down to Missouri for the race. He spent a restless night in the bed of his truck and was up early the next morning for the race. Even though he felt awful he pushed through and was able to complete the race. Not as fast as he would have liked, but it was a good teaching experience for the kids about how it doesn't matter whether you're the best, just as long as you are doing YOUR best. When Tanner got home from the race I asked if he would ever want to do a race like that again and after a long look I realized that question was comparable to someone asking a mother if they are going to have another baby right after giving birth. So we'll just give him some time. 

The river they were on is called the "float capital of the world". And it lived up to its name. Tanner said there were hundreds of people floating that made maneuvering the canoe a little more difficult. They also got their fill of drunken hecklers...guess that was just another element to the race. 

Chet and Austin decided to work in one of their forts and Austin got a serious case of poison ivy. Now that the ticks have calmed down there had to be something else to plague us. Right when I realized what had happened I gave him a bath and scrubbed him down with Dawn dish soap but it doesn't seemed to have helped much.  He has it all over his face, ears, arms, legs and torso. The fingers on his right hand have been covered in blisters and look so painful. Austin is such a trooper though and rarely complains about it.

Because August is the month of birthdays, we then got to go down to the Hilton's to celebrate Baydon's. We are so grateful to live close to family. 

Now we need to get back to school, piano, soccer... all the things. Why does summer have to come to an end? 

Five Months

• The girl loves to chew on her hands and toes. She acts like she is teething with all the chewing and drooling she is doing. 

• She has become such a happy baby. She loves to talk and gets excited about attention from anyone. When we are around other people she will stare at them and right when they make eye contact with her she gives the biggest grin with some happy little wriggles. 

• She loves to grab fistfuls of hair and even does it to me in the middle of the night. She gets Eliza the most because she is always right up in her face. 

One morning I told Eliza she could pick out an outfit for Vivi. After bringing out a dress I told her it was a Sunday dress. Eliza then looked at the tag and said, "hmmm, this says, 'not a Sunday dress.'" So Vivi wore the dress. 

• Bedtimes are getting better and she is starting to nap more. 

• I left her for three days with Tanner and she was amazing. She took a bottle no problem and was pretty happy. Tanner had one rough night with her but his parents were here to help as well. When I got home and held her she looked from me to Tanner and then gave a big ol' pucker. Tanner held her for a minute and then I fed her and all was forgiven. 
• She is starting to roll on her side but if she's anything like her siblings we won't be expecting her to roll over anytime soon. She tolerates tummy time better than any of our other babies have though. 

• She likes to bat me with her free arm while nursing. It makes it a little less relaxing. 
• She's still a great sport getting hauled all over the place. She takes naps at the pool and in the car as we drive around. 

This girl is such a delight!