Balance

I've decided the thing I love the most about school starting is that I feel like balance is restored in my life.  I love having my kids home.  I love playing with them.  I also need organization and routine and  a kitchen that isn't constantly covered in dishes.  I feel like when the kids are home for the summer all we do is play.  We play with each other, we play with friends, we stay up late and, let's be honest, we fight and argue and whine a lot too.  We practice piano and try to practice reading, but it's hard when schedules change every day.

When school starts the world falls back into balance.   I make lunches and breakfast at the same time and don't make a mess again until I'm starting dinner.  My kids get lots of learning time at school, which frees up after school for fun.  I can run errands with 1/2 or sometimes 1/4 of my kids, which makes my life much more peaceful.  We aren't in each other's faces all day, so we don't fight as much. I can get all the housework and errands and paperwork and organizing done while the kids are at school so after school I can really focus on them.  It's so great.  And we are all so much happier.  It's not just me.  

Here's what our last couple of balanced weeks have looked like:

playing legos with Colton, see that house? I probably build that house for him at least twice a week

shopping with just Hudson, it's so fun to be able to just have my baby two days a week 

one-on-one time, right now we have either cheer or football every night at 6, this means that when Madi is practicing I have time to spend with Jaxon, and when Jaxon is practicing I have time to spend with Madi, it's really fun actually, I don't normally run with Jaxon in the jogger, but we were practicing his running technique the other day so he was taking a break, and then he popped my tire, so I guess 60 lbs is too much or my jogger

field trips with friends, Colton has a great group of buddies that we hang out with every Friday

a couple weeks ago we went to Perot museum, which was great and very kid friendly, even for my crazy, crawling child

Colton and his buddies

We spend Saturdays at games.  It's a little crazy, but mostly just fun.  I like watching the kids play.  They are all on really good teams this year, which makes it even more fun.   Hudson is a great cheerleader, not.  Hudson is insane and fast and refuses to stay in a stroller/carseat/highchair he tries to crawl onto the field about 5 times every game.  He especially loves the cheer leaders' poms.  But he's cute, so we keep him. 

Uncle Steve his helping to coach Colton's soccer team.  And can I just say that Colton's soccer team is amazing?  He's playing with 3-4 year olds and these kids rock.  Most teams we play struggle to keep their kids on the field, but Colton's team dominates every game!

A couple weeks ago it was super, super cold (I wish that had lasted) the kids made a tent to stay warm.  Also, Colton and Jaxon both have maroon for their uniforms this year, so we spend our Saturdays in maroon.  

Sometimes Hudson and I swing together.  I like my buddy.  

Let's discuss Hudson for a minute, cause he's seriously getting nuts.  Here are a few of his latest antics:

yogurt everywhere, foot on the table

reorganizing the pantry and tasting everything

Yoga on the dishwasher, this kid is fast as lightning and into everything 

Here's a funny story, one night I noticed some deep gouges in our kitchen table.  I asked the kids what happened.  They all looked shocked.  Then Colton piped up, "I know what happened.  I sawed a ghost last night banging on the table with a pen."  I think I know who did it and how.  And it wasn't a ghost. 

Cousin playdates.  Colton loves board games lately.  Uno, Cootie, Memory you name it, he loves it.

Cool picture of Hudson swinging during football practice.  We spend a lot of time at the park these days.  Which is nice because it forces me to focus on playing with the kids.  Balance.

Nasty giant spider Steve found on night after work. 

Career day at school.  Madison dressed as a teacher.  

Jaxon dressed as a jungle explorer.  I love this action shot!  

In the morning we all go out and play in the driveway until our neighbor arrives to ride bikes to school with the big kids.  I love this time when the kids are ready and we can all be together for a couple of minutes before we leave for the day.  

Colton and his buddies at our favorite park.  Look at all these boys!  Colton is so lucky to have so many fun friends!

We did a cook out a couple weeks ago with our friends.  It was fun.  The kids loved it. 

Hudson was being crazy, though.  He was tired, but he wouldn't fall asleep in the pack and play that I set up in the van.  I was holding him and then putting him in the stroller then holding him again.  Finally he was quiet.  I looked over at him (it was dark) and I saw something all over his face and hands.  I turned on a light and found this.  Little goober found some chocolate for the s'mores.  It kept him happy for a while though.  

Madison is the cutest double-jointed cheerleader ever.   If she decides to do cheer long term we are going to have to teach her not to extend her arms all the way.  It's unnatural.  

And finally, summer is holding on for dear life here in Texas.  We still have highs in the low 90's, but the evenings have been great.  The ice cream truck visits cheer practice every day, so finally one day I let the kids buy something.  It made their lives complete!