Way Too Early!

So while this isn't the most attractive picture - O.k. so it's hideous of me, it's an accurate depiction of early mornings for me! Porter and Weston both love to get up at insane hours...sometimes 5:30 and usually 6:00 am every stinkin' morning regardless of weekends or how hard they played the night before. So Landon got out the camera to get a shot of me passed out on the couch with a boy in each arm and remote for the Little Einsteins' Movie - or as I like to call it sanity/sleep for Mommy! I don't know how I'll make it on no sleep when this baby gets here. I just saw my little countdown ticker to my due date and it said 36 days... Holy Crap...I need more time and aparantly more SLEEP!

Maybe a WATERMELON...

So Landon likes to say it's a WATERMELON... let me go back! All during this pregnancy I get these fun little e-mails talking about how big the baby is at each stage. So first we started with an avacado...then it was a Grapefruit...Next it was a Jicama...the Jicama grew to be a Pineapple

Then that pineapple grew to be a cantalope...

I've had fun forwarding the e-mails to my mom's...the "grandma's" to keep them updated all the while getting a huge laugh about the FOOD reference... So my mom calls me and says, after the last cantalope e-mail..."Well let's hope he doesn't get as big as a watermelon" we continued talking and I was checking my e-mail and Landon writes "I think ours is a little bigger than a cantalope...more like a watermelon!" Thanks a lot honey - I love you too! So here's to our WATERMELON due in 1 month.

J & Sally

So on Saturday Landon took the kids to the fish store to buy some thing new for our tank. We have a 55 gallon salt water tank and the kids love picking out new fish for the tank... the only problem is sometimes the FISH don't like it when we add someone new to THEIR environment... this is Landon defending our new striped fish that the kids named 'J' short for Jail Bird.

Marlin and Nemo (our clown fish) bit off his fins in about 2 minutes from him being added to the tank - poor little guy was so stressed out!

Sally is harded to see...look to the right of J on the left side of the rock. She is called a sally lighfoot crab and loves to eat 'things' off the rocks...ya know to keep the tank clean...I'm all over someone else cleaning up after the fish since I have enough of my own little fish to clean up after :) So for now we have J in a container in the fish tank to protect him until we can figure out what to do...and the clown fish are still trying to get at him...it's been a good teaching lesson for the kids about making good choices and how our actions affect others!

Ruthie's Room

So I have had Ruthie's room painted since last November! I know I know procrastination - it's not like I've had anything else keeping me busy... so I finally got some time to put up her princess border and nobody told me that the ceiling to wall ratio was NOT straight...OK so it totally stinks to have OCD and try to get a border straight on a wall that isn't...so after much stress and effort I got it up and straight - to my eye anyway - screw the lazer level that you cannot use if the wall to ceiling isn't straight , but that's a whole other stress!

So here are the final pics...

She came home and was SO ecstatic! Did I mention that she would pray Every night for like 6 months for her room to get finished and then finally gave up?!
The border was about 18 inches too short from completing the room when I remembered that I had curtains that matched her bedspread. My sister and friend came and helped me hang them and it turned out SO CUTE! Ruthie loves it when we untie them every night to mak her room dark! Now onto the boys room... wish me luck with only 5 or so weeks left until this baby gets here...too many projects too little time.

Wrestling w/ the kids

So James had his best bud Dalin sleep over and Saturday morning after breakfast the kids decided it was WWF time at the Varney's...

I don't know who had more fun...Landon or the kids!

The tickled and tackled and wrestled and I was laughing so hard it was difficult to take pictures :)

You just gotta love the pure Joy on Ruthie's face! So FUN.

Weston Boy

If only they could stay small and innocent like this forever! Weston had his well check today and is doing great in the height and weight department but after talking about some of the sensory things that he does and his lanuage delay the doctor asked me to fill out a questionaire to help better determine where he was 'at'. There were about 20 or so questions and after I filled it out the doctor and I talked about the "results". It's called the 'mCHAT' test... She put a transparancy over the check list and there were white, blue and red squares. If your child scores 2 or more blue OR red boxes they fall in the 'spectrum' of Autism...Weston had 4 blue boxes. Let's just say I really wasn't prepared to hear the 'A' word - whether it be to have my fears confirmed or just because there really is NO preparing for that, all the same...to qoute my friend "It's like being hit by a Mac truck!" The doctor and I talked about the therapies that we start next week (speech and OT) for Weston and how this will really help. She said that we would wait until he's 2 (which is in 2 1/2 months) and then do the questionaire again to "really see" if this is what 'label' he falls under...so now we work really hard, pray really hard and hope that everything we do 'sticks'. I am thankful we have so many who love and support us and while I wan't really sure if I wanted to post this or not - I knew talking about the appointment over and over would be too hard for me. So here we go again and we'll jump in with both feet and pray that the Lord will carry us through - because I know I cannot do this without him!

King Size Bed for 4...or 6 1/2

So Landon and I have a California King size bed...but there's not much room (if ANY) when there are 4 kids in it! I woke up this morning to all 4 kids in my bed. Those of you who know me know that I am not one to have my kids in my bed to sleep EVER! Snuggling and goofing off are a different story but a bed built for 6 ( and a 1/2 - if you include the pregnant belly) yeah NO. So I guess Porter woke up 1st and then Weston and James and Ruthie crawled in sometime in the early morning hours!. So much for the sticker charts for incentives! Maybe it's because they got to bed really late after a family thing...oh well. I love my kids, but I love my sleep too!!So get back in your own bed.

1st Day of School

So the first day of school came really fast for me! The kids were SO excited !! From getting breakfast, filling water bottles and making lunches...

And of course, doing hair...

Porter, James and Ruthie were all ready and cute for School. AND...

ON TIME!!

Poor Weston...

He just cried and cried when all the kids left for school. I wanted to drive them but Ruthie insisted that Daddy drive. I have to say the house is TOO QUIET, and while I know it won't last long with #5 on his way... I miss my kids and am praying they have an awesome day! 3:00 can't come soon enough today!

Ruthie's Fashion Show

School is Starting!

So I thought I'd write a little about the kids starting school...Ruthie will be in Kindergarten at Meridian and is SO excited. She posed -on her own- and wanted to take pictures of all her new outfits. I LOVE having a girl to do this with! At least I got 1 :-) James will be in 1st grade and is excited to meet new friends and be there with his sister to show her around. Porter is in 1st again - we thought we'd help give him an edge - and we're excited to see how much progress he can make this year at Augusta Ranch. It is so hard to believe that all 3 will be in school all day. I'm going to miss them SO much. But I know I'll be busy with Weston and this new baby, when he gets here. The kids are excited for their new backpacks and a blessing for school from Dad! How blessed we are!!!

Porter's Helpers

So I HAD to post about our wonderful helpers for Porter (and me)! On the left is Michelle - she has been with our family for over a year! Yeah Michelle she made it longer than anyone has and she is such a huge part of our family. She has been with us on family vacations and brings a whole new meaning to the term "sanity". This picture doesn't do this cute girl justice - at all-

Between working on Porter's 12 Habilitation goals, helping with tons around the house and all the fun games they play with the kids, we could not survive with out them. Below is Brenda who has been with us almost 6 weeks. She is such a quick learner and is so patient with Porter (and me). There is so much that we work on everyday with him and his progress couldn't be made with out their constant efforts to help him in every way! We are so thankful for the blessing that they bring to our family. Thank you girls for everything! We love you.

Last Swim Lesson

This was the last swim lesson for James and Ruthie for the season and Porter will be done in September. The kids have had an amazing summer and done SO well with their swimming. This is Lindsey Newman and she is fantastic. Fitness a la Carte' is the name of their swim school and Lindsey and her mom Mary have been teaching forever! I have NEVER seen anyone teach a child ( or anyone) as wonderfully as they have. Tons of positive praise, teaching parents what to say and how to say it. So much patience and love. They are incredible! At the beginning of the summer Porter was still really struggling to get his 'breath' and know when to pick his head up instead of drowning and Ruthie and James were great at Dog Paddling :-) Now...Porter swims like a fish and knows how to go back to the wall and when to take his breath!!! It's one of those how much $$$ later and now he swims...PRICELESS! Ruthie and James are so good that I could sit on the side of the pool and watch them knowing that they have it down perfect and are excellent swimmers. Landon and I are so proud of our kids! Even Weston - who I couldn't get a picture of because I did the lessons with him - he threw such a fit..but he did it and was so proud of himself after. Seriously awesome. We have taken from Mary & Lindsey for 3 years now and will never go anywhere else...it's a drive to Lindsay Road and Warner, but it has been and continues to be such a huge benefit to our kids and those we know that go there! Thanks Mary and Lindsey, we love you !!!