I Miss Blogging

Sweet growing boys. 6 weeks old already! Graham continues to stay on the little side for now, weighing in at a whopping 8'8 while tubby boy grows and grows and grows tipping the scale at 10'8. Good news is that Graham is growing just perfectly and gaining weight nicely...just not quite as fast as his voraciously growing twin. Both boys are well and perfect in every way. Graham has a head full of red hair...yet another red headed boy!!....while Gatlin is as sweetly bald as it gets.

Garrett.....finally getting his turn to hold a baby.

Our look alike Baby A's and Baby B's....except it gets confusing and the the look alikes are in opposite outfits. Had I known they'd be such great comparison pics I would've put them in the same colors and on the same sides as the twins that paved the road just barely 6 years before them!

Graham in blue, Gatlin in cream. 6 weeks old.

Garrison in cream, Grant in blue. Taken when these little guys were 5 months old.

Two little Baby A's crying, Two big Baby B's just hanging out.

Trying to capture his smile...which he does entirely well these days. Sweet, sweet boy.

Getting sweet, handsome smiles from Graham too

Grayson's 1st big buck. He scored a 70. Grayson made the shots that took both deer down from 150 yards away and in the dark. His eyesight and ability to shoot is absolutely amazing. We've target shot for years with the children but his ability to really get out there and hunt is proving to be amazing. These were also his first deer to process completely on his own from gutting to skinning to harvesting and cleaning the meat. Evye was elbow deep into it helping him all the way while the little ones stood around completely enthralled with it all. The meat now fills our freezers and the big buck will be his 1st shoulder mount while the smaller buck will be a euro mount and a rug...all of which he is doing. He continues to amaze me. And Evye is now not only shooting like a pro but helping process too. I'll shoot but I'm not much into processing. Nastiness.

Juggling an armful of babies....and no, she doesn't walk around like this.

Happy boys and a sister that absolutely adores them.

Garrett loves just holding them.
Cold winter family nights spent watching Christmas movies. 1,800 sq ft and somehow we manage to all 12 end up in about 150 of it.

Why I rarely blog anymore. These activities fill our days...along with nursing some infinitely hungry, growing boys. And I didn't do any of this....except hot glue the sides together since I got soooo sick of waiting for the icing to dry and seal the thing together. Not so surprisingly, much to the older three's horror, all the little colored candies on top were devoured within 2 hours of having decorated it. The wreath, gumdrop entrance, window candies and gummy animals mysteriously disappeared today. Notice in the 2nd picture the row of rooftop candies that had already been eaten before we could even take the picture! They got in trouble for that so the rest of it lasted for another 2 or so hours.

Graham was sleeping and Garrett, Grant and Ivye were outside playing. Nothing like spontaneous pictures!

Just loving on him

After bathtime

One of many things showing up in the traps these days. Two days after this he caught a raccoon that filled up the entire cage. As of now, he has taken the record for the largest possum, coon and snake to go through the shop.

And I do miss blogging.....but how entirely thankful I am for the reason my time is being spent elsewhere right now. Right now days are spent nursing, schooling, playing and sleeping when I can while late shift nights are spent nursing and spending one on one time with older children. I am still very much alive and quite happy. Admittedly, it has been very difficult to figure out how to manage my time and prioritizing has become a massive part of my days. I suppose it always was but so much more so now than ever......and the "extras" were what had to go for this season in life...most of my computer time being part of the "extras". It won't last forever...no season ever does....which makes it tolerable, but I still miss the peace that writing brings with it in the quiet of the day. But, honestly, there is not much quiet that exists right now and when quiet does pervade I end up with sleep inadvertently claiming me. I'm still very much learning how to manage time again....restructuring our days and just trying to fit everything within the few hours a day provides. Along with the usual responsibilities, raising a pre-teen boy is proving to be emotionally exhausting somedays, and as much as I have loved every stage the children grow through I will acknowledge that this part of it has challenged me more than any other stage of growth ever has. That, coupled with newborn twins and every age in between, makes for some very interesting days. But how bittersweet this time is...how fast it goes. Crazy, chaotic, noisy days filled with growing children..babies that just don't stay little and children that grow into beginning adulthood. How thankful I am for their growth..the character being taught and establishing itself in older ones.... and the longer intervals of sleep at night provided by much younger ones but how bittersweet it is to watch the time pass. It seems like such perfectly orchestrated timing as I listen to sweet oldest boy...not so long ago still very much a baby like the ones I hold.....as his voice changes and he transitions from boy to man child. Responsibilities grow, opportunities and horizons beyond our little world expand exponentially. I listen and see these changes taking place before my eyes and I miss the baby he once was yet I marvel at these two new sweet boys just beginning this journey of life and what they will be in a mere 12-13 years. How naive I was to think as I cradled firstborn baby in my arms almost 13 years ago that this day was so far away.....13 years...a lifetime away from that moment. Time is a cruel reality and I've learned to treasure each day I have with them..because it just doesn't last forever. They grow, they change in such amazing ways and the clock is relentless in its vigil. How grateful I am for the life and the busyness of our days....the love, contentment and fulfillment that bathes our world in color.