Everything Nice

Ren is out of town for the week, so I am juggling (literally and figuratively) 4 little ones solo. Let me tell you, it ain't easy. I have to make sure that one or two or three are settled first before I can tend to another one or two or three. This is especially tricky at nap time, bed time, lunch time, when I shower, brush my teeth, take any number of simple trips to the bathroom, any time I breath...or at any other time of day, for that matter. Well, today I had to get Oliver down for his nap. I sat Abigail down in her Bumbo Seat (I highly recommend one if you have a baby) in the middle of the kitchen floor. And this is what I came back to find:



Josephine is turning into quite the little mommy now that she's the oldest kid in the house while Isabel is at school. She even said she made sure to give Abigail "soft food." Now, the "food" was made out of plastic, but it's the thought that counts!

A Boy and His Cord

As many of you know, my husband, Ren, is in the IT business. Translation: Our house is creatively decorated with miscellaneous power cords, power supplies, hard drives, broken down computers, printers, monitors, faxes, etc., at any given time. We have several drawers dedicated throughout the house to stashed power cords and plugs. Enter in a certain busy-bodied, incredibly mischievous 20 month old boy. You see where this is going. As I write this, he's sitting on the kitchen floor, helping himself to an entire box of Nilla Wafers that he himself pulled out of the pantry. Pulling random things out of cupboards, drawers, and pantries is a favorite pastime of his as of late. Oliver has also developed a love for power cords in particular. Put those two loves together and you have Buckland Toddler Boy Nirvana. He pulls them out, I put them away. This can happen anywhere from 20 to 437 times in one day.

He would rather play with a safe, kid-friendly pile of electrical wires than his own toys. Matchbox cars? Ha! Action figures? He laughs in their plastic little faces! He likes to hold on to said cords and carry them throughout the house. He drapes them around his shoulders and wears them like a prized piece of fashion, as is evidenced in the photo above. He even attempts (and is successful at times) to take a cord in the car with him when we go "Bye Bye." The most interesting place to which he's ever taken one of his cords was blueberry picking. Sometimes he wakes up in the morning and the first thing he says to us is, "I wahn mah coooord!" Any cord will do, in fact. However, he does have some cords that he loves more than others. Take Ren's white iPhone charger, for instance. This one we've literally had to pry out of his hands when it comes time to eat, bathe, or take a nap. This one has made Daddy very upset on more than one occasion.

I don't know what this says about our son. It appears that he not only looks like his daddy, but is also showing some signs that they may have the same personality as well. It has long been suspect that Oliver is actually Ren's clone. This latest development in his character may just be the proof of the pudding.

Lance Buckland

Isabel, my 4-about-to-be-5-year old, has a husband. His name is Lance. That is her choice of words, not mine. Not boyfriend, mind you. "Husband." The object of her affection is a cute little guy in her K4 class. She comes home everyday talking about him. At first, she described him as her "friend." Then one day "friend" became "husband." And now she doesn't hide it, from me, him, or anyone else. She tells me all the time, "Mom, I really love him." At first, I was worried that my poor daughter would get her heart broken. But apparently, he feels the same way about her. He drew a picture on Valentine's Day of the two of them together, on which they both signed their names. I already like the kid, because he's obviously very smart and has excellent taste in women.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, Isabel and I were sitting in the kitchen talking, and she proceeded to tell me that she wanted to move out and get a new family. I tried to hide my hurt, and asked her to further explain herself. She clarified by telling me that she was ready to have her OWN family, one in which she would be the mother, Lance would be the father, and she would have her very own children. I explained to her that this was much more complicated than it seemed. For instance, she would have to change her name to Isabel Johnson (Lance's last name), and that she would no longer be a "Buckland". She then, emphatically and incredulously explained, "Umm, no Mom, you mean Lance will have to change his name to Lance BUCKLAND." I am already praying for the poor kid!

I honestly don't remember thinking about marriage and family when I was this young. I guess Ren and I are doing something right since she, not only isn't freaked out by the idea of marriage, but eagerly anticipates it. Hopefully, we can keep it up. It's funny, I thought that Isabel's first crush would totally devastate me. On the contrary, I actually think it's quite adorable. I guess I'd be scared and devastated if she were talking about moving in with him first. I mean her future is either going to have to involve marriage and family or a nunnery. I am afraid there will be no in-between.

More on Children, and That's Not a Play On Words!

I have had children on the brain a lot these days. Maybe it's because I am expecting. Maybe it's because I have so darn many of them as it is. We currently have 3 of the little buggers, and another baby bugger on the way, due in mid-June. So come summer time, we will have our hands full with, count 'em, 4 buggers, ages 5, 3, 18 months, and larva. I have heard several kind people say in the past that God must be pleased with how we're raising our kids, and therefore, keeps blessing us with more. However, I am beginning to see holes in this theory. The inverse simply can't be true, that God takes kids AWAY from people that are sucky parents??? Maybe if they're Charles Manson. I've known incredible people, that for whatever reason, have lost children. Job is one example that comes to mind, and God Himself called him blameless and upright. No, I am beginning to believe that this is just how many kids it's taking to finally make Ren and I half-way decent human beings. I wonder how many more it's going to take…

Out of the Mouths of Babes

So my daughter, Josephine, who's 2, sat on the floor today flipping through the pages of the Bible that she received the day of her baby dedication at our church. As she turned each page, I heard her declare, "He disobeyed God, and he disobeyed God, and he disobeyed God." I found it very amusing, and somewhat true, but then I found myself thinking, "What on earth are we teaching this child?!?!" I think we'd better expand our Bible lessons! But then again, I guess the world of a two-year old revolves around the question "to obey, or not to obey?" I'm afraid it's usually the latter.

Happy 5 Months!

I must give a "shout out" to my little man, Oliver. I cannot believe he is already 5 months old. He is at a very fun age. We are enjoying him immensely. He's such a happy little guy. His personality is really shining through, and he has the most expressive face. His expressions are hilarious. These are two of his cutest pictures to date. We simply adore our baby boy!