this is what kids look like...

...one year later!

Ok, so you all hate me, and that's fine, but listen, people....i have, like, 16 kids! ok, 3 going on 4, but you get the point. alas, it has been almost a year since i have "blogged" and, i have been harassed by several of your who have remained faithful, and have been continually checking for updates. i do apologize. people, i am massively pregnant....AGAIN! there, now that's out of the way....

we are just plugging along here at the lair. jackson is 7 (SEVEN!!!), campbell has just turned 4, sawyer is 18 months, and the newest boy will be arriving in about 5 weeks. holiness. yes, we have a name (well, we're about 95% sure), and no, i'm not telling you. why, do you ask? well, inevitably, when you share your pending baby name selection, you end up with one of a few reactions. there is: "oh, i knew this boy named (fill in said name here....we'll use "Roscoe"), and i hated him! he was a total nose-picker/axe-murderer/idiot". there is also: "oh.....(awkward silence, awkward silence...), that's nice". and finally, we have, "Wow, you really do like the weird names, don't you". oh, i forgot to mention the final option, and that is having your name STOLEN, even by the most innocent and lovely of friends. i have one friend whom i shared my one, sacred girl name with, and a few months later, she called me, and said gravely, " i have a confession to make". i waiting anxiously, and then she said "i stole your girl name". now, mind you, she was not even pregnant, much less expecting a girl, but she wanted me to know that if given the opportunity, she would be hijacking my beloved name. well, no longer, name thieves! i shall take my names with me to the delivery room, and make my announcement there, so harumph!

i'd love to write more now, but alas, i am being beckoned by one who a needs a snack, another waking from a nap, and the repairman fixing my fridge simultaneously. i shall try to do better in the future with posting pix and stories from the fruit loops, but i make no promises! 4th boy is on the way, and will certainly claim what is remaining of my free time/girlfriend time/haircut time/blog time. love you all!

Smelly boys in the summertime

Alrighty, here are some long-awaited photos of the the dudes throughout the summer...i have been even more slack than usual with the photos, and must apologize to all loyal Lair fans...please forgive!

Let's see....this summer was spent learning to swim (fianlly! two less people to worry about drowning), shuttling the clan to and from the beach with G-Ma, and just generally gettin' sweaty around town. The people had a good ol' time, but were definitely ready to get back to school. Jackson just started 1st grade (i am so old), and is enjoying himself, though he says, "it's not that challenging, Mom...we're just reviewing stuff from last year." I'm sure there he'll be happy once they get down to the real nitty gritty of insect larvae and multiplication tables....ah, the boy.

Sawyer is 7 months old, has two snaggle teeth, and weighs 19 lbs. He likes long walks on the beach, stimulating conversation, and pureed peas.

Campbell continues to both mystify and delight. He informed me that he would be going to school "nexterday" (meaning "tomorrow"), and during the beach trip this past week, he climbed up onto the island in the middle of the pool, dropped trou, and took a whiz into the crowded pool, as onlookers screamed with laughter. Their reaction thrilled him, so he stayed on the stage to dance for them as the band played alongside the pool. His favorites were "Jeremiah was a bullfrog/Joy to the World", and "Kung Fu Fighting". His moves were indescribable: Lots of air guitar and head-banging. He kept telling us that the island was "my United States". Ah, the pistol.

Da beach

Can you friggin' believe I'm blogging two days in a row?!?! almost like a real blogger! well, here are some snaps of the Lairs during our recent beach trip to Emerald Isle....it was GLORIOUS. I have to say I haven't had a more enjoyable vacation in quite some time, and really, have never had a vacation as an adult without my family, so alas, we are grownups!!!! We were able to score an amazing house right by the shore for dirt cheap because it was May, and thus, off-peak season. let me tell you, folks, this is the way to go. I typically secretly dread beach vacations, possibly stemming from an extreme dislike of sandy, sticky, sunscreeny goo all over me that i have to endure for the 19 hours that we stay at the beach, like some sort of sweltering prison. this trip, however, proved surprisingly delightful because a)it wasn't really hot yet, b)we were close enough to the beach that we could go for just 30 minutes at a time if we so desired, and thus, did not have to schlep 400 flotation devices, coolers, beach toys, and the like the 7 miles to the shore, and c)i did not have to put the thunder thighs on display right next to all the emaciated 16-year-olds on the beach because it was just too cold! LOVE IT! (did i mention that being on a show like baywatch, and running in slow motion in a bathing suit for all the world to see is my own personal fear factor?)

soooo.....we were there for 7 whole days, which was unbelievable in its own right....usually, we're away for 3 or 4 days, and by the time we unpack, we have to pack back up again, so this time, we were really able to relax. i didn't start the dreaded back-to-the-homestead countdown until about day 5, so that was nice. also, the house we stayed in was bigger than my own house, and was certainly cleaner, hello! and for the final perk, we didn't even have to clean the joint when we left because a cleaning service was included in the price of the rental. um, outstanding much?

anyway, it was delightful, so i've included a few pix for your viewing pleasure (if looking at toddlers and babies is pleasurable for you...i think i'm catering mostly to the girlfriends and family here). there sky view is a shot from our roof-top observation deck, and the bedrooms shown are ours and the "master suite" that our friends, the broughtons, stayed in (that's for you, ryan and kristin!). we gave them grief all week because our room was smaller, and didn't have a bathroom. you gotta harass your friends sometimes.

and finally, in big jackson news, my biggest, oldest boyfriend graduates from kindergarten on tuesday. sniff, sniff...tear....he is so grown. i wish i could explain to you some of the very insightful nonsense that he relays to us on a daily basis...some recent goodies are:

*"Mom, your car is really dirty, and i happen to know that if you don't clean it, it will get infected."

*Me (to all Lair boys): "Who wants a kiss??"

Jax: "Campbell does."

*"Mommy, did you know McDonald's is now serving capuccinos?" (he read it on his cheeseburger wrapper...."capuccinos"?!?! how can he read that?!?)

and now, on to the scramble (Campbell):

*"Mommy, why is all that salad dressing on your teeth?" (he saw me brushing my teeth)

*"Mommy, get your scissors and cut the hurt off." (he stubbed his toe)

*"Mom, we better HUSTLE!" (as we were getting out of our car and into the rain)

more later.....

major trouble

and here, folks, we have some major trouble. the most miniature of the lair completely runs the show without even trying. as you can see here, he is a pretty happy little dude, and really doesn't give us much trouble at all, except for that whole gotta-feed-and-change-and-interact-with-him-all-the-time thing. we like him a great deal.

these photos are of my mom and dad ("G-Ma" and "Grandpa") with Sawyer at Jackson's final baseball game of the season. oddly, we didn't actually get any shots of Jax playing ball, but these of the baby came out pretty well (0= i'm such a sucker.

you know what's hot?

what's hot is my gorgeous, amazing husband doting on the wee babe.


i totally wanna make out with him right now.

the wee one...

...has stolen my heart (and all my free time). i speak, of course, of the 20-23 minutes a day i had to myself before the advent of our third boy-child. no worries, though...i now get to gaze at the little one and act like a complete fool while "coo"-ing and "goo" ing at him. he has actually begun to respond to me, and it is ever-so-precious. you wish you could decipher infant-speak.

the big ones do love him dearly, and if i can just keep those walking cesspools of cold and flu away from his hands and face until about may, we should be set. then all heckfire will break loose, and we can just all cough and sneeze and snot all over each other.

And in other tiny fool news:
*These days, when the little one cries, campbell will sing to him "Sawyer....Take is easy" (read: "EE-zay-ay") to the tune of that old Foghat song ("Slow ride..."). Also, if he feels i am wound a bit too tightly, he sings "Mommy, take it easy". Really, the song is all-encompassing, an anthem for generations to come.

*campbell, the "precocious" one (that's the nice, Christian term), somehow made all his Easter candy disappear without actually eating it. i did, however, find all the wrappers on his floor, and a sort of fudgey fondue schmear from ear to eyelid. "Noooo, mommy. i did NOT eat that 'chockwit'."

*mysteriously, the same person who ate all camp's candy drew giant smiley faces on his wall in permanent, black Sharpie ink. we cannot figure out who is behind all these shenanigans.

*Jackson lost his first tooth, left it for the tooth fairy, and got paid. He then decided he didn't have much use for the dinero, and tried to buy back his tooth. The tooth fairy is not budging.