Going into the cone of silence

This weekend is the official move, so we are going to be disconnecting the internet tonight. Hopefully we will only be without it for a day.

I have been packing, packing, packing--and then driving the stuff over to the new house and unloading it and putting it away. It's tiring but it's good to have it partially done already.

Try not to envy me, ya'll. hee...

This morning, the little kids stripped the top sheet and comforter off my bed while I was talking to my mother-in-law on the phone. When I eventually hung up, I asked them what in the world they were doing.

Jake: We jumping in da fwimming pool!

Me: The swimming pool?

Jake: Yep...da blanket is da water. We jump of da bed into da water.

Well, ya gotta love their ingenuity.

"Diving" into da pool

Wheee...the water is warm!

Oh...and before I forget...

Jillian had a birthday party last Saturday. She and her friends were sitting out in the screened-in porch when all of a sudden, Jake went running over to the door. He flung it open, grinned at them and said, "Hello, Ladies!"

Oh my goodness, it was SO funny!

"The Faster I Go...

...the behinder I get." Amish proverb

That pretty much sums life up for me right now. We are living in our rental home and trying to move things over to the new house. There is no grass yet at the new house, so the kids inevitably end up in the dirt (ie: filthy from head to toe). I try to keep them outside so they don't track in. You can imagine how well that goes.

Last night we got an email saying that the owners of our rental had changed their plans. They are no longer planning to move back into the house, but decided to put it on the market. They listed it yesterday. Nice. They were 'thoughtful' enough to say that showings wouldn't start until the end of this week.

Just shoot me now!

There are boxes everywhere. I have taken most of the pictures off the walls. Let's just say it doesn't exactly look like the cover of Better Homes and G*rdens in here.

Between running to the house and running to the doctor with kids who are STILL coming down with strep, I am meeting myself coming and going!

After a stressful weekend, I decided that the kids needed a break from my grumpiness, so I took them to the lake. We had fun, although the water was too frigid to play in. They love to throw rocks and sticks, make leaf boats and accidentally splash the girls.

I had hopes of getting all the photos edited but yeah....that isn't going to happen. I know it's totally uncool for photographers to share unedited photos but alas, I do not have time to edit all of these.

Ohhh yeah....my rock made a big splash!

Katie...look at mommy for a minute so I can capture your cuteness.

Let's walk to the other side of the lake. (Jillian was home from school with strep, which is why she went with us.)

"Ohhh, mom...wook at dat cool twee!"

"I donna beat you, Zoey!"

"But I have a bigger wock, Dakie."

Jake and Zoey spent nearly the whole time running back and forth with rocks to chuck into the water. They weren't satisfied with pebbles. They had to be ROCKS.

These two have a special bond of being from the same orphanage and sometimes are the best of buds.

Miss Kate, ever serious, contemplates her next move.

Now this is an example of hugging someone's neck.

Kate always brings up the rear and I asked Jordan to help her. The two of them were SO cute. Jordan carefully helped her over every log and patiently waited for her whenever necessary.

"Be careful, Katie."