Daily Routine

(From November 2019):
Austin was leaving for work this morning and I sighed audibly, but when he asked me what was wrong I couldn't really put my finger on it...he suggested that I was just tired of the daily routine, and that was it! I'm tired of making meals and cleaning up and doing laundry and school drop-off/pickup and dirty bathrooms and the neverending tidying, etc etc etc. I would say we are in a good groove - the kids are doing well in school, everyone is healthy, we're making progress on money goals and have exciting plans to look forward to. But the daily is so DAILY. The laundry that gets done but not put away, the dishes that sit in the sink for days, the curtain rod that is permanently bent because Stockton likes to climb behind the chair and pretend he's "trash" (from Toy Story 4). The clothes (clean and dirty) that are always strewn everywhere despite multiple laundry baskets being available. Grocery shopping, getting gas, shoveling snow...everything!

Their school pictures turned out so cute!!!!!

messy basement before the purge! (the pictures do not to justice to the amount of items that were just tossed around everywhere)

The kids love feeding Claire. She is a good eater! She doesn't eat tons but she's willing to try pretty much whatever we give her, which is nice. She definitely is the most natural chewer out of all of our babies, which makes me so happy! I get so anxious about choking.

Sisters!

Natalie has had a rough attitude the past couple months, it seems. She gets irritated about chores, things that are unfair (in her mind) at school, and she doesn't have a very positive attitude about a lot of things. We're working through it though, and I'm grateful that she is still a huge Mama's girl and that she seeks me out for comfort despite her frustrations.

Stockton loves his Pete!

I love my Claire!

Jack loves smiling!

Jack made this laundry basket toy nest for Claire one afternoon and she spent a lot of time in it! Jack was so proud of himself and it was cute to see that Claire really did enjoy it.

we had a string of Target meltdowns and had
to give Stockton a break from shopping....he was mad
here because he wanted a watch, but it was almost
Christmas and I had already gotten him a watch so I said no.
He was....not pleased.

I like these moments when everyone is home from school...we get a snack and turn on a movie for a little bit.

sweeties!

Jack and Claire both fell asleep right before it was time to pick up Natalie and Stockton...luckily the timing was perfect for Austin to pick them up that day, so we got to just be cozy at home!

Austin's favorite: the Grinch jammies!! All of our babies have worn these jammies. Some day I'll find picture evidence.

Natalie reads every day, sometimes by choice and sometimes by (our) demand. She is a great reader!
She likes to have lots of books going at the same time, just like her Grandpa.

For some reason I think it is SO cute when babies drink out of water bottles. Claire mastered the art of the straw so fast!

The daily routine wears on me sometimes, but these kids are just so cute and fun and awesome. I'm glad I can document this time of our lives!