Today was one of the best birthdays in memory (if the number of pictures taken is any indication of the level of fun had, today ranks as the best).  We woke up to a wonderfully warm day, something enjoyed after all the rain and cold.  We got the goats milked and fed without too much trouble (see previous entry).  Mass was beautiful, as always, and we got to see our old priest which was a nice treat.  Then we came home to a relaxing day spent in the back yard. 

  

It didn't take long for the kids to get the sprinkler out.  Samuel loved the part of the hose the sprayed water.
 

He then headed for the sprinkler
 

Before long, everyone was having fun and getting wet.
           

A little action shot of Parker (who didn't stop moving all day)

Before I knew it, the squirt guns were out and Brad had changed into his swim suit and had joined in the fun
              

I loved this shot of Augustin getting Brad

Parker and Augustin take a small break to catch their breath, but notice the water jug (a favorite weapon of the day) never too far away

Samuel loved filling the cup over and over again     

Again, notice the water jug and this time he has two of them

While all of this was going on my Dad was grilling potatoes, burgers and cooking baked beans.
  

Then it was time to start drying off for dinner
      

Matthias showing off the beetle he found
  

Matthias attempting to push the riding lawn mower

And Grant showing him how to really get it to move

Matthias getting ready to enjoy some dinner

Matthias and I

Looks like someone had a fun afternoon.  Samuel moved his plate out of the way, put his head down and fell asleep.  There was no waking him either.  He was one tired little guy.
    

More fun with water after eating
  

Samuel, awake but still tired, snuggles with Papa
      

Finally....time for our annual first root beer floats of the season.  My birthday has become the day when the "Ice Cream Lady" (aka...Mom) makes root beer floats.  The kids look forward to this day all month.  It's the sign that summer is here.
  

All the boys enjoyed theirs outside sitting in the grass
 

Even the adults enjoyed them
  

And the Ice Cream Lady made an appearance to her happy crowd of sticky and full admirers

There was even time for fire works...in the board day light, but the kids didn't seem to mind. They all sat and watched Brad set them off on the driveway.
                   

And then the cake came out...but didn't get eaten until after the Holy Hour at the Chapel.  Red Velvet with cream cheese frosting....so yummy.  Thank you Brad for picking out such a wonderful cake.

And I'm sure everyone is wondering by this time where Veronica is...there are no pictures of her yet.  She decided to bless Mommy today with a wonderful 4.5 hour nap!!!!  It was wonderful.  She slept, I got to sit and relax and enjoy the day and then she was happy when she woke up.  So she wouldn't feel left out, I took pictures of her while Brad and the boys were at the Chapel. 
     

Modeling the bow that came with the dress, that she takes off about 30 seconds after I get it on.  I do love this picture because it shows what life is like...a girly dress with hair bow worn by the little girl, while she chews on a match box car left on the floor by one of the boys.

Still playing with the car...minus the bow

And showing off how she can get on all fours and rock back and forth

All the kids are in bed and sleeping, so I'm not relaxing and listening to some Pandora radio, enjoying a nice quiet night after a very fun day.

The goats have arrive and everyone is very excited.  We got them yesterday afternoon and they spent the afternoon crying and I was wondering how much of it we were really going to be able to take. I was really praying this would be short lived.  By this morning they were much happier....thankfully.

They did well on the trip home and the kids were thrilled to see them.  Samuel was a little scared after being knocked down by Hope a couple weeks ago, but he warmed up fairly easily.  I just made sure Hope didn't come near him.  Hope is a stinker.  Very hard headed and stubborn and likes to try to butt the kids.  They are getting better about pushing on her head and telling her "No".  Here they are getting used to their new home.

Dahlia checking out the "dog" house and a stump
 

Hope (Matthias trying to feed her leaves).  She doesn't stand still long enough to get a good picture of her.
  

So aside from the crying they did well...until it was time to milk Hope.  That is when the day got very crazy.  We took both goats to the milking area (red shed) and fed Dahlia while we milked Hope.  I am so glad that no one was taking pictures of us, I'm sure we were quite a sight.  First trying to get the two goats to the shed to milk and feed was hysterical as we had a combination of them yanking us down the hill and then us practically having to drag them a few seconds later.

So we finally make it to the shed and Hope doesn't want to get on the milking table.  Then the bucket we'd gotten to milk her was too big, so we got a bowl, but she wanted nothing to do w/ the milking and we had more milk on me (the very inept milker) and the table, floor, goat, etc.  She stepped in the bowl, knocked it over, tried getting off the table, etc.  Everything but standing still so I could milk her.  Not the patient milker we'd been hoping for.

So we finally brought both goats back up and put them in their stall for the night as we ran to the store to see if we could find a smaller bucket.  Success!!!  So home we came to give milking another try.  This time, we took Hope alone, which was once again interesting.  Finally, after many attempts, more stepping in the bucket and trying to step off the table, Mom fed her out of her hand and I got a little over a cup out of her before calling it quits for the night.  So back up to the stall she went....this was a combination of being dragged (by the goat) and dragging her.  Mom had her leash and puller her, while I nudged her from behind.  Like I said, quite a sight.

So then, we made plans to get up at 5am to milk Hope before Veronica woke up and it was time for Mass.  This time we were more prepared and with mom feeding her out of her hand again, we milked almost 2 cups!!!  Success, we had milk we could actually drink.  And getting her to and from the milking shed wasn't nearly as trying, which was good because 5am wasn't the time to give us a hard time.  Today went much better.  They didn't cry constantly, they loved the kids (minus Hope trying to butt the little ones) and tonight we got over 2 cups of milk in a very short period of time.  I'm praying tomorrow morning goes well.

The sun is finally shining after days and days of clouds and rain.  Everyone is enjoying being outside.  The grass is green, the flowers are blooming, the leaves are getting big and the kids and I are thrilled.  This time last week it was in the low 50s and raining and today it was 92 degrees and sunny.  I was hot and sticky, but there was no way I was going to complain after the cold and damp we've had. 

The kids begged all afternoon to be able to take the sprinkler out, so after all the chores were done I let Grant set it up.  They had a blast and played in it for over an hour.  No fighting, no crying, no arguing, just fun and not just for the little ones.  Grant and Parker really got into it too.

Augustin, showing me how dirty he was getting.  Sliding in the grass will do that to you.

Grant

This is Grant's "take a picture of me in slow motion" shot

Matthias stopping long enough for a picture

And seconds later sliding on his belly.  He was laughing pretty hard at this point

Samuel really enjoying himself.  He didn't really like the sprinkler last year, but this year he thought it was great.  Amazing what a difference a year makes

Samuel "kicking" the water

I don't think Parker stood still once.  I kept trying to get pictures of him, but he just kept running around

And playing with the little guys

Grant spraying the boys

Other random shots of the fun
   

And finally, it was time to get warm in a towel

I just love this time of year.  The grass turns green, the flowers bloom, the leaves come out on the trees and we can finally get outside.  We've had a lot of rain this year so we're taking advantage of the nice days when we can.  The flowers are loving all the rain though and are just beautiful.

Our lilac bush is just beautiful.  You can smell it from inside if the windows are open.  I took these 10 days ago when they were first blooming and now they are all open.  I'm going to attempt to take more pictures tomorrow (if the sun comes out).

The hosta has also exploded in the last week and is just gorgeous

The crab apple tree was blooming too and the kids loved collecting the blossoms and bringing them to me to put in water

I've gotten so many beautiful bouquets this spring!!!!

The boys are loving the outdoors and would spend all day out there.  The rain has really put a damper on our outside time.  Augustin doesn't let it stop him, he's got his rain coat on all the time and doesn't mind being the only one outside either.  On this day, it was bright and sunny and as you can tell by the dirty face, he was having fun.

That is dirt, not freckles

Enjoying time with Dennis

Grant was enjoying his time tending the bon fire.

Samuel...loves carrots

Matthias extra smiley and posing for the camera
 

No pictures of Parker for some reason; not sure why, he may have been at a friends house.  Right now we're just waiting for it to get a little warmer so we can get the seeds in the ground.  A couple weeks left before we can do that.

And in our big news....we're getting goats.  I can't wait.  Mom and I have wanted goats for the past year and they are finally going to be here.  We have found two beautiful Nigerian Dwarf goats, Hope and Dahlia.  They will be here Saturday.  We met them 2 weekends ago and got a few pictures.  Hope is the solid brown one and Dahlia is the brown and white one (laying down)

 

It always happens way too quickly, the change from newborn baby to mobile infant.  Yes, Veronica is mobile and the end of the "easy" life will be quickly coming to an end.  She isn't crawling yet, but in addition to rolling where ever she wants, she has figured out how to propel herself forward to get what she wants.  She tucks her legs under her belly, reaches forward and then pulls herself with her hands and pushes w/ her legs.

She started doing this over the weekend and I waited a few days to make sure it was deliberate, which it most definitely is.  She wants something...she gets it.  I guess it's time to pick up all the tiny toys and the boys are going to have to start worrying that she will get into their games.  And then the baby proofing begins.

I know she's almost 6 months old, but I really didn't expect it so soon.  She's not far behind Augustin who was actually crawling at just before 6 months old. I give her another 2 weeks before she's all over the place...maybe not truly crawling, but definitely getting into things we would rather she not.

I know I say this all the time, but where is time going?  It's already  May 7th and I'm sitting here wondering where time is going.  I'm LOVING spring, but I'm still in awe that it's here.  In retrospect it seems like winter was extremely short this year.  Please don't tell Brad I said that because he listened to me complain about the lack of ability to send the kids outside for 4 months and is probably thanking God multiple times a day for the nice weather; we are all a lot happier now.

I love flowers and the boys never disappoint.  Augustin and Samuel can spend hours (it seems) picking dandelions for me.  Brad asked me tonight how many containers of them we need in the kitchen.  We currently have 3 cups filled with the yellow flowers.

Samuel is enjoying not having to wear anything but a diaper (I couldn't resist)

We have been enjoying afternoons in the backyard as the kids play, Veronica lays on a blanket and I just enjoy having everyone outside.

Samuel and a chicken

Matthias playing with Veronica

Augustin trying to catch a chicken

Just playing around

Grant and Parker are back from their week away and finally got to hunt for their Easter baskets.

FOUND

Grant finds his too

More outside time...some baseball is always popular

The first week of May we headed to Old Sturbridge Village with some local friends and met up with some other families who have kids enrolled in the Classical Liberal Arts Academy.  We had a great day with amazing weather.  Everyone came home happy, sunburned and ready to go back.  We are considering getting an annual pass.

In the sawmill

Enjoying the sunny weather

Parker held up Veronica so I could take pictures of her

Veronica is getting really big.  She's rolling over all the time, loves her little doll and is generally getting too big for me.

Veronica is branching out and liking everyone in the family.  She and Grant are bonding

Augustin

Samuel