Chirps from the Tree~ January

"Chirps from the Tree" is a new addition to the blog this year & to give credit where credit is due, thank you Rob for titling it for me : ) When looking back at a month I want to have a snapshot of lots of little things occurring in our nest. The majority of life is in the day to day happenings & "Chirps from the Tree" will be a way to document those. So, here we go! 

Outside the Nest...

It's rainy & cold which is fine by me because it should be 70 again tomorrow. I do love Florida for that!

I am thankful for...

Precious friends that spoiled me this week with two days to myself.  The girls spent a day & night with their buddies Hannah, Lawson & Lilah then headed over to play with Quincy, Asa, Camp & Everett. The boys were cared for at home one afternoon while I was out & about, slept at home then spent the day with their doting older friends Anna, Clara & Alex. Everyone got dropped off at dinnertime just as another couple was arriving to send us out on a date. It was delightful to be quiet in our home, have some alone with with the hubby & reunite with my little brood.  Those other mama birds who took care of my little ones: Krinki, Cathy, Annie, Ileana, Christa & Jen (&Erik but he is no mama bird). 

I am thinking about...

how I am hopeful that Jesus would continue to change my heart to be more patient & loving, abounding in grace when I respond to my children throughout the day. I am often disappointed with my snappy responses & way I escalate to being super irritated in a matter of minutes. The process of become more Christ like is life long & I hope to struggle well especially in this area. 

In the schoolroom...

We are back in gear with CC this year & are pretty consistent with reviewing for about 30 minutes each afternoon. I am starting a new reading curriculum with Charlotte next Monday & I am really excited. As we are exploring homeschooling as a whole I am realizing there are some subjects that I need some MAJOR direction & reading is one of them. When I say major direction I mean a script & checklist ; ) This curriculum is almost that & I am hopeful it will get us off to a good start in the reading world. For the first time ever Charlotte opened a book this week & said "Mommy, I really want to read these words!" in a frustrated tone so I am also hopeful I will have an attentive student ; )  

From the kitchen...

We are big fans of Chicken Tacos in this house & have made them the same way for years until we recently tried them with ground chicken instead of chicken breast. We are hooked & are making them again tonight! Maybe we will mix up a Valentine Margarita to top off the yumminess!

Another change at the Valentine Nest is we are now doing our meal planning as a team then shopping as a family. It has helped us to stay on track & eat what we planned for & provides for a fun family outing. It has also helped to keep within budget which is something I struggle with when doing it on my own.

Mommy by day, nurse by night...

This month in Labor & Delivery we have been almost as busy as we are at the end of the summer. Not sure what is up with that but it is wild every time I'm there! It is nice though that I never get cancelled & I don't have enough time to get sleepy while I'm there since I'm on the move all night long ; ) I am done with ordering out following a run in with some food poisoning & have switched over to milk & cereal on my break....that is safe & delicious. One fun thing about having twins is that I frequently get assigned to patients having twins. I love it! It is great to connect with a twin mommy having had similar experiences & be able to accurately answer questions about caring for twins after going home from the hospital. I am always happy to walk in the door after a shift & be greeted by two girls running, one boy crawling & one boy squawking while stuck on a round belly ; ) Oh, and I get to take a long nap...always amazing.  

I am creating...

some Valentine decor. For quite some time all we have had is a metal bin with three wooden hearts on the kitchen table but heck, we have a holiday named after us & should be a bit more festive ; ) I pulled out a burlap banner I made for Eloise's first birthday party. At the time I taped bunnies onto each pennant on the banner & they fell off one by one. It was funny & annoying. This time around I used the Silhouette Cameo to cut red & brown hearts then attached them with velcro dots that way I can change out the shapes on the banner to match whatever seasonal decor we have out. So far so good, they have been up for 24 hours & nothing has fallen off yet! On my two days free I looked though my Pinterest boards for a project that would be cheap & simple. I am so relaxed when I am crafting & found great joy in leaving paint & mod podge all over the kid craft table during the day without little hands to get ahold of it & make a mess ; ) Here is the finished product....

and the banner...

I am working on...

a plan to manage the household duties around the Nest. Last January we hired Maria, a wonderful woman that served our family weekly for a few months then every other week for the remainder of the year. It was worth every penny we paid to have help with that prior to & following the birth of the twins. We made the decision to trim down our budget for 2014 & that was something we were willing to let go of. I told Maria that not only will I miss her amazing cleaning skills but I would miss the sweet way she has interacted with my family over the past year. She got to see the good, bad & the ugly if you know what I mean ; ) thankfully she lives just minutes away & I think we will still get to see her every now & then. I know we can get back in the swing of taking care of all those tasks ourselves but I imagine it will take some time. 

Clicking around...

A few blogs I have frequented as of lately are:

Love is Waiting- an adoption blog of a cousin & his wife of a good friend of mine. They have adopted one son from Africa & have come alongside other families to help them raise the funds needed for adoption by selling these adorable shirts & giving 20% of proceeds to a different family each week.  

Under the Sycamore- a creative mama with five kids, great photography & crafty tutorials. 

Wisdom & Righteousness- another family (I do not personally know) that does CC & has this great series on making a family schedule. I want to look more into this in February.

I am reading...

Desperate, Hope for the Mom that needs to breathe

The Ministry of Motherhood: Following Christ's example in reaching the hearts of our children

I am praying for...

my precious friend Jocelyn.  She suffered the loss of her baby Sam at 12 weeks gestation last July. The due date for Sam is just over a week away & she continues to struggle well as she & her husband grieve the loss of a child. Her transparency in sharing her heart throughout this entire experience has encouraged me to trust God more & I would venture to say it has done the same for others. 

Erik & Jen, good friends of ours who are waiting to adopt their son Edison from Colombia. They are in the waiting stages at the current time & are hopeful they will receive notification within a couple months to book their flights to bring him home. 

I am hearing...

or shall I say we are jamming out to Seeds of Faith Family Worship daily in the car, in the house, at bedtime for the kids...pretty much all the time! 

I am also hooked on the Frozen Soundtrack this week but only listen to it on You Tube for free.

Yes, I'm a mom. 

Something that has made me laugh...

Charlotte was on Facetime with Grammy the other morning & Grammy was showing us the dryer which was broken & had been taken apart & all the boxes of flooring that are waiting to be put in following a leak in their home. Grammy said "we are busy little beavers!" to which Charlotte replied "do you have tails?" with the most adorable look on her face. She also calls "yogurt" "yogret" right now...love that girl. 

Around the house...

we are in the constant cycle of preparing food, feeding, cleaning up over and over....and over....and over. and laundry, oh laundry, you are everywhere ALL THE TIME! Someday I will conquer you ; ) 

One of my favorite things...

I became a coffee drinker during my pregnancy with the boys & have never looked back. I have cut out soft drinks all together & am really enjoying my coffee beverage each morning or afternoon.  My favorite new addition to my coffee is Bolthouse Farms Mocha Cappuccino which I use in place of a creamer. I still like to add a little sugary taste via Stevia or sugar. So maybe in all honesty I like sugary tasting drinks with a little bit of coffee ; ) 

Plans for the rest of the week...

Fun play date tomorrow then working two out of the three weekend nights which means naps for four days straight wahoo!

Life via Instagram...

Squirrels 4- Valentines- ZERO!

What is going on? There are more squirrels in my parents backyard than all the acreage we "hunt" on! We can't say we were surprised that the squirrels won AGAIN as we traipsed around the forest with our unruly bunch brandishing a gun.  As far as wildlife goes, we did happen to see two deer & either a bunny or a baby hog...more on that later. 

The girls had been prepped well for the possibility of killing a squirrel & eating it for dinner. They were actually really excited to eat it although I am pretty sure of what their faces would look like if it was served up as squirrel stew ; )  Grammy & Grandpa were still in town on their extended holiday visit/dog-sitting Bella/repainting the interior of our house & were happy to join us on our tour of the woods with the Fab Four in tow. 

The little guys were decked out for their first hunt & could not have been happier to eat dirt & leaves! Owen actually broke out in some strange rash soon after we plopped him down for this picture : / Thankfully it wasn't poison ivy & went away rather quickly! Here are Anson & Owen on their first squirrel hunt...

It was AMAZING to have two more adults to share the carrying/rounding everyone up with. The girls were happy to fill Grammy in with what we do on a squirrel hunt on our way there. It went like this: "First we have to be really quiet & look for the squirrels with the binoculars. Then when we see one, Daddy will shoot it with his gun & then we will take him home & eat'em for dinner." Oh my goodness I was laughing so hard with her matter of factness! Grammy was laughing too & we thanked Char for preparing the "new" hunters.

Chubby Bubby hitched a ride with Daddy when he got to heavy for me to carry around.

Char hauled this branch around showing us how strong she is. I think she gets it from me ; ) Actually I am a total weakling when it comes to lifting things or unscrewing the lid off a jar of spaghetti sauce or sadly, taking the lid off a sippy cup Robby screwed on tight. He always refers to me as "Muscles Ellis" when I am struggling to do one of the previously listed tasks & it is usually in a tough coach voice saying "C'mon Muscles Ellis, show me what you got!" It always makes us both laugh since we know I struggle for a minute then just give & let him do it ; ) Maybe Charlotte will inherit some Valentine muscles & be a little more athletic than her mother.

Daddy is a popular guy when it comes to carrying kids & Anson soon got booted so Lolo could climb aboard.

When I say he got booted, he was actually delighted to be in the arms of his Grandpa who kept him happy with lots of sugars on those chubby cheeks.

Lunch at Billy Lake was quick, painless, a little muddy & full of opportunity to take pictures. I LOVE this one....

Those four all came home from the hospital in the big red Texas truck & were so precious sitting together eating lunch. Robby swears that truck will be around long enough to teach the kids how to drive it...can't wait to see that! The little misters were driving their sissies crazy by trying to steal every bite they were taking. I had to grin a bit knowing that it is only getting worse as they become more mobile!

Sweet Eloise, the middle child... we love her.

and we LOVE her dimples!

and Charlee, she did a lot of exploring & asked a lot of questions. Such a pretty young lady.

After lunch we headed over to one of our favorite trails that has lots of water. IT was a fun ride there because the girlie pies, Anson & I got to ride in the back of the truck. They thought that was about the best thing ever!  Once we arrived at our next destination, the girls were completely occupied splashing in puddles, walking along the edge of where some little streams began & throwing sand into the water...my favorite ; )  This gave Rob a chance to look for some squirrels sans kids.

It was beautiful outside & I loved watching the girls enjoy some good ol' fashioned fun. 

That last picture was where it happened.  Eloise got completely soaked head to toe! Grandpa helped her get her boots off & we were all laughing when he poured a good two cups of water out of each one! It was chilly when wet & silly mommy only brought leggings & a jacket but no shirt. That was better than forgetting diapers like I did last year ; ) 

It was a good thing we got a family picture before the splashin' began!

While the girls were splashing away, Grammy & I were ergoed up...

Anson was really tired & doing a lot of screaming/squirrel alerting so I walked & sang to him for a bit. He started saying "Mamamama, mamama" loudly at first but then it quieted down to the sweetest "mamama" you ever did hear. When I looked down, his eyes were closed, his thumb was up to his mouth & he was saying "ma-ma-ma-ma" so sweetly. I just about melted. Really though, I was teary eyed. Last year those buckaroos were carried in-utero while we "hunted" & this year they can say "mama." Sweet, sweet babies.

Eloise received a pair of binoculars in her stocking at Christmas with the hope that she would get to use them while hunting. She kept us laughing the entire time by referring to them as her "knockers." She would say "look at my knockers" or "Grammy has knockers" or "Don't touch my knockers." The list goes on & on. The "knockers" came in handy for these two....

When we were leaving that last hunting trail Rob was driving the truck with his dad in front of me in the Expedition. He stopped & jumped out right by some bushes saying that he saw something. I glanced over & swore I saw a black bunny. Robby had his gun out & was looking close hearing something rustling around. Charlotte was up against the window super excited saying "What is it?" I said I thought it was a bunny & she said "Is Daddy going to kill it? Can we eat it for dinner tonight? I really want to eat a bunny." Hahaha! I did not expect that from a 4 year old girl! Bob was wanting to get a better look too & said "give me some binoculars" while he was opening up the trunk & next thing I knew he was using the Fisher Price "knockers" searching for the supposed bunny. Another hahaha! After further debate, Robby declared it was a baby hog & that he could hear some snorting. I guess he was probably right since I have never heard a bunny snort. That would have made some good breakfast sausage though...better than squirrel stew! He escaped the hunter & we were loaded up & headed off the trail. 

Just a couple more pictures of the Valentine girls & boys on our first hunt as a family of six. 

I love this day every year! Being outdoors is one of my favorite ways to spend time as a family & the perfect weather helped for the wonderful time had by all.

I know I say it every year but....next year is it! We are going to have a feast of squirrels!

You bet your Pierogi I'm Polish!

We have skipped out on Pierogi day for two years now due to illness/pregnancy & were SO excited to bring it back to life this year especially with the woman who has passed along her Polish genes! Bob & Jeannine are pierogi making pros & apparently Polish dancers as well. We enjoyed their rendition of Roll out the Barrel in the middle of the kitchen!  The girls were excited to jump in & help grandpa with the dough making (pantless). At least it was Elo & not grandpa ; ) 

Grammy was in charge of rolling out the dough & cutting it. Thankfully Eloise was there to help her or I'm not sure she would have been able to complete her task in a timely manner.

I'm pretty sure the newest Polish shirt has not been premiered on the blog yet so...PIEROGI LOVER it is!  

Charlotte & Eloise got a kick out of helping & were actually pretty decent pierogi makers. Here are some little hands, a fork & extra long creases to close the dough...

Steve, Jenny, Karis & Isaac joined us for the last few pierogi's since the rule is "if you wanna eat one, you gotta make one." Isaac was happy that O & A were in the jumperoos & followed suit with Lolo bouncing them all over the place while they squealed.

That handsome little guy will soon be two AND a big brother to a baby sister who grew so very much while we were in Texas! I wanted to make a shirt for Jenny that said "Pierogi in the Oven" but I just never got around to it : )

Karis is excited about most anything in life minus naps according to her mother. She jumped right up alongside Rob-bu Shamu as she calls him. Not sure where that name came from but it makes me laugh every time she says it! You could tell this girl had 1/8th polish blood with her pierogi making skills.

We boiled them up, pan fried them & enjoyed with some kielbasa! Delicious as usual. 

Owen & Anson had never laid eyes on a pierogi before. Owen was not so sure about it & broke down in tears as if to say "that's what I have to eat for dinner??" I gave in & fed him some other yummy things he likes. 

And Anson, oh Anson, we wonder why chubby bubby outweighs his bro by 2 pounds.....this picture says it all haha!

After all tummies were full, we headed outside for a group pic. We have not had one since Jenny was pregnant with Isaac! So she looks about the same but she is holding that babe who was in the womb in 2011 & our family has doubled the amount of children we have : ) Makes for a stinkin' hard time to get everyone to look & smile at a boring old camera on a tripod! I love Char's 80's outfit combo. There was way too much going on when we were trying to get out the door & I didn't even pay attention to how she was dressed. It is cute though because it just screams "Charlotte" right now.

I am so thankful for Bob & Jeannine, the way they have stayed committed & faithful to one another through nearly 39 years of marriage, how they raised their sons, how they came to know Christ through the influence of those handsome boys of theirs, how they welcomed me & Jenny into their lives treating us like daughters, how they come to Orlando anytime they can sneak away & jump right into the craziness of all these children even if it can be overwhelming....which it is, how they develop relationships with our children while they are away & how they care deeply for us.  Retirement has kept these two quite busy with traveling & home repairs. Maybe some relaxing will come in 2014 : )

The Zoo Crew

Yep, that's right, I'm still playing catch up from 2013 & I'm okay with that : ) Maybe I'm trying to drag it out as long as possible since we had such a wonderful time....we will go with that.  At this point I cannot remember what day we went to the zoo. I just know it was between Christmas & New Years & I know that it was quite chilly. 

This was our third trip to the Houston Zoo with Charlotte & Eloise & the very first zoo trip ever for Owen & Anson. We love this place! With beautiful cool weather & a lively bunch to walk around with we were set for a great day. That was until I went to take a picture & realized my photo card was in my laptop...at my parents house grrr! I didn't even flinch when I forked over a bit too much for a photo card at the zoo gift shop since I had already decided it didn't matter because I really wanted pictures of our time there. It was a good purchase because we captured some special moments at the Zoo : ) 

Super Dad & three of the Fab Four approaching the giraffes.

First order of business: Feed the giraffes some $5 lettuce. Seriously, I should have brought my own head of romaine! Eloise was really excited & listened carefully as we explained the rules. She did a great job & of course wanted to do it again.

Charlotte is a giraffe feeding pro thanks to multiple visits here & a few places in Florida. That is kind of funny that I had never fed a giraffe until Char did it for the first time & now she has done it at least 5 times!

While we were waiting in line to walk up to feed the giraffes, I happened to glance at the name badge of the guy standing at the entrance. It said "Miguel" & my brain started working. I know that sounds funny but it is worth mentioning when I feel like my brain works well ; ) Anyway, we met Miguel & his now wife Amanda at our Life Group back when I was pregnant with the twins. They were friends of another couple in our group & came once or twice just before Miguel left for an interview at the Houston Zoo. As I said "Miguel, did you used to live in Orlando?" I caught Robby looking at me like I was crazy. It all clicked though & we realized we all met once or twice. It was fun to chat & really fun to get hooked up with a free ride on the carousel for kids #1,2,3 &4!

While we fed the giraffes, the boys chewed away. They could not have had a more appropriate toy than "Sophie." Or, is that inappropriate?

Owen & Anson

Uncle Kyle joined us even though he was on the downward spiral of not feeling well. We were glad he was up for the challenge.  Uncle Scott had already hit rock bottom & headed back to his house to recover. We missed him. I love this picture of these two & see a slight similarity...

We rented a wagon to pull whoever wanted a ride. I kind of wanted to ride at one point & I'm sure Kyle did too since he wasn't feeling fabulous. I love Elo's little feet sticking up as she was loungin' while riding around the zoo.

 It is always SO nice to go places when there are more adults than children!

The chimpanzee was right up against the window & was just "so coot" as Eloise said.  Both girls got a good look at him & he got a pretty good look at them too. 

Here's me & my dad. Too bad we didn't get a picture of our actual faces ha!

I had to take a picture of this sign. We laughed when we were standing there reading it thinking how that definitely has the potential to ruin your trip to the zoo! We maintained our distance without much consideration.

The lionesses (is that what they are called?) were lounging & it reminded me of how Bennett & Bella used to lay when they were wee little pups. The king of the lions was also lounging nearby...on his back...exposing himself so much so that my brother & Rob were giving me a hard time for taking a photo. I am refraining from posting the inappropriateness ; )

We can tell the boys apart very easily but when they fall asleep with hoodies on it makes it a bit more difficult! They look SO similar. Anson is on the left & Owen is on the right. I was even more confused as I examined this picture because I always give Owen the orange blanket or clothing but anyhow, I'm certain I swapped the blankets this time.

It is funny that I always end up with more pictures of our kids than animals at the zoo but when it comes down to it, I like them better than the animals anyway ; )  Charlotte decided to hitch a ride partway around the zoo & I just couldn't get over how old she is looking these days!

Eloise hitched a ride on her favorite shoulders & enjoyed the view of the tigers from up high.

We ended our trip to the Houston Zoo with one more ride on the Carousel which happened to be the first Carousel ride for the buckaroos! I had completely forgotten but Charlotte & Eloise's first ride on a Carousel was at the same place....so special!

The boys loved it & seemed to know just what to do. It was like Eloise, the professional carousel rider had given them some tips. They were precious! Uncle Kyle was buddied up with Anson & Rob stood next to Owen as we went round & round.

Any guesses on who stood next to Eloise? Yes, yes, you are right! GAGA, Eloise's best friend : ) Eloise picked a Golden Retriever which is a little random for a Zoo carousel but she enjoyed her ride & her riding pal.

I will end with a bit more about carousels.  We traveled to Dearborn, Michigan to visit Robby's Grandma Virginia in August 2012. We spent a day at Greenfield Village & rode the Carousel multiple times. The animals were three across & as Robby & I stood next to our little girls with sweet smiles across their faces I said while looking at the lone animal next to us, "What do you think about having just one more baby & being done?"  I thought the same thing while looking into the backseat while we were driving home with one space between the girls. Upon our arrival home we saw that positive result on a pregnancy test and a short time later we were told there were TWO babes growing in my womb. Haha! Fast forward to our trip to the Houston Zoo & I couldn't have been happier taking up MORE than one row on the carousel seeing the smiling faces of my four little Valentines. It kind of made me want to have one more, but then I would want to have two since I like even numbers ; ) 

What a lovely day it was, chilly weather & all! We headed home with some worn out children (and adults), & settled in for a quiet evening at home.