aloha

I really ought to get these Spring Break pictures posted, considering we're about to embark on our next family holiday!

The boys and I took a little trip to see my sister Laurel-Anne and her kids during Max's first week of spring break. We drove up Monday March 9 and stayed for 4 sleeps. I've discovered Mon-Fri is the perfect stretch for a holiday like this. We still got to spend the weekend on either end with Paul, and the 4 nights away was just enough. Her hubby is very busy with school in preparation for an exciting career change, so I was happy to go and help pass some of the long days with her.

My boys travelled very, very well! There was a little bit of everything from Max and Marty ... happy, not happy, whining, snacking, talking (okay, there was a lot of that from Max), and a tiny bit of sleeping. It was hard to talk to Max and respond to every little thought that crossed his mind and came out of his mouth. They boy loves to chat, my goodness. It was hard to interact with him and focus on the driving. A few times I declared "no more talking, until I say so!" A few minutes later he'd squeak out a "Can I talk now?" Jaxon slept for the first 3 hours, woke up for a snack and new diaper on our lunch break, then back to sleep for the last 4 hours. Yes, that's about 8 hours total travel time! Impressive, hey? It actually went by remarkably fast. It was a beautiful day for driving. The drive home was just as nice. Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from Save-On sure made it extra nice.

Marty-Mart found a comfy position.
The stars and planets magically aligned and all 8 kids happily posed for a group shot. This was on the first day. They were still quite keen on each other then. The big kids and the babies were all quite amiable, it was the two stinkers on the far right that caused quite a ruckus. Only 3 months apart, both hovering around the delightful milestone of 3 years ... this made for the most stressful week of their lives, I'm sure. "My Mom!" "No, my Mom!" "Not Mom! Mommy!" "Not Mommy! Mom!" And so on, and so on, and so on went the senseless bickering. I'm pretty sure every word exchanged between them was shouted.

L-R: Calvin (~11 mos.), Malcolm (10 years), Clay (5), Max (4),
Jax (~3 mos.), Elijah (8), Marty (nearly 3), Cara (newly 3)
Clay & Elijah admiring Jaxon
This boy loves babies!
He's had lots of practice tending to them, and it shows.
Naptime was fairly flexible. Looks like he is, too.
Max took this little nap while the rest of us enjoyed a late dinner in front of the tv. Although they had played a-plenty that day, this may have been the week's third or fourth screening of Over the Hedge.
We managed to prepare several tasty and nutritious meals! This big 'ol bowl of Skillet Chili Mac was one of them. I totally forget where the recipe is from. I'll have to ask L-A.
Now, lest you should think that all we did was sit around refereeing, cooking and watching movies all day ... we also took a few trips in to town. We spent some time at her church, where the kids ran off some steam, she worked in the library, and I napped on the couch. Another day was swimming lessons for her three oldest. She supervised Max, Marty, Cara and Calvin in the kiddie pool while Jax and I watched from the side. They even made it outside to play in the snow a few times.

While in that neck of the woods, I picked up my super-cool, super-unique Aloha Apron Set from the one and only Amy Quarry. I know, I write about her a lot. She's got a lot of cool stuff and I really quite like what she creates. I shall close with a picture of Max and I modeling the "mother/daughter" apron set. He loves to wear it! We both feel quite special with them on. I dare say it even increases my productivity, as it reminds me that I really do have a real job.

I am a domestic engineer, afterall. :)

I can even wear the small one as a half apron. She's clever like that.
I originally started this post on March 19th. I would have completed it much earlier tonight (maybe back when it was still night, not morning!) if Jaxon had agreed to stay asleep. He woke up many times after I thought he was settled for the next several hours. I hope he's out for a good long stretch now.