She Walks in Beauty of the Night

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellowed to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impaired the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o'er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express
How pure, how dear their dwelling place.
And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!

I don't think Lord Byron was talking about a baby
when he wrote this poem, but I thought it fit!
Here is one by Shakespeare that might also work:

I grant I never saw a Goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare.
As any she belied with false compare.

Can I Have the Other Guy?

When I was little, my job was to put away the silverware from the dishwasher. I got a dollar every week for allowance. One time I saw my Dad's wallet that there were other guys on the bills, and I asked, "Could I have the other guy?" My dad thought it was so sweet that I got five dollars for emptying the silverware. Mike doesn't think he has a chance when it comes to Emily, and she seems to understand that her beauty does have its rewards. I think when she asks her daddy for the other guy she'll get a Hamilton instead of a Lincoln.

Star Wars!

Harrison!
Joshua and Stephen in their capes! Joshua even wore his cape to the Library today! Isn't it fun to be a kid!

The boys love playing Star Wars. I don't think they could go an entire day without playing. They are always changing charaters and episodes. One of their favorite games is mixed up Star Wars: where they play all the episodes combined.

Gypsy Gril is on the Go!

Gypsy Girl loves climbing up the slide!
Here she is at the top!
She is all ready to go down!

Whenever GG sees the backyard she begs to go outside. She loves the swing and the slide! GG is also learning how to walk. If she has the time, she will walk. If she is in a hurry she will crawl. They grow us way too fast--but it is also fun watching them grow. Thank you GG for coming into our life!

What? My Kids don't like Nothing!

Now there is a long story behind nothing. I grew up in a family with seven children who lived off of food storage (my dad was a college professor) We rarely had cold cereal, crackers, chips, or any junk food. One treat we made was peanut butter balls: the recipe consisted of powdered milk, peanut butter, and honey. The second treat was better, and we named it nothing. Now nothing is a wonderful mixture of butter, brown sugar, and oats. We would cook it up on the stove (then eventually the microwave), eat it, sometimes with milk (powdered at that) and clean it all up. We called it nothing, and we thought we were so clever because our mom never would know that we made it! Well, then one night we were down in the basement and my mom goes, "Hey let's have some nothing!" We couldn't believe our ears, she knew, for how long we don't know. Well the other night for bedtime snack I made nothing. Luke wouldn't even touch it, and Anakin had a few bites. So I was stuck eating one of my childhood favorite treats, and wishing that they could share in this kitchen miracle!

Our New York Trip

We had a wonderful time visiting my parents in Upstate New York. Here are a few highlights:

• Joshua fed goats and milked a cow at Farmers Museum
• We got to ride the Carasol three times at the Farmers Museum
• Harrison and Joshua played Star Wars with cousins: Parker, Alayna, Taylor, Sarah, Abbey, Stephen, and Baby Joseph.
• Emily took a few steps and got a huge crush on Parker.
• We played outside with water toys for two days straight.
• Baby Joseph recieved a blessing and a name.
• We had real pizza, ate ice cream at Pie in the Sky, and had Brooks Barbeque Chicken!
• We went to the lake and ate s'mores, canoed, and saw fireflies.
• Had a wonderful time with the cousins!
• Slept on the floor. (Or didn't sleep in my case)

We can't wait to go back next year, and this time we will bring Daddy with us so we can go camping up at the lake!

Memory Tag

Here are the rules:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments. I can't wait to see what people remember.