Barefoot Books

If you need to do any Christmas shopping for kids check out my barefoot books page www.shelley-albers.barefootbooks.com
AMBFTN is a coupon code for 15% off Also this week is 25% off singalongs
Some of our favorites are Zig Zag Zebra Activity book, The Animal Boogie w/ CD and all the puppets.

Best Buds

The girls and their cousin Cole.

Halloween

We had a busy Halloween! We went to a trick or treat trail, trunk or trick, a Halloween craft and story and Alexa had a Halloween party at school. We also went trick or treating in our neighborhood. The day after Halloween we took 5 lbs of candy to the dentist to send to the troops and we still have a TON left!

Future American Idols

Skate Night

Last night we took the girls skating for the 1st time. It was an adventure. They were really cute. There were many falls and laughs. They did the limbo and the chicken dance. Everyone had a great time and everyone was exhausted. Here is a video of the limbo.

Who would I be if

I weren't Alexa, Belle, Jenna and Zoey's mom. A little over 5 yrs ago I became Mom. The 1st yr was totally and completely consumed with being mom. The second year I was pregnant with 3. Year 3,4, and 5 I have had 4 kids. Being a mom is like nothing else. The love you have for your children is amazing. Everyday really is a blessing with kids.
With that being said some pre-mom things I miss are regular haircuts, lazy days, going to the movies, watching non children tv shows and going out. I have found that most of my pre-mom friends have drifted away and some of the things I used to enjoy do not seem as fun anymore. I think now that the girls are older I need to work to find more of a balance between being mom and being me.


On a side note Alexa told me that when she is old and I am really old I can be a slushie maker with her which seems like a great career option for me.

Great wedding weekend

Last weekend Chris's Aunt Laurie got married at a beautiful outdoor winery. Everything was so pretty. I loved that it was a smaller wedding and the bride and groom got to spend a lot of time with all the guests. My favorite part of the wedding was when the bride's nephew walked her down the aisle. It was a very touching moment. The girls were very well behaved and looked super cute in their dresses. Their favorite part of the reception was the balloon artist. He was awesome and could make anything you wanted out of balloons. Alexa got a unicorn, Belle a poodle, Jenna a princess hat and Zoey a ladybug. My awesome Mom went with us to help with the girls and she took the girls back to the hotel so we could have some adult time. All I can say is I love free wine! =) The next morning we took the girls swimming and headed home. It was great to hang out with family that we don't see as much as we would like to. Congrats Laurie and Glen!

Cleaning Ladies

I told the little girls that had to start helping since big sis is at school now. They love to vacuum but it usually causes a fight. Another favorite is spraying down the table. Picking up their toys is NOT a favorite!

Alexa's 1st day of school

Kindergarten has arrived. Alexa officially goes to school full day. Her teachers name is Mrs. Cox and she seems really sweet and excited to teach. I took her for orientation on Tuesday and Wednesday she went alone. I volunteered for recess duty her first day and she loved seeing me there. After school the little girls got to play on the playground with Alexa and their cousins. It is an adjustment for Belle, Jenna, and me not having big sissy at home. Alexa came home from school saying she loved school and wants to go back. I think it helps her friend Isabelle is in her class.

State Fair

When I was a little girl every year I would go to the State Fair with my Uncle David. He has been trying to get me to bring the girls for a couple of years so we decided to give it a try this year. I am so glad we did.
We went Thursday night to the parade and preview night. The girls liked the parade and got to ride a couple of rides. Every one's favorite ride was the dragon roller coaster. I got some vinegar fries. Yum! We went back to Uncle D's to sleep and woke up to Mellocream donuts.
We headed to the fair again with Mammy, Pappy, Uncle D and we meet Uncle John and Aunt Linda. The girls got their faces painted. Ate some ice cream and saw the butter cow. I got more vinegar fries and some taffy in between sometime. More Yum! Then we went to milk a cow. The girls were too funny. Everyone ended up milking it expect Zozo. She touched the cow and was done. Then they got the free chocolate milk which was one of the highlights for them. Before we left the girls persuaded Mammy and I to go on the Ferris wheel with them.
The weather was perfect and all 4 girls zonked out 15 minutes into the ride home. It was a perfect day.

My 3 little girls turned 3!

Where has the time gone? Three means bye bye babies.
We had a swimming party last weekend which was a lot of fun. We were happy to have so many people come and I was really glad Nana and Papa got to come. The girls got a lot of great gifts which we have been opening a little at a time. On their actual birthday we had a special breakfast the girls picked out, went swimming again and then the girls and I headed to Springfield for the State Fair Parade. Belle, Jenna and Zoey wore cute shirts that said Happy Birthday to Me!

Alexa lost a tooth!

Today Alexa was eating an apple and told me her tooth is wiggly. She took another bite and out it came. She was really proud and couldn't wait to call and tell everyone. Later she wrote a note that said. Dear TF- I would like $1. Love- Alexa. She wanted to write that she wanted to keep her 1st tooth but ran out of room on the paper.
When she woke up the Toothfairy had left her a sticker and a dollar. She was super excited about both and wants to buy lots of toys with the dollar. All week she has been telling me she has wiggly teeth and thinks the tooth fairy will be coming again really quickly.

Mini Vacation

All the kids looking excited for butterflies!

Girls with their butterfly paint. Alexa and her bud!





Chris went to Vegas for work so my friend and I and our 7 kids decided to go to Branson. The girls and I made it after 6 hrs of driving and pulled up at an awesome resort. It had an indoor and outdoor pool, mini golf, kids activities and a playground. We did a lot of swimming.
My friend and her oldest son and I went zip lining and did a free fall. I was totally nervous. I love parasailing and bungee jumping or at least I did. I kept thinking I have 4 kids, I have 4 kids but it was a great experience and a lot of fun.
One night we went to the Butterfly Palace at night which was all glow in the dark. The girls got their faces painted glow in the dark. They had mazes and different things to look at. Everyone had a good time.
The trip was a success but I need a vacation after the vacation!

Alexa said

she wants to be a Mommy, Doctor, Ballerina and Slushie maker when she grows up. I thought that is too cute and hope she follows through especially on the doctor/slushie maker part.


This is her practicing her no smile smile!!!

Bye Bye Cast

one more night of cast trying out new brace

Getting ready to swim

Zoey's cast came off today. Zozo and I made the early morning trip to Shriners. They took her cast off and she did great. She still has a open wound on her leg with sterile strips holding it together. Next we went to get her purple brace fitted and headed to see the doctor. All the drs think she has made great progress. For the next 3 months she will wear her brace 23 hrs a day.

We came home and went SWIMMING! Zoey had only been asking for the entire 4 weeks to go. All the girls loved the outdoor pool so we went again after nap. Unfortunately Zoey was having some leg discomfort this afternoon and tonight. So hopefully in the next few days/weeks we can build her strength back up.

She continues to amaze me. She laid like an angel while her cast was being cut off and her leg was being clean and stretched.

We are going to Kentucky we are going to

ci




Cole's 3rd birthday party. On Thursday Mom, Bob, the girls and I went to Louisville to start celebrating. Friday was Cow Appreciation day at Chick-fil-a. Mom, Bob, Belle and Jenna dressed up and went and got us breakfast. Then we all dressed up and went to get lunch. This was our 4th year going and we have fun and our costumes get better every year. Friday night mom, Christie, the kids and I went to a free event with a horse theme. All the kids got to ride a pony and they had kiddie horse races that the kids loved. Chris drove up that night and we all went out for a much needed adult beverage after the kids went to bed. Saturday we went to storytime at the Disney Store. That evening was Cole's birthday party at a gym. Everyone had a blast playing, climbing and having cupcakes. Saturday night we all decorated cupcakes for our family lunch on Sunday. Sunday family came over and we had a great lunch and another b-day celebration. Zoey was excited to get a lot of new signatures on her cast. It was a wonderful couple of days away and I loved hanging out with my family. We were sad to leave but pretty tired on the way home.

Happy 4th!

Here are a couple pics from the holiday weekend. After 3 days of looking I finally found the girls 4th of July outfits that I had bought last year. They loved the parade and made out on candy for their Mom!

Choices

Everyday I make 100 choices. Big/small important/silly good/bad smart/stupid
I am never sure I make the right choices and obsess a little too much about them. Zoey's surgery was a huge decision for me all the way until she had it done. I wish I had a "everything will be alright attitude". I think I will make that my goal for this year.

I have had a lot more people looking at my blog lately which is awesome! If you like you can hit follow or leave a comment.

Tutu Cute

My friend Tabitha has started a tutu and photography business and ask if the girls would be models. She made them each a different color tutu and took tons of pictures of them. It was so much fun and the pictures turned out so cute. Check out her Facebook page Tabitha's Tutu Closet. Thank you Tabitha for the precious photos and tutus. She is running a special right now if you have a little princess in your life.

3 things I thought I would never say...

I don't know if I am stressed because of Zoey's surgery, having 4 crazy kids or I am morphing into my mom but I caught myself saying 3 things I thought as a child/young adult I never would.
1. It is all fun and games until someone gets hurt! I brought the girls maracas from the wedding I went to. My cousin Jenni warned me against this btw. After playing with them happily for the 1st 1/2 in the car I thought we were good. Then the fun begin the girls started switching colors and when that went bad they started beating each other with them. So I calmly!? screamed it is all fun and games until someone gets hurt. The response I got from Belle and Jenna was continued hitting and Zoey said me no hurt Momma.
2. Mom sees everything. This time the girls had balloons. I was in the other room and could just feel them doing something wrong. So I shouted STOP. Alexa said mom you can't know I am doing anything wrong you can't see me. As I walked in seeing them sitting on their balloons trying to pop them I say mom sees everything.
3. Shh shh I can't drive when you are making noise. This was my mom's favorite thing to say to my sister and I and I thought this was too funny. Even 5 years ago I teased her about it every time we went to a big city or somewhere unfamiliar she said this. I had a headache the other day and the girls were talking and the movie was on and I could barely concentrate so then came the shh's. The girls thought this was so funny and started shhing as loud as they could which actually made it worse. :)

Zoey update #2

Zoey is walking all around on her cast now actually faster than without her cast. I am excited about that. We had a little cast signing party and she thought she was soo special and Cole and the girls had fun signing. She is no longer taking her pain meds so things are going great. We go back July 18th to take the cast off and get re-braced. A, B, and J were a little jealous of all of Zo's attention at first but now is all back to normal.

I love my sister!

My sister is a great person. She is always on my side and willing to help whenever I need her.
We are 5 1/2 years apart and my mom loves to tell the story of how it all started. Christie was so excited for me to be born she wanted a real life baby doll. That is how our relationship was for a long time Christie was like a 2nd mother. Over time we have evolved into really close friends. She will still sometimes go into mom mode for advice . I love having her in my life and hope I can be always be there for her.

Zoey is a SUPERSTAR!

Zoey had heel cord surgery today at Shriner's Hospital. We left our house at 5:15 am. Got there and got signed in and did paper work. She got a couple toys and played. At about 8:00 they gave her happy medicine and at 8:45 the nurses took her back to start. She was so happy it didn't bother her to leave us. For an hour I was freaking out wondering if I made the right decision. After about an 1 1/2 the surgeon came out and said she did great and we could see her when she woke up. After another hour and a fire drill she finally woke up. She would not talk for the first half hour since she was intubated. She started drinking and eating so we moved to same day surgery unit and she saw her dolly also got casted and fell in love. She named her Baby Macie (big surprise). After trying to walk unsuccessfully we got to go home. She took a long nap on the way home. Woke up and wanted her shoe off. I told her it didn't come off showed her hr doll and she has been doing great. She is not able to weight bear on her leg yet and is still on some good meds so she has been goofy. The other girls were glad to see her and love all her new toys. Alexa had been worried about her all day.
I am very proud of her and how brave see acted not even one tear. What a big girl. I hope the next 4 weeks fly by and this helps her walking and posture.

California knows how to party...

but do Christie and I? Answer: not as well as we used to! After having delays and arriving 5 1/2 hrs after expected I meet up with Christie, Deanna and my family at the bar. Fast forward to the next day and Christie, Deanna and I were not feeling so well. Christie and I felt better in time to enjoy a great wedding with a beautiful bride and enjoy some time with family members we don't often see. Also Saturday afternoon we did get to enjoy a little time at the beach. Sunday morning came way too quickly and I had an uneventful flight home. Four precious little girls in cardinals jerseys picked me up at the airport and were as happy to see me as I was to see them.
It made me realize they can live without me and that I should do a trip like that at least once a year. Christie and I are already planning the next one.

Holiday World

The girls and I took our 1st trip to Holiday World with Aunt Taylor and Grandma Ann. Christie and Cole meet us there. We had not been before but loved it. The water park is awesome. The girls had so many places to slide and play they loved it. Taylor and I rode a couple roller coasters. Also loved the free drinks and sunscreen. The girls passed out on the way home until the last 1/2 hour and then cried the rest of the way home. They were so tired and slept in the next day.

14 Hours

Until I am in California without kids!!!!

Night out

Last Friday we got a non-relative babysitter for the 2nd time ever. Our friends little girl came over after the little girls went to sleep and Alexa and her friend Isabelle got to play for a little while before bed. We went to watch a band on the square. The most fun we had was watching people try to ride a mechanical bull. We haven't laughed that hard in a long time. Then a huge storm hit and everything started flying around and the power went out. We survived even though we didn't get under a picnic table as my friend Kim suggested. :) It was a memorable night and great to get out and have a few good drinks and laughs.

Boat ride

Last weekend we all went on a boat ride on Carlyle Lake. Chris mom stayed in a cabin out by the lake. We cookout or and went out on the lake. Everyone had a great time.