Happy Valentine's Day

Scrolling through facebook last night, I saw a friend's link to this video on writing love letters. It got me thinking, I should write a love letter. Not necessarily some sappy thing to Mike, but just a good letter to someone I love. Then I started to think about my kids. There's some amazing blog circles of photographers who write letters to their sons/daughters/children once a month. Whenever I read them, they completely inspire me, but my letters never seem to happen. So sitting there, thinking about love letters & thinking about the letters to our children project, made me want to write one letter to all three of my kids, for Valentine's. It seems fitting today, not only because it's Valentine's, but because yesterday was really crummy. Like quite possibly, my worst day of motherhood. That may be a stretch, but I'm fairly certain the kids secretly plotted against me, to make sure one of them was throwing a fit at all times. Seriously, there were some major screams shouted & tears shed by my trio. I decided there must be some change in barometric pressure that I can attribute their behavior to (that's a possibility, right?) because the weather really did change yesterday. Maybe that's a stretch, but I want to believe they will wake up with smiles, & keep them on for most the day.

My three musketeers,

This image was taken from the driver's side of my minivan, the one I swore I'd never own. That was pre- you three. I now have succumbed to the reality that minivans rock. Seriously, automatic sliding doors? The.best.thing.ever. Yesterday afternoon, I sat in my driver's seat in our driveway, while Ella slept in her car seat, & you boys burned off some energy. I watched the rain fall, I drew hearts on the window, I admit I looked at instagram a bit, but really I wondered why you two boys (& Ella) we're in such bad moods. Most the times, I think I understand when you're upset, what the reasons are & give you your space, or whatever else it is you need. But yesterday, I just wasn't sure what was going on. Regardless of what it was, I know today we can start a new day together. New adventures, new questions, new curiosities, new arguments, new challenges, new laughs, lots of new. Because every day really is full of a lot of new. We see it physically with Ella. Her top two teeth are trying so hard to come through, finally revealing their tips, & she's also decided to flail herself out on the ground, when she's upset. Two days shy of ten-months & she's thrown her first fit. I'd be lying if I didn't say I find it cute.

Rylee, my oldest. I see a lot of myself & your dad in you. You are determined. You like things a certain way, & you stick to your guns. You are strong-willed, incredibly intelligent, curious & love the outdoors. Here you are, on our Sunday at the beach, showing off your potato bugs. At least that's what we always called them, I'm not quite sure their 'real' name, but I'm fairly sure you'll know them as potato bugs, as well. Yesterday, you stayed home sick from school. You've had a cold this past week, but yesterday morning your cough was pretty bad. That dang asthma. You got that from me, too. Your lungs were tight last night & I'm planning on keeping you home today, too. I know you were so excited to pass out your Valentine cards at school, but you need good rest & good health. You also need to keep that smile on your face & your excitement for the daily adventures of life. You are one awesome dude!

Covey, my middle child, who we joke suffers from MCS (middle-child syndrome). Kidding, kinda. You are currently my ninja, & you've been sharing some fairly sweet moves with me lately. They are usually demonstrated at random moments, & provide me with the smiles I need. You are very, very good at putting smiles on faces, whether it's through words or actions. I often refer to you as our family clown or my goof ball, because you are. I hope you keep those qualities forever- people always need to laugh. When you make others laugh, it makes you laugh, too. Your imagination is incredible; it is so much fun listening to you use it, especially with your superhero/ninja/star wars figures. You are also learning an incredible amount with letters, words & numbers. Ry comes home from school & you soak up everything he is learning. You are also one awesome dude!

Ella, the baby. It's your first Valentine's day & your 10-month birthday. Hard to believe it's already been 10-months since we welcomed you into the world. You are so, so loved & so, so loving- I will never get enough of your sweet snuggles. Your brother's dote on you, always offering their help. I'm sure at times you don't like it, like when they keep food-droppings out of your mouth. Our bottom feeder, I call you, as you crawl around as fast as can be, searching for something to eat. You have your two bottom teeth & are working on those top two. You're standing up alone, without any support; walking with your wagon; crawling like crazy; flailing on the ground when mad; & so, so close to walking, without assistance. Basically, you are growing up too fast. Since you are the last baby, your milestones are bittersweet. You are also so full of smiles & share your laughter so willingly, you are the definition of pure joy.

Even on days like yesterday, when I'm convinced I have no clue what I'm doing as a mom, I still love all three of you more than I can ever tell you or show you. I hope that's something you never forget, even when you think you don't like me. You are my three musketeers & you always will be. Love, Mom

My photo-a-day attempt is having a funny effect on me; rather than dreading picking up the camera again, for another image, I am picking it up more, a lot more. I have a thing for Sundays & a thing for the beach. I'm not really sure why, but Sunday's have always signified family days, filled with lounging, fun & a bit of laziness. Whether we're on a Monday-Friday schedule, or absolutely no schedule whatsoever, Sundays are still Sundays. This past one we went to the beach. We do that a lot. We live on an island, so it only makes sense. The beaches surround us- they are literally minutes from our house, waiting for the kids' to arrive with their curious minds.

This past Sunday we woke up lazily, moving slowly around for a couple hours. Then our house shook from an earthquake. I panicked because it shook good & we are not in a tsunami-safe zone. Thankfully, it was only a 3.8 magnitude quake, it just happened to be very few miles from home, so we felt a couple good jerks. After deciding we weren't on tsunami-watch (part of living on an island), we decided to head to one of our favorite beaches.

My sister came along & I took a few pictures of her super-cute baby bump, she's 32 weeks already & tiny & cute, I never was! We found lots of beach treasures- a duck decoy, a fly swatter (last year a container was lost somewhere at sea, & football fly swatters have been washing ashore ever since), the perfect slingshot stick, a crab shell & a bright orange basket to carry home said treasures. I also took advantage of having my sister with us, to attempt a family photo. We ended up with a lot of interesting ones, & a couple worthy of sharing (for a good laugh).

It was a good day at the beach, followed by warm bowls of soup at my parents for our Soup Sunday's, a tradition we attempt to keep going at least a couple times a month.