a different kind of quiet....

These guys are back home! (Except for Margaret and Abigail, who flew on back to Norway) In pic, Joseph, Suzanne, Kathryn, Margaret, Mirielle, Evelyn, Abigail, and Emily.

And, these guys are back home with their mama and papa.


So it's a different kind of quiet. No pitter patter of little feet in the early morning, no breakfast requests or morning jammy snuggles. My own kids are all still sleeping, and the sweet twins and their big brother Will (he was here on the weekends, stayed with my sister, his Grammy, during the week so he could go to school).

My own kids aren't quiet. But they get their own cereal, and don't fuss about which cup their milk is in. ha. Their noise is in a different form, those teenage quarrels and opinions and suggestions and yeah, they come in and take over the house. Having only little ones is busy, but it has been a different kind of busy...almost soothing in it's predictable-ness, compared to dealing with teenagers. And the cuddles! Oh dear, I have had more hugs and snuggles in the last few weeks! Dealing with little children that aren't my own is interesting. I couldn't let them run circles around me...I mean, yeah, we ALL want cookies right after breakfast. It WAS a good idea to bring all the teddy bears outside, but sorry, I know I would be the one dragging their soggy butts back in the house tomorrow when we realized they were still out there. And it is cuddly to eat popsicles on the couch, but...nah. And honey sweety pie, I don't care if he DID have that booster seat last time, and you REALLY want a turn, this booster seat is just as nice. Twins, they are interesting. These little things they compete for...at first I tried to be fair, then I realized they didn't care about fairness, they just wanted what they wanted when they wanted it, especially if their sibling wanted it. :)

These little ones came here to my house so trustingly, so sweetly, and they did have fun! I absolutely love they way they appreciate the little stuff. I would find a really red maple leaf, and they would jump up and down and start running around the yard looking for more. They loved going bye-bye...one morning I had to pick Paul up from the airport, and wanted to make it a little bit special for them, so we all went into the Dunkin Donuts and I let them all pick out what donut they wanted, Davian was with us that day too. They took a few minutes to decide, and the clerk was so patient with them...

Anyhow, I miss them already, but we have plans for the future...I sang them the song, "On Top Of Spaghetti", and told them how Camille used to cry her eyes out when she was little because it was so sad. Sebastian would ask me over and over again, to "sing that sad song to me". So we are going to have a meatball party at my house some night and sing that song.

Just being silly and breaking out in, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", and having little voices join in...no eye-rolling...ha, it was fun.

Charlotte Claire and Camille loved having little ones here too. They liked tucking them in at night and for naps. They liked pushing them on the swings and helping them set up doll houses and forts. It made me realize that my kids are getting so big.


Story time.


Our trip to Target...Sebastian and Linnea with Char and Cam. I let them choose a plastic pumpkin right as we walked in, and they were pretty happy. But when we approached the toy department, just to look, I told them...Linnea said she didn't WANT the pumpkin. I knew what she was getting at. I reminded her that we were just looking, and she told me that her mama let her get toys. Can you see how I just drowned in cuteness? And half way through the store, I pretended I hadn't heard them ask for popcorn, and suggested, "How about we get popcorn and slushies?!" Just to hear them shout, "Yay!" Then there was the broken cup...I found these nice cups with straws, and let Sebastian choose one...there was only one little girls' cup, with princesses...Linnea was delighted...until it slipped out of her hand and fell, and yeah, it broke. She was so upset, I picked up another cup, not as nifty, but it had Anna and Elsa on it...and she was okay with it. But she kept telling me, "It makes me sad.", and I told her it just happens sometimes, and it IS sad. That child...the way she wrapped herself around my heart.


Camille, Char, Linnea, William, and Sebastian...we stopped at a one-room school house that William is fascinated with, he read a story about it in school and enjoyed the spur of the moment visit, even though it was closed and we only looked in the windows.

My teenagers are waking up, they have laundry to do...I did enjoy being the sole user of the washer and dryer for the last few weeks...ah well. Back to real life.