And What a Year It Was. . .

It's hard to believe this little man has been occupying space on this earth for over a year now (I am aware this picture says 10 months.  I can't seem to locate the 11 month pics & haven't taken the 12 month pics yet. Yeah.)  The Bonus Baby.  I wasn't sure I could love him the same way as the other two.  I was right.  I can't. (Totally not because he's the one I didn't have an epidural for)  He is a treasure all his own, full of cuddles, bashful smiles and special love for mommy.  No walking yet, predictable since his siblings didn't walk until 16 and 17 months old, respectively.  Actually, he has a crazy crawl propelled by one foot.  I am certain he has the strongest big toe in Texas.  I've often lamented that I never had kids that would sleep in crazy places.  Well, out of necessity, KP wins this race.  My dad says he has smiley eyes--his whole face lights up with joy. .  . unless there are loud noises or his parents walk out of his sight, then his bottom lip quivers, jutting out to express just how heart-broken he feels.  No worries, a thumb in the mouth solves everything.  

Seriously.  Face half in the water, half-out.  Asleep.  Clearly the best sleeper on vacation.

I love this picture.  Love.  This is my boy, in a nutshell.

Fifteen months or so ago I had no idea how we would survive.  How we would ever ever go on a vacation again.  How I would ever get out of the house on time for my job with four people to get ready.  Then Chris decided he needed a career change, exactly at the time this little boy was due to make his appearance.  No one else really understood our reasoning, but we just took it day-by-day.  Chris and I call it our own brand of chaos--dirty floors, sticky counters, toys everywhere, more laundry than I ever imagined, loud voices, hugs, tears, toys everywhere (seriously, everywhere).  I can officially say I survived working full-time as a mom of three.  We are a rare breed,I only know a handful of moms who have their own tribe and still work full-time, but with help of a laundry service & my generous co-parent, I have done it for one year.  Eighteen more to go.. . .although with current job stats, that may be more like twenty-one more to go.  I figure as longs as smiles out-number tears, hugs out-number hits, there is food on the table and healthy kids and parents, I'm ready to tackle the challenge.  

It was a "Big Day"

Days under 95 degrees in August in Texas are unheard of and are for the record books. With a million and one chores around the house, we decided that staying closed up inside the house was just not an option today. Elliott asked this morning if we could have a "Big Day." Repeated clarification attempts brought tears on his part, puzzled looks shared between Chris and me. . Finally, he explained he wanted to do something 'big' together as a family. So after nap, we headed out to the Fort Worth Zoo--one of the 10 best zoos in the nation. While we were hoping to see Baby Belle, the new baby Asian elephant, we saw enough in our two hours that made up for her absence. I was expected crowds, serious crowds, because any time in the past 10 years that I've been to the FW Zoo it's been crazy-crowded, but somehow fortune smiled upon us with little in the way of crowds and active animals. We followed up with an outing to Central Market for some live music, beer, foodie foods and friendship, as our friends Karen & Nathan & baby Ty-Mo joined us for some patio time.

Squint and you can see the rare white Bengal tiger in the background.  I saw the same tigers 10 years ago when they were cubs, held in the arms of zoo keepers.  The are stunning, but just easy prey in the wild.

Ostrich egg exploration.  The shell had been opened & inside cleaned out.  The thickness of the shell was several mm thick.  Totally fascinating.

Elliott's favorite part of the day was the bird atrium-thingy.  Full of parakeets & cockatiels, I spend the majority of my time waiting to get pooped on.  To each their own.

Brookie and the Sloth Bear.

That kangaroo was sacked. out.  Done.  

Python.  Yeah.  The kids loved the new Museum of Living Art, which replaced the old herpeterium.

Special K, just prior to losing his mind over being in the stroller for 2 hours.  Mainly I felt bad because all other zoo pics were of the big kids.  

Gelato.  

Hatch Chile Fest!

Big Days are good.  Glad that handsome boy convinced us to take the leap.