She could double for a Cabbage Patch doll... look at those cheeks!
She has serious style...
This is her big pose for the camera-- totally Jodi's kid.
She is just too cute. I love to watch her in action. I can't get enough of this little princess. I love you Beans!
This morning I was getting the kids ready for church and Emerson walked in looking like this. He is really good about getting himself dressed but he still struggles with the Sunday attire. I couldn't help but snicker a little at his almost "chip and dales" look. You're too cute Em!
My two cool guys all wound up for church. They like to give me a challenge on Sundays just to keep it interesting. Well, if you are wondering what I've been up to-- you're looking at it...
I've been busy babysitting Owen for the Barlow's. It's been a learning experience for the whole family. We now know that pets aren't really our department. Owen is a great dog-- but far too much work for a mother of four. I find myself feeling bad for him and going over the top to treat him well. So when I returned him this evening, I felt a great sense of relief to know that he was no longer my baby.
Tim even spent some quality time with O. We played with him and combed him every night after the kids went to bed. He was really spoiled at our house. By the end of the week the little hair ball was starting to grow on the big hair ball.
The kids have taken to wearing fake glasses so they can be just like Maddie. (Yeah, they really missed you Barlows-- A LOT!)
Brecky on the go carts-- again...
Rugs doing what he loves best.... feeling some speed. If he's not driving fast, he's riding his bike fast or running fast. He really only has one speed-- FAST.Emerson has been pretty skiddish with Owen since he was a puppy. He just isn't sure about dogs in general. Well this is the second time that we have had a chance to babysit Owen and I think he is slowly growing on Em. As you can see Em still isn't 100% cool with him but, it's a start.
She named herself, "Ribbon Girl."
She is ready to hop to it and solve the world's problems. She has been trying to get in on every "adult" conversation that Tim and I have lately. She wants to make sure her opinion is heard and that we consider her ideas seriously. She hears us talking and tries to take measures into her own hands. Yesterday she asked my mom if she could give the family a ride to the airport next week because it would, "save us a lot of money to do it that way." I haven't made it that far in our plans but Breckyn has taken it upon herself to take care of any loose ends I may not have gotten to yet. Tim keeps saying we are in big trouble the older she gets. I say I knew we were in trouble when she told her practice kindergarten teacher that it was, "irresponsible of her to not take the class potty before recess." Needless to say, the teacher was not impressed with Breckyn's mothering skills. It's going to be a few more long years of this I'm sure.
(WARNING, you may need to enlarge to see that I AM flexing)
I wasn't the only casualty....
Slightly lesser known rule is 5b. That says cleaning is only effectively done in a bathing suit.
(I Love you BABY)
More to follow .....
Answer: Still working on something that will workI have taught two girls how to ride a bike and it always goes like this. Dad: "the secret to riding a two wheeler is speed, you have to ride really fast and you will be OK, go slow and you will crash, but do fast and you will stay up." Girls: "What about stopping?" Dad: "you will figure that out pretty quick on your own." Girls: "Dad that doesn't sound right." Dad: "it is." Girls: "MOM! Dad's tring to kill me!" and then it was a slow process.
Now I decided to teach Rugby while Mom is away. Dad: "the secret to riding a two wheeler is speed, you have to ride really fast and you will be OK, go slow and you will crash, but do fast and you will stay up." Rugby: "OK"
One big push and he had it.
He did figure the stopping thing eventually.
If you notice he has a colic on the right side of his head. Each one of my kids have it along with many other Taylor kids.
He is a great baby and super cute.
He looks so peaceful and sleepy here. Babies are so great (especially when they aren't mine).
We went to a store that had hats. The kids gravitated straight to them. I think it's in their blood.
Ey Ey Captain Breckyn!
Wow-- what can you even say about this hat? Yikes!
Emerson found his new love, cotton candy. We were at a fundraiser this weekend and Grandpa bought him a bag. I think it lasted all of 20 seconds. He was mowing it like a little machine. When the first bag was done he kept badgering me to buy him another bag. With his new found sugar rush, he had lots and lots of energy to pester me with. Thanks Dad!
Chloe has been enjoying Coop a LOT. She likes to poke at him every chance she gets.
Little Miss Thang finally got her chance in a moment of weakness from Jodi.
Cam has taken over the power wheels and is even giving rides to his big cousins.
Here is the zip line's maiden voyage. This is the stripped down version. We will be modifying it as soon as Tim gets a little time this weekend.
Even the big kids tried it out.
Coco got to give it a go too.
We also pulled out the slip and slide for a little extra entertainment.
Cassie and her family is in town visiting this week. I just can't get enough of her new little nugget. He is so cute and very snuggly.
Look at those bright eyes!
He's all ready for a dip in the tub.
Z isn't letting him do much on his own. She has been on him like stink on a monkey.
B got a chance to hold our little guy.
...so did Yaya...
This is trouble! She loves babies and can't stop touching them!!!
Z and her newest little treasure.
Coco has taken quite a liking to the go-carts...
Breckyn is looking so grown up.
She and I spent most of the afternoon picking raspberries and catching frogs. 
Rugs spends all of his free time coloring and cutting things out. His latest passion is tic-tac-toe. He challenges everyone to a game or two.
Zoey helped Rugs design this sweet pirate costume. I think she just liked saying RRRRRRRGH a lot.
Dad and Tim spent part of the afternoon installing half of the much anticipated zip line. I'll keep you posted on the progress.So I fixed the bird dilemma. After chopping up worms for the sixth time, I knew that this project was not for me. I had made them a little home with a light to keep them warm. I looked up on the internet how to care for them and it said that they need to eat every 15-20 minutes. I was so not into that. I've got my own babies to worry about. So I talked Tim into taking them out to a place called "Fellow Mortals." They take on baby animals of all kinds that you may come across in the wild. So I'm officially FREEEEEEEE! Bye bye birdies...
Note that they are both covered in soot from getting a little too close to the show.
Beans spent the night cruisin' on Em's bike. She even followed me inside on it.
Owen needed an emergency bath and so I got out my favorite tool to dry him off. It's Tim's backpack blower-- it's awesome!
Em wasn't too sure about the fireworks. We finally talked him into doing the poppers with the other kids. After that first plunge he really got into it. This is his face telling me that it's "not a good idea!"
The kids were all watching one of those expanding fireworks. They affectionately named it the "poop worm."
Our brave kids getting front row seats to the nutters big show.
We have been landscaping at the church all week long and today we found these. I was trimming a bush and a little baby bird fell out. I looked a little closer and found a nest with another bird. We got them out because the nest was disturbed and the mom had left. We got a Kleenex box and some fluffy stuff. I called Breckyn over and put her in charge of our new babies. She was loving it. We brought them home and I now have them on the kitchen counter with a light over them. I have already gone on two worm digging expeditions. I've actually chopped up the worms for these two little things. They are eating well and drinking water. I'm not sure what else to do with them. If we would have left them they would have died for sure. But now I find myself left with two birds I'm not really sure what to do with. Any suggestions? I remember trying this a few times as a kid and it never really worked out. I'm hoping to prevent that this time for my kids. What to do?
It has occurred to me as of late, that little Miss Breckyn is growing up. She is starting to notice things around her and have adult opinions to share with everyone.
The other day I had to babysit for some kids from church. They were at our house all day and part of the night. B kept pressing me for answers about why these kids were with us for so long. She wanted to know what kind of mom would just drop her kids off for the day. I kept giving her the P.C. answers not wanting to share the intimate details of this ladies problems with my 8 year old. Finally after the millionth time of getting the soft answers from me she says, "Come on Mom, what's the real story here?" I'm not sure how she knew there was drama but she noticed and the rest of the kids didn't care a bit.
Earlier this week after a long day of yard work, we sat down to dinner. Tim was out of town and I had been pulling weeds and landscaping at our church all day with the kids. When it was time for dinner, I was pooped. I decided to go with P.B.J.'s, yogurt and apples. The other kids started getting squirrely as we are eating and Breckyn says, "Guys, quiet down and eat. Mom's tired and she needs us to be good." Z says, "Yeah, right! How do you know that?" Breckyn replied, "I know Mom's tired because we are having sandwiches for dinner. If she weren't so tired we'd be having something way better than this." She was so right on and I didn't even have to say a word.
My baby is getting too old....
Em on the prowl for cool bugs.
The boys were loving all of the freedom and good food.
The girlies spent the evening in pursuit of lightening bugs. They caught quite a few. Breckyn claims that this is her favorite night of the year because she can stay up late and catch bugs.
Beans was the funniest kid to watch the show. She kept yelling, "again again!" She loved all of it-- even the loud noises. When the fireworks started we had a captivated audience. The kids were mesmerized and so were we. 
Enthralled in his game of freeze tag Sunday night, Rugby ran full force into the T.V. hutch. His noggin caught the corner and he had a huge welt the size of a golf ball on his forehead. It was red and looked like it was going to burst. I bombarded him with a really lot of ice and called to Tim to get the flashlight to check if his eyes were dilating. The other kids saw all of this and had some major questions about the whole flashlight deal. After the trauma had settled Tim proceeded to give the kids a rather lengthy dissertation about dilation, concussions, brain damage blah blah blah.... The loved it because they think their Dad is a scientist you know. They are sure that he knows everything. Tim was rather proud of how well his rambling was received and he ended the night on a high pridefull note.
Fast forward to the next morning....
Rugby comes into our room yelling, "Daaaaaaad! Emerson hit his head downstairs and his eyes aren't dilating!!! I think his brain is wrong! Come check with your flashlight!"
Perhaps he took the science lesson one step too far this time...
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