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Let's just go with a list, shall we?

--I'm sitting in my mother's office at church while the older three are at Sunday School and Allen and Baxter are pricing water line at Lowe's.  I'm sitting in the recliner that Baxter and I slept in almost every night together for the first month of his life.  Can't wait to have a house built to get my recliner back :)

--Speaking of houses...we FINALLY have a closing date on our construction loan and things are starting to roll.  The power company got power out there, water comes next, then everything will be ready for footings and foundation to start!

--We spent a week on leaves at school and have moved on to Social Studies...continents for Ford, Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia for Rachel.

--Baxter has slept all night long TWICE now in the pack-n-play, not so much in the crib last night, but we'll get there!

--I can hear Ruby in her little class of girls at Sunday School and I love her little giggles and silliness (especially when I don't have to be the one to tell her to calm down!)

--Halloween costumes are ready to go, now I just need to keep the kids away from them for 19 days!!

--Our lives are getting ready to get crazy complicated with house building and holidays but we're going to make it!!

--did I tell you Baxter can clap?  And say Mama!?!?  So cute!!

--Looks like Ruby will hold the Ingram record for first steps at 9 1/2 months unless Baxter gets to it by Thursday!

A New Kind of Grief

I'm having a hard time getting my head around a new grief that has entered my life. With so much of our construction up in the air and living temporarily in a space that's not our own, it's hard to have time to myself to think because I'm constantly checking to make sure no one is hurt, missing, fighting, breaking something, or needs help in the bathroom!  When I do stop and think I get sad.  I am sad for the time I feel like I'm losing here with my kids because we can't completely relax and be ourselves.  I get sad because we're all so out of sorts that we do a lot more yellng and arguing than normal.  I want my kids to have happy days and happy memories and it feels a lot harder in this space and time to do that.  Yesterday Rachel said to me, "I know, I know, it will be better once we're in our own house."  I think that's become our family mantra.
I get sad for another reason, too, though.  I have such a hard time with the fact that I will not ever have another (planned) pregnancy.  Despite the heartburn and pelvic pain and breathlessness and fatigue, I really did love being pregnant.  I have to actually stop and recall memories of laying miserably in bed at night with a bottle of Tums at my side and a heating pad at my nether regions!  No matter how many times I remind myself of the pains of contractions, the epidural issues, and the physical recovery from childbirth, I still recall all four of my experiences in Labor and Delivery as some of the best times I've ever had!  There was a Euphoria there that you can't get anywhere else.  Everyone is rooting for you, everyone is happy, everyone wants to celebrate and wants what is best for you and the new life you're bringing into the world.  Allen and I got to be together as a team and even have conversations with each other.  It's weird to think we won't be playing in that arena as a team again.  Our babies are all here.  We have the most wonderful two daughters and two sons I could have ever asked for...they are beyond my wildest dreams of the most wonderful children in the world.   It's just strange to finally realize we really are complete.  This is our family.  I can't imagine trying to keep up with anybody else.  I think after 7 years of being pregnant or having a newborn, a strange adjustment period will be settling in.  I do think things happen for a reason, so I love the fact that our house will be new to all of us at the same time.  I find it weird that the minister who performed our wedding, all four of our children's baptisms, and my grandfather and father's funerals has decided to retire now  and yet it kind of makes sense when I look at where we are in life.  The circle of life continues to roll right along and we're moving to a new stage.  Baxter is nine months old today and hardly a baby any more.  Rachel is almost 7 and I so miss the days of her being a perfect baby every day.  I can't get back the days that I can't remember of Ford and Ruby as infants but I think we took some pictures :).  You can't stop time and you can't slow it down, so I need to do a better job of being present for the present.  When I get asked that same question over and over of "Why are you homeschooling?" Or the new one that pops up, "How long are you going to homeschool?"  I'm not going to have a problem answering any more.  It's because this is the one shot I get at this life.  This is the only time I get to be their Mama and I'm going to do it the best I can.  I'm not going to be the "Best Mom", but I'm going to be the best one I can be, so this is what we're going to do.  And I'm going to make a Fall Resolution to make today the best day and quit waiting for everything to be better once we have our house built.  It's coming, and it will be better, but today can be pretty good, too.  Good-bye Maternity Ward, Hello Ingram Family Farm!!

On the move!!

This little guy is ready to go!!! I'm afraid his little tiny legs have trouble keeping up with the pace at which he wants to go, but I don't think it will take him too long to figure this out!!!

Finally!!

The world heaved a sigh of relief yesterday!!

Hanging on by a thread

Have I mentioned that Rachel's top front tooth won't come out?  Have I mentioned that she can't focus on her schoolwork or her violin practice because she thinks about (and wiggles) her tooth?  Have I mentioned that Rachel can't sleep, worries about ballet, and is nervous about Art because she thinks she'll swallow or lose her tooth (as in, can't find it when it comes out and therefore can't leave it for the Tooth Fairy).  It has gotten so bad that she is now writing notes to the Tooth Fairy.  Two nights ago she left a note under her pillow to ask the Tooth Fairy what she could do about her tooth.  Luckily, the Fairy had some special powder that she left in an envelope for Rachel to rub on her tooth after every meal.  It's purple and smells like blueberries and it's NOT WORKING!!!   I have pulled and tugged and yanked on that tooth to the point that Allen probably just passed out reading this and the doggone thing won't come out!!  This is getting ridiculous!!!  Two weeks ago she told Dr. Ed at her checkup that she'd come back in a week and let him pull it if it hadn't come out.  The next week we had to go back and see him because of her swollen eye and he tried to pull it, but it wouldn't budge.  Next week Baxter has a 9 month check up and I'm not leaving that office until her tooth is out!!!  Hopefully it will come out on its own before then, but OMG this is putting a real kink in our days!!!!  Come on, tooth!  The Tooth Fairy is obviously hovering around waiting for you!!!

What we're doing this week...

Science...finishing up Animals with Ford and Habitats with Rachel
Math...inequalities with Rachel, tally marks with Ford
Language Arts...animal folktales
Autumn stories and information with everyone leading us into a week of leaf activities next week
Ruby...letter B, activities in her preschool book, working on being patient!
Baxter...crawling on knees, climbing up stairs,  cruising all around the furniture!
Teeth...Rachel has a dangling front tooth, Baxter has a mouth full ready to pop through any day
P.E....Ford suddenly hates soccer, girls LOVE dance class
Art...awesome as always, Ford and Ruby are visiting different countries, Rachel learns new artists
Costumes...Ford now has his own Batman, Thomas, Peter Pan, and Robin costumes, Baxter is going to try out Olivia's Robin costume, everyone has to decide next week what their Halloween costumes will be and then we get to work!  Looking like a family of super heroes this year!!
We are all super happy that Fall is finally here!!!

Fair Time!

The Ingrams finally got to experience the fair this year!  We weren't planning to go but after a phone call this morning and complimentary tickets, Baxter was entered into the Diaper Derby!  Funny enough, the boy who crawls everywhere didn't move a smidgen until the girl who won his heat was finished!  It was pretty cute, though, and the big kids were excited to go.  They had hot dogs and cotton candy.  Ford and Ruby wanted to ride a roller coaster but Rachel's anxiety level was way too high for that!  Luckily, they only had enough tickets for the helicopters so no one had to stress out about the safety factors!  Rachel wanted to pick a duck instead of riding and she won a large yellow ball.  The Fair is just one more thing that is completely different as an adult then it is as a kid.  I hope they had a good time!!