I am incredibly embarrassed about how long I have been away from here.  Wow - to think about all that's happened is crazy.  Since my last post, we have moved into a new house; watched the twins learn to walk (and then run!); celebrated our anniversary (11); my birthday (29-again), the twins' first birthday, and we're now preparing for Ryan's and Carter's (6) birthdays this month.

The summer is moving by so quickly and is so unbearably hot, but we are enjoying it, nonetheless.  All of the boys love the water!  The twins' spend a lot of time on the deck, splashing in their pool.  They also love to get into the sprinklers we are using to water our new yard.  We've been known to go through 4 different outfits in one day due to their affinity for the sprinklers.  We also like to go on walks around our new neighborhood - Carter cruising on his scooter way ahead of us, while we pull the twins in their new wagon.  Both are really starting to point at things and look inquisitively at you for an answer as to what things are.  Zac has become quite a talker and will rattle on forever, sounding as if he's solving all the world's problems.  Too bad we can't decipher any of it.  Sam is quieter but very intense.  Sometimes when he looks at me, I feel as if he can see right into my soul.  He really watches and studies in order to learn how to do things - usually things we'd rather he didn't figure out how to do, but it's interesting to see how his mind works.  I'm not ready for him to be smarter than me yet.  Sam is usually the instigator while Zac follows along.  When caught red-handed, Sam will give you a sly grin while Zac has the look of sweet innocence mastered.  They are really starting to play together more, and it's so fun to watch them chase each other and giggle.

Ryan is doing an amazing job with the boys at home!  Things are a little more hectic now that school is out with Carter being home on Mondays and Fridays.  He goes to a summer program the other three days of the week.  I really don't know how Ryan does it, alone with all 3 boys two days a week.  I'm so lucky to have a patient and kind husband who takes such wonderful care of our children. 

I really don't know what else to say at this point, so I'll end by sharing a few pictures.  Until next time!



Carter on the new playset in the backyard.

Sam

Zac

Shenanigans



"Eyes to the Sky" Festival in Lisle, IL - July 1st

QOTD

Ryan:  "Remember when staying home alone with one baby seemed hard?  Now it feels like a vacation."

The Gift of Gab

I'm sure you have all seen this video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JmA2ClUvUY
It's exactly what Sam sounds like right now.  No joke.  ALL THE TIME.  It's kind of funny, actually.

Moment I Wish I Had a Tape Recorder

#1204:  Random outbursts from Carter shouting answers to the iPad when watching Go Diego Go! while wearing headphones.  My favorite of the night ~ "The beluga whale!"  Five-year old + Ipad + Netflix + headphones = hilarity. 

#1205:  Carter singing while in the bathroom (happens quite frequently).  This particular episode featured his version of the chorus to "Airplanes" by B.O.B.  Carter's version~ "Airplanes are shooting stars, shooting stars.  Make a wish now, make a wish now."  Here is a clip of the true version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_cpmLufB_E

Love that boy!

Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone had a happy and safe Halloween!  No tricks for us, but here are my three treats.  Carter took his role as Batman very seriously.  Can you tell by the look on his face?

House Divided

A typical Sunday conversation in the Bevins household (yesterday, it just happened to be during the Vikings vs Cardinals football game): Carter: "Is that the green team?" Bobbie: "No honey, that's the purple team; the Vikings. We don't like the purple team. The green team is the Packers." Carter: "We like the green team, right?" Bobbie: "Yes, we like the green team, the Packers." Ryan: "No, we like the blue team. The blue team is the Bears. We like the Bears." Carter (who is sitting right beside me): "No, we like the green team, right Mom? Yup, the green team." Score one for Mom this week. Next week will probably be the opposite. My fear is that if Ryan and I keep pulling him back and forth in trying to influence his team preference, he'll completely rebel and become a Vikings fan. That would be a tragedy. Purple does not mix well with blue and green.

In other news, the twins have started rolling. Zac quickly and easily rolls from tummy to back. Sam does the opposite - back to tummy. Both are pretty proud of themselves when they do it. I don't blame them. I'm usually pretty proud of myself when I manage to roll over to get out of bed in the morning. My concern is that Sam has hence started to roll onto his tummy while sleeping. Since the "rule" is to always have babies sleep on their backs, do we start using a sleep positioner, or do we just let him sleep on his tummy? In my experience, babies tend to sleep better on their tummies, and since we could definitely use all the extra sleep we can get, I think maybe we'll just leave him alone.

When Carter was a baby and started teething, he would wake up in the middle of the night screaming and inconsolable. We discovered that a dose of Tylenol and turning on the movie
Barnyard was a cure all. Once the movie started, all crying would cease and he'd be completely tuned in to the movie. All I could figure at the time was that the bright colors of the cartoon intrigued him. Luckily, it was also a movie that adults are able to enjoy. He still likes that movie today. So I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Ryan recently made a similar discovery with Zac. What disturbs me is not that he found another TV show to mesmerize and calm our child (Hey- whatever works, right? Especially if it's 2 a.m.), but the particular show that does the trick. Have you ever happened to see Yo Gabba Gabba? If not, you're lucky. If you have, do you agree that the show is slightly disturbing? Indescribably strange-looking characters dancing and singing. Don't get me wrong, I understand the appeal for babies - bright colors, repetitive songs, and - as Ryan calls them - fat beats. :) However, this is a person who intentionally never tuned into Barney or Teletubbies with her first child in order to avoid the annoyance of strange, brightly-colored, sing-songy characters. But like I said, desperate sleep-deprived parents will do just about anything to silence the crying. I may have to invest in some spa-like music to play through headphones whenever a situation calls for the Gabbas. Mom will need a calming method to distract me from crying too.

Please Be Gentle...

...I'm new at this. My intention with this blog is to stay connected to family, friends, and anyone else who may wish to take a peek into the chaotic world of the Bevins Five. Ok... so maybe this is just an outlet for me to solicit sympathy for being the only female in a house shared with 3 active boys and a kid-at-heart husband. Can you blame me?

Let's start by describing our current family statistics. Ryan and Bobbie have been married for 10 years. Five years into that blessed union, a bouncing baby boy was born. He was dubbed Carter Ryan Bevins and has provided our lives with 5 years of trials, triumphs, and complete joy. Four years and 10 months following Carter's arrival, two more boys were inducted into the group on May 22, 2011. Isaac (Zac) and Samuel made their appearance after 80 long days on hospital bed rest with Mom. Their arrival on the scene occurred quite quickly that lovely May morning. We all were thrilled and relieved to have two healthy babies to take home a week later.

What follows will be a glimpse into our world filled with brotherly love, madcap mishaps, parenting lessons learned the hard way, and all of the humor that undoubtedly will be the result. Welcome to our humble home! Pull up a chair, grab a cup of coffee and hang out for a while.