Easter Brunch-E-Que

We celebrated this Easter Holiday with our college buddies in Santa Barbara for the annual Brunch-E-Que. Although this has been going on for (i believe) 8 years..this is only our third time joining in the fun! (Read about 2011 here and here 2010 here - oh my goodness how big our boys are now!).

We started the day with Easter service at All Saints Episcopal Church. It was a beautiful service and Bryson stayed in big church with us and asked me all sorts of questions. I was happy he could experience a liturgical service and hope that we can continue to introduce him to different ways to worship. After church we headed back to a friend's house for brunch and egg hunting and then eventually dinner. The day was a bit rainy and curbed our park plans, but it was very low-key day - and i feel like i was able to catch up with almost everyone...which is always an amazing goal since we also have 10 little ones running around through it all!

Whenever I am doing our statements and invoicing for our business I turn on This American Life (this will be related, promise) because the whole process lacks brain power...This last one I listened to was on Tribes (listen to it here) and I told Bryan - this is our tribe. It is just nice to have a group of people that you truly feel like you belong with. And how sweet it has been to be in this child-rearing phase with them - and watch our littles hunting eggs together. so fun!

Barnes Boys - Where They At

Bobby - Bobby has been learning new words at such an amazing rate. Every day he seems to have a new expression and some new word he learned. Right now he says "dang" a lot and its pretty stinkin cute. We try to get as much of him on video that we can, but its hard with this butterfly. He likes to entertain us with "zombie baby" and his amazing dance moves. Him and Bodie are learning how to navigate their play time with each other...they are not the best of playmates right now. Bodie has trouble understanding not to take every single thing from Bobby...luckily Bobby is pretty good at holding his own "I no like that, Bodie" is a frequent phrase one hears most mornings. 

Bryson started baseball up again. His best friend Asher is on the team - which makes this year so exciting for him. At the last game he hit two home runs! He is playing so well- and also having a lot of fun...because i wouldn't do it if he wasn't...The cutest is that Bryson helps dress Bodie in his baseball stuff from last year every game. Bodie has to wear his Pirates uniform every game. Looks like this baseball thing isn't leaving us...we will be spending a lot of time at these fields! 3 kids doing games - i reckon we will be at the fields every day! oy! Also - Bryson has some new obsessions over the last couple of months - Basketball at school has now replaced tetherball. He plays for about 2 hours every day, plus gets home from school and plays. He also is obsessed with his skateboard and going to the skate park. Bryan is less than thrilled about this - i am waiting until my broken bone heals, before I frequent there again - only one major injury at a time is my motto!

Bodie O - Bodie has been doing basically anything Bryson does. Bryson loves basketball, so naturally Bodie too. The best thing I have seen is that Bodie is now able to play catch with Bryson - they have been playing together so well (for the most part) which makes it easier to deal with the not-so-brotherly-love between Bodie and Bobby right now. Bodie has been sad about me being down. He likes our time together and I can't be there as much and he being the closest thing to a "mama's boy" I have - I know it has been difficult.

These boys are so much fun. So much work, but so much fun! I am constantly feeling blessed to have them - for all they are - God knew what He was doing giving me boys, I think. :)

Broken and Healing and Learning - An Update

I just saw my last post was from January. Oh my. So much has happened since then! but such is life. I feel like a bit of an update is in order!

February brought so much fun for me. I was able to celebrate all kinds of birthdays - for Ruth, for Rashelle and for Julia. And lucky for me- each of those celebrations included girls only! 2 of them were overnight ordeals and 2 included museums and dinners and amazing kid-free adult girly conversation. I walked away from each event so blessed to have such amazing women a part of my life. I feel like with all the men and boys I have to deal with on a daily basis, there is always an exhale when I get to spend time with good girlfriends. There is such an ease of understanding and relating that just is missing with men :)

February also brought a special visit from Bryan's parents, the fun of Valentines - a very special date for Bryan and I at the sky room- A family Valentines celebration - a Clippers game....




The very end of February, however, I broke my ankle - I was trying to slide into the skate park to retrieve a scooter, and my right foot buckled and I heard a "pop" - a truly horrifying sound...i knew it meant nothing good. Luckily, my phone was in my back pocket - I was able to call Bryan and prop myself up on a skateboard and wheel myself over to the stairs and use the rail to hop out of the park and wait for my husband to come rescue me...It was awful and one of the more painful experiences I have had. Tomorrow will mark 6 weeks from the initial accident and I have come so far, but I still feel like I have so much farther to go. Turns out, I am not the best patient (no surprise there) and also turns out, my husband is amazing. I was blown away by the support of friends and family. My mom flew out the day of my surgery (A titanium plate and 6 screws to hold together a displaced fibula fracture) and helped fill in my spot and took care of us all so well. It has been a definite shift in the norm - it means me in the office more- our kids at the house more (which is not so conducive to business getting done) and me having to let go of all kinds of things...like messes...like laundry...like driving.

I am not always the person to try to make sense of everything - I am an optimist - I will admit - but sometimes crappy things just happen and there are lessons to be learned, sure, but it gets disheartening when other people try to make sense of it all for you - "maybe God was telling you that you needed to rest" - that kind of thing. it bugs me. God could have used a different way to tell me that...like something that actually allowed me to rest...i haven't slept through the night in a month - i have been wearing my boot to bed - and there is no comfortable way to sleep in that thing! but that aside, I have been trying to be open to this lesson. An over-riding aspect that have helped keep my spirits up (it has been my biggest challenge just to fight depression on a daily basis) is that I am surrounded by amazing community. My friends have been picking my kids up and dropping them off various places...my MOPs mamas have been bringing our family meals - which have been a true blessing! My mom sacrificed her time to be Carlee 2.0 for a week. My husband has been doing everything he normally does, plus all my duties without a single complaint (other than chastising me for trying to do too much). I don't know why/how I deserve such amazing love, but it speaks to God's love in such a tangible way - it makes me pretty teary and sappy just thinking about it.

One good thing to already come of it is my kids are doing more because I am not able to do it. There is more cleaning of their room (when I would just do it because it took me 5 minutes and them an hour of constant correcting and arguing and whining and this isn't my mess - and just too much work in general to add another battle to my day) thanks to Bryan - and also cleaning in general. Picking up and putting away. There has been less dependence on me- which is a good thing. I am starting to see that these boys are going to be useful in the future...and capable...which is such a weird thought when I feel like for the past 7 years I have been in the mode of constant caring for other people...all of the sudden there is this shift. Its simultaneously thrilling and bittersweet.

I want to thank everyone for their prayers and concerns and thoughts and meals and help with the kids and want you all to know how very special it all means to me. I am constantly amazed at the generosity of people.

(So...here we are caught up to April. I will post a Barnes Boys Update too...although I have not been venturing out much - they certainly have:) )