As usual, when Texas forecasters predicted snow this week, we didn’t hold our breath. However Thursday we were hit with this giant snowstorm with huge flakes and snow that actually stuck. I was in shock! Even more shocking was Texas’s reaction to the snowstorm-that’s right, shutting down school (even preschool) an hour early, traffic accidents left and right, and pretty much widespread panic in all directions.
It didn’t stop Mad and Liv from getting right to work enjoying the backyard.
and yes, that is our backyard-to be recognized by the weeds.
All day Olivia kept going to the back door and saying “Mo!” which is actually translation for: figure out what I want or you will suffer the wrath…
But outside she was actually quite peaceful.
The other day we were at Costco and the girls found this little play cabin complete with a grill, cordless phone, puppet show, basketball hoop, and porch. Ryan and I joked that if we brought this thing home, the girls would likely move into it. Well, he took me up on it because Friday he surprised us all coming home in James’s van with the cabin in the back. So far nobody has moved out yet because it’s only been in tact for a couple of hours, but the girls have grilled up a mean plate of dinosaur bones, placed a few thousand phone calls, performed hours of puppet shows with puppets Honey and Honey …
If there’s even any question, Liv is to be found trapped outside the cabin, ringing the doorbell over and over and over. Tonight I overheard London say to her, “Livvy! Go play with your baby!”
Which brings me to:
I am pregnant. Yes folks, come September we will be evening things out for good! Every day the thought of four kids puts me more in a panic; however not as much as our current odd number of kids puts me in a panic. 
As expected, L & M were the last to know about their new little sibling, and seem pretty excited about it, telling just about every random stranger in Boston Market that Olivia’s getting a twin! It’s even added a new dimension to every dinner conversation yes, the ol’–how did the baby get here/how does the baby come out/is there a baby in my tummy? hoopla. And I believe we have Brent to thank for the phrase “pooping out a watermelon,” which has strangely made its way into our discussion. (Just wait until that one comes up at Boston Market…)
But I did chuckle that London’s solution to the cabin situation was to have Liv go find her own twin.
When we all know she’s just waiting for them to go to preschool so she can break into their stash. Oh that sneaky Liv. And in case anybody is wondering, L & M & O have already come up with a name for the baby (which we are 99.5% sure is a girl)-are you ready? Our baby will be named–
CUTIE.
Bluebonnets: Emphasis on Blue
We have missed the Bluebonnets in Texas for the last two years.
This year we were determined.
Who cares if we brought three, make that four of the grouchiest girls around to the shoot?
(And isn’t that a pre-requisite for family pictures?)
Most of us seemed more interested in the sticks, rocks, and insects than the actual Bluebonnets.
And we found out later we weren’t in fact supposed to pick them.
A few games of ring around the roses (make that Bluebonnets) and we were back in business.
Oh Liv. I love that even though we can’t quite pinpoint your eye color, today it was definitely blue.
Best friends forever.
Most of the shots we got were purely by accident, but it’s the candid ones we liked anyway.
In other news:
We’re having a boy?
Still in shock. Ryan and I have spent the last four months narrowing down girl names, but when a boy came up we always changed the subject. For anyone interested, her name would have been Penelope, Wendy, or Alayna, but a boy? Honestly, I was just as prepared to hear ‘boy’ as I was five years ago to hear ‘twins.’ But yet.
A boy is what I had my heart set on, even though I couldn’t quite admit it. The night before our ultrasound I had a dream of a baby girl and fell head over heels in love what I was certain would be my new daughter. After all, I have thoroughly loved my little girls and have no complaints with the gender, but then again, what have I to compare it to? The idea of a boy is uncharted territory to me, though everything down to the snips and snails promises of adventure.
At any rate, it was fun to have the five slash six of us crammed into the ultrasound room and experience this new little life together. I immediately burst into happy tears and the twins immediately burst into worrying: we don’t have any boy toys, we don’t have any blue clothes, we don’t EVEN know what boys like. The only calm person in the room was Ryan, who could barely get ‘alright!’ in edgewise amidst the chaos. In retrospect, his calm and mellow reaction was probably a mere preview of how this peculiar gender is. We’ll see. And I’m so glad that come September, we really do get to see.