Burkett QuadSquad

Wait...I Have a blog?

2012-01-16T20:10:00.000-06:00

I know it's been FOREVER since I've written. I can't even tell you how busy it's been around here. BUT the blog is on my to do list this week! SO stay tuned:)

Jenny

Family Trip to the Smokies

2011-10-12T23:09:00.001-05:00

What an amazing weekend we just had in the Smokie Mountains.

Months ago I decided that our family, our whole family on my mom's side, should take a family trip. My grandma, Nana, has always talked for years about us all going on a trip together. SO....to celebrate my grandma and grandpa's 60th wedding anniversary, we all gathered together in a BEAUTIFUL cabin in the mountains of Gatlinburg, TN.

This was no easy task. My cousin Corey and his wife Laura and their beautiful 3 month old daughter flew in all the way from California. The other 15 of us drove in from Missouri, Indiana and Kentucky. It was so great to all be together again. It's been way too long.

The quads eating a little snack with their great grandparents while dinner was on it's way.

Nana was SOOOO excited to meet her youngest great granddaughter for the first time.

I'm so thankful for such a wonderful grandpa. The kids LOVE hearing his stories that he makes up.

We decided to be brave and let the kids sleep in beds on this trip. We usually put them in their awesome Pea Pod tents, but since our cabin had 9 bedrooms we thought we'd try it and see. They did great and it was sooo cute to see them all snuggled up together.

John enjoying the beautiful view.

Pa and my sweet girl Anna.

This was right after we got to the cabin. They were so excited to see the mountains and run around our "new house". Sadly, I had to tell them that we were only borrowing the house for the weekend. Guess they were hoping it would be a more permanent thing. I think I could get used to that idea...well except for the curvy, narrow road.

My momma, me and my Nana.

YES,....that's exactly what it looks like. A black bear cub on our front porch. We knew before hand that the area has a local momma and her baby bears. But I never really expected to see them. They sniffed around for a minute and ran off down the road. It was so cool...and a little scary:)

What a view!

Sarah and Dad rockin out.

Having some fun family time. It was just so great to relax and do whatever we wanted for the weekend.

Oh yeah, one of the floors had a pool table, hot tub, & old school arcade games. Fun FUN!

The proud new parents and sweet baby Audrey.

The kids outside the aquarium with some of the biggest pumpkins I've ever seen.

They were in AWE....so was I:)

Sharks inches above our head. It was soo cool. You can't help but hear some Jaws theme in your head when they start swimming towards you on the other side of the glass.

Pretty.

The proud grandparents.

I love my little family.

Nana and her great granddaughters.

The whole family! I'm still amazed that we got such a good shot of us all.....Great job with the self timer Corey!

God is a beautiful artist!

It's hard to not want another one after loving on such a sweet lil thang!

Very important business going on here.....watching the Cardinals:)

60 years. That's amazing. SO thankful for my grandparents and for the amazing Godly example they have been my whole life.

Pa.

Da Bears.:)

Nana. Beautiful.

The big baby debut!:)

My sister and her husband. Still seems funny saying my sister has a husband.?!:)

What fun we had! I wish we could have stayed a little longer! It couldn't have been a better weekend.

Jenny

August FUN!

2011-09-12T20:18:00.003-05:00

Benner-benner chicken dinner:)

Nutty-mcnut pants

Shugatee-boogatee bear

My firstborn(s)

Ben and his magnificent tower. He's a great builder:)

Ornery lil punky pants.

Doing "school".

We've decided to not do formal preschool this fall, so I'm doing home preschool. It's been a lot of fun. I haven't done it daily with them, but they really enjoy learning and trying new things. Right now they are learning to write their own names and doing a great job with it! I'm so proud of my smarties!

Benjamin, Pa, Baron, Nana, Anna, & Allie.

We drove down to KY to visit my grandparents and go out to lunch. It was such a fun morning. The kid love their great-pa & nana.

My super dudes.

SUPER BEAR!

Holy Benman!

I can see it now.....he's going to be the class clown--getting in trouble.:)

Such a sweet little man. Ben is so strong and sensitive. Love it!

One of my beautiful princesses.

The crew.

It's Dr. Princess Allie Grace:)

Brian is such a fun daddy! SO thankful for him!

Brian's favorite red velvet cake for his 34th birthday.

We love you SO SO SO SO SO much daddy! Thanks for being the best dad/husband ever!

July 4th weekend (yes, I am 2 months late!)

2011-09-11T21:06:00.001-05:00

At the Splash Park a few weeks ago with some of our best friends, enjoying the last miserably hot days of summer.

So now that fall is right around the corner, I figured I better get the blog caught up on our end of summer activities!

The princesses hanging out with Uncle John (and R2D2:)

We had a FABULOUS 4th of July down in Alabama with family. It was hot but fun!

The girls wanted to take a turn driving! I mean....this is so cute and scares the crap out of me at the same time! They are growing up TOO fast!

Taking a little pit stop to stretch our legs in AL.

Baron, Ben, Me, Allie & Anna having a picnic lunch.

Can you say Doritos lover?:)

Cheese!

Sugabear:)

Allie giving me the "pirate eye"

We got to visit with Brian's grandfather (Pa-Pa). He loves his great grand kids SO much....regardless of the fact that we're Auburn fans and he's an Alabama fan:) We love you Pa-Pa!

Allie, Baron, Alana, Benjamin, & Anna with silly faces!

We love our cousin Alana.

Wrestling around with daddy and Uncle Rusty.

The kids were sad to leave the next morning....they love seeing their grandmama!

WAR EAGLE!

My Handsome Ben

My Gorgeous Anna.

My Handsome Baron

My Gorgeous Allie.

My five most favorite people in the world!

Me and my babies.

We didn't do anything particularly spectacular while we were visiting, but it was just a nice time away. We ate great food, visited as much family as we could and played a lot with cousin Alana. Just being with family is good. I am so thankful for every member of both sides of our family. We love you all and wish we could see everyone a lot more often!

I have another post I'm finishing up this week to catch up on all the comings and goings:) I'm telling you....life is so busy and hectic! All the more reason for me to sit down and take the time to post pictures and memories. I don't want to forget anything:)

It's kind of strange that I'm just now getting this Independence Day weekend post up....on 9/11. A day that will never be forgotten. We prayed a lot today for the many brave heroes and families that lost their lives and loved ones on that day. We also pray for those that continue to defend our freedom! We are forever grateful!

Jenny

Celebrating FOUR Days!

2011-08-08T15:16:00.000-05:00

What a GREAT few days we've had celebrating the kid's fourth birthdays. I know I have said it before...but I still can't believe my babies are 4 years old! I LOVE the unique personalities that these little people have:) I KNOW this is going to be a hilarious next year with them and I am so excited to see what's in store:)

So here's a recap of the weekend celebrations...

The kids received an amazing surprise gift from a sweet couple (who we don't even personally know?!)~~ gift cards to Build A Bear! So we loaded the kids up Saturday morning and headed to the mall. The frugal side of me was very excited to see when we got there that the store was running a sale---Pick any animal, any outfit, & any shoes for $29.99. Well wouldn't you know it....each kid had a $30 gift card. It worked out so well. Thank you sweet friends who gave the kids this gift!

They were overwhelmed with all the choices to be had. It was fun for all 6 of us.

In the end, they were pretty predictable in their choices;)....Allie picked a pretty bear and dressed her as Tinker Bell. Baron chose a horse dressed as a fireman (imagine that?:)). Anna picked a bear that matched Allie's but dressed her in Rapunzel clothes. And Ben chose a dog dressed in a Colt's football uniform. GO HORSE:)

Sunday after church we gave the kids our presents to them.

They have been wanting backpacks and I figure why not? They will come in handy when we're traveling. Plus they just look so darn cute:)

Allie= Princesses, Benjamin= Cars, Anna= Tinkerbell, Baron= Spiderman

Among the few little things the girls got, I think their favorite thing is the bag of 12 tiny little colorful bottles of nail polish. I'm pretty sure I've painted their nails no less than 5 times each since yesterday morning.:)

The boys got cute little man baseball gloves/balls. I think Brian was as excited as the boys about playing ball together. I'm so thankful for a husband who is a loving father and WANTS to play with his kids:)

I just had to throw this one in there. I mean look at how excited he was when he saw who was on his backpack. Precious:)

Daddy letting the "ladies go first" when opening their presents:)

So I had all these beautiful cake ideas in my head that I wanted to try and the proudly post pictures of....but the kids really wanted specific things and wanted to help. SO....I let go of the beautiful cake idea and when all was said and done...this cake was SO beautiful because I got to make it with my sweet babies. The cake was half chocolate with vanilla buttercream frosting and half vanilla with strawberry buttercream frosting (as requested by Allie). They each got to decorate 1/4 of the cake however they wanted. It was cute:) I am thankful for the memory made.

Happy Birthday Anna Ruth.

Happy Birthday Allie Grace.

Happy Birthday Baron Ross.

Happy Birthday Benjamin Russell.

This year (unlike the last 3 birthdays) we had a very low key party with just family. It was great to just be relaxed and enjoy it. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE celebrating with tons of family and friends, but this was great too.

Present time....thank you Mimi & Papaw for the great educational gifts!:) They love them!

Baron kept saying "I'm working on my computer like Daddy...":)

Trying out some of our new presents.

We love Mimi & Papaw! ( Grandmama too!)

This morning--their actual birthday- they were treated to cinnamon rolls with candles for fun:)

Well if you know me at all...then you'll be expecting a little flashback...here ya go.

August 2011, 4 years old!

August 2010, 3 years old!

August 2009, 2 years old! (with cousin Alana)

August 2008, 1 year old!

Brian and sweet baby Benjamin.

Me and sweet baby Allie.

Me and baby Anna.

Brian and sweet baby Baron.

As you can see....we are blessed beyond measure. Thanks be to the Lord! I am can't wait to see what this new year brings our way. Everyone says 4 is an easier age in some ways....I kinda hope so!:)

Happy Birthday my little big kids!

Love,

Mommy

Also...I memory of Brian's dad Russell, the kids called him Grumpus, here's one of our favorite pictures of him with the quads. He passed away the night of the kids 1st birthday. They will always know their Grumpus loved them. He is very missed!

Happy 4th Birthday to my babies!

2011-08-08T04:00:00.003-05:00

2002....Boy and Girl fall in love.

Boy and Girl get married and start a wonderful & fun life together...

..but eventually boy and girl think it's time to start a family. FINALLY in 2007 the amazing news came...EXPECTING! But WHOA----expecting FOUR!?!

About to be parents....nervous excitement!

Boy & girl went from a family of two to a family of Six in a matter of THREE minutes:)

Where have the last 4 years gone? Where have my babies gone?

Happy 4th Birthday to my most precious four babies:) Words can't fully express how blessed and joyous these last 4 years have been. Thank you God!

xoxo

Jenny

P.S. I'm a little pooped right now from our weekend of family fun, but there's more to see. I will post more later! Stay tuned......

Becoming a Mrs.

2011-07-09T22:53:00.000-05:00

So you want to know where I've been??

One of the BIGGEST events that has kept me busy and not blogging ----> my little sister's wedding on June 25th. It was BEAUTIFUL! I am so happy for my sister and her husband, John. It's still strange to me to think of her as an adult and not a tiny little 8 yr old with a bowl haircut:) I'm so proud of her. Here are some pictures from the bridal shower, bachelorette party and wedding.

I am working on several other posts about things we did before the wedding and I'll probably back date them so that when I look back a year from now it will all be in chronological order still:)

Enjoy the pictures. I can't WAIT to see how the professional shots turned out!

Jenny

A couple of the bridesmaids and I threw Sarah an "Around the Clock" shower. It was so cute. Everyone got a time of day that their gift was supposed to coordinate with. It was a beautiful little shower and my sister got some very generous gifts:) Thanks to everyone who could share the day with us. It was fun!:)

Sarah hated being the center of attention:)

Later that night we have a bachelorette party for Sarah since her best friend Ashley was in town for the shower.

The bride-to-be and our mom.

We started the night at Turoni's Pizza. YUM! We had some good food and some even better laughs. Next we stopped at several bars/clubs. Korie rocked out some "Like a Virgin" karaoke just for Sarah:) Hilarious.

Dancing and more dancing.

Sarah's new mothers-in-law can get low low low low......:) Too funny:) By the end of the night I was feeling my old age setting in....30 yrs and 4 kids later I can't keep up as long as I used to back in my college days. It was a great night. I am thankful I got to spend that time having fun with my lil sis.

Gift time--many of which I won't embarrass Sarah by putting up on here:)

Sisters:)

The Dancin' mommas:)

Karaoke Madonna time.

We just couldn't stop laughing....

This picture cracks me up......no real explanation. :)

Dancing in some trippy looking lights:) Fun until you look around and you see all the young college kids that look like they are 12:)

Ashley, Sarah, Korie & Me.

Sarah and her new sisters.

Sarah & John's rehearsal dinner fell on my parent's 33rd anniversary. So in honor of that they decided to renew their vows after the rehearsal. It was beautiful. My grandpa (who by the way has been married to my grandma for 60 yrs!!!!!!!) did the vow renewal. It was very sweet and special.

My mom and grandma.

Pa saying a little something about my parents:)

I love my mom and dad! They are such a wonderful example of a Godly marriage.

T-minus 16 hours and counting at this point.....

Sarah was so calm the morning of the wedding....just waiting to get her pretty on:)

"Princess" Aunt Sarah (as they kept calling her all day) and my girls, Allie & Anna.

My beautiful princesses. Don't you love how Anna is trying SO hard to not smile....rotten.

I love this picture. I like wondering what my mom was thinking as she was looking at her baby getting dressed to get married, and I wonder what was my sister was thinking as she was getting ready:)

Wardrobe malfunction.

The girls playing a little game to occupy Sarah, while waiting out the last 30 mins.

The Beautiful "I Do's"

Almost choking on communion...leave it to Sarah:)

Sarah with her Bridesmaids.

The whole wedding party.

Our little family. Don't they all look so cute?

Yay! Mr. & Mrs. Reis!!!

The Burkett Table

The dessert bar and the cake (that I am proud to have made but will probably never make another wedding cake again:)

Kids were wearing out from bustin' a move:) Yes....that's one of the triplets mushed in there with my kids:)

Ben & Baron were such gentlemen and let their sisters borrow their jackets because they were cold:) Cute.

Dancin' the night awaaaaaa-ay.

Ben, Emma, Baron and my cousin's precious son Elijah.

Baron and Eli were best friends:)

Me and my right hand wo-man, Jennifer:) Love you!

First Dance.....

I love this man.

Aww.....she's a Mrs!

Love you Sarah and John!

Back To Our Regularly Scheduled Program.....

2011-07-05T21:18:00.000-05:00

Wow.....how has it been TWO months since the last time I posted. I have really wanted to, but we have just been SO busy that I have not made the time to write a post. SO....I will be working on several posts this week and back dating them so that I can catch up on what we've been up to.

Check back soon......more coming:)
Jenny

June Fun!

2011-06-19T19:50:00.078-05:00

While still trying to get caught up on my blogging hiatus, here is a quick recap of our June fun.

Father's Day 2011

Our yummy breakfast treat I made for father's day. MM MMM good:)

Benjamin, Anna, Baron & Allie with the best daddy in the world:)

We took a trip down to my grandparent's house in Kentucky for a father's day lunch with the family. I have SO many memories playing and napping on this daybed in my grandma's sun room. It always amazes me when I get to see my kids enjoying the same things my sister and I did as children.

My mom and Nana (my grandma).

I finally remembered to actually take a picture with MY dad for father's day:) Love you dad!

We love you Nana, Pa & muffin:)

What a HANDSOME boy my Ben is:)

My and her dad. I am SO thankful to still be blessed with all 4 of my grandparents.

Thanks to Aunt Sarah & Uncle John for the kids early birthday present. They have loved EVERY minute of this awesome slide/pool.

I am glad i decided to keep their first pool to use as a little splashing/ foot cleaning pool. They still think it's fun. But just check out how much they've grown since buying this pool 3 yrs ago!

Splashing in their first pool 2008.

We love going to the splash park with our friends.

Our local Mother's of Multiple's group had the chance to meet and ride some horses. I wasn't sure how this would go over with the kids...especially since this day I worked all morning and they hadn't had a nap before going to the farm.

It went better than expected 2 of 4 got on the horses:) Ben LOVED the little mini horse.

Of course Baron--the fearless one--hoped right on the HUGE horse. Made my heart hurt but I knew I couldn't say no:) He LOVED it!

Trying to get at least a picture with the girls and the horse....didn't go so well. Thanks for Mimi's help though! She helped entertain them while I helped the boys.

Blueberry picking

My best friend Melanie and I took our 6 kiddos to go pick blueberries at an awesome patch just north of here. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, they were all picked for the day. But we were still able to go buy a peck of blueberries that were already picked. They were delicious and huge! I had to keep the little hands from eating ALL of them at once:)

Luke, Allie, Haley, Ben, Baron & Anna

They can find something fun to do ANYWHERE. Picking dandelions.

Mel & Me:) Love that girl!

After picking up our blueberries we scavenged through Melanie's garden and took home some yummy veggies. Zucchini, cucumbers & squash oh my!:)

I am determined to do a bigger better garden next yr--and NO bunny will be eating all my plants like this yr:(

Me and my #1 on a date:) I love you babe.

I had to just add this picture because it cracks me up. Dr. Allie:) I really do think she may end up as a doctor someday.:)

Thanks for taking the time to read and for being patient with my lack of blogging:) We have some more fun things coming up so I am determined to keep on track:) More updates on the kids to come....

Jenny

Adventures Indoors and Out.

2011-05-31T13:36:00.018-05:00

Wearing Green for little Keegan!

May was a VERY busy month! So instead of just listing all the things that kept us occupied....here are some pictures:) And Stay tuned....more to come this week! I'm trying to get caught up before their birthday in a few weeks!

Jenny

Ben standing behind his "pulpit" with his Bible. It was so cute. He was "reading" a Bible story to his brother and sisters. Blesses my heart.

Allie giving Anna a mani-pedi. They are SUCH girlie girls.:)

My sweet little men.

So.....I turned 30 on May 26th! EEK!:) We had a little cookout with friends. It was nice and I still feel like I'm about 22:)

My lil buddy Luke. (My best friend's son)

The men...of course surrounding the food area:)

The ladies. Melanie (Bff), Sarah (sister), my mom Kathy, me and my other dear friend Jennifer.

Sarah, John & I took my kids and one of their nephews to the area zoo. My kids NEVER get tired of it:) It brings back so many memories every time we go. I remember it when I was a kid, only now it's WAY cooler!

The kids just kept talking about the big POOP!? really kids...that's all you're looking at? gross.

Mother's Day 2011

Baron, Allie, Brian, Benjamin, & Anna

What a BLESSED mother I am!! Thank you God!:)

Who wants to go outside and swim??? (and then take a realllllly long nap afterwards?!:))

Our Mom's of Multiple's group visited one of our area hospitals helicopter pads. The kids were LOVING it. We drive by it all the time and to be able to actually go up and sit in the life flight helicopter was cool. While we were there we actually had to hurry off to the safe zone because a second one had to land. SO bonus....(not excited that someone was so ill they needed the life flight....) the kids got to see one land and take off.

Having a BLAST at daddy's office spring cookout at the managing director's house. Thanks Norm & Viv for such a great night!

Picnic lunch with some of our besties.

We as a family have been setting goals for Daddy to meet at work. If we keep him accountable and he meets his goals we get to do something fun as a family. This last time we drove over to the St Louis Zoo for the day.

They were so PUMPED! (and sweaty!)

Way to go daddy. We are SO proud of you for working so hard to provide for our family!

In awe.....

You want ice cream Anna?...I mean how do you say no to that face??

She doesn't like being hot...:) haha....drama queen.

The boys thought the cobra was real at first....Brian promptly showed them it wasn't and told them all about NOT going near a big snake if you see one outside.:)

We named this huge elephant Tiger Bait---get it.....Alabama U? yea...so WAR EAGLE!!

We Almost didn't rent these strollers but....dude. best $20 spent the whole day! Since we sold our quad stroller we have 0 strollers now so I knew we wouldn't make it all day walking!

We took an impromptu trip over to Garden of the Gods in So Illinois. It's so beautiful and I have so many fun memories from there. The kids are now old enough to think climbing on rocks is fun.

Allie, Anna, Ben & Baron.

Our little family:)

Ok...I DO have to admit that taking pictures of them while they are sitting near the edge of a huge rock face DOES scare the crap out of me......

Checking out the big hawks flying around.

Keeping them hydrated. It was HOT!

Ben was not amused at my request for them to lay on a rock...that is until I said I was done and then he didn't want to get up. It was nice and cool:)

Me and my little ducklings.

They think their daddy can do ANYTHING! He's their hero:) (mine too...)

Allie Grace

Benjamin Russell

Baron Ross

Anna Ruth

When Did My Babies Grow Up?

2011-05-02T23:14:00.000-05:00

Ben, Baron, Allie & Anna @ 7 weeks.

Please bear with me as I have been feeling very sentimental lately. :) I just can't believe my sweet little babies are going to be 4 in just a few short months. You're always told that they grow up so fast....and I never really listened or believed until I had my own babies. It's SO true!

I mean, I can sit and have full on adult conversations with my kids now. It's so cool and strange. I love seeing them play and love on each other. I DON'T love seeing them fight, but do love seeing them make up. I love hearing them pray for others. I love hearing them read along with daddy some of their favorite Bible stories. I love seeing their different personalities. It's true, they are all very different separate individuals, BUT at the same time the are a very UNIQUE GROUP too. Not many brothers and sisters are given the same awesome opportunity to grow up together in the same way they are. It's truly a gift from God! (Please please help me remember this when I have FOUR TEENAGERS in my house!)

"Mom....really another picture?" Ben right before his MUCH needed haircut.

My furry headed Suga bear.:)

After their haircuts...with a touch of post-nap bed head.

I will never get over how beautiful her eyes (and the others) are! They can MeLt you!

Practicing her "mean witch" face. Yes we play a little hide-in-seek/tag game where I'm usually the mean witch. It's fun.

The Holsey's came over for a couple of days while their mommy was in some work training. So we had lots of all day fun! I was BEYOND thankful it was nice weather out.---->probably would have lost my mind otherwise. Three 4 yr olds and Four 3 yr olds all crammed into our 1000 sq ft house would not make for much fun hrs & hrs on end.

My sweet sister came over to run around with the kids for a while. It was great to have another adult around. Thanks Sarah! The kids think she is the most fun Aunt Ever!:)

I whipped out the little baby pool for a distraction. A little bit of water and some cups--they were in heaven.

So you may be wondering....how & where did I nap 7 kids???.......

The giggly girls...

The boisterous boys...

In the end, all 7 did end up taking naps. THANK GOODNESS! My ears needed a few minutes of silence:)

Movie time. We had a "toddler screening" of "Tangled" with popcorn and everything:) It was cute and so was the movie.

Two of my best friend in the world. Heather & Melanie. We've been through it all together since middle school. I love you beautiful ladies!

Eight of our nine children helping celebrate Heather's 30th birthday.

We have had some horrible flooding/storms/rain/tornado action here the last few weeks. So we were without power for a little bit while the damage to our lines was being fixed. So how to entertain the quads, with NO power, no ability to go play in the back yard due to down trees and power lines? We did LOTS of crafty type things. It was fun and exhausting.:) Eventually the kids were constantly asking why the lights wouldn't come on....they were acting like I was some kind of mean mommy just taking pleasure in their whining?! UM.....no. Sorry kids. It was so out of my control! Thankfully not for very long.

(Speaking of tornadoes, please please keep those in Alabama and the other southern states that were devastated by the horrible storms last week. We are thankful all of our family were unharmed, but our hearts break for all those affected!)

After being given the all clear from the power dudes, we got on our boots and HAD to get outside if only for a few minutes. (It was short lived because it started dumping more rain again. But those few minutes were worth all the effort!)

The girls checking out the mess of limbs and part of our tree that came down during one of the storms.

Easter 2011

We got the kids some cute little Bibles of their own. They were so excited.

Allie, Benjamin, Baron, & Anna ready for church. (Thanks Mimi & Papaw for the cute new outfits!)

It rained so much that we didn't get to do our Easter egg hunt like last yr, but I don't think the kids even knew or cared.

Yeah....so....I guess I just wanted to make my "boring" life a little more lively by added a booted foot to it?! BOO! Seriously though, it's not broken---thankfully. Just some damaged ligaments from a unnamed child falling on it and sandwiching it between a bony butt and a stupid hard plastic toy. OUCH! Just a couple more weeks......

March of Dimes: March for Babies Walk 2011

Team Burkett QuadSquad ready for some fun!

I don't know why this picture cracks me up so much but man it makes me smile (in fear) every time. Is this what they will look like in 12 yrs when they're driving for the first time?! EEK!

Pretty Princesses

Daddy & Peanut

Daddy & Benihana

Daddy & Suga Bear

Daddy & Punky (gotta love the Baron face in the background!)

Me and my babies.

The Holsey's & The Burkett's

Nate, Emma, & Alli

Our area Mom's of Multiple's

I'd like to say thank you to EACH of you that donated to our March of Dimes team this yr! THANK YOU!!!

I could write more....but this momma is tired. :)

Jenny

How Did We Get Here?

2011-04-07T15:25:00.000-05:00

From the scary Nicu life......

.....praying for little hearts, lungs, and brains......

.....praying they would continue to thrive.....

.....trusting God would bring us through.....

.....longing for sleep but thankful for the 4 precious reasons we weren't sleeping.

To HERE....

FOUR precious HEALTHY almost 4 yr olds!

THANK YOU GOD!

Thank you family.

Thank you friends.

Thank you "angels" who helped without leaving a name.

Thank you March of Dimes!!

Without all of the above mentioned helpers.....we wouldn't be where we are today!

Check out last years blog about all the great ways March of Dimes helped our family and many others we know.

Please help us meet our fund raising goal for the March of Dimes! You can donate securely online by clicking the button on the Left side of the blog. OR if you'd prefer to donate another way just click the email me button at the top and we can work that out as well:) Thanks!

Jenny

Miss Us?

2011-03-19T22:00:00.004-05:00

I know it's' been SOOOO long since I've updated:) I've really been wanting to, but I had to take care of a little blogger storage glitch first---and of course the million other things that have happened in the last couple months. I'm going to give you a cliff's notes version to catch you up to speed!

In February I started working again--just PRN (as needed) at a nearby assisted living home. It's great! I can basically work when I want and I really enjoy assisting & getting to know the residents.

My little sister, Sarah, got engaged!:) She and John are getting married June 25th 2011. We are all very excited and busy planning the wedding. Only 98 days!

Soon to be Mr. & Mrs. Reis:)

I watched the Holsey triplets again when their regular sitter called in sick:) All 7 kids always have a great time together! It's just so fun seeing them interact with each other:)

Wrestle Mania--Multiple's edition.

Can you feel the sisterly love??

Ben, Baron, Nate, Allie, Alli, Emma, & Anna.

Our favorite college football team, Auburn University, played in & won the National Championship! We had a little get together wish some friends and had a great night. The kids are some hardcore fans---at the wee age of 3 they know the whole AU fight song:) TOO CUTE!

Bear getting into the game.

Daddy and Ben (a future AU football player according to Ben).

WAR EAGLE!

We had some snow....and more snow and ice.....and now I think we're finally finished with all that. THANKFULLY! So glad tomorrow is the first day of spring! We LOVE to play outside and it's so much more fun when it doesn't take 30 minutes of prepping with jackets/gloves/hats/boots just to walk out the door.

Anna & Allie longing for spring.

I can't even begin to tell you how quickly the kids are growing up. They are SO smart!! It blows me away. They are getting good at spelling! They really are like sponges. I love just sitting and talking to them and listening to their conversations with each other---Such little people. When I think back to the preemie days, it was SO hard to think this far ahead. It was too scary. I couldn't even really imagine what they would be like and how we would survive. And now here we are. Where did the time go? wow....

My handsome heart breakers:)

Allie Grace

Anna Ruth---she was pouting because she did not want her picture taken, but couldn't help but be cute!

We celebrated the Holsey triplet's 4th birthday and had a BLAST!

Mimi had foot surgery (2x) and has been off work since January. Although it's been rough on her, we have been very happy to get to see her a lot more often! They have been a source of entertainment for her. We love our Mimi! Thankfully she will be walking on that foot again in the next week! YAY!

We've played outside at any and every chance. If the temp is above 50....we're out there:)

Swing time at the park!

Daddy having a sweet moment with his little peanut.

I tackled the season change clothing sort out. UGH! It always amaze me how much stuff we have. I thinned it out A LOT after seeing this sight. We have grown a lot lately so many of the items in their drawers didn't fit well anyway. So long baby clothes....hello children's sizes!

St Patrick's Day 2011

Bear, Benihana, Punky & Nut

Our local mom's of multiples group took a little trip to one of the fire stations. I knew my kid would LOOOOOVE this! The boys are all things fire trucks & ambulances.

The quad squad meets the fire & rescue squad.

Holsey's & Burkett's

They let the kids "spray" the water hose. It was so cute.

Well of course my little shy sweetheart was too scared to do it.....no worries---Allie took Anna's turn:)

Thank you firemen for all you do!

My awesome 3.5 yr olds......

......used to all fit in this chair together when they were babies.

I guess I'll show you ....another thing I've been up to....BAKING! I thought, I like to bake and maybe I could make a little extra money doing it. Well it's going well and keeping me busy:) Here are a few things I've done for people recently. The kids don't mind me baking because I usually end up with just a couple extra bites for them in the end:

Red velvet cake pop for a 25th wedding anniversary.

Flower & lady bug cake pops for a 3rd birthday.

Valentine's day cake pop bouquet.

Cupcake pops.

Chocolate meringues

Mini pineapple upside cakes.

Coconut cream pie

Upside down Apple Pecan Pie

Brian's new FAVORITE pie:)

So...yes we've been busy, but now that we're caught up -sorta.....I can keep you better updated.

Happy Spring!

Jenny

NOT Cancer.---UPDATE

2011-02-15T14:12:00.002-06:00

My amazing maternal Grandparents, Al (my Allie was named after him--Allie Clayton) & Betty (or as we've always called them...Pa & Nana) and their great grandbabies--Christmas 2010.

Please keep Pa in your prayers as we just received news that no one ever wants to hear. The doctors think he has cancer in his lungs. I don't know many details yet.....we are still waiting for more test results and praying that it's NOT cancer.

Please pray that, if it is cancer it was caught soon enough to be treated and he can beat this.

I am thankful to have all 4 of my grandparents and to have known 4 of my great grandparents. I am thankful that my children have known the love of their great grandparents. I am thankful for all the wonderful memories I have growing up with them. I am thankful that they know our Lord, Jesus Christ.

None of that makes me cry any less right now...but I KNOW that I trust God to get us through it all no matter what. I love you Pa and Nana!

Praying,

Jenny

******UPDATE*****
THANK GOD!.....After doing a lung biopsy today the doctor gave us the GREAT news that my grandpa does NOT have cancer!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!
He has a very treatable virus that with some doses of antibiotics, he will be good as new!

I am so thankful for all the kind words, emails & prayers you have lifted up!!
Thank you!
Jenny

Christmas Festivities!

2011-01-11T14:29:00.000-06:00

So I had tons of pictures I wanted to post and have been trying to get this Christmas post done for over a week now. Blogger decided to give me a headache and told me I was out of storage space for pictures.....so until I get that all fixed up I'm going to post just a few favorites from our Christmas journey.

We did "The BIG Trip" again. 1400 miles in 7 days. yeppers.....Four 3 yr olds in the car with the dvd player OF COURSE, MULTIPLE potty stops, many goldfish crackers eaten--and even more on the floor & in the crack of the seats, tons of super cute conversations and pictures, even more bathroom stops, and all of it SO worth it to see our family and make some wonderful memories celebrating our Savior's birth!

We had great celebrations with both sides of the family. One of my favorite memories is from our little family night here with just the 6 of us. We started a tradition that we plan on keeping with every year. Before all the wild unwrapping presents mayhem began....we took some quiet time together and remembered what Christmas is truly about. The kids helped me bake little cupcakes earlier that day for our Jesus Birthday Party! They were so excited to sing happy birthday and blow out a candle for him and say a prayer. I love how innocent and pure they are. Can't they stay like that forever? Please?:)

I can't say this enough...I am TRULY beyond words thankful for the family I have been blessed with. Each and every one of them is so special to me. Also my friends that are like family to me. I love all of you and I look forward to a great new year filled with many exciting times!

SO...Merry Belated Christmas and a TRULY BLESSED New Year to you!

Jenny

A Little Late But Still Thankful!

2010-12-12T23:19:00.001-06:00

I am finally getting around to posting pictures from out trip to see family down south for Thanksgiving. I figured I should probably get around to it BEFORE Christmas.

We had a great 5 day visit with Brian's family. It was filled with Family, Food, and Football (WAR EAGLE---Auburn!).

We were also able to spend quite a bit of time with 2 of our nieces, Alana & Cymone. The quads were LOVING having other people to play with. There's just something about playing with someone else's toys that is more fun (but ya know....I don't think we ever really out grow that do we?:)

We had a great Thanksgiving day eating food with the family, which is getting quite large ( Brian's mom has 12 grand kids and 1 great-granddaughter)! Friday was a BIG day for 2 reasons....1) BLACK FRIDAY 2) AUBURN vs ALABAMA football (Auburn won!!)

Stupid me decided it would be a good idea to go black Friday shopping by myself, in a town that I've never driven in alone, & under a deadline (had to be back for the Auburn game). I thought I had planned it all out so well. I knew the exact place to go to get the deal I wanted on my new camera. I mapped out my way from my mother-in-law's house in the boonies to the store. I even planned to get up extra extra early so I could get home not long after the kids would be getting up.........hilarious how NONE of that worked out as planned.

11pm Thurs night I was talked into going to Super Walmart instead of Sears for my camera. I knew from doing my homework that their deals were pretty similar so I thought ok....tax was 2.5% cheaper if I went to the further away Wally world. To make this long story a little shorter.....got up at 3am...got on the road, sipping my caffeine and feeling confident this would be an easy trip. I got to Walmart WELL before the 5am sale was to start. I was SO excited that I was about the 12th person in line for the cameras. Finally after waiting for over and hour in the line I THOUGHT I should be in.....I got to the counter only to be told that the camera I wanted was being sold out of a different part of the store.....holding back frustrated tears I followed a lady that was just a couple of people in front of me. We both got in the NEW line to wait for our cameras.....she was the lucky one that day......she got the LAST ONE! I just stood there thinking that another one would magically appear but it didn't..... GRR!!!!

I couldn't believe that it was now 6am....I had been up for 3 hrs and had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to show for it. As I was heading for the door it started not just raining but POURING! I finally got to my van (an entire football field away) and just sat there for a minute drenched deciding what to do next......cry.....cuss....go home...go on a hunt?

I decided I was NOT going home until I got want I had come for. Found a Target---SOLD OUT of my camera. Found several other places.....alllllllllll sold out! Finally decided to head to Sears (the ORIGINAL store of choice) and they had 2 left! YAY Success! I figured while I was out and I knew the kids were already up and Brian was handling things, I would do a little shopping for some new Auburn gear since the kids outgrew their old onesies.

In this case my stubbornness was very useful and I'm still amazed I didn't get lost the entire time I was driving all around the city!?

Man....that story seems a lot longer when I type it out and probably isn't nearly as funny or important to anyone else but..oh well:) Main point.... I got my new camera and I love it!! It's a Canon Rebel XS. It was worth the hassle:)

I have TONS of pictures in this post---I know many of you family members have been waiting for these so I hope you enjoy. I PROMISE to get better about writing more often. Some days there just is not enough time to do the things I NEED to do....let alone what I WANT to!

Brian & Pa-pa (his dad's dad)

Baron enjoying a little "warm up" snack before the big meal:)

Anna looking so innocent.:)

CHEEEEEEEESE! Ben

No clue what Allie's doing?

The Hungry Hungry QuadSquad!

Granddaddy (my mother in law's dad) and his great grand kids.

Baron and Pa-pa = clones!

Brian's little sister, Barbara, with Anna and her daughter Alana.

The men in deep football conversation.

Pa-pa with his great-grand quads.

The little ones working up an appetite while waiting for lunch. It was a beautiful day:)

One of my beautiful nieces, Alana.

Learning to catch!

We were on a pine cone hunt---what??? This momma was trying to keep them busy so as to keep the hungry whining at a minimum:)

Our Peanut.

Bear was SO proud of his ginormous pine cones he found.....

...And so was Ben:)

Notice the necklace---she's always stylin' even when doing manual labor:)

Grandmama (Brian's mom) with her grand babies.

CHOW TIME!

The kids LOVE their cousin Cymone!

These next pictures are special because when Brian was a kid his parents and grandparents would pick him up to touch the pretty chandelier. Well his granddaddy still has that same chandelier and now Brian can pick up OUR kids and do the same with them. So sweet.

Baron

Anna "can I REALLY touch it daddy??"

Benjamin

Allie

Barbara & Alana.

Check out what a difference two years will make! Sweet little Allie.

Great aunt Kathryn "Kitty Kat" giving the kids a hug.

TOO MUCH TURKEY:) It was such a nice, silent drive back to his mom's house:)

Once we got back to the house they were dying to play on the swing set and we were hoping they would burn off some energy before bed.

Iron Bowl Game Day 2010!

Waaaaaar Eagle, HEY!

Anna, Baron, Alana, Benjamin, & Allie--Iron Bowl 2008

Baron, Anna, Alana, Allie, & Ben--Iron Bowl 2010

The kids loved their new Auburn shirts (And they better after all that hard work I put into get them:):)

After the game, we put up Grandmama's Christmas tree. The kids had fun "helping".

Check out this cute ornament of Brian at age 4.....look like anyone else??

The CLONES---Baron Ross and Brian Ross.

Uncle Rusty (Brian's brother) and Aunt Wendy came by for a visit to love on the kids for a few minutes.

They love their fun Uncle Rusty:)

Sometimes a mom's gotta get creative---the kids were getting restless for dinner.....so I found a brown paper bag, cut it open, found some crayons and ta-da....15 mins of coloring fun:)

We love our cousin Alana....

....and our cousin Cymone. (We missed seeing most of the other cousins this time.)

Beautiful Alana. She fits in perfectly with our crew especially since she's only 9 months younger.:)

On our way back up north we made a little stop to visit Aunt Brenda and Uncle Bud (Brian's dad's sister). They talked us into staying for lunch. It was a nice little break, the food was good and it was the first time some of the family had met the quads.

The rest of these pictures are just randoms that...well you know me...I can't resist putting up cute ones of the kids:)

Cheesey monkeys:)

Our first story time at the library with some of our other multiples friends:) The kids had a BLAST! We will do it again.

quads+triplets+twins+1+twins+1= 4 tired mommas:)

Brian and I decided to start a new, fun little tradition with the kids. We had fun taking them to the store to pick out one special ornament for themselves for our tree. Sometimes I forget that they don't have much of anything that is really their OWN! I mean....they share everything! So it's nice for them pick out something special that is just theirs. When we got home I wrote their name and the date on the back of each. We plan on doing each year.

Waiting to put their new ornaments on the tree.

Allie's Tinkerbell

Anna's Tinkerbell

Ben's Buzz Lightyear

Baron's Woody and friends

Last week we went to the hospital their were born at and visited our "Aunt" Robin. We LOVE her! She has been in my life for as long as I can remember and her family is just like family to us. Her mom, Mimi Joyce, was my babysitter for years and it's just so special to me that my kids know her and the whole family. They will always have such a special place in my heart:)

The kids were checking out the babies.....in the same spot that The HUGE REVELATION hit Brian and I. It's amazingly bittersweet:) We have SOOOO many things to be thankful for in our life. I could name thousands of people and things....but ULTIMATELY.....we are MOST thankful for our Lord Jesus Christ, for without Him......everything would be meaningless.

Praying that you all have a WONDERFUL, safe, Joy-filled holiday season. I know we will! The kids can't wait to have a birthday party for baby Jesus:):) I promise to post pictures:)

Jenny

GREEN EGGS & Bananas

2010-12-11T21:26:00.000-06:00

I Do Not Like Green Eggs & ~~Ham~~ Bananas......

I DO......

....NOT LIKE....

....THEM SAM.....

.....I AM.

Try them, try them and you may....try them and you may I say!

Say! I DO Like Green Eggs & ~~Ham~~ Bananas. I DO SO like them Sam-I-Am!

(Excuse lil miss attitude in this picture. She did really like the eggs....I think she was just tired of me sticking my camera in her face:))

I thought it would be fun, since the kids are ALL about Dr. Suess books right now--esp Green Eggs and Ham, to surprise them with some green scrambled eggs one Saturday morning:) (Disclaimer---I know food coloring is bad, but I think just this once won't ruin them forever!)

It was great watching them go from hungry for breakfast-->confused at what they are looking at on their plates-->not wanting to try it--->hearing us quote Green Eggs and Ham to them--->trying it and actually liking it a lot!

It's all about taking time for the fun little things we can do with our kids!

Jenny

It's been too long!

2010-11-16T16:23:00.001-06:00

***WARNING***

There will be MANY pictures in this post because I am trying to catch up from the last month and don't have time to do multiple posts:)

First off I want to say thank you to those of you who prayed for my surgery. It couldn't have gone any better and I am feeling great now!

SO now on to the good stuff......

Brian and I took the kids to a beautiful, historic little town nearby to just have some fun and try to take some pictures as the leaves were beginning to change. I absolutely LOVE how fascinated the kids are at the simplest of things. It makes me think of my childhood and how we didn't have video games, instead we had WILD imaginations. We could spend HOURS playing outside just pretending. I want my kids to be just like that! (Don't get me wrong--I'm not against video games etc. My parents gave my sister and I the choice between a Nintendo or a trampoline. We picked the trampoline and never regretted it!)

We love being outdoors and going on "adventures". There's something amazing about experiencing life through my children's beautiful eyes. Seeing them learn about something new brings me more joy than I ever knew was possible. Thank you God for blessing my life with Brian, Benjamin, Allie, Anna & Baron!

Last month we had LOTS of fun with our triplet friends, Emma, Nate & "other" Alli.

Holy Smokes! Seven 3 yr olds!

Breakfast time--boy can they put the waffles away!!!. Stacey's babysitter called in sick and I watched the triplets for the morning. It was FAR easier than I ever imagined. They were so happy playing together, that really I was just a warm body there:)

Emma and Allie

This was the best group shot I could get that day. They were all over the place. I'm so used to counting to 4 when keeping track of them that counting to 7 seemed unnatural:) Silly I know!

Brotherly Love

(please excuse the pj pants. Ya gotta pick your battles folks:))

4 Pretty Princesses

Anna, Alli, Allie, & Emma

They were in princess dress up heaven! (Thank you Craigslist!)

The lil men.

Baron, Ben, & Nate.

And since we didn't get enough time with the Holsey's that day, we met up at McD's for some lunch--a rare treat for our kids seeing as it costs a small fortune to feed the masses. Also, I hate to admit this, but it was THE FIRST time my kids got to play in the indoor ~~germzone~~ playground (it's just a logistical nightmare for me to take them all by myself so I choose not to:)). They LOVED it of course and Stacey and I didn't mind having a few minutes to chat and drink our delicious McDiet drinks.

I don't know if they do this everywhere or just our McDonald's, but they gave the kids free TINY ice cream cones! It was awesome and so cute. Of course, a handful of employees had to come stalk us while the kids were eating them. I guess they were curious when Stacey ordered 7 of the little cones!

We also to play with some new friends, Lucy & Kellen and baby sister Maggie.

Carrie--we need to play again soon so I can get a baby fix:)

Halloween 2010

I know I did a tiny post about Halloween earlier, but I thought I'd add a few pictures that I didn't put up then.

The Peanuts Gang

Papaw, Mimi & their grandbabies.

Our church has a big Autumn Fest every year and the kids had a BLAST this yr. It was so cute seeing them play the games for the first time.

We <3 fire engines!

We went to our first (well first they could remember) wedding as a family. I don't know why they were so excited about it. Maybe because I told them there would be cake?! They were angels during the ceremony (thank you Goldfish snacks!) and looked BEYOND cute in their duds!

Congrats to Kelli (my longtime childhood friend) and Jason!

Daddy and his boys. They were so excited to dress up in suits like Brian does everyday for work. They kept talking about going to work like daddy:)

He's totally wrapped around their little fingers.

We were very thankful that my parents were with us because I was just 3 days post surgery, but I didn't want to miss the wedding. Don't worry I obeyed all the rules and took it very easy!

Meeting the quads for the first time. After meeting the bride, the girls kept telling us they were getting married tomorrow! AGH! NOT READY FOR THAT YET!

My groom and me:)

So I thought about ending here, but since the kids are still napping I can't resist throwing in a few more random cute ones! I hope everyone is getting ready for the beautiful holiday season. We can't wait to spend time with all our family!!:)

Jenny

Benjamin Russell doing his Blue Steel impression:)

Allie Grace

Baron Ross

Anna Ruth after a little too much sugar:)

Sisters

Brothers

Allie was being my laundry helper

Forever Friends

Peanuts and Gang

2010-11-02T17:35:00.000-05:00

Halloween 2010

Charlie Brown (Ben), Linus van Pelt (Baron), Lucy van Pelt (Anna), & Sally Brown (Allie).

Not to pat my own back---but I'm really excited how these costumes I made turned out. It's always fun to try to come up with some better than the year before. Here's a walk down memory lane of our past costumes:)

The Flintstone's and Rubble's

2009

Stinky Pumpkins:)

2008

Their first halloween, 2007, was during RSV season so we didn't dress up, leave the house, or even hand out candy. Cute little sleepy heads, don't ya think?:)

I didn't take many pictures of our adventures so I'm waiting to get some from my dad. And as soon as that happens---I will share!:)

I am going in to have my gallbladder removed tomorrow so I will be outta commission for a little bit but will definitely have some down time this weekend and I have so many things to share! So check back:)

<3 Jenny

We Heart Fall!

2010-10-08T14:46:00.000-05:00

Sorry my To Be Continued took sooooooo long:) I haven't felt great for a few days so now here I am trying to play catch up again! We have had some major Fall Fun! I love fall...it's the best! I hope you are enjoying this beautiful season! Enjoy....

We took a spontaneous day trip to visit some dear friends, Eric and Donna. They have some BEAUTIFUL property with horses, dogs, roosters and a pond---the kids were in heaven!

Princess Allie. The kids have gotten SO creative and I absolutely love to watch their little imaginations at work. They make me laugh out loud on a daily basis.

A quad train.

Just a few of our local mom's of multiples out for some dinner and drinks. I love these girls. Between the 8 of us I believe there were like 28 kids. WOWZA:)

My good friend, Stacey--mom of the Holsey triplets, and I took the SEVEN 3 yr olds to go pick some apples and pumpkins. We all had a BLAST!

Ben, Baron, Anna, Allie, Emma, Alli, & Nate at the Orchard.

Apple picking is so fun:)

My girls were so excited about the "Baby" pumpkins.

What cute cheesy monkeys.

After our fun at the orchard, we decided to take a little trip to Sam's. You can't even imagine all the looks we got with all the kids and food in our carts. I SO wanted to say to them---"yeah we picked them (the kids) up in Aisle 7 on clearance":)

After a long day of playing in the dirt....we were DEFINITELY in need of a bath. So sad my babies are getting TOO big to take a bath all together. *tear*

Look at these rolly pollies when they were 9 months old--Allie, Ben, Anna & Baron.

My wonderful grandparents came up to visit us and go out to lunch with their great grand kids. We had a great time. We love you Nana and Pa!

The proud great grandparents

My mischievous Allie Grace.

Ben--sweaty, tired and needing a nap.

One of Anna's many signature looks:)

How does a Bear go Baron? ROAR!

I LOVE when they all play together--nicely.

The clones.

I love this dude:)

It's SO hard to get them all to focus on the camera, smile, not bounce around, etc.

Anna

Allie

Baron

Benjamin

Brian and I took the kids to get some pumpkins. It was so fun seeing them pick out the ones they wanted. We ended up with 3 white ones and one orange one. Guess who the odd ball was....yep--Allie:)

October 2010

After the pumpkins, we took them to feed the ducks, geese & squirrels. It was such a perfect day:)

"Making a race" as they call it.

How can you NOT smile when he smiles:)

Can you say CANDY CORN!! (which by the way is our NEW pooping on the potty reward. They have #1 down....and now #2 is much closer to being done too--all thanks to some candy corn!)

The Quad Squad

Papaw (my dad) building with the kids.

Mimi (my mom) and mini me- Anna.

Our Sweet Tutu

2010-09-27T15:45:00.000-05:00

Today we would have celebrated my great grandmother's 100th birthday! We were very much looking forward to a big family get together. Well, she went home to be with the Lord March 10, 2010 instead. Although I am very much at peace knowing she's in heaven and is no longer ill, I still wish she was here sometimes (especially for her great great grand babies).

Christmas 2007

Tutu meeting her great great grandchildren for the first time. They were about 4.5 months old.

The kids still talk about her sometimes. It's so sweet. She was so proud of them and I will always be thankful that my children knew the love of their great great grandmother.

She was such a hard working, Godly woman. I pray that I can be like that too! I am so thankful for such wonderful family. I love you all!

In Memory of Cylde "Tutu" Corey

September 27th 1910- March 10th, 2010

Jenny

Slacking on the Blog = HUGE PICTURE POST!

2010-09-21T22:30:00.002-05:00

First off, I want to apologize for my lack of blogging lately. I have no excuses...just busy and haven't made the time to do it. But after much "encouragement" from others....here is what we've been up to for the last month. I'm going to keep my words short and sweet and let the pictures do the talking:)

ENJOY!

The King Quads 1st Birthday Party. We had a BLAST! It brought back so many memories:)

My.Beautiful.Children!
Baron, Benjamin, Anna & Allie

I realized that I never posted a picture of the princess "closet" I made for the girls out of an old shelving unit. I just took out the shelves, stuck on some hooks and there ya have it! They love it and it cost me NOTHING!:)

While waiting to get some lab work done on Baron we checked out the beautiful fish tank at the hospital I used to work at BTQ (before the quads). (Thankfully the labs came back great and Baron doesn't have Celiac disease! PRAISE GOD!)

We have played at the park quite a bit......

....even better when we have friends play with us at the park!

My sweet friend Melanie and her youngest, Luke.

We have visited the zoo several times (especially now that we have a season pass--that means it's now free entertainment for us! woohoo!)

This time we were SWEATING forever in line to not see an animal but.....

...to see Dora & Boots!!! The kids were SO excited and I think a little thrown off too. Why was Dora so big? Why didn't she talk? Why does her shirt HAVE to be so short? (Sorry---that's my question!)

After seeing Dora and sweating it out, we checked out the animals.

An played in the spray outside air conditioning. I really think that was as big a hit as seeing Dora.

Before......

After.....

Benboo

SugaBear

Nutnut

Punkinpants

Playing with friends is always fun (and usually messy in some form or another).

The kids REALLY really like to dress up....Their creativity total melts me:) I love them!

My little sailors:)

And the princesses.

Some of our favorite triplet friends---The Holsey's! Seven 3 yr olds know how to have FUN!
Ben, Nate, Allie, Alli, Baron, Anna & Emma

Brotherly Love:)

The girls were pretending they were on a ship and Allie was falling overboard. She kept saying "Save me Anna, Save me! Pull me UP!" It was cute and reminded me a lot of how my sister and I played when we were little.

They have discovered one of the trees in our back yard has "berries" on it. THANKFULLY they haven't tried to eat them. They really just like picking them, counting them, throwing them and squishing them.

Allie was begging for Daddy to help her climb the berry tree.

I love this man:) He's the best!

Allie and Ben just....hanging around.

Ben and Daddy having some big man to lil man time:)

Yep...at the zoo again. Taking a snack break. We were an attraction ourselves.

We took the kids out for lunch a few weeks ago for their first real Mexican food. YUMMO! My favorite. Brian and I both don't know how it's taken 3 yrs to do this but....the kids were ALL about the chips and salsa!

Our dear friends Melanie & Brett had us over for a cookout. 4 adults, 6 kids under 6 and some good food = a good time:)

I love this little boy like he was my own! (I love Haley their daughter too...just didn't get a picture to post!:)

BFF since we were like 11ish yrs old!?

Haley reading to Allie. (Allie is without clothes because she thought it would be funny to get the water hose out and get soaked! It was funny....and very
wet!)

Labor Day Weekend we got together with my parents, my mom's parents and my sis and her bf for lunch. It was a great time of fellowship!

Sorry I'm dork for posting this picture but I was really proud of these homemade onion rings I made for the cookout!

My grandpa doing the grilling honors:)

My dad putting together a last minute picnic table purchase for the kids.

Baron-so sweet:)

Unfortunately the kids were a little too big for the picnic table from above---more like a twin table than quad!

Baron and his great-grandfather.

Brian and my cute sister, Sarah.

My grandma and my mom.

Sarah and John.

After TONS of family fun Labor Day.....and no nap.....the kids were exhausted. We let these 2 take a very short nap but an early bedtime was definitely in order that night!

These are their "mugshots" from Labor day without a nap...

Baron--actually did have 30 min nap and looks worse than the others:) Can you tell he definitely likes his sleep!

Anna=delirium at it's finest!

Ben--actually pretty pleasant...but kinda dazed and confused?!

Allie---definitely needing her princess beauty sleep!

Allie and Anna are talking more and more about being ballerinas....just wait until they find out their mommy was one for about 14 yrs!

There's a cat in the box. No really Baron---check it out!

My sweet gang.

Hanging with the triplets again. I'm sure we looked like a daycare with our mega strollers!

So sweet--Ben and (other)Alli insisting on holding hands!! Watch OUT!:)

Running Free!

Trying to pick some apples! They LOVED it! I think we need to go to a real orchard here in town to get some apples we can actually eat!

Me and our crew.

Stacey and our crew.

Funny Allie. (Yes that's the same box/bathtub from the Nicu. Can't believe we used to bathe her in that!)

Total fashion icon :)

The rest of the pictures on here were taken by a Canon Rebel XTI that I'm borrowing from a friend to see how I like it! Thanks Tan! (I <3 it!)

Our sweet old pup, Jasmine. The kids love her to death!

Hanging out down by the river. I was being brave by taking them down there, by myself...without the stroller...to try to take some decent outdoor shots. They did great! And it was quite liberating for me!

They were SO excited to find this bush that had TONS of Monarch butterflies on it!

My boys.

My girls.

As good as I could get...there was just too many things to look at. 2 out of 4 isn't so bad?! At least there are no tears.

They were fascinated with the Jesus statue in the garden.

I.LOVE.THIS.PICTURE!

Giving me the stink eye!

We visited a "retired" trolley while at the river.

Who would have thought.....

....so much fun would have been had!

Silly faces....

Baron

Benjamin

Allie

Anna

Anna (and all the others) love to have their "tenchamer" aka temperature checked.

Anna helping Allie look for kitty cats in her ears. That's what their pediatrician tells them he's looking for when he checks their ears.

My boys dressing up like daddy!

And now....for your viewing pleasure I have 2 videos of the kids singing and showing off their musical talents!:)

Have a great week!!
Jenny
(btw....sorry for the red eyes etc...I didn't take the time to edit ANY of these pictures. :))

The Big 33!!!

2010-08-26T15:12:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Brian/Daddy!!!

We have been counting down the days for daddy's birthday ever since the quads birthday!:) When Allie woke up this morning the first thing she said was "It's daddy's birthday...he needs some cake!" At least she's got her priorities right?!:)

Brian--I love you so much and am SO thankful to have you as a partner in this crazy life! I LOVE YOU!

Here are a few pictures from this morning's gift giving festivities. It was hard to keep the kids from telling Brian about all the surprises. They did a good job for 3 yr olds though.

You know it's a good gift when they are speechless with their jaw dropped:)

An Auburn blanket with favorite family pictures from this year.

Footprints on a canvas with one of my favorite baby pictures and one of my favorite verses--Prov 22:6.

The deeper meaning behind this canvas---On Brian's 30th birthday, just a few weeks after the kids were born, the Nicu nurses made Brian birthday cards with their hands and feet stamped on them. It was sooooooo sweet. So I thought I'd make a new version off the footprints for this birthday....because we all know how much I love to the compare now and then pictures.:)

Here are the cards from 8/26/2007 when the kids were just 19 days old and still in the Nicu.

Daddy's birthday present 3 yrs ago---to hold all 4 of his beautiful babies together for the first time!

Ben, Allie, Anna & Baron

Happy Birthday Daddy!

We LOVE you!

Jenny, Benihana, Peanut, Punkin, & Bear bear.

Finally....Birthday and Big Beds

2010-08-16T13:58:00.001-05:00

2nd birthday --2009

3rd birthday---2010. What a difference a year makes!

I made some cupcakes--with the colors the boys requested and the girls got a BEAUTIFULLY made Dora cake. Thanks to my best friend, Melanie, for making the cake. It was perfect!

The spread....YUM:)

The cheese ball thief--Baron, caught orange handed. I think he ate his weight in cheese balls that day!:)

The King quads (who just turned 1) and the Burkett quads.

Happy Birthday Benjamin!

Happy Birthday Baron!

Happy Birthday Allie & Anna!

We had 19 kids (from 6 families) at our party!! 4 sets of multiples:) Well... God did tell us to go and be fruitful right?!

I still can't believe they are 3!

And now..........

I want to say a HUGE HUGE thank you to my Dad and Mom for working SO hard on getting the kids Big kid beds built and painted just in time for their party!

This was the kids first look at their new beds (at the party). Don't they look GREAT!!!? Thank you Grandmama (Brian's mom) for the kids cute bedding!! They love it!

They were SO excited!

Daddy and his boys. You 3 are my favorite boys in the world!:)

Presents--thank you to all our friends and family. You gave TOO much!:)

Baron, Ben, Emma, Alli, Allie, Anna & Nate (the Holsey triplets & Burkett quads). We wanted to get a picture of all the multiples together that day...but we got sidetracked. Wonder how that happened?:)

I love all our friends and family.

My sweet princesses were SOO excited about all their new dress up stuff we bought them. (I am STILL so proud of the amazing deals I got on all that stuff!)

It was a packed house for sure!

Dr. Allie studying her new anatomy book.

My sister thought I needed a present for surviving 3 yrs. She's hilarious;)

My sis, Sarah and her boyfriend, John.

This is what Anna has looked like almost everyday for the last week. :) She's is a girl after my own heart!

The boys LOVE their new train table.

The first night in their new beds was an amazing success. (It might have to do with the fact that they were SO tired from all the days festivities....either way, they have done really well with the transition. It's kinda sad that we have no more cribs and no changing table anymore. We have a big kid house now. *tear*)

I am starting to work on a little project of my own. See all those dresses...well I can't deal with them being on the floor everywhere all day. SO...I'm going to try to make a little "princess closet" for the girls stuff. As soon as I get it done I will share some pictures:)

My little fashionistas:)

The boys are SO into building things and playing trains. Such boys!

As much as Brian doesn't want our girls to be cheerleaders, it's hard to deny the fact that they like to cheer:) WAR EAGLE/ GO HORSE/ BOILER UP are the only cheers heard in this house though:)

They are growing up toooooo fast. We have had a great time lately and I want to share some more of what we've been up to since the party (which yes, I know was a week ago...I'm behind!), but I have to get this house back in order so....stay tuned.

Jenny

Happy 3rd Birthday To Our Babies!

2010-08-08T13:03:00.000-05:00

The Quad Squad, Benjamin, Allie, Anna, & Baron are 3 today!!!:)

Off to celebrate! Check back soon for tons of fun pictures!!

Jenny

Where Did the Time Go?

2010-08-04T21:15:00.000-05:00

Seriously??.....Where did the last couple weeks go? I can't believe my babies will be 3 THIS SUNDAY! Wow! I guess we've been so busy having fun, staying cool and making awesome family memories!:) Here are some pictures from our recent adventures!

County Fair time! Can you say SWEATY?! But the kids were so excited about their balloons they didn't care about how hot it was.

Me and my babies at our MOM's Breakfast picnic.

Daddy and his wild bunch. I can't wait to take them on their first camping trip. They had such a good time playing in the woods at the picnic, I just know the camping will be great!

Play dates with our beloved Holsey triplets:) We love Nate, "other" Alli and Emma. The kids always have a good time playing and Stacey and I have some fun too:) What's not to love about 7 three yr olds playing together? As long as we mom's have our Diet Coke and Diet Dr Pepper, we can deal:):)

Brothers playing together. So sweet!

Such loving sisters:)

We are all about free entertainment!! Petsmart is always a hit!

Mimi and Allie.

Celebrating my mom's (Mimi) birthday. We love going out to eat as a family. Mmmm...chinese:)

Aunt Sarah and Anna

My dad (Papaw) and Baron

Daddy and Benjamin.

Yoga--downward dog anyone? I don't know what spurred this on, but I was so thankful my camera was in sight. :)

Another county fair. They LOVE seeing all the big tractors, combines, & trucks. (How many 2 yr olds can point out a combine??...yep mine can:) hehe)

Other fair favorites--->animals, ice cream, balloons, seeing friends, and being together as a family.

I really think they wanted to bring this Llama home with us....umm...no thanks. I have enough to keep track of right now:)

We took the kids to see their first movie!!! Toy Story 3. It was a HUGE success! We all enjoyed the movie and it felt like a big accomplishment for us as parents to be able to do something "normal" with the kids. They were so excited they would hardly sit still to take a picture:)

I was so excited because since the kids are still 2 yrs old...they got in free! WOO HOO!:)

Can you feel the excitement? Sunday after church matinee is definitely a good time to go. It wasn't crowded at all! If you haven't seen this movie yet....GO! It's great and I hate to admit it but it did get me teary eyed at the end.

Such big kids. I LOVE seeing how exciting every new experience is for them. We are so blessed!

Our little fashionistas. They crack me up on a daily basis when I see what they want to wear?! wow.

Benihana---these are some of the last pictures of them in their cribs before we make the big switch this weekend!

Suga Bear

Peanut

Punkin

And here's what we're switching too....my dad made these for the kids. Like toddler beds but modified:) I can't wait to get them in the kids rooms. Don't worry...I will definitely post pictures of the finished products:)

Also say a few prayers that we survive the switch. I'm sure they will surprise us and do better than we expect...they always do. But still--it's a big change:)

How did we go from this.....

Benjamin Russell 2008

....to this so quickly!

Benjamin Russell 2010

Allie Grace 2008

Allie Grace 2010

Anna Ruth 2008

Anna Ruth 2010

Baron Ross 2008

Baron Ross 2010

SO...many....memories:). Be sure to check back this weekend for some birthday celebration fun!:)

Jenny

Happy Anniversary Jenny!!! (The Quadfather Returneth to Blogging!!!)

2010-07-26T08:45:00.007-05:00

Seven years ago, you gave me the honor of accepting my proposal... and I am eternally grateful. You are the most amazing woman God has ever graced this planet with. You have taught me so much by your love, your patience, your kindness, your giving heart, and the grace with which you approach everyone in life.

You're the smartest person I know, and the funniest, too! Your comedic timing catches me off guard every time, and I love the way you make me smile... in my soul.

When I met you a little over 8 years ago, I don't think anyone could have imagined where our lives would take us. We've been around this great country together, and seen some incredible things, but nothing can top the things that have happened in your hometown of Evansville...

Evansville... The place we met in person for the first time, the place we had our first kiss, the place we ran to for rest when life in the ministry became too much, the place we first became homeowners, the place we started this business I'm in together, the place we conceived our children, and the place we gave birth to them...

When I come home from work, what I find is a house... a home... FILLED with love. I come home to (most of the time *lol*) happy children who know they are loved and who are learning of the love and grace, not only of their mother, but of the love and grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

You are, simply, my best friend, my lover, and my partner in this life. I love you baby!

All My Love,
Brian

Our 1st Beach Trip and Family Time on the 4th (WARNING: SUPER long post with TONS of pictures!!)

2010-07-09T23:18:00.002-05:00

So I couldn't decided between doing a MEGA long blog post or breaking it up into sections since we've had so much going on lately. But seeing as my internet connection has been giving me headaches recently and I've been trying to get this posted for a while now.....a mega post it is! So here it goes! Hope you enjoy!

Anna, Allie, Ben and Baron giddy with excitement the night before our beach vacation. Not only was it our first time on a family vacation to the beach, but also the first time Brian and I had been to FL together. Kind of sad 8 yrs together and no Florida?!:)

We headed out for St Augustine, FL and decided to take a slight detour to visit our Grandmama (Brian's mom) in Alabama. (Originally this vacation was planned for Gulf Shores, AL but once the oil reached the beach there we had to make new plans and it just worked out perfectly to go to St Augustine!) We stayed the night at her house and it really did make our trip easier since we split the trip in half. It was great to see family!

Along the way instead of stopping and eating tons of fast food we packed coolers and stopped at rest areas to eat. Let me just tell you how nice this was. Cheaper....healthier....fresh air....and plenty of stretching time:) I would definitely recommend it to those traveling with young kids! **also one other tip I would give to those traveling with little ones....buy an extension grabber arm. Sounds dorky but was SUCH a sanity saver!!!**

Daddy and the kids "making a race" as they call it:) It's SO stinkin' cute! He's such a fun dad!

Benjamin, Baron, Allie & Anna, Cymone & Alana

We finally made it to Alabama and the kids were so excited to play with some of their cousins on the new swing set Grandmama bought for them!

Grandmama and her grandbabies. We LOVE you!

Cousins: Alana, Cymone, Baron, Anna, Ben, & Allie

Making a race! Ocean here we come!

Allie Grace

Anna Ruth

Baron Ross

Benjamin Russell

If anyone wants a recommendation on a nice place to stay on the beach in St Augustine---you need to check these townhouses out. It was FABULOUS! We got an amazing deal on this 2 bd 2.5 bath.

Nothing like some YUMMERIFIC Dominos pizza to wake you up after a long drive! Unfortunately, by the time we got to the townhouse it was too dark to take the kids out the ocean. But that didn't stop Brian and I from taking a little stroll. I wanted to get a picture of this but kept forgetting to.....As we were walking across the boardwalk to get to our beach, I noticed--with my stealthy ninja eyes--a snake in one of the lagoons. We shined our flash light on it and it was HUGE! Brian immediately decided it was probably a poisonous snake ie cottonmouth! EEEEEKK!!!!! So we hurry along and decide to tell the management the next morning. As we're taking the kids to the beach the next morning (all the while I'm nervously scanning everything for snakes) we see signs stating, "Warning: Stay out of the sand dunes because poisonous snakes reside here". WHAT?!?! are ya kidding me?! Thankfully we never had any trouble and didn't see anymore on our way to the beach!

Who's ready for some sun and sand?

Our first time in the ocean. Can you guess who DID NOT like the water and was beyond content to dig in the sand????

Yep....Ben. Poor guy was just terrified of the water. But then the others....well just check them out....

Mimi and Bear heading BACK to the waves:) It was non stop back and forth--dig in the sand....jump in the water...dig in the sand...jump in the water!

My last attempt at getting Ben in the water. Didn't work, maybe next time though:)

My favorite man and me living it up!

Allie

Baron

Benjamin--he coined the phrase of the trip "Makin' gravy". That's what they called the wet dribbly sand. We made LOTS of gravy on the beach!

Anna

This was the perfect beach---uncrowded & beautiful sand.

Papaw and Mimi digging with their grandkids. (Thanks SO much, mom and dad, for coming with us! We couldn't have done it so easily with out you!)

We take up some space don't we?

I love this picture! It absolutely captures the pure joy the kids had while we were there. So much fun!

The Burkett's

For Father's day, I got Brian and my dad AWESOME shirts from my dear friend Casey's website, Designed for Babies. They said Proud Grandpa/Father of quadruplets. They loved them:)

We met up for dinner with some friends, Derek and Jenny and their son Dash. It was nice to see them and the kids had fun making a new friend.

Eating dinner on the beach--that's what I'm talking about!

The kids loved watching the ducks/pelicans/fish/cranes/snakes out side out patio doors. Can't beat free entertainment:)

One day we took a hiatus from the beach and decided to take the kids to the Alligator farm. I could NOT believe how many alligators were there! WHOA! Although it was oppressively hot, the kids had a great time!

I had to convince the girls not to bring in their little toy purses because the alligators might eat them (basically I didn't want to have to keep up with them along with keeping the kids out of trouble) .....now they always remind me that the alligators will get their purses if they take them somewhere. OOPS.:) Maybe I should have told them something else?!

Hot and sweaty much?

Allie was scared to death of the plastic alligator. I had to hold back my laughter:) I know...what a mean mommy:)

They also had other zoo like things to see at the Alligator Farm. They, of course, LOVED to see "Nemo". I think a trip to an aquarium is definitely in order!

It was SO nice to have the pool directly behind our townhouse. It was nice and warm and the kids loved it!

A sad attempt at a group shot. They were just too excited to do the next thing to sit still for very long.

Daddy and his mini-me, Baron.

Brian and I did get a night out while we were there. It was nice to just wander around and just reflect on how amazingly different our life is now from when we first got together 8 yrs ago:)

It was finally time to go home and the kids were not happy about it (neither was I really...).....

what was supposed to be a mere 14 hour trip home, turned into an 18 hr drive due to horrible traffic jams, many potty breaks and meals, an unexpected stop in Nashville where they made I-24 into ONE LANE?! WHAT?? And of course that's exactly when Allie tells me she's pooped in her pull up. What's a mom to do in deadlocked traffic? YUP...i got back in the back and performed the fastest poopy diaper change in history.

We were so tired when we got home, but it was nice to be in our house and in our beds again. And OF COURSE the next morning the kids were asking to go to the beach.....hmm.....did they miraculously forget that LOOOOOONG drive we took just a few hrs before?:)

Fourth of July weekend (mostly family pictures)

We were able to visit my dad's side of the family in Eastern KY. We don't get to see them nearly as much as we'd like!

Papaw with Bear and Punkin

My dad with his mom, "Mamaw" and Great Aunt Marilyn.

My beautiful sister, Sarah and lil Bear.

We took the kids to my aunt & uncle's store, Lifelong Learning Ctr & Resources. This place is amazing! I'm so proud of what they are doing and the kids had such a fun time!

The girls playing in part of the preschool area at the store.

The boys playing with cousin Luke. I don't think it's possible for them to love trains, cars, airplanes, basically any type of transportation any more than they do!

I love this picture of my dad and his brothers:) So cute:)

Elijah (my cousin's son), Uncle David, Uncle Matt and my Dad.

Mimi with the quads and their cousins Eli & Xavier.

Yep....that's what it looks like. A flat tire on our way home from KY. Thankfully my parents were following us because as it turns out our spare is stuck on the van and we're going to have to take it in to get fixed! Thankfully my parents have the same van and we borrowed their spare tire!

My sister celebrating her 25th birthday, on the 4th, with her boyfriend John. Love my sister!

As if I haven't overdosed you with the pictures....there are just some that are TOO cute to not add into this mix.

Have a great weekend!!
Jenny

Just for comparison- Baron, Allie, Anna & Ben in 2008

Anna,, Ben, Baron & Allie in 2010 (Thanks to Bennett Photography, this picture was actually taken during our churches family photo directory picture shoot. They thought it would be fun to take one of the kids and i love it --even though they aren't all smiling-because we woke them up from nap--it's still such a cute picture.) I can't get over how old they look! Less than a month until their 3rd birthday!! CRAZY!

My little Clark Kent, Baron.

Allie totally in the zone during Nemo. **Notice the huge bandaid on her knee....yes she scraped it. yes it bled. yes she milked it for all it's worth for at least a week:) what a little drama queen:):)**

When did they grow up so much?! Such a cute Ben-boo.

Anna. This picture just brings a smile to my face and there are just no words.....:)

Burkett QuadSquad

Wait...I Have a blog?

Family Trip to the Smokies

August FUN!

July 4th weekend (yes, I am 2 months late!)

Celebrating FOUR Days!

Happy 4th Birthday to my babies!

Becoming a Mrs.

Back To Our Regularly Scheduled Program.....

June Fun!

Adventures Indoors and Out.

When Did My Babies Grow Up?

How Did We Get Here?

Miss Us?

NOT Cancer.---**UPDATE**

Christmas Festivities!

A Little Late But Still Thankful!

GREEN EGGS & Bananas

It's been too long!

Peanuts and Gang

We Heart Fall!

Our Sweet Tutu

Slacking on the Blog = HUGE PICTURE POST!

The Big 33!!!

Finally....Birthday and Big Beds

Happy 3rd Birthday To Our Babies!

Where Did the Time Go?

Happy Anniversary Jenny!!! (The Quadfather Returneth to Blogging!!!)

Our 1st Beach Trip and Family Time on the 4th (WARNING: SUPER long post with TONS of pictures!!)

NOT Cancer.---UPDATE