CO$TCO

Man, oh, man. Today we made our tri-weekly trip to Costco and boy did we do some damage. We were out of everything you could imagine at home (probably from being in and out all summer). My long shopping list included the usual: diapers, wipes, paper towels, toilet paper, juice, cat food, and so on. Seriously, have you ever put so much stuff in your shopping cart that your feet slide out from under you when you try to get the momentum to push the cart? And speaking of the cart, they have the best carts in town because you can put 2 kids side by side which is great for a big family. And speaking of big family, people ALWAYS make comments about the size of our family when we shop there. I wonder why that is the case? I think the general population thinks you *have* to shop at Costco when you have a large family, but the truth is Brett and I have been shopping there long before Chapel was born. So anyway, check out the before and after shopping cart pics. It will take me all weekend to put everything away in the house. 

Can't Complain

I like to think that I do not complain that often. My husband would disagree, he tells me I'm always complaining about something. But in all honesty, this week has been a long week and it's only Wednesday. I think coming back from two back-to-back trips and having to catch up on home life and work at the store has worn me out. Not to mention Chapel has her very last camp of summer this week on Daniel Island. Which is about as far away from Folly Beach as you can drive and still be in Charleston - like 40 minutes - and it is the most confusing place on Earth to navigate. Every morning has presented a challenge: I have trouble finding where I am going, or we have been running late, or I forget to pack Chapel a drink and have to search for the one gas station on the island to buy a gatorade, or in the case of today I show up and camp has been moved and I spend another 10 minutes looking for where it has been moved to. A comedy of errors it has been. 

Meredith accompanied me to pick Chapel up from soccer camp today, and she suggested we eat lunch at Queen Anne's Revenge -  a pirate themed restaurant on the island. I have since learned is the only restaurant dedicated to the authentic history of piracy along the South Carolina coast. And let me tell you, with its unique collection of artifacts and items from the period, it rivals the pirate museum we recently visited while on vacation in the Keys. I was impressed and very excited to be there, and I've even been there before. Eli and Chapel LOVED the pirate booty, the swords, the boat theme and the Blackbeard wax figures.  So I must confess, although I have felt the week was overwhelming, I realize that I really have no room to complain. To be able to enjoy a great lunch with my kids and my sister and niece, in such a fantastic little place (even if I have driven around it 100 times lost this week), and to have the freedom in my day to do this, I should really be more grateful and appreciative and not stress so much about the catching up. It will all get done eventually.....

Chasing Waterfalls

The Barker Family reunion is always held somewhere between Florida, where most of the Barkers live, and South Carolina, where the other half of the family lives. This year it was held at Amicalola Falls State Park and Lodge, amicalola being a Cherokee word for tumbling waters. Which is exactly what you find there, a lot of waterfalls. We took the opportunity to hike to some of the falls, choosing paths that would allow us to take the stroller, and they were incredible. The water was loud and soothing - Chapel and Eli were awe struck and even the babies just watched the water falling over the cliff. There are several sets of stairs that allow you to walk up or down the falls and see the view from the top and bottom. Notice in the picture they are labeled strenuous. We did do some of these stairs, carrying the babies. Which I would think warrants the label "extra strenuous".

We also got to see some wildlife, including two deer and a wild turkey. Brett was especially excited about the turkey, claiming it was as tall as our car. And even more exciting, was the black bear sighting by Brett's cousin at the cabin RIGHT BESIDE the cabin we were sleeping in. There was a grill in the back yard and the first time the bear was spotted he was licking, yes licking, the grill at 7am. Later that afternoon when the cousin was napping beside the grill while grilling, he heard a rustling, woke up, and the bear was right there, only a few feet away from him in what I can only guess was an attempt to get whatever he smelled cooking. Yikes - bears sure are cute but I have a feeling they are not cuddly. I wish I could have seen him....from the safety of my cabin, of course!

Finally Back Home....We'll Start with the Cabbage Patch

We have been on the road . . . . a lot. So I have a lot of photographs and fun to share this week. We made our return from our stay at the beach house last Tuesday and then turned right around and left on Wednesday for the Barker family reunion, held this year in Amicolola Falls, GA. We spent Wednesday night in Clemson and then drove Thursday morning to to Cleveland, Georgia to visit Babyland General Hospital.... also known as the birthplace of the Cabbage Patch Doll. What a unique and out of the way place. I seriously thought we would be the only family there. Afterall, the route to this old clinic turned into folk art haven is a winding, little road in the middle of nowhere, Georgia. Was I wrong, the place was packed with other curious travelers, some old, some young, even some tour groups. After walking around and taking in the sights and witnessing a baby being born from the tree, Chapel decided she, too, wanted to adopt an authentic cabbage patch doll. These are not exactly like the ones that our moms knocked people down in stores to buy when we were little. These are the authentic, soft faced dolls that originally started the whole craze.

Once we decided to adopt, Chapel had to first pick the sex of the baby (girl), hair color (blonde) and eye color (blue). Everyone gathered around the tree to witness the birth and when mother cabbage's leaves dilated to 10 (I am not kidding) the nurse came out and delivered the baby. She told a cute story as she worked, claiming they have never had to do a c-section (that's a cabbage section) and explaining how the cabbage patch dolls were first found by Xavier Roberts. Chapel had picked the name Lucy Elizabeth for her doll and upon her arrival the nurse took Lucy to the nursery, where she was weighed, toes were counted, she was diapered and dressed. The baby was then handed to Chapel and we were escorted to the adoption room where Chapel raised her right hand and took the adoption oath to promise to be a good mom. I must say, so far she has been very attentive to "Cabby" as she has now been nicknamed. And I must say, going to Cleveland, GA - this little ole town in the middle of nowhere was really a little kid and big kid dream come true. And by big kid, I mean my husband, Brett, who was beyond excited to finally visit Babyland General Hospital. Because he is really in to folk artsy stuff like that......

Stay tuned this week for our other weekend adventures including hiking to waterfalls, fishing, bear sightings, mining for gold and cabin livin'.

'

Crazy For Our Cousins

We have been spending the past few days at the Barker family beach house in Garden City with Brett's parents, my sweet sister-in-law Crystal and her brood: Caroline, Bren and Cross. My kids love their cousins and although we live 2 hours apart, they have grown up spending a lot of quality time together. Caroline is 11. She was the first Barker grandbaby and has been doted on from day one. She is spunky, gorgeous, a huge help with the twins and always in charge. Bren is 8 and is quiet but very creative. She loves all things girly: fingernail polish, purses, pretty dresses, dolls. She is infinitely patient and shares so well with her cousins and siblings. Cross who turns 4 in August is adorable, funny and all boy. Eli and Cross love each other to pieces. They play trucks, they play helicopters, they play ball....anything you can imagine two boys that age playing. Then they fight over trucks, helicopters, and balls.....running to their moms to report that the other is mean. They make up quickly and are soon off to find something else to get in to. 

While we had the "Barker Seven" together this weekend, we scheduled a photography shoot at Huntington Beach State Park, which boasts a pristine beach and an old moorish castle named Atalaya. Once there, we embarked upon a mission more challenging than childbirth. Getting seven beautifully dressed babes to all look the same direction, and not play in the sand, and not make faces, and not crawl away, and not complain took a lot of coaxing, promises of ice cream, threats to call dads and all-around tomfoolery. We were singing and dancing and jumping up and down behind the photographer to try to get everyone to look her way all at once. It was a sight. Here are a few of the 230 pictures taken..... I still am not sure we ever succeeded in getting everyone to look in the same direction at the same time.

Happy 5th Birthday Chapel Easton Barker

Chapel was born on a Sunday morning with her daddy and Aunt Mimi by my side. She weighed 6lbs 9oz and immediately became the focus of our lives. Brett and I were typical first time parents - we worried she slept too much, wondered if she was eating too little, spent countless hours just holding her and staring her. I like to joke with Chapel when I brought her home I didn't know what to do with her so I would just hold her and rock her for hours. She likes that story......it's actually pretty accurate.

Five years later Chapel has blossomed into a little girl who loves princesses, plays independently or with others with equal ease, lives in a world of butterflies & unicorns, and much to her dad's approval - loves a good dance party. It is cliche but so true, time just flies by. And as cool as it is to watch your kids grow, I always think it is bittersweet for them to get older. I just hope the next 5 years with her are as full of love and surprises as the last 5 have been.

We were kinda on the fence about her birthday party this year - we usually have a large party at our home but this year we opted to do something smaller. We celebrated today, all day, in Myrtle Beach with both sets of her grandparents, her Aunt Crystal and cousins Cross, Caroline, and Bren and her Aunt Meredith and cousin Reese. We started out at Build - A - Bear where Chapel chose a horse in wedding gown as her new friend, we ate at Johnny Rockets and then returned to the beach house in Garden City for cake, present opening and a pig piñata. It was an easy day,without the craziness that usually accompanies throwing a large party. In many ways it was like the day she was born; a special time we could simply enjoy our little girl surrounded by the people that love her most.

Introducing......

You know those stickers that folks have on the back windshields of their car? The ones that are stick figure representations of all the people and animals in their family? I always joke with Brett that if we were to get one made for my car it would go from one side of the glass ALL THE WAY to the other. We would have Jodi, Brett, Chapel, Eli, Conor, Jude, Baxter (cat), Franklin and Eleanor (dogs) and now...........Olivia and Pedro. Olivia and Pedro are the result of Brett and I making good on a promise we made over two years ago. We told Chapel when she turned 5 she could get a hamster. She turns five today. We are good parents, we live up to our promises. A promise that maybe I was secretly hoping she would forget, but one she would never in a million years forget! She has the memory of an elephant and she has talked about these critters extensively! I must admit they are quite cute. I just hope they don't get too smelly or start escaping or I just might shorten our stick figure family back to the original 9 members. :)

Over the river and through the woods.....

After picking up Chapel and Eli from Vacation Bible School we drove to Conway to visit my sweet Granny. When school would end, I would spend most of my summer at my grandparents house, who for their whole lives were honest, hardworking farmers. I have memories of my parents stringing and hanging tobacco every Saturday and going to the warehouse auctions with my granddad. I remember everyone's diligence and how hard they worked in the heat, the bugs, the humidity. Farm life is hard life.  Every summer I shelled beans, shucked corn, dug up potatoes from the mud, watched granny can tomatoes and pickle cucumbers. I remember at the time I found these chores monotonous and sometimes felt they got in the way of me being able to do more fun things, like play babies with my cousins or ride my bike. In fact, somedays we had to shell so many butter beans I think I ended up with blisters! Looking back, I realize how much I learned about family ties, hardwork and the importance of a strong work ethic. Today, my grandaddy has passed on and granny isn't in the best health but she is still the same sweet lady who cooked and cleaned for us everyday, who took us to town on Friday to buy the groceries, who never sat down to rest and rarely complained. As I have gotten older, granny has been a doting great-grandmother. She spoils my kids rotten - they expect jelly beans and marshmallows upon arrival and she NEVER disappoints. There are many times that I wish my kids could have the same experiences I had as kid. They will probably never know what living in the country is really like. Or digging potatoes or what the smell of tobacco curing is like. But they will remember the same granny I remember and to me, that memory is the most precious. 

We Put the Cool in Pool

Actually we are more likely to put the drool in pool. Our sweet friend Caycee and her oh-so-cute baby Carson invited us over for a dip in their pool today. This is a dream pool. It is one of those zero-entry pools so even the smallest of toddlers can make their way down to the water and get just their ankles wet. But what makes this pool even cooler, in Eli's opinion, are the little water fountains that spray up in the air. He jumped on them over and over and over. Chapel has taken swim lessons through her school and she amazes me in the water. She is both careful and mindful of her water safety and she is an energetic little swimmer. This is the first time I have taken Conor and Jude to Caycee's since they have started walking and it was a whole new ballgame. They were so excited to walk in. And then walk out. And then walk back in. And then out. They were all exhausted, as was mom, when we left. Thank goodness Ms. Caycee had some cookies waiting on us when we got back to her house, we all needed a sugar kick just to make it home.

 

Membership Has Its Advantages

Of all the memberships I've had in the past 5 years, my SC Aquarium membership has been the one in which I take the most advantage. Brett gave this gift to Chapel for her first Christmas and I have renewed it every year since. I remember when it was just the two of us, I would take her and it was so peaceful and she loved to watch the fish in the great ocean room and climb on all of the steps and play in the play area. Now I can take all four babies and let them run wild and it's so much fun to watch them get excited. Conor loves all animals and sea life and just squeals in delight when a fish swims past....

Most moms I know also have a membership, which makes making playdates super easy. On any given day you can call your friends and say, "we're heading to the aquarium" and usually one or two will show up - kids in tow. So not only do my kids have a great time and enjoy themselves, but I usually get a chance to catch up with a fellow mom or friend. Or in the case of today, my best friend and sister, Meredith. Who is moving to Germany with her husband and my sweet niece Reese in one month. For 4 incredibly long years.  I have demanded that she hang out with me every other day before she moves (except for the days I am out of town, of course) because I know once she is gone, she is gone...... and I don't want to feel like we were too busy in our day to day routines and didn't make the time to enjoy the last month before she leaves. I should have demanded this six months ago but it did not seem as realistic then as it does now. I think I have guilted her reasonably enough, and I am genuinely excited for her and her family and the adventure they are embarking upon, but I am also very selfish and don't want her to live that far away from me. I am working hard to get her to start her own blog so I can keep up with their European adventures. Here are some pics of us today - just spending some quality time together and with our kids at the aquarium. Making the most of our memberships.

Personality Plus

My son, Eli Barker, has a lot of personality for a small guy. From the minute his feet hit the floor in the morning he is "ON". He wakes up and immediately requests chocolate milk, which I have learned to keep on hand to avoid starting our day off on the wrong foot. Tomorrow is going to be rough because I ran out of chocolate milk this morning! Eli also loves Scooby Doo, pirates, flashlights and all emergency vehicles. He does not like putting on his shoes, washing his hair or taking naps. 

Last week, while Chap (as he calls his sister) was at farm camp, I walked with Eli around the block so he could drive his monster truck - a Christmas present from PaPa Ed. He asks me at least once a day if he can drive his monster truck. He is not the best driver - usually opting to look back at me and run up on the curb instead of looking ahead, or sometimes bumping my leg or the stroller, but he does know the most important rule - STOP at the stop sign. I love this picture of him with his hair blowing in the wind and the earnest look on his face. He is a funny, serious, handsome little man that usually steals the hearts of all my girlfriends with his charming personality. 

What I think is so fun to watch with him is how distinct his personality has become. For so long he chased after Chapel and didn't talk much but now he really concentrates, thinks, ask questions, and generally gives me a run for my money. I love how hard he lives life and how much he enjoys being a kid. I love that he simply wears himself out everyday. Ahhhhh, to be 3 again!

Pizza + Ice Cream = Too Much for the Tummy

Last summer when I was VERY pregnant Chuck E. Cheese became a familiar hangout for our family. It is indoors so you can escape the Charleston heat......the kids can run around and play.......they have food........everything a mom expecting twins could desire for a fun family day out. We last went in April with the cousins to celebrate Eli's birthday so it has been a few months since we hit our old stomping ground. Today we took the babies for a little post-bday celebration, and it was the first time they have been when they could walk around and explore. They loved it -  rode the rides, played in the toddler center, even ate the pizza for the first time. 

Now Chapel, who has the smallest appetite ever, LOVES the Chuck E. Cheese pizza. This child who I have to threaten, force, bribe and coax to eat on a daily basis will sit at the booth long after everyone else has finished eating and eat slice after slice of the Chuck E. Cheese pizza! I don't get it - they must put some secret ingredient in that keeps kids begging to go back and eat there again, 'cause my kids always want to go to Chuck E. Cheese.

Later in the afternoon, we decided to have ice cream cones. I was inside making Chapel's ice cream and when I came out Jude's mouth and outfit were covered in chocolate - I was thrilled... Why you might wonder? Well it was great to see my man Eli sharing his cone with Jude without me asking.  Eli is usually very protective of toys, food, anything. So it was a surprise to see him sitting quietly with his brother and letting him have a taste. Chapel shared with Conor and she was so excited that after every lick she would smack her mouth over and over. 

But alas, the day may have proved too fun for the weak stomached. Jude spit up several times during the afternoon and when I just went to check on him in the crib, he had thrown up all over the place. YIKES. A bath and change of clothes later he is resting comfortably in my bed while I wash and dry the crib sheets. Too much for the little one's tummy. Tomorrow it is back to the baby food diet.....