Hunny Bunnies and a Couple of Hens

As a young kid, I was very lucky to always have a lot of animals.  Being an animal person, this was a source of great joy.  My family lived in a very small town (only a few miles from where I am today), and our house sat just on the outskirts of town.  We lived close enough to make quick trips to town, but far enough away that it still felt like we lived in the country.  Our house was on a half acre lot, and my parents also owned the acre across the street.  We lived on a dead end, so it was like our little country out there, since no we had very little traffic, and we were surrounded on two sides by fields.  

Anyway, we had a menagerie of animals on the property at one time or another including, goats, chickens, ducks, a pony, lambs, miniature schnauzers, fish, a parakeet, rabbits, and roosters.  Across the street, we kept our horses and my sister had a calf in FFA for a couple of years.  

I have been wanting to get more animals, at least chickens, for the past year or so.  But one thing has always held me back.  Button. Yep, our sweet faced little schnauzer is a terror to large and small animals alike.  She is completely untrained (thanks to me) and would not be able to stop herself from slaughtering a whole herd of chickens just for fun.  I'm not at all prepared for the amount of tears and loud wailing I would hear from the kids after that catastrophe!

My mom, who is fairly like minded in terms of a love for animals, took the fall a couple of weeks ago.  My sister brought over a large bunny rabbit names Suzie that she had bought from the barn sale animals, as well as a couple of fancy chickens named Fifi and...... the other name escapes me.  Actually that chicken keeps escaping from the pen, even though its wings have been clipped....twice! 

  

So, here are Cubby and Little G meeting Suzie for the first time.

Little G loved that bunny.  She had to learn how to pet an animal without petting it too hard.  "Gentle, Gigi, gentle...."

Awww....love at first pet.

And.....here are the hens.  The kids weren't super interested in them.  But the hens were totally o.k. with the fresh bugs in the dirt!

Then it became clear who the real animal lover in the family really is.  

The petting goes on and on...

Nope, we didn't even plan this.

More petting....

and still more...

....you get the point.

A week ago, my mom confessed that she was concerned about how happy the bunny could be since it was solo all the time.  Luckily, our good friend called with news that baby bunnies were for sale!

Meet Sparkle (the black one) and Sarah.

The girls were pretty excited to meet the new members of the pet family.

And the love affair began...

Cubby named this one Sarah, and she would not let her go.

And Emma named this one Sparkle.  Sparkle has sharp claws.

But she sure loves carrots!

Cutie pie, honey bun.

Poor little chicken.  You don't see anybody holding the hen on their lap and petting her over and over. Chickens aren't really known for cuddling.  We love our new pets!

A New Year, A New Blog Title

Hello again!  Oh, how I have missed the emotional outlet of this little blog.  I have been so busy these last few months that I gave up blogging.  And I have missed this blank page upon which to pour out the sweet/funny/crazy portions of my life. 

So here is where my family is today.  

In my blogging absence the Walker family (and the entire world, for that matter), not only entered a new year, but since my oldest daughter celebrated her sixth birthday in November, my blog now bears a new title, Four Under Six.  Four Under Six doesn't sound nearly as daunting as the previous title, Four Under Five, but four kids under age six is my new reality.  Life truly is not as daunting with a six year old, a four and a half year old and two crazy two year olds.  But let me remind you that only two short years ago, I could have typed Four Under Three, and that would have been my reality!!!

Homeschooling my oldest, kindergarten age daughter this year has been a wonderful, completely life changing experience.  The most major changes? Well, as a family we wake up late, like 7:30 AM.  We eat every meal together.  The kids have become best friends and/or mortal enemies, depending on their blood sugar levels and amount of sleep.  

Here is what I wake up and see every morning

Since I have time, the kids' breakfasts have become more and more extravagant.  Fresh waffles or french toast or egg scrambles have become the norm, not just a weekend treat.  Some rushed mornings are still cereal and scrambled eggs.  Some mornings I quickly down a protein shake and maybe a handful of raspberries and we're out the door.   

Eat up!

The three girls: Emma is 6, Little G is 2 1/2 and Cubby is 4 1/2.  They are super tight homegirls.  I love how they play "house" together now and dress up and play dolls.  Here's a tiny update  on each one.

Emma attends her homeschool academy twice a week with her amazing/incredible/sweet/adorable teacher, Ms. P.  Emma just learned about the parts of the body and we took a hospital field trip.  Church activities, choir and art class round out her busy schedule.  

Little G is a complete and total ham.  She keeps us entertained with her adorable toddler speech and crazy dance moves.  She has become a very willing playmate with her big sisters and also enjoys playing with (otherwise known as taunting) her twin brother.  

Cubby is all about activity and action!  She gets up in the morning and the first thing out of her mouth is, "What are we doing today?"   She loves experiencing new places and meeting new people.  She loves hanging out at the grandmas' houses and completing art projects at home. She can run faster than any four year old on the planet, and is up for a race any old time!

And here is a little update on J.D.  Two-year-old brother J.D. has expanded his early focus from only tools to vehicles.  His tools are still #1 though.  If I need a tool, say a screwdriver or the measuring tape (which he freely and regularly steals out of my kitchen drawer), I ask him for it, and he knows exactly where it is, allows me to use it, then takes it back to his tool box for safe storage.  J.D. is now at the point where he can regularly go out to the ranch with Dad to "work" in the afternoon.  He even refers to himself as "Nano" which is "Armando" in James-ease.  He looks up to any and all field workers.  Give me a man with a shovel, I'll have provided another role model for my youngest son.  He is a working man!

So that's the update!  I so look forward to getting back into the swing of regular blogging.  We have a whole lot of fun over here and it's time to start sharing that once again! 

Ring Around the New Rug!

We put in a whole lot of tile during this kitchen remodel.  All of the floors that used to be carpet are now tile.  That results in quite a bit more noise, aching foot arches (mine), and banged up knees and heads (the twins).  

So, I picked out some carpet and had a rug bound.  Danny picked it up today, we laid it out, and I was shocked to see how happy it made the kids.  Apparently, they really missed the carpet.

First, the kids gave hugs all around.

Lots of love.  Lots of hugs.

Then they did the crazy dance and ran in circles.

The circles led to an impromptu game of Ring Around the Rosies,

It went quite well.

Yep, all of my kids were happy, smiling, people at the same time, with each other!!

I was so shocked and excited, I couldn't stop taking pictures.

Then the game turned to the part, "Ashes, ashes, they all fall down..."

And fall down they did.

And then, since J.D. knows a dogpile when he sees one, he totally went for it.  However, he can only truly take advantage of his fellow twin, so he took her down.

She was not thrilled.

But in the end it was ok.  I realized that it has been a long time since I've seen them rolling around on the carpet.  Maybe I need to get a few more rugs around the house!

Cement Truck in the Rain

The cement truck showed up today, to my surprise. To show how little I know about the construction business, when our head contractor arrived this morning, I asked him what they were going to do today, since it was raining and all. See, when it rains in the Valley, it just seems like nothing should happen. Everyone should just stop for a day and enjoy this desert rarity. Anyway, Ramon told me that they were going to pour the cement for the footing on the new addition. I was incredulous, "What?! Cement in the rain? Is that possible??!!!" He calmly said, "Sure, and we scheduled it for today." Ok, well, I'm glad to have him on top of things. He's awesome.

The cement truck is looking good!!! This makes me feel like this is all really happening. I mean, cement is permanent!!!

I love this shot! Cool cement truck. Men working. Fall colors. Wet, shiny sidewalk. Lovely.

J.D. sensed the presence of a big truck before he even saw it. A big truck + in the front yard = little boy heaven.

G could care less. And to prove her point, she's just going to walk right on top of the table.

The cement truck makes some people just act sassy.




Twins do the funniest things sometimes. They look like they're in trouble, but they just decided to hang out here for a minute. G sat down first, and she kind of motioned to J.D., so he sat too.

They had a nice little visit.

G's buns don't really fit on the ledge. Don't even THINK about taking that apple slice away from her! You don't want to lose a hand.

J.D. is just shaving off pieces of apple with his teeth, then tossing the bits on the ground. See his little pile? A nice little snack for Button.

Then they started talking, which is always hilarious and cute. They just kind of laugh and talk about their day. It's the best.

Watching Cinderella

E and Cubby love Cinderella. They have watched that movie probably thirty times, own the ball gown in several sizes, know the song, "So This is Love" by heart, and love to role play each scene.

E especially is quite the romantic, and now can't help but add a little princess-y vobrato to every song she sings. Just today, as we were strolling into Wal-Mart, I asked her what she would like to do most in the world. She said, without any hesitation, "Be a princess and wear a dress everyday." Cubby follows along, but will no longer agree to play the prince as she used to when she didn't have a choice. Now we usually have two Cinderellas walking around the house, usually one is scrubbing the floor and the other is dancing around singing opera.

Anyway, I just recently happened upon this picture of the girls taken a couple of years ago. This was way before the twins, before we even imagined we'd have two more kids, when we had it pretty darn easy with two very manageable little girls.

Cubby, who still loves that thumb, is only 13 months old here. E is only two and a half. They used to sit so close to eachother on the couch. Now they own their own little piece of property.

And now they have another Cinderella fan who loves to sit and watch the magic unfold.

Good times.

Marker Fight

The twins are really starting to communicate now. People ask me all the time if they have their own language. I have to pause and analyze the definition of language. I mean, verbally, they don't really have a whole lot going on.

G babbles from morning until night, and it's all very important, pressing business. She has tons of words, and learns a new one almost everyday. For example, when I am getting her dressed in the morning, she lies on the changing table screaming "zsoo, zsooooo!!" Which is "shoe" for all you uneducated in 19 month old-ease. G is such a girlie girl, she wants the whole, complete outfit before going out to face the day. She also knows that shoes, plus a jacket equal going somewhere, and that is the twins' one and only goal in the morning. When they see me getting dressed, they go half-crazy trying to figure out if they get to go, too, and then if the poor baby-sitter shows up, she's welcomed with screams, since they now know the truth. They will go no where, and they will like it.

J.D., on the other hand, is a little stunted in the old language department. He just screams if something doesn't go his way, and he says "Da Da" like a thousand times and day, but that's about it. Oh yeah, and "cack-o," which is, of course, "cracker." That boy loves a good cracker. My friends with boys all say this is totally normal. Boys are just a little slow, in fact, apparently, they never really catch up to girls. We start out talking more than them, and that's just a race they're never going to win.

Anyway, another type of communication is body language. This is mainly how the twins choose to communicate. Just a look, a touch, a gesture, is all they really need to know to figure out how the other is feeling or thinking.

To illustrate the twins' use of body language, here's the twins having a gentle disagreement over markers.

G found them first, and she guards them close to her body, aware of impending threats.

J.D. enters the scene, and they agree to play in two adjoining camps.

Playtime is peaceful, calm and full of wonderful, sharing moments. I am on the lookout for markers in the mouth. That's all I really care about.

J.D. has all the markers now. Suddenly, (and I didn't get this shot, dang it!), G sees the full marker can, bolts for it, swipes it out from under his nose and high-tails it, as only G can.

J.D. is slow to re-cover, but his wrath is apparent. She is running quite quickly here, as her little blurred bunny tail indicates.

J.D. admits defeat, and feigns interest in a princess book (which he has never touched, except to step on, in his whole life).




Then he decides to go for it. The tapping of the markers hitting the bottom of the can is too much to bear. He sees me. He sees the camera. He pauses.




Then he goes in for the kill, without a care in the world for the consequences. He grabs her arms, and apparently enjoys this little exchange, while she tries in vain, to make a run for it.

Mom intervenes, saying, "No no!" He drops to the floor in a very dramatic statement, and cries for 25 seconds.

Then he gets up and is like, "Fine, you have the markers, I'll enjoy these beautiful pink beads." This is so cold! G loves those beads, and he knows it!

He totally knows what he's doing.

Then he gets distracted playing with his toolset and truly forgets about the markers.

G happily welcomes E for some wonderful, harmonious, girly, give and take play. They are both 100% in their element.

Another sister joins the game. All is well.

Even with J.D.

That's G's sippy. He knows it. He is nonverbally saying, "So what about those stinkin' markers! I have your sippy, and it's full of delicious apple juice.

Just wait 'til next time, sis."