breaking the two week silence

Well, I've gotten enough chastisement about my two week silent streak, so here are more pictures of the kids.... Emmett especially.... because there are those out there (don't worry, Mom, I won't name names) who are in desperate need of a baby fix.

He will be 4 months on the 21st, so here are some 4 month pictures of his chunky self!

Here is our Chubba Bubba - look at those cheeks!If he doesn't have a paci in his mouth then he usually has his fingers (or his whole fist) crammed in there! I am still trying to have him use the pacifier in the hopes that I will be able to break him of that habit instead of having to break the finger sucking habit ~ even though for right now, the finger sucking is adorable :-)Isn't this one WONDERFUL?!!!! I love him nibbling on his little roly-poly fingers and those teasing little eyes of his! He is a kid who loves to be in a good mood. As soon as he wakes up, whenever he can make eye contact with someone, he immediately smiles... now, who wouldn't want to wake up to that sort of alarm?!It is so wonderfully easy to get this little man to smile! He has such a friendly disposition and he smiles at the slightest bit of happiness! If he hears one of his brothers or his sister laughing it makes him chuckle as well... even if they are in another room.

This is also a time to celebrate Owen officially turning four and a half. He is starting to act so big lately... both in good ways and in bad ways! He has a ferocious temper to match his Indian heritage... he really makes the phrase "an indian on the war path" make sense! But he also tries so very hard to be loving and kind. He is so sweet to Emmett, so physical with Garrett, and so adoring to Teagan. He is a cuddle bug to me and a wrestling competitor for daddy. He crawls in bed with Daddy at night to go to sleep, I carry him to his bed when I finally am going to bed, and then he crawls back in bed with me in the morning after Daddy has gone to work for more cuddle time. He loves having his room clean, and will often clean it up without me asking...hallelujah! His doggies have to be just so on the foot of his bed, and his car carpet needs to be clear so he can "drive" on it with his feet. Let's hope this phase is one that sticks!

Owen has developed a love for photography lately. He loves taking pictures of things that are around him and sometimes they come out fairly well... I love seeing things through his eyes. What he finds beautiful, or amazing or noteworthy. He has a fun outlook on life!

We were on a bike ride this Saturday and he was in the bike trailor behind my bike. He said he wanted to take a picture of the tire so that he would always be able to remember what a tire looked like... so here is his original composition, "In Memory of a Tire."