{ Ledger Day 2 }

My super sweet friend Carly Carlson dropped by the day after the big "BIRTH"day and snapped a bunch of fantabulous photos of Ledger, these are just a few.

She's pretty much amazing, and having a cute baby boy of her own in a few weeks! Thank you Carly!

Photos: By Carly Carlson

Baby & Onesie: Made by me :)

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{ Welcoming Baby Ledger }

Okay so, I'm back from my "I've been birthing a baby" vacation..... 

Here is the long-awaited post about our surprise baby #6.

May 7, 2014: The day we welcomed Ledger into our family.

He was born at 6:56 pm
Weight: 9lbs 5oz (yes, drug-free)
Length: 21
Here are a few pictures

Oh, you know just having a contraction.....

He's here... He struggled with his breathing a bit after he was born.

But he was pediatrician approved soon after.

Daddy Lloyd with baby boy #4 our #6 caboose. :)

Brinley & Ledger

Jentry & Ledger (Jentry will kill me for posting this... Oh well)

Addison & Ledger

Parker & Ledger

And Corbin & Ledger

Well, there you have it, my 6 pack of kiddos. The kids are pretty much smitten by this new little man in our lives. He's turned it upside down but in a very good way.

:) More to come.....

I apologize for the cruddy pics..... I was too exhausted to care and frankly am still equally as tired.

I am an old lady people.....

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{ Where Have I Been? Vacationing In Sweet, Sweet Denial... }

Grab yourself a warm drink and a snack, this post is a long one!

In life, you have surprises and shockers, this story my friends is a shocker.....

I'm still here, just been surviving all the Holidays and vacationing in Denial all while dealing with one of the BIGGEST SHOCKS of our little ol' lives, that's all...

Oh, you want to know what our SHOCKER was? Here you go.....

Keep scrolling........

Ta Da!!

We were not expecting this AT ALL, WE WERE SO DONE HAVING KIDS!!!

But I guess the big guy with the sense of humor upstairs had other plans for us.

Let me start at the beginning...

Our oldest is 16 and our youngest is 6, so we pretty much figured we were good on the kid front.

No, neither one of us has been permanently fixed and yes we were using 2 types of birth control. I don't need to hear the "You do know how this happens right?" comments. Yes we know, and apparently from the picture above we are pretty good at it.

I found out I was pregnant on December 5th, 2013, the only reason I found out was, I took a pregnancy test as I hadn't had my period for a while. NOTE: I'm a very irregular girl on the monthly front so missing several periods in a row is nothing new to me, and I always had 1 or 2 tests stowed away in case I needed reassurance.

When I saw the 2 lines I swore. I said bad sailor man type of words that I don't normally say ever. I then proceeded to call my husband about 500 times on his cell, but of course, he didn't answer as he was on a job site. He eventually called me back and I tried not to freak out on him and cry & basically yell at him. (but I did anyway) Let's just say, December 5th was not a good day for me.

I pretty much cried and cried some more, I only did the crying when I was alone, I stopped talking to my husband and kinda went into shutdown mode, all whilst visiting Denial. Did you know that Denial has great beaches and Condos?? You see, as a woman and mother to 5 kids already and knowing that you don't want to have anymore, your mind is pretty much set that you are done. We've been well past the baby stage for SEVERAL years now. All my kids would have been in school ALL DAY this next upcoming school year. I've been looking forward to that for 16+ years.

NOTE:  I had already scheduled an appt. for December 10th with my Gynecologist about 2 months prior for my annual lady exam. It had been several years and I was due. 

December 6th: I explained, okay I cried to the secretary on the phone when she called to remind me of my appt. that I needed to add an OB exam along with my Pap/Boob exam. So she calls me back about an hour later and says the DR. would like me to go to the Hospital and get my blood drawn so they can see about how far along I am. Fine, no problem I go, the DR. calls me back around 8:30 that night to say that I need to keep my appt. & that I'm probably about 5-6 weeks along, maybe a little more.

Fast forward 4 days to December 10th:

Had my Pap, then she goes to feel my stomach, her only words were:

HOLY CRAP! There could be 3 in there, (I told her to shut up. nicely....) we need to do an abdominal ultrasound, and about 4 minutes later We found out that I was 16 weeks 4 days along!!!

The date on this ultrasound pic is wrong, it really was the 10th of January.

I've had ZERO, I mean ZERO pregnancy symptoms. I'm usually always nauseated and contracting Braxton hicks from conception on. So to find out we were this far along was a SHOCKER!! 

See I told ya..

We didn't say anything to our family or kids for quite some time. I needed time to process and I guess you could say mourn a little bit. Not that a baby is a bad thing, they are quite the opposite; I love each and every one of my kids. But I needed to mourn the fact that what freedom I thought I was going to have with all my kids in school all day was - poof- gone. Mourn the fact that I'm right back at the starting gate, where I did not want to be, we were well established in this more grown-up kids phase in our life.

I'm sure some of you see that as selfish, but really I don't care. It's how I felt at the time and you have to let yourself feel all the things.

I processed and processed some more and by Christmas Eve we felt it was time to tell our kids and extended family. We had my parents and Lloyd's parents over to our house for a Christmas Eve "treat". Little did they know what we had up our sleeve... Or my uterus to be exact. :)

We have a tradition of giving Pj's to all our kids on Christmas Eve, so I wrapped up all the kid's pj's and then wrapped up just one more box, a box for the Berry Kids to be opened on Christmas Eve.

A box that held the contents of a pack of gender-neutral onesies and the above ultrasound picture.

Yes, they were all shocked when they saw the contents, my mom kept saying Oh, Oh! I started to cry

(guess I was still processing) my mom comes over and gives me a hug and the questions start flying with my kids. For the most part, they took it pretty well.

Fast Forward 14 days to January 7th: Ultrasound Day

Yup, it's a boy! 

Did I secretly want another girl to make it an even 3 boys and 3 girls? Sure, but I knew it was a boy and I was right. The whole time we were at the ultrasound I was still in shock and awe that there is a tiny baby growing in my stomach. But there he was and he looked great. Oh and guess what? January 5th I started with my raging Braxton hicks contractions. Exactly 1 month to the day I found out I was pregnant! I have them EVERY day All day unless I just lay in bed all day and do nothing, which is really easy to do with 5 kids right?

So I've been collecting baby items as it's been 14 years since I've had a May baby. Parker was born in May and I pretty much got rid of all his clothes as Corbin was a fall/winter baby. So I'm back at square one. Lucky for us we did keep our Crib and I think the changing table is around here somewhere. As for the rest of the baby gear g-o-n-e-!

I SO WISH I COULD BE ONE OF THOSE BLOGGER BABY PRODUCT REVIEWERS!!

I have purchased his car seat and crib bedding, and I pick up little onesies and gown sleepers here and there. But I need to get a couple baby carriers and some other essentials. Yeah, you could say we are getting more and more excited around here. One perk of this pregnancy is I've lost 15 lbs and I can still wear my regular jeans and I'm almost 6 months along! I joke that I'm only 2 more pregnancy's away from my goal weight! :) Okay, so it's a terrible joke, but it's what I do in times of stress.....

My sweet 16-year-old put it all in perspective for me on Christmas Day. Jentry said: "When this kid graduates from High School I'll be like 34 years old, I could be married with 4 kids by then". Thanks, son, now stop doing the math cause you're freaking me out. But really, we are getting pretty excited to meet this new little man in our lives, my due date is May 23rd. I'm sure he will be earlier than that. I've never gone to my due date with any of my kids. One thing's for sure though, this little man of ours- he's going to be loved to pieces.

Life is pretty funny sometimes, it's always amazing to find out you're getting something that you never knew you wanted.

and FYI- The pregnancy tests from Dollar Tree? Yeah, they work.....

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{ Minion Halloween Costumes }

So, yeah, I've been a bit MIA.... I've really not had too much to say or blog about. I'm sure you don't want to hear about my oldest boys sports seasons with Football & Soccer so I will let you off easy there... We do always have some project going of some kind or another but I always feel like it's nothing that my fellow bloggers want to hear about. So I need to get better, get back to my blog and put my feelings and happenings & all my fun stuff back on the "big" screen. :)

In the month of October we celebrated: 
Corbin's Birthday, he is now 9. 
Our Anniversary- 19 years wowza!
And Miss Addison turned 6 yesterday on Halloween. 

It's been a crazy month to say the least but I did get 2 major crafts done. Sure they were only Halloween costumes, but by George I MADE THEM!!! 
I have the glue gun blisters to prove it! I hope you've all had a fantastic Halloween!!!

p.s. remind me next year that making Halloween Costumes is NEVER a good idea.. Especially when they are so involved.....

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{ Teacher Gifts 2013 - Part 2 }

Okay here are the rest of the Teacher Gifts that I did this year.

The Ruffle Apron's I've been making, are totally inspired by the Whatever Blog by Meg Duerksen. I've been an avid reader of her blog forever and am totally in love with her style and her craft weekends! I've seen hundreds of ruffled aprons, but her mix of fabrics just makes me want to craft!

This is the apron I made for Corbin's Teacher, 

I so so so love how it turned out.

This one I already posted about, but here it is again. I made this one for Addison's Teacher.

Brinley had a male Teacher this year, and one of his most favorite things is Beef Jerky. 

So I cut out a quick cardboard frame and printed out the note, then adhered it all to some manly scrapbook paper. Then, I stapled it to the package of Jerky.

He loved it!

We are into the full swing of summer vacation, in fact I have 8 kids at my house at this very moment. My friend Brooke is on her way home from The Farm Chicks Show and her booth did AMAZING, so I'm having her kiddo's over for the day.

PS. i miss school and all our fabulous teacher so much already.

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{ Are You Going To The Farm Chicks Show? }

If you are going to The Farm Chicks Show in Spokane this weekend, be sure to stop by my friend Brooke's booth. Keep reading for a discount at her booth.

Isn't the name super cute!!

Brooke made the wood sign out of old barn wood and trim. 

I did all the lettering blocks, I made them out of cardboard, I love how it turned out!

Brooke refinishes the most amazing pieces of furniture and if you stop by and decide to shop, tell her 

"Rachel Says Hi" to receive $10.00 off of your $50.00 purchase!

Brooke can be found in BAY-1 Spaces 32 and 33.

Here are some pictures she just texted me of what is set up so far.
I so wish I could have gone!

 So stop by and say hello to Brooke, and don't forget to tell her that Rachel Say's Hello!! :)

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{ Ruffled Apron For The Teacher- Part 1 }

I made this apron for Addison's preschool teacher Miss Sharae.
i think it turned out really cute!

don't mind my crap-tastic iPhone photo, i promise to get a better one later on this week.

now, i need to get mr. corbin's apron made for his teacher. 

this is our last week of school and it's gonna be a busy one!

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{ Year End Teacher's Gifts- In Process }

yup that's right, my kids last day of school is on May 31st. so i am getting a jump on teacher gifts. 

i only have to make 2 gifts, the 3rd is a male teacher and his will be store bought. 

my other 2 kids have too many teachers to "make stuff" for so, i think i will make them a simple thank you with some chocolate attached. everyone likes chocolate right?

 i will post when they are all done. i sure hope they turn out cute.

happy memorial day weekend!

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{ A Mother's Day Meltdown. }

Okay, I'm just going to say it.....

i am not a real big fan of Mothers Day. in fact, for me it's just another day of the week.

i still cook, clean, and pick up after my kids just like i do 365 days a  year.

but today's is mothers day, maybe today will be different... NOPE.

this morning i was yelled at by one of my teenagers. i know, i know, he's a teenager. it's comes with the territory.

but, then as i was driving the kids to church, i said out loud, after more yelled words from the one of my teenagers, how I hate this stupid holiday and that it's no different then any other day of the week for me.

then i quickly slide on my huge "celebrity style" sunglasses so my kids couldn't see the tears streaming down my cheeks.

was i acting like a child and having a pity party?

yes.

i.

was.

i guess, i was expecting more from my day. and i'm blaming the outburst on my hormones.

because i can...

i'm skipping church today to stay home with one of my kiddos. he's caught some dang cold bug and is coughing up his right lung.

i think i was home last year with another sick kiddo.

it's all very groundhog day to me.

i did manage to spent a few minutes online and i have to ask,

are all your Mothers Days as perfect as your instagram/facebook posts seem to be?

i hope they are, and part of me is completely jealous of the fact that MANY of you get breakfast in bed.

the closest i've ever come to breakfast in bed is, when we stay in a hotel and we walk down stairs for the free complimentary breakfast.

i will spend my "holiday" doing the following things.

 Dirty dishes in the sink

no, i won't be cleaning my boys bedroom but it just makes me frustrated seeing all this mess. 

ALL THE TIME.

loads of laundry, lots from having 7 people in our house and lots from the boys camp-out. 

does anyone notice the cooler in the background? 

apparently we now store the cooler in the laundry room. 

don't get me wrong, i think it's great to have a day to celebrate all things Mother and

i do love being a mother to my kids.

i fiercely love all 5 of them

and i have found being a mother one of the hardest, & most rewarding jobs i've ever had. 

do i feel rewarded everyday? nope.

but every once in a while one of more of my kids will remind me that i'm doing a pretty good job, most days.

being a mother has made me more grateful for my own Mother. she has done so much for me and still does. i want her to know that i love her very much.

i also love my Mother-in-Law because without her i wouldn't have my amazing husband and frankly she had a pretty big hand in how he turned out. 

and i like him alot. :)

i ran across this photo yesterday while purging our "shop". this is 1 of maybe 2 pictures that i can think of that's just of my mom, my sister and me. it just made me stop and think about all the women in my life.

so, i'm going to buck up & slap a huge smile on my face and enjoy my "day". i mean the day's not over yet. it has to get better, right?!!

 my hat is off to all you amazing mothers out there, i can only hope to aspire to be more like each and everyone of you more each day. 

photo via web

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{ A 13th Birthday!! }

this boy turns 13 today....

he's a pretty darn good kid.

he's an honor roll student & has been this whole school year.

he's energetic as all get out.

loves football.

loves to eat. pizza & ice cream.

is always smiling.

is a hard worker.

he's a good friend.

loves to hunt

loves to fish

loves to work with his dad.

love to build things, all. the. time.

and, he's finally 13!

Happy Birthday Parker-Roni!!

We love you!!!

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