A day at the beach in April

I will definitely do anything or go anywhere with my kids. Some people think I am crazy or just don't know how I do it. I can't imagine not taking them to exciting places. I love to watch them learn and have fun. So once again, a wonderful Wednesday with the Dargan clan. We headed down the Garden state parkway to Point Pleasant Beach. There is a great aquarium there on the boardwalk. There is also just something about being down the beach. The air is different and I always have this free feeling. Apparently it has the same affect on my kids. They are big fans of being down the jersey shore. They loved the aquarium, but I think their favorite part was taking their shoes off and feeling the sand between their toes for the first time this year.

Boys day

We called Monday "boys day". Ryley had a sleepover at Grandmas on Sunday night and a sleepover at GG's Monday night. She loves her alone time to be with her Grandma and GG. Ryley has been enjoying her time and I have been enjoying my time with the boys. We certainly missed our Ryley though. We decided to spend our "boys day" at Van Saun Park. It is one of our favorite places. We started off our morning with a walk and then ventured to Van Saun. It is really cute seeing the boys together. Owen just wants to be next to Joey at all times and do everything with him and imitate him in every way. You could see how much Owen looks up to his big brother. You can also see how Joey looks after his little brother. Joey stayed with Owen at all times on the playground and made sure he was next to him. My favorite part of the day was watching them hold hands. It made my heart melt. They had a wonderful day at Van Saun. We later headed to the park near our house. Joey and Owen played, and I took TJ on the swings with me. TJ fell asleep on me on the swings. My heart melted a second time that day. That was my other favorite part of the day. Being a mommy is so rewarding!

First steps

TJ took his first steps the other day. This is going to be my last "first steps". It's bittersweet. He was so proud of himself and I was even more proud. Then of course I had tears in my eyes. My little baby took his first steps. I have now watched 4 of my children take their first steps. My fourth baby is getting bigger. I sometimes just want him to stay a baby. Sometimes I just want all of them to stay where they are, yet I am excited to see each of them grow. I always loved being pregnant. I loved my belly and feeling kicks. I loved being in the hospital and giving birth (maybe not the pain part) but bringing life into the world. I loved hearing "it's a girl" and it's a boy. Then you hold your baby for the first time and you just know what to do. You feel complete. I remember thinking "this is what life is all about." The love is so strong. That special bond you have is incredible. Now every time I hold Ryley, Joey, Owen or TJ, I still say to myself, "this is what it's all about. It's funny. Usually when one of my kids turns 1, I have another baby on the way. There is a part of me that misses being pregnant. On the other hand, I feel so lucky to have 4 beautiful healthy children and am happy to be done. It is now just time to enjoy them. They are very close together in age and I wouldn't change it for the world! It may be my last "first steps", but this is only the beginning of so many exciting days to come. I look forward to it all! Joe and I will have our hands full with our crew. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Easter egg hunt

Spring is finally here and Easter is on its way. What better way to get the kids ready for Easter than with an Easter egg hunt. All week, I was harassed by the kids on why it was taking so long for Saturday to come. Ryley just didn't understand why it always takes so long for an event to arrive. I tried to explain to her that it feels like such a long to them because they like to ask questions about an event 7 - days ahead of time. Their excitement is wonderful. There are times though that I can run away when they ask me 7 times a day for 7 days if it's time for the egg hunt yet! On Saturday, the egg hunt was at 12:30. They were dressed with baskets in hand and ready to go by 9AM. It was a chilly day, but the cold air didn't bother them. I say this often, but I really just love their innocence. Ryley is so sweet and gets so excited. Joey and Owen just could not wait to get some candy. The kids had a blast as usual. Owen collected 1 egg and he was happy. He didn't care about any other eggs. He just wanted to open his 1 egg and get a lollipop. Thank God there was a lollipop in that egg. He was so excited. As for TJ, well he just hung out in the stroller and observed. He was very content all bundled up and cozy. Such a sweet boy. Such great kids!

A fun filled weekend

Where do I begin? We had an incredible few days together. On Thursday, we met our cousins at Great Wolf Lodge to celebrate cousin Matthews birthday. I can not express in words the amount of fun the kids had. Ryley did not waste any time. She arrived at the water park, put her bathing suit on and headed straight for the water. No water slide is too big for her. Ryley is so adventurous and so much fun. I love her excitement and energy. I loved holding her hand and waiting on line for the water slide. She was so thrilled and couldn't wait to go. While on the ride, she laughed and smiled the whole time. It was so amazing to see. I remember just staring at her and thinking about how amazing she is and how much I love her. She is so full of life. Joey and Owen at first were hesitant but before you knew it they were running to slide after slide and smiling and laughing the whole time. It was pure innocence. Owen had the cutest smile on and Joey was so cautious and brave and concentrated while on the slides. Joey is always very careful and likes to be in control. He is just like his daddy. Ryley is wild on the rides and the bigger and faster they are the more she likes them. She is just like her mommy. Owen is a little of both. Owen is also cautious yet once he gets comfortable he becomes a little more brave and takes a chance. TJ dipped his feet but hung out with GG a lot. Next year, he will be in the mix. I can't wait to see how he will be in the water. Is he going to take after his adventurous sister or be a little more cautious like his brothers? We really had a wonderful time. It is so nice to be away with your family. There are no responsibilities like cleaning or cooking or writing bills. It's just time devoted to being together and enjoying each other and that is exactly what we did!

On Sunday, we went to the St. Patricks Day Parade in Pearl River. I have to say that my kids love parades. They smile and wave and dance. Owen loves to march and really concentrates when he marches. It is so cute. TJ enjoyed every part. He claps and waves and smiles and dances. All 4 sat through the parade and were so well behaved and really enjoyed it. I just love spending time with them and experiencing different things with them.. I just take it all in.

Turtle Back Zoo

Today was our first trip to Turtle Back Zoo. It was loved by all! It was the perfect day for a trip to the zoo. Spring is arriving on Saturday, and we really got a taste of it today. The warm sunshine put a smile on everyone. Ryley, Joey & Owen skipped through the pathways excited to see all the animals. There were bears, wolves, cows, chickens and kangaroos! The kids even got a chance to feed the sheep; although most of the food ended up on the floor. Every time the sheep tried to get some food, Joey dropped it as soon as the sheep came near him. They attempted to go inside the gate to meet the sheep. Owen was not a fan of this as you can tell by the picture (he is reaching for Auntie Lauren for help!) The carousel was a hit. It always is! Spending time with their cousins Drew, Ella & Tyler was a bonus. TJ enjoyed the view of all the animals. He had a special ride on the carousel as well. It was another great Wednesday! The kids wore their green for St. Patricks Day. Once again, I just enjoyed watching them have fun.

Sleeping babies

This past weekend, we were lucky enough to have a bad storm that produced a lot of rain and of course as a bonus, we lost power. So, there were no exciting adventures to parks or zoos or jungle gyms. It didn't matter to the Dargan kids. They were just as entertained at the idea that we had no power and we had to use flashlights. It's amazing how much fun kids could have with the most simple things in life. After a day of no power, the nighttime was approaching and the idea of no lights was starting to sink in. Some of the excitement wore off and fears took over. Ryley was afraid of the dark and Owen was afraid of shadows. There were some tears and a couple of fights, but they stayed calm. Sunday night, the kids and I decided to head to GG and Grandpas for a sleepover. Ryley, Joey and Owen were so excited that they jumped up and down. It was so cute. It was also 9 o'clock at night and I was tired, and the kids were tired. All I wanted at this point was for the kids to go to bed so I could just have 1 hour of me time. They finally fell asleep. I went back in to check on on them and just stared at them with such a feeling of love. I just adore how they look when they are sleeping. No matter what kind of day I have had or no matter what kind of mood the kids have been in; when I see them sleeping so peacefully at night, it just makes me appreciate everything. It's like nothing else matters. Owen was sleeping so closely to Joey and he had his arm around him. Ryley was in the bed next to them. She looked beautiful. I kissed them all about 100 times and I told them I loved them. I could just hear their sweet breathing. I checked on TJ and he was in my favorite position (on belly with but in air) So cute!! Seeing your kids sleeping just makes you happy and makes you feel lucky for what you have. It makes any stress you have go away. The love you have for your children is so powerful!