About Us

So I decided it was about time to make a new About Us page... especially since the last time I introduced the whole family Claire was still a tiny baby! You can see that post here and check out how much everyone has grown in three years! That was almost 2 kids ago! 

Above is the most recent picture I have of our entire family, taken one week ago (as of time of posting this page). Rodrigo and I with our 5.5 kids. We are second generation homeschoolers. I was homeschooled throughout much of my childhood, although there were a few years in private and public schools as well. All of our kids have been homeschooled from the beginning.

{Here 18 weeks pregnant with #6}

This is me. :-) I'd much rather write about my family, but I know how much I enjoy seeing names, pictures and knowing a bit about other women whose blogs I read. So I am Rachel, the one who writes the blog and takes lots of the pictures!  I am currently pregnant with baby number 6. You can read about how we decided to have this many kids here.  

I love being married to my husband, and I really, truly enjoy being a mom to my kids. I'm not super patient, and I really don't manage to "do it all" as some people seem to think. Sad, but true! Here on my blog I really like to focus on the happy, and the beautiful, and the stuff that does manage to get done which really is a lot when I sit down to think about it! I am super crafty and creative, I much prefer working in my sewing room or painting at the dining table with my kids to things like cleaning and laundry... That's not to say that my house is a health hazard, but you know, priorities... the house will be messy again tomorrow, but a chance to sit and sew or paint and craft with my kids at the table is a fleeting opportunity, and I mean to seize it. 

I chopped all of my hair off once, when my oldest was a newborn. I hated it and have worn it long since then. I wear dresses a lot, but in the winter I just get too cold, so jeans and woolly sweaters are pretty much my uniform for a few months then! I also have dimples, all of my kids but Logan have them too.

 {here 26 weeks, playing at a science museum}

{26 weeks pregnant, at the zoo}

This is Rodrigo, my really hot husband, I think he's completely wonderful in every way! You can read about how we met here. I can pretty much sum it up by saying I totally embarrassed myself at the time! He is an awesome dad, he is calm, patient, funny and super affectionate. He is also one of the kindest human beings I've ever met. Plus he's smart, and he thinks I'm wonderful and he loves me completely, so what more could a girl possibly ask for??

{Sign above says "Tennessee State 'logan'" he has the "s" covered, heehee...}

This is Logan. He is our oldest at 16 years! Oh my, time really does fly by doesn't it? Words to describe him: serious, devoted, funny, happy, talkative, loving, responsible and helpful and goofy. He spends much of his free time playing guitar, riding his bike, and hand-feeding the baby birds he breeds.  He is also an expert baby holder/calmer downer who has managed to get his sister and littlest brother to sleep as infants when almost nothing else would work!

Matthew is our second child. He is almost 13. He is very sensitive, and playful. He reminds me a lot of his dad in those respects. He is very outgoing and is always looking for something to do. He is my most artistic child, constantly drawing, painting, modeling or building something. He adores acting and costumes. He is always coming up with new designs for dressing up as something, often asking for my help or advice in constructing elaborate costumes.

Ethan is 10. He is happy, silly, and very loving. He really likes being a big brother and loves playing with the little ones. He enjoys making art and crafting, but for him it is all about the process, he usually forgets completely about it as soon as he has finished, but he really enjoys the "making of." He is also very outgoing and has always been my child who would go to the park and introduce me to his 5 newest best friends within ten minutes of arriving. He loves climbing and exploring. When he was just under a year old I walked into the kitchen to find him sitting on top of the refrigerator, I never did figure out how he got up there! He hasn't stopped climbing since then! He is also the only one of our children to get his Daddy's brown eyes! 

Claire. She is 3. My precious, wonderful, little girl. I never really knew just how different little girls were from little boys until I had one myself. She loves playing with her baby dolls, and being "mommy". She also loves doing any kind of crafty activity, she follows me around all day and imitates everything I do. She really wants to be just like me. (Sometimes a very sobering thought!)  She was our very first post vasectomy reversal baby, a miracle! 

 Emmett will be two in September 2013. Currently the baby of the family. He is a real "mama's boy" never wanting to be far from my side. He is a bit wild, and reminds me a lot of Ethan when he was a toddler, constantly climbing and getting into things that he shouldn't. He is very loving with everyone and generally happy, but he is also quite "opinionated"! I love him so very much! He  really does make me happy to be around. But boy, oh boy, can that kid make me tired! :-) He walked early and talked early and has been into all kinds of adventures from the day he realized he could be mobile on his own!

OK so that's us! 

*Ninja baby is due to make her appearance in November of 2013, so hopefully I'll get this page updated soon after that and not another 3 years down the road!