Mammoth Sized- bigger isn't always better or is it?

This guy is pretty big....and dead

One more of our mini adventures landed us at the Fossil Museum in Madera. Shocking right? Madera, why? Turns out this is a bit of Mammoth Fossil head quarters and to think I always thought the Mammoth Hamburger joint was the coolest thing between here and Chowchilla(and I miss the Orange Shakes). 

My Mammoth size family:

This was our "start of the adventure" picture which has now become tradition. Ty has been trying his hand at some photography and is really enjoying it. I taught him the little things I've learned but I have no doubt he will be teaching me new things soon.

The twins ready to roll

The kids were excited to try something new which has been our motto this summer. We walked in to the museum to find a full Mammoth skeleton and it was pretty amazing. Gianna thought it was an elephant and it took some convincing to prove it wasn't- thank goodness for Ice Age the movie. The grounds are pretty small but it wasn't exactly inexpensive to check out but I am glad that we were able to. We learned quite a bit about many creatures and the fossil process and even how it came about in Madera. I will spare you the details in case you decide to make the trip.

Ty's hand at photography:

He took a break to read... I am THRILLED my kids enjoy learning!!!

Ty back to photography:

We are working on his lighting

Outside the Museum is a cool little hut the kids played in for a bit. One of the employees came and talked to the kids about the way people use to live. 

Man made wet-lands gave us a nice idea of what Madera looked like back when Mammoths roamed the earth

Me and some of my girls...

Digging for Fossils

When you think about extinct creatures you have to wonder why they went extinct... Now a days its easy to see mans influence on the extinction of animals but back then, what was it? An earth quake, lava, Asteroid or were they just too big to survive in the world?

Sometimes I think we (Richards Family) are too big to survive in this world.  I never thought I would be the mama to five kiddos and sometimes I feel like I am just not enough for any one of them. Not enough hours in the day to cook, clean, change all the diapers and keep their minds growing and intrigued. Maybe there is too many of them and not enough of me. My response to onlookers who tell me, "Your hands must be full" is "Better FULL than EMPTY" but maybe I'm wrong, maybe empty is peaceful and quiet and maybe like small inconspicuous animals- will survive easier....Oh what would it be like to have no children or even just two! My buddy Kristy and I joked about only having two children this week while thirty kids ran around us at Chuck E Cheese.

I met up with some fellow mamas to let our little Mammoths run wild a bit. This is Ty's best friend Conner who is by far my favorite of any of Ty's friends.

Paris and her best buddy Skyler

Kristy and I daydreamed about what it would be like as a family of four...how simple life would be...trips to take, freeeeeeedddddooom... Maybe bigger isn't better, I mean it didn't work out for the Mammoths to well.. 

This last week we were down one. Josh was out of town on business and I ran the family solo... You may think of how hard it must have been but honestly it wasn't that bad. The house stayed clean and the kids and I came and went as we wished which led me to believe things are easier with less people!!!

THEN josh came home.... The kids went wild! Babies laughing and crying in perfect union, Gigi screaming in excitement and the big kids talking a million miles a minute to catch dad up on the weeks events- I got dressed and left..... I met some fellow Mamas for drinks and much needed time out. We laughed and talked about the kids, husbands, work and then made fun of the young girls who sat next to one another all on their phones not for one second interacting with one another. I came to the conclusion they didn't appreciate this freedom they had. They didn't appreciate their perky bodies and clean clothes. They didn't know what it meant to sacrifice themselves for the benefit of another. The didn't know the joy hot food can bring when your use to eating cold food after everyone else is done... It made me sad for them because I know much like me I didn't appreciate any of those things until they were long gone. I guess I also realized in that moment I didn't appreciate how amazing "bigger" is until I thought about going back to smaller and all I'd be missing. For whatever reason things do run smoother without Josh here but we aren't as happy either. We aren't the same as a family when one piece is missing-I don't want to be different. I don't want to have peace and quiet (although it would be nice occasionally). I don't want to eat hot food if it means eating it alone. I don't want a perfect perky body if it means I don't have five little Mammoths following me everywhere I go because they have all left there mark on me. I don't want to go out only to sit next to one another on electronic devices-I AM THRILLED I CAN APPRECIATE! I want to keep things just as is and continue to remind myself how amazing it is to have a large, loud and perfect family.

Loudest of all Miss. Gigi age 4

Sweetest girl Miss. Paris age 8

Twinkies Charlie and Penny 7 Months

My little boy Ty age 11

My wonderful hubby...

I will take all the chaos of having a Mammoth size family any day of the week

My mothers day present this year is fitting- five rings, one with each of my children's names... Too many to fit on one finger so I wear them on a chain. 

There is no such thing as a family being to big it just means you have to find another way to keep them all close. 

Much love people, take time to appreciate all the Little Mammoths in your life