I've been mockingly calling it "The Blizzard of 2010" for two days, and then today I turned on the TV and there was the bold headline. It's officially "The Blizzard of 2010". And, no, it's not over yet.
Richard has been religiously clearing our sidewalk every hour on the hour in the hopes that he can stay ahead of the storm. But it's been snowing at an average of an inch per hour for about 24 hours now. Nobody can keep up with that! The kids love it, of course. Richard changed his plan from building an igloo to building a snow ramp for the kids to slide on. And it wasn't too hard a task since there was already a huge snow drift in front of the house. In the picture below Naomi is about on ground level, and Asher is only about half way up the hill Daddy nicely packed down for them. Here's Naomi at the top of the hill, with Richard at the bottom - you can see that it's nearly up to his shoulders. And Asher is stuck in the snow. And here's a fun video of Naomi sliding down. You can see that Asher is totally stuck in the snow. Shortly after I turned off the camera Richard pulled him out. But poor Asher's boots stayed buried in the snow. And that began the series of sock changes. He went through three pairs of socks because the snow kept sucking his boots off no matter how tight I strapped them. Richard suggested that I duct tape them on. Maybe we'll try that tomorrow. Also in this video you can hear Isaiah saying, "In, Mama." repeatedly and me ignoring him.
I'm not sure what the latest total snowfall is, but they've been saying that this storm is even worse than they expected. Just when they thought it would start calming down, it kicked up a notch. School is already canceled for Monday and Tuesday.
Time at home with the kids is nice, but if we can't make it out of the house until Wednesday that'll make 4 straight days of being inside together. That's a lot.
20 inches of snow are expected here in the next 24 hours. They're calling it a "Top 5 storm", meaning it will be among the 5 biggest storms on record here. The grocery store was a total zoo yesterday. School was canceled for Friday by Thursday afternoon - and it isn't going to start snowing until this afternoon (Friday). People are kinda acting like the end of the world is coming.
I had a "nickel auction" last night - guests each bring $5 worth of nickels and 3 things to auction off. Only 4 people came which was a big bummer. But it was still fun to sit around and chat with girlfriends. The biggest buzz was created by a pair of earrings that went for 45 nickels.
Our family has big plans for building an igloo tomorrow.
And lastly, I am finally with child. The latest Worth should arrive late September to early October. I am flat out admitting that I hope this is a girl. Because, one, my family goes girl, boy, boy, girl (and I'm that #4 girl!) so it would be fun to repeat that, and two, because this baby is sleeping in Naomi's purple princess castle room whether it's a boy or girl. We are so excited. I've only been to the Dr. once yet, but things look good. I actually managed to keep this a secret from most of my friends and family for a whopping three weeks. That's a new record for me. I'm not very good at keeping this kind of thing to myself. It's too exciting! Plus, I feel like poo and I want people to know why I'm suddenly a total party pooper. The Dr. has me on progesterone (just to be safe) twice a day and each time I take that little round pill it makes me so dizzy that I have to lay down for an hour. But I'm not complaining (much) because I'm so happy that this baby is finally on his/her way.
Last week I challenged myself to sit down for every bathroom visit to better understand the female point of view. My wife has made outrageous claims over the years by stating that she never knows what is going to come out when she sits on the toilet. Read more here.
Results
There were certainly no surprises. I have found a few women who agree with my wife’s claims, but the majority of women I have spoken to tell me that my wife is unique. Perhaps they are lying to me, but it sounds like my wife is on her own with this one.
I couldn’t make it the entire 7 days. I made it for 3 days and then had to call it quits. I did learn that sitting down on the toilet every time is terrible. I had no room to put my stuff down, I had to waste an extra minute every trip, I was worried about drinking anything because I didn’t want to go to the bathroom, and of course I was worried about the germs.
Overall it was a great experiment, but one which I will not try again.
I have not forgotten about you. Please forgive my lack of attention. See the thing is, it's cold and dark and boring and January runs right into February and I swear spring will never come. I know it's not your fault. Please accept this post as a token of my gratitude for your willingness to stick around. Thanks, Chelsea
This is Luke. This is the day he dressed himself. He insisted on swim trunks and jacket, I insisted on the shirt. This is Luke being mad because I was taking the pictures, he was not. More about his anger issues later. I took him to the doctor this week and he's tall and skinny 31 3/4 inches high and 22.5 pounds heavy. He was mad there too.
This is some stuff I sent to new baby E. We are happy to have him in the family. Unhappy he is so far away. I liked how these things turned out, burp clothes, pants and onesies. Pants are folded because they were weird, but I sent them anyway.
This is the bench that Roger built. We knew we wanted a bench when we removed the closet. Yes, it doesn't have a top yet, but baby steps people, baby steps. I had to talk Roger into believing he could construct this. I swear that man can build anything, it's awesome. Total cost up to now: $4.28. Still needs a top, hopefully it will have one soon.
Close up. I'll post before, during and after pictures after it's not topless anymore.
Luke has serious anger issues. I guess it's difficult to be 16 months old. He hates to be told no, he gets mad when he can't figure something out. We laugh. We are excellent parents. Here he is in action trying to conquer a gallon of distilled water. Note his dismay at not being able to open it or lift it. Note his glee when he notices I've got the camera. Is it too early for some anger management? Maybe I could go with him, I blow my top sometimes too.
Audrey recently switched piano teachers and had recital a few weeks ago. She has really blossomed as a pianist the last few months. It was fun to see her perform. Great job Audrey! Thank you to my friend, Sherri who first referred me to the new teacher, and second for taking pictures of the recital and giving me a copy!
It's hard to beleive that cheer season is coming to an end. What a great year it's been! MSHS recently competed in the Washington State Cheer competition. They scored 6th in a very competitive division. Way to go Wildcats! What an incredible growing year for Becky. We are so proud of her!
SOPHIA!!! Happy New Year! True to tradition...we ate our grapes at midnight to see who would eat 12 (for each of the 12 months of the year) the quickest as the clock strikes 12. The winner has good luck all year long! The older kids felt like it might be the last year for Sophia to start a minute early. I'd have to agree...her head start proved to be a little too helpful.
During Christmas Break we enjoyed having Oliver home! One thing we did was head over to the Cedar River Watershed in North Bend. The education center was having a family fun day and we were able to do all sorts of things including learning more about conservation, crafts, and meeting Mishka the bear dog. It was so fun, I think we'll do it next year. While the girls did some crafts, Oliver borrowed my camera and took a few great shots!
The forecast today said that it would start snowing in the afternoon, that the snow would start sticking after dark, and that there would be accumulation of 1 to 3 inches.
I was feeling pretty stressed about that since I have Young Women's tonight - putting me out of the house until 9:00 or later. It was on my mind all day - how scary that drive home late at night could be. I don't have 4WD or even anti-lock brakes on the van. Maybe I should take Richard's car? Maybe I should claim to be sick?
But around 3:00 today it was decided that our Young Women's activity was canceled. By 4:00ish when it started snowing I was feeling very cozy. No more stress. I looked out my kitchen window at the beautiful snow falling gently and felt warm and protected. I felt safe and even comforted by the snow. I felt loved by a Heavenly Father who sent such beautiful weather.
Then I remembered that Richard is still at work and is planning on staying late. So he'll have to drive home after dark. And the snow lost all it's beauty. It didn't feel safe and comforting - it felt harsh and menacing. Is it starting to stick? What if the wet spots from the previous weekends snow melting freeze over and then there's ice with snow on top of that? Maybe Richard should come home right now? Maybe it's too late.
I'm sure when Richard gets home the snow will go back to being soft and cozy and beautiful. It's amazing to me though how my feelings for the same thing can change just depending on my state of mind. I know I'm kind of a worry-er. But do I do this to myself very often without even realizing?
How often do I loose sleep (or peaceful daytime) over what are really insignificant things when if I just chilled out for a bit things would be fine?
Just kidding. Not really. I've never even played the lottery. But I feel like I've just won some sort of lottery or prize. ... Except I paid for it...
It's a brand new freezer! Fully stocked with meats, fish, prepared meals, and veggies! Mmmmmmm! We signed a contract with Country Pride Food Services. And, ya know, we paid for all this food and the freezer, but they delivered it and stocked it and sorted it and will refill it with whatever we want (and pay for) whenever we want!
I've been living with one tiny little above-the-fridge freezer for way too long. I can never stock up on bread or cheese or (ahem) cookie dough. I could never do the "make two meals instead of one and freeze the extra" thing. But now I can! Wa-whoo!
Every time I tell somebody about this they say something like, "Oh, now you can freeze ..." And insert their favorite thing to have on hand in the freezer. I'm most excited about bread. We always have to make a mid-week extra trip to the store for bread. What about you? What are you so happy to freeze (or would be if you had a big freezer)?
Ever walk into a room and been completely surprised? Sure. Ever walk into the bathroom and been completely surprised? Of course. Every time I see the hair straightener on the counter still turned on after ten hours of not being used. Ever go to use the toilet and been surprised at what your body is telling you to do? If you are a female, you are probably nodding in the affirmative. If you are a male, you are probably completely confused if this has never come up in your marriage.
Situation: I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth. My wife decided to infiltrate the room and sat on the toilet. Suddenly she yelled, “Quick. Get out!”
Confused, I asked, “What’s happening?” I was thrown out only later to hear an explanation from my wife. “Sorry. I thought I just needed to pee, but then realized something else had to happen.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked. She then explained that whenever she sits down on the toilet she is surprised by what her body might require: maybe it’s to pee, maybe poo, and maybe just some gas. My mind was blown. I always know exactly what is going to happen when I enter the bathroom. In fact, my mind subconsciously develops a plan and I am in and out of there with great efficiency. I know some guys go into the bathroom with a magazine and a plan to stay for an hour, but the fact remains, they have a plan and they know what the future holds.
My wife said, “Things would be totally different if you had to sit down every time you had to pee. You would wouldn’t always know what would happen next.” We have argued about this for several years, but I am finally ready to resolve this debate.
Challenge: For one week I will sit down on the toilet every time I need to go to the bathroom, no matter what my initial plan is. I will then document the experience and provide a report to you. Men, feel free to join me in this challenge. The more data points the better. Please document your experiences in the comment section. Let’s not get too graphic though. I have a high suspicion that this oddity is either unique to my wife or to women in general.
I have been such having a blast lately figuring out embroidery. I don't recall ever before sitting down to learn a variety of stitches (although I'm sure my mother tried to teach me at some point). So I did what every self-respecting Worth does - I went out, bought a book, and taught myself. I have learned a whopping 3 stitches so far. My favorite is the wrapped backstitch (because it seems very forgiving of my messy,uneven stitches). I think I'm enjoying it so much because it's seems to be a great way to perk up these drab Winter days.
This is the second set of burp clothes that I've done. These ones are for Richard's baby sister, Karen (shh, don't tell Karen!), who is about to have her first baby. I love baby presents with the child's name on them because they're perfect for keeping as heirlooms. (Which sounds very snotty, like I deem these heirloom-worthy, but really it's just that I appreciate gifts like that, so I enjoy giving them and thinking that the receiver will enjoy them the way that I would.)
Don't look too closely at my amateur stitches, but I'm very happy with how these turned out! (My secret weapon is a fabric pen with disappearing ink which makes it so that I can write on the cloth and embroider right over it, but then any visible trace of the ink disappears within 72 hours.)
Side note: I am totally inspired by this blog. I think my next project may be a little stitched house that looks like ours.
In the corporate world executives strive to develop the next wave of successors to be ready for eventual promotion opportunities. Without a fresh pool of qualified talent, disaster can strike when an executive is suddenly removed from office because of death, fraud, illness, or other unanticipated reasons. Although the impact to a company can be devastating if a successor isn’t in the wing when an executive leaves, the results are certainly more disastrous when a successor for your wife is in the wing.
Lesson 32: Do not engage in any conversation that results in a succession plan for your wife, especially when that conversation is with your wife.
Several years ago my wife asked me what I would do if she died. “What kind of woman would you go for?” she asked. I thought about it for a while and innocently gave some answers. “Small, cute, smart, blonde, rich, spiritual.” She responded positively and then asked me to identify some people we know who might fit some of my descriptions.
I’m not sure why, but the alarms weren’t going off in my head. “Hmmm,” I thought. I then opened my mouth and that’s where the trouble started as I provided several names of people we have known who might be good replacements should tragedy strike. She began questioning me, “Why her? What’s so great about her?” And then, “Really? Do you find her attractive? Is there something I should know?”
Struggling, I tried to crawl up the carefully polished, aluminum slide that I was suddenly faced with. It was as if I had socks on my feet and hands – I was only going down. In fact, I was questioned for the next few weeks at random to explain myself and what made me name a certain person.
My suggestion: Never ever suggest that your wife could be replaced with a successor. What’s the point? It only throws doubt in her mind. Some might be tempted to rattle off some nasty ladies as successors thinking this is a good idea. Don’t do this either. Although your wife might feel safe as you mention grotesque people, she will wonder if she is in the same league as these beasts. That plan will backfire. Instead, when your wife asks this questions, tell her, “I pray for your safety every day and plan on loving you forever. No one could ever fill your shoes.” She’ll buy that because that’s what she wants to hear. Leave the succession planning to corporate experts.
Naomi can read. She just doesn't know she can read. She refuses to admit it. She's so held up by the fact that she has to take her time and concentrate that she can't see that she just finished an entire book. I am anxious for her to figure it out (figure out that she's already figured it out, that is) because I just know she'll be so happy to sit and read for hours.
So, that's why I'm calling this her slow leap. Here's a little video of her reading. You don't have to watch it - I won't be offended - but I had to put it up for posterity... and cuteness.
Isaiah has hit a big jump forward in his learning to speak. He suddenly jumped to trying to say words even if he can't really say it right. It's a very exciting bit of progress. The other day we were walking in a parking lot and he said, "Ho me ha!" So I held his hand. Another day we were at the store and he saw a Diego backpack and said, "ba pa!". So what could I do but buy him the backpack? Like I said, this is really very exciting.
But there are still a few adorable Isaiah-isms that I know I should break him of using, but they're just so cute that I have a hard time finding the motivation.
ew ew ew ew = Diego ha ha = dog ho ho = Christmas or Santa eh me = help me wo mo = one more (usually said with one pudgy finger extended to illustrate)
I'm rather desperate for him to learn to speak, but at the same time I'll miss these little things. I guess that's true for any little person who's growing up. You always miss the phase they're just growing out of (well, most of them anyway).
And while we're talking talking, here's the first 30 words that Isaiah really learned to say correctly: Mama, Dada, wa-wa (water), bubbles, bye bye, nigh-nigh(t), one more, me, you, more, no, whoa, yeah, ball, uh oh, hi, ow, wow, boo, hot, achoo, what, why, baby, pee, poo, new, no way, go, one.
Christmas morning, 2009. Seems my blog entries are fewer and farther in between...feast or famine at times. Ok, I'm only a month late at getting Christmas documented, but at least it's not Valentines Day yet! Christmas morning seemed a little quiet this year. But, we certainly enjoyed our "us" time. Here come the lazies who slept in until 7:30am. Let the games begin! Santa brought a kitchen and new leotard for Natty!
New basketball duds for Celeste!
I-pod for the Tween!
New tires for Becky (and her car). I know, BORING gift! She did get a few little things to open too :-)
"Every 1st grader has a DS, Mom." I guess Santa wanted to make sure Sophia wasn't left out.
Presents for Dad...the home/school-made kind are the best!!
Pretty much immediately upon my arrival home from my trip, Richard took off for a conference. The conference happens to be near our house, so technically he's been sleeping at home all week - but I still have hardly seen him. He comes home long after I'm asleep and leaves within 30 minutes of us all waking up. At several points in the week our house was a kind of "home base" for other people who are working on/attending this same conference. The video below is what my house looked like all day on Wednesday (and yes, that's a genuine green screen you'll see). The link below that is to a blog post from one of these techies that will give you a picture of my house on Friday night.
There will be a couple more guys hanging out and sleeping at our house tonight. Nothing personal to them, they're really all very nice and well mannered, but I'm thinking it might be an excellent night to go see a chick flick by myself.
I had to do a little searching to find the best way to donate money to the Haiti earthquake relief. So since I did all the work, I thought I'd give you the link if you're interested.
I'm officially back from my week-long trip ... Physically if not mentally. I have never had such a hard time coming back home. I love home and all the people in it, but my personal space bubble had expanded to a size larger than toddlers permit. I was use to people talking to me with respect and being polite. Home was a harsh reality. But don't worry, after just one day my personal space bubble is back to non-existent. There are goobers on my shoulders again. Life is back to normal.
But let's do a little flashback and show you some more of my trip. I did NOT take enough pictures in Oregon! You already saw the pictures of Stacy and I at the falls, here's one of my with my nephews Scott and Andrew. Andrew made me feel especially loved when he cried to his Mom, "You're hogging Aunt Nancy!" It was so fun to get to be the fun Aunt instead of the cousin's Mom. Also in Oregon, I was introduced to Zuumba by Stacy, who is an instructor. Ate so much food that I was still full when I woke up the next morning. And shopped 'til I dropped with Stephanie as my person shopper.
Then it was on to Denver to meet up with my college roomies, Amanda, Shanae, and Erica. Here's Amanda with her sweet baby Kyra.
We ate out and enjoyed being served instead of doing the serving. And, yes, we talked about our kids for a good portion of the time. We ARE still Mom's! Below are Erica and Shanae. It was our tradition to drink A&W and eat peanut butter M&M's. We use to have to pool our money to buy one bag of M&M's. Our tummies have apparently matured a bit, and could barely handle the combo of root beer and candy. Erica is learning a new hobby. Photography. Below is all four of us at the fanciest hotel I've ever been in: The Brown Palace. We felt very pampered and loved that people were eager to jump to our assistance whenever asked. Amanda and I at a 50's diner. Who knew that Indian Poker could be this much fun? We were totally dieing in fits of giggles by this point in the evening. And to top it off we bought a copy of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and took turns reading it. It was hysterical ... and gory! But nobody can beat Shanae's English accent.... Except maybe an actual Englishmen. These are memories that will get me through many a tough day of parenthood. It was just so, so, SO much fun!
And the kids and Richard were even still alive when I got back!
Greetings from Oregon! I'm having a wonderful time! I've done a lot of playing and resting and sleeping and eating and shopping and site seeing. These pictures are from Multnomah Falls. It was very wet! Uncle Carl let me borrow his raincoat or else I would have gotten totally wet. Tonight I played games with cousins Cameron and Hyrum and Andrew and Scott. Scott gives me lots of loves and it makes me miss you kids even more. I love you! ~ Mommy
We miss you Mommy. Glad you're having so much fun.
Things are alright here. We haven't left much. Oh, except today. We went and saw baby Ethan. And held him. My goodness were the kids cute. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy.
Happy Bithday Sophia! We headed over to the Family Fun Center to celebrate Sophia turning 7. Unfortunately, Natty was running a fever, so Tim stayed home with her. Cousins, Elise and Margot joined us for a evening of fun.
These girls always have fun together! They came home with us after the party for their second sleepover of Winter Break.
Miss Margot enjoying a little cake
Sophia and her big sisters! Happy Birthday Blue Eyes Sophia!
These are the remnants of my Christmas baking for teachers, friends and neighbors. Yes...the DOG! She has been having sneaky issues lately...likes to wait until the kitchen is empty and goes sniffing for goodies left on the counter. Since this day she's consumed a dozen Krispy Kremes (in a closed box), a loaf of fresh bread, and probably other things I don't even know about! I thought I was doing good and making sure anything on the counter was pushed way back or put away, however this morning she jumped up on the kitchen table and knocked over our fruit basket and took an orange back to her bed. Do dogs really like fruit? She's getting desperate! If you follow me on facebook, you'll see there was quite a debate on whether I beat my dog or not. Hmm...after this, what do you think?
Don't let her sweet face fool you! Her face is sweet and so is her tooth!
Could it be true?!...Becky is 17! Tim and I took her out for an evening of shopping and dinner and then we enjoyed a Cold Stone ice cream cake with the family. Happy Birthday Rebecca!
Of course I forgot my camera at Natty's Winter gymnastics show. Thanks goodness for cell phone cameras! She was VERY shy and almost didn't perform. She loves her little class once a week, but when it came time to show off her stuff in front of everyone, she had her first experience with stage fright. She had already taken off her costume at this point. Getting a little gift (her bear) at the end of the show made it all worth it! Also, knowing she got a date with mom and dad at our local burger joint, put a smile on her face when all was said and done!
The Donkey shares some of The Wife’s intimate journal memories and stories from her childhood experiences on a rural Michigan farm. Grammatical errors and farm-talk left in for effect. (Read the original debate: Down on The Farm?)
July 4 – Independunce Day
I think the fourfth of July is one of my favorite holidays. First of all I love that we defeeted the Britush at the Elmo. I wonder if thats where that Sesume Street charakter got his name from. Second I love fireworx. We couldnt afford none but Pa created his own. He spent the gas money for the car and got Jiffy Pop and started roastin it. Then he took some dung balls from the field and lit them on fire and placed them on top of the Jiffy Pop. Eventally the Jiffy Pop exploded and the poop went shootin off into the night. We ran all around trying to avoid fallin poop. Pa howled somethin awful at the site. Ma laffed too. Sadly Ezekiel got a poop ball to the head and it burned him a little. I hope he comes over tomorrow still.
FifthI love watermelon. We couldnt git none this year since the saloon was all out so Ma shaved some ice and dripped some chicken blood and sugar into it. Then she put some beetles in there. Next she squished the ice into balls like watermelons. The ice tasted good but i didn’t like the beetles none. i spat them out at Liza-Jane. She got mad cause she hates beetles and therefore watermelons.
Anyways I love the fourfth. Plus today we put hay in Jethros overalls and he had a horrible itch all night.
I'm sorry, Nancy is out of the office right now. She is in Oregon or Colorado visiting girlfriends. She isn't taking any complaints for the entire week. No snot will reside on her shoulder. She will only be wiping her own mouth or...er... anything else.
If you have any whining, complaints, requests, etc you will have to deal with them yourself or wait until she returns next Monday. (No guarantees that she'll do anything about it then, either, but she won't even be processing Whine Applications until her return).
When my Mom was in town last month we wanted to go see a model train display at Union Station. But instead we drove around D.C. for two hours because we could never find the parking garage.
So today we decided to give it another shot at a closer location that we knew we could get to - with free abundant parking. So we got the kids all excited about it and headed off. ... But we only brought a credit card and they only took cash. Doh!!! Foiled again!!!
Luckily, next door was an indoor carnival! And they happily took our credit card. (Not so lucky was the cost of the carnival - an arm and a leg plus half your spleen. But what could we do at that point?) The kids bounced in bounce houses, did science experiments, watched ballerinas, ate candy, rode rides, etc. All inside - because it was like friggin 20 degrees outside with 40 mph winds!
It was a good compromise and a fun Saturday, but I still really want to take those boys to see some model trains! What's a girl gotta do?
I can't believe our glorious Christmas break is almost over. I get depressed just thinking about it. We have had so much fun. The girls were so excited for Christmas. I think Roger may have been even more excited.
The kids got new pajamas on Christmas Eve. This is pretty typical of our attempts to get Luke to do anything other than what he wants to do.
Luke got a new bike for Christmas. He's holding some bouncy balls in his left hand. The balls and a snack container were the big hits with Luke (note to self, don't spend more than $2 on the kid)
The girls both got Wii controllers and nun chucks. However there was no Wii. We opened all the presents under the tree and no Wii system. Ashby being the very kind heart she is commented a few times that maybe we should ask Santa to bring it next Christmas. After all presents were opened we found a suspicious note in the tree. In it Santa explained that he had dropped something in the toy room on his way over the house. Lo and behold it was the Wii. Ashby's never been so excited. She's done nothing but play the Wii since.
If you're in the neighborhood come on over and the girls would love to challenge you to a game of bowling, both girls consistently do better than Roger and I. I can't believe it's back to the grind in two days. I already can't wait for next year. We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a very happy new year. We love you all and thanks for all your love and friendship over the years. Happy 2010.
I've never been one for New Year's Resolutions. I've always felt like I didn't really have any goals that needed to be dragged out over an entire year. But I think my feelings on the subject have changed. I'd like to make a few goals to keep up for an entire year. I feel like in my life with these wonderful little kids, it's too easy to just let time pass. To just be thankful that I made it alive through that one day and then wake up and do it again the next day. I should be working on more than just living life. I should be working on living life better.
I've seen on some blogs that they choose a "Word of the Year" or something like that. A theme for the year, basically, summed up into one word. So I've decided to keep my individual New Year's Resolutions to myself, but to share with you my Word of the Year.
Increase
Pretty vague, I know. But the idea is that that one word will remind me of all my individual resolutions in all their different areas - to increase my spirituality, physical strengths, mothering skills, wifely duties, and cleanliness.
So welcome to my Year of Increase! Let the increase begin!
*As "bonus reading", this talk may help you understand what I am thinking when I say "increase".
Richard and I have been having so much fun playing with our new Cricut. To use the Cricut you have to have special cartridges that are kinda like memory cards with certain images on each one. If you want some new image, you have to buy a new cartridge - which cost somewhere in the $80 each department. So rather than invest all kinds of money into cartridges, my computer-savvy hubby bought me a computer software that can turn any image into a basic shape that the Cricut can cut out. So now we never have to buy the expensive cartridges!
One of my first thoughts when Richard explained how the software works was "silhouettes!". I've wanted silhouettes of the kids for a long time. I even know where I'll hang them. But it's a lot of work to do it all by hand. Yesterday for Family Home Evening we took profile pics of the kids and then as soon as those kids were in bed, we got to work. It turned out that the software (which, by the way, is called Sure Cuts Alot 2) couldn't quite handle all the work by itself. So it turned into a collaborative effort between Richard on his computer using Photoshop and me on my computer using Sure Cuts Alot. In the end it worked!!!! It took so long that we only got one done last night, but look!
That's my little Asher's silhouette! Look at his cute little nose and chin. I just love it! I can't wait to do the other kids' and get them framed.
Ever open a present and wonder what possessed the person who bought it to actually wrap and deliver it? I’m sure many of us husbands have been guilty of this in the past.
Does the following sound familiar? It’s last minute and you decide to grab something off the shelf just so you can say you had a present under the tree. “At least she can open something on Christmas. She can always return it.” This approach has worked with moderate success in the past, but wives are catching on. They don’t want just anything. They want thought. They want planning. And now, they want us to make the return for the poorly chosen gift. What will we do? Luckily the other day I had a flash of inspiration that will help you next year. It’s based on an experience I had last week.
My friend told me he bought his wife a jewelry box for Christmas. He had noticed that his wife’s box was falling apart. I guess this guy was going for husband of the year award or something. Anyway, he went to some fancy place and got conned by the saleswoman to purchase a jewelry box for $40. When he showed me the box I almost died. It was clear with bright, colorful circles all over it. It looked like something a little girl would keep her My Little Pony toys in. He decided to show the box to a girl at work for a second opinion. She also laughed and said it looked like it belonged to a third grader. He was panicked because it was two days before Christmas and he did not have time to return the item.
I asked how this could have happened. He mentioned that he and his son were in the shop and saw this one and picked it out. “Wait a minute,” I said. “Your son was with you?” He said yes.
“Problem solved,” I exclaimed. “Just tell her that your son picked it out. Tell her that you had seen another one that was better for a mature woman, but you couldn’t deny your son the opportunity to participate in his own mother’s Christmas present. Do you think she can actually complain knowing that you thoughtfully planned to include your children? Of course you need to make sure your son is present when she opens it. You won’t be bringing any gifts back this year – that box is a keeper!”
He asked, “Do you think she will buy it?”
“Of course she will. How could she not?”
He asked several women at work if they would fall for the story and they all said they would. The men he asked applauded the idea and pronounced it as a true Christmas miracle. I got a text on Christmas morning from him that simply said, “Your idea worked.”
Another satisfied customer. Feel free to use this for anniversaries, holidays, and of course birthdays. I’m not sure how far one could take this, but I think next year I will try this approach and get my wife some soda for my office. “Sorry, the kids really thought you would want the soda so you would have something for me.”
Naomi with her fancy new doll. Isaiah playing golf with his new baseball bat from Uncle Josh Me displaying part of my take - including a Cricut! And, since this blog is all about me, check out my favoritest present of all! New speakers for my MP3 player or laptop. I told Richard I wanted a tiny speaker that could sit on the kitchen counter and make just enough sound for me to hear it while I cook or clean.... He got me apples. That's right. Those two apples in the fruit bowl? They're speakers! Isn't that awesome! It's perfect! Elefun! Naomi and Isaiah playing with Asher's present that he has no interest in whatsoever - a car mat. Naomi beats Daddy at Guess Who with Asher watches. It was a great day!
It started snowing last Friday. We stayed in/near our house all of Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Tuesday and Wednesday we only made one quick trip out each day. Usually under those circumstances the kids would be going absolutely insane - and me with them. But the magic of the snow really did it's thing. The kids played together so well! They actually played together. I mean TOGETHER - not just near each other or in the same room or fighting. They played together. All three of them would disappear upstairs for an hour or so at a time. It was seriously magical. I just keep saying the same thing over and over because I don't think you guys are quite comprehending how magical it was. In fact, I got swept up in the magic, too. I played with the kids and did crafts with them and lay around watching movies with them, and baked fun treats for them. I didn't wrap presents or worry about the house being too clean or plan this or that. So, because I was swept up in the magic too, I have a lot to do today. Not tons or anything, but enough to keep me busy until tonight when we head to Richard's parent's house for the evening festivities.
But the problem is, that the magic seems to have worn off the kids finally. They are fighting and bickering and taking toys away from each other in endless circles today. And it's hard to make pies and dip chocolates and plan Nativity costumes when I have to stop every three seconds to break up a fight or mediate some dispute.
But I suppose I should just be thankful for the five days of magic that I got. And that tomorrow they'll all have new toys to keep them busy and happy.
How to keep the kids happy when you're unexpectedly kept at home for the entire weekend?
Bake cookies Decorate cookies Eat cookies Decorate paper Christmas trees Make pretzel wreaths Play in the snow Watch Christmas shows from TV Dig toys out of the basement Fold laundry Dip pretzels in chocolate Eat chocolate dipped pretzels Have friends over for dinner since they don't live too far away Have a head stand contest Chase your siblings in never-ending circles while yelling (oh wait, that's just for Asher to do) Dress up your brothers in Princess outfits (oh wait, that's just for Naomi to do) Play quietly while your siblings play outside (Oh wait, that's just for Isaiah to do)
The kids have really done amazingly well the last couple days considering that they've been stuck at home. Tomorrow we may brave the roads for a playdate with church friends. I made a trip out to Costco today for milk and such and the main roads were clear, and the parking lots were clear - but all the little roads inbetween main roads and parking lots were complete disasters. It's a miracle I didn't get stuck. My wheels were spinning and griding in several places and I really thought I was stuck for a few minutes - but luckily I made it out. I never heard an official total of how much snow we got, but I'd guess something like 14 inches.
No snow-play is complete without coming in to hot cocoa! (These pictures were taken at 10 this morning -it hasn't stopped since.) It's a serious blizzard here. But, like a good blizzard, it didn't start until everyone was snug in their houses Friday night. But since it started that evening it hasn't let up one bit. The back door has a snow drift several feet deep. Our cars have vanished. In fact, it's so bad that they already canceled school for this coming Monday and Tuesday! That means our winter break from school has already started!
Luckily, we really didn't have any big plans today. Just some playing and baking. The snow will put a serious damper on the delivering of all the treats I had planned to bake, so I scaled way back. I'm kinda wishing I could let the kids open a present early or something to keep them busy, but I think opening that can of worms wouldn't work out well in the end. Bad precedent, ya know?
On an unrelated note, look at these adorable scarves that I made for each member of the family. They were waiting for the kids in their stockings this morning. They're just fleece leftover from a no-sew blanket that I made for Isaiah for Christmas. Then I stitched a fleece monogram onto each one just using a quick-and-dirty stitch. The big plan was to wear them to the ward Christmas party tonight, but that's since been canceled.
We drove over to our neighbor town, North Bend to hop on the Santa Train, a holiday favorite to locals. So much so that we had to get tickets well in advance since they sell out every year. We road the train to the town of Snoqualmie which is known for its railroad and lumber history. It has a small train museum including about 20 old train cars that are on display outside while they are being refurbished.
Here are Tim and Nana waiting to board the train.
...on the train...excited to tell Santa what they want for Christmas.
This isn't Santa, but one of his train helpers. After we got off the train, we waited in line for the real Santa. This is our view as we anxiouly awaited to go into this train shop.
All I want for Christmas is...
After visiting Santa we headed over to the hot chocolate train car. We sat inside and enjoyed the cocoa, cookies, and warmth. It was a cold day!
Fun times playing in and around all the trains!
We found this cool totem pole!
This huge "log" on a train car is a permanent fixture to Snoqualmie.
On our ride back, another of Santa's train helpers came out to lead us in "Jingle Bells". What a fun day!
My Mommy was in town this past weekend. We made a gingerbread house, drove around D.C., Christmas shopped, lunched, sat and talked, drove around endlessly, saw the lights and sights, heard beautiful music praising our Lord, etc. It was a wonderful weekend that truly felt holiday-ey. And now that it's over and my house is all clean, and my presents are all bought, and my stress is all over, I can focus on the true spirit of Christmas. Giving of time and talents and special feelings of love to friends and family. Tonight our Young Women's and Young Men's groups have a big joint service project that I'm helping out with. I just bought supplies to fill gift boxes for our troops overseas. I baked dozens of cookies - only a dozen or so of which I am keeping. And I did it all with my Pandora station "Country Christmas" playing in the background. I am feeling the love.
I am so glad that this is how my Christmas season has worked out. I dislike it when Christmas gets so busy that there's no time for the really important stuff. Or even when I make the time, but it's hard to remember that I want to do these things because it's stressful. Between all the traditions and fun and commitments and even spiritual things, sometimes there just isn't much time left to follow my heart in the direction it wants to go to honor the wonderful gift that is the birth of my Savior.
I am thankful that this year I have the time to breathe and ponder and follow my heart. I am thankful that I have the means and strength and desire to serve my fellow man.
Seems we have found ourselves drawn to this little Bavarian Village in the mountains about 2 hours from our home. We've been there 3 times in the last 2 months, and each time we love it more! After Becky, Audrey and I shopped till we almost dropped on Black Friday, we met up with Grandad and Grammy and spent the rest of the day in Leavenworth.
Not sure what it is with Sophia and funky glasses, but she always finds a pair and then always find Mom for a "cool" picture!
Look who we saw strolling downtown!
Nana loved the lights and snowy mountains so close. I took two pictures like this....but chose to post her smiliest one!
Here is a preview of our Christmas card this year. "Quick...take off your coats for a family picture!" Brrrr...at least everyone tried to smile a chilly smile. Our little trip was a great way to get into the Christmas spirit! MERRY CHRISTMAS!
We had 8 or our 9 home during the week of Thankgiving. We missed you, Oliver! I'm still hoping for that far reaching family picture of all of us together...but I still believe it will happen someday! We did get to see Alisha, Zeb and kids, Vanessa and boyfriend, Steve, and Josh even flew up for a couple days from Florida! It was his first time seeing us here in the Seattle area. Being new to Seattle, we took Josh and everyone to Pike Place Market and the waterfront. First, we stopped in our local crazy burger joint, Triple X....decked out in 50/60's stuff (and I mean LOTS of stuff, you can't even see the walls).
Josh making mini planes for Celeste and Sophia to have a race see who's could fly farther.Vanessa and Steve. It was really nice to meet Steve. He got the 3rd (or 4th) degree from a few of us...but I think he survived. Going with tradition, we played our Candy kiss Thankful game (Stolen from Stephanie Stewart many years ago) after Thanksgiving dinner. We enjoyed sharing what each of us is grateful for.
Nani and Gran joined us for Thanksgiving dinner. What's dinner without your grandmas and great grandmas!?Nana was here from Pennsylvania for the last 2 weeks. It was so great to have her. She spent some of her time on puzzles, however we bought one that was so difficult that she and Audrey ended up putting it away. Nana has since took it back home with her and will try again.
Sophia is feelin' pretty cool in the sunglasses Josh bought for her!
Celeste LOVES to sing. She was so excited to learn they offered an early morning choir at her school this year. She goes every Wed. and Friday mornings an hour before school starts. Her first concert was on Veteran's Day. Since then she has had 2 more concerts where she joined with Audrey's middle school choir at the Fall City Tree Lighting ceremony and at their holiday concert.
Young Women "Night of the Stars" was a great Evening of Excellence for the Young Women in our ward.
Becky was the "star" of the show. For one of her Laurel YW projects she planned, coordinated and conducted the evening. The girls showcased their talents which included artwork, photo slideshow, piano, singing and so much more. The evening was modeled after the Oscars and girls dressed in their fanciest attire.
Becky's talent was putting together the evening's activities and Audrey played and sang "Beauty and Beast". This is Audrey and her friend, Maryn...a fellow Beehive.
The game is cow racing - you hold the Wii-mote sideways and tilt it to steer your cow around the curves, move the Wii-mote up suddenly to jump over obstacles, and purposefully hit other things for points
Naomi's cow is on the top half of the screen, Asher's cow is on the bottom half
Isaiah thinks he's playing, but he's not
Watch the bottom of the screen to see that Asher is making his cow just jump, jump, jump. Not a good strategy if you're trying to win the cow race, but very good if you think it's hysterical to see a cow jump repeatedly.
Lately I've been thinking about myself a lot. Not in a selfish way, but in a self-exploring way. I've realized that I worry quite a bit about other peoples thoughts and feelings. I go out of my way to make things easier for other people. I'm always willing to fill in or help out or do extra when I can. Maybe "worry" isn't the right word. It's not like I'm loosing sleep over other people's feelings - I just am always aware of others and how whatever is effecting them.
I know that to most people this trait of mine looks pretty good. I come across as a caring, thoughtful person. But I think the problem is when I sometimes expect others to be thinking like I am. I expect Richard to (hypothetically) see the garbage cans outside and think, "I'll take those into the garage now because I know that will make Nancy happy." But really he's thinking about work or what he's going to do when he walks inside or, heck, I don't know, humming his favorite song to himself. And that's OK! He doesn't need to be thinking about how to please me at that moment. But sometimes when I (hypothetically) see him walk past the garbage cans without even giving them a second glance, I think to myself, "Ugh! How can he just walk right past those garbage cans without even thinking about taking care of them!" Or I think, "How could that person at church just leave when we're all cleaning up?" Or, "Why did that man just walk right in front of my cart loaded down with three kids and 100 pounds of groceries? He should know that it's nearly impossible for me to stop!" Poor guy. There's no way he could know how hard it is for me to stop my cart. He's never pushed a cart with 100+ pounds of kids plus groceries.
My expectations are too high. That's where the selfishness comes in - in my expectations of reciprocation.
Also, this traits of mine turns into micro-managing sometimes. Because I feel like I see what needs to be done better or clearer than others.
So I think that the conclusion to this self realization is that I need to keep up the thoughtfulness for others, but stop expecting people to give it back in exactly the same manner. I need to see that eventually Richard does take the garbage cans in (hypothetically), and the person at church has a nursing infant that she's running home to(hypothetically), and the guy in the grocery store did say "excuse me" and I'm sure he felt bad for walking in front of me and maybe he won't do it next time (not hypothetically). I need to see that just because nobody was thinking of me and how something-er-other would effect me, doesn't mean that nobody loves me. It doesn't mean that there was any maliciousness in that act of omission.
I'm not sure this is really coming across right in writing. I'm not trying to pat myself on the back, or knock myself down or get compliments. I'm just noticing something about myself. And now that I've noticed it I am figuring out whats good about it and whats bad about it. So that I can continue to become a better person like Heavenly Father has asked me to.
Many husbands are lamenting the fact that it’s almost Christmas. Their wives’ stress levels are hitting an annual high, kids are out of school and committing acts of terrorism in the house, and husbands have no idea what to get their wives. A friend of mine was asking the other day if he could get his wife an IPod for Christmas. It seemed like a great idea to me, but then I realized the intent was to encourage his wife to workout more. She does not like working out because she gets bored, and he thinks this is a way to ignite the fire. I asked if she would otherwise like an IPod, and he said yes. It took me a minute, but I believe I came up with an effective approach:
Deliver the IPod to the local gym manager and explain the situation.
Place a note in the wife’s stocking indicating that a special present awaits her at the gym. (WARNING: She should already have a gym pass. Read about an approach that works.)
Wife finds the note Christmas morning.
Drive wife to the gym to retrieve the present. Wait until the wife is inside.
Drive off.
The manager will present the IPod to the wife and explain that this could be hers if she can successfully complete a week of working out.
Wife works out.
Pick up happy wife from the gym two hours later.
If that’s not genius I don’t know what is. Another happy customer!
Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!!! And snowing it is. A lot. The weather forecast said it wasn't going to start until after 1pm today and that it wouldn't be that big. Boy were they wrong! We had to postpone our planned 10am Christmas tree getting trip because the roads were already covered. Instead we went sledding!
The kids had so much fun! Naomi and Asher are both old enough this year to haul their sleds back up the hill all by themselves so that's a lot of fun. Isaiah can't quite drag the sled behind him on the way back up, but at least he can walk up the hill unassisted. (Last year Richard or I had to drag Asher and Isaiah up and down the hill)
So that's what we're up to today. Playing, watching Frosty the Snowman, drinking cocoa, and later Richard and I are going to his fancy work party. Below is Naomi and Isaiah doing a picture search/Where's Santa type thingy. What a fun Saturday!
Think back a few years to when Tickle Me Elmo was new and everybody wanted it for Christmas. It was before I had kids, so I wasn't a part of the rush at all, but I heard about it plenty. It was chaos! It's a pop-culture reference now! I imagine that toy makers have been trying for that kind of a release ever since then.
And I think maybe I came across it. But the trouble is, that I didn't know it was Tickle Me Elmo all over again until after I had passed the toy up several times.
Probably any mother who has walked through the toy aisle at Target with a son in the last few months knows what I'm talking about. There's this huge dinosaur on display that walks and roars and rears up on his hind legs. I think he's like 3 feet tall. And he costs more than $100. The dino I'm after is that big guys "little brother". Spike Jr. I've passed Spike Jr in the toy aisle multiple times, each time thinking "I am definitely getting that for Asher for Christmas."
So yesterday I started my Christmas shopping on Amazon. There was Spike Jr for $19.99. Great! Even cheaper than in the stores! So I put it in my "cart" and kept shopping. I went back after naptime to actually buy the stuff in my cart - and Spike Jr had jumped in price to $39.99!!! That's friggin' double! Well, fine, I thought. I'll get it somewhere else. Wal-Mart had it listed as $18.99 online. But they were out. Target had it listed for $21.99, but they were out. Grrrrr!
So today I went to Target and Wal-Mart in person to see if they have it. Nope.
So I came home in shame and hung my head while I ordered stupid Spike Jr. from Amazon for $39.99. Because obviously it's in low supply after such a great sale. *sigh*
He better friggin' LOVE that dinosaur. He better play with it until he's like 25. It better be the best Christmas present he ever gets!
I made this last year, but I didn't get it finished until after Christmas. So this is actually our first year using it. It's an advent calendar made out of a mini-muffin tin! How clever is that! (I can say that since it wasn't my original idea.)
This morning the kids were so excited to get to peak into square one and see what was inside. Today was candy, but we'll also do bigger prizes like coloring books or making cookies with Mom. For those ones I plan on putting a piece of paper into the muffin tin that will either describe the activity or tell them where to find the hidden prize.
Each muffin space has a piece of magnet over it. The kind you can buy in a big sheet (like 8 1/2 x 11 maybe) that rolls up and it's sticky on one side. I cut the magnet sheet into the right size squares. Then cut scrapbook paper squares the same size. After that it's as easy as embellishing each one. Scrapbook paper, embellishments, stickers, jewels, etc. When you're done embellishing, you peel the paper backing off the magnetic square and put your paper on. Number them 1 through 24. I didn't use any pattern, but some of the ladies I did this with did and it looked very cute that way, too. (I hope this explanation makes sense.... I tend to babble.)
This picture below seems kinda lame, but it's a shot of the back of one of my squares. So you can see that the entire back of each square is magnet.
I am not a perfectionist. This becomes especially clear when I do crafts like this. Each of my squares is not precisely the same size. I think it would look better if they were. They would all line up better. But this works. And I still think it looks great.
It's important to recognize that kind of thing in yourself I think. I'm not a perfectionist. But I'm OK. Nobody died because I didn't do this perfectly.
I'm adding this to Today's Creative Blog's Get Your Craft On Tuesday. I love Tuesday's!
No, no, I'm not talking about the first Thanksgiving ever recorded in history, which there's much debate about anyway, I'm talking about the first Thanksgiving that I've ever hosted. I was so nervous. I've never cooked a turkey before and I've never been in charge of cooking for lots of people before either. Richard and Nancy and kids and Nancy's sister Ruth came from Virginia and Bryan and Anna and kids came from Ohio for the big day. We had 16 people here for dinner. Luckily the turkey turned out great for my first attempt and everything else was pretty good too. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, but here are a few.
There was much pie making going on. Here's Nancy and Ruth making their family favorite, pumpkin chiffon.
Here's Richard and Roger making berry and cherry pies. Richard was helping, he was looking at recipes, promise. (Sorry to catch you at the computer Rich.) I am happy to loan out their services for a small fee...
This was a pretty standard match up over the weekend. Ashby and Asher catching a few shows during previously mentioned pie making.
And this pair, oh dear this pair, they were inseparable. I think I heard Naomi say she was ready to move in and Avery was accepting with open arms!
Of course I can't forget Luke. He participated by getting under our feet all day and pulling out all the clean dishes from the cabinets. But oh my look at that hair!
On a completely unrelated note, here are the girls today with their Christmas Countdown chains. I can hardly believe it's November 30th and they are ready to go already. Usually I forget about it and remember it sometime around December 5th. And here's another reason to pat myself on the back, see Avery's skirt? I made that out of one of Roger's old shirts. I'm as pleased as punch about it. Unfortunately Avery wants nothing to do with it and only wore it today because nothing else was clean! I really am sounding like a self centered bore aren't I?
I do just want to include how grateful I am for all my many many blessings. I'm so grateful for family and friends who are near and far. I'm grateful for my sweet kids, I'm not sure what I would be without them. I'm so incredibly grateful for Roger. He is my everything and I know without him I'd be nothing. I'm grateful for the lessons we are learning as we live so far from where I grew up. It really sucks sometimes, but most the time it's really great. We have accomplished a lot but I know we had nothing to do with it. Heavenly Father truly knows us and knows our needs. I'm so grateful.
I've always wanted to do a huge "Thanksgiving Tree" like this, but I just never get around to it. Until this year! I found a big roll of brown paper at the craft store and away I went! After Thanksgiving I plan to take down the leaves and put all our Christmas cards on the tree for display. The pictures from the cards will make it kind of like a family tree!
Here's Naomi adding a family of squirrels to our tree: And here's the kids helping to add the leaves after we had written things we're thankful for on each leaf. (The hardest part of this project was cutting out all the leaves. Man do I wish I had a Cricut!)
Here's a close up on some of Naomi's squirrels.
We are very, very thankful this year.
Happy Thanksgiving, Ya'll!
For more about our actual Thanksgiving Day activities, check out my SIL Chelsea's blog. We spent a lovely four days with them at their house near Pittsburgh.
I think of Isaiah as my baby still. I want to cuddle him and squeeze him and rock him. I want to protect him from everything. I want him to lay around making sweet noises and playing with his toes. And sometimes he obliges me since he's such a sweetheart, but really he is so grown up (the whole not talking thing throws other people off, too).
He is starting to role-play with his toys. It's especially fun since all he can really have them say is, "Mama? Dada. Uh uh uh. No! Mama." over and over in new combinations. It actually really throws me off. I'm constantly answering, "What?" to his "Mama" in his play. But it also makes my heart skip a beat in sadness to be reminded that he should be speaking so much more than he is. And in joy to be reminded how far he's come in the past few months.
Isaiah loves dogs. I mean he really, really, really loves dogs. Stuffed ones, TV ones, or real ones. He's not afraid of them in person. He'll walk right up and pet them and let them lick him with no qualms at all. He loves to play at his friends house who has a dog.
And, yes, we still call him Poochy. I think we'll call him that until he can ask us to stop ... Too bad for him that his speech is delayed so that time might be a ways off.
Isaiah has a sweet, loving soul. He has compassion. He melts hearts wherever he goes. When his toddler-hood gets the best of him and he does something naughty like hit or throw, he's always quick to apologize and give hugs and kisses. He lets me squeeze him in a long hug. He only giggles and then squirms a little when I kiss him repeatedly - he never tries to escape. He still lets me cuddle him for a good 10 minutes after naptime most days. If I need a hug at some random point in the day, all I have to do is squat down and open my arms and Isaiah will come zooming into my arms for a big bear hug.
My baby still actually naps at naptime. He's 2 1/2 so I know that can't last much longer, but for now I'm soaking up every minute of that peace. And he still hasn't tried to climb out of his crib.
Isaiah's speech therapy is going really well. He comes out of each appointment more vocal than he went in. He has added "wo mo" to his vocabulary (that's "one more" for all you non-Poochy-speakers). Now we're working diligently on "up". He can say "uh" easily, and he can say "pa" easily, but we can't get him to combine the two sounds to say "up". But he tries so hard! It's so amazing to see how much more world is opened up to him each time he learns a new word or phrase.
Isaiah's laugh is unbelievable. It's explosive. It's free and loud. And sometimes unstoppable. I love it so much.
Isaiah is the perfect middle ground between Naomi and Asher. He wants to be obedient like Naomi, but he has a sneaky little naughty streak like Asher. Basically, he's a typical two year old.
And we wouldn't want him any other way. We love him just the way he is.
seconds of just a few steps. I'm so surprised at Luke's sticktoitiveness. He tries and tries and tries walking. He's getting very good. Although at times he does look a little like Frankenbaby because he won't bend his knees. He's our earliest walker by about three months. Go Lukie, go!
Naomi is all girl. Girly, girl, girl. We recently got to know Fancy Nancy (the children's book series) and we think Naomi and Fancy Nancy are kindred spirits. She loves to be dressed up and fancy and pretty (but not "cute", she hates being called "cute"). She sits like a lady. She eats like a lady. She draws ladies. She dances. She sings. She IS a princess. And a very fancy one, at that.
She is affectionate in a non-physical way. She'll tell you you're beautiful and stand near you or beg to sit near you, but she won't really hug you. She likes to lay in bed with me, but she doesn't want my arm around her like the boys do. She does not like to be tickled. When she talks non-stop to me is when I know we're really best friends.
Naomi is a great big sister. She is happy to help when asked. She loves to start games and activities for her brothers. She is the leader of the gang that runs around our house all day. Sometimes when she's at school, Asher says, "Where's Naomi? I miss her." And Naomi misses Asher and Isaiah, too.
Naomi has a notebook in her hand for much of each day. She draws while she watches TV. She draws during naptime. She draws after dinner. Did I mention she really loves to draw? She draws for other people all the time. I get a "card" at least once a day from her. When she sees some new thing - an animal or shape or ...thing - she starts drawing it over and over until she has mastered it. She often sings while she draws. Sometimes it's an actual song and sometimes it's just more like humming but with la-la-laaaaa's. She reminds me of a Disney Princess when she does that. I can just picture the birds and squirrels gathering around her and joining in on the song. ... Which would make perfect sense since Naomi loves little animals.
Naomi loves school. I've mentioned before that I think that is because her teacher is fabulous. But also, the girl just soaks up new information. And she thrives in a social environment. Whatever situation she's in, she's soon traveling in a pack of friends. She may not know their names, but they're her friends. She often invites kids over for playdates and then doesn't understand why I say they can't (uh, because I haven't talked to the other kids parents and don't even have their phone number?).
Naomi always wants to be good. I almost never have to punish her because one withering you-know-that-was-wrong look and she's mortified and apologetic. The most upset I've ever seen her is when she's upset that she made a wrong choice - not upset that she's being punished, but upset that she made a wrong choice. The girl just doesn't make wrong choices very often so she has no coping skills for when she does.
Naomi brings me so much joy. I'm so glad I've got my girly girl to balance out the boy-ness of Asher and Isaiah. She's just a great person. She is such an important part of our family. We just wouldn't be whole without her.
I've been thinking about doing a generic "What I'm Thankful For" post. But I've decided to go a slightly different route. I'm thankful for my kids. A lot. Every day. Most minutes of every day. So I think I will focus my thankfulness on them by telling you all about them. I'll start with Asher. (Why start with Asher, my middle child? Because I just snuggled with him so I am feeling particularly thankful for him.)
Asher is crazy. Wild. Rambunctious. And not that obedient. Or rational.
But he is also so sweet and loving. He often proclaims things "beautiful" or "adorable". He is a lover of dinosaurs and worms. When he plays with his cars, pretending they are alive and talking to each other, they often ask each other "Do you want to crash?", "Yes!", and they politely and violently crash into each other. Repeatedly.
Asher loves soft things. He is particularly attached to a blue baby blanket with polka dots on it. He calls it "blankety". He curls it into a ball and cuddles in his "nest". He loves to pretend to sleep. And he loves to have me tell him a story before he pretend sleeps. He always chooses the names for the characters in these stories. He picks two random syllables and makes that the name. Poo-ku, Ka-nee, Wa-tee, etc. (I really love it when he does that because when Naomi was in that phase is when she re-named Isaiah to Poochy.) During "naptime" Asher doesn't sleep. He plays wildly in his room. Every time I take him up to his room for naptime I have to open his blinds - so he can watch the cars and trucks zoom past, bring him a sippy cup of milk, and set up a train track to his exact specifications. He zooms cars, talks to his stuffed animals, hides under Isaiah's crib, yells just for fun, throws things, tries to trick Naomi into talking to him through the wall (which he knows will get them into trouble), occasionally falls asleep, and reads his "magazines" (catalogs usually containing toys).
Asher loves breakfast. His favorite breakfast is "Fruity O's", a generic Fruit Loop. He eats them on and off again until about 9:30 or 10:00 when it's snack time. Asher likes lunch alright, too. He eats his sandwiches kind of like a watermelon - leaving a thin trail of crust on his plate and a huge smear of jelly on his face. Asher usually skips dinner. He comes to the table when told, looks things over, then usually proclaims he's not hungry and walks away. I refuse to fight him on it.
Asher has reached the "talking non-stop" phase of childhood. His constant babble in the car gets me into trouble sometimes because I readily agree to things when I'm not really listening and then he tries to hold me to it later in the day. Asher loves to play with Naomi. They play secret spies or hide n seek or race cars together. Sometimes they let Isaiah join in too. But Asher does not play with Isaiah when it's just the two of them. They just play near each other or torture each other. Asher and Isaiah even manage to have arguments, despite the fact that Isaiah doesn't speak! I sometimes wake up to the two of them yelling at each other. "Yes!" yells Asher. "No!" yells Isaiah. And back and forth and back and forth. When I go in there I find that Asher has made up some reason why they originally started fighting which usually involves Isaiah having insulted Asher in some not-possible-since-he-doesn't-speak kind of way. Asher is a Mama's boy. It has to be Mom who helps him with his PJ's and puts him to bed. It has to be Mom who washes his hands or zips his coat. But when Mom is gone, then Dad will do.
Asher is a little hard to parent. He tries my patience more than anybody else. But I love him so much. He's so sweet and soft, even when he's sour and prickly. He just wants to be loved, just like everybody else in the world. I can always love the grumps right out of him. He loves to be violently tackled and hugged. He loves it even more when I sneak up behind him then tackle him, hug him and kiss him. He's such a great kid. (I feel a little bit like I just wrote some kind of ad trying to sell my Asher. That is NOT the case. You can't have him! He's not for sale! He's mine!)
She's buying something and taking it home: She's almost home and the Thanksgiving decorations are in the basket: The doggy is sliding and they're playing in a backyard and the Mommy and Daddy are decorating the house:
(I think we need a close up on the Mom and Dad and dog)
before the next holiday. Just when you thought you were done looking at kids in Halloween costumes, I'm fashionably late posting these. I was terrible at taking pictures, I was too busy having fun. I'm also a terrible mother because I didn't dress Luke up, he wore a costume for all of about 5 minutes. I'll pay for his therapy later.
Avery choose this beautiful fairy costume from Grandma Worth's costume store. The wings kept falling off and people would say what a beautiful princess she was, which infuriated her. Couldn't they see she was a fairy? Here she is marching in her parade at school.
Ashby chose a knight costume and I told her she had to be Joan of Arc if she was using that costume. We learned a little about Joan of Arc and she was very good at telling people that's who she was dressed as. Here she is at her parade. I was able to help in her classroom this year (thanks Maria) and I marched in the parade with her class.
This little horror will have to suffice for Luke. I've never been more grateful to be done nursing. Yes he did that with his teeth.
Three girls dressed as Princesses, a ton of fun snacks, crown-shaped PB&J sandwiches, Princess music in the background, goody bags full of Princess accessories, and of course, tea!
The girls decorated Naomi's birthday banner to start off.
Then the tea party commenced.
Topics of conversation ranged from race dynamics to which Disney Princess is the best. (Sleeping Beauty won the popular vote)
And, of course, there were presents.
And playing.
And much happiness in all the land.
Just wait until tonight when we do another family-party and give her even more presents. I am really enjoying showering my Princess with love.
The kids love it, of course. Richard changed his plan from building an igloo to building a snow ramp for the kids to slide on. And it wasn't too hard a task since there was already a huge snow drift in front of the house.
In the picture below Naomi is about on ground level, and Asher is only about half way up the hill Daddy nicely packed down for them.
Here's Naomi at the top of the hill, with Richard at the bottom - you can see that it's nearly up to his shoulders. And Asher is stuck in the snow.
And here's a fun video of Naomi sliding down. You can see that Asher is totally stuck in the snow. Shortly after I turned off the camera Richard pulled him out. But poor Asher's boots stayed buried in the snow. And that began the series of sock changes. He went through three pairs of socks because the snow kept sucking his boots off no matter how tight I strapped them. Richard suggested that I duct tape them on. Maybe we'll try that tomorrow. Also in this video you can hear Isaiah saying, "In, Mama." repeatedly and me ignoring him.
Isaiah has a sweet, loving soul. He has compassion. He melts hearts wherever he goes. When his toddler-hood gets the best of him and he does something naughty like hit or throw, he's always quick to apologize and give hugs and kisses. He lets me squeeze him in a long hug. He only giggles and then squirms a little when I kiss him repeatedly - he never tries to escape. He still lets me cuddle him for a good 10 minutes after naptime most days. If I need a hug at some random point in the day, all I have to do is squat down and open my arms and Isaiah will come zooming into my arms for a big bear hug.
Asher is crazy. Wild. Rambunctious. And not that obedient. Or rational.
