Poison Oak

Almost two weeks ago now. Jed and some of the guys here spent the better part of a Saturday playing paint ball. They had a great time and are already talking about how they are going to go again before too long. It is fun to see Jed excited about something that is strictly just for fun, as he really doesn't have many things that he does just for himself. It must have been a really fun day because even the poison oak that he came home with was worth it, according to him. I am wondering how long he was crouched down/laying in the stuff because he has blistering all up and down his body. His right arm and waist are the worst. I'll post a picture of his arm, but the photo I took of his waist just seemed like it should be for my eyes only! :)

Daddy's Night In

Lately I have been beginning to understand a little better why so many moms experience "Mommy Burnout". I actually have been quite impressed with myself with how easy the transition from two children to three has been...that is until Kate started walking and destroying everything in her path! That being said, yesterday I took the opportunity to take the afternoon and evening off and spend it shopping and eating with two of my friends. We had a great time and it was so rejuvenating for my soul. I love how it feels to come home to my little ones after being away from them. We all seem to appreciate each other a little more. I am not sure, however, that Kate missed me at all. It seems that she had a grand time without me. The way that I understand what happened was as follows: Jed was exhausted after not sleeping well the night before, working all day, picking the kids up, making dinner, cleaning up dinner, cleaning up kids, etc. (are we feeling sorry for Jed yet?), so he decided that he would take a rest for 10 minutes (he swears it was no longer than that) while the kids played. Well, after dinner apparently he had let Owen and Davis chose a treat for their dessert and someone had left a box of chocolates (all individually wrapped in foil) where Kate could reach them. Jed said that he vaguely remembered hearing something about Kate and chocolate, but he was so tired that he didn't really care. So let's explore what a one year old can do with multiple chocolate candies in 10 minutes....try to open chocolate, stick the whole thing in her mouth, eventually spit out a mound of chocolate and tin foil on the wood floor in the kitchen...put more chocolates in her mouth...put chocolaty hands all over the boys "art cart"...more chocolate goes in the mouth, I assume...go climb up on the couch and in the process wipe chocolate everywhere, drool all over darling new outfit...feel bored in the family room, so goes to see what is new and interesting on Davis' bed, thus smearing chocolate all over big brother's bed and pillow...oh, what a mess!!!! Jed says he has never seen Kate so happy! That is my girl, she loves her chocolate. Now who is going to clean up the mess!?!? You gotta love an evening with Daddy!

"The Quiet Game" and "Quiet Time"

The Quiet Game: I am sure that our family was not the only family who played "the quiet game", while I was growing up. Of course I maybe would have argued at the time that my parents had "invented" it. I am sure you are familiar with this one...Mom and Dad are going crazy with the noise in the car on a long trip or something and one of them says, "Hey, let's play the Quiet Game!", as if this is the most FUN game in the world. Then everyone is quiet and just waiting for someone else to giggle or give in and say something. We always loved when my parents would "try" to get us to talk by saying things like, "Anyone who wants to stop for ice cream, say so now!". Now that I have kids who are old enough, this is a family favorite in our car/home too. Owen just loves this game and Davis has become quite good at it himself. So when do you think they will figure out that Jed and I love "The Quiet Game" even more than they do?

Quiet Time: I am sorry to report that Davis very rarely takes a nap anymore and has joined Owen in having mandatory "quiet time" only. Of course I should be more strict than I am and they often open the door and ask the ironic question, "Can we wake up yet?" Every once in a while I will go in and find that Davis has fallen asleep while playing. I love this picture posted above with both Owen and Davis are in Halloween costumes that are way too small and Davis is zonked out. Love it.

A few more things to remember...

**On Sunday when our Sacrament meeting was over Davis informed me that he didn't want to go to his nursery class that week. He has been doing this the past couple of weeks, so I decided to take a different approach this time. I told him that he had a choice to make he could either stay there sitting on the bench in the chapel or he could go into nursery and have a snack with his friends. He said that he just wanted to stay where he was. "OK, " I said and we continued to sit, side-by-side watching all of the other people exit. A few minutes passed and I asked him if he still wanted to sit there or if he was ready to go...he still chose the bench...a few more minutes and I told him that Kate wanted to play with the toys, so I was going to take her to nursery, but I would come back for him when church was over. "OK", he said. I walked out of the chapel and waited in the hallway for him to freak out. He never did. Can I tell, that kid sat/laid on that bench for 15 minutes. Finally, I went back in (he was still smiling) and told him that another group was coming into the chapel, so he had a new choice to make. He could come to my class and sit on my lap the whole time or go play with Ellie. "Ellie's in nursery?", he asked and off he went down the hall. That is one kid who knows what he wants.

**I was cracking up today…Owen and Davis were running from Kate who was dubbed “the baby monster” and they were screaming of course (who wouldn’t be screaming with a baby monster chasing them?)….”AHHHHHH..” breath, breath…”AHHHHH”…and then Owen says, “Quick, run from your life!” I thought it was a riot. Don’t you love how kids take common phrases and give them a whole new meaning?

**A few months ago we added “hate” to the list of words that we don’t say in our house. We tell the kids that we don’t tell people that we “hate” them because that is definitely not a kind thing to say, etc. Well, this rule has totally come back to bite me…”I would hate for it to rain and ruin our fun….”,”I would hate to have to take that toy away from you…”, “I would hate it if….”---AHHHH!!!! You better believe that the word police here notice EVERY time I use that word. Owen is the one who says, “BAD WORD, BAD WORD!” and Davis simply says, “Mommy, you used a strong word”, in such a disapproving tone. I have made myself follow the rules and have had to put many of my special things in time out. Thank goodness for my boys or I would have such bad language! the ironic thing is that they never say "hate" any more.

It's all about Dada!

I think that I can officially report that Kate's first word is "Dada" and that she is now using it properly. She babbles all day long now, but once Jed is home it is all about calling after him..."Dada....Dada?...Dada, Dada, Dada!" I laugh every time. She comes across as being so demanding already, so we are trying to teach her a few signs to help her communicate and hopefully eliminate a few of her frustrations. So far she has mastered "more", which she also uses for "eat" and "drink". Today we are working on "please" which I hope she will use when she wants anything else. That would be a huge improvement on the current grunting, "uh, uh, uh, uh!!!!"

I also thought this picture was cute...Owen is the photographer!

I wanted to look nice!

At the beginning of June we attended a BBQ at our church. Jed and his partner had spent the day painting the exterior of the office (Tyler painted houses to put himself through dental school, so he is a pro) and he wasn't ready to go, so I went on ahead without him. I told the boys to run and put on their shoes, go potty, etc. and meet me in the garage. Owen comes running out wearing a gray teeshirt with an orange stripe across the chest, jeans with holes in the knees, his bright yellow sunglasses and a tie. I say to him, "Hey, nice tie!" To which he replies, "Yea, I wanted to look nice!" That cracked me up! My local friends can attest that since then they have seen Owen wearing a tie with all sorts of outfits and BOY does he look "NICE"!

Mother Hubbard: What She's Doing Now!

A few months ago Jed and I decided to get serious about getting our family prepared for emergencies and stocking our pantry full of the foods that we eat. I know that growing up there were several times that our family did not have money to buy food, so we lived off of what was in the cupboards. I want to be prepared should our family ever have that same challenge. Of course I used my mom as a resource as I was buying things. She is after all, an expert in this field. :) I have to say in ALL HONESTY that even if she wasn't my mom, I would recommend her ideas to you, as they have helped me to have a different perspective on food storage. Many of you read her blog (blog.totallyready.com), so you may know that she has recently completed a book that you can download there. It is full of great ideas AND the thing that has helped me get organized more than anything else. She has included and inventory list (370 items from all of the food groups--not just beans and wheat--and non-food items as well) that will calculate for you how much more of each item you need to meet your goal and a calculator that allows you to determine the amount of food storage you need for your family based on the number of children and adults. It also allows you to specify the number of months you are preparing for. Again, I really wouldn't promote this unless it was something that I really found useful myself.
Check it out and let me know what you think:
totallyready.com

Ponies and Piggies!

I couldn't help but post a few pics of Kate with her new hairdos...ponies and piggies! Ok, so I can barely get enough hair to make either a ponytail or pigtail, but if you look closely you can see it. I'm having fun with this new stage. Can you tell?