Ethan's New Trick!

Ethan has decided that he is tired of showing us tricks we've seen our other children do.

So, he came up with a new trick!

I had to snap this photo fast because Daddy was VERY nervous!

Feeling Loved

I love having my school-aged children home for the summer! I eagerly look forward to it every year. I like the relaxed schedule that summer brings-- not worrying if a family outing puts us home after bedtime, being able to sleep in a little extra, more time for family games, no homework, etc.

One thing has been hard though-- NAPTIME! My school-aged children seem to no longer KNOW how to be quiet during this precious time of day. Ethan, who is the only one lucky enough to still take naps, has been having trouble staying asleep with the extra noise in this home.

On Thursday, Ethan was awakened about half way into his nap. I got him up but after only a few minutes it was obvious from his fussiness that he needed to go back to bed. I took him back to his room and rocked him in my arms. He immediately relaxed and looked up at me while we listened to his music play. I thought about how comfortable he seemed in my arms which reminded me about how comfortable I feel in my husband's arms. I feel so loved when he holds me. And even though Ethan might not understand the words "I love you" yet, I know that he feels my love when he is in my arms. I love you Ethan!

Ethan Discovers New Territory!

This was Ethan's first time climbing on the table. I was snapping a few pictures while thinking about how I was only encouraging this risky behavior when he dropped that Ragu bottle on the floor. Thankfully it didn't pop open and spill everywhere like one did when Jack dropped it on the carpet a few weeks ago. Remember?

My new kitchen chair cushions were spared for another day. They have already experienced chocolate, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, RED paint and various crumbs. Luckily, all of these happened AFTER I treated them with Scotchguard (Thanks Jacquie!) and I was able to get all of the stains out. I was scared when I saw the red paint but the hardest one to clean out of the cushions was the definitely the chocolate!

Doesn't my boy look so proud of himself for discovering new territory? He is such a cutie!

Happy Birthday Nana!

For my mother's birthday, we recorded each of the children on video wishing her a Happy Birthday in their own special way. I was surprised when I was able to get the older three children all singing Happy Birthday to You at the same time without being too silly-- on the FIRST try! You mothers KNOW how amazing this is!

Making the Girls Go Wild!

Jack told me that he should be on a commercial for school supplies. He said that if Walmart ran a commercial with him wearing his backpack and giving a wink, all of the girls would automatically run to Walmart to buy their school supplies!

Sibling Rivalry DOES Help Prepare Us For Parenthood!

As children, my sister and I learned how to sit on each other in a way that would allow us to hold down our "enemy" while allowing both of our hands to be free. You probably know the move too. The "enemy" is on her back. You straddle her with your knees holding down her arms.

Joshua sometimes gives me a hard time when I am trying to brush his teeth. This too may sound familiar to you. : ) We all know how important dental hygiene is to our health. So, I have discovered that I can sit on Joshua in the manner described above and brush his teeth while he laughs about it. (Don't worry, he is so tiny that I don't actually have to put any of my weight on him.)

Isn't it great how we can use the things we learned as children to help us in these situations?

Family Fun at its Finest!

Ethan Shows Joshua How It's Done!

I changed Ethan's stinky diaper and then dressed Joshua for the day. When I went to pick Ethan up, he was stinky again! "I just changed you little stinker!" I checked his diaper and it was clean but he REALLY was stinky so I knew more was coming. I put him on Joshua's potty and sure enough HE POOPED!

No, I don't actually believe he is ready to be potty-trained... but, I saved myself a diaper!

Later that day when I was telling someone about it, Joshua (who was right there in the bathroom when it happened and hasn't pooped on the potty for months) said, "I go poop in the potty." Yeah, right! :)

These Shoes Were Made For Walking!

When I tried to put shoes on Ethan before, he would always just pull them off. Now that he is walking, I knew he needed some good shoes to wear when we go out. He loves his new shoes so much that he asks for us to put them on by saying "shoes, shoes..."

He looks so cute in his Stride Rites!

Can You Figure Out How Well Potty Training Is Going?

I noticed Joshua bending over a little and pushing so we had the following conversation:

Me: Joshua, don't poopie in your diaper. Poopie in the potty so we can make cookies.

Joshua: No, I don't want to poopie in the potty. I want to poopie in my diaper.

Me: Don't you want to make cookies?

Joshua: I don't want a cookie. I want a poopie diaper.

Just So Tired

I gave Ethan some lunch and then proceeded to wash dishes while talking to my mom on the phone. When Ethan was done eating, he threw his plate and cup on the floor and fell asleep. (It was nap time after lunch.) I gave up on washing dishes while holding a phone and sat on the couch and then thought, "Something is weird...it's too quiet...where's Ethan?" It was then that I remembered the poor little guy!

Apparently this has happened to John recently too.

These Is My Words

I just finished reading this book today! I really enjoyed it and "found" more time to read than I usually do. I stayed up reading until 1:30 AM three nights and told John I would stay up all night reading it if I didn't know I would have to get up in the morning with Ethan. I plan to pick up the sequel tomorrow at the library. Let's hope it's as good as this one! Here is a short description in case you are interested: "Based on the real-life exploits of the author's great-grandmother, this fictionalized diary vividly details one woman's struggles with life and love in frontier Arizona at the end of the last century." The main character, Sarah, is a strong woman and you will LOVE reading her diary! Let me know if you read it or have already read it and what you think about it.

Free Chick-fil-A Tomorrow!

Dress like a cow and get free food!

http://www.cowappreciationday.com/

Gratitude

Okay, so I have a confession to make... I haven't been doing very well at keeping a gratitude journal. I really do think it is a great idea though and I hope I can make it a habit and do it everyday. Someone suggested keeping it in a little notebook by my bed so I would remember. I think I might try that.


I have decided to start posting about some of the things for which I am grateful. They will all be labeled "Things I Am Grateful For." I want you to know right now that I am grateful for my loving husband, my beautiful children, my Savior, my country, my home and all of the other wonderful things we are all grateful for. However, I plan for this list to include things that aren't so obvious or things you wouldn't know I am grateful for if I didn't tell you. Here goes:




I am grateful for my Bissell Little Green Machine. This photo is the new and improved version. Mine is old and sometimes leaks but I still LOVE it. Friday night Jack accidentally dropped a Sam's Club double size plastic jar of Ragu spaghetti sauce on the carpet. The lid broke off and when I saw the mess I couldn't believe my eyes! Forensic science must be very interesting to study because have you ever noticed how your children can drop something as small as a child sized yogurt in the kitchen and you can find yogurt on the wall in the living room! It never ceases to amaze me how this kind of stuff can splatter with such coverage!

When I first started cleaning it up I wasn't sure I would get it all out of the carpet but thanks to my Little Green friend, I was able to get it ALL out! I also was very proud of myself for not freaking out when I first saw it. I try not to react too strongly when things like this happen because if I do my children think I am mad at them when I am not. Whoever built this house put red carpet in all of the bedrooms (what were they thinking?) and when I first started cleaning up the mess that was in the hallway and in one bedroom (Splatter!), Jack said, "I guess they should have put red carpet in the hallway too."

Happy Fourth of July!

We have lived here for almost 7 years but this is the first year we have been in town for the Fourth. I found out that McIntire Park has the best fireworks around so we went there. It was a great display. Ethan knew just what to say when it started, "Oooo" and "Boom." Joshua kept saying "Whoa." Abby would say "That was a pretty one!" and Jack... silence...which is very unusual for Jack. When it was over I reminded my children how lucky we are to live in the United States and to be free.

We didn't get home until after 11:30 PM but it was worth it!

Our Baby Rabbits

When John was mowing a section of the yard that was overgrown, he mowed over a rabbit hole with at least three babies inside. They were all fine but the hole was now exposed so John made a protected entrance using an old piece of fencing and covered it with weeds to give the hole shade. I think the mommy likes the new changes.

Girl Scout Camp

Last week Abby attended three days of Girl Scout Camp with her best friend Kelsey. They are both in the same Daisy Troop and Abby loves it. However, she was a bit disappointed that Girl Scout Camp didn't have fishing and swimming like Boy Scout Camp did the week before! Next year, I plan to sign her up for Boy Scout Sibling Camp on the days John volunteers.

By the way, guess who they asked to be the cookie mom? Cookies anyone?

Don't Let Sleep Get In the Way Of A Good Time!

John sometimes falls asleep in his chair while playing the DS. On this particular evening, I woke him up and told him he should go to bed. When I finished with my work, I went into our bedroom to find this scene:

Yes, he IS asleep! How he thought he would be able to stay awake any easier in this position, I'll never know! Too funny though!

It's Official!

Ethan had been taking steps here and there but on June 14, 2008 he started officially walking. Isn't he cute?

Mother May I?

Isn't it interesting that children often demand to take over the tasks that they are developmentally ready to learn?

Ethan has been feeding himself for a long time but I have tried to continue to feed him the messiest foods like oatmeal, applesauce, yogurt, etc. On this day, Ethan decided enough was enough and refused to let me feed him his oatmeal. I must say he did pretty well!

When he got down to the bottom of the bowl, he decided it would be easier to get the rest with his fingers.

Can you blame him?