A Month of Random Moments

At lunch today, we were all talking about what we learned in Sunday school. Allen and I were trying to list the five A-words of things we should do for each other. We explained, "There are five things everyone needs: attention, affection, acceptance, approval, and a...a...a..." We couldn't remember #5, but Ben was proud to help, "Anapkin! Everyone should have anapkin." 6/26

Another one added to the "things I never thought I'd say to my kids" list:..."put away the P& IDs and get your teeth brushed!"... Followed shortly by, "No! I did NOT say peeing ideas!" 6/23

Jon just signed his name to a Father's Day card: "SMULL". I asked him why he wrote that... "Mama, you told me to write my name small." ... sigh... adding explanation since I can't erase it. 6/12
 
"But, Mom! I was NOT running in the house. I was really-fast-jogging." 6/12
 
Steps 1,2,3, & 4 of training done! All four kids can bring laundry down, sort it like I want it done, fold & sort clean laundry, and get it all put away. Next summer I'll teach them how much soap to add and how the buttons work. I hate laundry duty but I'm trying to teach them to enjoy it -- for my own selfish reasons 6/9
 
Discussing homonyms and homophones at dinner, I used examples of to, two & too. "Mama went to the store. Daddy has two fajitas. Daddy has a beer, and I do, too. See? There are three twos!" Jon confused me when he said, "no you're talking about threes because daddy has 2 beers and you have one, so you should say 'daddy has two and you have one, too, THREE!'" 5/29
 

Cat Naps

I snapped this picture of Tico and Ben napping back in March.

Today, I got this one of Tico and Jon.

Both times, our fourteen-pound tabby makes himself comfortable and naps with the boys, holding them down, keeping them from squirming, keeping them warm.

Pickin' Day!

All six of us were dressed, in the car, buckled up, with homemade hot breakfast sandwiches, fresh coffee for Allen & me, on the road before the sun came up... Must be blueberry pickin' day with all of us excited to be up and going so early.

Today was a great day for picking blueberries! We got to the farm when they opened at seven. It was just a bit foggy, but the clouds stayed overhead until we were done picking about two hours later. When we were getting dressed just before 6 AM, Jon was frustrated that he couldn't find his blueberry hat (the one he wore in the pictures he sees from two years ago.)

The rest of the day, we napped.

A beautiful morning with a big Texas sky!

Some day, Ben will ask me why it is so hard to take him seriously. This is what he did when I asked him if he was happy to be there.

Jon picked a nearly-full basket this year. This was taken about half-way through picking -- still smiling, but with a black eye from the day before.

Still just a bit attached

If you still read this blog, but you are tired of my birds, just skip this one. This is evidently my season of birds ...

The days we fill and drain the kids' pool, a big puddle forms near our porch. Though it used to be a nuisance (the dog tacked mud into the house because he walked through it,) I now love having the puddle there. Why? Because the birds love it! Each evening at dinnertime, I can watch out the door and see them bathing and splashing. Usually seven juvenile bluebirds take a dunk and chirp at each other. It isn't long before the parents join the fun, then the cardinals, then the housefinch babes and parents, then the mockingbirds come and squawk at the rest to make room. Eventually, when there aren't too many visitors left, the brown thrashers will come for a drink, too. It is still fascinating to watch our feathered friends. Another of their favorite perching places is the metal garden fence and the wooden one right near it.

One evening at dinner, I was thrilled to see a male painted bunting drinking from the overturned frisbee that I leave in the garden. The next day, we spotted the female. I am still attached to the bluebirds, but the buntings are even prettier colors.

Here is Thrasher Junior.

And our garden's nuthatch.

Another Busy Week

Sunday - cut all three boys' hair off for summer; packed little kids' suitcase; painted Maddie's and my toenails

Monday - Cub Scout day camp (Will); took Ben, Maddie, & Jon to my parents; had lunch with kids and my parents; picked Will up at friend's home; Allen, Will, and I went out for sushi (Side note: Will was a bit grumpy that it was "taking SOOOOO long," but when the food came, he eagerly announced, "Wow! This is the second best food I have ever eaten!" -- second to the Thai coconut-basil-tomato chicken I make.)

Tuesday - Cub Scout day camp; got oil changed; got car washed & vacuumed; read a book; walked two miles; picked Will up; got birthday gift for Will's friend; went to grocery store

Wednesday - Cub Scout day camp; did laundry; walked to the Y; worked out and went to yoga class; went to Babies R Us for more booster seats for car; picked up Will and friend; dropped them both off at friend's home; Will spent night with buddy; had a stay-at-home date night with take-out, bottle of wine, and recorded television shows

Thursday - Cub Scout day camp; picked up little kids; lunch with kids and my parents; did more laundry; put all kids in bed early; went to bed to read

Friday - Cub Scout day camp; Ben got sick; Ben went back to bed; made rice krispie smores treats; made jumbalaya; did more laundry; went to family stuff at day camp; picked Will up; showered Will and Ben who had fun rolling in the soap foam, then getting sprayed by fire hoses, then military-scooting through the puddles at camp; wrapped presents; packed a few things; headed out to MOPS steering retreat

A Four-Year Old's Perspective

This is Ben showing off his new haircut. When he told me he wanted it cut "super short," I asked if he wanted a buzz-cut. Though that is the type of haircut both he and Jon wanted, Ben explained to me, "I want a Buzz [Lightyear] haircut, and Jon wants to be Woody." I tried getting a nice picture of the new summer cuts, but no one cooperated.

Somehow, Ben sweet-talked me into sharing my phone so he could take some pictures. He took pictures of our family, and it humors me to see how he framed the people, animals, and other things he thought were important. Ben's photos: SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Circus! Circus!

We got to add a bunch more "First Times" to our bucket list last week. Last Friday, our church hosted the Circo del Rey (Circus of the King.) We took one of Will's friends with us and we ended up sitting next to some of my friends and their families. It turned out to be a great way to see the circus since we could let the younger kids wander the entire pew to sit with their friends, too. The circus was inside our church sanctuary, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew there wouldn't be any elephants, but I couldn't imagine how they would get some of the other acts into that room without destroying it. Somehow, they did, and we got to enjoy clowns, mimes, dancers, illusionists, tight-rope walkers, flame-jugglers, chiffon & silk-dancers (swinging from chiffon or silk ropes), and a ball of motorcycles. This circus is unique in that it tells the gospel through the acts. My two favorite acts were Christ's crucifixion shown by the man doing aerial acrobatics with the red scarves and when Chagy the clown washed all his clown makeup off to explain that Christ's blood cleanses us of our sins so God can see us clean -- they really found a fun way to tell some serious business. The kids were up pretty late, but they all had a lot of fun, and I enjoyed watching the circus through their eyes. Some of my favorite quotes that night were from our kiddos:

• "Mama, why do they keep saying, 'Don't try this,' to all the fun stuff that I want to do?" - Ben
• "He said, 'don't do that at home'. I guess I have to wait till we go to Nana and Papa's." - Will
• "Why is that man swinging on the curtains?" - Ben
• "Did he just kill the lady in the box?" - Jon
• "Don't talk to me now. I just can't watch them do that!" (referring to tightrope act) - Maddie

After the circus, we took Will's friend home with us, and Will had his first sleepover. The kids crashed pretty quickly, then his friend had to leave pretty early the next day. The whole thing seemed a little too easy, from my perspective ... maybe because we had pizza for dinner, or because the circus was the entire entertainment for the night, or because the kids were worn out, or because he didn't stay too long... who knows? But it was easy, and I'd do it again since the kids had fun.

Vacation Bible School (VBS) started Monday, and my friend and I were teaching Will's class of first graders. The theme was continuing with the circus, and Natalie and I spent all of Sunday afternoon decorating our classroom like a circus tent. Though we both started out a little disappointed at the chaos we were presented, once we were with our dozen kiddos, we had a blast. Day one was a bit of challenge because Will and another boy started the day trying to one-up each other. Will sort of was a stinker, but we had a talk about it that night.

I explained to Will that some kids only hear about Jesus at VBS, so those of us who knew about Jesus needed to do our best to represent Him. Will whined that the other boy was being mean. We continued our conversation, "Will, sometimes people were really mean to Jesus, too. Do you remember what He did?" I was hoping Will would remember that Jesus asked God to forgive them, but he responded in a way that let me know he had thought about it: "Mama, I know Jesus was nice to them.... but it was easy for HIM to be nice. He probably sent them down to the devil and fire when it was over." I was speechless... I still am about that topic. Thankfully, part of the discussion stuck with him, and we didn't have any more trouble.

The third (of four) days, there was an invitation for those to come forward who were ready to ask Jesus into their hearts. As soon as they started saying, "In just a moment, we invite..." Will leaped over toward me to ask if he could go. Since he had mentioned being ready to be baptized a few days before, I was expecting him to go forward. I didn't expect the flood of emotions from ME, though. I gulped back the tears of joy as I walked up to the front with him, and as I started to return to my seat, I was excited to see another boy from our VBS class making his way to the front, too. What a joyous day!! Those last two days of VBS, sixty children accepted Christ! At the end of the week, the coordinator asked Natalie and me if we would be interested in teaching VBS again next year, and it didn't take long to decide... ABSOLUTELY!

 
Checked off the list was our first circus, our first overnight friend, the little kids first time at VBS, our first kid to accept Christ, and my first time teaching VBS. It was an exhilarating, but exhausting, week, and it is the first of many that will likely be described as such this summer. Next up? Cub Scout day camp.

Sponge Bobs!

This was an inexpensive and quick craft. The kids enjoy playing with them because they don't hurt, but they'll also hold enough water to soak each other. Though I keep calling them spongeballs, somewhere along the way, the kids started calling them SpongeBobs. Whatever.

Step 1: Choose a couple colors of sponges ($1/3 sponges X 4 kids = $4).
Step 2: Cut them lengthwise into thirds.

Step 3: Stack the sponge strips into piles 3 wide by 3 tall.

Step 4: Tie a zip-tie around center, and pull it as tight as possible.

Step 5: Dip spongeball in water and play dodgeball outside. It doesn't hurt as much as waterballoons, but you'll get just as wet.

Step 6: When you get tired of wet dodgeball, they work well as window washers :).

Easels Debut

I was recently reading my old blog posts and discovered it was THREE summers ago when Dad built some easels for the kids. Though I keep thinking about getting them out, it wasn't until this weekend that we actually did. We started with a pretty easy-to-clean project: watercolors! I didn't give them much instruction, just a few tips about adding water to the paint and rinsing it between colors. Jon's favorite discovery was that the squirt bottle would change the design. Maddie got impatient -- I guess her imagination moved faster than her hands, because she eventually ended up painting with a brush in each hand. Will got a bit frustrated trying to paint a dragon, but when I reminded him he could make anything he wanted to, he decided it looked more like a dead camel, so he added a hunter killing it. Ben was determined to draw stripes, and his picture looked a lot like the black garden fence he was facing. He creatively named the painting "Black stripey things." Can you tell they are having fun?

The final paintings - Will's, Jon's, Maddie's, Ben's.