Boys will be boys

Today I walked outside in time to see Ethan go flying down the hill in our backyard in the wagon. The wagon was totally out of control (at least in my opinion as a mother). So, as many moms do, I first laughed out loud at the expression of glee on his face. Then, in my best "stern mother voice" I told him not to do it again. He, of course, is not following why his mother doesn't think this is the coolest thing EVER. I'm hoping we make it through his childhood without numerous broken limbs. I'm guessing it will only take an hour or two before he's in the wagon taking the trip all over again. Is it too much to hope that he doesn't haul Micah into the wagon for any of the trips?

The excitement continues, part 2

What could be more fun than a new niece or nephew in February?

Getting a new niece or nephew in February and April!

My brother, Steve, and his wife, Jennie, recently announced that they are going to have a baby and are due in April. The funniest part came when we told Ethan that "Uncle Steve and Aunt Jennie are going to have a baby!". Ethan's response? "Way to go, Steve" with a thumb's up. A man in the making there.

I hope I have time to hold all these babies! I'll just have to drive from house to house. :)

Note to self:

When removing an egg from the egg carton, do so over the counter...not over the register on the floor.

Warning: this will be a long one!

This post is my effort at playing "catch-up" for the last month or so. I know I've done a few posts here and there, but there are lots of pictures and activities that I've been meaning to post, but just haven't had a chance to! So, you may have to scroll down a few times to get through everything! I was going to post cool picture slideshows from photobucket, but they don't seem to want to upload. I'm assuming that when the website gives me an "error with posting" message that it's a problem with the website...not the user...right? Anyway, following are our activities, pretty much in no particular order since I can't be expected to remember exact time frames! :)

Blueberry picking!




The boys and I went blueberry picking with Jason's mom and sisters. It turns out that I have two kids that are very good blueberry pickers! Ethan happily went from bush to bush to pick the big ones (readily assisted by his aunts and grandma...his aunts were really good at finding the big ones!). Micah complained if his stroller wasn't close enough to the bush for him to do his own picking. He ate some of what he picked, but a number of them actually ended up in his bucket! Also had one of those "you know you're a mom when..." moments: Micah would pick a berry, bite off half of it, then put the other half in his bucket. So what did I do? Ate the other half of the berry. Yummy, blueberries and baby spit. Quite a combo.

Fun at the park...




Jason, the boys, and I spent one Sunday evening at the park with Jason's parents. The boys had a great time running around and showing off to grandpa and grandma. Not much time for me to chat though, since I mostly followed Micah around so he wouldn't walk off the play equipment wherever there was an opening up high. I highly recommend taking a grandma and grandpa to the park...they bring dessert. :)

Picture time...courtesy of Ethan




My oldest is practicing to be a photojournalist (otherwise known as "mom, can I have the camera?" I've found it's a great way to keep him occupied in the car!). Plus, with a digital camera, I'm not wasting any film!

More play time at the lake...




My aunt and uncle are gracious enough to allow us to regularly invade their home on the lake with our children and all the "stuff" that comes with them. The boys and I picked up my mom and met my sister and her kids for some play time in the water. The older kids had something to talk about after the pontoon boat broke down and they had to get a tow back to the house. My poor mom and aunt were stuck for a while with just them and 5 kids. Thankfully the littlest kids had stayed home with Karen and I, but it made for an interesting trip! We might have a difficult time convincing Ethan to get back on the boat for another ride!

College friends...

We have some friends from college that make a point of getting together once a year to reconnect. This year we decided to have an adult's only dinner out on Friday night. We had a great time chatting and catching up without having to pause and remind kids to eat! We also learned of some new babies that will be joining the crew next year! Praise God for his faithfulness! By our gathering next year, Lord willing, we will have 11 kids under the age of 5. Whew! I'm tired thinking about it! Hopefully everyone will be able to come next year!


(L to R--Ethan, Micah, Loren, Caleb, and Joshua with Nathan missing for a nap!)



On Saturday we all met for a day at the beach. The kids played...and played...and played. Jason had to work, so everyone was great at helping me keep track of the kids on the beach. Micah went in the water a little bit, but I think the waves intimidated him some. He was thrilled to just sit with a bucket and water and a shovel. Ethan had fun digging holes and building castles. He played in the water with me and had a great time motoring around in his life jacket. It was a great day with friends!

Other highlights that I don't have pictures for...

Playing in the pool at Karen and Rod's

The boys and I were able to spend some time at my sister's house. My mom and I took the kids in the pool. I was the designated "ring finder" in the deep end. A big job when three kids are tossing rings in! I was also able to get a little cuddle time with Kathleen. She's so big already, and I wish I had taken my camera so I could post a new picture of her! The boys are looking forward to going back to swim again sometime soon. Hopefully I'll remember my camera next time!

The great outdoors...indoors

I was on mission one morning to get all my laundry done. I went to the basement to begin my first load and made a lovely discovery. The bees that were making a hive along the side of the house had entered the basement through an area where a gas line had not been properly insulated. Thankfully most of them were dead, but there were a few buzzing around that were still alive. To make matters interesting, anytime I turned on a light, the bees would buzz all around the light. Of course, the main light is directly over my washer and dryer. So, I turned on one dinky light and loaded the washer as fast as I could while trying to avoid the dead bees that were scattered on the floor. Oh, and I think I'm slightly allergic to bee stings (just swell up allergic, not hospital level allergic), so it made me pretty paranoid to be down there. I was still able to get most of my laundry done that day! Jason's now most of the way through his second bottle of bee killer and has made a valiant attempt at sealing the hole into the basement. So far he has not been stung! My next project is to vacuum up all the dead bees. I hope I can find a good vacuum to do that... :)

Wow, I think that's about all for now. :) (By the way, we do stay home sometimes) I'm sure I could think of more if I tried, but I'll save that for another post on another day!

O-R-E-O

Tonight we had some Oreo cookies for a special dessert. The boys, of course, loved them. Micah had not had an Oreo before, so it was fun to watch him mangle it. :) Ethan enjoyed copying his daddy and dunking the Oreo in his milk. I couldn't resist some pictures...then Jason took over with the camera. I told him he took pictures that only a daddy would take (you'll know which ones). Even though it's pictures only a daddy would take, it's also pictures that only a mommy would post on her blog!

Fun at the Zoo

Yesterday we visited the zoo with my girlfriend, Sandi, and her daughters. The kids have fun playing together, so it was fun for all of them to go to the zoo! We had a good time laughing at the Emu as it chased the Wallabies around. They had their own game of hide-and-go-seek going. Ethan and Maria loved running through the mist of water that they had in various areas of the zoo (at around 90 degrees, sometimes Sandi and I wandered through them too!). We also took a "trip to Africa" on a tram, and were able get up close to the giraffes. Maria fed the giraffes, something that wasn't high on Ethan's list of "things to do". I believe the conversation was:

(Ethan)"Mom, can I buy one of those biscuits?"
(me) "Are you going to want to feed it to the giraffe?"
(Ethan) "No"
(me) "Then we're not getting one because I'm not going feed the giraffe".

Overall, it was a fun day! Enjoy the pictures!

The excitement continues...

Just when I thought it was a good day when I went to meet my new niece, Kathleen, it got better! I couldn't say anything before, but I've finally been given permission! Jason's sister, Kristi and her husband, Mike, are expecting a little one. They told us on the same day we learned about Kathleen, so blessings came from every direction that day! You can read more about it here. On or around February 9, I'll be posting some more good news! I'm excited to be an aunt again, and the boys will love having a cousin on Jason's side of the family!