Puddle Jumping

Last weekend, after the birthday party, Meagan spent quite a bit of time splashing in the puddle left behind by the downpour of rain. Being the picture-crazy person that I am, I of course, took a ton of pictures. Here are a few of them put together in a layout. I am going to put the rest of the pictures together on a 12 x 24 layout of just the pictures (kind of like the ND pictures I posted).

3 in a Tree

I told you I scrapped in the garage Saturday night (LOL). Here's the layout I did:

Journaling: I got a glimpse today - a glimpse into a world collaboratively imagined; a world that is ever-changing, moment-to-moment, shaped and formed by every new idea; a world of adventure, where a branch is a sword and a tree is a fort. What a privilege to see this world come to life; to watch the three of you play off of each other and respond to each others' ideas and actions. This is the beauty of childhood, the beauty of growing up as siblings and friends.

Weekend review

Well well well. Finally I have a free minute to sit down and post. It's been a busy five days or so. We left Thursday afternoon for Ohio. We to Lucas' parents' house around 5:30 or so - just in time for dinner!

Friday the kids and I went with Lucas' dad over to Luc's grandma's house. She was thrilled to have time with the kids, and to have visitors in general, I think. She is such a fun lady - she was telling me stories about plays she was in when she was younger. She was singing me the songs! Either she still remembers them quite well, or she's awfully good at making up lyrics on the spot! LOL!

While we were there, I got some good pictures of the kids climbing in her big tree in the back yard. What a perfect climbing tree! I wish we had a tree like that in our yard - I might be tempted to climb it myself! The kids were playing a game, along the lines of the imaginary world in the movie Bridge to Terabithia (not sure I spelled that right). They were having a great time making up a story and acting it out. It was way too cool to watch them, although I was completely in awe of how big they're getting to be able to play games like that...all three of them. :o(

Saturday was Sebastian's party. It's always nice to have the parties closer to family because more people are able to make it, so we actually get to see everyone. I got to see people I hadn't talked to in a LONG time! For some, it had been at least 2 years, others a year or so. It was good to see everyone. Sebastian and Isaac and Meagan loved having so many kids around to play with! They all were able to get in the pool - only for about 10 minutes because then it started storming, but they were happy to be able to get wet!

Saturday night, Shane and Lucas set up a tv and the wii in Guy & Jane's garage, and we all played wii until nearly midnight. But since there were five of us and only four controllers, I only played a little, and then broke out the laptop as my form of entertainment. So I sat in the garage and worked on a layout while Shane, Tina, Lucas and Guy played Boom Blox. I guess that's one way to spend a Saturday evening! Gotta love family time!

Sunday, before we headed home, we made a stop at my parents' house. We had lunch and the kids played for a bit. We got to see my mom's pictures from Israel, which was very cool. It was a short visit, but at least we got to spend a little time with them. I'd say we got back home just a few minutes before 6:00 Sunday evening. It was a good weekend.

The only bummer to the weekend was that, somewhere along the way, I misplaced my wedding ring. So please pray that it shows up again. I believe it will...you all remember my story about the movies! It's just a matter of time, faith and patience. But I would still appreciate the extra prayers. Thanks!

Overheard

While I was getting breakfast wrapped up today - you know, getting all the cereal boxes and milk jugs put away - I overheard the following conversation:

Isaac: "Sebastian, why did you say there's no Santa?"
Sebastian: "Because...Mom and Dad get the presents."

I asked Sebastian who had told him that, and he replied, "Me."

That didn't take long. Although, I remember as a kid that I had figured it out fairly early, too, and I went along with the whole Santa thing for fun really. So I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he has put 2 & 2 together.

I haven't decided yet how to handle the issue, since it still affects Isaac and Meagan. Still thinking about that one.

Home

We're home. I'm tired. I'll post more tomorrow (hopefully, if I get time...I'll try!)

Happy Birthday Sebastian!

We had way too much going on yesterday for me to be able to post yesterday for Sebastian's birthday. We got up and went to breakfast at a little local restaurant that has yummy skillet breakfasts...Sebastian got a candle in his pancakes!

Present-opening was a highlight of the day! He got some Pokemon stuff from his brother and sister. He got Mariokart for wii from us. He immediately started putting his new cards in his card-holder book, and he carried the book everywhere with him for the rest of the day! After they got all of their things picked up, they were allowed to test out Mariokart while I did the packing (which, as I predicted, made me GRUMPY...I have quite an issue with packing that we won't go into right now).

At Grandma's he got to open up a few small things before his birthday party on Saturday. He got MORE Pokemon characters! He is just in heaven with all this Pokemon stuff! He's so funny!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUDDY!

Going to Grandma's

Oh how I love that laptop! On our trip down to Ohio yesterday, I busted out the laptop and worked on a layout. The battery lasted for about 2 hours before I shut down. :0)

We got to Lucas' parents' house around 6:00, unpacked and headed out to dinner. Then we all hung out while the kids played and watched movies and got re-acclimated to Grandma & Grandpa's house. They talked Grandma into letting them put their feet in the pool for a while...their hoping for swimming today...we'll see. We also did haircuts last night - even Meagan. Grandma cut about an inch or so off of the end, and she looks so CUTE!

After haircuts, I got the laptop back up and running and started scrapping again. I finished the layout I had started in the van. I also did something a little different that I've never done before, although I've thought of it several times. There are lots of times that I take a TON of pictures and only use a few of those pictures on my layouts. Well, for the sake of not losing my pictures somewhere in the abyss of digital picture land, I decided to make a few layouts of just 4x6's of those 'other' pictures. I saw in Creating Keepsakes this month that several scrapbook album manufacturers are now making 12x12 sleeves that will hold six 4x6 pictures for this exact purpose. I figured, though, that rather than having to spend more money on special page inserts, I would just make a 12x12 layout that does the same thing and that will let me use the page covers I already have. Here's what I came up with:

8 Years Yesterday, 7 Years Tomorrow

As of yesterday, we've been married for 8 years! As of tomorrow morning, Sebastian will be 7.


For our anniversary, friends of ours offered to watch the kids for us yesterday evening so we could go out. Not just watch them for the evening, but keep them over night!!! Sweet! So, we dropped them off and headed out for a bit of a date night. We went and saw Indiana Jones (Indiananna Jones, lol!). Then this morning I got to sleep in a bit before I went to pick them up. What an awesome gift!

Tomorrow we are going to celebrate Sebastian's birthday. We're planning on going out for breakfast before I go to work (but I'm only working a little, so we can have the majority of the day open). Also, sometime tomorrow, we're going to pack and head to Ohio for the weekend (we're having his birthday party down there this year)...pray for me because I do NOT enjoy packing! It way stresses me out! LOL!

Altered Movie Titles

The latest blockbuster adventure, according to Isaac...Indian-anna Jones

And the childhood classic Christmas movie, according to Meagan...Rudolph Reindeer and the Red Nose

Funny stuff those kids come up with! LOL!

Worth the wait

Sebastian's ants came yesterday. He's happy now!

He ran to the mailbox as soon as the mailman came, sure that his ants would be there. Sure enough, he had a yellow envelope with his name on it. We waited for Lucas to get home (from power washing the Vaseline off of the screen from Tuesday's episode - he had to go to a car wash to clean it!) to put the ants in. I wasn't going to do it, because I didn't know if I needed to do anything besides dump them in...I couldn't find the instructions anywhere, and I thought, with as long as he waited for his ants, I surely wasn't going to be the one to kill them! LOL!

Yesterday they were a bit lethargic from their travels. This morning, however, they had started building their tunnels. Life is good.

Another layout. I've been on a girly streak lately, so I thought I should break it up and do a boy layout. These pictures are of Isaac playing in the stones at the playground at my Dad & Nancy's campground. They were taken in October 2005.

Encore Performance

Meagan strikes again with an encore presentation to follow her screen-painting performance on Tuesday. Again while I was attempting to fold laundry. Again with a nearly-impossible mess for me to clean. Again. AAAAHHH!

This morning, around 9:00 the kids wanted to watch a movie, and I needed to get some things done. My plan was that I would get all of the house work done before we had to leave at 11:00 for an appointment, and then we would have the afternoon to hang out and play and do whatever.

So, I put the movie in, and left the kids in the living room while I went upstairs to start folding clothes. In the amount of time it took me to put a load of clothes in the wash and fold a basket of towels and blankets, Meagan got into the refrigerator and took for herself a new quart of fresh strawberries. She brought them into the living room (because heaven forbid she miss any of the movie while she's snacking on the snack she didn't ask for). She went through all but five strawberries of the entire quart before I found her. One by one, she bit each strawberry in half, eating the bottom half and leaving a big chunk at the top where the stems were. What did she do with the uneaten portion? Put them on the light tan couch, of course. When I came down to check on the kids, there was a strawberry line-up all across one cushion, a few stragglers on the other, and a bit squished into the carpet on the floor in front of the couch.

I think I lost it for a second. I yelled at her. I yelled at Isaac (because instead of telling me, he decided to participate - which was evident by the strawberry juice all over the front of his shirt). I sent Meagan to her room to sit on the bed and Isaac to his room to start cleaning it. I then set to work on cleaning the couch. I went through all that was left of the 'special couch cleaning solution' that came with the couch, along with the apparently worthless stain guard that I paid an extra chunk of change for. The stain didn't budge. So I started phone calls. I called my queen-of-stain-removal mother-in-law, but couldn't get a hold of her. I then called my neighbor who brought a laundry treater over that she had luck with on her couch before. I think I went through at least half of the bottle of that, and two buckets of hot water (per instructions found on the Internet for removing strawberry & other assorted berry stains). Finally, I think it all came out. However, I only had time for couch scrubbing between 9:15 (when I found her) and 11:15 (when we had to leave). So nothing else got done - again. I guess I'll be doing my morning chores for the rest of the afternoon, while Meagan takes a mandatory nap!

I think I'm about to turn into Commando Mom. My kids don't know what they've gotten into.

Last Day

Sebastian left for his last day of first grade a few minutes ago.

Fine Art

WHY did I not learn my lesson a year or so ago?!!

Yesterday afternoon, after nap time, Meagan and I were in my room together while I folded laundry. I stopped what I was doing because it was time to make dinner. I sat her up with a movie in the boys' room, and I headed down to the kitchen to start dinner.

(Skipping some detail here...getting to the good stuff).

Just before Lucas came home, I had been slicing tomatoes for dinner. Meagan is the tomato queen, and she was eating one slice for every three that I cut. When I wiped her off, I noticed her arms were slimy, and I couldn't get her clean. So I took her upstairs and stuck her in the bath for a quick wash down. In her bathroom, there was slime on the sink and the wall - it looked like the nasty gelly hand soap that we have in there right now. I figured she had tried to wash her own hands and made a mess of things. Problem solved. Move on.

Until Lucas comes down a few minutes later and says, 'What did you let her do? Good luck getting that cleaned up!'

Huh?

So, back upstairs I go, to find what he's talking about. I went in our room. FOUND IT. A grand work of art, involving a jar of Vaseline (there's the part where I should have learned0, a jar of Vick's, a bottle of lotion and a makeup brush.

Odds & Ends

Nothing like staying up until 1:00 in the morning to watch a hockey game! To put it mildly, I did not want to get up this morning. But, at least I staid up for a good outcome...Pittsburgh won! Have I ever told you how much I LOVE HOCKEY?! I love hockey! I really do! If I could play, I'd be there!

Anyway, other than that, Cassie came over last night and colored my hair. So now I have fun hair again instead of boring plain brown.

This is Sebastian's last day of school...tomorrow is field day, so I'm hoping for no rain tomorrow (although rain tonight would be fine, so we would be without soccer and t-ball practices). Then Thursday & Friday he has half days, and then he's done. Summer break is just around the corner! :)

Meagan has been very into looking like a princess lately. The other night I tucked her in, in pajamas. Before bed I had laid out an outfit for her to wear the next day - a skirt & a white top. When I checked on her later that night, she had ditched the pj's, put the skirt & shirt on, and climbed back in bed and went to sleep. For church on Sunday, Lucas had to do some convincing to get her to wear her Dora crocks. Only after he insisted that they were pink princess Dora shoes, would she put them on. What a goofy girl!

Isaac has it all planned out what he's going to get his brother for his birthday. He is looking forward to going to the store to pick it out. FYI, we've decided to have the party in Ohio, for anyone who was wondering.

Okay, that's about it. Not much is really happening around here today. Just life as usual - little odds & ends.

Pout

A new layout to share with you...


These pictures were taken on Meagan's birthday. I'm not sure she really even knew what she was pouting about!

ants

Still no ants. Poor guy. But Isaac's ants are hard working little critters. Their whole tunnel system is quite impressive. I admit, I kinda like the ants. (Did I just say that?)

The Favorites List

For a few months now, I've known that Sebastian has had an interest in a little girl at school. She was in his kindergarten class, and is now in his 1st grade class (and, incidentally, will also be in his 2nd grade class as of now). She's also been on his t-ball team 2 years in a row. So he spends a lot of time around her. She is an adorable little girl, and a very sweet, well-behaved little girl. Not a bad girl to be interested in, I suppose.

Up until recently, they've each admired the other, but the other was unaware. However, lately, they've discovered that the feelings are mutual, which opened up a whole new world of possibilities. Now, Sebastian says she is his girlfriend. And I guess that sometimes during story time in class, they will sit by each other and 'hold hands.' The little girl's mom helps in the classroom, and has seen this in action a few times. LOL. She and I talk pretty regularly at every t-ball practice, so she keeps me informed (since Sebastian is his father's son, and isn't about to open up and talk about something voluntarily).

Well, yesterday, her mom told me that she had a talk with Abbie and told her that she needs to take relationships slowly...that there's no rush, and it's important to get to know someone before you really decide how you feel about them, etc. The next day, Abbie came home with a list she had made...a list of 'what's your favorite___' questions that she had thought of. She asked Sebastian these questions - in interview form, I can only imagine - and recorded his answers. She took it home and proudly showed her mom, "Look, Mom, I'm getting to know him!"

Apparently, Sebastian has also documented Abbie's favorites. Sheesh!

A Lesson in Patience

One child is happy. The other has used up all of his patience (in his words).

For Christmas, Sebastian got two ant farms. Because he did not need two, he chose one to keep, and gave the other to Isaac so that they could both have pet ants (lovely). When the weather started to show signs of warming, we filled out the ant order forms for each of them (on the same day), and mailed them off to order the long-anticipated ants. Each form stated that we should expect to wait 2-6 weeks for our ants to arrive.

Well, yesterday at lunch, Lucas went out to get the mail. In it, there was a yellow-orange package with Isaac's name on it. Lucas helped him open it up, where, lo and behold, they found a tube of ants. Isaac was elated! His face was beaming, and he was so excited he could hardly contain himself (if you've ever seen Isaac get truly excited, you will understand exactly what I mean). I thought he was going to burst a seam all the way down in his toes he was so happy.

That was at lunch. Sebastian was at school. He didn't know.

When Sebastian got home from school, Isaac could hardly wait to share his excitement with his big brother. He rushed Sebastian downstairs into the basement to show him and to check on the ants' progress at building tunnels (which they had made a surprising amount of already). Sebastian was happy for his brother, and thought the ants were pretty cool to watch. But they weren't his ants. Where were his ants? How much longer? Will they be here tomorrow? The next day?

So, Sebastian did what he does when he needs a bit of therapeutic time. He got out a composition notebook and a pen, and he began to write a story. He wrote a non-fiction story, with dates and facts as accurate as possible, about the day his brother got ants in the mail and he didn't. The story goes as follows (copied exactly from Sebastian's notebook):

"Hello my name is Sebastian." Me and my brother Isaac ordered ants a long time ago. On May 27 2008 Isaac got his ants. That was on Tusday. I lost all my patienc I think. Isaacs ants are busy little succers. Thanks for listening to my non-fiction book of ants.

(followed by an illustrated diagram of the two ant farms - 'My ant farm' with an arrow to an empty box with gel in it; 'Isaac's ant farm' with an arrow to a box with gel and dots (being the ants) and a tunnel started in the corner)

He was quite a sport about it. He was as content as he could be to check in regularly on his brother's ants to see what kind of progress was being made, etc. But he said to me, "Mom, I think I used up all my patience. I think today I ran out, and I used up the last bit of it I had. I've been waiting and waiting, and I don't think I can wait any more."

Poor guy. I can attest, lessons in patience are some of the hardest to learn.

New Sand, New Garden, and a Bike Ride

Just checking in to wish you all a Happy Memorial Day! We've been having quite a nice weekend. Yesterday was a beautiful day, which we were happy to spend mostly outside. After church, and after lunch, in lieu of nap time, we headed to Meijer for some new play sand, some garden veggies to plant, and a few other odds and ends.

With new sand in the sandbox, the kids were set for quite a while. I took the free time to spruce up my sad little garden. I planted 2 different kinds of tomatoes this year, plus a cherry tomato plant. I also planted 2 colors of peppers, and (lol) some cat grass for Lilly. Plus, on the day of Meg's party, she and Keylee planted a TON of sunflower seeds. So this year's garden should be interesting - or maybe crowded is a better word!



We also took our first bike ride of the year yesterday. We rode to a school nearby and played for a few minutes on the playground. The kids weren't really into the whole playground thing though, for some reason. Isaac actually left the playground to go get back on his bike to ride around the empty parking lot. So, we cut the playground visit short and took a longer bike ride instead. We explored the roads that go behind the school that seemed to lead to nowhere. I was so glad to have the exercise - it's been a long sedentary winter.

I did another layout last night. Meg decided to take Bunny Rabbit into the sandbox with her. They were building a princess castle, you see, and a girl needs help when building such an important structure as a princess castle. At one point, Bunny was pretty much buried, with only her little head and floppy ears hanging out. That is one loved bunny.

Journaling: poor bunny...soft, clean bunny. as I watched you play with bunny - in the sandbox! -I couldn't help but think of the velveteen rabbit. if bunny could talk - if she could tell of this day - how would she feel about being covered in sand? it made me wonder...does it really pay to be the favorite?

Well, enjoy your holiday! Pray for my mom, as she is leaving for Israel today. She will be there until June 7th (?), I think. Keep her in mind please. Happy Memorial Day everyone! Love ya!