Miss Independent

Emma has become fantastically self-sufficient lately.  She wants a cookie?  She helps herself.  She feels like climbing our 15 steep stairs to hang out in the toy room?  No problem.  Big brother or sister bugging her?  She takes them out with a stiff-armed whack.  I've even seen a bit of cruising on the bathtub edge.  This girl has no problem holding her own in our family.

Visitor

I had great plans to take amazing pictures illustrating our visit from Grandma Morales while we were at an outdoor symphony concert in Indianapolis this weekend.  I got a few, but I guess I'll have to beg her for pictures of the rest of our fun!

 We always love the conversations, the extra hands, and extra love that we feel when Grandma is here!

Happy Father's Day

To the man who loves to wrestles with the kids

foot rubs

and corn.  

We love you!

Of course, the kids are always looking to keep you on your toes...
A Father's Day conversation-

Jason: Ooh!  I love foot rubs!  They are my favorite thing in the world.

Leah: You mean you love them more than you love Jesus?

Jason: Well.... no.  But I do love them!

Hello, Kettle?

It's potty training, week 10,346.  At least it feels that way.  The joyful high that we were experiencing a few weeks back has worn off again, and we are dealing with wet pants way more often than I'd like.  And, once, poo in brand new Woody underwear.  I think that both Adam and I were sufficiently traumatized by that experience enough that we won't be dealing with that again.  Please.... oh please.... not that again.

I want Adam to be potty trained, but we are still potty training, and as long as I keep up with the work- the reminders, the encouragement, the praise- Adam goes right along with it.  But if I start to ease up and assume that he'll go when he needs to go, he eases up, too.  I have tried to explain to him that it is JUST NOT OKAY to wet your pants.  Wet clothes are gross and stinky.

Today at dinner we were talking about what to do at Disney World if you get separated from Mom and Dad.  I was using a full cup of lemonade and a sippy cup to illustrate how we could never find each other if Mom (represented by the the lemonade) and the kid (the sippy cup) both kept moving all over the park.  It would be much better if the kid would stay put and wait for Mom to come find you.  Somehow, in my excitement over the demonstration, the two cups collided and the lemonade spilled all over the table, the floor, and straight into my lap.  I just laughed- Mommy wet her pants!

I should have used this opportunity to teach Adam how to promptly change out of wet clothes and back into dry ones.  But then I started cleaning up the dinner dishes, Emma needed a diaper change, the bathrooms still needed be to scrubbed before bedtime, and somehow changing my clothes just didn't happen. 

I spent the evening in wet pants, and I didn't really care.  They were dry before I had time to change them.

Touche, little pot.  Touche.

Hopeful

Selling lemonade has been top on Leah's summer to-do list.  Today was the perfect hot day to do it, and it was a success.  She had four groups of customers in 2 hours and made $3.50.  She gave a handful of her coins to Adam and is planning on taking the rest to the Bibbity-Bobbity-Boutique at Disney World. 

She worked really hard on getting everything ready- making signs, decorating the cups and taste-testing the lemonade.  When it was finally time to head outside and start selling, she told me she was a little nervous- what if no one came?  What if they didn't like her lemonade?  But she did a great job of taking money, pouring cups and saying "One quarter a cup!" 

I was so grateful to the friends and neighbors we have that took a few minutes to stop by.  They are the ones that really made it a hit!

Growing Up... For Real

A trip to the Children's Museum in Indianapolis was our reward for getting through the week without Daddy, and, as always, it did not disappoint.  There were two new exhibits to check out- Legos and Hot Wheels: For Real!  I thought it was pretty funny that the title included For Real, since that is Adam's latest catch phrase. 

Everything I love about the children's museum was pretty well itemized here, but as a recap, I'll just say that taking my kids out to experience enriching activities (whether it be the museum, the forest, the library or just a walk through a field) makes me feel like such a better mother than the days when we are hanging around the house with nothing to do.  I do love the days that we are hanging around the house with something fun to do, though.

So the museum was a hit.  It amazes me that when we first moved here, a trip to the museum looked like this, and now it looks like this-

And it amazes me to see what I become capable of as the years go by.  Granted, this was the first time that I have lost a child in a public place- only for two minutes, but it was the longest, scariest two minutes ever- but I am able to do things now that I used to not even consider. 

Some are silly things, like taking three little kids on a carousel by myself- I convinced Leah it was her lucky day because she found a penny, got the carousel horse of her choice, and got the last cheese stick.

And some are bigger things.  Like refusing to lose my temper over something that would have set me off before or living thousands of miles away from the physical support of family or taking care of my own little family by myself when Jason is out of town. 

I guess we're all growing up.

Rolling Down the Hill

There are some things that kids just seem to know how to do. Things like climbing trees, jumping on the bed or stuffing beans up their noses.  No lessons required.

 

Sweet Little Emma

Two tiny teeth- 

Exploring every nook and cranny of our house- 

Stopping Mommy's heart daily- 

Clapping at herself- she kind holds her left hand still and whacks her right hand against it.

And trying her darndest to keep up with the crazies-

FHE Check In- Temples

Deliberate Family Home Evenings continue to be a success.  Sometimes I am rushing to get the lesson ready in time, sometimes I ask Leah teach the lesson for us.  Last week when Jason was gone Leah taught a great lesson about Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah seeing an angel of the Lord.  We acted out the parts where we could, and substituted stuffed animals for the rest.  We certainly don't (can't?!) expect perfect attention from the kids during family home evening, but that is probably why it can get so crazy!

Our latest family home evening theme has been temples.  We believe that temples are a holy place- a house of God- where we can make covenants that seal our families together forever.  Temples are beautiful buildings that dot the earth- there is one being built in Indianapolis, but currently the closest temple is in Chicago.  Attending the temple is the main reason we visit Chicago as often as we do.
 
To teach our kids about temples, we have talked about the basics of what we do in the temple- learn about Jesus Christ and his plan for us, marriage, baptisms and work for the dead.  We talked about what an incredible blessing it is that our family has been sealed together and will be able to live together for eternity. 

We spent one night talking about how the things we do together as a family are the most important things we can do- more important than playing with friends or eating ice cream cones- and we wrote out a list of all of the fun things that we want to do together as a family this summer. 

We have already made a good dent in the list, crossing things off like bowling on a hot day, running through the sprinklers and catching fireflies. 

We have also talked about what it means to be worthy to attend the temple.  One of the requirements of temple worthiness is paying tithing.  Our lesson on tithing laid the basic groundwork of the concept, although the ideas of "one-tenth" and "fast offerings" might have been a bit lost on the younger ones.

I'm sure this is a lesson that we'll have many times over again, but for now, it was just fun to talk about the blessings that our family has enjoyed because we have gladly paid tithing to the Lord over the years.  We believe the scripture in Malachi 3:10 that says that the Lord will open ‘the windows of heaven, and pour [them] out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it”.  He has certainly poured his blessings out upon us.

 

My very favorite website to get Family Home Evening ideas from is here. 

Dance Party

We love to have dance parties in the kitchen- this is one of my favorite Leah-moves.

I've noticed that my kids are definitely my kids- they listen to the lyrics and want to know what words from songs mean.  It is a good reminder that just because we like the way a song sounds doesn't mean it is a good song!

A Glimpse

My camera caught a glimpse into the teenage years... expressions I probably won't be inclined to post about in 10 or so years-

"Seriously, Mom?  You want me to smile for the camera?  I don't think so."

"This place is so totally lame.  I'm going to the mall with my friends."

Makes me even more grateful for every "You're the bestest mommy in the whole wide world" day that we have together now.

Me and My Baby

The blue-eyed ladies in the family...

Leah's Preschool Graduation

For all of the back and forth that we did over sending Leah to preschool, we couldn't have been happier with her experience at Federated Preschool.  She loved her teachers, Miss Dee and Miss Lori, she made new friends, and she learned, played, and had fun.  The class provided structure to her mornings and our weeks, and she is now weilding scissors like a pro. 

Best of all, we're now able to use the lessons learned from preschool to prepare her for the uncertainties of kindergarten.  Not sure if you'll like your teacher?  We've been there before, and you loved them both!  Worried you won't know anyone in your class?  You felt the same way last year, and look at all of the friends you made! 

Leah's teachers said she was always the girl the other girls flocked to, that everyone wanted to play with.  She never had to sit in the time-out chair, and she eventually got over the tire-swing incident and was able to enjoy the playground again.

Drawings

Leah likes to draw out her feelings- "This is how I felt when you told me no" or "this is a bad guy giving a trophy for the best blister because he is mean."  It's pretty easy to figure out what is going on in her head and in her heart because she will sit down and draw it out. 

I am usually the one who gets drawn with the angry scribble mouth or the one causing tears to fall down sad children's cheeks because I won't give them a fourth cookie, and that's okay.  I'm a tough-skinned mama.  But it warmed my heart a tiny bit to see this picture-

A loud-mouthed daddy saying, "When I'm done!".  Glad to know I'm not the only bad guy around here.

Vertical Ascent

 This little girl is everywhere!  She is taking to pulling up like a fish to water.

When she doesn't have a thrilled-with-herself grin on her face, it's a shocked look of "How did I get here?  I love this!"

Chicago Again

 

We have been trying to decide over the years if it's better to take a day trip to Chicago to attend the temple, or to do an overnight trip.  Going up and back in one day makes for a long day but it saves money on meals and hotel.  Overnight trips mean more packing, but more time to enjoy the city.

This weekend proved that overnighters are the clear champion.

Plenty of time to swim in the pool, enjoy Chicago-style pizza, and run around in the hotel while Jason and I take turns attending the temple (one Friday night, one Saturday morning).  Jason went to the temple on Friday night, which left me to swim with, bathe, and put the kids to bed.  Emma was not at all interested in sleeping in such an unfamiliar place, which resulted in the best part of the night- snuggling up by the fold-out couch with Emma in my arms and telling a bedtime story to Adam and Leah, who quickly dropped off to sleep.

The trip left us with most of Saturday to do something in Chicago.  This weekend we chose the Lincoln Park zoo, which was free and so much fun.  The weather was perfect, the crowds were manageable, and the exhibits were great.

We had to get our traditional family-by-the-giraffe picture-

And the rest of the day went on without a hitch.  I love the lowest right picture here, where Adam told me he was "having some alone time in dis cave," and the picture of the two-fisted cookie monster Emma, who loved her first trip to the zoo and happens to be wearing the same shirt that Leah wore on her first trip to the zoo.  When your older and you really care, Emma, I promise I will buy you your own clothes.  Unless you just want to wear your big sister's hand-me-downs- I know I did!

The best part of this day was sitting on the lawn eating lunch, watching all kinds of families pass us by and letting the kids chase away over-eager seagulls to their heart's content.  There is something magical about those rare moments when time stands still and you can truly enjoy the moment- there is no worry about naps or school or money or the next thing on the to-do list- it's just you and your best friends, being together and loving it.

Remember

*Today Adam and Leah slept in until 8:30 and 8:45, respectively.

*Today we made button necklaces, snipped bits of string, and sorted buttons into color piles.  And made silly button faces.

*Today Leah offered to help get dinner ready today while I put Emma down for a nap.  I instructed, "Get a piece of chicken out of the freezer, put it in a bowl in the sink, and fill the bowl up with water".

She did exactly what I asked, only instead of pulling out a single boneless, skinless chicken breast she grabbed the monstrous bone-in split chicken breasts I bought last week for a new recipe.  She pulled off the plastic wrap with the help of an oven mitt and some dish rags, "so I wouldn't have to touch them".

I laughed for a solid 5 minutes, after I told her how brave she was to touch those giant things!  Such a good helper.

*Today the kids scarfed down raspberries and strawberries at breakfast, oranges at lunch, carrots and kiwi at dinner and bananas at bedtime just as fast as I could slice them up.  We are all loving fresh summer produce.

*Today we sailed on a ship to "Afwica"- Adam's Baby T-Rex (his stuffed stegosaurus) was the fierce dinosaur that scared away the sharks in the water (aka Emma).

*Today Leah and Adam played happily in the backyard, gathering wheat and clover to make pillows for the beds in their outside home.

*Today Adam was thrilled to hurry into his pajamas so he could try out his new "Likikeen" (Lightening McQueen) pull-ups.

*Today Emma broke away from her quiet time baby-sitter (Leah) and tracked me down in Adam's room.  His eyes, and hers, lit up when she pushed open the door and found us!

*Today we acted out the story of Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah for Family Home Evening.  Leah was the angel that commanded them to repent, Adam was the puppy dog that kept licking his little sister, and Emma was the unbeliever who kept pulling up on the stuffed animal basket.