It's not shrubbery!

If you've seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail then you know about needing to go get a shrubbery.  If you've never seen it you can just skip this post or go watch the movie and come back to this.  Oh, I guess you could just laugh along anyways. :)

We recently let the older kids watch the movie.  Shortly after watching Mr. M was chasing and tickling the little kids.  They were having so much fun together.  At some point he told them he would stop chasing them if they would bring him a shrubbery.  "What's a shrubbery?"  He told them it was the big green exercise ball downstairs.  They got him his shrubbery and the game was over.  End of story; or so it would seem....

Miss A discovered my purple exercise ball which looked remarkably like what she thought was a shrubbery.  She brought it to me and said "it's shrubbery!"  Quite proudly.  Miss E and I laughed so hard and then corrected her. "No, it's not shrubbery.  Shrubbery is green"  For the last 4 days or so we've had the same conversation over and over again.  She brings me the purple ball and says "It's not shrubbery.  Shrubbery is green.  This not shrubbery."  All said in the sweetest, most serious 2 1/2 year old voice you can imagine.

Oh my goodness!  This girl keeps us laughing!

*This is posted so that years from now I can look back and remember and get another good laugh from this. 

This girl

This girl keeps us on our toes, keeps us laughing, and certainly keeps things interesting around here.

She regularly gets herself all bundled up to let us know she'd like to go outside.  Any boots left by the door will do.  She usually picks the smallest ones there, but her's are always put away.

She's still a big time cuddle bug, often waking half way through nap time to come finish her nap in bed with me.  I'm thankful for the "forced" rest.

Miss A has noticed that with my growing belly it's harder and harder to sit on my lap or even just sit in the chair with me.  The other evening she dragged a chair over next to mine so we could sit close and hold hands.  She found this to be a good method and continues to do this often.

Her hair do took a turn for the worse when she decided to pull the rubber band out half way through the day.  It stayed like this for a good 10 minutes until she found a hat she wanted to wear and flattened the "do."

Not convinced we were really out of eggs at breakfast she scraped the serving dish clean.

A new skill

Miss A has spent the summer mastering potty training.  Since she's getting so good at that one I guess she decided it was time to try something new.  This past week she learned that she can open up the refrigerator.  It's a very handy skill when Mommy keeps saying things like "no, your snack is on the table" or "wait, it's almost time for dinner."

I'm thankful that she still can't access most things in there.  About all she can do is look and let us know for sure what she wants since she CAN see it.  Poor girl, the cheese drawer is RIGHT THERE, she just can't get it open.  Well, she can also practice the skill of self control and wait; just like mama said. ;)

Gloomy rainy days...

We've had gloomy rainy days for most of the last couple of weeks.  Our tiny house was feeling smaller by the day, and then......

The basement seeped and leaked (after a week of steady, heavy rains...the water just had no other place to go) making that part unusable as we pulled up carpet and got it all dried out....

The boy's room.  Yea, they're all packed up for the move!

Then the cat had kittens in the girls room.  We had to block that off to keep the little ones from going in there to mess with them....

....and we're packing up to move to a house that is truly a gift from God (more in another post).

The house was getting smaller by the day.  We were all getting on each other's nerves.  So, when I announced at breakfast that we'd be heading to the library to return books and just get out of the house (taking a break from packing/move prep)...the older kids conspired to plan something else.  Could THEY help pay for build-a-bears for the little kids if we went to the mall instead?

Smart Mr. S brought skipbo to play.  I had fun playing a couple of games with these guys.

Now my house is full of resting littles and contentedly occupied big kids.  Sometimes you just gotta get out of the house and play a bit. :)

My brother Mom....

Mr. K has been joining us in saying prayers at meals and during family devotions.  His prayers sound something like this....

"Thank you God for my brother Mom, my brother Miss E, my brother Dad, my brother Miss C,  my brother Miss J, my brother Mr. S....."

It seems that all of the snickers, giggles and smiles around the table clued him in that there was something funny about this prayer.  Always one to enjoy making his family laugh he began to say his prayers even more enthusiastically.  I love that he loves God, is thankful for his family, and is a constant source of joy in our home.

A snow day!

It snowed over night.  My big boys have been getting up every snowy morning and not only shoveling our walkways, but our neighbors' too.  They do this because they are sweet, but sometimes the neighbors pay them. ;) Little kids liked watching their big brothers shovel this morning when they got up.

This morning Miss A sweet talked Mr. S into taking her out to play in the snow for a bit.  This afternoon she gathered her snow gear and tried to talk anyone and everyone into taking her out.  Here she is trying to sweet talk Mr. R who had other jobs he needed to be doing.

Mommy, will you take me out?

As I was bundling her up to take her out myself, Mr. M came up ready to take her out to play for a bit before he went sledding.

Talking to himself

Mr. K has taken up talking to himself in the cutest way, or he's found himself a new friend...

Yep, he's talking to himself in the mirror.  You know, because there's no one else around here to talk to....

This new friend is just his age, looks like him and even likes all the same things he does. ;)

I just love watching him have these little conversations.  He is such a cute little guy!

Playing baby

Miss C has been so excited about her new baby doll and the double stroller.  They are just about all she has been playing with.  Many around our house had commented that Miss A would fit in the new double stroller.  Nana finally took the time to put her in for Miss C (no, we did not let her walk around with Miss A in there).

Miss A seemed happy enough in there.

 

I always pick up some pacies for the new baby.  A few have liked them for a few weeks or so, one stuck with it.  Miss A does not like the ones I got her, and seems to have no need for them.  Miss C thought they would be nice for her dolls.  Mr. K thought he would try them out.  He is too funny!

*Mr. K has adjusted well to no longer being the baby.  He likes Miss A well enough and enjoys giving her kisses.  I think that grabbing the pacie was his way of checking to see if we would still let him be a "baby."   We let him, laughed with him about still being a baby, and he quickly gave it up.  

Unsupervised....

Today (Saturday) I took Miss E and Miss J to run a couple of errands while Miss C stayed home (to nap) and the big boys cleaned up the garage with Daddy (Mr. K was sleeping too).

It seems Miss C did not think she needed a nap and decided to help Daddy in the garage instead.  At some point she headed inside though.  Rob came in to find this....

 

She pulled out the bowl, measuring cups, flour, milk, salt etc. and just started mixing.  She was making a cake.  Daddy helped her a bit by pulling out some sugar and cinnamon and helped her get it in the pan (and then the oven).  It didn't turn out, but boy was she proud of herself!

It is good to know that she is quite capable in the kitchen (not that we were in doubt, she is always in there with us), and how she would spend her time if left unsupervised for a bit.  Now she just needs to learn to read so that she can be a bit more successful on her own.  In the mean time I'll have to make up some mixes for her to put together all by herself.

*After tasting it Miss J came to me very seriously to tell me "Don't taste the cinnamon bread, it is salty and green on the bottom"  later she was heard to say "thats nasty dude!"   On the other hand, Mr. K kept going back for more.  Miss C was very sure that Miss A (yet to be born) needed a taste too, so I got to taste it.  It was indeed salty and green on the bottom, but it did have a nice cinnamon flavor to it.

Can you guess what we are up to this week?

With salty snacks...

...special drinks...

The candy drawer is a little low, but these are some of his favorites anyways.

...sweet rewards...

...and an almost two year old on hand?


Yep, I pulled out the potty chair and the training pants.  We're giving potty training a go for the next couple of weeks.  Mr. K has been showing many signs of being ready, and I wouldn't mind a short break from diapers, so it's time.  He is just on the edge of being ready though.  We will give it two weeks and see where we are then.

Check out this post for some tips, tricks, and advice on potty training.

broken pieces, but treasured memories

We love tea parties around here.  We put on fancy ones, or just enjoy a pot and a pretty cup.  My little girls have come to love tea time and regularly get out a small teapot and tea cups on their own.  I love watching how excited they are and how they are learning to be careful and use good maners.  However, recently the day I had hoped would not come did indeed come.

Miss J sweetly came to me, grabbed my hand and said "Mommy, I need you."  I was making breakfast and asked what she needed; again she said "I need you" and then gently pulled me.  As she was guiding me I realized what must have happened....

We cleaned up the mess together.  We shared our disappointment.  I didn't have to tell her, she knew it was a special pot that my Grandma had given me when I was a little girl (though it was only the lid that broke).  While I was disappointed that it broke I was happier that my girls had gotten good use out of it and I realized a few things....

I was so glad that my little girl was not scared to tell/show me what had happened.  She knows I love her more than that pot/lid.  That we could share the task of cleaning up without tears and sadness over a meer thing, but instead could share our honest disappointment in it's breaking.

 

I was so happy that my girls had had the opportunity to use this pot.  It could just have easily broken in one of our many moves or as I handled it.  My kids not only have memories of using my special things (without fear), but they have built special memories together enjoying them.

More than anything I was thankful that for now I have my daughter's heart.  I pray that God would continue to give me the grace, wisdom, and strength to keep her heart as only He can do (and her sibling's hearts too!).

Within a couple of minutes we had the mess cleaned up and Miss J was cheerfully back to her tea.  I was left to think about how easy that had gone, and wonder how many other times I've made too big a deal out of little things that just don't matter.  What a blessing these little ones are, and through God's grace He uses them to teach me so much!

Working together

These two girls are such faithful workers and try so hard to bless their family.  It can be hard when you are 2 or 4 to find jobs you can do, but these two manage.  I love how well they (usually) work together.

After playing with play dough they realized they had made quite a mess of their play dishes.  Could they wash them?

Mr. S usually folds our towels/rags.  These two saw the basket full that needed folding and did nearly all of it for big brother.  What a blessing they are!  It looks like they are just about ready to take on the responsibility for this job.

A little book worm

Mr. K seems to be developing a great love of books, just like the rest of the family.  He can often be found in the corner by the book shelf reading, or in this little chair with a book.

He is quite pleased with himself now that he has figured out what to do with these books and how to get them off of the shelves, just like all of the big kids!

Cinderella mopping

Miss J likes princesses.  She really likes Cinderella.  A few days ago she asked if she could do some "Cinderella mopping" which was great since the dinning room needed a once over.

It was so cute so see her, and Miss C, working so hard.  They did a great job, and were a blessing to their family!

Quiet days

We have settled in around here for a couple of weeks of what should be quiet days. We have meals taken care of, for the most part, meaning I'm not having to do any cooking. We also do not have any errands to run, so other than the Wintons concert, we are staying home!

Mr. R has been reading through "The Dangerous Book for Boys" and found a project to work on. A pressure alarm.

Miss E recently acquired an e-reader (a Kobo, on sale at Borders) with her birthday money. She has been spending quite a bit of time reading.

Mr. M ans Mr.S are enjoying as much time as possible outside or playing with legos.

I prepared some activities for the little kids that we've started getting into. Simple gluing and cutting pages that will keep them busy for a little while each day. Miss E helped me make the cutting pages up a couple of months ago, it is great to have big kids that like to help with these sorts of things!

I'm enjoying plenty of cuddle time with Mr.K, who is well loved and almost always has someone asking to hold him. If he is not being held someone is usually sitting by him talking to him. We're a family of baby hogs around here, there is a reason my kids were praying for twins this time.... oh well, we will share.