Why is it?

That when one sees a sleeping baby, the instinct is to leave it sleeping and admire their angelicness, but when Mommy tries to sleep (or even pretend sleeps), and kids come upon it, their instinct is to try to wake the Mommy up? Just wondering.

Garden of Eden?

Last night, we were out picking berries. By "we", I mean mostly David and I...and Jadelyn helped quite a bit. Ruby and Isaac probably helped some, too, but they were pretty busy tunneling under the blackberries, and running down the "aisle" between the blackberries and raspberries - giggling and crashing like crazies on the ground (staining up their clothes good in the process, I might add. Mostly Ruby. We talked about that today. Because I have problems with things like that. =P) Anyways, there are these HUGE beetle things that buzz at our heads and such as we pick the berries. They like to eat the berries, those beetles do. Good thing they share - like 4 or 5 of those nasty boogers on a berry. 'Cause if they went around sucking juices out of more berries instead of sharing, I would REALLY dislike them. (Side note...a positive thing about the beetles is that they are so big that they create wind when flying away from the berries. And when it's hot, that breeze is nice. You wanna take some beetles home with you to cut down on your air-conditioning bills now, don'tcha? =D) Anyways, this was David's first experience with the beetles. I'm quite sure he screamed (high-pitched and everything) when some came at him. He said he couldn't handle being in the army, 'cause it was stressful enough with the beetles attacking him. Or something like that. And he wasn't impressed with the sun shining in his eyes, either. =P Well, we were working along, when all the sudden, my complaining husband commented that it was peaceful looking for berries - in the evening, and with the giggling kids, it was like "the Garden of Eden". Huh. With buzzing beetles divebombing our heads and giggling children added? That guy is crazy.

Oh! Another random Isaac note. I think it was at lunch yesterday, and Ruby was telling me how she can't marry Isaac because they're brother and sister, and it's against the "law". She wanted to know why. Ever tried to explain genetics and such in 4-year-old language that won't present itself wrongly in a public setting later when they feel like sharing their grand knowledge? =P Anyways, then they were talking about if they wanted kids. And out of the blue, Isaac starts talking about sprinklers that we saw at Dollar General the other day. It looks like a bug, and the water squirts out of it's floppy hands. The kid is so random. And I love him. Still. =)

Weekend visitors! And other stuff...

This weekend, Ardi, Philip, and Hughes came to visit. I much enjoyed myself! Probably too much. I didn't get much sleep. ;P Anyways, it was just lovely. I am so very blessed to have such wonderful friends. Friends that you can pick right up with right where you left off last time you saw them. Friends that encourage you and point you Upward. Friends that my kids LOVE. =) Ruby pretty much sat on Hughes' lap any time she could: at church, during worship, after Ruby was done eating...you get the point. And Isaac sat on Ardi's lap as much as his "shyness" would allow. I loved watching them. My kids have good taste in making friends, you know!

After they all left yesterday morning, we headed to the lake to swim. The water was lovely, there were only two other people at the beach most of our time there, and it was just nice and relaxing. Ahhh...I do so love swimming!

Today it was back to the "exercise doctor". I'm still alive. The car ride is just long and the kids tend to get cranky in public restrooms. Rats. =P At least they were only cranky in ONE today instead of the lately TWO. =P

And Ruby was sucking her thumb so loudly at naptime that I thought she and Isaac were in there partying. But no. When I swung the door open expecting to find two sheepish faces pointing at each other in blame, I instead found two sleeping angels. That tricker!

Oh! And our Sabbath School lesson is about Little Maid, who was a happy helper. So we're trying to keep track of the "happy helper" times the kids have. The great thing is that for some reason, this motivates the kids, so they're being nicer. As long as this doesn't turn into a competition - "I have more things written on my sheet of paper than you do!" =O

One child morning! =O

Yes, it is true. For probably the first time in my motherhood, I had only one child ALL MORNING LONG. David took Ruby and Isaac to work with him, and they left just after 6:30am, and didn't get home until around 2pm. Likely the most peaceful morning of my entire mothering existence. Wow. Jadelyn and I were all showered, dressed, hair done, had worship, made breakfast and cleaned up after breakfast by like 8am. Then we cleaned the kitchen for Sabbath (okay, mostly I did,) I finished washing the windows in the house, did a load of laundry, cleaned the laundry room for Sabbath, made the kids beds, weeded two day's worth in the garden, and harvested the food. Oh, and it was wicked hot. We took 2 cool-down in front of air conditioners/drink water/wipe-my-nasty-sweaty-face breaks. Yeah, it was hot. But then, we went swimming in the kiddie pool! Cooled us right off. ;) Jadelyn is a crazy swimmer. She pulled herself along with her arms and kicked while she went forwards and then backwards across the pool. She also enjoyed sliding down the slide into the water. Oh, and jumping. And splashing. She thought that was really funny. I must say, the one kid thing was VERY novel. No fighting. Hardly any fits. THIS is what it's like to only have one kid? Wow. Amazing. I needed that. Now, if I can just hold it together tomorrow! =P

Ruby and Isaac had fun with David. They did lots of things - eat breakfast at the nursing home, sat through 2 meetings, ate out at a restaurant (Isaac says he likes my cooking better, but then refuses to eat it =P), got the oil changed in the van, went to the bank, went to Dollar General, and came home. Yeah, I'm sure I'm missing something. Oh. Like Isaac's favorite thing. He talked and talked and TALKED about the water machines at David's work. Because the cups are down low so kids can reach them. And one had hot and cold water. And one had really cold water. I think that's what he was talking about when he said it was so cold "you can't imagine". Yeah. He likes "normal" water. And he thought that when it made bubbles, that was making more water. I told him only Jesus can make more water. =) That kid and his affection for machines. I tell ya.

Now I must go work. And FAST. 'Cause I should be getting ready for bed. I'm so not good at going to bed early/what-should-be-on-time. =P

My random Isaac...

Today, Isaac was sick. Because he didn't like to eat much of his food the previous day. He does that sometimes. =P He is celebrating the worm/bug/whatever that caused a squash plant in the garden to die, because that's less squash that he has to eat. He wants to know when the other ones will die. =P

After Daddy-o got home, Isaac informed him that he had a lot of "hicks" today. Because he "hicked-up a lot". Crazy kid.

Then tonight, he and Ruby came out of their room after they were in bed to go potty. I carried Ruby back to bed and Isaac waited until I could carry him back to his bed. I said, "what am I gonna do when you're too big to pick up?" Isaac answered, "give me candy!" He then proceeded to tell me that he knows how to make candy. Because there is white sugar and brown sugar. Mind you, this child STILL doesn't know his colors. =P

Then, as I was tucking him into bed, he said, "I like it when you carry me" followed by informing me that he likes it when turtles carry him, too. What?

I still love that random guy.

Blurbs

We often send our kids for walks around the garden as a consequence/mood-changer. There is a worn path around the garden now. Guess you can tell how our days have been going. =P

The other day, Jadelyn was helping me snap green beans when suddenly she just couldn't control the urge anymore, and gave in and licked one. Good news? She thinks is "yummy!"

Today, Isaac was telling me how he was glad that he was a boy so he wouldn't have to have a baby in his belly. His "girl" will have to have a baby in her belly. He wants to be a Daddy. The other day, he wanted 4 kids, but then changed to 3. He wants "one boy and two girls, 'cause that's what you have". Anyways...Isaac informed me that if he had a baby in his belly, he would yell when it was time for the baby to come out, because it would hurt. He wanted to show me how he would yell, so I sent him away from me in the yard so it wouldn't be so noisy to my ears. He then proceeded to try to work up the ability to yell, but it cracked him up a little bit. Then, he finally started yelling (and not too loudly, either =D), "Please stop! Please stop!" Or something like that. Well, at least he would be polite if he ever gave birth. =)

Seems like there was one other funny little story, but I can't remember it. That's what I get for not writing them down right away. =P

Adios!

Ruby fell in the pond...and other things

Today, we were over visiting our neighbors, Mr. Tom and Ms. Tina. We were visiting on the front porch, and the kids and Hickory were back and forth between the yard and the front porch. In their yard, they have a little goldfish-pond-like-thingy, which the kids really like. Well, we were visiting along when all the sudden Mr. Tom yelled. I looked over at the pond and could see a little body in there completely submerged. (Found out later that the pond is over knee-deep on an adult). I think before I even started running in the direction of the pond, Mr. Tom had leaped over the railing of the porch, and had Ruby out of the water before I even got down to the pond. So thankful for his quick reflexes! So is Ruby. Her naptime prayer went something like this: "Dear Jesus, thank you that Mr. Tom got me out of the water, 'cause I was afraid. Thank you that Ms. Tina got me a towel. Amen." It all happened so quick, I didn't even have a chance to get scared. Then, Ruby just cried and cuddled with Mr. Tom for quite a while before transitioning to David's lap. We sure have been blessed with wonderful neighbors!

When we got home, we gave Ruby a bath at Ms. Tina's suggestion. (There was mold in the water in the pond, and she didn't want Ruby to get sick.) Anyways, at the end of the bath, I found a tick on Ruby's back...so good thing she fell in the pond! ;)

Yesterday, during the children's story at church, Mr. Bill handed out pieces of candy to everyone who came up, including David. =) Anyways, after lunch yesterday, Ruby wanted hers. She had a terrible face while eating it, and said that she was only going to eat half of it because it was too sweet. I'm glad we didn't start giving them candy 'til they were older. Too bad I didn't do that with Jadelyn. She gobbles down candy as fast as she can...even when she's not supposed to. Like today, for example. =P

Oh! I KNEW there was some Isaac conversation I wanted to write about, and I just remembered it! Last night, I had the SWEETEST time putting him to bed. He knelt super nice during prayer time, so I got to sing him a song. He wanted "This little light of mine". So, I rubbed his hair and belly and sang to him. Then, he wanted to give me kisses. One on each cheek, one on each ear, one on my chin, nose, each eye, each eyebrow, my forehead and right on up to the top of my head. He started this routine in Cicero, but it went away for about a year until I told him about it, and now he does it every now and then. Anyways, it's very sweet. Then, he asked, "can I give you a hug?" so I enjoyed a nice Isaac hug. (He often doesn't give me hugs or kisses for days at a time, so this was extra special.) While he was hugging me, Jadelyn started climbing on him. He said sweetly, "good thing I'm so strong" several times. Then, he wanted to hug Jadelyn, so he did...she was laying on her back on his belly, and he gave her a very nice hug. And some kisses. Per his (and my) request, Lynnie gave him a kiss on his chin by twisting her neck around, and "hugged" him by grabbing his face with her hands. At some point, Isaac said, "good thing I'm so strong, 'cause I'm a man" or something like that. I totally thought he was going to say, "'cause I'm a boy", but no, at some point, he has become a "man". =) Then he informed me that men are stronger than girls. And when I was closing the door and said, "I love you!", that little boy responded in the sweetest voice, "I love you, too!" Awww...all that sweetness in one night. Now I wonder how much longer 'til I get some more. =)

Okay, I should get going. Adios!

Garage Sale-ing and other stuff

The kids and I went garage sale-ing for about 2 hours this morning. We found only 3 that were open, and of those, we only bought at one of them. And then, when I got home and opened the bag of toys that I got for $3 (it had train tracks in them, and I thought they'd hook up to Isaac's wooden track, though these were plastic), it was basically junk. The train track doesn't match his. And the bag had miscellaneous junk/bad toys that we trashed. Like a magic 8 ball, a violent looking man, a sword, squirt guns (I DON'T LIKE GUNS!!!), etc. Yai. That was a waste of $3 and of a day. =P But if I get too discouraged, I will never find the clothes I need...it's just that normally garage sales are for smaller clothes than I'm looking for, so it's getting difficult. Rats. =P However will I clothe my children if I can't find some decent yard sales? =P

When the propane man was here a couple weeks ago, Ruby and Isaac wanted to know why he left his truck running, because as Ruby pointed out, "he's wasting gas!" I'm afraid I'm a bit too informative/matter-of-fact with them about things. =P

Yesterday, Jadelyn was "putting me to sleep" while I was sitting on the couch. She brought me several stuffed animals and then stood in front of me singing, "Goodnight, Jesus oves ooou, Jesus oves oooou." and then she would point at me and say, "sweep, k?" Maybe that's what I should try on her next time she wants to stay awake forever after her bedtime. Just tell her, "sleep, k?" Think it would work? =P

Isaac had a dream last night. He told me about it very animatedly this morning, while sitting on Ruby's rocking chair with his feet up so Ruby the crazy driver wouldn't hit him with the motorhome she was zooming around. He had a vacuum for toothpaste, and the grass outside was really long (this part is true in real life, too! =P), so he used the vacuum on the grass and it broke. And the vacuum was hooked up to the ceiling ("roof"), so he was having a hard time getting it outside. And other stuff I forgot. That kid could tell me stories all day if I would sit down and listen! He gets so into it with his hands and facial expression. I love it.

Okay, that's about it. I'm off!

Party day....

Yesterday, David wanted to party. So we did. We attempted to garage sale, though apparently people just don't do their garage sales on Sunday. Rats. We found one. (Okay, two...but one was just knick-knack stuff.) David bought an over-priced-for-a-yard-sale fishing pole. And that was it. We took a long break from looking for garage sales at the school's playground in Mt. Vernon. It was awesome! It had like 5 separate playgrounds, and we had a ball. There were some super steep/fast slides which Isaac didn't like much (he looked absolutely terrified going down them), but that trooper tried each one one time. =) Jadelyn is starting to go down bigger slides by herself. Ruby is a jumping maniac - jumping off anything she can find.

Then, we went fishing. I caught the biggest bluegill of my career (ha ha), I think. It was a monster! And I reeled that bad boy in on Jadelyn's Dora fishing pole. Poor girl had really been sticking with fishing, and then when she took a break, that's when the fish took off with my hook. The kids threw lots of canned corn for/at the ducks. Mental note...there was duck poop EVERYWHERE. Maybe we don't visit that exact spot again. =O

Then, it was off to eat out at a sit down restaurant. I was a bit nervous, but the kids did great. I just had to watch out for the things being thrust in my face, and the fingers getting into my food. THAT'S why I don't sit so close to Jadelyn at home! =) It was a lovely time. On the way home, I sat in the back with Ruby and Isaac to keep the kids awake so that they would take a nap once we got home. Ruby declared that was her favorite part of the day. Isaac's favorite part was when Daddy gave him under-dogs on the swings. Oh, they're so easy to please! I don't know why I can't remember that. =P

After naptime, we headed out for the kids' first ride on Daddy's "big" boat. I thought maybe they wouldn't like it. Silly me. On the way out of the driveway, Hickory chased us like mad, so David stopped at put the dog in the van. To say I was unhappy about this would be a pretty big understatement. The dog climbed all over the seats and at least Jadelyn on the short drive to the lake. Once there, David rigged up a leash for the dog out of the rope I use to put the boat in the water. Again, I was an unhappy camper. So, I had to drive the boat off the trailer with a crazy dog and 3 kids who haven't been out on a boat in a year (I think) in tow. Oh, and I didn't know how to use the motor to drive back up to pick David up. We managed. I was so thankful that after my crazy back and forth driving, we ended up drifting right to where I wanted to be. Anyways, the boat ride was a success. David and the kids ate a light supper out in the shade of the lake. Hickory didn't go insane, and the kids LOVED Daddy's "fast" motor. Well, Ruby and Isaac did. Jadelyn wasn't so sure, but she did fine. Isaac was yelling "whoa, Nelly!" at one point, 'cause it was SO "fast"! =) I need to remember to calm down and not worry so much. =P

And that was it for our partying day.

Side note, Jadelyn can now say "hot tamale" when she walks on something hot. Love it! =)

A little blurb, Jadelyn-centered

Yesterday morning, we were all on the couch for worship. I told David "rabbit-rabbit", to which Jadelyn replied, "rabbit, rabbit. Giraffe, giraffe. Dow, dow". I love that silly girl!

Also, Jadelyn is learning to do imaginary play. The other day, she started calling Ruby "Mama". Ruby had Jadelyn laid on the couch and was doing a doctor check-up on her. Next thing I knew, Ruby had Jadelyn covered up in Ruby's blankets, and all ready for sleep. Jadelyn informed me that she was going to sleep. I asked her if her Mama was a good mama, and she said "yeah". Oh, the times they play so nicely are lovely! Now, to cut down on the "terrible-two" SCREAMING. Ai yai yai. Enough to ALMOST send me to the funny farm some days.....=O

One more note....Jadelyn is cutting her molars. On Thursday night, she was crying in her crib, "owie, owie, owie", so I eventually went in and gave her Tylenol. She smiled (I think) and stopped her crying. Yes, I realize medicine doesn't kick in that quickly. She's asked for medicine for her mouth several times since then. Today, David gave her lemon juice water in a syringe when she asked for medicine. And it "worked" fine. No more medicine for you, Lynnie!