Friday: well child visits

Today we had our well child visits.

Isaac's weight is at the 40th percentile and height at the 47% percentile...right on track with what was measured last year.  He hit all the milestones the doctor asked about, except for being able to hop on one foot.  (And the milestones seemed surprising, actually.  I feel as though he had hit most of them last year.)  He got three shots and one of them bothered him all day; he fell asleep in the car when we were picking up Ben and he rarely does that anymore.

He dragged his quilt off his bed to use while watching TV.

Joshua comes in at the 4th percentile for weight and the 40th for height.  We forgot to look at the charts, but I think the weight is similar to what it has been.  Joshua's lungs sounded good, so the medicines are working.  Joshua did not get his vaccinations since he's still sick.  He also hit all the milestones that the doctor asked about.

Joshua seems to enjoy the mask medicine.  We'll tell him it's time for the mask medicine and he goes right to the chair and tells us the nebulizer isn't set up.  It makes me wonder if it makes him feel that much better or if he just likes the process.  Ben was trying to get Joshua to write his name this evening and had Joshua say the letters back to him as they were writing.  We heard very clear Js, Os, Ss and Hs.

Time to pray!

Tuesday: sick

Last night Joshua came down with croup.  Isaac has had it before, although not quite this bad, but I kind of knew what to expect.

I brought him to daycare, but wasn't sure he would stay.  The teacher suggested that he not stay, so my backup plan was to just bring him with me.  He went in the carrier.  During the morning I thought it wasn't a bad thing to keep him out of daycare...he was a bit sleepy and lethargic, but part of me thought he probably would have been ok.

Then, in the middle of the next class something happened and I decided he was not ok.  I'm not really sure what it was...maybe a cough that sounded different?  Anyway, I made a doctor's appointment.

We went and by that time I was so glad that we did.  He had a temperature and was so lethargic and his breathing was rather laboured.  Well, the NP gave him a steriod, a gas to breathe (I forgot what it was) and a prescription for more gas, the gas machine, and an antibiotic.  Wowzers.  We came home and gave him Tynenol.

By dinner time he had started to perk up.  His breathing was still not so good, but he was running around and we even saw some smiles.  (Not the best idea, but try telling that to a one year old.)

Here's hoping to a good night that isn't spent on the couch.

Tuesday: storm and Isaac quotes

We had a wonderful storm here tonight...a thunder storm.  With rain.  I love rain, and I love thunder storms, but it would have been a really, really cool snow storm.  It makes me a little sad.

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Yesterday morning Isaac said, "I don't feel good when I have a baby in my tummy either."  It was a bit funny because he was talking about conversations from Sunday, when we met with a bunch of people that are pregnant.  (We're not.) (It was just a coincidence.)  I was a bit surprised that he had picked up on the topic since he wasn't near us very much and that he remembered.  But hey, he probably wouldn't feel good with a baby in his tummy.

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As we were getting in the car this morning Isaac starting asking what would happen in the plants were covered with dust.  I said they would probably die and started going into photosynthesis.  Then he said the plants might turn bad and spiky.  Hmm...ok.  He kept talking.

Then, about three minutes into the conversation, Isaac said, "Perry was in the bag and Doofenshmirtz spread the dust and then the plants captured him but Perry escaped and came back to cut the plants and save Doofenshmirtz.  Why does [Doofenshmirtz] call him Perry the platypus?"

"Sometimes people have more than one name, like you.  You're Isaac and Puppy-dog"

"Yeah.  I'm Isaac puppy dog and puppy dog.  (Pause.) And sometimes Isaac."

For the record, we saw this episode of Phineas and Ferb about a month ago.

49 months

Isaac turned 49 months a few days ago.

Attitude: we ended the month better than we started the month.  There is still a lack of focus, which frustrates Ben and me, but not so much blatant non-listening.  Beyond that he is still very silly and will laugh at the drop of a hat.  [Probably literally, although I haven't actually tried it.]

Learning: I'm so happy with how much he is learning academically.   He still sounds out the first letter of words and gets them.  The other day he read "Off" and "Go" without any context (and "on" and "stop" after the former ones).  I'm sure there are other words he knows, I just haven't found them yet.  He can mostly count 1-20 but does get stuck on 12.  Listening him count backwards from 10 is pretty funny...he mostly gets it but not completely.  He knows that 100 and million and billion are big numbers.

Socializing: We've noticed Isaac tends to play by himself when by other kids, but that isn't always the case.  As I've been watching more closely I see him playing with others too, just not as much as by himself.  (Which is fine.  Both in moderation, right?)  I think he likes school except for the nap time...nap time really breaks it for him.  But he happily goes into the class room.

Imagination: He is still a puppy dog.  (Joshua called him Isaac the other day and Ben and I were so proud and Isaac yells over "My name is Puppy Dog!")  However, there hasn't been as much actually being a puppy again this month.  He still loves playing imagination games like Castle and Bucky the pirate ship and takes an hour to get dressed, probably because he is playing with them.

Doing stuff by himself: This past month we celebrated his complete independence with the toilet.  He likes to use the TV remote and does a good job with the new one we have.  He can make his own tasty water.  He can do lego instructions as long as there are a limited number of pieces (so only the pieces for a few of the steps at a time).

(He likes his new quilt because it's soft.)

Sunday: Bible study

Our Bible study meet today.  It was the first time in a while, and was really nice to talk with everyone.  Isaac and Joshua enjoyed playing with all the different toys (and somewhat with the other kids).  In fact, they even played well with each other twice today.

Saturday night

Friend: I think my daughter has been feeling a little sick to her stomach because I've been feeding her expletives.

Everyone breaks out laughing

Friend: No! No!  Laxitives!  I always get those mixed up.

Two days ago: 18months

Joshua turned a year and a half!

Talking: he's gotten several more words down.  We think he has neigh and Isaac and maybe Joshua.  Moo and choo-choo are very clear.

Attitude: he's been extra clingy and grumpy the last week or so.  Absurdly so.  It'd think it's teeth, but I think he has all his teeth.  I'm sure it's something, but it is extra annoying.  He's still happy to go to school/nursery/gym.  He still loves his lovies and has told daycare that they are not supposed to take them away several times.  He throws things when he's mad.

Activities: He has started to enjoy books a lot more.  He will look at them by himself and brings them to me a ton more to read together.  He likes to play with the toys in Isaac's bedroom.  He also likes to chase Flurry, but is very gentle with her.  He does a pretty good job of entertaining himself.

Eating: Eating has still only been ok.  He's been throwing food on the floor more and that is not acceptable.  He really likes snacks and gets grumpy if he is hungry.  He still nurses 2-3x per day.

Sleeping: He sleeps about 11-12 hours at night, waking once to nurse.  He naps for 1-2 hours during the day.  He will often end up sleeping with me for an hour or so at some point during the day.  He's a light sleeper.

Wednesday: getting older

I realized that I had forgotten to turn on Isaac's alarm at quiet time.  So I went in after about an hour (because I wasn't taking a nap)! Only to find that he had turned it on himself.  How awesome is that!?!

This evening we were trying to get Joshua to say some words we've been working on.  I thought I had heard Neigh twice today.  Ben asked Joshua to say Joshua.  He pointed to himself and said something that sort of resembled Joshua.  Then we asked him to say Isaac.  And he said something that was kind of like Isaac.

Tuesday: No

Isaac: "Mom!  I'm going to write you a note!  It's going to say "No""

He did it all by himself!

Then he ran around trying to put it Joshua's back.  Joshua runs quite quickly, so it was a challenge.

I'm not really sure what it means, but it feels like it has a deep meaning.

Monday: walking, talking...

Today there were only a few things that needed to be done, and no where to go.  Isaac suggested playing bouncy balls.  It worked for a while.  Joshua was enjoying wearing his helmet.  Bouncy balls were being played with.

Then Isaac wanted to play "Walking Talking Bouncy Balls" on the carpet.  He showed me that in order for them to walk you made them hop a bit...your hands never left the ball.  I said no.  I'm not a fan of imagination games that much to begin with, but understand that Isaac loves them.  So we do them sometimes.  But I drew the line today at making my Bouncy Balls talk.  He asked several times.  I said no several times.

Then we made spice bars.

Sunday: Joshua drumming, Isaac snow slugging

We went for a sled ride tonight.  Joshua didn't cry after the first few minutes so it was a success.  Isaac really enjoyed it.  He especially enjoyed doing the snow slug, which was a wild flailing on his stomach slowly moving forward.

Saturday: nothing

Nothing of interest happened today.  It was a rather normal day.

Friday: the day Joshua hurts and doesn't hurt himself.

Joshua took a few spills today.  The first big one I didn't see, but he almost had a bloody nose.  (His snot from a little cold was red.)  The second one was when he tripped on the driveway.  I've been hesitant to leave him alone on the driveway due to its slant and Joshua's newness to walking, but today I thought he was looking pretty good.  Guess not.

There were also a gazillion close calls today.  Joshua seems to be more wild than Isaac was.  But most of the time he just stands back up...I suppose it is all part of the learning process.

Thursday: today

Today I was rather glad it didn't snow last night so that I could get back in bed for ten more minutes.  It's a good thing my eyes didn't deceive me, as they often do with snow.  Also, I always feel like we're running about five minutes early until we start pulling out of the driveway, at which point I feel like we're running about five minutes later than ideal.

Work went fine.  Some good, some medium.  Nothing all that bad though.

I picked up the kids.  They had both had a good day.  After being home for an hour or so Joshua went a bit crazy.  So we went in his room to read and see if that would calm him down.  Nope.  He said, "Look, I can stand on my little chair!"  then "Look, I can stand on my chair's arm while holding the crib" then "Look, I don't need to hold the crib!"  At that point I put an end to it, flipping the chair on it's back so he can't stand on the arms.  So he proceeded to throw things and himself across the room.  (Yes, himself.  It was odd.  I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone throw themselves across a room before.)  So we took a bigger time out and watched some TV.  The boys cuddled with me and I think I took a brief nap because I don't remember about 15 minutes of the show we were watching.  Joshua calmed down, at least for a bit.  Then Ben got home so there were at least two of us to deal with the crazy.

Wednesday: raisins

During snack time today Isaac started rolling the raisin container to me.  I rolled it back.  It went over a raisin.  *So funny.*  Even Joshua laughed a bunch.

So I tried again.  This time I squished all of Isaac's raisins.  *Hillarious!*

Isaac put up a water bottle to protect his raisins.  The raisin container knocked into it, causing it to crash.  *Big laughs*

Isaac put up two water bottles to protect the raisins.  The raisin container knocked into them, but didn't do anything.  *Still very funny*

Isaac moved the water bottles around.  The raisin container was diverted to the floor.  *Happy screams*

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We managed to lose one of the duplo trains between last night and this morning.  This afternoon, Isaac found it.  I asked him where it was and he said, "By the bowls."  The embarrassing thing about this is that there are bowls all over the house (thanks Joshua), so I still have no idea where it was.

Tuesday: a good day

I thought it was going to be a rather busy/stressful day.  It was busy, but it wasn't that stressful.

First off, it helped that I did most of my class prep yesterday.  Then today I dropped off the kids (with a crazy number of bags.  Seriously.  They're not there for that long...how do they need so much stuff?)  Then I went to Bible Study.  Then I had an hour before class, but that was enough to get to school, do a quick review, and get ready.

Class went well.  I tried asking specific students small questions for the review and that seemed to go well.  Then I had a help session for lab and no one showed up...so I was able to get a lot of stuff done.

I even had some time to clean and organize my office/storage closet.

I picked up the boys and we played quite a bit of Duplos during the evening.

Monday: misc

Isaac figured out how to get all four lights from his set to light up all by himself.  I didn't think it would work at all since the only theory he knows is that everything needs to connect in a circle.  He was very excited to show it off to everyone.

Sunday: snow!

Ahh...the last few weeks have been so nice now that we've had snow.  Last year I did get sick of the snow around March...I think it started in November...but only because we had no place to put it anymore.  I love watching it come down and making everything white.

Today it snowed most of the day.  A little bit of "I can easily see the houses across the lake" to "I can't see the houses at all!"  (The last one rarely happens.  The normal heavy snow is "I can make out house-like shapes if I move my head back and forth.)  It was lovely.  And it was super light snow, so we didn't get a ton of accumulation.  Probably just the right amount for sledding tomorrow.

Saturday: feeling better

Well, I did end up with a fever last night.  It's much nicer having a fever when there's someone to get you some medicine.  And it's super awesome to feel better again.  I love feeling normal.  I can think thoughts, I actually want to do things, and I can put forth more than the minimum effort.

Joshua was a little cranky today.  Isaac was a little non-listeny.  But we survived.

Friday: Friday night fever

I feel sick again.  Like a fever is coming on, but we'll see what happens.  There was a fever last Friday.  What a silly body.

Thursday: early morning

Thursday is our early morning day.  Joshua woke up a few minutes earlier than I was hoping, but it worked out well too...Tuesday I had to wake him up and he didn't open his eyes until I was almost done getting him dressed.

However the 8am class only took about 20 minutes today, so that was pretty awesome.  It gave me some extra time to get on top of things.  The rest of the day went pretty well.

Joshua's favorite song is Row Row Row your Boat.  He often does a little dance to it and says "row row" to get you to sing it again.

Wednesday: dinner

Joshua helped make dinner tonight.  He loves the step stool.  We might end up with two in the kitchen soon...

It's a good thing that the salt just ran out (after 10 years) or we might have had a rather salty meal.  He loved trying to put salt in the pot.

Isaac asked what we were having and responded with hesitation..."I don't think I'll like it."  I asked him just to try it.  The recipe suggests letting kids sprinkle on their own sesame seeds...I really think it did the trick.  Isaac came back for 4 helpings.  And loved sprinkling on the seeds each time.  (Ben liked it; I thought it was ok.  We'll probably do it again as it wasn't too hard and Isaac really liked it.)

Tuesday: back to school!

We all went back to school today!  A slightly odd thing to say as all the local schools were closed today.

Isaac did well.  It's L week and he was excited to have some licorice.  Nothing really changed for him so things happened as expected.

I did well.  I have a full (very full) class for business computing.  The first day always feels like I talk a lot and it is an information dump.  But it went fine.  There were also some lab orientations...they went fine.  The first time through is the hardest because I don't really know what is coming up and what is important.  I'm looking forward to something new though.

Joshua did very well.  He was in a new room today.  I was expecting it to go well, but it went super well.  He took right off when we arrived.  They said it was like he had been there for months.  The only problem was when they took his lovie away.  He dropped it after nap but he saw them pick it up and apparently gave quite a scolding to the teacher.  When I came to pick him up he barely acknowledged me but instead started running around like a maniac trying to have one last play on all the toys.

Monday: tableware

While Isaac and I were making dinner, Joshua was setting the floor.

Isn't it interesting how each bowl has one spoon?

Sunday: Ben's home

Ben's home. :D

Saturday: faster than expected

Today went faster than expected.  And healthier.  Last night I had a random fever for about three hours.  I have no idea why.  Ben had taken most of the ibuprofen, so I was glad that it didn't last longer.

Anyway, Ben is gone this weekend.  But I've prepared.  Yesterday we did several things with people.  Today we went to the gym.  (After the gym I fell asleep while the boys were finishing their lunch while watching TV.  Joshua finished all his food and I wonder if it is because I wasn't paying any attention to his "i'm done" signals.)  We had nap time.  We played a few games, read a few stories, did some random stuff.  We ate dinner and played another game.  Bath time.  And just like that, the day was done.

Well, I proceeded to go to the basement and stay up rather late.  It happens.

Thursday: birds

The birds have finally found our bird feeder.  Over the last two days we've seen several sparrows, a chickadee, some cardinals, and a mourning dove.

The male cardinal has also repeatedly flown into the sliding door.  I changed the position of the screen door hoping that it will help him realize that he really can't go that way.  Or at least cushion the impact.

Wednesday: Joshua communicating

Joshua communicates best on the changing table.  Maybe because there are no other distractions?




He can sometimes do button, but it more frequently has only one syllable instead of two, and so I didn't get a good one today.

I have also gotten several "please" motions yesterday and today (after prompting) but he seems to finally be understanding it!

Today I also met a friend at Rivertown and the boys played in the play area.  They had amazing stamina!  They kept playing and playing for about an hour, at which point we refueled with some cookies and then Isaac wanted to go back for a bit longer.

Joshua almost stayed awake the whole way home, but fell asleep with about ten minutes left.  It messed up the whole afternoon.

Monday: Isaac

"The spinning Bible turns you into soup!"

"My songs are at [Disney] World.  They're invisible.  I have 69 songs now that I'm four.  When I'm five I'll have 100!"

"My song is really loud and it is 13 years long."

"I drew a picture of a person yelling 'NO!!!!' "  (I still don't understand if that's what he actually did.  It was a bit confusing.)

We also tried out his bike in the garage.  He is still having a hard time getting the pedals around when they're vertical.  He had one good round though.

In Joshua news, he said "please" for the first time.  It was a pretty pathetic please, but I'll take it.  I'm hoping it wasn't a fluke.

Sunday: confession

I wish work started this coming week.  I'm ready to be back to our slightly busy schedule.

Saturday: lost and found

We been losing a lot of things lately.  We've found some...

1. The $10 and grey card for the play cash register.  (Found about two weeks later in an unused bathroom drawer.)

2. Three library books.  (Still MIA and accruing late fees)

3. One plastic frog that makes noise when air goes through it.  (Found about two hours after we realized it was missing because I saw Joshua dumping other things into the hole between our mattress and bed frame).

4. Our Thomas the Train DVD.  (Still MIA.  Ironically, we had been missing the case.  Once we found the case we haven't been able to find the DVD.)

5. A flash drive.  (Found about 10 hours later in a golf caddy.  Joshua had last been seen playing with it.)

6. The DeYoung picture of the cousins.  (Found about three days after it was missing.  It was in plain sight on the fridge.)

7. Our racquetballs.  (Found about ten minutes later.  They were in a bag pocket was not thoroughly searched.)

8. A cow from a nativity.  (Still not found, but I haven't looked for it either.)


Sigh.  It's kind of annoying.  But it seems as though these things just grow Joshua's legs and walk away.

Jan 1: sledding

This afternoon, after naps, we realized that we needed a plan.  So we decided to go work on the driveway.  You see, on Monday there was a snow storm.  (It was an odd storm as the temperature was about 32 deg, making it almost more sleety.  It hurt to go outside.)  The forecast said that it was supposed to warm up, so Ben and I ignored the driveway, laughing at the people that shoveled while secretly wondering if we should have shoveled too.

We should have.

I still have hopes of the driveway melting in the coming week, but based on this past week it might not happen.  So we at least shoveled the snow off of it.

Joshua wasn't having a great time, so Ben gave him a shovel ride.  That's rather hard, so then he got a sled ride.  Then Isaac wanted a sled ride.  It turned out that it was the perfect conditions for sled rides.  There wasn't too much snow and it was rather icy and slick, so pulling the sleds was a breeze.  Isaac went down our hills several times, a few times alone and a few times with us.  During most of this time Joshua was stoic.  We finally got a few smiles at the very end, but had to work pretty hard for them.  He wasn't crying or trying to get out of the sled, so I'm assuming he had a good time.  Isaac had lots of laughs, and I know he had a good time.

Thursday: New Year's Eve

Happy New Year's Eve!

Today the boys and I went to a Happy Noon Year party, hosted by the library.

We put stickers on some hats,

Wrote our wishes for next year (I think the bell was upside down when he wrote his name).

 Went through the photo booth,

danced (Joshua actually had a pretty fun time dancing, even if you can't really tell in the picture),

 watched balloons drop at noon, and

popped bubble wrap.

My review overall - not great, not too bad.  They did an excellent job with so many kids.  However, the audio system wasn't great and it was kind of hard to hear.  I could definitely see going next year, but we might aim to show up a bit later.

At home I finished my kitty steps.  As our kitty is aging I am becoming afraid that the jump up to her food could be too much.  However, she did not seem interested at all in using the steps.  They are very solid.

Lastly, we used one of the Netflix countdowns to ring in the New Year before the boys went to bed.

Both boys enjoyed the sparkling grape juice, which wasn't very sparkling.  I have a great photo of Joshua drinking the juice from my wine glass and me looking slightly worried.  However, I decided not to post it...it seemed too much like I was letting my underage son have wine and not proactively stopping it.

Wednesday: 4 years

Isaac, er, Puppy Dog, turned four today!  How time flies.

 I think he had a pretty good birthday.  He had food that he loves and got more presents than I was really expecting. :)

Play: Isaac loves to play.  He especially loves Bucky lately.  (The pirate ship.)  Ben and I added a submarine with a treasure chest to it today because he really likes hunting for treasure.  This month he has also enjoyed Advent Game (Snap circuits...I don't know where the name came from) and Legos.  Isaac is good at playing by himself and with Ben and me.  Once in a while he does a good job with Joshua.  It's coming.

(Side note: do you see the band-aid on his wrist up in the air?  He couldn't do anything with that hand all night because it got a scratch.)

New things: Isaac is still doing many new things...although I'm not sure if all of them are new or if I'm just discovering them.  He is cleaning his own hair.  He really likes mazes.  He can deal with assorted problems on his own.  He has been putting two things together and then making comments that surprise Ben and me on their accuracy.

Imagination: Isaac is still a puppy.  Therefore, everyone in the house is a puppy.  He has a special puppy voice.  He frequently runs out of power.  That means that he needs some watermelon/strawberry or pomegranate flavored water.  (The former is walking power, the latter is running power.  If you mix them with lemon water you get super power.)

Sleep: The removal of naps still seems to be working very well for us.  He falls asleep pretty quickly and lately has been sleeping until between 8:00-8:30.

Family: I am obviously the favorite parent, but Ben is often good too.  Joshua is ok.  I think Isaac likes making him laugh but finds that he is in the way a lot.

Yesterday: 17 months

Joshua turned 17 months yesterday!

 

Speech: He now says "choo-choo", "uh-oh" all the time, and once in a while "neigh".  I also thought I heard a pretty good button today, but it was only once.  He is starting to understand what we are saying, and sometimes when I ask him were his toes are he will point to them.

Proper use: Joshua is getting very good at the "Proper" use of things.  He tries to put socks and shoes on his feet...or at least show you that is were they go.  Combs and telephones have been correct for a while.  Trains and cars roll along the floor.

Attitude: Joshua, unsurprisingly, likes to get his way.  If he doesn't, he throws a little fit and bangs his head on the floor.  He then starts to cry for real because it hurt.  We recently stopped reacting to this fits, even after banging his head on the floor.   He also likes to see what is going on.  I've started putting him on the step stool in the kitchen, surrounded by my body, so that he can see and I can have two hands.  It's been working well.

Sleep:  No real changes.  He sleeps from 8pm until about 4am, when I nurse him.  He then sleeps until about 8am.  He takes one nap of varying length.  He likes to sleep snuggled with someone.  He's still a light sleeper and if Isaac makes a loud noise in the family room he'll usually wake up.

Food: The way to Joshua's heart is through food.  He loves his food, but only certain things.  I feel like the list has decreased since last month as string cheese and some fruits are now rejected.  Chex mix was a huge hit.

Family: He likes Ben the best, but I'm pretty good too.  He sat with several grandparents that were previously taboo.  (I think food helped.)

Sunday: sore, clean, but put together

I went to the gym yesterday for the first time in about a week and a half.  I am super sore today.  It's pretty crazy actually...I didn't think I had worked that hard.

We've been hiring one of Ben's cousins to come over for about two hours once a week to help around the house.  It's been rather nice.  Today she dusted, took down many of the Christmas decorations, filled all the water bottles, and then played with the kids so that I could do some of those things that are hard to do with kids around.

Tonight we started putting together Joshua's play thing.  The boys enjoyed taking the pieces out of the box.

Joshua also really, really wanted to use a screwdriver.

Oh, and look at this other picture I found.  I took some selfies last night because I really liked how my hair looked.  It was post shower and just kind of happened.  I don't know how to make it do that on purpose.

Saturday: boxing day

It really seems as though should be called unboxing day.

We took out/put away many of the presents today.  There are still some in boxes to spread out the fun.  We played quite a bit of pirate ship.  The ship has a name... and I can't believe I can't remember it now.  It seems like the first real name that Isaac has given something.  (As in, it isn't called "Ship" or "Shippy").  The name starts with a B.  Maybe Bucky?  We also pulled out an alligator whose eyes keep coming out (by design).  I've liked the addition of the alligator.  I feel as though attacking, and possibly killing, mean animals not unethical.  Attacking and killing mean people toes the line, so we don't do it in our house.  But Isaac knows it happens and yeah...

The package was also missing the projectiles and the flag.  So I contacted Fisher Price.  (This is the second time, by the way, and I've been very happy with their customer service both times.)  Here is the fun response we got.

"I'm so sorry that your flag was captured and your pirates are out of ammunition! I know how important it is they get back to their sea adventures, so I'm sending you out a new flag, some projectiles, some extra swords, and even a couple of extra guys to join your crew. You should be ready for the high seas in no time!

The captain is sailing over with everything now, so he should be there within 7 days!"

Friday: Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

We started out the day by discovering that the animals finally found Jesus.  Isaac took a few additional pictures too.

We opened some presents as a family.

We went to Ben's parents' house and had brunch and opened presents.

Joshua was very excited to have his own alphaberry.

 Isaac's favorite was the pirate ship.

Playing the the paper was also a lot of fun!!

The whole day was excellent and truly merry, but my favorite part was at the end.

They went around and around and around.  Sometimes Isaac joined them and sometimes Isaac was a half lap behind singing "We wish you a Merry Christmas".  It was so cute.  At one point everyone stopped following Joshua and he turned around with a puzzled look on his face, wondering why no one was behind him.

Thursday: Joshua

Joshua has really had a change in personality this week.

*He has sat with previously unliked grandparents.  (They found out the way to his heart is through food and exploited it.)
*He started waving to everyone, even strangers in the grocery store.
*He blew kisses to his grandparents.
*He started saying mommy instead of mama
*He started saying choo-choo.
*He identified three different trains.  (One in a book, one mega-block one, and a duplo one.)
*After identifying the choo-choo in the book, he went around to all the grandparents and told them it was a choo-choo.  I've never seen him so social before.

It's been fun and cute.

Wednesday: leaves

Well, we finally finished our raking today.  Our neighbors have some trees that don't lose their leaves until about two months after normal trees.  It was slightly wet but rather warm.  We were all in light coats without hats.

Tuesday: pictures

It turns out that camels like pomegranates.

...so much so that they sneak into your refrigerator to be close to them.  (It even happened that Isaac found the camel and he is rarely the first person in the fridge in the morning!)


This happened when Isaac decided to clean the front of the refrigerator and Joshua decided to stack the groceries.  It was loud and messy.  I don't actually mind the grocery stacking, but coupled with the magnets it was a bit much.

I do really, really love my kids, but I also enjoy being away from them.  I pondered that quite a bit today and decided it is just one of life's paradoxes.  And I'm ok with that.