Snow Day!

This morning at 6am we got a call. Luckily, I was up feeding Evan or I would have been very unhappy. It was the superintendent calling to say that school was closed for the day. Snow day! Kim was very excited to hear she didn't have to go to school. We celebrated with Hot Cocoa for breakfast. (OK, I normally have hot cocoa for breakfast, but it was a treat for the boys.)

We looked outside to check out the snowfall. There was at least 4 inches. Check out this pic. I shoveled the walkway to give you an idea how deep it is...

Steven proposed that we pay Kim to shovel the driveway and I seconded the idea. Kim was very excited to earn some money for Christmas presents. So promptly got bundled up and I gave her a quick tutorial on how to shovel snow. For the most part, it's pretty easy going since it is snow that had fallen overnight and isn't compacted yet. Just to test it out, I did the walkway and a strip to the far side of the driveway to get her started.

Here she is saying "Come on mom" (in that annoying, yet entertaining teenage whine) when she noticed I had come outside with the camera.
Here she is digging in deep to get a shovelful. Put your back into it! Use those arms!
And getting ready to chuck the snow. Check out the driveway behind her...only 30 minutes in and she has one side pretty much done. Good going Kim!

Here she is waving at the camera (at my request after some more of that whining) just to prove that I'm not a complete and horrible mother subjecting my child to slave labor...hey, she is getting paid.Ah, the joys of an older child. Now the snow won't get all compacted when we head out to the gym and library in a little while. It's a win-win situation for all!

Happy Snow Day!

Monies....

As a part of raising children, Steven and I feel it is our job to help our children understand how money works. There are way too many people out in the world that have no concept of money and how it works. People who think money grows on tree and are fiscally irresponsible. I don't want my children to live from paycheck to paycheck because I didn't teach them how to use money. (Don't even get me started....I could rant for hours on people and their poor money choices.)

So, to start teaching our children young (or brainwash them while young and highly impressionable), we decided to give them some chores to do around the house and assigned dollar values to them. When they complete a chore, they get to check it off their chore chart and at the end of the week they turn in their sheet and get cold, hard cash.

As part of this lesson, the children need to pay their tithing, put money in savings and then they can do what they want with the rest.

For those of you who don't know what tithing is, let me explain. In our church, we believe that God has given us everything that we have. He in turn asks us to give back one-tenth of our increase. That money goes to the church and they use it to build and run the church.

This is a difficult concept to teach to a small child, especially a 2 year old who is getting money of his own for the first time. In my infinite wisdom, I attempted to explain to Owen that he needed to part with some of his money. Since he has a great love of Jesus, I decided to try that angle. I told Owen that he needed to give some of his "monies" to Jesus. Jesus would use it to help the church. He said, "Give Jesus monies?" I said, "Yes." He said, "Okay." Much easier than I thought it would be. We counted out his tithing and put it into and envelope. He was very excited.

Here is Logan showing you his allowance with tithing slip in hand.
Owen was so excited about his monies that he couldn't be bothered to look at the camera. Holding his monies and tithing slip (ie. Monies for Jesus).
So to wrap up this charming tale. Yesterday, wile we were at church, Owen and I we were looking at his quiet book that has various church related pictures. When we got to the first picture of Jesus he says, "Jesus...monies!?!" Sure enough, we had forgotten the tithing envelopes. At least Owen learned where his tithing money goes.

Evan is offically mobile...

Evan is only 6 1/2 months old, but he is convinced he is older. For the past few weeks, he has been actively trying to move on his own, mainly trying to get his brother's discarded toys. It started with him scooting backwards. Then he moved onto "belly-flopping" his way around the living room. He would get up on his hands and feet and push forward and land on his belly. From there, he moved to his hands and knees, but it took a bit to get the hand/knee moving coordinated. Last Friday, we decided that wasn't good enough and he was determined to crawl. Little man had the art perfected by Saturday afternoon when I found him eating food off the kitchen floor...guess that means I will either need to sweep every night or Evan will be well fed.

Here is a video I took this morning. He couldn't decide if he wanted to get the zoo toy or the camera. Guess mom and the camera won.


Tell me that isn't the cutest kid in the world...You know he is.

Check out a couple pics....The shirt is so fitting (in case you can't make out the writing, it says "Prince Charming") and yes, he is quite charming...just ask all the YW in our ward. :)

Halloween

(I actually typed this up a few days ago, but just didn't get the pics off my camera until today...this past week was super jam packed with stuff.)

Since Halloween was on Sunday this year, I hardly even thought about it. Steven and I talked about it and didn't feel right taking the kids out to trick-or-treat on Sunday, so we decided to stay home and spend time together as a family.

Saturday night our ward had a chili cook-off/carnival. There were carnival games for the kids and lots of talking for the adults. As prizes for the games, the kids got candy. There was a booth to eat a donut tied to a string and suspended above your head. Steven got a great video of Kim and Logan doing it. Hilarious. Owen just gave the camera the "stank-eye" and held his.

Because we were taking the kids out, I didn't bother buying costumes. So Kim wore a pair of my old scrubs, carried the Fisher Price Doctor's Kit and was a nurse/doctor. Logan wore the Thomas the Tank Engine costume I'd bought a few years ago on after-holiday clearance. Owen was wearing a pair of overalls, so I scrounged up a construction hat, belt, boots and tools (which we was excited to wear at home but refused to put on at the church...but as you can see, he loved playing with his flashlight). Evan wore the traditional Winnie-the-Pooh dressed as a Honey-bee costume that both of his brothers wore.On Halloween, we went to church. Came home, ate lunch and had naps. (Okay, the boys and I napped while Steven and Kim cooked.) After we all woke up, it was time to decorate pumpkins. The boys shared a pumpkin. Here they are hard at work. The girls shared a pumpkin. Here is Kim posing with her creation....all I did was give suggestions and cut the top off. Evan had his tiny 1st Halloween pumpkin. He colored on it with a pen and sucked on the stem.
Here is Logan posing with the boy's finished product. We then ate super yummy pumpkin waffles with apple cider sauce. Such a wonderful tradition in our house.

We decided that since the kids didn't get to go out trick-or-treating (but Owen and Logan are at the age that it's super fun), that we would have them trick-or-treat inside. We had bought a bit of candy and dressed the boys up. Logan as Thomas again and Owen as Elmo (Logan's costume from last year). Steven was stationed in our bedroom, Kim in hers and I was in Evans. (This is my view from Evan's room. Ignore the mess in the hall and don't judge me...we all have that area that collects stuff....okay, maybe a few areas...this is one of mine.)The boys knocked on our door, said "Trick-or-treat" and were given candy. They then moved onto the next door. By the end, we were all laughing and having a great time....perhaps we will do this again.

We then got the kids ready for bed a little early and snuggled onto our bed to watch Alvin and the Chipmunks and Garfield Halloween movies. The kids all thoroughly enjoyed it. Then we packed the kids off to bed and Steven and I watched "Date Night". It was pretty funny. So glad that our dates don't turn out like that...well, seeing Mark Wahlberg's naked chest would be entertaining a time or two, but I don't want to have to pole dance in a western style outfit....

Happy Halloween from our family to yours! Check out this little monster....

On a much cuter (and less stinky) note...

Check out my super cute and adorable baby.

Mr. Evan is such a good little baby...well, aside from the every 2-3 hour feedings around the clock (I think he's going through a growth spurt and should go back to sleeping more at night...at least I hope so).

At his last doctor's appointment (Oct. 5th) he weighed in at 15 pounds. (Keep in mind his brother who is 20 months older than him is only 21 pounds.)

Here he is this morning posing in his "Little Pumpkin" outfit. Yes, I know Halloween is still a couple weeks away, but he's just getting too big for his 3-6 month outfits.


Here he is pushing himself backwards under the table. This really annoys him because instead of going toward the objects he would like to suck on, he is pushing himself further and further way. (I think Steven took this pic on sunday.)


He is also hugely into blowing raspberries. When ever he has skin-to-mouth contact he starts blowing away. Yesterday it was driving Kim nuts because she thought he was trying to spit on her...it was hilarious.

Tell me you don't want to just kiss those huge, adorable cheeks. Evan is just such a sweet, happy baby. I think we might just keep him.

I laugh only to keep from crying...or worse...

Let me first start by saying....I love my children. Each and every one of them. They are the reason I get up in the morning...literally, they cry and make me get out of bed to attend to their needs. :) But really, they are the meaning to my life. They are my calling and duty on this Earth.

But there are times I find myself muttering the phrase: "I brought you into this world and gosh dang it, I can take you out of it." This morning has been one of those days....

One of these things is not like the other one, one of these things just isn't the same.... (Imagine the Sesame Street song playing along...)

Here are my curtains from a different angle. (BTW, do you know how difficult it is to take a picture of windows...all that sun just messes it up, as you can see from the previous angle.)

Figured it out yet....one of the sheers from my curtains is missing.

Why? you ask. Well, let me tell you. Owen got poop on them.

While I was cleaning the kitchen this morning he decided to dig in his diapers and smear it all over my window, curtains and ottoman....oh and the couch. (Which was just cleaned FRIDAY from the last poop smearing incident.)

So I change Owen's diaper and get him cleaned up. Then I attack the couch with my "Kids and Pets" cleaner (which I highly recommend and need to pick up some more because Owen dumped 1/4 of the bottle out in the kitchen last week). I then clean the ottoman and window. I decided to wash the curtain, so it sits in my laundry room waiting until I have the energy.

After a little yelling on my part and a well placed spank (I'm not so proud of it, but I'm being honest here) I hoped this would put an end to it....as you can now see....

IT DID NOT!

Most people have children who use markers and crayons to color on the wall. My child is a bit more...um..."earthy" and uses his poop instead.

This second incident occurred while I was eating lunch. Logan had gone into the bathroom to go potty and Owen was over "talking" to him. I went over to check on Logan and find this smelly mess waiting for me.

He wiped it on the textured wall (which BTW, do know how much it SUCKS to get poop out of textured wall....take my word for it....it SUCKS big time.)

He got it on the white door and door jam and also on the floor.

That child is wearing my patience thin. I just don't know what to do with him. If I'm not physically holding him, he is getting into something....dumping EVERY SINGLE toy out of the toy bin, cooking a squash in the toaster oven, dumping cleaning solution on the kitchen counter, dumping his cough syrup on the counter, floor and himself, opening vitamins then half eating them then spitting them out, coloring on my couch with pink highlighter, then coloring on the other couch with green marker.....that is a small sample of what the kid can do.

I try to give him attention. We snuggle on the couch in the morning and watch Curious George together, we read library books over and over until I almost have them memorized (I now know a lot about dinosaurs and garbage trucks), I talk to him about things that he likes, but I can't spend every hour of every day babysitting him. I have a 6 month old who needs to be fed every 2-3 hours and I actually have to run a functioning household with clean laundry, clean dishes and food for people to eat....

Hopefully this is a phase and he will get over it, but until then....please pray for Owen and ME.

No, I didn't kill him. He is sleeping...Look how stinking adorable he is....If only he were this good while awake...

I'm Livid

Just a little blog to vent...it won't hurt my feeling if you don't read this, but I need to get it off my chest so I will stop festering over it.

I live in Idaho. Farms near and far beacon to me. My paternal grandparents were farmers and were many (hmm...probably most) of my ancestors. I grew up going to the Andersen farm every summer and have vivid, great memories of hay, cattle, mountains and farm life in general. Farming is just something that I love. If Steven would let me, I would convert my WHOLE backyard into a garden. One day I dream of building a house on a couple acres and planting rows of trees and having a huge garden, so I can can the produce from it.

But alas...Steven will only allow me a section of the backyard to toil in. So I have to take my farming dreams elsewhere. My neighbor, Andrea, told me that she had access to farm land from her husband's grandpa...I jumped at the opportunity to get some land and till it. I talked to my sister and my friend about it and we all went in on some seeds and plants to grow on this gorgeous piece of earth.

I went out with Andrea and saw the section she had marked off and realized it wasn't going to be big enough. Just knowing what she was planning on planting and what I had wanted plant there just wasn't going to be enough room. Not to mention, she had casually mentioned to another set of neighbors that they could plant a little bit of stuff and they took up a huge section that Andrea had planned for my use.

I resigned myself to the fact that I could plant some stuff up in front and then secure a section in the back for my other stuff. I decided to plant 6 rows of corn up front amongst my neighbor's stuff and then I planted my watermelon, cantaloupe, squash and pumpkin seeds along with another 6ish rows of corn in the back. Not too bad...and I realize beggars can't be choosers.

I spent TONS of hour out weeding these plants. (I can think of 3 specific times I personally went out and weeded for at least 2 hours at a time. That doesn't include Kim, Brian or Melissa out there helping me.) Talking lovingly to them so they would grow big and strong and healthy and produce an abundance of fruit. I poured my heart and soul into those plants and eagerly awaited the reap the rewards I felt were due.

So yesterday, on the way home from gleaning potatoes (a whole other story) I decided to stop out at the farm and check on my babies. I drove out to the back section where the melons and such were planted. I found many of our plants not bearing any fruit. I was saddened to see that the plants that did have fruit were very small. (I'm talking baseball sized watermelons and cantaloupes.) I know that this has been a difficult growing season all around and since I was all the way in the back and the land was being flood irrigated and since there are tons of weeds in all the other sections in front of mine I wasn't totally surprised, but I was still saddened. I'd hoped that we could have a decent stock of produce to split among the 3 families,but I don't know if we'll get more that a few small sized items.

I moved eagerly over to the corn that I planted in the back hoping for better results. Sure the stalks were smaller than some of the others, but I could see ears. Unfortunately, there weren't as many ears as I'd hoped. A couple rows had blown over in some wind storms we'd had over the season and some of the ears were just small. At least we only paid $3 for the seeds, so I will get my $1 worth of corn, but I'd hoped for some to freeze or can.

Then I remembered the section up front. This section didn't get the love and care that the other section did because my 2 neighbors basically gave up weeding. (In fact, Andrea who told me about the farm had gotten a different chunk of land and replanted hoping for less weedy results.) Given the sad state of the neighbors, I just couldn't bring myself to put much effort in up there...it seemed like it would have been a losing battle. But some of the corn had sprung up amongst the weeds so I quickly went over to that section to pick some corn.

When I arrived it took me a few minutes to find my 6 rows. I had marked them with some wood Steven had cut for me and they were very distinct from the others out there. I proceed to check my stalks for corn and didn't see any. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that there had been ears, but someone had taken them. MY CORN HAD BEEN STOLEN. This is where I became livid. As I went from stalk to stalk and saw that almost all of my ears had been removed. I was lucky to find a few hidden down in the weeds and quickly grabbed them before they could be stolen. I walked back the the car with my few ears of corn and fumed.

What kind of person steals someones corn? Really? Come on...I paid money for the seeds. I took the time and effort from my life to drive out to the farm and plant them. I weeded there. (At least 1 1 /2 rows of it got a good solid weeding, once.) I know I didn't pay a lot of money or invest tons of time, but really, why would you steal someones corn?

The thing that really stinks...next year Melissa and I were planning on going full-out and planting a big section to use for our canning purposes...tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapenos, sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, pumpkins, melons and more I can't even recall. But now I have a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. Do I want to lay out all the money on seeds and starters just to have someone take them? I will probably end up planting there...maybe just getting a plot further west where not so many people will venture over to.

I'll never know who took it...since it's a community garden type thing, it could have been countless people. Or some kid who just didn't know any better...heck, the person who took it could be starving. Or someone figured since I wasn't weeding it that it had been deserted and it was free for picking. I don't know, but I'm still annoyed. Whomever too my corn will probably never read my blog...and hence never know the wrong they committed...I guess this is my chance to be Christ-like and love them anyway...I'm working on getting there...but for now, I'm still upset...