Anything Goes

I've been thinking of a couple of things to write but have been hindered the last few nights to do so. My title has to do with the following story:

Tuesday I took Leah to get her blood drawn for a lead level-just routine for her 1-year checkup. Per usual, she got a cotton ball with a bandage over the puncture site. So after this, we headed over to Walmart to pick up a few things. When we got there, she was picking at the cotton. I could see a wisp of it sticking out from the bandage and thought nothing of it. Then she opened her mouth and out came a big ball of cotton. I just laughed. She must have decided it wasn't very tasty, but she had to try, right?

I just love this stage of her life right now. Despite her eating everything in sight, she says hi to everybody and is just a pleasant baby generally in the store. She smiles and will sometimes wave to people. When we're at home, I'll say goodbye to her and she'll wave as she walks away from me without looking back. It's one of the cutest things she does. I had another story about her, but I can't think of it right now.

We went to Famous Dave's tonight to celebrate my birthday tomorrow and Ben's birthday on Monday. I think that's our favorite place right now-that's our go-to for birthdays. But everyone loves it and you get a variety of food, so why not? My little Ben is turning 4 and I don't think I can afford him anymore. Some meals he eats more than I do. I just can't believe how big he's getting and the things he knows now. I'm going to attempt a Winnie the Pooh cake for him-if it comes out badly, you won't be seeing pictures of it. He asked for a Sesame Street puzzle on his cake, but I'm not that talented by a long shot and I wouldn't ruin a real puzzle for that, so he'll have to settle for Pooh, which I'm sure he'll be happy with. Wish me luck!

A Joyful Week

This week we had the privilege of attending a day of Jon's family reunion. We headed up to Minnesota on Tuesday morning and arrived late afternoon. We got settled in, let the kids play in the sand, enjoyed some supper, and headed out for a game of kickball. This is a pretty big family and there were a ton of little kids the boys' ages, and it was so fun to watch them play kickball and learn how to run bases. My boys did a lot of running across the field randomly. I think we all lost our supper calories laughing. After putting the kids to bed, we played cards.

Wednesday morning we headed out to the beach. The kids spent a lot of time playing in the sand and swam for quite a while. Leah and a little girl her age fought over a big beach ball. Leah let out her signature glass-breaking scream and they both ended up in tears. It actually was pretty funny. That was really our whole morning and the kids had a blast. We had some lunch and packed up the kids for home. Although none of them napped well, we let them stay up a bit later on Wednesday night since they sat in the car all afternoon. Leah was up at 8:00 and the boys got up at 8:20 on Thursday morning. I think they were tired. I also believe that's the latest Finn has ever slept. Overall, we had a great time, and it was good to reconnect with some and get to know a few more.

Another joy this week is that when Finn got up from his nap today, he decided that he was going to learn potty. We've had a couple of accidents, but so far he has told me 3 times that he had to pee, and he went! I am very excited. I wondered if I started Ben too early because we worked a long time, but Finn also has a good example in Ben, so who knows. Finn also has been adamantly refusing and Ben was very willing. So that was my excitement for the day. A few months ago he pooped in the potty and I thought we were on our way to potty training, but that was a solitary incident. Here's hoping for quick success and fewer diapers...

Feel the Breeze

We've had a few wonderful days of window-opening weather. There's a nice breeze flowing through the house with a great smell to it. We've been able to eat BLTs with tomatoes from the garden, and we were given a few bags of sweet corn. All I can say is, Yum. I'm freezing some of it, which I've never done myself, but I have had the privilege of eating the fruits of other people's labors. It's a bit of work but definitely worth it. I'm finding that doing it in stages is working the best for me. There's no way I can do it all at one time. Thankfully after doing one batch and eating other things, I've found room in my fridge for the many ears remaining so I can take my time.

Leah had her 1-year checkup on Monday. She was 20 lbs 12 oz and 31 inches. It's amazing how fast babies grow in the first year. Poor girl had an ear infection and got 4 shots. Plus she was tired. She slept for 3-1/2 hours when we got home. I'm sure the ibuprofen helped that along a bit, but she needed it. She was definitely a happier baby when she got up. At least she won't remember this stuff.

I guess the corn won't husk itself, so off I go.

Life's Little Joys

I have a couple of stories about Finn, who is without a doubt the most energetic one of this family. He definitely keeps me on my toes, and you never know what he'll say or do next.

I took the boys with me grocery shopping yesterday. I had lots of stuff to get, so I didn't put them in the cart. Of course they promised to behave, but after all, they are 3 and 2. So off they went running up and down the aisles. And the thing is, if Finn didn't do it, Ben wouldn't. That's just the kind of kids they are. So I specifically stopped Finn and told him he would be in the cart if he didn't stop running, which is his worst nightmare at the store. A lady in the aisle turned to me and said, "He must be your energetic one." I thought it was kind of funny that even though they were both running, she picked him out.

Last night Finn woke up around 11:00 with a very stuffy nose. Jon and I were both up a couple of times to help him. He refused to keep a tissue in bed with him and asked me to take him downstairs. I figured I might as well because I wasn't getting any sleep. So we went downstairs and I put the TV on, thinking he would kind of daze out as I rocked him. I dozed off for a while at some point, and a few times I asked if he was ready for bed. He said no. At 12:30 I told him it was bedtime and he went readily. Guess what time he was up? 7:20 this morning. This kid needs to live somewhere else where people don't sleep, cause the rest of us sure need more of it.

We got some kid-sized ice cream cones, so tonight I asked the boys if they wanted an ice cream cone after supper. They both said yes. So I got them ready and handed them over, and Finn said he didn't want ice cream, just the cone. He's never done this before, and I'm not sure where it came from. He ate the cone plain and was happy with that. Leah enjoyed his cone with ice cream in it-she ate the whole thing.

We find ourselves laughing at Finn often. He's goofy and he knows it. He's got great comedic timing and knows just how to make us laugh. What a joy he is!

Here, There, and Everywhere

We have returned from a week of vacation. Jon performed his first wedding and it went very well. We ate lots of pork in various forms. The kids got to spend time with my parents while we enjoyed a day plus an evening of wedding-related things.

We went with Jon's family to a nearby science center. The kids had a great time playing with 3 floors of science things, from air to water to color. They got to stick their heads in an astronaut suit and clean off dinosaur bones. Most of it was definitely beyond their understanding, but they had fun with the musical stuff and exercise equipment. There were piano keys on the floor that they could jump on. It was a great place and we would go back again. We spent a couple days seeing grandparents and letting the kids run. It wasn't one of those vacations that just flew by, thankfully. I even got quite a bit of my new book read.

Now we're back to find our tomatoes have blight and one of our apple trees is not doing well. There's the usual unpacking and sorting through mail. But it wouldn't be vacation if there wasn't work to do at home.