The Arboretum

Ellie watches as Chris pretends to get lost in the hay maze. She looks mezmerized by her Daddy!

We took a trip to the Arboretum this weekend for the fall pumpkin patch! They had a band playing music, and it was a beautiful day! While we listened to the music and relaxed, Kevin kept walking about 20 feet away and standing right by another family! We sent Ellie down to get him once, and she thought she was so big!

Trip to Austin

We went to Austin to visit family a few weeks ago. I asked Ellie to help me pack her clothes. We counted the number of days we'd be gone, and then Ellie went to her room to get 3 of everything - one for each day! She then lined everything up on the couch in nice, neat piles all in a row. I didn't ask her to do this. She definitely gets this skill from Chris and not me!!! She was so proud!

Ellie and her cousin, Pug, had so much fun together! I don't think they had a single disagreement, and they played so well together! When we came home, Ellie said, "Pug just knows so much about everything!" She was impressed with his knowledge of bugs, Star Wars, dinosaurs, and other random things! They slept together for two nights in the same bed... very cute! They stayed up until past 10pm just talking!

A Trip to the Zoo!

We went with our neighbors and a friend from CA to the zoo last week.

Kevin and Violet rode together in the stroller. They were very cute together. Violet wasn't feeling well, and Kevin kept touching her leg and patting her. I think he was trying to help her feel better. But he also grabbed her pacifier and put it in his mouth! Violet is about 3 weeks younger than Kevin, and it's very cute to see them "play" together!

A Geography Lesson from Ellie

"Mommy, did you know there are 7 continents? But some of them died, so now there are only 50 states. And our continent has so many people on it that we dont know what do with all of them. Did you know that, Mommy?"

She is learning about "Earf" (Earth) at preschool. It seems as though some of it is sinking in (and getting a little mixed up as well)!!

Kevin Loves the Dishwasher

Kevin - 13 Months

Kevin loves hats. He finds this hat and then puts it on immediately!

Kevin loves to do whatever big sister does...

Kevin eats lunch with the big kids...

Kevin's first day of Mother's Day Out...

Kevin feels so big when is allowed to feed himself with a spoon...

"Yeah, for me!" Kevin claps.

Spitting out the spoon. When the food is all gone, the spoon becomes a toy...


Kevin's favorite toy for the month... He loves to put the lid on and take it off.


First the lid goes on...

Then it comes off... Wow! What fun!

Kevin after his first haircut...


Grandma introduces Kevin to chips...

Granny tickles Kevin's cheeks...





Kevin and Ellie coloring...

Ellie put a bow in Kevin's hair one morning and called him Kevina, her baby sister, all day!


About a week after his first birthday, Kevin got his first haircut and learned about 5 new words in one week! Throughout the rest of the month, he's learned a few new words, but he doesn't use many of them often. Dog and Duck are among his favorites!

Da - Dog (He LOVES dogs! He says, "Da, da, da, da!!!")
Du - Duck (He also loves ducks!)
Bu - This was great because he was calling birds "du" for a while!
Hi
Bye
Nana - Banana
Nigh Nigh - Night Night
Eh-Yee - Ellie (he's only said this one a few times - when we went to get Ellie from preschool.
Mo - More

He loves touch and feel books! He also loves the books where you can press the buttons and hear songs.

He learned to scribble and made his first drawing for me. Completely on his own, he opened the marker box, picked up a piece of paper, scribbled on it, and walked to me in the kitchen with a big smile on his face, a marker in one hand and his drawing in the other. So sweet!

He's very into putting items inside bowls. It's cute and fun to watch him try to put large objects into small ones! It's fun to see the wheels turning as he learns that books don't fit in yogurt containers!

He also loves to put on hats! He's often walking around in his cowboy hat or Ellie's big pink Easter bonnet! If he sees a hat, you can bet it will be on his head within seconds!

He still takes two naps a day, and he still needs them both!

He has also figured out how to unscrew the top to my mascara and lip gloss. I dont know how he figured this out, but it can make a pretty big mess!

He started going to "Mother's Day Out" once a week from 9:30 to 2:30. This gives me a chance to go to the doctor or dentist child-free!! I also plan to begin using this time to volunteer at a pregnancy center. That's my goal, but it's been more difficult to implement that I thought it would be. Life is just so busy. I'm working trying to slow things down a bit! We'll see how that goes!

Kevin's First Haircut

Kevin received his first haircut on August 10th! He looks handsome and all grown up. But I prefer the longer hair look, so we'll be letting it grow a little more!

A Mighty Tug!

"Ouch! Ouch! My leg is stuck in my car seat! Ouch! Ouch!!!"

A few seconds later...

"Mommy! I just did a MIGHTY tug and SUDDENLY my leg broke FREE!"

New Neighbors

Our neighbors are truly amazing! On each side, we have two fellow stay-at-home moms with two young children each. A few houses down, we have a family with 3 older children, two of which are babysitters!

The above photos are of Ellie with her new playmate. Ellie and Sophia play several times a week. But Arden and Daniel, don't worry. She still really, really misses you!

Sophia's mom, Pam, and I have been running in the mornings several times a week. Chris and I are just amazed at how welcoming and caring our neighbors have been. We can hardly think of a better situation and never expected for things to work out this perfectly so quickly in our home. Being surrounded by such wonderful families has really made the transition from Stanford so much easier.

But, dont get me wrong, I do miss my Stanford mommy friends. Each of you has a special place in my heart! How I miss all our playground and playdate chats... always challenging each other and searching for ways to become better mothers, wives and friends. You are truly an amazing group of women! Thank you for everything you taught me over those two busy, busy years!! I know I am a better person because of the loving examples you were to me. Sappy, I know! But very, very true!

Ellie as a Loving Sister

Ellie is such a loving big sister. When I give her a cookie or treat in the car, Kevin immediately screams. Then, without any prompting, Ellie gives him a piece. It makes me smile with pride each time.

Today, she said, "I already decided that on this day, I want to do things to help you. I decided that I'm going to have a whole day with no punishments and no bad behavior". I think the favorite thing she helped me do was pick out Kevin's outfit for the day. She was so proud when we put it on him (plaid overalls with an aligator shirt!).

When Kevin falls asleep in the carseat, she immediately says, "Now I can hold his hand, and he won't even cry!" She often sings songs to him while he sleeps. Here is a video of her singing to him in the car after he fell asleep.

Ellie's Generosity

So, after the Monster Tantrum post, I feel the need to post about Ellie's good side as well... She has a big personality to say the least. The same passion that makes her a challenge at times also makes her so much fun and full of love at other times.

About a month ago, Ellie came out of her room one morning with an armful of toys. She said, "I want to give all these things away to the poor. But I dont have anywhere to put them." So, I got the laundry basket (the one we use to transport clean laundry), and she began filling it up. She came out a few minutes later saying she needed another basket. So, I found one. She filled it up as well. I went into her room to find that she had included several of her favorite items - her Clifford dog, her sleeping beauty outfit (the pink princess dress you have all seen before and that she wore daily), two of her fanciest dresses, princess crowns and scepters, etc.

A: "Are you sure you want to give these away? You wont be able to get them back."

E: "Yes, I want the poor to have them. I think they have been wanting some dressups."

A: "Well, why dont you give them these instead (pointing to her Jasmine and Snow White dresses (that she never wears)."

E: "Aww. That would be so sad. Then the poor won't have any dresses that don't itch them."

My 3-year-old is teaching me a lesson in selflessness. I wanted her to keep the Sleeping Beauty dress because I know she loves it. She wanted to give away her favorites so that other children could experience the same joy she finds when she plays with them. She was happy to keep only the dresses that she dislikes and that she thinks are itchy. If that isn't selfless, I dont know what is! She had no ulterior motives. She only wanted to share her favorite dresses with those who are less fortunate.

I knew in my heart that I should foster her desire to generously give away some of her favorite things, but my instincts were for her to keep them. My friend Shannon encouraged me to let her give them away, and so we have!

A few days later, her friend came over to play and wanted to dress up as Sleeping Beauty, but Ellie said, "No, we gave those to the poor. But you can be Jasmine, and I'll be Snow White." After I took off the "itchy" gatherings from the dresses, the girls enjoyed playing dress up!

Ellie chose to give the toys and dresses to the children of a shelter for abused and neglected children. I'd love to post the link to the website, but that would give away our top secret location!!!

I'm still not sure where she got this idea from, but maybe she learned about the poor while at church. Wherever she heard the message, she certainly took it to heart. I was very proud of her generosity and so glad that she reminded me of the true joy of giving.

Preschool and the Monster Tantrum!!!

Ellie started preschool today, and to say she loved it would be an understatement. This is the first time she has ever been to preschool, but she has been so excited that I wasn't concerned about leaving her at all. I should have known it would be a tough day, however, when she woke up a full hour early this morning because "she thought it was time to go to school." She was still tired, but there was no convincing her that she should get more sleep. Getting out of the house was rough because she thought the world was upside down. Everything was terrible - the brush hurt her neck, the milk was too cold, her toast was too hot, Kevin "makes too many dirty diapers", and on and on...

On the way to school, we talked about being nice to new people and listening to the teachers. Out of nowhere...
E: "How does God see us everywhere in the clouds when we can't see him?"
A: "Good question. You should ask him."
E: "Let's say a prayer now and ask Him."

So, we did. And we prayed that Ellie would have a good day and be light to the classroom. I dont know if she was an "angel" while I was gone, but once I arrived it wasn't clear if God had heard our prayer!!!! :-)

We got to school (she was "too tired" to walk to the building - but she did anyway!) and found her classroom. As I was talking with her teacher about what time I should return for the parent meeting, Ellie slipped away and found the aquarium and the bird cage. I said bye to her teacher and the left the room. Oops, I forgot to say bye to Ellie. So, I looked into the room through the window and she was already chatting by the aquarium with another child and one of the teachers. So, Kevin and I left - a little sad, but also very excited for Ellie. I knew she was going to love it.

Two and a half hours later, I arrived to attend the parent meeting. I had assumed the kids would be doing something fun while we had the meeting. But, when I got there, all the other kids were outside playing and about four kids, including Ellie, were in the parent meeting. This is were things really started to go wrong.

All the other kids where quietly sitting with their parents. What well-behaved kids!! Ellie kept coming over asking me to read her a story and she wanted to eat her lunch. I convinced her to go play. But when she did, the other teacher went over to her and told her something. So, she came back to me and started whining and hanging on me again. After leaving the room twice to talk with her and after running out of threats and punishments (already took away TV and no play dates with Sophia today or tomorrow), we left.

Looking back, she really wasn't behaving THAT badly. But she was talking while the teacher was talking and being pretty whiny. Mostly, I just felt bad that she was interrupting, and I was embarrassed because it was obvious I had NO control over her in this situation. I could see that I was not going to win the battle, so I didn't know what else to do.

Well, obviously, Ellie didn't want to leave, but we started walking. The further we got from the classroom, the louder her protests got. So, I stopped to give her another chance.

A: "Are you ready to behave and be quiet while we have the meeting?"
E: "errrr... errrr...i dont like the meeting...errr....errrr."
A: "Ok, let's go."

By the time we got outside, the royal fit had begun. I dont know that I've ever seen her this mad, or anywhere near this mad, before today. Through her screams, she told me she was ready to behave.

A: "Ok, can you tell me that again in normal voice, a quieter voice."
E: "ERRRR... ERRRR... I'm ready to BEHAAAAAAVE... ERRR."
A: "Ok, I guess not. Let's go home. We'll try again next week."

But this is where it gets really challenging. How can I get to the car with Kevin in the stroller and Ellie refusing to walk? I thought about going in to ask someone to watch Kevin while I carried Ellie to the car. No, I dont want to do that, I thought. Then everyone inside the school will know how crazy my kid is and what an ineffective parent I am. Well, it didnt really matter anyway. Those inside the greeting area already knew how little control I had. I guess she was so loud that they could hear her. The nice receptionist came out to help me.

Ellie just grunted at her, too. But it was getting worse. Now, she was swinging her lunch box at me. Fortunately they aren't metal lunchboxes anymore! So, I tried to pick her up, but she started pulling at my face and kicking me. All while this nice lady was outside trying to help me. I'm serious. It was that bad.

So, I picked Ellie up, kicking and screaming and hitting, while the nice lady pushed Kevin in the stroller. I loaded Ellie and Kevin, and apologized over and over to the lady. How embarrassing. She said she's seen it all before. But this was one monster fit. I don't think I've ever seen a kid throw this kind of fit! So, we sat in the car for a while because Ellie is so strong and was fighting me so much that I couldn't get her in buckled into the car seat. She jumped into the front console and screamed that the wind from the air conditioning was scary and the music was too loud and we need to go back to school RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!

She was so angry and mad. I could just see it in her eyes and in the way she was kicking and thrashing and yelling. It reminded me of how I sometimes felt as a kid. I can remember sitting in my room being so mad that I wanted to punch the wall. It was pretty rare, but I still remember that feeling. So, I also felt a little sorry for her. This was the true test of a mother's love because only her mother could feel sorry for her at this moment!

Eventually after about 15 minutes, I was so frustrated and getting scared that she was going to hurt herself or the car with all her thrashing and hitting everything in sight. So, I forced her into the seat and kept reminding her that all this was her choice. But I don't think she cared whose choice it was!

Anyway, about 1 mile down the road she was halfway out of her carseat. So, I pulled over, put her back in, and gave her something to drink. Eventually, she calmed down and told me she wanted to stay at school forever. She had calmed down by the time we got home, but she told me that my "punishment for my choice to punish her is that she is never going to hug me ever again." Thank God for their short memories!

At lunch, we played "Two Goods and a Bad". This is usually a dinnertime game where we pick the two best parts and the one worst part of the day. Her two goods were: 1) Going to school and 2) Coming home from school (WHAT? How is that a good? Isn't that what the huge fit was about???) Her bad was not getting to eat at a restaurant (WHAT??!! What about the huge fit she threw less than 30 minutes earlier????).

As adults, when we're having a tough day, we can say, "Tomorrow is a new day." I guess for kids it's more like, "Next hour is a new hour." I dont know. What a day. It's quiet time for Ellie now, and nap time for Kevin. Needless to say, I need the break right now!!!

"I dream of a church where . . ."

"Fight for the Heart of our King" by Jackie Roese

The link above is an amazing sermon from the first woman to preach at Irving Bible Church (or any other bible church in the area). I hung on every word.

The sermon was inspired when Andy (the pastor) asked church leaders and members to submit their ideas for a church vision. "I dream of a church where . . ." was the inspiration for the ideas submitted.

This church is such an amazing place. They are truly on the cutting edge and always challenging members to serve God to the fullest and love God in new and exciting ways. Anyway, I hope you listen to this sermon. You won't regret it!

We really miss this church!

Cowboy Kevin, Cowgirl Ellie

Oh, the things you'll do once you're back in Texas...

He's going to kill me when he grows up. But I couldnt resist! Below is our family's Western debut...

"Deputy Ellie, there's a rumor goin' 'round that some youngsters been seen theiving blueberries down yonder. I reckon we otta go check it out."

"Yep, ain't no escapin' us now, boys. We caught 'em red-handed. Wait a minute... Are those MY blueberries he's eatin'?"

"Hey, those ARE my blueberries!"

"Didn't your momma ever tell ya not to go around eatin' other people's blueberries!"

"Well, I reckon I can share."

More photos. I couldn't resist!

Mommy's Labor Force

Lately, I've been encouraging the kids to help me clean the house. Ellie earns quarters for clearing the table after meals and helping me pick up around the house. Kevin earns blueberries for sweeping, eating crumbs off the floor, and drinking the bath water - all of which he loves to do!

Yesterday, Ellie surprised me by putting away the princess coloring book and purchasing a dinosaur coloring book from Walmart with 4 of her freshly earned quarters! We have been doing this for about a month now - offering quarters for good behavior, and it works pretty well. But, we also charge quarters for things like whining and yelling in the car. Ellie's favorite purchase thus far has probably been the two gumballs from the gumball machines. What a delight to turn the knob and receive a big sugary treat!