March 29, 2011

Battle Wounds

Boys will be boys

Jack bumped his head really well on Friday. Brian was babysitting but was with Ben and didn't see it happen. And Jack's account is obviously fictional, because it involves leaping from one side of the room to the other in a single bound, as well as a somersault or two.

What we do know is that he somehow slipped and hit his head on the leg of the kitchen table. Hard.

Brian is a wise man and sent a text with a photo to Kyle instead of me, who went home right away without even telling me he was leaving. Before I even knew what was going on, he was pulling back into work. Only after verifying that Jack was okay and didn't need to go to the ER did he tell me what had happened. I took this photo at breakfast this morning, but the bump might have been the biggest I've ever seen on Friday.

Then, while we were playing around in the living room yesterday, Jack tripped and fell into the arm of one of our chairs and was screaming. I literally watched his cheek turn purple right after it happened. It's hard to tell in the picture, but it looks painful.

Their injuries make me want to cry every time. I need to toughen up, because I have a feeling this won't be the last.

March 28, 2011

Valentine's Day . . . a month and a half later

You guys . . . I'm up to FEBRUARY! That means I'm only a month behind on processing my personal photos. Pat me on the back next time you see me.

I asked Crystal to make me these awesome capes for us to give the boys on Valentine's Day. They loved them and often wear them for their daily "races" around the house.

February 2011

February 2011

February 2011

And here are the valentines that we put together for Jack to give to his class. I had seen this idea before done with gumballs, but was really inspired to do it when I saw that Crystal used rubber bouncy balls. They were so easy. So, so easy. The cost was minimal, too . . . about the same price as boxed valentines and candy would have.

I took Jenny's advice and printed them on sticky paper and folded them over the top of the bag so that we wouldn't have to use staples. The back said "From: Jack" but I don't think I took a picture of that side. I'll probably give these away as a printable freebie next Valentine's Day on the LOD blog.


February 2011

March 27, 2011

Bath Lover

Bennett loves bath time. He always has. Jack enjoyed playing in the water, but never got as excited about taking a bath as Ben does. Jack takes mostly showers now, but I don't think Ben will outgrow taking a bath nearly as soon as Jack did.

February, 2011

February 2011

February, 2011

February 2011

March 25, 2011

Building a snowman

I'm just finished processing my January photos, and I wanted to share these for the soap snowman that Jack made for an at-home school project.

It was easy, quick and he really enjoyed it. And because we can build it while sitting in our nice, toasty home, this is the kind of snowman I like to build.

How to build a {soap} snowman

how to build a {soap} snowman

How to build a {soap} snowman

How to build a {soap} snowman

March 24, 2011

My Not-To-Do List

I just finished a book by Shauna Niequest this winter called Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way. There is so much in this book that I could relate to and share, but the parts that my mind always wanders back to are these:
"This winter, I got the kind of tired that you can't recover form, almost like something gets altered on a cellular level, and you begin to fantasize about what it would be like to just not be tired anymore. You don't fantasize about money or men or the Italian Riviera. All you daydream about is not feeling exhausted, about neck muscles that don't throb, about a mind that isn't fogged every single day."
I know exactly what that is. I felt as though she were reading my thoughts. And as I read the next few pages, I couldn't help but feel as if she were speaking directly to me.
"It's fundamental to my understanding of myself for me to be the strong one, the capable one, the busy one, the one who can bail you out, not make a fuss, bring a meal, add a few more things to the list."
Gulp.
"DO EVERYTHING BETTER [is] a super-charged triple threat, capturing in three words the mania of modern life, the anti-spirit, anti-spiritual, soul-shriveling garbage that infects and compromises our lives."
Double gulp.
"She said it's not hard to decide what you want your life to be about. What's hard, she said, is figuring out what you're willing to give up in order to do the things you really care about . . . . Deciding what I wanted wasn't that hard. But deciding what I'm willing to give up for those things is like yoga for your superego, stretching and pushing and ultimately healing that nasty little person inside of you who exists only for what people think."
I think instead of making to-do lists, it might be time for me to start making "things-not-to-do lists." I just don't even know where to begin.

March 14, 2011

Refreshed

I went to the Hearts at Home national conference with friends over the weekend and loved it so much. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to go and I plan on going back. I'll write more about the weekend later, but I was really glad to get home to my boys. Both boys ran fevers over the weekend while I was gone (of course they did) and I called Kyle at one point on my way home, only to hear screaming and chaos in the background because JACK HAD JUST SWALLOWED A DIME. But why was he crying? Because he was worried that he wouldn't get it back.

I feel like the weekend provided the right about of a break and encouragement to re-charge me as a mom. I was able to spend a lot of time with them today and it was so much fun to parent with a refreshed perspective on motherhood.

Kyle took Jack to a basketball game tonight and it was just Bennett and I until his bedtime. We had a really good time. I think he liked not having to compete with Jack for attention or getting talked over all the time.

During his snack, I shot this little video. The video right after it was of him accidentally biting his finger . . . it left marks. It is the saddest thing ever, so I decided NOT to share that one.

Take a look at Ben in all of his cuteness.

I have so many videos that I'd like to share! I just need to get them dumped on to my computer first. They literally go back months and months.

March 6, 2011

Dear Bennett, Months 16 & 17

Dear Ben,

I'm wondering if maybe you'd like to come write this letter, because with the way your verbal skills are multiplying, and the dexterity with which you can operate handheld electronics, it feels as if you're just a few weeks away from being capable of doing so. You speak in garbled words that sound like complete sentences, but usually only contain one or two words that we understand. If we don't get what you're saying, you violently shake your head and say it again. When we finally do interpret your babbles correctly, it's a celebration, complete with flapping arms, bouncing and gleeful exclamations.

January, 2011

You know how to say, "Mama." On occasion, you call me "Mama." But when I instruct you to say, "Say Mama" you always look right at me and clearly say, "Dad-dee!" I can't help but wonder if you know exactly what you're doing and you do it just to drive me crazy.

One of your favorite things to do right is race your brother. You run like a 2-year-old and my guess is that one day you'll be able to hold your own in a race with him pretty well. I'll give the traditional "On your mark, get set, go!" and you two take off running in circles around our house as if it were built to be a track. Sometimes . . . SOMETIMES . . . I'll even race with you guys. As we run, you'll often pump your fists in the air and say, "Go, go, go" which might be the cutest thing I've ever seen. You don't really get that it's a competition, because every time Jack exclaims, "I WIN!" you pump your fists in the air, bounce up and down and say, "Yay!"

January, 2011

In January, you were really sick with bronchitis and fever. I hated seeing you like that . . . struggling to breathe and lethargic. You curled up in my lap, sucking your thumb and just sat there while I held you. I'm not glad you were sick, but I really did enjoy snuggling with you. I know these times will get fewer as you get older.

February, 2011

Your dancing and singing might be my favorite thing about the last few months. I love it when a song you recognize comes on and you start waiving your hands and shaking your bottom. Then you'll just start spinning in circles until you're too dizzy to stand. It makes me a little dizzy just watching you.

January, 2011

You're becoming such a funny little boy. You exclaim "tadaaa" whenever you find something new. You sing along with songs, using words that only you can understand. You blow kisses with smacking noises that can be heard from several rooms away. You pretend to comb our hair and brush our teeth. You brings us plastic cups, instructing us to "dink" and won't be happy until we make fake slurping noises and say thank you.

I love you, Bennett!

Mama