Tag! Megan, Krista, Trina, Sonya, Taran, Katie and Nicole

I've been Tagged for a fun new game by my friend Carly!

Here is what you do:
1. Open your pictures folder (or Picasa)
2. Go to the 4th folder
3. Open the folder and pick out the 4th picture
4. Once you find that picture, share the picture and what it means to you or what is going on in the picture.

I opened Picassa, and this video is in my 4th folder, it is the 3rd video...apparently, this folder only contains these 3 videos (which I never remember seeing, FUN!) in there, so I went with it with no #4 to choose from. Sorry...I realize it is LONG and repetitive, but in keeping with the game, I will say how excited I was to watch the first part of the video (before all the photos started repeating!). What fun memories!!

The date on this is December 24, 2005. (We celebrate Christmas with Jeff's family on Christmas Eve). I can't believe how little Ryan is -6 days shy of turning 1- and that Julia was "nothing" at this point in our lives! How time changes things so quickly! And how blessed we are!

I thought this night was the first time Ryan jumped out of his crib -- he was SO EXCITED about a Thomas the Train pop-up tent that Aunt Stacy had given him he jumped right out (didn't get hurt!) to try and get back downstairs to it, and we thought our lives had changed forever. But I see from the photos this is the year she gave him "potty Elmo" and "sick Elmo", so we must have had one more year of bliss before the dreadful jumping and climbing to 'freedom' began! =)

Just hearing this music is putting me in a Christmas-ey mood!

I tag: Megan, Krista, Trina, Sonya, Taran, Katie and Nicole!

Jeep Drivin' With Grandma

Today the kids spent the afternoon with Grandma. Julia slept most of the time, but the time she was awake was filled with FUN!

Dance Party

Look at that little joyful smirk!

Tonight before dinner we had a dance party...this is where we put on music and all dance. The kids LOVE it. Sometimes, we even pull out the microphones, as we did tonight.

Julia belting out her solo.

My little star.

I LOVE this game!After dinner we were going to head to the library and exchange out our books. Note I said WERE. I asked the kids to put on their shoes, and Julia grabbed these boots and took off running. I found her in the foyer attempting to put them on...which she did get one...on the wrong foot, but great effort on her part. =) However, she made quite a big blowout in her diaper sitting here, and we ended up in the bathtub instead of the library. Oh well. They are clean now, and got to "go swimming" tonight, so no one is complaining. HA.

Here are some Ry-isms from today:
Ry to Julia: "Baby! Peace and quiet, PLEASE!"

Ry adds on to our dinner prayer:
Me: "...Amen."
Ry: "And please we would like a Geotrax set." (Because Santa is now up there with God in his head?)

Julia: "Aaaatter, please!" (water)
I knock over a baby stroller on my way to fill up her glass.
Ryan: "Uhh, ohhh! We need to call the policeman!"

Ryan: "Mommy, what happens if your car has an accident?"
Me: "Sometimes it can be fixed if it is a little accident, and sometimes you have to get a new car if it is a big accident."
Ry: "Because your car is broken?"
Me: "That's right."
Ry: "And then it falls off a cliff?"

Um...I think something is wrong with the camera!! This was not our special music video effects! =)

Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes

My Cup Runneth Over

Oh my...I am such a happy, happy, joyful Mommy right now. Jeff just told Ryan that I would be going out of town this weekend for a trip and that he and Julia and Daddy were going to have some fun. Ry very hesitantly said, "No." And then nothing more. So I talked a little bit to him saying I was going with Aunt Krista and Aunt Amy to Glammie/Papa's lake house. He pauses and says, "But Mommy, don't go. We like you." Of course, I then gave him about the biggest hug. The kind your grandma used to give you when you were a kid and wondered when you could come up for air. =)

Defiance

Julia is just waking up from her nap (early. ugh!) and here is what she is laying in her crib saying over and over.

"No, Mommy. No! No, Mommy. No! Hi, Daddy. Ohh, Daddy. No, Mommy. No!"

That same line. Over. And over. And over again. Further proof our girl IS a daddy's girl!

Give Thanks

Ever have those days where your kids are making you crazy? Ours started like that. Mine were both up at 7:45 this morning, and by 9am I was thinking it was going to be a L-O-N-G day! I had gotten nothing done from my to-do list and Julia was hanging all over my leg. So, regroup..attitude adjustment, and remind myself they are a blessing, and it is a blessing I am able to be here with them..in my jammies, and not stuck in some office...that they are my priority, and not that ever growing "to do" list! Besides, I can put the laundry away later..it's been hanging out 24 hours already, what's another few!?! =)

After breakfast the kids drag in the bin of train pieces and dump ever single bizillion piece in there on the floor as Ryan declares "We are going to build a VERY BIG, VERY COOL set, Mommy!" I bite my tongue and refrain from saying what I am thinking, "Yes, and you will be picking up that very big, very cool set when you are finished playing, as well!" Because, really, who could squeltch this enthausiasm..just look at their sweet happy (and dirty..yes, they have been wearing these jammies for the last 48 hours!! Yesterday, also a jammie day. Which I did question my mother about sending Ry to DQ with Papa dressed like this and she thought that it was a sweatsuit. I am not sure if she was serious or being very kind. Oh well. No harm done, the next laundry load will be that much lighter!)

Attitude adjustment: This is not a mess waiting to be cleaned up. This, here, is what it looks like when children have a very fun creative morning.

Yes, I might have gone off the deep end with the "happy attitude". This IS a full bottle of glue Julia is using...washable. I did check that out. So hopefully, it will wash out of her hair easily. =) I drew the line at giving her the scissors. A mom has to have her standards, ya know? =)
See the book? This is one we got from the library last week and it had a fun, easy craft on how to make a turkey tracing your child's hands (for the feathers) and feet (for the turkey's body). Anyways, we spent a chunck of our morning tracing body parts. Ry said, "This is fun!! This tickles, Mommy!" (That was the pen as I traced his feet). They were having fun, and I felt like we were accomplishing something....our Thanksgiving mantle decor...

TaaaDaaa. The turkey on the left is made with Julia's hands/feet, and the one on the right is Ry's. The banner reads "Give Thanks."

Happy Veteran's Day

Today Daddy had the day off work, and the kids (and me!) LOVED having him around!!

(Thank you Veterans for your service!)
Jeff plays this game where he puts the kids on his back and then pretends like he can't find them, and he spins all around looking for them. They think it is just hysterical. (And it is pretty funny to watch, too...where is the video camera when I need it?!)

Daddy: "Where is baby??"
Ry: "Right there!!!"

Look how excited Ry and Julia are that Daddy has finally "found" her!!!

Now for Ry's turn!!

Late this morning we went to Glammie and Papa's house and visited one of our friends, Jerri Ross, who was visiting from Jackson, Mississippi. Ry stayed the afternoon there, and enjoyed a little "boys afternoon out" with Papa at Dairy Queen, where he told me "Papa bought me chocolate ice cream". (As if I couldn't tell from the leftovers on his face!) and he also told me "I dropped my spoon, so Papa gave me his." I enjoyed the afternoon with a little salon visit while Julia napped at home and Jeff worked on a little (ok, actually a BUNCH of) paperwork here.

Ry and Tyler checking out conservative talk radio at a young age!

..And some sweet cousin snuggles!

Tonight we had family Little Ceasar's Pizza night (did you know this was voted America's Best Value?..or so says the pizza box top!) and Ryan declared, "I like this pizza. This is my favorite. I'd like some more." And then a few minutes later he said "Baby, you need to take a nap. It is dark out." to which she screamed, "NO!" and pointed an angry finger at him.

Other Ry-isms from today:
Jeff: "Look, Ry, the leaves fell off our bushes. Fall is here."
Ry: "Ohhhh, Let me see!!"
(Jeff holds Ry up to look out the window).
Ry: "Ohhh! No! We need to call the policemen!!" (I'm not sure why?? Does he think the leaves have been stolen??)

And then when Julia dumps the ENTIRE bin of crayons out on the kitchen table.
"Whoa, baby! It's time to clean up, silly goose!"

Girlfriend Time!

Our friend from high school, Amanda, now lives in Florida but returns "home" about every 6 weeks, which makes for a great reason to get together! This Saturday night consisted of dinner out, some shopping and then hanging at my house. What more could a girl ask for?! Here is a pic of myself, Emily and Amanda. (Happy birthday, Amanda!)

Emily, Me and Katie. I'm so thankful for these girls!

Sunday afternoon I brought Ryan to Cole's birthday party. His friends from preschool were there, and he had a blast. Running around. With friends. Thomas the Train theme. Eating cake. What more could you want at age 3? (or 30!?).

This morning I had tennis and then Ry had his gymnastics at the Y. The kids were so tired (and me!...we had a late Sunday night at church and grandma/papas house) afterwards, so we came home, despite Ryan's pleas of "We need lunch, Mommy. Let's go to the Donalds!" (meaning McDonalds), and I put both of them down for a nap by 12:45. It was SO NICE to have the afternoon "off" to actually tackle some of my ever-growing 'to-do' list.

Gym Time!

Friday our Mom&Me group rented the gymnastics room at the YMCA. This is probably one of our favorite outings. The kids get to run and run and bounce without hearing "be careful!" or "we do not jump on the furniture!" It is usually a great time for all. This day was no exception.

Julia enjoys climbing in and out of the foam block pit. Humm..how could I recreate this at home?! Ryan has already discovered if he takes all the pillows from the bedrooms upstairs he can pile them up nearly as high as the doorway goes in our bedroom and then crash through...sorta similiar..just more danger! Augh! =)

I am "behind" in blogging some..we have had a fun weekend. I am not quite sure what happened to me..I left the house most of the weekend without the camera (gasp!). It was one of those weekends where we had so much happening that in order to "simplify" I thought leaving one thing at home (the camera) would make life easier..but I missed it, for sure! So thanks to Taran, Krista and Trina for sending me pics from this event!

Friday night Jeff and I had "date night" at Theresa and Mike's wedding. (Thanks Uncle Jeff and Aunt Amy for babysitting!) It was nice to get out and see some friends we don't get to see too often...and I particularly enjoyed not filling up a single sippy cup during dinnertime. HA.

Ry-isms

These are some recent conversations with Ryan:

Ry: "We go to the circus soon, Mommy?"
Me: "Soon, Ry. In about 15 minutes we will leave."
Ry: "But Mommy, it is DARK out! We need to bring a flashlight. We might need new batteries."

Ry: "May I pick one?" (Referring to a piece of candy out of a container)
Me: "After dinner."
Ry: "But I don't want to eat dinner. I don't want to. I don't like dinner. Only lunch."

Ry: (bows his head to pray) "Dear Jesus, thanks for the food. And please help Jesus to get better. Amen."

Ry: I'm a rockstar! Bamm ,bamm!

The Greatest Show On Earth! Circus time.

Tonight our family had a great time going to the circus! We ended up having amazing seats (12th row center circle!) and the kids both thought the whole thing was fantastic.

These brothers did some pretty amazing stunts, including riding unicycles across these ropes.

And another favorite, the zebras!

These gymnasts worried little Julia. She kept pointing to them saying "Get down! Get down!" as if she were protecting them from an accident waiting to happen.

This was one of my favorite acts (although the pics just do not do it justice!). The guys on the left jumped on the board and the guy on the right was tossed up in the air, did a flip and landed on the stack of guys to the far right. They did several variations of this, including one that was 5 men tall! It was really unbelievable!

The tiger act was pretty amazing. Ry thought it was cool that one of the tigers wasn't listening and started a cat fight, so he was sent back to his cage during the performance.

The elephants were probably Julia's favorite.

Julia is intrigued by those elephants! She even stopped eating her pretzel when they came out!

Ry's sweet little face looked like this most every time I looked over at him. This for sure will need to become a yearly outing for our family!

Silly Elephant Daddy!

This morning at breakfast we reminded the kids we were going to the circus tonight. Daddy even did a great impression of an elephant, with very realistic sounds and all. Too bad I didn't have the video camera around...that one would have made some great blackmail. I bet 5 years ago if I had told Jeff he'd be walking around the breakfast table as an elephant he would have never believed me..augh, the joys of parenthood! =)

Ry does his best impression of the elephant sound too.

And, of course, Julia never wants to miss out on the action!

Thankful Thursday

Julia's teacher sent home the November newsletter for her classroom. I thought it was a sweet idea she wrote just why she is thankful for each of the 8 kiddos in the room.

"This month usually wells up within us reminders of how thankful we are for God's daily blessings. He is so good to us, and we often take all that He gives us and does for us for granted. In this spirit of renewed thankfulness, I would like to share with you a few reasons I am SO thankful for your little ones.........I am thankful for Julia because she is the sweet mother of the bunch; all 16 baby dolls in our room would be hungry and lonely if not for her.....Be thankful for the precious blessing of our children. Every one of them is such a gift."

And something I think is funny: "And finally, I am thankful for Maggie because she is the class "lover"; she is constantly giving hugs and head-pats to each of the other children."

You know who little Maggie gives head pats to? Julia, who constantly thinks Maggie is going after her hairbow and tries to take her out! "NO!" she screams! =) hehee. That's our little sweet mother!

What we've been up to Wednesday

Building "tall towers" with some cans - who needs blocks?! (Warning: these can hurt or scare baby sisters when they crash to the ground). =)

And then the tractors are called in to clean up the rubble.

We've been working on writing our name. Ry is doing well with the letter "R". Julia enjoys this time because she loves to color these days. I just must keep the markers away from her - she enjoys writing on her hands and high chair for some reason!?

I was bummed still this morning with the election results both for the presidential race and local results, so I decided to take the kids outside to enjoy probably the last day of this fantastic weather and to try and put things into perspective. (Worry does not change anything!). So we had a very nice walk to the library singing "Here is Thumbkin" about a gizillion times, but for some reason it was sweet every time and never annoying. Ry was trying to teach the words to Julia, and as she (of course!) got them wrong, he would say "No, silly baby!" and correct the words for her.
We returned our 30something books to the library (yes, we brought a stroller to lug these along!) and got some new ones for this week. All was great until about the last half-mile from home Julia had a meltdown. I really am not sure why, but it was not pretty. She didn't want to ride in the stroller, and she didn't want to walk. And I was just as stubborn as she was throwing her fit about not carrying her the rest of the way home, which she was insisting! (Hello, backpain!?!) About this time, Ry decided he was going to start to RUN for home. So he is way ahead of us, as I am struggling to strap a very unhappy Julia into the stroller and run after him. One of our very kind neighbors was driving down the street witnessed all this and offered to help..I almost took her up on it..it was getting to that desperate point!) I think we all got our exercise. Thankfully, this tantrum did not last long, and we ended our walk home on a "good" note!