What he's reading

We have some booklet type books at our house. I believe I saved them from when Austin was is first grade, and now Adam is working through them. Mike was having Adam read some of them to him last night. He wanted to make sure that Adam was reading the words and not the pictures, so on one particular page he cover the picture with another one of these booklets. The main word was "goat." I felt very confident that he knew this word. However, he was seeming to struggle. So we encouraged him to sound it out. He got a really confused look on his face. Finally, we asked him what are you reading. He very innocently pointed to the UPC mark on the back of the booklet that covered the picture!

Leave it to Adam to try to find a way to read that! However, I don't think that will be such a great story!

Hibiscus

Aunt Helen, this one is for you. Mom wanted to show the hibiscus that is growing in their backyard.

Beautiful, isn't it?

Adam is 7!

Yesterday was Adam's 7th birthday. We were out of town, so I did not get his birthday post done on the day of his birthday, but we had a fun day at Matt and Lana's. Lana made him some wonder cupcakes (strawberry cupcakes made with pumpkin--easy and yummy). Overall, I think he had a good day!

To follow suit with Austin's birthday post, I'm going to revisit his pregnancy and labor. I'm not sure they will ever find this interesting. But, one day, their future wives may!

When I was pregnant with Adam, I had a much easier pregnancy compared to Austin's. I never had to go on full bed rest with him. I did go to the hospital several times, thinking I was in labor, but they would usually find something that could be corrected with antibiotics (some sort of infection to cause cramping).

Adam a few weeks old

Adam's due date was August 1. In early June my mid-wives became concerned that I may go into preterm labor again. They suggested that I go on what is called modified bed rest. This is sitting, with your feet propped up, and not heavy lifting. I remember feeling like, "how am I going to do this? I have a 23 month old at home!! But, I did it! I closed all the doors that Austin would be able to get into and let him have free reign of the house. I no longer lifted him into his high chair. We made it work. I was very thankful that it was only a few days until Mike was out of school and would be able to take care of Austin for me.

The mid-wives told me that since I had Austin 3 1/2 weeks early, this pregnancy was going to feel a whole lot longer. I did not believe them, until I passed the time when I had Austin. On July 10th, I was able to get off of bed rest. I sort of expected to go into labor right away, like I did with Austin. That did not happen. I remember walking and walking, trying to go into labor. I would walk up the street and back to the house, use the bathroom, get a drink, and go do it all over again. I did that for about an hour every evening. There were days that I truly wondered if I would ever have this baby!

Adam about 3 months

For Austin's labor I had asked for a doula (a service provided by the hospital). I got this wonderful lady to help me through his labor. When I was pre-registering for Adam's, I asked for that service again. They told me that they were running short on doulas (one was on a trip, one on medical leave, etc), and I should not expect that service. I decided to ask a friend of mine if she would be my "doula." She was very honored that I asked and agreed to help me. At that time she was working full time, but was very good about calling me on her way home from work to see if anything was going on.

On Friday, July 25th, she called me on her way home. I was making supper (hot dogs, and macaroni and cheese--I think we had that quite often. I was so focused on "I have to have this baby" I could not think of decent meals!) She asked how I was doing. I told her that I had about 3 contractions all day, I was sure it would not be that day.

Adam about 10 months

After supper, we had some things to take to my parents house. I was starting to have some, what I thought was, braxton hicks. We delivered the stuff and went to Wal-Mart. The "braxton hicks" were getting worse, and I was getting really irritated about it all. As we were leaving Wal-Mart, Mike and Austin were walking to the car. I had to stop and hold onto the post in front of the store. Mike looked back and I told him, "Go on to the car, I'll be there in a second." (at this point you would have thought that I might have had a clue, but...no, I didn't)

We went home, and all I remember from that point on was sitting on the couch, being totally miserable. I remember trying to time this awful pain, but we had 2 digital clocks int he living room and they were 2 minutes different. I remember being frustrated because I could not remember which clock I looked at! During this time, Mom called to tell me that she was going to Lowe's with Dad to get lumber, so Dad could build their tree house or swing set (I forget what they called it) (She was going to watch Austin for us, so she reported her going about quite frequently.) I told her that I did not that was a good idea, maybe she should stay at home. (I think I was starting to realize what was going on) It finally got to the point that I sat on the couch, crying. Austin was standing by me, wiping my tears. At this point, I decided we needed to go to the hospital.

Adam, 15 months Austin,3

I love this picture! I still have it in a frame in my living room.

I needed to call the mid-wives to let them know I was going in. I called, however, that particular day someone forgot to transfer the phones to the answering service. I tried to call my mom, there was no answer there. I tried to call my friend her land line was busy and she would not pick up her cell phone. I could not contact anyone, I had by then decided I just might be in labor, I did not feel good--things were not going well at this point! I decided to call L&D at the hospital, and tell them about the situation. They said to come on in, if I was in labor, they would get someone there. As we were walking out of the house, I got a hold of Mom. She had been in the garage, helping to unload the wood. I told her there was no time for us to bring Austin out, we would take him in with us, and she could meet us there.

Adam, 2

We got to the hospital at about 9:00. When Mom came, she saw one of her good friends who worked in the nursery. Mom said, "maybe you will get to clean up my new grandson." Her friend replied, "No, my shift is over at 11:00. I'm sure I won't get too."

I settled into my room. I was dilated to between 9 and 10cm. They paged the midwife on call. She did not answer. They did it again. Again, she did not answer. The 3rd time they paged her they put in stat. (Turned out she was at a movie, and thought she had time to watch the last 10 minutes. When they put stat, she realized someone was having a baby --NOW!) I called my friend who said she would be with me, and finally go through. I told her to "COME NOW!" The mid-wife on call got there with about 20 minutes to spare, my friend came with 10-15 minutes to spare. At 9:50 Adam Henry joined our family.

Adam,3 Austin, 5

I love this picture, too! This is taken

by my Aunt Dora's flower garden in Glenbush, Saskatchewan.

And my mom's friend did get to clean him up!

Happy birthday, Adam. We love you!!

The Difficulty Of Children...

...according to Austin:

Today Austin and I had lots of time talk at the Dr.'s office. He was explaining the difficulty of children to me.

1 child-easy
2 children-normal
3 children-hard
4 children-crushing
5 children-working out
6 children-impossible
7 children-harder than impossible

After this I asked him how many children he wanted to have once he was married. He said, "Only 1!"

I asked, "What if your wife wants more?"

He said, "I'll say 'NO WAY! It's too hard!"

I hope his view changes by that time. He has a few years to think it over.

I do think it is interesting that he thinks that our family is "normal."

Space Creatures Among Us

The boys are attending VBS this week. The theme is "A Galactic Adventure Like No Other."

They get point for different projects. Today is crazy hat day. They can wear a crazy hat to VBS, but they get extra points for space looking hats.

Mike found some things in our basement that would work for the hats, but the boys decided they wanted to create their own.

After breakfast, I got out all kinds of supplies they might need, and they started to create.

Austin is an astronaut. He even left foil off some places, because that is where he has been hit by something. He has a few dents and dings, apparently.

Adam is a space alien. The antennae in the back is so that he can talk to other aliens.

I enjoyed sitting back and watching them come up with ideas. So much more fun than store bought! Tomorrow is Robot Day-come in foil creations. I think they might get to wear their hats again!

Rings

Adam always gives me something to think about in some new way!

This evening Adam asked me about rings. His question was very vague, so I questioned him about it a little. He pointed to my wedding band. I explained that ring showed that I was married. Not everyone does this, but some people chose to use it as a symbol, to show they are married.

Adam replied, I thought it squeezed blood from your finger so that blood could go to a baby.

Ummmm....No! But, he sure does make me think!

Slip~Slidin Away

Yesterday, we went to the water park! I would have loved to get pictures, but my camera is not waterproof!

We had so much fun! Mike and Austin went off to the tube slides first thing!! Adam and I did some of the indoor slides, and activities. I decided that I was going to let the boys call the shots at the water park. They got to decide where they wanted us to go. After a while, Adam decided he wanted to go outside.

There is one slide outside that I do not like. Adam and I were talking and he said he really liked the one I don't care for. I told him I would not go on it with him. He grabbed a mat (one you have to have to go down the slide) and said, "You wait here mom, I'll be back in a little." And off he went. I watch my dear boy walk to get in line, go up the stairs, and watched him come down-all by himself! I have to realize that my boys are growing up!

After a couple of hours, Mike and I switched boys. It was nice to have to time to play with Austin and see what he enjoyed at the park.

My mother loves this water park! Carol told me that she would go up to the tube slides and announce to the attendant that it may take her a little longer to get on the slide, because she is 67! I wonder how many people announce their ages to the attendants...

When we got home it was almost bedtime, for the boys. They were exhausted! I was too, but I wanted to have some time for me before I went to bed.

We all had a wonderful time slippin, and slidin, and playing in the water. When should we do it again?

He Looks Like Me

Sunday, Mom brought our mail from our church mailbox. In the pile of mail, I found this picture of Adam. It reminded me of me as a child, so I went on a search for a picture of me about this age.

I found one with me and my 2 sisters. I have the same closed lip smile as Adam does in his.

I cropped it to show it better. I think if my hair would have been shorter or Adam's hair was longer, we would look very much alike.

I always said he favored me in his looks, now I have proof! We even smiled similarly at about the same age.

Our Sunday

We have had a wonderful, full of fun, Sunday.

We went to church this morning. What amazed me was after church, at lunch. Adam must have been thinking about what they talked about at church. He asked, "If you are not a Christian you go with the devil, if you are a Christian you go to heaven with God, what happens if you are not a Christian, but then change your mind?" My first thought was, wow!! That is deep! Then I explained to him that as soon as someone decides to become a Christian, God happily accepts them into Heaven.

After lunch, Mom, Carol, her boys, and our family packed a few things and went to Riven Rock.


Austin was happy to find some crayfish. He kept showing them to Mamaw, I think mainly to hear her squeal. Then he would say, "Mamaw, it is only science and nature."


Looking for treasures, mainly crayfish.

Adam, looking under water.

Adam found a sparkly rock. Yet, another treasure.

The boys built a small well for the crayfish. They tried to keep water in it, but is leaked out through the cracks.

Carol had a wonderful container in her car. So, they moved their home into the Rubbermaid box.

Austin was sad to have to say good-bye to the crayfish. He was not bringing this new friend home. We will have to go back a visit.

When we got home we checked our answering machine. A friend from church was going to ask us to lunch, but we lost track of each other after the service. They wondered if we wanted to do supper. I had said that our boys were wanting to go to the new playground in our area. But, a picnic would be a lot of fun. They said they would get the pizza, I brought fruit and drink. We headed out.

Adam took a picture of the playground.

They had a small trail around the play area. We had brought our bikes, and the boys made a few laps.

Austin relaxing in one of the hammocks.

Adam stepping on one of the play areas.

Adam called this "the trickster." They had some other things to step on (like in the picture) and they were solid. The one he is on, wobbled. So, that made it "the Trickster."

We had a wonderful, fun day! The weather was great for all these outdoor activities.

11 Years Ago...

11 years ago today I did not...
~Say good-bye to my mother and father in-law before 7am.

~Sneak to my room to read while the boys played with Lego's.

~Clean up muddy boys after they had a mud fight.

~Take the boys to the tennis court near our house to hit balls. (Austin played more of racquetball, and Adam played more of baseball--but we had fun!)

~Try to think of a way to lift my pumpkins off the ground (found that bricks work great).

~I did not think, "Oh, I forgot to give Austin his allergy medicine before bed, I better try to do that in the morning."

However, these are things that I did today.

11 years ago...


Mike and I were young and in love (still in love, not quite as young). We were happily married at 1 in the afternoon. Had supper at my parents with Mike's parents and some of my parents friends that helped out with the wedding. Then we all came to our house and we opened our gifts. Then Mike and I went on our way.

Mike and I had no idea on our wedding day what adventures we would have in the first 11 years. We have enjoyed the good adventures and, together, we have gotten through the no so good adventures.

We are older, wiser, and looking forward to the adventures in the next 11 years (and more).

Eyelashes

The boys are having swimming lessons this week. They are enjoying them and really working hard on their skills. They both love to wear goggles while swimming.

I have known for years that Adam has REALLY long, and might I say beautiful, eyelashes. I have gotten used to people commenting about them. When he was younger, and I would take him shopping with me, women would always stop me to talk about these lashes. They would say, "If I had lashes like that, I wouldn't have to wear mascara!" So, when his swimming teacher commented about his lashes I wasn't surprised.

I know he has these long eyelashes, and I know he loves to wear goggles. But, I have never really looked at him as he is wearing the goggles. After his teacher said something the other day, I did take a look. His eyelashes are so long that they do not move freely behind the goggles. They are smashed in there, and quite frankly, I'm not sure how well he sees behind the goggles, and the mess of eyelashes.

He has never complained about this, but he has never known any different.

Austin's Time At Camp

Austin spent Wednesday through Friday last week at camp. He has been looking forward to this for some already. The campers were able to choose a cabin mate that they would like to be with. Austin and Shannon, his cousin, signed up together.

Once we got there and got signed in, we found his cabin. It located near the dining area, near the tether ball, near the climbing wall, and near the ga-ga court--really it was in the middle of everything, very convenient for the boys. We went in the cabin, he chose his bunk and we set up his sleeping bag.

Then he was off to play!

Somehow, Carol got them to stop long enough for a picture!

I did not sleep the best while Austin was at camp. I would wake up and wonder if he was cold (there were some cold nights! One night it got to 48 degrees-brrrrrr)

Friday came, and Carol and I rode together to get our boys. There was a program, so we met them were the program was going to be. When his cabin walked in, this is the Austin I saw-

He matured quite a bit over the few at camp! They had a "carnival" Friday morning. Face painting was one of the activities. Almost everyone had a beard-even some girls!

At the program they sang some of the songs they had been singing while at camp. There were several that I remember singing at camp as a child. Austin thought that was amazing that I knew some of the songs, and they sang them "back then."

One of the first things I noticed about Austin, was that he was wearing the same clothes I had taken him in on Wednesday. He did not change clothes while there. He could not find the bags of clothes that I packed for him. I had gone as far as to pack a gallon size Ziploc bag with clean clothes, socks, and underwear for each day, plus an extra--just in case. Oh well, we had clean clothes for this week!

Austin told me, one day they hiked, and had a picnic lunch--I'm not sure where they hiked to or what the bathroom was exactly like there. Austin needed to use the bathroom. When he got there he asked his friend what was on the seat. His friend said he thought it was a rope. Nope--It was a SNAKE! I think Austin handled that better than I would have!

We then went back to the cabin to gather their things. Carol got a picture of the boys and their counselors.

Both Counselors were named Mike. However, the one on the left had the nickname of Biscuit. I guess that made it easier to tell them apart, if nothing else.

Adam missed Austin! He would ask, "When is Austin coming home?"

He made him this card, probably before Austin even got to camp on Wednesday.

Austin had a great time! He is already talking about next year. He wants to do the 1/2 week again. He is afraid he will miss me if he does a full week. I know I would miss him!

Boy Milk Or Girl Milk

We are having a very hot, very dry summer. We have some pumpkins planted in our backyard. They seem to be doing well, but with the hot and the dry, I worry that they might not get watered enough. Last night as I was laying in bed, I thought, " I know! I'll take empty milk containers, fill them with water, and poke a hole in the bottom. Then place it by the pumpkin plants. That way they will continually get a little bit of water!

This morning, Adam and I decided we would do this. I told Adam to go out to the recycling bin and get some milk containers (gallon size). (Let me just say here that I do not always buy my milk at the same store. Some stores have different color lids than others) Adam came back into the house and held out a milk jug with a blue lid, and asked, "Did the milk that was in here come from a boy cow..." then he held out a jug with a pink lid, and continued, "...and the milk in here from a girl cow?" I chuckled and explained that all milk comes from girl cows.

He is a city boy--no question!

Adam's tooth

Adam's tooth has become more and more wiggly! Often as I would see him, I would ask, "How's the tooth coming?" (Austin has had 2 adult teeth come up behind the loose baby tooth. I like to avoid that if I can.)

We have recently been trying to shoot the tooth out with a Nerf gun. Somehow, that did not work for this tooth. The floss, no matter how tightly it was tied, would slip off. Adam would be there trying to shoot it out, and suddenly say, "I'm shy" I think he meant I'm nervous. But, still cute!

This morning, I was going to the kitchen and saw him on the couch. As I walked by I asked, "How's the tooth?" Then he wanted me to come and check it out. It was barely hanging on. I told him, "I bet we could get the tooth out without much trouble." Just as I said that, the tooth fell into his lip!


Now, we have to make sure that the tooth fairy has gone to the bank and didn't blow all her money on the July 4th celebrations!

July 4th

This year we celebrated July 4th on the 3rd. When the 4th falls on a Sunday, sometimes they do the festivities on the 3rd.

There were some activities that sounded like fun downtown, so we went to check it out.

They had a parade. "Uncle Sam" was handing out flags. Ironically, there were about 4 "Uncle Sam's" at the parade.


The one that tickled Austin and me the most was the one on roller blades. Somehow, I have NEVER thought of Uncle Sam roller blading!

After the parade we stopped at Jess' for some supper. They put us in the back room, which was probably a good idea--we had 7 children and 3 adults.

They had some rides. Austin wanted to do the climbing wall, but we agreed that the "cow wagon" ride was a better choice.

Karen was gracious enough to buy some cotton candy. When your are celebrating the 4th, there is nothing like fluffy sugar to top of the evening!!

We had some more time to waste until the fireworks, sooooo.....

Someone had a great idea to go to....

Kline's and get some ice cream.

Hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, cotton candy, and ice cream. Sound healthy enough??

We walked around a bit until is was close to firework time. While we waited, Adam rested. It was WAY past his bedtime. He almost fell asleep!

We had a wonderful evening celebrating the 4th on the 3rd. What shall we do tonight?

My Favorite Phrase, For Today

I have decided that we are doing a whole house cleaning!! My kitchen is a disaster from re-doing the floor, and Austin just came home from camp-another mess. To add to all this, I just found out that my in-laws are coming for a visit next week. I am cleaning!!

This morning, I was working in Adam's room. When I would find something that he no longer uses, I would ask, "What do you want to do with this?" His response, my favorite phrase, "Give it to Grace!" and sometimes it is shortened to "Grace!"

As my boys grow out of things, I always pass them through Lana, my sister, to see if there is anything she wants for Grace, my niece, or any future child. My boys know that this is the process, so when they are done with something, it goes to Grace.

They have even gone as far as to say that about some boys items (like swimming trunks). I do offer them to Lana, but that is only in the case that a boy may follow Grace.

Lana, be warned!! I am in a cleaning mood, and my boys are being generous. I am working on bag #2 for today, already--and it's not even 9:00! :)

On Thing Leads To Another

A few months ago, Mom came over and was helping me do some cleaning. She pointed out some areas that seemed concerning about my refrigerator. My refrigerator does have some age on it. Several years ago, I called the company to ask them a question, and they said that it was already several years out of it life expectancy, at that point. I had been waiting for my fridge to die, and that just was not seeming to happen. I talked to Mike, and we decided to look into getting a new refrigerator.

We went on a date and the main focus was....Refrigerator shopping!! I thought that I had a pretty normal size refrigerator, however I soon discovered that out of the 3 places we went to, to look, we had a choice of 2. The 1 I did not like at all, the other I could clearly look over. I think it came to the bridge of my nose--not a top choice. Apparently, when our house was built, they put in fridges that were only slightly bigger than a dorm fridge (might be a slight exaggeration, but I was frustrated!!)

I found another place that sold appliances, and they said they could order one for us that would fit, I liked the layout, and it had all the factors that we wanted. I was happy.

Then I got to thinking. The guys are going to install this for us. I do not want to move the fridge in a year or so, to re-do the floor. (We have had a problem with our ice maker since we moved here 11 years ago. I don't want to move the fridge for fear that something may come undone and we would be back to the same problem!) So, again, I talked to Mike and we decided to take care of the flooring problem.

We went and picked out the new flooring.


Wednesday, Mike and Dad, (I helped a little) took up the old...


Then they started to put down the new...

I think I looks great. I am anxious to wash, and get rid of some of the sticky spots. Mike needs to do under the fridge today, then next week we can have the fridge delivered.

I wonder what else this could lead to.

One Year Ago Today....

....I started blogging!

At that time, I was enjoying reading my sister's blog, my friend, Davene's blog, and a few others that I had come across, along the way. I was not thinking of starting one for myself. It seemed that they had so many interesting things to write, what on earth would I write about??

Davene, had made several suggestions that I should start one. I would always think, "yeah, yeah..." Then when I decided to give it a try, I had to come up with a name. Lana got really excited about this. I remember her calling me, and having all sorts of names that she would run by me. I would nix them all. It would not be too long, and she was calling me with some new suggestions. Then I suggested something like, "The Joys Of My Boys." But then I thought better of that because I wasn't sure that all my posts would be about joys. That is when I came up with "Moments With My Boys." That can pretty much cover anything!

Now, I wondered, "What am I going to write about. Just because I have a blog set up, doesn't mean that interesting things are going to happen." I don't know anything overly interesting has happened over the past year, but I have found this to be a great way to document little moments of my boys lives. I had been journaling before, but would only write about once a month... if I remembered. I think a lot of little moments were lost while I was doing that. This way I document what is going on, and I do it more regularly. Often, I think, nobody will find this post interesting. But, it may be something that their future wives will enjoy one day.

So, one year, and 208 posts later, I am enjoying this process.