Good-Bye 2009

Which also means good-bye to another year of my kid's lives.....and ours. I have the gray hair to prove it (thank you blonde highlights for covering it up), wrinkles (not so covered up) and creaky joints. Cooper has entered a great stage. He is talking more, understands consequences so he's listening much better and is so funny! I think he maybe the comic relief of this family. Yesterday, he put on Layla's winter hat and ran around the house saying "ahhhhhhhhh." He would not take the hat off and, as long as we kept laughing, he kept running. His favorite new expression is to pump his first in the air and yell, "YES" when he's done something good. He loves to color and "draw" and is so dang cute how he lowers his head so his eyes are right next to his paper. And my all time favorite...the way he grabs my cheeks with both hands and lays a big old kiss on my lips.

It's horribly painful to see this last year of Layla's life come to an end. She has officially moved from toddler to little girl. I am thankful to God for how he has made her and that we get to be her parents. I don't want to be the mom of little kids forever, but I also hate to know that the years that have past will never be again. She's a beautiful, sweet little girl who is so darn intuitive it kind of scares me at times!

On a high note..........Dave and I are enjoying every minute of being a family. God is so good, so gracious, so constant. We pray 2010 holds new adventures and many blessings to all!

Christmas 2009

Christmas is really about 3 things for us.....the birth of our savior, family and good food! Measuring by these three factors, 2009 was a great success. The weather made us change our plans slightly, but didn't really affect us much. Last year we started a tradition of having Christmas Eve morning be our Christmas morning. This gives us a whole day to play with new toys and just be a family. We then go to extended family on the real Christmas Day. This year I made beef tenderloin, shrimp stuffed baked potatoes, citrus and lettuce salad and a white chocolate raspberry torte for Jesus' happy birthday cake. YUMMY!

Our kids woke up on our Christmas morning to find a tent/house/2 tunnel combo in the living room. We filled the tent with their gifts and it was fun watching them haul them out before opening. Cooper freaked out about his barn and tractors and Layla was over the moon for her first American Girl Doll.

We then headed to Ames where we hunkered down for the next two days and celebrated Christmas with the Kellen side of the family at my brother Ben's house. We put together a big puzzle, which brought back great memories. We always worked on puzzles in the winter when I was growing up. Then the big boys decided to make a sledding luge in the front yard, who needs a sledding hill? The kids had to use a ladder to get to the top and spun down the spiral luge with great delight and a wipe-outs. It got more interesting when they broke out the water hose to make it more icy.

It was a great Christmas! We look forward to 3rd annual New Year's Eve party. We didn't set out to make it an annual event, but it has turned into that. This year it's a dinner party with just the adults! We will make prime rib and crab legs, watch the ISU bowl game, and stay up too late!

Stillness

I love the few minutes of stillness that occur each day when our family prays together. Cooper sweetly bows his head and loves to hold hands. He is adamant that no one let go until he is good and ready. Layla's prayer tonight........

"Thank you God for my family. Help us be good. Help Cooper (I'm not sure with what). Thanks for my pointer (a gift from her teachers). Help us do the things we should and love each other."

Amen little girl.

A Daughter's Intuition

There's this thing about my daughter that I find intriguing and frustrating. She always knows what she's talking about and she always has a point. Always. And, she always knows if I'm patronizing her. Always. So, if I don't know what she's talking about or understand what she's asking me, I can never blow her off with an "I don't know." Never. She will keep asking until she can sense that I fully understand her.

Today, while I'm doing about 5 projects all at the same time, she asks me, "What makes 25?" Okay....... So I ask her, "what do you mean?" She asks again, "What makes 25?" Okay...... So I answer, "25?" She quickly asks again, "What makes 25?" My reply? "A 2 and a 5?" And Layla comes back again, "No, what makes 25?"

Alright, I put all 5 projects down so we can get to the bottom of this question. Because I know, this will not stop until she feels we are on the same page. Then it occurs to me, is she talking about addition?

"Layla, are you trying to add things? Like what numbers equal 25? Like if we add them together"

"Yes mom! I've been thinking about what numbers add together and what colors I need to mix together to make purple"

As of today, the foundation of addition has been laid. She also surprised me the other night by counting to 100. Not without help, but she got the concept.

Now as for the color mixing.....I nixed her idea to bring buckets of paint in the house and just start mixing until we got purple.

Our First School Christmas Program

Wow, what a total blast Monday night was! Just before the big blizzard of the week, Layla had her first Christmas concert with her class. She was thrilled to wear something fancy and not plain (ICA wears uniforms of khaki pants and plain shirts, just not very fancy). She was dressed and ready in about 5 minutes as she had been thinking about just what to wear and how she wanted her hair. She is almost entirely in charge of picking her own hairdo and outfits, which is mostly out of control! However, I was pleasantly surprised that she picked something appropriate, although the bow on the top of the head wasn't my favorite! But, it was better than what she first purposed to me, which was bows all the way down the middle of her hair!

The performance was at a local church and when it was time for Layla to go with her class, she felt a bit hesitant. The whole thing was just out of her normal school routine. But, she was brave, she sang LOUD and was so amazed that so many people came to watch and clapped for her(well, her whole class).

Travel Not Advised......

So what did the Handsakers do during the "epic storm of 2009"? We traveled. It started with Daddy driving the last leg of his Kansas trip this morning. He was home from Bethany, MO by 9am. Then, we decided to drive to town for lunch. I mean really, how bad can 15 inches of snow, 40 mph winds and 5 degree temps really make the road?

The highlight of the day for the kids was getting in the tractor with Dave to clear the driveway. And, Layla enjoyed her first bowl of ice cream snow. Two very happy kids!

Now that I'm a stay-at-home mom, the whole idea of a snow day has lost it's thrill!!!! I'm ready to get out and do something tomorrow!

Kellen Cousin Sleep Over

What fun we had this weekend having all 5 Kellen cousins at our house! Sam(6), Henry(5), Layla(4), Oscar(2) and Cooper (1). Here's the honest truth, these kids are easy......except for one....my youngest! The four oldest cousins play together so well. Cooper, well, he was mister destructo. He took their toys, wrestled them if they were on the ground, pushed his way in if he wanted to play and, well, ended up doing a lot of crying out of frustration! He'll get it one of these days.

I laughed listening to Sam, Henry and Layla talk, play and imagine. The biggest difference between Layla and her older, boy cousins. She talks constantly about what they are playing and the boys, they just play! I'm waiting for the day that Sam or Henry tells her it's time for a little less talk and a lot more action.

The funniest conversation........
"Layla, we have a papa whose a dairy farmer" (Henry)
"Yeah, we get to ride in his tractor." (Sam)
"And his skid loader, we get to scoop the cow poop." (Henry)
"You like scooping poop?" (Layla, with nose crinkled up)
"It's stinky." (Henry)
"No it's not, it's the smell of money." (Sam)

A Little Scuffle at School

I picked Layla up from school today, same routine as everyday. I drive up, teacher walks her to the car, she jumps in full of smiles and stories. As I was looking back at Mrs. Hall helping Layla into the back seat, there was a knock on my window. It was Mrs. McGrath. She wanted to let me know that while practicing their songs for their Christmas concert, a little boy hit Layla in the face.......on purpose. I will call this little boy "Johnny". Layla has stories about Johnny and how he "does not listen and is in trouble a lot."

Layla was happy and smiling when she got in the car, so I was curious about this incident. As we pulled away I asked her what happened. She said, "Mom, I was singing my song and 'Johnny' turned around and just hit me. I was like, did he just hit me? And Mrs. McGrath was mad, that's when I knew that yes, he really had hit me." And Layla chuckles. Layla is strong and tends to be a bit bossy at times, but she is very tender hearted. So, I was curious if she cried when she was hit. Her response...

"Well no mom, he didn't whack me, it was just a little hit. It didn't hurt."

I told her that I was proud of her for being so brave. What a great teaching opportunity this has been...for both of us. Inside, I felt like I had been whacked!

Layla reminded me of this great book we have, "How I Pray for My Friends." In the book, one of the ways Erik prays for his friends is when he prays for Todd. Todd can be mean and doesn't always do the right thing at school so Erik prays that Todd obeys and treats others better. So we are now praying for "Johnny". The truth is, when I'm not acting right, I hope others pray for me!

"Mom....Mom....Mom...."

Cooper's latest thing is to call my name when he's about to do something to show-off or something new and dangerous. And he will not stop calling my name until I have both looked at him and verbally acknowledged what he's doing. It goes something like this....

"Mom..Mom"
I look and say, "What buddy?"
He does his trick
I respond, "Cool bud." or "Be careful buddy."

Today, he called me for another reason. A sweet surprise. The first time he called me he was cuddling with sister on the couch, watching Sid the Science Kid. The second time, he was sitting on her lap, at their little table, coloring together. Layla will tell you that Cooper is her best friend, but she will also tell you that he is rough and tough, ruins her things and pulls her hair. They have their moments....both good and bad!

Gratitude

I once heard a pastor say that gratitude is the healthiest human emotion. Simple thought...profound meaning. What if my primary emotion was gratitude? How would that change my day....my life...my family? I wrote that in my Bible the day I heard it. I see it often. I wish I was better at having the attitude of gratitude. But I'm trying. I'm a work in progress. I'm also trying to show and talk about how grateful I am for all of my trials and blessings so that my kids see it. So, to celebrate Thanksgiving, we started a Wall of Thanksgiving in the laundry room. We looked for things to be thankful for all week, wrote them down and taped them up. Here's a picture of some of our thanks.

Blame it on the Droid

There has been a lack of blogging in this house and I'm going to blame it on the Droid. Yes, Dave and I got new phones and figuring out how to use them to their fullest has taken over our lives. So far, I know that my phone can be a level, a metal detector, it know my every move, finds me coupons based on my shopping location, keeps track of my to-do lists for my different gps points, it price shops for me, it reads bar codes, I can talk my text messages instead of typing them, it has google maps/gps with voice directions.....and the list goes on.

So, sweet children of mine, I am taking a break from logging your cute, sweet moments and milestones so I can play on my phone. I know, I know.........

Mentally Challenging Conversations

They sound like this.....

"Mom, when was I two?"
"2 Years ago."
"Was I Cooper's age?"
"No, Cooper is 1."
"So I was 1 when I was Cooper's age?"
"Yes."
"No. What I want to talk to you about is when I was 2. Was that when I was older or younger than Cooper's age."
"You were older."
"Was I always older?"
"Yes, always were and always will be."
"Even when Cooper's Sam's age (6)."
"Yes"
"No, Sam's older than me."
"Darling Child, what do you really want to know here? What's your real question?"
"When I was 2, could I talk?"
"Yes."
"Thanks mom." And Layla goes back to her room to play and, for some reason, I can't remember where I left off on my bank statement I was trying to balance.

Bother or Brother?

Sunday was our last day on the trampoline for the winter. Before we put it away, the kids enjoyed all 15 feet of it in the beautiful 70 degree weather. As Layla was trying to show-off her moves, Cooper kept falling into her.

She eventually just gave up and the two of them just started running around on it. As they did, Layla kept saying, "Cooper, you're my bother."
I laughed, because her mix up was actually a cute play on words. But she kept saying it so I said, "Layla, don't you mean Cooper is your BROTHER?" To which my first born child replied, "Well yes, he is always my brother, but sometimes he is also my BOTHER."

A Very Happy Little Girl.......

Yesterday was THE day Layla has been waiting for. We took her to the mall and yes, she got her ears pierced. Wow, really not a big deal. All the things I had worries about are a non-issue. She got up in the chair, picked her earrings, got them both pierced at the same time, cried for a minute, looked in the mirror and was all smiles. She is great at cleaning them, had no problem sleeping on them, pulling clothes on and off over her head, etc. She is so excited and so proud!

A Very Happy Mama.........

Today is my something-something birthday. What a great weekend Dave and the kids have made it. When Dave came home Friday evening, he sent me to get a manicure. When I returned home, I was greeted by jazz music, candlelight and my 19 month old son in his suit jacket and a towel draped over his forearm. I had entered a five star restaurant, complete with a 19 month old maitre de, a 4 year old server and a very handsome chef. The chef even gifted me with a necklace I had been eyeing at a local art store. What a great birthday! Thank you Dave, Layla and Cooper for making it so special!

Now that I'm 19 Months.......

..........I like to vacuum, sweep and haul groceries into the house for mom. Yes, again, Cooper is the happiest when he's working and contributing to society (hopefully society will still require him to do so as he grows up). He also loves doing forward rolls by himself and is trying to master a backwards roll. He will walk down the stairs by himself, without holding onto to anything, and gets a little offended if you even gesture to help him. He makes the same frustrated, closed mouth sigh/grunt I make when I keep dropping something or can't get a knot out of a shoelace. He is also trying to be much braver when you break his heart by correcting him or taking something away. He cries, but purses his mouth shut and tries really hard to be brave and get over it. He loves, LOVES, L O V E S to dance and gets way too excited about horses, cows, trucks and tractors! And he is, by far, the most stubborn of my children! He is getting so big! And, by the way, letting him vacuum was a BIG mistake! When I took it away to finish the rest of the house, he cried, screamed and was latched onto my legs.......the whole time!

On the Road Again

Layla, Cooper and Mommy spend 1 hour in the car together every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday as we take Layla to school at ICA in Des Moines. I don't love this adventure, but I love the reason I do it and so does Layla. That makes it all worth it. I also love the car conversations. Here was today's......

"The other Ella (she has two in her class) asked me if I wanted her bracelet and I said to her, 'Sweetheart, you keep your bracelet. You need it more than I do.' Mom, I don't know why that Ella thought I needed that bracelet and I don't know why I called her sweetheart. It just seemed appropriate at the time."

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.............she just sounded so grown up that I looked in the rear view mirror to make sure she was still my little 4 year old.

It's a Jolly Holiday???????

Tonight was the night that we took our kids on their first trick or treat adventure. The businesses on the town square host a trick or treat event for little ones from 3:30-6pm, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to get our feet wet. And, well, we did, quite literally. It was cold and began to rain towards the end! But Layla loved it and had a great time.

As you can see, the kids went as Mary Poppins and Burt the chimney sweep. Thank you Miya for sharing your Mary Poppins goods with Layla. She was walking on air in that outfit. She was even trying to talk in a British accent. Cooper, surprisingly, kept his whole outfit on the entire time, but never did push his broom. He was too confused about what was going on, why people looked so strange, and why oh why people kept putting things in his bag (he didn't yet understand what candy was).

Now, as I watch the kids throwing themselves off the steps, jumping from the couch to the chair and running full force into the bathroom wall (giggling the whole time), I am 100% sure the first thing I will do when they go to bed is get rid of the sugar in their trick or treat bags!

Can We Just Hibernate Until Spring?

What a great time we had all summer, playing outside on and with all the fun stuff an acreage allows. Anytime the kids were fussy or fighting, I just took them outside. The fresh air, change of scenery and new activities were always the anecdote. And, for those reasons, I have been dreading the change of weather. Don't get me wrong, we love, LOVE, L O V E fall. But it's the rain, which turns to cold weather and snow, which means we're housebound that I hate! So, we've already had to start getting creative around the Handsaker House. We've built forts with sheets, using pillow cases as sleeping bags, we've taken household items, like the laundry basket, and re purposed them for things like a pretend dog kennel or a baby's bed. We've blown bubbles on the deck, baked, cooked, done clay projects, made jewelry, built farms on mountains (steps) and played endless games of hide and seek (which Cooer is really good at). Here are some pix of our futile attempts to enjoy the great indoors!

A Little Male Influence

Apparently, all Cooper needed to jump start the talking was a little male influence. He likes to point to people in pictures and ask, "Ma?" That is his way of asking, "Whose that?" Today, he pointed to a picture of Papa Dean and asked, "Ma?" I said, "That's Papa." And Cooper said........"Papa." Clear as day. Now he runs up to the picture and says "Papa".

To kill time yesterday while Layla was in school, I took Cooper to the mall where I was happy with endless Starbucks and he was happy with unlimited time in the play area with no other kids. I then took him up to Scheels where they have numerous stuffed birds, elk, moose, deer, etc. He walked around, looking at them in amazement and stillness, breathlessly whispering, "wow....wow.....wow....wow..." And then proceeded to point and say "duck" 1000 times. I guess all the little man needed was some male influence.

He is also now calling Layla La-La. So stinkin' cute!

A Good Weekend

Our weekend was good and restful! As previously posted, my favorite weekend consist of a little rest, a little work, a little family time and a little time with friends. We were able to get it all in. And, best of all for the kids, we carved pumpkins and toasted the seeds. They both loved the toasted seeds, I eventually had to cut them off. Cooper has a little cold, just congestion really. A little coughing here and there and no temp. But, with the whole H1N1 thing, I take his temp like 4 times/day....just to make sure things aren't changing!

The Zip Lock

What a fun weekend we had in Sioux City, IA. One of my cousins on the Holles side got married Friday night and it was a great excuse for the Holles clan to PARTY! The Holles side (my mom's family) is fun and LOUD and likes a good party. We were able to spend Saturday at my Uncle Chuck and Aunt Marguerite's house. If you've met this couple, I need not say anymore. But, if you haven't, this was the aunt and uncle who taught us to play hide-and-seek in the house with all the lights off and every time Aunt Marguerite sees you she greets you as if you are the only person on the planet and she's been anxiously awaiting your arrival for 5 years. They are awesome and they've made their house a wonderful place for their grand kids and all of us big kids too.

Here are Layla and Cooper on the "zip lock", as Layla calls it. It's really a zip line and they both loved it. Dave spotted Cooper all the way, but he didn't really need it. We now have plans to install on of these babies at the Handsaker Ranch this summer. SOOOOOOO FUN!

Happy Hair Day

Layla's letter to learn at school last week was H. Each week they meet (via picture) a new letter person who has fun, physical characteristics. Last week was Mr. H who had Happy Hair. So, on Wednesday, the kids went to school with the happiest hair they could come up with. WHAT JOY FOR LAYLA! Her creative hair do's that she is always telling me about, yet I rarely let her wear in public, came to fruition. She instructed me and I did as I was told. Here is Layla's happy hair.

Seriosuly?

As I was in the car, waiting for Layla after school, there was a group of older kids walking out. These kids all had Dowling High School shirts on, so they were obviously visiting ICA for some reason. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM pulled out some sort of cell phone/blackberry device and were checking it and texting. NONE of them were talking to each other, just walking in groups checking their phones. Seriously?

Here's another one for you.....I was driving in my car and ahead of me was a lady with a disabled symbol on her license plate, a handicap tag in her window, driving, eating Hardees and talking on her phone.

There are so many things I just don't understand.

Preview of 2009 Family Pictures

Amazing that we had these family pictures taken at our house last weekend. Thank goodness we didn't schedule them for this past weekend. We would have been COLD!!! I love the picture of Cooper where he looks like he's posing for gangsta rap CD cover. Can you guess which one I'm referring to?

http://smidts.blogspot.com/2009/10/handsaker-family.html

Layla Rockin' the Mic

What do we do on a Saturday evening for fun in Winterset? Turn off all the lights in the house, get a flashlight out for a spotlight, and let our 4 year old entertain us.

We woke up this morning........

....to this. At least 2 inches of snow. It snowed from 6am-1pm. This wasn't the little dusting they said we would have, that wouldn't accumulate. But, by early afternoon, this was all Uncle Jeremy and Layla could muster up for a snowman. Layla was thrilled!

Ever Wonder What 52 Tons of Rock Looks Like?

Well, when you work for months and neatly stack it, it looks like this. Obviously, we still need to plant the grass and put in the pretty stuff around the house. But, I think we have given up hope of getting that done this fall. And, honestly, that is a relief! This is 52 ton of rock and the rock walls are about 4.5-5 feet tall.

Oh My Foolish Mommy!

Cooper has enjoyed coloring and drawing with crayons for the last few months. Today, I threw caution to the wind and let the boy try the much coveted markers. He did great............until I left the kitchen to check the laundry. Here is what I saw when I returned. A very proud little man.

The Big Cheese!!!!

Every morning when I drop Layla off at school she says, "I wonder who The Big Cheese will be today. I hope it's me!" And, every day, she's come home to report it wasn't her. Being The Big Cheese is an honor in the classroom and it means she gets to be the line leader, teacher's helper, etc. She has been waiting 7 weeks to be the big cheese. It's been a good opportunity for us to talk about patience and being happy for others when good things happen in their lives.

Well, yesterday was finally her day! She was The Big Cheese. And, beacuse they had class pictures and Bible Buddies yesterday, their classroom time was cut short. So, she got to be The Big Cheese again today! I told her God was blessing her for her patience. She assured me that she will be even more patient as she waits for her next turn to be The Big Cheese. She's sure that more patience equals many more days in a row of being The Big Cheese. On the way home she called Daddy to give him every detail. When she was done I asked her if she wanted to call her Grandma's and tell them the big news as well. She said no, as she was sure that they had already heard the news.

Copy Cat

There is something I've recently noticed about Cooper. He is a copy cat. He can do just about anything he sees someone else do. If I work out at home to a exercise video, he will watch me for a few seconds and copy my moves. There is a dance studio on the first floor of our gym. On our way out last night the kids stopped to watch and, sure enough, the boy start plies and piques. It's hilarious. It also comes in handy when teaching him things he really needs to know, like using a real cup and silverware! From a very early age he understood how to get the right shapes into their corresponding openings in his shape block and how any mechanical toy works. He just watches us once and then does it. It will be interesting to see where this skill takes him in life. Hopefully it's not as an Elvis impersonator on America's Got Talent!

18 Months

A few days ago Cooper turned 18 months and we celebrated with an 18 month well check today. This was an easy one.......no shots! When Cooper was about 5 months old he had a shirt that said, "I'm Bringing Chubby Back." Well, he brought it! He was rolly-polly. Now, he's lost most of the chub and he's just solid. He weighed in at 31 pounds and is 33 1/2" long. He has started to take on the look of a little boy, not a baby. It's fun to see, but breaks my heart just a little. I don't want to be a mother of little ones forever, yet I miss every day once it's past.

We have two new additions to our family activities. One is a ride behind trail bike for Layla and a ride behind buggy for Cooper. Both were great second hand finds from someone at our gym. Here are Cooper and Layla trying out the buggy with daddy. They both do well in it, but sis LOVES the trail bike! I'll take pix the next time we're out. Since she's still riding her bike with training wheels I wasn't sure how long she would last on the trail behind bike (it's a bike without the front wheel. Where the front wheel would be, is where it attaches to Dave's bike). The first day out she did 8 miles with Dave and another 3 later in the day as a family. And, when we were done, she was mad we hadn't gone further. I think she likes it so much because she feels like a big girl.

You'd Cry if You Had Pee All OVer Your Face Too!

I'm blessed with good sleepers (Dave included)! So, When Cooper started screaming only 45 minutes into his 3 hour afternoon nap, I knew something must be wrong. I went into his room to find him laying on his back, diaper in hand and pee everywhere. The poor little man, I have no idea what he was up to before I arrived, but the end results did not make for a happy camper. A little cleaning up, new clothes and bedding and he was off to la-la land again.

A few mornings ago he woke up screaming at 6:30am. I thought, wow, this is early, maybe if we give him a few minutes he'll go back to sleep. I could tell by the pitch of the screams that was not going to happen. Dave went to his room to find that he had peed through his clothes, which for a boy means his jammies were wet from the ankles to the armpits, and with his shirt half off. What is up with these crib shenanigans?

"Adam and Eve had only one rule..."

....not to eat the apple from the tree. that was their only rule. They weren't supposed to eat that apple because God hadn't washed it yet. It had mollage (knowledge) on it" -The story of Adam and Eve as told by Layla Handsaker.

Puppy Love

Cooper is doing good without the pacifier, but we have our moments! Driving in the car for more than an hour is torturous! But, his sleep pattern hasn't been altered so I'm thankful for that! It doesn't help that he's cutting 4 teeth right now.

Brother had a great weekend. He rode in the bobcat, on the 4-wheeler and experienced his first litter of puppies. OK, so the puppies were born 4 weeks ago, but this is the first time he's had free reign. We brought the litter of 4 up to the yard for the whole day. We put Layla in charge of them, what a concept! She was busy nurturing and mothering them the whole day! And Cooper, he just laughed and them for hours.

We had a nice weekend at home and ended up doing a ton of work outside today. It was actually nice to check some of that stuff off the list. The boulder walls are complete, the dirt work is complete, now all that is left is for the the pretty stuff. I viewed the walls from the other side of the pond today while mowing and they really do look good. Wow, what a project that has been! We've had a landscaping crew do about 70% of the work, but even at that, Dave has worked so hard! I'm sure no one will be as happy as he when it's all done! I will post before and after pictures some day!!

You've Come a Long Way Baby!

BEFORE

AFTER

Today was the day. I didn't really plan it, we just went for it. After all, Cooper is almost 18 months and it is time for the pacifier addiction to come to an end! So when we woke up I threw all of his pacifiers away...except one, which I cut the tip off. This worked for Layla, but it didn't phase Cooper. He picked it up, put it in his mouth and carried on with life, like nothing was wrong. He spent the first hour walking around, barely holding onto it with his front teeth! Just like a man....he knew something was wrong but chose to ignore it! I'm glad to report his nap went as normal, he's now down for the night with no incident and by the end of the day he chucked the paci with the end cut off. He finally got tired of not being able to keep it in his mouth. You've come a long way baby boy!

Home Again, Home Again....

The four members of our family are now back on Hiatt Apple Trail and all under the same roof. This mother hen is happy! Dave and I had a great 5 days away and the kids did not want to come home! That made me feel so good...seriously...so good that they were somewhere they are loved, spoiled and have a great time. Thank you Mama Faye.

Dave and I made it through Saturday's game....poor, poor Cyclones....poor, poor Cyclone fans! We then took off for Alexandria, MN and RELAXED!!!! What a great few days to sleep, reconnect and have no schedule. We slept 10 hours/night, went and saw 2 movies...IN A MOVIE THEATER, played tennis, hiked, shopped and toured a local winery. I will post pictures, as soon as I get through the 10 loads of laundry, etc, etc!

A Lesson about Hell from a 4 Year OId

While eating lunch together today Layla proceded to give me a lesson on heaven and hell. As she started, I could tell she was trying to recount the lesson her 6 year old friend, Kendall, gave her while we were driving in the car. Kendall knew about heaven, she used the word hell and explained exactly what it is, who the devil is, how he became the devil, etc. She was spot on and she didn't sugar coat a thing! Much of the hell talk was new to Layla, so it intrigued her. Here is her version.......

"God lives in heaven, so does Jesus and well, Mary and all of Jesus depostles. But that's not what I want to talk about. I want to tell you about the bad guy. He used to be in heaven, but he was bad. So Jesus wrestled him right out of heaven and he fell with a big thud right into hazel. Hazel is where you go when you like that bad guy better than Jesus. Hazel is where......what's his name mom? I think it's........the devil. Yes, hazel is where the devil lives."

Now, I don't know where the word hazel came from and when I tried to correct her that, no, you mean hell. She replied......"Um, maybe mom. But, I better ask Kendall. She know for sure."

So, for this occasion I have posted a picture of my two little angels wrestling.

7

Today Dave and I celebrate 7 years of marriage. As I look at our two little ones running around and enjoy this beautiful day, I am thankful. What a blessed life.

A Good Week

It was a good week of landscaping. Our boulder walls are now 90% done. The end is near! Cooper watched the landscaping crew for hours. No kidding.....hours! It made for a nice, quiet few days for mama! He had a great view from this spot in our room as everything was happening about 20 feet below him, including a bobcat. He was in heaven!

Layla painted her own nails this week.....all of them....all by herself. I think she did a pretty good job. This picture was taken after I used a Q-tip on a few spots, but still, she did great! I'm sure you will notice the variety of colors she used. This is just Layla. She loves every color. She has always wanted all different colors used on her nails, she colors with every single crayon in the box and she loves mixing her playdough together to make "beauteous new colors."

Going Good

We had Cooper's appt. on Friday for the hema thing on his shoulder. Honestly, I think it's gotten smaller in the last month. But, Cooper has discovered it which means every time I take his shirt off he's poking and pulling at it! The Dr. we saw suggested just letting it go. He said that over the years of treating these things aggressively, they have learned that, in the long run, it's just best to let them be. And, hopefully, over the next few years, it will dissipate on it's own. I'm very pleased with that recommendation.
I can't tell you how many times I have had this thought in the last week......"we made the right decision!" Taking Layla to Des Moines Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday morning to attend preschool at Iowa Christian Academy is a commitment with a capital "C". It's 35 minutes door to door and although preschool tuition is the same as preschool in Winterset, we will have to start paying full tuition once she starts Kindergarten. Again, it's a commitment. But, her first 5 days of school have been absolute confirmation that it is right for us. She loves going. She loves her teachers and her classmates. I know some of this has to do with the fact that she is a year older and is just more ready for school than she was last year. But mostly, it's because of a great environment. Here are some of the lessons she has brought home over the past week......

"Mommy, did you know my God is alive? He's with me, right here, every day."

"Mommy, it's important that when we make decisions we stop, think and do what the Bible tell us."

And, we're working on her first memory verse this week........"Give thanks to the Lord who made the moon and stars."

The nice part to leaving the house and having 2 1/2 hours to kill 3 days/week is that I have enjoyed my time with Cooper. We walk, browse, drink coffee and just hang out. Here is something I've learned about my son.....he talks. He has more words, expressions and partial phrases than I thought! He loves to say uh-oh, no, all done, hi, and we've all heard him say Layla a few times. He is getting so big. He's even starting to lose his baby chub.

The Mystery of the Missing Underwear

We had a rushed morning getting to church. Mostly because Mommy and Daddy stayed up way too late playing dominoes with friends and we did not want to get going this morning.

As I headed for a shower before church, I gave Layla her clothes and told her to be ready in 10 minutes. She did a great job with very little supervision. But, I had to laugh as she came into the bathroom and asked me if I had seen her jammie shirt, she was trying to find it so she could put her jammies in the laundry. She was looking everywhere before I pointed out the shirt was still on her! Then, in the process of finding her church clothes, she forgot the jammie shirt was still on and put her church shirt on over it.

When we got home from church, Daddy took the kids to the bathroom and to get their clothes changed while I started lunch. After going potty, Layla went to pull her underwear up and couldn't find them. She told Dave, "they must be in my jeans." She looked and no, sure enough, not in her jeans. "Hmmm, did they fall off me and out of my jeans at church?" She wondered out loud. Dave and I had to laugh, picturing this in our minds. Obviously, in the rush to get ready she had forgotten to put underwear on! But Layla is still sure she put them on and is still wondering where her underwear could be.

I love this picture of Layla. I took it a few weeks ago when she yelled from our bedroom, "Mom, get the camera and get in here!" I did and this is what I saw. She explained that she had been working on getting this pose just right and I had to get a picture of it. These are the little things that make me laugh. It's not the pose that cracks me up, it's imagining her, on her own, thinking about this pose, working on it and trying to get it just perfect.

Layla's Quotes of the Day

Today I heard Layla ask Cooper, "What inspires you today Cooper? Are you encouraged?"

At supper I was telling Layla stories about when she was a baby and I asked, "Can you even believe we didn't have Cooper then? What did we do without Cooper?"
Layla replied, "Well, I bet we had a lot more girl days."
And I said, "Yes, I'm sure we did, but we still get t have them, Cooper just goes with Daddy." I then reminded Layla how much we love Cooper and how funny he is.
I asked, "Who would make you laugh if we didn't have Cooper?"

Layla's reply......"Mom, you are plenty of funny for me."

Hmmmm, not sure how I feel about that.

Just an Update

What a week we've had and it's only Tuesday. More than once today I prayed out loud, "Lord, help me through the next 10 minutes." Between poison ivy, birthday, first day at a new school, ear infection, bad reaction to medicine, my work and Dave's work, I'm pooped!

Here are the updates....................
1. Poison ivy looks 70% better. I look forward to being able to shave my right shin for the first time in 3 weeks!
2. Layla enjoyed school and has made new friends. She did have a few tears yesterday, but the only tears today were mine. I think it's going well. ICA is a great environment and Mrs. McGrath is made to teach preschoolers!
3. Cooper's ear infection is not getting better. We started his antibiotic Sunday night and there does not seem to be any relief for him. He is now tugging at the other ear and his tummy is very upset. So, we're off the first med, have to wait 24 hours and will start another. I feel so bad for him, he just wants to lay on me. I cherish snuggling him, but at the same time, it's a challenge to get dressed or pee with 30 pounds attached to the front of me! ............."Lord, help me through the next 10 minutes!"

Layla Faye is....

....sweet, joyful, expressive and today, she is also 4 years old. Layla is very conscientious and obedient. She loves a party! She wants to be the first one there and the last to leave, and, of course, wear something fabulous. Her favorite color changes with the day. Her favorite things are Mary Poppins, Hillsong, Laurie Berkner, cinnamon rolls and when all four of us are together. She enjoys making up her own words and proudly telling me their definition. She also makes up songs and is enjoying her karaoke machine we gave her for her birthday. We fall more in love with her every minute of her life.

Here are pictures of her first day at school. We picked her up after school and took her to lunch to celebrate her birthday as a family. Daddy brought her four red roses and she got to drink orange pop. What a day!