It's all fun and games until......

If you're a parent, you know there are times your kids do things that probably won't have a good ending. But, you give them your warning and let them figure it out. The "figuring it out" part can be tough. On Sunday, Cooper was sitting on the kitchen counter and said "I get down myself." I said OK and backed up. He jumped, hit the hardwood floor pretty hard, ended up flat on his belly and choked out an, "I did it!" Well, he did. Layla and Cooper made up there own game called The Hitting Game. Yup, you know how that ended up.

This is their latest. Cooper stands on the bed, jumps on Layla's back and they run through the house. I'm not sure how her skinny legs haul this 40 pound boy around, but she does. I'll let you know how this one ends.....

The Measure of a Man

When I see my kids held by others or playing with other kids, I realize how physically big they are getting. I think it's that I see them in comparison to another. I had to take a picture of Cooper sitting on Layla's lap because I was really struck with just how tall he's getting. I know I shouldn't be surprised, our kids have always been in the 95th percentile or more for height (sorry Layla, your chances of being a petite girl were gone when God decided to you would be conceived by us)! But, just look at this big boy!

Reviving a Tradition

Here is the fun thing about decorating for Christmas this year....instead of getting it all done inspite of the babies, they are now old enough and help me get it all done. I mean really, truly help. I got the tree up, lit and decorated in no time. When I was growing up, I have fond memories of stringing popcorn and cranberries for our Christmas tree. So, I took a chance that the kids were old enough to give it a try. And....SUCCESS! Friday, with Mama Faye here and Roger Whitaker Christmas CD playing, we strung popcorn and cranberries. I love creating and reliving Christmas traditions! And, the kids are so proud of their work.

Family Fun

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I truly love it. We always get a 4 day weekend, we eat yummy food and hang with family. There is no stress in Thanksgiving. There's no programs, plays, parties, events, massive gift buying, etc. It's all about giving thanks and being with the ones you love.

We were extra blessed this year to host the Kellen side of the family at our home. The cousins had a great time and the 5 oldest cousins just played, played, played! We only heard from them when they were hungry or had a "show" for us to come and watch. They camped out together Wednesday and Thursday night and just enjoyed each other. Louis (9 months) and Ava (4 months) don't know what they were missing, but are sure to be in the mix next year!

Sam, Henry and Layla got to go bird hunting with Dave and Uncle Ben Thursday morning, which was a new experience for Layla. She loves to watch Dave clean birds when he brings them home (I know!) and has been patiently waiting to get in on the action since she was 2. I think she enjoyed it, but was very cold!

This weekend we will go to an ISU game, hang with friends and get Christmas decorations up. 'Tis the season and I love it!

Independence

The way they were....


The way they are...

Something very nice has happened in my house. The change has been so subtle, that I can't even pinpoint when it happened. There is a growing independence among my children and I LIKE IT! Don't get me wrong, I still make mental notes every day of how fast this time is going and I still measure each of their hands against mine when I hold them. And, yes, I still inhale deeply every time they sit on my lap after a bath. I truly treasure these days. But, I don't want to be the mom of little ones forever.

Today I celebrate that I go to the bathroom alone. Did you hear me? ALONE! They can totally get themselves in my truck BY THEMSELVES and BUCKLE THEMSELVES! I shower alone with no interruptions and my kids prefer to play with each other, rather than me, IN A DIFFERENT ROOM THAN WHERE I AM! Here are a few comments I heard over the monitor today while the kids played downstairs.

"Seriously brother, I don't want to wrestle or you'll mess my hair up and then your mom will have to redo it." (YOUR mom???)

"Lal, Cooper no like. You stop. You go time out!"

"Brother, you're not supposed to put that in the toilet." (Yup, independent play time was over when I heard that one!)

A Whistle and a Tie

My Grandma Leona taught me to whistle. She was beautiful, industrious, and always up for the unexpected. It was sitting at her work table in her flower shop when I finally got it. I think I was Layla's age. Layla never met Grandma Leona. Her funeral was the morning Layla was born. But, Layla loves stories about Grandma Leona. And I love telling them, she was one of my favorite people.

Since telling Layla the story of how I learned to whistle, Layla has been working diligently. In the last week, not only has she learned to whistle, she can now whistle songs.

The other skill Layla's has been working on is tying her own shoe laces. Today was the day! She tied her own shoe laces twice. And really, I'm not sure who is more excited...her or me!

"Cannon in the hole!"

Do you notice little phrases and sayings your kids pick-up....but not entirely? Like Layla used to call a hair rubberband a hairberband. I still find myself using the word from time to time. Layla also combines the word annoying and ignoring to make annoring. Cooper, well, he has too many to mention! But soon, the whole family adopts these funny words and sayings.

This summer I noticed Layla doesn't call a cannon ball jump a cannon ball. When she jumps off the side of the pool or dock with her knees tucked up she yells "cannon in the hole!" She calls it a cannon in the hole jump.

Brother has picked this up. No matter what he's jumping off of, including the couch, he plugs his nose with his fingers and yells, "cannon in the hole." Yesterday, Layla's bed was the dock and the two of them were doing cannon in the hole's for an hour.

Another Thirty-Something Birthday

Layla keeps forgetting how old I am (thank you, baby) so she keeps saying "Mommy's thirty-something." I wish she were saying I'm twenty-something, but I had barely married her dad in my twenties and she didn't come along until I was already in my thirties. So yup, she has only known me as thirty-something.

Dave is out of town today, so we celebrated my birthday Saturday with my brother and his family. It was fun to spend time with them and share my cake with my sister-in-law as her birthday was just 1 1/2 weeks before mine. Dave made a great birthday supper for us...grilled steak, crab legs, green beans with brown butter, fettuccine and spinach salad. Darci was right, we had a food hangover Sunday morning. It was worth it!

This morning started with both kids waking me early so they could tell me happy birthday, we stayed in our jammies until 10am watching The Music Man (a new favorite of Layla's), we got a picnic lunch at Trader Joe's and headed to a little lake for a picnic. The highlight for the kids was feeding bread to the fish and geese. The highlight for me is it was 70 degrees! That doesn't happen very often when you have a November birthday and live in Iowa! Thanks family and friends for making this a great birthday!

His First Crush

I've always said that if a 2 year old can have a crush, Copper's would be on Tayia. Tayia is a favorite babysitter and friend of the our family and Cooper always gets a little goosey at the mention of her name or the sight of her sweet face.

Yesterday, however, I think she was replaced. I walked into Layla's room to find Cooper holding a Barbie and passionately telling her, "I love you Barbie." This wasn't a little boy holding a toy he was excited about. This was a little man, serious and in love. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or take it away before he started making out with her!

Retained?

Dave and I have always taken the kids to vote with us. Yup, it's not really the easiest route, but we feel like it's of great value. And here's the interesting thing....Layla remembers voting with me at a church when she was 1 1/2 years old (which I had actually forgotten about since we haven't voted there since) AND, this year she asked me if we were voting for Barack Obama and John McCain again. Proof they are never too young and they are always paying attention!

This year, when Layla asked me why we vote, I explained to her that it's a privilege. She was very perplexed when when I explained to her that there was a time when your skin had to be white and you had to be a boy to vote. She processed on that one for quite some time.

I also explained to her that voting is my chance to decide who gets to be boss. She processed on that one for quite awhile as well and then asked me if we were going to have an election in our family. I decided not to pursue that conversation. It's been a tough week and I doubt I would be retained!

If I were a Professional Blogger....

...I would have long since been fired! Wow, what a crazy last two weeks. The Pumpkin Ranch is officially closed for the season and I'm not exactly sure what to do with myself this week. I'm giving myself little pep talks like, "Yes, you can just sit down on the couch and read the paper while Cooper naps. Do it, do it!" It's been a long time since we've had free time! We truly enjoyed our first year in the pumpkin business and were incredibly blessed with a great crop, amazing staff and CUSTOMERS! We are already making our plans for season 2.