Way to Witness!

Our town offers fun little inexpensive hour or so classes at the public school for kids in the summer so I always sign the kids up for a few.  They enjoyed painting these figurines and even Julia could go!  When I arrived to pick the kids up Thomas announced "Mommy!  I made the Pope!"  The two instructors were very amused.  I think it looks like a pope hat too.
Not sure what's up with the funny faces on all the figurines.
 
Julia made a pirate.

 And Samuel made a farmer.  He says the farmer is sad because his crops aren't growing.

 Obviously they didn't have any help at all.....

What Philip's Been up to

Running around stark naked or half clothed.  Because that's the only way he's potty trained.  And I'm okay with that.  (He is my fourth you know.)  I'm just waiting for someone off the highway to stop by to see what kind of weird mother I am who lets her kid run around the yard naked every day.  He hasn't burned his buns yet!  It may be coming to an end though.  After two days of Philip walking strutting down the hall from the boys' room to the bathroom, peeing and grinning the whole way I'm thinking it's time to work on how to pull your pants up and down...

Is it called skinny dipping if you're playing in the sprinkler?

 Pretty sure he's naked under that tray...

Nope, no pants here either.

 

Here he is, naked of course, enjoying a homemade oatmeal creme pie.  Yummy.  A little too sugary for the 10 week pregnant mommy, but if you're not pregnant I'm sure you'd think they're delicious. 

Taking the Plunge

Samuel went off the diving board for the first time at swimming lessons last week.  He likes it, but keeps trying to leap as far as he can and then ends up doing belly flops.

 

It hasn't deterred him from jumping again though!  He may have already jumped off the board more times in his life than I have in mine!  (Let's just say none of my pool-loving fish got their love of water from me...)

The Ups and Downs of 4

I can't say that four is my favorite age.  In fact it's one of my least favorite.  All the mood swings and tantrums because "I want to do it my self-but it's not working like I want it too!"  Ug.
Julia is right in the middle of this lovely age.  Able to crumple to the floor in a wailing heap of despair at the sight of a small pile of corn on her dinner plate.  The up side of four is that they say hilarious things that almost make up for the tantrums.  Here are a few gems from the last week or so:
J:  Mommy, your earrings are so beautiful, can I have earrings like yours when I grow up?
M: Sure.
J:  Mommy you're so beautiful with your earrings I'm going to call you Isabelle from now on!

J (out of the blue from the back of the van):  Mommy?  I really want one of my brothers to be my hon when I grow up....maybe...Philip.
This was preceded by a conversation weeks ago that girls don't marry their brothers.

J (having enjoyed a Rapunzel doll we found at a garage sale all day):  Mommy, if we move to a high castle I'll grow my hair to the ground so we can get down!
This, about two days after her haircut!

Please excuse her bubbling.  I still can't get a nice picture!

Visible Progress

Jeremy has been working his tail off getting things ready for our big house-move (we're digging a basement about 100 yards west of our house and moving the house on top) but up until two weeks ago most of his work was unseen.
But now you can see the fruits of his labor.  The garage is moved!  The house will go where the garage was and the garage went further back (to the west) on our property. Jeremy, his dad and Chad did the prep work through out the week and then Jeremy, his dad and Jeff, a tech of his, moved it in a day.  I slept through most of the fun as I was having a bad day but Raleen took pictures until the camera battery died. If you want all the details you'll have to talk to Jeremy, I have no idea!  But here's the basic progression :  Braced and ready to go.

Lifting it up with huge jacks from work.

Taking off.  Those pop-pop tractors sure have a lot of horsepower!

Pulling away

This is where the batteries died so the actual trek is undocumented.  But here the garage is, safely settled in it's new spot.  You can see how far it is from the house now.

Next on the list: demolition of the old cement pad the garage sat on and the cement porch on the west side of our house :( The bushes around the house will come out too and then the hole will get dug!  Don't worry, I don't think Jeremy is doing any of that work.  The excavating company will do it all.  I'm sure Jeremy will keep busy with other prep work though!

You Should Try This One

Microwave a SMALL piece of Ivory bar soap (it has to be Ivory) for about 30 seconds.  01

Watch the whole time or you'll miss it!

Pool Time!

Visitor

Well Loved

This Gator has been around since Samuel was little. And it's still fun!

:)

We're expecting!  Which explains why I haven't posted in so long.  My normal computer time is now nap time.  But I'm starting to come out of the exhausted icky stage so maybe things will get a little closer to normal again.  I'm due in mid January and everything so far looks good.  The kids are enjoying looking up how big the baby is every week.  When we first told them it was tic tac size, then jelly bean, then we happened upon a web site that compares the baby to healthy things so now we're at a grape.  Any prayers for "Grapie" and our family are greatly appreciated.  :)

Couldn't Make this Up

Julia (in her bossy tone): Thomas you can't play with that it's for my ponies to eat!
Thomas:  You're ponies can't it this, it has gas in it.  They'll die if they eat it!
J (exasperated): Well Thomas, toys don't usually die!
T (equally exasperated):  Well if people eat toys they die!

Jeremy thought I should post a picture of an upside down My Little Pony with x's for eyes with this but I'm too tired to go through all the trouble....