Happy Birthday Ben!

Today my baby turned two! He was so excited it was his birthday because he knew that meant presents! He had a hard time when it was Sam's birthday and we told him on his birthday he would get presents-he remembered! We had Grandma T and Thomas over for dinner, presents, and cake and ice cream. I'll post pictures soon (I always say that don't I).

Ben is a great kid and he fills our house with love...and screaming. Ben has a very strong personality and often vocalizes his opinions very loudly. He is not timid or afraid of much (except dogs due to his run in with a roaming dog in the backyard). He is always willing to give a hug or blow a kiss. He loves Emily and Sam so much and is sad when they are sad. He loves to cuddle and read a book but also loves to play with trains, trucks, balls, dinosaurs, blocks, or whatever Sam is playing with. He is excited to show off his new room to anyone who visits our new house.

I am always amazed at Ben and the happiness he brings to our family. Ben can be a handful (those of you who know him, know what I mean) but he is worth every minute. Emily and Sam adore him and put up with so much because they want him to be happy. Lately Sam and Ben have been buddies and they play with each other a lot. It is sweet to see these two brothers play with each other and take turns. Emily loves to baby Ben and he eats it up.

It has been a crazy two years since Ben was born. We got a house ready to sell, sold a house, finished residency, moved across the country, started a practice, and bought a new home. Wow! Happy Birthday Ben! Your family adores you!

Daily Musings of Nothingness

Ben was sick last week and now he is back to his happy, giggly, messy self. Sam is sick this week. I would rather my almost 5 year old be sick than my almost 2 year old. Not that I want Sam to be sick but he just lays around, rests, and is willing to be cuddled. Ben cried and was irritable, constantly. Any questions.

I went to the school this morning to get the Read-A-Thon daily prizes organized. The principal forgot to draw the winners and announce them. Tomorrow I'm going to do it for her and give her a written note to read and hope it gets done correctly tomorrow. If you want something done right....

I went to Brad's office after the school. I didn't have much to do. Tobie showed me the inventory list we have to do for tax purposes. I really hate stuff like that. We'll do it later.

We had someone come over tonight and talk about renovations on the new house. I wonder how we will pay for them? Cash or loans. Now or later. convenience or total inconvenience.

I miss Rochester's library. A LOT! My new one only lets me check out 50 books at a time. Can I get a gold card for the library. They don't know who they are dealing with. 50 books at a time; what a joke!

I reread Twilight. It was better the second time. Just like the movie.

I spent Monday cleaning my house. I got rid of all the little clutter piles that mysteriously appear around the house. Today you could never tell that that was how I spend President's day.

Yesterday Ben wrote on the wall with a pencil and on my computer screen with a pen. Brad said that he was lucky it happened while he was at work.

When Rick came over this evening he asked Emily what grade she was in. Her reply, "I'm in first but I read at third."

Ben loves to wear shoes. Especially mine, Brad's, Emily's and Sam's.

I took a nap today and I didn't even feel guilty about it. It was lovely. Unfortunately, the kids made a mess in my office. It was worth it.

I made dinner tonight (shock!) and everyone loved it and ate it (shock again!!). Emily even gave me a hug for making the best dinner ever. Hawaiian Haystacks: 2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed added to 2 cans of cream of chicken. Dilute with milk to desired consistency. Serve over rice. Top with Chinese noodles, cheddar cheese, olives and add a dash of lemon juice. Emily will have the left overs for lunch tomorrow.

I love Emily's lunchbox-sized thermos. It keeps food hot or cold. Makes packing a lunch much more imaginative.

Even though I had a nap today, I'm going to bed now. Thanks for reading my random thoughts. I should do more posts like this. So easy!

Trick or Treat

Halloween was a highly anticipated event in our household this year. As with most children, the thought of buckets of free candy is one of the most exciting events of the year besides Christmas. Emily and Sam kept asking how many more days until Halloween. Emily informed me that we should have a countdown to Halloween just like we have at Christmastime. Emily kept asking when would we decorate, when would we carve pumpkins, when is it time for trick or treating, etc, etc, etc.

Here are the kids in their costumes. Isn't Emily adorable. Somehow she did not have her pom poms with her for the picture but she was in too big a hurry to get the picture over with so the fun could begin. I neglected to take a picture of her during her school Halloween parade (I forgot my camera, what was I thinking!) My neighbor took one for me but I haven't got it yet.

Here is my valiant knight in shining armor. He looked so handsome and brave in this costume. As you can imagine, the sword was the best part. This pose was his idea.

Now here is my adorable Benny. One thing about Ben-he LOVES dogs. I mean LOVES dogs. Whenever he is throwing a fit or being difficult all I have to do is say, "Benny, lets look out the window and see if there are any dogs" (our neighbors have two small dogs that occasionally are outside). His strong desire to see a dog usually saves my sanity. So when I was digging through the Halloween costume box, I was so happy to find Sam's old dog costume (he wore it when he was 2 years old). I knew it would be perfect for Ben.

Sure enough, Halloween night he allowed Brad to put the costume on him and was even delighted to be wearing it (he wore it all night without a fuss). When Emily stood in front of the door to have her picture taken, Ben waited for his turn and wanted me to take his picture as well.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of the back of the costume. Isn't that tail the cutest? When I tried the costume on Ben, I pointed out the tail to Emily and Sam. Ben then turned to see and looked just like a puppy chasing his tail-around and around. What I wouldn't have given to have a video camera at that second. My kids were so excited to go trick or treating in our new neighborhood but we found out that the neighborhood does a trunk or treat instead. Our kids were soooooo disappointed. They did not want to trunk or treat. That was until I asked Emily's neighborhood friend if it was fun. She gave Emily the low down i.e. You Get Tons of CANDY!!!!!

Emily and Sam did not have school on Friday and so we spent the afternoon making paper bats and spiders and Kleenex tissue ghosts to hang up in our car for the Trunk or Treat activity that evening. The kids had a ball and made a huge mess. But it was totally worth it to see how hard they were working and how much fun they had doing it.

Brad's mom was able to join us for our evening festivities despite recovering from a nasty sinus infection. We had our traditional chili dinner, then dressed up, and headed to the Trunk or Treat activity. I thought the car looked pretty cool and we got many compliments on the decorations. I was surprised that we were one of the few to decorate. Party poopers!

The Trunk or Treat was a success and sure enough we got plenty of candy (and gave out plenty). Ben was SO EXCITED!!! After the first two cars, he realized that people were giving him candy. He would hold up his hand and they would hand him his candy and he would walk away giggling and giggling and giggling. He would not wait for Emily or Sam but continue on to the next car where he would hold up his hand or reach into the bowl, he was not shy at all, and get the candy. Then he would walk away giggling and giggling and giggling. It was a riot to watch him.

Sam said to me as we were walking around, "Mom, I really like Halloween."

After Trunk or Treating we headed over to Grandma T's. It was so fun to spend the evening with Dianne and have her a part of our holiday. Here she is with our crazy gang. Do you like my Hippie Witch costume? I bought it on clearance an few years ago for $2.90. I get so many compliments.After seeing Grandma at her house, we went to Steve and Tobie's to go trick or treating with their family (we promised the kids they could do some traditional trick or treating). Emily, Sam, Mikey, Ben and Sean had a great time trick or treating the neighborhood. I should have got a picture of them. What was I thinking! The fun continued with more candy, giggles, running from house to house, and more candy. Sam and Mikey got tired and all the boys headed home. Emily wanted to keep going and so Tobie and I walked one more cul-de-sac with her. She scored because every house gave her a handful of candy. I think it was because she was so darn cute.

It was a fun Halloween spent together as a family. As we drove to Steve and Tobie's, we passed the hospital and Brad laughed and said, "Ha, Ha I'm glad I'm not there." It hit me that even though Brad works hard all week long, his weekends and holidays are free to be with us. I am so happy about that!

Gymnastics-Level 2

Emily has been in gymnastics for just over a month. Tonight they told us she was ready to move to the next level! We are so excited! Emily is thrilled but a little nervous. She is excited to learn new skills but worried about being in a new class. We know she will do great. Can I say again how happy I am that she is in a serious gym that really teaches and evaluates the kids. Too bad she had to wait until she was 6.

The only down side is now I will have to go to gymnastics twice a week-once for Emily and again for Sam. Currently they take the same night with just a little over lapping. Now Emily's class is 1 1/2 hours and not taught the same day as Sam's. Sam said he loves gymnastics and wants to continue. So I guess I'll be spending more time at the gym (too bad I can't get a workout at the same time huh!)

Gymnastics

Emily loves gymnastics. She took for about 2 years in Minnesota but I pulled her out because I was frustrated with the gym; I felt she wasn't progressing due to their lack of teaching (yes, I'm bitter).

So today Emily went to her first gymnastics class in Idaho. It was for 5 - 7 year olds and Emily had a good time. Despite being out of gymnastics since March, she performed really well on all the activities. After the class the teacher pulled me aside and told me Emily was too advanced for the class she was enrolled in and invited her to join the "by invitation only" class. I was really happy to find a gym that takes notice. Emily is thrilled that she will start learning new things. I'm thrilled that my monthly tuition will be put to some good.

The class is scheduled at the same time as one Sam can attend so I think I'll enroll Sam as well. It is in the evening and at first I was disappointed until I decided Brad can keep Ben home! Sam gets to try out next week for free. I wonder if he will be the only boy? It is described as a co-ed class but who knows. Sam and I were watching the Level 1 Boys class and he thought it looked fun. We will see how he likes the intro class. When I asked him which activities he wanted me to sign him up for he stated he wanted to take ballet classes. Maybe Sam spends too much time playing with Emily. (That is Ben crawling in the background wearing Emily's pajamas.)My mom is playing dress up with Emily and Sam. Any question why she is the great grandma ever!Poor kid. He is going to hate these when he is older.

Emily's First Day of First Grade

Today was Emily's first day of First Grade. I was afraid she would be too tired to wake up. Despite my best efforts to gradually move up bedtime, we still have been going to bed and waking up late. But she woke up and was eager to go. I took a few pictures and unfortunately none of them really turn out well. Here's the best of the worst.

I worry that First Grade will not be a challenge for Emily. We went to Back to School night and saw what they will be working on and Emily has been doing it since the beginning of Kindergarten. We mentioned our concerns to the teacher and she didn't seem to want to talk about it. She has been teaching 23 years and I get the feeling she is going to go with the "program" rather than what Emily needs. Oh, gee. Any advice?

Emily's Trick

We can't leave out Emily.

Emergency Room Visit

The title of this post alone brings fear and trembling to any mother's heart. No one wants to see their precious child injured in any way. I have never had to visit the ER before and maybe it was the fear of the unknown or of what could be that makes it all the more terrifying.

Let me explain:

I usually go walking with Ben and Sam in the morning while Emily is at school but now that school is out I was wondering how I was going to get my morning exercise without waking up at the crack of dawn (Angela, you are a stronger woman than I). So I decided to try having Emily ride her bike while I push Ben and Sam in my double jogger stroller.

Well, after much prodding and pushing to get everyone ready (sippy cups filled, pretzels in bags, and everyone pottied-is that a word?-and dressed) we were off like a herd of turtles. We weren't but a house away that I was already yelling at Emily to slow down. We live at the top of a cul-de-sac that is on a hill. I always worry about it and bike and scooter riding. Today was no exception.

Emily continues on at a speedy pace. I'm running behind her about 15 feet shouting to slow down when suddenly she loses control and falls FACE FIRST onto the sidewalk. I scream and run (I have to stop the stroller and set the brakes so the boys don't go speeding down the hill unmanned). Blood is covering Emily's face; her nose is bleeding like mad. I grab the blanket from the stroller to try and stop the bleeding. I'm not sure what to do first. I'm not sure if the blood is just from her nose. I fear all her teeth have been smashed out. She is hysterical; she is crying in pain. Just then my next-door-neighbor pulls up and offers to help. I'm not sure what to do. I have a bleeding child, a bike, and a double stroller. I figure out Emily can walk-no broken bones we hope. I ask the neighbor to bring the bike home. He puts it in the car, still unsure if there is more he can do. I walk Emily and the boys home. My neighbor comes back and helps push the boys up the hill. At least we are home. Somehow that make everything seem so much better.

Emily is still crying and bleeding. Ben is now crying. I hand Sam a bag of pretzels (newly opened from a few minutes ago-do you see where this is going?) and tell him to feed some to Ben while I take care of Emily. I wipe blood from Emily's face. We have the bleeding under control. I check her teeth. Everything just as we left it but there are lines of blood above her three top teeth. Nothing seems to be looser than usual.

I have Emily sit on the couch (still screaming) as I make an ice pack to help with the swelling. Her nose, lower left eye, and lip are already growing. I try to get Emily to keep the ice pack wrapped in a washrag on her face. She won't. I page Brad. He calls and I give him the story. In the meantime. Emily is still screaming (this is very abnormal) and Ben and Sam are causing trouble. Brad isn't sure what to do because he can't see the damage. I'm frustrated and scared then look over at Ben dumping the entire 16 oz bag of pretzels all over the floor. Perfect! I hang up on Brad (not to be mean but this was not the time for courtesies) and I hand Sam the broom and dustpan and put Ben in his bed. I check Emily out again. She is confused and doesn't know what happened.

She doesn't know what happened! She can't remember how she got hurt. She doesn't remember riding her bike. She doesn't remember that we were going on a walk. That scares me. She is still crying and complaining that her face hurts. I have done all the first aid I think is necessary. Bleeding controlled, ice packs applied (as much as she would let me), Band-Aids on knees. I need her to stop crying. I decide to read to her to get her to calm down. I ask her where the Lucy book is (Lucy, the Diamond Fairy). She has no idea what I'm talking about. She has no idea who Lucy is. I go down to her room and get the book. She has gotten up to go to the bathroom. She comes back out and has stopped crying. She opens her mouth and has a surprised look on her face. "Mom look!" she asks with her mouth wide open. I'm sure her teeth are falling out. I look but nothing is wrong. "What is it Emily?" I ask. "My tooth. It is missing", she replies. Oh my, what did I miss, wondering how I could overlook a missing tooth. I look again and she points to the space of the tooth she lost last night. Oh dear!

Me: "Emily, you lost that tooth last night."
Emily: "I did?!"
Me: "Yes, it came out last night."
Emily: "Do you have it?"
Me: "Yes, it is in your tooth box."
Emily: "Where is it?" (she has absolutely no idea what I'm talking about)
Me: "Here it is." She looks at the tooth she has been packing around in the little wooden tooth case I gave her last night. She is in awe and looks at it like she has never seen it before in her life. I am freaked!

I immediately called the Ask A Nurse line. I give them the lowdown of her condition emphasizing the fact that she is confused and forgetful. She doesn't remember the most exciting thing in her life (according to her). The nurse is concerned and wants me to take her to the pediatrician. She transfers me to our clinic. I talk to a nurse there and they can't get me in to see the pediatrician until 3:00. They don't want me to wait that long and tell me to take her to the ER now. She says they might need to do a CAT scan.

At this point I'm scared. I page Brad again. He calls right back. I tell him that the clinic wants me to bring her to the ER and then tell him that she doesn't remember loosing her tooth. Brad firmly tells me YES! Take her to the ER now! Okay, my neurologist husband is telling me to take her immediately. I'm in my exercise clothes, Ben is asleep, and I need to go to the ER. Breathe deeply, breathe deeply.

I pull out my phone list. I call Hillary-no answer. I call Ann, my neighbor. I should have called her first-duh. Oops no answer. I call Sarah-no answer. I scan my list and was about to try someone else then I feel I should call Lorie L. She lives close by. I call Lorie. I'm in tears and can hardly talk. Lorie is so calm and tells she will come right over and take the boys. She offers to take me to the ER. I decide it is best to take Emily myself.

Before I know it, Lorie is here and takes Emily to the car as I grab diapers, wipes and Ben’s shoes. She loads the boys in her car and we both drive off. Brad is trying to call me/I’m trying to call him but for some reason we run into each other’s voice mail.

Eventually we connect and tells me he will meet me at the ER. I’m so relieved. I hate hospitals and I didn’t want to deal with this on my own. As I drive up to the ER, Brad is waiting for us. He takes Emily to the ER while I park.

We get in quickly. They weren’t busy and it does help that everyone knows Brad (he was just on ER service two weeks ago). The nurse and Brad evaluate her. Another doctor comes in and does another evaluation. Emily is starting to be more coherent and is recalling details that she did not know thirty minutes earlier. Brad continues to quiz her and she is able to answer most questions. After another evaluation (no one wants to take chances with the daughter of a neurologist) we decide she is okay and a CAT scan is unnecessary but a Popsicle is. I’m so relieved!

Her diagnosis was a concussion. We were concerned that her nose might be broken but since it was so swollen we couldn't tell. They said that there isn't much to do with that until the swelling goes down. She was told to rest and eat lots of Popsicles (no problem with that).

For the rest of the day I was a hopeless mess. I think I had a slight case of post traumatic stress. I kept seeing her fall face first onto the sidewalk and know that I couldn't do anything to stop it. I kept thinking how lucky we are that she didn't loose teeth, break her nose, or have a traumatic brain injury (she was wearing a helmet). I was sick to my stomach for the rest of the day and couldn't sleep that night. I was so worried about her. Every time I saw her sweet injured face my heart leaped for thankfulness that she is okay and sorrow that she is hurting.

Here is a picture of her soon after the accident eating a treat. It is difficult to see the swelling but her nose, upper lip and under her eye were quite puffy. The swelling went down the next day and I think she looks pretty good now considering what happened. We don't think her nose is broken. Thank heavens!

This experience has taught me so much. I'm thankful for my kids. Sometimes they drive me crazy but they are healthy and alive. I'm so thankful for friends who drop everything to help when needed (Lorie-you were a lifesaver!). I'm grateful for bike helmets. I know she would have been seriously injured if she hadn't been wearing one. I'm grateful for the Lord who watches over us. We have been truly blessed.

Emily's Last Day of Kindergarten

Oh my, has the school year already come and gone? Emily experienced her last day of Kindergarten last week. Here is a look at Emily on the FIRST day of Kindergarten.

And here she is on the LAST day of Kindergarten.

What a difference a year makes. She accomplished so much this year. My favorite thing about this year was she finally decided to become a fluent reader! She says she loved the arts and crafts she did at school. She had a fabulous teacher and overall good experience. I'm happy with the year and I know she is. When she came home from school, she started to cry because she didn't want it to end.

Here she is waiting for the bus for the last time with her bus stop buddies (Brittany, Emily, Jacob and Amanda). They will miss her next year. Brittany sat by Emily every day and Amanda always made sure she was okay. I'm grateful that these kids were so helpful and kind.

At least this time when the bus left, I didn't cry.

Lemonade Stand

While I was getting ready for the garage sale, I realized that it would be nice to have something for the kids (Emily especially) to do while I’m manning the sale. Rosemary’s kids sold cookies at their garage sale and I thought it would be fun for the kids to do something similar. I talked to Ann about it and we both decided we didn’t want to make cookies (or anything else for that matter). She suggested we use my lemonade stand and sell lemonade. I also decided the kids could sell freezer pops (or Otter pops depends on what part of the country you live). Emily was THRILLED with this idea. One thing you might not know about Emily is she is an entrepreneur and highly motivated by money.

My mom gave me the above lemonade stand last summer. She purchased it at Target when it was 75% off. She bought all they had and gave one to me and my sisters. My kids have a ball with it and beg to sell lemonade. We live on a cul-de-sac so I rarely let them do it for numerous reasons.

But the garage sale was a perfect chance to use it. As soon as Emily came home from school on Friday she immediately set it up. They had fun with it for awhile but eventually lost interest because we didn’t have a lot of people coming through later in the afternoon and it was a bit on the cool side. I think they also ate most of the freezer pops. At the end of Friday they had $2.60 which they immediately spent at Target on nail polish ($1) and a foam sword ($1).

Saturday was another story. Despite being 9:00 in the morning, many kind people were willing buy a small cup of lemonade for 5 cents or a freezer pop for 10 cents from a few eager kids. As the morning went by they were selling many cups of lemonade and lots of freezer pops. Most of the people were very generous and gave a quarter and didn’t expect change. Emily, Sam, Alyssa, and Anders greeted everyone who stopped by with a friendly, “Would you like to buy a cup of lemonade?” As they left Alyssa even told them to, “Come again!”

I was amazed that they stayed interested and profitable until about 1:00 pm when things started slowing down and they sold (or ate) all of the freezer pops and we ran out of lemonade.

In the end they made over $22.00. I was surprised by the amount of money they earned. It was kind of people to support the kids’ enthusiasm and buy a cup of lemonade. I think it was a good lesson for them as well. Emily even gave a few kids a free freezer pop just because she either knew them or she wanted to be nice.

Emily and Sam chose to use the money they earned to buy their bikes (that was our theme of the garage sale). One of the first things we will do after we move is bike shopping!

I wonder what our next entrepreneurial project will be.

Conversations with Sam

I had the following conversation with Sam this morning just as Emily left for school.

Sam (looking longingly out the window as Emily walked down the hill): I wish today wasn't a school day.

Me: Why buddy?

Sam: Because I love Emily. I want to play with her.

My heart melted to witness such tenderness.

Emily's Perspective

We had a rough afternoon with Emily today and she got in big trouble. Later, Brad asked her why she thought I was so mad at her and her response was, "Because she needs a nap."

Maybe I do.

Emily's Birthday Party

Amidst the turmoil of selling a house, we decided Emily would have a birthday party with her friends since we will be moving this summer. It was a princess themed party and each little princess attending was crowned on arrival. Here is my 6 year old princess on the big day (excuse the extended middle finger in the picture-purely innocent).Each princess made their own pizza and then we played some princess themed games. The favorite game was "The Princess is Missing her Favorite Things". I had a tray of "princess" items. One child left the room and we took off one item. They had to guess what was missing. I was surprised at how much they liked the game.

After games and dinner Emily opened her presents. Emily absolutely adored every gift. As soon as all the guests left, she played with each toy and even woke up early the next morning to play with them again. Poor kid all her other toys have been packed away.

I'm really glad that we have a picture with each of Emily's friends. They are wonderful girls and I'm glad we can remember them in picture. Here is Emily and Mary Jane G.

Emily and Rachelle B. Emily with Sam (At first he did not want to wear a crown. But when everyone else had one, he asked for a blue crown.)
Emily and Sarah C.
Emily and Alyssa M. I'm so glad Emily invited Alyssa. She is only 4 but she is the only girl in our cul-de-sac. They play together all the time. I was afraid that being much younger, she would be left out. But everyone at the party was so kind to everyone else.

Ella F., Emily and Tessa P. I adore this picture. They look so happy. Emily LOVES the "Emily" mug. I can't wash it fast enough.
Emily and Haley T. Haley and Emily were only 2 when we moved to Minnesota. Haley was her first MN friend.
After presents we had cake and ice cream. Emily chose a chocolate cake with vanilla frosting and Neapolitan ice cream. She blew her candles out too fast for a good picture. Then she had the candles out before I even put the camera down.
Every party has to have a goofy face picture.
After cake and ice cream we had a Princess search. I told the girls that a princess had been captured by a dragon and it was up to them to rescue her. The dragon left pink eggs with clues to help us find the princess. Each girl was assigned one clue. We searched the house to find them all. To help the hunt progress quietly, they had to whisper so they wouldn't wake the dragon (the best idea I ever came up with). Emily drew, colored and cut out a princess to glue to the pinata. I hid it in the laundry room and Emily was really surprised!Here is the first whack!! Unfortunately I did not get a picture of the mad scramble for candy. But there was plenty for all. Because it was cold and rainy outside we had to break it inside. It was so heavy and the girls so strong that the pinata fell from the hook in the wall. Luckily Brad was home and he held the pinata while they took a swing. Brave man my husband!
Hopefully a fun time was had by all the royal attendees!

Happy Birthday my dear daughter!

Speaking of Polly Pockets

So I went into Emily and Sam's room to return the Polly Pocket who so kindly posed for my haircut picture and I found them playing with the Polly Pockets.

This is Emily explanation of their play:

Emily: Mom, remember the story in our scriptures that a man can have two wives (she is referring to Jacob, Rachel and Leah). Well, we are pretending that he (Playmobile SWAT team motorcycle man) is getting married to these two (dolls). They are sisters. They are twins.

Me: Hmmmm (how do you respond to that?)

Here is a picture.

At least each "wife" has her own car.

New Haircut

I got my haircut the other day and I thought it looked nice. It's short, fun, and versatile. A day after I got it cut, Emily and I had the following conversation:

Emily: Mom, you look like a Polly Pocket.

Me: Hmmm, is that good or bad?

Emily: Bad. People aren't supposed to look like Polly Pockets.

Me: Oh....

Sorry folks but I'm not going to post a picture of my new haircut (but it looks similar to this Polly Pocket) because who can compete with a Polly Pocket on cuteness.

Emily Rides a Bike

Emily has learned how to ride a bike! Again! Last summer my dad taught her while we were visiting and she did really well. She rode around all night. The next day she wanted to show her cousins but she got nervous. For some reason she didn't want to ride again. When we came back to Minnesota we didn't take the training wheels off her little bike because we live on a hill and we were concerned that it wasn't a safe place to ride a bike until she was better at it.

Well, today was the most beautiful day we have had in probably 7 months! We came home from church and Emily asked Brad to take off the training wheels on her bike. While they were working on that I took my bike for a ride. When I came home Emily was riding all around the cul-de-sac like she had been doing it for years! She can start, stop, and turn all by herself with no problem! She is so proud of herself. Here is a short video of her riding.

The bike she is riding is too small for her but we want to wait until we move to buy a new one. We hate to buy one and then haul it across the country. So she will be cruising the cul-de-sac on her 12 inch Barbie bike until we move.

Daisy Meadows

I love books. I love to read. Reading is a need I have that must be satisfied just like eating and drinking. Before I had kids I worried that my children might not like to read. This really upset me. When Emily was just a little bitty baby and she wouldn't sit still to hear a story or look at a book, my fears resurfaced.

But I worried for nothing. My Emily LOVES to read. Since she was old enough, she loved to hear a story and look at books. When she was two I introduced her to books on tape. She was able to follow the beeps by herself. Now she spends more time than I would like listening to chapter books on tape.

I worried a lot about Emily learning to read. She learned her ABC's very quickly but she was very resistant to learning how to read. I decided not to push her and let her natural curiosity go at the pace she preferred. I have to admit it was frustrating that she was not reading because she had all the skills necessary to put the sounds together. I told her when you learn to read independently you will be so happy because then you will be able to read whenever and whatever you want. She still didn't want to do more than her 20 or so words she had learned. But I let it go and figured she would progress when she was ready.

Well, this year in kindergarten she took off. She finally had the motivation and drive. She is now doing excellent. She is the top reader in her class and we are so proud of her. For the past few months she has been staying up late at night reading books by herself. Every morning there is a stack of books in her bed. We have had to limit it to five.

But what I'm really excited about is that she just started to read "chapter books". We have been reading the Fairy books by Daisy Meadows (yes, Daisy Meadows-I didn't get it at first). Tonight as I was reading to her, we had to wait for Sam and I asked her to read to me. She read the whole page-no problem! I was astonished! She was so proud of herself. She said she wanted to read these before but she was afraid if she did I wouldn't read them to her any more. I assured her that I would always read to her (for the millionth time) but now she can read her favorite books anytime she wants.

So the reason I'm writing this post is not to brag by any means but to express my joy that my daughter is a reader. Just like I always wanted! As I'm writing this Emily is reading Inky the Indigo Fairy in her bed. Sam and Emily came in a few minutes ago to give me an update (she is reading out loud to Sam) on what is happening. Soon I'll have to go in and turn out the lights but for now I'm just glad Emily loves books. Emily loves to read!

Emily is the Best!

One of the frustrations of having a house for sell is that I feel like I have to have the house looking perfect every time we leave. Yesterday I was talking to Brad on the phone debating whether or not to mop the kitchen floor before we went to story time at the library. We decided that the chances of a showing in the middle of the afternoon on a Wednesday was slim. Brad told me to relax, let it go, or else I would go crazy.

Well, just as I was telling the kids to get into the car, the phone rang. It was a realtor who wanted to show our house (while we were at the library). Frantically I tell the kids we have a showing and we can't go to the library yet. Fortunately, I had everything "show ready" except the kitchen and living room floor. As I'm grabbing the mop and mentally calculating how long it will take to tidy up and can we still make it to story time, Emily comes to me and says, "Mom, what can I do to help?" Oh, my heart filled with joy and relief. With her help I knew we could probably make it. She cleaned the entry way and vacuumed the living room floor while I gave the kitchen a quick mop. Then as I was finishing up, she carried Ben to the car and buckled him in his car seat and had Sam do the same.

We got the house ready and we were only a little late for the library. I'm so grateful for Emily's willingness to help. When the call came, my first thoughts were that the kids would complain about missing story time and/or get in my way while I hurriedly cleaned up. But it went so smooth and I was able to leave knowing that the house looked pretty good. They didn't complain about being late and cooperated while we rushed into the library.

Here is a picture of Emily reading a story to Ben. When did she grow up?

He's So Proud of Himself

Today during conference Brad had Emily and Ben on his lap. Somehow Ben flipped his head and bonked Emily in the face. She started to cry (he's done it to me before and it really hurts). I was holding Ben as Brad was comforting Emily. Ben looks over at Emily and Emily cries out, "He looks so proud of himself!"

It was really funny! Maybe you had to be there but Brad and I found it quite hilarious.

My Three Girls?

Emily really wishes she had a sister (and a pet) so she uses her little brothers to act out her dreams. Here is a picture of her brothers dressed up as her little sisters (we took it tonight).

The boys are so excited to be a part of her play that they are more than willing to do whatever she wants (well, Ben doesn't really have a choice). I'm sure in a few years Sam will be mortified that he dressed up in "girl" clothes (you should see some of the pictures I have-hee hee). Earlier this evening she had Sam crawling around on the floor with a jump rope leash, pretending he was a dog.

I'm glad Sam is willing to play because there is no way we are getting a pet (who knows about a little sister-or brother-just to clear up any speculations).