Conversations

Noah : Why do I have to go to the store with you?
Me: 'cause
Noah : What does that mean?
Me: It means "Because I said so!"
Noah : I don't speak that kind of language.

Best Version Ever!

Thankful for Stuff

Thanks to everyone who voted in my flooring poll. We're going with hardwood! The house is coming along nicely, I'll have pictures up soon. We have walls and ceilings and everything! It's very exciting. Who knew I would ever be this excited about sheetrock? Not only am I excited about it, but I am also thankful for it. Soon, we will move into our new house with walls and ceilings and carpet and tile and all sorts of things to keep us warm and safe from the elements. And everything we've been through will become a distant memory but hopefully a memory that will remind me to never take those things for granted again. And remind me that it could have been so much worse. Unlike a lot of people, we did not lose everything. Still, this experience served as a reminder that all those comforts we enjoy can be striped away amazingly, painfully fast. I never want to forget that so I plan on framing pictures of the mess we've been through to hang above the fireplace. It'll look lovely next to the dried flowers. And if any of you ever have your house suddenly rain hell upon you, you can totally stay at our place because we have 6 months (and counting) worth of favors to repay. And according to my in-laws, we're a joy to live with. AB-SO-LUTE JOY.

And my in-laws can't lie. It's against their religion.

My Little Einstein (aka smart aleck)

The other day, I'm enjoying some quality cuddling time with Noah, when he ever so casually begins picking his nose.
And I'm all, "Dude! Why are you picking your nose right in front of me?"

And he's all, "To freak you out."

Nice.

More of the Same

I thought I'd post more pictures of Noah's Unusual Pet Show, cause, ya know, what else am I gonna talk about? It's either this or me whining about how Nov. 4th can't come fast enough. Take your pick.

I want you all to know that the only time Noah wasn't smiling is when I was taking his picture. He was on a smiling-for-pictures strike. So even though he looks mad, he really wasn't. I also have some video of the class singing, but seeing as how my little angel refused to sing ONE FREAKIN WORD of all three songs, I decided what would be the point of posting them. You'd just see him standing there, straight faced, for 3 minutes. Fun.


Yeah, and I didn't even fix the red-eye. I'm that lazy.


Sorry about that mans head, he got in at the last second. Rude, I know.


This one was a balloon covered in cottonballs. It's a polar bear. I thought it was cute.


And this one is not another porcupine. It's a vampire hedgehog. Wicked.

This one is made out of a real alligators head. It's a dragon which is surely the unusualist pet of all. And yes, unusualist is not a real word. But it's my blog, I can make up words if I want.

Our New Pet

Ain't he cute?

Can you tell what he was supposed to be?

Noah had to make an "unusual" pet for his class. Parents were then invited to come to their Unusual Pet Show. And because I'm a mean mom, (and we're homeless), this may be the only pet Noah gets to have for a long time. Enjoy Noah!

And can anyone guess what it's made out of?

Little Man Ethan

A little tribute to the sweetest kid on earth.

Dear Ethan,
Today you got baptized and I think a part of me died a little. Died to see my little baby growing up. Yes, I know you haven't been little for a long time now, I know that, I do. But milestones like this one force me to come out of denial and admit that my shrinking potion is not working and you will continue to grow despite all my efforts. You had 43 people attend your baptism. That's a lot of love. You received lots of congratulations and gifts. Watching you be baptized was so exciting and I want you to know I made it through the whole thing without crying.





Ethan, you have been such a blessing to me. I want you to know the part you play in making our family complete. Your personality is a balance to the force my friend. Your easy going, patient, and kind temperament helps our family to get along. You are always so willing to give what needs to be given and do what needs to be done to keep the peace. Ethan, NEVER STOP HUGGING ME! I would surely die. I hope you never lose your compassion for others. You have such an extraordinary ability to sense others feelings. I love your sensitivity. It is a gift.
At 18 months old, we took you to nursery at church and they couldn't have paid me to leave you there alone. I remember watching you, so worried that you'd be the child getting your toys taken away because you were too nice to fight back. Then, one Sunday as I watched you playing with a certain toy, I noticed this little girl watching you. It was obvious to me that she wanted your toy and I wondered if she was getting up the courage to snatch it from you. I looked at you and saw that you had noticed too. You looked at this little girl, looked at your toy, and then gave it to her of your own free will and choice. No other 18 month old in the history of man kind has willingly shared his toys, let alone recognized that look of longing on that girls face. That is written as fact somewhere I'm sure. I knew right then God had given me something so much better than myself. I worried about what I could possibly have to offer you.





Over the years, it's become obvious you inherited what I like to call the "silently stubborn" gene. Telling you what to do is the surest way to make you NOT want to do that thing. You want things to be of your own doing. You totally get that from your father. I LOVE people telling me what to do. (that there is sarcasm and with me as your mother, it won't be long before you recognize it).
Between the two of us, you had no hope in being a trend follower. And I LOVE that about you. You do things because you want to do it and that is another gift, I believe. I was so impressed by your desire to be baptized. And I know your father and I did not push you into it; we were the ones wanting to put it off. You tearfully asked why you couldn't be baptized right now and I was immediately plunged into a pool of guilt for asking you to wait longer. You are an example to me too.

Ethan, being baptized means you now have the gift of the Holy Ghost. I told you the other day that learning to listen to the Spirit takes time and practice. I'm not so sure that will be the case with you. I'm pretty convinced that for you, having that companionship is like having an old friend return. You have had a sense of right and wrong from the beginning and as much as I'd like to take credit for it, I can't without feeling like lightening could strike me any second.



For your baptism, they asked me to answer some questions that they were going to use to introduce you. Well, that Sister totally messed it up so I want to tell you again how I have seen you live the gospel.
I see you living the gospel everyday in how you treat your little brothers. They way you protect them, teach them, and play with them emulates every aspect of Christlike love. You always jump up if you see Corbin heading for something he shouldn't and you're always so willing to watch him when I need you to. You are so loving toward him and he does love you back, it's just that his way of showing it right now is to whack you in the face. Don't worry, he does it to me too.
You always include Noah when playing with your friends. I don't think you realize how much he loves and benefits from that. He knows he has a brother that will be his friend as well. That will mean more to you when you're older, I promise. You are a great example to him, he literally copies everything you do and while I know that puts extra pressure on you, I hope someday you will appreciate the great love he has for you.

I hope you enjoyed your baptism day as much as I did. You have a lot of people that love you.







Well, this is long and I've certainly asserted my bragging rights to the fullest. Some day, you will appreciate this more than it embarrasses you.

I love you always,
Mom

My Nothingness

Noah: Mom, what are you?

Me: What do you mean?

Noah: Cause you're all grown up and when you grow up you can be a policeman, or fireman....... but you're nothing.

Me: Well, I have chosen to be a mommy.

Noah: But everyone's a mommy!


Ungrateful little............

Makes for a Good Watering Hole

Gettin' His Groove On

So you think you can dance?

Oh the Humanity!

Okay, just spent waaaay too much time "decorating" this thing. Are all blogs this time consuming? I haven't even started it yet. I haven't even begun bragging about my awesome offspring! There's nothing here yet to help you revel in the awesomeness that is us! And the time! The hours already spent! I had real things to do today!

As a professional procrastinator, this is going to be one very helpful tool.