Jed's in Charge of Dinner

The bonus of all those scout trips-he's learned to cook dutch oven.  

Even though it was 70* during the day, once the sun goes down and the mosquitoes (in January!?) come out, a fire is perfect and gathering the rocks for the ring entertained them for a whole twenty minutes or so.  We also performed the Little Einsteins theme song and Elise called in a few coyotes with her distress cry.  The "bumblebees" (mosquitoes) were really disturbing her.

I love when they play nice.

She just found out we weren't having hot dogs.

Even though we were minus the rot hogs (tell me you also took language development and know it is important to manipulate sounds to enrich your child's literary experiences) it was a great evening I love this kind of camping: dinner, light a fire, and go home to sleep in our beds. Plus the kids learned a little of our past, for example; why mommy can never go to DHM and not smell beet juice in the air and even though you can't jump off of a windmill that's probably not why it's gone. 

Pet Birds

I love this guy.  He has been in this same field, in the same spot for about forever or maybe it was his ancestors.  Even as a child I remember seeing a Great Blue Heron from my bus window on the way to elementary.  Jed makes fun of me for how excited I get about bird sighting/watching, I think it has something to do with the fact that I hate birds, BUT this is not a bird that will fly in my hair or wake me up in the morning/dead of night.  This is a beautiful, majestic creature that is silent and still.  The embodiment of everything that is lacking in my life with small people.  Anyway, I have always wanted to take his picture and Saturday I had my opportunity, the camera was in the car.  I regret that I got too close and spooked him into flight, but I was able to view detail that I never knew existed.  I didn't realize a GBH had red spots and a striped head or those amazing chest feathers.  May there always be a Great Blue Heron family in the valley.  Winter would be lacking without their presence.

Elise Time

Elise and her BFF, Jake

Elise has started talking in long sentences and phrases and is much more content and happy in life.  I love her funny little monologues and how she has started speaking with/to her toys.  Here are a few of our language experiences.

  I had to give her the pep-talk while Jed was on a work trip about how daddy has to go to work to buy her clothes, food, toys, and diapers.  The next morning I went to get her out of her crib and she told me "miss my daddy."  I reminded her he was at work and she looked at me and in a very annoyed voice said "buy me food, buy me diapeees, buy me teats (treats) uhhhh/sigh."  

She also makes fun of all of us and already has a potty sense of humor.  A kind lady at the grocery store asked her if she liked helping mommy at the grocery store and she promptly replied "YA POOPY!"  Yikes, I wanted to crawl in a hole.  On that same note she also announced to all of Sunday School, when the nursery leader brought her in to "find daddy,"  

"DADDY I POOPY!" repeated four or five times before Jed could hustle out of there, that was his moment for wanting to crawl in a hole.  Any spiritual feeling was promptly squelched.  

What else...

She has watched Despicable Me 2 way too many times and will "lipstick taser" you with a vengeance.  One night she was crying in her crib so I went in to console her only to find the cause of her tears due to the fact that her lipstick taser, my empty bottle of hand-sanitizer, had fallen out of the crib.  Apparently a girl needs her lipstick taser to sleep peacefully.  

Whenever something isn't going her way, say for example when she can't properly get her blankie wrapped around her head, or she is otherwise distressed she will start yelling "EEK, EEK!"  I think she picked this up from one of her animal books we read to her and has ran with it.  The day she got the motorized-hot-wheels-car-thing stuck in her hair there were many afflicted EEEK EEEK calls, with good reason too, we had to hunt down scissors and cut the cursed thing out.

All of her letter /s/ sounds she replaces with /h/ sounds.  She was very frustrated when daddy wouldn't draw "hanta's hay."  Santa's sleigh of course.  Jara had to interpret for the babysitter last week.  We've all started speaking with a bit of a German accent.

She has given up nap time.  It's a very sad day.  However, she will now go to bed at six.  Which is no easy task with older siblings.  Life seems to begin at six around here but we do what we can.

Elise makes most of my day's, as long as we don't go to somewhere with cash registers, a happy day.  Who can't help but smile listening to her evil cackle as she mercilessly chucks rocks at the cats head.  

When there's No School

We ride

Jara mastered the electric scooter.  In about one day she was already jumping it and riding like a banshee.  

Elise loves to roller blade. 

 Jed asked for them for Christmas and is now trying to bring back his roller hockey days.  He is very graceful.  An accomplishment not many 6'5" guys can achieve.  As he rolled down the driveway I cringed and prepared for blood but of course he makes it look effortless and after a 13 year hiatus is jumping down the steps of our walkway.  Do you know what would happen to me if I were to even try rollerblading down the flat street?  Let's just say I can't even sleep without an injury.  The big red nose you see me walking around with, I rolled over in the night and clawed myself.  It's bad/sad when sleeping is dangerous.  

Jack did not have a great start on the scooter.  Too much speed, too little prep.  But by the end of this week he's got it down. 

What do I do?  I watch and then write about it.  And try to keep the neighbors from yelling at Jed.  'Nother story.

And a Happy New Year

Don't worry it's just sparkling cider.  

Worry about all the many other unspoken messages this picture sends.

anyway

Happy New Year! 

Annie-it's not safe to leave martinelli's on the doorstep with these two

Merry Christmas

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

This is a magical age.  

When Mr. Bubbles shaving foam is still the most awesome item in your stocking.

And sheer contentment overcomes you when you realized" HoHo" did come for you and bring you your very own: HOOK-TaTa-Bucky, Izzy, and TICK TOCK CROCK.  Elise luvvvs Jake and the Never-Land pirates and has been calling Jake, tata (not to be confused with tahtah) since this summer.  She wanted two Hook's but alas she had to settle for two crocs instead.  

Sheer joy overcomes you when you realize you now have your very own motorized scooter.  (I'll feel like this when I'm old and get my jazzy.)  

Sheer joy again.  

It's blurry but it's the only shot I have and he was so excited for a rc turtle van.  This was the year of Ninja Turtles for Jack.  Ask to see his ninja moves, he'll be happy to oblige.

Only 354 days until next year...

Traditions-Winter Hikes

Hikes are great for children.  Wears em out.  Makes them one with nature.  Lets them roam free.  I love being outside and I love showing them new plants and animals and sometimes I may or may not make up names for various flora and fauna.  Just carrying on tradition dad.  Yellow-bellied-sap-suckers....

We saw quite of few of these guys.  

The fishies may have had a slight carb overload this day.  Oh well it's the holidays.

Ruling

Jed caught, with his bare hands, this little snapper.  (His lightning quick reflexes do come in handy at times.)  Don't get too close kiddies.

Elise says no to turtles.  

See there really are yellow-bellied-sap-suckers.