Monday, October 31, 2011

Trick-Or-Treat

Another year of trick-or-treating is over. This year was hysterical. Jack was really into the whole thing and once the twins discovered all the candy that was involved they couldn't get enough. This year we had a fire breathing dragon and two dogs. We did two rounds of trick-or-treating. In the afternoon we went to my mom's office. The kids and grand-kids of the employees can come in and trick-or treat in the afternoon. I decided to let the twins walk and at first they didn't really understand. Eventually though, they realized that in the bowls and buckets were candy and they could grab some. They always had candy in both hands and when they would go to get more they would often just make an exchange. Drop their candy in and grab something new. I had to throw away many pieces of melted, mangled candy that their little hands had crushed. They seemed to really enjoy themselves. Jack of course had a great time. He is quite exuberant in his trick-or-treating. He really enjoyed breathing fire on everyone too. What was really funny is when I'd ask him, "What do you say, Jack?" and he would stand their confused, wondering, "Do I say trick-or-treat or do I say thank you or do I breath fire on them?" We had a fun afternoon, then came home and ate dinner so we could go around our neighborhood. I haven't lived in a good trick-or-treating neighborhood since I was 6 so I was pretty excited this year. We had a big crew that went out and the big kids had so much fun. They ran most of the time and instead of ringing door bells they would just stand at the door and scream "trick-or-treat". Thankfully, Kyle was tall enough to reach the door bells. As they ran off with the candy they would scream "thank you" over their shoulders. Sometimes, Jack would actually say thank you at the door and then immediately breath fire on the candy giver. The little kids had fun getting to walk some and ride in the wagons. We let them go to a few houses and somehow Logan ended up by himself in a wagon full of candy. He got the wrapper off a tootsie pop and reclined himself in the wagon with a happy grin. Now I think I have three candy addicts on my hands. The twins just kept signing more when we got home and staring at the bucket full of candy. 

fire breathing dragon

Schaeffer the puppy dog

the big kids-Silas, Jack and Kyle

All the kids-a lemur, a ladybug, an angry bird, two dragons, and two dogs.

Logan and Schaeffer getting in on the candy.

My favorite picture of the night, Logan enjoying his sucker.

Paper Party

To say I am materialistic might be an understatement. I like things, I like neat things and sentimental things and old things and gadgety things. And I have a really hard time getting rid of stuff. I always get sucked into the "what if?" mentality. What if I could use that for something later, what if I need that later, what if I fit into that later, etc...Even though we have the space for stuff in our house now, I'd really like to begin shedding the clutter that we have collected. I don't know that I'll ever be considered minimalist but I would like the pendulum to at least start swinging in that direction, if only slightly. It was almost unbelievable to see how much stuff we moved from Palatine. I just kept wondering how we had fit so much stuff into that little place. Not only that but we moved tubs of stuff from our parents homes too. So we decided now that the weather is turning and our major outside projects are finished for the year we will turn our efforts inward and do another round of purging. If you can believe it, I have stored nearly every piece of paper, notebook, handout and folder from school. All of school. Kindergarten through college graduation. I started going through those tubs this month and I've realized how totally unnecessary all that paper is. I have, however, gone through it page by page and pulled out the few things that I think are worthy of keeping. Probably about 98% has gone to recycling. Last night I finished going through my tub of college work. Here is what has become of all of the hard work, time and effort I put into college. An hours worth of rip roaring, paper throwing, crazy fun for my three kiddos. They had such a great time making a disaster of my work. And then I got to teach Jack a lesson about how while it can be very fun to make a mess, when we are done it must be cleaned up.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

C25K

My Couch to 5K journey has officially ended for the year. What is supposed to be a 9 week program, I managed to stretch into a nearly 17 week endeavor. I'm a bit surprised that I finished, but not at all surprised it took me so long. I am not a runner. I have never been remotely fast and I have never found running to come easy. But I needed to do something to start getting my body going in the right direction and running is free. Thankfully, I've had friends running with me along the way. I would never have gone running the second day if Trisha hadn't been pushing me a long. Though we did have some moments of slacking, and we don't really make compatible runners we made a great team. Having a partner made all the difference for me. Signing up for a race is also good motivation. I did two races during my C25K journey. In September I ran the Pumpkin Festival 2 Mile race "with" Trisha and Megan. That was my first race ever and it was pretty awful. I was terribly sick with a cold/sinus infection and I had barely any sleep the night before thanks to my 10 year reunion and my sickness. I also foolishly tried to stay on pace with Megan and Trisha. I lasted around a mile and then fell back. It was only two miles but it felt like an eternity. But I did it. I finished without walking and completed my first race ever. Since my goal was a 5K, not 2 miles I looked around for another race to sign up for. I heard about one in Palatine that our former church was having and thought it would be fun to go up for the weekend and run with some of my Palatine friends. Of course for this race I was recovering from having a stomach virus two nights previous and had almost no food in my system. I wasn't even sure I was going to run it, but I drove up Friday night and got a good nights sleep. Thankfully, I woke up Saturday morning feeling alright though still not hungry. My goal was to finish without walking and hopefully be under 40 minutes. Chanda stuck with me, even though I slowed her down and we finished in 37:21, my best time ever. It was a fun-ish time being with old friends and seeing a lot of people I hadn't seen since we moved. I only add the "ish" on fun because we were running and I'm not nearly ready to call such an activity fun. So until next year. I will try not to return completely to the couch, but I'm hanging up my running shoes until spring.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Sticker Charts

We've done sticker charts before but the concept was always slightly lost on Jack and they usually took a long time to complete. But a little while back when it seemed like Jack might never go a day without peeing or pooping in his underwear, I decided to give it a try again. I like the idea of positively reinforcing good behavior, rather than always being upset over bad behavior. This time he really took to it and it seemed to make a big difference in the number of accidents he was having. His reward for filling his chart was a trip to Monkey Joe's which we took last Friday. I was especially thoughtful and let him take his buddy Silas. In reality, this made the adventure easier for me because with a friend along, I didn't have to climb in all those bouncers! Si and Jack had a great time together and I really enjoyed listening to their conversation in the car. Si said, "Jack I'm so glad you are my friend". Jack asked Si, "Silas, do you like tractors?". They talked about the moon and whether or not all the lights in a town go off at bedtime. They played a wildly silly game using the straws in their cups to make funny sounds. It's just so fun to listen to them have little discussions and to also be silly boys. We had a great time together and I'm pretty sure they are both ready to go back at a moments notice.

Since the potty sticker chart was going so well we decided to start another sticker chart for staying in bed at night. When we first started potty training Jack he discovered his ability to get out of bed. I'd say we didn't handle things super great initially and it sorta snowballed into a nightmare routine every evening of fighting with Jack to keep him in his room at night. Then a few weeks ago, he wasn't feeling too well and he stayed in bed two nights in a row. We jumped at the opportunity to reinforce such good behavior (even if it was only due to sickness). I drew up his second sticker chart and he totally ran with the idea. He needed to earn 18 stickers and he could only get a sticker if he didn't come out of his room even once at night. Miraculously he earned his 18 stickers in 18 consecutive nights. I'm hoping we can continue this positive behavior now that the chart is full, but if not I will be making another one! For this chart we let him select one, mom and dad approved, toy. We purchased it and sat it on top of the refrigerator to remind him what he was working for. Last night was night 18 and this morning he got his new remote control trickster car, wich Paul thoroughly tested out last night.

Cucumber Bites


I suppose no one said you could only eat a cucumber if it was cut in slices, but doesn't it just seem wrong to pick up a whole thing and take a bite? I let Jack pick out his vegetables at the store last night and he selected broccoli and cucumber. He nearly had a bite out of the cucumber at the store and then asked for it repeatedly until we got home and I could unpack the groceries and get it washed. I guess when you're hungry for something, you're hungry for something. He ate almost the entire thing last night, all but about an inch and half of it. And this kid, who apparently likes cucumbers to be eaten like apples, also has to be told to put down his raw broccoli (un-dipped, ewww!) to take a bite of pizza. I guess I can't complain about that! And of course Logan just had to have a bite. He's not one to turn down food.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Schaeffer's Fall

In my women's Bible study on Wednesday morning we are studying the book of Esther. This past week we talked a lot about the fear that Esther had to overcome in order to approach King Xerxes and discuss the planned annihilation of her people, the Jews. She was risking her life and somehow had come to terms with that and had the attitude "if I perish, I perish". In our discussion we talked a lot about the fears that we have and how Satan can use those to disable us. Anyone who is a mother can probably resonate with the fear of losing a child. Thankfully, this fear does not typically have me in its grips but I did have to face it earlier this week. I know I am being dramatic but in the moment my greatest fear was losing my child. Monday morning I decided to head to Walmart to finish up some school supply shopping for a donation from my high school reunion. I had an exact amount of money I could spend so I was really trying to pay attention and keep track in my head. This lead me to be slightly less focused on my children. I had my two carts, one for kids and one for stuff. Logan ended up in the child's seat of the stuff cart and Jack and Schaeffer were in the main basket of the kid cart. (One moment to defend myself-I've always thought the child seats were more dangerous than the basket because my babies insist on turning around and standing up and doing all sorts of tricks when they are sitting there. Obviously with good discipline from their mother this behavior could be stopped, but consider the difficulty of disciplining two babies who are doing dangerous stunts in different carts while also trying to accomplish your grocery shopping. So instead I typically put the kids in the basket part. They are still short enough that they can't flip over the edge. Unless of course they start to climb, as I found out.)  Schaeffer kept trying to grab stuff off the shelves so I moved the cart to where he couldn't reach and then I turned around to finish a calculation. Not a moment later, I turned around and saw Schaeffer mid-air on his way to the ground. He had decided he was going to grab stuff no matter how far away he was and I'm guessing he started to climb the cart to enhance his reach. Clearly he reached too far and flipped over the edge of the cart. I had turned in time to see him land directly on his head and hear the most horrific cracking sound. In a matter of seconds I had scooped him up and was uttering my plea to God to spare his life. Perhaps that seems dramatic, but the sound was so awful and instantly I thought of a story I had heard recently of a baby carrier (with baby) falling off a cart and the baby dying from the impact. So I was terrified. I was certain when I picked him up there would be blood. I was certain when I felt his head I would feel a cracked skull. I was certain he must be bleeding in his brain. I was certain that if he did survive he would be permanently damaged, the rest of his life disabled because I didn't pay attention that one moment. As I tried to comfort him and keep the other kids from falling (another instant fear) I grabbed my phone to call the pediatrician. To my disbelief there was no blood and I could feel no crack and he was actually calming down fairly quickly, considering. I was even keeping myself together. That is until I told the nurse what happened. Then I just started sobbing. Thankfully, a lady I knew had turned down our aisle and perceived that something was wrong and once she heard what I told the nurse she took Schaeffer, telling me she was a nurse. She looked him over and said he looked great and the nurse on the phone asked me questions to which I had all the right answers. By a miracle of God we did not have to go to the ER. By a miracle of God, Schaeffer was going to be ok. This entire incident still has me on edge. I cried all day Monday when I talked about it or thought about it. I keep seeing him fall and hearing that crack against the floor. I'm terrified of putting my kids in carts, though it seems nearly unavoidable. Every time Schaeffer doesn't seem quite right I start to panic and wonder if it's just taken a few days for the impact of his injuries to be noticeable. So I guess God knows how to speak to us in a timely fashion. And apparently I can learn something from Esther about facing these new fears and trusting God with my life and the lives of my children.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Big Boys

I cleared off the camera the other day and found a smattering of pictures I had forgotten were on there from the recent weeks. Looking at these pictures it seems as though we are fast approaching the end of baby days around here. Logan and Schaeffer are clearly on their way to toddler-hood and seem so much like big boys lately.

Our first picnic. Yes, it was in September but the twins were just too little to sit at this table like big boys until recently. 

More table sitting and more eating. Sitting in chairs at a table makes them look so grown up, never mind that it is a kid's table and pint sized chairs :-)

Toddling. We played a rousing game of walking one night before bed. The boys thought it was such a game to walk between Paul and I. They haven't committed to walking full time yet, but they are getting oh so close.

Peek-a-boo. Schaeffer LOVES to play this game and he loves to play it with Jack. Just this past weekend he also started saying "peek-a-boo" when he uncovers his face. His verbal skills are developing fast and furious lately. He has a few words he can say and know what they mean but he can imitate a variety of words.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Three

I've been mulling over this post for a few days now but I'm having a hard time organizing my thoughts. So I'm just going to wing it.

Jack has proven to be quite the little challenge lately and as many will tell you this is no surprise seeing as he is a 3 year old. But as I have observed the world, it is obvious that most everyone survives the age of three and most parents survive raising a three year old. But being as I'm in the trenches of it right now, survival often seems unlikely so I take comfort in recognizing how many 4 and older people are in the world :) Once I began to consider this obvious revelation I then began to ponder how it is that so many have survived. I have come up with a few answers. First, God must be intervening on my child's behalf. The anger and frustration that well up within me when Jack misbehaves (to put it lightly) can only be quelled by the Almighty. My instinct to scream back is only kept in check by the Father's strong right hand. Now certainly I too have fallen into "misbehavior" in regards to how I react to my son, but without Christ, Jack and I would surely be in a constant downward spiral with our intertwined emotions battling for control.  Thankfully, instead we just have an occasional speed bump. God makes it possible for me to more often than naught keep myself under control until the situation is resolved or until I have a moment by myself where I can let my emotions out without risking my son's emotional well being. That is one way in which we will survive, the strength of God.

The second reason that Jack and I will get through this difficult stage is because in God's infinite wisdom he made little kids cute, adorable, sweet and endearing. As often as I find myself frustrated with Jack's disobedience and extreme tantrum throwing, I find myself just as often savoring his sweet smiles and animated, hands flying conversations. There is so much good and wonderful about my son that while I sob in exhausted frustration after dealing with a 45 minute screaming tantrum, I also have hope for his future because I see what a beautiful child of God he is. He has kinks to work out, don't we all? But in the midst of these growing pains are so many wonderful signs of who Jack is. He sings sweetly to his brothers if they are crying, though he might bop them on the head with a toy a moment later. He gives me giant hugs and big sloppy kisses every night before bed and then proceeds to repeatedly get out of bed in disobedience for the next hour . He is funny and serious, he is playful and smart. He is learning how to discard his sour attitude and find his happy heart. And when I see him decide to take his whiney, pouty, near tantrum face and put on a smile and a sweet, kind, happy face, I know we are making progress-however slow. He is learning and one day we will be able to look back and thank Jesus for helping us survive 3.

Question is, can we survive a double dose of 3?

Tanner's Apple Orchard

Saturday had the makings of being a pretty crappy day. Paul had plans to work on the shed all day and I had no plans. Plus none of the kids are feeling super great and Schaeffer was especially irritable all morning. Then my mom called and suggested going to Tanner's Apple Orchard. It was supposed to be a beautiful day and my parents had no plans either. I'm so glad I agreed to skip naps and go out for a fun afternoon. We left Paul at home so he could spend some uninterrupted time with his shed. Despite the cranky dispositions we had at home all the kids had a great time and did a great job the whole time we were gone. Though it was definitely a great thing we had a 1 to 1 ratio of adults to kids. At least for me, that made the afternoon much less stressful than it could have been. Here are some of the highlights:


-Giant pumpkins. They had an area filled with over-sized, massive pumpkins. The kids loved them. Jack especially thought it was really cool that he could walk on them and pretend they were a pumpkin balance beam. He made sure to point out that Papa was too big to walk on pumpkins though. I liked the big pumpkins so much I bought one to put on our porch. It took my mom, myself and another lady to hoist the thing into my wheelbarrow and it took Paul to hoist it from the van to the porch. Hmmm...That just didn't seem right, but whatever.



-One of the highlights for Jack was this caboose. He loves trains and it took a lot of convincing to move on to another activity. He just went up and down the stairs and in and out and all around checking out this real train. Only according to him it wasn't a train (trains are only the engines) it was a load. He told mom and I all about the different parts. His passion for it was adorable and he took it all very seriously as he pointed out the real tracks, wheels and hitch. 


-Tanner's has a whole section full of activities for kids and families. What I really liked was that you just paid one fee to get in and then everything inside was unlimited. We spent most of our time playing. The favorites of course were the caboose, the hay bale maze, the wooden train, the peddle tractors and the CAT tractor. It was a very fun and dirty time made even better by the beautiful weather.

Papa and Grandma hanging with the twins while Jack and I jumped from hay bale to hay bale.

In my mind I thought this would be a really cute picture-all the boys on the cool CAT tractor. But who am I kidding these three couldn't all smile and look at the camera at the same time if we stood there and tried all day.

This train was just the right size for Schaeffer and Logan to crawl all over.

Logan LOVES anything with wheels that he can push around.

-Another fun thing was riding on the covered wagon out into the fields. Jack and I did this by ourselves and we had a lot of fun. He decided he wanted to pick a pumpkin instead of picking apples. And he took this task very seriously as well. Once we got in that field he was on a mission and lead me on a wild goose chase to find the perfect pumpkin. I suggested several and was immediately shot down as though he had something very specific in mind (though what, I really don't know). My favorite excuse of his was that a particular pumpkin wouldn't do because it was too dirty. Finally, I found this cute little pumpkin that was just Jack's size. 


While we waited for the wagon to pick us up from the pumpkin field Jack decided he did want an apple after all. So we walked over to a nearby apple tree and I let him pick one and eat it on the ride back. 

Thanks for a great time Mom and Dad!

When we got home that evening around 6:15 or so I was so proud of myself for having thought ahead and having dinner in the crock pot. But as our day had been going at home before Tanner's, so it continued once we were back. I overcooked the chicken. Put it on high for 8 hours instead of low for 8 hours. Dinner was a dry, brittle, disgusting mess and the kids resumed their cranky dispositions almost immediately upon entering the house. Made me even more thankful for the afternoon out and that the kids were so good while we were gone.

 

Template by BloggerCandy.com