today

landon has recently decided to potty train himself.  he has been ready for awhile, i am the one who is not ready.  not ready for a third little boy having to go pee the minute we are all in the car and its 115 degrees outside.  no, i am not ready!
he has gone outside like the other boys a few times and then made his way to the 'big' potty.  no little potty for this one, i have it out, but forget it!  the most precious part of this, is that he is so proud of himself.  when we picked up luke from camp, landon looked right at him and told him that he had gone on the big potty.  he must have been waiting all day to share the news with his big brother.... there is nothing like having a brother.


logan is into sending mail lately.  he has been writing letters to his friend kevin.  a few letters, everyday, and they have to be read over and over again.  and written over and over again, until they are perfect.  his words are so kind, "dear kevin, thank you for being a lovely friend.  from logan"  lovely, yes, he even came up with that one himself.


luke does not want to do anything that does not involve a ball or playing rock, paper, scissors.  i have never played so much rock, paper, scissors in all my life.  his front tooth is still loose.  it has been loose for a few months now.  and he keeps waiting patiently for it to fall out, he cannot wait to see the tooth fairy again.  another little boy at his school told him that if he brings the tooth into the principle, he will get a little surprise.  luke shared this with me last night and this morning he was pulling on his tooth and asking me to get it out.  i think this little boys patience is growing thin...


lily just keeps growing and growing.  she is so good.  the only time she really, really cries is when she has a poopy diaper.  she does not like that at all, what a smart girl!  she smiles at her brothers, even when she is is danger of being knocked over.  i heard her first laugh today, while logan was bouncing her around in her seat.  logan is also into getting her dressed.  she is in her party dress today for pump it up this afternoon.  logan wanted to add extra bows to her outfit, but luke voiced his opinion on her having enough bows.


we are preparing for a week in minnesota for the 4th of july.  i have just started to get us ready.  flying for the first time as a family of 6.  omg, 6, with 4 of us being 6 and under, this will be a delight!  sorry to all my fellow travelers.  but into the air we will go on saturday for a fun filled griswalds style vacation.  off to see nana lewis, green grass, fireworks, humidity and more.

pictures to follow.  i am a bit busy!

new hobbies

110 degrees and they still want to go practice at the driving range.  even landon is asking.  luke has practiced so much he has developed a blister on his hand. i know, i was laughing when i first saw the gloves, but bit my tongue, because apparently they do have a purpose.

heaven

oh you cant get to heaven on roller skates, you will roll right by that pearly gate....or on a pogo stick... or in a rocket ship.

thats the song we listened to over and over last night in luke's bedroom.  he wanted to hear that more then he wanted a  bedtime story.  him and landon danced around the room singing along with their new cd player. 

the part that really got luke was the rocket.  why cant you get there in a rocket?  he wants to design one to get him there. 

this weather has us inside alot, 109 yesterday.  still off to swim we went.  the boys hopped right in. lily and i sat with a spray bottle, feeling its cool mist evaporate a few seconds after each spray.  it worked, it kept her cool.  everyone wanted the magical spray bottle, even the other moms my littles were 'cooling' off.  i would have stopped all the fun, but the moms were thanking the boys for the sprays.  

after his dinner and bath, logan was so tired, he quietly slipped away into his bed, naked, and was asleep before i could get him dressed.  must be the heat.

father's day

logan's words

we love you daddy, 

we love you papa

what a birthday it was... he woke up this morning ready to take on the world and show them all the new things he can do since he is 4.  he grew a few inches of course, had a dream that it was his birthday, and was insisting that his party was to be at pump it up.

off to summer camp he went with a box of cookies to share.  its 'chef's around the world' this week with lots of cooking in each classroom.  

at pick up the teacher tells me that 5 children went home with the stomach flu.  of course, of course.  we are heading on vacation tomorrow.  and of course, all these littles have been cooking and eating together all day. hopefully, all our bellies will stay well!

after picking up luke we head for home to have a little family party.  luke is upset, well, beyond upset because it is logan's party.  after he tries to take the cake, blow out the candles, peek into every present and yell out whats inside... he comes to me to whisper in my ear that he needs to have the biggest piece of cake, which of course needs to go to the birthday boy, logan.

the rocket from papa and nana was the biggest hit.  all three loved it. they could not keep their hands off of it, and there were many tears.  

logan, being so smart (and 4 years old), decided to just go upstairs for a nap at around 5pm.  when he came back down at 6:30 he could not figure out why all the birthday stuff was still out.  we ate, took baths, brushed teeth.  then came story time.

logan got out his new bible from vacation bible school and decided he wanted me to read him the entire thing.  of course, since he is 4, he needs things done a certain way.  i have to read the entire bible with no pauses, yawns, sneezing, or moving. i am not even allowed to use funny voices.  if i do any of these things we have to start all over again, from the beginning.  and i mean close the book, read the cover, and open it again.  

after restarting a few times, laughing and restarting again.  i explained that we were just not going to finish the entire bible tonight.  maybe tomorrow or by the time you are 5 logan.  i love you!  and, oh how you make me smile.  how can i read the entire book without stopping to smile or starting to laugh.

who does she look like?

Luke

Logan

Landon

Lily

sunday morning

a quiet sunday morning all to myself, i love it!  soon, i will hear the pitter patter of little feet running out of their bedrooms and giggling when they see me sitting and drinking my coffee.
life has been so busy, especially these past few months, but i love every minute.  seeing life through their eyes, listening to their stories and understanding how they interpret the world.
today, luke and logan will be singing in a church presentation.  they will go onto the sanctuary stage and sing the songs they learned in vacation bible school.... shake it up and give thanks to the lord.  they are so excited.  luke even passed up an invitation to go up to the cabin.  i cant wait to see them sing!  i love that its something they have been able to participate in together, they have been practicing their dance moves, so cute.
an update on our garden.  as i had mentioned, the apples and grapes were almost ready for picking.  this is the first year that our apples have not been eaten by birds, squirrels, and anything else that can climb the tree.  so, after dinner last night andrew and i mention to the boys that its time to pick the apples.  we all run outside and there is only one apple.  there were easily 20 apples on our little backyard tree.  where could they have all gone?  i am thinking we have some full bellied landscapers:-)

sweet dreams

nothing i love more then this sweet little face.  and a big brother to love and hold her while she slept on top of him.  he asked if she could start sleeping in his bed. oh so sweet, melt...

three boys peacefully playing together before bed, what more could a mother ask for? the oldest leading his brothers in building a track.

our garden

we had so much fun planting our garden in march, i never thought any of it would still be alive and growing by june in arizona.  normally our days are in the 100s.  we have been so blessed this year with perfect weather.  

our garden continues to grow. we have picked radishes, cilantro, and now carrots.  and the littles eat it all.  yes, even the radishes!  so much excitement to run out there in the morning and see what has grown and put it into our mouths.  soon the apples and grapes will be ready for eatin' 

terrible twos

he is a darling little boy, so sweet, but suddenly the terrible two's are upon us.  full on tantrums on the floor, sidewalk, store, i turn around and there he is laying there screaming and crying.  at swim lessons he cries until its his turn to go, even though he has been fine swimming for months.  toys, food, and drinks are flying around the room when he gets them in his little hands.  poor little guy is really learning about time out these days...

xtreme

brotherly love

never have i met a brother so in love with his little sister.  everywhere we go he tells everyone that they are three brothers and one baby girl, lily grace. he could not wait to dress her in her party dress.  when i told him he was cute, he smiled and said, 'no mommy, lily is cute'.

lazy cabin weekend

days spent fishing (real and pretend). first they practiced in the driveway, then down to the river they went.  logan in search of rainbow fish and a wopper.  lukey in search of salmon and tilapia for dinner.  they both came back full of excitement at all the crawldads they had caught.
 landon a bit under the weather... hopefully the sunshine will come his way and have him feeling better.  in the meantime he shared his blankey passion with puppy.  i am sure she loved blankey's soft edge rub.