Wisdom from a 5-Year Old

Me (telling #3 about Heaven): ...and you'll never be hungry in Heaven.
#3: I'm not hungry now. But I will be. In sixteen minutes.

(Four minutes later)

#3: Do you know who George Washington is? I do.
Me: Who?
#3: You know! Tell yourself!
Me: Why don't you tell me and we will see if we have the same answer.
#3: He broke down a cherry tree and told the truth.
Me: Yes, and he grew up to be a brave soldier and the first President of our country!
#3:.....Just like my teddy bear was my first teddy bear?
Me: Ummmm, sure....
#3: And he came down from teddy bear heaven?
Me: .....? Just go upstairs.

(12 minutes later)

#3: Mom? (Looking very pathetic) Can I have some chips?

Do Pools Have Water?

This is the question Child #4 asked on our way out the door. He did fine in lessons, until the teacher asked him to sit on the stairs while she worked with another child at the other end of the pool. Now, this pool is not a standard sized pool; it is located in a hotel, had dimensions of 12 x 15 feet, is 3 feet deep at one end and 5 feet deep on the other. Child #4, being listening-challenged, did not stay sitting on the stairs. He stood up, splashed around, and promptly fell off the stairs into water that was just over his eyes. Needless to say, in a pool where the teacher is at the other end and no life guard on duty, I came home with a wet leg. Good thing I was sitting on the same side of the pool and could haul my child to safety.

God's Purpose for Mothers

Our family celebrated the first official day of summer vacation by...starting the new homeschool curriculum I received over the weekend. Child #3 and I were reading about Martin Luther and how he wasn't sure what his purpose was, but he knew that God had a plan for him. I turned to my much loved (and quoted) child and asked, "Do you know what God's purpose for me is? Do you know what He wants me to do with my life?" to which he answered, "Knitting?"

In other news... Dadad and Child #3 had their Taekwondo ceremony and received their Second Degree Black Belt and Senior White Belt. We are very proud of them.

Child #1 got straight A's this quarter at college!
Child #2 is now on Summer Vacation...and probably can't wait to get back to school. She also got straight A's!
Children#3 and #4 start swim lessons today (Child #4 for the first time...he had a nightmare that he fell into the water last night, so we will see how today goes for him)
And...Child #5 is now sleeping in her own bed...

Okay, Fine!

Fine, dear ole husband you! After you tease me about loving my new Haggen bags and saying I should post it on my blog and then maybe someone will read it! Here is my list of 10 reasons why I love my new Haggen bags:

1. They are Reusable
2. I don't have to throw away a bunch of plastic bags every week
3. They stand up by themselves!
4. They fold flat or hang for storage!
5. They cost $.99 each
6. You get a $.05 discount for each bag you use, every time you use them
7. The handles are long enough to hang over your shoulder
8. They are strong enough to carry two gallons of milk!
9. They are pretty (the dark Haggen green)
10. They don't fall over in the van

And just for everyone's information, two of my friends are going to buy them because of my email! So there! :S-

Jumpin' Baby Bean

Child #5 is still up...an hour past her bedtime. I did find her chewing on a coffee bean. I wonder if that has anything to do with it?

WHAT is so FUNNY?

Children #3 and #4 are going through an interesting phase. Everything is funny to them. They will sit at the table during lunch and say, "I'm eating a sandwich." And then the giggling starts. And it doesn't stop. The giggling and strange comments go on and on until I'm about ready to go crazy! "There's a plate on the table." "I see a tomato." "The dog is dumb." I tried separating them...but they could still hear each other giggling in the other room. Child #3 had to sit on time out until he could stop laughing. He sat for 15 minutes.

Most parents have sibling rivalry issues. Their children fight. My kids love each other too much! How can that irritate me? How can I give my kids a time out for LAUGHING and SMILING and LOVING each other?

So now the rule is they can laugh, but if it is so loud that it hurts my ears, it has to stop.

She Speaks!

Child #5 is a late talker, just like her older brother. At 18 months, she should be speaking in two word sentences. I'm just so happy to hear her say, "Mama! Mama! Mama!" What else does she need to say? Of course she can say other boring words like apple, uh-oh, and no. And some fun ones like Flash, Mn, Nn, and Ay-Mm. But nothin' beats Mama.

Child #3 is testing for his first Taekwondo belt this week. Because these kids are so young, the instructors just hope the kids can remember to yell, "Yes Sir!" Forget knowing the Poomses! It is a fast and easy track to Black Belt if you start young I guess.

Bad Timing or Run Away Imagination

Today I took Children 3-5 to the doctor's office for a well-child check up. Only #3 and #5 were actually seen. As I was reassuring the doctor that my child would indeed be properly socialized without the aid of the public school, Child 3 decided that this was a great time to play mouse. He crawled behind the examination table and peeked out a few times before cautiously creeping out and grooming his mousy fur. Right when Doctor asked if I "had any concerns about his behavior," we looked over to see the little mouse sniffing his feet and attempting to scratch under his chin. "Um, well, as you can see he has a great imagination (Get back on the bench where I told you to sit!)..." was all that I could say. Our family doctor has been with us since Children 1 and 2 were little tykes and he likes to reminisce about the time one of them said, "You may call this a butterfly, but I call it Lepidoptera." So he wasn't at all surprised to see the next generation following in their footsteps.

Oh, but Child 3 wasn't done with just a mouse act. Doctor interviewed this child about important safety topics such as bike helmets and how dangerous handgun are and how he should never pick one up. At the end of the appointment, we casually chatted about our summer plans: camping. Doctor asked Child 3 how he could be safe around a campfire. With a straight face, I kid you not, this incredible child of ours said, "Oh, we will bring guns. That will keep us safe."

My Pathetic Doberman was home alone all day and now she is so happy to see us again that she is following me from room to room.

Welcome!

Hi all! I'm going to try to keep a blog running updating friends and family on our adventures in life. We will see if this format works better than that website I had a few years ago...

Security and privacy are important to us, so I won't be referring to us by name and I will try not to reveal the whereabouts of our secret underground lair. The kids will be coded by their birth order and the dog will be... Dodo. I can't post her REAL name of course. I wouldn't want anyone to be eaten alive by my ferocious attack dog.

The title of my blog was inspired by an event that took place in my backyard the other day. Child 3 was swimming underwater and popped up out of the water when he reached the edge. Dodo was taken by surprise and ran away, frightened of the sea monster.

Kids n Pets are a great combination when its all said and done. So get in, sit down, and hold on! We are having a fantastic journey!