Another room painted!

The boys' room was cutsey with lots of character before, but also a drab off white color. Actually, the main reason this project took priority was because the previous owners had a bunch of ugly stickers that they had half-heartedly tried to get off, which left the walls looking dirty where the stickers weren't, and half-peeled stickers in other places. (not pictured) So Mom and I painted it a fresh white when she was here, then I added a rust red on the built-ins with brown handles. The only thing left to paint is the thin strip of molding along the ceiling (brown), which is a nightmare of a painting job. So we'll see who tackles that. (No we don't let them watch TV in their room, only a movie during some Bible studies :-)

I can't help adding a cute pic of our Little Thing. (bow by Sarah!)

Boys' tidbits

After a long hard day, I am most thankful for laughter. These little munchkins always manage to make me smile. I recently realized that my brain is leaving me and I can't remember a cute story even by the time Jason gets home from work. So I am going to try to blog some of these happenings so I don't forget!

Today I took the kids to Burger King in the afternoon to get their wiggles out. I bought a drink and the boys were hopping around so excited to beg for part of my pop. Jonas then said in a loud voice, "But I'm not going to pee my bed tonight!!"

My folks were up for the weekend and my mom was reading while I nursed Elsie. Caedmon marched in from outside and declared: "Now. Who would like to get the green stroller out of the garage for me?!" Oooh, pick me, pick me!

We have our kids call adults Mr. and Mrs., and decided those terms of respect should apply to any adult, even celebrities and atheletes. It is hilarious to hear Caedmon and Jonas cheer for the Vikings' football players: "Go Mr. Favre! Come on Mr. Peterson!" Their favorite Christian music artist from the radio is Mr. Mac. They beg us to youtube Toby Mac's songs, then dance around with their guitars rocking out, singing the backup voices. I should post a video! Little Jonas who is about 13 inches tall sings/yells "I don't want to gain the whole world, and loothe my thoul!"

We got a neat Noah's Ark made out of popsicle sticks from Uncle Karl and Aunt Mary, and the boys love playing with it with their animals. Lately I have seen matchbox cars also make their way up the ramp into the ark. I overheard Caedmon telling the kangaroo if he said something one more time he was going to get a spanking.

Tonight at dinner I was making hash out of leftover ham. Caedmon said, "Ooo I love chicken!" I said, "It's ham." C: "Yeah, I like ham, but Jonas doesn't like it." (they are not supposed to say they don't like food that is for dinner) There is a pause, then Jonas says, "But it's not my favorite thing!...I didn't say gross."

Caedmon often asks me when he will be allowed to do certain things. I have to think hard about my answers, because he will often recite the ages I have already given him. "You can only cut with sharp knives when you're 5, so then you'll be really big. But, Jonas, when you're 4 you can crack the eggs. I can drive the tractor when I'm 12 and I can drive the go-cart when I'm 6." My favorite, "When I'm as big as Daddy I don't need help when I go poopy." I certainly hope not!

Caedmon loves to get out of taking naps or even lying down during rest time. It has been a good lesson showing him when he's crabby later in the day because he chose not to take a nap when I recommended, but didn't necessarily enforce rest time. Now his catch phrase as he's eating lunch is, "I don't think I'm going to take a nap today. I'm going to control myself!" I smile and think to myself, good luck, kid. I am STILL learning to control myself!

Tonight the boys were in the bathroom and I heard Caedmon say to Jonas, "You'd better not because maybe Mom will hear you." Obviously, I investigated. Neither of my boys have ever defaced property or had issues with pens and pencils, but Jonas had scribbled all over the bathroom door with pen. I spanked him and made him scrub it with a magic eraser. After a few minutes, I heard him gravely lament, "We ONLY write on paper. Only paper!" Lesson learned!

P.S. The pen came off the door. :-)

Fall Color

My favorite season is here again! The colors weren't as vibrant as last year, but still amazing. My toddlers were even more into the leaves!

Gannons!

James and Sarah and nephew John got to come for a visit. Oh what a great time we had! I really wish Sarah lived so much closer because we are good friends. We didn't do too much out of the ordinary, but enjoyed a lot of nice walks and hikes. I didn't get a good picture of James (he hides from the camera), but he ended up watching the toddlers outside for most of his vacation. THANK YOU UNCLE JAMES! Sarah practically did all my cooking for me. It was MY vacation! Here are Sarah and Elsie. They like each other. Elsie doesn't have a bow in her hair *gasp*! The best cousin shot I got from my attempts. My boys liked telling John what to do and what was fun.

He is so cute!

We hiked up our "mountain" together. Three adults and four young kids, we were proud of ourselves! The view from the top of the tower:

My little bubbies climbing rocks with Ant Sarah. She is so much fun!


Come back soon, family!

My Elsie

A good friend of mine gave us a screamin deal on professional newborn shots of Elsie, so I had to share some of her work! Thanks, Jessie! I love them because she has already changed so much and I want to remember her tiny!

Tick Tock

Time, time, time. I used to have so much of it!

I know I increased my parenting duties by 50% lately by adding Elsie. Still, it is incredible to me how BUSY I seem to be! I don't know why I'm blogging about it, to complain? to ask for advice? to get empathy from others who feel so busy?!

My friend pointed out that with a newborn, 5-6 hours of your day at least are spent just nursing, burping, and changing. I sure notice those 5 hours!

I don't think 3 kids is any harder than 2 really, if you had like 30 hours in a day! I am not pulling out my hair with the chaos, I simply get to the end of the day and am unable to name one solitary thing I accomplished besides "doing the day." Are my expectations too high?

Things I would LIKE to do everyday:

-spend time with God alone (~30 min) and PRAY (any amount of time!)
-exercise (~30 min)
-make Jason's lunch (10 min)
-make breakfast for kids (10 min)
-clean up breakfast (10 min)
-Bible time with kids (30 min)
-get the kids dressed (15 min)
-shower and look presentable (would like ~30 min)
-make phone calls for appts./sisters/friends (~30 min)
-take pictures of kids (5 min)
-do "school" time with kids: crafts, cooking, puzzles, playing, etc. (30 min)
-make lunch (10 min)
-clean up lunch (10 min)
-read to kids (15 min)
-nap the kids and pick up house
-E-mail, facebook, blog, etc. (~30-60 min)
-prepare dinner (30-60 min)
-get kids out for a walk (20 min)
-clean up dinner-sweep (15 min)
-hang out with Jason/family (30-60 min)
-read by myself! (20 min)
-go to bed!

I'd also LIKE to add one or more significant "extra" to each day like:

-laundry
-extra baking
-cleaning house
-sorting clothes/piles/boxes
-meeting friends for playdates
-Bible study
-having someone over for dinner
-printing pictures/baby books etc.
-groceries/errands
-serving at the church (60 min)
-NAP!!!!!

I am managing ok, and some days feel less guilty than others. It just seems like the minute I think I am done I remember: Elsie is hungry, the laundry just beeped, Jonas needs help putting his shoes on, I need to get meat out to thaw, Caedmon wants me to set up a lego house for him, Elsie needs to eat!, I need to look for a recipe, someone needs a new diaper, Jason's coming home soon and our house is a tornado, someone needs a bandaid, Elsie is STARVING, Elsie wants to be held, I promised Caedmon I'd play a game, I want to talk to my faraway friends, oops someone just talked back and requires immediate attention ETCETERA etcetera etcetera!

I know this is such a short phase in life and I will definitely miss this particular busyness. I love my job! I am trying to shift my focus to serving God in each pan I wash, each and every diaper I change, each disciplining moment, and to treasure the precious memories along the way. I love a challenge but it is harder to pat myself on the back for productivity anymore. haha And I even have a DISHWASHER! Does anyone else feel this way?

Chicken Soup

Ok, here I go. Determined to write my Laura Ingalls post. Since I am a big fan, and I like ALLY'S (http://allylaughingatthedays.blogspot.com/2010/09/come-to-my-party-please.html) idea to pool the crafty-homemade-frontier ideas we use in our families, I will do it. I did always want to be Laura. And make fun of Nellie!

The first problem is, do I do anything original that is clever? I have dabbled in a lot of things, but certainly don't consider myself an expert at many. I do cloth diapers and make my own laundry detergent, I use my clothesline and make bread and dried beans, know the basics of knitting and crocheting, but do I really have any unique idea to share?

The only thing I thought of that I learned just in the last couple years is cooking a chicken. I DO know how to cut off a chicken's head, scald the feathers, pluck the feathers, etc. from growing up in Africa. But what I mean is boiling the leftovers after cooking a whole chicken into the best soup EVER!

My mom always said that whole chickens are way cheaper per pound than say B/S chicken breasts. I don't know HOW much cheaper it is once you consider the bones, the inconvenience, and all the dark meat that isn't devoured as quickly as prime white meat. But a big roasted chicken dinner sure is good! It comes out really good in the crockpot, too. Very moist.

To make an unbeatable chicken soup, though, continue boiling all the bones that have been carved, for at least 12-24 hours! People say the marrow flavor and nutrients are extracted if you boil it for a long time in water. My friend even boils the chicken 3-4 days! Anyway the meat falls off the bones, the broth is rich and yummy, and some simmered veggies give you chicken soup that beats Grandma's.

Best part is the meat is "scavenged" off the part you usually throw away. If only I knew how to skin a buffalo, I could REALLY cook soup for a herd of Ingalls'. Imagine what a person could make out of buffalo pancreas!