Standing up....

Noah has decided to stand up. I thing that he thinks that sitting and crawling is boring. He loves to stand. He pulls himself up now. Just the beginning...did I mention that he is just 7 months old?

Graduate!

Today we went to my brother's graduation from the University of San Diego Law School. He is such a hard worker and has accomplished so much in all of his studies and . We are very proud of him. He will go far... now it's on to the bar exam in July! Happy studying Chris!

My brother Chris and our parents

ugh...I dropped my camera and hope it is OK!!!! The zoom button popped out but I think I got it back in where it should be!! crossing fingers!!!!

Gardening...

We are growing lots of stuff in our garden this year. We have beans, peas, snap peas, zucchini, cucumber, radishes, lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, cantaloupe, delicata squash along with some sunflowers that should grow to be mammoth size! So far that is what we have planted. We still have some other melon types and some pumpkins that we will grow also. We probably won't have enough to get into a pot though because as soon as the kids spot a bean or a pea that is ready to be picked, they pick it and eat it. It looks like we will have to grow more of those so that we can enjoy them more. We will have to see how the other 'crops' do...and for that we are waiting for that nice warm sun to stay out longer than it has.
Today we went to the nursery to find some tape for our trellis (the vines seem to need some help in the beginning to go up the bamboo) and the kids got some squirt bottles. They love to use squirt bottles to water the plants. As we were getting back home Ben said, "Well let's get to the back yard and do some gardening!" We couldn't wait to get our hands in the dirt!

Bees...

Ben and Hannah were playing today with all their friends at the park today. They were running from one tree and back playing "bees". Then they would hide in the bushes and keep playing. They were having so much fun running free. On their way back to me, Ben started screaming that he had a splinter, so I ran to see what I could do. It turns out that he got stung on the bottom of his foot. The stinger was not there (I think he puled it out himself). I put a cold wipe on it and it seemed to be a little better. He put his shoes on after that. Then about 30 minutes later his friend Gabriel got stung on his hand! Wow, 2 stings in one day. I think Ben will remember this and agree to put his shoes on when I ask him to.

I just think it is strange that they were playing "bees" and then they got stung...makes me wonder....

Fishing...

Last night while we were at the graduation party, my Dad gave Ben and Marissa a fly fishing vest. Ben loves it because Marissa got one and his Daddy has one. Hannah loves to fish too and wondered where hers was. GranDad told her that he would look for one in her size. Here is one! Ben and Hannah practice fishing at least once or twice a week from the garage. They cast their rods down the driveway and often cast into the street. Because Ben got a vest last night that sparked their interest in fishing today. Here they are with their fishing poles on the front lawn. They can't wait for our yearly camping trip to Lundy Lake.

Fruit...

It's funny how kids are. Often times when we are at a playgroup and someone has a snack that they don't mind sharing, Ben and Hannah will get to try it if we haven't had it before (or they don't want to try it from me). They will take it eat it and like it so much that they want some at home. For example Hannah would not eat carrots. Ever. And one day a friend at playgroup brought carrot sticks and shared and now she loves to eat carrot sticks! So I have been trying to get the kids to eat grapes for the last few years and neither one would try them out. I mean what a refreshing snack to have on a hot day! And they don't believe me when I tell them that they are plump raisins.

Tonight we were at my parents house for a triple college graduation party (Congrats Chris, Heather and Jacqueline!) and they had grapes and berries out to eat. My niece (Marissa) would come down and grab a full plate of fruit and take it upstairs to where they were playing. I followed her upstairs to check on the kids and ... get ready ... they were eating a huge plate of grapes! I try not to make a big deal out of these new discoveries so I just mentioned how huge their plate of yummy grapes was and left. They were so excited that I didn't take it away.

Ice cream...

Tonight was the last Bradley class that I will teach for a while. I have to finish my final exam and turn in all the last of the paperwork before I can teach another class. The kids went with Corey to his Moms house (as they always do on class nights) and they walked to Wendy's. They love the walk along the river and they love Wendy's. They get a cup with the kids meal and after they finish the meal they get ice cream in the cup. What is it with kids and ice cream? They can't finish their dinners but they always have room for it. No threat will make them eat all of their food. We always resort to "take 3 (or 4 or 5) more bites" before we give them their treat. These treats are not every day treats, so they are extra special when we have them...like tonight.

brothers forever...

Ben loves his little brother. Usually he wakes up in a grumpy mood from a nap and can't or won't snap out of it for quite a while after waking up. Today he was sleeping and we had the door closed so that he could rest. But time came when we had to wake him or he would be up all night! So we all went in there to see him. I told Noah to find him in the bed, Ben peeked out of the covers and Noah laughed. That perked him up, I guess Noah is the only one that can get Ben up from a nap smiling. He jumped up and then Noah was jumping on my knee watching him and then Ben started to jump on the bed. So that's what time it became, time to jump on the bed together.

Undo yesterday...

Well, we had a bit of 'buyers' remorse' when we returned from the preschool yesterday. We thought and thought and thought some more about it then we did some researcho online about whether or not preschool is necessary for kids... and we decided not to do it! Kids don't need preschool especially if there is someone who can 'educate' them at home (that would be me...I mean, I am very qualified after all). So Ben is staying home another year :-) Corey went to get the checks back from the school and the deal is done! We're very happy with our decision and will find some other things to spend our hard-earned money on!

Preschool...

Well we went for a visit today. Ben and Hannah really enjoyed looking around and discovering what preschool was all about. I don't think that they had any idea about what school was like before today. They have been playing 'school' but now that they've seen it...well, maybe they'll incorporate what they saw in their play. So Ben is signed up for the fall semester. I think he will like it, I am the one who will have a problem with him being gone though. He's been around me his entire life and now he's growing up (I guess going to school is a sign of growing up?).

Anyway, they have a great place. There's the classroom with all the areas of learning indoors, then they have a playground, and a garden where they actually can do gardening! When we were in the garden looking around Ben and Hannah got to pick peas and eat them from the vine, they loved it! Good thing we have peas growing in the back yard!!

The Director (Ms Marie) asked Hannah if she wanted to come to school too. She said "no". Ben also said no but we think he'll be ready to go at the end of the summer.

Cheeeeez...

What a ham!

Our walk...

We went for a long walk today to the nursery. I had to take back the shovel that the kids got me because there was lead in the handle. I couldn't bring myself to using it in my organic garden so, off we went! The kids were so excited to walk to the nursery! They were interested to learn what we passed with every turn in the road and every driveway that we came to cross. I told them about the car repair shop and the car dealership, the driveway to the apartments, the driveway in to KFC and to the liquor store. They wanted to know what kind of stores we were passing on the way too. I had to explain what a bar was as well as an investors office. They knew exactly where we were going and they did well all the way over and back home. :-)

Mother's Day sweetness...

Today was Mother's Day. The kids are getting so good at keeping secrets! They bought me some presents a few days ago and they didn't say a word about them even while I was opening them! They bought me a new shovel, a tea kettle (!) and a new nozzle for watering the plants. Then we went to lunch at Corvette Diner. They had fun eating the red chips and drinking chocolate shakes with sprinkles in it. Why not! It's only a few times a year that we get to have treats llike that! We played in the backyard in the afternoon and had Nanny here for dinner. They love to have Nanny chase after them playing "monster". After dinner we had our nightly routine of baths, night snacks, brushing teeth and reading books. On her way to bed, Hannah peeked in at me with the baby and said, "Happy Mother's Day" with a big smile on her face. That was so sweet, I hope I remember it forever!

it's official!

Noah is able to sit up all on his own! He's such a big boy now and so much happier! He doesn't need us to sit behind him anymore to catch him. We do still do an occasional catch but they are getting more and more sparse throughout the day. Now it's time for all those little bruises :-( He has one one his cheek from a toy....poor little guy!

Not so fun days...

The last few days the kids have been fighting and arguing with each other. One will tease the other with a toy s/he wants and then later on that day the other will tease back. I can't get them to stop. No matter how hard I try. So we go out of the house for the morning and don't come back until lunchtime. We go to the park. They have lots of fun playing there and they don't get on each others' nerves as easily. So that is where we will be tomorrow!