Hunger Strike

Have you ever had a child go on hunger strike? It's very frustrating! The last few days Chandler has been getting more and more picky about what he will and won't eat, and yesterday, it was essentially milk, milk, and milk. I tried not to give him any milk so he would be hungry after his naps, but it still didn't seem to improve his appetite! (and then he stopped having wet diapers so I thought I better give in to the milk a bit) He seems hungry, (and grumpy) but then he takes one bite and spits it back out. Things like yogurt and cheese have been well accepted for a few bites, and then that's it too.



So last night Gordon let him pick something out of the fridge (applesauce) and then they had a little picnic on the floor where they fed each other and tried to make a game out of it. And he ate it! They were so funny sitting in the middle of the floor making a mess, but we're a little desperate. Unfortunately the results of this seem to be temporary, and he's back on strike this morning. Hopefully this will pass in a day or two!!!

This mouse isn't named Aidan!!!

Oh Gross!!! Quick story. . . Our Stake Humanitarian project is these baby kits for needy moms. I volunteered to do two boy quilts, and when I did, the girl sitting next to me said, "I have some batting someone gave me I can't use, do you want it?" And since batting is often one of the most expensive parts I said "Sure!" So, she dropped it off and seemed all to happy to be rid of it. This morning I was on the phone with Nicole trying to figure out how to split it and make it usable (it was too thick) and I noticed some black stuff in the batting. So, to be on the safe side I took it out to the front porch to shake it out. (black pellets, time to get suspicious Rachel!!!) When I started to unroll it, guess what I found! A DEAD MOUSE!!!! Or what was left of it! I'm sure my neighbors were wondering what the commotion on the front porch was, and poor Nicole's ears, I'm sure she's deaf now from the squeal! Oh, I am so grossed out!!! I feel like I need to take a shower to get rid of the heeby jeebies! Yuck Yuck Yuck!!! That's it, I don't care how much it costs, I'll not be using old batting again! Blech!!!

This and That

It has been a fun day. I took the kids to the gym and had a good run on the treadmill and then lifted weights with Keren. The very buff people next to the mirror did not deter us too much, and we did free weights today, which was nice. It's always more fun with a buddy! Aidan talked me into playing soccer with him in the back yard this afternoon which was also fun. The rest of the day my plans include cleaning up the kitchen and reorganizing, which is quite the task ahead of me, expecially when my sewing machine keeps calling to me periodically. Resist, resist!!!

Doesn't Chandler look just darling in this little overall set? His eyes sparkled all day yesterday, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

And here is the little bug playing turtle in this big box. His new trick is to empty the box, and get inside like this, or to empty the box and then tip it upside down so he can climb up to my sewing machine and ruin my tension settings. Grrrr!!! I had to hide it the other day so he would stop. The fun of motherhood. . .

On a completely different note, look what I found when I opened the cheese the other day. We apparently have a "mouse." I beleive it's name is Aidan. Oh, the manners lessons yet to come. . .

What a Weekend!

It has been a very fun weekend around here. It started with Gordon taking the big boys camping out at the coast. They found a fun little campsite where you have to walk your stuff in about a quarter mile, so it wasn't REALLY car camping. I think that made Gordon happy. They had a wonderful time exploring the beach, roasting marshmallows, and sleeping in the tent. Our big family tent also proved itself Oregon worthy when it began to rain at 2am, and didn't stop until 8am. They had breakfast (oatmeal from the thermos) in the tent and waited for it to stop raining, all the while Aidan was apparently doing his best to wake all other campers in the area. (surprise, surprise!) Ethan reportedly threw a little fit when it was time to build the fire and claimed that it might "chase him all over," even though it was in the fire pit. He was not convinced until Gordon actually got the fire going, but he still didn't want to get too close. On Saturday morning they went to a "really hard beach" (hard because the sand is wet and very hard) where they watched people dig for razor clams and made lots of trails in the sand. Such fun! I'm sorry Chandler and I missed it, but the thought of my little Climbing Chandler at a campsite is enough to stay home for! Chandler and I actually had a wonderful time spending some alone time enjoying eachother's company, pointing at everything in sight and saying "Ooohhh!"

Saturday evening Gordon and I had a sitter come and we went out to dinner and a movie. It was so fun! We haven't been to a movie in SO long and were shocked to see the price is up to $9. I can't believe that! We had some delicious Mexican food and a great time. We saw Amazing Grace, which is the story of the abolition of slavery in Great Britain, and I highly recommend it. It was quite a good movie. Apparently it appealed to the older crowd though because we were definitely the youngest people in the theater by at least 35 years. We were surrounded by walkers and canes, and when the movie ended we ALL stayed to watch ALL the credits! I'm serious, 7 minutes of key grips and best boys and horse masters. We couldn't get up because we thought we'd trip over the walkers or hurt some body's toes. So, we stayed. I haven't watched that many credits since I used to go to the movies with Tyler. I think it might be because they were afraid to get up in the dark and trip, and you know, I can't blame them. Anyway, it was fun!

This morning we had hair cuts for all four guys this morning, and then off to church. Chandler only made it half way through and then came home with me, which was kind of nice to have a quiet hour here at home. I promised cookie making tonight, so hopefully we'll have a good evening too. Have a great week everyone!!!

Chandler's 1 year portraits

I finally made it to the mall last night to pick up Chandler's pictures from his first birthday. Poor Chandler did not enjoy having his photo taken, but they did manage to get a few cute ones. They kept trying to get me in the picture as well, and that did seem to work for one extra little smile. Enjoy!

Ker-Thump

Poor little Chandler took a tumble down the stairs last night. After a thorough examination by mama, he was deemed "okey dokey" but still got the privilege of staying up late for a little extra love. He fell asleep next to me here on the couch and looked so cute cuddled up to the roll of masking tape that he was playing with. Poor little guy! I'm so grateful it wasn't anything more than scary!

Apology Letter

Our big boys have been positively obnoxious at dinner lately. Cries of "I'm going to barf!" and other such exclamations accompanied with gagging sounds when they don't like something have become all too frequent. Gordon and I have cracked down pretty hard on them lately and last night was one of those nights. Chicken Fajitas were just more than they could handle I guess. Anyway, Ethan got himself removed from the table and sent to his bed. He came down with this "letter" about 20 minutes later.

I asked him to tell me about it and he said it's him, walking down the hall to the table to eat his chicken nicely. And he did!

Here's another fun picture he drew just a couple of days ago. This is "Me and Grandma from Alaska playing catch. Grandma is wearing a Jeff Gordon racing suit and I am wearing a jet suit."

Looks like fun Grandma!

Tip Toe Through the Tulips, Twice!

Yes, that's right, I just can't get enough of those beautiful tulips in Spring! Keren and I took the kids down to Woodburn, OR again yesterday. On the way out to the field, we had a virtual downpour, which made us a little wary, but being brave Oregonians, we didn't let the rain frighten us and we pressed on. I was so glad we did! It was SO muddy, and the kids got positively filthy, but we had a wonderful time frolicking in the mud and exploring many a tulip field. Keren brought her camera and captured these wonderful pictures of the cuties. I'm sure they'll be up on the wall soon! Come and visit next year during tulip time! It's such fun!

Oh, the Mud!!!

Soggy Eggs

It was definitely an Oregon Easter here at our house! We thought it would be fun to host an egg hunt for all the kids in our neighborhood at the park across the street on Saturday. Unfortunately, mother nature was not cooperating. We had quite a problem. 65 people coming and POURING rain, and 38 of them children expecting an egg hunt. We decided our only option was to open up the garage and have the party in there. It had just been sprinkling most of the morning, but right as everyone arrived at 11, it started pouring!!! Buckets!!! We took a poll of who wanted to stay and have cake first and hope the rain lightened, and who wanted to go hunt, and of course the kids just wanted to hunt. So, we traipsed across the street with umbrellas, galoshes, and rain slickers and everyone had a wonderful time! Gordon did a great job hiding the 550 eggs and it took the kids about 25 minutes to find them all. Very fun! Afterwards, we were planning on cake and cupcakes for the kids in the park, but since that was not an option, we just came back to the garage and served it in there "pavilion" style. Very fun. Everyone had a good, if not soggy time! Enjoy the photos!

Happy Birthday Chandler!!!

Chandler is one year old today! We had some friends over for dinner and had a great time eating hamburgers, and then cake. The kids had a great time having a picnic in the backyard and playing baseball with the daddies. It was a very warm and sunny day, so Chandler got to wear the same outfit that the other two boys did on their first birthdays. I included some pics at the end of the slideshow. . . Happy Birthday little guy!!! We love you!

Cake Monster

I was cleaning the bathroom this morning with the fan on (so I couldn't hear very well) and Aidan came running in and said "Emergency, Chandler is eating garbage!!!" The little stinker tipped over the garbage can that had some cake in it, (we had to trim one of the cakes) and was enjoying very much his first birthday cake, just a day early. Also, he had spread it ALL OVER THE FLOOR, which will at least motivate me to scrub the floor before tomorrow. What a guy. . . and look! Here's my Easter Basket!

Generosity

I NEVER let my kids put quarters in those machines with candy in them, but for some reason today, Aidan's curiosity about how they worked convinced me to do it. He put in the quarter, and out popped a whopping 9 skittles. I thought he'd learn the whole "you don't get much for your money this way" lesson, but he was so cute. He wouldn't eat any of them, because he counted them up and figured out exactly how many there were to share. It was so sweet. When we got home he brought me a blank paper and had me write every one's names on, and he separated out the skittles for everybody. Sorry Keren and Jeremy, looks like you have to share yours! But no worries Carolyn, you get your own! Very fun. He doesn't want anyone to eat theirs until Chandler's party when everyone is here, so don't eat too much before you come, save room for your skittle!

Aidan's 4 year pics

Here are the real pictures from Aidan's 4 year portraits about 2 weeks ago. I love them!

I love that last one in B&W too. Those puppy dog eyes!

In other photo news, I took all three boys today to have their picture done together today, and also to get Chandler's 1 year photo. And may I say, what a frustrating experience! I requested the same photographer as we had last time because he was so great, but he was totally impatient with the baby and just was not giving him the time he needed to adjust to the circumstances. It turned out disappointing in comparison with last week, but oh well! You can only try your best, right! I'll post those when I get them back. . .

Big Dog

Today Aidan and I made a mad dash through Costco trying to get the shopping done between baby naps, Pre-school, and Ethan's school bus home. After we checked out, Aidan was begging for a hot dog, but I told him we really didn't have time to sit down, cut it up, and eat it with a fork, which to this point has been his preferred method. I thought he just wouldn't want one, but instead he looked all annoyed at me and then said, "Mom, that's is how I eat hot dogs when I am 3 years old. Now I am 4 years old, so I eat them like a grown up." DUH. . . Who would have known!!! Now I just need to convince Ethan too!

Tulip Time!

Too many cute photos! I had to put them in a slide show. Much easier that way! Today we went down to the Wooden Shoe tulip festival. It was so much fun! The boys are exhausted, and I am too! Some highlights this year were the new hay fort, with tunnels and everything, the rubber duckie races, and the HUGE roller slide that scared mom to death when the boys climbed the ladder. They loved it though! Aidan was very into the duckie races and pumped with wreckless abandon! Ethan really loved the hay fort and the horse swings. And Chandler just loved the fresh air. Oh, and the tulips that he constantly tried to pick! I mostly had him in the backpack, because if I let him down he went right for the tulips! I even heard him gagging on one and had to pull some petals out of his mouth. He was also caught many times playing "American idol" with the tulips like microphones. He would pull them to his mouth and yell "AH!" Over and over and over. Such a cutie.

What a fun day. I've been looking forward to it for quite some time. I might even have to go back next week when Keren (sis in law) is back in town! Here's a fun video of the duckie races. I'm assuming it's going to do that annoying buzz thing again that it always does when I upload from this camera, so you might want to turn down your volume! (sorry)