Full bellies

This morning, Jake made the boys oatmeal and as usual Miles ate like a homeless man. Will picked at his on and off and then was ready for what anyone else was eating so I offered Miles Will's leftovers. He got those big eyes and said, "uh corse" (it's so cute when he says it).

After finishing his, Will's and then eating part of a peach Miles was very quiet. I came back from the kitchen and saw him sitting at the table just looking at his pooched out tummy. I said, "whatcha doin' Miles"?

"Trying to get my tummy to go back where it was before ... before breakfast" then he jumped down and sucked his tummy in showing his ribs.

Sweet thing! He was so proud of his full tummy but I think he preferred the look of the not so full tummy! I feel the same way .... I want the full tummy, but I don't want the pooch.

Miles' cute phrases

On Disney's CARS (one of our favorites, 2nd only to Toy Story 2), Lighting McQueen psyches himself up by saying, "Floatin' like a Cadillac, Stingin' like a Beamer". Miles likes for us to say it to each other YELLING but he has interpreted it "Stinkin like a beaver".

July

Random Summer Events:

Earlier this month, we went to Georgia to see my brother, my parents and Mandy and Jake's house progress. Geoff was amazing with the boys (buying them little gifts, but not letting them get away with any nonsense). My poor parents took us to the Georgia Aquarium where I informed them "you cannot sit down", after losing both boys within the first few minutes of being there.

While we were there, we realized that there were no penguins. My brother, Geoff asked every worker (especially the cute girls) if we could see them and we got escorted back into a hallway where the penguins are kept until their new habitat i finished. It was very exciting!!

The beluga whales were mesmerizing and we got to eat lunch watching them swim back and forth. The boys were enamored with their poop.

Mandy and Jake's house is still coming along slowly! She's getting frustrated with the tiny details at this point but I am sure that means their move-in date is getting that much closer.

Two weeks ago, Miles had an amazing beach trip with Ella, Judi, Memomma, Jerri and Jane (the only reports I got of others was "Uncle Richard made pancakes" and "Keller plays drums"). They went to the park, played at Jerri's house, went to the condo adn the beach, visited Sam's Fun City (the amusement park), hardly napped and had a late bedtime (a preschoolers dream come true). He had a great time and I don't think he missed us for one second that he was gone. He had a busted lip and skinned knees when he got back because "the kwonkwete won". For days after the trip, Miles kept telling me how much he loves and and would cuddle up to me. It's great having him back.

Judi showed me video of Miles running and jumping into the pool and then swimming with his face in the water until he runs out of breath!! He was so proud and was telling me all about it when he got home. Then he said, "But you and Daddy didn't get to see me do it so next time you have to come with me to the beach".

Will didn't seem to miss Miles too much while he was gone. I think he enjoyed having all the toys to himself. But whenever we got in the car to go somewhere he would look over at Miles' empty seat and say, "Mo". That's when I realized that that's how he says 'Miles'. It's so cute!!

I will post pictures when I can get copies!

Miles is Cat./Will is a Dog

I've decided that Miles is a cat and Will is a dog. Will is just as content as could be (until someone takes his bone). Miles, on the other hand is a little more quirky! He sleeps with Bubba and Big Old Dog (using BOD as a pillow). This morning he told me that he has to tuck Big Old Dog's arms under because if he doesn't they bother him. Then at naptime, he turned Big Old Dog around, over, and upside down until he was just perfect. Then Miles laid his head down and twisted and fidgeted and squirmed until at last he was perfectly settled. Then he said, "Soft me" ... just that simple. (Softing is that soft scratching that people like as they fall asleep).

Miles doesn't like fruit in his yogurt. He prefers things not too hot but not too cold. He wants "lots of water" added to his juice cup. He doesn't like sleeves (I'm hoping it's a seasonal thing). When he wears his Buzz Lightyear costume, he wants the pants legs "twisted" but not twisted too much. Even with all those preferences, he's still the cutest 3 year old in the world! He loves to "plus" (i.e. "Mommy, if you take one dog plus and two kittens, what does that plus" and "if I eat two bites of peas and three blueberries, what does that plus"?) and he always gets the math right!

Last week at nap time, Miles and I were reading a book and I asked him, "What do you want to be when you grow up"? He thought for a minute and then grinned and said, "When I grow up, I'm going to be a Daddy like my Daddy". He's very aware of "big boy" vs "little boy" stuff right now and can't wait to be a full-fledged big boy!! At a playgroup last week, a boy called he and his friend "babies" and Miles was offended beyond description.

Will is really into training Jessie (by the way, our dog was 'Molly' for about a week and is now officially 'Jessie'). The problem is, he is still pretty nervous around her. But he'll grab a treat to give her and just shiver with fear, blinking his eyes as she dances all around waiting for it!

Will can say lots of words these days (about time, right): Buzz, Jessie, juice, paci, panda, cheese (for pictures and snacks), and especially Memomma ... Jake's mom, Judi (Mimi JuJu) tried all day when she kept them this past week, to get him to say, "Mimi JuJu" but of course he thought it was hilarious to refuse and only say, "Memomma". Last week when we went to visit Memomma after her knee surgery, I told Will to 'tell Memomma bye-bye' and he said, "Bye Me Bye Momma" and it was one of those moments when you children are so precious you think they really are an angel!

Will is a dancing machine! If a song comes on, he will be rocking out to it in no time ... it's pretty phenomenal. If I can figure out how to post a video you can see for yourself.

Finally, this summer, Miles has re-named us all. Miles is Buzz Lightyear (of course). Jake is Zurg. I am Woody. Will is Mr. Potato Head. The names come out around the time Jake gets home from work. Then it's "game on" and Miles is ready to wrestle Zurg. Jessie and Mr. Potato Head jump in but Mr. Potato head giggles so hard, he can't really do much damage right now. Woody just kicks back and watches.

4th of July

This past weekend, we packed the family up and took a roadtrip to Nolensville, Tennessee to visit our good friends, the Watsons. I've known Jay and Shantel since they moved into Spring Aire Apartments just after they got married. Jay and I were at Beeson together and then they lovingly welcomed Jake into the fold. Jay even officiated our wedding.

We got to their house and Miles was a little shy at first. But it was not long before he, Will and the Watson's twins, Hope and Hannah Chayse, were chasing one another, digging out all the toys and wrestling Jake on the floor.

In the playroom, Miles found a princess pop-up tent and said, "We can play in here" and the girls seemed thrilled to have a 'prince' around (who wasn't their cousin).

This was really the first time that Will had been around them and the first time in almost two years that the children had played together! But it was amazing how well they did together. Within an hour or two, Miles and the girls both asked if we could stay forever! It was so precious.

The most beautiful part of the weekend was seeing a friendship spark between our children with such ease! It was so effortless and automatic. We have been blessed to be a part of Jay and Shantel's lives for years and then to see that deep appreciation and love come alive in the playtime of our children was an even greater blessing.

Pray for their church - Life Community - and listen to Jay's sermons online - you will see why we love this family so much! http://www.lifecommunitytn.com/

One of my favorite moments of the weekend was watching the fireworks. Will was slightly nervous but when he sat in my lap he relaxed a little. He even gave some sound effects, "pop", "boom" and waved his hands in the air. But my favorite moment was when Miles needed to go tee-tee right in the middle of the fireworks display. He came over to me and said, "Record it, Mommy" ... that means "pause" it thanks to our DirecTV that allows us to pause, record and rewind favorite shows. For some reason, he calls it "recording" when I pause so that he can go potty without missing anything! It was hysterical. I wish life were like that ... with moments we could pause and just savor (or run to the potty and not miss anything).

Lazy Summer Days

It has been a CRAZY summer so far! I am absolutely loving being home with the boys every day and the only “side effect” they seem to be experiencing is an increased anxiety when we are not together!
We’ve been to Moss Rock Preserve, the Zoo (and back again with Nanny Ray and GrandBob), Tannehill, the library for a puppet show, and a lot of playtime outside on the trampoline and backyard!

We took a hike nearby at the Moss Rock Preserve and stopped for lunch by the creek. Miles soon needed to “poop” but was afraid a BEAR may come along so his body denied the process!

Will pooped in the potty this week! He asks to go frequently but I think he has either just recently gone or it is a false alarm. But he legitimately said, “poopoo” and then sat on the potty for a few minutes and out it came! He was soooo proud. It was his second time but we thought the first time was a fluke. Since then, he has asked and gone tee-tee as well.

Continuing with the poop updates: Miles had “to go” and said, “Mommy, if I squeeze your hand it will be easier.” As he pushed a little tear rolled out of his eye. He looked at me so sincere and said, “Sometimes when you push real hard, a tear pops out but it’s not because you’re crying.” It was one of the most precious things … he had this look like he wanted to make sure I understood that he was not sad at all, just working real hard at going.

Saturday we got a puppy. I’m a firm believer that children need animals as they grow up so that they can learn empathy, care, responsibility, loyalty and good old play! So far Will (who loves dogs) has been terrified of the cute little caramel colored wet-nosed puppy but IS learning to talk more (“down”, “no”, “help”). Miles on the other hand (who can sometimes be a bit rough) loves her to pieces. He runs and she chases – both of them full of absolute glee. He even laughs hysterically as she nips his ears and licks his hair when he’s low enough on the ground. Multiple times Miles has said, “my little baby” to her and it is wonderful to see his precious tender side. As of naptime today, they were both sleeping soundly in Miles’ bed (though it took some settling of all the giggles and wiggles).

Miles is really into Buzz Light-year this summer. He was the ring bearer for Amanda and Ryan’s wedding about a month ago where he got a Buzz costume for “walking down the aisle with that pillow”. He did a great job and we were very proud of him and delighted that they asked him to be a part of such a special day! He has worn the costume daily since then (and once to church). Jake says he will end up losing 60 pounds this summer but I love that just 10 minutes of playtime on the trampoline in the middle of the day increases his naptime by about an hour!

As a child, our family took trips on what my Mama calls, “backroads. ” You never knew where you would wind up, just following some forgotten dirt road that inevitably (serendipitously) ended up at a waterfall, old cave or forlorn house in the woods. Then after playing for a while, we’d let the tailgate down and have a snack lunch of Vienna sausages, slices of cheese and crackers (and of course an ice cold Coke).

My favorite day this past week was like stepping back in time to one of those trips. I had never really been there so I didn’t know much about it but my parents went with us and it was literally like living out something I would have done as a child growing up!

We found a cute little creek (very very cold) that spilled into a small river. The boys were tentative at first but then really started to love it. They would “swim” back and forth to me (in the deep) from GrandBob (in the creek). After a meager lunch (keeping in line with childhood trips), we decided to go up the “waterfall”. You would have thought that Miles was forging the river with Lewis and Clark. Each of the boys found a walking stick and then they turned into “fishing poles” or good old “water slappers.” And as it happened – every stick looked like a snake to me just as it did when I was a child. The worst part was trying to find a good place to get out. I finally had to pick them both up and wade chest deep in the water (losing one of my favorite shoes). But it was worth it! My heart swells to capacity when we get out in the “wild” like that. These wild Indians loved every minute of it, too.

Sometimes I can't hear Him!

Miles is afraid of bears. Well, during the day he's cautiously excited about bears but at night he is scared of them. He's afraid they'll come into the house or blow our house down like the Big Bad Wolf. He knows now that bears eat berries, leaves and other foods - not people. It doesn't seem to help. Last night Jake prayed with him at bedtime (Miles repeating each phrase) and asked God - who created everything, even bears - to protect us. He stammered through the prayer while his little voice quivered. Jake was patient and gentle with him and then said it was time for bed. Miles wailed for a while so I went up there to double check on him. He asked me all the questions, "What if a bear is still out there? What if he comes to get us?" I asked, "Didn't Daddy pray with you about bears? Do you know that God gave us this house and will protect us inside from the bears?" Miles said, "Yeah but I can't hear him." I asked, "who?" thinking if we couldn't hear the bear that was a REALLY good thing. "God", he said, "I can't always hear Him". I got all teary-eyed. "Me either", I said, "but I know He's there."

Miles put his hand to his ear and said, "Let's listen". We did but there was nothing audible but honestly, at that moment I could feel Him in my heart. "God is always with us whether we feel Him or hear Him or not" I said. "I can't see Him either ... I can't see His eyes or His face" said Miles. "He gave us Jesus to help us know who He is" I said, "Can you feel His arms around you?" Miles said, "No and I can't see them either." I answered, "Well, they're special arms so we can't see them but we know they are there". "Yeah," said Miles, "and when Jesus opens my belly and then closes my belly, I have a door on my belly."

The things they say sometimes bring you to tears because they're so true!
I think the same things sometimes ... I can't see Him. I don't know what His eyes look like. And what kinds of arms does He have? We know that there probably is some fear of the bears but there is also the fact that Miles doesn't want to go to bed at night. So we are patient and understanding and then firm about bedtime. And thankful for moments like these when somehow our own child can say the things that our hearts so often fear themselves ... and the things we don't even know how to say anymore!

Funny Things

Miles just held onto a quarter with his toes and asked me if I could do the same thing. He took off my sock for me and put the quarter in between my toes and said, "See... you can do it! Maybe you are awesome like me?!"

Then he picked up the dollar bill and said,"Let's see who is on here? Who is that man?" and I said, "His name is George Washington" and he said, "He's the number one and then the number two and then the letter B" (reading the serial numbers on the bill).

Oh Poop!

We headed off to Grammy and Grandpa's yesterday to visit and play for a while. We got out there after some early Sunday naps (just the boys - not me unfortunately). We got there and visited for a little bit when Will headed off to the corner to do his business. At home, we all get really excited and run to the potty to get him interested. To be honest, he's mostly interested in the treats (M&M's) that he gets when he sits. So far, there is not much action. But Miles is a great big brother and he'll 'read" Will Once Upon A Potty while we wait. It's so precious! Because actually, he can't read so he just describes the pictures and uses his own name for the main character ("Miles has a penis for going tee-tee" and "is the potty for a cat to drink out of?? NO!")

Out at Grammy and Grandpa's there is no potty book or little potty so I thought I'd just let Will have his moment in the corner. He doesn't really like to be interrupted so when he started whining I thought he may just be embarassed or disatisfied with the corner he picked. But very quickly, the whimpers turned to actual crying and it's pretty unusual for Will to cry for no reason. His little face turned red and the crying got worse. When I picked him up, I could feel that he was clenching his legs and little hiney as tight as he could and realized he must be backed up. (When Miles was younger and had trouble going we would say, "uh oh, my truck is stuck" from a book we had checked out from the library).

Grammy and I laid Will down on the bed and opened his diaper to check things out. Sure enough, the hole was opened about the size of a quarter and there was a LARGE poop obstruction. I said, "What should I do?" and Grammy, very calmly said, "You're going to have to dig it out" and I said, "With my finger?" and she said, "Yes ..." It was all so casual like we were talking about adding a little more milk to gravy or something ... which is good because inside I was beginning to get freaked out.

I started digging and nothing happened. Will was just screaming so hard that it would do a little turtle head action. Finally, pieces started to crumble until more and more came out. Then finally a pretty large hard-as-a-rock piece came out as I pulled on it! Like a little cat giving birth or something - with Grammy and I cheering Will on.

After that, Will was happy and content again. WHEW! I cloroxed, washed several times and then went to dig for worms in the dirt to try to get that smell off.

A parent's love is something so strange. You find yourself doing things that seem so completely out of your realm of possibility. And then not really thinking too much of it. I sometimes wonder what in the world could possibly be next but I like the surprise too much to really dwell on it for long.

Who knew?

Who knew that a 3 1/2 year old needs a helmet when riding a Big Wheel?! Who knew that on a road 100 yards or so long, my little guy has the precision to hit the ONE culvert that seemed impossible to hit?!

I decided to take the boys on a quick walk (since dinner was in the crockpot). I guided the boys into the garage to pick their bike. Luckily, they both chose bikes that have some parental control. Miles chose the Rock, Roll and Ride trike with the push handle and Will chose the Radio Flyer trike with a handle as well!

Off we went up the hill to see the dog who lives up the street. We made it all the way even though steering two trikes in a similar direction without allowing them to tangle is VERY difficult!

We said, 'hello' and made our way back down the hill. Then it happened...

Will's trike started veering off to the left down the incline. It was sort of "Sophie's Choice"-esque (I haven't seen the movie, but the gist is a mom has to choose between her children). My thoughts were racing. Since the hill is not too steep and Miles is able to steer, pedal and brake himself when necessary, I decided to let Miles go quickly righting Will's trike in time to grab Miles if needed.

I did need to .... but I was not able to. As I let Miles go, I used both hands to turn Will's trike back into the right direction. Miles was beginning to veer toward a small culvert about the size of a grocery bag set upright in the ground. Miles' trike drove directly toward the grass in front of the hole, spilling him head-first into the culvert.

There he was with legs kicking, head to waist in the hole, screaming! I steered Will over grabbing Miles by the ankles to lift him out. The blood was pumping pretty badly since he was crying pretty hard.

I had one of those moments you hear about when people lift vehicles or heavy objects off a loved one. I yanked poor Will up off his trike by one arm and got them both on my hips, kicking the trikes into the grass as I ran the 40 yards toward our house. Both boys were screaming; Miles because of the huge gash in his head and Will because I had interrupting his joy ride.

At the ER, they decided numbing and sewing would be more traumatic for Miles so they had me scrub off the dried blood and apply iodine. Then the Dr. scrubbed the wound itself and stapled his head twice to close the wound.

And that was our very first ER trip. Who knew that a little walk could be so eventful?! Who knew I would be so sore from the tension and running down the road with two boys on my hips?! And who knew that Miles would be so brave as his head got stapled with no pain relief?!

Red and Yellow, Black and White ...

Last night Miles and I ran to Wal-Mart before dinner (his Lightning McQueen race car blew a tire). When we got there, we got our things and had to wait in line for a while. The lady in front of us was talking to Miles and we introduced ourselves. She shook his hand and when she did he just looked at her arm. Then he said, "You don't have this color on" and rubbed his arm. I felt the color RED rush to my cheeks since we haven't ever really had an indepth conversation with Miles about people being different colors. I was getting a little nervous about what was next. She said, "What color do I have on"? He said, "Black". She just smiled and asked him what color he had on and he said, "Orange". She laughed but I was curious so I said, "What color do I have on"? He looked at me and said, "Yellow". Still a little nervous, I said, "We are all colors of the rainbow aren't we"? The lady was so nice but I think it tickled her soe she just laughed and laughed. So much so that then Miles turned RED and covered his face with his shirt.

As we walked off to the self-checkout (since the line was too long), Miles said, "Why does she talk like that"? And I wasn't quite ready for another cross-cultural lesson so I just asked, "Like what"? But I don't know if he really has words for what he meant yet ... are there words for it?

I wish I could see the world from his vantage point sometimes. Things are so simple and so black and white (well, black and orange and yellow ... and sometimes red).

Easter

Easter has come and gone and we had a great time this year. We made it a point to read the Children's Bible every day during the Easter season so that the Boys would capture the real meaning of Easter. In fact, The Bunny wasn't ever even mentioned and no one seemed to miss it at all!

We did talk a lot about Jesus riding a donkey into town. Miles thought that was very cool. He loved that the people put their coats down for the donkey to walk on and one day we made some "hosanna" palm branches here at the house and celebrated!

For cards, we sent family homemade cards (see photos). We made a little chick with Miles' hands, and when I decided to use Will's feet print, I wanted to do something to celebrate the season. We ended up making his footprint arch into the empty tomb! See how it turned out.

We had Jake's side of the family over on Saturday for an Egg Hunt and lunch and had a great time.

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Today, is Friday so it's stay-in-your-jammies-until-late-day. Will got to sleep until almost 9:00 (I'm so jealous)! After we finally got dressed and had breakfast we loaded up the stroller and attached it to the bike and went to "King of the Hill". I met Mrs. Lois the other day (King of the Hill is on her property) and she re-introduced herself to me today. She is 90 years old and I had a great time talking to her while the boys played in the water.

Miles loves to get a walking stick and make it into a fishing pole, a sword (today he said, "we're soldiers - fighting for good") or even making them into "trains" as he has running commentary from Thomas movies. Will's favorite thing is to throw balls into the culvert on one side and we RUUUUUUN across the road to see them pop out on the other side.

Miles brought me a handful of rocks and said, "you be Goliath and I'll be David". Trying to be a good mom, I was thinking, "is he really going to try to throw those at my head and am I willing to let him" because I just LOVED that the Bible is becoming alive to him. Needless to say, before I could finish the thought process he had chucked them all into the creek.