Grass!

Anne came running into my room this morning yelling, "There's grass outside, I see grass!" And everyone went running to the window to see it too. I laughed because I don't ever remember yelling "Grass" when I was a child, I remember yelling "Snow!"

Winter Fun

From January 2009

We have had an igloo in our front yard for weeks now. I think that there have only been two days since the first of January that have been above freezing. Today was one of them. There is too much melting snow and ice to play outside but we moved the car out of the garage and the kids played inside the garage and ate lunch at their little picnic table in there too. It was a nice change, even though we have enjoyed the frozen cold this year.

From January 2009

With some garage sale skates we have gotten some good exercise on a frozen pond for the last few weeks.

From January 2009

We can go at any hour since the pond is at a Metro Park here and always open. There are lights on at night and a fire kept up nearby. We have gone often at night and it has been great fun. Alec has tried skating but doesn't last long before getting blisters. He and Anne and Pati spend their time sledding down the little slope onto the ice.

From January 2009

We are making it through the winter here but really looking forward to some warmer weather and more outside living. David gets a few days off in April and that is keeping us going right now.
I am so happy with the progress that Jan and Alec have made in school so far this year. It has been a good winter for settling into regular schoolwork.
Pati is potty trained and sleeping in a big girl bed now. She likes it but everytime she gets in bed she hollers "Daddy taked my bed. He taked my bed!" (He carried the crib down to the basement). She and Anne are enjoying each other more and causing trouble with each other rather than for each other. Tonight they took a bath and for the few minutes I was out of the bathroom managed to nearly empty all of my clean towels into the tub. I found three very wet ones put back into the nearly empty linen cupboard. I thought that I was almost caught up on laundry and realize now how silly that thought was.

Ever wonder?

Ever wonder what a strawberry flavored honey stick would look like cut up in 17 pieces?

I don't. It is really sticky and really red.

Ever wonder what a bathroom looks like after a just 2 year old is playing tea set in the bathtub and poops in the water and then puts it all out on the rug to try and clean it up?

I don't. It is really yucky.

Even wonder what carrot juice looks like when it is spilled on the living room carpet, the ottoman, a down quilt and a comforter cover?

I don't. It is probably the orangest thing I have ever seen. A really pretty color, anywhere but there.

I could go on but those are the most recent new messes that we have invented. We are over a week into this illness and Jan is still laid out on the couch with a double ear infection and a fever. Alec is the only one who is really better. We got some school done this morning and maybe we will see David for an hour this afternoon. He has worked more than 90 hours in the last 6 days and I think that we have finally managed to give him what we have had since Christmas.

I remember now why winter is not my favorite season. It is a good season for schoolwork, though. If we lived in a temperate climate it might be hard to buckle down and study. I think we might like to try it out though.

Two Years Old!

From Christmas 2008

From Christmas 2008

Patagonia's birthday got a little mixed in with Christmas this year. I know she didn't mind at all. She might next year though. She was napping on Christmas Day when the neighbors brought by presents for her and the other kids. So hers weren't opened that day and I just left them under the Christmas tree and they became her birthday presents! She had a few others from Grandma and the Engens and the Burketts and I had been stressing about finding her a birthday gift. I looked at the pile of presents under the tree the day before her birthday and decided not to get her anything!
She had a wonderful day. Opened a new present every couple of hours and we all went out for ice cream...I didn't even make a cake!
I have been trying to teach Pati to answer two questions. "What is your name?" She usually says "NAME!" really loud. The other is "How old are you?" to which she replies "THREE!" really loud. Sometimes I ask her what her name is and she says "TWO!" really loud. Right answer finally, but the wrong question. We go down the line, I point to Jan, "What is your name?" she answers "Jan". I point to Alec and say "What is your name?" he says "Alec". I point to Anne and say "What is your name?" and she says "Anne". I point to Pati and say "What is your name?" and she says "ANNE!" really loud. (Or "NAME!" really loud.) At least she has the really loud part down.
Tonight she was so proud of herself, she answered both questions right, really loud.

When my brother Titus was here at the beginning of December he and the kids had some pretty fun towel snapping wars. They were especially fun for Titus since none of my kids really have the snapping part down very well. But it impressed them and they have been working on their skills since he left. Anne decided to work on her skills with a belt. She was snapping it around and walked into the kitchen where, for once, Pati was actually minding her own business and not bothering anyone. Anne snapped the belt at Pati. The buckle end. That is the explanation for Pati's beautiful black eye in all of her Christmas and birthday pictures.

Pati loves music. Yesterday she was singing and singing and I realized that she was singing Hark the Herald Angels Sing without any help. Anytime there is any kind of music that comes on she starts to dance and makes eye contact that says "Isn't this fun?"

Pati is always ready for a party. In many ways she thinks that she is the party. I think that comes a little from being the baby longer than anybody else in this family has been. She is truly beloved by her older siblings. A little less beloved to Anne than to the older ones though. Anne loves her, for sure, it is just that Pati won't listen to her.

From Christmas 2008

From Christmas 2008