Letterboxing

We were recently turned on to Letterboxing by some friends. If you've never heard of Letterboxing I'll give you the basic run down... Letterboxing is like geocaching only with rubber stamps. You have your own stamp and notebook. You look up locations on letterboxing.org and go find said letterbox where you will usually find a rubber stamp and notebook. You put your stamp (name and date optional) in their notebook and their stamp in your notebook. The locations can be hard to find with a code to decipher or easy to find with number of paces to step or easily understood clues within a clever story.

This is the beginning of our letterbox diary...

Our first Letterboxing adventure was fun. It was a story about a turtle that went to find

a spot to sun himself and at the spot where the story ends was supposed to be a stamp.

The story was fun, the hunt was a great break from the car but try as we might we could not find the stamp.

This one was in Spokane Valley, Washington.

So we hoped for a better find on the next hunt which ended up being on our way home on the last day of the trip.

In Missoula, Montana, there is a Smokejumper's Training Base and Visitor's Center.

Our clues led us to

the corner of a replica of a look-out tower.

What will we find?

We put this stamp in our books....

(The one we found here was a hand carved stamp of the parachute and wings. Very cool!)

... and put our stamps in this book with a note that said, "Grandson of a 25 year vet of a Wildland Firefighter."

More letterboxing stories to come!

World Famous Cooking

I haven't posted here in WAY too long. I have pictures to post and stories to write but this is something I have to get down before I forget.

Right now we are living with my parents in Marysville Washington and while we are here we are helping out around the house. I help with... something, I promise. Logan helps with dishes and cooking and each night when we sit down to dinner the boys tell my mom and dad, "This is Dad's World Famous (fill-in-the-blank)." It doesn't matter if it is pork chops, chicken or french toast; it is both world renowned and delicious to them.

They think very highly of their dad. Not only is his cooking fantastic but he is the rock of our family, they know it and they love him.

So do I.

Zip Line Tours

Tonight Kevin and Nolan made a zip-line in their room. First I should say that we took Kevin's bed down and put it on the floor (just for something different - which they love). So their beds are parallel now, which makes for longer giggle sessions at night. But tonight they took a rope that they play with often and tied it from the foot of Kevin's bed to the foot of Nolan's bed. Then we heard them sending their "buddies" (stuffed animals) down the zip-line and having a blast.

After a firm warning about the dangers of hurting the family jewels on the zip-line, I returned to see Kevin upside down on his shoulders with his knees over the top of the rope.

I walked away thankful for Aflac. I know I say that a lot, but if you have kids that often get hurt and Aflac, you know why I am thankful.

Little adventures like this make me think a lot about what they will be like as teenagers and men. I wonder whether Kevin will be as daring as he is now or whether Nolan will ever take a chance. We joke that Nolan will be an engineer that builds a rocket and Kevin will be the pilot, but if their personalities remain the same, that's not much of an exaggeration.

In this case, the adult version would be that Nolan would design a zip-line to install somewhere on our lodge property and Kevin would give the tours.

I can just see it now.

On the way to church on Sunday we were talking in the car. Kevin asked, "Dad, could I eat an ant?" to which Logan replied, "...Well, I guess you could, buddy, but there are other things that would be better.... and so the conversation went...

Kevin: Yeah... crickets... I heard you could eat crickets. 

Logan: You can eat crickets. There are other bugs you can eat too.

Kevin: Like what?

Logan: Like grubs...

Kevin making a face: Only with ranch.

*snort* Logan: Yeah, buddy, I guess you could eat anything with ranch.

Kevin: even rocks.

This morning at the breakfast table we had a conversation about who would win in a fight between a buffalo and a gorilla. According to Kevin the buffalo would win because he has "those spiky things", he is bigger and he can run faster.

Glad that's settled.

Nolan and I had a picnic today. After finishing lunch he laid down beside me and nestled into me. He was so content and peaceful. And after a long moment he asked,

"Mommy, when do we get to live with God?"

I cherish moments like that. 

Kevin's Bed Time Quiz

As we were saying goodnight this evening Kevin decided to quiz me...

"Mom"

"Yeah, buddy."

"What is the scariest part of a monster:

A: The Teeth

B: The Arms or 

C: The Feet?"

"Uuuu... the teeth?"

"Yep. You get a medal."

The First

Here is what Kevin created tonight. His first Lego Creation all by himself

From This

To this

And....

Did I mention he did it by himself

A New Chapter

Kevin began going to school yesterday at the Christian school adjacent to the college campus where we live... AND BOY WAS THAT A GOOD DAY!!!

After several months of home schooling we finally decided that sending Kevin to school would be the best thing for our entire house hold for several reasons. 

From Kevin's perspective: I had so much fun! I played spies out at recess with the guys. WE HAVE TWO RECESSES! And I got to go to the library and we had reading... We did math and writing too... and I made this for you and Dad... Did you see my new book mark? It is a ice cream cone with lots of scoops. And we didn't have gym class today, that is on Friday. And my show and tell is on Wednesdays. This week is "S" week so I have to take something for show and tell that starts with the letter "S". Can I have a snack, Mom? I am so hungry....

I am grateful beyond words at the opportunity to send him to a safe place to transition into the world of going to school. Usually if anyone asks me how I feel about it I just start to cry. That's all I can do because I am so intensely grateful. So after just one day, I am happy that he has buddies to play with, that Nolan and I get to spend some time together, that there is enough capacity in my mind to give good attention to other things at our house & in our church and that there is better opportunity for me to fulfill my job duties in a more complete way. 

Lord, thank you for providing this opportunity. Thank you..... Thank you.... Thank you....

On Bobby, Again

Still waiting. That little guy must be making some marvelous changes...

On Bobby

Still waiting....

Here is Bobby

Here is our new pet. It eats leaves... well it use to. Now it just sits there and does what it was created by God to do. When God is finished inside this small little package we will have a new pet that we will let go and allow once again to do what it is created to do. The coolest thing is that the boys are getting to see that creation some times takes a while. What they started with is not what they will end up with. How many life lessons are there held in side this little package made by Bobby because something his creator placed inside him told him it was time.













I've also concluded that whatever God does, that's the way it's going to be, always. No addition, no subtraction. God's done it and that's it. That's so we'll quit asking questions and simply worship in holy fear. Whatever was, is. Whatever will be, is. That's how it always is with God.
Ecclesiastes 3:14-15

School

I can't believe it's the beginning of October already!!

Well, school has gotten off to a great start! Kevin and Nolan LOVE school and we are able to have class 5 days a week, which is more than I thought possible for our unique and busy schedule. But The LORD knows what we are capable of and continues to surprise me with the energy and ability needed to teach two excited little sponges.

Kevin is reading simple words now and points out words that he sees where ever we go. He is so proud of his letter formation which takes considerable consentration for him. I didn't think I would ever be able to get him do consentrate on seat work, but he is showing remarkable improvement and all because he is seeing the accomplishments he is making.

Nolan is working on tracing lines. He is easily frustrated which makes me consider what his learning style is. I haven't put my finger on it, but I know with time we will get it figured out. And, he is still 3, turning 4 in November. So I don't push him too hard. He is thirsty for learning though, so I manage to get him engaged in our math work and some of our phonics.

We are including library time in our school work, which my mom knows is a challenge for me personally. But once again I have learned from her example and know the value of library time. So we go, and the boys love it, and that's what matters.

My dad found a gigantic version of "Skippy Jon Jones" which Nolan asks me to read to him every day. I was nearly in tears when he brought it in last week when they came for a visit. I had the pleasure of reading it to our whole family at a gathering some time ago. It is a great memory that I cherish... not because I got to read a story to my family (aunts, uncles, cousins and such) but because everyone was listening and laughing and really enjoyed it. - So I read it to Nolan often. It's a great tradition.

Kevin found a pet yesterday. I will let Logan post about that one. *smiling, shaking my head and sighing* ...boys...

So there's an update. I hope your fall season has been as sunny as ours in more ways than one.

Olympic Fever

Can you buy "The Olympics" on DVD? 

Some statements we have heard since the Olympics began...

Kevin: "I'm going to swim like Michael Phelps... Mommy, can I take a bath?"

Mommy: "Kevin, the back of the couch is not the pummel-horse, honey, there are no handles."

Kevin: "WHAT?! You can go to the Olympics and jump on the trampoline?!"

From the bathroom, "Mommy, I need a towel... well, maybe two towels..."

Nolan: "Is Michael Phelps on?"

Kevin: "Watch Mommy, I can vault over the side of the couch!"

Nolan: "No, I don't want to watch a movie, can we watch the olympics?"

Nolan: "Watch Mommy, I can do a flip over."

Nolan-isms

An "upside down" - also known as a somersault. 

If you don't remember something Nolan might say that you "got for" something.

Funny Words

Here are a few recent "-isms" and funny quotes from our boys. I might be a little biased, but I think our kids are pretty funny...

Nolan on pottying: "Mommy, I twinkled!"

Kevin on Harrison Ford's latest movie: "I want to see Indian-and-a-Jones."

I've probably put this one on a blog already but it makes me laugh every time... When Nolan asks for chocolate milk (which he does for every meal) and we say he can have regular milk, he asks, "Well, can I have regular milk with chocolate in it?"

After we got home from a week at Nana's Kevin promptly parked himself on top of our couch. He looked right at home. Logan said, "Buddy you've been waiting all week to sit on the top of the couch huh?" Kevin replied, "Yeah. If I sit on top of Nana's couch she will hang me up by my toes."

More later...

I realized that it has been a month since I posted here. A lot has taken place in the last month and we have been quite busy. Here are a few snapshots of the last month:

Recently when asked his full name Nolan responded, "Noly-spinoly".

Kevin has become the biggest fan of movies he has never seen: Spider Man, Indiana Jones, Narnia and Pirates of the Caribbean. 

Nolan's soccer team and Kevin's soccer team played each other at the season's Championship game. Nolan's team won... He never played a single minute in any of the games. - Kevin played in every game we were here for. When he wasn't distracted by friends or the grass, he followed the ball around on the field pretty well. - I coached Nolan's team... I'm not sure how we made it through the season.

Kevin's doctor told us at his (overdue) 5 year check that kids his age should watch only 30 minutes of TV a day. So we have severely limited the TV watching for everyone in the house. I was nervous about that but their imaginations and behavior have changed for the better. I see the benefits of it daily but I have seemed to loose hours out of the day in exchange for the changing of this tide.

We had a yard sale. When he was told that he could keep the money from the toys he sold he went crazy putting things in the "sell box". We stopped him when he tried to put his brother in the box. :) Just kidding.  But we had to stop him from putting nearly all of his toys in it. - He seems to be learning the value of earning money.

Nolan was oblivious to the concept of a yard sale and got upset when people started walking away with his toys. But pizza and a movie made up for that. 

School has been coming along slowly but surely. Nolan can count to 45 and Kevin can read simple three letter words. It is amazing to me that I have been able to teach him that. Sometimes I don't think they are paying attention at all. And then they repeat the instructions I have given them or demonstrate a skill I've tried to teach them. - They are amazing.

And today, our trip to the waterfront to tour a Navy ship was so fun! After getting out of line on a bathroom hunt we waited for about 30 minutes before being taken on the ship. Kevin was bouncy he was so excited and taken back by the sailors who greeted him. Nolan got to ring the bell in the helm of the ship. What great fun! - Then we climbed the stairs to the bridge over Saturday market and watched the Rose Festival Parade for a while. After that we ate greasy hot dogs for lunch and braved the crowded MAX line on the way home. Whew! What a great day!!

Today is the first day of vacation for us. What a great kick off. Next week we will be unplugged and as disconnected as possible. Catch you on the flip side!

Play Place Story #1

We have  been visiting my family this week and staying at my parent's house. And as we are here I have discovered that I don't challenge my children to progress in their development enough. Nolan still needs help with his shoes and going potty. Kevin doesn't tie knots for the play things he straps on and interrupts conversations all too often. While I am positive my mom doesn't intend to make me feel any certain way I am acutely aware of these inabilities through their interactions with her and so I have been contemplating ways to urge my boys to move forward a bit, become more independent. - Of course the other half of my heart longs for them to stay little, but that is irrational and impossible, so I am doing my children no favors by allowing them to remain immature, right? 

I decided to surprise them with lunch at McDonald's today. We got there and got our food and went to sit down. The place I chose for us happened to be next to a young woman (I think) who is developmentally delayed. This person is an employee of McD's and asked several questions several times in a language style commonly associated with a 2 year old. Kevin responded marvelously by answering the questions over and over and over again while eating his food as quickly as possible without being rude. I was very proud of him for his manners and kindness. 

After we ate we moved to the play place that is three "stories" tall. You parents know what I'm talkin' about, this thing had three levels, two twisty slides, three places with steering wheels, and tower at the top. "SWEET!" was Kevin's exclamation as he entered the space and Nolan tagged right along. After a little while Nolan started to cry and despite my best efforts I could not coax him down. Another mom asked if I wanted her to go get him, to which I nearly replied, "Why, do you think I'm too fat to get up there?" but I didn't. - So up I went to get him and literally drag him down (because every parent knows how ridiculously difficult it is to do anything besides), all the while telling him that if he wanted to come back up he would have to do it himself because I was not climbing back up again to get him. "Okay Mama." - And we both sat and rested when we got to the bottom. - After a few minutes he wanted to get down and go again and I reminded him, "You have to do it by yourself, Nolan. I'm not climbing in to get you again." 

"Okay Mama," and off he went.

The boys played for quite some time, 35 minutes or so and when I finally said it was time to go, Nolan happily started down the mountain... and then got stuck in the same spot as before. 

Sticking to my guns I told him he would need to slide down it just like before and he began to cry... not the whimpering "I don't want to" cry but the "I'm scared out of my mind and I can't get down" cry. 

With several other parents watching I tried for a long time to coax him down. I sent Kevin up to grab his feet and pull him down (no dice). I spoke in a very calm tone (as calm as one can sound in a super tall echoey area) and tried to get him to come down for TWENTY minutes. - I nearly decided to just sit there until he came down, but then I realized that it was drawing more attention than I care to be responsible for, and so I went in after him...again. 

Nolan has been sleeping for almost two hours and I don't know if I will wake him up. He was exhausted by the end of it, as am I.

It's time for my baby to become a kiddo. 

Spam!!!

Spam is a favorite dish of my husband and my son Kevin. They love to make it when mom isn't around because I can't stand the stuff. Usually they make it on a "man day" as they like to call it. They have particularly weird traditions for those times which I will neither understand nor divulge to protect the innocent. :) It's all good fun I'm sure, but it's weird.

Spam is also a form of irritating communication from people you neither know or have interest in. I have gotten such comments on this blog, which stinks because it's a blog where I share the lives of my boys with my friends and family so that we can all feel a little bit closer. I don't know whether someone is taking the time to log onto public blogs one at a time or whether they have a sophisticated sort of way to do it to lots of blogs all at once. I don't really care which one it is, I would just love for it to stop happening to this blog. If any of my FRIENDS out there know how to help make that happen, I would love to know. 

Spring

During a home schooling session I asked Kevin and Nolan: "How can you tell that it is spring?" 

Kevin replied, "The sun."

"What does the sun do?"

"It cares for us... and gives us light... and... it burns bugs when they come out to catch some sun."

That's my boy.