Love this computer

Brent did a work on this computer...after we took it to the Geek Squad and they told us what to do. But he did the work and now I can log in to my favorite stuff again! I'm pretty excited about a faster computer back in action. Let's see if it actually makes an impact on my blogging frequency. I was ready to send it back and jump to mac...but we're not ready for that price increase quite yet!

In other news...our hermit crabs are still alive, after 2 days. In fact, they both moved to a new "home" the day that we brought them to OUR home! After our day at COSI, the boys found a new shell for them from a random collection here at home. They put them in the crab's containers, we left for a couple hours to run some errands & we returned to find original shells were empty. The boys were so thrilled! Just wish we could have witnessed their moving skills! Little Brudder's actually moved again that night while we slept, after we had offered him yet another shell from the collection. What fascinating creatures!

The boys and their new pets - "Crabby" & "Hermit"
Wow, we exude creativity!

Feeling a bit more energy these days. Felt quite productive today, which hasn't really been the case for quite some time. Now that I have this computer back at my disposal though, the productivity around the house may decrease again. I can still play that pregnancy card, I think. Brent may be on to me soon though! :-)

Catching up!

It's been quite a month full of wrapping up summer vacation! My mom came for her annual Longaberger Bee and stayed with us. It's always fun to have her out here for a few days. She's usually back and forth from downtown Columbus, where her meetings are and then to the Longaberger Homestead, for her big shopping & basket-making day. We did a little shopping while she was here and she also watched the boys for us while we had a date night!

We turned around and drove her back to Iowa with us when we took our annual trip to visit our families. A week at the Bower's and a week at the Bailey's...we kept going, but also had some nice "down" days too. More on that trip later...but no promises with the way I'm blogging lately.

Back to Ohio for a week of catching up before Brent went back to teach and Big Brudder went off to school for his first time!! We were all very excited for school to start and see what this new world holds for all of us. Our school system does a staggered start where 1/3 of the class begins on Tuesday, 1/3 on Weds. & 1/3 on Thurs. Then they all return to bombard the teacher on Friday! I think the 2nd day was harder for me to let him go than the first.

Little Brudder starts pre-K next week and we are looking forward to his first experience there also. We think it will go well, but you never can tell, so we just keep praying.

Today we had some fun as a family and went to a COSI Hermit Crab workshop for the boys. (COSI is the kids' science center here in town. It was rated #1 in the US by Parents Magazine recently! A good friend of ours is director of membership there, so we just had to get a membership. :-) It's a treat to go whenever we have a chance!)

Back to today...the boys have been fascinated by ocean and water animals for quite some time. After our pet fish bit the dust, they started their request for hermit crabs. So this seemed like a perfect introduction to the creepy, crawly creatures. I signed them up ASAP when we learned about it!. A cool surprise was that each kid in the workshop was going to be taking home a pet crab after the class! The class was wonderful and had a great mix to keep them occupied. It was well worth the investment!

We had some lunch there and checked out the outdoor exhibits before catching the Extreme Screen movie. "Fly Me to the Moon" is now showing there in museum length (45 min...just perfect for their ages) and it's in 3D!! I don't know if all their movies are shown like that, but this was a neat one for the boys. Their first 3D movie, so we weren't sure if they'd keep the glasses on. If you didn't, it wasn't near as cool to watch. Kind of blurry and annoying, actually. It was very funny to see all the kids in the theatre reaching out to grab for the flies and other objects in the movie! The movie got poor reviews for the full-length movie, but we thought it was perfect for kids that are our boys' age! We say "Go see it!" if you're even considering it!

Not by the hair on my chinny-chin-chin

No, we aren't growing facial hair already...if it weren't so bloody, it might look a little hairy though. We had our first encounter with sutures the other day. Poor guy took a good fall (with the help of his brother) and did a chin-plant. He had just finished up his 2nd day of swim lessons and was warming up in his towel. Therefore, he had no arms to catch himself. I can still hear the sound of him meeting the pavement. But we're thankful that his mouth didn't catch the fall. Brent and I were both expecting to see teeth laying on the cement after we picked him up. Thank you Lord!

Unfortunately, one of our little buddies just had stitches in his head a few days earlier, but it helped us know a little about what to expect. And unfortunately, this means he didn't finish swim lessons. Keeping us away from the pool is not an easy task. Hopefully we'll be making a splash next Monday, if all heals well. Til then, we amuse ourselves and fake it!
Even "Turdee" needs to protect his eyes from chlorine! (We are very literal in naming our pets in this house. One would hope that we could at least annunciate this one a bit better!)

His Grace is Enough

A couple of weeks ago, we were all taking Braden to school and a favorite song came on called "Your Grace is Enough." Generally, the kids are dominating the music choice in the van, but today, Brent and I had a voice! Amazing!
I ran in a friend's house to drop something off and Brent and Brooks had a nice little conversation about "Your Grace is Enough." Brent usually sings loud enough so that the rest of us don't have to be heard. The boys think that because he sings it that loud, it must be his favorite song. So the guys were discussing whether this was in fact one of Brent's favorites. They both agreed that it could be a favorite. :-)
Later that day, the kids and I were at the zoo. They were starting to get a little tired and they usually kind of slip into their own zone. As we were walking by each animal home, I kept hearing Brooks singing. Finally I said, "Watcha singing there, Brooks?"

"I shingin' my favrit song. Your graaaaace is enough....your graaaaaace is enough....your graaaaaace is enough....your graaaaaace is enough....." and he just kept singing it.

I loved knowing that he is listening and something is sticking. Our prayer is that he will always remember that God's grace is enough for him. It's so easy to get caught up in what we think works to give us significance/purpose in life. I am the first to get all that confused & jumbled. But after a while, it's so clear that my idea of what works, isn't working so well. It's so obvious that there's got to be One Single Source out there to define our worth and what we're about...can't be ourselves, as that is all so relative.

Thank you God for giving us worth through your grace...your undeserved love toward us. Help us to rest in your grace that is enough!

Bugs!

We have some new pets around the house these days. The boys are raising ants! :-) They received an ant farm for Christmas, so we sent away for the ants. A few days ago, we received our ants in the mail. They came in a little test tube. I think 12 of them were alive, but some didn't make it through the tumultuous trip in the mail.
It actually is really fun to watch them make their tunnels or whatever you call ant homes. We've feed them hamburger meat & banana so far. What a trip! Thanks to my brother's family for the gift...it's a great idea! My SIL is always finding great ideas for the kiddos...she's so creative and is great at fostering kids' love for creation and thinking outside the box.

Back in action

We've been out of the blogging world for a while lately and all for great reasons. Spring is here and we are back in action!!
Thanks for all your prayers and concerns about getting home after the Skybus ordeal. Amtrak helped us out immensely. The thought of renting a car entered my mind for a short while, but I didn't realize they have one-way rentals, so I passed over the idea. Better to have someone else doing the driving, than myself...I think.
My nerves really worked me over as we waited in the Milwaukee station. I asked my SIL to pray for us when she dropped us off there. I felt like I was going to be surrounded by weirdos on the train. I called my friend who had done this before for reassurance about our safety. I also envisioned having to identify people after they committed some crime against my boys and me. So I used my camera phone and took pictures of a few people in the waiting area, just in case. Yes, I have to admit, I was the biggest freak on the train. I was giving them all something to worry about, I'm sure!
The boys did a great job riding the train. On a passenger car to Chicago, the first lurch out of the station was exciting. After that, the boys were all about their Leapster and watching videos on my iPod for the next hour. They weren't as enthralled as we expected.
Once we got off the train in Chicago to hop our train bound for Cleveland, the "adventure" began. I was really nervous about making that connection. As we left the passenger car, a man was waiting on a little transportation cart-type thing. I asked him where our train was and he said it was quite a walk. So we boarded his cart with our carry-on bags and experienced the boys' favorite part of the entire trip! This little cart whipped in and out on the narrow walkway between the trains. He was honking at people to get out of the way and making the boys laugh with every move. The driver said that most boys rarely want to get off his cart, b/c it's so much more fun than the train. Let's just say, I'm glad that he wasn't operating the train, however!
The attendants on the trains were very helpful and we were led to our assigned sleeper car. It was the size of a small walk-in closet, but the boys transformed into monkeys and found ways to move in that thing that amazed me. Suddenly they had urges to go potty about 4 times in a row, just so they could use the cool toilet and sink in our car.

Brooks is standing above the toilet and the bunk bed is to the right of his head. The "pink" sink pulled down out of the wall and then drained when you pushed it back into the wall. Funky stuff.

"When does this train leave?"
This is the sleeper and the 2 chairs turned into a bed for Brooks and me.

The other passengers peeked out of their sleepers and were so friendly and accepting. I suppose we provided the entertainment for them as we waited to depart. Most of them were professionals and shared their stories about where they were bound. I felt very comfortable after meeting a couple of them.
I still had apprehensions about how the sleeping arrangements would work out. Around 10 pm we left the station. The bunk bed had been pulled down from the ceiling and the bottom bed was made. The boys settled in and fell asleep quickly. I sat and watched out the window and talked on the phone with my mom. (extra reassurance needed from her too) Finally I squeezed myself on the "bed" next to Brooks and drifted in and out of sleep. It wasn't quality sleep by any means, as I felt every move of the train. I startled awake any time there was a loud bump on the tracks. At some points, the train seemed to float back and forth and I felt like we were going to crash. This is when I wished I were in control and driving! :-)
The train rolled into Cleveland around 6 am. The attendant woke me up and I woke the boys up out of their surprisingly deep sleep. So glad they had more faith in that train ride than I did...they slept like rocks! Our gracious friend, Angie, picked us up at the station at 6:30 am. and taxied us back to Columbus.
All in all...it was a great alternative to paying $1,500 to fly home. Will I ride a sleeper car again? Most likely not. Unless it's the size of a small country and has pillow top mattresses.

He's a Keeper.

Lately I've become kind of sneaky around the boys, but I'm feeling a twinge of guilt for it. They both love to craft, play play-doh, use stickers...all that stuff.

But more-so, Braden LOVES to draw. He draws, cuts and creates all sorts of pictures. He likes to hang them in different places, hide them in his bed or in his toys...wherever. (He's always been one to keep even the smallest "precious" toy in the most secure place.) He's definitely a "keeper."

However, there's a point when I finally get tired of them lying around or looking at them on the walls/mirrors. We started asking him to pick out a few of them to keep and we'd have to throw some away. He knows that we just can't keep EVERYTHING! But asking him to part with them didn't work so well. He didn't want to get rid of any of them, regardless of whether he remembered them!
So the sneakiness sets in...
I have to "discard" them as best I can without him knowing. I try to keep the ones that seem important, but once in a while he's found the others in the trash. I can't lie, but I do try to act surprised to see them in the trash, so I don't hurt his feelings. Thankfully, he's not good at using the recycle bin yet. :-)
We want to foster his love for creating, but I'm tired of finding the remains everywhere...and I'm tired of feeling guilty for throwing away his "precious" work. I don't mind getting rid of things. (We're starting to do that with toys too, as they take over so rapidly!!!) But I could use a little help in figuring out the best way to do it, with the least opposition! Anyone been there and have some suggestions?

I'm the biggest loser

Things have been up and down for me, emotionally, for the last few weeks. The hormone & other physical changes haven't been horrible, but slowed me down. We got away for a few days and it was a very refreshing break.

I had kind of a humbling experience while we were gone though...
We dyed eggs before Easter and Brent helped me measure out the water. I asked him to fill each mug with 1/2 cup water and I measured the vinegar and put the tablets in. After a while, we wanted more dye, so I filled one more mug with the mix. My mug had much less mix in it than all the others. We realized that Brent had measured 1/2 pint of water, rather than 1/2 cup. Oops! No biggie...but I had to make fun of him for sure!

Well, Brooks has been on amoxicillan for a few days. Instructions: 1 tsp twice a day for 10 days. Today, I realized we were running out of medicine. I also realized that I have been giving him 2 tsp. twice a day...for about 3 days. Oops!!! That made Brent feel much better about his measuring mistake and humbled me (and scared me for a minute) for sure!

I don't know what I was thinking in giving him that much. I will say I haven't been working with a full brain though. Don't try that at home...I'll be using much more caution in dosing my kids next time!

What's in a name?

Of course, names are on our brain lately...names for a baby...boy or girl. That was after we did some talking about adding a sibling to the family.

Braden's original thoughts about a baby: Not interested. "Babies chew on things and they will eat my Legos." This is going to go over really well.

Brooks' original thoughts about a baby: Whatever...he's excited or else he doesn't get it and will be dethroned once it gets here.

So we talked about how God planned this and knows even better than Daddy & Mommy how they will be excellent big brothers. Baby won't move for about 6 months...Legos will be safe until then. A little more peace for the big brother.
Next, we convinced them that they will play a big role in teaching the baby many things...they each could choose something right now.
Braden: He'll read to the baby.
Brooks: He'll teach the baby how to surf. That's crucial.

Now, name picking. Of course, we tried to come up with "B" names for a boy...possibly even more "Br" names. Tough. Mommy & Daddy have our girl name picked out...same one from our last pregnancies. (I told them I really like "Dori," my favorite character from Finding Nemo. lol)

Braden's thoughts: "If it's a boy, I want to name him An-THON-y!" He likes to annunciate that and it's a name of a new friend at school. No girl names...he didn't want a sister during discussion.

Brooks' thoughts: "If it's a boy, I want to name him Cody and Lani if it's a girl!" Those are the stars in his favorite kids' movie, Surf's Up. Can you tell there's a theme here? He prefers a sister. Again...don't know that he understands what's going to hit him if he gets his wishes.

Other names in the running...Billy-Bob-Joe; Katora (that's from my niece); Skyler (that's the name of another niece). Those probably won't make it to the final round.

Any ideas...we're happy to hear them! Early in the game...yes, but I usually can't make decisions to save my life, so we're starting now!

Cabin fever

Since I haven't posted in forever, I thought I'd put a few out there...in case I don't post 'til March.

We are definitely suffering from cabin fever. Plenty of indicators...

Mommy did not pose...for everyone's benefit. I also don't want to be admitted based on evidence on this blog.

We would seriously be happy with more snow, and tho I may regret saying this, we're jealous of the abundance of snow our family received in Iowa & Wisconsin. They have had numerous snow days and they're still enjoying the mounds of snow there. The boys love sledding, but we just don't have enough to keep them occupied on the "slopes."


Looking on the brighter side...the boys are honing their skills on the Wii. (Is that a brighter side? Nintendo claims it's healthy...nice try!) I can't stand video games...but these, I've developed a strong liking for. Super Mario Galaxy...that's a favorite these days. It has even topped Brent's rock star obsession of Guitar Hero. Thank you Mario!

We welcomed a snow day on Tuesday and made it out to a local sledding hill. Our friends joined us with their adorable 2 year old. It was his first round of sledding and he seems to be a pro now. We had the rare treat of warming ourselves by the fire and having lunch at Panera afterward. Gotta love a break from the norm.

The upside to having little snow this year was a winter hike the boys convinced us to take on a Sunday afternoon. There is a great "trail" in the city that is perfect for the boys. We would call it a gorge, as the river/creek runs below the trail. This day happened to be a little rainy, but it didn't hinder the adventurous spirits!

We can say there ARE plenty of things to keep us busy around here. However, staving off the viruses is our goal in NOT partaking in all of them. Spring or at least spring break will be so welcome in this house...or perhaps we'll just settle for a little bit more snow. I know...I just went and said it. No hate mail please! :-)

Logic...lacking it

We have determined that one of our boys really lacks logic at this stage in life. Don't know when you really determine if someone has the gift or not, but we're gonna have to say "no" right now. These are a few statements that you would hear come from this guy's mouth, ever so confidently.

"I'm going outside, because I'm going to go outside!" (With his hand in the air to explain, in case you didn't understand)

"I'm so cold, b/c it's so cold!"

The other night, he didn't want to eat the sandwich that he claimed he wanted. After one bite, "I'm done with this."

"You said you wanted it, so you need to eat 3 more bites." (The bites are calculated by their age...that's great logic right? )

He put on his best mad face...(he's got a mean one) and said

"I'm SELFISH!"

Huh? How's that fit in? Where did that come from? I busted up laughing and he had a hard time keeping his mad face without cracking a smile, making me laugh all the more.

He did agree (unwillingly) with our bites logic... after a few minutes of laughing!