I just have to post some of the conversations that we've had with Alicia recently to be sure I have them for blackmail when she's older.
As we're driving down the road:
A- "People come from animal sounds"
D- "Oh?"
A- "Yep. Like a donkey says 'pea-cock' 'pea-cock'"
To really understand this moment you have to have been there. She said peacock with a perfect donkey bray.
While she was using the bathroom:
A- "Mommy, I just said a prayer to Heavenly Father."
D- (while trying to stop from laughing) "what about hunny?"
A- "I prayed for five children when I get big."
D- "Five is a lot, are you sure?"
A - "Yep, and Heavenly Father will give them to me because that's what He does!"
Somehow I think we've missed a few connections with that one.
Sitting together on the couch:
A- "Mommy when I get big, I'm going to come to your house every day and do all the cleaning and the cooking and everything so you don't have to."
D- "That would be nice."
A- "Yep, when I get big I'll have lots of cleaning energy."
D- wonders silently where all of that energy is now...
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Friday, June 5, 2009
Counting Sheep
Yesterday we all had quite an adventure. Five adults took a grand total of eleven children (all five and under) on an outing up to a member of the church here who has a sheep ranch/farm. I have been trying to work out an opportunity to go and let the kids see some of the sheep since last year and the timing couldn't have been better. The night before we came one of her ewe's delivered a beautiful boy lamb. Aside from a mild road-trip adventure where I learned that Tom-Tom (my usually wonderful navigating GPS) is not as smart as she likes to think she is (yes... Tom-Tom is a girl...) we finally found where we were going and the kids and adults had a blast seeing all the animals. There was even an impromptu game of tag between the herd of sheep and the herd of kids.
The baby lamb - possibly to be named Conductor. The kids that wanted to all got turns holding him and petting him. Naturally he had the cutest little "baa" I think I have ever heard.
Here is a picture of Alicia with the new momma and lamb. The poor momma just couldn't understand what all these crazy two-leggers were doing with her baby.
While the rest of the kids were having fun with the momma and baby Ryan gave up and went to go check out some of the rest of the sheep.
The "odd sheep" of the bunch - they also have a few alpacas that they keep but we only got to see this one. The kids thought it was really cool though.
The baby lamb - possibly to be named Conductor. The kids that wanted to all got turns holding him and petting him. Naturally he had the cutest little "baa" I think I have ever heard.
Here is a picture of Alicia with the new momma and lamb. The poor momma just couldn't understand what all these crazy two-leggers were doing with her baby.
While the rest of the kids were having fun with the momma and baby Ryan gave up and went to go check out some of the rest of the sheep.
The "odd sheep" of the bunch - they also have a few alpacas that they keep but we only got to see this one. The kids thought it was really cool though.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
At Last
Mark finally has all of his grades in from this past semester. He's officially finished successfully all of the coursework to receive his Bachelors from ESC! I can't say how much I admire him for the work he has put in to make this happen especially when dealing with a full time job, trying to start his company, taping meetings for SAPA, and still managing to spend time with me and the kids. Simply said he is and always will be my inspiration. I love you hun... congratulations, you deserve it!
Friday, May 22, 2009
Our Seasonal Guests
Every year we get some visitors to our house. This year we were a little disappointed because they didn't come in their usual time toward the end of April but two nights ago Alicia looked out the window and spotted them.
The likely reason for their late arrival was also explained... this year they had baby chicks with them (they're hiding well in the picture above). They were so cute to watch even though they only stayed less than a day this time. It'll be exciting next year to see what happens.
Needless to say the kids were excited. Both were ready to run outside and personally go greet the family. I had to catch them quite a few times and hold them back when I went to take these pictures and they followed me outside. In the past it really hasn't been a problem - Alicia's chased these two all over the yard and they could probably care less but I didn't want to take any chances with how they might react now that they had the babies with them. She finally accepted the idea that they would probably be scared if she came too close because they were worried she would hurt the babies.
The likely reason for their late arrival was also explained... this year they had baby chicks with them (they're hiding well in the picture above). They were so cute to watch even though they only stayed less than a day this time. It'll be exciting next year to see what happens.
Needless to say the kids were excited. Both were ready to run outside and personally go greet the family. I had to catch them quite a few times and hold them back when I went to take these pictures and they followed me outside. In the past it really hasn't been a problem - Alicia's chased these two all over the yard and they could probably care less but I didn't want to take any chances with how they might react now that they had the babies with them. She finally accepted the idea that they would probably be scared if she came too close because they were worried she would hurt the babies.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Living in Dagobah
Okay, so our little patch of this earth is not quite Dagobah, despite sometimes (especially during mud season) when it may seem like that, but it is full of life and outdoor adventure and I can definitely appreciate Yoda's desire to be connected with nature - even with the inescapable bug-bites.
She'll probably use this picture as evidence to call 1-800-childabuse when she's older but she was the one begging to try and use it... actually she even got Ryan in on trying to help her, if only she were a few inches taller she could probably really do it.
Alicia decided to plant some broccoli. This was all her, she grabbed the seeds and pot, filled it with dirt, planted them and watered them. She checks on it almost every day. She's trying to work out a deal where if she can get it to grow and shows that she can take care of it she'll get a pet fish.
This is some of my zucchini, we also have pumpkins, beans, lettuce, corn, tomatoes, peppers, spinach, and even watermelon started. There will be more once planting season really starts. It is one of the main gripes about VT though that the growing season is so short.
A blossom on one of our apple trees. It doesn't look like we'll have many apples this year though, which is okay really, they're fun, but don't have much taste, pretty much only good for deer food.
Blossoms on our lilac bushes. Okay, so I don't know if they're really considered a bush or a tree but they're so pretty to look at and smell so sweet I love to sit out with them.
We've also been working on clearing out some of the ditches and getting the drain fixed in the pond so the water level will be where it should again. Hopefully that will help keep the little people out of it and then Zach's been talking about stocking it up with some fish. Either way, it's been fun and quite the family adventure.
It's so pretty here at this time of year. The Earth is bursting with life and color everywhere. The blossoms are beautiful and even the leaves on the trees are a sight to behold -I never knew there were so many shades of green. I think I like the idea from A Beautiful Mind that God must be an artist because He used so many beautiful colors when He created the world.
She'll probably use this picture as evidence to call 1-800-childabuse when she's older but she was the one begging to try and use it... actually she even got Ryan in on trying to help her, if only she were a few inches taller she could probably really do it.
Alicia decided to plant some broccoli. This was all her, she grabbed the seeds and pot, filled it with dirt, planted them and watered them. She checks on it almost every day. She's trying to work out a deal where if she can get it to grow and shows that she can take care of it she'll get a pet fish.
This is some of my zucchini, we also have pumpkins, beans, lettuce, corn, tomatoes, peppers, spinach, and even watermelon started. There will be more once planting season really starts. It is one of the main gripes about VT though that the growing season is so short.
A blossom on one of our apple trees. It doesn't look like we'll have many apples this year though, which is okay really, they're fun, but don't have much taste, pretty much only good for deer food.
Blossoms on our lilac bushes. Okay, so I don't know if they're really considered a bush or a tree but they're so pretty to look at and smell so sweet I love to sit out with them.
We've also been working on clearing out some of the ditches and getting the drain fixed in the pond so the water level will be where it should again. Hopefully that will help keep the little people out of it and then Zach's been talking about stocking it up with some fish. Either way, it's been fun and quite the family adventure.
It's so pretty here at this time of year. The Earth is bursting with life and color everywhere. The blossoms are beautiful and even the leaves on the trees are a sight to behold -I never knew there were so many shades of green. I think I like the idea from A Beautiful Mind that God must be an artist because He used so many beautiful colors when He created the world.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Spring Has Sprung
Okay so it's a little late and quite a bit cliche but I'm so excited. The weather's been really wonderful and we've been spending lots of time outside, something that we were all in desperate need of after the confines of winter. Here's just a few of the pics I've taken....
Out on the Toonerville Trail:
Out on the Toonerville Trail:
Mark and Ryan... walking while Ryan looks for "wibbits"
Alicia riding so she can draw the trees...
Around the house...
Ryan taking over the responsibility from Alicia of filling in the pond one rock at a time... this was actually only a few minutes before Alicia joined him and they both tried to climb down the bank for better access... we've also had to rescue an assorted variety of objects including hats, shoes, and bubble wands that went in as well.
Alicia and Ryan on the play-set. Sometimes they surprise me with how well they do on their own.
Assorted Springiness...
A Whirlwind of a Week
These past two weeks been a bit crazy... lots of good things... but craziness indeed.
First of all - My mom and Aunt Dorothy arrived about a week and a half ago for a week long visit. It was a fairly low-key visit aside from the fact that they got to experience first hand the wild animals that I claim sometimes as children... Their arrival immediately prompted a few rounds of "bump bump" riding around on the back of Grandma's wheelchair over doorstops etc.
The day after they arrived Uncle Matt came for a visit as well. They had the attention of 5 grown ups and lots of presents - they were spoiled rotten and loved it. While Matt was here we all got to use the pool and fitness center where Mom and Aunt Dorothy were staying both kids gave me some scares in the water but it was really fun.
Tuesday night I finished up my papers and such for school this term! It felt so good, I'm actually trying to convince myself that I should still take the one course through the summer.
Thursday I left Ryan with Mom and Aunt Dorothy and took Alicia over to the school for a chance to look around and get a feel for the place. She got to meet both of the Kindergarten teachers, we won't know for a little while whose class she'll actually be in but she liked both of them and already found some of the big kids that were practicing for a production of Little Mermaid that thought she was adorable. I actually had to fight with her to get her out of the place because she was sure that she hadn't seen everything yet - possibly because I refused to let her go play on their outdoor play set.
Friday Morning Mom and Aunt Dorothy hit the road again back to TN and FL. The kids were pretty exhausted. Not that I should be surprised after the vast quantities of energy that they had exploited during the week.
Unfortunately, I was too busy to remember to take more pictures or when I did remember the kids were moving around and they came out blurry. I think Mark got some video, so we'll have to see how that turned out.
First of all - My mom and Aunt Dorothy arrived about a week and a half ago for a week long visit. It was a fairly low-key visit aside from the fact that they got to experience first hand the wild animals that I claim sometimes as children... Their arrival immediately prompted a few rounds of "bump bump" riding around on the back of Grandma's wheelchair over doorstops etc.
The day after they arrived Uncle Matt came for a visit as well. They had the attention of 5 grown ups and lots of presents - they were spoiled rotten and loved it. While Matt was here we all got to use the pool and fitness center where Mom and Aunt Dorothy were staying both kids gave me some scares in the water but it was really fun.
Tuesday night I finished up my papers and such for school this term! It felt so good, I'm actually trying to convince myself that I should still take the one course through the summer.
Thursday I left Ryan with Mom and Aunt Dorothy and took Alicia over to the school for a chance to look around and get a feel for the place. She got to meet both of the Kindergarten teachers, we won't know for a little while whose class she'll actually be in but she liked both of them and already found some of the big kids that were practicing for a production of Little Mermaid that thought she was adorable. I actually had to fight with her to get her out of the place because she was sure that she hadn't seen everything yet - possibly because I refused to let her go play on their outdoor play set.
Friday Morning Mom and Aunt Dorothy hit the road again back to TN and FL. The kids were pretty exhausted. Not that I should be surprised after the vast quantities of energy that they had exploited during the week.
Unfortunately, I was too busy to remember to take more pictures or when I did remember the kids were moving around and they came out blurry. I think Mark got some video, so we'll have to see how that turned out.
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