Sunday, October 30, 2011

Pumpkin carving--Oct. 30, 2011

This afternoon, Oliver carved a couple of the pumpkins that we got last weekend at the pumpkin patch.  I'm still a little taken aback that he can clean out the pumpkin and carve it without any help.  I guess I'm still a little taken aback that he is already 8, but I digress.  




I added this picture because according to Pat, Oliver's great-grandpa Jaberg (Robert Jaberg) had the habit of sticking out his tongue when he was concentrating on something.  That tendency has definitely been passed down to Oliver! 


 Baxter had to get in on the fun!





 Eli was throwing a fit because he wanted "A KNIFE!!!" to carve a pumpkin, so I got out some paints so he could decorate a pumpkin, too.





 When the paints were all gone, I gave him some water to paint the deck.  But, he got a little frustrated because "Baxter keep drinking my water!!"


Toasted pumpkin seeds...I'm not much of a fan, but Pat and Oliver love them!


Oliver's 2nd grade Halloween party--Oct. 28, 2011

Every Halloween, Oliver's school has a costume parade/fall party.  I was able to help with the party...Pat agreed to watch Eli during that time, but he lucked out and Eli slept the whole time.  (I'm not sure Pat would say he "lucked out" by working instead of playing with Eli, but with all of the work he has had lately, it was good that he has those extra couple of hours.  Anyway, it was fun to see all of the kids dressed up and excited!  As a parent, I can say that...as a previous teacher, I don't know if I would have used the word "fun." :)

Oliver's 2nd grade class 


 Oliver and his good friend, Baxter, dressed as Transformers


Heading down the hall for the costume parade! 


Oliver and his WONDERFUL teacher, Miss Ewert


Wichita Wings game--Oct. 26, 2011

The Wichita Wings is an indoor soccer team that just recently started up again.  We haven't had a team for quite a while...I remember going to a game when I was in elementary school which was in the 80's (YIKES!).
Anyway, the organization just started up again and they had a scrimmage/try-out game that Oliver's soccer team went to.  I know this is a big shocker, but Oliver loved it!  Pat is already looking at season tickets, so I have a feeling we might be attending just one or two more Wichita Wings games in the future!





Phase 3--Oct. 23, 2011

Dad and Mom made another trip to our house to help with the final stage of our front landscaping (at least for this particular project.)  Dad roto-tilled the ground, and then he, Pat, Oliver and our neighbor, Jacob dug holes and planted a few things.  Everything still looks very bare, but hopefully things will perk up next spring and the front of our house will have a little more color!  I'm just so happy that those overgrown monsters are gone!










Oliver's last outdoor soccer game--Oct. 22, 2011

Oliver had a really good soccer season this fall!  He had so much fun playing and loved his teammates.  Even though we weren't supposed to keep score (the league is supposed to be more for fun than competition) the Wheathawks won or tied all of their games except one...the other team had a last minute shot that bounced off the corner of the goal.  Just a couple pictures of the Wheathawks...





Now on to basketball and indoor soccer!


Thursday, October 20, 2011

I'm so sorry, little pumpkin--Oct. 20, 2011


Dear little pumpkin,

Today while Eli and I were at Wal-Mart, we picked up a big pumpkin for Oliver to take to school tomorrow.  Eli also had his eye on you, so I thought, why not?  You came home with us also.  You probably figured you were in for a rough time of it, since Eli dropped you numerous times on the floor of Wal-Mart, but I'm really sorry for what happened to you once we got home.  You have been dropped, rolled, kicked, sniffed, thrown, and at one point, even "punted."  I must say, you are a strong little pumpkin and I really appreciate you not breaking all over my floor.  Despite all of your torture, you are greatly loved.  Eli continues to look at you and say, "I love it!!"  Thank you for making my little boy happy!

Lisa














 

Phase 2--Oct. 18, 2011

Dad and Mom came down again and helped with Phase 2 of our landscaping project.  (I'm a little overwhelmed to think about how many phases this project might actually be!)  We removed the big evergreen tree and the rest of the shrubs, added some fill dirt, and Eli even got a ride in the wheelbarrow! 

If you're wondering, no, Eli was not born with his thumbs next to his pinkies.  He just refuses to put his thumbs in the right part of his mittens...I mean "work gloves." 


Our bare house


Two boys and a dog--Oct. 18, 2011

Oliver and Eli were playing so nicely with Baxter and of course, I went to grab my camera.  However, by the time I came back, the moment had passed and these were the best photos I could get!








At one point, Eli wanted to give Baxter a hug, but chose the wrong end to hug.  He said with his little lisp, "Mommy, thath Baxter'th tail!  That'th the betht tail I ever theen!"


Oliver day off from school--Oct. 17, 2011

Oliver had Monday off from school, so Eli and I had a nice change of pace by having Oliver with us all day!  The boys spent part of the morning watching cartoons in Eli's "Lightning McQueen house," which now seems to be a semi-permanent fixture in the living room!




They also worked for a while making Shrinky Dinks.  Oliver always loved doing art projects with me, and Eli is finally getting to age where he not only wants to do projects, but is also able to do a few! 


 Eli


Oliver


Saturday, October 15, 2011

Extreme Makeover, Home Edition--Oct. 15, 2011


Phase 1:

Okay, so maybe this really isn't an extreme makeover, but it's a little makeover.  Let's just say I haven't been very fond of our front bushes for some time now, and was really excited when Dad (and Mom) agreed to help us pull them out! 


 The view of our house with all of the overgrown bushes


 Pat, Oliver, and Dad assessing the situation


 And there goes the first one (which happens to be a very thorny, painful bush!  Pat and I have both had one of its thorns stuck in our toes at one point or another!)  Dad hooked up a chain from the bush to the pick-up and within a few seconds, it was outta there!  YEAH!!!


Eli quickly noticed that Dad and Pat had on their work gloves and demanded that he wear his "gloves" too!


 Eli helping to carry away some branches.  Good thing he has on those "gloves"!


 Peyton (Oliver's friend), Oliver, Eli, and Dad sitting in the pick-up


 Oliver trying to pull out one of the long roots


Our house, post bush removal!  I'm still not exactly sure what I want to plant now, but as long as it isn't huge, overgrown, or have thorns, I'll be happy!  (Phase 2 will include the removal of that big evergreen tree at the side of the house!)


Applesauce!--Oct. 14, 2011

I know it's fall when it's time to make applesauce!  Before Oliver was old enough to go to school, he and I helped Mom make applesauce several years in a row.  He has such good memories of making applesauce with Grandma!  He was actually pretty bummed that he couldn't help this year since he had school!

On Friday, Eli and I went to Mom and Dad's house for a morning of applesauce making.  I wasn't sure how much help I was going to be, since lately Eli will only play by himself for about 6.7 seconds and then wants me to hold him.  Thankfully, Eli kept himself pretty busy...

...washing apples, 


...loading apples in the sink, 


...and helping Grandma!


 Eli was so proud of himself when he figured out how to crank by himself!  "I cranked it!"


 Look at all of that yummy applesauce!



I just had to include these two photos!  What is it about apple boxes that are so appealing to two year olds?
 Eli, Oct. 14, 2011

Oliver, Oct. 26, 2005

Can you tell they're brothers?



Thursday, October 13, 2011

I Must Remember...--Oct. 13, 2011

Like I said in my last post, I've been spending quite a bit of time on Pinterest.com and it has led me to many  recipes to try and craft ideas, but it has also led me to lots of other blogs from other moms like me (or at least what they right about are things I can relate to.)  I found one this morning that I really like.  This woman has 3 kids and seems to love DIY projects and crafts that look pretty neat.  She also posted an article that I feel really pertains to me lately.  As Eli is pulling at my arms as I am trying to write this, and Oliver's room (that I just picked up) is now covered with Legos, I must remember...



Parenting Memories

by Anna Quindlen, Newsweek Columnist and Author

All my babies are gone now. I say this not in sorrow but in disbelief. I take great satisfaction in that I have today: three almost-adults, two taller than I am, one closing in fast. Three people who read the same books I do and have learned not to be afraid of disagreeing with me in their opinion of them, who sometimes tell vulgar jokes that make me laugh until I choke and cry, who need razor blades and shower gel and privacy, who want to keep their doors closed more than I like. Who, miraculously, go to the bathroom, zip up their jackets and move food from plate to mouth all by themselves. Like the trick soap I bought for the bathroom with a rubber ducky at its center, the baby is buried deep within each, barely discernible except through the unreliable haze of the past.

Everything in all the books I once poured over is finished for me now. Penelope Leach, T. Berry Brazelton, Dr. Spock. The ones on sibling rivalry and sleeping through the night and early-childhood education,all grown obsolete. Along with "Goodnight Moon" and "Where the Wild things Are", they are battered, spotted, well used. But I suspect that if you flipped the pages dust would rise like memories. What those books taught me, finally, and what the women on the playground taught me, and the well-meaning relations--what they taught me, was that they couldn't really teach me very much at all.

Raising children is presented at first as a true-false test, then becomes multiple choice, until finally, far along, you realize that it is an endless essay. No one knows anything. One child responds well to positive reinforcement, another can be managed only with a stern voice and a timeout. One child is toilet trained at 3, his sibling at 2.

When my first child was born, parents were told to put baby to bed on his belly so that he would not choke on his own spit-up. By the time my last arrived, babies were put down on their backs because of research on sudden infant death syndrome. To a new parent this ever-shifting certainty is terrifying, and then soothing. Eventually you must learn to trust yourself. Eventually the research will follow. I remember 15 years ago poring over one of Dr. Brazelton's wonderful books on child development, in which he describes three different sorts of infants: average, quiet,and active. I was looking for a sub-quiet codicil for an 18-month old who did not walk. Was there something wrong with his fat little legs? Was there something wrong with his tiny little mind? Was he developmentally delayed, physically challenged? Was I insane? Last year he went to China. Next year he goes to college. He can talk just fine. He can walk, too.

Every part of raising children is humbling, too. Believe me, mistakes were made. They have all been enshrined in the, "Remember-When-Mom-Did Hall of Fame." The outbursts, the temper tantrums, the bad language, mine, not theirs. The times the baby fell off the bed. The times I arrived late for preschool pickup. The nightmare sleepover. The horrible summer camp. The day when the youngest came barreling out of the classroom with a 98 on her geography test, and I responded,"What did you get wrong?". (She insisted I include that.) The time I ordered food at the McDonald's drive-through speaker and then drove away without picking it up from the window. (They all insisted I include that.) I did not allow them to watch the Simpsons for the first two seasons. What was I thinking?

But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night.
I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.

Even today I'm not sure what worked and what didn't, what was me and what was simply life. When they were very small, I suppose I thought someday they would become who they were because of what I'd done. Now I suspect they simply grew into their true selves because they demanded in a thousand ways that I back off and let them be. The books said to be relaxed and I was often tense, matter-of-fact and I was sometimes over the top. And look how it all turned out. I wound up with the three people I like best in the world, who have done more than anyone to excavate my essential humanity. That's what the books never told me. I was bound and determined to learn from the experts. It just took me a while to figure out who the experts were.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

My new addiction--Oct. 12, 2011

I haven't taken many pictures lately, so I thought I'd share one of the things I've been interested in the last couple of weeks. It is called Pinterest. For those of you who aren't familiar with the website, it is basically a place where you can "pin" your internet finds onto "boards" to keep them organized. For instance, I have a board for crafts, one for recipes, one for Christmas ideas, etc. Anyway, I have spent quite a bit of my free time, okay most of my free time, pinning things on my boards on Pinterest. If you're interested, you can check out my boards at http://pinterest.com/lpjab/

Enjoy!


Eli and his hats--Oct. 3, 2011

I know I've said this before, but Eli LOVES hats! Especially his big brother's hats. However, he insists on wearing them backwards, which is fine with me because I think he looks pretty cute!





He was busy playing with Legos when I took these photos, so if you're wondering, those are Lego helmets on his thumbs...which he thought was pretty cool!