Mom! Dude!

Our Memorial Day mini-vacation for 2008 got started much like it did in May of 2007: with a true test of our patience and determination. We got packed, loaded, everyone was in the van, we start to back out the driveway and Pete pushes the button on the remote to close the garage door. The garage door, previously having had no problems whatsoever, jumps off its tracks and crashes to the ground, crumpling and shattering all the glass that was in the garage door windows! It was like it was possessed...by our recurrent vacation demons. Naturally, we stopped, got out of the van and checked out the damage and what could be done about it....all the while with Alex jumping up and down with excitement, screaming, "Look! See! What happened? What we gonna do? We gonna fix it? We gonna call a bulldozer to clean it up? We gonna call a high lift to pick it up?" Only Alex would find sheer and utter delight in such a nuisance. We did the only thing we could do on late Friday afte...

Alex and Austin decided to play barber shop one day. Both boys were in the bathroom while Pete was dressing and shaving for Family Dinner Night, and Alex was watching Pete very closely while Pete used his side burn trimmer. He asked questions, Pete answered questions, and when Pete put it up and away after he was done, he made the colossal mistake of turning his back for one moment. The boys got ahold of the sideburn trimmer, took it outside, Austin sat down on the steps and bent his head down, and Alex proceeded to shave Austin's head! Yep, our middle son is now known as baboon butt! We don't even know what to do with it. There is no pattern to it. Just one big streak on the top, middle of his head, and then a big, round spot on the back of his head. Pete says at least Austin looks a little like him now. When Pete found them, he had to walk away, he was laughing so hard. It was much later before he could actually talk to Alex about the possible dangers of what he had just don...

I'm going to be taking a brief break from blogging for a while.....to enjoy and lap up every moment I can with my newborn daughter, Marley. She arrived safe and sound at 9:25 PM on Saturday, June 20, 2009. 6 pounds, 8 ounces and 18.5 inches long. 8 and 8 on her apgar. She is a beautiful, healthy baby girl with the blackest, fullest head of hair I've ever seen on a newborn. Pics to follow when I can....but she's safe, she's ours, and she's home. Many thanks for all your prayers and support.

It began with an article I found, "Potty Training in One Day" and we followed that up with the one book I always swore I would never buy, "Everybody Poops". In the days leading up to the big day, we tried talking to Alex about it. He had #1 mastered for many months; our trouble now was getting him trained for #2. Here's how it went. Mommy: Alex, we need to talk. Tomorrow is going to be a very big day for you. Alex: Uh-huh. Mommy: Alex, would you like to not to wear pullups anymore, not like your little baby brothers do? Alex: OK. Mommy: You're a big boy now, and you need to learn to not poop in your diapers anymore. Alex: OK, mommy. Mommy: Did you know that everyone poops? Alex: Uh-huh. Mommy: And grown up boys poop in the potty! Alex: Yeah. Mommy: Andrew poops and Austin poops, but they poop in their diapers, and they're babies, and that's OK for babies. Alex: OK. Mommy: But you're not a baby, you're a big boy, so ...

So 2008 was well underway....we celebrated Valentine’s Day with candy and small toys, and then went on a few days later to celebrate Austin’s 1st birthday. I could not believe it....Austin, a year old already. We kept the celebration small. Pizza with the family at my parent’s house, then with a chocolate cake to dive into and gobble up afterwards. What a crazy year it had been We got home early from Austin’s first birthday party because baby Andrew was scheduled for surgery the next day. I have not mentioned it yet on this blog, but Andrew was born with Amniotic Band Symdrome. You can learn more about it at While Casey was pregnant with Andrew, he at some point during his development got his right hand caught in the amniotic sac. The amniotic sac, which is fiberous in nature, wound around the middle, ring and pinky fingers on his right hand, causing a disfigurement. His middle finger is intact, and has full function, mobility and circulation, but looks a little creased at the...

So here's another one of Alex's enlightening conversations. It was the day after we'd been to Busch Gardens, and we'd gotten up and gone to church and brunch that morning, so it had been a very lazy afternoon, with everyone napping to catch up on our sleep. We were all a little tired and lazy, and I really wasn't in the mood to cook a lot, or have the boys be fussy about what I cooked, so it was pretty much let everyone eat whatever they want, as long as it's leftovers, or something very easy. Alex is a little grouchy, and it goes like this: Mommy: What to do want for supper? Alex (grouchy): I don't want supper. Mommy: Are you not hungry? Alex (whiny): Yes, I am hungry! Mommy: OK, so what to do want to eat? Alex (whiny): I don't know. Mommy: Do you want chicken? Alex (huffy): I want breakfast. Mommy: Well, that's OK Do you want eggs and sausage? Alex (grouchy): No! Mommy: Well, what do you want? Alex (whiny): I want nuff...

Having a three year old is a lot of fun...one morning, on the way to school, we saw a lot of backhoes at the construction site across from school. So I purposely drove by the construction site and slowed down so Alex could look, and all you could hear from the back of the van was, "Wow! Mommy! Look at dat backhoe! What is dat, Mommy? That a backhoe?", etc., etc., etc. Then, when we got to the parking lot, every hole in the parking lot, which was caused by the recent rain, every cement glob in the parking lot, every crack in the sidewalk, Alex would ask: "That made by a backhoe?" Or "a backhoe did that?" Then, upon seeing the large sinkhole in front of the education building, Alex asked if that was made by a backhoe. I told him, "no, that is part of the Earth. It's a sinkhole. God made that." Alex then asked, "Did God use a backhoe?" ....I told him yes....now he thinks God is so cool for using a backhoe! That's Alex's new wor...