Boundaries

When do you draw that line that it's not silly anymore, but that it's naughty and enough's enough?

Christian and Ethan have become quite the dynamic duo, for good or for bad. On one hand, I LOVE watching them be together, play together, and laugh together. I love watching Christian be completely entertained by Ethan, who is the family clown. I love hearing them giggle together. I love seeing them stick together when they're in unfamiliar territory. On the other hand, they can get into too much trouble as a team. Ethan is usually the one to carry out the naughty deed, while Christian is right there, often whispering in his ear, and encouraging him to do it. A typical scene looks something like this: Ethan gets an idea and knows he's not supposed to throw his plate across the table at Christian, but looks at Christian and "asks" if he should do it, who of course nods and smiles, nods and smiles. And then Ethan throws his plate. Like I said, on one hand I love that they are working on the same team and having fun together, but on the other hand, I'm getting tired of all this naughtiness! :)

So tonight I put the boys to bed, and then went into the next bedroom to feed Owen and put him to bed. After a little bit I heard this loud thump. And then another. And another. I kept expecting to hear one of them crying, but there were no cries, so I assumed at least it wasn't one of them falling out of bed. Instead I heard intermittent laughter, so i knew they were probably up to no good. Eventually I went to investigate, to find the light on, Christian out of bed, Ethan reading a PILE of books in his bed, and many more books scattered all around their room. They were having a grand old time throwing books! Not okay. The look on Christian's face when I walked in unexpectedly was hilarious--it was "oh no, I'm in big trouble. I know I'm not supposed to be doing any of this.". So I calmly, but sternly, told Christian he had to pick up every single book right that minute and then climb back in bed. And I also threatened to pack away all our books if they were going to be used to throw instead of read. :)

So I was a little upset about the books all over the place, especially because I know Christian knows he's not supposed to be doing that. But I also don't want discourage my children from having fun together, even if sometimes it makes a little mess. (Mind you, throwing books is still not okay). I want my children to grow up to be friends, to be on the same team. The way I see it, mom and dad are on one team and the kids are all on the other. :). Of course, I also want to have a close relationship with each of my children.

I guess I'm just trying to find that line--when do I get mad and say, go to sleep! And when do i just let them be silly and be brothers and have fun in their bedroom together? Because keep in mind, no matter how late they stay up, they will not sleep in. Ethan wakes up at 6:27 every morning.

Perhaps the truth is that I may show face that I'm upset and they're in trouble so they won't turn into little terrors down the road, but deep down, I am grateful for the bond they are building and the friendship they are creating. I hope they can see how valuable they are to one another.

Let's just try not to make too big of messes, okay?

The Beach

We went to this fun beach in Daybreak with my sister and her kids and had a great time! The kids had a blast playing in the sand and water. It cracked me up to see all the kids having so much fun playing in the sand, and there was Ethan, who spent almost his entire time on the side, all by himself, throwing rock, after rock, after rock into the water. He was perfectly content.

No-Spill Bubbles

I found this picture on the camera when I was downloading them, so apparently Christian took my camera and started snapping pictures. But I thought it was the perfect moment to share a breakthrough we have come to discover in the bubble world.

I hate bubbles. Let me rephrase that: I USED TO hate bubbles. The mess, the spilling, always tipping over, only lasting a few moments until all bubble solution is dumped out, unless you sit there and hold the bubbles, in which case you will definitely be covered in the soapy substance in just a few moments. And then I purchased our very own NO-SPILL Bubble contraption. (I bought one for my neice last year, not even realizing how great it was. It took me a whole year to get our very own. Think of all the bubbles we could have blown in that year!) It's a breakthrough. Thank you Walmart. It was well worth every penny of that five bucks I spent. Now I can send Ethan outside with the bubbles and they keep him entertained for a LONG time! And he can do it all by himself. And when he's done with them, there's even more bubble solution inside for next time. So go out and get yourself one, because it's well worth it.

Stylin'

We were at the park with some friends and I looked over to see catch Ethan attempting to climb on Christian's bike with Christian's helmet on his head just like this. Unfortunately I missed capturing the moment, but he repeated it on the scooter just a few minutes later. Stylin'. :)

Hiking

We have been enjoying the wonderful weather, in between the rain, but especially appreciating the cooler than usual temperatures for June! And so we've been doing some hiking, which has been a lot of fun!

First we hiked Bells Canyon. This was Owen's very first hike!

Christian LOVES hiking and couldn't stop talking about going hiking again.

Then we hiked Ferguson Canyon. Notice the LARGE rock in Ethan's hand. He carried it and carried it, and picked it up time after time when he'd trip and fall and drop it, until he reached the water where he could throw it in. He was not about to give up the rock. :)

At the end of this hike, Christian fell and got a tiny scratch, but he was exhausted that day, so it was a huge deal. As we climbed the stairs in our house to get a bandaid, he sobbingly said, "I don't ever wan to go hiking again!". Luckily, he didn't hold onto that for too long.

Just two days later we hiked Ferguson Canyon again, in the rain. :). Oops. We didn't turn around soon enough. Luckily I had a blanket to cover Owen, so he was warm and dry, but poor Ethan was the cold one--not able to move and get warm, and just got soaked riding in the pack! He was a trooper! It was still fun, and very memorable. It just rained on us on the way out.

Growing gardens and three children

The weather here has been unusually cool and wet. But we managed to plant a garden the end of May, and if the sun will start shining on it enough, hopefully we'll get something from it in a few months.

We don't have much garden space, but we planted three tomato plants, a zucchini, a jalapeño pepper, and then some seeds. Christian chose pumpkin seeds and Ethan chose carrot seeds, so we planted them. I'll be honest that I didn't have much hope for these little guys, as our garden didn't do super well last year, but to my surprise, they have both sprouted and are growing well! And the rest of our garden seems to be growing too! It's amazing what happens when you make sure to water your garden daily. :)

And on the topic of growing, our little Owen is growing like a weed. Where has time gone! He will be three months this week and I can't believe it's been that long, and at the same time it seems like he's always been a part of our family.

I was talking to a cousin about how it was having three kids and it really has been going well. She has also recently had her third and she said she feels like she is "treading water.". Boy, I am right with her on that one now. And lately, I might say I feel like I'm drowning. In the department of my three little boys, things are going quite well. I really am enjoying having three! But my house? That's where I'm drowning. I can't seem to keep up on laundry, cleaning or just keeping the mess under control. I suppose that as long as their bellies are full, they are rested, and they aren't too dirty, I'm doing okay. And those are definitely checked off each day. :) Maybe it's my calling, maybe it's the fact that I've recently started making bread, maybe it's because Ethan's getting older and messier with his dynamic duo big brother, maybe its because we live close to family now and have lots of opportunities to see them, maybe it's because I'm just too tired at the end of the day. Or maybe it's all of that combined. But whatever it is, hopefully I'll figure it out soon. Any suggestions? :)

Preschool Graduation

It was such a fun year of preschool this year. I am so glad I rounded up a couple other moms to join me in a preschool co-op. There were four little boys in the group, and it was fun to watch each of them progress though out the year. Two of them will go on to kindergarten, and so Christian will be doing a different preschool this next year. He's a smart little guy, so hopefully he'll enjoy it! :)

Ruger Winward, Braeden Lazarte, Dakota Howe, Christian

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the Daddy of our home! Oh, how we love you! And oh how I love the facial expressions in these. :)

To celebrate, we made golden rod egg and took it to Jake in bed, except he'd just gotten up, so he joined us at the table.

We went to church and enjoyed the spirit that we felt there, especially as one young boy talked about the close relationship he has with his dad. I hope that my boys will enjoy that same relationship as they become young men.

We had a yummy shish kabob dinner and enjoyed spending the day together.

Unfortunately, it was raining ALL DAY. So we had to improvise inside with Daddy's Father's Day gift. I was pretty impressed with Jake and Christian's creativity.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to our Dads and Grandpa's and all the fathers out there! We have these really cute videos of the boys singing "I'm so glad when Daddy Comes Home," but I can't get them to post. I think I'll try another method.

My little math brain

As we were driving in the car, Christian says from the back seat, "Mommy, 2 and 3 make 5.".

"Yes Christian, how did you know that?".

"I just thought it."

And then yesterday I was telling Jake about this so he started quizzing Christian over dinner.

"Christian, what's 4 plus 1?"

After just a moment of thought, "Five."

"What's three and four?"

Another moment of thought and then, "Seven."

"What's eleven plus four?"

Christian was quiet for a few moments longer this time and then he said, "Fifteen."

We were impressed. So I said, "Christian, how did you know that? How did you figure that out?"

"I just thought it."

And that's when I realized that's exactly what he meant. And that's what he meant in the car the other day too. He wasn't counting on his fingers he was just figuring it out in his head!

I'm still impressed. And of course very proud that he seems to have a math brain. :)

Catching Thomas

We were headed up to Heber for a family get together over Memorial weekend, and Thomas just happened to be in town, so we decided to chase him down so the boys could see and wave to Thomas. We parked at an intersection with the railroad track and waited until he passed by. The memories are well worth the effort.

First, I gave the boys pennies to put on the track that were smashed flat by Thomas. Christian loved this and still has his penny! This is something I did as a child too, so it was fun to do with the boys.

Second, Ethan wanted to make sure his Maya was not going to be "mashed" by Thomas. While we were waiting for Thomas, Ethan spotted his Maya in the front seat of the van and looked at me with this very insistent look and said, "I not need my Maya. Thomas not mash my Maya.". And he repeated this multiple times the rest of the evening, even after Thomas came and went. He must have been worried we were going to put his Maya on the track with the pennies!

Third, the events unfolded just as I predicted. As Thomas was coming down the track in the distance and blowing his horn, I told Jake that Ethan was going to freak out when Thomas came by us, and maybe even Christian, and sure enough, Ethan began screaming and was carried back to the van by Jake as Thomas passed. Luckily he kept saying that seeing Thomas was fun! So he must not have been too traumatized. Christian tried to bail too, with a concerned look in his eyes, but I convinced him to stay with me, as Thomas hadn't even passed by yet! He was the last train car.

So Ethan was terrified of Thomas, but thrilled by this...

Again! he kept saying. Sort of like how Ethan is Mr. No Fear when it comes to rocks and outdoor adventures, but he wants nothing, I mean NOTHING to do with the train or the carousel at the zoo. But I am definitely not complaining about that. Let's keep it that way! :)

All in all, the boys loved it, and talked about it the rest of the evening. Our favorite thing to do was ask Ethan about his Maya, to which he'd reply, "No, Thomas not mash my Maya. Thomas mash my money!"

Coincidence?

Last night we experienced (again) one of the great joys of parenting--cleaning up throw up in the middle of the night. I say "again" because this Is definitely NOT the first time we have experienced this. And may I ask, why is it always in the middle of the night? Is it written in the parenthood book of laws or something? It must be. My children have NEVER thrown up during daylight hours. Never. So cleaning up throw up is definitely a nocturnal activity at our house.

So once again, there we were at four a.m. this morning cleaning up throw up. It began with Christian coming and waking me up, complaining of a tummy ache, requesting medicine, which of course I gave him because I was half asleep and wanted to go back to bed. Next he was calling me into his room, requesting lotion on his belly button, insisting that would make it feel better. We have magic lotion at our house, don't you? :). So I complied and put lotion on his belly button, hoping to get back to sleep. But just as I was drifting off, he was calling me in again, deciding that his tummy must be hungry and he needed some food. So I got him a piece of bread, which he had one bite of, and then went back to bed. By this time, Owen was waking up and needing to be fed, so instead of returning to my cozy bed, I took my place in the rocking chair in Owen's room and started drifting off to sleep while Owen ate. But before long, I heard Christian's door open and his little voice calling for me, saying that he thought he was going to throw up. That's when I jumped up and told him to run to the bathroom! And even Jake jumped out of bed to join the excitement. Luckily, Christian mostly made it to the bathroom and there were only a few spots on the floor to clean up.

And as we were cleaning Jake said, "Why is it always taco soup when someone throws up?" And I realized he was right, as my last memory of this was cleaning taco soup throw up out of Ethan's bed just a few months ago. And let me tell you, taco soup makes a big mess when thrown up! With Ethan's sheet, I just cut my losses and tossed the whole thing in the garbage. Luckily Christian is old enough to be able to throw up in the toilet. :)

So now I wonder...is it coincidence? Or should I stop feeding my children taco soup? What do you think?

I think I will play it safe and stop feeding them taco soup for a while. A long while.

We have arrived!

This week, we hit a major milestone in our family...Ethan is now pitching to Christian! And let me tell you, he does an excellent job for a two year old! And Christian is getting great practice at hitting all kinds of pitches. As Christian put it, "Mommy, me and Efan make a great team!

Yes Christian, yes you do. Don't ever forget that.

Now, this might appear that Christian and Ethan are the best of friends and play perfectly together...let you not be deceived. They are still brothers and Christian is still the boss. He still gets very frustrated at Ethan sometimes when he pitches it wrong or if he throws him a bean ball. Sometimes he even charges the mound with his bat. Luckily he knows that if he touches Ethan with his bat, he loses it. He still makes Ethan cry. A lot. But this week I have seen a glimmer, or even better a flash of hope that these two boys really can get along and be buddies. And playing baseball together seems to have spilled over into other areas of play. How grateful I am for these moments.

I took this picture because it is a scene that I love and one day will miss very much--two little boys, in a pile of blocks, building things, together, in peace, on a day at home, in sweats, just playing, no where to rush off to, not a care in the world.