Fall means...

Beginnings. And changes. To me Fall has always been more of a beginning than January, mostly because of all those years of school. This year was no exception, because Jacob started Kindergarten on the 9th. What an experience. He was definitely far more ready than I. On the first day I took the morning off and took him to school and picked him up. He was so excited! But, he informed that I did not need to take him inside in the morning, and that "Schools need humans to do things on their own". So on day 2, I dropped him at the curb and let him walk in the building all by himself. I should say strut, because it was far more than a walk. I have never seen a little boy so proud and excited to do something on his own! He rides the bus home from school, and that may be his favorite part of the day. I can't believe my little baby is growing up!


And speaking of babies growing, Austin is 2 going on 10. He is pretty much ready to give up naps, because anymore, when he takes one, he is up til 10:00 at night! He also has decided that he is not interested in sleeping in his bed anymore. At first he would migrate from his bed to the floor sometime after I put him down, but now that's where he starts the night out. He has placed his pillow and blanket on the floor between the foot of his bed and Jacob's, and that is where he lays down at night after he has said his prayers. Crazy kid! And call me a too relaxed mother, but if he sleeps through the night and stays out of my bed, I don't care if he sleeps in the bathtub!

You're it...

Tag! About a month ago, Jennifer tagged me... how sad that it has taken me this long to sit down and do it!

Three Joys

1. My little family
2. Sleeping in!
3. The dollar section almost anywhere

Three Fears

1. Birds - crazy irrational, deathly fear of birds!
2. Losing one of my kids
3. I'm totally claustrophobic

Three Goals

1. Scrapbooking!! (I'm sooooo behind)
2. Lose weight - isn't this always on here???
3. Get my yard done

Three obsessions/collections

1. I used to collect monkeys - the stuffed animal kind. I don't anymore but the collection is still in the garage in a box
2. Books - I love to read and envision a wall to wall library in my home some day
3. We collect mugs and glasses from places we've been

Three Random Facts

1. I have been featured in the Sports section of the Oregonian
2. I can tap dance
3. One of my high school nicknames was Marcio Andretti - I liked to drive a little fast

Kids say.....

the funniest things! And my sister keeps telling me that these are the kind of things I need to include on my blog, so here goes...

• I pulled up to the gas station today, handed the girl my debit card and told her what I wanted. Jacob, who thanks to Dora and Diego is obsessed with the Spanish word for everything, asked me if "$20 regular" was the Spanish word for gas...
• Right now, Jacob's world revolves around the fact that he gets to go to kindergarten this fall. One day I got turned around on my way to Jennifer's new shop and said "Darn it, I don't know where I am going." Jacob asked me if I had gone to kindergarten when I was 5 and learned the right path, and I absentmindedly answered yes. At this point he said "So what happened, you went home from school, went crazy and it fell out of your head?"
• Last night at Valerie's, Austin fell and hurt his wrist, and we thought for a few minutes that he needed to go to the hospital. After we determined he was okay and were headed for home, I got teary in the car about Austin being hurt. Jacob asked me why I was crying, and I explained to him that I was sad Austin fell. He got very serious and said, "Mom, what do I always tell you when you cry? You need to calm down." Hmmmm Brian, I wonder where he got that idea from.......
• Austin is starting to jabber a lot, and while he is not quite as prolific in the comedy department as his big brother, he has added a new phrase to his vocabulary this week: Rotten Turd. -----Please bear in mind he is deep in the throes of the terrible twos and is (most of the time) called this completely out of love! :)

The joy of.....

Springtime! Or almost summer, since that is how long it has taken for weather to warm up around here. But today was beautiful! It was 75 degrees and the boys and I headed straight outside as soon as I got home from work. (My poor darling husband, unfortunately, had been puking his guts out all day and went straight to bed.) I love to garden, and yes, even weed. I love the feel of dirt on my hands, the satisfaction of clearing a bed of weeds, and seeing something that I planted grow.

We started in the front yard, where I spent the better part of an hour weeding and chatting with my neighbor, Raelyn. I love living in a neighborhood and having neighbors and a place for my kids to run! Jacob has made friends with some of the neighbor kids - there are 5 of them so I'm not sure which ones. He climbs the apple tree in the back yard and chats with them over the fence. When he leaves to play with Austin or come inside you can hear them yelling "JACOB!!" at the top of their lungs for him to come back, and he just eats that up. Austin is so content to just wander the yard and check out everything. He loves to sit in my lap and weed with me, then wander off to check out a bug or a plant. As I have said before, Austin would live outside if you let him, he loves it that much.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in the backyard, which from my perspective is a jungle. It needs so much work but it is huge and has lots of room to run, ride the quad, play baseball, etc., so I try not to get too caught up in how much landscaping it needs. The kids don't seem to notice. I sat and pulled weeds and enjoyed the sun while watching them play. We have lived here almost a year and a half and I still have to pinch myself every time I get to tell my kids "go out in the yard and play!". After so many years in apartments it almost doesn't seem real, but I love it!

Spring means...

Soccer! At least it does in our house this year. We signed Jacob up for a parent-tot soccer class (although I hardly think of him as a tot!) Saturday mornings in April and May. At first I thought it might be a little chaotic, just a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds running around on the field, but, it's actually pretty organized. The kids and parents practice skills for the first half hour and then the last 15 minutes they spend playing games with the coach. Brian has really enjoyed getting in and playing with Jake, and Jake loves soccer (with the exception of experiencing his first side ache). Austin wants to play too, of course, and I love sitting on the sidelines, as long as it is sunny! Between my new Victoria Beckham haircut and my sporty new car, I picture my self as quite the "soccer mom", teehee.


It hardly seems possible that my baby is going to be 5 years old this summer and starting kindergarten. He would have started last year if he could have. He wants to learn so badly! He is so smart and has an a amazing memory. Last week he memorized a scripture for Primary, and at night you can hear him in his bedroom reciting it to his brother to help them fall asleep and have good dreams. He is still my sensitive one, and far more emotional than his dad would like. But, we are working on that - his new mantra is "Boys are brave, proud and strong!"

Austin is 21 months and so stubborn! I remember thinking when he was a baby that he was going to be my quiet thinker, he was SOOO mellow. What a difference a year makes! He is such a climber and roughhouses with the best of them. Most days all he wants to do is be outside, no matter the weather, his clothing or lack thereof! He is talking all the time now, definite words and some phrases here and there and absolutely lets you know what he thinks. Last night Jake took a 4 hour nap and Austin got to experience a rare moment of being an "only child". He loves being the center of attention almost as much as he wants to be exactly like his big brother.

Spring for Brian and I has been busy as well. Between working fulltime and the kids, we also have a milllion and one projects around the house we are trying to accomplish, as well as working for Jen and Dave and teaching our Primary class at church. Brian tries to get in a basketball game Saturday nights when he can, and I am looking foward to having the back room finished, as it is now going to be my craft room.