Sesame Street Live

On Friday, John, Emma, and I went to Sesame Street Live with Jenni and Lauren Whitaker. John and Lauren definitely enjoyed it. Emma was clapping and smiling during the first few songs, but then she got really antsy. She hadn't had a morning nap, and the show started at 11. She enjoyed standing on the back of John's seat looking all around.

A Refreshing Change

Target is running a special this week on the cube storage unit that we have in our living room. I decided to buy another one, so that the kids could find their toys easier and the bigger ones currently scattered around the floor or shoved in a corner would have a home. So at 11 last night, I put together the new one and sorted through toys. I removed broken toys, stored unused baby toys, and put others in a pile for a garage sale. Now the toys, puzzles, and games look MUCH better.

Last week I discovered an AWESOME website. Simple Mom has great tips on spring cleaning, time management, kids, organizing, etc. At one point, she referenced another website called Keeper of the Home, specifically the entry on quiet time bins. This idea inspired me to make quiet time bins for John since he's often not taking a nap. At this point, I'm storing John's quiet bins on top of the new cube storage unit. He helped make the labels using letters I won at last year's Flip Flop Crop.

Here is a glimpse inside the bins. I have 3 books in every bins (1 Christian-based book, 2 others). For my own sanity (and to clear out the car bin), I also added 3 cars to every bin. This may change later...we'll see.
Monday - coloring books, notepad, colored pencils, crayons
Tuesday - dominoes and memory (He often plays with these by himself and they get scattered all over. This way, they're stored in one place and played once a week. If we want to play together, we can pull them out of the bin.)
Wednesday - train tracks and trains (I think I'll be changing this one since he kept getting upset today about putting the tracks together and the trains falling off.)
Thursday - felt pieces
Friday - puzzle
I'm going to be adding more to some of these and occasionally rotating what's in the bins, so if you have other ideas, let me know.

Playdate with Devon

John and his friend Devon have been wanting to get together outside of church for some time now, so Erica and I finally set a date for me to take them to the park. Fortunately, it turned out to be a beautiful day despite the wind, and the boys had a blast. Oh, and Emma did too! They played, ate lunch, and played some more. As you'll see in these pictures, they were constantly on the go.

Like brother, like sister...

Devon and John had a blast spinning on the swings. Probably because I wouldn't give "underdogs."


Emma totally biffed it. Then she stayed down on the ground to examine the dirt and wood chips...until she started eating the dirt...again.

Proof that I was there too...

Picking dandelions in the soccer fields

Devon and John driving the plane.

Silent "t"

Scott and John were out running errands today, and this was one of their conversations:

John: (pointing at an Old Country Buffet sign) That says buffet.

Scott: (slightly shocked and amazed) Yes, it is.

John: That has a silent t.

It's amazing how God has blessed John with a love for words. I have never forced him to learn his letters or read books. He constantly asks questions...and I answer them.

When he turned 2, he already knew 5 uppercase letters.

By the time he was 3, he knew all his uppercase and lowercase letters and their sounds.

Now that he's 3 1/2 (that 1/2 is VERY important in his eyes), he is reading words (i.e. John, Emma, Mommy, Daddy, God, Jesus, and most CVC words), spelling words, and writing his name and attempting others.

I wonder what God has in store for him. Today our youth pastor preached on destiny and helping kids realize God's purpose for their lives. Whatever God's purpose for John's life, I hope and pray that John loves the Lord his God and follows God's plan.

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

Although this morning started off crazy, I was blessed to have Scott get the kids dressed and ready for church. John rode to church with Scott since the choir was practicing before the service, and he did a great job sitting and listening.

I was running around like a mad woman before church trying to finish getting all the Mother's Day crafts ready for the Sunday School teachers. Suddenly the kids were being dismissed to the nursery and Sunday School, so I rushed to get to the 3s/4s classroom where I was teaching. John decided at that point to throw a fit. Scott helped and got John to come to class.

However, John decided he wasn't going to participate and crawled under the table saying, "I think someone's missing." In other words, he was sad that his friend Tommy was not at church. Scott, bless his heart, ended up taking John out so that I could focus on the rest of the kids and their Bible lesson. I noticed them out in the parking lot, but I didn't really think much of it.

Then after second service (and yes, I really did get to attend service!), Scott asked me to head out to his car. It turns out that they had gone to Hy-Vee during first service. John was so excited as he started to hand me things:

1. card (MOM turned upside down spells WOW!) =)
2. plant (daisies) from John and Emma
3. tulips from Scott
4. receipt (which Scott quickly grabbed away)

We then enjoyed a delicious meal at the Triple Crown Buffet. God was looking out for me again today because John fell asleep on the way home. Therefore, we all got a short nap. YEAH!

After playing outside for awhile, Scott and John headed out to run errands. I fed Emma, and then she was ready for bed. Ahhh...a quiet household. Until Scott and John arrived home...