Slug Bug!

Slug Bugs are everywhere--and Daniel finds them all. Everywhere we go he yells, "Slug bug!" We have two on our street and he finds them first. Today he actually dropped a rock in the car and asked me to get it for him, then when I leaned over to get it, he yelled "Slug Bug, Mom!" He had totally set me up so he would get the bug first. Sneaky, sneaky. Yesterday, he yelled "Slug Bug" while playing in the living room. Nathan burst out laughing and explained that there was indeed a VW bug on the TV! Daniel gets them all. Bug Off! LOL;)

Daddy, A Cut Above the Rest

We had so much fun with Nathan the week of Father's Day. When I told Daniel that it would soon be Father's Day he asked, "When is it kids' day?" But really the boys were excited. The boys planned special gifts for Nathan. Daniel and Liam collect rocks everywhere we go, so they picked out the perfect rocks from their collection and painted them (to decorate Daddy's office). They also built and painted picture frames at the Lowe's kids workshop. We tried to take pictures in the trees up at the temple, but didn't have enough time, between swimming lessons, for me to be satisfied. (I'll have to replace them soon.)

That Friday the boys and I rode the light rail downtown to meet Nathan for lunch. When we got to Nathan's work we stopped to chat with a few friends before we made it to Nathan's office. A minute or two later Nathan walked out. The boys saw him in the hallway and yelled "Daddy!" and ran for him. They all sandwiched him in hugs. His coworkers were so impressed. All I could say is, "My boys love their Daddy!" They always respond with an excited hug. Nathan is such a great Daddy. We enjoyed a pizza lunch and frozen yogurt for dessert. The kids had fun on the train ride home, but wished Daddy could ride home with us.

On Saturday a few boys at our house, including Nathan, needed haircuts. Nathan let Liam and Daniel cut most of his hair for him. They thought it was so fun. It was pretty funny to watch.

On Father's Day, we got up early and made Nathan breakfast in bed. The boys couldn't wait to give Nathan their rocks and frames for his office. Nathan loved them. I kept teasing Nathan that he'd ruined my traditional Father's Day gift because every two years I've given him a new framed baby footprint. No baby footprint this year so I gave Nathan an IPOD. It was a really big gift for Father's Day, but the best part was that it was a complete surprise. Nathan always seems to know what he's getting. I think Nathan will really enjoy it. We are always 5 or 6 years behind the technology, so I guess it's about time that we got an IPOD. Caleb helped me make bread for our Father's Day dinner. He loves stirring. He was mad when I moved the bowl so the dough would have a chance to rise. What a cute chef. Nathan, I love you. You are the best Daddy our boys could ask for. I love that you love to play with your boys. I love that you take us to the swimming pool to play after a long day at work. I love that you play ball with us. It is so fun to hear you laugh together. We all agree, "I'm so glad when Daddy comes home." Thanks for all you do.

How Does It Feel to Ride An Elephant?

"Like a car in an earthquake...bump, bump, bump!" --Daniel

And Daniel would know. Despite his major fear of heights, he climbed on a huge (20,000 lbs-if I remember correctly) elephant, with Caleb, Liam and me at 6 Flags. He wasn't sure at first, but in the end he thought it was a lot of fun. I was so proud of him. It was not a smooth ride. Huge up and downs, but my boys were brave and had lots of fun. We sang "Jumbo Elephant" as we rode. What an adventure!

Stinky fingers! The boys each got to feed the sea lions a fish. Gross! I was the one who didn't want to participate in this activity. But the boys sure had fun.
We had all of the usual fun on the train, Harold the helicopter, and going through the shark tube (2x--Liam and Daniel love the sword fish--huge with very human eyes--eerie!). We also enjoyed the Shuka show (killer whale), the dolphin show, and the tiger show.

We spent a little time at the sting ray tank and all of the boys got to feel them. It's a wonder they didn't fall into the water. Nathan was holding them way out over the water to reach them. Actually, they each got to pet quite a few and they were really excited. Caleb kept saying, "Again, Spash!"

Another fun full day of adventure. We love summer--if only Daddy could be off work more often.

Plum Tired

I can finally say (with a sigh of relief) that plum season is officially over here at my house. (It ended at about 2 AM Tuesday.) I always dread that week when the plums come on. Actually, this year was probably easier than years past because I didn't have a newborn strapped on while I stooped down to pick up the disgusting, squishy, bird and bug-eaten plums from off the grass. What a back ache that was! I also have a beautiful convenient kitchen in which to work (thanks for the remodel Nathan!). This year Daniel was really exicted to earn money by helping me with cleanup. (Daniel still hasn't figured out the worth of coins so he's thrilled to get a handfull of pennies--even more so than 1 dollar bill.) He also had fun using the fruit picker to reach yummy ripe plums off the tree. He filled up his Tonka truck to overflowing multiple times and took them to the back kitchen door. Liam helped some but his enthusiam waned quickly--especially after he stepped into a nasty, squishy, over-ripe plum that made his shoe and foot all sticky. This year's plum harvest plus a few bags of juice from last year made approximately 120 jars of plum jelly! Hooray! So now you all know what you'll get for Christmas, if you stay on our nice list. If there is a natural disaster, remember that I have plum jelly in the food storage and I'm willing to barter. I imagine it would all go down like a giant game of pit..."PLUM JELLY, PLUM JELLY, WHEAT ANYONE?" Meanwhile, the peaches are well on their way!--Oh, dread!

Hoppy 2nd Birthday Caleb

Sunday, May 30th was Caleb's 2nd birthday. It was so fun to celebrate it with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Andrea, Uncle Paul and Jonas. This year we've caught many frogs, which Caleb has loved, so I decided to make him a frog cake. It was so cute to see Caleb get excited about his cake and singing to him.

Actually, I think Caleb's favorite part of his birthday was playing with his cousin Jonas. Usually it's Daniel or Liam who has a friend over and Caleb tries to tag along. But this time Caleb had his very own pal-- just the right age and size. They both had a great time attacking Grandma with lightsabers. When Grandma looked like she'd had enough we replaced the weapons with stick horses for them to ride around on. Then they giggled and played in the huge cardboard box leftover from Daniel's birthday. Life just doesn't get any better than that.

What a cute birthday boy! I sure love my 2-year-old's smile. He didn't much care for his first birthday experience. (I'd really hoped he'd make a bigger mess in his personal cake, but he didn't like getting sticky--Wow! A lot has changed in the last year.) He really seemed to enjoy our singing and attention. I was really surprised that he blew out his own two candles, without spitting on the cake--and he did it before the candles melted into the cake! (Which is miraculous because my family sang their 10 minute version of the birthday song.) After eating cake, Caleb got to open some presents. What a great age. We really only needed to get one present, because after opening a gift, he just wanted to be left alone to play with it. He almost seemed annoyed that we would interrupt his playing to get him to open something else.

"Digger Truck!" Boy was he excited.

We told Caleb to smile and this is his interpretation. What a funny look. Crazy kid. He loved the Richard Scarry board books.

Puppy love. His response was automatic. He has loved a few of his puppies to near death, so this new puppy is a welcome addition. (Caleb bites on the noses of his puppies--almost as if he's the puppy, and he's worn through more than one.--Just an additional tidbit--Notice how he is sitting--I can't do that, it would kill my knees--he gets that from his Daddy.)

Jonas gave Caleb a froggie sippy cup that he loves. He slept with it in his crib that night and asked for bunny chocolate (strawberry quick) in it the next morning. Basically, he won't let it out of his sight.

Grandma, Grandpa, Jonas, Andrea, and Paul made the birthday so much more fun. Thanks for coming.

Caleb is such a sweetie. I love to tickle him. I love to hear all of his new words. I love to see his eyes light up everytime he sees one of the neighbors' dogs. He loves playing in water and in dirt (sometimes at the same time). I love his prayers--especially when he sees things around the room to add to the thankful list (usually trains, dogs, bankies (blankets), duckies...). I also love that he prays for each family member and gets excited to include himself ("KB"). He screams when we go to the doctor's office--even if he's only getting his head measured, or getting weighed. (I think he still remembers going in last Dec. to get his arm wrenched back into the socket--not fun.) He loves his Daddy and cries when he sees him leave for work. Most mornings he asks me, "Daddy work?" Then he acts all disappointed--me too. I love Caleb's Star Wars light saber sound effects, "Chee-Wah". It is especially funny when he uses the sound effects while handling a 2 1/2 inch Star Wars action figure's light saber. Caleb also says "Yee haw!" when he does fun things climb on the rocking chair's ottoman, or riding bikes, or sliding, etc. He always says, "Ooo..Gross!" When I change his diapers--very accurate. He still likes for me to hold him and cuddle him, but he's becoming more and more independant. Some days he says, "Hold you!"--meaning 'hold me', of course, but now he's starting to like walking and running off ahead of me--usually trying to keep up with his brothers. His brothers adore him. Actually, when he gets into trouble they beg me not to put him on time out. Sometimes they even cry for him--even if he's in trouble for doing something to them. Just like his brothers he points out anything that even slightly resembles a track..."train track"...window tracks, stitching on clothes, lines on the gym floor at church. He also loves Thomas and Percy. Caleb, you are so loved. We are excited to see all you will become.

Kindergarten Gaduation

The year has flown by and now Daniel has graduated...from kindergarten that is. The kids prepared a song to perform for us, which was cute, even if they were a little shy for their proud audience. Daniel with his teachers, Mrs. Suleiman and Mrs. Oxford.

Daddy took a little time out of his busy work day to cheer Daniel on and take a few pics. Unfortunately, he had to rush back to work before he could enjoy the food and fun. Daniel is always looking out for his Daddy. He even tried to put a hot dog, cookie, and chips in the diaper bag to save for him for later. --That's Daddy's boy!

Daniel, I love you so much. It has been so fun working in your classroom with you this year. I'm amazed at all you've learned. You are such a great reader, and story teller. I loved all of your pictures and creations from the choice time writing center. I especially loved when you gave me a kiss goodbye each morning and ran out the door with an excited, "Mom!" and gave me a hug each afternoon, when I picked you up. You are amazing!

After the song and certificates were awarded, we enjoyed a giant family picnic.

There were stations outside for the kids to make butterfly kites, paper airplanes, blow bubbles, and play on the playground.

What a fun end to the year!