Spring Break

One night after an evening walk, I saw Simon through his window.

It was one of those moments you know you'll remember forever.

A handsome seven year old dressed in navy long johns and looking at a book by lamplight.

I ran inside to get my camera, and then I knocked on his window to get his attention, and I snapped a few pictures.

Reminiscent of times gone by

A precious moment with Simon the other day was when we were walking to the Dollar Tree near our house. We passed through a parking lot, and there was a really beat up looking car with a patchwork body. The door was a different color/piece of metal, the bumper was different, etc.

Simon said, "Mom I wish that person was here that drove that car."

Mom: Why?

Simon: So I could compliment them. Their car is awesome.

I love kid's perspectives!

So refreshing

Evie after church last week.

I need a cuter pic of this dress.

I love it!

It's definitely not American; to me it seems German.

I bought it for a dollar secondhand, and when I brought it to Bible Study to ask the ladies a question about how to repair the zipper, one of the sweet ladies just took the dress and said she wanted to fix it for us!

We were visiting their church last week on Sunday, since Simon was singing with the Good News Club there, so I made sure Evie wore the dress.

Butterfly sanctuary on our screened porch

It makes me laugh when I think about what Brian Regan says about butterflies ....

Si staring at the butterfly

This face reminds me of the serious questions he asked sometimes.

Actually, he and carpool can stump me often with deep inquiries.

One of the ones that comes up often, as they inspect their belongings in the car, is

"Mom, why is everything made in China?" - Simon

"Auntie Amy, how come everything says China?" - any other carpooler

My answers must be inefficient or they must have bad memories b/c I have been asked this answer MANY times. It just makes me laugh now. And now I say, "Ask your Dad" to Simon and "Ask your parents" to the others.

Cherished face

The Good News Club after singing, "Nothing But the Blood of Jesus"

Silly Simon

That reminds me .... the other week I packed a Godiva Chocolate Bar in Simon's folder for school. The school was collecting chocolate for a combined teacher's gift.

I guess I should have informed Simon as to my intent.

He came home from school thanking me for the special treat that he ate at lunch.

I thought it was pretty funny, and a little surprising since he doesn't like chocolate. Maybe he shared it with someone. If a teacher saw his lunch they were probably wondering if I'd lost my mind sending such a sugar-rich treat. And such a nice one at that. Usually the kids get leftover Halloween candy if they get a treat, not a Godiva treat!

My friend Kellie's daughter Moriah at approximately 7 months

We were a little short on toys, but Moriah liked this plastic lid!

What Moriah really likes is all the attention from Evie!

Simon's first "break-up" note!

So funny. It was in his Valentine's Bag.

For the sake of anonymity I "sharpied" out the girl's name.

They really are friends, but I guess she wasn't ready for that next step....

"Dear Simon, I am supar glad you like me But pleas do not call me your girlfriend. Just call me your friend. I hope your Valentine's Day is amazing."

On any given day, Simon has several "girlfriends," but this particular girl has been top of his list for two years now.

I inquired.

Mom: Simon, why do you call ___ your girlfriend?

Simon: Because I love her.

Mom: (thinking ??!!!) Hmmm? Why do you love her?

Simon: Because she is a good reader.

Mom: (sigh of relief)

Hey Shay, I'm still using the pink toolset!

Somehow Matt ends up using it all of the time, too!

The cutest and more boring game of Battleship, ever.

If you think Battleship can be a little slow, imagine this scenario...

Simon is playing both his side AND Evie's.

And they both had fun.

Isn't Evie so cute for Super Hero Day at school?

The school said not to spend any money on a costume, but to put one together from things around the house.

I was proud we were able to put this together!

The kids chose their "super hero power"

Evie's power was that she would "Dance and make people happy"

It was a bit of a parenting fail, though, when I realized shortly after I took these pictures outside of school that Super Hero was actually on THURSDAY. (It was Tuesday)

After a quick wardrobe change in Evie's class the day was saved!

And Evie danced and spread super-heroine happiness on Thursday instead!

Super student Simon doing homework on the porch

The other week we had to have an EKG for Simon for preventative measures.

When they came to get Simon, the nurse said I could wait in the waiting area if Simon was okay with that. He was, of course, and it was easier for me since Evie was with me.

A couple of minutes later the nurse came back to get me, and she told me that Simon requested me. I was flattered because he rarely needs me and is very independent.

As we walked down the hall she confided in me that when she had asked Simon to take off his shirt (for the EKG) he had told her that was inappropriate and that he wanted his mom.

So cute.

Simon and his Dad on Valentine's Day with the gift we gave Simon

Evie's class after the Valentine's Party

Evie LOVES Miss Amber

Almost every morning she queries, "Is today Miss Amber Day?"

My sweet Valentine

Evie's speech is still hard to understand a good bit of the time.

She goes to speech therapy twice a week with the school district.

The other day, though, when I finally deciphered what she was saying it made me smile.

She was walking to the van holding her closed umbrella by its crooked neck handle.

Evie: Mom, Am I walking like Jesus?

Mom: Hmm?

(Well it took Evie several time to repeat her question for me to understand her)

Mom: Oh, Are you walking like Jesus?

Evie: Yes! I am. I am walking like Jesus with this stick.

(umbrella representing a shepherd's staff)

Simon's decorated box for his school party.

Creative, but easy.

Valentine's Day Breakfast with my men!

Soldier and Princess ... more on that later

I've never been a fan of the "Princess" theme for little girls.

Not really when the girls dress up as princesses, but the signs you can put over their bed or something that say Princess. It has seemed a little spoiled.

But trying to ignore the princess play with girls would be as hard as ignoring a boy's tendency to turn EVERYTHING into a gun. Evie can make a gun fairly quickly, too, but she loves to be a princess.

On our family walk the other day she kept talking about how she was the princess, I was the queen, and the two boys were soldiers.

To redeem her princess-stage a bit, when we came home that night and Simon was in the bath, I told her the princess-secret.

The secret is that princesses have to take care of the soldiers.

So, we had to think of what we could do for Simon.

We surprised him by cleaning his room/ "quarters" very well and prepared the quarters for bedtime.

We pulled down his sheets, Evie made Simon a glass of water, we pulled out books for him, sharpened two pencils, picked up any trash we could find, etc.

Now we have an even better princess that has requested more than once now to go clean the soldier's room!

And I've told her princesses themselves must keep their room clean, too....

When Simon and I were walking the other day, we heard a lot of music and people at our neighbor's house. They have a lot of family and a lot of parties. The music was in Spanish sounded very celebrational.

Simon asked, "Mom, are they having home church?"

So cute.

Maybe, but I don't think so.

Unless they have Coronas at communion at their church :)

Our new discipline/training approach for Simon

Since writing isn't Simon's favorite thing to do, and we could use handwriting practice, it's a bit of a perfect solution, if I do say so myself.

Now, if God will just give me the grace to be consistent.

When Simon doesn't handle screen-time ending very well.

The funny thing is, life and days are so much easier when there are no screens or technology allowed. We did that last summer for the most part. And during the school week we do that all year. It seems like it would be harder, but the transitions really are harder. And it's addictive, they always want more!

Speaking of technology, we have the internet again.

We met our New Year goals for turning the internet back on.

They ranged from various home maintenance projects to losing ten pounds.

Honestly, it is bittersweet to have the distraction of the internet so convenient.

Taking a break from it is so nice. (after the first week of painful detox)

The internet was also our tv (netflix) so we were really isolated except for our Thursday night shows that are local. We love to watch "Parks and Rec," "The Office" and a new favorite, "Up all Night" And then "Awake" We only watch these shows and they all come on Thursday night! Whew! But we are usually prepared with mounds of laundry to do so that we can redeem the time!

Random Snapshots

Some of these pic are old, but I'm at my mom's house and taking some pictures from her computer.

My family this past Easter

Easter in the early 80s

I am in need of some dire lady-like coaching.

Another Easter sometime in the 80s

Scott looks so cute - I wish mom had kept this suit!

Simon with his cousins Blaize and Alex.

Evie is the only of 5 cousins WITHOUT red hair.

Here's my mom in a recent picture.

This is the oldest item in her closet.

I think it's over 25 years old.

She noticed recenty that it looked style-appropriate again.

Here's my mom's 5th grade class in 1964.

(I'm on my mom's computer and am raiding a few pictures).

Here is a quote from an interview with Billy Graham that I found really interesting.

The interviewer asked him, "Dr.Graham, you are now 92 years old and if you could go back and do it all over, what would you change?"

He replied, "I would preach less, study and pray more and spend moretime with my family."

I found this really refreshing and perspective-giving.

Here's Evie wearing Matt's "Old Man" mask

What?

You don't have one of those.

What a shame.

This is how our living room has looked for quite some time.

Yep, Matt gave me permission to change things up, however I wanted, buying whatever I wanted with the agreement that it would stay that way.

So, slowly we came up with what we wanted and we only have one area that hasn't been tackled yet. We still debate getting rid of the huge, dark piano, and putting our small circle table back in that corner. Then, my secret hope is that a smaller piano could one day be nested behind Matt's leather chair and ottoman that we could pull back from the wall.

Matt's chair was my great find for his birthday last year. It was a craigslist gem, and the house was so spotless and magazine-ready that we went away with their couch, too. I promise you - I would have eaten off of their floor with no hesitation. It was amazing. But I suspect the missus might be carrying a heavy weight of some sort of syndrome, but that's okay I might suffer with the same one to a smaller degree. The one where I am constantly staging everything in the home just so takes a little energy, but it give me more mental energy. That's how I'm wired.

And the desk you can't really see is going to be spray painted red on a soon to be warm weekend coming up.

That's one of the projects Matt wants to accomplish before getting the internet back.

We've been hitting goals and projects hard because we are missing the internet!

It's a nice break and give good focus, but we are definitely focused to cross off our respective lists.

We each wanted to lose 10 lbs - I've lost 7 or so and Matt has probably lost about the same. Then, we both have house projects - handyman or organizational to get done.

We are so blessed - they get along so well together!

There are moments, of course, but Simon is really gracious towards Evie most of the time, and Evie thinks Simon is her best friend and relishes attention from him.

Evie made her own sandwich and set her up a spot to eat on the porch.

Then she proceeded to eat two or three bites of it.

That's a look that says everything is right in her world!

I'm blogging at my parent's house this weekend.

Evie and I drove here yesterday afternoon, and we spent the night.

Today, Saturday, Matt and Simon are doing a couple of house projects and then they'll take a train up to this part of the metroplex. Then, Simon and Evie will both stay here tonight, and Matt and I will drive back to Carrollton together and go out either tonight or after church tomorrow.

Mom really wanted the kids to attend the children's Valentine's Party at their church tomorrow.

I have been wanting a more useful piece of furniture on this wall by my pantry.

I was THRILLED with a purchase I made at the Resale this week.

I was looking for something below 35 inches in width , and this was 33 inches!

It was very solid, and in good shape ... and just $50 ... but wait, there's more

PLUS I had a 50% off any one item coupon, so I only paid $25!

Yep, I take coupons almost always with me to the Resale or to Goodwill

There are coupons fairly often in the Greensheet for Goodwill, and the Resale honors competitor coupons.

I was happy a year or so ago when a new Resale opened up near our house. Sometimes I walk there for a treat. Walking anywhere is fun to me and feels very non-American.

I also walk to our Target which is in a shopping center with Ross, Ulta, Bed Bath and Beyond, Payless Shoes. If only a bookstore/coffee shop would open up nearby!

And there's a Peruvian Restaurant there that Matt and I bought a Groupon for. We're just waiting for a warm weekend to walk over there as a family.

So, I have my little kitchen-command center!

And my counters and kitchen table can now be paper-free!

I've caught Simon being super sweet and patient with Evie lately.

Last night he offered to teach her how to brush her teeth.

He showed her how he rinses his mouth with "blue stuff" (it colors all of his teeth so we can see what areas he is ignoring ... since they will still be blue afterwards).

Then he showed her how to time the electric toothbrush for two minutes.

So cute.

She was participating fully in the lesson, with her new toothbrush we bought her.

It's a kid's electric toothbrush that came with Evie's favorite thing ... stickers to personalize!

So, I meant to buy Evie a shopping cart for Christmas to use with her kitchen set-up.

But I never did.

But why buy one now? Evie was proud of one she made by turning her ironing board upside down. And why would I want to hamper her imagination and resourcefulness?

Si doing his math homework.

We are very thankful that Simon can read so well; I know it is a hard struggle for children and parents when reading fluency doesn't come easily.

He also has great number sense and surprises me with his measurement and computation abilities. And he does well with his spelling words ... when I remember to have him study the night before!

I asked him if there was anything at school he wasn't good at.

He thought about it.

"Yup, being good."

He has a good rapport with his teachers, though, and they say he is really respectful. Just impulsive, especially in non-academic situations like water/bathroom breaks, lunch, etc.

We're working on it! But we're glad he is friendly, respectful, and honest! He doesn't hide mischief - it's right there for anyone to see!

Afternoon snack.

He asked if he could lay down on the counter if he took his shoes off.

I didn't see a problem with it.

Evie's new haircut!

Evie has always been very cuddly and affectionate.

Lately she seems to crave it even more.

She is so sweet - sometimes it is hard to disentangle ourselves from her bed.

Evie also has a cute habit of narrating pretty much everything.

I've asked Matt to videotape her soon to capture her sweet speech, voice, and choice phrases.

For example, if she is sitting in the hall with her giraffe, this is what you might hear:

"I'm sitting in the hall with giraffey. Mama, am I sitting in the hall with giraffey? Yes. That's right. I AM siting in the hall with giraffey. I love him. I just gave giraffey a hug, Mama. Are we two people sitting in the hall? One girl and one giraffey? Yes. We are. And we are both happy. Are we home, Mama? Is this our house? Yes, it is our house.

And then, a very satisfied smile and sigh (as everything was said in super fast and she is catching her breath for the next narration)

Evie's speech (articulation) is improving with speech therapy through the school district. We take her twice a week to work with a speech pathologist for 30 minutes.

Another catch phrase of Evie's is:

"You bought that to me?"

Pretty much everything she is very thankful for and happy that someone "bought it to her" at the "storey" (store)

I wish I had gotten a better picture the morning they were dressed similarly for school.

Evie goes to a preschool-type program Tues/Thur from 9-2.

That interaction with other children her age is helping her speech as well.

Unfortunately, Evie has had horrible allergies lately as seen

above with what the allergist calls "allergy shiners."

Poor thing.

And, if you haven't seen us much lately it is because this little girl has had a horrible cough and fever INTERMITTENTLY FOR WHAT SEEMS LIKE MONTHS!

There's not much to say about that but that I am really tired of it, and sometimes I want to give her a cough suppressant and tylenol and let her go to school or GFA or church. But I haven't. Promise.

I have maybe done that once with Simon last school year, for full confession purposes.

It's just sad to hear her racking coughs at bedtime,to see her allergy shiners, and her eyelids that bleed from so much rubbing. And to tell her on a day when she was hoping to see "friends" that she is sick and can't go. (when she has a fever) She insists, "But I'm not sick, I better."

We really need to get her tested again so we can figure out what the allergies are. Her tests last fall showed up with no allergies, but the allergist said it was probably b/c she was too young for them to show through the skin prick test.