A Day in the Lives of the Princes

Sharing a Snack

2012-01-23T22:11:00.000-08:00

"More"

2012-01-23T20:51:00.000-08:00

Kate started saying a new word today..."more." We were pretty sure that her next word would be something related to food. She would do the sign for "more" and say something close to it then laugh and cheer. It was a fun day.

Christmas Afternoon

2012-01-14T14:14:00.001-08:00

A Visit from Jill and the Kids

2012-01-14T13:44:00.000-08:00

Jill and the kids came to visit right after Christmas. It was so fun to have them at our new house and finally have room for everyone to sit down at the same time if we wanted. :-)

Eating pizza for dinner

Kegan is always so helpful!

Kate Kate and Auntie Jill--she warmed up to Jill really fast.

Jared was so gentle with Kate!

Kate and the Piano

2012-01-14T13:32:00.000-08:00

Kate loves music. She will dance whenever she hears music and when I start to play the piano she comes over and wants to join me. I sit her on the bench next to me and she plays along and will try to sing with me if I'm singing.

Here's a little video of her playing:
Kate and the Piano

First Homework

2012-01-09T15:52:00.000-08:00

Grant got his first homework assignment right before Christmas. He sat down and diligently worked on it. By the end he'd decided it was "too much work" and was no longer excited about homework. That didn't take long, did it? I opted not to tell him he had another 12+ years of homework to go...or that it got harder than writing his name.

Kate's First Trip to Disneyland

2012-01-06T21:26:00.000-08:00

We love to visit Disneyland during the Christmas season and it was fun to take Kate for the first time. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time together.

Sickies

2012-01-06T21:07:00.000-08:00

We were all sick up until Christmas. Most of our time was spent like this:

Fortunately it was just colds so we weren't too miserable. It was actually really nice to just all lounge around as a family and snuggle with the kids. But I still vote for no colds next Christmas.

Grant started feeling better first and took over picture taking for us. Here is part of his documentation:

Me and Kate Kate (you have to look hard to see her peeking behind me). And yes those are footy pajamas...don't knock em' till you've tried them.

Kate Kate eating lunch and wondering, "Why does HE get to touch the camera?"

Snuggling

There are always quite a few foot pictures when Grant is in charge of the camera.

Can you guess what we were watching? Grant didn't like the movie and decided that "the green guy" (Buddy) was the bad guy. He's clearly not ready to appreciate "Elf."

Jesus' Birthday Cake

2012-01-06T21:01:00.000-08:00

Grant was adamant this year that he wanted to have a birthday cake for Jesus. I picked up a small cake from the bakery and some icing for him to decorate it. Then this happened...

...and that was the end of the cake decorating.

He was a bit dismayed about the size of the cake. "Jesus' birthday cake is smaller to mine." He didn't understand why Jesus would have a smaller cake than he had on his birthday. It was wonderful to see his enthusiasm and excitement over celebrating Christmas as Jesus' birthday.

Through the Glass

2012-01-06T20:50:00.000-08:00

Kate can't really play outside yet since she's not walking. So when Grant goes out she frequently stands at the door and knocks on it until he notices her. She gets so excited, giggling loudly and waving vigorously. Makes me laugh every time. And is there anything cuter than a little girl with pigtails?!?

Snowflakes

2012-01-06T20:41:00.000-08:00

Grant's favorite activity of the holiday season was making snowflakes. We must have gone through half a pack of computer paper. Then he would find random pieces of paper (candy wrappers, paper bags, napkins, etc.) that he thought would make a nice snowflake and started cutting those. It was a lot of fun and a HUGE mess...but he couldn't have been happier.

Kitchen Update

2011-12-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

One more room is finished. We LOVE the new floors...they make such a huge difference. As you can see in the "before" pictures, the old tile in the kitchen wasn't even laid straight. You can't really appreciate the bad color, how deep the grout was, or how it looked dirty all the time. The flooring guys said it was one of the worst tiling jobs they'd ever seen. So we're so happy with the new floor--it makes the room so much warmer. I had to take pictures at night so it's not as dark in the kitchen as it might at first appear. Here are the before and after pictures:

Bathroom Update

2011-12-17T16:55:00.000-08:00

I know, I know...bathroom pictures are soooo exciting. But it's one more room that's almost done (after we do the paint touch-up). Here are the before and after pictures:

First Day of Preschool

2011-12-16T19:10:00.001-08:00

The preschool we had signed up for finally started the Monday after Thanksgiving. Grant was very excited and bouncing off the walls on the first day. He seems to really love it and we're so thankful.

Birthday

2011-12-16T18:38:00.000-08:00

So the flooring people started working on the downstairs on my birthday. We tried to be gone as much of the day as possible, then hung out upstairs for Kate's naptime. This is how it looked the evening of my birthday after I found and uncovered the table and chairs.

They actually got the entire kitchen and laundry room done that day. We love it! It's so dirty in this picture. I'll post the finished product soon.

The whole week we ended up going to bed by 8:30 every night since there was nowhere to sit. :-)

Play Doh

2011-12-16T18:33:00.000-08:00

"Look, Mom--it's Jabba the Hunt!"

For My Mom

2011-11-30T17:10:00.001-08:00

I keep saying that I'll post pictures of our house, but haven't taken many yet. Here's the family room...it's the only room that's painted and mostly done. I'll post more pictures in January after the floors have been put in and the rest of the walls have been painted. :-)

Halloween

2011-11-30T17:00:00.001-08:00

We moved into our new house a few days before Halloween, so we got to trick or treat in our new neighborhood! It was a lot of fun getting to meet all the neighbors. Grant wanted to be a bee again this year (which made things a lot easier) and so we thought Kate should be a ladybug to go with him. She ended up staying home with Daddy, answering the door, while Grant and I trick or treated.

At the end of the night, all was quiet and I found these two in the kitchen, sharing a little drink.

Mr. Caterpillar

2011-11-30T16:53:00.001-08:00

Grant's been finding lots of cool bugs in the backyard. Yesterday he found a black caterpillar and Kate got to examine it.

Kate Kate

2011-11-30T16:50:00.001-08:00

Don't you just want to sqeeze her?

Kate's New "Crawl"

2011-11-30T16:41:00.001-08:00

Kate is getting much closer to walking since we got her a walker. She's finally figured out that she needs to get her little rear end up in the air in order to stand up, but she hasn't figured out how to coordinate that with her arms. The result is this funny new crawl.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZFCXZgek8I

Doctor's Visit

2011-11-30T16:28:00.001-08:00

Both the kids had appointments with the doctor yesterday. Last year's picture of Grant's checkup was quite sad, so I had to be sure to update with this year's picture. Quite an improvement!

This one is really blurry, but I love how you can see them both smiling. I couldn't get another one with them both smiling at the same time.

The smiles lasted all the way until the shots. Then there was just incessant screaming. I think they were glad to see us leave. On the way out we ran into Grant's new preschool teacher, so that helped make his day a little brighter.

Chillin' at Lowe's

2011-10-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

I love how when you have little ones, a simple trip to Lowe's for boxes is an adventure. We tried out lots of chairs and benches and then got to watch a forklift in action.

Glamour Girl

2011-10-13T09:11:00.000-07:00

Kate LOVES my sunglasses so when I saw this little pair in her size I had to get them. She smiles so big when you put them on her. :-)

Kate and Grant in the Car

2011-10-07T18:31:00.000-07:00

I shot a very rough video of Kate and Grant in the car while we were at a long stoplight. Yet again, she's demanding food from Grant. Yes, it's a very common theme these days. Hopefully soon I'll remember that you're not supposed to hold the phone sideways while doing a video (which is why it's such a skinny video)...oops.

Typical Dinner Prep Scene

2011-10-07T18:02:00.000-07:00

Sharing a banana

Kate, cheeks full of banana, realizes she's taken her last bite and looks for more food

Kate sees that Grant still has some banana and demands he give it to her

Grant turns his back, trying to protect his snack so she tickles him

She's sure if she works at it, he'll give in

GIVE ME THE BANANA

After a banana and a half, she had some pasta. Good thing Grant was done by then or she would've insisted on eating his as well.

Kate's 1st Day Crawling!

2011-10-02T22:25:00.001-07:00

What I Get to Wake Up To

2011-10-02T21:26:00.001-07:00

Somebody Found the Snacks

2011-10-02T21:22:00.000-07:00

Kate is starting to really feel at home. She knows where the snack bin is and I found her helping herself to some raisins.

Fun with Dad

2011-10-02T21:18:00.000-07:00

Hanging out...Nate put the play fruit basket on Kate's head and told her it was an "eating hat." Her love for eating outweighed her dislike of things on her head.

Giving Daddy a kiss

Everybody loves Daddy!

Got Milk

2011-10-02T21:11:00.000-07:00

In an effort to cut down on the number of bottles I wash, I decided to cut them out completely. I wonder when Kate will be able to hold her own "bottle."

And So We Begin Again

2011-09-29T23:27:00.000-07:00

So, we cancelled our offer on the house we planned to purchase. When we did the home inspection, there was water dripping from the living room ceiling onto the carpet. To make a long story short, the listing was notified of the problem, assured us it would be fixed, then had someone go and paint over the water stain. We completely lost confidence in everyone we were dealing with on that end and decided it was unwise for us to continue in that purchase. If they were willing to paint over a water stain and claim that they fixed the problem, we were very worried that there were other problems lurking and were simply painted or carpeted over. So, our Realtor submitted the cancellation this afternoon and we made an offer on a different house! Our offer was accepted tonight so escrow starts Friday. We are in a 25-day escrow, so hopefully we can move out of our home without having to rent back from our new buyer for too long. We are SO thankful that the Lord made it abundantly clear that the other house was not a wise choice and that He kept this other house on the market in the meantime.

Front of the house...I'm such a great photographer, cutting off the top

Entry

Living Room looking into Family Room

Kate testing out the Family Room

Kitchen

Kitchen with door leading to Laundry Room

Kids' Bathroom

Upstairs Linen Closet

Master Bedroom with Balcony

Master Bathroom

Master Closet

Balcony off Master Bedroom

Upstairs Hallway

Side Yard

Backyard/Patio

Cute Munchkins

2011-09-27T16:58:00.000-07:00

Kate can barely wait to get into the bathtub lately. As soon as I start the bath water, she desparately tries to hurl herself head-first into the water. Clearly she has no plan beyond just getting in the water. She's also newly fascinated by her belly button...which you'll see below.

Saturday Afternoon

2011-09-24T16:55:00.000-07:00

Everybody's excited to have Dad home today. After a few hours of homework, he worked with Grant on the computer...and of course Kate wanted to be in her favorite spot on his lap. One last (semi)-relaxing Saturday before we have to start the real packing.

A Few Qutoes

2011-09-23T07:45:00.001-07:00

I was cleaning out the cupboards last night and found a chocolate cake mix, so of course I had to make cupcakes so we wouldn't have to pack that pesky cake mix box...

Grant: I love chocolate cupcakes! Want to make cookies after this?

Me: Cookies? What kind of cookies do you want?

Grant: Sugar...and chocolate. And more cupcakes. We could make it into a factory!

Grant: Mom, what's seaweed?

Me: It's a plant that grows in the ocean.

Grant: Kate-Kate...seaweed is a plant. It grows in the ocean!

(He is constantly trying to teach Kate about whatever he can think of.)

"This is my police car...this guy's going in the clinker!"

"Mom, remember a long time ago in a galaxy far away...I went to the office with you and I was such a good boy?"

New House

2011-09-18T12:53:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of the house we're purchasing. I'm so excited to have a backyard so the kids can play. We're praying that everything goes smoothly and we can move within the next month.

Miss Kate

2011-09-16T14:09:00.000-07:00

Kate has started pulling herself up on furniture and even a little bit of crusing. If you hold her hands, she'll try to take a few steps, but they're still very Frankenstein-esque. She's at such a fun stage!

We've also learned that she is LOUD. She squeals almost in a scream when she's really happy and she is not shy about letting you know when she's NOT happy. It's a little tricky in public--you have to keep her happy but not TOO happy (unless we provide everyone else with earplugs). But overall she is such a sweet, even tempered, lovable little girl. We are so blessed.

Our Little Snuggle Bunnies

2011-09-16T13:53:00.000-07:00

We officially have 2 little ones who love to snuggle. Nate was trying to get his homework reading done the other night, and Kate was distraught. We couldn't quite figure out what she needed and then Nate put her on the couch with him. She immediately snuggled up next to him and was happy as a clam (at least I think clams are happy).

Later, after the kids were in bed Grant made is way back downstairs for a little more Mommy time. He wanted me to scratch his back and sing to him...and he fell asleep almost immediately. I'm so happy we have little snugglers!

My Little Karate Kid

2011-09-16T13:52:00.001-07:00

Look who earned his karate uniform last night! He was so happy. One of the highlights of my week is watching him in karate class. We're so thankful that he's loving it!

Kate's "Room"

2011-08-26T16:25:00.000-07:00

For those of you who expressed concern over Kate sleeping in our closet...hopefully it's not as bad as you were picturing. :-) It's definitely working until we move. Our clothes still fit in the other half of the closet so it was a perfect solution.

First and Last Day of Swimming Lessons

2011-08-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

Grant was very excited to start swimming lessons this summer, but they didn't go so well. He struggled at his first lesson and really didn't want to go back, so we took him out of the lessons and decided to try again next year. Instead, we worked with him in our pool. I just thought he was the cutest thing sitting there during his lesson, listening to the teacher!

More Packages in the Mail!

2011-08-25T16:59:00.000-07:00

More gifts from Gramma and Papa with a beard! Thank you for our new little stuffed animal friends! I like the look on Kate's face in the bottom picture..."He's laying on top of me--again!!!"

Proper Fly Care

2011-08-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

Grant called me to his room during his quiet time this afternoon...

Grant: There was a tiny fly in my room. He touched my lips...gave me a kiss. I want you to take care of him.

Me: What do you want me to do to take care of him?

Grant: Take some tissue and make a submarine. Then put him in the potty and flush it and he will search for SEA CREATURES!!

We've come a long way from him being terrified of flies...although I prefer if they don't give him kisses on the lips. Yech.

Quotable Day

2011-08-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

This morning at breakfast Grant told me, "When I was a baby, God said I was cute." We had been talking about how God created all things and I had asked him if he could think of something God created. When he started talking, I assumed he was going to say that God created him as a baby, but no...he managed to turn it into a way to remind me how cute he was when he was a baby. That's a common theme now that Kate has arrived. He tells me how cute she is then asks something about himself when he was a baby.

Later this evening, Nate and Grant were working on Grant's computer game together. They were updating Grant's in-game profile and there were a series of questions. I was chuckling at some of his answers.

Nate: What is your favorite food?

Grant: I like cake. I have cake when I turn 5. (When I asked him what kind of cake he wanted, he told me chocolate with coconut. Earlier today he said he wanted a cake with pinecones on it, so at least we're moving in the right direction.)

Nate: What is your favorite type of music?

Grant: Jesus Love Me, ABCs, hmmm...and Jesus Love Me (So Nate chose "Classical")

Nate: What is your favorite animal?

Grant: Lion. Lion might bite you.

Nate: What country are you from?

Grant: I like Mexago. What's Mexago?

Nate: What is your favorite type of movie?

Grant: Mighty Machines. It's a giant movie.

Nate: What is your favorite sport?

Grant: What's a sport? (So Nate named a few.) Baseball! What's baseball? Is there restaurant there? (Meaning, is restaurant listed as an option--now that's my kind of sport! Nate kept prompting him for his choice.) It starts with a "G"...gymnastics. I did that at my class...gym class. (I don't know if we ever landed on a sport.)

A Fun Visit!

2011-08-24T16:51:00.000-07:00

Nate went on a short trip with his dad over the weekend, so his sister Crystie and her two adorable girls Ella and Emma came to visit. We had such a great time together and can't wait for our next adventure. Grant and Ella are about a year apart and are great playmates. Kate and Emma are only about 2 months apart and will be great pals one day. We were so sad when they had to go home.

Nate got home a little early so he was able to meet Emma for the first time. I'm so glad he got to see them before they had to leave!

Reunited

2011-08-24T16:49:00.000-07:00

Nate was away for the weekend and Kate was very happy to see him when he returned. She just wanted to stare at him for a while.

"Flower"

2011-08-22T09:49:00.000-07:00

Gramma and Papa with a beard sent Kate and Grant some gifts last week. This cat toy was undoubtedly meant for Kate, but Grant immediately made friends with it and we didn't have the heart to tell him it wasn't for him. Here he is sleeping with "Flower." Can you tell how much he loves it?

One of My Favorites

2011-08-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

We have a copy of this picture that Kate likes to drag around with her. :-)

Guess Who Likes the Tub Now?

2011-08-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

Kate hated the bath when she first came, but we decided it was probably because somebody she didn't know was putting her in a very precarious situation. After the first week, she stopped screaming at bath time and now she loves it...and Grant is so excited that he gets to play with his new favorite person in the bath.

Thank you, Gramma Jean!

2011-08-22T09:31:00.001-07:00

Gramma Jean sent Kate a cute blanket and pink penguin. We named the penguin Kiss Kiss because Kate wanted to give it lots of kisses when she saw it. :-)

Everybody Loves Daddy!

2011-08-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

What can I say? They have great taste.

A New Pillow

2011-08-22T09:24:00.000-07:00

This is one of Grant's favorite things to do with his new sister...use her as a pillow. I can't tell you how many times I look over and he's just relaxing on her, happy as can be.

Signs of the Times

2011-08-15T11:29:00.001-07:00

Grant continues to be the BEST older brother. He absolutely adores Kate and wants to be with her all the time. Today while they were playing, he decided he needed to make a couple of signs for the kitchen. They were "Don't go in the kitchen" and "Go the other way." He got a crayon and paper and I could hear him trying to sound out the words as he wrote. He then found magnets and attached them to the doorway. After that, he rummaged through his shoes and lined them up in the doorway and said, "Look! I made a gate!" As if the signs and the gate weren't enough, he also placed himself as an additional barrier which only ended up earning him kisses from Kate and lots and lots of giggles. It's been a fun morning.

Peek-a-Boo!

2011-08-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

Partners in Crime

2011-08-13T08:10:00.000-07:00

Grant and Emma got to play for a while yesterday. They played upstairs for a while, then came back down. We noticed that Emma's eye looked a little red around the edges and Grant's lips were strangely pink and glossy. It turns out they were putting on makeup in Auntie Lola's room, and were quite pleased with themselves. Grant told me later that night that he couldn't find any perfume in Auntie Lola's bathroom (thank goodness!), so we had a little talk about boundaries and not going through people's things.

Best Friends?

2011-08-13T07:59:00.000-07:00

Kate got to hang out with Bella, her soon to be best friend, yesterday. They spent a while checking each other out. Bella was so sweet and took on the care-taker role, even though she's a little younger than Kate. Even though Bella already walks, she would get down and crawl with Kate and even ended up feeding her chicken nuggets when we weren't looking. They're going to be great friends!

Kate's 1st Visit to Dr. Kim

2011-08-13T07:54:00.000-07:00

Kate and I went to meet with Dr. Kim this last week for a quick check-up. He said she's healthy and cute, but we already knew that. :-)

She's clearly more comfortable at the doctor's office than her brother is...or ever was for that matter.

Grant's "Pinano"

2011-08-09T17:38:00.000-07:00

Grant thought his crayons in the box looked like a "pinano." It's in need of a little tuning, but he had a great time playing. A couple of "keys" were missing and instead of asking where the red one was, he sang out the note and said it was missing.

My Costco Buddies

2011-08-05T15:22:00.000-07:00

Good Pals

2011-08-02T14:11:00.000-07:00

Grant is so gentle with Kate and loves to play with her and give her kisses. He keeps saying "I want to play with that girl." We have to constantly remind him that we don't call her "that girl," we call her Kaylan or Kate. I don't want her crawling into the kitchen, so he comes over and lays down as a human barricade to block her...always going above and beyond. :-)

Two Little Blessings

2011-08-02T13:55:00.000-07:00

Racing

2011-08-01T15:51:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to get more pictures and videos of Grant playing with Kate. Today they were "racing" in the hall. You can see Kate's funny little crawl. She doesn't walk yet. In Korea, they strap the babies to their backs to carry them around most of the day, so she apparently didn't have a lot of practice. She can move pretty quickly with her version of an army crawl...and we discovered she can go in reverse as well. Grant likes to hover over her while she's crawling and pretend she's giving him a ride. She's okay with it for a while, but starts to get a little nervous if he does it for too long.

Saturday

2011-07-30T18:57:00.000-07:00

Another fun day with our new little girl! Things we've learned about Kaylan: She doesn't like baths, she will eat anything...and a LOT of it, she loves to be held and snuggled, and she's the most even-tempered and sweet baby ever!

First Day Out

2011-07-29T15:22:00.000-07:00

Last night went so smoothly--Kate slept straight through the night and we got some good rest. She has to be the most laid back, cheerful baby ever. I think she'd get along great with her cousin Emma, who also seems to always be cheerful. :-) We went out today for the first time as a family of 4 and had such a fun day. Kate loves Stonefire as much as her brother does and loved watching him play at his gym class. She loves to blow raspberries and thinks it super funny when you blow them. We've having such fun with her already!

Kaylan is Here!

2011-07-29T00:15:00.000-07:00

Kate is finally here! After 2 1/2 long weeks of ups and downs, we were sure the Lord had closed the door for us to get this precious girl. I got a call yesterday afternoon that the family had again changed their minds and wanted to give up the baby. They set up a time of 4:00 for the social workers to come and get her. We tried not to get our hopes up, but waited for more information. Even today as I handed the car seat over to Ann, there were serious doubts. But Ann called at 4:30 to say that they had the baby in the back seat and were headed to our house! She and another social worker brought Kaylan to us at around 9:30pm and we couldn't be more excited! Ann has been the most amazing social worker, working tirelessly to get this resolved and sacrificing a lot of her time, energy, and emotions on this particular case. The Lord gave us the perfect person to be our advocate!

Grant LOVES Kate and she responds to him a lot. Ann said that Kate was happy and content the entire trip from San Diego, except when putting her into and out of the car seat. We've enjoyed a wonderful, quiet evening starting to get to know her and snuggling with her. She spent a long time resting on Nate--it seems like they have a quick bond. We got a little smile from her when we played peek-a-boo with her and even a little laugh. I know it will take a while for her to adjust, but so far she's doing amazingly well. She went to bed without a peep and fell asleep pretty quickly. Thank you for all your prayers! We are so thankful for our precious gift!

"Frankie"

2011-05-20T10:32:00.000-07:00

Grant went through a phase where every little bug scared the living daylights out of him. So when he found a teeny tiny beetle bug one day I decided to name him "Frankie" and told Grant that Frankie wanted to be his friend. Well, he thought that was a GREAT idea. Frankie and Grant were fast friends. He put Frankie in a little bowl and carried him around, giving him a tour of the house. He fed him a goldfish cracker (which later turned out to be Frankie's demise--I think the salt killed him), sang him songs, showed him a picture of Nate and me, and gave him rides on the Sit and Spin. The Sit and Spin wasn't the best idea...poor Frankie took quite a spill and it took us a while to find him again.

For Papa with a Beard

2011-05-20T10:29:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the license plate--I love it!

Writing

2011-05-20T10:19:00.001-07:00

Grant has started to love writing. This top picture he wrote "I Love You Mom." He said "I write you a note" and this is what he showed me. He also loves to write his name. If not given directions, he will always write backwards, so it takes a little thought to read, but he's getting there! Garbage trucks are still his favorite trucks, and if you give him a crayon and piece of paper, chances are he will draw one...always with WM written on the side for Waste Management (our garbage company). I love it!

Newest Member of the Force

2011-05-20T10:01:00.001-07:00

I've been spending a lot of time at the chiropractor lately. Grant has been such a great buddy, coming with me and keeping me company. On the way out of one of our visits, there was a policeman sitting behind the desk in the office. Grant was in awe and got to shake his hand and say hello. Then the policeman offered to let Grant sit on his motorcycle. He was over the moon. He got to rev the engine, turn on the lights, and do the siren. He's always been a little nervous about policemen since I told him that they take people to jail so it was really good for him to see that the police are the good guys.

Fun Visit with Cousins

2011-05-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

We hadn't been down to see Jill and the kids for a while, so we jumped at the chance to see them. We had such a great time, as usual. Grant LOVES his cousins! They put up with all of his shenanigans.

First Hot Day of the Year

2011-04-23T21:59:00.001-07:00

We had our first hot day of the year a couple of weeks ago. Grant and I walked to Bridgeport with Lola and the girls to have lunch and feed the birds. Grant and Emma had such a great time splashing in the fountain after we ate. I don't think we actually fed any ducks that day, but we found some baby turtles that were a huge hit. I love this picture of little Bella. That's the look she always gives me. She likes me okay, only if I keep my distance so she gives me cute little warning looks if I get too close!

Disneyland with Papa

2011-04-23T15:47:00.001-07:00

Papa with a Beard came to Disneyland with us a few weeks ago. We had such a great day! He got Grant to go on a few rides he was never willing to try before. Now his two favorites are the Monorail and Casey Jones, both of which terrified him before. We can't wait for our next adventure with Papa!

More Snails

2011-04-23T15:42:00.000-07:00

So, Grant's still really into snails. He laid out his snail shell collection for me and said, "These are the ones I found with my Grandma." One even made it as the pilot of his plane toy. Funny how something so simple can be the source of endless hours of enjoyment. Yet another reason we don't buy a lot of toys--nature has the best toys!

Day at the Zoo

2011-04-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

We got to go to the zoo with Lola, Emma, and Bella this last week. We didn't see a whole lot of animals, but Grant and Emma had a great time together!

Snapshots of a Day #3

2011-04-20T08:56:00.000-07:00

I forgot about my Snapshots day till I saw Crystie's! Better late than never.

8:30 Starting to hatch the dinosaur egg Gramma & Papa with a beard and Gramma Jean sent
9:30 Going for a walk with Jack
10:30 What's cuter that a boy watching for the garbage truck? TWO boys watching for the garbage truck!
11:30 Lunch, drive-through style
12:30 (Oops, busy at Target and forgot to take a picture)
1:30 Shopping at Albertson's with my little helper
2:30 Taking a little break and seeing what Rachael Ray is making for dinner tonight
3:30 Steaming shirts
4:30 Talking to Lola on the phone...I haven't mastered self-portraits
5:30 Dinner prep
6:30 Watching a few minutes of the Upside Down show with Grant while dinner cooks
7:30 Crazy car rides with Daddy

Saying Grace for the 1st Time

2011-03-15T13:02:00.001-07:00

We've never been able to get Grant to say grace. He will repeat what we say, but he's never come up with anything on his own. Today I asked him to pray for our food and this is what he said:

"Jesus love me! And GLORY! (with his arms raised) Thank you for food. And I love you. I eat now. Pasta. And plates. And bowls. You not sad. You happy. And Jesus love me. Amen."

It was so sweet to peek at him with his eyes tightly shut and saying whatever was coming to his mind. And I'm not sure where "GLORY!" came from...maybe that's how they do it in Sunday School.

Snapshots of a Day, #3

2011-03-10T19:26:00.000-08:00

Today we went down to visit my Mom who has been staying at Jill's house for the last couple of weeks. It was our last of 4 visits with her on this trip. We had a great time visiting and can't wait to see her again soon!

9:30 Driving on the 405 to visit Jill and Mom
10:30 Finally there!
11:30 Ready to head out to lunch together
12:30 Grant having a great time with Grandma at lunch
1:30 Playing with Zhu Zhu pets and waiting for Timmy to get home from school
2:30 Grant and Timmy wrestling around--Grant was laughing SO hard
3:30 On our way back home
4:30 Trying to catch up on my email after being gone for 3 days in a row
5:30 Setting Grant up with a computer game so I can figure out dinner
6:30 Proof-reading Nate's paper for his class

Singing A-LOUD to the Lord

2011-02-22T16:37:00.000-08:00

During our Bible time today, I read "Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to the Lord." Grant said, "Jesus likes the ABC song" then proceeded to sing his ABCs at an earsplitting volume. I love that he's trying to put the Word into action, even if it isn't in the most conventional way.

A Quick Change

2011-02-22T16:17:00.000-08:00

I ordered this pirate ship wall vinyl a couple of years ago for Grant's room. He's much more into space than he was into pirates, so I recently got a space bedding set on clearance and changed things up. Then, with my new cutting machine I was able to replace the pirate ship with a spaceship. Have I mentioned how much I love my Silhouette machine?!?

Random Conversations

2011-02-18T17:25:00.000-08:00

Me: Do you know who the President is?
Grant: Oh, it's George. George Washington.
(They've been talking about President's Day at school.)

After Grant's rest time, I noticed that he'd changed his clothes.
Me: Did you have an accident?
Grant: No, it was just a little bit wet.
Me: Why was it wet?
Grant: Oh, maybe it was rain...that dropped down...from the sky.
Me: In your room?
Grant: Yes?
Hmmm, somehow I just don't think so. Another day he said, "It's not an accident. Maybe I'm just sweaty." At least at this point it's easy to tell which of his explanations are true and which are made up. I wonder if he'll always think I'm that gullible.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T18:17:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day! We were so excited about it this year. Grant's class at school was celebrating so we got to make valentines for him to hand out. Then I wanted him to have a special shirt to wear so I made him a "Mom" tattoo one...but he really wanted a robot shirt, so that's what he ended up wearing. He was so pleased that it looked like the robot that Gramma and Papa with a beard got him for Christmas. He seemed to have a great time with his Valentines exchange at school and wanted to show me each one he got the moment he left the building.

In his Valentine's basket this morning, Grant got a new caterpillar friend called "Cappie" whom he carried around and talked to all day. The poor caterpillar's eyes are actually rubbing off from getting so much love today. Such a fun day!

Snapshots of a Day #2

2011-02-10T20:21:00.000-08:00

So I actually remembered on the 10th to take 10 pictures! Hopefully next month I 'll have more exciting things happening on the 10th. This time, it was a very uneventful day:

9:30 Got a busy morning so I'm starting my exercise late while Grant works on a vocabulary computer game.
10:30 The dragon (Grant) plays in the tub while the princess (Mom) puts on her makeup. (He wants me to pretend to be the princess ALL THE TIME...if you thought Barney's voice was annoying, you should hear the princess.)
11:30 The dragon and the princess go to Walmart to pick up supplies for his preschool class.
12:30 Lunch is ending. I saved the best for last (or so I'm telling myself).
1:30 Sampling at Costco. I found that chewing gum while shopping is my best defense against all the goodies and Grant's happy to get them all to himself.
2:30 Mr. Clean and I took a little spin around the kitchen.
3:30 Deciphering how many points are in those goodies from Costco. 5 pieces for 1 point is acceptable. No, I didn't eat the whole 1/4 cup.
4:30 Planting "pomagranick" and avocado trees and green peppers in Grant's room, then pretending to eat the fruits of our labor. We grow the best pretend produce around.
5:30 Grant and I are fixing dinner together. He commandeered the sweet potatoes and thought they looked like organ pipe cacti. I thought the little hats were a nice touch.
6:30 Daddy's home!!! Grant's new ritual is to bolt for the door as soon as he hears the garage door opening so he can play in Nate's car for a while before dinner. Daddy's a good sport and never complains about all the little fingerprints all over his mirror and dashboard.

Yet Another Space Reference

2011-02-09T09:20:00.000-08:00

Grant hates when Nate leaves for work in the morning. There's a lot of, "You never go! I want you to stay here with me!" along with clinging to his leg or trying to drag him by the arm back into the house. This morning he put a new twist on it:

Grant: Where are you going?
Nate: I have to go to work.
Grant: I take work and put it in a black hole...and put it in SPACE! (punctuated by huge arm movements and drama)

Later he said, "I put my class in the black hole, also." We're working on being content even if we don't like the circumstances. It's a tough lesson for me, let alone a 4-year-old. Hopefully we'll learn it together.

Discussion of the Day

2011-02-07T15:52:00.000-08:00

On the way to school today, we passed under a bridge where we'd found dead birds several months ago. We discussed death a little and that turned to talk about heaven and hell.

Grant: There's bad guys in hell?
Me: Yes.
Grant: They poke you?

Hmmm...I don't think they poke you, but I'd better brush up on my theology. (I think it was a reference to his recent doctor's visit where they "poked" him...aka gave him shots.) He was quiet for a moment then said, "God is my favorite guy."

Career Choices

2011-02-06T22:04:00.001-08:00

Driving around this evening, Grant and I discussed what he might want to do when he grows up.

Grant: I don't want to be a fireman. It's too dangerous.
Me: How about a policeman?
Grant: No.
Me: Why? Because it's dangerous?
Grant: No, it's not dangerous. They do the jail. There's a lot of crying. Nurse?
Me: You want to be a nurse?
Grant: No, they have needles. I want to be a dentist!

Last week he wanted to be a "cactus guy" so it looks like he's keeping his options open. Later he told me he didn't want to grow up...he wants to stay Grant. I thought that was a great idea.

Valentine's Day Project #1

2011-01-27T15:40:00.001-08:00

(The cute "dinosaur" helper is optional for this project.)

I saw this idea online a while back and always wanted to try it. You take your old, broken crayons and put them in seasonal silicone ice trays to make new, fun shaped crayons. I found these ice trays at Target--they were 2 for $2.50.

I put just one broken crayon into each indentation, but they came out a little thin so next time I'll add a little extra. Put them in an oven set at 350 for 5-8 minutes, or until the crayons are totally melted. Let them cool completely before trying to remove them from the molds.

My only real problem was the residue they left in the molds after the cooled crayons were removed. Haven't been able to get all that color out yet, so if I were going to do a second batch I would need to put a similar color into each slot.

Valentine's Day Project #2

2011-01-27T15:33:00.001-08:00

One of my goals for this year was to do one project each week. I always think about doing projects, but never seem to make time to actually do them. I wanted to do something for Valentine's Day, so here is my Valentine's Day Specimen Art. I didn't want to have to spend any money on it, so I used what I had.

Car Wash

2011-01-27T12:53:00.000-08:00

If you know Grant, you know he's scared of EVERYTHING that makes loud noise. Historically, the car wash has been out of the question. This particular day my car was in desperate need of a wash, so I let Grant crawl up and sit on my lap during the wash. I love the look on his face. He actually really liked it and now asks all the time to go to get a car wash.

Hmmm...

2011-01-27T12:51:00.001-08:00

Yes, that's underwear attached to handcuffs on his head. He came up with this awesome idea on his own and couldn't wait to show his daddy.

Glasses

2011-01-27T12:46:00.000-08:00

Grant really loves glasses. He told me that he wants to wear contacts like Mommy and glasses like Daddy. Over Christmas break, I had an eye virus and had to go to the eye doctor. Grant was so excited to go and wanted to know if the doctor was going to give him glasses. I found a pair of Nate's glasses from high school/early college and Grant couldn't have been more excited.

The New Fashion Police

2011-01-21T09:15:00.000-08:00

While I was driving yesterday, Grant saw a couple of teenage girls walking. One was wearing extremely short, tight white shorts. "Mom! That girls just has underwear on!" Kids...they call it like it is.

Pretend City

2011-01-18T17:04:00.000-08:00

We went down to the Pretend City Children's Museum in Irvine over the long weekend. It's a new family favorite. Grant got to play at the beach, shop and work at the grocery store, drive around a fire truck, work at the emergency dispatch station, do a little gardening, watch some little chicks (birds--not girls), do a little construction, and so much more. We didn't even get to some of the stations, so there is more to explore later.

Fiscal Responsibility

2011-01-12T18:44:00.000-08:00

Grant: I like money!
Me: Do you know what money is for? Why do people need money?
Grant: Oh, for expenses.

Snapshots of a Day #1

2011-01-12T09:27:00.000-08:00

I was reading someone's blog recently and on the 10th of each month they take a picture each hour of the day for 10 hours. At the end, you have a little snapshot of their day. I thought it might be fun so I gave it a whirl. Of course I missed the 10th so I did it on the 11th and forgot to take pictures for a couple of the hours, but it was fun anyway! (All the pictures were taken with my phone, so they're a little fuzzy...)

10:30 Waiting for the garbage truck to come
11:30 Trying out EVERY couch and chair in Ikea
12:30 Found joy on clearance at Target...but I have plenty of joy so no need to buy more
1:30 Driving home with my buddy behind me
2:30 Laundry
3:30 Opening a package that arrived today. I love getting packages!
4:30 Folding laundry
5:30 Playing with Grant in the tent we made out of the dining room table and a blanket
8:30 Shopping with a friend during our night out

Not what most people would call an exciting day, but I loved it. It was filled with lots of time and fun with Grant, getting things marked off my to do list, and a fun evening with a great friend. What a wonderful day!

First Ornament

2011-01-08T20:07:00.000-08:00

Grant's class made little foam gingerbread ornaments this year. I can't tell you how excited I was about the first ornament he brought home. I felt really silly being so excited about it, but I just couldn't help myself. It's my new favorite ornament...and he was pretty proud of it!

USA?

2011-01-08T19:58:00.001-08:00

I found this in Grant's room after his rest this afternoon. He'd propped it up on his chalkboard like it was his work of art. It's the first time I've ever seem him write letters. It looks sort of like "lush" (aka random letters) but now I think maybe it's USA...like he was copying it from something in one of his books. I'll never know, but I loved it!

So THAT'S Where My Stickers Went

2011-01-08T19:30:00.001-08:00

Grant was quite proud of himself when he found my stickers and put them to use. Taking them off wasn't quite as funny, though.

My First Project

2011-01-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

I got a really fun toy for Christmas, and this was my first try at using it. One of the things it does is cut shapes that can be heat-transferred onto a shirt. Grant LOVES his fire truck shirt. When we were out that day, we saw a big fire truck stopped at a light and all the firefighters waved to him. He couldn't have been happier. I later asked him what other things he might like on a shirt and he said "two hearts." I think I'll make all the clothing decisions from now on.

A Sad Day

2010-12-14T09:17:00.000-08:00

I'm really behind in my blogging. Things are really out of order. I took Grant for his 4-year-old check-up a few weeks ago. As you can tell, he was not pleased. I was trying to stay as calm and nonchalant as I could and I took my phone out to distract him. I couldn't resist getting a picture of his poor, pathetic little face to show Nate how our morning was going. By the end, all was forgiven and he even invited Dr. Kim to go to Disneyland with us.

Unfortunately, it wasn't over. We had to go to get his blood drawn down the hall. He didn't know what was going to happen and went into the room all happy. The guy tied the rubber tie around Grant's arm and he thought it was funny. Then the needle was put in and he was incredulous. "That hurt me! Why you hurting me???" It was so sad--I wanted to cry! Needless to say, I'm glad that day is over.

Nice Try

2010-12-14T09:12:00.000-08:00

This is definitely the first time I've seen a sign like this: "Homeless. Need Monye Donation. Please Send to PO Box..."

I particularly like how they can spell "donation" but not "money."