Pledge of Allegiance

Now I've got 2 Lee Gr*enwood loving kids, thanks to their wonderful teacher! A couple years ago, the only thing Levi asked for for Christmas was an mp3 player filled with his songs. Brings me back to my high school days of riding the lawn mower on the farm, with Lee or R*ndy Travis blaring in my walkman...I'd go to their concerts, secretly dreaming they'd call me up on stage for a duet! That would've made my decade! Isn't Sarah a cutie, though? Those are some big words for her!

My little chef

Sarah loves to experiment with her food--calling them her her "secret recipes". Here are just a couple ways she ate her food this week.

First, you'll see her chicken/cheese/corn/peas/salsa combination. She thought it was amazing. Another day for breakfast she asked for oatmeal, and while it was cooking, she decided she was hungry for banana bread. Her secret recipe consisted of banana bread, with a thick topping of oatmeal, with peanuts sprinkled on top. It was so good that she's asked me to make more banana bread so she can try it again! Aunt Emily, I think she may be taking after you in the kitchen!

Just the two of us

Robbie and I got to spend all of last weekend together, just the two of us! We went up to a wedding in Iowa that Rob officiated, and had our kids stay with my sister and some great friends. They had a blast, but I think we may have had more fun. A 7 hour car ride, with no interruptions, only a couple potty breaks, and great conversation...we had such a fun time! The rehearsal dinner was on a riverboat, and we got to catch up with some KSU alums that we haven't seen in a while. Went shopping, ate out, relaxed most of the day Saturday, then a night of fun at the wedding/reception/dance. The pic above is of us at the reception--I couldn't get one of Robbie smiling--hopefully he'll look happier when he get his braces off in a few months! Of course we were excited to see the kids again, but I think we could handle a weekend like this every year or so!

A family favorite

Tried to put a picture of the cover of "The S*ven Silly Eaters" here, but it didn't work...

If you moms out there have never read this book to your kids, you need to run to the library and check it out. (Unless you live in my town--won't work, 'cause I've got it and will keep it for a couple more weeks!) My kids are crazy about this book--it's adorable--I really never get tired of reading it to them. My sis Shari told me her kids loved it years ago, and we probably check it out every 3rd or 4th time we're at the library. I should really own a copy of it, but I'm cheap and just keep checking it out. The story is so cute--makes having a crazy household of picky eaters seem normal. I love how the mom, Mrs. Peters gets progressively more frazzled with each new babe--I can identify with this woman! The kids love the rhythm of the book, and the great illustrations, and following each kid through the pages as they get older. I can't imagine anyone not loving it. So, my question is, what's your favorite? I'd love to get some new great book ideas, especially with just Jas at home with me these days. We're taking much more frequent trips to our great library!

A new song

Here's a cute song that Sarah learned her first day of school--she sang it constantly for a few days, and as you can see, the other 2 have learned it as well.

My helper

Jason is really becoming a great helper around the house, with big brother and sister at school all day. Here's his newest accomplishment--he can now sort laundry (for the most part). He thinks he's big stuff!

School Days

Well, I survived letting my kids go off to school. The were both talking a mile a minute afterwards, telling us all about it over an Appebee's celebratory meal. Sarah says she was the "goodest" one--she only talked when she raised her hand. I guess she did this 3 times--once to use the restroom, once for a drink, and once because she needed to get the pebbles out of her shoes--I'm guessing these were the only 3 times she opened her mouth this morning! She helped a little girl tie her shoes, and she's already made lots of new friends. She exclaimed, "Kindergarten is AWESOME!" Miss Horan said she was a little shy, but other than that, she was great. Levi loves his new teacher--says he'd give her 10 thumbs up if he had that many thumbs! He's so excited that he gets to sit next to Micah and Isaac, and he thinks this teacher doesn't mind a bit if they talk. He said she even turned off the AC some so that they could hear each other better when they were chatting with each other. I've tried to warn him that the rules might change soon, but he's convinced that this year's going to be a breeze! He looked all over the room, and could find no cards to be turned (this is how some classes handle discipline issues--start out on green, then go to other colors of cards when you get warnings.) I'm afraid he might be in for a rude awakening, but so far, he's feeling lots of freedom! I so love to hear these kids talk about their days...hope they never get too cool for mom and dad!