halloween happenings

A few nights before Halloween, we hit the streets with the Lehman boys for an area tradition – the Halloween parade.  It had all sorts of fun things, and a few noises (like fire sirens and tractors) that made Anna say, “loud noise Mommy!  I ‘kared” mommy"!”  After a few floats with candy though, she was okay with the noises :)

That feels funny in that pumpkin!

Anna gingerly painted her pumpkin.

Vote for me!

Click this link and vote for us – each of us – at least once a day until November 17th…and we could win a special vacation for our family!!!!

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beauty surrounds

   

Anna NO

Can you read it?  Hudson is proud of the sign he made all by himself.  Literally.  He took out paper and a crayon and sat at the table….and wrote this… even before she was awake.  He was apparently very concerned that his carefully constructed train track would be destroyed – along with the dinosaur land he had set up.  I guess we forgot to tell him that Anna can’t read.  Oh well – he thought it did the job! :)

Emma's Free!!!!!

Emma is non-quarantined anymore...so that means we are at the Wats, having fun, eating Japanese inspired yummies and swimming in the pool. Nope, we don't care it isn't heated right now. And the kids are in heaven - what kids wouldn't be with friends that are 8, 4, almost 4, and 2? They are having a blast together!

so, here’s the more than one way part…

Wednesday was sure to bring lots of new possibilities as we started off the morning just as we used to – a walk to the school to say hello to Mr. Larry (the principal and our friend), and then a run.  Man, I really miss running here.  First, it’s gorgeous.  Really.  Can you complain about running while looking at the majesty of mountains like this while you go?

My legs get tired long before I ever really want to stop – I can breathe clearly and there’s never a lack of sidewalks or trails in the desert.  There aren’t massive hills – although, I think I am a stronger runner thanks to the hills at home, now. 

Next on the agenda was a haircut for the boys from our favorite barber, Don the Barber.  He was delighted to see Chris and especially Hudson.  He kept telling his other customers, “I’ve been cutting this young man’s hair since when he had to sit in his Mama’s lap!”  

Daddy had the delight of spending the day with his good friend Tom and the rest of our crew went to Merle’s to eat and play.  Anna has been fighting a cold since Sunday, and I should’ve known something was wrong with Hudson the minute that he didn’t want to get in the pool. (Meanwhile, Anna played in the water the entire time, while Hudson got a warm bath to warm up….) After we got home for naps, I took his temp, and it was 102.5  That may not sound like much to you, but this is a boy who does not get a temp, and doesn’t act sick unless he is really sick…and he was laying on the couch and the floor and not wanting to move.

I’m gonna skip ahead a bit at his point – 24 hours or so to today, Thursday.  Because when they both had a slight fever this am, I called our old pediatrician (who still had us on file – praise the LORD) and we took them in this afternoon.  At this point, they are pretty sure that both kids are fighting something bacteria based and put them both on Antibiotics.

Hudson’s one ear is not infected, but on the way there most likely, has a bad sinus-y gunk, and the reddest throat the dr. said he’s seen all week.  Anna has a red throat, a stuffy nose and one of her tubes is clogged.  So, we are recovering.  Trying to.  It’s hard and good at the same time because they want to be outside, and they want to see everyone (as do we!).  We’re able to stay very entertained, but we also are trying to make sure we all rest as much as possible. 

Hudson’s fever was down all day and we had fun at the pumpkin patch farm with Merle and Carmen.  But it’s evening now, and it is back up to where we started.  We’re praying the antibiotics do the trick and their bodies start to heal…or we may be staying a little longer to get better before plane rides.  Wait, maybe that doesn’t sound so bad after all! :)

recovery….in more than one way

After a long day of traveling on Monday, this is what our kids did almost immediately after getting into the rental car.  They needed to recover from a lllloooonnnggg day and airplane ride. Tuesday morning brought a breakfast out at our fave little breakfast place here in town…..well, one of the only restaurants in town, The Red Sage.  Then it was off to Wal-Mart we went to stock up on basic groceries for our stay – and a few things that were forgotten.

While Daddy and Anna took a recovery morning nap, Hudson and Mommy took at walk through the community to say hi to our friends and see places we enjoyed while we lived here.  First Hudson wanted to hit Grammy Lyn’s, but to his dismay, she sold her house and doesn’t live that close by anymore…although we will get to see her while we are here. 

We then stepped into Tracy’s drive and called out to her.  We got to chat with Tracy and Emma from the window and at least talk in person – that’s good, right?  I mean, at least it isn’t from across the country on a phone or on Skype (although we do love Skype.)

We had a delightful lunch and some swim time with Reggie and Mary at their resort in Queen Valley.  Now, if you think Gold Canyon is in the middle of no where, wait til you check out Queen Valley.  It is about 15 minutes farther than where we leave but after you leave our town, you best well hope you don’t have any critical needs until you reach there – it ain’t nuttin but coyotes, cactus and rattlesnakes.  And the gorgeous rugged landscape of the Superstitions.

Reg and Mary are special people in our lives; and not only because they are originally from the same area of NJ that Chris is from.  (He never knew them back there – we met here!)  Chris loves Reg for his love and passion for worshipping Christ through the bass guitar.  Hudson, Anna and Mommy love Mary for her sitting and loving on the little people so Mommy could serve in the worship arts ministry.  And we all love them because of their compassion and their hearts for Christ.

After yet another nap time, :o) we got to go have dinner with the infamous Yochim family.  Now really, seriously, infamous.  You can’t have a conversation with Hudson about Arizona without him mentioning Merle, and honestly, neither can I.  We got to hang out with the Yochims for dinner, Anna took a dip in the pool – I should say a “skinny dip”…played with Pirate…the rockin’ dual-eye-colored Aussie pup….  and had an awesome time of fellowship and catching up.  (Plus, one never, ever, ever leaves Merle’s house hungry.  Never.  And our family are happy recipients of that food love.)

elation. joy. sadness.

Landing in Phoenix – elation and relief.  After 5.5 hours on the plane (darn that mid-fall jet stream coming West!), we were elated to deplane and hit solid ground…never mind that it felt like 9:30 to our children.  They were so excited that they could barely contain themselves – and they did wonderfully the entire flight. 

The flight attendant commented on how well they did and how cute they were ;) – AND that we obviously have done this before (due to the activities, plane presents and appropriate snackage/dinner items).  Little did she know this was probably Hudson’s 30th plane flight or something like that.  He’s so used to it that when he sits down in his seat he says “do the drill” and I hand him anti-bacterial wipes and he wipes off his tray, seat, seatbelt and arm rests.  He knows.  Anna follows.  :)

Joy at the prospect of seeing framily.  No I didn’t misspell that.  ‘Round these parts, framily are friends that are more like family.  And they are.  We desperately miss them and are excited to get to spend some time with them.

Sadness.  Yes, the divine Miss Emma has the swine flu.  That’s a playmate down for Hudson and Anna.  And because Miss Em is quarantined, that means that her momma is too.  And that means Mommy gets to spend no time doing fun things with her best friend.  Tracy is busy taking care of Em and the rest of the family is banished to the casita (guest house).

We are enjoying our time at our house.  Loving it actually.  You can’t beat the weather – and the sunshine is abundant.  More to come soon – gotta chase Anna.

wordless wednesday (kinda)

How Angie, Hudson, Anna and Mommy made applesaucecrank that food mill Hugs!mix it up, stir it up   ain’t it purdy? IT’S YUMMY!!!!!

“craft-y” mamas and C. Rylant

So all you mamas out there, yea you, there are those fun art projects that you know your kids will make every year at school for the first 5 years of their schooling.  And for those of us who are teachers, we know that there are those special art projects that are just more fun when they aren’t spoiled at home by art project lovin’ mamas.  (Just so you know, it doesn’t stop me from doing them. :o)

Well, here’s a craft for you moms that I came across and I have never seen done in a school setting.  Read:  it’ll be so awesome for your kids because they’ve never done it at school too!  It’s a paper bag fall tree.

Hudson, Anna and I decorated a bunch of leaves – colored ‘em, bedazzled ‘em with glitter glue, markered and stickered ‘em.  Then we took a brown paper grocery bag.  We stuffed recycled paper in the bottom of it and cinched it tight with a ribbon.  Next, Mommy cut strips from the top to the cinch-spot.  Hudson then twisted each strip into a “branch” and we attached our leaves.  We glued at first, but then found it easier to staple them on.  And the result?

An awesome tree to sit on your table (ours is our current center piece) or to give to a grandparent.  We had so much fun with these, we may make a forest.

Which brings me to C. Rylant.  Not really, it’s just what I want to write about today.  We got to visit the library today.  Yippeee!  But we weren’t intending to do, but when a wonderful friend calls you and asks if you want to meet at the library park on a gorgeous fall day, how can you say no? (When library and park are in the same sentence, the refusal rate for me is about .06%).

As we were browsing the aisles I came across a rockin’ C. Rylant book that I know because of the online world, but have never seen in the flesh.  I always let Hudson pick books that he wants, and then I pick books that I want to read to he and Anna.  This one has words that need to be shared with you, because they are just too good not to be shared.

Underneath that great big sky
the earth is all a-spin.
This day will soon be over
and it won’t come back again.

So live it well, make it count,
fill it up with you.
The day’s all yours, it’s waiting now . . .
See what you can do.

That’s my charge to you today. Live it well.  Make it count.  See what Christ in you can do! :)

soccer by a 4 year old

This is Hudson.

This is Hudson kicking a soccer ball for his team, the Red Flames :)

This is Hudson performing a “throw-in” from the sideline.

And folks, bless my son, he likes to kick the ball if he is by himself or the coach hands him the ball to do a throw-in.  But he doesn’t quite yet get the idea of chasing down the ball and trying to kick it before the other players. 

He’d much rather do this.

Or talk to the coach.  Or play imagination while the rest of the team is at the other end of the field.  Or pick handfuls of grass and watch what happens when the autumn breeze takes them from his hand lifted above his head.

Bless him, he tries.  When he remembers what he is supposed to be doing, he runs after the pack of the rest of the kids while they are following the ball; so at least he’s headed in the right direction!  At this point it is necessary to remind fans that he is four.  Four.  Four and a few months.  And most of the other kids on the team are 5 and 6, and have been on the team for at least 2 seasons (fall and spring).  And what I need to remind myself - as I laugh hysterically at his nonchalant attitude - was that the point of trying this is to see if he likes it, to have fun with other kids his age (he loves the games his coaches play at practice) and to be outside in this region we have chosen to live in.

This is his good friend holding his hand and pulling him around the field.  She really wanted to see him get to be close to the ball.  So she took matters into her own hands.  And thanks to her, Hudson was ‘credited’ with his first assist, as they were holding hands when she scored! :o)

This is Hudson’s loyal cheering section….

God bless them.

princess love has begun

our little baby is becoming a little girl – even though it pains me to even type that!  She has begun recently to love “babies” (her dolls) and is very fastidious in her care for them…although she does carry them at times dangling by their feet or arms.

She talks with a very serious face, “Mommy, baby tired.  Baby nap.” And she will proceed to lay her baby down on a blanket or in her new baby bed she got for her birthday.

But what I have found most interesting of late is her new found love of princesses.  What is it about these mystical creatures that draw little girls into the love of frills and wands, crowns and prince charmings?  Ah, no, I have not forgotten the deep psychological reasoning – the longing to be saved, scooped up and to live happily ever after.

She loves this princess castle.  First off, she is in love with Little People and the whole collection.  It’s not just the castle.  But since this rockin’ birthday gift, our Banana has been quite enthralled with this castle full of dancing ‘peepul’ and the horse that you can brush the hair.  The castle sings, plays music and provides endless imagination opportunities.  She sits for a long period of time in princess pretending world.

Here’s to princesses, princes, and imagination!  (oh, and our adorable live little princess :o)

new record

• 1 cantaloupe
• broccoli crown
• 3 navel oranges
• 2 quarts strawberries
• 2 kiwi
• 2 red peppers
• 1 green pepper
• 1 eggplant
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms
• a lime

$9.62. 

That's a record I think.  My bag was overflowing!  Yup, market day rocks.