A few weeks for family home evening I did something a little different. See, I was getting "changing the toilet paper overload syndrome." I was the only one to change the toilet paper and I find it hard to believe that I am the only one who ever finishes off a roll.
At first I would leave the empty roll on thinking, "HA! This will teach them all a lesson!" But somehow it was always me that found myself "up a creek without a paddle" so to speak...not a fun place to be.
It even got to the point that I was using the bathroom at a doctors office one day and the roll was empty and I had to refill it.
So for family home evening I taught everyone how to change a toilet paper roll. I have to say that I choked up a little bit when I found the toilet paper put on backwards like this because you know what...I didn't have to refill the toilet paper.
This one is about Christmas!
March 25th Aaron burned the Christmas Tree. Menfolk and their "tools" are a little scary. First of all Aaron let the boys help cut the branches off the tree. I went outside just as Ben and Jacob were both gleefully hacking away at the tree with sharp objects. By the time I came back with the camera I was only able to capture Jacob.
Then there is Aaron who felt the tree was best lit with a blow torch. He really honestly, truly had this look of "he he, I'm using a blow torch" on his face.
Boys...It is a good thing I like them, because soon this house will be crawling with them!
From now on the kids are teaching Family Home Evening. Usually Sophie sits and listens and answers all the questions while Aaron fights to get Ben and Jacob to stay in the room and quiet, let alone paying attention.
Sophie read MANY pages of the story of Moses with no interruption and Ben and Jacob were glued to her side with rapt attention.
So guess what...I quit!
We were getting low on soap so we stocked up at the grocery store. Apparently I had some helpers put them away.
I have avoided putting this on here for almost a whole month, but I am who I am. My body is what it is. Here I am half way through my pregnancy.
Jacob was the photographer. Maybe a trained professional could have made me look less tired and lumpy, but I am ALIVE and WELL...what else can I ask for?
This morning is such a raw, cold, dreary, rain day. It reminds me exactly of winter in Spain. It sounds nice if you are used to a Vermont winter, but trust me, that kind of raw day after day is bone chilling. Anyway.......
As I went about doing my outdoor chores this morning, sludging through the puddle that is our yard, I was amazed to hear all the different birds. They were singing their hearts out totally oblivious to how awful the weather was. There is something to be learned there I think...
I hate to say that stereotypes are real, but in many cases they are. There are always exceptions to the rule, but none the less stereotypes happen. Case in point...
Today I went to go spend lunch with Ben and Sophie at school. We then went out to play for recess.
Sophie quickly joined a gaggle of girls in a VERY elaborate set up of fairy house. They have multiple spots all over the hillside. Sophie has been sewing away on pillows for the fairies. They have a seashell toilet with seashell bathtub and sink. They have created a fairy garden with moss and apple seeds. They even have a fairy graveyard with half a Lego man in it. A fairy hotel is in the making. It was fun to watch them all run around and find random bits of bark and dust and then imagine them into necessary items for the fairy house.
Then I went to join Ben for awhile. He and his passel of boys had what looked like a very similar set up. Pine boughs at the roots of a tree appeared to create yet another locale for the fairies. When I asked, I learned that they were playing Star Wars. They had different sticks that were various weapons from Star Wars, some from the movie, some made up because weapons are just cool.
It was such a pleasure to watch the two of them interact with their peers. It was clear they were having SOOOO much fun. And while there were a few boys helping with the fairy set up, and I know girls that love Star Wars (Sophie being one of them,) it was funny to see them fall into little stereotypical groupings.
I just went upstairs to check on Sophie in the bath tub. I called her several times with no response. Finally I opened the door and there was Sophie with her eyes closed, laying down in the tub, swishing around. Then she started to talk. I thought maybe she was responding to me finally, but this is what she said.
"Do it immediately!"
"Yes ma'am."
"If you don't I shall have you beheaded."
I wish you could have heard the inflection in her voice. I wish I could have recorded it. I am not sure of the full story, but she was clearly in story making mode and it was very real. It was fun to listen to, but I snuck out before I was discovered.
I read an article about a museum that painted a fly in the urinals and reduced their... ummm...spillage...by some incredible percentage.
Having two boys (one who can't focus to save his life) we have a fair amount of "spillage," so I painted a ladybug, flower and butterfly in the toilet bowl.
That very day there were no "spills" on the floor. A few days later I noticed that the bathroom smelled much more fresh than it had in a long time. Then Ben scraped them off (ok well actually the flower and butterfly didn't dry long enough so they peeled right off, so it was just the ladybug he scraped off) and within minutes there was a "spill"on the toilet seat.
Don't be surprised if you find something interesting in my toilet next time you are here.
I take care of a friend's daughter on Mondays and Fridays and during vacation that meant that her older sister who is good friends with Sophie got to come too.
The three of them got all dolled up and then came strolling out into the living room. I pretended to be the paparazzi, snapping as many photos as I could. This one is the only one that came out decent. I guess I need one of those fancy fast cameras to really be the paparazzi.
The time has come for Ben to wear an eye patch. These pictures are from the very first time I out one on him, and I put it on wrong.
He has to wear it all day and our goal is to make it until dinner time. We usually make it, but every once in awhile he takes it off mid day. We have learned a few tricks to make it successful.
1. He gets to pick the patch and open the package
2. I cut little wedges out of the patch from around his cheek area. It changes nothing, but helps him to feel in control
3. I give him personal 1 on 1 time or a movie or computer game for the first 10 minutes he is wearing the patch. After that he mostly forgets he is wearing it
He does have this fabric one that goes over his glasses, but it is very easy to cheat and peek around the edges or move it. The first week we couldn't use it at all. Now that he is used to patching we use it when he takes the sticky patch off too early.
I always kiss his sweet brown eye goodbye in the morning and kiss it back at night when he takes the patch off.
I also tell him that people will think he is so adorable with the patch that they will pinch his cheeks and give him candy. So far I am the only one who has done this so he doesn't believe me anymore. If any of you locals want to support me on this, Ben would love it.
Ben goes back in April to see if there is any progress. If there is than there are eye drops that can blur his vision and he won't have to wear the patch any more, though sometimes I think it would be easier to put a patch on then put eye drops in!
