Milestones for a Little Boy

My little Ian is not so little anymore! Honestly I don't see him as a little baby or a toddler anymore--more of a buddy or rambunctious little boy, but with the impending start of kindergarten and the speed at which he rides his new "big" bike I realize he is growing up!

Here are a few pics of his latest milestones. The new two-wheeled bike was a Easter present and watching him ride it that first day reminded me of how great it is to learn to ride a bike. So fast, so fun, and what independence to cruise around not buckled into a car seat! He wears the helmet, the knee pads, and the elbow pads every time he rides--so much for always having skinned knees. He's a little nervous to go over bumps and the curb, but I'm sure that in no time the training wheels will be off and he'll be terrorizing the neighborhood.

Last week Ian graduated from preschool. He has so loved learning and making new friends with Teacher Lici. His class did a great program where they sang "The Star Spangled Banner" complete with actions. It was fun to see Ian concentrating and singing as loud as he could. He is ready for kindergarten and so excited to go to school with all his friends from Primary (they are all a year older). As of right now he has decided to be an astronaut when he grows up so I hope he enjoys school, because I do believe astronauts get their fair share.

Ode to Heatburn (aka "Burning Ring of Fire")

Inspired by Adam Lambert's rock rendition of "Burning Ring of Fire" Dave decided to pull out his Johnny Cash CD and let the kids listen to the original. Ian now has a new favorite CD and will probably grow up to be a cowboy. He can sing the entire song word for word (I don't know if this is the best thing although it is cute) and he and Miles have created a new game centered around this song. One of them wears a cowboy hat the other sits on top of the overturned laundry hamper. They hit play on the CD player and the one in the cowboy hat sings and dances around the one on the laundry hamper. It does look like some kind of child inspired rain dance. They do this over and over and over with the CD player on repeat.

So, the other night when awakened by the acid that the baby likes to kick back up my throat you can guess what song started going through my head..."I fell into a burning ring of fire, I went down down down as the flames went higher" I'm not a huge Johnny Cash fan, but at least I can thank him for serenading me through the sleepless nights of pregnancy heartburn!

Making Room for Baby

Well, the nesting has begun and the first item on my list was to get the two boys into the same room. This meant moving Miles into a big boy bed, new bunk beds, possibly new paint, new bedding, etc, etc...

Fortunately our neighbors had some bunk beds they were getting rid of and of course I'm game for anything that someone wants to just give me so that part was easy. The bedding not so much--I decided I did not want to paint again. I painted before we had Miles and when we moved into the house and being pregnant and grouchy I decided painting would just stress me out. I was worried about finding something to match the baby blue paint that wouldn't look to "babyish" because my boys are growing up. Walmart to the rescue--I found these cute striped/beachy looking comforters and was so happy that they matched.

Here are a few pics (out of order of course) of how the room has come together--now to just get Miles to sleep in the bed (I found him curled up on the floor the other night).

Free bunk beds with Walmart comforters.
A little space saving idea.

Digital scrapbooking meets canvas, some paint, and my hot glue gun. Ian wanted superhero's, but fortunately he thinks the digger and dump truck are pretty cool.

Now we must get rid of the pink bink! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We keep telling him it is going bye-bye we just need to make sure mommy is ready first.

The Glowing Hours

Last week I attended a Digital Scrapbook Retreat. One of my favorite classes was a photography class. The class centered around light and how using natural light will yield your best photos. The photographer had a bounce (a foil looking thing that you use to direct the light) he demonstrated how to use the bouce and how to use backlight, sidelight, etc to best light the face of your subject. One of the most interesting things I gained from the class was to remember that you can move all the way around your subject to get the light where you want it.

Now I don't have a bounce, and my photography skills are sub par at best, but I decided to try out what he taught us. A few nights ago the kids were playing outside at about five o'clock. I love evening light--all filtered and golden. Anyway here are a few shots I got.

We're Back (at least for now)

Sorry about the leave of absence. Between feeling fairly ill and trying to chase around two kids, teach piano, and run Primary I just haven't been up to blogging lately. The ickies have seemed to have passed though so maybe I can start journaling a little bit more.

For those of you who haven't seen me in the last few months (because it is apparent). We are expecting baby boy #3! Now don't think "oh no another boy" I know how to play with trucks, I can shoot a few hoops, and summer buzz cuts are my favorite.

Little boy 3 is due September 9th, but Miles was three weeks early so we are aiming for August 23 (my birthday). Miles was born on Dave's birthday and I think it would be a great present for this little guy to show up a little early on my day.

Anyway, that is the big news from the last few months--

Happy Valentine's Day

Over at DSM April posted this link http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbphotography/390180594/ and I thought these cards were so cute we decided to give it a try. They were so easy to make and Ian thought they were really funny. Hope you all have a great Valentine's Day.

My Grandpa

My Grandpa Lee passed away a couple of weeks ago. He was such a great man and such a great example to his family and everyone he knew. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of him and a few favorite memories. We will miss you Grandpa.

Favorite Memories:

The dancing wooden man he made—I thought it was magic, I didn’t realize that Grandpa was bouncing the board so the man would dance. I just thought Grandpa had made a magic, dancing man! Of course he could work magic with wood.

The teeth—I remember always being afraid of the little container that would appear on the bathroom counter every time Grandpa came to visit. I knew his teeth were in there, but I never dared take a peak. Without his teeth he had the funniest grin. I remember him coming down the hall once without his teeth in and chasing us around the kitchen, and then somehow he and Grandma ended up fox trotting around the table.

His hugs—Grandpa would always give me a big bear hug and a whiskery kiss every time I saw him. It wasn’t just a little hug, but a big hug that let you know he really liked you. This past fall we went to visit Grandpa when we went to leave Miles started to fuss and lean away from Dave towards Grandpa. Dave walked over to Grandpa and Miles reached out to get his big hug before we left—he was not going out that door until he had a hug from Grandpa.

His laugh—Grandpa wasn’t one to show a lot of excitement, but given a funny story he could laugh until we thought he might pass out! These stories were usually brought forth by my dad—the knocking out the chicken story, the pig story, something about a experiment gone wrong in my dad’s science class (ask Dave for more details.) As my dad would tell these stories Grandpa would laugh until his face went pink and he could breath—and when he would do this it would immediately become contagious and pretty soon everyone’s face would hurt from laughing so hard.


Most of all I will remember Grandpa as someone who lived a life of quiet service. He showed his family and those around him he loved them by the service he gave them. The dresser he made in my little boys room, the many selves he made that now decorate my walls, the electrical outlet on my porch, the rocking horse in my basement, even the spackle and paint on the walls on my house were all acts of service rendered by Grandpa. Thank you Grandpa for loving us and serving us, we will miss you.