Me: KSL (a local news website) has the worst pictures. They have an article about an autistic boy who went missing and the blind dog who found him, and there's not even a picture of the dog!
Adam: Well, the dog's blind; it's not like he can see his picture in the paper anyway.
Adam: We'll have to check to make sure no snails have gotten in the baby pool. There are a lot out there.
Me (with a horrified, I-hate-snails look on my face): There are?
Adam: Yeah.
Me: But you killed a bunch.
Adam: Yeah. We'll have to get a stick and stab 'em and see how many we can get on the stick.
My mouth falls open as I stare at my husband
Adam: Zed and I are going to have a lot of fun in a few years. You just look at me like it's a stupid idea.
Me: I wasn't thinking it was stupid; I was thinking that's a gross, boy idea.
(little bit of chit chat)
Adam: Well, now that they fixed the irrigation, we don't get the water snakes anymore.
Me: We had snakes?!
Adam: Yeah.
Me: A lot?
Adam: Oh, like five or six. They were little. I chopped one's head of with a shovel. That one was big.
Me: We had snakes?! You didn't tell me that!
Adam: I couldn't tell you. But now that they fixed the irrigation so we don't have them anymore, I can tell you.
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Primary
I teach a group of 4- and 5-year-olds at church each week, and I love them to bits and pieces. Every week, they say or do something that touches my heart or makes me laugh, and they ask such good questions. Here are a few recent examples:
We were discussing who came to visit Baby Jesus just after His birth--the shepherds and the wise men. One kid asked what the wise men did.
Me: Remember, they brought the gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Jane: And they built the house.
Me, looking puzzled as I try to figure out why Jane would think the wise men built Jesus a house: They built a house?
Jane: Yeah, the wise men built the house upon the rock. And the foolish man built the house upon the sand.
Me, beaming: OH!
Jane: What does "foolish" mean?
We then got to have a tangential but awesome discussion about how wise men follow Jesus and foolish men don't.
Me, as Dexter bounced up and down on his chair: What could we do to help you be a little more reverent and stop bouncing on your chair?
Dexter: It would help me stop bouncing on my chair if Alice sat by me.
Cute! So, I did let Alice sit next to him, and he did stop bouncing...but he was a little distracted from the lesson since he kept giving Alice hugs. However, seeing this boy give my little Alice hugs totally melted my mommy heart, so I just went with that.
Later in the class, we were writing a note to invite a couple of friends to come to Primary. The children were dictating and I was writing.
Me: What should we write?
Dexter: You should come to Primary.
Christine: It's fun!
Audrey: We want to be your friends.
Dexter: If you don't come to Primary, you won't get to meet Alice!
Haha--I love that Dexter thinks not getting to meet Alice would be a serious disappointment. :)
We were discussing who came to visit Baby Jesus just after His birth--the shepherds and the wise men. One kid asked what the wise men did.
Me: Remember, they brought the gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Jane: And they built the house.
Me, looking puzzled as I try to figure out why Jane would think the wise men built Jesus a house: They built a house?
Jane: Yeah, the wise men built the house upon the rock. And the foolish man built the house upon the sand.
Me, beaming: OH!
Jane: What does "foolish" mean?
We then got to have a tangential but awesome discussion about how wise men follow Jesus and foolish men don't.
Me, as Dexter bounced up and down on his chair: What could we do to help you be a little more reverent and stop bouncing on your chair?
Dexter: It would help me stop bouncing on my chair if Alice sat by me.
Cute! So, I did let Alice sit next to him, and he did stop bouncing...but he was a little distracted from the lesson since he kept giving Alice hugs. However, seeing this boy give my little Alice hugs totally melted my mommy heart, so I just went with that.
Later in the class, we were writing a note to invite a couple of friends to come to Primary. The children were dictating and I was writing.
Me: What should we write?
Dexter: You should come to Primary.
Christine: It's fun!
Audrey: We want to be your friends.
Dexter: If you don't come to Primary, you won't get to meet Alice!
Haha--I love that Dexter thinks not getting to meet Alice would be a serious disappointment. :)
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
One Year Old!
Zed and Alice are one! Crazy! It has been a wonderful/hard/amazing/humbling year. It's so fun to watch them grow and learn new things and see their likes and dislikes and personalities.
As a one-year-old, Zed 29 inches tall and weighs 21 pounds, 12 ounces. He is a blonde still, and looking at baby pictures of his daddy, I can definitely see some resemblances between him and Adam. His eyes are mostly green, with some blue in them. He has two teeth and we expect more any day now. He continues to be our sweet Snuggle Bear and gives great hugs.
Some of Zed's favorite things are:
Alice is 28 inches tall and weighs 17 pounds, 1 ounce. She's so tiny, but she doesn't seem to know that. She can totally hold her own with Zed and is very strong. She's our little brunette and also has mostly green with a little bit of blue eyes. She has two teeth. She is still our sweet little pretty girl and I love the fact that she really likes to sit on my lap a lot lately.
Some of Alice's favorite things are:
As a one-year-old, Zed 29 inches tall and weighs 21 pounds, 12 ounces. He is a blonde still, and looking at baby pictures of his daddy, I can definitely see some resemblances between him and Adam. His eyes are mostly green, with some blue in them. He has two teeth and we expect more any day now. He continues to be our sweet Snuggle Bear and gives great hugs.
Some of Zed's favorite things are:
- walking laps around the house
- swinging on the swings
- riding in his Radio Flyer wagon
- wrestling with pillows or Mommy or Daddy
- laughing
- playing Peek-a-Boo
- poking Mommy in the eyes
- eating pancakes!
Alice is 28 inches tall and weighs 17 pounds, 1 ounce. She's so tiny, but she doesn't seem to know that. She can totally hold her own with Zed and is very strong. She's our little brunette and also has mostly green with a little bit of blue eyes. She has two teeth. She is still our sweet little pretty girl and I love the fact that she really likes to sit on my lap a lot lately.
Some of Alice's favorite things are:
- riding in her Radio Flyer wagon, or the stroller, or a shopping cart, or a box, or a laundry basket, or anything that anyone will pull or push her around in
- pushing her toy shopping cart or a box or a laundry basket or anything that she decides needs to move around the floor
- playing in water--she likes the bathtub, her kiddie pool and sprinkler, and the local splash pad
- walking/almost running, especially when she can leap into Mommy's or Daddy's arms at the end
- eating pizza (she has actually only done this once, but she loved it and got upset that I wasn't giving her pieces quickly enough!)
- swinging on the swings
- pulling Mommy's hair
- dancing! She just started doing this recently; she has always enjoyed music but now she is definitely swaying back and forth when she hears it. So cute!
Happy Birthday!
How on earth has it been one year (and three weeks, since I'm a little behind in blogging cuz I've been busy living life instead of writing about it!) since Zed and Alice were born???
Zed and Alice got to have two birthday parties, which was lots of fun. We did a star theme, with some dangly star decorations.
We also had cupcakes that we arranged into star shapes.You can kinda see both the blue and pink cupcakes here.
Zed does not look nearly as happy about his cupcake as you'd expect. He was a little nervous having so many people around.
We were worried Alice might try to grab the flame, but she actually didn't even try!
Our handsome little birthday boy!
And our beautiful little birthday girl!
Zed and Alice got to have two birthday parties, which was lots of fun. We did a star theme, with some dangly star decorations.We also had cupcakes that we arranged into star shapes.You can kinda see both the blue and pink cupcakes here.Zed does not look nearly as happy about his cupcake as you'd expect. He was a little nervous having so many people around.
We were worried Alice might try to grab the flame, but she actually didn't even try!
Our handsome little birthday boy! Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Adam Stories
Me: "They had Duck Dynasty stuff at Walmart, and they had cups, but they were GREEN!" (Uncle Si's ever-present cup is blue...maybe blue-ish green-ish, but definitely not the yellow-green of the Wal-Mart cup)
Adam: "Maybe his started out as green. They should do testing on that thing, if he's had it since Vietnam."
People from Juab County in Utah have a slightly different way of speaking. Some of the things I've heard from them: Chimley (instead of chimney), I've went (instead of I've gone), theirselves (instead of themselves), and ambleance (instead of ambulance). One day, Adam said something he learned in Juab and I sighed and said, "Before I die, I'm going to get the Juab out of you." His response? "Good luck."
Me (after looking from my plate to Adam's and back): "How is it that in the time you've eaten three green beans, I've eaten my whole meal?"
Adam: "Mm-hmm."
Me: "What?"
Adam: "I'm friends with Mountain Man.'" (from Duck Dynasty)
Me: "Oh, I see. Well, I'm not getting you a grape slush."
A couple days after that conversation, Adam and I were eating dinner. I had finished my plateful and went in the living room to check on something. When I came back several minutes later, Adam still had half a plateful of food.
Me: "Is that your first plate?"
Adam: "No, it's my second. I'm slow, but I'm not that slow." :)
Me: "What are we going to do for the babies for Valentine's Day?"
Adam: "I don't know. What does Pinterest tell us to do?"
Me, doing a little online shopping: "Twenty-nine dollars for a bath rug?!"
Adam: "I could paint a rug on the floor for a lot less than that."
Me: "Don't even think about it."
Adam: "If I told you about it, obviously I've already thought about it. And it's a good idea."
Adam: "Maybe his started out as green. They should do testing on that thing, if he's had it since Vietnam."
People from Juab County in Utah have a slightly different way of speaking. Some of the things I've heard from them: Chimley (instead of chimney), I've went (instead of I've gone), theirselves (instead of themselves), and ambleance (instead of ambulance). One day, Adam said something he learned in Juab and I sighed and said, "Before I die, I'm going to get the Juab out of you." His response? "Good luck."
Me (after looking from my plate to Adam's and back): "How is it that in the time you've eaten three green beans, I've eaten my whole meal?"
Adam: "Mm-hmm."
Me: "What?"
Adam: "I'm friends with Mountain Man.'" (from Duck Dynasty)
Me: "Oh, I see. Well, I'm not getting you a grape slush."
A couple days after that conversation, Adam and I were eating dinner. I had finished my plateful and went in the living room to check on something. When I came back several minutes later, Adam still had half a plateful of food.
Me: "Is that your first plate?"
Adam: "No, it's my second. I'm slow, but I'm not that slow." :)
Me: "What are we going to do for the babies for Valentine's Day?"
Adam: "I don't know. What does Pinterest tell us to do?"
Me, doing a little online shopping: "Twenty-nine dollars for a bath rug?!"
Adam: "I could paint a rug on the floor for a lot less than that."
Me: "Don't even think about it."
Adam: "If I told you about it, obviously I've already thought about it. And it's a good idea."
Saturday, March 8, 2014
Nine Months Old!
Zed and Alice are nine (and a half) months old! At their 9-month checkup, Zed was about 27.5 inches (21st percentile) and weighed 19 pounds, 4 ounces (44th percentile). Alice was about 26.5 inches (15th percentile) and weighed 15 pounds, 3 ounces (7th percentile). So, they are both still on the small side for their age--in Alice's case, really small.
However, they are both healthy and happy and strong. They started crawling on January 3rd, within 30 minutes of each other. Alice crawled to reach a toy; Zed crawled when we put a plate of food on the floor and told him he could have some if he crawled to it--which he did...and grabbed a big handful of food. From there, they just took off. Both crawled over to see Ruby in her pen as soon as they got a chance. They quickly learned to pull themselves up to a stand and then, as long as they're holding onto something, walk around. They certainly keep Adam and me busy! They are fast, and Zed especially likes to have us chase him. Earlier this week, they each stood on their own for a few seconds, but they aren't doing that consistently...yet.
Both Zed and Alice like "real" food more than baby food. Zed is a little piggy and we're pretty sure he'll be a Chubby Bunny champ someday (Chubby Bunny is a game where you stuff as many marshmallows as possible in your mouth all at once) since he is always cramming as much food as he can into his mouth! Alice is better about waiting 'til she swallows to put more in. Her favorite food is ham, we think. Zed's favorite food is everything.
Both Alice and Zed have enjoyed moving from the baby tub to the big bathtub. They like to splash each other and kick their feet and have us hold them on their backs and help them float. They have lots of fun in the tub and we have lots of fun watching them. Alice especially is a little water baby and loves, loves, loves being in the tub.
Zed cut his first tooth earlier this week, and Alice looks like she's got two that will be here soon!
Both babies continue to bring so much joy to us. They are super sweet and cuddly and we love them to bits and pieces!
**Alice has her first tooth, too! It's just barely poking through as of this afternoon.
However, they are both healthy and happy and strong. They started crawling on January 3rd, within 30 minutes of each other. Alice crawled to reach a toy; Zed crawled when we put a plate of food on the floor and told him he could have some if he crawled to it--which he did...and grabbed a big handful of food. From there, they just took off. Both crawled over to see Ruby in her pen as soon as they got a chance. They quickly learned to pull themselves up to a stand and then, as long as they're holding onto something, walk around. They certainly keep Adam and me busy! They are fast, and Zed especially likes to have us chase him. Earlier this week, they each stood on their own for a few seconds, but they aren't doing that consistently...yet.
Both Zed and Alice like "real" food more than baby food. Zed is a little piggy and we're pretty sure he'll be a Chubby Bunny champ someday (Chubby Bunny is a game where you stuff as many marshmallows as possible in your mouth all at once) since he is always cramming as much food as he can into his mouth! Alice is better about waiting 'til she swallows to put more in. Her favorite food is ham, we think. Zed's favorite food is everything.
Both Alice and Zed have enjoyed moving from the baby tub to the big bathtub. They like to splash each other and kick their feet and have us hold them on their backs and help them float. They have lots of fun in the tub and we have lots of fun watching them. Alice especially is a little water baby and loves, loves, loves being in the tub.
Zed cut his first tooth earlier this week, and Alice looks like she's got two that will be here soon!
Both babies continue to bring so much joy to us. They are super sweet and cuddly and we love them to bits and pieces!
**Alice has her first tooth, too! It's just barely poking through as of this afternoon.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Zed's and Alice's First Christmas!
Okay, I'm waaaaaay behind in blogging, but we've been super busy! But for those who are interested, here's a little bit of our Christmas celebration.
It was super fun getting ready for Christmas this year. I have to say, Adam is not the most fun person to give gifts to--he's always appreciative, but he's not the type to get very excited. And since I end up picking out half of my own gifts, I'm not the most fun, either! But this year, I had tons of fun shopping for Zed and Alice and wrapping their presents. Even though they were a little young to know what was going on, I loved helping them open presents and reading the Christmas story to them.
Here are our stockings, all ready to go!
Christmas tree
Alice and Zed, ready to open their first presents!
Alice in front of the tree
Zed in front of the tree
Alice and Zed with their gifts from Grandma Potter--some fun little bugs and some onesies
Zed and Alice with their presents from Grandma and Grandpa Perry: a toy workbench, a box of food (notice what Zed is reaching for!), a toy laptop and a toy kitchen set!
Zed with his turtle (it crawls and says, "Crawl with me, Baby!")
Alice with her Laugh and Learn Puppy
Zed and Alice with their present for Daddy--a calendar with pictures of them :)
Alice at Grandma and Grandpa Everitt's house
Zed at Grandma and Grandpa Everitt's house
Merry Christmas!
It was super fun getting ready for Christmas this year. I have to say, Adam is not the most fun person to give gifts to--he's always appreciative, but he's not the type to get very excited. And since I end up picking out half of my own gifts, I'm not the most fun, either! But this year, I had tons of fun shopping for Zed and Alice and wrapping their presents. Even though they were a little young to know what was going on, I loved helping them open presents and reading the Christmas story to them.
Here are our stockings, all ready to go!
Christmas tree
Alice and Zed, ready to open their first presents!
Alice and Zed helping me open my present from them: the Willow Tree "Two Together" set--twins! And it's funny, they are just like Zed and Alice--one has his hand in his mouth (like Zed) and one is holding onto her foot (like Alice).
Adam with his griddle...which I was so proud of keeping hidden since, like, July. Turns out, he saw it before Christmas :(
Alice at Grandma and Grandpa Everitt's house
