A Tale of Two Funnies

No new pictures, just two funny thing that have been said in our family this week:
*First, we were driving home last week and passed by a bunch of orange cones. Cole asked what they were for and I said, "They've been workin' here." Without missing a beat he asked, "Like Arvin?" I asked who Arvin was and he replied, "You know, Arvin workin' on the railroad."
*The same day we were in Jo-Anns, standing in a long line, and Quentin looked up at the enormously ugly Santas that seem to be everywhere and yelled, "Jesus!" I could not (and still can't) convince him that all people with white beards are not Jesus.
That's it. Enjoy.

Final for now

These last pictures are not from Oregon. Two big things have gone on for Avery this week. On Wednesday night she finished her AWANA Climber book. That means she completed 3 books and earned a trophy. The second was a big writing assignment for school. She was asked to write on a tradition in her family based on her heritage. She chose the Swedish part and wrote on pancakes. She also had to make a doll out of cardboard or paper or whatever material she wanted. Choosing the easiest (yeah right), she chose to sew it. She and I set up the sewing machine, and began sewing. I didn't want this to turn into a project done by me, and she sewed almost the entire thing (with a bit of guidance). Her Swedish doll is so beautiful. Here are a few pics.

Pony rides

Wendy was kind enough to let the kids ride Whirlwind, her horse. Avery was quite scared, but Cole loved it. I got near the horse with Quentin, and it was as if he was going to be eaten. He screamed, so he opted to stand near the horse for a picture.

Having fun hanging out with the dads

Denzel Carousel

While we were in Oregon, we drove to the Albany Oregon Brass RIng Carousel. A man named Dentzel creates them and volunteers carve them. It was amazing to watch people just relaxing and carving these beautiful designs. They were so kind to the herd of children we brought in and even put the giraffe's head on just so Avery could sit on it. Avery was also the first person to sit on the newly carved frog. A few are already painted and they sat on them also. We had a wonderful time and look forward to going back in a few years and riding it.



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Some Oregon pics

It has taken me a bit to get the pictures on my computer, but here they are. For anyone who doesn't know, we headed to Corvallis, Oregon for Thanksgiving. My very dear friend, Wendy, and her family moved up there one year ago. Ryan (3) and Caleb (19 months) and our 3 had a good time mixed with a little arguing and a few meltdowns, but parted ways smiling. We even got a babysitter and went out to dinner... just the grown-ups. Like a date. Here are a few pictures of the arboretum for OSU (please, Wendy, tell me if the initials are wrong). Apparently there is a big rivalry, but I've been assured that the Beavers are the better team. The picture of Cole by himself was right after he inched his way to the end of the dock. He was so proud.

AWANA Grand Prix

A few weeks ago, the kids made cars for the Grand Prix at church. Avery kinda copied Auntie Mel and made a butter car, Cole made a train. There were no trophies for them this year, but we had great fun. What we learned from this year: 1) racing the 3 and 4 year olds at the end is not a good idea and 2) if you don't cut the car (Avery's) it will be way too heavy to race. Bryan had to hollow it out that night.

Let's Party!

Avery had a few friends over Sunday to celebrate her birthday. We made our own pizzas (same as last year, but Avery requested it), we ironed on pictures to canvas bags, and ate cake. I realized that next year we will have to plan something different. I think in an age where enormous parties are the common thing, a small party at home doesn't entertain some kids as much. I'm not saying for a second that next year her party will be at one of those places, and Avery really enjoyed herself. I did however hear a few say they were bored, or question why their canvas bag was not full of stuff(I only bought a few things - and the bags!). Enough of my grumbling, Avery said all afternoon how wonderful it was and even noticed that the cake I decorated matched the paisley plates we got. Her friends were sweet to her and all left smiling, although it may have been because they were in a comatose state of boredom and were finally going home.

Ouch

As we were getting out of the car on Friday, Cole began screaming that awful sound that every mom knows that means "COME NOW, I'M NOT FAKING!" I raced over and saw the tip of his finger stuck in the door. I had to open it to get him out, poor baby. It was instantly purple, and didn't bleed until it was stepped on Saturday night. That's when we bought the finger splint to help avoid anymore injury. So, here's a picture. It's a bit icky, but Cole said it is feeling a little better today. Ouch.

The big 07

It is amazing to watch a child born so small grow into such a delightful young lady. At seven she is:
• so stinkin' smart (she is just like Bryan)
• completely uncoordinated (like both of her parents)
• kind, respectful to her teacher and classmates (one of my favorite qualities about her)
• silly- she makes us laugh every day
• incredibly stubborn since birth. She is convinced she was up all night and never slept waiting for her birthday.
• confident in herself
• convinced she is great at soccer (refer back to the second point, I'll say no more)
• growing to love God more and more each day. She loves her verses, devotional and time we spend talking about Him
• reading often until we tell her to turn off her light. Unless it has ghosts (she doesn't like those).
• convinced she no longer needs a booster seat, although starting out a 4 1/2 lbs, she still has a long way to go (sorry Girl)

I'm sure this goofy list is just for me, but I love her so much. She has taught me to be a more confident mom and I'm glad she thinks I do a good job.

Avery, I am so proud of the girl you are and excited to see what God has planned for your life.

The Harvest Fun Fest

My pianist

Q loves to play the piano. He has also been practicing going on the potty a bit. So, what do you get when you add those things... a naked pianist.

Avery's Limo ride

Monday Avery had her limo ride as her prize for the Gator Gallup. She and 19 other second graders were taken to Red Robin for lunch. I got there to take pictures, expecting to see a bunch of other moms with cameras. Nope. I was quite disappointed to be the only one. I was glad to hear Avery's response as she saw the bus, "That is the biggest limousine I have ever seen." They said they had a great time. I was hoping she wouldn't be disappointed because it was a bus, not a car type of limo, but no way. It was filled with couches. Way to go, Avery, and thanks to all who supported her. Hopefully you'll be receiving a thank you note soon. BTW Avery got her report card last week and received all Gs (good). She was in tears because she had two G-, but we were so proud.

Cherry Dress

Gramma Jo, sorry it has taken me so long to get this picture up. She loves the dress.

Carving

A bit of explanation. Cole was listening for the ocean. He did not like the pumpkin guts, and finally had to stop on pulling them out. Avery pretended it was a body and she was performing major surgery.

Pumpkin Patch

Last week we went to the pumpkin patch with Kyle and Joshua. We all had fun, despite the fact that the bounce houses, pony rides... were super expensive. Then we went back to our house and carved pumpkins and ate pizza. Avery carved a skeleton (since that's their science unit right now). Cole made a pirate's ship. Q just carried his around.

Science in a nut shell... or a cocoon

Anybody who knows me knows I never pass an opportunity to teach my kids science (thanks Mom), so this week we had an exceptional find at our home. It was much better than the "fossil" that Cole found in the yard which turned out to be a bird's foot or the other nasty stuff the kids love to show me. A week ago we found these orange and black pokey caterpillars on our Passion flower. I was ready to spray them so they wouldn't eat the beautiful flowers, but thought I'd look them up on the internet. I found what it is, the Gulf Frittilary butterfly according to enature.com. So, we have been watching these insects as caterpillars, then cocoons, now butterflies. Just thought people would like to see what we've been up to. Hope you enjoy, Grammy Honey!