Confusion

Last night Everett started talking about how his food goes down into his stomach, so I decided to show him a simple animation of the digestive tract on You Tube. He found the whole thing to be very interesting (especially the "end" of the food's journey) and learned the basic parts (throat, stomach, intestines). He had fun squishing his intestines and mine, and it was fun for me to see him visualize it.

A few minutes later he came to me and showed me his abdomen. I asked him if his intestines were still there.

"No! Baby!" He exclaimed. I figured that he realized if he has a baby in his tummy (which apparently he does, just like me), he can't possibly have room for intestines, too. I have asked him a few times since and he is adamant that the baby is there, and there is no room for intestines.


(Just in case you are worried, his stomach is still there.)


It's fun to see him thinking even if he is getting those thoughts a little mixed up. The thing I love about this age is that everything is a new concept. It is fun to watch him begin to sort everything out in his own way.

Dreamers

Joel and I were having a discussion today in which we talked about what we would do if we made a million dollars annually.

(It's fun to dream when a big shopping trip is fifty dollars at the grocery store.)

"A basketball court," He said immediately. "We'll dig deep down past the basement." Lighting, wood floors, the whole works.

I joke a little about letting the kids ride their bikes down there in the winter (because, you know, this is such a real possibility. . .) and grin as he reacts badly to that idea.

"WHAT? You don't let kids take bikes down on a wood basketball court."

"No problem," I reply, trying to get a reaction. "We'll just put in that laminate vinyl flooring they have in elementary school gyms."

"NO. No way." He was adamant, and I enjoyed my joke.

But now it was my turn.

"Let's see," I muse. "If we made seven figures, I'd hire someone to clean the house." I don't care if our house is small, I would afford myself that luxury, I think.

"What?" Joel was incredulous. "You'd pay someone to clean? That is ridiculous. Why would you do that?" (as though I love cleaning.)

"Well, you get your massive court in the basement. I should get something too, and I pick house cleaners. What's so wrong with that? It would cost less than just the upkeep on your man cave."

"I don't know. It's the principle of the thing." Joel is very helpful around the house and harbors no notion that women should do all the cleaning. However, his view of "necessary" expenses is a little funny. Basketball court in the basement? Check. House cleaners? Why would we need those?

Really, this wasn't the point of my post. Joel goes out of his way to make sure I feel appreciated. My point is that it is fun to have dreams, even knowing that we will be perfectly content if (when) they never happen. My point is that money isn't overly important but it can get some fun things. My point is. . .ok, apparently I didn't really have a point. You just spent the last five minutes of your time reading a conversation of our thoughts. Feel better?

But really, I do want to ask: What would you do if you made a million dollars? Would it have something to do with your house? Would you travel? Would you buy an elephant? Practical or wild, what would you most want to do?

Boy of Few Words. . .

Everett has been making a lot of progress with his speech, but he still generally speaks with as few words as possible. It is interesting to see him express his almost-three-year-old ideas with one, two, or three words.

Yesterday we were eating some raw broccoli. Everett loves eating it and sometimes pretends they are trees. He and I started talking about how he is a dinosaur and eating all the trees. "Oh No!" we said, "where will the birds live?"

Joel doubted Everett's rationality so he asked pointedly, "Everett, is that a tree or is it broccoli?"

Everett looked right back at Joel, thought for a moment at how to say what he wanted, and said carefully, "No, Dinosaur!" He wasn't saying the broccoli was a dinosaur; he was saying that he is a dinosaur and aren't you silly Papa, you know I'm pretending to eat this tree because some dinosaurs are big and eat the leaves on trees.

But yeah, you know, he didn't actually say that. We're getting there, though. Someday he'll be able to tell me all that. Right now I'm just his interpreter, but I try to fill his head with ideas so he has more he wants to say. Let me tell you, You Tube has been great for this. Have you ever shown a video of a mosquito sucking some one's blood to a two or three year old? Try it. It is something else. Now Everett understands that mosquitoes give him bug bites because they stick their long pointy mouths into his arm and fill their bodies up with his blood. Yum, yum! We don't fear that which we understand, right? (hopefully. . .)

Par-tay!

Everett attended his first real birthday party ( a)not involving family, and b)being old enough to really understand what a party is.) today. He has been looking forward to this day ever since we got the invitation--which he has faithfully been sleeping with at night.

"Mommy, PARTY!!!" he would occasionally yell to me as a reminder. He would also tell anyone else who would listen.

He had a lot of fun picking out the present, and had even more fun decorating the "wrapping paper" and making a card (because I wasn't prepared with any real wrapping stuff). He clutched it carefully the entire morning before the party and presented it proudly when we got there. I was just glad he was okay with giving it to someone else.

He had a great time and came home satisfied and excited for the next one. He may have to wait until his birthday, but we'll try to make it a good one.

Miss Personality

A couple of weeks ago, I cut Ashley off of the pacifier--and we did it cold turkey. She can have it while she sleeps and naps, but otherwise she is out of luck. I wasn't too worried about it because she is still pretty young, but she isn't making very many sounds so I want to give her a lot of opportunity to practice before I even start to get worried about it :).

Well, we've had a couple of weeks filled with whining (I guess it isn't called a "plug" for nothing). I expected it a little, but I was surprised to hear the amount of whining and screeching coming from her little lungs, especially when Everett does something to annoy her. Or when he considers bothering her. Or when he breathes in her direction. I figure I've got about 16 more years of this so we're getting used to it.

However, it has been fun to see a little more of her personality. Case(s) in point, having something or nothing to do with a lack of pacifier:

~Today Everett, Joel, and I had a bit of a water fight. We're talking teaspoons of water, people, and yes, it has been months since the last incident, lest you think we're completely out of control around here. After we were done, Ashley asked for a drink of water. I watched her carry her cup over to Joel, dump it over on his foot, and grin satisfyingly as she brought it back to me. At least she's been trained to get the right parent.

~If Ashley asks for something and we tell her "no" oh boy do we hear about it. Whew. She will spend twenty minutes asking repeatedly and after each denial will scream and yell and collapse dramatically on the floor. I have been waiting for a little more drama with this child and we've finally got it. (It is during these times that I remember all the blog posts I wrote about the perfect baby that she was. I knew it wouldn't last forever; it's just nice it was that way at all.)

~Ashley continues her love for stuffed animals. Her favorite is a giant stuffed monkey from my mother. She sleeps with it every night and grabs for it every morning when she wakes up. It is as big as she is but she enjoys dragging it around and giving it more hugs than anyone else on earth.

~She loves climbing. Her favorite toys are kitchen toys, or anything with little animals she can put into containers. She still loves bananas, but she also loves any other kind of food she can scavenge for.

~No talking yet. She signs and screeches, and that's about it! We may have another case of apraxia, but it is too early to tell and I'm not going to worry about it yet. I'm giving her time to catch up, and I'm trusting myself to recognize the signs this time around.

~She will follow simple commands, though. She finds her shoes anytime we say we're going outside, and if we're being slow enough, she'll get everyone else's too. She will start climbing in her high chair when it's dinnertime. She takes things out of her mouth (except dirt and sand) if I ask her to. She will give things back to their owner, and she will deliver things if I send her to do it.

That's all I'm going to write. It helps me keep track of everything! If you read this far, you're a saint.

Happiness Is. . .

Spur-of-the-moment swordfights with vacuum cleaner pieces.

In our house, we like to stay young and make way too much noise.

Quests

Joel likes to tease me that I and my family are always on some sort of "quest." My Dad is on a quest for the perfect pillow and the perfect pancake recipe. I am on a quest for the perfect whole wheat bread recipe, and the most absolutely perfect from-scratch brownie recipe.

I haven't had much luck with the brownie recipe (the King Arthur brand directions for whole wheat bread are pretty good). The brownies would turn out too cakey, too cardboardy, or too gooey.


BUT, I have realized that the "perfect brownie" means different things to different people. To me, it means a deep chocolate flavor with a dense, chewy texture. No frosting.

Then you have the cakey brownie fans. I know a few of you, and no offense, but I don't understand this one. If you want chocolate flavored cake, can't you just make chocolate cake? Or call the "brownies" chocolate cake? Isn't that essentially what it is? (Nothing wrong with a good chocolate cake, by the way.)


Also, there are the hardcore fudgey brownie fans. I used to think I was in this camp, but I realized I didn't like the texture as much. However, I can respect this group because the chocolate flavor does seem to intensify this way.


SO, I have good news! I finally found the PERFECT BROWNIE RECIPE. Why is it so perfect? It will make everyone happy. There are three separate versions to satisfy those of you with each preference.

(clockwise from top left: blondies, cake brownies, fudgey brownies, chewy brownies)

I made the chewy version last night and it was by far my best success. The flavor was deep and rich and the texture was right on.

The best part? I think my brownie recipe quest is over!

Wait, what's that? What's that, you say? You want the recipe? Oh. Well, HERE it is (the picture is from the same article). It comes from a magazine called "Fine Cooking" and is ten years old. Why haven't I seen it before, I wonder? FYI, I haven't used baker's chocolate. . .I just convert cocoa powder by adding oil to it, as per directions on the box. Now that I'm thinking about it, I think I accidentally added extra oil to the recipe, which could change the texture. But it worked. Baker's chocolate would probably be even better, but I cook on whims and don't always like to have to get it beforehand.

And, I'm curious. What kind of brownies do you like? Let me know how it goes if you try out the recipe. I'd love to hear how the other ones are.

Playing Favorites

Fresh Mozzarella on a crusty baguette

Stroking the faces of my sleeping children

Fall breezes

The thump-thump my heart does every time Joel walks in the door from school or work

A beautiful movie

Cross-breezes in my apartment

When my family wants to eat the leftovers

Dimples

Long walks on a breezy day

Pushing past my bedtime with an intriguing chapter

Fresh pineapple

Books about diseases of the mind

Dark chocolate

Preschool TV shows in the morning

Knowing I've been productive

Creating something

Nap time

A compliment from a friend

Freshly cut and imperfectly arranged flowers

Feeling my mind or spirit grow

Watching my children experience the excitement of learning something new

Baking something special

Kisses

What about you? What are your favorites today?

Today I took the kids to the Zoo after Everett's hearing screening (it's his third one, still has inflammation and fluid in his right ear, gotta get it checked out, but that's another story), and they had a great time. It is a very small zoo--no elephants or giraffes! The kids don't seem to mind, though.

I even let Everett ride on the train. It seems like everything is free for kids three and under, so I have to take advantage of these days.

We were the only ones on the train, so Merle, our conductor, called the ride "The Everett Express!" and let Everett sit in the engine for a picture. Everett thought it was pretty fun and has talked about it since.

Cute picture of Everett on the train with Ashley and me. Too bad Ashley wasn't looking, or this could have been a good picture.

Ashley loved the zoo and spent her time leaping out of the stroller anytime she saw an animal enclosure. Her excitable sounds were something else.

Everett was especially taken by this giant tortise. Obviously he's thinking about something very important. . .


All in all, a fun day. It was a spur of the moment trip, and I'm glad we did it. We don't have a whole lot of warm days left this fall.

Announcing. . .

The arrival of our new baby!

Isn't he cute? This two-year-old has recently had quite a fascination with babies. He notices them everywhere we go and points them out to me with pleasure. Why he pronounces the word baby like "bee" but can say "amazing" almost perfectly is beyond me, but I take what I can get. He also has wanted to be wrapped as a baby, always in the same cars and trucks comforter.

My other baby, Ashley, is getting to be less baby-ish every day. She is almost fifteen months old and is becoming quite a nuisance in church. She can make it through Sacrament meeting pretty well but poor Joel spends the remainder of Church roaming the halls. Unfortunately I am out in the halls pretty often as well, so when Ashley sees me she is less than happy with me not being able to hold her.

Aren't these cute? I found these second hand for three dollars. Ashley needed some new church shoes pretty badly so I found some girly ones. They are too girly for Joel, but I told him that when he buys the clothes and dresses the kids, he can decide what they wear. Little does he know I won't let it get to that point. . .

And, if you've made it this far, you can be "in the know," as they say. We are expecting another baby in March. Everett thinks its so neat I have a baby in my tummy that he informed me that he has one in his as well. It's a boy, apparently. At 13 weeks along, we are now excited and ready for the challenge of having three kids ages three and under. It will be an adventure, to say the least!

Here's the fuzzy pixelated lima bean, for those of you who are interested. Baby is three inches long and one ounce.

And, because I know some of you will be wondering, here are the answers to what might be your questions:

1. Yes, I have been a little nauseated and very tired. Nothing big; I'm sure I'll be tired until I get all these kids out of the house, and then I'll have to sleep for ten years just to make up for lost time, so "tired" is a state I'm getting used to.

2. Yes, technically I may be "showing". However, most of it is the extra weight from my "well-I-guess-I'm-pregnant-now-so-forget-all-this-eating-to-be-trim" attitude. Go figure (hah.) I lost my remaining five pounds from Ashley and gained six for this baby the very next week, after no dietary changes, so I pretty much threw in the towel after that.

3. Do I have names picked out? Yes. But we'll save those for later :).

4. Do I know what it is? I have my suspicions, but I was wrong with both of my other kids. (I think it's a boy, by the way).

5. What about your 500 square feet of living space? Good question. Baby will be sleeping in a bouncer in our room for his/her first two months of life until we move. Who knows, maybe it will even help with acid reflux. When we move, we'll figure out a more long-term solution.

So, there you go! I was going to think of a creative way to announce this, but quite frankly, I'm too tired. Don't worry; I am getting used to it, and I am reveling in these days when I have both kids napping at the same time.

Clean Floors

Yesterday the kids and I discovered a great way to clean the kitchen floor. I was doing dishes and had an enormous mountain of soap bubbles in the sink, so I took a big chunk and tossed it in the air to Everett. It floated magically and slowly made its way down to the floor.

That was enough for him, so I put the dishes on hold and we had a bubble tossing contest. When it was all said and done, the kids had fun stomping out the remaining bits that were left on the floor. The best part was, after wiping the bubbles up with a cloth, Everett had the floors looking better than they did before. I think I'll have to get my floors cleaned more often this way!

Entertainment

Everett and I are alone tonight for a little while, so I told him he could stay up with me and watch a show on TV. Sometimes he watches a house show on HGTV with me and we have a running commentary on the designs. He can watch those shows for a surprisingly long time.

"Everett, do you like the color they're putting on the wall?"

"Noooooo. . . . ."

"Well, what should they paint it?"

"Blue! Airplanes!"


But tonight we were flipping channels and decided on America's Funniest Home Videos.

He has been laughing hysterically. What a good show for an almost three year old! I admit, I haven't found it this funny in a while, but there is just something infectious about belly laughs that unburies the funny from your own insides.

Thrifting and Saving

This week I bought a bushel of peaches for 15 dollars, so Everett and I have been on the hunt for a "really big pot." Really, I've just been hoping to find a big canning pot at a thrift store around here, but for simplicity's sake I just told Everett we were looking for a big pot. He was excited to search for it with me. He also told me (and anyone else who would listen) all day yesterday that we didn't find it. Where is it? He would wonder.

We went to many thrift stores over two days and finally found it at the 11th hour in an unexpected flea market on the way home from the last Salvation Army/Goodwill in our area. We walked in and there our pot sat, in fine condition with a price tag of 1.50. You can't beat that. I think I can say my first time at a flea market was a sucess.

BUT, we did find a few good things along the way to make it all worth while.

Cute dog halloween costume for Ashley: 3.00 brand new.
Fireman's hat for Everett's halloween costume that lights up: 75 cents
Three baseballs and a softball: 25-50 cents each. (We're trying to amasse a collection so we look whenever we're at a thrift store.)

AND, a neat little game called "Don't Break the Ice". Is anyone familiar with this game? I used to love it. I have been wanting to get it for Everett for a while now, so when I found it for 50 cents at a thrift store, having all the pieces in tact, I couldn't say no.

He has been thrilled. I think he was happier about this than anything else we might have found.

Ashley has liked it too. She is actually pretty good at it!

Now I have the beginnings of a thrift store shopping list:
Hot rollers
Cookie Sheets
Dutch oven/large oven pot with lid

Basically, we had a lot of fun exploring the stores. I think we have discovered a good winter activity. Joel will hate it, I think. He doesn't like collecting things "we'll just have to move."

I think once I get some mason jars I'll have to get bottling, after I pick up the canning rack/tongs/funnel kit from Wal-mart. I have some peaches in the freezer already. Once I get the peaches down, I'll take advantage of some of the local "canning" deals, like a bushel of apples for 8.00, or 20 pounds of canning tomatoes for 9.00. Cheap!

Any tips for me? Am I biting off more than I can chew?

Starting Him Young

Lately Everett has insisted on vacuuming for me. It takes him forever and I always need to finish up because he misses almost everything, but it is nice that he is showing enthusiasm for what is supposed to be a chore. It certainly isn't a chore to him.

See how thrilled he is? I'll have to show him this picture when he is a teenager.

This Is To Help You Sleep Tonight. . .

1. A rat can tread water for three days and survive being flushed down the toilet. (And it can return to the building via the same route.) There is approximately one rat per person in the United States.

2. In June 2006, animal rescue workers in Petaluma, Calif., found Roger Dier in his one-bedroom home overrun with more than 1,000 brown rats. The brood began after the obsessed collector took pity on a baby rat he planned to feed to his pet python.

3. Rats can squeeze through a hole as small as a quarter to get into your house.

4. Rats eat their own feces, purely for the nutritional value.

5. A female rat can mate as many as 500 times with various males during a six-hour period of receptivity -- a state she experiences about 15 times per year. Thus a pair of brown rats can produce as many as 2,000 descendants in a year if left to breed unchecked. (A rat matures sexually at age three to four months.) An average rat's life span is two to three years.

6. A rat can fall as far as 50 feet and land uninjured.

7. A recent study at the National Institutes of Health revealed that decreasing the caloric intake of rats expands their life span. So feed them as much as you can.

8. Rats are known to transmit several potentially fatal diseases to humans, including viral hemorrhagic fever, plague, Weil's disease and Q fever.

After reading all this, does anyone still like rats? Blech. I think I'd better go read something else before I go to sleep tonight.

(photo and information taken from THIS article.)

Have You Ever. . .

. . .had to figure out how to walk/run through the church building while chasing two screaming girls through the halls without sounding like a hypocrite when you say, "Remember, we must walk! No screaming please! This is Jesus' house!"

I did, four separate times today. Let me tell you, I was beyond grateful for the ward exectutive secretary and the Bishop, who just happened to be out in the halls at the exact moment the girls decided to split directions and dash wildy around. I couldn't have done it without them; in fact, I might still be stuck going around and around that church building!

I still had a good day at church, though. Those girls actually let me sit by them and one of them even looked up at me and dreamily said, "Do you think when I get older I can have hair like yours?"

Sometimes it's the small moments that carry us forward. The big moments, well, after those sometimes I just need a nap.

In a similar vein. . .

Today on the way to church I was talking to Everett about when the horses came to our complex for a visit last week.

His reluctance to get near the horses, let alone ride on one, prompted me to ask,

"Everett, were you scared?"

He looked at me and grinned.

"No mommy. Happy!"


Well. I guess something about all those feelings we talk about has sunk in.


Of course, then we have conversations like this:

(Everett needing help with something, like opening a popsicle)

"Mommy, help you, help you, help you!"

"No, Everett. It's Help me, Can you say help ME?

He looks at me with confusion. "No. ME!" He says. "Help you!"

"Everett, when you ask me, you should say "Help ME", not "Help YOU."

"No! Help YOU!" He reiterates, patting himself on the chest, growing increasingly frustrated.

"No, not "ME", I say, pointing to myself. You are ME. when YOU need help, you SAY Help ME."

"No Mommy!" He growls. "Help YOU. No me."

I try to explain it to him one more time, while I watch his impatience balloon into tension.

"NO MOMMY! HELP YOU. HELP YOU. HELP YOU!"


I think we have a little progress to make, but I'm just pleased we can even have this kind of conversation. This boy has been making so much progress lately, I can't think about it without feeling pleased.

Everett-isms

Forgive me; you'll have to indulge me on this one. I want to record some of the things Everett does and says lately, because these are the things I know I'll forget but wish I remembered.

WHAT HE SAYS:

I feel like I have a teenager living in the house. Everything is "cause. . ." or "WHY??!!" Everything.

"Everett, why did you turn the TV back on when I told you not to?"
(Standing casually by the TV with his ankles crossed, looking unruffled) "Cause. . ."


"Everett, you need to go make your bed now."
"WHY?!"

We have been talking about feelings lately. Sometimes I go into the kids' room only to discover that Ashley is crying over some cruel injustice (hah). Sometimes I ask Everett what happened.

"Everett, why is Ashley crying?"
"Cause. . .sad!"
"Well, why is she sad?"
(looks at me quizzically) "Cause. . .crying."
"Yes, I know. Why is she crying?"
Exasperatedly: "Cause, SAD!"

Circular logic. Someday we'll be more linear :).


WHAT HE DOES:

Everett has a little battery-operated drill that actually works. The other day Joel pointed it at Everett like a gun (yes, I gave Joel a talking to about that move) and said, "BAM! BAM!"

So now my sweet Everett, who has no concept of what a gun is yet--he's still into Mickey Mouse type stuff--goes up to all of us in the house, drills into our bellies, and gleefully shouts "BAM! BAM!" Thank you, Joel.


Everett is very interested in the state of the sun. For instance, he is the first to point out that the sun has gone down. He knows that he cannot get in bed with us until the sun comes up. He just informed me two minutes ago that the sun is sleeping and reluctantly added "Me." Yes, he knows. If the sun is in bed, Everett is in bed.


Everett also loves to help me cook anything. A couple of weeks ago I was dicing some onions and mincing some garlic, and he got brave and tried some. He really liked it and spent the remainder of prep and dinner picking out little pieces of garlic and excitedly informing me about his discovery.

He also knows to put his dishes in the sink when he is done eating, and if he forgets he is usually happy to do it when reminded. I'd like to hope that this will last until he moves out of the house, but I don't want to kid myself.

When the speech therapist comes and goes through picture cards of prompt words, Everett happily sits down and says them but adds a different little gesture for each picture. I don't know why he does this, but I think it helps him remember what is what.

Everett loves to hide, anytime, anywhere, any way he can. But he can never stay in his spot for long without some giggles bursting out of his mouth.

He has to sleep on the floor in his room, and he cannot sleep without Ashley being in there too. Whenever we talk about going somewhere, the first person he asks about is Ashley. He has to make sure we don't leave her behind. Only then does he worry about Mom and Dad.


WHAT HE HAS LEARNED:

He knows the letters of the buildings his friends live in, and he has learned quite a few other letters. He still gets mixed up on the sounds sometimes but I think this goes hand-in-hand with his speech struggles, so I'm not too worried about it right now.

Everett has just learned about bones and enjoys pointing them out to me on his body and mine. He is fascinated with dinosaur books and especially likes looking at the archaeologists digging.

He also knows which animals eat meat and which eat plants (and, incidentally, where their poop comes out, but that's beside the point). He knows to look at the animal's teeth to tell what it eats, but he mostly just likes doing this with dinosaurs :).

Lastly (you thought this was never going to end, didn't you?) Everett has learned that he LOVES the story of the Three Little Pigs. We read it for the first time on Monday and he has asked for it repeatedly. It really is a great story, with just enough repetition to hook a child his age.