I love New York…

and so did they.

     

For all the Dead Poet’s Society Fans…

Oh Captain My Captain

Just kidding…

Hallooween 2009

I will never use cardboard costumes again.  Here is why, they aren’t comfortable, the kids can’t move in them or see in them, and we (Jeff or I) wind up carrying them (wearing them).

Here is a little glimpse:

Here are some pictures of the boys.  Kenzie refused to wear her cardboard costumes.

 

        

 

MOPS Fun

This picture shows how much Kenzie likes MOPS.

Kid Logic

Me: Kenzie, did you cut the bottom of the toothpaste tube off?

Kenzie: Yes

Me: Please tell me why.

Kenzie:  I thought there was some toothpaste left in the bottom of the tube so I wanted to check. And I needed some.

I had no words.

School Starts

On the evening after the first day of school we ate sandwiches for dinner at my aunt & uncles beach house. It's tradition for my parents to do this (my mom's a principal). They usually eat on the beach, but the views from the house are spectacular especially when the sun is setting. It was a beautiful night, crisp and clear.  Here they are on the hammock.

Koah was not a big fan of the hammock… sitting on the hammock would mean he would have to stop moving for 30 seconds… and I knew that wasn’t happening.

He would rather climb the railing of the deck 4 stories high.

We were eating our dinner when my mom spotted something in the ocean. Dolphins and lots of them. It was as if they were performing for us. They were everywhere. I have seen a school of dolphins swim past as I am sitting on the beach. This was different. They weren't swimming past. They were circling right out in front of us. Some were even jumping out of the water. Jeff tried to capture a few pictures. It’s not great a pic but it is the best we got. It was an unexpected treat.

School Year’s Eve- Korben

My oldest, off to kindergarten tomorrow.

He is ready. I am ready. We are ready.

I hope I don’t show too much excitement.

I will try to contain myself from dancing in the streets.

An update tomorrow on how it goes.

 

Weather Change

It dropped below 80 degrees… it is time to break out the sweatshirts. 

Meet Your New MOPS Coordinator

ME!

This is what I wrote to the moms in the group when I decided to take on this role.

Dear MOPS Moms,

I am writing you to introduce myself as your new MOPS coordinator.  When I was informed that we were without a leader for our 2009-2010 year I immediately felt something pulling at my heart to fill this role.  I waited, assuming for sure that someone else would fill the position.  After lots of prayers and the support of incredible friends and family I made the final decision to take on the role of coordinator.  And to be honest, I am really nervous but I know that God will equip me with what I need to lead this group.

I have been attending MOPS now for 5 years but have only attended MBC's group for the past year.  I am passionate about this organization as it has ministered to me as a new, inexperienced,  scared mother.  I have laughed and cried with other moms at MOPS.  And my vision is that our MOPS environment is one where all moms feel welcome and safe.

I am excited to kick off our MOPS year on September 22nd.  This year's theme is "Together on Planet Mom".

Peace,

-Jill

Kenzie’s Kids

Kenzie loves her kids. Yes, she has kids. Ask her, she will tell you all about them, in detail. What they look like? The things they enjoy. She is sad when they are sad but she takes very good care of them. She brings them along on errands with us (they are very well behaved) and on occasion we have left room for them in the cart. Last week she taught them what she learned at VBS.

These are her imaginary kids but to her they are as real as real could be.

I recently asked her how many kids she has and their names.

Here was her response:

Kenzie's 10 kids

TuNu

HuTu

Hairy

Painty

Turtle

Balloony

Makeup Magnet

Planets Galore

Soapy Pineapple

Mr. Pecker

Vacation Highlights

Kenzie loved her bubble baths.

The one and only fish caught the whole week.

Koah stuffing his face as per usual.

Our first kid free hike since becoming parents. Thanks to my brothers.

Project Complete

Five and half years ago I enrolled in a quilting class when we lived in Seattle and when I was 8 months pregnant.  I began with a small project, a wall hanging. 

Three children later and 4 moves later that wall hanging is complete!

Thanks to a local group called the Sewing Sisters (which I found out about through MOPS) who guided me through this project to its finish and has encouraged me to keep with quilting which I love.

The finished project:

Miracles Do Happen

For the first time in his 13 months of life Koah, aka The Non Sleeper, slept through the night.  He was in bed by 8:30pm and up at 7:00am.  This is a reason to celebrate!  What better way to celebrate than to eat… maybe I ‘ll make a cake, bake cookies, or, my favorite, buy a bag of Oreos (double stuffed only) and eat an entire row all by my self.  I can always find a reason to celebrate and eat!

Koah’s First Haircut

It was a Saturday that I mentioned to Jeff that Koah was due for his first haircut.  Sunday… I am walking with Koah through church  to grab a bagel… oh how we love the bagels.  They are not Fair Lawn bagels but not bad for these parts.  Back to the story.  As I approach the bagel line I pass and overhear two teen age boys commenting on my son’s hair.  This is what they said, “Did you see the mullet that little boy had?”  Then I heard lots of laughs including mine.  I meant to grab before and after pictures of his oh so fine baby hair mullet but completely forgot.  It won’t be long before he has another one.

What to do?

No kids. One hour.

What to do? What to do?

Non-Negotiables

I'm tired. I've been up since 4am with the non sleeper. For the first hour and a half I was up with him I listened to him cry and whine as I:




1. took away from him the Fantistik bottle I left on the floor he wanted to guzzle down
2. removed him from the toilet water, the shade of yellow, he was splashing around in like a kiddie pool
3. launched like a rocket off the couch to make a save from the entire plant table from falling
4. took away the TV remote and the Wii remote he wanted to eat for breakfast
5. took away the long sharp metal spatula that could slice a finger off (I just found this spatula on the bathroom floor… I was wondering where it went)

There are just some things that are not negotiable.

Birthday Crown

Daddy's Birthday Crown, created by Korben and Kenzie.

Happy 1st Birthday Koah Bean!

Koah turned 1 on June 5th.. finally his birthday letter is posted.

To My Little Man,

It been quite a year. You're my number 3 and for that alone you have had to put up with a lot. But you make sure you are not forgotten, maybe when you are 3rd you do anything possible to get some attention. The truth be told though, there are times that I do forget about you. These are the times I find you playing in the toilet water, standing on top of the play kitchen, in the front yard (when 30 seconds prior you were in the back) marching down the sidewalk at your own pace (your only pace... full speed ahead), or carrying knifes confiscated from the open dishwasher. Speaking of the dishwasher, I wish I could understand your fascination with this appliance. When you hear the dishwasher door open you make a bee line for it, where you then climb on the open dishwasher door to then pull out the racks, to hold the glasses… you are such a great helper. :)

Each day I see more and more of your personality being exposed. It's exciting. You are a determined little man and you get mad, real mad, when you don't get what you want. And you are persistent in trying as many ways as possible to get whatever it is you want. You also possess a laid back kind a personality, but this is not by choice. Often times your brother treats you like a stuffed animal, and you just go with it, cause you have to in order to survive. I like to say you just have to roll with it.

Throughout your first year of life you've been injured more times that your brother and sister combined in year their 5 and 4 years of life. I can always find as least a few bruises and scrapes on your body somewhere. I hope you forgive me for allowing you to nap in the van with the door open on a bright sunny day thus inflicting 3rd degree sunburn on your face. Or for the time you took a tumble down the basement stairs. And for all the others.

By my third baby I was a veteran, or so I thought. But you decided to shatter every expectation I had about babies. All babies like the car and falling asleep in it; but not you. I held you and/or nursed you for 5 straight hours on our trip to Lake George, NY when you were ten weeks old. When you were 4 months we drove to South Carolina but still you didn't like the car. You were nursed and held quite a bit on that car trip too and as for me, well I was pretty much miserable. You didn't like the baby swing, the bouncy seat, the baby carrier, or the wrap. You wanted to be on your own 2 feet at all times which is why you were fully walking at 9 months. You didn't want to be fed, you had to feed yourself.

I have to admit you are exhausting not only because you are a terrible sleeper but also because you never stop moving… if you are awake you are moving. You travel at one speed, fast!

You have brought a fun humorous vibe to our family. When life is spinning out of control, you , with your pure innocence and carefree spirit make us laugh, uncontrollably. Through our journey together I will and I have made many mistakes but always know that no matter where you are or what you do, you will always have a mother who loves you.

Love,

Your Mama

Koah's Latest Obsession...

Standing on the table.

I'm back...

... it's been awhile.

Cape May Zoo 2009

Our yearly trip  and picture at the cape May Zoo... Koah's first time.

April Beach Day…

and the little man loved it too... thank goodness!

 

March Snow Day

New Addition to the Breakfast menu

 

As per Korben's request this was his breakfast.

For The First Time Ever... A New Year's Resolution

This was written in January and I am just posting it now.

 

It's that time of year when we are bombarded, in stores and on the TV, with the quickest weight loss solution.  Don't you just love those before and after photos on the infomercials with the fine print on the bottom "results not typical".

So although I could post about weight loss (which should be my resolution), the idea behind my New Year's resolution will result in weight gain. Therefore it should be easy to achieve.

So here it is… This year I will drink more beer, at least one a day.  Ya see the kid won't sleep and beer seems to help.  I am so craving good sleep that I am willing to go to weight gain extremes to get it.  I am beginning to hallucinate and the typing of this post feels like a workout for my fingertips. Every last piece of my body is suffering from exhaustion to the point that  I shouldn't be allowed to drive or speak under these conditions. 

And if the beer doesn't work for sleep purposes I will at least enjoy myself in the process.

Gotta go… out to the liquor store.

Happy Birthday Korben!

This is Korben's birthday letter... finally... a month late.

Dear Korben,

 

Today you turn 5. Somehow this  feels like a big one. You are now  old enough to be in kindergarten....  though I am glad we have  until  September before that begins.

 

This year I've watched you become  more like your Daddy in so many  ways.  You love to figure out the  why's and how's of how things work.  And you are extremely persistent  in getting a full explanation when you don't have a complete understanding of the function or purpose of the tool/machine/word/object in question.

 

The entire summer you did the laundry.  As long as I sorted you took care of the rest.  You were fascinated with the workings of the washing machine and its various cycles.  Unfortunately for me this excitement for laundry has worn off.

 

You also adjusted the sprinkler heads of our irrigation system.  Again you were fascinated on how a small key placed in the top of a sprinkler head could manipulate its function.  An exciting day for you was when you and Daddy replaced a sprinkler head.

 

Throughout the summer you faithfully waited each Tuesday and Wednesday morning for the garbage and recycling truck; after taking out our cans and Mr. & Mrs. Wagaman's too.  You loved watching the automatic arm on each truck.  We never left for the beach until the trucks had come and gone.  One day you followed the truck, unbeknownst to me, and after searching for you and then calling upon Daddy for help, there you were at the end of the street following the garbage truck.  You and our township workers have developed quite a nice relationship.

 

When September came, preschool and MOPS started.  You were distraught about having to miss the trucks.  After your first day of school I asked you how your day was.  You preceded to tell me about the gutter system on your school that you could see from your classroom window.

 

It's the simple things in life that brighten your day and put a smile on your face.  I admire this love for finding happiness in what God has given you... your everyday surroundings.  And if nothing around you is of striking interest, you create something new… something unforgettable… hose attachments become weedwackers; flipped over end tables with jump ropes strung around them become decorated Christmas trees; and the list could go on and on.

 

You seek out opportunities to challenge your mind and expand your knowledge of the world around you.  And when you find an opportunity that involves skill, you are  self motivated and determined to master it.  I've seen you practice something for hours until you have reached perfection.  I stand in awe of your persistent in completing a task to its fullness.  I tend to give up on things too quickly.  This is something I admire about you.

 

I pray that you use your bright mind and curious spirit to follow your dreams, whatever they may be.  I pray that as your mother, I don't stifle your inquisitive mind which is truly an amazing gift from God.  I pray that you will forgive me for all the times that I have snapped at you.  You see, as much as you are like your Daddy, you are also a lot like me.  We struggle with the same kinds of things.  And instead of beating each  other down, I pray that we can band together as mother and son to encourage and support, and most of all love one another.  I want you to know that no matter what you do, where you are , or how you behave, I will always love you unconditionally.

 

Here comes 2009 and I am excited to see what kinds of things you will bring to this family this year.

 

Happy Birthday.

I love you.

-Mama