Just a box?

Ok, so we bought a new vacuum yesterday. I was pretty excited about that (pretty pathetic the things I get excited over). My kids on the other hand, before we left Wal-Mart, were asking to play with the box. We feel the need to spend tons of money on toys that light up and sing and dance and provide mindless entertainment for our children...and trust me, I am not anti-electronics...the t.v. has babysat my children, but when I see the hours of imaginative play this box has brought my children it makes me wonder, how much of that other stuff do they really need? So far this afternoon, my kids have been to space, been on a submarine, rode a ride at disney world, started a secret Lily and Sam club, been to the beach, played house, and been super heros. All this from an empty, not that large box. No buttons to push, no light up screens or songs playing....just a box. They played TOGETHER for hours... I am thinking about hanging out at Aldis and snapping up boxes. With boxes of all shapes and sizes, the possibilities are endless :)

So I stole this post from another website, but it was too funny (and too close to home) to not post :)

Why Having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party

10. There are half-full, brightly-colored plastic cups on the floor in every room. Three are in the bathtub.
9. There is always that one girl, bawling her eyes out in the corner.
8. It's best not to assume that the person closest to you has any control over their digestive function.
7. You sneak off to the bathroom knowing that as soon as you set down, someone is going to start banging on the door.
6. Probably 80% of the stains on the furniture contain DNA.
5. You've got someone in your face at 3 am looking for a drink.
4. There's definitely going to be a fight.
3. You're not sure anything you're doing is right, you just hope it won't get you arrested.
2. There are crumpled-up underpants everywhere.
1. You wake up wondering exactly how and when the person in your bed got there.

Family!

Lately it seems we have had a lot of time at home hanging out with our family...which I love! Roger had a week off school, and so it felt like I was on vacation! :) The kids love time at home and down time when we can just play...especially Sam, who needs wrestle time with Daddy daily! When I look at my kids, I can't help but smile....they are pretty terific! Lily is an interesting girl. She is a little quirky and lots of fun! Here lately she has begun to speak in 'infomercial'. She lets us know that the 'packit' will keep our food cold for "upto 10 hrs" and "it's only $19.95!" She also has a interest in ALL animals/bugs. We recently got a hamster (Sarah) who she and Sam love, love, love!! She is already trying to figure out what the next pet will be.....We also just did the butterfly garden (tons of fun) and learned about butterflies. It was a lot of fun for her to get to see the caterpillars grow and eventually become butterflies and take care of them and eventually set them free! Lily is also one of the most polite little girls I know! I don't think I ever have to remind her to say 'please' or 'thank you'. She is doing great in school. We are still working on reading and we are also working on math, science and history. A lot of what we do is hands on (like the butterfly garden). She loves dancing! We turn on music and she just lets loose :) She and Sam play so well together (which I really appreciate!) Sam is a total goofball! I don't think there is any other way to put it! He loves to tease and make people laugh! He likes to go up to Roger and say, "Hi Mommy!" or up to me and say "Hi Daddy" and then he just laughs and laughs. He also thinks Pappy's whoopie coushion is the funniest thing ever (what a boy....). He has more energy than every other kid to ever live combined...or maybe it just feels that way to me :) He is also kind and loves to give kisses and hugs, and will randomly come up and tell us he loves us and totally melt his momma's heart! I remember being pregnant with Sam and thinking I wasn't sure how I could love another child as much as I love Lily...now I can't picture a life without both of my children! And now with baby number 3 on the way, my love will get to grow more :) and I can't wait!

Home Sweet Home!

Well, we are in our new house! (Hooray!) We still are doing a lot of work, but the majority of the manual labor is done :) Now it's just decorating and organizing...the fun part! We have spent a lot nights and weekends doing projects around the house...we are sooo tired, but we love our house! :) Here are some pics...not all of them, but what I have snapped so far!

Here Comes the Sun!!!!

The sun has finally shown itself today after what feels like months without it! We have been watching it rain and rain and rain for about two weeks now. The Ohio has flooded (8 feet above flood level). I have also lost a few nights sleep staying up making sure tornados were not going to blow us all away! But, being stuck inside has given us a lot of time to pack! We closed on our house on Monday and we are really excited to get the keys to the house tomorrow! We are ready to have room to move around and the kids are ready to have a yard again! The kids have been busy and learning like crazy! Sam has learned that if he is tired of sitting still he scrunches up his face and whines at a loud strung out steady pace we take him out of the chapel at church. (So annoying!) He is FINALLY starting to recognize colors and counting. He loves his big sister. I love when Lily decides to go play in her bedroom and Sam realizes that is where she is headed and runs as fast as his little legs will go to catch up to her! So fun to watch! Lily is still learning to read and she is doing amazing! She is figuring out basic addition and subtraction on her own...a (nice) suprise for me! I love the things the things that come out of her little mouth! She has Roger and I laughing so hard sometimes! She loves to tell jokes and the attention that she gets when she tells them :) Roger and I have stayed busy with getting things ready to move into the house. There are so many things you have to do that you don't think about when you start the house buying process! I am just really enjoying my family right now! The kids are doing so well and are such fun, it's sometimes hard to believe it gets any better than this :) I have posted some pictures from the past weeks Easter adventures. We started off at our house coloring eggs. We drove to Roger's parents house on Saturday (having to pull off the road at one point b/c the rain was coming down so hard) We had a great time visiting! The kids hunted eggs and got their candy from Mamaw and Papaw. That night we stayed at my parents house and the Easter Bunny came that night and the kids got their baskets and we hunted eggs after church. It was a great weekend and we love visiting family!!!!!!

Lazy Days

I honestly don't have a lot to report. We are having a lot of lazy days (which are great!)!! We have been doing a lot of playing toys, games, reading books, watching shows annnd breaking up fights, kissing lots of ouchies, cleaning up messes, punishing little stinkers...but mostly the playing stuff :) We also had Uncle Brad over for dinner last week. Lily thought it was the greatest night ever! From the time she woke up til Brad arrived, it was all she could talk about! It was so nice to get to see him, since Amanda will never bring him out when she comes :P We are loving the warm weather and spending a lot of time outside riding bikes, drawing on the sidewalks, and picking flowers (the kids personal favorite). We are ready for summer! I am also looking forward to having a fenced in backyard (at my house!!!). Letting the kids play outdoors anytime they want will be awesome! Daddy is really busy with school. He is doing so great! I am always so impressed with him, he does so much and takes such great care of us!!! Here are some pics of the things we have been up to the past week :)

Painting with cars and cotton balls to spice things up a little :)

Playing with shaving cream on cookie sheets.