A funny hat and a stylin' boy!

Green Eggs and Ham, Grace style

A month or two ago Grace really took off on reading. The first real book she read happened to be non other than Dr. Seuss's "Green Eggs and Ham". The day that she realized she could read it, she read it like 10 times... out loud. Needless to say, we are all very familiar with the story now! As you probably know, the story has a lot of "Would you could you eat them on ___?" A couple of days later, she stapled together several pieces of construction paper and wrote on them (this is exactly how she wrote it): "could You would YOU Love ME MAMA I Love You MAMA". She copied the words exactly out of the book and added the i love you mama part. How cute is that?

Grace's "convention"

Grace has been busy on the warmer Spring days constructing all sorts of inventions outside on the play structure. This is her latest one, she refers to it as her "convention". hehe. This "convention" was designed to help me out - she could "push" all three kids on the swings at the same time by herself. Nathaniel can't pump on the swing yet, so he does need a lot of pushing. She called me over after she was done creating it and to my surprise, it worked! Megan definitely enjoyed it!

Nathaniel rides a two-wheeler!

This is a little late, but last month (4/11/10) Nathaniel mastered the art of riding a bike without training wheels! He quickly became a pro and has hardly fallen at all. He is so proud of himself, as are we. Upon Nathaniel's achievement, Grace promptly tried to steal the show by showing us how she can ride the bike with one hand.

Goodbye Uterus Party

So it is official. My uterus has left for greener pastures! The festivities began with a surprise party put on by... who else but Amber Johnson!

On Saturday April 24th, I was blindfolded and taken captive by Amber. She drove me to BJ's in Tacoma (my keen sense of direction led me to believe we were somewhere in the vicinity of the Tacoma Mall, but the exact location eluded me). Upon disembarking the vehicle, a headband of some sort was placed on my head along with what seemed to be a feather boa like thing around my neck. Still blindfolded, I was led by Amber a long ways. We must have been an interesting sight - a really pregnant woman leading a blind women with a boa and some item on her head. Anyway, she led me through the parking lot and up to the restaurant. Along the way, I smelled cigaratte smoke, and said out loud (apparently right in front of the guy), "Someone is smoking." Great insight, Shari! We came by another person, who complimented me on my donkey ears. What in the heck was on my head?

Once we entered the revolving door, I was pretty sure we were at BJs. My suspicions were confirmed when I heard the loud clatter of many people dining and talking. Amber continued to lead me. Finally we stopped and the blindfold was removed - there was a long table of friends! It was a very fun mix of people from Rainier View, Lake City & beyond. At that point, I realized that the thing on my head was a tiara with pads attached. Lovely and just slightly embarrassing!

The party was complete with yummy food and desserts, some "unique" gifts (and some really great gifts too for my upcoming hospital stay) and even poetry! See for yourself in the pictures. I am now very aware of all of the things you can create with those leftover, unneeded feminine products. Next to our table was a big bachelorette party. They thought we were pretty funny - we just told them they'd be where we are in 10 years!

Thank you to everyone who came and helped me feel so loved! You all gave me the courage to say goodbye to my uterus for good! And now a poem:

Bon Voyage My Monthly Friend

A glad farewell to PMS woes,

Snapping tongues, and tears that flow,

To mood swings on a coaster ride,

To endless trips to stores to buy,

Supplies that fill the city dumps,

No achy breasts or week long grumps,

I will not worry anymore,

That sex may bring a visiting stork,

No more to swell up like a whale,

Or tearful too dramatic tales,

Soon gone the urge to punch a face.

And lose my sweet good tempered grace,

To never fear a sudden flush

Then to the bathroom have to rush,

Oh praise three miracles that you brought,

Your existence was not there for naught,

Your cramping bouts were not in vain,

But I’ll be glad to feel no pain,

Please fade away and rest in peace,

So now the flow will be ceased,

Come join with me in celebration,

No monthly dance with menstruation.

I pass the cycle on with pride,

To those who must be Jekyll and Hyde,

But for me I smile with glee,

I’ll wear white pants now, worry free!

Amazing feats of a one-year-old

If you've ever been around our kids, you know that they excel in the area of physical development. They may lack in speech and other areas early in life, but that is because they are putting all of their energy and brain cells into trying to overcome gravity and pushing their little bodies to the limits. Here is a fine example. Megan, climbing up the bunk bed ladder at less than a year of age. She was quite proud of herself and her amazing feat. For the record, she walked at 9 months, climbed a slide all the way up at 10 months, and basically never sits for more than one second at a time. Diaper changes are like wrestling an octopus.

She does have a black eye in this picture... the day before this was taken she was toddling along and fell head first into a drawer knob. Poor thing! And she LOVES necklaces as you can see in the picture. She is always finding them around the house and putting them on.

Do "Wii" have a problem??

Our boy is obsessed with the Wii. There. Now it is out in the open. He would play Wii all day long if we let him. The first thing he asks for in the morning is the Wii. The last thing he says before nap is, "I play Wii after nap?" When he isn't "playing" the Wii, he is doing one of the following things:

1. Asking to play it (actually it is more like whining to play it)
2. Carrying around a Wiimote cover/glove everywhere he goes
3. Studying a Wii game manual intently.
4. Searching for pictures of Wiis and Wii games in the Sunday paper ads and saying "Look mama - Wii!" (always followed by #1 above)
5. Watching Papa and Mr. Johnson play the Wii.
6. Trying to convince us to let him play the Wii by picking up toys.
7. Referring to his sister as "player 1" or "player 2" while playing
8. Sleeping or eating

The thing is, he is actually pretty good. In fact, he can beat some adults at golf, sword fighting and bowling (they will remain nameless to protect their pride). His favorite games are bowling, bicycling in resort sports, and most recently Wii Fit plus. Awhile ago I bought the kids a Jumpstart game for the Wii that is made just for preschoolers. He refuses to play it. *sigh* I guess his tastes are just more mature! After seeing the picture above, you may be wondering if Megan is a Wii-lover as well. The picture is deceiving. She appears to be in a stance to bowl or something amazing. Rest assured, at this point she just enjoys chewing on the nun-chuck controller knob. (And throwing them into the toilet)