Rocky Balboa

So I just have to post this really quick. Sam has been BEGGING to go to Nana & Papa's house. Every time we get in the car it's "are we going to Nana & Papa's and then a mini tantrum when I tell him no. So yesterday I was just curious why he wanted to go so badly so I asked "Sam, what are you going to do at Nana & Papa's house?" This was followed by a pause, a hmmmm, a pause and then "hit people". Yep that's right, hit people. I asked just be to sure and he confirmed that he indeed was pining for Nana & Papa's house so he could hit people. I hope this is just a sweet little harmless two year old thing to say rather than the other option which is that he remembers that there are always people smaller than him at Nana & Papa's house and therefore he has people he feels safe to hit. So scary. Just look how ferocious he is.

New Addition

We have a new addition to our family. An addition I was very reluctant to make.


Nathan started asking for a lizard a few months ago. I hoped this fascination would pass. We finally told him that if he still wanted one on his birthday then we would get him one. Well, guess what? He still very much wanted one when his birthday rolled around. Dave did a lot of research and determined that a bearded dragon would be our best bet. When the day arrived we all loaded up and headed to the stinkiest yuckiest place in town to purchase this ugly little creature. Nathan was so excited. He took his time picking out just the right one. (they all looked the same to me...ugly and....lizardie) Once he was chosen, they packed him up in a little box, we bought a hundred crickets and took him home.

Naming the little critter....

Nathan had his heart set on naming him "John the Lizard". The whole thing. Not just John. John the Lizard. When I asked him if I could just call him John he explained "no mom, because his name is John the Lizard, like John the Baptist". Oh, well of course we should turn to the scriptures for the naming of our pets. Thankfully after a few days of the confusion and his annoyance at me that I would not call him by his full and proper name, we settled on Jack. I feel this rolls off the tongue much easier, don't you?

Now that the naming was over the little monstrosity took over our lives. I kid you not. Like a little newborn baby. When choosing this thing Dave assured me that he would be very easy to care for. Not so. First of all, he is apparently very sensitive to the temperature in his "habitat". We bought a heat lamp to put over his cage, but this is not enough. He prefers a warm room. The girl at the store where we bought him told us that she keeps her reptile room at 75 degrees. Well of course you do. We, on the other hand, like things a little cooler. The room he resides in happens to be the coldest room in our house. So I found myself worrying about this ugly little creature I didn't want and finally put a space heater in "his room". There's another funny thing. He now has his own room which used to be a guest room slash room to escape to when Dave's snoring is too much for me to take. Now I can't go in there because "Jack" likes his room so stinking hot that I can't stand to sleep in there. The next issue that kept me up at night worrying was his eating. He's supposed to eat anywhere from 5 to 20 crickets a day as a baby and some greens. Well, when we first got him home we could not get him to eat any of the HUNDRED crickets we bought. I was going in there all day offering them to him and in my spare time reading on the Internet about what to do next. Turns out he was just "anxious" about his new environment and after a few days his appetite returned. What a prima donna! Really?? The worst part is I've developed all these nurturing feelings for this thing I never wanted. I wouldn't say that I exactly like him. I still won't touch him. But I do spend a great deal of time fussing over and worrying about him. How did I get tricked into this? Also, I bet you didn't know that the crickets i.e.food have to be cared for as well. They have to be fed their own special food and sprinkled with some magic fairy dust that makes them more nutritious. Seriously, I think a baby elephant would be less trouble!

For now he's here and I see no end in sight. Luckily Nathan has become really good at taking care of him now and really enjoys it. He loves to hold him and is very gentle with him. Sam is mostly stuck watching him from afar as he has not yet learned how to pet "softly".

I think there are levels of care we could provide and I don't know how long we will keep up this whole first class routine. As a friend pointed out to me, his accommodations are equivalent to country club living and he might be just as content living in low income housing. I hope he doesn't get too accustomed to all the pampering.

One last thing...this is what we have to look forward to

(i just threw up in my mouth a little bit. isn't that the uglies thing you've even seen?)

p.s. my sincere apologies to any of you reptile lovers out there. i did not mean to offend.

Hello Seven

Again I am in shock as another year rolls around and I am now the mother of a seven year old! If things had worked out as we hoped in the beginning I would have a 13 or 14 year old by now, but seven seems old enough for me right now.

We celebrated Nathan's birthday several times. On his actual birthday he got his present from us and we let him choose where we would go for dinner. He chose Moe's for the chicken quesadilla and I made a cake for him at home. We celebrated again a few days later with a party at a jump house. He invited some of his friends from school and church and they had a great time.

He's growing up so fast. Only a year from now he'll be eight which is a big milestone. He's starting to spend more and more time by himself. He is most often found in his room creating lego vehicles and guys from his imagination. This time last year it was all about the video games and spongebob.

His is enjoying school but his fascination with the new school year and attractive teacher have worn off and he's decided that first grade is a lot of work. He does well in school when he feels like it, but is guilty of trying to be the first one done and doing a pretty pitiful job sometimes.

He is getting better at church. He's finally learned to sit still and might even be caught enjoying music time. I don't sit and wonder when they are going to come get me to "deal" with Nathan at church anymore.

He's still working on his relationship with his little brother. I'm still hoping it gets better. He picks on him sometimes and like to hear him scream. On the other hand, he really enjoys making something for Sam to play with or loaning him some of his "special" guys. He really hates when Sam does not show adequate appreciation for this gesture. He becomes Sam's biggest supporter when I have to correct him. He often defends Sam and wants to be there to comfort him when the scolding is over.

I still look at him every day and think of how he came to be ours and I am so thankful to have him in my home.

sam the shopper... he is not

As the mom of two boys who will one day marry women who will in no doubt love to shop, I find it my personal duty to teach them the joys of shopping. I think I did a pretty good job with Nathan. At a young age he seemed to enjoy looking at things as I pointed out the fine details and differences in things I was trying to decide about. I would talk to him as an equal, asking his opinion etc. So naturally, being so proud of myself I have continued this goal with Sam. It's true what they say...no two children are alike. Sam HATES shopping. Doesn't like anything about it. I can't find anything interesting enough to capture his interest. He can't be bribed or begged into cooperating with me. He pretty much complains the entire time. But being the ever determined soul that I am, I forge ahead with my goal of making a good shopping companion for his one day bride. It's a tough job, but won't she be so happy?
On one such shopping trip I had been promising that we would look at just "one more thing" for the past five things. He had a toy in his hand that he could not open until we paid for it. This he understands and was very frustrated. He said to everyone we passed "open pwease". He was so put out that no one would help him. When we neared the front of the store he was elated. He was kicking his little feet and smiling that sweet smile from ear to ear. Then, as a test, purely because I feel it is my duty, I stopped to look at "one more thing". He could take it no longer. He balled up his little fists, banged them on the cart and yelled almost at the top of his lungs "OH MY DOSH!" I tried my best not to laugh at him. He was SO over it. I blame the geniuses who put the stuff right up at the front of the store. They know me too well. But alas we did check out. Ironically, after all that shopping all we got was the stupid toy. So I'll say it now...sorry to Sam's future wife. He will most likely not enjoy helping you pick out a lovely outfit or furniture for your first home. I tried.

honesty at a price

We have always been so proud of Nathan for being honest. He has almost always been painfully honest no matter the cost. As he's gotten older I have noticed that there are occasions where this is becoming a little more difficult and I see him struggle a little longer with his decision in whether or not to be truthful. Of course, as his mom I would ONLY ever encourage him to be honest....unless of course it embarrasses me. Case in point...
We have a new primary president. She is a very sweet, young mom with lots of enthusiasm and great ideas. A few Sundays ago she was letting the children know there were going to new rules concerning their reverence. She tried the "reverence means love" tactic. And that to show their love they should want to be reverent. I just happened to walk into the room as she was saying "well, you might not love me, but you do love your Heavenly Father don't you?" For just a tiny second I wondered what child had told this sweet lady that he did NOT love HER. It did not take me long to come to my senses though and realize that of course it had to be Nathan. Who else would do that? In talking to another adult that had been present for the full exchange, she told me that he was very serious and matter of fact in his statement and that he had not meant to be mean or funny. I know this to be true, but still. Does he always have to be honest out loud? He did go on to say that he did love his Heavenly Father very much and for that reason he would try to be more reverent. As we discussed this episode with him he said to me "well sorry mom, but I barely know that lady". True . But necessary to say? I think not.

Baby Turns Two

I can't believe our baby is two. It shouldn't feel so strange as he's always tried to be bigger than he is. Keeping up with a big brother makes for a short life as a baby. This makes me sad. I try to explain to him how he's my last and it must LAST. All of it. The baby babble, the silly cartoons, the unique language all his own, the chubby wrists and elbows. Ohhh, the dimples where elbows and knuckles are supposed to be. I don't know how much longer we have to enjoy these things. It's going by so fast. Oh and the fat, square pudgy feet. What will I do when they have disappeared forever from my life? sigh.... He doesn't listen. He just insists on getting bigger, saying big words, trying to potty train himself. How dare he do this to me??


No matter how sad of an occasion for me, we did celebrate the little guy turning 2. Sam mostly loves what Nathan loves.....legos, "guys", spongebob....yuck, but he also loves puppies. All on his own. Puppies are Sam's love that he came up with independent of his big brother's influence. So we had a puppy party. It was just us, very anti-climatic, but we got lots of pictures and I think he liked his huge cookie cake with the big paw print.

Happy Birthday my little Sam. May you stay little just a little longer.

Firsts

We've had a week of firsts.

-Nathan's first day in the 1st grade.

-first time I didn't take 100 pictures to commemorate such a big event

-first time I let Nathan choose his own shirt for school

-first time I only spent one day during the 1st week crying my eyes out after dropping him off

Nathan is loving the 1st grade so far. He is doing very well also with listening and following directions. Only a week in, but SUCH an improvement over last year! I think by this time last year he was already on a first name basis with the principal. I am really happy and couldn't be more proud.

passing it on

so a few weeks ago, we were in nathan's favorite store toys r us. they had some of the "old" games on sale, one of them being battleship. i picked it up thinking it might be a little challenging, but fun and nostalgic for dave and i. so yesterday nathan and i played it for the first time. he actually picked up on it pretty easily. he then challenged his dad to a game when he got home from work. he did even better this time.

this morning this was the scene at the breakfast table.

battleship game - great deal

time spent teaching nathan to play - honestly...tested my patience

witnessing this moment between these two - priceless

sidenote - i think this is the second time i have ripped off this ad campaign. i don't even remember what company it is for. memorable, but not in the way they intended.

the essentials

i have been asked to help out in primary indefinitely, as a parent volunteer. mostly because my own child has a problem sitting still and listening. on one such sunday they were having a very good sharing time on pioneers. nathan was sitting beside me in his own little world, not listening to a word being said. the sweet sister in front of this rambunctious group of children was talking about the handcarts and how you could only take what would fit in your handcart. i saw an opportunity to get nathan involved, so i leaned over and asked him what he would take if he could ONLY take what would fit in his handcart. his first answer was a a very rational "shirts". "well yes, nathan you would probably need more shirts. what else?" so he pauses for a minute. i'm assuming because he really wants to say his DS and IPOD, but he's pretty sure those wouldn't be considered essentials in a time like this, so he instead says "oh, definitely a comb and that stuff you spray my hair with to get it to lay down."

good answer nathan. very practical.

addendum

I can't believe I forgot to mention the best word Sam says. It's bubbles. I love to hear him say it and he knows it too. He doesn't say it often and almost never when I ask. He usually reserves it for when he's in trouble. He'll come up to me and say really softly "bubbles mama". How do they learn these tricks so early? Because looking at those juicy lips enunciating all those B's, who can resist? Usually not me.