Perpetual Motion: December 2007

Kids Say The Darndest Things

Me: "Alex, I'm going to miss you today while you are at preschool...what am I going to do?"

Alex: "Maybe you should exercise some more."

1/4/11

During FHE...

Kurt: "So, how do we know our church is true?"

Alex: "Because we can just open the door and walk right in."

1/3/11

Alex, very sweetly to Natalie and Todd while brandishing a light saber:

"If you guys are mean I'm gonna whack you on the head with this!"

6/4/10

Alex, plopping himself into my lap after the Saturday afternoon session of General Conference:

"Wow! I liked that movie!"

4/3/10

Alex: "Mom, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

Me: "Ummm....a Mom."

Alex: "Yeah, and Dad can be a MONSTER!"

4/2/10

Natalie: "Hey Dad, I can do a cursive L."

Kurt: "What!?! You don't get to learn "cursing" until third grade."

Natalie: "But I know it! Mom taught me!"

Ah, yes..."cursing" ...a skill every mother should teach her child! ;o)

2/6/10

Sitting in line at the bank drive through...

Alex: "This is taking forever!"

Me: "I know. The bank is busy today."

Alex, pointing at the teller: "What is that girl's name?"

Me: "Ummmm, I don't know."

Alex: "I do! It's LAZY BONES!"

1/25/10

Kurt: "Hey, Emily...I think you should be a quantum physicist when you grow up."

Emily: "Dad! I just want to be a teacher...not a genius!"

1/7/10

A conversation in the van while sitting in the parking lot at Maverik...

Natalie: "Mom, why do those teenagers always hang around that picnic table?"

Me: "I don't know, maybe they're homeless." (I was kidding)

Natalie: Laughing, "Yeah! Maybe they are hobos!"

Laughter from all

Kurt: "No, they're not hobos, they're bums."

Todd: "Dad, what's a bum?"

Kurt: "Someone who doesn't have a job and just sits around all day."

A moment of silence

Todd: With the wheels in his head turning, "Hey, Mom! You don't have a job...You're a BUTT!"

12/23/09

Todd: "Hey, Alex, do you want to come sit by me?"

Alex: "Actually, no I don't...but thanks for asking, Toddy."

12/7/09

The morning after Alex dumped water on the VCR...

Todd: "Dad, do grown ups make lists for Santa?"

Kurt: "No, not usually."

Todd: "Oh, I thought that if they did you could ask Santa for a new VCR. Wait...I know! I will ask him for one and just give it to you!"

12/3/09

Me: "Todd, you'd better be good...Santa's elves might be watching!"

Todd: "Oh! Is that how Santa knows if we're being naughty or nice?"

Me: "Yep."

Todd: "Wow. I thought Santa just looked down on us like Jesus does."

11/28/09

Dinner Conversation:

Kurt: "Todd, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

Todd: "A veterinarian."

Natalie: "I want to be a doctor."

Emily: "I'm going to be a teacher."

Alex: "And I'm gonna be a FLYING RAT!

11/23/09

Alex, struggling to get away from me: "Let me go, OLD LADY!"

11/16/09

Me: "Alex, what are you doing with my phone?"

Alex: "Texting Albertson."

Me: "Really? What does he have to say?"

Alex: "He says he can't come play because his sister has the swine flu."

10/22/09

Kurt, after swatting the bum of a very naughty and deliberately disobedient Alex...

Kurt: "Alex, do NOT do that anymore! If you do, you'll get another swat on the bum and then you'll cry."

Alex: "I didn't cry...my bum cried."

10/05/09

Alex: "Dad, are we going crazy yet?"

Kurt: "Yeah."

Alex: "Do I need to put my shoes on?"

9/27/09

Me, taping a game card that Alex had nearly ripped to shreds...

Emily: "Mom, what are you doing?"

Me: "I'm fixing Alex's card."

Emily: "You mean his victim?"

9/25/09

Emily, singing: "All I want for Christmas is two contacts, two contacts, two contacts."

9/24/09

Todd, while lagging behind Kurt on the way to the soccer field: "Hey, Coach! Wait up!"

9/19/09

At dinner...

Kurt (being a trouble maker): "We eat chickens, pigs and cows, why don't we eat horses?"

Natalie: "Because horses are harmless!"

Emily: "Cows are harmless too!"

Natalie: "COWS ARE NOT HARMLESS! COWS KICK OUR POPPA!"

9/19/09

Todd, while telling me the story of The Three Little Pigs: "And the first little pig built his house out of weed."

8/25/09

Alex, to me, as I walked out of my room dressed in my ratty lawn mowing clothes: "Mom! You're cute!"

8/17/09

Me, while changing Alex's rather potent diaper: "Whew, Alex, YOU STINK!"

Alex: "I apologize."

8/13/09

Todd: "Hey, now I know why we have birthday parties with our friends and family."

Me: "Really? Why?"

Todd: "So they can celebrate with us and we won't be nervous to turn older."

7/23/09

Todd: "I'm kind of nervous to turn five."

Me: "Why?"

Todd: "I don't think I'll recognize myself."

7/21/09

Todd: "Mom...have you ever kissed Dad at work?"

Me: "Um...yeah."

Todd, giggling: "Are you serious?

7/20/09

Me (thinking about pouring cereal): "What should we have for breakfast?"

Alex: "Eggs and hash browns...that will taste yummy!"

7/11/09

Me, singing while driving in the rain: "Rain, rain, go away..."

Emily, interrupting: "AND NEVER COME BACK!"

6/17/09

Todd: "Jesus is tougher than Superman, huh Dad?"

Kurt: "Yeah, I guess He is, buddy."

Todd: "Yeah, 'cause Jesus made Superman."

5/29/09

Todd:"Mom, why don't we get the newspaper?"

Me:"Um, because Daddy and I usually read the news online."

Todd:"Well, can we get the newspaper?"

Me:"Why do you need the newspaper?"

Todd:"Because I like to read the newspaper while I eat my breakfast."

5/28/09

Alex, pointing to the picture of Christ on the wall:"Mom! That's Jesus!"

Me:"Yes, it is."

Alex:"Oh! Did you buy Him at the church?"

5/22/09

(Possible TMI Alert--But this is the life of a Mom)

Me, to Todd while helping him in the bathroom: "Bud, when are you going to learn to wipe your own bum?"

Todd:"Ummmm....maybe when I'm 18."

Great. Only 13 years to go!

5/17/09

Todd, while inspecting a giant anthill:"Mom, do ants watch TV?"

Me:"Uh, no."

Todd:"Do ants talk?"

Me: "Nope."

Todd:"Oh. Well, if they did, I would talk to them and tell them about TV."

5/11/09

Alex, pointing to the kindergarten playground at the girls' school:"LOOK! DISNEYLAND!"

4/30/09

Todd, while looking into the pantry:"Oh! I didn't know Rice Krispies were available!"

4/30/09

Todd:"It's okay to cry, huh Mom?

Me:"Yeah, it is."

Todd:"And it makes us feel better because all the sadness drips out and then we are happy."

4/27/09

Alex:"Mom! The BAD MONSTERS are in the laundry room

Me:"Really? What are they doing in there?

Alex:"Getting dressed for church."

4/17/09

Natalie turns 6!

>> Thursday, December 13, 2007

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Dear Natalie~

Happy birthday, sweet girl! I can't believe you are six years old. Time goes by so quickly. You were our special Christmas gift in 2001. Natalie means "born at Christmas". Your due date was December 24...Christmas Eve. I secretly wished that you would be born either early or late so you could have your birthday a bit separate from Christmas. You must have heard my wish and decided to make it come true! You were such a teeny, tiny baby, but full of personality and spunk from the very beginning. Your spunk and personality shine even brighter six years later!

You are well liked by your friends and you make friends quickly. Daddy and I are so proud of how outgoing and brave you have been here in Colorado while adjusting to school and friends in a new place.

Emily loves having you as her little sister. You are concerned for her and helpful to her. You look forward to when she comes home from school and gets her homework done so the two of you can play dress up or Webkinz together.

Todd and Alex couldn't have asked for a more fantastic big sister. I love watching you and Todd play "pretend". You have some great adventures together and are best buds. I appreciate what a big help you are with Alex. You are very loving and tender toward him. He always has a smile and a hug for you.

Daddy and I love your beautiful (now toothless) smile, your sensitivity, and your determination. We love your friendliness and your outgoing nature. We are glad you have a definite knowledge of right and wrong and you do your very best to choose the right. We enjoy being the audience for your "shows" and stories and are continually amazed by your creativity. We like tucking you in each night, hearing all about your day, and getting the reminder that never fails..."Check me in regular 3 and lay by me, and we'll see about the lay-bying"! You make us smile everyday.

Natalie, you are a very important part of our family. Here's wishing you another wonderful year. Happy birthday, pretty girl! We love you!

With love~ Mommy

What the....???

>> Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Do you see this? This is the amount of snow that was on the ground in lovely Colorado Springs this morning.

Yep. It's about 2.5 inches.

See this? This is a picture of my kids at about 9:30 this morning...enjoying their first snow day EVER. It's almost like Christmas!

Clearly, we have moved to the land of winter wimps! Cancelling school for 2.5 inches of snow? Seriously...

I can think of ONE...yes...ONE time during my childhood that school was cancelled. And it wasn't even for snow. There was a big wind storm and the power was out. And yes, I used to walk uphill both ways to and from school in the blinding snow! :)

I guess maybe the reason school gets cancelled at the drop of a hat (or 2.5 inches of snow) here could be that the city doesn't seem to buy into the idea of plowing the roads.

All I have to say is...What the....???

Toothless!

Natalie lost her first tooth on Thursday, December 6, 2007.

After much nervousness, weeping and wailing, she consented to let me try to get it out. The old dental floss trick worked like a charm, and she didn't even know it was out until I told her. She immediately asked "Is it bleeding?" To which I replied, "Yes, a little." At that point, she started howling!

She saved her tooth for show and tell at school the next day and then relinquished it to the tooth fairy the following evening in exchange for a silver dollar.

I'm loving this toothless grin, how about you?

Thankful

We were so glad to be able to share Thanksgiving with family! Jason and Lori and their kids; Carrie, Jim and Jimmy; and Uncle Sam braved some nasty snow packed roads to get here and filled our house with fun and laughs for four days over the Thanksgiving break.

Highlights included:

Playing at Focus on the Family
"Grown-ups" only dinner at P.F. Chang's (thanks to Ben and Whitney for holding down the fort)
Emily's sprained foot and ankle
Yummy collaborative Thanksgiving dinner
Lots of card playing
Happy and content kids (gosh, aren't cousins THE BEST?!?)
Sam's foot...OUCH!
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
Crazy trip to the mall and seeing the movie "Enchanted"