Unbelievable!

I really hate it when you get a great picture of your little guy all dressed in his Sunday best...

and then...

Flying High

Following a brief discussion at school about the events of September 11th, Lindy announced to her first grade class that her dad was a pilot. This prompted a load of questions from the kids. Her teacher called later that week and asked if Ian would be willing to come in and talk to the class for a few minutes some time. He just happened to have a few days off and we soon set up a time for Lindy to bring her dad in to talk to the class.

She was so excited and proud to introduce him.

Ian showed them pictures of the airplane he flies, showed them a layout of the cockpit, answered all of their questions, and even listened to their little stories. One of the little boys seemed slightly awestruck. He would walk up to him and slowly say, "Hi." several times during our visit. So funny.

Ellie got a taste of what first grade was all about. Lindy let her sit at her desk and helped her read a book. She helped her write her name on a piece of paper. She went around the room and introduced her to all her friends. And...during the presentation, sat beside her and made her feel safe. It was so amazing to see Lindy take such great care of her little sister.

Meanwhile Curtis spent most his time and energy trying to destroy the classroom and keep his mom running. There was a brief moment when he was distracted by some Hot Wheels and crayons. Right after this picture he ran over to the group of kids and tried to throw the cars at them. I stopped him in time. Barely.

Lindy was so excited to share a little of her school life with her family. And to share a little bit of her family with her school friends. It was a great morning.

The Long Arm of the Law

It was only a matter of time. I know that Curtis is still young...but truly, it was only a matter of time before he landed his parents on the wrong side of the law. (If you know his uncles--my side of the family, not Ian's--you will understand my shrugging acceptance of this fact. Hee, hee.)

Responding to the doorbell this afternoon, I was surprised to see Mr. Police Officer standing on my doorstep. He had a notepad and pen in hand and asked, "Are you Amy?" I, of course, stuttered a quick, "Y-y-yes!", my mind racing through several years of my life to find the one tiny detail I may have overlooked that would have landed me in this uncomfortable predicament.

Turns out Curtis has figured out how to unlock my LOCKED cell phone and place several 9-1-1 calls. Mr. Police Officer was sent, by dispatch, to find out if everything was okay. They were able to get my name from my voice mail (they tried to call me back but my phone was still on silence from my trip to the movies last night). They then were able to "triangulate" a possible location of my cell phone (did they trace my number? Ping it? Weird.) After knocking on a neighbor's door and asking if they knew anyone named Amy he ended up at my house...informing me that if my eighteen-month old's cell phone use becomes a consistent pattern we may be charged.

Great. What are the odds this doesn't happen again?

Right before leaving the officer offers up this tidbit of advice: "You may want to curb his cell phone use...at least until he's a teenager." No worries, sir, at this rate he won't be getting a cell phone. Ever.

More Stuff

Today I discovered a couple things.

First: The game "Where's your eye?" could actually cause a child to poke themselves in the eye. Who exactly started this game and why have I played along? (The following is a reenactment.)

Second: I also realized that I love it when my kids wake up with bed-head. I find it absolutely adorable!

Uh Oh

For those of you who don't know...I have a bad habit. Okay, I have a few bad habits. Alright, alright...I have several bad habits, but we're only going to discuss one tonight, okay? Sheesh!

(Deep breaths. Breathing in. Breathing out.) I'm okay now. Let's just skip over the introspection-caused breakdown and move on to the part where I actually get to the point.

I like TV. No, I love TV. I don't know what it is about that little magic box, but I am the poster child for couch potato-ism and normally I make no apologies. But tonight I found a flaw in my stolid acceptance of the TV world.

As I sat making a list of all the shows I love, and the shows I think I'm going to love, along with their nights and times (yes, the OCD makes me do this) the following realization slowly sunk in: I have just mentally committed myself to 11 hours of TV PER WEEK!

Is it any wonder that Lindy announced in Primary a couple weeks ago that our family likes to watch TV?

No. No, it isn't.

Randomness

We can send a man to the moon. But we can't eat an Otter Pop without getting a "paper cut" in our mouth from the plastic.

Seriously? Someone needs to figure it out and FIX IT.

Thrills and Spills

Today was another big day here at the Jones household. (Is this going to continually be a theme as my kids grow up?)

Top of the list...Ellie's highly anticipated First Day of Preschool finally arrived. She was, at long last, able to don her class shirt and brand-spankin-new backpack and join the throng of school-goers worldwide. She was ecstatic. She had a fantastic time and informed me on the way home that she LOVES her teacher and can't wait to go back. Phew!

Later on I took Ellie to visit our dear friends at the pediatricians office. She is on her doctors' "watch list" for asthma-related issues and, following a rough night of breathing troubles, we went in to make sure everything was as it should be. She got a shot in the leg--not her idea of fun--and then we made our way home. I planned on settling right in and cooking dinner for my family.

It was not meant to be. Shortly after arriving home from the doctors' office my fearless little boy decided to do a swan dive off the back seat of the van. This acrobatic feat ended with blood spurting out of the back of his head. Biting back the panic, (anyone who knows my mom knows I was raised to panic) I calmly tried stem the flow and be tough. This was also not meant to be. I finally conned a nurse friend into coming over to examine the wound (thanks again, Ivana!). She soon gave me allowance to pursue a course of slight panic. This led to my second visit to the pediatricians office in one day. Then came the restraining of a cranky boy to put a staple in his skull!

It's just one little staple. But, sweet mother of a badger, it looks awful. I'm starting to think that my whole philosophy of "he'll learn not to do it again" may not be as foolproof as I originally thought.

And now...I'm worn out. I'm going to ignore my predisposition to stay up late. I'm going to bed.

Birthday Girl

It's hard to believe that our little Ellie is a FOUR year old! I keep telling my kids to stop growing up but, as usual, they never listen!

We spent the majority of her birthday driving back from Idaho, but decided to celebrate in style as soon as we got home. There were balloons, presents, and a fabulous birthday meal courtesy of Rubio's...Ellie just LOVES those quesadillas.

Happy birthday to our little princess. We love you!

Grandpa and Grandma's

Our Idaho vacation was spent at Grandpa and Grandma's house this year. The kids had so much fun! I'm afraid our house is relatively boring. I haven't seen these smiles since we left.

They were even allowed to crawl around in the dirt. Curtis was completely enthralled. Apparently he doesn't get enough dirt time around here.

And the best part...the tree swing. I think Lindy would have slept out there, given the chance.

Grandma also planned a fun birthday celebration for our little soon-to-be 4 year old. Ellie had a beautiful girly cake and was surrounded by cousins. What a treat!

A big thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Jones for the wonderful vacation. We miss you already and can't wait to see you again.

Parades, Fairs, and Rides, Oh My!

We have roots in Idaho. His and hers. It seems logical, then, that we attempt a yearly trek back to those roots in order to participate in something that true Idahoans seem to feel a rather deep kinship with. I'm speaking of the Eastern Idaho State Fair. It's a spectacle of life that I don't exactly understand...resplendent with tractors, farm animals, cowboys, and carnies. And we thoroughly enjoy ourselves every time we go.

This year was no exception. It started with a parade. And who enjoys a parade more than kids? Mine were in absolute heaven. What could be better than a stream of horses, clowns, cheerleaders, and people throwing CANDY? Nothing, I tell you.

The next highlight was a trip to the petting zoo. 50 cents buys you a little cup of "animal food" and happiness for two little girls.

Curtis ran around from one animal to the next practically squealing with excitement. At one point he even tried to climb on top of a goat.

Lindy begged us to let her go on a ride, an aspect of the fair we have ignored up to this point. We let her choose one ride. She chose the Ferris wheel...and regretted her decision as soon as we started moving. She white-knuckled her way through the entire ride. I asked her to smile and this is as good as it got.

So here's to the Fair. We're glad we went but we're glad it's only once a year. It was exhausting.

What Do You Do?

What do you do when it's 90+ degrees outside and your air conditioning breaks?

Well, at our place we spend a lot of time in the shade enjoying a slight breeze and playing with chalk. Oh...and we spend a little time wondering when the repairman will grace our over-heated home.

Coming Clean

While we're on the subject of denial I should mention that it doesn't always end well. You see, my nasty habit of avoidance often (and I mean very often) comes around to sink it's sharp teeth in my derriere. So, I'm fessin' up:

I know that I promised to do a giveaway every month. You might think that I just plum forgot about August. I didn't. I simply couldn't get my brain to cooperate with me and, after drawing a blank day after day after day, my good friend Denial took over and allowed me to get on with my life (such that it was/is) for at least a few more days.

But here we are...September 1st. No way to cover my tracks now. So I'll simply have to look forward and try to make up for my shortcomings in this month...it is only the 1st, after all. This month is still abounding in promise!

In the meantime, I hope you'll all understand my temporary insanity (yes, "temporary" might be a bit of a stretch) and not consider me an outright liar.

Sigh.