Being Thankful

Found this paper laying around our stack of mags, papers and mail yesterday... A simple message amongst the clutter. Love reading or over hearing my boys talk when they express a personal thought without being prompted; the truest glimpse of what's inside...

Pumpkins and cider, oh my!

Defenses

Thought this was a moment in time to remember...
Nolan and I were on our way to pick up Ethan from school and had a little science discussion..."are these gnats blood suckers?" (we've had quite a swarm now for a week of these most annoying no see-um bugs) . Me: "no, just mosquitos". Nolan: "why are they here; what do they do, what's their defense?" Me: "they're just food for some other bugs, birds, bats". Nolan: "yeah, but what's their defense?" Me: "I don't know". Nolan: "well, the worst defense is when frogs pee on you." Me: smile.

Classic...

Little brother woke up big brother at 7am to prepare for their FIRST lemonade stand during our garage sale. It was a proud Mom day...they had clothes ready to go and came to the kitchen fully dressed. Ethan grabbed a doughnut for each of them and out they came carrying their supplies. Their first sale was a customer who gave them a $1 bill to keep. Ethan looked stumped, thinking he paid for lemonade and should have some :) What a great way to start their day! With a steady flow of people, Ethan began to ask people if they'd like some lemonade and of course very few turned him down. He counted back change and exchanged niceties. It wasn't long before Nolan followed suit. What great lil entrepreneurs they were! After the sale, Ethan ran into the house to count their money and discovered they made $18, which they both split equally. I was oozing with pride...love my boys!

Catching Up...

For those interested...This is what we've been up to for the last month or so...We always enjoy the annual Carillon Festival and Fireworks. We're fortunate to live nearby and can hear the bells periodically during the week and throughout the spring and summer. Anyway, the boys travel in style over to the park in our SUV Radio Flyer (gotta love gifts from Grandma and Grandpa) with glow sticks and all! Top notch fireworks AND better than any we've seen around here on the 4th of July.














































Next...

Out with the old, in with the new...We said good riddens to our old, very inefficient patio door (not too mention as my Dad put it, "It looks like crap"). Thanks to my Dad, brother and Uncle Tom we're now enjoying our new energy efficient, beautiful Marvin door :) Who knew a new door could bring such small joy, but it sure does...It rolls open oh so smooth, the screen is actually on the outside, no gaps for outside winged or 6 legged critters to crawl or fly through, and the BEST part is...(drum roll please)... no billy bar needed to keep the door 'locked'! Woohoo!

Slippers in Summer

Nolan started a trend over the winter...my slippers were the last thing off before slipping into the warm bed at night and the first things on my feet before hitting the floor in the morning. Nolan would often come in to "check" on me to see if I was awake and then one morning he just started handing me my slippers when I got up. With the warmer temps, I've worn them very little and haven't had them bedside for at least a few weeks. They've just been kinda here and there around the bedroom. Maybe since the mornings are brighter now, Nolan heads down stairs by himself, but this morning...I woke up to that familiar soft breathing sound towards the back of my head. Rolled over to see it was my Nolan suckin his two fingers, holding his baby bear in one hand and there behind him was a full length mirror giving me full view of what he was holding in the other...my slippers :) If time could just stand still...

Buds

The other day I took Nolan with me to help out in Ethan's class on a project for his teacher...having been there awhile, the kids were lining up to head outside and Nolan asked if he could go too. Thankfully Ethan's teacher was on it before I could reply and asked that he join them. Ethan was at the front of the line and began calling for him..."bud, bud over here". Then another friend or two wanted to help summon him, too, by referring to him as "bud". Ethan very politely, but firmly looked at his friends and said "you call him Nolan, not bud". Loved that! A little big brother pride showing, the good kind :) May they be lifetime buds...

SEVEN

Hard to believe my firstborn son is 7 today! Happy Birthday Ethan! He's been counting the days for a month I think...he decided to choose a lego theme for his party this year, so we sent out 6 invites to classmates. Saturday was the big party and we had 5 boys and one girl come to celebrate ringing in Ethan's 7th year. The kids started the party off with a lego hunt searching for duplo size legos hidden all around the yard. Next, everyone received a baggy with the same number of lego car parts to assemble a race car. Soon to follow was a lego car derby race to see whose car was the fastest. Josh engineered a wooden race track and ran the heats till we crowned a champion. The last game was a lego toss (much like Bozo's Grand Prize Game - loved that show!). What's a party without ice cream cake with chocolate chip cookie dough, no less :) Favorite gifts were his Agents Lego set and a square Bakugan.
It was a great day!

Double Lovin'

Picked up Nolan from pre-school the other day and he says "I'm double lovin' Jesus today". You see he had on his favorite cross necklaces (2 of them)... He's so good at loving unconditionally, not expecting anything in return. My 4 year old inspires me :)

2am Scare

Scene:
Hughson house
Setting:
Parent's bedroom
Time:
2:00 am
Characters:
Mom, Dad and 4 year old son

All is quiet and family is in a DEEP slumber...Enter 4 year old son...running into parent's bedroom crying. (Picture all of what you're about to read happening in half a milli-second)... Dad jerks upright, Mom is startled hearing running footsteps, and crying. Half out of it, she believes there's someone else coming after her son. She cowers into her husband believing her head may be in danger and screams twice while her husband summons their son towards him (why would he come closer, with Mom screaming in terror??) at the same time he 'protects' her from the 'intruder' by getting on top of her. He says in her ear "it's ok, it's ok". She snaps out of her moment of terror realizing her 4 year old was just reacting...to... a... bad... dream.

Oh, for the love of Pete! This is not the first time I've been scared out of a slumber because of Nolan having a bad dream, but this takes the cake. In the past, he's tiptoed into our room and stood at the side of the bed, my side of course, and I awake to the sound of 'someone' breathing heavy in my ear. Heart rate hits the fan! I'm appreciating Ethan's preferred way of seeking solace during bad dreams...he stays in bed, pulling up the covers over his face, and calls for us in an ascending manner...therefore allowing me to gently awaken and console him without a racing heart.

Oh, how different our kids can be!

Hair

Why is a woman's hair so important? On a good hair day...I can feel more confident, prettier, energetic and kinder. On a bad hair day (oh boy)...I feel less confident, use less eye contact, can be more selfish and have less energy. I've been in a funk with my hair for a few months now and it just hasn't been 'pretty'. Sure wish I had been blessed with a full head of long flowing brunette wavy locks...I'm WAY on the other side. It's been a hard road, but I just look best with short hair! That's it. Googled local salons yesterday, emailed one place voicing my frustration and asked if they had an expert who had a knack in giving clients that "AHA moment" when they looked in the mirror afterward. Isn't that what we all want? To sit in the salon chair and swivel around to see a new and improved version of ourselves? Well...this place offered free consultations and each stylist had their qualifications/certifications all spelled out, so I hand picked a man named Leonard. He had a cancellation later that morning and I ran with it...Leonard sat with me and combed through my hair talking about the right look for my face, my eyes and type of hair. I asked when he could work his magic. He was hesitant to say he was available now (he wanted me to go home and think about what we talked about, so I'd have no regrets I'm sure), but offered none the less. Long story short, he cut my hair beautifully. He even instructed me on how to add some highlights to my Sally-store-bought-color-in-a box treatment. Loved the spontaneity of doing it, his objective professional opinion and leaving feeling sassy with my new do. Then it hit me...how am I gonna break it off with my other stylist? She's gonna take it so personally. I wish I didn't care so much, but just what is the RIGHT way to end your professional/personal relationship with your hair stylist? Afterall, you do share some history in those back and forth conversations over hair clipping. I feel like I'm breaking some sort of oath...ugh...I do LOVE my new do and I'm still switchin to Leonard.

*there is some exaggeration in this post*

1st Tooth

My first baby boy lost his first baby tooth tonight! He's growing up so fast...He must have hit it just right with his toothbrush cause out it came. He was a little shell shocked at first and then he got excited after seeing my reaction. Grabbed the camera, took a couple quick photos and then shared the news with Dad. Then the gazillion questions followed..."where are the roots?", "when will the others come out?", "how did they get put there?", "could I have more than one tooth lose at one time?", "what does the tooth fairy do with all the teeth?", "will I need braces?" and on and on it went.
Oh to be a kid again and experience something new with your changing self...to ask endless questions and to trust in the answers. It's in these moments, I treasure being Mom.

40 Years of Marriage

My parents just celebrated 40 years of marriage on the 15th! This is soooo HUGE especially in the culture we live in. I'm so proud and so blessed to have witnessed a good chunk of their story unfold...Their story begins as highschool sweethearts who married just before turning 19. They had a very simple ceremony with close family and friends. A reception followed at my Grandmother's house where cake and punch was served. Shortly after they took off for their honeymoon...a one nighter in St. Louis. Humble beginnings to say the least and many would say the odds were against them.
The lasy 40 years has brought many good times, but there was also a time when they both wanted to throw in the towel...Accepting what they needed to change about themselves, they slowly began to tear down the wall that seperated them. Today, they're closer than ever and are the better for mustering up the courage and strength needed to restore a love almost lost. My life and marriage are blessed because of their devotion...Love you Mom & Dad! Happy 40th Anniversary!

Connecting...

We're going on our 2nd week of no tv...Nolan's missed his morning cartoons, I my morning Today/Regis & Kelly shows and Ethan says "I don't like tv" and hasn't missed it one bit. We've spent more time playing games, putting together puzzles, reading, writing, watching episodes of Nature on PBS.org, and doing math. So, I shouldn't find it so surprising that we're connecting so much more these days, which actually makes for an easier time for me in being a 'single Mom'. I've realized what a crutch tv can be...the number of times bedtime is rushed just so I can watch my show, mentally pulling away and feeling like my boys are interrupting me. A few highlights of this last week...

Nolan offered me one of his precious teddy bears to sleep with and even went so far as to let me pick which one I wanted. Love that!

Ethan filled out his Valentines for his classmates and came up with writing 'I love you' on almost all of them. A little peek at his big heart...

Ethan spells out words often, so instead of asking for a snack he asks "can I have a s..n..a..c..k?" Since this has been happening more and more over a course of a few weeks, Nolan is now asking "can I have a s...c...o...k?" He 'spells' out words all the time too (just not quite as successful)...So darn cute :) It's important to keep up with big brother, ya know.

Ethan, Nolan and I are sitting in Baskin Robbins eating our ice cream when Ethan recognizes that we're the only ones in the place. Soon a man walks in and Ethan says "now there's 4 of us"...Nolan tries to debate him and says with a smile on his face as if to say 'I'm smart'..."there's 2 groups of us and 4 people". Ethan and I looked at each other with the exact same expression of 'Wow!'. He's so smart :)

Last night Ethan discovered his first tooth poking through. A new and exciting change in him! He was FULL of questions! "Will it hurt when it comes out?" "When will my tooth start to wiggle?" "Can I stay awake to see the tooth fairy?" "I wonder how much $$ I'll get?"

So, with the tv only offering us 'snow' to watch, maybe I'm better able to tune into what's really important and recognize how blessed I really am...Life is good!

We all live in a Little Lego World, a Little Lego World...

Who knew a constructive mess could yield such creativity! If you know me, this is a hard thing (and for Josh) to let happen. This picture was actually taken on a good day, otherwise, they're EVERYWHERE in the room. When they get picked up to vacuum, there's still the tiniest of the bunch that manage to get sucked up. And the guinea pig's cage is known to have a few scattered about...it's just the cost of creating... There isn't a day that Ethan & Nolan aren't playing with their legos (for hours). I know some parents talk about when their kids grew older, they missed the fingerprints and marks here and there, but I can say I'll REALLY miss stepping, sucking up and continually scooting little legos outta the way in order to witness our boys tap into their creative juices...I am continually AMAZED by their creative minds!
The first three below were designed by Ethan from last year. Look forward to 2009 creations later! Nolan has really just gotten the knack of making some great machines... his are the last three...Just for the record, our boys are 4 & 6 and these were ALL done solely by them. Gotta love little legos...

Ready...set...GO!

Ethan experienced his first Pinewood Derby as a Tiger scout last Saturday. To start, Josh traced the pinewood block to a piece of paper and then Ethan went to town drawing up the design. He cut it out and then traced it onto the wood block. Josh did the cutting and Ethan helped with the sanding. With a sore hand from coloring it all over in colored pencil, Ethan had a finished race car. Well, almost...I had my hand in adding yellow racing stripes and 2 layers of varnish. Add to that a proud Dad who spent a good chunk of time slickin up the wheels the night before the BIG race (one key element in winning, ya know).
This was all new to us, but what FUN! With Grandpa and Grandma Taylor, Uncle Todd, Erin and Grandpa Hughson there to witness Ethan take 1st place in his Tiger den and 4th place in the Pack..it was VERY exciting! A far cry from years ago when you had to rely on biased eyeballs. The results of these heats were projected instantly onto an LCD screen via computer. No replays or convincing needed. So, Ethan was thrilled to take home a metal AND a 1st place trophy! Just good clean fun for ALL...AND what better way to celebrate than to fill our stomachs with Culver's burgers and custard after wards.

The gift of being women...

LOVED this video and it was a good reminder for me why we need to put our hearts out there...gotta have both the laughter and the tears.

If I could have it ALL...

I'd be a Certified Nurse Midwife, pottery makin, livin in a cordwood house on the edge of some woods with a crystal clear lake to jump into, mom of three, friend to orphans and widows, church goin, world traveler, playin in the dirt gardener, chocolate chip pancake eatin, part time interior decorator drivin a 56 black n chrome thunderbird, lovin on my man, bikin & hikin chick who made a little God imprint on all those who knew me.