Family Happenings

Airsoft Armor

2012-02-10T16:27:00.000-05:00

Airsoft is kinda big at our house right now and we felt like JuneBug needed some protection if he was going to play. Thus Ike came up with the idea of cardboard armor until (maybe) we can upgrade to plastic or something. It involved a lot of cutting and fitting. In the end we were pretty pleased with it. We do want to get him (and us) face masks but we will have to see if the make them his size.

Quick Post

2012-02-03T19:17:00.001-05:00

Well, I guess I can't post videos but I can pictures so here are a few of the boys from yesterday. BTW down south here it was in the 60's and sunny- beautiful weather!

As a side note the rocking chair above we picked up off the side of the road. I think it needs some repairs but I love the "Cracker Barrel" style and that it is a double-seater and that it was FREE! :)

We have been trying to get out and take a walk before lunch/nap time and here we are at the pond down from our house.

(Forgotten) Older Videos

2012-01-28T11:29:00.002-05:00

Well, I don't know if you can exactly call them old (~one month old) but I had saved them off the camera and forgot about them. Here are a couple videos of us around the house doing "regular" stuff. :)

Ok well I was going to post more than one but Blogger isn't letting me so this will have to do for now.

JuneBug Stamps!

2012-01-13T14:43:00.000-05:00

This week we made cards for someone who had their wisdom teeth removed. Since Peanut was sleeping I took the opportunity to show JuneBug how to use stamps. He loved it!

Big Brother Helping Little Brother

2012-01-11T14:46:00.000-05:00

JuneBug came up with this all on his own. Thankfully they ARE learning to play together nicely. :)

We are...

2011-12-28T11:46:00.000-05:00

Peanut didn't exactly want to cooperate. :)

Baby Bump #3 is coming in the summer of 2012

Street Preaching

2011-12-26T11:20:00.000-05:00

On Friday, during the lunch hour, we had the privilege of going downtown to listen to Pastor preach. He preaches on the streets every Friday but this was the first time we were able to go. Since a lot of people had vacation time there was a large group of us from church. You can't tell from the pictures I captured but there were hundreds of people out, which meant that hundreds of people heard God's Word being preached. The reactions of those that passed by were interesting. While there was no outward violence one person covered their ears while they walked by and a few people hollered. But Pastor takes it all in stride and preaches directly to them. For instance when some young waving children went by in a motorized carriage Pastor called out to the "little children" and pointed them to the example of young Timothy who knew the Scriptures from his youth. It was a good experience for us to have.

Some of our church family listening to Pastor

Ike and Junebug listening

Peanut with Pastor in the background. The weather was beautiful and warm- a real blessing!

After Pastor finished preaching a least one person from the street came up to ask him a question. Of course he talked to us as well. :)

Containing the Peanut

Two other Mothers from church

Ike with Pastor and two friends from church

Here you can listen to Pastor open-air preaching a couple of years ago

Beach Videos

2011-12-13T19:56:00.000-05:00

Edisto Vacation

2011-12-05T14:50:00.000-05:00

The pictures are many the words are few because I'm off to catch a nap to rest from my vacation! :)

Playing on the beach

Bike Riding and the Bike Trail

Checking our speed. We couldn't figure out for sure when it calculated so although the pictures only read 12-19mph some of us at times were registering 25-30mph!

More playing on the beach

The "before" swimming pictures

There are no "after" pictures. We were too wet and cold. But we DID swim in the Atlantic in December!

Birthday

The Boys

Our beach front house

Fall Fun

2011-11-22T13:12:00.001-05:00

Today I'll let the pictures and video do the talking...

A Giveaway Entry

2011-11-22T12:04:00.001-05:00

Well, here I am again entering a giveaway. This one has a great prize- a $300 Vision Forum gift certificate! WHOO-HOO! :D
You all do know about Vision Forum right? It is THE place to find a huge selection of christian books, toys, messages, and more.

I could *almost* say that you will only ever need to order from Vision Forum for your family library. Almost. When I think of Vision Forum I think of Philippians 4:8:
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever thing are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Of course we still need to be discerning, but many of the books Vision Forum sells are the epitome of this verse.

I know my girlhood library was filled with their products and I would love for JuneBug's and Peanut's library to be the same. Just last week I ordered my own copy of Large Family Logistics (can't wait to take a highlighter to it!) to add to the family library. Some of our other favorite products are Providential Battles, the Douglas Bond books, and the first item I ever remember getting from Vision Forum: What's a Girl to do?. I could also give you my wish list but that might seem kind of corn-y. :) Anyway thanks for reading this (if you did). A bonus for reading this far...YOU can go enter for a $100 or $200 gift certificates by commenting at Raising Olives, Smockity Frocks, The Wise Woman, Life in a Shoe, Generation Cedar and The Modest Mom. Or if you want to win the $300 gift certificate- blog about it (directions are on any of the blogged listed above). Have fun!

P.S. A cute fall post of Junebug & Peanut will be forth coming!

What's on the Table?

2011-11-17T12:00:00.000-05:00

This week I have another breakfast recipe. It is called Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal by GoodLife Eats. I originally came across it in my blog reading and I think we have had it almost every week now. After going through last winter with stove top oatmeal nearly every morning I about gag just at the thought of it. But we need warm hearty breakfasts during the winter and oatmeal is a good choice. So this is my compromise. Of course anything with the word "pie" in it for breakfast doesn't seem too bad.
As for modifications to the recipe I have a few. For one I don't use the individual sized ramekins that the recipe uses. Because well, I don't have them and we eat a lot of oatmeal. A lot. I quadruple the recipe for our family and it lasts two mornings. For a quadrupled recipe I use a 9x13 pan. If I remember correctly I have also x6 it and it just barely fit in a 9x13. I usually bake my quad-ed recipe for 45-50minutes total.
Instead of the brown sugar I have substituted sucanat and/or honey successfully. You can if you are in a hurry mix the topping right in but it won't have a layered look.
This doesn't make me gag at all. No sirree! :)

What's on the Table?

2011-11-10T12:00:00.000-05:00

photo credit

This post is going to highlight my newest favorite recipe. It is a cookie and there are so many variations that you can eat cookies all day long. They are healthy enough you almost could....almost. The recipe is for Giant Breakfast Cookies by Heavenly Homemakers.com When we had them for breakfast I used a mixture of dried fruits (strawberries, raisins, figs, dates, peaches). The cookies were delicious! Then I made them with chocolate chips and cashew brittle and they were even better. A few things I love about this recipe:

1. Very versatile (healthy enough for breakfast, chocolaty enough for a snack)

2. Whole wheat and honey are main ingredients

3. Super easy. Trust me you can whip them together fast enough during nap time to still get a nap yourself!

Again I didn't paste the recipe here in case of copyright infringement but you can go here for the recipe.

Ooddles of Little Boy Yummy-ness

2011-11-08T15:23:00.000-05:00

Well, since I said yummy-ness in the title I thought I would share this fun picture of JuneBug eating a cupcake.

Throughout the last month or so I've been trying to get some good shots of the boys individually, together, and as a family. During this time of the year all the photo places start competing for your picture business and I wanted to be able to take advantage of any good deals. Especially the FREE ones! :) So for your enjoyment here are a few of the good ones.

Look at these eyes!

Dressed as a cowboy

This one cracks me up with how it looks like he is anticipating the gun really going off

This one turned out sooo cute

That afternoon he had a "thing" for showing off his tongue

In these next two there was too much light but I thought they were cute anyway

Even though they aren't smiling I love this one

Blurry but happy

Peanut was not on his best behavior that day but you wouldn't be able to tell from this photo

In their police car.

Shootin' Pistols

2011-11-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

What's on the Table?

2011-11-03T12:00:00.000-05:00

photo credit

I thought I might start a little series highlighting new recipes that I have found AND used. Perhaps it is the cooler weather and wanting to turn the oven on but I have always thought that the fall season is a good time to try new recipes.

The first recipe I want to share is this lifesaver: 30 Minute Breadsticks by Everyday...Food Storage. One evening with a pot of spaghetti on to boil, the sauce to perfection, and hubby about 30 minutes from home I realized I ~~wanted~~ NEEDED bread-sticks to go with my Italian meal. I mean who doesn't have some sort of bread-stick/garlic bread with spaghetti? But alas who can make bread sticks in 30 minutes using whole foods? Well, I must be a believer in the impossible because I got online and searched for a recipe anyway. 30 Minute Bread-sticks is just what I was looking for. My favorite things about this recipe:

1. Uses whole wheat

2. Honey can be used in place of the sugar

3. So easy

4.QUICK!

After trying the recipe it went on my list favorites. One note I have on the recipe is that the "1 cube" of butter is about 1/4cup. Second I went ahead and added my spices (garlic, parsley, etc) right to the dough before the flour so that it get mixed well enough. Third this does come together pretty quickly so 30 minutes really is 30 minutes start to finish.

This delicious recipe certainly satisfied my craving for bread-sticks!

I did not copy the recipe here in case there were any copyright problems so you will need to visit the site.

Overnight Guests

2011-10-31T11:01:00.002-05:00

The dining room awaiting guests. Was that a big gasp of shock I just heard? The state of this room rarely looks like this so I had to take a picture. 5 days later and only a couple of things have been stacked on the table awaiting to be put away. Sorry I'm rambling now....

Now we jump to the next morning ( I know there is a deplorable lack of pictures). We headed to my in-laws for breakfast and while the grown-ups got ready to go the children played outside.

Essie riding in the police car

Peanut watching the goings on

Little Rose

Ti and JuneBug playing guns

Th th that's all folks!

~~~

After our company left Ike finished a project we had wanted to get done before they came. We hung a mirror.

It needs some help though because it looks a little plain.

Our get-in-the-way helper boy. :)

Monthly Update

2011-10-18T14:29:00.000-05:00

Peanut Points:

Peanut turned one this month!

He started walking a week before his birthday.

Two new teeth cut through and two more are on the way.

The picture below is JuneBug on his first birthday (after the cake) :D Inserted here for easy comparison of JuneBug and Peanut at similar ages.

Starting to notice how "slack" we are with the second child

Peanut loves all sorts of squash and green beans. He doesn't want "baby" food (like the puff snacks they make for babies now) he wants stuff he can sink his teeth into. Except cake. Loves the frosting but doesn't like the texture of cake.

Big Brother Bits:

We are on the 6th week of school and still loving it. Most of the time he reminds me to do it. I'm learning a lot too.

You can tell the world of words is opening up to him because already this morning I have been asked a gazillion times: "What letter does ____ start with?"

He is a very helpful critter and his new thing is "need a hand with that?" :D

JuneBug is learning that his older relations, although they are his friends must be respected.

Oh, and does he love to sing.

(words taken from the picture in the book he is holding)

I'll end with a transcription of a recent telephone conversation of him with one of his Aunts

JuneBug: Can I talk to Uncle J (Age 16)?

Aunt: No, not right now he is outside working with Grandpa. He's driving the the tractor.

JuneBug: Is he sitting on Grandpa's lap?

:D :D :D

Suggested Sermon

2011-10-18T14:15:00.000-05:00

This past weekend we had a communion season. At the Preparatory Service Pastor McCurley preached on self examination. It was the first time I remember hearing a sermon preached about it- very good!
Also don't forget to check out our church's new website. Just click on "Favorite Places on the Web" located at the top!

Baby Legs Project

2011-09-27T09:15:00.000-05:00

Last week I used the directions found at Adventures In Fluff to make my own knockoff BabyLegs. I used an old pair of "toe socks" that I had planned on donating to Goodwill. This particular pair required less sewing because I only had to cut the toes off and roll the edge under. I can't wait for the cooler weather to come back so Peanut can wear them more often. :)

Oh, and something that isn't quite clear in the directions: the "sock" is worn upside down. The part that is around Peanut's ankle was the original top. :)

Pictures!

2011-09-21T15:52:00.000-05:00

Due to the loan of a camera and the purchase of memory card reader I have a couple of pictures to share with you all.

See the two new top teeth?

Crying baby pictures are a lot of fun to take...most of the time. :)

even though it is blurry I had to show you a picture of Peanut in his footie PJ's

LOVE this face

Just woke up

Junebug showing off his new shirt and Peanut yawning in the background

~~~JuneBug School shots~~~

~~~Various Family Shots~~~

Monthly Update

2011-09-20T12:00:00.000-05:00

We are still without a camera so I'll keep it short. How about a bullet list?

JuneBug:

Started School using My Father's World. He loves it!
Learning how to be a good role model for the Peanut (instead of leading him to trouble)
Whenever he is not playing (and even sometimes when he is) JuneBug is hungry. I think he is growing.

Peanut:

Got two more teeth...finally! (Making a total of 4)
Starting to eat table food. Whenever I sit at the table he is immediately at my feet seeing if I'm going to eat anything. :)
Very very very close to walking.
He has a temper.
Gives kisses, which is so stinkin' cute. I hope we get it on video before he grows out of it.

Looking back in the archives of this blog I pulled out a picture to compare JuneBug and Peanut at a similar age.

Here JuneBug (on left) is 11months and Peanut is 10months.

See you all next month!

I'm an AUNT!

2011-09-15T20:04:00.001-05:00

Today my little nephew made his appearance. See how cute he is:

Our live coverage team, Pop-pum, Mum-mum, and Aunt SAM are on the premises now however the reports have been spotty. We all know how a new baby can capture the complete attention of folks so we will have to bear with them. :) :) :) Who can blame them? Take another look at how sweet he is.

I wonder if they have thought of a blog name for him....

JuneBug & Peanut Post

2011-09-01T18:16:00.000-05:00

I'll *try* to make this a short post because the best part of the updates (the pictures!) are unavailable. Yes, my dear friends our camera has died. ;( It made a terrible crunching noise as I turned it on the other week and now only a green light briefly shines when I try to power it on. On a good note though I think I might be able to trade it in for Swagbucks or Recycle Bank points.

August was a busy month hence the reason I'm posting this in September! We had a week long vacation right in the middle of the month and have been recovering ever since. :) No, actually it was restful even if it was busy.

While we were on vacation Peanut started to really crawl. Not just army crawl, but a get up on your knees and crawl. He is almost walking but needs to get better balance first.

Peanut still continues to nurse and only has two teeth. Table food has become interesting to him now so another plate and fork might be added to the table soon.

On our vacation JuneBug had his first experience swimming (other than in a bathtub). At first he was quite frightened (my neck was in his death grip). By the end of the vacation though, he was walking back and forth in the water to Ike and me. I wouldn't call him a fish but I could see him really start to enjoy swimming. Maybe next summer?

School is beginning for many now and JuneBug just might be one of the newest scholars. Yesterday in the mail I received from my Aunt the My Father's World Kindergarten Materials. As I looked through it today it seems very feasible to do. Some of the items would be over his head of course, but it would be a nice structure to work off of. At the end of the month I maybe able to say we have started school!

Ta Ta For Now!

JuneBug Post

2011-07-28T15:43:00.000-05:00

This month for JuneBug's post I'm just going to share a couple of cute photos of him. Oh, and a video. We lost our camera for a few days and so missed capturing his birthday and a visit from my Grandparents (thankfully my s-i-l captured some on her camera).

Helping with some of our garden produce

It was his first time working with a real knife. I had to remind him that it was REAL a couple of times!

Peanut Post

2011-07-28T15:30:00.000-05:00

Peanut is another month older and we have seen a lot of growth in his life. For starters he is now pulling himself up to standing position. He doesn't really "cruise" along the furniture yet, although the other day he did let go and balance for a few seconds. The army crawl is still his fastest and favorite way to get somewhere (unless you count being carried).

One big change is the length of his hair. Always one for having his boys look like boys, Ike has wanted to cut Peanut's hair for awhile. And if you think 9 months is early for a hair cut... JuneBug's was cut at 5 weeks!

Papa and Peanut getting ready

Before

In-between (Thanks to JuneBug for this picture)

After#1

After#2

I'm still nursing Peanut but he has been enjoying some fruit on the side. A friend gave us a baby feeder that I've stuck different items in and allowed him to chew on. The contraption makes it so you don't have to worry about the baby choking. This morning I gave him frozen blueberries and banana and he LOVED it.

Answer to "Do you know?"

2011-07-22T16:41:00.000-05:00

In my last post I asked you all if you could identify the fruit in the following picture.

Yes, they are figs! This is the first time I have ever seen or tried a fresh fig. I have only ever had a Fig Newton. :) A fig tastes a lot like a plum, though the texture is somewhat different almost like a peach. Oh, and they are very sticky when first picked.

Inside of a fig

Well, having had little experience with figs I went on a recipe search. With hardly any results. Two recipes for fig newtons that I would like to try here and here. I noticed many of the recipes have a lot of sugar in them, which I find interesting since a fig itself is so sweet. For right now I decided just to dry them in my borrowed dehydrator. So if anyone has any healthy or healthier recipes for figs PLEASE leave a comment! It will help me and Chloe N. out immensely.

Two of the 4 1/2 trays of figs waiting to go into the dehydrator

Fig Fact: According to this website if you have latex allergies than the milky juice of figs (when first picked) can cause you to break out in a rash.

In addition to the figs we were also given a box of pears and some peaches. I'm drying some of the peaches with the figs and have started a crock pot of pears to turn into pear sauce.

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof. Matt. 6:31-34

Do you know....

2011-07-19T21:09:00.000-05:00

what these are?

Hint: It is a fruit! Answer will be forth coming in a couple days.

Cow Appreciation Day

2011-07-09T12:06:00.000-05:00

In the video below JuneBug explains our outing today.

Our "herd"

Mama and her "calves"

"Mooooooo"

Chicken makes us happy!

Remember everybody..... EAT MOR CHIKIN!!!! :)

I may have more pictures to upload later after I get my SIL's camera card.

JuneBug Post

2011-06-20T15:20:00.001-05:00

This month our JuneBug is 3 years old! He was born two weeks "late" at a whopping 9lbs 22in long. With all the energy he exudes JuneBug has thinned out quite a bit since then. Now he registers 30lbs at 3ft. The following are some of his interests and accomplishments.

THOMAS: JuneBug is a Thomas the Tank Engine fan. He enjoys making his trains "chuff down the track" just as much as watching the show. In his play "Sir Pop-pom Hatt" frequently visits his engines and you can see Thomas going under a lot of tunnels (i.e. couch cushions).

PLAY: In addition to playing with Thomas JuneBug also has fun in doing anything boyish. He can play in the dirt, "shoot" at bad guys, and work on tractors. His imagination is vivid and he can't wait for Peanut to grow up and be able to help him "shoot".

WORK: Admittedly, JuneBug doesn't do as much work as he could and in fact would love to help more. Right now I'm creating more of a schedule and hopefully that will include some training time for this "Mommy's Helper".

FOOD: Anything with sugar could be considered JuneBug's favorite food. We, however, try to limit the intake of such items. Good foods that he enjoys are muffins, hamburger, and all types of fruit. Lettuce for some reason gags him and so he doesn't like it very much. It melts my heart on the nights at dinner when we hear him say "it's delicious!"

KOREAN: JuneBug's Papa has taught him some Korean words. Hopefully with our new schedule we can have a little more structure to aid his (and Mommy's) learning more.

Peanut Post

2011-06-15T12:00:00.016-05:00

Inspired by some friends I thought I would try to start making a monthly post on each of the boys. It will be to record their growth in all areas of their lives. I pray that I can be consistent with it!

~~~

STATS: Our Peanut is 8 months old this month. He weighs 21 pounds. Since measuring the length of a baby is so difficult my best estimate of his height is 27 inches long.

FOOD: Exclusively eats/drinks Mommy's milk. Peanut has sampled avocado and "smoothie" (coconut milk and banana) but finds his appetite best satisfied with Mommy. Considering he got his first tooth only a couple of weeks ago it isn't too bad for Mommy either. (You can kind of see the tooth in the picture below)

MOBILITY: When Peanut is in his walker he runs! But put him on the floor and he moves at an army crawl. He is working on getting his knees up under him though. Because Peanut moves around so well in his walker he is also learning the meaning of "don't touch". :)

SOCIAL SKILLS: Peanut has the uncanny ability to melt your heart. He goes to anybody and likes to be cuddled. Quieter than his big brother, "he talks with his eyes" as one checkout girl at the grocery said.

IMITATION: We have been telling JuneBug for awhile now that he needs to be a good example to Peanut and just recently have noticed why this needs to be the case. When JuneBug comes running into the room and yells "GGGGGAAAAA!!!!!!" Peanut will race after him in his walker and yell "GGGGAAAAAA" too. Remember in the last paragraph I said "quietER" not quiet. :) More examples are below.

SLEEP: A couple of nights last week he slept from 8PM to 7AM but now he is playing catch up with a feeding at midnight and 5AM. It isn't too bad and I have a theory that maybe he is waking up cold at one of those times because he hasn't kept the blanket on. So I plan to add a thicker covering to see if I can get by with just one feeding.

CLAPPING: In the past week Peanut started to imitate clapping. Watch the video to see.

NIGHT-NIGHT: Part of the "Peanut goes to bed" ritual is everyone waving madly and saying night-night. Again this past week Peanut started to imitate us waving. He will even make a "na-na" sound telling us goodnight.

AN ANECDOTE: The other day Peanut was crying and JuneBug goes over and tells him "It's okay Peanut. Don't cry I'm your best friend."

Yes, I said awwwww! :)

Look for a JuneBug Post in a couple of days!

P.S. For those of you who may be wondering.... Mrs. L, Aunt Kt, Devin, Mum-Mum, Auntie S, Bugsbee, Britt, Bree, and "Mom" Alexander all chose the winning photo in the YoBaby contest. Peanut was one of the six winning babies. He generously is sharing the yogurt he won with Mommy and JuneBug.

Working and Playing with Friends

2011-06-13T12:00:00.000-05:00

A few weekends ago we went to help some church friends work on their house. Well, I should say Ike helped work while the boys and I played.

Here is Ike in his Tyvek suit to go under the house

The guys taking a break and walking the property

M hanging out in his carseat

Peanut in his

JuneBug and A playing with some toys we brought

The X Family's property has some great backgrounds for photos so I tried my hand at capturing a few.

This one is my favorite of the day

The two of them were born about a month apart and have spent nearly 2/3 of their Lord's Days together. Here is a picture of them when they were babies and another one with them a little older.

M and Peanut were also born a little more than a month apart.

Mrs. X making a dandelion wreath

Modeling the finished product

JuneBug didn't want to be left out

and didn't want me to be either so he took my picture.

This beautiful oak tree was huge. A few of the limbs (on the right) came down almost to the ground. In the pictures below you can see the children sitting on them.

How to Make a Smoothie...

2011-05-27T12:00:00.011-05:00

...JuneBug style! If you have ever watched Homestead Blessings: The Art of Dairy Delights you may notice a couple of references ("let this set for awhile") he watched it with me a couple of weeks ago and then we made yogurt. I think it is funny that JuneBug associated the video with us making a smoothie.

You are my sunshine

2011-05-25T12:00:00.000-05:00

Grandpa and Grandma Come to Visit

2011-05-23T10:51:00.001-05:00

On their way home from Florida Grandpa and Grandma C stopped to visit us.

For an afternoon snack we had ice cream.

From stories to gadgets Grandpa always has something interesting to share. In the picture it was a watch that contained a train engine counting the seconds. (While he was here we also played with a GPS, recorded our voices and heard a story of when Grandpa was young in the 1930's.)

Grandma and Grandpa with two (of the three) great-great grandsons

In this one we added Mommy and Teddy

While waiting for Ike to get home we went out and played some catch.

I think it is funny how JuneBug has his hand on his back for this one.

Playing hand games after dinner

Grandpa played a little trick on JuneBug and got him wet. :)

Back to normal play

Watching with amusement.

It was a great visit and we are resolved to make time for our grandparents more.

Garden's First Fruits

2011-05-18T14:52:00.001-05:00

I guess we should have showed him how to pick a green bean before we told him to do it. :) (The plant was fine though)

We ate them for supper!

l-r: tomatoes and peppers, cantaloupe, green beans and cucumbers

l-r: yellow squash, zucchini, acorn squash and butternut squash with some tomatoes and peppers mixed in.

Various Pictures of the Boys

2011-05-10T14:44:00.000-05:00

Kitchen Tour! With Video

2011-05-02T17:25:00.001-05:00

Last week my sister-in-law K came over and helped me de-clutter and organize my kitchen. I put her to work that is for sure! We started with a trip to Wal-Mart to spend birthday money on items that I hoped would help us organize. Then we hit Wendy's so that we would have sustenance (the Frosty especially helped!). After that it was Work! Work! Work! At one point I realized how helpful K really was. It wasn't just that she was literally working but she secretly motivated me. Had she not been there I would have given up and put it off to an indefinite later.

Here are a few photos of the day and my purchases.

The baker's rack "before" or should I say in midst of organizing

The baker's rack "after" and in it's new location

My new bamboo silverware organizer in place of what used to be nothing.

K and Peanut (June Bug was at Grammy's house)

A few (or should I say a lot!) of the items I the baker's rack needed a new home. The two-drawer box under the monitor is the new home for our letter writing/sending supplies. It has paper, cards, addresses, stamps, etc. The green box on the left is a in/out box and also holds pens and pencils. It isn't exactly how I would like the desk to look but at least everything has a place now.

Now for what you all have been waiting for... the video tour! I hope I don't make anyone sick moving around. Enjoy!

Part 1 of Kitchen Tour

Part 2 of Kitchen Tour

Part 3 of Kitchen Tour

At the Strawberry Fields

2011-04-28T15:09:00.001-05:00

A picture is worth a thousand words or in this case a couple thousand....

Coming soon: before and after pictures of my newly organized kitchen!

Votes Please!

2011-04-20T07:50:00.003-05:00

UPDATE: Photo #1 won by a landslide! You can look at the contest gallery here to see all the photos being submitted. I think you will agree that our little Peanut is the cutest (and the most photographically pleasing) baby!
I need to pick a photo (cute of course) of Peanut to enter into a contest. But I want your help in choosing which one to enter. When your children are cute it is hard to determine in which photo they are cutest. So enter your vote in the comments. The photo with the most votes is the one I will enter in the contest. If Peanut is chosen those that picked the photo will receive royalties here on the blog. (In the contest 6 winners are chosen at random.) Let the Voting Begin!

#2 (Look at all that wonderful chubbiness)

#4 (Looks a little Russian here I think)

Did I give you too many options? :)

Some Pictures of Our Ohio Trip

2011-04-18T14:27:00.000-05:00

Mum-Mum and JuneBug plotted the route we took to Ohio

GOLDFISH!!!! A Pop-pum treat.

Peanut in the Puppy Hat you can see a picture of JuneBug wearing it here.

Playing swords in the "barn".

~~~

My Birthday happened to land while we were there and so we had a celebration.

JuneBug also received a gift from Great Grandpa and Great Grandma

A spongy letter puzzle

Pop-pum reading "Grandpa's don't like snakes"

~~~

A big family get together

We were excited to have been able to see our cousin and Aunt who have been living in Japan

Aunt J. couldn't ever get a picture of her face because her hair kept falling in the way! :)

~~~

Doughnut face

Playing with Great Grandma Roxy and Aunt Patty

Uncle John with Peanut

Froot Loops

2011-04-07T14:43:00.000-05:00

Thanks Grandma!

Email to Pop-Pum

2011-04-05T12:52:00.000-05:00

A Sweet Giveaway!

2011-03-28T18:57:00.000-05:00

This is a mandatory item so I can be entered into the giveaway. I have included some pictures of JuneBug & Peanut to sweeten the post.

~~~

On the Azure Standard blog they are giving away a huge prize pack full of better-for-you-sweeteners. You can check it out for yourself here. I'm entering the giveaway because I would really like to try some sucanat. I've heard a lot of good things about it. Some of the other stuff I would share with others because I wouldn't know how to use it. But I can definitely smell some molasses cookies right now.....

Oh, and if you do happen to enter tell them you read about it here and I'll get an extra entry! Thanks!

~~~

The Prayer of a 2 Year Old

2011-03-10T14:08:00.000-05:00

"Our Gracious Father please help me go to Pop-pum's house and eat goldfish with Pop-pum. Please cleanse me from my sins. With all our strength. In Jesus' name Amen. Oh, I forgot. Please help it to be Mommy's birthday. In Jesus' name Amen."

The topic of our conversations lately has been visiting Pop-pum and Mum-mum around my birthday....and the things we will do when we get there.

5 Months Old

2011-03-08T12:32:00.000-05:00

Peanut is 5 months old this month and I thought I would capture a few photos.

Brothers

Drool is a very common thing for Peanut and thus, so are wet shirts.

Peanut is reaching out for toys and other items now

Peanut Post

2011-03-05T12:00:00.001-05:00

Deer in the Headlights look

It is really cute to wake up and see him looking across at you

Peanut can get around quite quickly going backwards in his walker. JuneBug likes to push him around and give him toys.

Garden Update

2011-03-04T12:00:00.001-05:00

The garden expansion project is almost complete now.

When we last saw the garden on the blog it looked like this

Then last week T-man and Marf came over. They wanted to help me on my project. They asked me if they could help.

They all enjoyed using the tools Great-Uncle John sent down.

If JuneBug saw one of them using a tool he thought might be fun he would want to trade. The tool always looked "greener" in someone else's hand.

We finished it!

My helpers #1

My helpers #2

~~~

On the weekend Ike helped me move the railroad ties around.

We had an extra one stored underneath that carport. We don't know why or can't remember what made us buy 5 ties originally. But we did and I'm glad we had it.

Every time Ike moved it JuneBug would jump on and walk across it. He was helping.

Move the railroad tie step #1

Move the railroad tie step #2

Move the railroad tie step #3. Ike only moved it this way a couple of times because eventually he found and easier more efficient way of going.

This is where it is at today. I need to put in the bricks to finish off the end but that shouldn't take any time at all. Then we can start planting!!!!

Papa's Birthday

2011-03-03T12:00:00.000-05:00

With some of our family far away birthdays are always exciting because we get packages! The first came from Grandma Roxy.

Look Papa!

New shirts. Yeah!

Let me see Papa.

New sweater

The boys (and Mommy) also got some goodies. Here JuneBug looks at his new puzzle, which he is mastering already.

A fidgety stick- really cool

~~~

Singing and Birthday Cake

...happy birthday to meeeeeeee!

Let them eat cake!

Yummi-ness

~~~

Another package came from Popom & Mum-mum.

Junebug was very interested in the books

Can you tell he was excited?

Cheese!

A new shirt!

Thanks everybody!

For Mum-Mum...

2011-02-26T16:17:00.000-05:00

...and all other interested parties we have a post dedicated to Peanut Pictures. Don't have much commentary on them so we will just let them speak for themselves.

JuneBug tried helping us get a picture. :)

(The red is a reflection from my sweater.)

Stay tuned because next week we will have a garden update and a birthday post!

New Garden

2011-02-22T13:21:00.000-05:00

The boys and I haven been taking advantage of the warm weather to start expanding our garden plot.

The original garden

The planned expansion

Cutie Distraction #1

Cutie Distraction #2 helping

He is very interested in the rocks we've found

Putting the rocks in the box

There were a lot of rocks found in that small section we dug up

We now have about 3/4 of the space turned over but have not taken a picture of it yet

Birthday Preparations

2011-02-21T16:09:00.001-05:00

This morning JuneBug and I have been working on some birthday treats for Ike. But shhhhh! they are surprises (I don't think he reads the blog at work....).

We made a pumpkin cheese roll...

... warmed up our vocal cords...

and after naps we have special cards to make.

New Stone

2011-02-11T12:00:00.002-05:00

At the Farm the driveway needed new stone and the boys and I were there the day it was delivered.

It came in a a big red truck

We stayed inside so that there would be no danger of any of us getting buried (or run over)

"WOW! Cool! Hey do you see that it's tipping."

Some of the excited voices inside.

It is a lot of rock but yet not a lot...

JuneBug with his younger Aunts & Uncles on top of the pile.

Inspecting

Needless to say after a full day of playing on the rock pile they were all extremely dirty

King of the Mountain

Shoveling the rock into the trailer to take it up the drive.

Big Blue Eyes

2011-02-10T13:29:00.000-05:00

Tummy Time!

We got the walker out this week and Peanut likes sitting in it a lot better than in his other chair.

He likes being able to watch all the action going on around him. Plus he doesn't lose his toys as easily.

Here I was going to get a video of him pushing himself up and smiling but he got tired when I went to get the camera. :) I love that you can see how blue his eyes are in this picture. I reminds me of one of Stonewall Jackson's nicknames...Old Blue Light!

Poor Sick Boy

2011-02-10T13:03:00.000-05:00

JuneBug got sick on Tuesday night and all day Wednesday he laid out on the couch. His fever made him flushed and very pitiful. We think he is on the mend now though as he has been up and running around a little today. On Wednesday SIL K came over to use the computer and brought over a surprise that Grammy had found. She found it on a clearance rack last week but had not had a chance to give it to JuneBug yet. He was really cheered up by it and it helped us to more accurately track his mood.

Me: Would you like something to eat?

JuneBug: (moaning and groaning).........

Me: How about a banana?

JuneBug: (moans turn to tears).......

Me: (lifts up toy gun)

JuneBug: (sits up) Yeah! and he shoots 'em! Pow! Pow! He died! Can I have my gun? Please can you pull the hammer back? Here comes another bad guy. POW!!!!!

Me: (goes and gets a banana)

Sleeping with his gun at his side

My Boys

2011-02-08T13:44:00.000-05:00

Peanut being a happy boy

"Digging french toast" is how JuneBug described it.

Hurrah!

Organizing

2011-01-26T12:00:00.003-05:00

Last week JuneBug and I re-organized the seasonal/hall closet. By the time I thought about taking a "before" picture I had already pulled everything out...

...and started to put some stuff away. These are the top shelves in the closet:

This is where the bottom shelves go:

The after pictures. The top shelves:

The bottom shelves:

Clutter from other parts of the house also found a more permanent home in the newly re-organized closet. Thus some of my more frequently used items are out where I can get them easily. The new home of my crock pot (yes, the top shelves of that unit need organized too):

A couple items were rearranged in this cupboard. JuneBug showing us how much room is available:

After:

Weekend Visiting

2011-01-25T12:00:00.001-05:00

A couple weekends ago a friend of ours got married. It was in the middle of the afternoon so the little boys napped the whole trip up...

...while Ike and I philosophized (is that a word?) over the concept of forgiveness, which I had been reading about in a magazine.

I had big plans to get lots of pictures of my handsome men all dressed up but I guess I forgot to do it because the ones you see above were the only ones on the camera. :)

J and E

~~~

We skipped out on the wedding reception so that we could visit some nearby friends.

Sadly this was the only picture of our time with them. But I was glad to be able to catch little C's smile!

Helping Friends

2011-01-24T10:54:00.000-05:00

Over New Year's Weekend we went and helped some friends work on their house. But I don't want you to get the wrong picture...we helped with some tearing out. :) They even let me for old times sake use a crow bar to take out some molding around the door.

Ike and Chris tearing out the shower.

Kara and I taking pictures.

While we nursed our babies Kara entertained us by reading Thomas and Friends to us.

Elijah, Kara, and Mary

Hannah snacking on some peanuts.

We bundled up since there was only a kerosene heater

Grace

Zoe

Abby

I just realized I don't have any pictures of Caleb or JuneBug. I guess they were too busy playing.

JuneBug

2011-01-17T10:58:00.000-05:00

After my Dad posted his new look I thought I would give JuneBug a little facial hair...

Billy Boy

2011-01-12T18:42:00.000-05:00

JuneBug singing Billy Boy. I can't remember exactly how it goes so JuneBug gets a different version every time. :)

Snow!

2011-01-10T14:35:00.000-05:00

our "sled"

JuneBug was a little scared sitting up to ride but enjoyed it much better laying down. Ike was even nice enough to pull me down the rode a bit.

PS Ike got to make THE call to work again today! Yippee!

Peanut Videos

2011-01-07T17:20:00.000-05:00

Sword Slashing a Snowman

2011-01-07T17:14:00.000-05:00

Leftover Reddi-Wip

2010-12-22T11:50:00.000-05:00

JuneBug demonstrates what to do with the little bit of Reddi-Wip left in the can. This was his first year at attempting it.

Thanksgiving~ Friday & Saturday

2010-11-30T18:35:00.001-05:00

Friday

Grandma Roxy also brought the boys down a couple of items. Here Ike and Junebug play with Thomas the Tank Engine.

Reading It's Great to be an Engine. It plays music!

JuneBug playing with Thomas on the track

Uncle Stephen and Peanut

Aunt SAM cutting up apples for Fondue

Watching...

Daddy and Kate stir the fondue

Grandma Roxy and Peanut

JuneBug and Peanut int heir matching PJ's

Can you say too cute?

JuneBug, Aunt Kate, Peanut, and Popum

Saturday

Around the breakfast table

Getting Peanut to smile

Here I'm sure Junebug was smiling. Actually probably more like screaming.

Conked out on Grandma's lap

The Morton's with the boys

Our first family picture since Peanut was born. Can you believe we hadn't taken one yet?

Us with Grandma Roxy

Thanksgiving~ Thursday

2010-11-30T18:30:00.000-05:00

A note on the pictures. Currently, we don't have a way to turn the pictures so that you don't have to crank your neck around to see them. We hope to have this fixed soon, but computers can be very mischievous. Also, we don't have a lot due to the fact that our memory card was full for half of the weekend with no way of emptying it. And as is always the case you can check Kate's blog or SAM's blog for ~~more~~ other pictures (everyone had camera issues this weekend). That is when they post.

~~~

Everyone came rolling in for Thanksgiving late on Wednesday night. Thursday morning Junebug opened up some surprises and Peanut made his grand entrance for three of the visistors.

Aunt Kate and Uncle Stephen bought JuneBug some tractors.

Peanut and his Great Grandma Roxy

Peanut and his Aunt Kate

Grandma Roxy with her two great grandsons

Making mashed potatoes- a favorite of ours

Sweet potato casserole with marshmallows- another favorite

Someone can't wait!

The weekend had just begun and we were already getting tired

The finished potatoes getting ready to be set on the table

Great-Grandparents Visit

2010-11-30T18:25:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks after Peanut* was born Grandpa and Grandma Gray came to see him (and the rest of us too)

JuneBug kept Grandpa very, very busy.

Grandma and Peanut

The boys with their Great-Grandparents

*Official blog name.

Various Videos

2010-10-14T15:00:00.000-05:00

Here is another video of JuneBug riding the lego "car"

Playing with the kitty at Grammy's house

New Church Building

2010-10-13T19:00:00.002-05:00

A couple of pictures of the new church building.

Looking from the back corner to the front

Something you don't see very often- Psalters in the back of pews

Looking from the pulpit to the back of the room

Elder Larson and JuneBug

Miss B and Junebug wanted to sing but never had time

It's a Boy!

2010-10-13T18:57:00.000-05:00

The first pictures of our Little Octopus*

Our midwife who helped us have a wonderful home birth

Born at 1:05pm

9lbs 4oz

22in

*Official blog name not yet decided

Baby Belly

2010-10-07T19:52:00.002-05:00

Thanks to a couple of friends we have the following record of my baby belly one week before the due date. Perhaps one day I will thank them...

Below you will find the guesses/wishes of many of our family members and a couple of friends as to the Birthday and size of the baby. Feel free to add your own guess in the comments.

Birthday	Gender	Weight	Length
~~9/30~~	Girl	8.0	20	K.M.
~~10/3~~	Boy	8.8	19 ½	Mrs.O
~~10/4~~	Boy	8.8	-	Grammy
~~10/7~~	Girl	8.12	21	Newie
10/9	Boy	8.4	-	N. V.
10/10	Girl	8.3	21 ½	Me
10/12	Girl	7.0	20	Jimmy
10/12	Girl	8.0	20	Pop-pum
10/12	Girl	8.7	20	S.A.M
10/12	Boy	8.7	21 ½	Ike
10/12	Girl	10.0	20 ½	Genny
10/13	Girl	8.5	20 ½	K.V.
10/14	Girl	9.6	22 ½	J.V.
10/20	Girl	7.8	20 ½	Mum-Mum
Thursday or Saturday	Girl	10.0	20	T.V.
Wednesday	Girl	1.0	Medium	Marf
Late	Boy	-	-	Midwife
	Sister	-	-	JuneBug

New Door

2010-09-06T09:00:00.002-05:00

At the beginning of July we installed a door between the kitchen and sun-room. In the summer time it gets very hot in the sun-room. So by installing a door we were able to keep the heat in there without exhausting the air conditioner.

Ike practicing cutting out hinges

Looks about right

Placing the hinges. Remember measure twice cut once!

Before

After

A close up of the handle and trim Ike put up

Family Happenings

Airsoft Armor

Quick Post

(Forgotten) Older Videos

JuneBug Stamps!

Big Brother Helping Little Brother

We are...

Street Preaching

Beach Videos

Edisto Vacation

Fall Fun

A Giveaway Entry

What's on the Table?

What's on the Table?

Ooddles of Little Boy Yummy-ness

Shootin' Pistols

What's on the Table?

Overnight Guests

Monthly Update

Suggested Sermon

More Pictures and VIDEO!

Baby Legs Project

Pictures!

Monthly Update

I'm an AUNT!

JuneBug & Peanut Post

JuneBug Post

Peanut Post

Answer to "Do you know?"

Do you know....

Cow Appreciation Day

JuneBug Post

Peanut Post

Working and Playing with Friends

How to Make a Smoothie...

You are my sunshine

Grandpa and Grandma Come to Visit

Garden's First Fruits

Various Pictures of the Boys

Kitchen Tour! *With Video*

At the Strawberry Fields

Votes Please!

Some Pictures of Our Ohio Trip

Froot Loops

Email to Pop-Pum

A Sweet Giveaway!

The Prayer of a 2 Year Old

5 Months Old

Peanut Post

Garden Update

Papa's Birthday

For Mum-Mum...

New Garden

Birthday Preparations

New Stone

Big Blue Eyes

Poor Sick Boy

My Boys

Organizing

Weekend Visiting

Helping Friends

JuneBug

Billy Boy

Snow!

Peanut Videos

Sword Slashing a Snowman

Leftover Reddi-Wip

Thanksgiving~ Friday & Saturday

Thanksgiving~ Thursday

Great-Grandparents Visit

Various Videos

New Church Building

It's a Boy!

Baby Belly

New Door

Kitchen Tour! With Video