A House of God

This month the children (ages 3-11) at church are focusing on the theme, "The Temple is a House of God."  Sophie has pretty much memorized, "Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally." from The Family: A Proclamation to the World.  We explain difficult vocabulary to her and talk to our kids about how we love to be in the temple, how we were married in the temple, and that we need to be worthy to enter the temple.  She often states how she want to go to the temple too.  So we planned a Family Home Evening on this past Tuesday evening to do just that.

If you're wondering "What's with Mormons and temples anyway?" -- there is a brief, accurate explanation here.

See our sweet, dear children on the temple grounds.  They were so sensitive to the Holy Spirit...

Okay, okay! So they were actually squabbling with each other a bit!  So it's a good thing that God loves children because sometimes I think they can be down right irritating.  But we move on.  They quickly got it together with a touch of parent guided distraction and enjoyed walking the grounds fairly quietly, asking questions, and listening to our brief and simple answers.

We even got permission to let them come into the foyer so they could see the beauty there, feel the Spirit, and see our Savior in several pieces of art.  We showed them the recommend desk and our recommends.  We told them that mommy and daddy had to be living a good life in accordance with the gospel to enter.  If we made "bad choices" we would have to get things right before getting to go again.

It was a simple, good experience for the kids and for us as parents--not only to teach our kids but also remind ourselves of the significance of the temple and family in God's plan.

Everyday Super Heros

Last weekend Comic Con International: San Diego hosted it's convention by the same name.  The convention showcases comic books, science fiction/fantasy and film/television.  It is the fourth largest convention of its kind in the world.  We, as a family have not dabbled in graphic novels but our friend, Carter, is a real fan.  We decided to have some fun with the kids, introducing this hobby/media to our family.

Things got off to a good start when, while eating breakfast, a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episode came on and we watched how Goofy tried to become Super Goof, a super hero.  We talked about how he had to be fast, strong, and be able to fly. 

We decided to head to the park with our tennis shoes on and do what was required to become a super hero.  We stretched, jogged, went up and down the stairs several times, tried balancing on a wall, jumped repeatedly.  We even practiced good flying posture laying on the picnic bench.  Sophie decided all that was left to do was try and lift something heavy.  So we tried some immovable objects to build our strength.

Obviously, with our training behind us, we talked about how super heroes help people and that we can super heroes everyday.  We went to work the next few days finding ways to help others.  We used our super hero powers to help mom bring in the groceries, open doors for people, push each other on the swings,...

...bring games and puzzles to a local assisted living facility, walk newspapers up to our neighbors door step, and so on and so on.  We made sure we had healthy snacks and naps so we could keep our strength up. It was a lot of fun!

We also, borrowed several age-appropriate comic books from Carter and have been reading them with the kids.  We talk about villains and super heroes and who we want to be like and why.  It's been great!  We have decided that although it would be cool to fly, this power is not necessary to make others happy. My job as a mom is always more fun when I can get my kids excited about something.

Taking a Dip

This past Saturday we drove out to our freinds', the Huffs, and went to Grapevine Lake with them.  It is always great to see them--just really good people. 

The swimming area was small but not crowded.  We enjoyed watching boats and people on paddle boards go by.  The kids did great with their arm floaties--which we call water wings. 

We applied sunscreen twice but still ended up with uneven minor burn spots wherever we missed or weren't liberal enough.  Today marks the 23rd day in a row with heat in the triple digits so we hope to go out again this summer.

The highlights of the lake trip, besides seeing the Huffs, was with only 2 feet visibility in the water, Rhys still thought it was great way to quench his thirst.  Neal got nibbled on twice by fish, Keri attempted to do the butterfly after 2 decades void of competitive swimming, and Sophie learned that she has the ability to pee in the lake and was not afraid to announce it loudly to all in ear shot.  She actually told us, "I'm going to go potty in the lake." and a fellow lake goer not in our group said, "Oh wait, let me pass by first."  Good times!

Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

We love our local library!  This summer we signed both kids up for the Summer Reading Club.  They both read 25 books with Mom and Dad's help and received a certificate and a Chik-fil-A lunch.  They also got the chance to pick out a book to take home for keeps!

July is National Ice Cream Month!

Back in 1984, Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month and the 3rd Sunday as National Ice Cream Day, stating that these two events should be observed with "appropriate ceremonies and activities."  Given the great love and esteem my dear husband has for this past president (I jest not)...

 we decided to honor Reagan's wishes and enjoyed reveling in this delectable dairy dessert.  Besides, it sure beat recognizing July as Lasagna Awareness Month.

First we introduced the idea with ice cream crafts.  We built an ice cream cone 4 scoops high so Sophie could practice her cutting skills and Rhys could become acquainted with glue.  We talked about flavors, shapes, and cone to bowl preference.

Later in the week we polled our neighbors and house guests regarding their ice cream flavor preference when given the boring choices of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.  Rhys held a picture of the three flavors so the participants could point to their choice.  Sophie marked their responses on a chart.  Vanilla and strawberry tied for the most adored of the boring flavors.  Chocolate only lagged behind by one, however.  In total, we asked 23 persons.

 Another day, Sophie filled some of her time by sorting hot and cold items.  We had pictures of the sun for "hot" because July has been sweltering, and an ice cream for "cold."   Then she categorized a number of pictures onto the appropriate side of the paper.  Here Sophie is putting a BBQ grill on the cold side because I am distracting my sweetie with taking pictures.  Way to go Mom!

 Our ice cream antics culminated by preparing homemade ice cream today, on National Ice Cream Day.  This morning, before church, we made the mixture and tossed it in the ice cream machine so it would have adequate time in the freezer while we were at church.  We chose to make strawberry, but as previously stated, strawberry may be considered boring.  So we went with a more sophisticated version--Strawberry Balsamic Basil. 

It was delish and not overly sweet. And admittedly, it was not a true ice cream but a frozen yogurt. But it was good. We even splurged and used cones. We were happy to have Oma and Opa over to share with.

Thank you Ronald Reagan for suggesting another way for our family to have fun together!  We'll have a bowl tomorrow expressly in your honor.

A "Turn" of Events and an Upgrade

Sophie has started gymnastics for the summer.  She was so excited she wanted to wear her gym suit all day.  For her first class they had a Wild West theme.  She warmed up to "Rhinestone Cowboy" and they threw in plenty of cowgirl analogies to get them performing.  She followed directions just fine. 

 Here is Coach Mike helping her keep her form for a summersault.  She has 7 more classes to go.

 Rhys is now in a Big Boy Bed!  At least the bed is in his room.  How long he'll stay in it is still to be determined as this is his first night. 

Our 9th Anniversary

Today we celebrate 9 years of attempting to master the art of marriage and quite swimmingly too.  It has been a wild ride--crazy, exciting, and fun mixed in with a lot of the everyday.  I think Neal put it best: "It's been a 9-year lesson in enduring to the end, but there's no body else I'd rather endure it with!"  We're not sure we'll make it to our 50th with that whole mortality bit; however, we know we have an eternity to look forward to because of the covenants we have made with a loving Heavenly Father.

Healthy Kids

It's that time of year again!  We went to say "hello" to the doctor and make sure all was in order regarding our children's health and development. 

Sophie weighed in at 36 pounds and is 40.5 inches tall.  She is at the 50th percentile for her weight and the 65th percentile for her height.  She is healthy and happy. 

She was a champ about getting 4 vaccine shots.  The doctor and nurses were shocked about how well she quietly sat to receive her shots.  She only cried for a bit.  I think after a year, she simply did not remember how painful shots can be and that's why she didn't fight it.  Afterwards she kept asking why she had to get shots and telling me they hurt.  She did so good. 

She also passed her vision and hearing screenings and we got all the health forms filled out for preschool starting up at the end of August. 

Sophie is kooky, fun, and happy.  She is doing better with monitoring her own whining and pouting.  She bounces back pretty quickly.  She is doing great with learning to share with her brother and friends.  Sophie has become more of a cuddle bug in the past 6 months.  I'm glad she sits still long enough for me to love on her.  You never have to guess much about her because she will openly tell you what's on her mind.  We chuckle at how many nonsequiters occur in a single sentence at times.  She like trying things and participating.  One could say she lives out loud.

Some of my favorite things about her is when she says "That was really getting me frustrated!" or tell her brother, "Shoo away!"  At night we have the sweetest routine when being tucked in.  Kiss, then butterfly kisses, then nose rubs, then sniffs!  The fact that when she gets her afternoon movie, she falls asleep and naps during it about 50% of the time.  To Sophie, "ridiculous" is a swear word.  We don't know why but as soon as one of us says it, as in, "Let's exit, this traffic is getting ridiculous."--she is lightning fast with a "Don't say "ridiculous!  That's not nice."

Sophie can remember the smallest details from so long ago (i.e., we had our family vacation back in February and today she told me out of the blue, "When were at our vacation, the hotel had a swimming pool and when you looked out the window, I could see my church."  We went to the indoor pool twice and yes, when you looked out the windows on one side of the room, there was a little white church not far off.  Or when we are driving to the store,  she'll say so-and-so's house is that way and she is right!

Sophie sporting her cool swim goggles

Rhys is a big kid.  He weighed in at 33 pounds and measured 38 inches tall.  He is in the 90th percentile for his weight and the 98th percentile for his height.  The medical gods smiled upon Rhys and he did not have any scheduled immunizations this visit.  We did get a referral to an audiologist to have his hearing evaluated.  Although we do not suspect a hearing loss, we want to be sure given his speech delay.

Because of his speech delay, they screened for autism (which is present in Keri's family history) and Keri answered a long list of questions regarding his communication and social skills.  It was actually a very satisfying experience because there were no red flags and it was great to hear a long list of skills that he did have.  Especially with speech and play therapy, some previously lacking skills had been acquired.  It was a great way to celebrate our little guy's achievements.

Rhys has responded well to the additional help he is receiving in speech and play.  He is verbalizing consistently and is approximating more words, even hitting it on the head sometimes.  He now has all his long vowels although are not consistent yet.  He says some words spontaneously.  His new favorites seem to be "mine" and "uh oh." 

He is also working on understanding what we are saying.  He is doing better at following simple directions, identifying objects and pictures we label,   We are working on transitioning from one activity to another with more ease and using picture cues to help him.

He is feeding himself with a spoon and trying to manage an open cup,   He likes to point to indicate his choice, given 2-3 picture options.  When putting away the toys, he categorizes them into their correct places better than his sister.  He is newly showing interest in books and picks out several board books from our local library each trip. 

His play skills are increasing in that he now demonstrates appropriate play with dolls, doll house, cars, blocks, balls, books, kitchen and play food, as well as other toys.  When we first started therapy, he was usually just opening and closing things and placing items in and out.  So we are very pleased with his success. 

Cute things he does right now are watching the chorister during the hymns at church and waving his arm around to mimic her.  Running into the living room when he hears Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's "Hot Dog" song and dancing.  Rhys' love of songs and finger plays.  His excitement when daddy comes home--"Dada!" and running to meet him. 

We are very grateful that our children are healthy, happy, and developing beautifully.  They are a joy to behold.

Let Freedom Ring!

We love being Americans!  We love the freedoms we enjoy!  We love all the fanfare that comes with Independence Day!  We love having Neal home for long weekends!

This 4th of July, we started the day with a scrumptious red, white, and blue breakfast then headed to the McKinney parade. We try to provide Sophie with lots of opportunities to help prepare meals.

The parade was perfect for having toddlers and being in the Texas heat - short and sweet!  Sophie was very pleased that handfuls of candy were thrown at her feet.  We had fun seeing the creative decorations and cheering those passing by.  We enjoyed the bikers, classic cars, and the antique ladder fire department truck best.

At midday we sliced up some fresh watermelon and joined several family friends for a BBQ.  We feel so blessed to have a large, supportive group around us.  We always have a great time with everyone.

We finished out our evening with an impressive pyrotechnic experience.  Keri has LOVED fireworks since childhood and that excitement has never lessened.  Every time Sophie saw a red and green firework, she'd say, "Christmas!"  Christmas in July, we suppose.

It was a wonderful day and we loved spending it with our family and friends.  We were happy to have several moments to reflect on our country's blessings and feel grateful.