Playing with Crawfish

We went over to Uncle Steve's house to eat crawfish. Emogene and Hattie love to get there early to play with the food. Lydda will be joining them soon.

Uncle Scott kept handing her a crawfish. She would throw it right back in. It was fun for Lydda.

Aunt Stacey was giving her a chance to pet one.

Emogene and Hattie were checking out their possible choices.

Here was Hattie's friend. His name was Stanley.

Here I am comforting Hattie after finding out what will happen to Stanley. She wanted to save him so badly. He stayed in my cup holder for quite a while. He was tossed in with the second batch. She needed to be comforted again.

Hattie and The Bike

Hattie decided that she was ready to take off her training wheels. Her daddy helped her a lot.
Disclaimer: I don't know how she got away with not having on her helmet. It is getting too small and falls off a lot, but she is supposed to wear it anyway. We had her ride in our yard and the neighbors' yards so she would land on the grass. On the second day of riding lessons, she wore Emogene's helmet. I felt like such a bad mommy while looking at these pictures.

the turning around part of practice
Hattie came up with many reasons why she couldn't ride her bike.
Here is a sampling of Hattie's reasons:
1. She broke a nail.
2. She doesn't like to touch grass.
3. The grass is too heavy.
4. Her bike needed to stop for gas.
5. She doesn't have balance.

We practiced again today, and she got to ride on the road a few times with Emogene's helmet. For some reason Hattie's bike is magnetically pulled to our van, the ditch, and the neighbor's bush. She would turn right into them. It was quite funny. One hit to the van caused her to be propelled backwards. She landed on her rump. Thankfully she is getting better at stopping. Her final ride ended in our neighbors flower bed and a scratched knee. I wish I had my camera. Eric was walking back to the house with her slung over his shoulder and carrying her bike in his other hand. It was a sight. Isabel and I laughed and laughed tonight while we watched.


the look I get for laughing many times

She had a spill while refueling.

the moment of explaining why she needs the training wheels back on

A Topic

I have seen a lot of blogs lately tell about each child's entrance into their lives, and I wanted to do the same. I'll start with Emogene. It may take me a few days to finish. I don't have a lot of kids, but I don't have a lot of time. For example, it is almost 11:30. Lydda and Daddy have been asleep for hours, so I really need to join them. I'll start tomorrow.

A Screaming Baby

It was doctor visit day. I took Lydda to the doctor for a check up. She gained 1.5 pounds. Ooh, we have a chunkster on our hands. She then got THREE shots. Poor baby! The screaming was horrible, but the nurse totally redeemed herself. Lydda got a very delicious, extra sticky, super sweet sucker.

Do you think she will think it is yummy?

I think so!

I later had to do a total wipe down at the gas station. She enjoyed rubbing it on both hands and her legs. She then misplaced it. It was stuck to her chest. I also had to rescue her from the napkin that wouldn't go away. It was stuck to both hands and she was about to totally freak out. I'm not sure she will be getting a sucker tomorrow.

Summer Fun

We have started off our summer with too much fun. I'm serious. We better slow down or I'm going to run out of things to do with them around next Tuesday.

We busted out the E*sy B*ke Oven and made a cake. Isabel so wonderfully helped them with this as I cooked supper.

Hattie was in charge of doing some stirring.

Emogene was really more excited about the whole thing than she looked.

We then played with M*del M*gic. It was not as fun as they had hoped. We ended up throwing away most of it.

Emogene made opera glasses.

Yesterday we went for a walk. According to Emogene and Hattie, they almost died from the heat. Lydda and I survived with very little complaining. I am not sure I will invite them on our next walk.

They rode bikes today. I think we are about done with our summer activities. I entered a drawing for a pool. I am praying our ticket is chosen. It would really extend our summer fun for a few more weeks.
Does anyone have any free and easy ideas we can do at home to keep them entertained? We won't be venturing away from the house much.

What do you get...

...when you combine...

two unsupervised little girls,

and a Reynolds vacuum seal tool?

a five year old with a forehead hickey

and an eight year old with a forehead hickey

#1 Yes, I did give it to them to keep them out of my hair while I cooked.

and

B. I did not know that my children would come back with passion marks on their foreheads.

They will have them for church on Sunday. Yippee!!!!

Eric has also been chasing me around the house with it, trying to attach it to my neck. He has so far been unsuccessful. I will continue to fend him off.

Emogene was also reluctant in taking this picture for the blog. Eric had to pin her down.

Daddy Love

I was watching Eric and Lydda today and began thinking about how far they have come in a month. Eric lets me sleep in a little bit when he is off so he can be in charge of feeding her and playing with her in the morning. It has really helped them bond. I found this video of bedtime in China and had to laugh while watching it. It went a little long, but the beginning is my favorite part. The way she moved her legs while trying to go to sleep was so cute. She hardly ever does it anymore.

Field Day

Emogene and Hattie were on the green team for field day. They had a blast. I would have more fun if I could just focus on them instead of an entire class of children, but hey, it's my job.

Emogene is the boss of any hula hoop.

That sack was almost bigger than Hattie.

Hattie had me laughing so hard for her first two games. She could not go straight and kept ending up in other games. Instead of correcting her, I just kept following her and laughing.

These were two teammates that cheered each other on.

Emogene was trying to pop her balloon.

Hattie needed some help getting on top of her balloon.

The Graduate

Can you believe I have a college graduate at my age? I kind of cheated on that one. We sat through a beautiful graduation, well Lydda and I visited the lobby with occasional Hattie sightings. The ceremony was lengthy, but I thought that most of it was very touching.

Here is my family with Isabel's Uncle Fu joining us. He took us all out for dinner to celebrate.

Here she is receiving her diploma. She is so glad to be out of high school. Isabel is heading back to China for the summer and will return in late July. I will miss her so much. We try to aggravate each other constantly, but I love her and wouldn't want her to stop aggravating me.

Isabel the Great

Her name wasn't called once, but twice. Wow!! She is fabulous.

We are extra excited about the free admission she received to the Audobon Zoo. The card gets her in and a parent in for free! I am super excited. Now I wonder who will keep the other kids when Isabel and I go to the zoo.

my beautiful award winner

Here she is receiving an award for having super grades.

T is for Tough Tortoise

We had watermelon as a treat at school. I walked around and collected many rinds and unwanted pieces and brought them home as a treat for Sweetheart. Hattie was very happy to feed him.

They were playing tug-of-war.

Well, you see, Hattie's shoes resembled watermelon and Sweetheart pinned her in the corner. I had to distract him with another piece so she could get out.

Emogene helped feed him some more today. She told me that the T in tortoise stood for tough. Sweetheart loves him some watermelon and won't let anything get in his way.

Hattie, The Graduate

I cannot believe that this little girl has graduated kindergarten. She is still a little baby to me. I included some videos of her performances at the bottom. You will especially like the last one.

She was walking in. The whole class walked in slow motion. We were envisioning a 3 hour graduation. They liked to have very long, dramatic pauses between each thing. It was funny.

This is the reason Hattie asks me, "Mommy, when will I get big?"

She was the smallest in her class.

Words cannot describe the joy.

Hattie was in charge of telling about China.

Hattie was in interpreter.

She received her diploma.

To us, she was the star of the show. She did so well on the poem. I tear up watching it.

Buzzzzzz

Here is my little speller. She was very nervous for the Spelling Bee this year, but she was awesome. She finished third in her class. I am so proud of her!

A Sad Day

Well, the dreaded day finally arrived. I went back to teaching full time. Lydda went to the daycare at my school. It was sad for everyone. Isabel just happened to be at my school for the morning time. She had a test at 12:00, so she came with us and then had a friend pick her up later. Isabel was worried about Lydda too and went to check on her and wound up spending the morning with her. She sent me some pictures.

"Do you see the tears in my eyes? I wanted you Mommy."

"Oh, I loooove food. This breakfast is awesome. I would definitely cry less if they kept feeding me the whole day."

"OOOOOh these pineapples are sour!"

"Do you really think I'm going to drink this? I have no more room in my tummy."

Her caregiver has noticed that she hasn't learned to tilt her bottle up. She really noticed it while I rocked her this morning and fed her a bottle. She pointed out that she hasn't learned how to hold a bottle because I keep doing it for her. She was totally right, but I am not going to stop. I explained to her the importance of closeness and eye contact. I'm not sure she is completely in agreement, but Lydda only has four more days with them. SUMMER is almost here!!!

"Isabel, you may remove me from my highchair. I am ready to leave this place."

She has been to the daycare for 5 days. She is getting better. Leaving her is still the hardest part. I spent a lot of extra time with her this morning. Her caregiver says that her hardest time is playing on the floor. It isn't her style. She likes to be held and as far as I know, they are obliging her. That makes me happy. They have mentioned her voracious appetite more than once. That girl is a great eater.

I walked away in tears this morning. It doesn't seem to be getting easier for me. I have many prayers going up to the Father asking for a way for me to stay home with her next year. Please say a little prayer for me. I know many moms struggle with this too.

Yard Day

On Mother's Day everyone, including me (I KNOW), got in the yard to do some work.

Isabel mowed for her very first time. She still had her prom hair. You have to be stylish while mowing.

This was such a momentous day. Eric and I have been dreaming of the day that one of our kids would be old enough to mow the yard. We both cried.

Emogene is a weed exterminator. She worked really hard to get rid of all the weeds in the garden.
This is the Michael Jackson of gardeners. I asked her if she wanted me to find her another glove. She said, "No, one is enough,"

This girl was rockin' the stroller. She didn't dare touch any grass. We are going to work on that this summer. She wasn't so happy in the stroller either. This meant that I didn't help as much as I wanted.

It was such a beautiful day and we all enjoyed working in the yard. It was a great Mother's Day.

Mother's Day

Here are the reasons today was so special for me.

It took us a while to get a picture. They were not very cooperative, and we don't exactly have the prettiest landscaping for nice pictures. I also need to remember to work on outfits before taking pictures. With it being Mother's Day and all, I didn't pick out the girls' outfits. They were sent to get them by Daddy. They did a good job. Isabel was wearing her day after prom lounging clothes, but her hair looked pretty. I did pick out Lydda's outfit. They are my special joys and they bring me joy everyday.

I woke up with breakfast in bed and opened my singing cards from Emogene and Hattie. I received a text from Isabel, she was at a friend's house, that told me how great Avery's mom was at cooking. Well, she knew just how to make my day great :). Isabel gave me a treasured St*rbucks card. I will have to sneak away next weekend to use it in peace.

We went out to eat with my mom, sister, brother and his family. It was so much fun. I love being with them all the time. Have I ever mentioned that I have the best mom EVER. She is incredible. You will never meet a more giving and loving women. I think she got it from her mom. She always wants to help others and does at every chance. I am so blessed to get to spend every Sunday with my parents at church and then to occasionally spend lunch with them.

I hope everyone else had a great Mother's Day.

My Joys

My two crazy girls. They know just what to do to drive me crazy sometimes.

These two are together as much as Emogene is allowed. We really have to tell her to put her down a lot. She was trying so hard to get Lydda to look at the camera. I think the evil grass was distracting her.

I really liked this picture. I have three of them concentrating on grass and one ever so diligent to stick with her picture pose and not think about anything else. Hattie is sitting on Isabel's lap because she would NOT sit on the grass. Lydda and Hattie are my grass haters.

Isabel's Prom

Saturday night was Isabel's prom. She was very excited and we spent a few days getting ready. She had to get a pedicure, her eyebrows waxed, and her hair done. The hair was very scary. She just picked a place from a directory and was not happy upon our arrival. Everything worked out fine. The stylist handed her a book from the 80s to help pick a style. Come on, how much could have really changed in 30 years. Didn't we do our hair the same for prom back then? Her hair looked beautiful. She went with her friend Seth.

Here she was not so excited to have her picture taken.

She was ready and wanted to leave, but I made her stop for a picture.

The important corsage. Seth's mom had to make it because the florists were all out due to Mother's Day. It took her a while to figure out why all the florists she called didn't have any.

This was just for the picture. Isabel was not trusted to actually put the boutonniere on. Seth's mom did it. Her name is Leslie.

Didn't they look pretty and handsome and ready to go?

I was in charge of driving them to a friend's house. Seth sat in the back seat and was given a choice of movies. He chose "The Princess and the Frog." I was concerned that his mom wouldn't want him watching it. I got a couple of strange looks and heard, "He is 17!"

I'm sorry you two. I didn't want to get in trouble.