Conversation with Ashton yesterday

On the way home from his end of year party, Ashton and I ate lunch at Chipotle together (so  excited to have another restaurant on our short list that he can eat at!) Then we were driving in Duluth and saw the flags they have out for Memorial day. I was trying to explain that memorial day we honor soldiers for our country and he asked what a soldier looked like. I reminded him that my grandfather Pop was in the army and that soldiers are regular people. He said, "And soldiers keep the bad guys away from  us?" I guess he learned that at school so I said yes. I knew what was coming next. "Do they shoot the bad guys?"
me, "Well...um... hopefully not."
Ashton, "Then what do they do with them?"
At this time I started praying for the right words, "Well maybe they take them to jail and sometimes people from our church go to jails to tell the bad guys about Jesus."
Ashton, "And check it out?" (meaning check the jail out)
me, "Um...yes."
Ashton, "So some people who go to our church are in jail?"
me, "Oh well they might just go for a day and then go back to their house. They don't stay there."
Ashton, "oh...Can I go to jail and check it out?"
me, "Well maybe sometime when you are older we could go to tell the people about Jesus. You know when people learn about Jesus, they change and want to become good."
Ashton, "I'd like to go to jail when I'm 22 and check it out with you and Collin and daddy and Embry. Well maybe when Embry is 22 because then he'd be old enough to go to jail!"

Oh my goodness what a conversation!! I just prayed that my boys would never be "old enough to check out jail" unless they really were going to minister to prisoners!!

On a lighter note, here are some great photos of his amazing end of the year party. They had waterballoons, watermelon eating contest, cookie decorating, hula hoops, tattoos, popcorn and an inflatable obstacle course and a hilarious kid DJ who was busting the tunes!! It was so fun and I am so glad I got to get off work for it. We will truly miss his three amazing teachers and I got teary eyed thinking of how scared I was before this school year about protecting him with his allergies. I still get nervous everyday when he is eating lunch and check my phone constantly but this year has been so calming and those ladies have done everything the right way! In fact, even during the party his teacher saw someone had a snack out and I heard her say, "Snacks are out. Where's Ashton?' As an allergy mom, I could not have asked for better teachers and I pray the years to come are the same!

limbo

In line for the jumpy. I am loving his goofball faces. He looks so grown up!

I think Ashton has a crush on Morgan!

His teacher, Mrs Wood won the watermelon eating contest!

His classroom after the party raising their hands for their favorite parts of the day.

His cubby with backpack, waterbottle and Epipen bag! They said he has been awesome to carry it everywhere!

His teacher, Mrs Wood

Her assitant, Mrs. Olson

Other assistant, Mrs Holcomb

A few good stories

Today Collin had his observation day at GACS. We are hoping to send him to school next year to be in K3 which is the class Ashton is in this year. Ashton is so excited about his little brother coming to school and was so great to hold his hand and walk him inside and show him the ropes. It was super sweet! Ashton's amazing teachers said that Collin was definitely ready for school and he really loved it. I am getting teary eyed every time I think about Ashton starting school 5 days a week next year. I just can't believe he won't be with us on Thursdays and Fridays. I have been trying to really make the most of my days off but that's been hard lately with these stupid boards looming over my head. I'll be so glad when they're over. We're so thankful Wes finished up his first year of his doctoral program last week. I won't lie...it's been downright horrible at times. We just have to make it through another year of classroom and then hopefully it will be better. Every time I tell people our situation right now, they truly look at me like I'm a crazy person and I just about am!
Here are a few funny things I have been meaning to write down the boys said...

Ashton and Collin are getting really into the potty humor and I'm trying to not let it get too far but some of it is hilarious. Ashton studied jungle animals last week and his teacher told the class that baboons throw poop at you sometimes. Well of course he loved this and he tells me baboons have "Blue booties" so now EVERYTHING is about his "blue booty."

Tonight I was tucking him in and we had a sweet moment. His cousin Edwin gave him a sweet book about a fish who tells the story of Jesus walking on water. I showed him in his Bible that the story is a Bible story and we read that as well. Afterwards he said, "So if we look at Jesus and trust him, we won't fall in the water and we can walk on it?" It was so sweet that he got the concept and I was so proud of him. I am just praying the story will sink in one day and he'll truly know the deeper meaning. So later I was hugging him telling him that I cannot believe how fast he is growing up and he rolled on his tummy and said, "will you smell my blue booty?" A little comic relief I guess!!

Today on the way to school Ashton was telling me he was disappointed that something was not going to happen this weekend and he kept complaining about it and finally Collin said, "Sweetheart, it's not going to happen!" That made Ashton really mad and he said he did not want Collin calling him sweetheart. I thought it was hilarious!

A and C have been running lately from the playroom in different directions to the kitchen where I usually am to tell on one another. If Ashton gets there first he says, "Whatever Collin is about to say is a lie."

Ashton recently told Wes over spring break that I had said it was ok for him to eat a cupcake for lunch. Wes said he would call me to check since I was at work and Ashton said no, he didn't need to and he didn't need to tell me about it when I got home either.

Embry is saying a few things too! He says graham cracker which is his favorite food but he calls all good food graham crackers. It is really funny and his brothers get a kick out of it.
He also says "good job" and "tee tee" which is a result of having an older brother potty training.Funny what determines your first words! One of Ashton's was "Hayla" which was Haley and Collin's was "At-ton" for Ashton.

Locked out mom looks like a crazy lady in a super nice neighborhood

So tonight we went to a dinner at one of Wes' band student's homes for all the senior band members and their parents. It was in a very nice neighborhood and it made me nervous to have the boys loose in this house. Anyway, I stepped out of the house to the car to get some of the many cars/trucks/trains that are always in the car hoping that would keep them entertained while we were there. When I came back, I had all these toys in my hand and the door was locked. I tried and tried to knock, ring the doorbell, and yell but no one heard me because it was so crowded inside. I knew Wes was in the kitchen sitting with Embry so there was no way he would see me. I kept looking in the window and all I saw were Ashton and Collin and their buddy Nicklas running in circles in the living room. I was so panicky that something was going to break in this nice house and here I was not able to get in. Finally I went to a dining room window which was high off the ground so I had to jump a little and bang on the window and a father walking by saw me and I pointed to the door so he let me in. Phew! Nothing was broken but what a night. Then Collin of course had to poop since we're potty training him and he holds it until the LAST second so I spent a lot of the night in the bathroom with him. But all in all it was good because anytime I get to eat something I did not cook, even though I have to eat it while holding a very squirmy Embry, it is a good night!!!!

Speaking of, Embry took his first steps this week! It was so sweet; the first time he did it Collin and Ashton and I were all in Collin's room watching Wes cut the grass and Embry walked to the window with 2 steps. His brothers LOVED it! They were so excited and just cheered. They've been asking me most days, "Is Embry going to walk today?" They have it in their heads that when babies turn one, they walk. Anyway, now they love to practice walking with him around the house and he loves it and just squeals! It's really something special to be a third child, I am learning. You get so much attention when you have 2 older siblings to enjoy all you do and love on you.

 

 

And a sweet photo of my dear friend Kim who visited us today

taking a study break...

to finally post our Easter photos!! Pre-Easter I tried to get creative and do a few things with the boys leading up to Easter. We played a sensory Easter game where I hid different items in the plastic eggs and the boys had to feel them and guess what they were. They loved it and we got such a kick out of Collin. he looked so cute shutting his eyes and loved to teach others to play the game. On Easter, he wanted all of our family members to take a turn. He would get so excited that before they guessed, he would shout what the object is. My grandmother especially got a kick out of that and the photo of her laughing is at that moment.

 The next thing we did was dye some paper eggs. I found a craft online since we don't get to dye real eggs due to our egg allergy. We took glue and made designs on the paper. Then put salt on the glue and then dyed the salt with colored water. The boys loved it. AShton was meticulous and Collin loved pouring salt on the glue by the spoonfuls. Then he ended up dumping his colored water on the plate so AShton thought it was funny and did the same. Here they are working...

Embry snacking and watching from the porch doorway

 

 

Bunny Loot Easter AM

Dressed for church

Best Family photo from the day!

 

GG laughing at Collin during our sensory game!

twins

My mom playing our game

 

More Fun times with cousins at grandmother and grandaddy's house today

Aunt Laura took the boys to "the woods" to check out a neighbor mowing the grass.

Fun Morning with cousins!

 I was excited to post these fun pictures from a visit this morning by my cousin Laura and her two boys, Grayson and Griffin, and my Aunt Jeannie. These boys don't get to see each other nearly enough so we were glad they were in town. These are my favorites. It was nearly impossible to get a good group shot but these of the two babies were so sweet I thought and I was excited for my grandparents to see them!

Embers is such a goofball these days!! He loves to entertain us.

Grayson

The men

I liked this random shot!

Also great news of the week! Collin is potty trained except for at night but this is huge since it took us over a year to potty train his brother! 2 weeks ago I was with Kate and after her encouraging decided to do a potty boot camp. We did and Collin caught on after just three days of intensely taking him every 30 minutes. It's great now! He goes by himself yelling that he has to go tee tee on his way now! He is doing awesome and we are so proud of him. He and Ashton like to go together I have found and Ashton wants them to have a "tee tee crash" with their streams of urine. Boys, boys boys!! It's too funny. And, while at church 2 nights ago I got a text from wes that collin had told Ashton his (male part) was "lookin' good!" Who knows where he got that?!!  Whatever, it's working and we are down to one in diapers!!

Fire

So A few weeks ago we had quite a scary mishap. I accidentally left a burner on low after breakfast which caused a kitchen fire a few hours later because i had put Embry's high chair try on top of the stove after I cleaned it. We were all upstairs and thank God the fire alarm went off. The boys and I rushed outside and Wes went in and found the fire. He ran back outside calling 911 with the scariest look I have ever seen on his face. He went back in and turned off the burner while the 911 dispatcher yelled at him to get out. We ran across the street to a neighbors and prayed and prayed until the firetrucks came and put it out. When they opened our back door, smoke billowed out from the kitchen so we had no idea how much damage was done. God truly spared us and our house. We had only minimal kitchen damage and a big mess to clean up. The firemen were even surprised at the minimal damage. They brought in huge fans to air out a lot of the smoke and removed our oven which was demolished. My parents came and took the boys for the rest of the weekend while Wes and I cleaned up every inch. We decided after some advice from a fireman we know to do all the cleaning ourselves. I think it was more physically and emotionally exhausting than even moving ever was. There was dust and soot and ash all over our kitchen and had spread to cover everything in the living room too,
so we had to clean, blinds, curtains, our couch and remove everything and wash it from all our cabinets and drawers. We could not complain one bit because we were constantly shuddering at what it could have been. I still cannot believe how God spared us. Anyway, today we finally got our new microwave installed so I wanted to blog that the clean up is officially over! It took awhile but we are just so thankful and so glad to have our kitchen back. Unfortunately with the boys allergies, we can't just eat out likemost families so we knew we had to have our kitchen working asap. We finally got the oven installed last week but I was amazed at how much we could do with an extra microwave we had on hand, crockpot and grill! Here are a few photos so we can remember the damage and a photo of the boys enjoying our new oven when we made Easter cookies last week.The door has a window so they love to watch things cook now!

Embers 12 mos

Boys enjoying the chairs in our living room until our couch was cleaned

Embry one morning-he looks so old!

I love that A is able to feed Embry now when I am needing some extra help. He's such a goof pretending to eat the food. Embry isn't too happy about it. He's become pretty grouchy about his food lately.

Kiss from Collin.

Painting in the bathtub later. I absolutely love this photo!