Almost February!

Seth, after discovering a painful hangnail on his big toe:

“Oh NOOOOOOO! MY BEAUTIFUL TOE!!!!”

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Sometimes I complain about Seth. And no, I don’t feel bad about it. The kid is Hard.

But one thing is is great at: “helping”. More than any of the other boys, he loves to help. I realize most three year olds like to be involved with what their parents are doing, but SETH MUST HELP AT ALL TIMES.

WITH EVERYTHING.

ALWAYS.

Every night he walks into the kitchen when he hears me bustling around in there (or Aaron), and cutely and innocently asks:

“Hey Mom can I help you? What can I do next?”

I usually give him a job but I am never able to keep up with his constant insistence to help. Usually I start making up things to do. I’ll get out a bag of clemetines and have him put them in a large bowl, one by one.

WHAT CAN I DO NEXT. WHAT CAN I DO NEXT. WHAT CAN I DO NEXT.

I hand him the plates and ask him to set the table. After I hear the plates clatter to the table in a heap…

WHAT CAN I DO NEXT. WHAT CAN I DO NEXT. WHAT CAN I DO NEXT.

Uhh. here! stir this. I hand him a bowl of flour and a spoon. 5 minutes later.

WHAT CAN I DO NEXT.

If I’m not quick enough with a new assignment, he turns angry.

BUT. I WANT. TO. HELP. YOU. !!!!!!

Then he storms out of the kitchen crying telling Aaron that I wouldn’t let him help. oy.

Some nights it’s better. Or some mornings like this morning, I had to wash the entryway floor and asked if he wanted to help. “(GASP) YES! YES I WOULD!” He pumped the squirt bottle happily next to me (for what seemed like) forever. Later in the morning I had to file a ton of paperwork and he helped me by holding the bag into which went all of our old papers to be shredded. “I’M THE BAG MAN! I’M THE BEST BAG MAN!”

“You are totally the best bag man I have EVER hired.”

(smiles all around).

Then, as I turned around, he had grabbed a big pile of papers from his bag and was about to launch them around the room.

“Oh. Let’s not do that.”

“BUT I’M THE BEST BAG MAN.”

He stormed out of the room in tears.

But still. I let him help whenever I can. Because when it actually works and we end up happily chattering together while folding laundry or throwing legos into a bucket. We both end up beaming proudly and thinking “I did it!”

I’m sure this is a phase. As exhausting as it is, I really don’t want it to end.

(The helper showed up to help Daddy put together our new Ikea desks! Because tyrranical three year olds always make that situation better.)

 

 

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We celebrated Luke’s eleventh birthday a week ago. Instead of doing a “friend” party we decided to a laser-tag party – family only. And by family, I mean our immediate family AND all of the aunts, uncles, and cousins that live around here.

Unfortunately I was totally sick in bed that day, but from what I heard, It was awesome. We’re super lucky to be so close to all these crazies:

 

(Uncle David, retelling stories of laster-tag victories?)

 

And yes, it’s just as loud and fun as it looks.

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As I was thinking about my baby boy now turned eleven and very firmly planted in the tween-dom, I just kept thinking how lucky we are to have such a happy kid. Goodness knows we’ve had (AND STILL HAVE) our challenges with him, but I am blown away at his buoyancy. He is cheerful and helpful and always has a smile or a laugh. Lots of people (including us) get frustrated with him over little things. He’ll smack his forehead, he’ll laugh it off, he’ll try harder, but his reactions to our frustrations inevitably school me in kindness and patience.

Happy Eleventh Birthday, Kiddo.

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It’s been snowing for 2 days straight. Yesterday I woke up and saw how bad the roads were and decided to keep the kids home until the snow let up a bit and we could at least see the plow go by. And that’s how the kids ended up with a snow day. (It never stopped! The plows did come by but five minutes after the drove by our house, the roads were terrible again. Getting down the mountain is okay, it’s getting back up that’s the hard part.)

 

So here are our snow day snapshots:

(Also. I blasted Elgar’s Enigma Variations through our intercom speakers most of the morning. Drama! Everything is more epic when listening to Elgar.)

 

 

 

I woke up this morning to more snow. Roads just as bad as yesterday. The kids were THRILLED.

Until I told them we were going anyway.

(and it took me AN HOUR to get there and back!)

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On making new friends in our new neighborhood:

thank you so much for the suggestions.

I haven’t followed through with any of them. I know, I  lose. The snow has cemented my hermitage.

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Have a great week!