Learning to Walk

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Cookies anyone?

I realized about an hour ago that I was responsible for bringing snacks to our community group this week. Opps! With the help of Elizabeth, I made about three dozen M&M cookies. When making food for a group of people, I always worry about whether or not there will be enough. I decided to make another 3 dozen, just to be on the safe side.

After mixing up the dough, this time with the help of Micah, I tried to lay Benjamin down for a nap. While I was laying Benjamin down, Micah helped with the cookies. Below are the pictures of his cooking.
Yep, that would be several cookie put in the little bit of coffee left from this morning.
So gross! He also smashed several cookies and did I'm not exactly sure what to the cookie dough. If you're in my community group, we apologize if there aren't enough cookies!

And heaven help Micah future wife!

Lunch at the park

Today for lunch, we braved the very chilly wind, and had a fun family outing. We went to a local park, and had tons of fun playing together! But boy were we ready to get out of the wind!

Micah and Elizabeth, getting read to race down the slide.
Ready, set, GO!!!!
Who is that big boy?!? And where did my baby Micah go?

Little Boys

I'm learning quite a lot about little boys, which is a good thing since I really didn't know anything about little boys when I had Micah. Growing up, I came from a family of three girls, had mainly girl cousins, and of course had lots of little girl friends. So when the doctor told me I would be having a boy, I was shocked! Then, when I found out we were having another little boy, I was shocked all over again. And since several of my friends are having boys, I've been taking a few notes on the whole little boy thing. Moms of boys, feel free to add to this list!

Rules of the toddler boy

• If an item is placed somewhere neatly, it should probably be moved to the floor.
• Once on the floor, the item should be kicked.
• Why walk when you can run?
• There is no point in putting books on a bookshelf, they're really supposed to be on the floor.
• Board books are chew toys, and the objective is to shred the book into the smallest pieces imaginable.
• Cribs are for jumping and climbing, not sleeping.
• Bats can be uses to play baseball, or they can be used to beat the snot out of anything on the floor, including the floor.
• The above rule goes for golf clubs, wrapping paper tubes, or sister's wand.
• When Mommy vacuums, a boy should run around screaming, trying to be louder than the vacuum.
• Food is to be shoveled into the mouth, there is no reason for spoons and forks.
• If your food is too liquidity to shovel, then you should slurp it from your bowl.

Janelle, I am so excited for you and Brian! I kept you in mind when writing this post!!

A post from Benjamin

Aren't I cute?!?! Mommy and Daddy don't think so. They're trying to have date night. Mommy even made a pizza. Yeah, I said made, not ordered. But don't you think it's wrong that they think I need sleep? Ha! I'll show them. Date night is more fun with three anyway. The more the merrier, right?

The Krajca 3 in action

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Mommy's Night Out!

Christi, Jamison, me and Ashlee

This evening I got to have dinner with three very fun ladies from church. The guys all watched the kiddos, and the mommies ran for the queso, salsa and margaritas as fast as we could! We had a wonderful time laughing, talking, and just enjoying some kidless time. These three women are a constant source of encouragement and help to me, and I love them all dearly! Thanks for a great evening girls!

And thanks to the hubbies who made the night possible.

In too deep.

On Monday, I went to the doctor to make sure I wasn't falling apart (as Curtis so sweetly put it). Turns out I'm not falling apart. Anyway, one of the things the doctor recommended was to not drink coffee or any caffeine until my throat heals (trust me, you don't want the details on the throat issue.... just ask Christi or Erin!). I looked at him like he had just asked me to cut off my hand.

"We'll have to wait and see on the one!" I told him.

Yesterday, no coffee. But today, coffee was a must. And boy do I feel better!! You can handle anything when on a caffeine high! Before it wears off I need to go get some cleaning done!

Yay for coffee!

More matching jammies

Micah loves to read to Benjamin. However, Benjamin would rather crawl around. But it's sweet when they do read together.
Sweet, happy, brothers!
The screaming game. My older two kids have played this game for awhile. But Benjmain has just learned how to play too. And I must admit, he seems to be a natural. Look at the size of that mouth!

Thankful Tuesday

Okay, so it's really supposed to be "Thankful Thursday", which is much catchier, but I had something I'm very thankful for and felt the need to share on a Tuesday. My friend Rachel is much better at being thankful on the right day of the week.

Life has caught up with me. It has been a whirlwind three months at our house. I thought about writing a recap, but you can just go back and look at old posts! Like most people, when life catches up with you, I got sick. Nothing major. I'm just tired, and a bit under the weather. So Curtis took the afternoon off. Despite the fact that he is just as busy and just as stressed as I am, he took care of me, he did the dishes and he was Super Dad this afternoon.

I'm very thankful for having a man who loves me as much as Curtis does.
I'm thankful that he doesn't act put out when I ask him to watch the kids.
I'm thankful that he supports me every day, even when I'm being whiny and unpleasent.
I'm thankful that he loves our children, and would do anything for them.
I'm thankful for the "chores" he does around the house, even though it's not "his job".

9 months

Benjamin is nine months old today!! And what a nine months it has been! I remember saying that when he was about two or three months too. We just thought we knew how busy you could be with three kids. Ha! Things just keep getting more and more crazy, but more and more fun. My friend Christi is always reminding me how boring my life would be if things were less crazy. Back to Benjamin. He had his well visit today. He weighed in at 19 lbs 2 ozs (edit: thanks Klye for helping me realize that I originally wrote 9 lbs rather than 19!) which is the 40th percentile. He measured 29 1/4 inches, which is in the 80th percentile. The pediatrician was very pleased with how great Benjamin looks.
Because of the surgery, and the fact that Benjamin is still nursing, the doctor checked his iron level. Turns out Benjamin is a little anemic, and will be on an iron supplement for the next three months. Nothing to be concerned about, this is fairly normal for a baby who had the kind of major surgery Benjamin did.

In other Benjamin news, he got his first tooth about a week or so ago. And now, tooth #2 is making its appearance. All this has led to some really yucky nose issues and the inspiration for the poll.

So, all is well! We praise God for every healthy report we get.

Micah trouble!

Sorry this video is so dark. But the funny part is what you hear.

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My Valentine's Day Cutie

My kids love....

Remember Andy?

A few months ago, I introduced you to Andy. Andy is the token white kids AND the token disabled kid on the show Mia and Miguel. As you may recall, Andy only has one arm. I know. I'm trying not to laugh too!

Earlier this week, Elizabeth was watching Mia and Miguel. On this particular episode, a new student came to school, and this student was deaf. On a side note, I think that this is a much more "normal" disability then someone with one arm. Just my thought though. I was also glad that Andy was no longer the token disabled kid. Anyway, the deaf student had an interpreter who explained to the other children that deaf people can use their hands to talk. Andy then asks, "Can I do sign language with only hand?' I died laughing!!! The deaf kid (whose name I never caught) assured Andy that he could do lots of signs with his one arm, but that he might not be able to do all the signs. No joke!

Poor Andy! Has no one heard of prosthetics?!?!

Helpful Elizabeth (another then and now)

Messy boys (then and now)

Messy Micah, November '06, eight months old
clean that messy Micah up!
Messy Benjamin, today, eight months old
Clean that messy Ben up!
My messy boys.

Two sets of Princesses and Best Friends

Coffee?

With part of our tax return we bought one of these. This morning, I made coffee for the first time in our marriage. This day has been a long time coming. So here's, my coffee story.

My very first coffee experience was with my friend Jill. We were visiting DC, the summer after I graduated from high school. She took me out to this little coffee place, I had some sort of supped up coffee. It was then I realized that it would be a while before I slept. So I talked to Daniel, whose house we were staying at.

Sure, there was the college coffee pot. But despite a few good efforts on my part, I never became a coffee person. I even learned how to use the timer on my coffee pot! Unfortunately, I forgot to turn it off and learned the hard way that coffee will mold.

Over the course of my college career, I drank coffee. But only the fancy mocha stuff.

Fast forward to this past December. I was sitting in the hospital (which got very cold at night!) going on nothing but adrenalin. I had slept an average of four very restless hours for three nights in a row. I was about to go home to my three children three and under, one of who was have some major medical issues. It was then I knew I needed something stronger than a Diet Coke. I needed COFFEE! After a few trips to McD's, I was hooked! And the funny thing is that I got Curtis hooked in the process. Yep, Mr. I-Don't-Want-To-Put-Hot-Stuff-Into-My-Body himself! The same man who won't eat soup unless it's less than 50 degrees outside.

That brings us to this morning. We bought the coffee pot, the coffee and the creamer. We ran cycles of water through the coffee pot. I tried to figure out how much coffee to put in with how much water, and ended up with a pot of REALLY strong coffee. Curtis knew our new purchase was a success when I woke him up saying, "The big kids are up, I'm putting them in the bath, the baby just woke up, I can get him if you want, do whatever for breakfast and can you feed the baby if I make his breakfast" He replied with, "Coffee pot must be working."

Yep. The coffee pot is working!

Questions

Okay, here's the deal. Amy posted this on her blog, and as I was reading it I thought about my answers, although the parameters make it a bit hard -- one-word answers only!

Answers
1. Where is your cell phone? couch
2. Your significant other? couch
3. Your hair? mommyish
4. Your mother? loving
5. Your father? supportive
6. Your favorite thing? sleeping
7. Your dream last night? forgotten
8. Your favorite drink? Diet Coke
9. Your dream/goal? contentment
10. The room you're in? living
11. Your ex? n/a
12. Your fear? loneliness
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? family
14. Where were you last night? home
15. What you're not? short
16. Muffins? warm
17. One of your wish list items? pan
18. Where you grew up? everywhere
19. The last thing you did? ordering
20. What are you wearing? jammies
21. Your TV? old
22. Your pets? psycho
23. Your computer? fast
24. Your life? wonderful
25. Your mood? moody
26. Missing someone? family
27 Your car? awesome!
28. Something you're not wearing? glasses
29 Favorite Store? Target
30. Your summer? hooooot
31. Like someone? sorta ( :-) )
32. Your favorite color? pink
33. When is the last time you laughed? tonight
34. Last time you cried? yesterday
35. Who will/would re-post this? Sherry/Dad

Big Boy Bed

Micah has been sleeping in the pack and play in Elizabeth's room for about a month now. Originally it was our plan for the two boys to share a room. But Benjamin had a lot of sleeping problems, which we have almost resolved by letting him cry it out. But we couldn't have Micah in the same room while Ben was learning to sleep.

Since Benjamin is doing so well, we decided to make it semi permanent, and put Micah in with Elizabeth. But he was so squashed in that pack and play, so thanks to some thinking on my Mom's part, we put Micah on the trundle from Elizabeth's bed. To help make the transition a smooth one, we got him some big boy sheets. I found these Thomas the Train sheets at Wal Mart for $7! Yay for a clearance! Micah was very excited when I showed him, and even helped me make his bed.
After a trip to his sister's bed, and a few trips to see us, Micah fell asleep in his new big boy bed. I think he looks so little in it!

And just in case you were wondering, our plan is to now have the big kids share a room till Benjamin is ready to move out of his crib. At that point, we will move the boys together in what is now Elizabeth's room, and move Elizabeth into what is now the nursery. With the help of my parents, we are looking at redecorating Elizabeth's pink room into something that would work for her and Micah, and would then be a good boy room when Micah and Benjamin share it. And, as you may have suspected, the nursery will be converted into a girly pink room when Elizabeth moves in.

Awwwww!

This evening we put Elizabeth down first, since she was the most sleepy. After awhile, she finally went down and we put Micah in bed. He came out several times, just seeming a little out of sorts. Finally we got him down too. Curtis went to check on the kids, and here's what we found.
Look at their sweet little hands! Now, how long will this last? I'm guessing till about 3am, then it will be party time!

Happy birthday Alexis!

Elizabeth would like to wish her best friend a very happy 3rd birthday! Curtis, holding Alexis and Michael hold Elizabeth. This was the day after Alexis was born.
Elizabeth meeting Alexis for the first time.
Our "other" daughter.

The challegning part of this post was picking out just a few pictures. The Findleys have played such a huge role in our lives that there are literally dozens and dozens of pictures that I could have put on here! We are very thankful for the Findleys and for the way God has blessed them with two beautiful children. Having our girls grow up together has been wonderful, and now we get to watch the boys grow up together too!

Alexis, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! We love you, and are so thankful that you are part of our family!

Michael and Christi, way to go on making it through three years of parenting! And to think the fun is just beginning for all of us. :-) You guys are great parents, and a huge encouragement to Curtis and I.

Funny Elizabeth

This picture was taken the day of Elizabeth's 1st birthay party. While looking through some old pictures, and seeing this one, she exclaimed, "Look! How cute am I?" Humble, isn't she?

Did I mention?

A couple Fridays ago, we were leaving the house to take Curtis to work when we noticed that the driver side door on the van and the passenger door on the car were both open. Out of habit, we closed the doors and got into the car. Quickly, we realized that neither of us had opened the doors and that the glove box was open as well as the little compartment where I put my sunglasses. Yep, you guessed it. Our car had been broken into! Actually, the doors were unlocked to begin with, so really, was it a break in? Regardless, the thief stole a $20 and the remote to the DVD player. Amazingly, he/she didn't take the DVD player itself.

All this led to a visit from the police, just to check things out. Turns out that our neighbors car was also broken into, as well as several other similar break ins through the neighborhood. The very nice detective came, and dusted for finger prints. Micah was very excited to see a police car up close. To make his day even better, the detective turned on the lights and did the siren as she was leaving.

Moral of the story, lock your car at night, even if you do live in a great neighborhood.

Superbowl weekend

Every year for the Superbowl, we get together with our friends Daniel and Molly. Curtis and Daniel were friends and room mates in college. We got married two years apart, had our daughters three weeks apart, and our boys are three months apart. Here are a few pictures from our weekend with them. The boys pushing each other around.
All three of the boys playing with the doll house.
Isaac and Benjamin.
Elizabeth and Anna praying over breakfast. It was so cute, until they started arguing over who was saying the right prayer!
Awwww!!!!! Look at those sweet faces.
One of the great things about Isaac is that he is as big as Micah. Molly and I think Micah might have a couple inches on Isaac for now, but that could change!

Daniel and Molly are very sweet friends. They are the kind of friends who you see once a year (more if you're lucky) but it feels like you just saw them. We know that they would do anything for us, and we love their friendship! Thanks for a great weekend guys!

Funny Elizabeth

While looking through some old pictures, I found these video clips of Elizabeth. She cracks me up!!! Enjoy!

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Cracker?

While I was blogging....

While I was blogging about the mess below, my son dumped out an entire box of Cheerios.
I was able to save some, but most of the Cheerios got swept into a pile which I vaccumed up.
And did you know that Cheerios could bounce?

Off to see what else my son can get into before noon!

My morning thus far

Any guess as to what my son is covered in? There was another picture where you could see it on his hands and feet as well, but it didn't turn out. But you get the general idea, just from the face.Curtis had just gotten out of the shower, and I was dressing the baby when all this took place. Elizabeth follows Micah in as he exclaims, "Mommy's makeup!" Let me just tell you, it is a darn good thing for Micah that his Daddy, even when hopping mad, can keep him cool. We quickly ask Elizabeth what she was doing while all this was happening and she tells us, "Oh, I was sitting and watching him." Thanks Elizabeth!

And in case you hadn't figured it out yet, that's lipstick. And entire tube of brand new lipstick. Mary Kay would be proud!

And in case you were wondering, it's not easy to get an entie tube of lipstick off a little boy. Says something about the lipstick though!