Spoonfuls of Sugar

The last year has been full of ups and downs, to say the least. Nothing really worked out the way that we wanted or anticipated. It was a year ago this week that we moved from Rexburg, the last place that really felt like home. We moved to Washington and lived with my grandma, and despite our best efforts, Jon was unable to get a job while we were there. While we appreciated my grandma's hospitality, it was a great struggle and test of our patience to live there. In July, we moved to Utah to live with my parents. After a few months, we were finally able to get Jon into the Voc Rehab program here, and it has been a true blessing to us. His disabilities have finally been diagnosed and we can now move forward, knowing that the Lord has a plan for us. Although I wish we did not have to go through so much difficulty to get where we are now, we feel confident that the Lord has been watching out for us and that everything we have dealt with has led us here--and "here" is good.

I am so grateful to have the children that I have. They get into mischief sometimes, but they are mostly obedient, and they play together so well. They make the dark days not as dark, and they give us a reason to keep moving. They are my two spoonfuls of sugar, and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for them.

Here is a sampling of times when my goofies make me laugh....

Netty loves stickers. Fortunately, these stickers were cheap, so they didn't stick very well. I was able to peel them off without leaving any residue for Aunt Stephie's unsuspecting piano students. They were not so lucky when Atticus decided to play the piano with his peanut butter fingers.

Remember a few weeks ago when our family played out in the rainstorm? Well, during the next rain storm Jon and I were folding clothes on our bed when we heard squealing outside. I looked out the window, and this is what I found.

At first I was really scared, then upset that she didn't come ask. And then I saw that face, and instead of letting our frustration show, we supervised her and had a talk about it later. Since our "talk," we've heard Netty tell all kinds of toys and dolls, "If you want to go outside, tell Mom and Dad."

This is a pretty common sight--Netty wearing a hat and pushing the doll stroller, and Atticus following right behind with the toy cleaning cart.

Why yes, that is a backwards fireman's hat. She always wears it this way.

Depending on what we're eating for dinner, we often strip Atticus down to his diaper. I was grateful that we did on this particular night when we had lasagna. He ate two pieces, and then he got a little sleepy. I think we'll call him "Garfield."

One night we gave the kids ice cream after dinner. Atticus's cone got so slobbery that it just kept slipping out of his hands. He finished it this way.

Remember how Netty loves stickers?

A lot?

We bought the kids one of those 9-cube shelves for their clothes. They were so excited to help me put it together. It took a lot longer, but it was a lot more fun.

Nailing the on the back pieces was a little tricky with so many tiny fingers trying to grab the hammer.

Netty climbs out of her crib most nights and often falls asleep right in front of the door and we go in after she's asleep to put her back in her bed. One night when I went in, I found her not in front of the door, but beneath her bed.

Netty was watching a video of "Let It Go" on YouTube. At the end of the video, it had a link for directions on how to draw Elsa. Netty watched it for a minute, and then she asked for paper and a pencil so that she could draw too.

My niece Rochelle was in ballet a few years ago, and this was one of her costumes. Netty found it in a box of hand-me-downs that we got from my sister-in-law, and she insisted on wearing it.

Atticus loves Peek-a-boo, but he hasn't quite figured out how to cover his eyes.

Putting on Mommy's makeup

Lying ON the table to color