Category: Xander

Blackberry Picking…

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The boys and I went blackberry picking this morning. We tried out a different blackberry farm close to home. It’s their first season open for picking, and they were super laid back. The farmer was really sweet with the boys and had them all fascinated by and taking turns holding a shiny green bug before they even set foot on the blackberry fields. It was just us out there which was so peaceful. The blackberries were wild, so it took some getting used to the thorns. Roman was the least into it, wanting to be carried and saying, “Don’t prick me, blackberries! Them pricking me, Mommy!” We brought our own containers at the request of the farmer, and we left with two sand buckets and one Easter basket…each filled about a quarter of the way full…not bad for a morning’s work of picking.

Lily’s Visit…

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Lily came to stay with us for a few weeks to help out with the boys, followed by a weekend visit from The Paccassis!!! It ended up being a SUPER busy time with VBS, swim lessons, park and pool play dates, a marionette show, a zoo visit, a fire department tour, a Centennial Park/Parthenon hang, and a van tour (Seyfried style) of downtown Nashville. Phew…it makes me tired just thinking about it…ha…but we had fun! Lily and the boys ran in the sprinkler and went down the water slide, made crayons, finger painted, and did lots of creative play. And she and I even got some good girl time in (we painted nails, worked on a sewing project, and went for a thrift store/ice cream run). Here are a few pictures from our time together…

For more pictures from Lily’s visit, click on the “Lily’s Visit 2014” page to the right.

Swim Lessons…

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Jonas and Xander have had SUCH a good run at swim lessons this summer!!! They did three two-week sessions. Although they about gave me a heart attack doing anything and everything but staying on the platform during their lessons (even when it wasn’t their turn), Coach Betsy went right with the flow and took Xander from crying to smiling and from hugging her tight in fear to fearlessly diving in the water and swimming to her AND took Jonas from wild man to wild man with a purpose in the water. What special people teachers are…especially teachers of children.

VBS…

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We missed VBS at our church this summer as we ended up going on vacation the same week (next year I’ll double check that before we book anything), so the boys ended up going this week to a little church down the road. It was much smaller and less overwhelming, and there were lots of familiar faces from our neighborhood. They learned about the twelve tribes of Israel and had a blast doing it. (I was so excited that Xander actually went…when the sweet girl who babysits for us saw him when we were picking up Jonas on Monday, she asked him if he wanted to be in her tribe for the rest of the week and he said yes!) Here my big boys are with their precious tribe leaders (both of whom I taught in the library years ago).

Painter’s Tape Roads…

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While Jonas and Xander were playing with the Lego table (we bought a few Lego plates and Tom used them to convert the top of a car/train table into a Lego table for the boys), Roman and I had fun making some painter’s tape roads on the kitchen floor for his cars. We used a big salad bowl as a hill and small popcorn bowls as car garages. Xander and I enjoyed adding a few more twists and turns to the roads, and even Jonas couldn’t resist tweaking the road design a little bit.

A Baby Pool Full of…Mud Soup…

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In the time that it took me to run back inside with Roman after weeding in the garden to find my phone and call Tom to thank him for adding on to our garden space soon and grab a few Gogurts for snacks, Jonas and Xander had turned our baby pool into this…

What, might you ask, is it? Well…a baby pool full of mud soup, of course.

Playing Train…

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The boys and I had fun playing train this morning…we took turns conducting and taking tickets…we stopped at Ah-Ah Land, Friend Land, and Candy Land…and we picked up friends and pretend sweet treats along the way…fun times just hanging out at home.

NVFD…

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The boys had a BLAST at the NVFD this afternoon with a load of other kids from our moms’ group…checking out the fire trucks and playing in the water from the fire hose. It was so fun (and hot) in fact that several of the moms and dads joined in as well (including Tom and I). Here’s a picture of the boys with Daddy on the fire truck.

Water Fun…

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We’re getting pretty good at the hanging out thing this summer. Ha! When we got home from dropping Jonas off at camp this morning, Xander and Roman amused themselves for a while with the water table, baby pool, water guns, garden hose, and paint bucket in the driveway. It’s amazing the things that become toys and games with the boys in general…but especially when there’s time to just hang out.

Fourth of July…

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We had a super laid back Fourth of July which is just what the doctor ordered…an impromptu backyard water play date and a picnic lunch with our precious next door neighbors and a restful afternoon of naps and indoor play. Then, Jonas and Xander and I hung out with neighborhood friends and watched the fireworks from our across the street neighbor’s yard while Roman slept cozily and peacefully in his bed all the while on the monitor. (We missed Daddy a lot…he was on firefighter duty at the 4th of July celebration at the park.) The boys really had so much more fun staying up super late and playing with their friends than they did watching the fireworks but it was still fun and festive.

Blueberry Picking…

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The boys and I went blueberry picking this morning with our moms’ group. Most of the ripe ones were up a little high, so I took turns lifting each of the boys up so they could pick their own blueberries and picking handfuls myself and dropping them into their buckets. Either way, a lot of blueberry picking (and eating) was done…the best parts were that it was just down the road from our house and that we shared it with friends.

Happy Birthday, Xander!!!…

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Xander had so much fun at his birthday party…playing in the back yard with his brothers, one of his best friends from preschool, and two of his best neighborhood friends…they loved the water slide and the party blowouts were a big hit. It’s hard to believe that my sweet little Xander is four years old!!! He continues to bless us with his gentle and deep spirit, servant’s heart, ever-observing eyes, and solid individuality. Happy birthday, Xan-Man!!!

Audrey’s Visit…

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We were SO blessed this summer to have Tom’s niece, Audrey, fly down from Connecticut to stay with us a few days in Tennessee before and after our road trip together to a beach house in Florida for a week!!!

Before we left and amidst the packing (and my shaky mental and emotional state…poor Audrey and the boys), we went to Centennial Park in Nashville to feed the ducks and to the Smyrna Splash Pad.

We really loved our time in Florida…playing in the ocean, splashing in the pool, and kayaking and snorkeling in the bay…and there is NO way we could have done it or enjoyed it without Audrey. Her sweet and calm spirit was SUCH a welcome addition to the loud and wild chaos of our family life.

For more pictures from Audrey’s visit, click on the “Audrey’s Visit 2014” picture page to the right.

Brothers…

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It was so hot this morning that I filled up the baby pools in our backyard early… I thought the boys might enjoy cooling off while working out some of their boundless energy.
As we struggled with our dynamic like we have been this summer, I was having a moment of despair about the boys…how incessantly loud they are, how they don’t listen and follow directions, how much they use mean words and sassy words and potty words (the bane of my existence), how often they hit and push and kick and bite each other, and how quickly they can unclean a house and how destructive they can be…and more than anything…thinking what kind of a mother am I that they’re like this and I can’t seem to do anything about it…then I looked over and saw this sweetness happening and had to capture the moment to remind myself to stop and be thankful for what I have…wildness and all.

Lego Club…

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Jonas, Xander, and I went to the Lego Club at the library this morning (while Daddy spent some one on one time with Roman). It was really cool to see so many boys and so many Legos all in one place. The boys created and built to their hearts’ content and had fun doing it…we will definitely be going back!

Couch to 5K…

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I ran my first 5K in years (like since way before marriage and children) this morning!!! Here’s a picture of: Jonas, Xander, and I bright and early before the race (Roman was still sleeping); Kim and I gearing up to head to the starting line (we have been training partners and have kept each other accountable and motivated for the past few months…yay, Kim!); and Jonas, Xander, Roman, and I celebrating after the race. My favorite part was seeing Tom and the boys at the crest of the last hill, cheering for and running with us.

Dairy Day…

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After dropping Jonas off at camp this morning, Xander and Roman and I headed out to the Lane Agricultural Center for Dairy Day. The boys sampled cubes of cheese, crackers with fresh butter, ice cream sandwiches, and chocolate milk. The latter two, of course, were their favorites. Xander enjoyed playing a few milk bottle games (bowling and ring tossing); and Roman joined in just in time to have fun in the preschool area…picking fruits and vegetables, gathering eggs, grabbing handfuls of grain, and milking a cow…they even got to exchange it all for money (all pretend but such a great idea) to buy an educational coloring book about agriculture. Our last stop was a quick ride on the tractor. Yay for Dairy Day and for two little boys to share it with!