What we are Playing At Our House
Saturday, March 29, 2008
The adults and kids can play and neither gets bored.
Anyone else played it? Any other good recommendations for fun family games?
A Hit!
Can I just say the trampoline has been a hit with our kids. Nothing like telling them to go burn off some energy outside before dinner. I can't wait for summer!
Amanda's back . . . and she's discovered candy
Thursday, March 27, 2008
We are happy to report that Amanda has almost fully recovered from some complications of pneumonia that prevented our Spring Break trip to California. Thanks to everyone for their prayers and help with meals and watching the big kids while we spent most of last week at the doctor's office, x-ray lab, and hospital.
Of course, Amanda doesn't realize what she has been through. But on Easter morning, she made a wonderful discovery. She learned that the colorful plastic eggs hidden throughout the house can be opened with a good squeeze. And then she learned what CANDY is and where to put it (straight into her mouth). She became quite the scavenger over the next couple of days, finding lost jelly beans and an occasional missed Easter egg. We are so glad to have our happy and busy little girl back!
Happy Easter, everyone!
Backyard Progress
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
We finally finished the planters for our garden. Now we just need to set them in the ground and fill them with good planting soil. 
The kids already have stuff picked out to plant...Broccoli, corn, pears, apples, and bananas. Lisa and I hope for tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, carrots, and lettuce. Maybe we'll just tell the kids the seed is a from a banana ...but something weird happened so it came out as a tomato.
The Science Project
Since we couldn't go to California, I thought I would post a few quick pictures of things we've done over the past several weeks.
This one is of Natalie's Science Project. She did a great job!
Just a quick, funny story. She did all the typing in MS Word and of course there were a few misspellings. At one point, she asked me what the green squiggly line underneath many of the words meant. I told her it was a grammar error. I then started explaining that the red line meant a spelling error, but she quickly stopped me by saying with a smile "oh, I already knew that!" She also figured out that if she forgot to capitalize a word after a period, the computer would do if for her. Pretty soon she just started letting the computer do all the capitalizations.
Dr. Pope Would be Proud
The Rock Score:
Natalie: 5 buckets
Brendan: 1 bucket
The kids raced outside this morning in the pouring rain and each filled a bucket. When the rain stopped, Natalie went back out with a vengeance and was still working when I came home. She even had another bucket that was almost full, but she was too tired and hungry to finish it.
Some interesting observations...
1) Brendan started fast and furious but petered out quickly. I don't think he really understands the value of a dollar yet. He doesn't really have a toy that he is drooling over (or should I say he just wants every toy?), so he really isn't yet motivated by a few extra green papers in his wallet.
2) Natalie was thinking about all the money she was earning the entire time. When I came home from work and asked her about what she was going to buy, she said a CD player, a Hanna Montana CD, and stuff for my room. So she must realize that with money you can buy cool stuff and that to get money all it takes is a little work. One of the neatest things to see was that Lisa didn't have to bug Natalie to do the work....she just went out and did it.
3) The kids quickly learned that if you used the rake, you could fill the bucket much faster. They apparently also learned that if extra leaves and dirt were put into the bucket, the bucket filled up even faster. We weren't sticklers on the amount of dirt and leaves in the bucket, but the kids found a flaw in the payment process and took advantage of it. Good for them! But next time I'm going to set a stricter rule.
Just so you know, we don't pay the kids for every job they do. They have a very long list of regular chores that have to be done or they can't do certain activities. We only pay for money jobs that are above and beyond the normal call of duty...or Lisa and I just don't want to do them.
Either way, I'm very proud of Natalie. She did a great job and worked very hard. Now if I can just find the right incentive for Brendan... Any suggestions about what works with boys?
BTW: Dr. Pope was my Econ 110 Professor...I loved that guy.
Lava Rocks and the Value of a Buck
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Much to our chagrin, the previous owners of our house filled the flower beds up with lava rocks. Of course the rocks are grenades, lawn mower missiles, and flower killers so they had to go. Unfortunately, quite a few still hide in the bushes and in the mud.
Anyone remember Econ 110? I loved it because I think all people are motivated by self interest--even irrational 5 and 7 year olds. So I ran an experiment (don't tell the social workers) using my ki..., I mean guinea pigs.
On Monday, I offered $2.50 per bucket of rocks that the kids found. It worked pretty well. Brendan was the first to fill a bucket and then Natalie persisted and filled two buckets. Of course, we heaped the praises on them and gave them the money as soon as possible.
Now I know for a fact that there are still quite a few rocks out there...so I offered them this.
It is supposed to rain tomorrow but Thursday and Friday we have other plans... I guess we'll see how much Natalie wants that Hanna Montana CD and how much Brendan wants another transformer.
I'll post their earnings tomorrow.
Our Backyard Fun
Sunday, March 23, 2008
We followed everyone's advice and picked up the trampoline. Ezra is totally bummed that his nice, new, green grass is covered. Of course it was a family project to put the whole thing together. This is just a quick video of us putting it together.
The rules are strict:
1) Your parents have to agree before you jump
2) Only 2 people of similar age at a time
3) No toys or flips on the tramp
4) No fighting, pushing, or wrestling (at least no wrestling without dad)
There are a whole bunch more. What rules do you use?
It's a . . . . . . . girl?
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Our long-awaited ultrasound was Friday. I think I was more on-the-edge-of-my-seat excited with this one than I was with Natalie or Brendan (we chose to be surprised with Amanda). I was POSITIVE it was a boy. Ezra didn't have feelings one way or the other. We left only knowing one thing for sure-- baby #4 is very modest. He/she kept his/her legs crossed almost the entire time. We were able to get a brief glimpse and the ultrasound tech gave her opinion that it was "probably" a girl. So, yea, another girl!!! We think. We'll let you know in July. ;-)
Read more...Ezra's Run
Monday, February 25, 2008
One of my typical New Years resolutions is to exercise more, but I always seem to fall short of the level I would like to be at. I also firmly believe that "what gets measured, gets done"... So if I could some how measure my progress and have all my friends bug me about keeping my goal, I will somehow succeed. Right?
And so I signed up for a half marathon.
Now how will I measure it? Click here. Each time I run, I'm going to log my time and miles in this handy little spreadsheet. Then I can easily compare that to the plan I found at some fanatical runners site selling spandex (not going to happen) and $200 shoes (Looking for the right excuse).
Occasionally, I'll publish a little graph, like the one below, showing how I'm doing..png)
The spreadsheet also shows the course I ran (find the web address to the right) and other bits and pieces of data that I'll collect along the way.
I expect to start slow...hey I just had surgery...and I doubt I'll ever hit the 25 miles per week, but at least I've committed to all my friends and the www that I'm going to finally get into shape...or kill myself running 13.1 miles.
Now, to make this work, I need everyone to bug me about it and I need your motivational support.
And how can I get people to help me?
If you leave a short motivational quote or comment, I'll write it on a white t-shirt that I'll wear on race day... Ok, that sounds kind of cheesy, but if you think its a good idea, let me know and I'll still think about it.
Either way ... help me! I need motivation!
Endoscopic Nose Blah Blah Blah...
Saturday, February 23, 2008
So Ezra had Endoscopic Nose Surgery on Thursday and is home recovering quite well. Lots of naps, tissues, and pain killer has kept him quite passive. The kids have been very patient and helpful. Look at the cute note Natalie made for him on the day he came home.
Click on it to see a larger picture.
Let me point out a few things...first he just finished reading the book "Ender's Shadow". Can you see the book and words in the lower left hand?
Second, Ezra works for an electric company that builds lots of power lines. Can you see the spelling of Electricity and the power lines?
Lastly, we were looking at stars last night as we drove around.
What a thoughtful kid!
Bowling with Brendan
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Tonight was "Mommy-Son" date night. Brendan and I went bowling. This was his first time and it had been many, many years since I had bowled, so it was an adventure for us both.
Have any of you been bowling lately? Bowling has changed since the 1990s at the Wilk. They have AUTOMATIC bumpers. They popped up for Brendan and went down when it was my turn. They also have fancy animated balls and pins acting out strike/spare/gutter/etc. on the overhead screen. But the rental shoes still stink.
I wish I had a picture so you could see Brendan in his little size 11 bowling shoes, hugging his six-pound bowling ball. He loved that ball. As soon as it came out of the machine, he grabbed it and held it until it was his turn. First he tried bowling the regular way, with one arm. Too heavy. Then he switched to the "granny", setting the ball on the ground and giving it a big underhanded push. That worked better, but the ball still rolled so slowly down the lane that he got bored waiting to see if it would hit anything.
Once as I was starting my steps towards the lane, he yelled "Go Lisa!" Hearing him call me Lisa caught me completely off guard. My ball went straight into the gutter.
One other new thing is a little light and buzzer that go on when you "scratch" or step over the line. Brendan thought that was pretty fun. When he didn't set it off as he rolled the ball, he would stomp on the line to set it off. He later described it as a "buzzer that doesn't shock you".
I'm proud to be able to say that even though I did not get to use bumpers, I still won. By an amazing score of 69 to 67. I taught Bren the meaning of "gutter ball", since I was the only one who had one (or maybe a few more than one).
Richards Can Dance!!! (but not pregnant Richards)
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Don't send a lame eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!
Read more...
Flu
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
So Lisa has the flu and has been feeling miserable over the past few days. Carrying a baby and harboring the flu – What could be worse?
Will everyone please leave some encouraging words for her!
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