Okay, you can stop envying my strawberry plant.  Everyone that sees it says, “oh wow, that plant is really growing.”  Well, that’s true…it is growing.  But today I went to water it and thought, ‘huh, these leaves sure look different than the other (not nearly so healthy) strawberries.’  Upon further inspection, I realized my “strawberry” plant was now growing pods.  Pods…as in bean pods?  What in the world?  Then I remembered.  When I was planting the strawberries, Joseph threw a lima bean in and everyone said, oh don’t worry about it.  Well it turns out that perhaps I should have worried about it and dug through the soil to find it because it managed to find the light and it is now growing beautifully.  So if you need some lima beans, I can harvest my bean pods for you.  But don’t ask me for strawberries.

Two little boys.  Lots of energy.  Lots of rain.  We were stuck inside.  Rain, rain, inspire me…

How about an obstacle course?  Yep, that’ll use lots of energy.

Jump as high as you can four times…Hop on that cushion…Beat that instrument…

Hop on the couch three times (yes, I said you can hop on the couch)…Go under the easel…

Ride the horse…faster, faster…

Through the tunnel and into the tent…

Whew!  I’m worn out!  What?  You two are not?  Hmmm…

How about some hopping?

What else can we do?  I know!  A rainy day is perfect for painting…

Oh, thank goodness!  Here comes the sun (and some cool fall weather)!

The economy isn’t doing so well, have you noticed?  With Christmas slowly creeping up, many of us are probably dreading the extensive shopping that’s about to take place.  If that’s you, I think you should read this.  It’s just a gentle reminder that even in the midst of a materialistic society, simplicity can be the sweetest gift of all.

Sometimes all it takes is a big bottle of bubbles…

some willing lungs…

a lot of energy…

and you’ve got yourself a memorable summer evening…

I thought we were done with that awful virus that visited Joseph last week, but it is not to be so.  Today William has a dreadful hacking cough.  At breakfast he coughed and coughed and I said to Joseph, “Oh poor William.  Now he is sick.”  Joseph responded with a simple nod of his head, seemingly uninterested.  I went on, “Now Joseph, since William is sick, you cannot kiss him, okay?  We don’t want to keep passing those germs around.”  I’m pretty sure Joseph’s world stopped for a split second.  He looked up at me with a stricken expression, tears in his eyes.  “What do you mean, Mommy?  I love to kiss William.  Oh I must kiss him.”  I sympathetically responded, “When he is all better you can kiss him.  But for now, you will have to kiss him on his cheek, okay?”  “Oh, Mommy, I will, but I hope he gets better soon…I just love to kiss him!”

Every year on the 3rd of July, Daxson takes 575 flags and puts them out in a nearby neighborhood.  His purpose is two-fold.  First, it’s a method of advertising…we tie a business card to each and every flag.  The second purpose is pure and simple: it’s patriotic. 

This year I took Joseph with me to deliver my share of the flags.  I wanted him to see patriotism in action.  It’s so easy to take for granted our freedom and liberties; so easy to forget how hard our forefathers worked to build this nation into the great country it is; so hard to find a tangible way to show the love we have for our country.  I may not be able to stand alongside our brave and noble soliders; I may not even be able to make it to any 4th of July parade; sometimes I barely know what’s going on in politics, but still, I have a duty as an American.  A duty to teach my children about our country…our freedoms…our rights…our history.  And it starts now.

I just love this age…Joseph’s age, that is.  Everything is fuel for his imagination.  He lives here in our world, but his mind is often times somewhere else…off in a world of pretend. 

Yesterday, mid-morning, he came to me and said, “Mommy, I’m going to be Alex.  You’ll be Auntie Leslie and Daddy can be Uncle Dustin.”  And then off he went.  I didn’t think much about it until it was time for lunch.  I called to Joseph and told him to come and wash his hands.  Nothing happened.  No pitter patter of feet in the hallway.  No response.  I tried again.  Nothing.  Then I remembered.  So I called to “Alex” and told him to come and wash his hands and suddenly little feet came running down the hall and there he was by my side.  Joseph, aka “Alex”, was ready for lunch.  And so our day went.  If I asked Joseph to do something, I received a blank stare.  If I asked “Alex” to do something, he kindly responded.  For an entire day, I was referred to as Auntie Leslie…”Auntie Leslie, can you hold Alex?  Auntie Leslie, I love you.  Auntie Leslie, Alex needs help.” and Daxson was Uncle Dustin…”Uncle Dustin, it’s time to eat.  Uncle Dustin, let’s play!”

Today I am once again Mommy, Daxson is Daddy, and our oldest little boy is Joseph.  Things are back to normal…for now at least. 

(By the way, I asked Joseph at one point yesterday, “If I’m Auntie Leslie, Daddy’s Uncle Dustin, and you’re Alex, who is William?”  He thought about it and finally look at me as if I’d asked a very silly question and replied, “He’s just William.”)

We love Jamberry by Bruce Degan.  We love the pictures and the rhythm; we love the rhymes, the adventures, the mountains and fountains of berries; we love the idea of a jam jamboree! 

So when strawberries went on sale last week for under $1 a pound, we couldn’t help but make strawberry jam and since we were already making a little, we figured we might as well make a lot and can it to enjoy in the months to come.  Nothing beats fresh strawberry jam…especially during the winter when berries are expensive and lack the sweetness of summer ripened goodness.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t much that Joseph could do yet…so he watched…and he waited…and he kept me company while I cut and stirred and poured…and then finally when it was done, he was right there to try a nibble! 

After the dishes were cleaned and the jars were lined up along the counter, cooling, Joseph said to me, “Hey Mom, I think we should have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch today.”  I couldn’t have agreed more with him.  Joseph, William and I have never devoured a few sandwiches quite so quickly!     

 Once upon a time there was a little boy named Joseph.  He was almost 3 years old.  He asked his mommy, “Can we have a birthday party for my 3rd birthday?”  “Sure we can,” his mommy replied. 

Joseph and his mommy began to make plans.  First they thought about where they should have the party.  Mommy said, “I have a great idea…why don’t we have it at our church?  They have such a big playground and a huge sandbox…I bet everyone would have a good time there.”  Joseph thought that sounded fun.  He also thought it would be fun if they made everything soccer-themed since it was going to be outdoors. 

So Mommy and Joseph (and William, too!) went to Hobby Lobby and bought some paper to make the invitations.  Mommy asked, “Joseph who would you like to invite to your party?”  Joseph thought and thought and then he told Mommy that he would like to invite all of his friends and family.  They made a list together and then addressed the party invitations.  Everyone was included.  It was going to be such a fun party!

Next, Mommy and Daddy took Joseph (and William, too!) to Party City and they picked out decorations and party favors.  It was a lot of fun visiting Party City.  There were many, many party decorations there.  It took a very long time to walk up and down each aisle, but finally Joseph decided which decorations he wanted.  He chose some sport-themed decorations and some party hats.  

Everyday Joseph would ask Mommy, “How many more days until my birthday party?”  He was so excited!  His guests were all calling to RSVP, Mommy was busy baking muffins, and soon his family would arrive from out of town.  Joseph could hardly contain his excitement. 

Finally the day of his party arrived!  Mommy and Grandpa Gary went early to decorate.

Then Daddy, Joseph, and William got in the car to drive to the party.  When they got there, Mommy came and helped them out.  Joseph was so excited to see everything all decorated.  But no one had arrived yet!  Where were all the guests?  It was just Joseph and William…

Joseph looked around again.  Where was everyone? 

“Oh, here they come!”  Joseph exclaimed.

First Auntie Jessica and Walker arrived with Grandpa Larry.  Then Grandma Nury came.  Soon Auntie Leslie, Uncle Dustin, Alex, and Grandma Cindy came.  Then Ms. Marjorie and Mr. John, Ms. Virginia, Ben and Gabe, Aunt Romy, Noah, Ethan and Alijah.  A little later Don and Ingrid came.  Auntie Jane and Neva arrived from Ft. Worth and finally Ms. Gail and Mr. Carlos showed up.  Joseph couldn’t believe how many people came to his party!

Everyone was playing, having a great time.  Some of the kids played on the playground.  Some played in the sandbox.  Some just ran around. 

Soon it was time to hit the pinata.  Joseph was very excited because he had never hit a pinata before.  Daddy held the pinata up by a rope and the fun began! 

Everyone was so exhausted from all the playing and the pinata, so Mommy said, “Everyone come and sit down and Joseph can blow out his candle and we can all do some coloring.”  Boy it felt good to sit down and drink some juice!  Everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Joseph and then Joseph blew out his candle (although his candle was on a frosted muffin instead of cake!)  Then the kids all sat and colored until it was time to go.  Whew!  What a fun and very exciting birthday party Joseph had!