Laughable

My boys had a friend spend the night (or two) the other day.

They had a funny conversation. It went like this:

Lawrence: "One day I drank a lot of water and my pee was clear."

Me: "That means that your body is well hydrated."

Lawrence: "Yes. But there's one thing I don't get. After I get done swimming, my pee is clear."

Phyllip: "That's because the water soaks into your body through your spores."

Me: "Phyllip, we don't have spores. We have pores."

Phyllip: "Oh, yeah."

And everyone laughed!

Then & Now

I can't say enough how it seems time flies by so fast when you are raising children.

I have 'then' and 'now' pictures of the kids.

Then - 2000/2001 (I can't remember exactly.)

Now - 2009

Is it just me or are my kids looking grown up?

She Did It!

My absolutely gorgeous and very wonderful daughter finished her very last day of high school today!

She is thrilled to say the least!

We are very proud of her and look forward to her graduation in June.

Mom, This Isn't Going So Well

We had a box of mac 'n cheese in the cupboard.

Phyllip wanted it for lunch. He asked if he could make it.

The conversation went like this:

Phyllip: Can I make it, Mom?

Me: Can you follow the directions on the box?

Phyllip: Huh? Yeah.

Me: Ok.

He gets out the pan and fills it with water, puts it on the stove and turns the burner on. Everything is going fine.

Phyllip: Mom, how do I know when the noodles are cooked?

Me: Take one of the noodles out of the pan and eat it. You'll know if it's completely cooked.

The noodles are fully cooked and he drains them and puts them back in the pan.

Several minutes later...

Phyllip: Um, Mom?

Me: What?

Phyllip: This isn't going so well.

Me: Why?

Phyllip: Can you come here? It doesn't look right.

Me: Did you read the directions on the box? Did you put milk and butter in the pan?

Phyllip: Huh?

Me: Did you put milk and butter in the pan? Read the directions, son. It will tell you how much.

He's still confused by this.

Lyndsey walks into the kitchen and reads the box. Sure enough, he didn't read the directions. She came to his rescue and helped him add the missing ingredients. The mac 'n cheese was saved.

Overheard

Yesterday was Tyler's 10th birthday.

We had a couple of boys spend the night Sunday night and then another friend surprised us and called out of the blue to spend the day with us.

Anyhow, the boys started out sleeping in the living room. They moved into the bedroom later on. They woke up somewhat early (at least is wasn't 5:15 a.m. like it has been in the past) and I heard them talking.

Lawrence is one of the funniest kids I know. He's very quick witted. He has a great sense of humor. I heard the following:

Lawrence: Phyllip, I thought this was a boys' room.

Phyllip ignores/doesn't hear him.

Lawrence: Phyllip, I thought this was a boys' room.

Phyllip: It is.

Lawrence: Get out!
(just in case you don't understand, he was calling Phyllip a girl)

Tyler gets in on the conversation.
Tyler: Mr. George says we're all girls so we all have to get out!

Lawrence: Mr. George is an old, ancient woman and he's not allowed in here, either!

They were all laughing and I was laying in my bed laughing.

It was a very rainy and cold day yesterday. That didn't stop the boys from playing outside. Tyler came in to ask if he could get some shovels from the garage.

I looked at his jacket and noticed how wet it was and the following conversation took place.

Me: Tyler, it's pouring down rain outside. You guys need to come inside. Your jacket is all wet.

Tyler: Mommy, it's not pouring. It's just raining big drops!

Me: (puzzled) It's not pouring?
I looked outside and it was indeed pouring. I pulled rank and made every one of them come inside!

It's Really Exciting When You Start To See a Change...

in your children for the good.

I've been praying for my boys to start having their own personal devotion time daily. I realize that they might still be a bit young to be conscious about their spiritual walk. However, I want them to have a walk with the Lord at a young age that I didn't have. My desire is for them to know Him on a very deep, intimate level even at a young age.

I didn't tell anyone except the Lord.

This morning I knew Tyler was in his room. I thought he was doing some of his schoolwork. I asked him what he was doing and he said he was praying. He had asked me earlier about reading the Bible and I didn't think too much about it. But he had read a chapter in his Bible as well. He did this all on his own.

I am so thankful that my children are exhibiting a desire to walk with the Lord.

In case you might be wondering why I don't mention Lyndsey here, it's because she's been having her own personal devotions for about 5 years now every morning. She has a very strong relationship and walk with the Lord. And I am soooo thankful for that as well.

You'll Never Guess...

who Tyler got to talk to today!

He talked to the one and only "Patch the Pirate."

Walter was talking to a friend of ours on the phone when he motioned to Tyler to come to the phone. Tyler got on the phone and the VERY real "Patch the Pirate" was on the other end. He only got to talk with him for a few seconds but he thought it was great! That was probably a once in a lifetime thing.

I felt kinda bad for Phyllip because he didn't get to talk to him.

Hunting?

Yesterday we had another guest speaker at church. His name is Jeremy Picker. He and his family were with us all day at church.

We spent the entire day with them. They have 3 kids. Their son, Travis, is basically the same age as Phyllip and Tyler. The boys were instant friends.

L to R - Phyllip, Travis, Tyler

After lunch, both families came back to our house. The boys wanted to play outside and we told them to have a great time.

Apparently, Travis is quite a hunter. He's killed snakes, quail, bunnies, deer, etc. He's even skinned the animals, too. Of course, his dad has taught him these things.

We let all six of the kids go play in the fields. The boys were trying their best to get a quail or bunny. But, to no avail.

Fast forward to this morning.

The first thing out of Phyllip's mouth this morning was the following:

Phyllip: "Mom, after school can we go into the fields and hunt quail?"
(notice that he didn't even say good morning to me!)

Me: "What are you going to hunt them with?"

Phyllip: "Rocks."

Me: "You need to talk to your dad about that."

A few minutes pass by and he decides he wants to talk to his dad and the conversation went like this:

Phyllip: "Dad, can we go in the fields after school and hunt quail?"

Dad: "What are you going to hunt them with?"

Phyllip: "Rocks."

Dad: "That's going to be pretty hard to kill a quail."

Phyllip: "Then can we take your gun?"

Dad: "NO!"

I just about busted a gut laughing because the conversation went from rocks to guns in about 2.2 seconds!

Dad went on to tell the boys that he will take them target shooting to get their skills sharpened. The boys don't realize yet that it's going to take a while to get the hang of shooting again.

Travis invited the boys to go camping with him and his dad over his birthday in May. They're going hunting during the trip. I guess we better get to teaching these boys a thing or two about the great outdoors before then!

Chalk Another One Up To the Kiddos

My sister (Nancy) called me today and shared this story with me.

She had to take one of her cats to the vet today and have him put down. He was just too sick to keep anymore.

Nancy's two girls, Rebecca and Katie, wanted to go to the vet with her so they could say their last goodbyes to Sylvester.

Both of the girls were understandably upset on the drive home. However, both girls grieve completely opposite of each other. Rebecca cries quietly. Katie cries very loudly. Nancy couldn't hear Rebecca crying although she knew she was. Katie let everyone know she was upset.

Here's where the funny part comes in.

On the drive home, while Katie was boohooing loudly, she would suddenly yell out, "Slug bug blue" and continue boohooing. Then another, "Slug bug silver." All the way home!

Apparently, Katie wasn't upset enough to keep her from playing any games!

A Little Extra Money?

Lawrence was with us for 4 days straight this week.

On Monday, the 3 boys decided they wanted to earn some money. They wanted to wash the neighbors cars for extra money.

I told Phyllip and Tyler to call their dad and ask if it was ok. Dad said yes, but first they needed to practice on our car. They happily obliged and we got a free car wash. Tyler rolled up the hose and grabbed the scrub brush. Phyllip carried the towel. Lawrence carried the squeegee and they were ready to take on the neighborhood.

I turned the van around and sat in it so I could watch them.

They were so excited. They had dollar signs in their eyes!

Unfortunately, they weren't able to wash one car. They were soooo sad.

They wanted me to drive them down the street and watch them wash cars down the street. I said, "No, not today. It's getting late. I need to make dinner, etc. Maybe Saturday." The boys quickly concocted a plan for Lawrence to come over Saturday.

Maybe a lemonade stand would have worked better??????

Silliness

We rang in the new year at a friend's home. We got home somewhere around 12:30 a.m. The kids were really tired. The following conversation took place.

Lyndsey: Tyler, there's a cricket in the sink you need to catch and throw outside (Tyler is our resident bug catcher).

Phyllip: Just flush it down.

Lyndsey: Phyllip, you can't flush anything down the sink!

Phyllip: Why?

Coffee

The boys had a friend (Lawrence) spend the night a few nights ago.

Lawrence is very funny for only being 10 years old.

After we got home from church, the boys changed their clothes, brought out the humungous tub of legos, and turned on a movie. They were carrying on a conversation during all their playing and watching the movie. It went like this:

Phyllip: I'm having cereal in the morning.

Lawrence: Not me. I'm having coffee.

(I whipped my head around from what I was doing)
Me: You're having what?

Lawrence: Coffee.

Me: Oh, really?

Lawrence: Yes. Isn't that what you have every morning?

The last time Lawrence spent the night, I had just happened to make a pot of coffee and had some of my favorite peppermint mocha creamer to go with it. Lawrence tried it and now he's hooked!

Is it just me, or do kids like being grown up before their time? *smile*

A HOT Lesson...

I was in the process of making "Jalapeno Poppers" today.

I had cut open the jalapenos and was taking the veins and seeds out. Phyllip and Tyler walk into the kitchen and both proudly proclaim that they've eaten the seeds before and they're not hot. What did I, their mother, do????? I dared them to put a seed on their tongue. To which they both happily obliged.

What happened? Immediately they started diving for something to take the HOT away! Phyllip got the biggest glass of milk he could! They were pathetic! Even an hour later, Tyler was still complaining that his tongue was on fire. They are such light weights!

I served the jalapenos for dinner and neither one of them would eat them. They ate the filling and the bacon but happily refused the jalapenos! They didn't want to take any chances.

I think they learned their lesson.......

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In case you want the recipe for Jalapeno Poppers, here it is.

1 lb. bacon
12 oz. sausage (any kind you like-I used breakfast sausage in the tube)
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
jalapenos - as many as you want

Slice the jalapenos lengthwise. Cut out the veins and seeds (you can leave some seeds in if you want extra heat). Brown the sausage in a pan, breaking up into small pieces. Transfer sausage into a bowl and add cream cheese. Mix well. Stuff the jalapenos with the sausage/cream cheese mixture. Cut slices of bacon in half or thirds (whichever you like better). Roll bacon around each jalapeno. Place in a baking dish. Stick each one with a toothpick. Bake in 350 oven for 30 minutes or until bacon is crisp. Cool for a few minutes before serving. Enjoy!

I can't take the credit for this recipe. I got it from one of the ladies in my church (Thank you, Esha). This has become a favorite of my husband. I made a really good pot of chili tonight and he said the poppers trumped the chili! I know these are good if he says that!

I'm Quite Sure They Get the Gene From Their Father...

Today was a major work day at church. We have decided to beautify our church building.

Walter and I and the kids were down doing some prep work and cleaning the office.

We had been there for about 4 hours or so by the time we were done.

Unbeknownst (is that a word?) to Walter and I, the boys were outside playing in the water. Shouldn't be anything wrong with that you wonder? Ha! You don't know my boys!

Phyllip told Tyler that Dad said they could slide in the water and mud hole in the grassy area next to the building (major run-on sentence, I know). They played like it was more of a 'Slip N Slide.' As we are about to set the security alarm in the building, I walk outside and call the boys. Tyler is the first one to appear. Dripping wet from head to toe! Next, Phyllip appeared equally as wet.

Our mouths dropped open and I think almost hit the ground!

Me: "What are you two doing?"

Tyler and Phyllip: "Dad said we could slide in the water and mud and get wet. Aren't we just going home anyway?"

Me: "No, son, we aren't just going home. We have lots of errands to run! You can't get in the car dripping wet!"

The look on their faces was priceless! They were completely amazed that we didn't give them permission to get wet.

Walter: "Guess what? You two get to run errands with us looking like that! Wring out your clothes as best as you can!"

Me: "Where in the world did you get the idea that you would ever be allowed to do this?"

Phyllip: "Dad said we could!"

Walter: "No, I didn't."

Me: "Boys, look at me. In case I haven't been clear up until this moment, let me be very clear. You will never ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever be allowed to play in the water and mud at church ever! Have I made myself clear?"

Phyllip and Tyler: "Yes, ma'am."

Walter turns to me and says, "They get that from you. Your mom used to have water fights inside the house!" "My sister and I never would have thought to do what these two knuckleheads have just done, so I think they get that gene from you!" I said. We both laughed.

They went inside and tried to dry themselves as best they could. They were shivering everywhere we went because all the stores still have their air conditioning running. Their teeth were chattering. I did feel kinda bad for them, but not too much. The worst part about it was that as they were drying they started smelling like mildew and it was really bad!

I'm not upset now. Actually, I was laughing about it a short while later.

Boys! They never cease to amaze me at what they think of! Gotta love 'em, though! They bring much joy to our lives!

It Just Has To Be a Boy Thing!

This morning the boys were supposed to be doing their schoolwork. They were sitting at the table with their books open and pencils in hand but decided to have the following conversation.

Phyllip: Tyler, I dare you to eat a piece of Ruby's (our dog) food.

Tyler: Ok.

Tyler can't bring himself to actually eat the food so he licks it several times instead. Eventually, he put the whole thing in his mouth and spit it out immediately!

Then Tyler decided eating one of Ruby's cookies would be better. He tried it (a chicken flavored one) and said it tasted like Top Ramen, then it tasted like chicken, and then it was gross.

What will they think of next?

When I was growing up, it was only my sister and me. The things these boys do blow my mind! It just has to be a boy thing!!!!!

Teaching Does Have Its Moments!

My husband is ADAMANT about washing the windshield of our car when the car gets gassed (is that a word?) up.

He showed the boys how to wash the windows with a squeegee. He usually has Phyllip wash the windshield.

Phyllip isn't quite tall enough and his arms aren't quite long enough to reach the middle of the car. But he tries, and he tries, and he tries, and he tries (you get the picture, right?). If there's a spot left on the window, he does his best to get rid of it - even if it means adding about 20 new spots!

A couple of Saturdays ago we were at the gas station. Walter was pumping the gas and Phyllip was washing the window. When Phyllip would touch the window with the squeegee we laughed because he didn't touch the window gently. It was with all his might! The squeegee would almost slam against the window and 20 new spots would suddenly appear on the window. It was a process of elimination for him! He did finally get all the spots off - it just took him a looooonnnngggg time. And he enjoys washing the window, too!

Kinda makes me wonder how many laughs my parents got from teaching me different things...

The Honesty of Kids

Brother Brown (our guest speaker at church today) decided to use Tyler in an illustration. He said, "Are you good with illustrations?"

Tyler said (without any hesitation), "No."

Of course, the church laughed at that one. I'm not sure Tyler understood why everyone laughed.

According to Tyler...

I was taught something the other day by Tyler - melting silver.

It's quite simple, I'm told.

Here's the instructions.

First, get out a small pan. Next, add some water to the pan. Put pan on the stove and turn on to high heat. Place silver piece in pan and watch it melt when the water boils.

If only it were that simple!

I love the simplicity of kids - they've got the whole world figured out.

Glasses x 2!

I took Tyler to the eye doctor today because he's been complaining of blurry vision.

Well............he needs glasses!

Like mother, like son, I guess!

I'll put before and after pictures on the blog after he gets them (and of Lyndsey, too).

3 Valuable Gifts I Received

Ok - I must admit - it was my birthday yesterday.

Lyndsey gave me a handmade card that was great (by the way - I think she makes incredible cards!).

Tyler won the behavior award in Jr. Church a couple weeks ago. He won a box of "Lemonheads." He loves 'em. On to the story...he made me a card and taped a small container of lemonheads (his most prized possession at the moment) to his card. Boy, did I feel special!

Then it was time for bed. Phyllip came out of his room to give me a hug goodnight. Phyllip not only gave me a hug but a kiss, too! To some, that doesn't seem exciting. But to this here mom - that's incredible! See, I haven't gotten a kiss from said son for over 6 years! He just doesn't like it - giving or receiving. I quit trying to get a kiss from him a very long time ago! But I was pleasantly surprised.

It was a FANTASTIC birthday!