When Jonah is man of the house

Josh has been gone for 5 days now. Miraculously, the house is mostly clean and we've had half decent meals (most of the time). The children haven't been bathed since before he left, but I'm thinking about sending them outside to roll in the grass tonight. That's good enough, right? Jonah has really risen to the occasion and taken good care of all the women of the house.

A few nights back, I went to bed early(ish) at 9:00. I wasn't feeling well, so I stuck my head in Jonah's room and told him I'd be taking a shower and then going to bed. After my shower, I heard some noise coming from Miriam and Caroline's room. By the time I got there, however, she had calmed down. Jonah was kneeling next to her bed and rubbing her back and shushing her. She went back to bed and so did I!

Caroline followed suit the next morning and got herself and Miriam bowls of cereal so I could stay in bed.
That's not to say we won't be ecstatic to have Josh back. We can't wait!

Josh's view tonight

What I have:
-air conditioning
-a hot meal
-5 pillows all to myself
-an amazing mattress

What Josh has:
-a hammock
-a protein bar
-this view:

Father's Day bloopers

It's that time of year again: time to take pictures of the kids for Josh's desk at work. For the past 6 years, I've been taking pictures of them in the same shirts Josh was wearing when they were born. Jonah is starting to grow into the shirt. Boo!

The great shots won't appear on the blog until after Josh opens up his Father's Day card. Until then, enjoy the kids being the goofs they are.

First up, "If Only Jonah Looked Up":

Second, "Miriam Finds a Rock":

Third, "Caroline is Ready to Be Done":

There are some advantages to being a professor

We have all been enjoying having Josh around more this summer, the kids especially. First, he taught Jonah how to play the jumping peg game at Cracker Barrel. 

Then he taught Caroline how to climb a tree and held an impromptu scooter race to the corner and back.

And swinging is obviously better with someone else on your lap:

wisdom of Caroline

C: Boys are smart, funny, crazy, and cool.
Me: What are girls?
C: Pretty, funny, crazy, and smart.
Me: Can boys be pretty?
C: No.
Me: What do you call boys that look nice?
C: Cool.
Me: I see.
C: But some places boys wear skirts! Can I visit a boy in a skirt? Can I visit ALL the boys in the whole world?
Me: That's a lot of visits.
C: Well we wouldn't do it all in one day. One week, we'd visit one or two or three. Then the next week, we'd visit one or two or three.

Jonah turns 8!

Almost a month ago now (oh boy), Jonah turned 8. He chose lemon cake for his birthday cake this year. Sometimes I think he is an old man at heart. (As an old woman at heart, I mean that in the best possible way.) We played with friends and opened presents and got ready for his big baptism day. 

Part of being 8 is learning to play longer, more complicated board games. There are some advantages to getting older, I guess. We played a ton of Monopoly during Jonah's birthday week. He is still undefeated (and no, we're not letting him win!)

Then in June, Jonah was baptized. It was as beautiful of a day as I could have hoped. Mom came out from Arizona and helped me with the programs and getting everything ready. Jonah was excited and happy all day.

(See that program? I was pretty proud of it.)

a few things that make me feel inordinately mature

1. Eating leftovers.
2. Making my bed.
3. Waking up before my alarm.
4. Eating vegetables when no children are around to see it.
4. Getting out of the shower before the hot water runs out.

Some days are more mature than others, but I find I pat myself on the back much more than I probably should for these little things even now. I may be 31 (almost 32!), but making my bed still feels like a gigantic accomplishment.

happy birthday, Mim!

Two years ago, this little bean was struggling to gain weight. We were falling in love with her smile and funny yawns and awesome hair.

One year ago, she was learning to sword fight with Jonah and insisting that the only acceptable way to sit in a cart is sideways.

Yesterday, she was blowing out candles and being adorable (and sneaking out of her room to take her baby for a walk in the middle of the night). Happy birthday, darling!