Yes, I have a party tonight...

...but I just thought I'd take a moment from preparation to notice that the boys are really starting to play together.....a 3 and 1yr old playing Legos....amazing.

Car Church

My 3 yr old Wyatt, has been so ill and this is the first thing he built when started to feel better. I told him to play quietly in the living rm while I nursed Zane and put him to bed......and this is what I came back too. It's not his usual tower monstrosities that he creates. This is simple but thoughtful. He actually worked out a design instead of just stacking bocks together. He called it his "car church". Notice the floor. We go to a church that looks like a normal building so I'm not sure where he came up with the idea of this. I am so glad my Wyatt is better. The circles under his eyes are disappearing and he's acquiring his quirky personality once again.

handsome

Happy Father's Day!

Where are you Blanky?

Wyatt prayed just now saying, "Dear God....thank you my blanket......I'm sad....thank you my blanket. Amen"

Oh, I feel like crying! We have been missing his blanket since Saturday. We have been hunting nonstop and simply cannot find it. Any of you who know Wyatt personally know what a friend his blanky is to him. What breaks my heart even more, is how brave he's being. He doesn't cry but he just keeps telling me he's sad.

"I so sad mom." Oh Wyatt, mom's so sad too.

Wednesday Quotes

Jon did the first diaper change of the morning and I heard,
"Hey Leigh!! Zane's got brown poops! It's really brown!"
Thank you sweet potato for changing our son's poops from bright yellow to brown. :o)

I was putting on Wyatt's shoes to go outside when he said with a grin, "I got cool stacks mama!"
Who taught him that? Jon said he's never referred to shoes as stacks........
Yes, Wyatt, you got cool stacks.

Today is NOT the day!

Ok, so potty training did not go so well. In fact it was downright gross. Wyatt peed on the floor and on himself all morning. I let him marinate as much as I could without it being disastrous and then.............when we were playing outside he pooped without telling me (and somehow I didn't smell it) He was swinging and said, "mama, I need pee pee." "Alright!", I said. I thought, ok now we're cooking! He actually asked to go! SO I had the bright idea to take him behind a tree and let him try. He's a boy after all. Well in the process of pulling his soaked pants down, poop just squirted out everywhere! All over me and all over Wyatt. He stood there looking at my yellow smeared arm in horror. I think he thought I was going to be mad. I was a little mad, but what can you do? So, I carted everyone back inside and changed us............putting him back in a diaper. Not 5 minutes later Zane made a funny choking sound and looking down I saw my whole shirt front covered in spit up. He really unloaded a massive quantity on me. What a cutie, he just looked at me grinning, his sweet cheeks covered in something not so sweet. Ahhh!

Needless to say, Jon and I have decided to wait a few more weeks and try again. Wyatt seems almost traumatized by the whole thing. He gets a scared look on his face when you mention big boy underwear or anything related to the potty. He is very, very happy in his diapers. I am ok with him being in them right now........

Today's the Day!

Wyatt is potty training today..............it's already been fun......more to come.

dust

I'll slowly but surely get pictures up of Wyatt's Birthday party. I don't remember the last time I was this busy. My family from Chicago is coming to visit this Sunday. Seven people will be staying with us. I think it will be fun....but cleaning will not be. My house is dusty and I just have too much clutter. Don't we all! :o) There is no where to hide clutter and dust when there are that many people in the nooks and crannies. Plus Wyatt has been one to contend with lately. I turned around yesterday and he had Zane by the feet and was dragging him across the floor. He had him halfway to the living room before I noticed. Zane didn't seem to care. He didn't make a peep, even though his little head was dragging. He was probably thinking, "Oh, this is a new way to get around!" Anyway, bare with me. I have more pics to post soon.

ChooCHoo

All Aboard!
Isn't this train set neato bedito?
Wyatt has played with it non stop.
I can barely tear him away to eat!

Wyatt's THREE

Wyatt Ezekiel Vashey
March 18,2007

Your first fish!

Your first signs of imagination
"Cake Mama?"(rocks)

Lego Towers
Your first signs of genius

People always ask me, "Is he this happy all the time?" I say, "Yes, yes he is."

Wyatt, I love you. You are my little man. When you turn and say, "Hear-n mama. Want coffee?" and hand me a pretend cup, my heart melts. Every kid on the playground is your friend and you pray for a list of friends a mile long (Avery, Audrey, Claine, Reecy, Josh, Ivy, Kayla, James, Zachy...etc)

You are so excited about the world around you, and I am very excited to be your mom. God has blessed me indeed.

Poppies and Peas

This is what I made right before the sickness overtook us. I thought I needed a happy picture for this post. I've been making quite a few of these wool flowers, none have made it to the shop. They've all been gifts, sorry. This is my first poppy and I love it! I just learned how to do it and it's so amazingly simple, I can't believe I never figured it out before. It's red linen and I plan on making 2 more of a smaller size and then using all 3 to make a "It's Spring and I'm Happy because I'm Wearing a Red Poppy" pin. :0)

Wyatt climbed up into the pantry this morning while I was unloading the dishwasher and pulled out a jar of babyfood peas. "Mommy, I want this. I want peas!" 'Yeah, right.' I think in my head.....but he persisted so I sat down at the table and watched him eat, with absolute relish, a whole jar of mushy peas. He even scraped the jar! Why am I blogging about this? Because this is SO WEIRD! Not to mention all I could manage this morning was a piece of toast and a glass of 7-up. I can't even drink coffee yet and here my son sits eating something the color of how I feel and loving every minute of it. I really must be slacking on my mom duties, in fact I can't remember the last time I made a vegetable. I know it wasn't this week.
In case you were wondering, half of the Vashey house is doing better but still a little under the weather. Zane nurses well, but he's fussy, sleeps more and has a slight temp. I'm just sore, sleepy and have no appetite. Wyatt and Jon are great, just great, never better. My husband is doing exceptionally well. If you know us, then you know why but I won't say here. Jon, I envy you right now.

Up Chuck Chopped Suey

I made chopped suey for the first time last night. It's apparently one of my husband's favorites that I wasn't aware of. His mom made it growing up and I have her recipe. Actually I think I have all her recipes. She graciously gave me a box full of them before we got married. How many of them have I tried to make? 2.....yes, only two in 5 years. Chocolate pie and now chopped suey. Why? Because I think I have this fear that anything of hers that I make just won't measure up. I can't even seem to get my own mom's recipes right. They've both been practicing for years and years!

*Ok, potty break. Zane has pooped through his clothes and onto the swing. Yuck!*

Anyway, I got to try out this special sauce pictured above! The ingredients called for 1- 1/2 tsp of bouquet and I knew that we weren't talking about flowers here. I was able to locate it in the grocery store pretty easily. This stuff is really good! I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I think it's been around forever. It brings up memories of my Nana's kitchen. I'm not positive but I think she used it....it kind of reminds me of her wallpaper.

So, midway through chopped suey, I heard Wyatt make a gurgling sound in the living room. I turn from the stove and see him standing in the doorway with red stuff streaming out of his mouth. I didn't have my glasses on, so at first it looked like blood. My heart stopped and I ran to him. Thankfully it wasn't blood, but pasta coming up. He just stood there and just kept heaving out massive quantities on himself and the floor. There were no sinks or toilets within a mile of us so I just kept him there until he was done. Poor, poor thing! He'd never thrown up before and I think it was traumatic for him. I know it was traumatic for me, not to mention that it was all over the couch, throw pillows and the floor. He managed throw up again as I led him to the bathroom and then again ON the toilet and the wall. Chunks people!! Chunks! I have never seen such chunkiness or such quantity (maybe b/c as adults we usually get most of it in a contained location) and the color was so red. Not orange but red.......... He is doing fine today, thankfully. My couch, not so much. Any suggestions besides soap and water? It stinks pretty bad! Help!

Well, if you're still interested, here is my mother-in-law's recipe, which was delicious by the way and not overly complicated. I am renaming it here, but you don't have to call it..............

Up-chuck Chopped Suey

*upchuck is optional

Saute: 1 large onion diced and celery 3 to4 stalks diced in large pot

-when soft add 4 lbs of cubed meat (usually 2 lbs of pork and 2 lbs of beef but I just used beef)

-brown and add about 2 tsp of kitchen bouquet while browning

-add 1-1/2 TBS of bead sauce (I used molasses)

-add 1/4 bottle of soy sauce

-fill pot with water to cover meat 1"

-cover and simmer 1-1/2 hours till meat is tender

-before serving add 1/2 cup of Argo Starch that has been dissolved in water

-pour over rice (with slotted spoon)

Spring!

Awake, thou wintry earth -
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!
~Thomas Blackburn, "An Easter Hymn"

The Engineer Arguing with the Architect

This picture makes me laugh! I love that my cousin LeeAnn is on the floor playing with my son!

Natural Disasters and kids

Why is it that when I leave the room I always feel like something bad is going to happen? Maybe it's b/c it almost always does..... Why do I have to leave my sons alone at all? Well, I don't take them to the bathroom with me and Wyatt usually does his own thing while I nurse in the bedroom (why I nurse in the bedroom is another long story). Today his "own thing" was salt. Before we even had breakfast, this is what I was faced with! Have you heard of people having an "eagle eye"? Well, I possess an eagle ear. I can usually asses what's going on in the other rooms with my super sensitive hearing. These two situations surpassed even my super human powers .
Note to self: Never let your toddler see you throw away old mascara in the trashcan. He will most assuredly dig it out and wreak havoc. Yes, he wrote on his baby brother's head. He also wrote on the table, which I don't have pictured here.

My Valentines

Wyatt and Zane's 1st Valentines party.

This little girl, Kinsey, is so cute! She and Zane just kept looking at each other.

Towers and Vegetables!

Wyatt's most recent tower. I think it's fabulous. I think it's fabulous that he built it all by himself and allowed me to do the dishes. I've been really using my Deceptively Delicious cookbook lately. So far I've made chicken nuggets (with hidden spinach) and blueberry bars(with hidden spinach). I plan on making quesadillas tonight (with hidden butternut squash) and rice balls tomorrow (with hidden broccoli) Wyatt and Jon liked the nuggets and kept asking for more! We give Wyatt unhidden vegetables for every meal and make him take at least one bite....which he does, gagging to show us his displeasure. There's nothing grosser than a two yr old gagging on his food. It does take some of the pressure off knowing that he just scarfed down a serving of hidden broccoli or spinach. This is a vegetable war and his parents will win! I am very jealous of Tyne's kids who eat their broccoli with relish and ask for seconds!!! She is the one who bought me the cookbook too!

Best Buds

By the way, thanks Tyne for being such an awesome photographer! Wyatt and Jon have really bonded lately. He'd much rather hang out with his daddy than his mama. Am I jealous? No! I love watching him watch his dad and mimic everything he does. He's slowly learning to be a man. Am I sad that he's growing up so fast? Yes! I still get to kiss his baby fat cheeks but I know that even that is coming to an end soon. He looks at me with those big brown eyes and says, "Go to work? Go to work with dada? Bye, bye mama!".....and I know I've lost him. (Wiping away a tear now) I want you to remember son, how I nursed you, changed you and kissed away all your "owies"....but I'm glad that you want to be like your dad, whom I love very much and am in awe of daily. He is a gentleman that takes good care of his family and I know you will be the same too someday.

Christmas is near!

Wyatt's friends are quite obedient little boys. Clean up the room? Sure, we'll just take everything off the floor, out of the toybox, and off the bookcase......and pile it on the bed!

Last minute shopping, making and homemade baking! This will be our first Christmas with 2 children. Bing Crosby is crooning White Christmas, peanut butter mouse cookies are baking and Wyatt is happily painting. Thank you God for sending your Son. We celebrate His birth with joy in our hearts!

Wyatt and Zane update

So, someone taught Wyatt to say, "Oh, sweetie, are you ok?" everytime there is any semblance of sadness, crying or booboos. Who taught him this? It wasn't me. I don't really like being called "sweetie" but when my 2 yr old does it, it's pretty sweet. He also kisses whatever hurts and says, "There, is that better?".....so cute He doesn't seem to understand what Christmas means, although he recognizes Santa and knows about baby Jesus, mama Mary and Dada Joseph. He loves to pretend it's someones birthday. He sticks things upright in his playdough, says, "Cake Mama. Hmmm, is it good?" and then sings the b-day song and blows out the pretend candles. For some reason it's always Avery's (his cousin) birthday. Anyway, I think I may stick a candle in a Christmas cookie and sing Happy Birthday to Jesus on Christmas morning....always thought that was a bit cheesy....

Zane has acid reflux. It's gotten really bad the last 2 weeks. He just screams everytime he nurses and it gets so frustrating. Sometimes I cry when he cries. I have him on medicine now but it hasn't worked yet. It takes about a week to kick in. For those of you who remember Wyatt had the same thing. Anyway, it's not pleasant and I feel sorry for the little guy. It must really hurt to be burned by acid in your throat. He also stopped nursing on the right side. I figured out that if I lay down and turn him at a funny angle, then he'll eat....but that seems to have stopped working. I'm sitting here right now and I stink. I changed Zane's clothes and my clothes but I still smell sour milk.....is it in my hair?!
I'll leave you with a quote by author Zane Grey, who Zane is named after..........I know it wasn't intended, but I think it describes exactly what it's like to go from being just yourself, to being a mother to a newborn. Dying to self...hopefully to rise a better human being.

Men may rise on stepping stones of their dead selves to higher things.- Zane Grey