"Kid"versations!

Nash: "I'm thirsty!"
Mom: "Okay!" I hand him a glass of water.
Nash: "I want something different than water."
Mom: "What do you want Nash?"
Nash: "I want coffee or maybe some pumpkin beer."

Nash: "What are these called?" Pointing at his nipples.
Atley: "Those are your nipples."
Nash: "What are they there for?"
Atley: "They are just decorations, but if you were a girl they would have a purpose."
Mom: Thinking, "Wow, I really hope the purpose Atley is talking about is feeding
babies."

Nash: "My arm hurts."
Mom: "What happened?"
Nash: "My nursery teacher kicked me in the face."

Nash: "Mom, I don't feel good."
Mom: "What's wrong buddy?"
Nash: "I am really nervous."
Mom: "Why are you so nervous?"
Nash: "Granny comes on the morrow and that makes me nervous."

Conclusion: Perhaps a "Word of Wisdom" and a "My Body is a Temple" Family Home Evening is in order along with some counseling for Nash to settle his nerves.

Fall Frolics

We have had a very busy weekend of fall fun! In fact it was so much fun we are beginning the new week completely and utterly exhausted, but I suppose it was worth the sacrifice. Here is a recap!

On Thursday I attempted to do a little yard work but when each pile of leaves I raked turned into a playground for Nash, I gave up!




Atley got his stitches out Friday morning. Then he headed off to school. Nash had an afternoon with daddy while I went to our Lunch Bunch group to try a Filipino restaurant nearby. I have one suggestion. Don't try new and exotic food when you are 13 weeks pregnant. Bad experience. After school we headed to PUMPKINVILLE. Our first stop was the petting zoo where Atley tried to tackle a sheep and kiss a camel. At least Nash is kind to animals.



On to the slides, and jumping castles, topped off with a hay ride, and pumpkin picking!



Saturday we headed downtown to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. The Smithsonian was hosting a special event with PBS Kids. PBS has a new show called DINOSAUR TRAIN. My boys love this show. What boy wouldn't? Trains and dinosaurs, how can you go wrong with that? Anyway, there were activities and then a special screening of a never seen before episode of DINOSAUR TRAIN. Dr. Scott, a real life paleontologist on the show was present and the boys were super excited to meet him and get their picture taken with the famouos doctor. After the viewing Dr. Scott came on stage and said that he would take a few questions. Mind you, this is an auditorium of nearly 1000 people. Atley bolts from his seat to find a microphone. I chase after him, scared to death of what he might say. I reach him before he reaches the microphone and ask him what he is doing. He says, "Mom I have a question for Dr. Scott." I say, "Well, what is it?" He looks at me with an evil grin and says, "It's a surprise." I was terrified. But it was too late, they stick the microphone in his face. Atley clearly states, as I hold my breath, "My name is Atley. Dr. Scott how did you prove that a Troodon Dinosaur had the biggest brain of all the other dinosaurs?" I was dumbfounded. I didn't even know what a Troodon Dinosaur was, but Atley and Dr. Scott did and that was all that was important. Atley got his question answered. When I returned to my seat Nash had this sad look on his face. "Mom, I have a question for Dr. Scott." I say, "What is your question Nash?" Nash's response, "Why don't dinosaurs wear clothes?" I thought it was a great questions. Sorry about the fuzzy pictures.

We rushed home to host a BYU football party. A party we vow never to host again. We have hosted a party for the last three BYU losses-Utah last year, FSU, and TCU. What an embarrassment! At least the food and drink were good!




Sunday was the primary program in our ward. After church our neighborhood hosted a Halloween parade complete with an escort by the local Fire Department. The turtle and the frog had a great time!

Another Atley Accident

Atley was running around the house with just his socks on last night when he slid on the tile into the bottom step of the stair case. He bit his tongue and sliced his chin open. Scott took him to the hospital and they fixed him up with seven stitches. Nash was quite worried about the whole incident making statements like, "My brother's broken. I have to get a new one." and "Is Atley gonna live at the hospital now?" Nash was pretty relieved when Atley returned home to show off his new scar. Scott said that Atley never shed a tear during the whole ordeal and that the doctor's were amazed at his toughness!

Notice the crooked smile! He was still a little numb from the medication.

Exposing the gore for his brother's viewing pleasure. Click to enlarge and maximize your viewing pleasure as well.

Safely tucked in bed and relieved that they both survived another day, Nash snuggles his big brother.

The Riddle

What am I? The following makes me want to vomit...

Sitting
Standing
Walking
Running
Driving
Reading
Eating
Not Eating
Water
Toothpaste
Milk
Lotion
Soap
Laundry Detergent
Deodorant
And anything else that smells or doesn't
I am also moody, tired, and getting fatter!

If you need any more help solving this very difficult riddle just look at the creepy floating fetus to your right for a clue.

Public Service Announcement

If I can do it you can and should as well! That is my message today. I took the boys on an hour long car ride to wait in line for almost 4 hours, most of which was spent outside in the freezing cold to get vaccinated for the SWINE FLU. It was a long and frustration filled morning, but well worth it to be able to protect them from this virus. Unfortunately, the fun is not over. Children under 10 years of age have to return for a second dose in 4 weeks! So, we will be back but I can assure everyone we will be better prepared for the crowds and the tears. Here are the boys showing off their battle wounds!

Na-Na-Na-Na-So you think you can DANCE, dance!!!

Every Wednesday in the Fall and Spring they have Jammin' Juniors Concerts in our local park. Here are some pictures of Nash jammin' to the music. He even started a Conga line! I can see him being the next Derek Hough on Dancing with the Stars and it frightens me!

Thank-Fall

With the exception of springtime, fall is the only other season that gives me an almost euphoric feeling. I love how the weather cools down. I love the feel and sound of leaves crunching beneath my feet and the sight of those leaves gracefully falling from the trees in all their vibrant colors. I enjoy watching Scott work to keep up with the thousands of gracefully falling leaves in our yard. I love getting out the sweater box and dressing the boys in cushy, soft, sweat suits. I get excited to put away my shorts for the season-who but a 12 year old girl really looks good in shorts anyway. I love seeing apples, pumpkins, squash, and mums everywhere. I love fall parties and apple cider. I love making my kids wear ridiculous costumes and then sending them to the the homes of complete strangers to beg for unhealthy food. The sound of a football game blaring on my TV gives me a most happy feeling. This morning I went outside and smelled the first wood burning fire of the season. What a cozy thought! I love the anticipation of the impending Holiday season! The stores are already filling up with Christmas items and the excitement of seeing friends and family in the next few months is mounting. I am thankful for the change in season that gives us a new perspective on the miraculous beauty of the earth! Here are some recently captured fall pictures.

Close Enough!

One needn't worry that I have given up on my dreams of being a Rock Star just because I haven't blogged about it lately. In fact, today I think I came as close to the realization of my dream as I might ever get. Nash's favorite mommy/son activity is listening to music really loudly, while I sing even louder, and he dances most incredibly. We participate in these antics on a daily basis with few results. But, today I had a break through moment with one of my toughest critics. As always he was dancing and I was singing when he suddenly stopped his highly sophisticated dance moves and said, "Hot Momma! You Rock STAR!!!" I almost cried! Does he see something in me that others have been missing all these years? The most amazing part of this story is that I was singing Pancho and Lefty. As I see it, if Nash can recognize Rock Stardom in my rendition of a Willie Nelson song the sky is the limit. I can practically see myself on stage next summer as the opening act of the ACDC revival tour.

Well, okay maybe not but Nash thinking I'm a ROCK STAR, that's close enough for me.

National Book Fair

Well, we finally did something fun and exciting. The truth is life has been boring and completely devoid of fun since Atley started school. I feel trapped and tied down and the whole school thing is totally cramping my style. In fact, I expressed those exact words to a woman at the bus stop last week and she said, "Cramping your style-I haven't heard that phrase since 1975." Okay so now my life is not only boring but I am a big nerd in some sort of 70's time warp.
However, Saturday was the National Book Festival on the National Mall in D.C. and we had an adventurous day with the boys, our friends Dan and Jill and their kids. The National Book Fair is pretty self-explanatory. It is a celebration of books and reading for all age-groups and literary genres. It is sponsored by the Library of Congress. The fair hosts many authors who give lectures and sign books. Some notable authors this year included John Grisham, Judy Blume, Sue Monk Kidd, Jodi Picoult, James Patterson, David Shannon, and Jeff Kinney. The kids had a great time gathering free books, bags, stickers, and tons of other goodies, not to mention meeting some of their favorite story book characters.

I love my Kindergartner

Today might have been the hardest day of my mothering experience. Today was Atley's first day of Kindergarten. And while he is only gone for 3 and 1/2 hours, the thought of him being old enough to be an elementary student is a little sad for me. It is the end of an era. I haven't even been inside of a public school since the day I quit teaching for his impending birth. Now I guess we have come full circle. He seems to have a great teacher and the class is small, so I am sure he is going to have a great experience. He told me it was way "more funner" than preschool. (Let's hope they work on his grammar) He even won an award for being respectful! Wow, where did that come from? Way to go Atley.



I was crying when we took him and then when I saw the picture of him walking with his daddy and making new friends I cried some more. I know it won't be long until he won't let us hold his hand while we walk him into the school building. But I also know how important this step is in his young life and how much fun he will have making new friends and learning new things. It was a bitter sweet day!

Tourists in our own Town!

Grandpa and Grandma Butler came to town this weekend so, we gladly became tourists in our own hometown. Here are some of the highlights of our weekend.


We started day one at the National Postal Museum, which sounds really boring but is actually pretty interesting and just the right size for kids. My boys enjoyed testing out an 18-Wheeler the best!

Atley has been dying to try out the DCDUCKS! They are these amphibious vehicles from WWII that travel on land and water and have been turned into tourmobiles!

Next, we went to the Library of Congress. Not really sure why after two years in D.C. we had never been there but the art and architecture alone is well-worth the visit.

Of course the highlight of the weekend was the intense BYU victory over Oklahoma. I am not sure if my heart and nerves can handle another football season, but here we go!

Monday we spent in the American Museum and the Museum of Natural History. We took the boys to an IMAX show about Dinosaurs. Isn't Nash cute in his 3D glasses?

Giveaway

My friend Sarah just wrote, what I am sure will be an amazing book about quilting. She is very talented and super creative and she is giving away the above-pictured diaper clutch on her quilting website. To enter the drawing just visit her website and leave a comment telling her your favorite movie. Never fear if you do not win Sarah gives an easy-to-follow tutorial on how to make the diaper clutch yourself.

http://milkandhoneydesigns.blogspot.com

Baby Nash

A few weeks ago I mentioned to someone that my baby was sick. She said, "You have a baby? I thought you only had Atley and Nash." I am not quite ready to consider my Nash a big boy. He is my baby and he likes it that way. Sometimes Nash gets a little overshadowed by his big brother's super-duper-out-going personality so I am writing to give Nash some credit! Notice in the picture below Nash is with his five favorite things-his daddy, wearing his "digger" shirt, wolfie-his toy wolf, a tape measure (he measures everything, including me all while exclaiming how huge I am), and being lazy.

We love our baby! He is very special, very smart, and very funny! He can almost name every commercial airliner that flies over our house and sometimes he can even identify the type of aircraft-like Boeing 737 or MD-88. Here are some recent Nash quotables!

*He loves chocolate! The other day in the car he said, "Mom, I tired!" I told him that he could take a nap when he got home. He said, "No thanks! If I eat some chocolate I'll feel better."

*When having a family home evening about gratitude Nash told us he was thankful for his SPEED! He thinks he is a super fast runner!

*He woke up the other morning and asked where his dad was and before I could answer he says, "Oh no, did he die?"

*In church he yelled, "I see a naked man on a flying horse!" Who knows where he comes up with these things.

*He accidentally hit Atley in the private parts the other day. Of course Nash's solution to any problem he causes is to kiss what ever or whomever is hurt. Atley freaked out when Nash tried to kiss the offended body part to make it better. We tried to explain to Nash why this was inappropriate while keeping a straight face.

*He calls me his little fluffy one! And tells me that he loves his dad more than me, because I am too squishy.

*He loves to pick out shoes for me to wear and turns violent if I refuse to wear fluorescent green flip-flops with a red dress. Last Sunday this was the case and he yelled, "You are so mean, I am going to attack you!" He did just that with a green flip-flop.

So just to be fair I will also add a few of Atley's recent embarrassing/funny remarks.

*Yesterday he says, "Mom, I wish we lived on a cruise ship." I say, "Why buddy?" And he says, "Don't you think they are romantic?"

*We went to Olive Garden and after serving our dishes the waitress began to walk away, Atley yells, "Hey lady, I would like some freshly grated AMAZON cheese on my spaghetti, please!" Of course he meant Parmesan cheese.

*At a baptism Atley turned to the lady next to us and said, "Did you take a shower today?" I immediately squeezed his arm hoping it would deter him from whatever he was about to say. The lady replied, "Yes, I did. Did you take a shower today?" Atley tells her, "You sure don't smell like you took a shower today. Maybe you need another one." Hence, the reason my friends are few and far between!

Summer's Last Swim

Last week we had our last swim party of the season and it is a good thing because this week feels like fall is approaching quickly. Here are some pictures. Please notice that my children chose playing in the mud alone rather than playing with about 40 friends in the pool. Go figure!