Makin' Mem'ries

Today was one of those days. One of those days that you remember for a long time because you felt such a joy and a sweetness about the entire day. A day that helps you feel not alone in the crazy sea of raising children. We started out with our homeschooling this morning. I had told the girls that we would go somewhere special if we got enough work done so they both worked very hard. I packed us a lunch and we grabbed our picnic stuff and headed to Downtown Woodstock. The city is having free concerts weekly through September on Thursdays. I almost decided not to go because I was tired (nothing new there) but changed my mind. I'm so glad that I did. We all had a ball. The group that was playing turned out to be a Christian group and sang many praise and worship songs we new and a few old country songs. Our sweet friends Megan and Carrie joined us with their children thanks to a status update that I posted on facebook this morning on a whim in case anyone wanted to join us. The girls all played in the inflatable bounce house that they had set up in the square and we enjoyed our lunch under the shade of a large tree. There were even a few games of hide and seek and duck, duck, goose. Annie saw a sweet friend from school and his mom and I had a nice chat. The girls threw coins in the fountain before we left and we talked on the way home about how much fun we all had. As my Nanny always says, "We were makin' mem'ries." We sure were.

The boy can SMILE!!!!!!!

Jack is smiling up a storm now and is usually in the best moods during the day unless he's sleepy. These pictures do not do him justice because the moment I get the camera out he is fascinated by it and the flash which in turn causes him to make goofy faces instead of the sweet smiles I was getting pre-camera. He is growing like a little weed. Our sweet (nosy) neighbor who is in her 80's says I am feeding him too much. I think he's just perfect. He coos now and it is just precious. He loves to look at the girls and smile at them as they act silly. They think he is a baby doll.

Silly story:

Today Ella has a stuffy nose (allergies) and was saying something about a bench this morning during our school time. I'll leave to your imaginations what Annie thought she was saying. (Hint: Hold your nose and say bench.) Anyway, Annie says the word she thought Ella was saying with a question in her voice as if to say I've never heard that word. Is it a real word, Mom? I quickly changed the subject and focussed on the BENCH that Ella was coloring.

A Special Day in First Grade

Monday was a special day for Annie's class. They have been studying relatives and the teacher planned for the children's relatives to surprise them for lunch on Monday. There were so many relatives that lunch had to be moved into the chapel. All of us went and so did Aunt Mel and Claire which made the day super special! It was fun to see Annie so happy with her new and even a few old friends. What a great day to remember in 1st grade!

Annie's not the only one having fun!!!

Ella and I are enjoying our special time together while Annie is in school. We do her reading lesson and sometimes take a trip to the park or McDonald's. Annie is having a blast each school day and loving every minute of it so I thought Ella deserved some special time with Mommy and Daddy. Just thought I would put up a few cute pictures of sweet Ella.

Ella-ism/Annie-ism: Mark told us he had to go to the jail to speak with a client. Ella said, "Did they lock you up, Daddy? We told her no and then she wanted to know if Kind David was in jail. Annie said, "Ella, back then they called them prisons."

A need and a want....

Okay, I have a need and a want on this fine Wednesday afternoon. I want a new vacuum cleaner. The silly thing won't pick up a single piece of dirt but when I put my hand up to the extension it feels like it could suck the life's blood out of me!!! How is that possible? I could take the time to really clean it out but that seems too difficult and time-consuming. Now for my need. I need a MAID. Now, I know what you're thinking. That sounds backwards. She needs a new vacuum cleaner and wants a maid. No. I NEED a Maid. I had 30 minutes of free time today in which I cleaned the entire bathroom, vacuumed the upstairs, cleaned the kitchen and started yet another load of laundry and there is so much more that really needs doing. Oh, well. Maybe for my birthday. Ha! I actually love cleaning the house but I'm finding it increasingly harder to make the time. Right now as I type, there is a boy demanding my attention and a little girl wanting me to color. So I leave you Louisianians with a final thought. If I can't have a MAID could you please send me some Southern MAID donuts?????? That would soften the blow somewhat.

1st grade, Sparks, Cubbies, 2 months

Well, as you can see, the Anderson's are busy as usual. Too busy, in fact, to update the blog recently. There are so many stories I have wanted to post but have now forgotten. Here is the big stuff that has been going on in recent weeks.

First Grade started today for Annie at The King's Academy. She was excited and nervous at the same time. The new glasses she has worn for only 4 days contributed to the nervousness. What a big adjustment along with attending a new school. I am so thankful that she has several good friends from church and dance in her class.
Ella and I started working on her "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" book this week as well. She is doing great with it so far and is excited to be doing "homework" as she calls it. She sits at her desk and does her lessons, colors or is currently doing the pattern blocks activity that we bought for the 2 of them.

Sparks and Cubbies started this past week and the girls were so excited. Ella was the most thrilled because this year she gets to memorize verses and receive patches for her vest. She has already learned the first 2 weeks worth of verses and was very disgruntled after the first week where they don't say verses in class. The first week is just to get everyone ready and get the kids used to being in Cubbies. That didn't go over well with her. Annie has fantastic teachers this year and she said all of her repeat verses from last year the first week. We are so proud of them. What a great way to hide God's Word in their little hearts.
Last, but not least, little Jack turns 2 months old today!! He has grown so fast. We measured him the other day and he is about 23 inches long and around 10 lbs. He still sleeps great at night if snuggled in his woombie and is pretty fussy during the day if not being held. He smiles more and more every day and is getting quite the little personality.

Annie-isms: Mark was trying to teach the girls table manners the other night at dinner and Annie leaned over to him and said, "Dad, are you talking with your mouth full?"\

"Daddy, we need to get a new van." Mark: "Why?" Annie: "Um, Dad, because mom wrecked it remember?"
Ella-ism: "Annie is Annie and Ella is Ella." Annie: "Good point, Ella.
They keep us laughing. Have a great week.

Sel-fish???

Today, I was trying to teach Ella that it wasn't nice to make Annie clean up the entire playroom by herself. I was explaining the meaning of the word selfish and thought I was helping her to understand how God wants her to treat her sister with love. Silly me forgot I was dealing with a 3 year old brain that takes everything very literally so why should this conversation be any different? She says in her loudest voice with a touch of anger, "Mommy, I can't BE selfish because I AM NOT A FISH!" What a girl, that Ella. She keeps us laughing.