Sugar Bugs

July 12, 2011- It is recommended that children should first visit the dentist at the age of three. I didn't feel that Nathan was ready last year for the visit. He is very apprehensive when it come to any new experiences. So since we are so good at brushing teeth and keeping away from sugar we decided to wait. Well, we have been talking about the dentist all year in preparation for this summer's visit and it paid off! We scheduled Olivia's visit first so Nathan could watch and know what to expect.

He was all about the visit at first, but then all of a sudden got very nervous and thought he couldn't do it. So he went back to the waiting room to read books while Olivia finished her visit.

He was ready to go when the hygienist came to get him for his visit. He was practically running!

We were so proud of Nathan. Unlike Olivia and Luke, Nathan is not always so ready or excited when it comes to new experiences. He is getting better at expressing how he feels when he is nervous and stepping out of his comfort zone. He was awesome for both the hygienist and the dentist! Very compliant and sweet.

          
           Nathan got a new Lightening McQueen toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss! Rock on!

Best part of the visit? No cavities! We did a great job of keeping the sugar bugs away. Dr. Solly did say that Nathan's teeth were all perfectly in place so closely together. So we'd better start saving. Braces might be in his future.

Camping at Cove Lake

July 7th-8th
Olivia had been wanting to go tent camping since last year. We promised her that we would go this year since Luke would be older and potty trained. So off we went to Cove Lake State Park. Greg and his family used to come camping here during the summer when he was little. It is north of Knoxville. The park has a small campground and a great bike trail. I also like how it is just a few minutes from a little town so we can do Walmart runs for things forgotten.

The kids brought their Pillow Pets and a special toy. Olivia brought the baby doll she has had since she was 2. Nathan and Luke both brought their "Big Eyes" animals. We also bought the kids new crayons and markers to color in their coloring books.

 

Baby Doll

Camping tradition? Drinking Capri Suns and eating junk food like Poptarts for breakfast.

 We had a little field right behind our campsite. Perfect for the kids. They had a blast playing tag. It was so much fun to watch them catch fireflies when it got dark. I'll have to remember to bring some mason jars when we go camping again.

Big sister showing the boys a firefly.

Mr. Adventure was not one bit afraid to catch the fireflies. He even watched as the fireflies crawled on his arm after he caught them!

 Greg bought the kids new flashlights. Talk about cheap fun! The flashlights were a dollar and came with the batteries. I think Nathan was the most excited about the flashlights. He could not wait for it to be dark so he could use his flashlight.

As with every kind of "tool", Luke put it in his pants and pretended to be a "worker" and went to work.

 
 

Playing "Hide and Seek".

Greg brought 2 tents, but we all slept in the bigger tent.

 I love having three kids. Although sometimes it can get loud, it is such a blessing to see how well they play with each other. They are really such great friends. I hope and pray they will continue to be there for one another as they grow.

Making a train to wait for me to get the night-time things ready.

They were so funny in the camp shower. We used the handicap shower stall so I could bathe all three kids comfortably. Olivia could have taken a shower by herself, but I'm glad she didn't. Nathan and Luke squealed with excitement the whole time we were in the shower. It was hilarious!
The next day we woke up early and went bike riding. Olivia has forgotten how to ride her bike so we tried to help her remember. She is a trooper. It isn't coming back as easily as we thought. Olivia has been blessed with having most things come to her so easy. She was reading at four and a half. She understands math concepts the first time. She has a great memory. So she was ready to give up when the bike riding didn't come back to her. We had her practice when Mami Elia was here. There were tears. As there were tears today. There was even some blood as well. She kept on jumping off the bike when she got scared and really wanted to give up.  Olivia needs major encouragement it comes to things that don't come as easy to her.  So we kept on encouraging her and she's almost got it!
I am so proud of her.  She went from being discouraged, scared, and wanting to give up to being determined to ride that bike! Regrettably I don't have any pictures from our bike ride because the camera battery was out of juice.

The Funniest Things

Kids say and do the funniest things. I wish I had started writing them down as soon as Olivia started talking in paragraphs which she did at the age of 2. For example, today as I was trying to get the laundry folded and put away before the boys woke up from her nap she called me about three times to come see something she had done. I finally told her I was trying to get my chores finished before the boys woke up from their nap. She said " You have chores?!" She couldn't believe it. I thought that was so funny and I told her that my life was full of chores.
The boys love to pick dandelions from the yard to give to me whenever we leave the house. Nathan always picks the yellow ones and Luke mostly picks the white ones. Our driver's side van door lock is messed up. Well the other day as I'm pumping gas the door shut and locked on it's own. I called Greg to come and unlock the van for me. The boys were napping so he whisked them out of bed, told them it was an emergency, and they came to rescue me. As he unlocked the van door I went to give the kids kisses. Nathan, oh so very sweetly, says "Mom, I'm sorry we don't have flowers for you. We didn't have time to pick any for you." My heart melted. How sweet is my little boy?!

Nathan, Olivia, Luke

The kids like to take turns pushing the handicap buttons to open the doors @ St. Mary's. It all started when Luke was a baby in his car seat carrier and boy, was he heavy. So Olivia and Nathan would push the buttons to open the doors to help me. As they've gotten older it is now Nathan and Luke who take turns although I am no longer carrying a baby in a car seat carrier. Well, today as we were leaving the gym Luke ran as fast as his little legs would carry him to push the button. Then he ran again to push the second button which should have been Nathan's turn.  He giggled so! He knew what he had done and thought it was so funny. :) He does things like that all the time.  That boy!

Dollywood!!!

So I decided to write in a Word document and upload to the blog when I don't have access to wireless. Then I can still be up to date.

 July 5th
Greg won tickets to Dollywood back in December and we upgraded to season passes for this year when we went on New Year's Eve. We love going to Dollywood. It's definitely not Disney, but it has it's own charm and plenty for the kids to do and see.
When I first moved to Knoxville we would go do Dollywood if we had free passes. Over the year the park added more rides and started doing festivals such as KidFest. KidFest is in the summer and always so worth taking the kids to play. My favorite thing at KidFest is the kid theater they have. The theater has live actors that bring to life 3 of the Imagination Library books that Dolly has sent out. The play we saw this year sucked big time! Ha, ha. We couldn't wait to get out.

There was a bubble show we saw as well. It was great. The kids loved all the bubbles and tricks the performer did. Luke kept on saying "I pop them, Mom!" when the bubbles came flying by. Awesome.

Yay! Bracelets make knowing which rides they can ride easy.

This year Olivia is tall enough to ride ALL the rides! Too bad Greg and I get sick on the upside down twist around and round rides. She and I love to ride the "Blazing Fury". I hope that as they update the park they don't get rid of that ride so that in a few years the five of us can ride it.

Nathan can ride so many more rides this year. He was all about it. We had to be sure to ride the train this visit to DW because we didn't get to ride it the last time. Nathan loves the train.

 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs simulated ride:

Nathan, Luke, and I watched the 3D movie since the boys couldn't "ride".

Olivia and Daddy

3D glasses upside down!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Luke can finally ride the Veggie Tales roller coaster which is my favorite kid ride! He was so funny. The ride scared him a little so he crossed his hands, pouted angrily and said "I don't like that ride!" He is so expressive with his words and his little body. I love him!
Best part about our visit? Normally on a Tuesday, it would be me and the kids at KidFest. Greg would have been at work. It's been wonderful to have Greg be a part of so many summer activities he wouldn't normally be a part of. 

So great to always be the five of us.

 I need to make a list of the rides the kids rode.

River Rampage-He didn't enjoy this ride back in May. He loved it today. May be that he knew what to expect this time around. He yelled "Mom! I got wet!" Oh, so cute.

235 years..... an inconceivable amount of moments

What a sweet day we had celebrating our country's birthday! 235 years old! So young compared to so many other countries. So many accomplishments in such a short time. Some as Christians we can't be proud of. However, there are many to uphold and see to it that we continue for the sake of our future generations.

It is so late and I am so tired. Often I don't update the blog anymore because I am so tired or can't find the camera cord so I put it off for the next day. The next day arrives, but it brings with it more fun, pictures, and memories. Looking back at some of my older posts I am so thankful I was committed to journaling the year I stayed home with the kids. Then I see where I slacked off when I went back to work almost 2 years ago and I wonder how many precious moments I've already forgotten.

So I've decided to journal our day's events whether I am ready with pictures or not. There are so many little things that the kids say or do that I don't want to forget. It's the little things that make our life so rich. Making flour stars all over our driveway with all three kids.

Luke shouting "Whoa! Did you see that, Mom and Dad?!" EVERY time a firework was super loud or colorful. The kids flying their 4th of July paper airplanes. Watching Greg try and make a red, white, and blue drink. Paper lanterns Olivia and I made looking so beautiful with the tea-lights burning wondering at what point they might catch fire...only one did. ;) Sweet Luke running when Greg set off a bottle rocket and torn between going back for his lost flip flop or staying away from the flying bottle rocket. Nathan climbing into my lap towards the end of the neighborhood fireworks display @ 10:15 p.m. ready to go back in the house to sleep.

These and so many more little "things" are the reason I am going to try my best to blog every day. Life goes by so quickly and so much happens in such a short time. I don't want to forget any of it!

Family visits are the best!

Mami Elia left on Saturday. We were sad to see her go, but so thankful we had 3 full weeks to enjoy her company. We went to the pool, had picnics, went blackberry picking several times, went swimming up in the mountains, and ate many pupusas! Mami Elia knows the name of every plant, flower, and fruit growing. It's also pretty much amazing how she can spot things growing in places most people walk by and miss. So because of her love of nature we make sure to go to the UT gardens or the Knoxville Botanical Gardens. We have been taking pictures in those places since Olivia was 3 months old and Mami Elia came to stay with us for a month.

Olivia wore one of the beautiful dresses Mami Elia brought for her.

I was hoping that the kids would pick up some Spanish by having her here speaking Spanish constantly. They only picked up a few words, but I told them we would continue speaking Spanish so they would be ready for the next time Mami Elia comes to visit. Nathan isn't too thrilled about it, but he is always hesitant to try new things and is mostly embarrassed. Olivia is slowly warming up to the idea. She doesn't think Spanish is easy to learn or pronounce. Luke is the easiest since he's the youngest. His accent is beautiful and he repeats everything.

Nathan and Luke with gummies in their mouths.

This girl loves her Mami Elia!

I'm hoping that by this time next year, all three kids will be ready to ask Mami Eila in Spanish if she enjoyed her trip down to see us.

Hard to get everybody smiling and looking at the same time. Almost had a perfect picture.

Sweet Days...

Mami Elia is here and we are enjoying her company. The kids are trying to communicate with her despite the language barrier. All three kids lavish her with hugs and kisses.

Roasting marshmallows. Eating S'mores.

Olivia is enjoying having a roommate as Mami Elia is sleeping in her room with her. Olivia loves getting the toiletries out of the cabinet. She likes to put Mami Elia's toothpaste on her toothbrush and then they brush their teeth together. My heart just aches as I write this thinking how sad my sweet girl will be the first morning Mami Elia is gone.

Olivia just loves hugging her.

Mami Elia got to attend Olivia's art exhibition on Friday!

Olivia had art camp this week so we have dropped her off @ the museum and then we have headed to the gym. Mami Elia has worked out with us this week even participating in a Zumba class!
We have gone to the pool, shopped a little, and eaten all the yummy food she brought from El Salvador! I've gained 2 lbs. Yikes!
This morning it rained hard. When the sun came out we decided we'd take an adventure and go hunting for blackberries up by the dam. Well it started to POUR just as we got in the car. So we went to Target looking for some "adventure" toys from the dollar spot since the boys were so disappointed that it had started raining again. While we were shopping Greg found some wild blackberries growing nearby and our adventure started. All three kids loved picking the berries. Luke REALLY enjoyed it. He ate more than he picked....no surprise there!

So hard to smile for the camera when you are eating blackberries!

Mami Elia picking blackberries and eating a few.

Nathan saved most of the blackberries he picked.

On the way back Greg spotted some blackberries in a lot near the house so he and I got out and picked. We have scratches all up and down our legs and arms to prove how "wild" these blueberries were. Mami Elia found some raspberries that were absolutely delicious!

Father's Day and is he relaxing? Nope! Climbing steep hills to get us blackberries.

We ate our Wok Hay when we got home (carry out) and made some blackberry jam, 3 jars!

He managed the chopsticks pretty well.

Eating Lo Mein and Chicken Fried Rice.

After cleaning up we went back out and picked enough raspberries to make 3 jars of raspberry jam.

Pretty deep basket almost full of raspberries.

I have never liked store bought raspberries. These raspberries are delicious! They are so sweet. We planted some seeds on our property in hopes we might have some bushes one year. Mami Elia can grow anything so we are hoping her green thumb brings us good luck. Plus, how awesome would it be to have raspberries growing next time she comes to visit that she helped us grow! 

Nathan's silly face.

The boys climbed a steep hill to help Daddy pick some raspberries. They slid on the way down.

 We also have about a pint of blackberries to eat with our breakfast tomorrow.

Pretty good sized blackberries

It still makes me laugh at the thought of us out with our boots picking berries trying not to get all cut up by the bushes. All in all a very good day. An excellent week!