Meat Makes Muscles

Ephraim used to have trouble eating his meat, so I used to say that it would give him muscles. He eats very well now and usually needs to show me after each bite how big his muscles are getting! 

Great Grandpa Gunn and his wife Betty came for a visit on Saturday afternoon. It was relaxing to catch up a little and have the kids meet them (and vice versa).

Gabriel got the camera for a bit and took a great picture of me watering our garden with Ephraim by my side. 

We had a friend over for dinner the other day. He is about 6 months older than Ephraim. Gabriel really enjoyed being the oldest one and proudly showed him around. Gabriel "read" books to them, including "Where the Wild Things Are" which he told in his own words.

Catching Up with Big News

I need to catch up with my blog--so much has happened in the last few weeks!

Easter came and went. The kids had a cold, so we didn't do much. I put candy in a few eggs and hid them around the house for the kids. The fun part was immediately afterwards when they took turns hiding eggs for each other. 

 

Then I got hit with the worst flu/cold combination I've ever had. Ugh! I was useless for two days straight (and I'm still trying to get rid of this sore throat). We all snuggled in the morning sunshine, it was wonderful.

Thank goodness we had a week off of school for Easter break. We needed that whole week to fully recover! They are so cute passed out on the couch.

On Wednesday, April 10 (happy birthday, Mike!), we had gorgeous weather! It was practically hot. So after I picked the kids up from daycare, we had a picnic dinner in our backyard, home-grown snap peas included! We currently have started tomatoes, more snap peas, carrots, swiss chard, and potatoes in our garden.

BIG NEWS #1 Ephraim is potty trained!!!
No more diapers for us! Last Tuesday, April 9, he wanted to wear big boy underwear. I explained (once again) what that meant. He tried to negotiate putting the exciting train underwear OVER his diapers, but I wouldn't yield. He agreed to go in the potty. He tried again the next day... and the next. Each day was a great success! After he went poop in the potty (supposed to be the hardest part of training), I gave him the promised toy--a Lego figure. He's ecstatic that it was a pirate! He is so proud of himself and deserves to be. "I free year old. I big boy!"

 

BIG NEWS #2  Gabriel lost his third tooth!
Gabriel's two front teeth have been slightly wiggly for a while now. Sunday morning, he bit into something and cried out in pain. It started gushing blood! After the blood stopped, he tried to eat again, but his tooth got caught and it was hanging by a thread. Mom had to yank it out (with more blood). After we all calmed down, I took a picture because it was quite exciting! This is the first tooth that he lost that we could put under his pillow (the first two got lost and swallowed). Ironically, after he went to bed last night, Gabriel ripped open the envelope to the Tooth Fairy and hid his tooth in his Lego treasure chest. I had a moral debate with the Tooth Fairy whether she should still leave a prize if there was no tooth for her. In the end, she left something. Gabriel explained to me that he really wanted to keep his tooth because it is HIS, he is fascinated and loves looking at it.

Favorite Photos

My mom just gave me some photos that were taken with their camera over the last few months. These are my favorites! The first three were taken at my brother's house last month.

By far, my favorite... so sweet!

We need one of these...

 Climbin' monkey!

The spider birthday cake that my dad made for E's birthday.

 Gabriel likes to play school with Ephraim and grandma while at grandma and grandpa's house.

 My precious snugglers!