Iowa

Ezra and I are spending the week in Iowa and are enjoying the great April weather. Spring planting has started, and so Ezra got to ride in the tractor. He's having a lot of fun playing with cousins and learning things that Iowa kids do. My three year old nephew John rode home with us from riding with his dad (my brother) in the tractor last night. He explained that he was going to get to come to my house in Michigan this summer, and had a lot of questions about my house and going swimming at the big lake. He asked where my brothers and sisters were and if they lived in Michigan. When I explained that his dad was my brother and he said, "no, really?" This was quite humorous to me, but also frustrating. Someday I will have to tell him about how mean his dad was.

Here are some pictures of our time so far...

Cousins Ethan, Amelia and John playing on the equipment during suppertime.

Uncle Mark and John checking the seed depth.

Ezra loves the kittens.



Getting muddy.Uncle Karl power washing off our boots before going inside for the night.

Happy Easter

Words

We took this video a few weeks ago when Ezra really started using his words. What is a bit awkward for him in this video is that we are asking him to say them out of context - so you can tell he is a bit confused by some of them. I'll post the words below that we know he is saying. I'm sure there are others, but we've yet to understand them. He turned seventeen months yesterday.

Some first words:
Dad-eeee
Dee-Dee (Blankie)
Cha-Cha (Tractor)
Pupeeeee (Puppy)
MaMa
Snaaah (Snack)
Kitteee-Kitteee (Kitty)
Baaaaah-Bah-Baaah-Bah (Bob the builder)
pst(Grapes)
fisss (Fish, the crackers)
Nin-na (Jenna, his friend from church)
Ahck (Socks)
Tahh Tahh (Thank you)
Keys
Deep (Jeep)
Bow-Bow (Brown Bear, the book)

And most recently
Naahhh - yeeh (Not-yet)
Cheeeeeese
Bath tup
Vooof (Juice)
And just tonight - Wuh bah (Wilbur, the pig from Charlotte's Web)

He has started repeating things when we ask him to, so we've been working on "E, can you say, Kurt?" so that he is ready in a few weeks :)

Helping Dad Build

Brian and E built a daybed for the mattress on our sun porch on Saturday. You can't tell it from this video, but it turned out nice. Brian has now built several projects that I've pointed out to him in a Pottery Barn magazine including shelves, a book rack for the nursery, and closet organizers. We can now slide baskets of toys, outdoor blankets and craft supplies underneath, and still have a nice mattress for guests and Sunday afternoon naps. He bought the supplies at Lowes for $30! He would like router saw bits and could use a new cordless drill, so I'll have to keep those in mind for his birthday.

I spent the morning painting a small table we got from the free furniture pile while we were in seminary, which goes great with four little chairs I found at a garage sale. We used to use it for a side table, but now it is a great size with the small chairs. I will post before and after pictures soon.

This video is of E helping Brian by bringing him screws.

Pregnancy: Week 29

This is my 29 weeks picture for family and friends who haven't seen me in awhile. My babycenter.com email this week said the baby is approximately two and a half pounds (like a butternut squash), and 15 inches long. I'm still comfortable, but ready to be able to be outside more. This weekend we did some spring clean up on the yard with weather in the 50s. The Seven Sisters climbing rose behind me will bloom in May - a hot pink. I've cut the old growth off to cover our tulips from the deer. The prickly stems keep them away. The tulips on the south side of the house are really starting to pop out of the ground.

Rainy Days and Rhythms

We've had a rainy weekend that we spent mostly inside because we all took a turn being sick. All of our family rhythms were off - meals, morning routines, projects around the house and Sunday's activities. Even though Ezra is only 16 months he knows these rhythms and reminds us in his own way when we are off...pointing at the snack cupboard, getting his boots out of the closet, finding his blankie, reaching for the door knob, pulling at his clothes to be changed, folding his hands when we sit down (even when there is no food in front of us). In fact, he points out things that we didn't even know we did until we do them wrong! This weekend he reached for the door knob to go outside, which most of Saturday and Sunday wasn't an option.


Finally on Sunday night, after the sixth bath that day (sick kids = lots of baths) and pajamas, Ezra had enough. He reached for the back door, and then ran to the front door and whined, and then the back door... until I had had enough. Even though it was raining and we weren't feeling 100 percent, we ventured out. (Brian was preaching and Ezra and I skipped church). He led me right to the spot he likes to go to - the little bench that he is almost big enough to sit on himself. The creek was pretty full so it was fun to see all the water spilling in. He could do without some things during the weekend, but going outside was not one of them!

A year ago on March 12 I wrote in his journal, "He is slowly getting a nice schedule finally, sleeping 10 hours... we just started solid foods this week." As new parents we didn't realize that it took so much work to teach a baby life's normal rhythms of sleeping and eating. We honestly thought they came with that built in. So much has changed in a year! I had fun looking at pictures from last year... One thing that hasn't changed - his hair still sticks straight up.

Lake Michigan Winter Hike

This morning we went to Rosy Mounds, a county park by between Holland and Grand Haven. The hike is only two miles, but the added ice and snow on the steps up and down the sand dunes made it extra adventurous. Lake Michigan sometimes freezes on the Michigan side, creating mountains of ice from the waves tumbling over the already formed ice. Along the shore was a section that melts during warm days, and Ezra was eager to see how close he could get with his boots before we yanked him back. We left with only one wet boot. It was 15 degrees along the lake this morning, but the wind was what made things uncomfortable. The sun was a beautiful change of scenery for us.

Baby Tags

One of my favorite gifts we received when Ezra was born was a handmade book with his name on it. It fit in perfect on a shelf above his crib and celebrated the new addition to our family. For some lucky parents, picking a name is easy. For others, it is a struggle. Many parents put a lot of thought into choosing names that their kids will grow up with and grow into.

Now I like to give a handmade gift with the new baby's name, because of how special this was for me. I also like to recycle old things and make them new. These baby tags are created from scrap minkee fabric from blankets I've made and from ribbons I collect from garage sales or gift wrapping. I do buy a few spools of ribbon to help pull it all together.

You can adjust the size and shape for what scrap fabric you have. They also look great with varied textures and colors of ribbon. I reinforce each with a piece of upholstry fabric on the inside, so that they aren't so flimsy and will withstand a lot of wear and tear, but you don't have to. The picture on the right shows how you begin "inside-out" with the rightsides of the fabric facing each other, the ribbons folded inbetween and their raw ends sticking out. After sewing around all but an inch and a half of the edge, flip the right-sides out through the space you didn't sew and use a pencil to push out your corners. Sew the last inch and a half by hand.

Now, Brian and I need to get working on a moniker for Ezra's little brother or sister!

I Heart Cookies

Ezra and I usually accomplish baking something once a week. It is usually a simple recipe: chocolate chip cookies or grandma Barb's cake bars, but for Valentines day we made Aunt Stacy's famous sugar cookies.
Ezra made a mess while I made the cookies. He was also very impatient with the decorating part, understandably, so I finished that part during his nap.
Several have asked for the recipe, so it is posted below. This recipe makes an outstandingly soft cookie, unlike the hard sugar cookies you may be used to. Be warned: there is a lot of crisco...

Soft Cut-Out Cookies
2 c sugar
2 c butter flavored crisco
1/2 c sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 tsp almond flavoring
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
5 c flour

Cream sugar and crisco, add sour cream, vanilla, almond flavoring, egg. Mix well. Combine salt, baking soda and flour separately, then add to the mix. Chill dough overnight or a few hours until easy to roll. Roll out 1/4 of dough at a time to 1/4 inch in thickness. (Too thin cookies will be crisp). Cut with cookie cutters and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake!

Butter Cream Frosting
1 c margarine
1 c butter flavored crisco
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
6 T milk
1 bag powdered sugar (8 cups)

Mix well and add food coloring if desired. Makes 6 cups.

Backyard Sledding Fun

This weekend has been beautiful for Michigan winter, and our backyard is known around the neighborhood for having a great sledding hill. We often have tracks through our yard as evidence that a group has been sledding. On Saturday Brian and Ezra took a sled ride to watch the neighborhood kids. The video below is of our neighbors' sled train, which included parents, their kids and friends. One of the moms is at the bottom with the job of catching them in case they slide into the creek, which wasn't frozen.




Ezra loves being outside. Here is a video of part of his sled ride behind our house.