Elijah's write-up about our Kirtland's Warbler trip

On the 22^nd of June, I had the opportunity to go on a birding trip with my family to try to see a Kirtland’s Warbler.  We woke up at 4:00 am and drove up to Grayling, MI.  We had to be there for the Kirtland’s Warbler tour by 7:00 am.  We got to Grayling, we went to the Ramada Inn Conference Room and watched a movie about Kirtland’s Warblers.  It talked about the history and success of the conservation efforts.  After that, we caravanned along a road with many Jack Pine fields, with both short and tall trees.  We stopped at a small, unmarked parking lot and as soon as we exited our van, we could hear the call of the Kirtland’s Warbler across the road.

The Kirtland’s Warbler is a very picky nester.  They will only nest in areas of 80 acres or more and the Jack Pines within have to be between 5 and 20 feet tall.  In Michigan, they clear the forests that are too tall and plant new ones to replace the old trees.  The old trees go to companies and get sold which makes more jobs so that the Jack Pines are a benefit to the warblers and to people.

Cowbirds are a problem, but are being controlled and are less of a problem with the controls.  It used to be that 70% of the nests of Kirtland’s Warblers were parasitized and is down to only 6% of the nests being parasitized.  Cowbirds are considered parasitic because they lay their eggs in other birds’ nests.  When the young hatch, they are larger than the warbler nestlings and Cowbird chicks are often fed more to the detriment of warbler species.

Before we started walking through the Jack Pines on a two-track, Allison (who is employed by Michigan Audubon to give the tours) told us not to step off of the two-track because we didn’t want to cause early fledging of warbler nestlings.

While we were walking, we saw and heard many cool birds including: Vesper Sparrow, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Eastern Kingbird, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Brown Thrasher, Palm Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Common Nighthawk, Upland Sandpiper (they have the most amazing call!), and Clay-colored Sparrow.  While we were there, I noticed that the Clay-colored Sparrow sounded more like a grasshopper than the Grasshopper Sparrow that I heard on an outing a couple of weeks ago.

We heard Kirtland’s Warblers all along the way, but had trouble locating them in binoculars or scope.  It was the last of all of the birds we saw.  Walking back along the two-track, we were able to see some of the warblers we had missed on the way out (photo by Elijah).

Kirtland's warbler.  Yellow streaked belly with a grey back.  There are only about 4000 of these left in the world.

When we got back to the parking lot, Allison offered to show us a cowbird trap.  We said we would, so we followed her to another place and there was a cage made of chicken wire and wood.  On the top, there was a slot that the Cowbirds could get through, but couldn’t get out.  Inside there was millet to attract them and other captured Cowbirds (with yellow tape on their legs to identify them).  The other Cowbirds are in the cage because Cowbirds are social and are attracted by a group.

This time, the trap had attracted one wild Cowbird and Allison entered through a latched door and captured the wild one with her bare hands.  These Cowbirds are being used this year by a college that is doing research on the genetics of resident Texas Cowbirds versus migrating Cowbirds.

The cowbird trap.

Allison with a Brown-headed Cowbird.

Stretching out the wing helps researchers find the age of a bird.

We finished our day at Hartwick Pines State Park.  From the Visitor Center, we were able to see Evening Grosbeaks feeding at the window feeders.  On a hike, we heard a few species of breeding warblers and later on Scenic Road which is a drive, we saw another Evening Grosbeak (photo by Nathan),  an Ovenbird, and a Black-billed Cuckoo.



Evening Grosbeak on the road.


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After the Kirtland Warbler tour, we took a hike at Hartwick Pines State Park.





I found these on our hike.  Any guesses what they are?



Click on the picture to enlarge it.  This is a wooly aphid.  Amazing huh?



The kids in front of Hartwick Pines State Park sign.

2010 Trip Out West

Canyon with beautiful river and Lower Falls peaking out at the top of the view

Joseph has challenged me to blog about each place we visited on our trip. The only problem is that my time feels so full, so it might take me a while to get to all of it. I do just need to say that I'm so grateful we could go. My family is so wonderful and supportive and I'm so glad we were able to be there with you all!!

On the way home, we asked each person to say what their favorite part of the trip was (divided into three categories: people, place, wildlife). I'm taking the time now to post picture of my favorite place: Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

The river water is turquoise from all the silt. Breathtaking!

Close-up of some of the beautiful colors that can be seen. Some walls of the canyon are smooth, others are fantastically rugged. I would have loved to spend a whole day there.

We were driving along and came across this bison leading a line of cars. We laughed as we wondered if the people in the end of the line even knew what the hold up was about.

The babies have arrived!

Earlier this week, Nathan was expressing some frustration that there was no indication of the wren eggs hatching. But, then as the days went by, I noticed both parental wrens out and about. They are running to and fro with food in their beaks. Twice, I even noticed one of them carrying away something that might have been part of an egg shell (it would be interesting to research this since I don't know if birds dispose of their chick's eggs).



At any rate, I did two things today. I checked the House Sparrow nest for eggs. Sure enough, there were four speckled eggs. Since House Sparrows are invasive species, I didn't have a problem with removing the eggs. Nathan would like to keep them in a collection (drained, of course). I didn't keep or photo the nest, but it was an interesting conglomeration of grass, feathers, hair and even plastic, all in the square shape of the nesting box. That was the morbid part of my day.



The wonderful part was checking the wren's nest. The Carolina Wrens took up a home in our Purple Martin hotel--which has yet to attract Purple Martins. At my first look, I could see two beaks poking up. The chicks are very silent, at least when I was there. I'm pretty sure there are at least three chicks in there, but it's hard to tell. There were four eggs to start with. Then, because none of the kids are tall enough to check inside to see, I took the camera out and took a few photos:




The wren's nest is a lot prettier than the sparrow nest. Wrens like moss. An interesting thing that Nathan taught us about wrens this year is that the male will begin building several nests (up to six). He will then take the female on a tour of his nesting sites and she will pick the one she likes best. Then, she helps the male finish building. Our funny male wren started nests in five of the six holes of the hotel and the female picked the bottom middle. We feel really lucky!

Remember How I Told You About Spring in the Forest?

You don't? Well, I guess I don't talk about it enough. I never understood the old hymn that says that the woodlands are fairer than the meadows. This was until I experienced Spring in the forest.

Last year, in the Upper Peninsula, we would see forests where as far as the eye could see, there were forget-me-nots or trillium. Other times it was yellow and orange hawkweed mixed with daisies. Or, it might be garden lupine in three colors.

But, even here in central Michigan, we get some really nice wildflowers. My flower beds are neglected because I'd rather be in the woods!

Today, the kids and I did a little walk just to see the trillium in bloom on a hillside near our home. It's an amazing sight and something I don't know how to capture on camera to convey it in photo form.

These first two photos are just shots of the hillside to give you an idea of how many are there. It is a steep hill, over fifty feet high and goes on about the length of a football field (just a guess, I'm not great with measurements):



Here is a close-up that gives a better idea of what a trillium looks like if you aren't familiar:

Here's a close-up I took last year at trillium time:


And these are a different type of flower we saw today, just to give you an idea of what the forest floor is like right now. There are also places just covered with a flower that looks like a yellow star:



Here is the row of turtles we saw today, plus the leopard frog Brigham spotted on his own the other day (he sometimes identifies birds by name before I can!):



There's so much to be grateful for!!

I have arrived!

I stopped blogging. I waited and waited. Finally, I got what I was waiting for. A comment from my famous and slightly quirky brother!

Now that I'm totally fulfilled, I'll show you where I have been.


Well, that's not the only place I've been, but one of the most memorable!

There, now the blogging pressure is off me. I don't know if I'll keep blogging (I don't keep a journal, so I should do it) or not. It's been nice having a break from the computer.

A World Apart

Hands down, my favorite part of our upper peninsula vacation were the two spots we visited on Lake Superior with rock outcroppings. Presque Isle Park, Marquette AND Hunter's Point, Copper Harbor.

We picked up some take-out Tex-Mex one night (best taco salads we've ever eaten) and headed to Presque Isle Park. I had read that there were very old rocks exposed at this park, but didn't know what to expect. After we had eaten, we began to explore. We immediately came upon an inlet of water with a pebble beach, crystal clear water, and wildly red and green colored rocks. I had a feeling of instant happiness and any feelings that I might want to move away from Michigan to be near the ocean and marine biology evaporated completely. I'm pretty sure I never want to leave here. The feeling of happiness/joy was that strong for me.

Copper Harbor's outcroppings of rock were also dated back to possibly Pre-Cambrian times (the bedrock of basalt is exposed). We didn't know what we were seeing at the time and have since identified some fossils and types of rocks that we saw there.

These were both places I could never have dreamt up. Just incredible. I can't wait to go back!

Click here to see more pictures.

Bugs and Butterflies

It is very exciting around here right now. We have had lady bugs for a few days now and just a few minutes ago, I noticed a butterfly drying its wings. Even more exciting, a few of us witnessed a butterfly sliding out of its chrysalis and begin to dry its wings.

When the lady bugs first come out of their pupae, they are a very light pink with no spots. It's hard to believe that they fit into that tiny pupa (in the photo below the shell of the pupa is larger than it looks before the bugs hatch out).



After a little while, they get their spots. They're eating raisins as we don't have any aphids to give them.



Butterflies come out of their chrysalis with very wrinkled wings and then eventually they stretch out and start to open and close them to dry them completely. I put some sweet william flowers sprinkled with sugar water into the butterfly pavilion. We also bought some oranges for them to snack on.




After a few days we'll let these creatures out into our garden. The last time we did this with butterflies, we opened up the butterfly pavilion and off they flew. Despite having plenty of flowers and orange slices available, we never saw them again. It would be so cool if they stayed around a little bit this time!

The video below is of our second butterfly just after it emerged. I'm not getting much done today as I keep running over to check the progress.

Changing (Michigan) Attitudes One Person at a Time

The year I entered high school, my family moved to Massachusetts. My mom did not like this move at all and mentioned mostly the negatives to us kids about living in our new state. I couldn't really see much great about it either and I remember sitting in my 7th period study at the end of each day expounding on the many faults of MA to a new friend. One day she became fed up with me and told me in no uncertain terms that I was not to talk to her about this anymore. How would I like it if she moved to Utah and told me how horrible it was there? Point taken.

On to Michigan. I don't hear people saying that they LOVE to live in Michigan. As you may know from my previous posts, I LOVE Michigan! A lot of people I have known come to Michigan to complete some schooling or for their first job and can't wait to "get outta he-ya."

I admit the winters are cold (though not much colder than Utah or Massachusetts) and probably an even bigger factor is the lack of sunshine in the winter. I can see their point to some degree. I have done my share of complaining, but now I am out to convert even the hardest cases!

I was in Meijer (grocery chain) the yesterday and had such a fun experience. I could tell the cashier was a friendly guy and when I got up to the front of the line, I could see his badge. He had been given an award for his friendliness and now it was my turn to have a chat with him. He made some comments here and there about my purchases. We got to the sand toys and I explained that we are planning on hitting the beach this summer. At one point a comment he made (said he had been to the upper peninsula and was amazed to find that Michigan could be pretty), made me wonder if he was originally from MI, so I asked. He told me yes and asked me the same. I told him we were transplants, that we had come for school and loved it. We decided to stay. He told me that I was the first person he had ever heard say that before. So began my sales pitch.

"Where else can you live where you have an east coast and a west coast, where you can visit 'up north,' where you can see lots of pine trees if you want to and if you like snow activities you can do that too? The fall is absolutely beautiful and once spring arrives you are so glad to see it that it looks and feels magnificent."

He was amazed by this new perspective on Michigan. I think I left him considering it a little. He really doesn't need an attitude adjustment with his free smile and friendly ways, but even if he can enjoy our great state a little more, it was certainly worth it!

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Here's something to consider no matter which state you live in and whether you like your surroundings or not. This is from my friend Jeff, who has just arrived back to the Grand 'Ole US of A, from a year in Iraq:

America The Beautiful

When the flight touched down the crowded plane full of uniformed troops under my command erupted into cheers and applauds. “Thank God,” the Staff Sergeant and Miami Beach cop sitting next to me expressed with the deepest sincerity. His voice crackled. It sounded like he would cry.

“Yes, America!” shouted others while the clapping continued.

I was so choked up I could cry and shout all at once. The feelings were contagious.

My gratitude to be back in the land of the free and the home of the brave cannot be adequately described.

Also, it might sound funny but I want to run through all the thick, green bushes and roll around in the tall grass. I’d like to climb a tree and hug a branch, soaking up the scent of the leaves and feel them brush against my skin. Man, America is BEAUTIFUL.

…I can hardly wait to see my family again.

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For more of Jeff's writing, see his blog.

Red Dog, I Think I'm Gonna Puke!

Red Dog is safely stowed away in the basement, I think. Do doubt he'll be uncovered in the next few weeks as I make my way through the house. More on him later.

Today I was grilling Joseph on our way back from eating at Panchero's for lunch. Mmmmmm! I was asking him what he would do if he were in my shoes. I wanted to know what he'd do with the dolls my mom made for me when I was a kid. These are lovely dolls, folks. She specialized in Raggedy Ann and Andy. She has seen much less quality dolls than the ones she makes sold for $100. I still have the pair she made me when I was one year old. They are tattered looking, but in pretty good shape. I have a three foot tall pair as well. Plus, my mom also branched out and made a few other kinds of dolls. They are beautifully made. I never really got them down for my girls, I guess with the idea that we'd keep them nice and pass them down. I just didn't realize that for items to carry meaning, they needed to be held and loved. With my space issue, these are a real dilemma! Joseph didn't make this any easier. He simply told me that he'd not make any decision about them because they are mine.

At that point, somehow, Joseph remembered Red Dog. Red Dog has been with me for a long time. I'm not sure what age I was when he was given to me, but I know that he was washed many times. One day, at about age 3 or 4, I remember sitting on the bottom stair of the staircase and crying. Red Dogs stomach had ripped open and the little beads and stuffing were coming out. Mom saved the day and sewed him up for me.

When Nathan was born, we put a shelf up in his room to display some of the dolls and, of course, Red Dog. I used to pretend that Red Dog would talk to Nathan and sometimes Nathan talked to Red Dog.

When we moved to this current house, the shelf was again installed in Nathan's room over his crib. He always liked to say good night to Red Dog, who was up on the shelf, before he went to sleep. At that time I was pregnant with May and apparently often said, "I think I'm gonna puke!" One day I took Nathan in for his nap and suddenly, he looked up at Red Dog and said, "Red Dog, I think I'm gonna puke!"

Red Dog stays. Good dog.

Sweet!

I must say that I have the sweetest and kindest friends and family. I appreciate you lending me a hand and offering to help me in my time of need. Seriously, thank you.

Now, I need to address the wording of my gratitude statement. Some of you may balk at being called sweet. That's o.k. I completely understand. Hopefully this won't embarrass Joseph as I explain.

This weekend I was going through old picture albums and journals. In one of the albums I came across an old list. It was Joseph's hopes for his future wife. Now come on. Most of us either wrote a list or had a mental list of some kind. Mine went something like this (and just so you know of my shallow-ness, I think it was in this order):

1) Good looks (check. oh yeah!)
2) Brains (check!!! He's an absolute genius.)
3) Money or the potential for making it (check, we'll never be rich, but I don't care anymore)
4) Returned missionary (check, loves the people of Guatemala and wants to go back)
5) & etc

Anyway, Joseph's list was something I had come upon before he even asked me to marry him. I gasped as I read it. There were things I would never qualify for. One item in particular. Sweet. Now some of you know me and some of you really know me. I have a super saucy side. I've never once thought of myself as sweet and it certainly wasn't my goal then. (Though I love sweet people.) Still, my good husband, then boyfriend, decided to marry me. I can only guess that he saw my potential and had a store of superhuman patience for the wait for my transformation (still waiting, I assume).

New topic:

Some of you know that I like to blog and that if I'm not blogging, something is wrong. More than one caring person has called or e-mailed to say that they noticed I wasn't blogging, is everything ok? I'm so touched by that! This is just a heads up to say that I won't be blogging much at all for the next two weeks or so. Don't worry. I'm gonna be o.k.!

I Lub

Brigham just came up to me with this little-yellow-cat-guy and told me "I Lub." He wanted me to kiss the cat. I love it! I've been trying to teach him "I love you" for a few days now.

1999

Looking out at our decapitated snowman, freezing weather, wind blowing, snowing, winter scene, I wanted to remember warmer days!

A corner of the vegetable garden. The wood chuck ate most of that garden!

May was born at the end of a very hot summer. That was the first year we lived in our house and my first time gardening. Joseph spent hours and hours digging garden beds for me. (Many of those beds have since been filled in with grass.) I planted most of the flower beds with seeds and was given the gift of perennials from a couple of people who heard that I wanted some. As I planted the yard in flowers that year I told myself that I was planting it for the baby that was coming, as a gift. The yard was beautiful that year as a result.

I remember looking out our bedroom window one night at the sunflowers that were growing there. On the stem of one of the sunflowers was a tiny frog. Michigan is full of frogs. It's fun to hear them chirping, but we usually just see the toads in the grass, bumpy and brown. Or we see the bull frogs at the nature center. I keep meaning to plant sunflowers in that same spot in the hopes of seeing another little frog. If you look at the pictures, you can also see a little tree. It's a flowering plum. It's pretty big by now. I wouldn't be able to take that same picture today. Mostly you'd just see tree.

The sunflowers

We didn't get an ultrasound with the pregnancy and so we didn't know if the baby was a boy or girl. I had a kind of sixth sense about it though and bought many, many baby girl clothes at garage sales that summer. May brought a lot of joy to our lives. The best word I can think of to describe the time after she was born is 'sunshiney.' She was a peaceful baby and a beautiful one. Since she was too little to enjoy the gift I gave her that summer, I give it to her now.

When each of our babies have been born, we have picked a classical piece for them. May's piece is "Sheep May Safely Graze" by J. S. Bach. It is a happy, lilting, sweet melody that totally captures those early days of her life.

The day my water broke, I had driven down to Charlotte (40-45 minutes) because they had the closest Walmart. I heard that music while I was driving and just knew that it was "the one."

I love you, May!

P.S. Just for my own benefit, Nathan's piece was "Air in D" by Bach, Elijah's was "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" by Bach, Sariah's was a violin piece from Chris Baker's doctoral CD (Joseph, do you remember?), and Brigham's was Pachelbel's "Canon."

Sentimental

Right before Christmas this year, we decided it was time for our family to move to a larger house. The time line on that move has extended recently, so rather than getting the house ready to sell right now, I'm just trying to organize to give us more space.

It has had me thinking though, about the things I will miss. Mostly in my yard. It's funny, because a couple of years ago, I was questioning if I really did like to garden. I'm guessing by my response to leaving this yard, that I do.

I love it that my yard is fenced, but that behind that fence is forest. I love it that we are on a corner lot which provides us with a big backyard. I love it that I have spent years working on my flower beds. There are perennials that come up each year, but still lots of space to plant my annual seeds. I love it that Joseph built me a structure in the back yard for viney plants. One of my goals for this coming summer is to nurture that area so it is full of lush growth. I can see it from my kitchen window. I imagine it could bring me a lot of joy each day! I love it that our neighborhood is established with large trees and that they haven't replaced the vintage looking street lights. I love it that Sariah and Elijah planted their very own pine trees in the back yard and can't wait until summer to water them. I love it that even though our success has been limited, we planted our own fruit trees. I love it that Nathan is old enough to play behind the fence and that he runs to tell me that I have to come back there because it's so beautiful. I love it that my kids speed up and down the sidewalk on their bikes and scooters (I gotta make a goal to get them wearing helmets this year). I'm glad I have one more summer in this house. I will make the most of it!

Naptime Routine and Surprise! Kisses

Brigham loves my blog. He ate his lunch and then I brought him out here to see the pictures of his buffalo on the blog before naptime. What do you know? When he saw the first picture, he said "Diddy!"

His naptime routine goes something like this. We round up Diddy and head into his room (shared with May). If we can't find Diddy, the tradition is that I leave him in his room and go find the buffalo myself. Then he gives me the "more" sign which means more songs. Today I held him and he put his head on my shoulder. How many more naptimes will I get with such treatment? I refuse to count down!

I sang "I am a Child of God." He lifted his head and adjusted Diddy to give me the more sign. I began singing "A Child's Prayer."

Heavenly Father (suddenly his head goes up and Kiss! head goes back down)
Are you really there (head up, kiss, kiss, kiss! head down)
And do you (kiss) hear and (kiss, kiss) answer every (kiss) child's prayer (kiss, kiss)

It went on like this.

I sang our rainbow song, full of kisses as well. I sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." He was then ready for me to lay him down. I put his blankets on, he adjusted his Diddy. I did "I" "love" "you" in sign language. He joined in for the "love" and "you." I made the "I love you" sign with my right hand. He held his hand up for me to manipulate his fingers into the "I love you" sign. Then we clapped together because he did it! Finally, I tell him "Bye!" Sometimes he says bye back and other times he doesn't.

Sweet times!

What's Brigham Up To?

He loves cars and trucks, which I've previously mentioned. He calls them "Drrrn drrrn" (read that with a trilled "r.") He likes to line up his cars in rows. He also likes to put little cars into bigger cars and "shut the dowa" (shut the door). He's recently added a new sound for a Thomas the Tank Engine train whistle that we have. Something like "Dooo dooo" but close to "Choo choo." Aren't baby sounds hard to replicate with letters?

He recently started insisting on folding his arms during prayers. I have to admit that I peek at him and it's funny to watch him thinking the prayer has gone on too long. He throws his arms to his sides, but when he sees the praying continue, he kinda huffily folds his arms again.

He can be seen with a bottle nipple bitten between his teeth as he carries it with him using his hands for other things. I'm hoping this won't inflict the kind of tooth damage seen in Sariah below!

He still loves his buffalo that we bought him in Yellowstone. Click here to see him biting the nose of that guy! The buffalo's faux leather nose is completely gone and I have to admit that he needs a bath, badly. He takes it with him on car rides. But, he's a little confused and calls it a "rar rar" or the word he uses for dog. By the way, he's obsessed with dogs and dog stuffed animals and has a few that he sleeps with. We are in that stage of frantically searching for his pets so he can get to sleep at night.

Still signing, we are trying to add new signs to his repertoire. It's hilarious when he bucks against the status quo and refuses for a few days to try a new sign and so adorable to see when he tries them for the first time.

I caught the picture in the upper right hand corner one day when he was doing some bizarre behavior and wished I had gotten it on video. He was sticking his tongue out and licking each of his cars that he had put on the chair, but he was also talking to them in between licks.

I love watching his little legs as he RUNS around the house. He loves to put his diaper in the garbage and his bottle in the sink. He loves the bathtub. He also spends a good deal of his time begging for "num nums."

He likes to rock my glider rocker back and forth while I sing "Rock-a-bye Baby." He runs in circles while we sing "Round and round he goes, round and round he goes, and a Bonk" (he plops to the floor) to a little tune meant for a different song.

At nap time and bed time, he makes the sign for more (center, left above). This means that he wants more songs. He stands in his crib and leans his head against mine or Joseph's chest while we sing "Twinkle, Twinkle" or "I am a Child of God." Then he settles into his blankets, arranges his doggies and goes swiftly off to dreamland.

He's still my baby.

Sweet Baby Sleeps!

May says she is trying to call Brigham "Baby" as much as possible because she realizes he's growing up and won't be a baby much longer!

I Will

Yesterday was my 15th wedding anniversary! That's so amazing to me. We celebrated on an off year, taking a week-long trip after our 13th anniversary two years ago! But this post is dedicated to Joseph:

I Will

Who knows how long I've loved you
D'you know I love you still
Will I wait a lonely lifetime
If you want me to I will

For if I ever saw you
I didn't catch your name
But it never really mattered
I will always feel the same

Love you forever and forever
Love you with all my heart
Love you whenever we're together
Love you when we're apart

And when at last I find you
Your song will fill the air
Sing it loud so I can hear you
Make it easy to be near you
Cause the things you do endear you to me
Oh, you know I will

Hug Day!

Sariah just ran upstairs and gave me a great big bear hug. She told me that it's hug day!! I think this idea came from Blue's Clues, but how cute that she carried the idea out to include me.

The other day I spilled some water all over while I was trying to get Sariah a drink. She exclaimed, "Oh, for goodness sake!" This one came from Backyardigans.

Another one. I bought Sariah a smiley face umbrella. She was using it as a weapon and got it taken away. This was very upsetting for her. After a day I gave it back to her, but she started doing crazy things with her seatbelt. So much so, that I told her she had to have seven days of safe seating in the van to get her umbrella back. The next day she asked me how much seven is. I held up seven fingers and she said, "You have got to be kidding." This may be another Backyardigans, I couldn't place it.

I know that you can see a theme here. This child watches too many DVD's. But, in my defense, she spent most of the day yesterday doing creative play with her Oswald characters etc. up in her room.

Sariah has a lot of spunk. Joseph calls her our live-wire. I might say she's a spit-fire. Whatever she is, she is a lot of trouble and a lot of fun!!

I Had Already Forgotten

Elijah was in preschool during the school year of 2005-06. He was so cute. That was in infamous time of the "Huh, Mom?" I LOVED his preschool "Lad and Lassie Preschool." I also loved his teachers Mrs. Cousino and Mrs. Johnston. They welcomed each individual child lovingly and cheerfully, each and every day of preschool. Sadly, I can't send Sariah there because due to low enrollment, they had to close. They did some amazing art projects; the teachers took a lot of time with each individual child. They had a lovely Christmas program where the children served punch and cookies that they had helped prepare and also sang songs (it was nice that it was affiliated with a church because I so enjoyed standing in a circle holding hands with teachers, parents and children singing all three verses of Silent Night).


Here he is doing the Christmas program. The little girl next to him is Kira, his best preschool friend. There was a cute photo in the newspaper of the two of them hugging.

But the thing that I really got on here to write about was this. Last night I was sorting through old school work. This is something that gives me great anxiety because I have not done a good job of saving important papers and keeping track of them for my kids. We have lost a lot of things in that way. But it was so fun to see the things the kids have done over the years. The thing I had forgotten was that Elijah used to bring me an envelope with the word "MOM" on the front. It was the first word he learned to spell. He would cut snowflakes or draw me pictures. Almost every day after preschool he had one of these envelopes for me. So sweet! Sweet memories!

Favorite kid's sayings

Nathan (age 8)

Papa: "What was your favorite part of school?"
Nathan: "Everything."
Papa: "What was your most favorite part?"
Nathan: "Everything."
Papa: "What did you like best of everything?"
Nathan: "Everything."

4-9-2006

"Mom, if you had made this rice...I mean really MADE...then I would like it."

4-23-207

Playing a video game: "I keep missing it by a bazillimeter!"

May (age 5)

"Ooh, I would be delighted if Sariah would listen to my book with me!"

"It would be a dreadful idea!"

"I think I'm getting attacked!" (an asthma attack)

Elijah (age 3)

"Oh my goodness, it's dusty today!" (foggy)

A couple of days later: "It's soggy today!"

Referring to a stuffed frog: "This?!? I haven't seen it for years!"

"I wish we had a fire engine for everyone. Me, Sariah, Nathan, May, you, and Papa. Ackshlee, you and Papa could share one!"

Papa: "Sissy, you don't want to kick my chair."
Elijah: "Her want to and her is!!"

Mama just poured him some lemonade. Elijah: "Good much! How much is that? Good."

Eating spaghettios with meatballs: "Mama! Get the gum balls out!"

"Oh look! A holy ghost!" (in a Halloween catalog)

"I'm going to get something I hate and give it to Sariah fowevow."

Elijah remembered that Santa told him to clean his room and clean up his toys, so he ran up and made his bed, cleaned his room, and cleaned the living room because Santa had told him to (he was very happy and pleased to have remembered. He asked if Santa could see him.

4-29-2006

Elijah: "It's my birthday!"
Cindi: "So you should be able to do whatever you want."
Elijah: "I should!" (big smile, hiding behind his monkey hat)

Sariah (age 2)

Pointing to the dishwasher detergent holder: "Soup in there!"

Singing in her bed: "I think I two!" from a song Nathan sang for her birthday.

Papa: "Tell me when you're done."
Sariah: "When my done!"

"Joseph, are you want some more cereal?"

"I want some l'ade!" (lemonade)

"I want to go schloopin'!" (swimming independently)

"I don't want you lay downing on my pillow!"

"Happy Birthday Cake to you! Happy Birthday Cake to you! Happy Birthday Dear Nathan. Now sing Happy Birthday Cake to me!!"

Upon seeing the ultrasound picture of Brigham: "It's a cat!"

"I don't want Nathan atin on my cawetts!"

"Now my know my ABC's. Next time won't you sang with me?"

Sariah: "May, you have a huge bum!"
May: "I do not have a cute bum!"
Sariah: "You have a big bum!"

3-12-06:

Sariah: "I'm not going to turch...I'm not going!" (hiding under Mama's covers)
Papa: "Do you want to watch Zoboomafoo?"
Sariah, running out of the room: "We get to watch Zoboomafoo!"

4-7-2006

Sariah had been running in a small circle for 5 minutes (Cindi could hear her feet pad-pad-padding). Cindi came in the room and asked what she was doing.

Sariah: "I'm running."
Cindi: "Round and round and round."
Sariah: The floor's going round and round!"

"My blanket was peed out last night!"

4-14-2006

Mama: "Do you have some chocolate milk in the fridge?""
Sariah: "I believe so."

1-13-2007

Told Sariah she could paint after her friends left so she went downstairs and rounded them up and told them, "Leave!"

1-15-2007

"I want to eat at Whole Country Buffet!"

1-19-2007

Opening her new markers "There's a message in here Mom."

Cindi: "What did you do to Brigham?"
Sariah: "I bonked his head on the step, you silly!"

"Do you want some sacraminit?"

2-2-2007

At dinner, "But I don't like food!"

2-5-2007

Everyone was gone except Cindi, Brigham, and Sariah. Brigham was asleep in bed, and Cindi went to take a bath. Cindi hears Sariah say "I'm all alone. Everybody's gone." Sariah then comes to talk to Cindi, then later says again "I'm all alone, by myself" while knocking on the front window.

2-13-2007

"I'm too heavy, Mom, amn't I?"

2-26-2007

Song goes like this: "Moon loves the baby the moonlight says."
Sariah sings like this: "Moon loves the baby and moon loves Sis."

Brigham

2-2-2007

First word "Papa" on the phone with Papa.

3-1-2007

Trills his R's.