Manners

I have been working with the kids on practicing good manners. Tonight I was encouraged that they seem to be learning, at least a little.
During dinner, Jericho climbed on the edge of the table while he was eating. I told him that he needed to get down and that he would get a spanking if he did it again. I asked if he understood. The response I expected was "Yes, Ma'am" or "Okay, Mom". I received a slight nod.
"No, Jericho, you say, "Yes, Mom".
Still nothing.
"You need to answer me, Jericho."
His answer, "I haf foo in my mouf."

Binky Update

We have been very successful with taking away the pacifier. Ransom has only had his pacifier once since I posted about taking it away. (It was that same night at 2 am.) He now tends to suck on his fingers or his thumb occasionally. This might just be because of teething but I am not sure.
This seems to be the best age to take it away because he is too young to ask for it. Hero was two when we weaned her from the binky and it was extremely difficult.

Almost Standing

Ransom is able to stand by himself for about five seconds at a time. It really surprised me when I let go and he didn't fall down!

The Girl Next Door

Hero has a little friend next door. Her name is Jehaida, at least we think. (Hero called her Ohana for the longest time and the girl didn't seem to mind.) She is maybe four years old. This child comes to our door constantly. When we would let her come in to play, her brother would always come to the door five minutes later. Her brother is about seven. He would inform us that Jehaida was not allowed to be over here and that she is going to get in trouble. Sometimes the brother will come over with Jehaida and say that their Dad said it was okay. When this happens then the mom will yell over the fence or occasionally come over and get her. Their mom does not speak English very well so it has been hard to communicate. We have been letting Hero play with her in our front yard and in theirs so that her mom can still keep an eye on her if she wants. The problem seems to be that the child is a little escape artist. You can't just keep one eye on her; you need both. She came to the door at 10 this morning in her pajamas. Tonight she came to the door at a quarter to 9, again in her pajamas and eating a chocolate bar! I am glad that Hero has a friend close by but this child is driving me crazy.

Dentist Appointment

The dental hygienist was feeling much better today, so the kids appointments took place as scheduled. This time Jericho went first and he did great! He didn't cry, fidget, or scream at all. Hero, on the other hand, did okay but she started gagging when the polish was put on her molars. No cavities for either one and they each got to pick a toy at the end. Oh Boy!

Three Days Without Daddy, Day Three

The waiting is almost over. Only one more night to go.
The day went fairly well. My dentist appointment was cancelled so I had some extra time this morning. (Seems like a lot of things are being cancelled lately, I think God is trying to tell me something.) Anyway, I used my extra time to clean out the fridge. Fun times.
We went the whole day without the pacifier. We almost made it through last night, but it was used once at two am. Mommy was desperate.
Jericho informed me today that by making him pick up his toys I was "hurting his life." He also told me that he is going to go to Texas "last night." The boy has no concept of time and can't quite figure out locations too well either.
In other exciting happenings of the day, my thermometer outside reached the nice cool temp of 101. Summer is here.

Yes, he likes to pull up everywhere!

Three Days Without Daddy, Day Two

Two days down, one more to go. Today went much smoother than yesterday. I am sure it is due to the fact that the kids got a lot more sleep last night than the previous night.
I was able to view the live feed from the SBC. The kids really enjoyed that, but they were really confused at first when they couldn't see Daddy. Jericho kept pointing to the computer and asking if that was Texas. It seemed to help knowing that Daddy was somewhere he could see.

On other various happenings of the day...Hero had Karate, my sister went back to the beautiful state of Oregon, and I attempted to make pita pockets. The pitas turned out a little too puffy. I'm thinking I didn't make them flat enough. Then kids loved them though, so they weren't too bad.

Also, (you may think I am crazy here) I am attempting to detach Ransom from the pacifier. We survived a couple naps without it and are now trying bedtime. It is going as well as can be expected. That being said, I better go comfort my crying child.

Ransom loves icecream. Of course, so does Cozy! Hero is attempting to save her brother from some doggy kisses.

Three Days Without Daddy, Day One

My husband is enjoying the wonderful opportunity of accompanying two of our pastors to the Southern Baptist Convention in San Antonio, Texas. To read updates on that, click here.
While he is gone, Mommy is constantly reminded of the importance of a two parent household. My children, having stayed up late last night, were a little onery. However, they were not too bad throughout most of the day. When evening came, the lack of sleep from the night before caught up with them. We were about done. That is to say, Mommy was all done giving spankings and they were definitely done receiving them. We survived...barely. One day down, two to go.

Last Day of Preschool

This is the group we had on our last day of preschool.

Jericho riding his favorite squeaky trike. We never remembered the WD40.

Hero enjoys a yummy cookie for snack.

Jericho had fun making a mosaic mask on his last day.

Breaking News

My husband has a new post.

Edison Picnic

Grandma & Jericho ride the train.
Jericho had to jump on this jumper instead of the pink and purple castle because that one was "for girls."

Hero rides the pony.

Jericho's first pony ride.

Jericho and his spiderman balloon.

Hero and her little mermaid balloon. (Her face is painted like a kitty cat.)

Hero has a thing for reptiles.

This skink was fun to hold and it tickled her ear.

Jericho checks it out but won't hold it.

Like I said, she has a thing for reptiles.

Hero cooled off later by going on the waterslide. Jericho got his swimtrunks on, waited in line, but changed his mind at the last minute.