The Freedom of Being 2

Who else could pull this off?

Something's Missing...

Two weeks ago, Isaac managed to wiggle his first tooth out. He was at church on Wednesday night, and came home proudly showing off his new gap. "You're gonna cry, Mommy," he grinned sheepishly, as he walked towards me holding a mostly empty plastic bag. At the bottom was a tiny tooth. I had joked all month that if his tooth fell out I would cry because I'm sad he isn't a baby anymore.

That night, he stayed up until midnight waiting impatiently for the Tooth Fairy to make an appearance. We told him over and over again, that the Tooth Fairy only comes if you're asleep... Isaac assumed that if he pretended to be asleep, he could trick the Tooth Fairy. So, at midnight, I was tired of waiting to go to sleep myself, and Noah called Isaac into our room to talk to him about his need for sleep. I quickly put 4 quarters into the special tooth pillow.

When Isaac went back to bed, he was almost in tears from his disappointment that the Tooth Fairy was a no-show. I said, "Well maybe he came when you weren't paying attention, check your tooth pillow." Much to his delight he pulled out the four quarters. "I'm rich!" he exclaimed. "But I think you put them there, Mommy."

Hmmm. I guess it makes sense for a boy who knows Santa is a story, to assume a real Tooth Fairy is unlikely. Isaac spent his newfound fortune on a Sprite out of a vending machine at gymnastics. He was pretty proud of his new gapped smile, and his first soda that he didn't have to share.

Flashback Friday: For a Laugh

I don't remember the circumstances of this photo, other than it was taken on a chilly day in October of 2003. Don't they just look thrilled to be spending time with each other? Apparently, we had not yet acquired a properly fitting hat for Isaac.

Sorry to be a bore.

March has really flown by fast! Our busy life has prevented me from blogging much, and I haven't even taken any photos in the past week. Hopefully, we can get some dry, warm weather our way soon.

My life seems to consist of TRYING to start Kristin's potty training. I hate potty training. Talk about frustrating. And this time seems especially hard because I am so distracted with everything/everyone else in the house, I forget to put her on the potty consistently enough. I'm not going to stress about it, though. She'll be potty trained in the next 6 months or so hopefully.

Isaac is doing well with school. I am very happy I have homeschooled this year. I have learned a lot along the way, and my favorite part of the year has been being able to see first hand how much he has learned, and watching his active imagination in action. I love how he is so happy to be a cowboy one day, and an "army man" the next. What a treasure.

Even this blog has taken me all day to write. It will type a sentence, then tend to a crying child, or fix dinner, or a start load of laundry, etc. Even now, with all 4 kids in bed, Kristin needs water ("cup"), Lauralyn somehow fell (big drama) while walking back to her bed after using the bathroom, and Isaac is questioning me on the cowboy craft in his new book. All in bed, yes, but obviously far from sleeping.

I will finish now, with a night of mindless television and wine in my future. I do look forward to Thursdays. Nearly done with the week, and a glass of wine relaxes me to the point of realizing how very blessed I am. I love my little chaos filled home... full of love and the sound of children. Hopefully, some more interesting blogs will be in the near future :-)

Going Public

I have opened The Haut House back to the public, and our adoring fans. However my adoption blog Random Arrows will remain private. I am happy to invite you (even if you are just lurking) to have access. Simply leave me a comment with your email address (I won't post your comment, so no spam worries).

Why have I unblocked The Haut House? Well, my initial worry that prompted the block is no longer an issue... and because all fostering/adoption news is posted on the other blog, I feel this blog does not give out too much information that would put our adoption hopes in jeopardy. Also, I have had a few loyal readers who could not access the blog (and really, that's just cruel to deprive folks of reading my thoughts and the Haut House capers). Ha ha.

Flash Back Friday: Film in a Camera? What's That?

Here are photos from the last time I ever used a camera that required film. It was an old SLR camera that Noah's parents handed down to him in college. I loved using this camera, but I am SO glad that digital technology came along!!!

This is one of my all-time favorite photos of Isaac. Lauralyn is the same age as Daniel in these photos, and Isaac was a couple months older than what Kristin is currently. Their personalities are completely different. I forget how EASY and quiet my girls were as babies. I am not ashamed to hope our next child is another girl... the boys wear me out and get into all kinds of trouble!

Now Taking Donations: The Haut House Pool Fund

Really, this is a worthy charity :-)



I have a new concern. I didn't think this concern would come so soon, but parenting is an adventure, and I am learning as I go. No, this isn't a pool fund for the Swim Club membership fees... our new "dream" is to have our own private pool. Why? When the Swim Club is literally a stones throw from our abode? Well, let's just say I am much more aware of young ladies who proudly flaunt themselves about wearing nothing more than a few inches of fabric tied together with dental floss. (I fully realize I was guilty of this years ago, so this is not me casting judgment, but rather wanting to protect those little eyes I am responsible for.)

While my mind has solely reflecting on how to help guard Isaac from temptation, Noah is more concerned with boys gawking at his little princesses (in modest 1920's style swim suits of course).



Why worry about this now? They are too young to think about this stuff, right? That's what I thought until I found Isaac sneaking about, looking through some woman's fitness magazine. (These magazines appeared in the mail... is someone secretly trying to hint at something?) Mind you, he was not interested in learning about fitness, but was mesmerized by the photos of women in underwear, bikinis, or in some ads, artistic "nude" shots. AUGH. He isn't even 6 yet.

I know there is a fine balance of guarding my children from the influences of the world, and being over protective. Allowing Isaac to see immodestly dressed young ladies at the pool can easily open the door to lust and viewing women improperly (which can lead to much more serious offenses as he becomes a man). But on the flip side, extreme sheltering from the world can just as easily push him in the wrong direction and give him a strong desire to rebel once he grows older. All of this will become a much bigger issue as he hits puberty, so I hope by thinking about it early we will at least not be blindsided.

I began to research pool installation. Do you have any idea how expensive pools are? They don't come cheap. Maybe I should just send Isaac to the back yard and tell him to dig a giant hole.

My Sweet Smiley

Kristin's nickname is Smiley. We haven't used this nickname much lately, as smiles aren't as easy to come by anymore. Kristin is stuck being the third child. The baby who was "de-throned" a little earlier than planned... Daniel is not quite 18 months younger than her.



She goes back and forth between wanting to be a big kid like her older siblings, and battling for the baby position with Daniel. While she prefers mommy... any warm lap or set strong arms will do. She will even snuggle up to Daniel's GAL who visits us once a month (the GAL loves that Kristin will cuddle in her lap).



Sunday, we were out of whack in our schedule with the time change. Noah and the two older kids went to church in the evening for the final installment of the missions conference. I stayed the the late napping babies. At 6:00 I finally had to wake Kristin, and with the warm weather, I thought some water, cups and a spoon may make an otherwise cranky toddler pretty happy. I was right.



Kristin spent several minutes calling for Jezebel to come and try her creation. She was elated when Jezebel listened and came for a taste.



While Kristin does battle Daniel for my attention at times, it is neat to see them starting to form a bond. Tonight, I took them on a walk in the double (side by side) stroller. They talked there own language back and forth, and every once in a while, Kristin would gently pat him on his head. So, sweet.



Also, tonight, Kristin was caught in the act of cutting her hair for the second time this week! Agh! This is the first child who has done this in my house, and now the right side of her hair is much shorter than the left side. Oh, boy. Lock up the scissors.



One thing is for sure: I LOVE this little girl! She is funny and smart and our family would not be complete without her in it. I will treasure these last months of her being a toddler. Pink blanket and all.

One Week Ago...

Today it is 80 degrees outside... one week ago this is what we were doing:


Little Man on our way to Granny's, so we could take the big kids out in the snow. You can see he doesn't feel well.


Isaac and Elijah attempting to sled.


The happiest shot I got of Kristin. It went downhill soon there after.


On our way to a better hill.


We are cruel parents. We didn't realize how sick Kristin would become as the day went on. We wouldn't have tortured her with snow play if we had known.


Daddy and Lulu the Snow Princess.


Instead of sledding, Isaac did a lot of rolling down the hill.


CaCaCaCoooolllllddd.


The fun was soon over, and we went home to de-thaw.


Lauralyn wanted to eat snow with sugar sprinkled on top.


Isaac opted for peppermint tea, complete with a candy cane left from Christmas.


If Daddy has to go to work, Isaac has to "go to" school. He wrote about snow, and we read about polar bears.

My New Favorite

When I grow up, I want to be like my friend, Leah. For now, I will just have to practice, practice. This is my new favorite of Little Man. Nine months old, and cute as a button. FYI: He is crawling everywhere now... fast.

Flashback Friday: Wooo Wooo!

We don't live especially close to the train tracks, but you can hear the train from our house pretty clearly. Isaac has loved making the "Woooo woooo!" noise since he was about the age of 3... while he has grown into more of a sauntering cowboy, he occasionally will sound his train whistle in response to the train chugging down the tracks a couple of miles away.

Here is the train in action, well, our version of a train. These were taken in late November of 2007, and I never got around to blogging about it. Perfect flash back material. Isn't it amazing how fast they grow? This was only 15+ months ago!

Impromptu Shoot

I love grabbing my camera and taking some great shots, without planning anything in advance. It makes for a much more relaxed and fun experience. This has been a crazy week with a "big" snow on Monday, Daniel in the hospital on Tuesday and Wednesday, and beautiful spring weather today. I know I'm a bit behind with blog posts, but whatever. Life has to be lived, and at some point I may have time to blog about it :-)

I love my new camera! I didn't have time to process these in PS, but you can still see what great quality I get.