Summer Hair

How cute is this little kid? He sweats pretty badly in this humid weather so I was thinking a buzz would feel better for him. It was a struggle to get it done as he hates the clippers. It turned out so cute!

Mommy meltdown

Moms are aloud to have a meltdown every once in a while right??

Well, this was my week.

After 2 weeks of fighting with Josiah about his acts of violence towards me (and Asher) I was done. I picked him up from VBS on Wednesday and he came at me and pushed me hard in the stomach and then started screaming. I got him home and put him in a time out and each time he'd get out he'd do something aggressive and go right back in. This went on until lunchtime when I'd about had it.

Len came back and we weren't on the same page and I couldn't stand to be in the house anymore. We had full coverage so off I went...

31 hours later (after I'd shopped, read, reflected, journaled, and soul searched) I returned home in a much more optimistic mood. I came home last night after the kids had gone down to bed. Len and I had a campfire and a long talk. We came up with some goals and tools to help me cope and I'm feeling better about things.

The boys seemed to thrive without me. They were much happier and laid back when I picked them up from the last day of VBS this morning. Asher was affectionate and happy and Josiah was social and in pretty good sensory form.

Things are looking up for the moment.

Cabin Update

Here's what the kitchen at the cabin looks like right now. Len has removed the floor down to the joists and I helped with some of the lath on the walls. This weekend he put in electrical where he'd need it on the floor and removed the large vent pipe. Next time he plans on working on the plumbing we'll need under the flooring. After that he'll have jack up the floor and put in new support beams, insulate and then put the new flooring. Then we'll have a level floor in the kitchen!! I'm sure that will feel weird as the current floor has about 4.5 inches sloped down to the west.

Ceiling:

Floor: those circular spots seen in the last picture are where he

poured concrete to support the new footings.

Syttende Mai Parade

We took the boys to the parade in town last weekend. This was the first year that Josiah was interested in retrieving the candy as well as eating it. Last year he was so focused on getting more and more candy in his mouth that he couldn't concentrate on anything else. Both boys seemed to enjoy themselves and Asher loved the tractors of course.

The horns were too loud for both kids, but they did well covering their ears. After the parade was done we walked to the park where they had some activities set up for the kids. They had a big bouncy thing with a slide that is a lot like what they have at the House of Bounce. They really wanted a turn, so I bought tickets. Then we stood in line. Not only was the line long, but it was SLOW. They couldn't only let one kid in at a time so it forever to get to the front. Meanwhile, the kids were still eating candy and were starting to get really impatient and whiny.

We finally got up to the front and Josiah was first to go through. Once he went in, we could't see him anymore. It was quiet for a while and then we heard him yelling for Emily. The ride operator waited what seemed like forever, and then finally went in after him. He was excited to go down the slide. Asher needed help as well, so maybe in hindsight the ride wasn't the best idea. By the time they were done they were so whiny and grumpy that we just went right home.

Last day of Preschool

After 3 years, Josiah is finally done with preschool. It truly feels like the end of an era and time to get serious about things now that Kindergarten is next. He started Special Ed preschool the summer he turned 3 and I remember how I felt like we had so far to go before "real" school.

Here is a picture of him on his first day of preschool that day in summer.

These are pictures with Betty (the teacher) and Lisa (his aid) the last day this year. I gave the teachers petunia pots as a thank you. We couldn't have asked for a better staff. Everyone treated Josiah was the right of amount of compassion and sternness. We were really happy with how they never made a big deal out of his differences, especially in front of the other kids. They were really great and we will always remember this great preschool experience for him.

Fire Pit

I love my husband.... Occasionally I get these whims to take on projects that I think I can do by myself. But after totally exhausting myself, I turn to my "fail-safe" who takes over and completes my projects.

Our firepit turned out totally great, but it was a huge amount of work. He hauled these extremely heavy rocks and a huge amount of gravel home to make this vision of mine come true. Our backyard looks so nice now! I also lined the gardens with smaller rocks on the south side of the house and a new garden in the backyard that isn't quite finished yet.

Teeter Totter Spin

The boys have finally gotten into the teeter totter that Grammy and Grandpa gave them for Christmas. I brought it upstairs thinking I would bring it outside, but they love playing together in the living room. Josiah does all the work which is great coordination work for him. Asher has gotten knocked off several times, but he still gets back on. Since we took this video, Josiah has started putting the blanket over his head while he spins!