Day 2 - Admiration Challenge

Oops, I missed a day already.

I admire Nathanael because he has a large vocabulary and uses words that I've never heard of. That means he's smart, and I like being around smart people. 

I am thankful that Nathanael loves God. It makes everything in life and marriage and parenting so much better when we have that together.

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30 Day Challenge

Today, October 28th, I begin my second 30 Day Challenge. I challenge myself to the following:

Every day, for 30 days, I will post a blog detailing something that I admire about Nathanael, and something that I am thankful for.

My intent is to become better at the expression of my admiration of him and thankfulness for him.

Day One

I admire Nathanael because he brings logic and reason to my chaos. I know I can count on him for good advice and good sense. In fact, I rely on it. If I don't have him and his logic and reason, I would be unbalanced and unsure.

I am thankful that he has a job he loves, and that he is responsible and goes to that job every day. I NEVER worry about having a husband who doesn't go to work simply because he doesn't feel like it. 

Just because blog posts need pictures 

There are so many things to love this week.


*Ezekiel and Atticus each got a new pair of shoes at the mall today. I can't believe how big their feet are.

Ezekiel: size 10.5
Atticus: size 8

Ezekiel asked for light up Spiderman shoes. Ugh. I didn't love that, but I also couldn't deny him the joy of having a pair of shoes that he loved. I remember when I was 5, having a pair of white Nikes with a red swoosh. I loved those shoes.

*Atticus went to his bible class today all by himself! I'm so pleased. I knew he could do it. I'm really looking forward to being in an adult bible class again!

*My mom came for a short visit this weekend. We took the boys to the Tualatin Pumpkin Regatta. Ezekiel's favorite thing was the balloon ghost he got. Atticus' favorite thing was playing on the tractor.

*I went to see Nathanael at Coffee Fest on Saturday. It felt really good to get away for a little while, after many days of "single parent" status. My mom timed her trip perfectly.

*Nathanael returned from Panama on Thursday night, and I'm rather pleased with our welcome home efforts. We picked him up at the airport in pajamas (the kids, not me), which is always fun.

*Barb came over last Monday morning to play with the boys so I could go grocery shopping by myself. One of the little joys in my life is opportunities to go grocery shopping by myself.

*Atticus played with play dough for the first time...for SO LONG. He loved it.

Here is something I did NOT love.

*Ezekiel is loving his new freedom of playing outside in the cul de sac with the other kids. Yesterday, one of the girls told him that he couldn't play with them. It broke my heart to see him sitting on the curb, wiping tears from his eyes, shouting, "Why can't I play with you?" to the girls across the street. The situation worked itself out very nicely in the end, but I was traumatized by it, much more than he was, I'm sure. Having your kids grow up hurts sometimes.

first time with play dough!

making welcome home notes for daddy

welcome home daddy efforts

1. We spent a few days at Grammy and Poppa's house last week. Mindy was visiting them. It was good to see her. Ezekiel and I put together a haunted gingerbread house (thank you, Trader Joe's). Atticus found great joy in the horses, dog, and cat.

2. Ezekiel's first field trip was on Friday. We went to a pumpkin patch. I think he had a lot of fun. I am looking forward to lots of field trips with the boys. It brings back fond memories of when my mom was a chaperone on my field trips, and I would insist we dress like twins. I know, it's weird. I'm confident Ezekiel will not be doing that.

3. Project Friday! We made bats from egg cartons. I might say it was the best project idea I've ever found. So simple, yet so effective at being scary. We also bought spider webs at the dollar store, and Ezekiel decided where we should put spider webs in the house. Now he says, "Mom, it's getting SO scary in here." I love that a trip to the dollar store and an egg carton can satisfy his Halloween decorating needs.

4. Atticus grabbed his behind and said, "toot!" after he tooted last week. That was the first time I heard him dp that. It was awesome.

5. All of the trees and shrubs in our yard have been trimmed, and our yard now looks amazing. I love it. Everything is better for playing in.

The following are some questions I have.

1. Have you used kids toothpaste recently? I did last week, and it's gross. Berry Blast is not my idea of fresh. I felt like I needed to brush again afterwards.

2.  Do you ever wonder if you have the Ebola virus? I do. I had something that was hurting in my mouth for a few days last week, and I was wondering if it was a symptom of the Ebola virus, so I looked up symptoms. Fortunately, what I was experiencing was not on the list.

3. Do you know anyone who gets shoes repaired? I saw a shoe repair shop last week, and it got me thinking. What are the circumstances under which people would go to the trouble of taking their shoes there? None of my shoes are worth that trouble.

Japanese Maple's are perfect for 4 year old boys to climb, when they are trimmed.

first field trip picture ever!

field trip selfie

at the pumpkin patch

completed haunted gingerbread house

working on the masterpiece

picking apples at Grammy and Poppa's

TTTIL

1. Last Monday, we went for our usual visit to the farm store. On our way in, the owner asked if we wanted to go for a hayride. Uh, yes, we did want to. We had our very own personal ride out to the pumkin patch. It was a lot of fun. I was not planning on buying a pumpkin that day, but I felt obligated. It came in handy for project day later in the week. 

2. Atticus has become afraid of some things, at the delightful age of 19 months. The primary one being elevators. Another one is hay rides. 

3. Ezekiel was very excited to practice writing letters of the alphabet on the chalkboard. He was very pleased that he could write a "Q" without me writing it first.

4. Ezekiel and I baked cookies today, but not after making 3 (yes, 3!) trips to the grocery store for things I had forgotten. First, eggs. Second, baking soda. Third, oops, I bought baking powder, so now I need baking soda. Sometimes I wonder how I live and take care of children. I don't think they should let me. 

5. The boys and I had a very fun walk to the school one afternoon last week. The band was out practicing, the weather was cool and the sun was out, the soccer ball had air in it, Ezekiel found a big stick to play with, everything was perfect. 

6. Pumpkin rolls from Trader Joe's, YUM. Two years ago this very month, I made a special trip to Trader Joe's and purchased exclusively items that contained pumpkin. It was not very effective for menu planning, but it was fun. I don't remember if I wrote about that or not, so I am reminiscing about it now. 

7. We did pumpkin projects. My favorite was melting crayons on top with my hair dryer. It was really satisfying watching wax melt down the top of the pumpkin, sort of like peeling wax off of your fingers. I hope you know what I'm talking about. 

8. Ezekiel's favorite was the pumpkin volcano. Lots of vinegar, baking soda, and water. You may have figured out by now why I ran out of baking soda for the cookies.

one of my little helpers

other helper!

pumpkin project

patiently melting wax

unexpected hayride

he tried to pick up most of the pumpkins (almost)

Peace, love and pumpkins,

Misty