Toilet Humor

I've never been a big proponent of toilette humor, however, today it struck me twice as quite funny. Maybe since my boys are getting older they are forcing me over to the dark side? Please let me know if I'm slowly becoming uncouth.

So, this morning Charlie (20 months today!) has decided independently that the floors must be dirty (they are not! because they were swept and mopped yesterday!). Anyway, he creatively and resourcefully began dumping cups of toilet water (and I'm not talking about the French kind "eau de toilette") all over the house... beginning in Riley's room and continuing throughout the kitchen. Do I just surrender to thinking I can ever win the battle to have a germ less or even a germ-reduced house. I must be relaxing a little because I did find the humor in it rather quickly. In my younger years it would have taken me at least year before I thought that was funny.

The other off-humor thought is my own fault. Some of us may be getting an economic stimulus refund check. Is it me or is this whole idea of giving Americans money to spend on what-ever their little hearts desire instead of being encouraged to paying off our own current debt ridiculous or what? I don't have a degree in Economics but, even just encouraging Americans to use it more wisely like at the gas pumps seems more logical. I think it should have been called a "gas relief" refund check!

THANKFUL

1. I planted some tulip bulbs last fall and I am thankful they are starting to bloom!

2. I am thankful we have wild asparagus growing on our property and we gathered it and ate our first batch on Mother's Day.

3. I am thankful for my homemade Mother's Day cards... "You're as young as you look!"

4. I am thankful the sun is shining today and everything is turning my favorite color.

5. I am thankful there was a lonely, left-over piece of chocolate cake this morning when I woke up. BREAKFAST!

6. I am thankful for Brady and Jean Ann (his mom) letting me get away for a couple of days. Now, I'm just two-pages away from finishing Charlie's babybook!

7. Spring Soccer is over. I am thankful the girls LOVED playing and the boys played outside while we watched the games. I'm also thankful we're not running around looking for soccer shirts and shin guards, too.

8. I am thankful for medicine and Doctors (especially my Doctor, he made blueberry pancakes, bacon and fried eggs on Mother's Day).

9. I am thankful for Jesus, He is my daily strength.

10. I am thankful for the hope and promise of Heaven.

If you'd like to look at other thankful lists or make your own see here.

An Irreplaceable Role

Happy Mother's Day. I am a stay-at-home-mom. I was a go-to-work-mom for three years + pregnancy. I respect you mama's who have to leave your babies daily to work. I felt torn like I wasn't doing a good job at work or at home. However, since I am currently a stay-at-home-mom the following excerpt was a great encouragement to me (I came upon it last week in Captivating). I thought I'd share the blessing.

To be Queen Elizabeth ... deciding sales, banquets, labors, and holidays; To be Whitley... providing toys, boots, cakes, books; to be Aristotle... teaching morals, manners, theology, and hygiene; I can understand how this might exhaust the mind, but cannot imagine how it could narrow it. How can it be a larger career to tell other people's children about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one's own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone and narrow to be everything to someone? No, a woman's (mother's) function is laborious, but it is gigantic, not because it is minute. (What's Wrong with the World by G.K. Chesterton)

These are a few of my favorite things...about Jay

He thanked God for his Birthday cake in his prayers all year long!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!
4, 3, 2, 1 BLAST OFF


"Scuse you to move, please."

"Yes Sir, Mommy!" I hear that at least once a day.

His four year 'blow out the candles' birthday wish was "I wish for mommy and daddy to go to God's place."

Jay's first time in Big Church... it was time for the offering, I gave him a dollar and whispered to him "put it in the plate". He said NOT whispering "why?" I whispered "we are giving it to God." He stared real hard at the sweet man passing the plate around the church and turned back to me and said not whispering "is that GOD?"

Last Sunday was a hard Sunday. You know the one where you are smiling and waving goodbye at everyone as you are running to your car to get them home and in bed, no lunch, just bed! It was way past meltdown for both the boys and the girls were starting to cave as well. I tried to encourage everyone to keep it together because Satan just wanted to ruin our nice morning at church. A moment later as we were exiting the car Jay stepped on Hallie's Bible Class pictures. Exasperated she said "Satan is just trying to ruin my day". Jay immediately rebutted "I'm not Satan!" We all broke out in laughter-it was just what we needed to turn us around!

Yesterday, Jay said he wished he could climb a ladder to the sky and slide down to see his grandparents in Oklahoma.

At this age Jay has been very curious as to who his "honey" is going to be when he grows up. He is convinced she lives in Oklahoma!

We have another BABY!

Brady and Clay watching prairie dog hunting clips.

MOLLY SUE BANTA


Brady's best friend since college came to visit us this weekend. I didn't get that many pictures because they were so busy working on my "Honey-do" List! Clay even brought Riley's 13th B-day present with him! Molly Sue is the newest addition to the Brady Bunch. She is an eight week old Yorkie weighing in at almost two lbs. She is sooo adorable and the kids can't get enough of her. Bailee took her for show and tell this morning. I can't think of anything cuter than a puppy and a class full of first graders oohhing and aahhing.

We had such a great time with Clay. (Although, we did miss Anita, Nathan and Abby.) Anita, I'm going to have to send Brady down there to help Clay with your honey-do list. They even fixed the garage door I wrecked last week! Brady and Clay did manage to squeeze in some prairie dog hunting of their own! When we count our blessings The Johnsons' are at the top of the list!

This week on the Brady Bunch....

I took the boys out to one of my friend's (Misty) sheep farm. They are lambing now and we got to hold some 24-48 hour old lambs. So precious! We went inside the barn to get a closer look at the mamas and babies and Charlie snuck/snook out of the barn's gate. I ran out to get him. Here's where it gets interesting... swung down to pick him up and my back went out on me! I am sooo old! All my friends and Jay were still in the barn. I couldn't pick up Charlie, so I opened my car and let him crawl in (I couldn't even pick him up to strap him in the car-seat) so I just closed the door.

I had to go back into the barn to get Jay and tell my friends goodbye. I hobbled into the barn and immediately Misty (a nurse) had me lay down on a bale of hay. With my legs in the air and a dog licking my face! I told them I just wanted to get Jay in the car and go home. So we head to the car and are surprised to see Charlie holding my car keys pressing the lock button over and over again. We proceed in playing his game, happily trying to get him to press the unlock to no avail. He's smiling having a great time! Let's call On Star! Great idea, where's my phone? In the car! While we are finding a phone that has cell service (remember we really are in the middle of nowhere). I get to lay down with my feet in the air again, in the back of Misty's car! I am in the strange place of laughing so hard but on the verge of tears! How did I get this old? I have been exercising lately, this isn't suppose to happen.

So, now I'm home and bent (for lack of a better word) trying to "rest"! How do you "rest" with five kids? The girls have been so funny they started walking around like hunchbacks to make me feel better. Definitely sit-com material!!! It is a good thing we took pictures right when we got there or I would have been taking pictures of everyone's feet!

You know you have a toddler in the house when....

you find dryer sheets in the toilet!

you get squirted by a water gun on a daily basis.

you celebrate things like throwing trash away or putting tiny dirty jeans in the laundry basket.

you'll sing a whole song just to get them to eat one more bite!

you pick up the same toy six times and put it away.

your foot is injured requiring you to limp for awhile because you stepped on that SAME toy.

you scream expletives like... "SCOOBY DOO!" or "ICE CREAM!" when you step on that SAME toy!

you give them too many cookies because you love to hear them say "cookie."

you lose your keys, your phone, your sunglasses, and your mind!!!

you find out you LOVE to play trains and read the same book over and over again just to hear them laugh at the same part every time.