The small lessons!

If you are going to sneak out of bed at 11:00pm to play, it would be wise to choose something other than drums! Just sayin'!

Cookie Recipe!

It was suggested that I post the recipe to the yummy cookies I blogged about not long ago!  I would love to tell you that it is a ancient family recipe, but the truth is that it came out of the Joy of Cooking cookbook!  So, if you have that particular cookbook, the page number is 705, and they are called Chocolate-Chip Drop Cookies!  Otherwise, here is the recipe!

Preheat oven to 375.
1/2 cup butter
Add gradually and beat until creamy:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
Beat in:
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
Sift and stir in:
1 cup plus 2 tbs sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
Stir in:
1/2 cup chopped nutmeats (I skipped this)
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Drop batter from teaspoon, well apart, on a greased cookie sheet. Bake about 10 minutes!

I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!!!

Cast Away!!!

Well, Logan's doctor must have felt sadness for my child because he promptly removed Logan's hard cast this past Thursday!!!  I was thrilled that they replaced it with a REMOVABLE walking cast.  Now, we can really enjoy the miserably hot days ahead knowing that the pool is an option!  The new x-ray showed that the fracture is healing well, and he should be back to running and jumping in four short weeks!

Luke really did not care for the noise that machine made!

It has been just two days since it was removed, but we did not waste any time at all!  We raced home, threw on our swim suits and broke every traffic law to get to the pool!  I had to carry him in, but once he sat in that cool water, he sighed this huge sigh of contentment!!! He splased around some and scooted around with his hands just happy to be around everyone else!  He has handled this situation so well, and everyday I am proud of him for showing such maturity!  He never complained about the cast, never whined about not being able to take part in certain things and even managed to get around very well on his own!  He actually took part in Vacation Bible School at our church this week which was such a wonderful experience for him!  I could not get over the fact that he was so big about being dropped off with his cast and walker at a new church with kids he does not know at all understanding that I was leaving him there.  I had a small heart flutter once I returned to the car on that first day.  He is just getting so big! 

I took the opportunity while Logan was at church each morning this week to do some special things with Luke!  The first day, we headed to the pool.  I thought Logan would be upset that he could not go, but, once again, he demonstrated just how wonderfully he is handling his injury. He was excited for Bubba and asked him if he had fun.  He had really enjoyed VBS that morning and was genuinely happy that Luke got to do something fun too.  The next day Luke and I went to the YMCA and hung out there with some friends and went to a playdate after we picked up Logan.  And on Wednesday, we did some not-so-neccessary craft supply shopping at Michael's, Barnes and Noble and visited the library!  It was nice to be able to spend some quality time with Bubba, and I think he enjoyed not having to share with Logan!!!

The dinos had to make the trip to the pool also!

I have to say that my 4-year-old child has dealt with this SO much better than his mother!  It has created some extra work for me in the effort to be somewhere on time! In some ways, the things that he has done so well by himself for a year now have become very difficult for him, and I have had to step in to help with basics.  Also, I have had to search myself for patience (something I lack anyway) and let some things go that normally would just drive me crazy. However, it has become very important to me that my children have fun this summer and do as much as we can together while they are still at home! Logan is at home for one more year with me before he goes to school, and my eyes well up every time I think about that!  My heart breaks for Luke too.  They are best friends, and most of the time they can be found hanging out together.  It will be a difficult adjustment for him probably more than anyone.  I hear it all of the time from people that have older children, but I really am trying to take to heart that this time in their lives is so precious and goes by so fast that we tend to take for granted what we have in this moment!  It is quite pathetic that his little leg injury has been such a reminder for me, but as with most difficult moments, I am taking the opportunity to learn what is most important!

We LOVE glue, and it was one of our big purchases at Michael's!  They each had their own bottle, and after this particular craft, each had about half the bottle left!

This is Luke's craft area!  He had moved on to coloring when I got out the camera, but I had to take a pic of the lovely glue work he did!  It took quite a bit of cleaning to remove the dried glue from the table, chair, floor and him!

A summer without swimming...

The beginning of the summer has been rough with Logan's cast!  Because he has not been able to swim or do anything involving water, I have really tried to find other activities that both kiddos can enjoy!  We also have some wonderful friends who have made themselves available for playdates and fun outings! So far, the heat has not been overwhelming which is nice.  They have spent a lot of time outside in the yard or playing on their "cars"!  We have even figured out how to set up Logan in the car so he can drive. 

So, he is learning how to adapt to his misfortune and handling it so much better than me!  I am the one who is pouting about the pool because I have hauled them back and forth to swim lessons since February to prepare for living at the pool this summer!  It is interesting how God works in our lives.  I guess He needed me to focus on other things? At any rate, we are having fun!  So, here are a few of our latest adventures. 

Logan and Luke helped me replaced the plants I lost during the move (that Lyndon killed during the move, rather)

Our adventure to pick strawberries with our wonderful neighbors!

The boys ate half of them before we even got home!

The kids enjoying a fruit smoothie...

precious!

Logan has a crush...she is as sweet as beautiful!

Luke helping wash the car...

and cooling off daddy!

The Lazy 5 Ranch!

They could not keep this beautiful bird in his "area"!  He was very entertaining!  The poor woman would move him back to his area, and within a minute, he would be back!  I felt her pain as I could not keep Luke where he was supposed to be!  The camals were a riot! 

This ram was very aggressive!  Those poor baby goat just wanted a bite, and he would literally kick them out of the way!  Logan was very disappointed in his behavior and refused to give him any food!

This peacock was amazing!  I think he was really trying to impress the ladies! They did not give him the time of day, but Luke could not stop staring at him!