Blessings

Due to the power of prayer all of us are much recovered from our illnesses. William is doing great. We all have been able to get a lot more sleep the last two nights which is a blessing in itself. Below are some pictures I took through out the week.


If you are going to quarantine your child, under the stairs is the best place to seclude a virus. Alexander has found a fascination with climbing into the closet under that stairs lately, so I laid our camping gear out nicely and placed a sleeping bag over the top to make a bed for Alexander. He loves it. During the week while he was not feeling very well he would lay in closet and watch t.v. When he would get tired, he would turn the light off inside and snuggle with his blanket. So cute.


William did not care for the nebulizer, but what a difference it made in his breathing after a treatment. Thank goodness for medication. I could not even imagine how terrifying it would have been as a pioneer to have a child be sick. For one, you would not know what virus they even had and two, there was no machinery to help ease side effects such as we have now. You'd just have to pray your child would survive.


One of the nights I had both William and Alexander in the sleeping bag with me downstairs so that Gordon could get some good rest. I had to take a picture in the morning. I love my boys so much!


Tonya, a cousin but more like a sister, and her husband Tyler were sealed yesterday. It was such a beautiful sealing and a lovely, sunny day outside. I am so happy for them. You could see in their eyes just how much they adore each other. They are some the sweetest people I know. Congratulations Tyler and Tonya!


As you know, Saturdays are "experiment" days at our home. Yesterday Gordon designed a new bread pan and tried a new baking method. Here is a picture of the final product. The bread was soft and fluffy in the inside with a slightly crunchy crust. That is the way I like it. Perfection.


I have been studying how to create a "Montessori house" for Alexander and trying to use its teachings in our home. The Montessori method is so fascinating. It is about creating an environment that allows your child to be as independent as possible in learning everything. Thus I try to make everything accessible to him, kiddie size things, and include him in all the daily activities. Nothing is forced but rather I watch and support his curiosity and learning of anything in his time frame. Above is a picture of his room. Each toy has its place on the shelf and he has a little table on which to work. The method teaches that less is more, and that by having a place for things, the child can learn to put items back into place after use. Well, I wondered if it was truly going to work and if so, how long would it take Alexander to put his toys away? Well I fixed his room up two weeks ago and this week, right before tucking him into bed, he put his toys back into their proper spot without me even saying a word. In fact, I had not even worked with him on putting them back into place. He had just observed me every night for the past week put the toys away in the same place and he mimicked! How awesome is that?!


Speaking of Alexander, this kid is soooooo energetic and curious. In the last two months he has figured out how to open all the doors, cabinets, how to climb onto the counter tops, push a chair to where he needs it, pop, screw, twist, unzip, and unsnap container tops. He has learned to put in a DVD, turn on the radio, computer, lights, fans and how to plug in items safely in sockets. He likes to put clothes and crayons in the dryer, plastic silverware in the toaster, wallets in the laundry basket, cell phones in the trash, chapstick in the kitchen towel drawer,remotes in toilet, string all the silverware around the house, blankets in the bathtub and throw pillows of the bed and couches. He has also learned to jump from his headboard onto his bed, from the couch to the floor and slight leaps from the toilet to the bathroom sink, which he loves to sit in and pour out the liquid soap and comb his hair. Did I mention that he enjoys spilling water on the carpet and throwing his plate off the table when he is done eating...don't forget to mention if there is any kind of sauce, it becomes his new hair gel. Best of all, he loves to play the game Yahtzee with us. He is our good luck charm. Whose ever team he is on always gets a Yahtzee. Last week he rolled two Yahtzee's in a row for me! I love this kid!!!!