In the Lord's Army

We went round and round about Halloween costumes this year.  Luke really wanted to be Iron Man, but we're not real keen on cartoon costumes.  We finally decided on Army Soldiers--complete with flag patches, specially made dog tags and face paint.  Not to mention they each got new pants and a shirt that they can use as play clothes. The boys loved it, and we were happy too! 

Gettin' in the Zone:
Luke Simmons
Lord's Army Soldier
Atlanta, GA 1-10-05



All smiles:
Jonah Simmons
Lord's Army Soldier
Chelan, WA 4-23-08

  

Trick-r-treatin' downtown Chelan.

Too many to choose from!

Knockin' on Great Grammy's door.

Look at all that CANDY!

  

Which one should I eat first???



"Mommy, I can eat this? Really? All of them? Really?"



And the winner is...

Proud recipient of the WILD HAIR award.

Luke was awarded the WILD HAIR award at Frenzy tonight! He was so proud, and so am I.  Putting teeny tiny rubberbands in a boy's hair is very challenging.  We both did a great job and it paid off!

Punkin Carvin'

Our first pumpkin carving in our new kitchen! The kitchen island was the perfect place to 'gut our gourds.' 

Jonah had no reservations about sticking his hand in the mess!

Look at all those seeds! Too bad we don't have an oven yet.

I have overcome my aversion to slimy things...well, when it comes to pumpkin carving anyway. ;)

"Not all pulp is gross, right Dad?" Luke says as he's cautiously poking through the pumpkins pulp looking for seeds.

  

Two proud little boys.

Final product: two cute-as-a-button pumpkins for our porch.



Our First Graduation

Luke graduated from Pre-School tonight. 

So proud of his diploma!

Best buds: Caelan and Luke.

Viva Las Vegas!

My favorite type of picture and it turned out really good!

On the Cathlemet from Whidbey Island to the main land.

The view from our hotel room. Beautiful sand bottom pool surrounded by palm trees and a vineyard.  Peaceful and fun all at the same time!

Our gorgeous bathroom!

Robes included, nice!

Yummy dinner at Lucille's Smokehouse BBQ!

Twins!

Triplets!

M&M World



Sight seeing from the double decker DUECE bus...can you see us?





There's no crying in tee-ball...well, maybe just the first day...

Luke has waited in anticipation for this day for over a month: Tee ball started today!  Luke had fun practicing throwing, catching and hitting! He only cried 4, maybe 5 times.  He's sensitive when he's not perfect; boy do I know that feeling!

Listening intently to Coach.  He was telling the team to practice throwing at home with a partner, or throw at a tree in the back yard.  Luke speaks up so innocently, "I don't have a tree in my backyard...but I do have one in my front yard."

Ready to catch!

Pretending to have a mit.

Fielding stance.

Crying.

Luke catching a ball personally tossed by Dad! I love this picture.

Thumbs up = All is good in the end!
Fun was had by all!!!

Who's there?

Luke has taken to telling knock, knock jokes lately.  His favorites:

"Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Canoe." "Canoe who?" "Canoe get a plug and stop this leak!"

"Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Banana" "Banana who?" "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Banana" "Banana who?" "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Banana" "Banana who?" "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Orange" "Orange who?" "Orange ya glad I didn't say banana again?" 

I'm guessing that you're not nearly as tired of reading the last one as I am of hearing it over and over...and over again! I love 5 years old that are learning new things and repeating them over and over again...

We do exist!

Photos by Luke:

16 and Counting

Luke informed our family today that he doesn't believe in the Easter bunny or Santa Clause; they are just a "BIG FAT FUN GAME!" he shouted at the top of his inside voice.  "Oh, and you know what else is a game? My sisters and brothers."  Yes, Luke has invisible siblings: 3 big sisters, 9 little sisters including baby girl twins, and 2 brothers.  "Their names are Millie, Tinkerbell, Claire, Jessie, and Jess.  My brothers are Bot and Geo.  Well, Jonah, too.  And the twins are Jessica and, um...(eyes rolling up and looking around the room) um...I don't remember the other one. Well, we can name her Mia since you like that name, Mom," he says in the most serious 5-year old voice.   

I'm sitting in my living room, looking around the house thinking, "No wonder my house is always a mess! Not only do I have 2 very active, rambunctious little boys, I have 14 children that I can't even see!  Huh, it's all making sense now."

What an imagination! 

It's Spring, or is it?

"Spring" break started 6 days ago and yet it snowed today!  We've had lots of fun with the boys, even though we haven't left town.

Monday.
Morning with Mom ::: met Grammy for coffee and cake (blueberry muffins) at Starbucks,went to the Super Store for kid supplies at work, lunch.  
Afternoon with Dad ::: napped until 4! Lucky him.

Tuesday.
Morning with Mom ::: colored pictures, played Super Why on the computer, visited Grammy's house, lunch.
Afternoon with Dad ::: nap, helped Dad make soup for dinner.  It was wonderful, as always.

Wednesday.
All day with Dad ::: went to Don Morse park to slide, climb and swing, lunch & nap, cleaned the carport and front porch, played ball in the back yard.

Thursday.
GRAMMY!!!  The boys were so excited to spend the day with Grammy ::: throwing dirt clods and a walk in the meadow at Bent Tree, a long nap, then an afternoon at the ball park watching baseball practice and sliding on the round slide.  They were so sad to see her go at the end of the day, but I'm sure she was looking forward to a quiet night to herself.  Oh, did I mention that she cleaned the boys' room and did their laundry? Amazing!

Friday.
GRAMMY'S BACK!!!  Bring on day two with Grammy ::: first a trip to the Super Store to get egg dying supplies, watched it snow all morning, lunch & nap, watched it snow more while coloring Easter eggs for the hunt on Sunday.

All in all, a great week.  Looking forward to a wonderful weekend of more fun and relaxation.

Lucky & Charming

The St. Patrick's Day Kid Parade was a big hit with the boys! Luke was chosen by his teacher to carry the banner for Precious Promise Preschool and he was soooooo excited.  He did an impeccable job wearing his homemade hat and following the center line; when he marched passed us on the parade route, I could hardly get him to look up to smile for the camera.  Since they were the first in the parade, we were able to run back up the street and be with the family to watch the rest of the parade. 

Jonah was happy hanging out in the wagon with his grammy.

We came home with a proud little boy, a sleeping munchkin, and a handful of candy.

Brilliant!

Luke thought it would be 'cool' to put Jonah in his PJs.  So, with a little help from me, we made a two-headed, two-legged, four-armed giggle monster!

Turns out, it was brilliantly funny!

Reading Corner

We rearranged the boys' room a few days ago.  We now have a reading corner with my rocking chair, the little rocking chair and our small bookshelf in between.  Jonah thinks it's wonderful to have his own chair to read in.  Every night since the move, he sits in his chair for bedtime story.  I'm missing my baby on my lap!