The Man In the Backyard

Reagan and Rylan were playing in the backyard while I made lunch. When it was ready I called them in to eat. Reagan offered the blessing on the food. He said, "and pweese(please) bwess(bless) the man in the backyard."

I admit that I opened my eyes. I looked outside. I was nervous. When he said amen I asked him, "Reagan! What man in the backyard!?"

He said, "The man that was here yesterday and put those dirts all over the yard." (we had our yard arriated the day before.)

Aubryn said, "What was his name?" This way, when she prays for him, she can just say his name. I didn't know his name! Whoever he was, he was blessed by a kid who is very generous with his blessings.

Aubryn says...

After I gave her a Dove dark chocolate, "It taste-es kind of weird, but I'm going to eat it anyway."

"Mom, are boogers healthy?"
"No." I said.
"Do they have sugar in them?"

Update

I know it has been awhile. At first, nothing new was going on. Then my computer broke and was "being fixed" for a long time. Now I feel like I have to post something spectacular since it has been so long. I’ll just tell you a few things that have happened.

Brian SHAVED! He had a beard for over 2 months. It was getting bushy. We had trimmed it back a few times. He is blessed with much hair. After he shaved, it was strange to see his face after so long. I guess this means I better shave my legs. It is only fair.

Brad jumped off tha diving board. This may sound like a small thing, but it was the opposite. He had convinced himself he would die if he went off the diving board. It was a real thing to him. I imagine it would be the same to us as swimming with sharks. He was terrified and would do anything to avoid it. We worked with him. (took him swimming many times outside of his lessons, had him visualize jumping off the diving board in his mind, had him repeat to himself that he could do it an he would be okay, had him stand on the couch with his arms raised and shout, "I CAN JUMP OFF THE DIVING BOARD!!", and of course many pep talks.) He was not going to be convinced. Also, because he would not listen to his teacher (who spent hours treading in the water waiting for him) and he displayed less than acceptable behavior (that is putting it mildly), he was punished. He didn’t mind being punished. It was "worth it" to him. So, I had to make it not worth it . It was going to go to a new level. A level he did not want it to go to. A level I did not want it to go to.
The next lesson he walked onto the diving board. His face was full of fear. He was being cheered on by everyone in the room. He was terrified. He was reluctant. I stood on the back of the board. He turned to me. I told him he could do it. He was doing it. I was proud of him. He inched a little bit more. I walked half way out on the board ready to push him in. (I’d had to throw him in the pool before.) He got to the end of the board, timidly bent his knees, leaned forward, and fell. WHAT A BIG MOMENT! He did it! Everyone cheered!!
After lessons when we were in the car I asked him, "How was it?"
"It was fun!" he replied.

Aubryn has finally tackeled her back bend. She has been working hard on it since her 5th birthday in November. Now she is happy to show anyone. Here are a few quotes from her lately:
"I want to be a mom and a cowgirl. I want to be everything in the world!"
"What are dogs made of?"
"I’d rather have a puppy than brothers."

Reagan is learning to cut. If he finds scizzors, then I find hundreds of tiny pieces of paper. Here are a few things from his mouth lately:
"Aubryn, I’m bigger than you." (She told him she was bigger than him) "I’m bigger when I’m naked."
I asked him what his snake’s name was. He said, "Reagan."
"And your dinosaur?" I asked.
"Reagan."
I over heard Reagan talking in the bathroom, "Hi, I Reagan. I go in the potty now." When he came out I asked him who he was talking to. "The mirror."

And Rylan. He is busy. He climbs. He talks, just a little. He says , "Dadda" for almost every occasion. It is the way that he says it that he makes it fit. If he is excited, "DADDA!" If he is upset, "Da duha" (said with sterness. As if whatever is wrong is Dad’s fault.) If he wants to go in the car, "Dadda!" (in a please, please, please tone.) You get the idea. This is hard to explain without sound!

Aubryn said...

"Mooooom. Brad doesn't like my lips! Even with lipstick."

I Have a Cold...

So tonight Reagan asked me, "Do you have booger water?"

I said, "yeah."

Then he brought me a tissue.

Mommy Aubby

I said, "Aubryn we need to clean up. But we'll wait until you're done feeding your baby."
"It's gonna be a long time. I still gotta do the other one." She said back to me.

Reagan said to me....

"Mom, you are my best friend. [giggle] Is that nice?"

I said, "Yeah, thanks!"

He giggled again and said, "Okay, now I'm going to go tell Aubryn. Aubryn, you're my best friend I ever had!"

We took the kids to a buffet for dinner tonight. Boy, we were stuffed! We stopped at a Red Box on the way home to get a movie. It was in a McDonald's parking lot.

"I want a burrito!!!" Reagan yelled.
"I want chicken nuggets. I want chicken nuggets!" said Aubryn.

Dew Tour at Snowbasin

Reagan.
We went to Snowbasin to watch some professional skiers compete. We didn't really fit in because 1. none of us were skiing, 2. none of us were drinking beer, and 3. two thirds of us were 9 years old and under. There was a twenty-something year old who stood there with his beer staring at us with the most confused look. I am not sure if he was wondering how we got all those kids up the mountain, how those kids could make so much noise, or if he was just so drunk he forgot there are little humans on the earth.

Rylan. Brian sporting his new beard.

Watching the half pipe.

skier in half pipe

Another skier in the half pipe.

Reagan

View of the half pipe from where we stood.

Aubryn

Man with a crazy beard! I hope Brian doesn't get any ideas.

Free style

Skier

Upside down skier.

Aubryn on the ski lift. She LOVED it! Until it was time to get off. I had Reagan and Aubryn with me in one lift and Brian had Rylan and Brad in another. When it was time to get off, I grabbed Reagan and then fell flat on my bottom as she continued on the lift. She started crying. They stopped it and got her off. We know how to blend in.

Reagan happily riding the lift.

Us at the lodge.

Beautiful waterfall on the way home in Weber Canyon.