New Foods

We continue to try new foods with Hope - cooked carrots, cucumber, blueberries, green beans & squash purée, applesauce etc. She would MUCH rather feed herself than be fed purees by a spoon. 

Here she is with a cucumber stick.

It never seems like she actually consumes much, but her diapers tell a different story. 

Growing Up

Look at this sweet girl!

She's growing up before our very eyes. Today I put her in her rocker chair, where she normally sits back and rocks, but not today! She's strong enough to sit herself up and lean forward. Couldn't help but snap a pic! Gotta strap that baby in!

Over Here...

Here's Cole's creation he made while I was putting Hope to sleep tonight (behind the chair - "Cole?" "Over here...") He was happy to pose for a picture to show off his masterpiece. 

Cute!

School Lunch

Every summer sublette has a grant of some sort that allows for any child under 18 to come to the school to eat breakfast and lunch for free. Adults pay a minimal cost. 

I think it's an awesome program. Kids get a good meal, get out of the house, get to see each other, and all for free! 

Lunch is served between noon and 1:00, and we often like to eat earlier than that or Hope sleeps during that time, so we haven't participated very much. But today, all the stars aligned, so we headed on over. 

It was a good experience - hamburgers and French fries and chocolate milk, of course - along with some fresh (and canned) fruit and vegetables. Pretty good/typical school lunch. 

Lupe, our neighbor, took our money and was happy to see Cole and Hope and me too. And then we sat next to our other neighbors, Sarah and her kids. It was good to connect with them. 

Mark it down - one more reason to love the small town. 

First Solo Swim

Today was the first day I took both the kids to the pool by myself and it was a success!

Hope hasn't liked to get splashed and has been pretty timid in the water the last few times, so I decided to leave her in the stroller and just let her watch us. She loved it! 

Cole and I would come say hi to her frequently, along with all the other kids. She loved watching. And then i got her out and dipped her feet in the water in the kiddie pool with Cole. She didn't mind. And didn't mind if she got splashed this time either. 

Cole had fun "ruling the roost". He's tall enough to touch at the shallowest part of the big pool and not afraid to be in the water where he can't touch with his floaty on. I was proud of him. 

He asked to go off the diving board today, since that's what he's done with his daddy, but that's not my thing - at least not while I have a baby to watch too. We'll just have to wait until Marc can come again. 

I told myself this year I wasn't going to be that mom that didn't get her hair wet or didn't like to get splashed. So today I got all in, and it was lots of fun! Got to show off with my fourth grade swimming tricks - a little handstand action and swimming through Cole's legs and somersaults. Reminded me of all the afternoons we went to the pool with Mom. Such good memories!

Water Fun

We got a little bit of rain today, but it was enough to flow in the gutter across the street. So, while Hope took her morning nap, we strapped on the monitor and went for a bike ride/river wading/puddle jumping adventure. 

Letting Cole be an exploring boy. There was a puddle of water in his boots that I had to dump out when we were done! Ha!

And can you see? He's wearing Marc's ear protection for shooting guns. Crazy kid. 

Come Find Us!

Overheard from the kitchen as I am putting breakfast dishes away: [in a sing song voice] "Maaaaamaaaa, come fiiiiiind us!"

Two cute little kids behind the living room chair. What a hoot!

Playing to Learn

I'm pretty sure Cole plays with his MagnaTiles nearly every day. I love watching him and enjoy playing with him. I've heard it said that kids learn the most from playing, and I can see it lots but especially with these. He calls the shapes by name as well as the colors and then has to do some problem solving to make them stand up sometimes and uses his spatial reasoning to see what shapes would fit where. 

Today, I was impressed with him using the triangles and figuring out how to fit them together by turning them upside down. Check it out. 

And then there's this...

Funny! And fun!

Hope is Mobile!

Hope is mobile!! We've been having to start being creative to keep her contained when we can't keep an eye on her - like here when I went to the bathroom. Ha!

Our world is a changing!

First Day in KC

We made it to KC for our visit! Yesterday we took it easy and made sure to get the kids good naps and not push them too much. But we did manage to go play at Cindy's house for a bit where we saw Watson, jumped on the trampoline, played little people and watched Hope and Watson discover each other on the floor. 

Gramsy came over after naps and Cole went swimming in the backyard in Mom's little wading pool. Cole donned his complete swimming outfit for the occasion. 

With his cheering section under the shade. 

That's Watson in the picture, not Hope (who was taking a nap). 

In the evening, Abby came for supper, and we had such a fun time talking and catching up. 

Our night ended with going lightening bug hunting and catching our fill. That was a first for Cole, and he loved it! We don't have them out where we are (even though Mom says she remembers having them as a kid.)

Grateful for some time to visit!

A Sun

The other day I was working in the kitchen, and Cole called me downstairs to check out his creation. Looked what it ended up being - a sun!

He was so proud of it, and the math teacher in me was impressed with his spatial reasoning, pattern making, and perspective. We love these MagnaTiles!

Weather Boy Cole

Marc has taught Cole about the weather app we have installed on our devices. It's not uncommon for Cole to check the weather and tell you a "storm's coming", wether he's right or not. But lately it seems like he's becoming more and more savy and really does know what he's looking at and if there is a storm in our area. 

Tonight Marc taught him to use the pencil tool to draw a circle around sublette and around the farm. Here's his finished product. He was excited to show me his new skill!

Weather is pretty important around here, and Cole's picking up on that. He's taking after his daddy, who is great at tracking storms and analyzing the radar images. Maybe we have a budding weatherman in our midst. 

Another first

Look who's big enough to sit in a restaurant high chair? 

Hope Christine! Not sure when this happened, but she did great today at the pizza place with Cole and me. Her first time in a chair like this - Mark it down!

And her doting big brother...

Sleep Sack

Hope "graduated" out of her swaddle a few weeks ago when she kept rolling herself over on to her tummy in bed. Shirley made her a sleep sack like she did Cole to replace it. 

When Hope tried it on, Cole went and got his too, for old times sake.

Aren't these two the cutest? He loves teaching her things. 

Johnny Jump Up

I pulled out the Johnny Jump Up this week for Hope. Cole couldn't wait to put her in it. 

Who do you think makes her smile like this?

Yep, her favorite person, Cole. 

I'd say the jump up is a mediocre success. She likes it ok. Has bumped her head on the door frame once. And doesn't really jump but kind of hangs and swirls around. I'll have to try again a few more times, but the last few times she's started fussing as I put her in it. Maybe it's not her favorite. 

The Sights

Here are some sights from our bike ride/walk to get the mail the other day. 

Uncle Mike was using a skid steer to install a fence for a house on our street while Grandpa Voth looked on. 

We had to stop at the courthouse to use the bathroom. On our way back out, we ran into the custodian and Cole worked his magic to get to push her cart with an empty box. I thought it was pretty cute. 

Add these things to reasons I like living in a small town - along with my impromptu gathering of friends that came over last night (from an invitation sent out at 7:30) to help us eat some pie after all our kids went to bed. That works when you all love within a two mile radius!

Party

Tuesday afternoon Cole and I attended Corbin's 2nd birthday party. (Hope stayed home and out of the sun with Grandma Voth.) It was held in his backyard with a kiddie pool and slide, a sandbox complete with buried bugs to find, and fun riding toys. 

It was a fun hour or so with friends in the sun. We are so fortunate to have so many little kid friends around to play with (and celebrate)!

Hope is Moving

Hope is on the move! She hasn't yet gotten up on her hands and knees but she can use those chubby elbows and little feet like a champ. She can get to where she wants to go, faster than I expect. 

Here she is under the Voth's coffee table going after her prize - a soccer ball. 

This picture was taken right before she completely nailed her forehead and started crying (real tears!). Guess her mom should've been cushioning her blow instead of snapping her photo. 

Little Visitors

We had two little visitors today - Micah (6) and Lilli (3) - while their mom and dad went out for their anniversary. I sent Jonae some pictures throughout the day, so I thought I'd share. 

The kids played really well together. I got to experience the phenomenon I've heard about - that it's almost easier sometimes to have kid visitors because they keep each other entertained. 

We played in the sand, did a lot of building in the basement, walked to the park, had lunch, and ended with a few shows. 

It was a great day together!

New Tailgate

Last week Marc personally replaced his tailgate on his pick-up. He had been noticing that it was beginning to give out. He loads and unloads the four-wheeler multiple times a day and the ramps sit on the tailgate each time. 

He was able to work on it down in Turpin at the Isaacs's shed with their welding equipment, I guess. I was pretty impressed with the finished product. Who can take a piece of metal and come up with something like this? My man!

Wednesday with Cindy & Charlotte

It was a great day with the kids. I am amazed that Watson is changing so quickly! We were gone only a week and he went from hating to do tummy time to sleeping on his stomach.

He loves being a part of the action so we have him sitting in our borrowed chair. He is always happy- except when he is hungry or tired. He also hates it when we leave the room. He is also rolling over in bed.

Elsy had such a good day with us. We did science in the morning, I am sure she can tell you all about electricity now.

Charlotte made no bake cookies so she helped her. Then helped me lick the pan.

She also spent over 3 hours playing with play dough. Charlotte made her stop for lunch, then she went right back at it. I was amazed how patient she was. I spent part of 2 hours playing the part of the doggie we had made. She has such a vivid imagination.

This a picture she drew today, it is monster. Look at the details of the eyes and mouth. Last week she was just scribbling on the paper.

Kids grow up too fast, I love every minute with them!!

Marc is on the (Internet) Radio!

A few weeks ago Marc was interviewed by our good friend Nathan for his online radio broadcast, PeakAg Radio.  He knocked it out of the park!  As I was listening, I was so proud of him and the way he knows his industry so well and is an excellent businessman.

Check it out!  You just might learn something! :-)

www.peakagradio.com

Scroll down to the episode that aired on April 25, "Bonus Episode 2 with Midwest Crop Consultant - Marc Voth".  Very official!

7 Months

Hope is 7 months old! Check out these gems from our 3 minute photo shoot. 

"Cole, you wanna get in a picture with Hope?" - "Sure!"

Hope is changing so much lately. She's mobile, getting where she wants to go, slowly. And she has turned a corner in her sleeping and has started sleeping through the night, taking longer naps, and falling asleep completely on her own. I'm so proud of her - and feel like I have a completely new baby!