Playing with water

Yesterday morning, Granddaddy took Oliver to the store to get a new pair of rubber boots. (And here they are, not as macho as Oliver's old boots, but I think he's manly enough to pull off the look.)














While they were gone, Grammy and I sat on the patio and watched Buttercup fill a cup with water from the hose, drink it, sometimes choke on it, toss out the rest of the water, and start over again. It entertained her for at least 10 minutes!

It's funny how kids are so much alike -- I remember Oliver doing the same exact thing about 2 years ago. :-)

Old Friends and New Friends

Yesterday morning, Oliver, Buttercup, and I got to visit with my high school BFFs and Maggie's son at the mall. It was so good to see them again! Jackson brought toys to share and gifts for Oliver and Buttercup -- what a sweet little guy.

Thanks again for meeting us, we had a great time!

Mmm, watermelon!

Nothing like a slice of cold watermelon on a hot day. :-)

Playing in the Rocks

Before having kids, I never knew that there were so many uses for plastic containers. For instance, this morning Oliver played in the rocks with some tupperware and a plastic cup. He used them as:

A steam roller














a bulldozer














a cement mixer




































and then he used his hands as a jackhammer.


















And what was the Toot doing during Oliver's construction work? She was playing with Grammy's car remote, unlocking the doors and opening the trunk, over and over.


















Speaking of the Toot, here's another example of her wanting to do everything that Oliver does.

Cuties!

Making Good Choices

These days, Dennis and I are really trying to teach Oliver how to make good choices. For example, it's a good choice for Oliver to let Buttercup play with his Lincoln Logs. And it's a bad choice for Oliver to hit Buttercup over the head with the Lincoln Log box because she accidentally knocked his tower over.

But making good choices isn't just for kids. While I'm not prone to hitting people on the head with a toy box, it's very easy to be impatient and say a harsh word, or use a harsh tone of voice, just because I'm tired, frazzled, or stressed and don't feel like putting forth the effort. I know that we've all been there.

So it was really eye-opening that this was my devotional the other day: Though we are too apt to think that we are not accountable for our words--He who is to be our Judge, has plainly told us that "for every careless word which men speak, they shall give an account in the day of judgment." Matthew 12:36

I've read the verse before, but never really took the time to really think about it. Wow. I will be accountable for every.little.word. that I say. That is some serious stuff! And then I realized that my heavenly Father -- the Creator of everything! -- is patiently teaching me how to make good choices, at the same time that I'm trying to teach Oliver how to make good choices.

Wow, again.

You know, it's pretty cool the way God works. :-)

Oliver and his "light hat"

At the mall the other day, Grammy bought Oliver a kids' construction worker hat with a working light, sounds, and microphone. He calls it his "light hat." He wore it on the way home and had the most interesting conversations talking into the microphone.

At one point, he was talking for a minute or two, rambling into the microphone. Then he stopped talking and turned it off. Then he turned it back on, and said, "I have one more thing to say. I love you." I said, "Oh how sweet! Who were you talking to, me or Grammy?" Oliver said, "I was talking to my light hat!" DUH, Mom. I laughed so hard!

I took this video of one of his conversations -- enjoy!

Transcript:
Niner niner, sevener, niner niner, thirteener elevener. See you, niner niner sevener.
And here it goes.
Is there something to see over here? Let me see. Oh, it was a car.
Um, I have to talk to you, okay? Niner. I've got some bubblegum at home. What you can chew, and swallow, and don't -- and don't swallow it, and something else. I will give you a pizza and some sausage, okay?