Brigham says the funniest things. I went up to his room because his tape went off during quiet time and I knew if he was going to stay quiet for a while longer, the tape needed to be flipped over. (He is currently listening to Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingals Wilder.) I opened his door, and he was standing there looking a little tired and dazed. "Do you want me to open your window a little so it isn't so hot in here?" I asked. His answer - "Ab-sa-woot-wee." What three year old says absolutley?

Tulips

Tulips and daffodils are big around here. I mean, BIG! Today we took a trip to one of the local gardens and I don't think I even realized how many types of tulips are out there. Instead of boring you with tons of pictures of flowers, I just made a collage or two.

And, okay, I had to throw in one or two really cute smelling pictures. Next year we will head for a field instead of a garden. I think the fatalities will be less noticeable. There was only one picking, but someone fell, and a few lives were lost.

Good-Bye Stitch

Yeah! Paul got his stitches out today! And, he did remarkably well with the procedure. I only had to remind him not to move (okay, lots of reminders) and the doctor took them right out.

We didn't even have to sedate him. :) He is definitely going to have a scar, but hopefully it will fade in time.

Vox

This post really needs to be much longer, but, as usual, I am on the run and don't have time to do it justice. However, this is the long and short of it. Paul now has a Dynavox, which is a fully-functioning computer communication assistance device. It has a touch screen that he can use to navigate through picture menus to select what he wants to say. When he touches a picture of grapes, the device says, "grapes". We are really excited to see the progress he has made in the 1.5 months we have had it. And, I am finally figuring out how to program it. So, for the next week or two, I will have my camera in tow. I am just warning you that you might be the subject of a picture for the Vox. The more customized the Vox is, the more effective it is. We need pictures of all our friends and places!

reasons I love my brothers

I have brothers who are 13 and 14 years old. Since living up the street from my parents, I have discovered some things about them that just make me happy. When we go to the store (they sometimes come with me and sit in the car with the kids so I don't have to lug the whole crew), I am sometimes requested to pick an item up for them. Now, what would you expect a boy of that age to request? I mean, like a normal boy. My requests? Soda and gum. How can you not love that? And, when I went down tonight to borrow some thread, guess what I found them watching? Now, Mom and Dad are out on a date, and they didn't know I would be coming down, so this is what they were watching for their own enjoyment. "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show" and "The John Bennie(?) Show". Yes, they do have a PG limit for movies, but, there are a lot more modern movies they could be watching. I love that they are so innocent. What great guys!

Poor Paul

Well, yesterday was Paul's birthday, so I was planning on posting today. He had a pretty fun day, and a birthday party to boot! It was his first, and I think (hope) all the boys had fun. Joy wasn't too impressed and thinks that Paul really should invite girls to his party next time so that she will have someone to play with. I was just excited everything went smoothly and am glad that Brigham won't be five for another year and a half. Paul had a ball party, and they all got bouncy balls and had ball "cake." Not really cake, but rice crispy treats on a stick. We don't really like cake, so we decided to find a tastier route.


Then, in the evening, Paul did the family party. He was delighted with his car and pants from Grammy and Grandpa, birthday money from Meme and dog neck pillow from Mom and Dad.
But, he was estactic when this morning came and he found the train table put together. He and the other three boys played in his room for quite a while, it was really nice.

Actually, I had to tear them away to go play with friends. Then, the unfortunate happened.

Paul is not the world's most graceful child. While playing this morning, he slipped on the linoleum and smacked his head, right between the eyes, into a chair. I didn't get a before picture, what with rushing to the emergency room and all, so you will just have to believe me that it was grusome! Blood all over the place. But, he is a trooper, and after an oral sedative, they were able to wrap him all up, strap him to a board, and stitch him up. Poor little guy has EIGHT stitches! I guess it won't be hard to remember the date on that one!

Fun with a camera

The other day, Hyrum was walking around with his cute belly sticking out. I tried to get some video of it, but I am still an ametuer video-grapher. It helps when you have a cute subject.

Then, when I really tried to capture the belly, I got knocked over and climbed on.

And jumped on. Life is just hard.

Even Brigham had to get in on the action.