Walks in November

I miss the warm weather already. Sigh.

Probably don't show this next one to DCFS. I'm not sure it's 100% kosher. But hey, with 3 churchlynns and a double stroller I had to improvise!

Rub a Dub Dub...

3 kids in a tub!

I just found my camera cord so I'm starting a bunch of catch up posts. Be excited.

2 Churchlynn Stories

I lost my wedding ring a couple of weeks ago. Each night I take it off and place it on our dresser next to the bed. My hands get so dry during the winter I have to lather them in eucerin before bed so they don't crack and bleed- and I just don't like the greasy stuff on my ring. So around noon one day I realized I hadn't put my ring back on yet. I went directly to the dresser and found it was gone. Immediately I called Jo and Tic to my room, asking if they'd seen my ring or taken it somewhere. I assured them they weren't in trouble. They swore they didn't have a clue where the ring was. I wasn't too worried because I was 99.9999532% positive one of them had taken it and the ring was still in the house somewhere. Only a matter of time before I found it. So 2 days ago I'm looking under our couch and Jo comes waltzing by, "What are you doing Mama?"
"I'm looking for my ring," pointing to my ring finger, "remember?"
"You're looking for your ring again?"
"Yep! If you ever see my ring make sure to bring it right to Mama, okay?" bending back down to keep looking.
Jo pauses for a minute. "Probably it's in your light." I stop.
"What?"
"Probably it's in your light by your bed." Both of us take off down the hall. Ryan and I have an old fashioned style of lamp by our bed, sort of like this:

It's not an oil lamp but looks a bit like one. I pull out the glass covering around the bulb finding the following locked inside: 4 sewing pins, 1 paper clip, and 1 diamond ring! According to the Jo Tic likes to drop things in the lamp. Probably he was the guilty party. So if you lose anything ask Jo. Probably she'll know where it Probably is.

Yesterday after playing outside for about 5 minutes Jo was cold and wanted to go back in. Atticus was still having a grand time so I let Jo go in by herself and said, "Just poke you're head out the door and call me if you need anything!"
Within a couple of minutes I heard her muffled voice calling me behind the still, closed door. I opened it slightly. "What do you need?"
"I need to go potty!"
I helped Jo with her business and went to leave.
"So Mom?"
"Yes?"
"If I need you again I just poke my head and stand by the door and call you and you'll come again?"
Such a great image! Jo repeatedly poking herself in the head with her index finger behind the closed front door and calling for me! I love how her mind works:).

Things

I'm sad. I've lost my cord to transfer pictures to the computer. Lame, lame, lame, lame, LAME.

This morning Ryan left for work and quickly realized he had a flat tire. So he turned around and came home. Atticus was the only one awake at this point so I turned on "dinosaurs" (Land before Time) , put on my coat, and went out to try and help. I've never changed a flat. I don't know if Ryan had. The car manual came in handy! After about 10 minutes I came back inside, finding two little churchlynns holding each other behind the couch with big, rolling tears on their cheeks. I realized very quickly that Jo had woken up and the two had searched our apartment for me, deciding they'd been abandoned by their mother. They looked at me with such relief! As if they never could have hoped for so much! The look on their faces was heartbreaking. I quickly knelt down and threw my arms around them telling them over and over again that Daddy and Mama would never ever leave them alone. They were quickly reassured. I, on the other hand, had to kiss them and squeeze them every minute for the next hour- such guilt for causing so much fear!

Jo just asked me, "Mama, are girls idiots or are boys idiots?" Pause. How to answer...

A moment like this

Some people wait a lifetime

for a moment like this!

Today as Atticus and Jo were playing some game, running up and down our hallway, I could not help but smile. I hear Jo, "Akus! Akus! Stop. Akus, I love you." And then in reply, "audge ou, Jo." And then more running and laughing. SO SWEET.

Answers to the vocab quiz.

churchlynn- a baby animal, but we call the kids churchlynns just to make them mad. "No! I'm not a churchlynn, Mom!" Ha ha.
waa-ting- sword
wan hold ju- I want you to hold me
bottle- sippy cup
porphas- pretzels
squeeze- hug
cars- anything with singular or plural wheels
purpits- we honestly don't know. I was hoping someone could shed some light for me. We know they are something Jo keeps under her shirt and we know Tigger (from Winnie the Pooh) is one.
baa- sheep
make- cook food
boop- belly button
mooBee- movie
bubba- little brown dog Jo sleeps with
loves- kisses and hugs together
saucy- not exactly sure on this one. But it's refering to food that tastes good. That's all I've been able to conclude. (Jo at dinner) "Mom, this is SAUCY!" Pretty cute.
rhar- anything with teeth: tiger, lion, rhino, dinosaur, monster, shark, etc.

Fishystat- Jo
Peeleaf- Me
Worschrystat- Ryan
Lehi- Atticus
Decoin- Casey
Snugglie- Andrew
Dobby- Jane
Hinjolt- Me again

I'll tell you what, not just anyone gets a name. Jo is very particular about who she bestows them on. Be offended if you're not on the list. And let her know that you need to be. Christy is definitely the winner. And her prize... is... um... a play date. With said churchlynns. All by herself (I mean she'll still have her kids and household duties and everything). So we'll drop them off, leave for a few hours, go do something inconsequential (like a hot date). That means she'll get to entertain and feed them. I know what you're thinking, "Sounds a lot like babysitting." But it's not. See, you volunteer to babysit. This is a prize bestowed on you. So be grateful, Chris:).

Vocabulary Quiz

How confident do you feel communicating with Jo and Atticus? This is a list of words they've made up or substituted for other words. You're job is to define each one as the identified child would. You will receive your score by mail within 10 business days. All sales final. We do not guarantee your satisfaction. The end.

Jo- churchlynn
Atticus- waa-ting
Both- wan hold ju
Both- bottle
Jo- porphas
Both- squeeze
Atticus- cars
Jo- purpits
Atticus- baa
Both- make
Atticus- boop
Atticus- mooBee
Jo (but stolen from Sophie)- bubba
Both- loves
Jo- saucy
Atticus- rhar

And these are names Jo's given people. I think mostly we use these names just when we're fighting monsters. Who are they? (hint: one person is used more than once.)

Fishystat
Peeleaf
Worschrystat
Lehi
Decoin
Snugglie
Dobby
Hinjolt