the toy barricade

As I work in the kitchen, this is a common scene. I confess there are days when the sight of the clutter is unnerving. Also, moments when tripping over tractors, trains, and animals cause me to utter words my toddler should not hear. But the maker of this mess just wants to be near me. He wants to ask me, tell me and show me things. So today I am thankful for the clutter. I hope that at every age and stage, he'll still want to spend some time near mom.

pictures that were on the camera ...

the man from snowy river... no that's not a measly chopstick, that's a whip!!!

baby J, every once in while he decides to confiscate E's dusty pacifier and relax in the swing... reliving the glory days.

we hosted a dreary day picnic for our friends in the living room...

J was and excellent host.

other dreary weather activities include scooping beans into various containers and sitting on his brother (not pictured)

speaking of brother, there he is! what a happy little wiggler!

and a pretty cute little turtle too!

while i was catching up with Auntie Ashley on the phone there was a pant-less escape... not so unusual as one might think... also pictured, the edge of my NEW herb garden which borders the goat pen.

Happy April Fools Day!!!

we have names! :)
Mama's name is Cassie, actually "Milky Way Cassiopeia", she came with that name :)
the little gal is on the left and her name is Daisy Mae
and the little guy is on the right, we call him Buster... he will find a new home sometime in the next month or so.


Daisy Mae playing up on the fence board


Cassie and Buster eating some hay


our little drummer boy... loving this imagination! just so you know he is sitting on a folgers container and set this drum kit up all by himself. :)


E checking the jumparoo out for the first time :) he likes that he can see J when he's in there.


after J blasted through a bag of whopper eggs and skittles (with absolutely no help from mom at all, non what-so-ever) i decided it might be best for all involved to switch to Annie's bunny cookies and gummies for treats :)


J just filled his 2nd sticker chart on monday... he calls the smiley faces his Papa stickers... "this looks like papa..."( i think he remembers the little smiley guy you draw for yourself ). In honor of his accomplishment last night we watched...


other news:

J has picked up the phrase "hey, wait a minute..."

i found "the many adventures of winnie the pooh" on youtube (the one i watched when i was little) J will ask now "mama, can i watch the silly old bear?"

he has also now become interested in time, he asks me "mama, what time is it?" randomly through out the day... his favorite guess is that it's "sixteen eleven"

goings on and goats

J got his "movie with popcorn" reward night last sunday :) featuring THE LION KING.


where's J?


here's a hint... yes, he's asleep in there.


me: J, can you go get E a toy?
J: umm, sure
E: *30 seconds later*


sunday morning coffee


our little farmstead


we have a new farm vehicle...ok ok it's just our old car but with new purpose... it was recently used for hauling livestock :)


the goats are here! we went and picked them up today: a doe with her doeling and buckling


they are settling in nicely


our first yield

potty progress plus

training is going really well! J went all day yesterday with no accidents... we even went grocery shopping! worth noting: this little frog is a very good sport!


after he pees he dumps it by himself and comes running out for a trrrreeeaaaaattttt!!!!

he also gets a sticker. if he fills all the squares with stickers we will watch The Lion King on the projector with a popcorn snack on sunday.


J is becoming an accomplished drummer... he drums on anything, any time, any where! (in underwear)


he's even trying to get E to join in... he's thinking about it.


E is still chubby and smiley... much to my joy and relief!


J has a booster chair now, he gets to eat at "the big brown table" with mom and dad. for the record he's not smiling about the booster, he's smiling about the meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and green beans! MIDWEST!!!


i was rocking E and reading a book about goats the other night... then here comes J, he carried his little rocking chair in and sat down to read his jesus storybook bible. pretty cute!

i want to tell the world!!!!

that's right all ten of you...

J IS OFFICIALLY POTTY TRAINING!

he has gotten 3 stickers today and i am thrilled!
we are super proud of this little guy!
feel free to make a really big deal about it in any way! :)