did you miss us???

it's been pretty rainy out here so here's what we've been up to inside...
legos!!! J is a master castle architect.

Play dates and play doh!!!

trains... OHHH LOOK! J's actually wearing pants!!!!

chasing... (everybody's favorite)

 mowing the lawn with an exmark... (or sitting on E's car seat which you have turned upside down)

riding horses with a "saddle"

helping mom put groceries away...

and of course after all that... naps...

Animals

Just what exactly does a man with a Saturday off work do?  He goes to the zoo with his wife and kids right?  Yes that is exactly what he does.  WOW thats great says you, is there anything that could be better than that?  only if the zoo was full of moving walkways. carrying 2 kids, walking for hours on end in the heat... exhausting but worth every step as evidenced by the images below...

For the 1st hour all J wanted was to see a zebra, which is practically a horse... we could have gotten away with a drive in the countryside.  Also, see how good he is doing at looking at the camera, wrong camera but looking none the less

There's a leopard in there, A leopard is a big cat, probably could have gotten away with a walk around the neighborhood where there are plenty of those ferrel creatures

another big cat but super close and pretty cool

 E had a great time, even seen a crow!

We got to feed this guy a little later which was not as cool as it sounds but to J it was indescribable

 FOR ASLAN

If those pics weren't proof enough that the boys had a great time, these last 2 of the trip home ought to convince you

Thanks for looking
Jordan

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