Outlet

As an outlet for work, some people run. Others cook or eat. I have a friend who reads and takes long baths, usually together. I used to play sports, but now, I'm a bit older and my body doesn't take the beating as readily as it used to. Plus, I'm lazy. So that led to finding new ways to remember that I'm more than just the spit-up on Mommy.

A few months ago, I borrowed a sewing machine from another missionary friend. I wanted to make a crib bumper... correction, I WANTED a crib bumper and HAD to make it because I couldn't find what I wanted. Guess that's what I get for being picky. Anyways, I found I really enjoyed the activity. For Christmas, I was given a new machine, all of my very own. I wish I had the time to sew more, but let's face it, most days, by the time I get to a "me" activity, the choices are either sleep or something else (like read a book, take a shower, etc.) and sleep wins 99.4% of the time (sometimes, I sneak some baking in there, hence the non-100%, but it's usually fueled more by a desire to EAT than bake). Well, I found a few websites that I really enjoy which give inspiration for easy projects. One had a "how to" on reusing old t-shirts and such. Unfortunately, we got rid of all old, tattered things before we moved (who wants to bring t-shirts from your husband's junior high to Africa?). That translated to being a bit more... creative.

I was hunting through the sale racks at the local version of Old Navy when I realized that a bunch of shirts were on sale for just over $1. ONE DOLLAR PEOPLE! I grabbed two in two different colors, determined to get some sanity, at some point out of them. Em needs longer sleeved shirts for winter, which is coming up, and I like to sew. Put the two together, mixed with my adorable little toddler and... abracadabra, presto-change-o! A bit of my sanity back and Em has two new shirts, complete with girly ruffles.

This is my serious, pouty face... how's it work for me?
Seriously guys, whatever it is, it was NOT me!

Rough Day

Yesterday was a rough day. There was no real reason in particular, it was just one of those days where the house is a mess, you can't find the sink, your kids are driving you nuts and dinner, though you actually worked really hard at it, was inedible. By 5:30pm, I was just ready to crawl into bed and wish the day away. I think if I were a better person, I would have cried, but the reality is, I'm not a crier and even if I was, I didn't have the energy to expend on tears.

Then, Todd came home. I informed him it was PB&J for dinner, while he, in turn, presented me with two packages. The first package was from my Grams and Gramps. They spent WAY too much money sending us this package, but I have to say, the clothes that came, with the smell of "Grams" was worth every single penny. In fact, I have all the clothes on my lap as I type so that I can get as much of the full smell for the longest amount of time possible. It's that great mixture of a house that's been well cared for for decades and Caress soap and Grams herself, with just a hint of the wood shop from Gramps. The second, was from a church on our LINKS District (yeah for Prarie Oak Church of the Nazarene!). I don't remember telling them what we were needing, but even without that, we got an amazing answer to prayer in terms of Em and her clothes. For some reason, her eczema seems to really flare up with most of the fiber blends of clothing here. That, mixed with her huge toosh and small waist have set me to making many items for her. But they had dresses and socks and a hat for my tow-headed, burn-in-two-seconds daughter. On top of all that, the stuff is so purtty!

We've been here for over a year. I love it. I love our church and I love my friends and I would miss them DEARLY if we had to leave. But that doesn't mean to I have forgotten home or don't miss things there. I miss my family dearly... every last crazy member and I dearly miss spending time with them- eating Christmas dinner with all 3,000 (okay, slight hyperbole) of them. I also miss being able to provide things for my family (that don't cause them to break out into hives) but, the honest truth is this: God is SO GOOD and I'm so incredibly blessed by all he does and gives to me.
Em in her new "Mommy's Surfer Girl" shirt (I finally get one instead of just "Daddy's Little Girl"- wahoo!) Do you suppose we should tell her tomatoes taste better when they're red?
Gardening with Daddy... even has her own gloves, although they seem to blend in with the background here- hum...
Aunt Hilary will have to help out in the basketball department because Lord knows, I can't shoot!

Official

Many new, and rather official things have happened in the Leslie household today. Another missionary family is leaving, and while we're sad to see them go, I'm DELIGHTED to have their dishwasher! I was planning on having this great post with pictures and everything of the installation. Problem with that plan came when the dishwasher showed up unexpectedly (I wasn't about ready to send it back so I could get the camera out) and the guys had it in and ready to go in less time than it took to get the camera... so no pictures, but I am LOVING the clean small parts and pieces to all the sippy-cups and annoying kiddy things we always have around the house.

The next major event came when we went swimming as a family and Em swam from one end of the pool to the other. She did have a small float around her middle, but she kicked, blew bubbles (and drank just a little) and did big arms and everything! (I'll get video when I can, but it didn't happen today, obviously)

The last and final surprise of the day came from Cooper. Coop has a particular distain for all things "normal." He has hated from day one being on his belly. I know you're supposed to put babies on their tummy for "tummy time" to help their neck and back muscles and such. I also know that kids are supposed to roll from their belly to their back around this age. Then in a few months, they roll from their back to their belly. Well, Cooper is my son and apparently he won't do anything unless it's on his terms. So this morning, when I put him on his play mat on his back and Todd found him on his belly. I figured it was a mistake... Then, he did it again at the pool. Again, thought I'd put him on a slant or some such. When we got home and he did it again, and again, and again, I finally grabbed the camera. Well, no mistake about it, he's mobile... I've come to the conclusion that the difference between the first and second kid was profoundly felt today. When Em first rolled over, that sentence would have had three exclamation points after it. Another milestone and my baby growing up- yeah!!! This time around, I know what it means: it means I can no longer leave him in the middle of the bed, or laying on his play mat, or sitting in his bouncer to do the dishes, take a shower, or change the laundry. This means that he's just a hair's breadth away from crawling, and then walking... With Em, I was so excited to see her grow up, but now, now I know how fast it goes and I'm just wanting to put the whole thing in slow motion. At least I have this on video and can play IT in slow motion because I doubt Cooper will be okay with putting his "growing up" on hold just for his silly ol' mommy!

Signs

There are sure signs of good naps and signs that my children aren't yet ready to wake up. As strange as this may sound, if a child of mine is crying after a nap, then they needed longer to sleep. They both wake up happy and content to just play and amuse themselves. This, however, has it's downside as well. I'm always afraid that a child (or two) will end up awake but stuck in a crib or bed. Thus, I end of up trapsing up and down the stairs half a dozen times to check on them, but I still suppose it's better than the alternative.
Emme after a good nap.

Not so good nap... please note that a tremendous hairdo is required of ALL naps these days!

Today was Cooper's day to wake up screaming. Em and I were downstairs getting a snack. Cooper, due to his 4-month immunizations, hasn't been feeling so well, so he was asleep in Mommy and Daddy's bed instead of his own. This is a very important detail because his room has a sound-drowning fan on when he sleeps. Anyways, back to snack time. After four days of diligently trying to find the bottom of my sink and the beginning of my kitchen counters, I had managed to have a CLEAN kitchen and wasn't about ready to add more dishes to clean, so Em got her half sandwich on my lunch plate. She forgot about the lunch plate when Todd came home and, in an effort to show her exuberant love and affection for Daddy, ran to him but got a foot on the plate in the process. Em went down, the plate went flying, and Cooper went...

Don't forget to note the sad, lone tear. This picture shouldn't make me laugh, but it does. He's such a trooper but when he's had it, he's HAD IT and there's no going back.

ABCs

Auntie Em is the best! We received (albeit a little late, but that's South African's way of delaying the glorious gratification!) a package packed with all sorts of fun goodies. The family favorite is a set of really cute blocks that are clear plastic and have a letter of the alphabet stamped on the outside. The best part, though, is that inside the block is an object that starts with that letter!! (The teacher in me LOVES this toy)
The other day, Todd and I were doing chores and such trying to clean up, when we noticed a suspicious lack of noise. The immediate thought is, "Oh man! Now what is she into?" We came into the living room to see our future champion Jenga player practicing her talent for stacking. She got up to 8 before we heard, "Uh-oh" and a squeal of delight that she got to do it all over again. (Please note, Todd can only do 6 and I refuse to try on the grounds that a toddler might beat me) She's been stacking and unstacking those blocks all over the house!! While finding them in the laundry basket is a bit... frustrating, I love seeing her so involved with them. Working on those gross motor skills... fine motor skills... pre-literacy... makes this teacher's heart sing, just a bit!

Full-contact Yogurt

Em, who after months and months of just four teeth (you try eatting anything with just your four front teeth!) has finally cut two more teeth on the bottom. Unfortunately, since she's gone without for so long her favorite foods are those that require little/no chewing... like yogurt. Em, as in everything she does these days, has made yogurt an art form. Actually, less like art and more like full-contact!

Gardening- Emmerson Style!

Some time ago we purchased an inflatable pool for me to help teach Em some water safety and swimming (I don't have to worry about people seeing me in my backyard). The problem is, it's the rainy season and paint chips from our not so well painted roof tiles kept running off the roof and getting into the pool. We have a community pool five or six houses down (it's always frigid, but it works) so after much debate, we took down our backyard pool that we couldn't use because of the paint (or couldn't use because of the outrageous amount of upkeep it takes to keep it useable). The thing we forgot about was that the pool had overlapped into the grass just a bit. Oops. That left us with a half-circle of nothing but red clay with a very curious toddler and a dig-happy dog. The solution to this issue was to put in pavers, so that we might finally have enough room for a patio table (which we hope to have). We picked out pavers that are most like cement so that Em will be able to do chalk drawings because, as we've discovered, stick people made out of sidewalk chalk on brick just don't look right.

Em decided to help. (Note: She's in a diaper because she had already ruined with red clay the very cute romper she was in... grrr!)


She's also discovered a new-found passion for stacking things in multiple places. I was so nervous about her dropping one on a foot, but she wouldn't hear of ANY help.


Since the whole backyard was in total deconstruction anyways, I decided it was time to wage war on the zucchini plants. They had, after all, gone from overlapping the grass by a few inches to a few feet (and zucchinis have spikes!). Em and Lani decided, once again, to help out.

Safari

We have had the privilege of spending time in a few game reserves the last few days. We went to one with just Marilyn and Warren and then went as a group of 8 (our four, Todd's folks, and the Patricks) to another park today. It's so wonderful to see all the glorious animals and cruise around slowly just enjoying the time talking with good friends/family. The kids enjoyed the time, although Em did fall asleep eventually and Cooper was asleep longer than he was awake!

"Sitty, sitty" according to Miss Capri... we're still working on the "k" sound.

Bill pointing out an alligator to Em, who promptly almost knocked Bill over by making the chomping noise and moving her arms like an alligator's mouth... Oops, should have warned you Bill!

For an All Blacks fan like Connie, seeing sights like the magnificent Springboks was something! For those of you who don't know, Connie (Kiwi) is obviously an All Blacks rugby fan and the South African Springboks are their arch-rivals... We did win the last Rugby World Cup, but who's really keeping track?