On September 7th, Michael turned the BIG FIVE.

I'm still recovering.

The fact that I am now a mother to a five-year-old (and one-year-old) is a little... shocking, to say the least.

I imagine I'll be over it by the time they're six and two. Then that's a completely different hurdle.

But, turn five Michael did and we made quite a day week out of it. From camping the weekend before with dad, and Marmee flying in the evening before his big day, to donuts for breakfast, a zoo trip, chick-fil-a, and wrapping it up with a Zootopia-themed evening, it was marvelous.


Michael's Fifth Birthday Interview


What's your name? Michael Clark Dunn

How old are you? Five!

What date is your birthday? September 7th, Wednesday.

What's your favorite color? Green!

What's your favorite animal? All of them.

What's your favorite book? Dinosaurs! (oooooh)

What's your favorite movie? Zootopia, and also Jimmy Neutron!

What's your favorite song? The Zootopia song. (Try Everything by Shakira)

What's your favorite food? All of it! OR Birthday Cake!

What's your favorite drink? Purple Flurp! (Grape Soda)

What's your favorite breakfast food? Toast and fruit.

What's your favorite dinner? Chicken.

What's your favorite snack? Goldfish.

What's your favorite thing to wear? Surfing shirt and light brown pants.

What's your favorite game to play? The Disney game (Disney Scene-It).

What's your favorite toy? All my birthday presents!

Who's your best friend? All my best friends are my best friends! (followed by a nudge from Clark and the answer: Dada.)

What's your favorite thing to do? Play!

What's your favorite thing to do outside? Play!

What's your favorite holiday? My BIRTHDAY!

What do you like to sleep with? Wrinkles and Alaska.

What's your favorite place to go? Ice cream! (Baskin Robbins)

Where do you want to go on vacation? Disney WORLD.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A police officer!

And, what's today? MY BIRTHDAY!


For his birthday this year, Michael's big gift was an Amazon Fire from us and his Marmee and Papa.


It has awesome features, including read-aloud books that make putting his brother down for a nap a little more do-able-- plus it works with our homeschooling reading time, too! This is not to say he doesn't use it for shows and games, too, but we're working out a routine.

At his doctor's appointment he weighed in at 48 lbs and measured 46 inches tall. That's three pounds heavier and 4.75 inches taller. (See Michael is 4! for last year's birthday.)

This kid, I tell you. And I'm pretty sure he's growing-- again. Why does he have to do that?

I realize that this is very late coming, considering Levi turned one over two months ago. However, in the spirit of giving myself grace, I decided to still share some excellent pictures and facts about Levi that apply to him around June 8, 2016.

Prepare for an overwhelming amount of pictures.



We first celebrated Levi's birthday in a local park with family friends & coworkers of Clark's. It was very fun... except the high was 117 and by the time we rolled out the cake and candle Levi was ready for a nap. But then, what are first birthday parties but to snap some pictures, enjoy some company, and show off your baby... am I right?



We call Levi, "Mouse" as a nickname, so we did If You Give A Mouse A Cookie which was a lot of fun. We had way too much food, most of which melted in the heat, but everyone enjoyed it-- and that's what counts!


On Levi's actual birthday, we woke up early (per usual) and went downstairs. He was a little overwhelmed by all that he saw, but once he realized he got to rip the presents open he had way too much fun doing it. He also had no problem letting his big brother know that they were his.


Right around his birthday Levi officially started walking. Much like his big brother (who took his first true steps on his first birthday), Levi started cruising around (semi) gracefully just five days before his big day. He weight 18lbs exactly on his birthday, and was 27.75 inches long. Lover of cheese, grazing, putting everything in his mouth, and a bit on the small side-- this is why we lovingly call him "Mouse." (It has NOTHING to do with the fact that he's grown into his ears and made squeaky noises as communication when he was itty-bitty...or does it?)


On his birthday Levi:

- had six teeth (molars coming in-- this is still true)

- loves: climbing on the dishwasher, toys that make noise, bubba (Michael), mama and dada, clapping, playing "chase"


- first word: dada
- words he says/said clearly: this, that, ball, mama, dada, cheese, up, juice, nana, out


- favorite songs: if you're happy and you know it & what does the fox say
- favorite foods: tuna, bananas, snap pea crisps, cheese, spaghetti, black beans, Lima beans.
- favorite book: Baby Lit Books' Treasure Island


He's already grown so much since his birthday. I'm not sure my heart can handle it.

It's hard to believe we are closer to Levi being ONE than we are to him being a newborn. After passing the halfway mark, or even before, I was amazed with how quickly Levi progressed. Perhaps it's because he has a big brother to watch, but this kid just wants to GO.

He went from crawling/flopping like a seal at five months to quickly getting up on his hands and knees. As soon as he conquered that, he quickly started pulling up, sitting up, and cruising furniture. It's hard to keep track, truly, of everything he CAN do right now.


The biggest change, I think, is he's practicing his balance. I'll watch and he lets go of a toy, or the couch, or a shoulder and tests his two feet before quickly grabbing hold again. It's over in a flash, but when I look at him-- I know he's super excited, proud... and ready.

And I am SO not.

As if moving and testing his balance wasn't enough, Levi very clearly says, "Dada" ... all the time. The only time he spits out, "Mama" is when he's near exhaustion or upset and can't see me (though I, of course, see him). We're also 80% he's calling Michael, "Baba" for brother and associating "nana" with banana. He'll also rub his hands together for "more" and likes to wave his hands in the air to a song he enjoys.

Although Levi is moving and grooving faster than Michael did, he's a little peanut by comparison. Coming in four pounds lighter than Michael at this age, Levi is 15lbs 6oz and 25.75 inches long. His gums are also swollen on the top and the bottom in top... so we'll see which teeth win the race. (Michael's top two came in first.)


When it comes to food, Levi isn't exactly picky. Unless you try to spoon feed him-- then he doesn't trust it. But anything that's on our plates, or seems to be "real" food... he'll eat it.

Peas? Check! Green beans? Check! Apples? Bananas? Sweet Potatoes? Avocado? Check, check, check, check!

Oatmeal? Baby food? WHAT IS THAT STUFF?

So when I had a fleeting moment and grabbed a thing of baby puffs at Target, he was SO excited because they pretty much look like brother's goldfish crackers.

Now that we're trying to make a change (again) with our eating habits, I'm trying to steer away from the baby puffs and make things at home (that goes for the goldfish, too). Luckily, I found THIS recipe and molded it a little to make something that is Levi approved.

HOMEMADE BANANA-SWEET POTATO [BABY] PUFFS


Ingredients:

- 2 medium baked potatoes
- 2 bananas
- 1 C flour
- 3 tbsp oil (I used coconut)
- 3 tbsp water (or formula or breastmilk or another milk if your baby is older)
- Cinnamon to taste (optional)

Directions:

- Bake your sweet potatoes at 350 for 45 minutes or so, and if your bananas aren't SUPER ripe you can bake them for about 20 minutes to soften them and strengthen the flavor.
- After your bananas and sweet potatoes have cooled, put them and all your other ingredients in a food processor or blender.
- Prep a cookie sheet with wax paper or cooking spray. Next you can do one of two things:

1. Use a piping bag or ziplock bag with the tip cut off to make little circular "puffs." I found this to be a little difficult, since the batter is pretty runny.

2. Spread all of your batter on the cooking sheet so it's not TOO thick but you can't see the cookie sheet through it.

- Bake for 12-15 minutes for #1 and 15-20 minutes for #2. Check to make sure the edges aren't burned/too dark.
- If you go with option #2, next you can use a small cookie cutter to cut the puffs into desire shape. I used stars!

Serve and see your baby's happy face.

Happy March 1st!

We are all about countdowns this year. It keeps Michael focused, busy... and from asking how many days it is until the next holiday. After our Valentine's Day Countdown was such a success, I was assured that it would pretty much work with everything. And while I realize St. Patrick's Day is BEFORE Easter... Easter is so early this year it just had to be the priority.

Plus, we got to work on more counting this way. We did up to 14 with Valentine's Day, and now we made it all the way up to 27. Woooooooooo!

Can you sense my excitement? I hope so!

I scoured the wonderful world of Pinterest for some ideas and printable. After all, we aren't all meant to be amazing at that sort of thing... and I knew that other moms before me would have had it ready at hand.

Laziness? Maybe. Resourcefulness? Absolutely.

Sure enough, I found a countdown that I love. It's called THE JOY JOURNEY (follow the link), and came with some an adorable printable that allowed us 20 days of ideas and service projects for this amazing season.


That did leave a problem though, as you may have noticed. I wanted to countdown from today to Easter, which is 27 days. Not 20.

In order to not create any confusion in Michael with counting down, I looked some more to find some Bible verses to filter in the 20 days of activities so we could have a few days of rest. After all, we aren't guaranteed to accomplish something every.single.day. before Easter.

Even I'm not THAT crazy.

After searching, I found THESE.


Michael colored and cut them all out, and I honestly didn't pay attention to which seven made it into our eggs.

Oh, that's the next part.

After coloring, cutting, and numbering-- we made a game out of this.

Michael matched the numbers he wrote to the numbers I wrote on our Easter eggs.


He had so much fun filtering and arranging and all that jazz. It was a wonderful, educational, time-consuming activity.

And, let's be real, those are the best.

Michael has already called me out on writing the numbers on the eggs wrong, since the eggs are now upside down... but whatever. They still serve their purpose, am I right?


Are you a writer? Check out my OTHER SITE today to read my thoughts on Finding the Time to be a Writer.

I'm finding it hard to believe that we are in the last week of January, let alone that it's 2016. I know we all fret over time and how fast it goes, but it makes more and more sense to me why our parents always warn us about it. Michael is four, and Levi is just about 8 months. I can't handle it.

I decided to try and do Practising Simplicity's 52 project this year (again...). The problem is, I decided it about a week ago. So although I'm sharing four pictures, I'm honestly not sure of their timeline. I intend to be more intentional with pulling out my "good" camera and not just my phone to snap some shots as time passes. After all, life is made up of small moments. And I definitely want to capture as many as I can.
#1

Goose Poses.

#2

Loving Chaos.

#3

Brotherly Fun.

#4

Levi's Curious.
These boys just make my heart burst. Michael has started just playing with Levi whenever I'm preoccupied. He'll crawl on the floor and hand Levi some cars or try to play patty-cake. And while Levi isn't always amused by his big brother, anyone can tell by the way he looks at Michael that he wants nothing more than to keep up and be like him.

Making a Valentine's Day banner wasn't the only craft we've done in preparation for this wonderful holiday. Some may say that it's crafted by Hallmark to make people buy cards and chocolates and flowers, but I say it's what we make of it. And I love this opportunity to teach Michael about the purist type of love-- God's love.

On good 'ole Pinterest I found this link for Bible verses centered around Love for a countdown to Valentine's Day. Michael has a hard time counting past twelve, so it was the perfect opportunity to start working on the next round of numbers with him. We spent time cutting out more hearts and learning numbers up to 14.


On the back of each heart, we taped a verse. Then we taped them on our fridge. Right now they are front and center, and every day Michael will point to the numbers and count. It's an easy way to help him with 13 & 14. Next week, once February begins ::gulp:: we will take the number down that matches the day, and tape the verse on this:


Not my finest work, but it serves the purpose. We've taped it up in Michael's lesson/art corner (a post to come about that soon!) and that way he'll be reminded each day about the true meaning of LOVE.

Have some Valentine's Day ideas? I'd love to hear them!

Valentine's Day is coming up and in my opinion there is never enough time to celebrate it. Naturally I decided that this year we should start extra earlier to prepare for the day of L O V E.

I don't see Valentine's Day as just a day to remind your significant other/spouse that you love him, it's a day to remind your children how much they are loved and how much we are ALL loved by our Heavenly Father.

Can I get an amen?

This year we're doing lots of crafts. Michael is so into doing things together (like our Thankful Thursday jar). He's also seriously into cutting.


I had been wanting a heart banner for the house. Although I would *honestly* prefer a perfectly crafted one that looks professional, like most that are displayed, it's much more fun to let Michael pour his heart out and share just who and what he LOVES.


We used a cookie cutter to make the identically shaped hearts, but I think different ones would be adorable, too. We cut them out and each day he filled out 3-4 with things he loved.


I helped him spell.

It ranged from family members and friends to Quesadillas and "The Red Store" (aka Target, the best place on Earth).


After we had more than enough, we used some adorable ribbon (which I think originated from Michael's) with XOs all over it and then hung it around his teepee he got for Christmas.


Now whenever he looks at them, he'll ask me what specific ones say. Each one makes him smile and brings about a conversation about that specific thing.


Example:

"Oh, that one says, 'Read Winnie-the-Pooh'. I love doing that. But we finished it, so what will we read next?"

(In case you were wondering, the answer is The Wizard of Oz.)

We are trying to do this new year right, and because of it I seem to be in a "January slump." I have all these goals I want to accomplish, which therefore leads me to feeling overwhelmed and grumpy.

Needless to say, it doesn't help my New Year's Resolutions. But I'm taking it one day at a time.

Part of the focus for this year was to remind us to be THANKFUL. It's so easy to slip away and see everything everyone else has, or wish on a star, or be grumpy because we are unable to do something. That's not how I want to raise our boys. I want them to grow up knowing how blessed they are, not just because of all they own/have or all they can do, but because God blesses them with GRACE and LOVE.

So we made a thankful jar.


I soaked an old pasta sauce jar in soapy water to get rid of the label/ wash it out. I read Michael some Bible verses and let him pick out which one he wanted to put on the jar.


Then I found this printable which is positively adorable to use for our thankful cards that we fill out every Thursday. Michael loved cutting them out and gluing everything on the jar.

(He also decorated the lid with who knows how many Minions stickers....)

At some point in the day every Thursday, we sit at the table and Michael thinks of something he's thankful for and I help him spell it out. While we've only done this twice now, Michael gets very excited when he realizes it's Thursday.

And he's not the only one that does it. We all do.

Clark and I think of something we're thankful for and fill out a card. My plan is to encourage friends and family that are over on Thursdays to do it, too.

Last year I wanted to do this but didn't think about it until about June and by then we had plenty else going on. So this year I got a kick start. I hope this habit sticks!

Our first day at Disneyland Park, we had a plan. We were going to leave our hotel by eight, get to the opening by nine, and head straight to "Peter Pan's Flight".


Because somewhere (probably on DLR Prep School) I read that's how you're supposed to do it, and a friend told me the same thing. Get there for the ribbon drop, everyone said. So that's what I wanted to do. And the park opened at nine, so leaving at eight would be enough time... right?

Wrong.

When we arrived, it took us a good 30-45 minutes to get through parking. If you're not staying at a hotel with a shuttle or monorail, plan for this. Plan for driving time-- LEAVE EARLIER! SAVE YOURSELF!

Yes, I'm being dramatic. Sorry about that. Breathe in, breathe out.

Here are the five things I learned from our first day at Disneyland, accompanied by adorable pictures, of course.

1. You're never TOO early.

The great thing about getting to Disneyland early is that you're there before the magic even begins. They'll let you in through the gates, but you stand and wait for the music to start and the "ribbon" to drop. We didn't get to witness this at Disneyland Park, only at California Adventure. But it's still something to be there for! Plus, you get to line up with the masses and then push through like you're shopping on Black Friday to get to the best rides/fast passes.


If you get there and want to mosey a bit before joining the crazy, you can walk Downtown Disney. Some of the shops are open (like The World of Disney) and there aren't as many people there so early in the morning. It's a great time to shop for souvenirs without being pushed in by the masses of people.

Also, the earlier you there, the shorter the lines. Our first day, when we did Disneyland Park, we wanted to hit "Peter Pan's Flight" because it was the ride Michael was looking forward to the most, and we could all go on it together. Well, we stood in line for around 40 minutes because we didn't get there right away and were diverted from our plan (I mean, Minnie Mouse was standing right there.

2. Know what rides you want to ride and what characters you want to meet.

Disneyland Park was kind of a nightmare for us. I went in with a list of, ideally, what order we should do things. The only problem was I had the list for Michael, not the adults. I'm not a ride person, so I was more focused on Michael meeting the characters and doing the kiddie-focused stuff. My husband, his brother and sister-in-law, however, clearly wanted to do more than just stand in line to meet Winnie The Pooh.


Because we all didn't communicate we ended up going back and forth and around and back and this way and that... I think you get my point. And we missed out on quite a few rides and things because we just couldn't get it together.

California Adventure, I made a list. I made a list of all the rides for Michael and then all the adults consulted on what they wanted to do. We got there earlier, made our way around and got the fast passes we could at different times, and rode some amazing rides with no lines because we followed our efforts.


The difference was breathtaking. I mean, we were still all dead tired, hot, and exhausted the second day-- but I couldn't help but feel a little more accomplished because we checked everything except one ride off the list and met Michael's favorite characters.

I mean, I'm not saying it was perfect, but it was a lot better than the first day.

I now know why people go to Disneyland for five days. It gives you so much more time to rest up, not stress, and still do (I would imagine) everything you want to do. Well, maybe not everything... but close.

3. Pack as lightly as you can.

We never took a "real" picture day one, and I wish we had. We left the parking lot with two strollers, two carriers, a diaper bag, a backpack... the works. My husband actually ended up running back to the car to take the carseat (because I kept telling him Levi wasn't going to ride in it, let's be real). However, he didn't take a stroller. So Clark's brother/sister-in-law ended up acting like the children were just as much theirs as ours day one because they were helping us tote around all of our stuff.

DO NOT IGNORE THIS ONE.

Pack lightly. If you're going on the summer, you're not going to need jackets. Odds are, you aren't going to need as many snacks as you think you will. Unless the weather calls for rain, leave the umbrella at the hotel. This is not a time to bring everything imaginable you think you might need. I am an over-packer. I'll admit it. But by day two, we got our crap together and it went sooooooo much more smoothly.

I mean, bring the bathing suits if you don't want to walk around wet. Bring the extra towel, or maybe extra clothes for the kids just in case. But don't bring your suitcase. My next Disney post will be full of what I personally thought were the necessities.


4. Find some shade, AC, and/or a place to put your feet up.

Disneyland over Labor Day Weekend was crazy, so I can't imagine it at the height of the season or on a "real" holiday. The crowds, plus the sun + heat, plus walking around all day... it can make a person grumpy. At the end of day one we were all feeling it. We were probably all dehydrated, starved, and in need of just somewhere to sit. While it did cool down near the end of our days, the full-fledged heat from 9am-5pm got to us.

So find somewhere to sit. We didn't do this the first day. At all. We only hit up indoor rides (like Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blaster) that gave us a moment out of the sun.

*Side Note: That ride scared Michael to pieces. It was dark and Emperor Zurg was huge, loud, and kind of terrifying even to me.*


If you can, go back to your hotel. Take a nap. Go to the pool. Do something to give yourself a break. The only reason we didn't do this is because we had to drive to the park, and we didn't want to endure parking again. The Tiki Room is supposed to be a good place to get a Dole Whip and cool down. We never did this. But at California Adventure I can recommend going to Disney Junior Live as an excellent place to cool down. Also, if you don't mind getting wet, there's a splash pad in A Bug's World.

*Another Side Note: If you can, go to the LAST show of Disney Junior Live around 4:15pm. This gives you perfect time to sit and wait for the parade in California Adventure, which was one of Michael's favorite things. You start slowing down at the right time, and you get to cool off.


5. Be prepared to "Do the Elsa" and LET. IT. GO.

I had a really hard time letting it go the first day, if I'm being honest. I'm pretty sure I made it so, if they weren't forced to stick around due to buying 3-day passes, everyone in our party would've split after the first day because of me. I'm a control freak, admittedly, so I had a hard time when we didn't follow the plan. We ate lunch at the park even though I made sandwiches, we bought snacks even though I packed some, we missed out on meeting key characters and riding rides I really wanted to get to... but at the end of the day what mattered is that Michael was still in love with the trip. He wanted to go back the next day. We had met some awesome characters, they got to go on some of the rides they wanted, and above all else-- Michael got to meet Mickey.


Day two it was probably easier for me to "let it go" because, well, we had a plan. I'm not sure it counts, I guess, since we did such a good job sticking to the said plan. But I tried to breathe more. I tried not to complain as much. I tried to be in the moment rather than focused on checking everything off the list (well... I did my best). All I know is once my husband was like, "Just do the Elsa!" (he feels super clever for coining that phrase) I found myself trying to focus on the atmosphere, not the list.

On September 7th, Michael turned four years old. It's hard to believe that we are now housing a true preschooler rather than a toddler, but he doesn't let us forget it. He likes to tell everyone, "I'm four! First I was three, now I'm four, and next year on September 7th I'm going to be five!"

Way to give Mama a heart attack, kiddo.

But when he turned four, we were much to busy for a doctor checkup because we were on a trip. Where? Well, if you saw my previous post and follow posts to come, you know that we were at DISNEYLAND.


I'm pretty sure I was just as excited as him.

Once we returned, we took him to his checkup and did our usual interview. Michael is currently 45 pounds and 42.25 inches tall. The doc said if he continues on the path he's on, he'll be around 6'1".

That's a good thing, I know. I just hope I'm prepared for that day when it comes and I have to look up at my son.



Michael's Fourth Birthday Interview
What's your whole name? Michael Clark

How old are you? Four!

When is your birthday? September 7th

What is your favorite color? Green

What is your favorite animal? Dinosaur!

What's your favorite book? Disney-Pixar storybook

What's your favorite show/movie? A Bug's Life

What's your favorite song? "Trashin' the Camp" from Tarzan

What's your favorite food? Tuna

What's your favorite drink? Apple Juice

What's your favorite breakfast food? Cheese

What's your favorite dinner? Pizza

What's your favorite snack? Goldfish


What's your favorite thing to wear? Doctor costume

What's your favorite game to play? Candyland

What's your favorite toy? Emperor Zurg

Who's your best friend? Ezekiel

What's your favorite thing to do? Go to the park

What's your favorite thing to do outside? Play with "Mighty Machines" in the dirt

What's your favorite holiday? "I like Christmas."

What do you like to take with you to bed? Wrinkles

Where's your favorite place to go? Disneyland

Where do you want to go on a vacation? Everywhere!

What do you want to be when you grow up? Astronaut and a Baseball Player


For his birthday, Michael's grandparents got him a bike. The following is the face I got when I asked him to smile for the camera:


Someone tell him to stop growing up, already.