NO MORE BINKY!!

Where to start from the last 2 weeks. The kids are goofier than ever and we haven’t been very good about keeping notes on their various shenanigans and comments, but we’ll do our best to give a flavor for where they are at and what they are doing. Adelaide is cooling down … FINALLY! We had a couple of really hot days last week, but for the most part we are down around the 70s again which is a welcome relief for sure. Hopefully our lawn will start a turn for the green instead of the sickish yellow that it’s been in for the past couple months :)

Ok, so moving on to the fun stuff. We gave Hunter’s binky the boot last Monday. We happened to forget it for church on Sunday and thought, “Well, we’re coming up on his second birthday and we’d rather he be used to not using it when we go back, so let’s bite the bullet and do it now.” So, Monday is garbage day and he loves the ‘garba man’. Kelli went out with Hunter and they waved to the garbage man as he took our garbage and drove up the street. On the way down the street again he stopped and waved at Hunter and gave him a ‘beep beep beep.’ Talking with him over the phone he was so excited and told me, “Garba man, go beep beep beep!” Kelli seized the moment and told Hunter that the garbage man took his binky and that he wouldn’t have it anymore. Well, the first nap after that was terrible. He screamed a terrible scream trying to get to sleep. He finally settled into something that I guess you could call a state of sleep … but then we had to deal with the night-time. He’s always been one to go to bed quickly and on his own, but that was with his binky. Now without it we felt like we were on square on again. We gave him a break the first two nights and held him on the chair downstairs, but the third night we had to let him cry it out. Now a week later he’s back to his normal sleepy self and NO BINKY!! So, we’ve crossed that path … now for the potty training … after a few weeks of relishing this victory of course. We should also mention that he is talking in pretty much full sentences right now – albeit with incorrect grammar. Things that come out of his mouth just make you laugh. The other day he did a ‘tooter’ and told Kelli, “I toot … [pause] … you like it Mom?” He is also a very polite boy saying, “bless you” and “dank you, Dad” all the time. We also have him swimming right now and he’s king of the class. Of course, last week Kelli made the mistake of getting Collin an ‘ice block (popsicle)’ right the beginning of Hunter’s lesson. When Hunter laid eyes on the ice block there was no keeping his concentration on swimming and all he wanted was one of his own. Some things never change with the kid – he’s definitely got a short circuit from his tummy to his brain. He does do really good swimming and doesn’t mind going underneath the water but especially loves being thrown up in the air. And one more thing on the little man – the other day he got mad at Savannah and yelled at her, “Sannah Jones!” We’ve heard “Collin Pachik Jones!” quite a bit, but this was a new one for his sister. Oh, and this morning Hunter was the first one up (as usual) and we were downstairs together. When I went upstairs and Collin got up, Hunter came wandering up the stairs. On his way up he said, “Dad – where Collin?” … to which I replied, “He’s right here.” … to which he replied, “Cool –“ We’re not sure where he’s picking ts stuff up from, but it’s coming in waves right now!

Ok, now that we have Hunter well-documented, what do we say about the other two? Collin is loving all sorts of sports and his bicycle. We went fishing on one of our recent bike rides at a local pond and although we didn’t catch anything in the 5 minutes we were there, he thought it was pretty cool. He’s really into basketball right now and is a goof in and of himself. He and Hunter fight quite a bit, but they have their good times as well. We think he’s growing quite a bit right now as he sleeps heaps at night and eats a full peanut butter, jelly, and chocolate chip sandwich (including crusts) for lunch … which he’s always struggled with before. He’s really good about making his bed and wanting to do his other chores. And as always he’s our little pack rat carrying everything and anything around with him during the day. I bought them some cap guns the other day and you would have thought he’d died and gone to heaven. Hunter doesn’t like the noise, but Collin thinks they are great.

Savannah is loving school and everything to do with netball and swimming. She also went to a birthday party last week and had a great time hanging with her friends and singing karaoke. She did a ‘me bag’ at school the other day where she showed a picture of her family, piano music, tennis racquet, art projects, netball trophy and swim goggles. I stuck around to watch her present her stuff and it was so cute to watch as she’s sitting in front of the class and after she’s shown everyone her things she says, “Are there any questions or comments?” Two kids raise their hands and each say, “I go to swimming on Wednesdays” and “I go swimming, too” … to which Savannah stares blankly and replies, “Are there any more questions or comments?” Some other kid says something random and Savannah replies, “Are there any more questions or comments?” Good times in 2^nd grade.

Kelli and I have been sicker than dogs the past week. Thankfully we’re both coming out of it, but the nasal congestion, sinus pressure and chest cough have been horrendous! Finally I can think reasonably straight and get back on the bike (hit 4,000 miles this week!) With only 2 ½ months left until we return home we’re trying to figure out how to get rid of all of our stuff … and in a manner which allows time to still have transportation and sending money back to the States from our Aussie bank account. Should be another adventure just waiting to happen :) So that combined with our computer having 70 viruses on it from the time our anti-virus software ran out until we got new stuff has provided us with some crazy last couple of days. Stay tuned for more looney tunes to come! Cheers!

36'as!

Well, we don’t have much to write this week, but there were a few highlights we’ll mention. First, on Saturday we took a long bike ride. It was long for the kids at least (3 miles or so). They were troopers and made it up the hills, even when they had to walk their bikes up. It was fun for all—we got to cross a bridge over a pond, stopped to play at a very unsafe playground, and enjoyed all the birds (we’ll miss the cockatoos and lorikeets and rosellas!). The weather has been absolutely gorgeous—almost like fall. We’re taking advantage of these cool days while they last (we’ll be up to 100F again by Saturday).

Hunter went to swimming lessons Saturday morning after the bike ride. He LOVES his time in the pool with dad! He particularly enjoys splashing the teacher and jumping off the side. He does really well, and doesn’t mind going under at all. Even when he is tired, he is a trooper and does everything the teacher asks (as long as dad throws in a few extra tosses in the air!).

Saturday evening, Jessy took Savannah and Collin to an Adelaide 36ers game. It’s the basketball team here, and apparently it was a great evening for everyone. (They went with Scott and Sam Hann and family.) They played the Cairns Taipans and beat them, mostly because Collin was fiercely cheering them on. Collin was pretty hilarious at the game, in that kind of mode where he is just soaking everything in. I expected both kids to get ornery and cranky at some point during the game, but they were enthralled by everything that was going on. Collin turned to me at one point early in the game and said, “Dad, have those guys been baptismed?” We had just come from a baptism earlier in the afternoon and it must have been on his mind and he was concerned about the b-ball players. He also kept asking me, “Dad, are the sixas winning?” – throwing in some Aussie accent to fit in with the crowd. Both kids loved the whole atmosphere and when they came home at 11:00, they were wide awake, giggling, and had to recount to me everything that was said or done the whole night. The Hanns are awesome friends and we are going to miss their company. Scott has been my counselor in young mens and was recently released to go to the high ‘dry’ council … we sent him off with chocolate and a magnetic sudoku game to keep him awake and not bored out of his mind!!!! Collin has a special affinity for Micah – their 14 year old. He’s a really good kid – one of the best, and a great example for little Collin.

Attention all Shorties!

While I was browsing blogs the other day, I found a great site for hemming jeans. Mine are always frayed and dirty on the bottom because I hate the look of hemmed jeans, but this looks to be the perfect solution for me. Haven't tried it yet (don't need it for shorts or capris), but I will, mind you. (By the way, today's high temperature was 68F/20C. That's cooler than our low temp on most summer nights!!)

School's in Session!!!

School’s in session!!! Savannah and Collin have returned to school from their summer vacation. Yes, all you up north who are inundated with heaps of snow, we’re still living up the rays of ozone-less sun. Our friend, Holly Ziegler, living up in Mountain Green, Utah sent us a picture last Sunday. They had so much snow they couldn’t clear the parking lot at church so it was canceled! Go figure – can’t wait to go sledding in some real snow … and not just white sand!

Anyway, Savannah was very excited to get back to school. We took her Monday morning and her seat was placed right next to her best friend Keely which helped to calm the nerves a tad. She found the place to put her water bottle, backpack and everything. Savannah brought home homework for Kelli and I – wrapping the notebooks in contact paper (totally annoying--it gets all these wrinkles and bubbles and sticks to everything!!), to keep them in a usable fashion for the entire year. Her teacher, Mrs. Stevens, is wonderful and super-organized. She says that "organisation is one of the four paths to success," and I'm hoping Savannah will absorb that mantra in these 4 months or so in class. Collin, on the other hand, had to wait until Friday for his turn. He goes every Friday for 2 hours to ‘pre-entry’ (when he turns 4 in March he will be able to go to kindy which is 4 days a week.)

Hunter has been continuing his amazing path to full-on conversations. He’s gradually developing full sentences. He is also very concerned for his siblings. He tells Collin when he gets hurt, “You ok, Collin?” but it comes out more like “You ‘k Con?” He also likes to say ‘disgusting’ which comes out like ‘sgusting’. And of course the all-time favorite – ‘toot’ which comes out, well, ‘toot’. He also likes to go to bed on time! He likes to spread out blankets (yelling at whoever walks on them), and jump with two feet off the ground. He especially likes jumping from high things, like chairs, stairs, and even out of the car. I'm getting good at doing, "Crocodile, crocodile on the wall, Crocodile, crocodile in you fall" at record speeds. He also likes to sing, and like his brother and sister before him, has drawn attention to himself lately in sacrament meeting with his "singing." As soon as he hears the organ, he starts moaning loudly while holding a hymnbook open in front of him. All around look at him to see what's wrong and then smile when they realize he's singing. He likes to give fish kisses and little squeezes, well, ok, big Hunter hugs – with an added verbal ‘squeeze’. He’s even started giving strangers all sorts of hugs … and even went up to the missionaries at church on Sunday to shake their hands. Yes, he’s kind of coming out of his shell. Now, if we could only get him to go to nursery by himself.

Kelli is doing well to keep up with the kids and all the activities going on. She’s extra busy making super-duper quilts for nieces and nephews and even made a headband for Savannah (in the picture), which she hasn’t stopped wearing (she chose the material--not exactly school colors, but it is cute). Click here for the link to the pattern (for you, Jenny). The lady who designed it is a fabric designer who also has fun crafty, but not country-crafty, stuff on her website (anyone need a good idea for Enrichment craft activity? See the paper globe pattern on the right sidebar...could be a great spring decoration or Christmas tree ornament).

I had my run-in with backyard cricket at work. Very fun game except that I was in the equivalent of bottom of the ninth, two outs, full count … and flew out to right field – we’ll see if they let the American play cricket again J Job search is going ok … gradually making progress.