Hunting

This morning three in this household woke up early for hunting. Shawn and Lee went out for deer, and I went out for deals!
Probably all of you are looking at the picture below and thinking I'm nuts. Some of you think I'm nuts because I willingly got up at such a crazy hour. Then there's those who think I'm nuts because I slept in too much on Black Friday. But in Juneau, you don't have to be up sooo early to still get the doorbuster deals. I accomplished my goal and am pretty much done with my Christmas shopping already. Just two more folks to buy for. So now I can focus on my holiday projects. (Let the craftiness begin!)
Lots of good deals were secured by me, but sadly no animals were secured by the Phelps boys.

Here's a photo journey (with captions) of my morning.

wake-up call

(I usually go for the local Heritage brew, but this morning I started my shopping at Fred Meyer so I hit the starbucks kiosk inside to make things speedy.)

Daybreak

the spoils of war

Thankful

Today we enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings. The only basic item we didn't have was pumpkin pie since Shawn's not so fond of it. So I made a pumpkin cheesecake instead. It's much more work than a pie, but oh so good!
After we filled our belly's and were being entertained by Isaac at the dinner table, we all shared what we were thankful for.
Shawn: thankful for our family
Carly: thankful for momma (it was the sweetest thing I heard all day)
Isaac: thankful for his highchair since it helps him eat more
Grandma Hinds: thankful that her grandkids live in Juneau and they can come to visit them
Grandpa Hinds: thankful for his grandkids and that they are healthy
Me: thankful for my family and our healthMy mom and I worked all day on our feast, but I noticed that this was the least stressed I've felt on Thanksgiving since we've been married. My mom and I were a mother/daughter dream team in the kitchen. Everything went smoothly and was under control--what a blessing.I've also been meaning to post about Carly's thankful list. Last week at playgroup each of the kids made a turkey and Olivia helped each kid write down the things they were thankful for on the feathers. Here's Carly's list:
hugs, juice, ABC's, Knox (Lee's dog), backyard, crayons, grandma & grandpa, toys

The True Story of Thanksgiving

I know Thanksgiving means a lot of things to a lot of people. I appreciate it for the opportunity to reflect and be thankful for my blessings. I truly have a lot of blessings this year. Thanksgiving also means a lot more to me after living in a foreign country. I now see a patriotic element to it, that I hadn't appreciated until we lived in Japan.

Recently I heard a few new details about the first Thanksgiving celebrated by the pilgrims. I thought it was interesting and found an online article to support what I'd heard. So here is the story of the reason for the first Thanksgiving. I hope you find it interesting. If nothing else, it's a good economics lesson.

Hope you are with or will be with family and friends to celebrate and be thankful for all the blessings God has lavished on us this year.

Momma's Little Helper and a Free Turkey

For the past week and a half I've been baby-sitting a 4-month old boy temporarily. It was just while his regular daycare lady was on vacation. Today was the last day I had him and I was pretty relieved at about 5pm. It wasn't all bad, of course. It's just hard to not be even a little demanding when you're a 4 month old. It also reminded me why the good Lord usually doesn't even make it possible for a mother to have two babies that are 11 months apart.

Carly has been a HUGE helper over the last few days. In general, she is a great helper, but even more so with the extra baby. She was often entertaining the little baby or playing with Isaac so I could focus on the little guy. Or sometimes she was bringing me a bottle or throwing out a diaper. She has definitely earned her keep this week.

The picture above was a common sight this week. Often when the little guy was napping, she would put one of her baby dolls in his carseat and try to tote it around along with his diaper bag. She was usually "going to the store". And yes that is a doll in the picture and not the little baby. (It's just one of those life like dolls.)

One benefit to the little guy was that he usually took some phenomenal naps. His usual seemed to be one 3 hour nap and then also a 1 1/2 hour nap later on. Of course, like any good 4 month old he wasn't completely consistent. But with his long naps I was able to get quite a bit done around the house. The only down side to this was that I pretty much always "around the house". I tried very hard over that past few days to only do the errands that were absolutely necessary. Staying close to home proved to be a hidden blessing though.

On Wednesday afternoon, the little guy left a bit early for a doctor's appointment so I saved up all of my usual grocery store trips for that one afternoon with just my kids. Like, I said there was an advantage to not going out much over the past few days. At the grocery store the other day, I had so many things to purchase--since I hadn't been to the store in about a week--that when I got it all, I had enough to get a free turkey! A 19 pounder too! Now some of you may be thinking that I probably bought a bunch of stuff just to get the turkey, but actually I stuck pretty close to my list. It was just a big list this time. So I guess in a way, the little 4 month old earned me a free turkey, because if it wasn't for him I probably would have gone to the store at least twice in the week and just spread out the same purchases over a few trips. That would not have gotten me a free turkey. A silver lining to a sometimes challenging week.
The whole free turkey thing also makes me feel like some kind of coupon queen! Yipee! We'll be eating good this Thanksgiving.

Proud Momma Moments

Recently both of our kids have impressed me with how they're learning and growing. A week and a half ago they both gave me moments to be a proud Momma.

It was Sunday morning and Carly wanted to bring her purse and wallet (with a little change inside) to church. She had hinted that she wanted to "give her money to God" but I didn't count on it too much. She doesn't usually bring a purse with her to church although she has plenty. It's just one thing to want to bring one along and another to actually remember it when the rush of getting out the door starts. Anyway, this week she got her purse to church and I believe she hung up her purse on the hooks in her bible classroom. When the communion service started she actually remembered and got out a quarter and waited for the collection plate to pass. She did this all on her own without any help or even coin suggestions from me or Shawn. Then a song or two later it was time for her to go over for the children's Bible time. The kids in our congregation always drop off a collection in a basket on their way over to the annex. Carly was prepared for this collection too. She carefully pulled out a penny, closed up her wallet and then purse and left it on the pew by me instead of taking it with her to Bible time. I was very glad that there was no fussing about leaving her purse with me. I was also so impressed that she's gotten the idea of giving money to God and his church. And as a bonus she wanted to use her own money and not Mom's! (I'm sure that's just temporary.)

Isaac gave me another moment to be proud of on the same morning. As soon as we arrived that morning for Bible class, Isaac tried to run off after we got his coat off. This is pretty standard practice for him. But that particular Sunday he got a really good head start. He ran right into the auditorium. By the time I caught up with him he was half way down the main aisle. Now don't worry, there's not a class in the auditorium that he was interrupting or anything. But his Bible class is in a room just off the side of it. So I caught up to him and he actually took my hand (which he usually doesn't do, he'd rather not be held back and hold anyone's hand) and proceeded to lead me into his classroom. We got to the door, he paused to give his teachers a good morning smile, and then walked right on in.

Then, just this past Sunday, he ran off like before into the auditorium just after getting his coat off . But this time I got a bit side tracked talking to someone so by the time I caught up to him he had already walked into his classroom and had been placed into his seat. He just smiled at me when I got to the doorway. I am so impressed with him that he knows where to go at such a young spry age. I hope he continues to enjoy going to Bible class for years to come.

Both Carly and Isaac continually make me proud to be their momma, but these recent moments really brought smiles to my face. I enjoy seeing them when it seems they "get it". Whether it's distinguishing between upper case and lower case letters or learning to push a car around on the floor. I especially love seeing them understand things about God and His love for them. Walking into Bible class by themselves or using money from their own wallets might not be that big, but they are pieces of a foundation I hope they continue to build upon for the rest of their lives.

Sunday at Auke Rec

On Sunday morning, the sun was shining and it was looking like a beautiful day. We had invited our friend, Rachel to come over for lunch, but Shawn didn't want to stay inside on such a beautiful day. Despite the temperature of 29, he suggested that we take a picnic lunch out to Auke Rec, our handy dandy beach area. I agreed. (Although it really took some convincing because I had already cleaned the house the night before for our company, and I wasn't looking forward to the possibility of being cold.) So after services I went to the store to get some deli/picnic food and Shawn took the kids home to get out warm clothes and paper plates, etc.

It turned out to be a nice afternoon. We made a fire in the fire pit and stayed pretty warm. I think Isaac was probably the warmest just by looking at him. We also had fun with Lee's dog, Knox, who was not bothered by the cold water and kept wanting to play fetch. Unfortunately, our camera battery didn't last long, so we didn't get nearly as many pictures as I would have liked, but here are a few of the best that we got. Enjoy!

Oh! And I almost forgot to mention that Carly was disappointed that we didn't bring her swimsuit! What a crazy girl. The truth is though, that we probably go to this beach without needing swimsuits more often than actually using them here. It's got to be pretty warm to warrant swimsuits in this water since it's basically the ocean. I guess that's what happens when you do something out of it's normal season.

Mother of the Year

Yes, that's me. I'm definitely in the running for this coveted prize. I believe my ordeal the other night will lock in my nomination for sure. (Just to be clear the previous sentences are dripping with sarcasm.)

Monday afternoon, I was at the store with Isaac. It was one of those days where it was like pulling teeth to get a few free minutes from needing kids to get things done. Anyway, when I finished shopping I pushed the cart with Isaac in the seat out to the car/Jeep. It was cold, 37, so I decided to start the car and buckle Isaac in first to get him out of the breeze and chilly air. So, I put the important things, my son and my purse, in the car. Then I started the car, closed the door, and walked to the lift gate to put the groceries in. The only problem was that the lift gate was locked. And I soon realized that all the doors were locked. That's right, I managed to lock my keys in the car with it running and Isaac buckled in his carseat.

I think I did a fairly good job of not panicking, but it was hard. I quickly noticed a mother and teen daughter sitting in a car just one over from me. They looked like they were waiting for someone who was shopping inside. Anyway, I asked to borrow their cell phone and called Shawn who was fortunately at home with Carly. He answered and was soon on his way to my rescue.

The good news is that Isaac fell asleep and wasn't freaking out. I was also thankful that it wasn't snowing or raining or gusting or a crazy negative temperature while I was standing outside the car.

The only bad news was that I had to wait in the cold breeze and feel so incredibly ridiculous. But then again, it gave me time to figure out this blog post in my head.

Another nice detail to the story is that my good samaritans in the car next door, turned up at a card stamping thing I went to the next day. I should have known that such helpful rescuers would be stampers/scrapers.

The only thing I can figure is that I accidentally bumped the lock button with my gloved fingers. I believe I can honestly say that I've never even locked my keys in the car. But now I can say that at least I didn't hold back and do it half way.

I'm sure there are some of you out there who have had similar experiences. I know Hiedi Picker, an old OC friend of mine has had a similar experience. Here's her story.
So if you've got a story, I'd like to hear it.

Isaac (attempting to eat rice in October), the unknowing victim of Momma's mistake.

To Serve and Protect *UPDATED*

Last week, we went to Lee's formal swearing in ceremony. He was officially sworn in about two weeks ago now, but they put off the formal ceremony until last week when two other new officers were starting. Lee is already getting in the groove of his new department and we're enjoying having him around. He's been a big help to me around the house and with the kids. I must apologize to Shannon, my sister in law, for pulling him away from their neighborhood in Oklahoma. I know she wasn't very happy to loose him to Juneau, but we're all happy that he is enjoying being in Alaska.
*UPDATE*
I forgot to mention earlier that when Carly woke up early last Monday morning, we reminded her that we were going to the police department. Somehow Carly got the swearing in ceremony confused with a Dora the Explorer episode and thought that rather than becoming a Juneau Police Officer, Lee was about to "become a true princess". We thought it was pretty funny and didn't correct her. Then after the ceremony she told Lee that he was now a true princess. We couldn't have scripted it any better.
***
Best of luck, Lee, as you serve and protect the people of Juneau.

Porcupines and Preschool

On Wednesday it was my turn to host Carly's preschool playgroup again. I really enjoy these four kids. They are great friends and play very well together.
In the midst of their play the other day, I looked out the window and saw a small porcupine across the street in our neighbor's driveway. With four preschoolers there, I realized what a great opportunity it was for them to see some wildlife. So I called them into the living room and they all lined up on the couch to peek out the window. They were all very interested in the little guy. (So were our neighbor's dogs who were watching and sometimes barking out of their front window.) My guess is that this porcupine was not quite a year old because he was so small. Still he was fun to watch. And as always I took the opportunity to remind them all that porcupines don't like to play. This is a much easier lesson to teach preschoolers than dogs. In fact, last week Knox, Lee's dog, got an Alaskan welcome porcupine style. The pictures are further down. Fortunately, he is just fine. Lee got all the quills out and was as good as new. Hopefully he learned his lesson. And Lee thinks Knox's porcupine may have been this little one since the quills he pulled out seemed pretty small. Not that I'm a porcupine expert, but it make sense to me.
Enjoy the pictures.

Investigating

The star of the show
(He's the fuzzy ball to the right of the mailbox.)

Knox's Alaskan welcome

Sleeping Babes

Today I found our kids sleeping in some cute positions and thought I'd share.
Last night, after she had been put to bed, we heard Carly singing and talking to herself quite a bit before she actually fell asleep. Surprisingly she didn't creep out of her room though. This morning when I went into wake Carly up this was the scene. She never sleeps with this Elmo and you can probably see why. He's HUGE! In fact she rarely ever sleeps with any dolls or animals. Obviously she had brought Elmo into bed with her while she was singing and talking last night. She's so funny when she's left to her own devices.
Then tonight when I got home from my twice a month prayer group meeting, I found this scene.
Shawn was just getting off the phone with his parents. While he was talking he sat down in the recliner with Isaac. Apparently he'd been pretty grumpy. So Shawn said it didn't take to long for him to nod off. Unfortunately, Daddy let him get a 45 minute nap just an hour before his usual bed time. So we pushed bed time back about 20 minutes, but he still went to bed just fine. I guess he was tired enough for that evening nap after all.

They always look so peaceful and innocent when they are sleeping. It reminds me that's really what they are despite the loud voices and active play. At the heart of it all, they really are peaceful and innocent children. What a blessing they both are to me and Shawn.