Everyday Adventures

On Thursdays we go to Third Church in Pella for a Bible Study.  I meet with a really awesome group of ladies, and the kids really enjoy the nursery/classes that are provided for the little ones.  This is the church my parents and sister go to, and we affectionately call it "The Church with the Fountains."  Sometimes, when we get there early enough, the kids and I walk over to the pond and look at the fountains.

Look at the fountains!

Nicolas looks like mini-Scott in this picture.

Laurel: "You are a good friend, Nicky"
Nicolas: "I love you."
Isn't it great when your kids start being affectionate with each other and you with even being prompted?

We try to go to story time at the library every week.  Laurel can go into her story time without a parent, and Nicolas plays in the toy area while I chat with some of the other moms.  Then we pick out books for the kids, books for Mom, look at the fish, and select the Dora video to check out that week.  

Last week I finally asked how old you have to be to get a card--3 years old.  So Laurel got a great surprise--her very old library card!  She was excited!

One night last week the kids were having fun running up and down the hallway.  I heard a loud noise, then Nicolas started crying, so I went to pick him up and brought him into the living room.  At that point I looked at his head and discovered a huge bump!  He has hit his head many times, but has never gotten a bump this big that quickly before.

We put some ice on it (which was not his favorite!), and I called the 24/7 nurse line at the hospital to see if we needed to worry or what signs to watch for if it was a concussion.  We didn't have to bring him in, but we did wake him up every couple hours that night to make sure he was doing ok.  By the next morning, the bump was gone and he only had a slight bruise.

All my pictures were blurry because he was not sitting still, but look at that bump!

 Nicolas still sleeps for a couple hours every afternoon, and that is when I try to have special time with Laurel.  Sometimes we read books, and then do some "pre-learning" exercises with the books, talking about the pictures or comparing the story to Bible stories.  Sometimes we do crafts or bake things.  And sometimes she just wants to draw.  Laurel has this idea that Mommy can draw anything...I don't want to burst her bubble, but I am not a great artist!  But I do have a couple drawing instruction books, so we break those out, get a big piece of paper, and draw!

This past week it was a little cooler--only getting into the 60's in the afternoon, and still in the upper 40's/low 50's in the morning.  I still want to get a few more bike rides in, so I bundled the kids up in the Burley and off we went!  

They had a blanket behind them and over their laps.  Nicolas only left his hat on for about a minute, but was willing to keep his hood up.  They must have been comfy because both kids slept through most of the bike ride!