Friday, February 28, 2014

Valentines and Disease

Every night when we tuck Sara Beth in for bed, she will give her nighttime prayers. One night, a couple days before Valentine's Day, she prayed to God for pink valentine cupcakes. I passed that prayer request on to Heather, who went out and got the ingredients to make them the next day. Sara Beth excitedly started to help make them, though Heather finished them by herself. Both Hudson and Sara Beth were excited to eat them, but I finished them off by myself.
If having a house torn up due to flood mitigation was not enough, our kids got sick too. Hudson was the first to get a bug. It made him rather sleepy. Sara Beth went to a birthday party last Saturday, and she must have picked up something there. That evening, she said that her stomach was hurting. We told her that a good nights rest is the best cure for something like that. Then, at 1am, she threw up in her bed. At first, when I went in, I thought something was seriously wrong with her, until Heather explained that the birthday cake had black frosting on it, which explained the unnatural color of the smelly mess in the middle of Sara Beth's bed. I didn't take any pictures.
Sara Beth came home from school one day and proudly informed us that she led one of her friends to Jesus. She explained to her friend how it worked and led her though a prayer. We were both very proud of her. Picture is unrelated.
Hudson is always eager to help carry the recycle out to the bin by the alley. When it is a light load, he will politely request to carry it all by himself, with a big grin on his face.
Since our house is still in pieces, we decided to to out one Saturday morning to feed the ducks. After we ran out of bread, we played at the park. First, Hudson and I were the bears chasing Heather and Sara Beth. Then the roles reversed and they chased us. It was great fun both ways.

Construction has started on the empty lot near our house. Hudson watched by the windows, eagerly keeping an eye out for tractors and cement mixers that might drive by our house.
Lilly Belle is surprisingly tolerant of the children. Initially, when she was a kitten, I attributed it to her not knowing any better. But she is a fast learner when I use the spray bottle, so I can only assume that at some level, she enjoys being a pillow.
Hudson's emotions are rather extreme right now. He will act like the happiest boy within a 5 mile radius with a big grin on his face. And then, if he doesn't get is way, he will instantly transition into a combination of the saddest and angriest boy in that same radius.

Friday, February 7, 2014

A boy and his tiger

 Our house has been a wreck the past two weeks. The water line to the fridge broke and flooded a majority of the downstairs. The people drying the floors ripped out all the wet carpet pad and tore off the soggy base boards and poked holes in the drywall and cabinets. Now, we have most of the downstairs furniture crammed onto the carpet that is still dry and exposed carpet tacks where the carpet was torn up. It is still a mess two weeks later and I think everyone is ready to have the house back to normal.

Well, Hudson has developed quite a bit in the past two weeks. He has expressed interest in being potty trained (and has successfully earned himself a couple jelly beans by using the "porcelain hobby horse" in the way it was intended. He also really likes his stuffed tiger whom he has named "Nice". Hudson made lunch for him.
And then Hudson provided a snack and blanked for Nice before taking him on a walk outside. I hope we can find some interchangeable "cousins" for Nice before it is too late. That was really helpful with Sara Beth's "Emma Rose" doll. Also, the similarities between Calvin and Hobbs and Hudson and Nice have not escaped me.
This past weekend, we went down to the Fort Worth stock show. Hudson is also starting to give up his afternoon nap, so we arrived in the morning and stuck around until the early afternoon. Both children enjoyed seeing all the animals, but the baby cows and the gigantic rabbits were their favorites. While going through the booths, Sara Beth decided she wanted to pay $10 for a toy bow and arrow. Unlike the $4 sand sculpture from a couple weeks ago, she hasn't regretted this choice, yet. I don't see her playing with it at all, but she explained "It was just one bill, so it's not that big of a deal." At this point 4 $1 bills is a much greater loss to her than a single $10 bill.