Eight Down....Four To Go!

Here they are, friends, the last of Christian's baby teeth, all measuring between 1/2 and 3/4 of an inch long! And a couple were even wider than they were long! Yikes!

In preparation for some serious orthodontal work, Christian had all 8 of these monsters extracted this morning! The oral surgeon said with the full roots still on them, they would have been in there for years and years still if he hadn't taken them out! Christian did fabulously, and momma was impressed that she could sit and watch the whole thing! We are grateful for blessings and prayers that made this experience as good as it gets!

The dentist guy also said no school for Christian for 2 days...his body has to rest and heal, so continued prayers would be really appreciated!

Examining his tooth after the bleeding stopped...4 hours ago that was in my head?!?!? Unbelievable!
Yeah, we've got alot of work to do. He actually does have two more teeth behind his two front teeth....his "shark row" as he calls it... braces come on May 11th, once those huge holes on the top and bottom heal!

So for the next few days at least, Christian's diet is limited to soft and slimy. He's actually pretty excited! Look what he picked out at the store!


I didn't have the heart to tell him once those eight adult teeth grow in, four of them are coming out, as well! Oh, well, nothing another trip to the store won't help! Bring on the chocolate pudding!

Uh-Oh...Spaghetti-oes!!

Ok, not quite spaghetti-oes, but even better! This is one girl who takes after the Washburn side of the family...she can eat spaghetti with the best of them! Notice in the following pictures that everyone else is done, the table is cleared, and Ellie is still at it...and her little plate wasn't even going to cut it!

Momma says please use the fork...

but fingers are far more efficient!

Now that's some advanced noodle slurping skills for a 22 month old!

Ahhh, that hit the spot!

After about 25 more minutes munching on my lap, Briella decided her tummy was quite content! And so was my heart! I just love these little moments with my lambies that seem to go all too fast! I have to admit, though, I sure was glad the sauce had been cleared from the table!!!

Letting their Light Shine.....

At the Ward Talent Show!!!

Ok, so you get front row viewing pleasure for the rough footage, but cute kids!

Bekah and Indy do Veggie Tales!



Christian and Jonah at "Camp Grenada"!



Kamberlynne's not so "Bad Day"


Catherine made a plate of Peanut Butter balls, with Briella's help.
She's got some real talent, don't ya think?
Two spoons at once!

Happy Spring!

So this is just a silly note, but just the thought of more sunshine on its way makes me want to
sing from the rooftops! And add in a chance to get something yummy for free, and that's worth blogging about!

To celebrate the arrival of spring, we take good advantage of the Rita's Italian Ice give away, and this year was no different! The Ice was tasty and cold, and standing in line was even colder, its about 42 degrees right now and a little windy! Yipes! So we got our treat, and headed to the warmth of home to enjoy them!

We started out with 2 chocolate, 2 coconut cream, a cherry, a cotton candy, and Indy was brave enough to go for the MYSTERY flavor! IT WAS AMAZING! (mom of course must taste them all to make sure the kids will like them...hee,hee!) By the time we were done, we had concocted a whole batch of new fabulous flavors....our personal favorite: 2 parts coconut cream mixed with 1 part Mystery! YUM!!

So if you haven't yet, head on over to Rita's and welcome in spring....but don't forget your coat!

Just so you can't say I didn't tell you.....

OK, so this isn't a picture of our Van. It is the same make and model, but right now the front drivers side of our van is mashed up and waiting to be assessed by the insurance people. And it is all my fault.
I'm 36 years old, and there are a few "firsts" that I am still waiting on...getting my first cavity filled, going to the ER with one of my kids for the first time, and until yesterday, causing an accident. I can mark that last one off my list, now, and gratefully, there was no injury to anyone, just my car and the car I hit. You know, it could have been way worse, the Lord was really looking out for me. I had no kids in the car (which very RARELY happens...I was on my way to go pick them up from theatre class), the guy I hit was alone in his car, too, and he was as nice as the angels. Other drivers have been very rude to me when I've just changed lanes, but this guy was super kind even though I hit his car. And you know, there's nothing like a little bitter to remind you how sweet life really is! After we got home from all the police report and insurance calls (Brian came and rescued me ) we gathered the children around and knelt in prayer thanking Heavenly Father for his protection and blessings. He doesn't stop bad things from happening, but He shows us His love and direction in the midst of them, and I am very grateful!
I am really truly fine, and we hope our van will be soon, too!
A silly side note...more than a couple wonderful people have offered us the use of their vans over the next couple of weeks, while they are out of town, etc. I remind them that I just crashed our Van, are they sure they want to loan us theirs? They have happily agreed..how amazingly trusting is that!?!?!? So now that's what I need prayers for....:)

Arrow of Light!

(Ok, these Sunday night postings get shorter and shorter, but I'm trying to catch up.....)

Congratulations Christian, Arrow of Light Scout!


"Pinning" mom!


Receiving his official "Welcome to Boy Scouts" neckerchief!

The "Arrow of Light" is the highest award a cub scout can achieve, and we are so pleased for Christian and his good work and diligence in completing this wonderful goal! Great job, Christian! You are a wonderful example to your brothers, and we are so glad!

Thumbs up to Indy...and OUT, too!

There it is, friends...that's the thumb that has been sucked on for seven plus years....we even saw Indy sucking his thumb in utero during an ultrasound before he was even born! But NO MORE! That's right, after a trip to the dentist where they showed Indy the "appliance" they were going to put in his mouth to help him stop sucking his thumb, and told mom it would cost $550 (which was a real bargain since without our insurance it would be $1130), I did what any mom would do in a similar situation....I bribed him. He had two weeks to stop sucking his thumb on his own before the "appliance" was scheduled to go in, and if he could break his in-utero habit, we would have a "thumbs up pizza party" and he would be able to pick out any dragon toy he wanted (up to $30, a considerable savings to mom and dad verses the dental bill!)! Well, two weeks are up, and this amazing guy did it, with lots of prayers from the whole family, sleeping in a winter glove the first little while, and replacing the sucking habit with a new "wiggling" habit! Our soon to be 8 year old still had all his baby teeth save two, and they needed some extra help getting motivated to come out! Notice I said HAD all his baby teeth save two. In the past 2 weeks, he's wiggled out 2 more, with another 2 on the way!
Yesterday was the big "Thumbs up" party day! We ordered "pizza that the man brings", sang our own arrangement of "For He Doesn't Suck His Thumb" (some of you may know it as "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow), and we are now searching for the perfect dragon toy! Great job, Indy boy! We just hope that the new "wiggling" habit doesn't end us up footing the bill for dentures!!

What's in a name?

It's happened with all our cuties...even though we don't mean to, sooner or later they are called by a sweet little pet name that becomes a special term of endearment. Kamberlynnie-loo-loo, Bucky Boy, Jonah-bagonah, Indy-boy, Bekah-boo, and now, Briella has her very own, too. It just sort of happened, and we think it is as cute as she is! Aunt Amber even found a shirt that shows just how adorably they fit together!

Ellie

Now we don't call her "Elephant Ellie", but we do call her all sorts of other combinations....
Ellie-belly, Ellie-baby, Ellie-belly pudding and pie ( I have no idea, it just came out!)... A special side note is that my Maternal Grandmother's name is Eldwina, and you know what she has been called throughout her life? Yep, you guessed it...Ellie! Our Ellie would be blessed to follow after her great grandma's example of developing wonderful gifts of determination, ingenuity, and creativity! Here's to having wonderful family traits passed down through the generations!