Operation Christmas Child

Last year Noel and I wanted to get the "safari" looking towards missions. So we packed two boxes for Operation Christmas Child, one for a girl and one for a boy. This year Noel and I thought that each of our children would like to make their own box.

Each box contained:
*socks (2 pair)
*washcloth (2)
*outfit
*shoes
*candy
*chapstick
*toothbrush and toothpaste
*bar of soap
*crayons and coloring book with stickers
*a bouncing ball that lights up
*boys: trucks girls: chaulk and jacks

The "safari" was excited to put the lids on and pray over them. We continue to pray for the boxes until Christmas. Next year I think that we will track where our boxes go to show the "safari" how far they actually go. Noel and I have a great time and it is nice to see our mission oriented "safari" coming alive.

Halloween 2010

Halloween was great this year, because the "safari" was one year older and they were really excited about the candy part of Halloween this year. They were the Wizard of Oz again this year because I worked so hard on their costumes last year that I wanted to get two years out of them. Pops came up to help us with the "safari." We carved our pumpkin in the early evening and the "safari" was okay with that but really could have cared less. I think that Noel and I had more fun then the "safari" did.

We ate dinner and then got ready to go Trick or Treating. It was dark when we started and the "safari" was more than excited. Noel and I tried cover all the rules of Trick or Treating with the "safari." You only ring the doorbell once: they took that as each of them got to ring the doorbell once. You say thank you when you receive your candy: they took that as say thank you and ask for more candy. If no one answers then no one is home: Jacob took that as try the door to make sure they are not hiding. We were out for about 1.5 hours and the "safari" got more candy then I thought they would. We had to send Noel back to the house to get a book bag because the "safari's" buckets were so heavy they could not carry them. Everyone had fun and they are already talking about next year. I think that we are going to be the 7 dwarfs from Snow White, Sneezy and Dopey will stay home in bed. It is great to have our "safari" at the age where they enjoy activities.

Stupid Geniuses

I have come to the conclusion that when you put any two or more of my toddlers together in a room that they become stupid geniuses. I have several examples of this just based on all the modifications that we have had to make to the rooms that our "safari" sleep in. Here is a short list:

**Took all pictures off the walls so that they could no longer through their pillows to see if they could knock it down.
**Had to take the wheels off their cribs so they would not play roller derby with them.
**Had to nail their curtains into 1X1 into the studs in the wall because they were hanging from them
**Had to take the closet doors off because they were trying to slam their fingers off.
**Had to play team match to see who could be in the same room together. That took a couple of months.
**Had to put locks on the outside of the doors because they were playing exchange student with each other.
**Had to take the mattresses away from Elijah, Esther and Jacob because they figured out that you could lean it against the wall and climb up into the closet. That is how Jacob broke his collar bone. Now Elijah and Joshua have a bed that Noel and I have a hard time moving.
**Had to take the closet shelf out because Elijah and Esther Mae climbed onto the end of the bunk bed and climbed up into the closet and then were jumping back into the bed. Esther Mae taught Elijah how to use the wall to get into the closet.

I am sure there are more that I have forgotten, but that gives you an idea of the stupid genius acts that Noel and I have witnessed. Now the roommate assignments are as follows. Joshua and Elijah are roommates. Esther Mae and Hannah sleep together in a twin bed and Jacob sleeps in a twin bed in the other room. The third room is a guest room.

I thought I would leave you with a recent picture of my stupid geniuses.