Brother-Sister Play Time...

Lately, Benjamin just looooooves this rocking horse. He rides on it, and pulls it all around the apartment. He likes to push it on it's side and climb between the wood pieces to pretend he's stuck. He calls out, "Hep! Hep!" (help) until someone comes to help him. I get so nervous when he is teetering on it, using it as a step stool to reach something. But it brings him so much joy; I try to let his dare-devil antics slide. It seems like he finds so many life threatening situations in a given day, that I'm actually becoming less worried and uptight. Could it be that I'm finally growing accustomed to having a little boy? I think so. :)

Sweet - Anna helping Benjamin play. They sing Row, Row, Row Your Boat together, and Anna helps rock him faster. Such a sweet big sister. Anna is actually very concerned about Benjamin getting hurt; she is always looking out for him. Unless of course, he has just taken one of her toys and ran with it...then she just gets annoyed. :)

I. LOVE. THIS. PICTURE. I just wish you could see Ben's face a little better. My sweet little babies, ahhhhhhh. Brings a tear to my eye.

The first picture is Anna trying to hug Benjamin, while he is strongly resisting. Anna has him around the neck pretty tight; I had to intervene quickly. The other two pictures - Reading time! I love reading to my kids, but I also think it's sweet to find them "reading" through books on their own...especially when they're sitting right next to each other sharing books. Love it.

A typical mischievous look for Ben-Ben. Mostly during this photo shoot, I was taking pictures of them doing their thing - all natural playing throughout the afternoon. But then I wanted to get a picture of them standing together, preferably hugging (which they occasionally do unprompted). When I was trying to set that up, Benjamin gave me this look, like, "Think again, Mama," right before he ran down the hallway laughing. (Hence the tackling from Anna in the previous picture.) I did manage to get that one cute shot of the both of them, so it all worked out.

Anna and Benjamin have been getting so good at playing together, and getting along together, and entertaining each other, and even making up games together. Although, most of the time I think Ben is oblivious to what the game is...hehe. As their mommy, it is so precious to witness this bonding. Anyway, despite all the good play time lately, and yes, I'm usually involved in it too, if I am cooking in the kitchen, it is an instant magnet for the kids to be in there - begging for things, wanting to help, trying to peer over the counter to see what's happening. It's understandable, but occasionally I'm in a hurry and can't let Anna help, or I don't have the patience to listen to Ben-Ben beg for food over and over. I'm not super-mom or super patient, so during these hurried "making dinner moments" I sometimes turn on a TV show for them...but always PBS 'cause that makes me feel a little better about it. :) For the record, the kids have some "TV time" in the morning, so yeah, they watch some TV, but I'm specifically talking about evening TV right now...something we try to avoid. I know, so much background info for that first picture. But, whenever they're doing anything together, side by side, developing a sibling bond...even if it's watching a show together...I am just so happy.
Okay, second picture - you couldn't tell from this picture, but Benjamin is very into building things lately, and he is getting so good at it...for an 18 month old. Fun, fun. I love how the harder he is concentrating, the more his lower lip flops out. Cute. And I just had to add the last picture - Anna's upset/disappointed look. She scrunches up her little face and makes a noise like, "huuumhhff!" It's better than crying, and I totally respect her need to show disapproval about things. Ethan and I actually find it pretty cute, which doesn't help Anna's feelings of frustration. Oops.

So, this entry was supposed to be about Benjamin, and he is certainly featured in the pictures and stories. But his life is so intertwined with his big sister's, that it was hard to leave her out of this post. Benjamin is growing up, learning the "rules of life," and I can see how that has strengthened his relationship with Anna. And with all of us. It makes sense, but the more he can communicate with us, the happier he is...and the happier we all are. :) I just LOVE him. I love simple, sweet moments with my little family...it's hard to describe the feeling....peace, love, joy, contentment. Of course we still have our moments, but mostly, life is good.

Wait, one last thing - when we leave Anna at pre-school, Benjamin always loudly calls out, "Bye Anna!" over and over. It's so sweet. Many of the other little kids say, "Bye Baby," back, and say how cute the baby is. When I look at Anna during these moments, I can see the love Anna has for Benjamin. And I can see that she is proud he is her little brother. And it makes me happy.

The Finished Product...

This little project idea was mentioned in a previous post, and Anna and I finally finished it.

We painted the clothes pins...decorated the clothes pins...

And then hung them up on our "clothes line."

Anna loved this idea. The empty clothes pins are already filled up. They hold recent art projects that Anna (and a few from Benjamin) has created at home, pre-school, church, and play groups. (I also have an organizer/binder that holds some of her other art work....kids sure make lots of it...and I only keep my favorites. :)

Since we live in an apartment right now, and we can't paint our walls, I love the added color and unique-ness this gives Anna and Benjamin's room. Anna loves that her art work is displayed in our home. Benjamin likes it now that he realizes it's just decoration, and not something he can grab. Speaking of Ben-Ben, I know my next post was supposed to be about him, but I only had time for a quicky tonight. Next time. (Ethan has been needing the laptop tons lately, so I only have limited time on it in a day...and sometimes not at all. I know, sad. :)

It Has Begun...

Anna started pre-school this week. Crazy! I was so sad to see her go, but I think it's so good for her too. Anna has been wanting to go to school for FOREVER. I don't know if this is typical, but a few weeks leading up to this, I worried tons about sending her off...a few nights I couldn't get to sleep. And the first day was hard for me, but it got easier as the week went on. Anna attends Mon.-Thur. for three hours in the afternoon. I miss her, but the worried feeling is mostly gone. How will I feel when I have to send Anna and Benjamin (and maybe a future baby #3...maybe) to school all day, everyday?! I guess I should wait to worry about it when the time comes. Baby steps.

The pictures above are of Anna's very first day, outside our apartment. Not surprisingly, Anna had no problems adjusting to pre-school, and loved the whole experience. She loves her teachers, Miss Rita and Miss Karen. She loves the outdoor play time. She loves hanging out with 15 other little kids. She loves the toys, and activities they have. And she LOVES that they eat at school. The first thing she tells me about when I pick her up, is what snacks they had that day. ha ha.

I'm happy for Anna. This is a good thing. It helps that she goes to school during Benjamin's nap time. He's kind of a light sleeper, so we always had to do quiet activities, or watch a little movie during his nap. Now she gets to go to school and have all kinds of fun. Speaking of Ben-Ben, I hadn't considered how this would affect him. He's not napping for the whole time Anna is gone (the one-on-one time with him is a fun change too), and he always asks about her when he wakes up. And he keeps asking about her until we go pick her up from school. Sweet.

So there's our big news for the week. Next time I'll be sure to hi-lite Benjamin, you know, make sure he gets equal blog time. :)

Bonus ~ Ethan got to pick up Anna from school one day this week. He told me part of a hilarious conversation they had on the way home. Anna - "Daddy, I'm frustrated." Ethan - "Why?" Anna - "Because Mommy is in love with you and I am in love with you." Ethan - "Well, you can both love me, and I love both of you." Anna - "Okay."

A Bit of Creativity...

So, I've never really thought of myself as a creative person. This idea was mainly based on the fact that I am not so into cutesy, crafty things (not counting kid's crafts), and never felt particularly artistic. However, in many of my education classes (including an amazing art class), in classroom experience, by decorating a home, and through church service, I have had many opportunities to try my hand at it. It's been fun. Lately I have been working on some projects that have me feeling pretty creative.

First of all, the kid's crafts. 1) Anna and I made some paper plate masks the other day, something we've done before. We made a lion and a bird, as you can tell from the picture. And yeah, they aren't perfect, but that's the point - we made them together. I loved how they turned out. Then at story time at the library, we heard a story about a lion and a mouse. So, when we got home, Anna had the brilliant idea to change the story to be about a lion and a bird so we could act it out. What a creative idea. 2) This other idea isn't really a craft, but it is imaginative. We were playing with a Topple game, and I decided to make little people on our fingers, with the topple pieces being the hats. Anna loved it; she insisted on having a whole family. Benjamin loved it even more; just watching us sing and talk to him with our finger people was enough to crack him up. Fun, fun.

This week we had an enrichment activity at church, and I was asked to give a lesson on home decorating on a budget. I thought I wasn't so qualified at first, but then realized this is something I really love. When we sold our home last year, we had numerous comments from potential buyers that they loved not just the home, but what we'd done with it - our colors and decorating style. I've always been into great deals...garage sales, clearance isles, thrift stores, etc, but I'm pretty picky about what I get. I think the creativity comes in by deciding how and where to use the item, whether to paint, or change it, etc. (Right now, living in a small, two bedroom apartment, and having a non-existent budget for this kind of thing, I'm currently not really doing much. :) For the class, I had many past ideas of my own to bring in and share, and filled in the gaps by searching a few articles on-line. I loved that my first main ideas involved three FREE things: de-cluttering, cleaning, and rearranging. Seriously, none of that costs anything and can make the biggest difference in a home. We also discussed many other ideas concerning themes, art, painting, accents, etc. Okay, I'll stop, but this was so much fun, and the class went great!

So, a description of one project I just recently completed: I had two black, square frames that I purchased forever ago for $3 each. I thought they'd look great on either side of our clock to fill up that wall a little more. The problem was, I didn't want to put in pictures of people because we already have plenty of family pictures displayed. They hung empty for a long time. Sooooo, I came up with the idea to take pictures of doors around our area to use. Artistic, right? (I later learned that there is an artist that is known for photographs of windows and doors, BUT I bet he hasn't done any from Clio or Frankenmuth.) Maybe not an original idea after all, but I thought it was, and I've already had so many compliments and inquiries about it. There are two doors I want to switch out, but this is it for now. I love that once we move away from this area, it will serve as a reminder of our time here.

When we have a home again, I also want to try this project: buy art canvases, but instead of painting on them (unless you're good at that kind of thing :), buy fabric that goes with your room/theme/colors to pull tightly over, and glue behind. A friend of mine did this, and it looked so good. And it's potentially inexpensive, depending on the size and quality of fabric. (Fabric stores and art stores often have great deals and coupon opportunities.) Something I am in the middle of for Anna's and Ben's room: hanging a twine "clothes line" on the wall, Anna is colorfully decorating the wood clothes pins, and then we'll use that to display her art work. I'll get a picture of it when we're finished. (I also like the idea of painting old frames matching colors, and putting the artwork in there...Maybe someday when we have a house and I want to decorate a wall in a family/play room.) Anyone have any creative, artistic ideas they'd like to share? Feel free to leave a comment.

The Perfect Autumn Activity...

First a little of this....

Then some of that....

To get this.....

Hmmm, perfection. I. Love. Apple. Pie. (Don't zoom in on this picture; it's not flatering. At all. :)

Incidentally, Benjamin now knows how to say apple (and night-night, but that's unrelated to this post).

My Name Is Angela Rayhorn...

(Meghan, Jake and Rorie came to visit over Labor Day weekend, so fun, and Anna got her hair done like a "princess." Thanks Meg.)

...And I am a picture taking addict. Seriously. Many people often regret forgetting the camera to capture those precious family moments, a beautiful sunset, or that random silly act. Not me. I always think to have my camera, and I always take lots of pictures. Don't get me wrong, I love taking pictures. I love looking back at our family photo albums every so often. And I love that Anna and Ethan enjoy reminiscing with me. But, I've decided I need to cut back. Since Ben-Ben was born, I have just been on a roll. It's crazy, but I have to make a conscious effort to leave my camera at home. I also have to remind myself, really reassure myself, that it is okay if I don't get a picture of every thing we do and every thing we experience as a family. (So, I don't think I'm that bad, but I do think I could stand to cut back. Most of the pictures I take end up on here, or facebook, so you can be the judge. :)

In lieu of the highlights from our week, with pictures to accompany, this week I decided to write 5 things I have been thinking about, reflecting on, or appreciating lately. *Again, not because I believe many of you reading this will be very interested, but because this is also a journal of my thoughts.* Notice I couldn't bring myself to blog without any pictures this week...baby steps. (Although, these were the only pictures I've taken in a week or two which is good for me right now. :)

Numero 1) I only took piano lessons for three years, but I taught myself much more after that, and I have always been so grateful for the ability to make music. I feel peace when I play the piano. I have really missed not having a piano in our home this last year. (We left ours with some family friends in Marquette during our time down here.) I took for granted all the moments I was feeling stressed, frazzled, or down, that I could sit down at the piano and work through my emotions. It was a beautiful thing. Even when I was feeling especially joyful, playing the piano would magnify those feelings. I still have opportunities to play here. I am the sub for the organist in my congregation, and I play the piano for the primary children Singing Time every Sunday. The hymns and children's songs are beautiful and invite that peace into my life. But I do miss my own piano, and I miss playing other types of music.

Numero 2) Baby-proofing for Benjamin is never ending. Just when I think my little 750 square foot apartment could not possibly be anymore safe than it already is, Ben-Ben proves me wrong. I mean, it's such a small space, how does he keep finding mischief to get into?! New things - climbing on top of a small book case, standing on a little rocking horse to poke holes into his bedroom screen, and bringing a big toy block over to where I keep my keys so he can then proceed to climb up, press the car alarm, which I then have to rush out to turn off. (I'm amazed that it works from our apartment, since we don't park that close to our building.) Ethan and I often find ourselves describing Benjamin as being naughty, or naughty pants. A few weeks ago, we decided to stop using that word to describe him...avoid the whole self-fulfilling prophesy thing. I guess it would be a parent-fulfilling prophesy. Either way, it's been a lot harder than we realized.

On further reflection, I have come to realize that most of the time Ben-Ben is simply being curious, with a bit of mischievousness mixed in there. But other times he is being down right naughty: Pinching his older sister (it's only happened a couple times, but still!), looking you right in the eye and then quickly throwing all of his food overboard from his highchair tray, or running away from us as fast as he can, often endangering his life in the process. Moving on - I always feel like I must mention a few of Ben's sweetness's whenever I discuss some of the challenging things about him: his love-y, hug-y, kiss-y moods, reading time, he tries to help me by mimicking things I do, his big smile and even bigger laughs, and the list could go on. I love him.

Numero 3) Cooking is so satisfying. I have often told people that I don't like to cook, not to be confused with thinking that I am not a good cook. hehe It just wasn't a priority, and I saw it as a waste of time. (I was a busy combination of mommy/student/wife at the time.) Since I graduated almost two years ago, I have been cooking for my family so much more. I am surprised by how much I enjoy it. I still go for quick prep, I am a mommy of two little ones, but I find the process so rewarding. I love sitting down as a family, sharing a delicious, healthy meal together, and talking about our day. It's such a simple thing, but it seems so significant to me. Yes, some days I have to do a box mix, or a frozen meal, but the days that I cook (usually with Anna assisting me), I feel like I've accomplished something good, important. So, I try to stick with healthy meals - lots of fresh produce, whole grains, fish, lean meats, soups, etc. - but it doesn't always happen. Here are some of my favs right now - chicken enchiladas, Thai garlic beef (with mushroom, broccoli, and onion), rotini pasta with the works (meaning lots of fresh, sauteed veggies), chicken tacos with avocado, beef stroganoff, Italian chicken, chicken white chili, bbq roast, broiled salmon over couscous, and the list could go on... Hmmm, what should I make for dinner tomorrow?

Well, I was going to name five things, but the first three were so detailed, I think I'll just stick with that for the week. The fourth involved Anna's helpfulness/big sister role, and the fifth was about being creative (not in a 'crafty' kind of way though). Oh, and I want to record some of the conversations Anna and I have been having about appearance, and what true beauty is. I know she's only four, but she is the one initiating these conversations, and I keep it to a four year old level. But, I'll have to save these for another day. I'm sleepy! Hope you all have a fabulous week.

Bonus - A few new words from Ben-Ben: Echo, book, poopy, Bob (as in, Bob the Builder...a book he likes), Anna, Amen, ew (as in yucky), Rorie, ball, shoes, Ben, please, thank you, juice, and more. The learning to speak stage is priceless! *Many of these words would be impossible for the average person to decipher in Ben-Speak, but Ethan and I understand him, and that's all that matters. :)