Ouch!

Sour Cream is getting so big.

And breaking his leg in May hasn't slowed this boy down - thank goodness

for doctors who know what they are doing.

We've been reading Little House in the Big Woods lately,

and it made me wonder what we would have done if we hadn't been able

to access a doctor.  He might have been stuck with a limp forever.

Anyway, that's not the point of this post.

The point is how fast this boy is getting.

He doesn't need to keep his hands up and out in front of him for balance much anymore

while he's walking.

Which means he's also starting to try running.

 

And since he always wants to keep up with girls, he's often going top speed.

Tonight after dinner, he was headed for the library book bag,

since that's where the girls had been, and

I heard a bang.

Followed by a cry.

And a scream.

And lots of tears and snot.

As soon as I got into the living room (15 seconds max),

the bruise was already forming.

 Right between the eyes.

As I tried to console him, I went to the freezer and tried to give him 

an ice pack.

Not happening.

We'll see what it looks like in the morning.

I'm guessing he'll have his first goose egg.

Best Friends

I love what great friends my kids are all becoming with one another.

They still get on each others nerves every day, but

there are more and more tender moments and laughter and a little less of the 

fighting and bugging.

 I also love how cute this boy looks with a little bit of gel in his hair.

We've put the girls in a bedroom together.

It's been a week now, and it's been great.  They are actually

getting along better with each other and seem to be sleeping better at night.

If anyone would have told me this would have happened, I would not have believed a word of it.

I'm also excited to complete their room, and I will share what we've done.

It's the first time that we've ever decorated a bedroom, and I'm really pleased with how it's turned out.

Sweet Boy

My sweet little Sour Cream.

He's becoming quite the little gentleman.

Yesterday right after dinner, I asked Olive to bring me 

the rag so I could help her get cleaned up.

She had washed herself, but missed some ketchup on her face.

As has become the norm for her the past week or so, she said 'no' and started crying.

I told her that she needed to go get the rag and get cleaned up or she'd be dirty all night.

Well, little Sour Cream saw her crying and toddled over to her - 

BTW, he's now walking!! - 

and as I watched him, I could see that he knew she was sad.

He almost gave her a hug, in the form of bending his head down to her, and

then he stood up and walked off into the kitchen.

We read scriptures as a family together after dinner, and 

Daddy was helping Tomato read her verse.  I was

watching Sour Cream come back over to the living room, and he was 

carrying the rag that I had asked Olive for earlier.

I watched as Olive sat up when he touched her and he

shoved the rag into her face, trying to clean her up.

 So.

Darn.

Cute!

 I interrupted the reading so Daddy could watch this touching display

of affection and love that our little 15 month old boy was demonstrating.

She cheered up while Daddy ran for the camera, but he was done cleaning by then.

Grandma

My grandma died last month.  It was not

completely unexpected - she's been very sick and frail for years, but it was still

a shock for us all.  I guess she had been hoping to make it to age 87,

since that's the age that her mom and one of her sisters passed away, and she did.

She turned 87 just 2 days before she died.

This is an old picture, but it shows how happy my grandparents

were to have each other.  They have always loved spending time with family.

She was an incredible lady.  She had 6 children, one of which was my mom.

She's the first person to die on that side of the family, which is really

quite amazing, since there are 28 grandchildren & over 40 great-grandchildren.

I think that my cousin summed up her amazingly when she posted this

on facebook:  

"She is the spunkiest firecracker, who will whip you into shape and love you at the same time."

 Grandma made sure that you knew what was right and that she expected you

to act right.  But even when you were upset that she called you

out for something or let you know what's what, you always knew that she loved you.

She always called me by my given name, which even close friends have at

times been surprised that my Missy is not my given name.

I was able to fly to Salt Lake City for the funeral over Father's Day weekend.

I'm so glad that we could afford that, and especially that my husband was willing

and able to stay home with the kids all weekend.

He's kinda great.

Still in love, over 60 years later.

My aunt created a painting of this photo and it was next to the

casket at the viewing.

I learned some things about Grandma at the funeral that I hadn't known before; she had

graduated from beauty college & another program, like a typing program or something.

It was so fun to hear her brother give the eulogy - he was telling stories of

Grandma and also her mom.  It was neat to be able to hear how 

Grandma had so many of the same characteristics and attitudes that their mom did.

Her mom had 10 children, and later ended up taking care of several nieces and nephews 

after their mom died.  And since Grandma was one of the oldest, she helped a lot.

I'm so grateful for such a good example in my life.

And even more grateful that I know that we will see her again one day.

It makes losing someone in this life easier to bear.

The gospel is true.