Freezing

Remember this picture? My friend Kim took it a while back at the beginning of summer. It's still the perfect poster image for our summer. Almost every day after nap/quiet time we have a popsicle on the back steps. Davy is great at making sure we keep to this tradition, telling me what a hot day it is and that he needs a popsicle. Eddy's caught on too. Anything anyone else is eating is fair game and he wants his share.

This same friend, Kim, moved a few weeks ago. Very sad for us to loose them from our ward and neighborhood. Good for us because they had to leave their big chest freezer. After all, we need a place to store all those popsicles and ginormous buckets of ice cream. I have to laugh, though, every time I open the lid and see things in there that I made fun of my Grandmother for having in the freezer. As a kid I thought it was the most bizarre thing to keep butter and flour in the freezer. I guess I still think it's weird, but now I do it anyway.


I found this picture of my dad when I was looking through old photos on my Heritage Makers account. Good things don't change much in 50 years. Oopsy-daisy. I gave away an age. Hope he doesn't mind!

A Balanced, Righteous Life

I was reading the current Ensign the other day and came across this great anecdote in Elder Perry's article (full link here).

"One fun tradition we practiced in our family had a lasting impression on us. When the children in the family reached the age of one, they were placed at one end of a room and the family at the other end. Where the family was gathered, four objects were placed on the floor: a baby’s milk bottle, a toy, a small savings bank, and the scriptures. The child was then encouraged to crawl to the objects and select one of them.

I selected the bank and turned out to be a financial executive. My brother Ted selected the scriptures, was a great lover of books all his life, and became a lawyer. My brother Bob was the well-rounded member of the family. He crawled up and sat on the scriptures, picked up the bank and placed it right at his feet, and put the bottle in his mouth with one hand and held the toy in the other hand. He became an accountant. He lived a well-balanced life."

I'm so grateful I married another accountant--certainly a balanced, well-rounded man! I wonder which item Eddy would choose in two months. Maybe we should try this experiment!

Jumping Monkeys

Apparently you still need to rub sunscreen around after you spray it. Oops and owie.


Davy kept wanting to jump on my bed this week. No can do, especially since it's an Ikea frame with slats. But we did hang out in my room several uncomfortably hot afternoons when we might normally go to the park. The boys love to wrestle. Even Eddy seems to think being pulled around by his head and tackled is fun.


Eddy's going to be walking in the next month or two, from all the signs. He likes to practice standing up by himself and loves to walk along holding on to things. Crawling is still the fastest way to get around, though, so he may surprise us and be a long-time crawler. Either way, he's getting into stuff and generally being a cute curious baby.



We've had a few cute Davy-isms this week. Collin reported these two:

"Oh, look! It's something on the ground so wonderful!" -- while riding a tricycle in the driveway and happening upon a shriveled-up leaf.

Also while riding his bike, he abruptly stopped, looked at Collin and said, "Daddy, you remember . . . you remember, I have to be 16 before I can date," which Rachel had just said to him earlier that day in the car, but we didn't think he was actually listening.

Salisbury Beach 2011

We thoroughly enjoyed the fabulous weather today at the beach. Amazingly it was our first beach trip this year (in MA, at least) and I always wonder why we don't come more often when we're there. After we come home and dump all the sand out and it gets tracked everywhere I remember. But we sure love it while we're listening to the seagulls and waves, chasing the tide and running away from the waves, building castles and forts and soaking up the vitamin-D rays.



We brought Eddy his own little beach in a bucket today and it was a big hit. Several people commented on what a great idea it was, seeing the baby happily and safely splashing. The only bad moment was when he tried to crawl out and did a full face plant in the sand. He was pretty unfazed, though. I think he may have a mineral deficiency, judging from the relish with which he sucked on everything sandy and salt-watery. He even tried to drink a whole cup full of the water before I poured it out and told him, "Blah, yucky!" which always makes him smile and at least pause before trying it again.





We had such a good time at the beach, but knew we were done when a tantrum reared its ugly head. We left in a cloud of screaming and kicking from Davy. Collin carried him down the beach toward the board walk and I followed a few paces behind with Edward. I heard a young woman say to her husband and friends, "See, that is why we are never having children. They cry." I wanted to turn around and say, "Yes, they cry, but in five minutes he'll be laughing and giggling and giving the best hugs and kisses anyone could dream of and saying the funniest things to make you smile." But I didn't. I hope she changes her mind.

Pioneer Appreciation Day

Can you believe that we have no pictures of our Pioneer Day celebrations? What kind of Mormons are we, anyway? Truly, though, the whole wonderful weekend went by and we didn't get any pictures of us dressing up to be pioneers and doing a fun trek with some families from the ward, getting drenched while trekking (I even brought the camera and had to keep it safe and dry under my bonnet, or while we were doing an LDS Seder that is a tradition from my family. All those photo ops and nothing to show from it.

But the boys and I did have a real chance to appreciate all the walking the Pioneers did last week when our car broke down and wouldn't start (for me) again. We were just going to the library, luckily, so we were only a mile and a half away from home. The car sputtered and died right as I pulled it to the side of the road. We weren't in any immediate danger, but it was very hot and I couldn't get it started again for 20 minutes. Our car has been doing this a lot recently, but it's always started again quickly. We have brought it in to have it looked over but they haven't found anything, urgh. I was actually kind of hoping it truly was broken and finally the mechanic would be able to locate the problem and fix it, so after a short while I called AAA and had it towed. The boys and I walked home. Davy was a real trooper and walked the whole way, except for half a block when I carried him near the end. Eddy fell asleep in the Ergo carrier. I have no idea how Pioneer women did it in skirts and without an Ergo. Unfortunately, the car started right up for the mechanic and they still haven't found the problem. Next time it dies I hope we're walking distance from home, but if not I suppose that is what visiting teachers are for!

Here's a funny from Davy: He told Collin the other day that "When you become a mommy you will go to school."

Fun at Fenway

On Saturday Collin took advantage of the annual Boston Red Sox LDS night at Fenway to purchase tickets to a game for a boys' night out. In preparation for the grand event we went to the local thrift store to find a "team shirt" (as Davy calls it). The only one they had in the kid section was for a seven year old, but at $2.50 we got it anyway. Then we came home and listened to Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline all afternoon. Davy was ecstatic to be going to a baseball game, although I believe he was under the impression that he would be able to actually play with the baseball players and that he "could throw the ball to the guys and they could hit it with their cool bats." Even though he couldn't play on the field, he still found plenty of ways to entertain himself, according to Collin. He found letters and shapes in the signs around the park, was very confused at the Green Monster (probably expecting an Elmo-esque character), and eating plenty of sugar. He came home beyond hyper and bounced off the walls giggling at 11:30 at night until he finally crashed hard.



I love that cute smile! He looks like he's headed down the path to being a Sox fan for life.


Ice cream in a hat was a must. No wonder the kid came home hopped up on sugar!

Wayne Edward Lambourne

Collin's grandpa passed away this week. We have been remembering him and telling Davy some stories about Great-grandpa Wayne. His funeral was this morning and we were sorry to have missed hearing more stories and being with family. Here is our long-distance tribute to a great Lambourne man (written by Collin).

Wayne Edward Lambourne, my paternal grandfather, was born on December 23, 1922 in Holladay, UT. After graduating from Granite High School, he left home to work at an aircraft plant in Burbank, CA, and then enlisted in the US Navy as the country entered WWII. He mostly worked on experimental aircrafts with guided bombs and helped analyze a German bomb captured later in the war. Recently, I've been watching documentaries and reading books associated with WWII -- both on the European and Pacific fronts. It amazes me how these mere boys sacrificed and performed such great service for their country and for freedom of others.

After the war ended, Wayne served a mission to Sydney, Australia at the age of 23 and later enrolled in a school of business at the University of Utah. He graduated in just three years. During that time, he also married a pre-mission sweetheart, Elizabeth McDonald (a marriage slightly forbidden due to the fact that Elizabeth and Wayne were technically 2nd cousins, and the unthinkable match of a U of U grad and the niece of the President of Brigham Young University).
Wayne and Elizabeth moved the family a few times to places including El Paso, TX and various locations in Southern California in pursuit of Wayne's career. He worked as an instructor at a technical training school and later as an engineer at North American Aviation Corp, where he was involved in cutting-edge technology development for the Air Force.

Upon retiring, Wayne and Elizabeth served church family history missions together in Chicago and Denver. At the age of 73, Wayne served as bishop of his ward in Fullerton, CA.
As a grandfather, he was interactive and always seemed to have some sort of life lesson to teach (frugality, responsibility, self-sustainability come to mind) or fun feat for his grandchildren to accomplish (sometimes with $$ incentive!) -- like seeing how many pull-ups they could do, whether they could climb over a particular wall at the local community college track & field, or how long they could resist laughing and keep their arms up while he tickled them. He would tell them riddles or jokes. Grandpa occasionally used the nickname "High Pockets" (whether for himself or his 6' 5'' grandson, Garrett) as an allusion to the fact that Lambourne genes typically create disproportionately longer legs than torsos.
He always had a box of sports equipment like frisbees, whiffle balls and bats, Nerf footballs, etc, for when the kids came over to use at a nearby park. He let us play games like "Frogger" on his ancient computer -- my first interaction with MS-DOS! Despite his affiliation with the U of U, for as long as I can remember, Grandpa was an avid BYU football fan. I recall Saturdays going over to Grandpa's house during the latter stages of the LaVell Edwards era for crucial games and routing on the Cougs.
Growing up so close to both sets of my grandparents was very beneficial to me (and makes me wonder why I don't provide my own children the same benefit . . . ). In addition to seeing and working alongside Grandpa at least once a month, I was able to spend a few days with him and Grandma in the Palmyra, NY area and remember those moments spent together with fondness. Grandma had unfortunately had a fall in the O'Hare airport and was confined to a wheelchair during the trip. While we were at the hotel, with Grandma relaxing on the bed, Grandpa would challenge me to do wheelies in her wheelchair. Then he challenged me to do a wheelie all the way down the hotel corridor and back. To this day (sometimes to Rachel's annoyance), I can't pass a wheelchair without wanting to get in and practice my utterly useless talent. I also can't help but think of Grandpa and how he and Grandma were kind enough to invite me on such a spiritual and fun trip.
Music has a way of making you think of people, events, feelings. Most often, I associate specific songs with my mother and the feelings I had as a young boy listening to her sing. And even though I don't recall Grandpa singing, there are a few songs that I always associate with being in his home. One of those is the hymn "Love at Home." Every now and then, Grandpa would bring us over to his stereo and share a favorite song with us. Here are a few that come to mind:
"Old Rivers" -- another of Grandpa's nicknames
"Danny Boy" by the Irish Tenors


Four generations of Lambourne men. Rachel and I feel so blessed that our boys have such examples to look to and emulate. Thanks for the memories, Grandpa. We love you and we'll see you again soon!

Tall Enough

At the beginning of summer I got this balance bike on sale, and was disappointed when at the lowest setting it was still too big for Davy. (It had been advertised as a 2-4 year old bike, so maybe Davy's just short?) I left it out with our other wheeled toys for other kids who come over to play and are big enough. Davy would share, but still be a bit territorial--"that's my bike" and watch enviously. I reassured him that at the end of the summer he would be tall enough, but what does that mean to a two-year-old? In the meanwhile he tried to use his trike, but he couldn't figure out how to pedal it and was getting very frustrated. Last week he abandoned his trike and refused any suggestions that he try it again. Finally I got the hint and stopped nagging. He pulled out the balance bike again and insisted he was "tall enough" to ride it. And on his very tip toes he is, and has surprisingly good balance so far. Then last night he pulled out the trike again and pedaled perfectly around the driveway. This is a really good story for me to remember when I'm teaching and watching Davy learn something new and hard. Don't push, try something different in the meantime, let him succeed on his terms.


Davy must do everything himself. Last night well after he had been sent to bed and had a dozen warnings to "go back to bed" he came out again. I told him that it was bedtime and not to come out again or a privilege (stuffed animal or book from his bed) would be taken away. Then I took his arm and gave him a small push toward his room. He shook me off, said, "No, I do it myself." He stepped back to where we had started before I propelled him forward and marched off toward his room. Collin and I could barely control our laughter until he was out of earshot. His expression of indignation! The privilege of doing things himself is a great motivator. If he doesn't hurry when mom says go, he looses the chance to climb into the car, do his own seat belt, etc. Still, sometimes he does want help and I am trying to love that he is too big for somethings but too small for other things--often the same things at different times of the day.


And this boy is all over the place! He is a demon crawler, lunger, stander, roller and general mover. He is going to catch up to Davy much sooner than big brother thinks possible and watch out! One of my favorite moments of the day recently has been the time just after he wakes up from a nap, usually before Davy, and gets his mama milk snack on my bed. Then blissfully happy and energetic he uses the bed like a trampoline and rolls around to his heart's content while I get a few more minutes rest watching him to make sure he doesn't fulfill his death wish of lunging himself over the edge of the bed head first.

Super Duck

We had visits from several super heroes this week. The one who stayed the longest and was the most opinionated was Super Duck. Davy, alias Super Duck, was running around the house in just the towel costume and I told him that he needed to get dressed and then he could be Super Duck. He told me, "No, Mom. Super Duck doesn't wear underwear." And I said that even thought it was 103 degrees and 1,000,000 percent humidity, underwear was the bare minimum (haha, I crack myself up). Finally we did compromise. "Davy, do you really want to be wearing those hot rubber boots right now?" "Super Duck needs boots . . . I will rescue you." "Okay, whatever. Thanks for rescuing me." (Note to self: probably shouldn't say "whatever" to my kids. 'Cause it'll be way annoying when they say it back to me.)


And I got Eddy chatting on the cell phone!

Some of This and Some of That

I needed a print of the Boston Temple for a project for my new calling as Primary secretary. I saw a few images I liked on the internet after an image search, but I didn't really have time or money to get a professional print. So I plagiarized an angle that I thought was striking and went to get my own shot. After a little finagling in the the "darkroom" (iPhoto histogram and special effects) I got the result I wanted. I was very pleased that it turned out better than I originally thought it would. My one complaint is that I don't know how to use Photoshop to get the Angel Moroni to stay gold. Any tips?


Handsome boy. Nana sent a tie in a package this week. Davy was very excited when we opened the box and had to wear the tie right away on his tee-shirt. So it was especially thrilling to wear it today. It did not, however, make it all the way through nursery.


I don't think he knows who Darth Vader is, but maybe he's taking style tips from some guy like him.


Silly expression. We love to walk around the temple grounds. We probably do not really add to the reverent atmosphere, but we try to talk about what temples are and enjoy the flowers as well as walk on the walls.


Eddy has always been my finger-food man. He accepts a spoon with food on it just fine, but it better come fast and frequent. Better for both of us is when I just load up his tray with foodstuffs and let him go at it. He'll be quiet and happy much longer that way and I get to eat in peace as well. Sometimes the full feeling and boredom set in before I catch on to it and fruit drink and spagetti sauce get everywhere. Thanks, Collin, for capturing this moment!

Edward has finally, finally cut three new teeth on the top. We're still waiting for the second middle tooth so he has a quirky gap right now.


I think this stick is a gun right now, but possibly a sword or a wand. He looks like he should be holding a wand, wearing that Hogwart's-like uniform!

Storyland

Yesterday we got up early and drove into the White Mountains of New Hampshire to visit Storyland. We had been looking forward to a big trip to Disney World, but decided that it would not be prudent at the current time. Luckily, we have our very own "theme park with training wheels" (as I overheard the park described by another parent while waiting in line) right here in New England. Whoop whoop. Our friends were also ready for a visit this summer, so we were able to coordinate and spend the day with them. Lucky us, as it made the trip much more enjoyable for kids and parents!


Storyland is obviously a children's theme park based around stories, nursery rhymes and fairy tales. One of my favorite parts was the little animal zoo with Little Bo Peep's sheep and the Three Little Pigs and their houses (super cute), etc.


We checked out Alice's teacups and there was a great Mad Hatter (aka "clown" according to Davy). The ride itself was definitely not up to Disneyland standards (we're rather snobby at our house about Dland) but still fun.


The biggest hit by far was the carousel. It was awesome! An antique German carousel, over a hundred years old but still gorgeous. Two unique things about it are that it is one of two carousels in the world that go clockwise instead of counter-clockwise (the other one is in Germany), and the fact that instead of horses going up and down on poles the horses were on springs front and back so they could rock. The kids loved the ride, and I thought the motion was more similar to an actual horse so felt right at home.


Early in the day (you can tell because he still has a hat on, which only lasts an hour tops) Davy found a sandbox and would've stayed the rest of the day if we did not bodily remove him.


There was a Dumbo-esque ride, only with whales.


And funny auto-matronic bamboo reeds singing a hippie peace song that entranced the kids.


After lunch we were ready to get wet to cool off. The kids look so small in those big chairs, but they passed the height requirement, and the ride wasn't too wild. We did get nice and wet, though!


Eddy loved watching the rides.


Eddy needed his own turn to get wet, so at one of the splash park sections we let him crawl around. He kept obsessing about the little disks where the water comes out, and after a while I just let him go at it, knowing that he would learn eventually that water shoots out of them. He got caught right in the face with a big geyser, sat up spluttering, but didn't even cry. Crazy kid.



I think I end half of posts with this sentiment, but here we go again! What simply adorable kids these boys are!!