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One of my goals with this blog is to record the cute sayings I hear and the amazing milestones my kids reach. But some of the best stuff seems to happen when I’m not looking…or when they think I’m not.

Like Walter “reading” 101 Dalmatians to Abigail.

Or the time I was at a choir practice, and Mr. Guru caught Walter trying to fix himself a “humongous” snack.

Then there was the time Abigail decided to show off her neat-freak side by washing the windows.

Once at Grandma Schoolcraft’s house, Abigail disappeared, only to be discovered in the bathroom sink.

I’m so glad my video camera fits in my pocket for these little moments!

6/21: While preparing for a road trip in a tape deck-equipped vehicle, I came across Keith’s cassette of DC Talk’s self-titled album from 1989. I showed the cover to Walter. “Look,” I said, “there’s TobyMac as a teenager!” Walter thought about that and said, “Wow, that must have been before, like, 2002!”

6/25: We went to watch the Fridley fireworks at Commons Park. It was Abigail’s first time, and the noise really scared her at first. But Walter had a good time. It was a nice clear night, and as we were walking home, he said “I see some special shooting stars, but they’re staying still.”

6/30: Walter picked up my sweater shaver, the little device that can take pills off fabric. “What is it?” he asked. “A sweater shaver,” I said. “Does it sweat shavers?”

In a startling turn of events, I resigned from my part-time job at Boston Scientific in order to stay home full time with my kids. I had always seen myself as a lifetime engineer and career woman. But sometimes God has other, and better, plans. It was a tough decision, but after a lot of prayer, thinking and talking, it was clearly the right thing to do. My coworkers gave me a nice send off my last week of June – they are the part I’ll miss the most. So now I’ve been at home full time for about 3 weeks, and it’s great! I’m hoping this means more time for trips to the park, playdates, church activities, and of course blogging!

This post is a bit late, but life has thrown a lot at us lately. Not the least of which was a tornado on the day of Walter’s birthday party…

Just as our guests were arriving, the sirens went off. A couple of minutes of watching the TV weather report made it clear that an actual tornado was headed toward Fridley. So, thankful for the small guest list, we headed to the basement. The kids had a wonderful time playing on the exercise equipment and trampoline, while batting balloons around. Sure enough, the power went out, but the storm passed quickly and the sun even came out. There was plenty of light for cake and ice cream!  After treats and presents, all the boys went out back to set up our generator, while the other mom and I watched the neighbors clean up shingles that had relocated. (We didn’t have any damage.)  All in all, it was the best way to go through a tornado; the kids were having so much fun, they forgot to be scared!

So, what can I tell you about Walter the 5-year-old? He is one smart cookie. He seems to be destined for the engineering fields like Mom and Dad. One indication is that when he plays Monopoly (the electronic banking edition keeps the math simple) he counts the squares by saying “0, 1, 2…”  If you’ve ever written software code, you will probably recognized that in the computer world, lists start with 0. We didn’t teach him this…apparently he has the innate logic of an engineer. He is of course highly adept at using the iPad and our iPhones. He practices writing his letters and numbers in iPad apps, and likes to hear stories. Sometimes the iPad reads, sometimes we read, but I think he finds it a bit more glamorous that paper books. He is very much into Star Wars. His favorite birthday present, hands down, was a “real” light saber from Aunt Sarah. It lights up and makes real light saber sounds and is great fun. He also enjoys riding his bike and has even tried riding once without training wheels. I think we’ll get there by the end of the summer.  He can be very sweet and will pray at the drop of a hat. After he prays for someone, he asks “Did you feel that?”

Walter is also very creative.  He came up with an original song for Father’s Day. Then just yesterday he told me this story: “Once there were three little pigs named Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. One built a house of straw, one built a house of sticks, and one built a strong house made of brick.”

“Why do they have those names?” I asked.

“They wanted to change it up,” he said. “I’m making my own story!”
Another big milestone shortly after his birthday was graduation from preschool. Walter completed his five years at the Bethel University Child Development Center and proudly announced that he will be attending Kindergarten at Bel Air Elementary in New Brighton. Walter is very excited to go to school “every day” and keeps asking if it’s fall yet.

We are very proud of Walter and can’t wait to see what the next year holds!

4/23: While playing Super Paper Mario on the Wii, I heard Walter exclaim, “Why would he flippin’ do such a thing?”

4/25:  I let Walter try Fig Newtons. “Do they give you big muscles?” he asked. “No, they just taste good,” I said. He thought for a minute, then asked, “Do they give you dancing skills?”

5/8: Abigail: “Where are we going?” Me: “Nowhere.” Abigail: ” I want to go yes-where!”

5/8: Walter’s first visit to Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis. We went to a Target Free Family concert of American music. He thought it was a little loud, but liked the show and the “blocks” in the ceiling. Afterward, we explored the many levels of the lobby, had a sundae at Brit’s Pub and did some more exploration in the Skyways.5/17: A college student named Jenna sometimes comes to help with housework. One afternoon, she was playing with Walter, pitching a baseball to him.

Walter: “I’m going to hit it into space!”

Jenna: “It may not come back; there’s no gravity in space.”

Walter: “Maybe it will get stuck on a planet.”

Jenna: “Yeah, like Pluto.”

Walter: (silent pause) “No, Pluto’s not a planet anymore.”

6/5: Walter: “I love you all the way to the last number.”