day 51

february 20

Melanie's deep thought for the day:

What is it that keeps some leaves on the trees throughout fall and most of winter?

Melanie's not so deep answer:

Fear of falling.


Any other suggestions?

day 50

february 19

Jonas' fortune cookie tonight:




He read it, lowered his head and said, "Please don't put this on your blog."

But I know he knows me better than that.

day 49

february 18

Have you ever wanted to be a kid again for a day?

To have no real worries, no real problems, no to do list...

Haven't you ever wanted that back for a day?

Haven't you ever wanted to just be able to run outside and play until you are too tired to do anything else?

Haven't you wanted to run around in the cold, Utah February weather throwing dirt at your cousins.... pantsless?

and wearing your snow boots?





No?

Well then you must not have ever been a two year old boy.

day 48

february 17

Our little baby Porter is blessed.

He has an adoring fan,

a faithful follower,

a fierce protector,

a gentle advocate,

a proud cheerleader,

and a tender teacher....



and that's just his big brother.

It's a pretty sweet deal being the baby.

day 47

febrary 16

Jonas has a little problem with lunch boxes. He can never seem to remember to bring them home. Last year, I gave up on lunch boxes and used paper sacks. He complained about his sandwich getting smushed and the dorky messages I would write on the bag to embarrass him... (Brian quit letting me make lunches for him for that exact reason), so he said he would be more careful with his lunchbox. Just to make sure he knew which one was his, I put his name in big red iron on letters on the front. And it has worked for the most part. He usually remembers to bring the lunchbox home. The only down side is that the big red letter J lasted about a week, and now Jonas has a new name around school:



But he's not complaining; it's way better than LOVE MUFFIN on a brown paper bag.

day 46

February 15


I'm serious, every single recipe I make contains cheese.
And for good reason: it is the tastiest thing on the planet.
It is essential.
If there was a fire, my block of cheese would be the first thing I grabbed.
Okay, maybe that was taking it a bit too far...
but honestly, where would the world be without cheese?



Thinner perhaps, but definitely missing something....

something essential and flavorful.

This is my ode to cheese.

day 45

February 14

Dear Sunshine,

We love you...
will you be our Valentine?

And stay for like, ever?

XOXOXO

- us

day 44

February 13

We love books.
We love Barnes and Noble.
We love getting books at Barnes at Noble for Valentine's Day.

I love having children that are book worms.

day 43

February 12

This is not your mama's Valentine box.

Jonas put lots of thought and effort into this box, sure that he would have the best box in the class. And while he won furriest box, his thunder was stolen by a ROBOTIC box with flashing lights. There was also one that meowed. This lead me to a realization:
we as parents must have WAY too much time on our hands.

day 42

February 11

Cookies & milk anyone?

Or should I say cookies, milk and insulin anyone?

day 41

february 10

One persons trash is another man's treasure...

Jonas takes that phrase literally.

Our trash have become pieces of artwork for Jonas lately.

I think we'll take him to the dump for his birthday and let him pick out WHATERVER he wants.

day 40

february 9

Proof that this child is the third child:



We are so over combing the hair for public trips to the store.

day 39

February 8

Note to self:

Do not buy a cheap shelf. In this area, you get what you pay for.

Another note to self:

If you decide to ignore the above advice and do buy the cheap shelf, please do not hang it.

Final note to self:

If you do hang it, please, whatever you do do not put your adorable salt and pepper shakers full of every color of glitter on the cheap shelf.

Because if the cheap shelf fell off the wall and the little colorful bottles of glitter broke all over your floor bathing it in glitter, that would suck.

day 38

February 7

Sundays are best spent learning. Learning to clap, to sing, to play patty cake, and how to be a 7 year old girl.

Porter is the best student.

day 37

February 6

Porter's world is a small one. All he ever needs is at his fingertips, almost always within reach. He spends a lot of time here on this rug in the library, waiting for mom, for food, for the kids to come home and rescue him from boredom.... Today he decided he is tired of waiting in his small world. Today Porter looked on and saw a world beyond the rug. He is expanding his horizons, and he couldn't be happier about it.

day 36

February 5

It's 10PM. Pitch Black in the boys room, but it was worth drowning the black with a flash of light for a moment to capture this momentous occasion. Both boys asleep. In their own beds. At 10PM. AND they went to sleep there. No transferring.

Do miracles cease to be?

They do not, they do not.

day 35

February 4

I used to see those parents who leashed their kids and would silently freak out to myself. What are they thinking?! Something is seriously wrong if you have to leash your child.
Then I had Caleb. And then he turned two. Then I understood the leash thing. It's not cruel, it's necessary to his survival. Because if I didn't have a leash I am fairly certain he would escape from my grip and run to the first stranger and ask him if he has any puppies or candy.
I am just glad the people at Walmart are smart enough to disguise the torture device as a fun animal back pack that you GET to wear!

day 34

February 3

Hailey and I had a little craft night tonight and Porter had a field day exploring. He dumped the garbage can out. He ate a sheet of stickers, almost knocked down my ribbon lady, and swam in a sea of fabric.
life is so much more fun when you are mobile.

day 33

February 2

When Brian gets into a book, he REALLY gets into it. I sympathize because I have the same problem but what makes it different is that my taste in books is so much better. My choices allow for thoughtless reading. A bunch of easy fiction. Brian's picks are historical non-fiction or boring biographies where he actually like, learns stuff. Then he walks around telling me about it for days and I'm all... "Brian, I totally graduated. Books are not for learning anymore." And even though the look he gives me doesn't show it, I know inside he is thinking how brilliant I really am.

day 32

February 1

There are some children that would never sleep if they were given the option. Caleb is one of those.
It's after 11pm, I am tired. I am going to bed. And he is in the playroom still going strong.
If only he could pass some of that energy onto me...