You Talk Too Much

I was so excited to clean our carpets the other day for two reasons. One, I have been wanting clean carpets for months. And two, I thought I would get some peace from Jacob constantly talking to me. :) I was able to have one of my desires happen. Any guess which? Yep, I now have clean carpets. I really thought the loud Rug Doctor would give me some "peace and quiet" but after the first 15 minutes Jacob decided that the loud machine wouldn't be a deterrent. The problem with this was that I had to constantly turn off the machine to hear what he was saying. So for a job that should have taken about an hour, it took over three. I love Jacob and I know there will be a time when I wish that he would talk more (ie teenage years) but I am just trying to survive this current talkative stage. What a sweet, amazing kid he is!!

Jacob loves to use descriptive words when he talks.
"Momma, It was a really really really really really really really really really really big truck Momma!!"
"Momma, remember a long long long long long long long long long long long long long long time ago when we went to tball, Momma?"
Maybe we should teach him more descriptive words.(And yes, he begins and ends his sentences with Momma.)
The other day he got lazy and said, "Momma, do you remember a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time ago when I was three, Momma?"

Jacob has been telling knock-knock jokes. He loves orange and banana one. He also has one about an interrupting cow. We have turned that into interrupting 'just about anything' (ie, dog, bird, whistle, car, tree) and he can tell them for hours if we would let him. He thinks any knock-knock joke is hilarious and of course he doesn't quite understand them. 

Carnival

The Friday and Saturday before Mother's Day I have a booth at a school carnival and Jacob and Max helped me set up. Of course, Jacob had to play a little too. His friends showed up as well and he was so excited!  He loved what he called the 'car carousel' and the train. Those where the only two he would ride. There was no way he was getting on the ferris wheel but he did let me take a picture of him in front of the sign to measure whether he was tall enough to go.

I was able to break even with my booth, despite the lack of foot traffic around the booths and the crazy bouts of torrential rain. I also have someone who is interested in signing up under me. I enjoyed hanging out at the carnival but was glad I was ony there a day and a half. It was exhausting. On Saturday when it rained I got soaked trying to keep my canopy from falling over from the weight of the rain. Luckily, Max and Jacob brought me a change of clothes. It was a good first experience to get my 'feet wet' (pun intended) in the Scentsy booth business. I have to boast a little that I made the table cloth. I just couldn't fork out $50 when I could make it for $10. I am hoping to find another gig soon.

AgMagic

A few weeks ago we spend some time on LSU's campus at "AgMagic". Jacob was in heaven as he learned about Louisiana's agriculture through kid friendly learning activities and centers. We all learned a lot about Louisiana's resources. We picked up a crawfish, Jacob would not. We held day old baby chicks, Jacob would not. We looked at huge beetle bugs and pet a scorpion, Jacob would not. But he did dig through the dirt to find potatoes, look through magnifying glasses at various tiny things, and saddle up on a fake horse. That was the only picture we got of the whole adventure.

They also had a "Tour Through the Body" where we went in a group with a guide through a maze of tarps that resembled the inside of some of our body parts. We started with the mouth and then down the throat to the stomach and small intestines. When we took a detour to the heart, lungs, skin, and bones Jacob was confused. He wanted to know why we didn't come out of the bum. During the presentation he was the most vocal and answered all the questions from the guide. At least people kept saying he was cute and didn't seem annoyed. Max and I were a little. He just got a little too excited and loud. But at least it pertained to the tour.

After going to AgMagic we decided to go see Mike the Tiger on the other side of campus. We also stopped into the LSU store and Jacob decided to be a tiger. I am not sure when someone in Louisiana would every wear this cozy hat. Cute but wrong environment. We ended our family outing with yummy Italian ice cream just off campus.

 

Summer Plans

Playschool ends in about 2 weeks and the long days of summer will be upon us. Trying to plan things that will entertain Jacob and be within our budget has been challenging. As he is getting older, more and more things are opening up for him to participate in. It is so fun to get him involved in activities. He has a few t-ball games left and despite his whining about the heat and being tired, he has really enjoyed it and learned a lot. We are definitely glad that we had him play. So came the decision on what to enroll him in for the summer. Our options were basketball (he's fascinated by his teacher playing and wants to learn), art classes (a new found joy), karate (he talks about doing this a lot), music/piano lessons (he is ready), and swim lessons (he is very nervous in the pool). Since the budget is tight we decided to have him do one activity this summer. We enrolled him in swim lessons because that is the one he is in most need of :) He will go to Crawfish Aquatics rather than the YMCA. It was a little more expensive but their sessions are longer, they have smaller classes, and my friends have said they do a better job. Also, parents are not allowed in the pool area which will be great for Jacob's progress. He does so much better when mom or dad aren't there. So, that is our plan for 2 weeks in June. Besides that we will go to playgroups with the ward, have play dates, and visit the apartment pool a lot. Hope this will keep us both sane until he goes to school in August. :)

Prayer

Typically Jacob's prayers at dinnertime include phrases like, "thank you for this day, please bless our food, healthy bodies, thank you for it, bless our family, and my friends". Tonight at dinner he prayed, "Heavenly Father, please bless our dinner...that we will eat soon...after I say this prayer. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen". Took all that Max and I had not to grin too much.

Before Max goes to work we like to have family prayer as well. If Max or I say a prayer Jacob has to follow it up with one of his own. It is a great teaching opportunity because after one of us prays then he can imediately follow our example of ways to talk to his Heavenly Father. It is so great to see his faith and to see him learn and grow.

Cleaning the Church

A few weeks ago it was our turn to clean part of the church. Since Max had just gotten home from his conference in Arizona I decided to take Jacob with me and we would do what we could. We were there 2 hours cleaning the bathrooms. It wouldn't have taken so long but keeping a 4-year-old quiet (there was a missionary meeting in the Relief Society room) and busy takes time and effort away from the cleaning job. He also wanted to help so much but would jump from task to task. Before we left Jacob had a chance to walk down into the empty baptismal faunt. He was nervous but when I walked down with him enjoyed it a lot. He talked at dinnertime telling dad all about our cleaning the church adventures. On Sundays when he uses the bathroom he explains how it is clean because we cleaned it :)

Family Time

We have been holding fairly regular family home evenings on Monday nights and they have been enjoyable. Jacob loves learning about the gospel and what he can do to follow Jesus. Also, after dinner Max reads with him from the Book of Mormon reader while I clean up from dinner. They have good conversations and Jacob retains a lot of the information. He is such a good child of God and we are very lucky to be his parents to help him on his journey through his life on earth.

That's What I Get

Whenever I see a small lizard outside I try to grab it. I don't spend a lot of time doing this and I have never really caught one. We were coming home from an outting on Saturday when I saw a little green lizard ready for me to grab. Of course when I reached for him he ran behind the drain.

I teasingly poked at the drain gap and instantly the lizard decides to jump onto my hand and run up my arm. I was so startled that I screamed and flicked him off. That might have been my only chance to handle a lizard and I ruined it because I was chicken. Jacob thought it was hilarious.