Super Nathan is Three!!

Nathan turned 3 on June 21, and we had a spectacular day! His birthday was on Saturday, so it worked nicely to have a party, and the day was just beautiful! We played outside on the jumpy slide, had pizza, and played with toys. Nathan wanted to have a Super-Hero birthday party, so we got some decor of different heroes, and finished off with a super cape that I sewed for each little boy. It was so cute! Nathan had his friends Trevor, Tyler, and Caleb Kucy as well as his cousin Forest. We had a great time. Here's a picture of the boys (except for Forest - hard to get boys to stand still!) with their capes - love it! Then after the other kids left, some family and adult friends came over and we pulled out the sprinkler. It was a wonderful day. We couldn't have asked for anything better!

Wooo Hooooooooo!

I am so happy to finally say that after a (very) long (long) wait (it was long), Zack is potty trained! Yay Zack! I knew he could do it! :) He's now officially a big boy.

A little more serious...

"Those who spare the rod of discipline hate their children. Those who love their children care enough to discipline them." Proverbs 13:24

"Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives." Proverbs 19:18

"Don’t fail to discipline your children. They won’t die if you spank them." Proverbs 23:13

"To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child." Proverbs 29:15

"Discipline your children, and they will give you peace of mind and will make your heart glad." Proverbs 29:17

I've been both encouraged and saddened by seeing other families lately. I've been saddened to see friends struggle with their children daily because they are too afraid to discipline them. Why? I don't know. Maybe it's because they don't want to limit their child's freedom, maybe because they think it's cruel, maybe they are afraid of saying no. But I have realized how unhappy and indifferent these children are... Their parents just following them around, providing no direction for them. Is it that what our society has taught us -- to feel guilty for punishing kids? These kids are learning that they can get what they want if they just fight or cry or manipulate enough.

I've been encouraged by friends that discipline their kids - seeing how their kids are growing up knowing that their actions come with consequences, knowing how to apologize, and respecting their parents rather than walking all over them - it gives me motivation to raise my boys that way... I too have felt so encouraged by others that tell me it's a joy to babysit my boys. I love going to pick them up at sunday school and hearing how good they were! It's true what Proverbs 29:17 says (as above) - my heart is glad! My mind is peaceful when my kids are with other people. My boys love going to bed, they love knowing what's going to happen next in their routine, they know what's going to happen if they choose to do something bad. They aren't surprised - they are happy to know that we are paying attention. Their routine and the consistency of our discipline makes them feel secure. And I love it. I truly love my children. And I'm not going to stop disciplining them!

Pete's first unicycle injury.... THIS year.

So Pete came home with another wound from his battle with unicycling... This one was from his pedal slicing the back of his leg. His pedals have metal spikes that are made to "stick" to your shoes for better stability. Unfortunately, those pedals leave quite the bite marks! Ouch.

Jumpy slide

My dad loves to buy cool things, and last week he bought a jumpy house with slides going in and out. He got it for their back yard, sunday school, (and for us to borrow!) and he brought it over last Saturday. The boys were in their glory sliding and jumping in our back yard. We were just happy that it fit in our tiny little yard! The boys now ask me constantly if they can play on the jumpy slide, and if grandpa can come over to play.

Zack's burp

Zack was singing the ABCs yesterday after supper, and while he was singing he hit the "E" and burped for 3 full seconds. Three FULL seconds! "Eeeeeeee." It was hilarious.