Twins

I captured this sweet moment while at the soccer field this morning. It wasn't raining but Max and Naomi had to have the umbrellas up and ready to go if needed. As I sat next to them I listened to Naomi humming Jingle Bells while coloring in her Hello Kitty coloring book and watched Max go through his candy bag nonstop asking me if he can have another treat.

They are such a gift. Completely opposite. Naomi is very independent and is starting to be a little mommy as she listens to the boys fight and marches right to where they are at and says "Boys! Stop fighting right now. That is enough of this." She is mostly quiet and loves to be helpful. Naomi loves to play with her my little ponies, unicorns, and pretend to be a kitty with Noah as her owner. I love when she asks me to color with her. The pictures are always like a rainbow and filled with color.

Max is very dependent on us. He asks for help with just about anything and needs constant direction for what he is doing. He takes his sweet ole time doing his daily jobs and dilly dally's around getting involved in building with legos or reading a book when he is supposed to be cleaning up. Piles follow him everywhere he goes. Max is very loud and highly wired. Some days I just don't know what to do with his hyperness but I do love that he has such a great energy in life. He plays with all his heart in whatever he does.

Our hearts are always happy when Max gets a book Naomi likes from the school library when she is sick without us even asking. Naomi is just as thoughtful to Max when he is out of school for the day and brings him his work and explains in detail what he needs to do. They don't play together much in their classroom at school but I think they are unconsciously watching out for each other. We often forget Max and Naomi are our twins because we are so used to them being with us and we see such differences in them yet they are bonded in a way that is unexplainable because they are simply just part of each other.

Rain

I love hearing the rain fall. I am sitting here on the couch with the windows open and the sound is just so peaceful. It reminds me of being a child. I remember running around outside in the rain opening my mouth to catch the drops on my tongue. I remember jumping in puddles with the freedom of no worries about how wet I am getting or that I may get sick from being wet. At times I am overly protective of the kids and I need to remember to let go and let them be who they are. Let them discover the world around them instead of creating what I want them to see. Yes, they need protection but they also need freedom to become the beautiful little people they are. I write this just to remind myself to let them experience in their own way the simple things in life and appreciate them for their uniqueness. So, next time it rains I will let the kids run and jump in puddles with no worries on my mind. I will just enjoy watching them without freaking out that they are going to get sick. I want them to create a memory of their own like mine. I love how a sound of nature can remind me of something so sweet in life.

Things that make me happy today

-Getting a call first thing in the morning from a massage patient telling me the massage I gave them the day before made them feel like a new person. The call was my Hallmark card!

-Making my own laundry soap at $1 per 5 gallons thanks to the Duggar family recipe. Can't wait to try that out tomorrow after it sets.

-Clean sheets on my bed.

-A beautiful walk in the morning from bringing my truck to a great mechanic in town so I can open my door again from the inside.

-A friend who offers to drive me to get my truck so I don't have to walk far again.

-Spending time with Marlee in the front yard and getting fun pictures with Bokeh and good catchlights in my photos!!!

-Hearing Max and Naomi's presentations this morning on their research project. Max did soccer which his picture had a boy kicking a ball at the other boys head:) Naomi did Seahorses and drew a mommy and daddy seahorse with almost one hundred babies!

-Knowing what is for dinner-Tacos.

-Looking forward to Max and Naomi's Music program this afternoon.

-Plans to go to the park tonight for Noah's raingutter regatta race for cubscouts.

Miss Marlee

She is walking!!! Marlee definatitely takes her own time probably because she likes everyone else to do things for her. Today she is walking across rooms to me and then off to get what toy she wants. When she gets to where she is going or falls down she laughs and looks for us because she is so proud of what she has accomplished! The other kids love it when she walks. They get so excited and if I am not in the room they run in to tell me "Mommy, Marlee just walked from the big couch to the little couch!" They just make me smile because they love all her little milestones so much.

Little Miss likes to take her socks off now too. She thinks it is the funniest thing ever to rip them off her feet. So, when she takes me her shoes I usually have to go on a search for her socks, and that is no easy thing. Marlee loves to go outside which we haven't done too much because she is ripping up her pants from crawling on the ground. She loves to watch the kids out the window and is constantly trying to pull the screen door open. We will be running around soon! I can't wait till she is more free to see what she gets into in the great outdoors!

and so it begins...."Mrs. Oosterhouse"

I am starting my blog. We'll see where it goes. I just hope to capture some of the moments that can too quickly be forgotten. So, for my first post is something that will forever be in the back of my mind whenever I see the number from school on the caller id.

For the first time ever I get a call from the principle at the kid's school. "Mrs. Oosterhouse" (now I know something is bad) "I need to talk to you about Max. He peed on a tree at lunch recess." It is all I can do to keep a normal voice so she doesn't know I am cracking up on the other end of the phone. She had me talk to Max and have him tell me what he did. He of course blamed it on the other little boy who did it before him. Peer pressure already! I had to tell him it wasn't a good thing to do in front of other girls and boys and that we would talk to him more when he got home. I guess if that is the worst thing we get a call about from the school that would be perfectly fine. Oh, the joy of having boys.