Jon & Kate plus 2: a little of this, a little of that...

On Father's Day Jonathon started his day off on the right foot with his favorite...corn pops. I wish I had time to do a little more than just push the new box of cereal in his direction and say "Happy Father's Day", but we were running late for church...as usual.

He opened his present in the car on the way to church because Maddie couldn't wait much longer to give it to him. It was a "Tap Out" shirt--showing out support in his interests and hobbies. :) Thankfully it was more laid back after church and we were able to enjoy a great dinner and two kinds of his favorite cookies...

To Jonathon--You are such an amazing dad. Our kids are so lucky to have a father like you. I love how you just like to be with Maddie and Lyndon and hang out with them. I love the enthusiasm you have for life and the desire you have to share that with me and the kids. I love how gentle and kind you are with them but also how you can play hard and wrestle the energy right out of them. I love how you take any opportunity you can to teach them. I love being able to leave the kids with you for a week knowing that they are in the most capable and loving hands. I love being on this roller coaster we calling parenting with you. (I just wish we could go one more actual roller coasters. :) ) I love you.

And to my own Dad--I can still remember always wanting to sit by you during church (and not just because you always had candy in your suit coat pockets). I remember listening with you to all your "oldies" music on "Solid Gold Saturday Night"..."634-5789...Solid Gold Saturday Night"! I remember going with you to help get wood during the summers and holding the "measuring stick" for each log you had to cut and feeling like I was your best pal and so important. I remember my volleyball game in high school when you yelled at the ref for making a bad call against me. I remember how proud you were of me when I got my Young Woman medallion and how good I felt. I remember how you taught Heather and I the precise way to go up and down looking for and pulling weeds and how much I hated it but what a great work ethic you instilled in us. I remember the ice skating rink you made for us in our backyard. I remember playing Nintendo with you into the wee hours of the morning trying to figure out how to bump that turtle just so to get 100's of lives and when we finally did it how cool I felt to have done that with my Dad.
These are just a few things that I'll never forget and just a few things that still make you an amazing Dad. I love you.

We did a little craft project this week...bags made out of cereal boxes. It was fun. Maddie LOVES bags and stuffing her treasures in them so this was right up her ally. Lyndon enjoyed the thought of it. I think.

Maddie (and Lyndon of course copied her) HAD to mix all the colors together. Being the OCD painter that I am, I didn't want her to mix the colors, I wanted them all in their original beauty. (I know, it's a sickness. ) So to discourage her from mixing them all together I said, "If you mix ALL the colors it will turn yucky brown." to which she replied, "oooh good, I LIKE brown!" I never seem to win with her. FYI: I took a deep breath and just let her go at it. Who am i to say that unmixed colors are more beautiful. It's all in the eye of the beholder, right?

Lyndon didn't last too long with the project. He soon found other interests elsewhere. I look over to find him doing this:

If you can't tell with my blurry picture, he is trying to plug some ear buds into the holes on our shelves. I love watching his mind work. :) He got a little frustrated after no music was heard so I helped him find the I-Pod and listen to some real music.

meanwhile...