Snow Day!

So like everyone in the Portland Metro with a blog, I'm gonna post some pictures of the piles of snow as well as some of the fun the boys and I had this afternoon. I'll tell you what, I was worn out. But they say exercise is a good stress reliever, so I think it did me good. Helped me not fret too much about whether our pipes might freeze or when we'll get out of town to Idaho.

This is the grill that I cooked dinner on last night.
You can see that we got about 8 more inches after that.

The pile of snow on my car. That's not coming
out of there anytime soon.

Ben is getting a ride in his "One horse open sleigh"
Or in this case, "One daddy open tarp"
When you don't have a sled you have to make do.

The snow got in poor Kyle's eyes when he fell.
Isn't daddy compassionate to take a picture before he helps him clean up

My snowy adventurers at the top of the
mound of snow that I cleared from our driveway.

Ben's Great Invention

This is a video of Ben explaining his latest "great IDEA!" I was going to just try to write about it, but I asked him to explain it again for the camera, so that's why it seems a little staged.



So next time you sneeze and the tissue box isn't close enough, just give Ben a call and encourage him to finish the prototype and get started on production. ;)

Happy Birthday Ben

6 years ago today we welcomed Benjamin Wayne Isom into our lives.  And oh how they've changed!

What we couldn't have known then:

-That Ben would be such an awesome big brother

-That despite being a reluctant nurser, he'd turn into the boy that eats enough to earn dessert, finishes dessert and then asks for more of the main dish (especially if it's pizza)

-That he would love eating sardines with me even though no one else in the house will touch them

-That he would love to draw so much.  And often as a gift for someone

And now he's grown into such a little man.  Lots of big ideas an boundless energy and enthusiasm.  I can't wait to see what the next few years will bring.

So my Cousin's wife (Cousin-in-law?) linked to me on this, so I guess I'll give it a shot.  Better late than never.  And seeing how I don't know any other bloggers that haven't already been linked, I guess I'll just make my happy list, but if you feel so inspired please make you own happy list and put it on your own blog or in the comments below.

The rules: List six things that make you happy. Pass the award along to six more bloggers.  Do not give the typical answers and go for the less obvious, as you all know that family, friends, God, etc would be on the list :) 

1. A good book

2. A good puzzle

3. Finishing a project

4. Doing something techy (computer stuff, sound board at church, etc.)

5. A good backrub

6. Playing games

Time: Where does it go?

That's how I feel lately. Everyone says that it seems like just yesterday that their kids were little and to cherish every moment and I've experienced that first hand for the past 6 years, but it just doesn't seem possible sometimes to spend the time you want with all your loved ones.

Sometimes I look at pictures from when Ben or Kyle were Owen's age and wish that I could remember those times better. I know I was there, I'm in pictures, Mindy claims I was great, but I just can't help wondering if I could have done better. 

Is it our lot in life as parents to worry about these things? I don't know. Maybe I'm a worrier by nature. I hear I got that from my dad.  

But back to the topic of time.  I have this quote posted in my cube at work from Chuck Swindoll's book Come before Winter: "Listen-- God has given you (as He gave His son) sufficient time in each day for you to fulfill His perfect plan--including the interruptions!  If you're fudging on your sleep or becoming a frantic, nail-biting, hurried Christian, then you are adding to your day too many things that simply are not His will for you."

That's pretty blunt about our time and I'm convicted again that I should be more intentional about mine.  And maybe give myself a break sometimes for not being the "Perfect Dad."  

So in the interest of this not being a complete downer of a post, here are a couple pictures from adventures that I've had with my boys lately.  

Ben's reaction upon hearing that my frozen yogurt

was White Chocolate Mousse:  "Moose!!??  In ice cream?"

In the park a couple of weekends ago: 

"Daddy, here are some more rotten apples.  

Smash them against that tree again!"

I've recently started having adventures with them one-on-one (it just doesn't seem right to call them dates).  I try to do it at least once a month and I hope it can become a great ritual for us to share in the years to come as it evolves from roller skating and the pet store to hunting or fishing or just hanging out talking about our lives.  Just need to keep making time for these kind of things to happen.

Time.

It's a precious resource.  How do you spend yours?  And in what ways do you wish you could change that?

Crazy Kyle

Kyle got croup on Saturday night and so Sunday was an interesting day to say the least.  At one point, he woke up from sleeping on my chest while I was watching TV.  It was time to give him some medicine so we needed to get some food in his stomach.  He was eating some cheerios out of a little bowl while still sitting on my lap, then he just randomly sets one on his nose, tips his head back and balances it there.  He looks over at me and we laugh about it and it drops into my lap.  I pick it up and give it back to him and he puts another one on his nose.  This time when it fell, it rolled down the blanket that he was covered up with and went onto the floor.
"Boy, that was a fast one, Dad!"

I just cracked up.   Then a little bit later, out of nowhere, he turns to me and says:"Dad, if a superhero knocks on the door, I'll answer it."

And then not 30 seconds later:"Ben, just like I told Daddy, if a super hero knocks on the door, I'll answer it."

What a goofball!

Thankfulness (a little late)

I'm thankful for:
~ a wife that loves me so well
~ Ben and his tender heart
~ Kyle and his adventurous spirit
~ Owen and his patience
~ great parents and parent-in-laws
~ a wonderful church that I love being a part of
~ awesome extended family
~ a warm dry house
~ 2 cars that get us where we need to go
~ a job that I love most of the time
~ good friends

I suppose I could go on, but I won't. It's humbling to count my blessings and realize that all my whining and complaining is really pretty pathetic. Why should I have a scowl on my face when I have all these things going for me?

They say a man is wealthy when he is content with what he has, not when he gets all that he wants. I'm working to be more thankful for what I've been given and it sure puts the things I want into perspective.

What are you thankful for?

Like Butta'

Well, today I made butter for the first time. It was pretty cool. We skimmed the cream off of the raw milk we get from the farm and using this old Dazey Butter Churn





















I cranked and cranked until I got butter.













Haven't used it yet, but it sure smelled good and felt just like regular butter only smoother. Just another adventure in our family's foray into more natural and healthy food choices.

The Next Evening

It's amazing the difference a day makes. On Thursday the 23rd, I was so furious with my boys, I could spit nails as they say (See post Pushing Buttons.) They had just been pushing my buttons left and right.

But that didn't change the fact that I loved them. I didn't change the fun I have with them and it certainly didn't ruin the fun time we all had being silly and enjoying one another's company at Burgerville the next night.

So please pardon me if I wax philosophical again, but don't you think this is another parallel with how God sees us? We can push his buttons left and right, but it doesn't change the fact that he wants to be near us. Wants to spend time with us. Wants to hear from us every once in awhile. So don't forget that. No matter where you stand with God, he desires a relationship with you.

Are you drifting away? He'd love to hear from you!
Have you pushed him out of your life? He's waiting and watching hopefully for your return!
Have you never met him? He'd love to get to know you!
Have you just been too busy to give him any of your time? There's no time like now to tell him what's going on in your life!

It's so amazing that the Creator of the universe want to know us. Don't let that opportunity slip away

Gooey

The weekend before last the boys were getting dressed up stairs after breakfast and I was getting some stuff done downstairs. Ben came down dressed, but Kyle was still buck naked. Since Kyle still doesn't like to be upstairs by himself, so I asked Ben if he'd go back up with him for a couple minutes while Kyle got dressed.

Well, a few minutes later Ben came back down and Kyle still wasn't dressed. As I was finishing paying the bills, I heard Ben and Kyle conversing about making things "Gooey."

Yup, you guessed it. Toothpaste. I asked them what they were talking about, dreading what it might be and toothpaste was not the best answer, but it was better than it could have been.

So, I got them busy cleaning up their mess. They had "painted" the following:
* Bathroom door
* Both sides of the door handle in the bathroom
* Bathroom sink and counter
* Steps on Ladder to Ben's bunk
* Window sill
* Edge of Bookcase
* And they'd even managed to get a little on the railing and wall going down the stairs.

Needless to say, they haven't been using toothpaste for a few days.

Answers to Halloween Who's Who

It's been a busy week at our house, but I promised some answers.  

Top left - Kyle

Top right - Owen

Bottom right - Ben  

Sorry I didn't get as fancy as Mindy and put new recent pictures up in the respective spots.  I'll leave that to the professionals.  ;)

Simple Pleasures

There's nothing like your kids to remind you of the simple pleasures of life.  Saturday, Ben was making a paper airplane and I offered to help.  

As these things do, it turned into more and Kyle, Ben and I ended up out front throwing paper airplanes around.  We probably spent 30 minutes or more just throwing them as hard as we could trying to make them go across the street or get stuck in trees.  Then I had a great idea.  I ran upstairs with both paper airplanes and through them to the boys from our bedroom window.

But the excitement really started when they wanted to do it too.  Ben managed to clear the roof with his, but Kyle's didn't quite make it, so Daddy got to make a trip onto the roof!  Very exciting for the boys, especially when I acted like I fell backwards back into the window of our room when I was going back in.

So who needs a $300 video game system, or motorized/battery operated toys when 2 pieces of paper can keep you busy for a good hour.

What simple pleasure have you enjoyed in your life lately?

Halloween Who's Who?

So here are our 3 little Tiggers. Can you guess which one is which? I'll post the answers in a few days.

In Bed

Sleeping in a 12 by 12 by 12 box that is his "nest." Very sweet.

And not yet asleep, but laying quietly in his bed watching me take a picture of his brother

Pushing Buttons

The answer to this question may be obvious, but I'll ask anyway.  Do your kids ever push your buttons?

Oy.  How is it that they seem to know how to do it and sometimes, without even meaning to, they can send you through the roof in a nansecond.

Ben has this new habit of saying "I know, I know!" when we ask him a second time to do something, but continues to do something else.  It just makes me want to scream "If you know you're supposed to be clearing your place from dinner, why are you walking into the living room!"

And Kyle now says, "Daddy, I was on the top of the couch pwaying with mama's decowations too.  I'm sawy."  And very contritely I might add.  But does that mean he won't do it again?  Not necessarily.

It's enough to drive me batty!  But as I thought about it this morning, I wonder how much we push God's buttons.  "Yes God, I know you want me to share my faith," as we let another opportunity slip past.   "I'm sorry God that I entertained those impure thoughts today," knowing full well that it will happen again.  

I'm sure it probably drives God batty too, but I'm eternally grateful that He is so much more capable of handling it than I am.  The grace and discipline of my Heavenly Father is incredible.  He may be saddened by my choices, but he forgives completely.  And if we're walking with Him, He's faithful to teach us a better way.  

Lord, I pray that you would give me some small measure of your grace and wisdom in dealing with my boys and I thank you for your grace that covers me and the ways that you've been working in my life.

So how do you push God's buttons?  And are you open to his discipline to stop?

Pragmatic 3 year-old

When did my 3 year old become pragmatic? It's really fun to start seeing him make these little reasoned statement. This morning, Ben was wanting me to take him with me to church this morning. It just wasn't feasible this morning and Ben was very disappointed. Kyle was watching from his perch on Mama's lap he was very reassuring to Ben: "It's ok, you can ride with Mama, and me and Owen."

Flock of Dogs

There's a new show on Discovery Channel called Iditarod: Toughest race on Earth that I've started watching with Ben. It's pretty fascinating and Ben is very interested in the dog sleds and how they work.

At dinner that night, I asked Ben if he wanted to tell Mama about the show.

Ben got really serious and told Mama that the race was very hard. They had to practice lots! First they had to practice staying up all night. And then they have to practice staying up all night outside!

Mindy and I stifled our chuckles and asked him more about the show.

"One of the ladies fell off her sled and her flock of dogs kept going... but she caught up with them."

I love listening to him explain things! He was very astute about what was happening on the show though for the most part. It's so much fun to start to have more adult conversations with him. I can't exactly explain it, but there's just this new quality to our conversations that are not little kid conversations any more.

I've been Tagged

Well, I guess if Mindy's doing it, I better.  But I don't quite read as many blogs as Mindy, so I won't be tagging nearly as many people.  But that's a decision for later.  First I've got to pare down the quirky things about me.

1) I don't instinctively know which is left and which is right.  I have to think about it for a second. (wedding ring = left, class ring = right)

2) I put vinegar on my macaroni and cheese.

3) I love pickled pigs feet.  Although I don't get to have them very often.

4) I enjoy reading math textbooks for fun.

5) When my job starts to involve more documentation and less actual coding, (I'm a computer programmer) I find silly little programming projects to work on in my spare time for fun.

6) I racewalk.

7) When I roll over in bed I always roll toward the edge of the bed.  Mindy thinks it's hilarious, but if I roll that way, the covers don't get bunched up between us.  (I also sometimes end up stealing covers that way too, but it's purely unintentional!)

Andy - http://meaningfulglances.blogspot.com/

Cory and Cory - http://californiaisoms.blogspot.com/

And that's all I got that haven't been tagged yet.  It was nice of Mindy not to tag my cousins so I got to do it.  Thanks, honey!  :*

Daddy's Little Helper

Growing up so fast

Ben has always been just completely enamored with his littlest brother (he doesn't have to share toys with him yet) and at the table if Ben is sitting next to Owen's chair, he'll scoot even closer when we put Owen in.

Today at lunch as I was getting ready to feed Owen, Ben looked very interested, so I asked if he wanted to feed him. He said yes, and after a short demonstration did a very good job feeding him.

All the while, Ben kept saying, "I'm learning to feed Owen!" and was so proud of himself.

Last night, this historically picky eater shared my sardines with me, and he's become a big fan of lentils lately as well!

And at yesterday's soccer game, I saw him excerise some incredible self-control. He always wants to throw the ball to the coach or ref at games when it's time for a throw in or goal kick. And it's usually not an easy throw to catch. I don't think that's on purpose, just how it turns out. So I've been asking him to hand it to the adult at those times. It's been a little hit and miss the last couple of games, but yesterday, he handed the ball to the coach every time. I could see him run up and wind up like he was going to throw and he so wanted to. But every time he pulled back and handed the ball to the coach nicely.

When did my baby boy get to be such a big boy. Eating new foods, helping with his brother, showing self-restraint. I'm so proud, I could bust my buttons

Our Little Spellers

We knew it was bound to happen sometime and it looks like the end is near for being able to spell things in order to keep them a secret. From Ben at least.

He's been in to the language work at school lately and just loves to "write stories" This could mean anything from drawing pictures to actually writing words. Sometimes it's completely phonetic and sometimes it's right on.

He also has taken to calling his mother and I "M-O-M" and "D-A-D" and sometimes he calls Kyle "K-Y-L-E" His younger brother takes issue with that and respond adamantly "I'm not K-Y-L-E, I'm Kyle!"

And of course his little brother is working on emulating him. He's definitely able to identify most if not all of his letters and will list them all out and then ask you what it spells.

"O-R-G-A-N-I-C! Mama what's O-R-G-A-N-I-C spell?"

And that conversation is a whole different post...

Kyle the Enforcer

Heard at the Dinner table the other night from Kyle:
"Ben said that all the raisins were his, but I said 'No, no no! They belong to the whole family.' Isn't that right, Dad?"

Tiny Friends

Kyle has lately been best friends with a tiny hard plastic turtle about the size of a quarter and a rubbery lizard about 2 inches long. They're both bright red and amazingly until the past couple days have rarely been lost.


The lizard helps Kyle clean up. Kyle builds "tree houses" for them to sleep in upstairs. He build forts for them out of blocks in the living room. It's all very sweet and he has so much fun with them.

But last week the turtle disappeared for a while. He didn't seem too upset and I don't remember him asking for it. But he was thrilled when we found it. Tonight, though... the lizard was lost.

He came out of his room very sad and I couldn't understand what he was saying. When I finally got him calmed down enough to understand him, he said, "I'm too sad that I can find tHE LIZARD!" Crescendoing into more tears. And then "I don't know where my turtle is!"

Through the sniffling and a little more crying I convinced him that we could find the lizard tomorrow and that I had seen his turtle upstairs on his bed. He agreed that he could ask mama to help him find the lizard in the morning and I helped this sweet little boy back to his bed and found his turtle for him. I left as he crawled into his current little hidey hole to sleep clutching Rainbow Bear under on arm and holding his turtle tight in his other hand. Just warms your heart.

Kyle is 3!!

Well, it's happened! Kyle turned 3 today! 5:15 this morning to be precise and thankfully he was still asleep! I wish I had been, but oh well.

Kyle is such a joy and a challenge for us. He is big-hearted and passionate. He knows what he wants and is VERY persistent in letting us know, but he also is just as insistent on sharing things with his brother that he thinks his brother should be playing with. He giggles when I kiss his cheek and my beard tickles. He is so overjoyed at little things. His laugh is totally infectious.

And he's starting to use grown-up phrases!!! Ahh! What will the next year bring? More growing up I'm sure, which is joyful and sad at the same time.

Happy Birthday Kyle!

Overtired

Do you remember when you were a kid and you didn't want to go to bed:

"I'm not tired!"

"Yes you are, you just need to lay down in your bed and relax and you'll fall asleep."

"But I want to play more!"

Well, I had one of those incidents with Kyle last night. Poor guy really wanted me to help him finish building some Lego creation. It was an hour and a half past his bedtime and I don't know that he had actually been in bed for more than the initial tuck-in.

Well, I made it upstairs to hopefully quiet him down and he just loses it. He wants help, he's not tired, he doesn't want to be in bed! Well, I tucked him in gently but firmly and snuggled with him for a couple minutes.

He was still very sad when I left, but I guess I was right that we was tired because he was still snuggled up like I left him and fast asleep when I checked on him before we went to bed. And I guess my parents must have been right all those years ago. Go figure.

Sportsmanship

Ben is playing soccer again this fall and since his coach doesn't have an official assistant coach, I've been helping out as much as I can. I guess I've kind of become the unofficial assistant coach. At Ben's level, the coaches share reffing duties which usually consists of one coach from either team on the field to call out of bounds and goals and basically coach the team as they are playing.

Tonight Kevin (Ben's coach) asked me if I'd like to ref to get practiced up for when he was going to be out of town and needed me to take over for the game. So I took the whistle and headed out. It went pretty well and I had fun, but there were a couple of interesting incidents. During the first half, one little boy from the other team scored and then turned around and pointed in one our players faces and jeered, "You're poo!" Then he ran by another player and shook his fist in her face and taunted "Yaa! Yaa!"

I was shocked. As we were lining up to kick off I caught the little boy as he went by and stopped him. "That's not ok! We don't talk like that." I wasn't sure if or when I should say anything to the other team's coach, but then another of our players came to me upset and said that he'd fallen down and someone from the other team laughed at him. While probably not a huge deal in itself, I felt it was time to say something to the coach. I did and he appreciated that I said something and he talked with his player.

The rest of the game went pretty well, with one other small incident. I was talking with my Dad afterward and were just wondering if the boy who'd been taunting had seen that behavior somewhere before and was just imitating. As we were getting in the van I said "Good game!" to one of the opposing players as they walked by. Ben noticed and looked back to say "Bad game!"

I was floored. Now don't get me wrong, I don't think Ben's a saint, and I know that I've not always been the greatest sport in my past, but I really haven't been into them that much since Ben was born, so he hasn't seen me do that. So where'd it come from?

How much of this stuff do they learn, and how much comes from some natural human tendency? How much is malicious and how much is rejoicing gone overboard?

Most importantly, how do you teach you kids how to be good sports. Maybe it all comes in modeling good behavior, just like everything else. I don't know, but I do know that tonight sure reminded me that I've gotta be vigilant about teaching good sportsmanship to my boys. What a big responsibility!

Next time won't you sing with...

A couple weeks ago, we were sitting in the family room after dinner. Kyle was in the bathroom and taking his sweet time about it. Eventually we heard him start singing the ABCs. As he got the the end he said
"... next time won't you sing with me... next time won't you sing with {long pause} shirt! ...next time won't you sing with {long pause} belly! ... next time won't you sing with {long pause} pants! ..." and so on.

It was a fun new twist on an old song.

What happens when...

You buy your 2 yr. old and 5 yr. old books with stickers

and let them have those books in their bedroom

where they can reach the ceiling from their bunkbed.

Not Right Now

These are words that I'm trying to eradicate from my conversation with my boys. I've been convicted to do this from many sources, not the least of which is listening to myself say it every evening when I get home from work. It's hard, but definitely worth it.

I'm not say it's led to life-changing moments with them, but I think these small moments are building our relationships in just as profound ways as deep conversations or big events.

I would also highly recommend listening to "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman. It's a poignant reminder that our time with our children is short and a beautiful song about the different stages we get to see our children through.

Boys Club

Yesterday, Ben taped a sign to our door that says:

     de
wolla
slrig on

in his scrawling 5 year old printing. I came home church (Mindy had gone to first service and brought the boys home earlier) and as I came in the front door, I puzzled over this new sign. They were all real letters, not some random lines that Ben sometimes makes, but I couldn't figure out what it said.

Ben opened the door and said "Dad, did you see my sign? It says 'no girls allowed'. This is our boys club! We're gonna sleep in here."

"Yeah!" chimes in Kyle.

I take another look at the sign and sure enough if you read from bottom to top and right to left, it says exactly that: "no girls allowed"

My Little Angels (of Chaos)

Don't they all look so sweet? It's so much fun to be a dad to three boys. Ben and Kyle are so adorable cuddled up under their fuzzy blanket on the futon. They really are sweet boys. Especially to their younger brother. This little 4 month old cutie is rarely at a lack for attention. Ben just loves to dote on him, often a little too close. I don't think Owen has a huge issue with personal space yet, so I guess it's ok with him for now. And Kyle has his own way of doting that usually includes talking to Owen in a high pitched sing-song little voice that mimics the way we talk to him sometimes.

But these angels bring their own brand of adventure to our house. Owen can even get in on the chaos some days with his proliferation of little wet spots from either drool or (more likely) spitup as he scoots around the floor. The older 2 have gotten a little more ... what shall we say... chaotic. Over the past week, I've discovered paint chipped off the walls, a 3-inch string of carpet pulled out on the stairs and the glove box door pulled from it's hinges. (That's the last time they are allowed to mess around in the van while we're working in the garage, that's for sure!)

But, I guess as they say, "boys will be boys!" And they're all very kind at heart and aren't being mean or malicious in their actions. It's just that when the play, they play hard and if they're curious (like their daddy), they'll just keep picking at something until the figure out how it works or it breaks. What can I say?

Can I Count on You

The other night I was asking the boys to clean up some toys and I said, "Can I count on you to pick up your trains?"

Ben agreed quickly and went into the other room to get started. Kyle said no and just stood there looking at me. I asked him whether he wanted me to put the trains away which would mean they would go in the garage on a shelf for awhile and not be available to play with. He didn't like that idea either. So I asked him again.

"Can I count on you to pick up your trains?"

"Um, ya!" And then he stood there expectantly.

After a couple seconds it dawned on me that he was taking my question very literally. He thought I needed to actually count on him before he picked up his trains.

So I counted to 5 while tapping his head and then he went running off happily to clean up his trains.

Scary Dreams

As those of you with kids know, they have an innate talent to come up with lots of reasons to come out of their rooms at night. Ours are no different and Kyle (who's a night owl anyway) seems to use any excuse he can to come out of his room.

So one night while Mindy and I are watching TV, Kyle comes out of his room and says, "Guys, I had a scary dream."

This isn't a rare occurrence, but on this night our patience had worn kind of thin and I didn't really have the energy to go upstairs to talk with him. And let's not forget that he hadn't even been asleep yet.

After trying to reason with him for a couple minutes that it was time to go into his room and sleep, he kept insisting that he had had a scary dream about a lion that tried to eat him.

In a moment of sarcasm, I said "Kyle, feel free to have a scary dream after you have gone to sleep."

Dead silence from upstairs. I would have loved to see his face as he tried to puzzle that statement out. Shortly he went back into his room and shut his door.

Meanwhile, Mindy and I tried not to laugh loud enough for him to hear us.

Kyle prays

Kyle has started to really put his personality into his prayers. We've been praying for the leader of a home church in Cuba that one of our missionaries supports. So at night he prays:

"Dear God, thank you for Luis Perez to keep learning more about you. Amen"

Kyle's recently learned a prayer that they use at Ben's school. It's very sweet to hear him pray it and he's very sing-songy with it.

"Dear God,
Thank you for the world so sweet.
Thank you for the food we eat.
Thank you for the birds that sing.
Thank you God for everything.
Amen."

And now he just plugs his own thing into it:
"Dear God,
Thank you for the world so sweet.
Thank you for Luis Perez to learn more about you
Thank you for the birds that sing.
Thank you God for everything.
Amen."

Very sweet.