Car Talk, Episode 2

One day last week we drove through Chick-fil-A, and I ordered a kids' meal for Emerson (sub fruit cup for the fries for those of you who were wondering... yes, we're those parents who try to have their kids eat as healthy as possible for as long as possible. I know, I know... call us crazy). Unfortunately, a kids' meal comes with a drink, so I decided to take one for the team and go ahead and order a lemonade with that kids' meal and drink it myself. Desipite my best efforts to say 'lemonade' as quietly as possible to the energetic and uber-polite teenager on the other side of the menu board microphone (don't you love how they always say 'my pleasure' every time you say 'thank you' at Chick-fil-A? Makes me feel all warm & fuzzy inside), Emerson heard me utter that magical word. So, she immediately says, "Lemonade, peas! (please)" I reply, "No, ma'am, lemonade is mommy's drink. You have fresh, cool water." Now, please understand that 'fresh, cool water' is actually Emerson's term of endearment for her water. Not kidding. If she's thirsty, she'll ask specifically for "fresh, cool water." It's so cute. So I think that this reply will be enough for her. She waits about 30 seconds, and this time she asks for "Water-Ade, peas!" I stifle a laugh and realize she's getting a little confused, the poor dear. I decide to just let this one go without a reply. We get back on the road, and I see in the rearview mirror that she's really thinking hard about something. The next thing from her mouth is, "Watermelon, peas!" From lemonade to water-ade to watermelon... the creation of a vocabulary is a fun thing to behold.

Two strange occurrences

Last Friday we were outside playing in the backyard, and after we went inside, Boomer started barking strangely in the side yard outside the dining room window. I peeked out and saw him flipping a snake up in the air. Disgusting! I could tell that it was a small snake, however the thought of a snake in the back yard, no matter how small, was a little more than I could take. So I put Emerson on the couch with some books and went outside to assess the situation. I got about two steps into the grass and realized I probably should've put shoes on, but I didn't want to delay the task at hand, so I forged on. I walked around the side of the house (all the while scanning the ground ahead of me in case the injured snake had escaped from the crazed Jack Russell and was on a path to attack me). Oh, I forgot to mention that I had picked up the back yard shovel on my way, so at least I was armed. When I got to the crime scene, Boomer looked at me as if to say, 'Go ahead, lady. Just try & take this snake away from me.' So I had to use the shovel to physically push the dog aside, and he was barking and growling and baring his teeth. What a nice, family-friendly pet. So now I decided to take a look at the snake, and the poor guy was barely clinging to life. The front half of him was still while the back half was doing a slow rumba. Or it was a little more like a snake wave. Click HERE for a demo. Why, thank you, Hip Hop Dance Master. That was educational! Okay, back to my story. Out of care & concern for that poor animal, I took my shovel and gingerly tapped on his head. It was one of those strange situations in which I didn't want to feel his snake brains squishing out but also wanted to make sure the stinkin' thing was DEAD. After being quite sure he had passed on to snake heaven, I picked him up with the shovel and laid him on the back patio so I could get a snapshot of him. Let's all take a moment of silence for Mr. Snake who unfortunately spent his last moments on this earth as a playtoy for my dog.

Another interesting thing happened last week. I discovered an apple-biter had struck the apples in the basket on the counter. Taking special note of the bite marks and distance between each bite, I hypothesized it to be a rather small member of the species homo sapiens, perhaps one about 23 months old and somewhat ornery. Just last night, Jason and I observed suspected human actually climbing on the stool and taking a bite of another apple, saying, "MMMMMMM!" Busted!!!

Jax's 4-month pictures

The ever-fabulous Kelly Stocksen came over 3 weeks ago and took pictures of the family. She's one of those incredibly creative people who can make beautiful things out of nothing. For example, the outside pictures of Emerson were literally taken in the empty lot next to our house. We're talking a dirty, weed-filled, rocky empty lot, and Kelly was literally laying flat on the ground taking pictures. In her cute designer jeans and top. Not kidding you.

Anywho, enjoy taking a peek. Click on the link below, then select Proofing. The password is: 082609vanvalkenburg

Kelly Stocksen Photography

Lazy blogger

Pretty much every day since my last post, I've tried to set aside time to upload some videos & pictures so that I can sit down and write all of this. But it's been one of those weeks where the days seem to run together and I'm not getting much of anything done! And for those of you who know me well, that's a frustrating thing. Because I LIVE to get things done. Last Friday, my friend Leslie called & asked if we wanted to have a playdate at the zoo. What an absolutely beautiful day it was weather-wise (not your typical August day in Tulsa), and we had a fabulous time. Her daughter Claire is about 5 months older than Emerson and is as cute as can be. We had a funny incident in the rainforest exhibit... Leslie had a rogue bird land on her arm and it scared the pee out of both of us. I just saw it all go down out of the corner of my eye, and I swear I thought it was monkey that had landed on her head. She screamed, but it was a soft, lady-like scream (talking about the incident later, she said she was so in shock that a small scream was all she could muster). Both of us ducked our heads and ran in opposite directions, leaving our helpless children to face the rainforest alone. That also made us laugh as we thought about it later. As we were about to leave, the perpetrator bird actually had the nerve to cross our path again, this time strutting his stuff. I think he was taunting us. Here is a cute video montage of our girlies. *Actually, I can't get the video to upload right now, so here's a picture of the two of them on the playground. Hopefully I can get the video working tomorrow.

Poo-Poo in the Potty!

So yesterday Emerson and I were playing in the living room on the floor with Jax, and she looked at me and said, "Poo-Poo potty." So, as usual, we traipsed into the bathroom, took off her shorts & diaper, and she sat on her little potty. I, as usual, said, "How do we get our poo-poo out?" And she, as usual, made a grunting sound and then we chatted for a little bit before she decided enough was enough. I took her into her room, put her diaper & shorts back on, and we came back in the living room. About 30 seconds later, she walked back down the hallway toward the bathroom and came back holding the entire potty in her arms. I laughed & told her that the potty needed to stay in the bathroom, and when I went to take it from her, I was met with the wonderful aroma of toddler poop. That little stinker (both figuratively & literally) pooped on the potty while we were in the bathroom, and I didn't even know it! I, of course, praised her to no end and we got Daddy on the phone to shower her with more praises. There were pictures taken of Emerson next to the poop in the potty as well. I know, I know... but come on, it's a milestone! She got a few bites of peanut butter straight out of the jar to which she replied, "Mmmmm... Yummy Buttuh!" Later that day MeMaw (Grandma) & Pa-Pa Van called to congratulate her as well.

So, I'm not expecting it to be habit yet, but I'm pretty sure she's right around the corner from being ready to potty train fully. Exciting times at the Van Valkenburg household!

Free lemonade

Free lemonade from Chick-fil-A this Thursday, August 20th! This event will start at 6 a.m. at all area locations. Coming from a lemonade lover who knows where to go to get the good stuff, trust me when I say this lemonade is stinkin' good. Slightly sour with the perfect amount of pulp. Exactly the kind that makes my husband's forehead sweat when he drinks it and causes an unexplained gagging reaction and near-profane list of reasons he hates lemonade. Needless to say, he won't be participating in the free-ness on Thursday. His loss.