Aidan's Firsts

I (K) have been meaning to write for weeks, even got a post done and the the computer froze and I lost it all. So..... here are a few Aidan updates.

Aidan spelled his first word! He came running up to me with 3 letter puzzle pieces and spelled "WHY". Thank you to PBS's show Super WHY!

Aidan also wrote his first Letter...."A" for Aidan!

And Aidan also went to his first Bucks' game where he "caught" a Bucks' ball! (Note to Uncle Greg: Aidan is a confirmed Bucks fans and Michael Redd is his favorite player. Also please note that the game was against the Pistons and the Bucks lost by a lot.)

More on the other 2 coming soon.

Aidan's Video Update

Just wanted to thank all of you who voted for Aidan. He got 3rd place! Unforntunatly we didn't win anything. Oh well! The kids are really into making videos lately. I will try to put some on soon.

Vote for Aidan!

On a whim a week or so ago, Kate decided to record Aidan singing one of his favorite songs and send it in to Modern Mom for a video contest they are running. Aidan's video is in the Final 5! He needs your vote because currently he's getting beat by a kid playing drums in his diaper. Vote early and often! (You only get one vote per day per computer, unless you have a computer genius friend who can figure a way to circumvent this!) Vote and tell a friend!

Voting will take place through 12/7/07 at http://modernmom.com/site/video_polls.php?poll_id=1

The Good and The Ugly

On Mondays and Wednesdays, I stop home briefly at 4:15 with my basketball team so I can change before we walk down the block to the gym we rent for practice. The boys (both the team and Aidan and Davis) enjoy the brief time of interaction and at times things can get pretty comical.



Yesterday, as the boys and I came through the front door, Davis yells out his obligatory, "Daddy!" as he was seated at the dinner table "reading" his Bible. I had to throw out a gratuitous, "That's my boy!"




When I got home a couple hours later after practice with one of my players who had helped me carry gear back, Davis was again at the table as we walked in the door. This time, though, he had his left index finger half way up his nose as he yelled to my player, "Hey Edward! Hey Edward!"

Halle is Talking!

Well, at least cooing lots. So, I thought you might want to see and hear.

Dinner Menu

Yesterday, I (Kate) was sitting in the living room with the kids contemplating what to make for dinner. So I asked them, "What do you guys want for dinner?" Davis immediately replied, "Cookies!" I then responded with, "We can't just eat cookies for dinner!" So, Davis, after thinking a moment added, "Cookies......and peas?" That's our Davis. He loves his treats and his vegetables.

PS. Tonight we were sitting in the family room and heard the familiar "thud" coming from the boys' room and then shortly thereafter Davis began crying and ran out looking for Mommy. When he found me he said, "Mommy, I hurt my wall!"

Aidan on Brett Favre

While waiting for MNF to start tonight, Aidan shared the following...

"Is Brett Favre going white tonight?"

"Yes, he'll be wearing his white jersey tonight."

"Maybe when I'm older I can play with Brett Favre."

"Maybe."

"Or maybe, when I'm older I can be Brett Favre and Brett Favre can be little like me and he can wear my jersey."

Davis on Church

Yesterday we went to church at St. Phillips on our block and they do not have a nursery so the kids sit with us, which is always fun. But, if they were in the nursery we would have missed out on Davis's comments.

Many times throughout the service, after they would complete a portion Davis would get down from the pew and say "All done, go house now." At one point he was ready to go, but we were about to sing "Glorify Your Name" and when the song started Davis exclaimed, "No....Veggie Tales!" Apparently if he was going to have to stay longer he wanted the songs to be Veggie Tale Songs!

Aidan's Basketball Class

Aidan has been taking a basketball class for the last few Saturdays through the Milwaukee park and rec. He is enjoying it, but I am not sure much basketball training is getting accomplished. The park and rec is pretty inexpensive so I guess we aren't too dissappointed. The class consists of 10 little 3 yr old boys (we think a few aren't), that run in circles chasing whoever has the ball and tackling them! Occasionally there is a dribble (2 kids are exceptional dribblers) and shooting of the ball in the hoop. Here are some pics and a video. I'll put more videos on youtube.

Big Girl Halle

After many hours/days, Halle's window - not her room - is done. It was quite the project. The stop was broken and the paint chipped and peeling (ugly too). So I (Kate) stripped it, put new stop on, filled all the holes (there were a lot!), painted, and hung curtains. The lower portion of the window was so bad I gave it a mural to pretty it up. Thought you all would like to see the beginning of her big girl room, still a lot more to come. I also put her new linens on her bed, which she loves (Thanks Cousin Stephanie!). Halle likes them and her thumb so much that she sleeps alllll night! That's right folks my first child to sleep sometimes 10 hours at 2 months old!

Davis' Bathroom Observations

Last week Davis burst into the bathroom while I (C) was in there finishing some #1 business.

"Daddy use potty like big boy."

"Yep."

He then points and says, "Yellow."

"Yep."

Then when I was done, he added,

"More Daddy, more."

A day or so later, he follows Aidan in to observe a #2.

"Aidan, poop out. Poop out, Aidan."

Bedtime Routine

Our typical bedtime routine involves me (Kate) getting the kids ready for bed and Christian putting them to bed with a Bible reading, songs, verses, and prayers. The boys sit on Aidan's bed to read and Davis's to sing. The boys usually hold there blankies while the routine unfolds.

This week Davis has stepped it up a notch. He now has to hold his 3 blankies, his water cup, his football, his stuffed puppy, his new Bucky Badger doll, and have his pacifier in his mouth. It is quite the feat of a 22 month old to carry all these things (especially up and down the stairs), but he can't go with out. He added his basketball one night too!

Aidan also has decided that their bedroom is too noisy. "While I am sleeping I hear a big noise that comes from the mountains and goes boom, boom, boom." That's no mountain kiddo, just the busy night life outside your window. Life in the city from a child's perspective.

Go Pack Go!

The Latest

Halle

She made it to 2 months old yesterday, and is already catching up to her cousin Ellie(at least in size). She weighs 11 lbs. and 14 oz. The thighs and cheeks are rolling. She is still cute as a button and we are enjoying her smiles, coos, and the beginnings of a laugh.

Davis

Aunt Abby sent us a package(mostly for Halle, but a treat for the boys too), Davis's present was a little wind up monkey that walks sideways when cranked, unfortunatly it only last about 15 seconds. But Davis thought it was great, soo.... As he sat on Daddy's lap we heard every 15 seconds for about 5 minutes, "Daddy, Monkey not wook'n!" Too cute!!! Thanks Aunt Abby!

Aidan

Totally into a new PBS show Super Why! So as we went to leave the house he exclaimed, "Time to go Super Mommy into our Super Van. Super Davis and Super Halle too!" I think everything is "Super" now.

Mommy, my head hurts!

Davis and I(Kate) were having a bowl of ice cream together this afternoon, when he exclaimed, "Mommy, my head hurts!" I thought for a minute if he had bumped his head, and then it dawned on me - Davis had his first Ice Cream Headache! It was soo cute I had to video it. Check it out!

Puedo usar al bano?

Before going to bed tonight, Kate asked Aidan if he needed to go to the bathroom. He told her he did, but he needed to ask his teacher first. When Kate asked him who his teacher was, he pointed at me. "Then go ask him, " Kate said.

He walks over to me and says, "Ah, teacher. Can I go to the bathroom?"

On his way up after his pitstop he yells, "Teacher! I'm coming back up!"

Brewers + Blame Shifting + Big Mammals

We took the kids to a Brewers game Friday night, it was Davis' first time ever at Miller Park. Today, Kate and the kids went to the zoo with my aunt and cousin and her kids. When I got home from work tonight I walked in the front door to find Davis sitting at the dinner table eating my sunflower seeds. I walked in and say, "Hey, Davis is eating my sunflower seeds." He just nods at me and says, "Aidan did it."

When Kate asked him what he saw today he replied, "Baseball game." "No Davis," Kate said, "Where did we go today?" "Go to baseball game." Apparently, they drove past Miller Park on their way to the zoo and he exclaimed, "Go to baseball game! Go to baseball game!"

Aidan, however was ready and willing to tell me all about the hippopotamuses AND the hippos that he saw.

The Davis Face

Ever since Davis was born the one thing everybody says when they meet him is, "He's so cute!" Davis's face is full of life or at least gives us a picture of what his life is full of. So, I thought I would put a myriad of his face photos for all to enjoy. To get the full experience of Davis's face you'll have to come visit us.

Aidan's Memory Verses

While I have been a bit slack since starting it, Aidan and I have started getting back into his verse memory work.

We started sometime last year when Kate and I realized that he had memorized an astonishing amount of songs and details from Thomas. So, we figured he was ready to begin putting eternal things into his little head.

Back when I was in Bible college I took a class called Bible for Teachers. In this class we read an article that talked about how most Evangelical churches' Sunday school classes are driven by the "immediacy of salvation". This means that typically when we get a child in our SS we think, "I/We have to teach them about Jesus immediately, I must take them to the Cross today." This is instead of thinking, "How great that we have this child in our church and, God willing, they will be here for years to come giving us all this time to begin to teach them the whole counsel of God!"

I think children should hear about Jesus (and grown-ups should too!), but I was really struck by this article and its perspective that rests (a tad bit) upon God sovereignly ruling over time and events, meaning I/we can take the time to teach the ways and Word of God in its/His totality believing God honors His truth and His Word will accomplish all that he desires for it to and will not return to Him void.

SO, when I started Aidan's memory verses I started with the beginning and we are moving through what I feel are the important points in God's Story. I am sure we will miss some important verses along the way, but I figure that we have a lot of years to fill in the gaps.

When I teach Aidan a new verse I start by saying the verse to him a couple times in short phrases. (For some of the verses I do take the liberty of paraphrasing slightly.)

For example, with Genesis 1:1, I say to Aidan, "In the beginning...God created...the heavens and the earth." Then I repeat it and then the third time I have him repeat each phrase after I have said it. We do this step once or thrice a night. It usually only takes him a couple nights before all he needs is "In the..."

Currently we are working through the Lord's Prayer. Then we will get back to Genesis. Kate thinks Davis is almost ready since he has been so close in his singing to actually phrases (he already speaks actual words). We'll see...

The Boys' Room

Well....after many long hours and help from a few friends and family members (Thank you!) the boys have a new room. It was a big transition for Davis going from a crib to a big bed and for both moving upstairs away from Mommy and Daddy. But things went well (better than I expected), with a few times of "go back to your bed," the boys went to sleep. Davis still sang for about an hour but did eventually go to sleep. We also want to thank Mr. Paul from Hope School for giving us the bunk bed.

A 3 Year Old and a Baby Sister

Since Halle came into our family a month ago, Aidan has had many observations and ideas about his baby sister.

1. I (Kate) just finished painting a few sports themed murals in the boys' bedroom, and Aidan stated, "Mommy, Halle needs her room painted like a little girl's room." I then asked him what I should paint, and added a few ideas like flowers and lady bugs. Aidan added, "Ants too Mommy, so the ladybugs have someone to play with."

2. I was nursing Halle, and Aidan was watching and exploring his own chest when he discovered, "Mommy, I have those too." I then explained to him that only mommies' have milk in them for babies. He responded, "and boys' have juice in them."

3. This morning Aidan told me he didn't want a baby sister anymore, but instead wanted a boy baby. I asked him why and he said, "Baby sisters cry too much."

Life with 3 children 3 and under has been kind of crazy and interesting, but a blessing. I am sure there will be more funnies to come.

Davis the Entertainer

A couple Davis funnies...

#1. (Sorry, the first one involves literal bathroom humor and is soley intended for Dads or other guys)

I was peeing and Davis just walks in on me and stops to stare. I say, "This is how big boys use the potty... and sometimes your brother."

Right on cue, Davis busts into a deadpan, "Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha."

#2. I'm sitting on the couch with Aidan under my left arm and Davis walks up with his blankets. As I pull him up with my right arm, he baby farts. "Hey, who tooted?" I ask.

Immediately, Davis replies (with his nook in his mouth), "Aidan tooted."

Because they're beautiful...

Fitting Right In

Over the last few weeks when we finish praying for dinner Aidan will say, "Amen" followed by an immediate, "So..." It took us a couple days to realize that this is how we typically start our post-prayer dinner conversations about our days.

Last night after we prayed, Aidan gave us his typical "Amen" but then this time he added,

"So, how is school for you Daddy?"

"What do you want to do with your life?"

We were visiting some friends yesterday that just moved into the neighborhood. They have a drumset in their living room which both Aidan and Davis took turns on. Of course, just one turn was not enough for either boy. We were able to divert Davis' attention, but Aidan proved a little tougher. Occassionally, the boys and I will box a little so I attempt to provoke Aidan with a couple right jabs and say, "You wanna fight?"

Without a moment's hesitation Aidan replies,

"I wanna rock."

(I certainly hope this does not lead to this)

Aidan + Church

So, we're looking for a Milwaukee church and have not yet found one. I decided to get Aidan's input on the matter.

Here were his top 4 things a church should have:
1. A play room
2. Toys
3. A slide
4. Babies and a baby room

Tonight I was singing "Be Thou My Vision" to him at bedtime and he says,
"Daddy, that's a church song."

Which is cool, but I can't remember the last time we were in church and that song was sung.

Aidan Quotes

While waiting for his VHS movie to start Aidan mentions to me:
"Look Daddy, the blue show is on again!"

While Aidan was stalling at the dinner table I say, "Unless you finish your plate, you're not going to the candy store with Daddy and Davis."

"Daddy, we don't eat plates."

Halle is Home

Halle and Kate have been home for a couple hours now. Their stay at the hospital (from start to end) was by far the easiest Kate had of the three births. Now the fun begins at home! Here are some photos from the past two days...


















PS. Shortly after today's picture session, Kate needed to feed Halle. Upon seeing this mother-child miracle take place, Aidan asked, "Why is she eating you?"

Halle is Here!

Our baby girl has arrived a week early!

The details:
Halle Megan Karis Arvold was born Friday, July 27, 2007 at 3:59am. She is 20" long and weighs 7 lbs, 13 oz.

The short story: We checked into the hospital at 1:57am. Kate had decided she wanted the epidural this time but we found out the anesthesiologist was busy with a c-section. A few minutes later she finished but was whisked away to another c-section. Kate decided to go completely natural and forgo all drugs and finished in record time (both the older brothers were all day affairs)! She's a pro.

The name: Halle (as in Halle Berry- but not named after her) was a name we liked. Megan is Kate's middle name (all our kids get a family middle name first). Karis (actually spelled Charis) is the Greek word the New Testament uses for grace (all our kids get a Biblical middle name second), but Kate likes the letter K better than Ch.

The pictures:

Kate and Halle should be coming home Sunday, so be sure that more pictures will follow. Thanks for everyone's love and prayers!