We're being watched

Anthony and I took the boys out to do some errands this evening, and as we were leaving Target, a woman stopped us. Since Anthony was in his uniform, I assumed she was stopping us because of that. Instead, she told us that she and the cashier had both been remarking that it was nice to see a family where the parents were treating their kids so well. Both of us were taken aback. We weren't acting any differently than normal, and it was surprising not only that someone would even notice us, but she went out of her way to say something. It made me so grateful for my wonderful children and our family and made me want to be a better mom to always live up to that compliment.

Will has been a big help around the house. He's very interested in using Anthony's tools, and he even helped put together Ethan's crib on Sunday, so we got him his own play set of tools today. I had a hard time finding tools that didn't make "authentic" noises or play songs, but we finally found just a regular set. He loved banging the hammer into the nails, and I'm sure I'm going to find him trying to use the screwdriver throughout the house. Before, he would take a pen and put it in a hole, so now at least he has the right tools. He's also been a little accident prone lately. He rolled halfway down the stairs a few days ago, and today he tipped himself backwards in his chair. He had been tipping back on the back two legs, and I told him to cut it out or he'd fall. He chose the latter.

Ethan's been trying new foods, and we're both loving this new arrangement. He tried sweet potatoes, and while he seemed a little shocked at the taste, he loved it. He finished the whole jar and hasn't looked back. Ethan also started babbling a little bit. On Sunday during church, he decided it was time to start talking. All through Sunday School it was, "Da da da da." I think he was trying to say, "Happy Father's Day." It was an appropriate first sound to make, but now I can't get him to be quiet. He has such a cute little voice though. I'm sure this is the beginning of the end with two talkers.

Here are some more pictures of our boys and our home here in Alaska.

Will loves his stuffed animals. Every morning he grabs two before I can lift him out of his crib, and our living room is always littered with them.

He always hated hats, but lately he can't get enough of them.




He even wears Ethan's hats.

I don't know why everyone looked so unhappy when we first got to the zoo. It's a beautiful day, Anthony was off work, we'd just had lunch. Why do they look like I've forced them into a day of grocery shopping?

At least Ethan would smile for me.






Will is enjoying his grilled cheese sandwich at the outdoor market.

Gathering more rocks to take home.

He figured out how to get the sunglasses on his eyes instead of around his neck.

Several times I have been working around the house and I notice that the bouncing has stopped in the Jumperoo only to find that Ethan has jumped himself to sleep. But if I take him out and lay him in his crib, he's immediately awake.

Here's our awesome Landcruiser that we got for such a good deal on Craigslist. I love driving it! And I'm even starting to get good at parking it. Starting.

Before I put the pictures of our house, please excuse the mess. Like I said, we're unpacking all over the place and it's not been very easy to get organized. But I wanted to get pictures up before it's time to move, which is when I will be organized. So try to look around the piles of things to get the picture. I only was able to get the main floor and the front and back yards because the basement is where all of the empty boxes are going, and the boys were asleep in their rooms. Also, these pictures were all taken at 10:15 at night. Do you see how bright it is outside? I'm not complaining. We're storing up the sunshine for the very nearby winter that is coming. Even in June, we've had a lot of days that are in the LOW 50's at best. I had to wear a sweatshirt to weed our back yard today. Where is this global warming I keep hearing about?

Our house

Each building is a group of four homes. We have a single car garage (heated!) and we share the driveway with our neighbor.

We have a special room called the Arctic Entry to take off our shoes and wet clothing in the winter. That scares me. How much snow is there?!

The living room, which opens up into the dining room/office.

I had to take a picture of Anthony the way most of you would recognize him.

The kitchen is in there somewhere.





Half of our backyard. The other half looks about the same, except with a tree. There's no grass right now because the people before us had a dog, so it's our job to restart the lawn. They do give us free grass seed at least. And again, it may look like the middle of the afternoon, but it's definitely not. No wonder the kids couldn't sleep without blackout curtains!



Our garden area where we're about to plant lilacs, and the playground behind us.



The view of the mountains from the back yard.