Fun with nieces and nephews

This weekend I have 4 of Sarah’s kids staying with me.  Unfortunately, my kids can’t afford to take the time off of school, so they were stuck with me all day today.

We ended up having a lovely time!  We got the garden almost completely ready, then enjoyed some fresh lemonade while we surveyed our work.

The girls had warm chocolate chip cookies waiting for the school kids when they got home:

(Obviously, we did not spend any time polishing the fridge today!)

Tonight they are all gathered together playing an amazingly loud game of CatchPhrase.

We love cousins!!

The problem is…

The other day I read, on someone else’s blog, about how important it is to teach our kids to work hard.  I whole-heartedly agree with the post, and my kids insist that they have more chores than any of their friends! (Insert whine and eye-roll here.)

The complaining doesn’t deter me one bit.  The hardest thing for me is living with the “finished chore” during these many years of learning curve.

This, for example, is a “clean” casserole dish that I took out of the cupboard.  CHUNKS of food all over it!  Unfortunately, not an uncommon sight at my house.

I need some reassurance.  They will learn, right?  If I keep at it, and catch as many of these sloppy jobs as I can, they will get better?

A shiver in my heart

Jonah loved all the fast rides at Disneyland.  He told me many times how brave he was, and laughed out loud when I asked him if he was scared.  The only ride that was almost an exception was Tower of Terror.

When we were waiting in line he looked a little nervous.  I asked him if he was getting scared.  “No,” he answered, “I’m not scared, but I do feel a little shiver in my heart.  But it’s kinda fun.”

My funny Valentines

This morning, which is the day after Valentines day, Jonah poked his head out of my room and called for me to come look at my bed.  This is what I found:

When I walked in, they both yelled “Happy Valentine’s Day!”

A belated Valentine’s gift for me.  A couple of smelly, snotty little boys playing in my bed.  What more could a girl hope for?

Number 17- my big announcement

Last week the whole big Alston family went to Disneyland. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!)  We had matching shirts, which made it easier to keep track of our group. 

We got asked, several times, to explain the number system on our backs.

Grandma and Grandpa were 0 and 00, then each of their children were numbered, starting with me.  That’s right, #1!  (The boys were super excited to find out that Uncle Brandon was #2!  We had lots of crude jokes about that!)

Anyway… everyone in my little family had a number that started with 1.  Jeff was 10, Becca was 11, Savannah was 12, etc.  On down to Simon, who was 16.

So the first day, when we all put on the shirts, I made a little addition to mine:

I put stickers right over my belly that said 17.  That’s my big announcement!  There is going to be another little Davis!

The kids were all so excited, which made it really fun.  Little #17 is due sometime toward the end of September!

Harlem Globe Trotters

I have a fun memory of going to see the Harlem Globe Trotters with my dad when I was a kid.  So when Santa left tickets for all of us in our stockings, I was super excited!

Jonah did a good job of keeping his eye on the scoreboard, and updating me when it changed.  He also did a verbal replay  of the funniest parts.

 

 

After the game we went to get pictures and autographs with “Cheese.”  He was one of our favorite players.  (Maybe his name had something to do with it.)

Thank you Santa for a fun family activity!