asa at three

This look is very 'Asa'... a little mischievous, a little sweetheart

Mr. Asa Joseph Pulley. What a character. It is so fascinating (and challenging) to see how different each one of your children turns out. Which means, if you happen to figure out how to deal with one child, don't expect it to give you any sort of advantage for the next. Because it won't. They require a whole new set of instructions. But, it's great! They each add something different to the mix. And, Asa definitely adds a lot. He is such a fun, lovable, naughty little guy. Here are a few things about Asa:

1. He is so very affectionate. He loves to give hugs and kisses. Especially when he has gotten in trouble. It's quite hard - even for his brothers - to stay mad at him, because he forces a big hug and kiss upon you if he suspects you are mad at him. It would be easy to assume that he is a master manipulator, but I really think he needs it for his own reassurance that he is still loved - despite his actions.

2. He is very good at saying he's sorry (again, I think he hates the thought of you staying mad at him). If he has a melt down, or carries on (and on) about something, he will make sure and say sorry afterwards - it's sort of like he will all of a sudden realize that he's being a tad bit ridiculous (or realizes his crying isn't going to work) and so he abruptly stops and apologizes.

3. He is very playful. He is always up for chasing some brothers or letting them chase him.

4. He is usually very sweet and lovable... unless he decides that he is in the mood to be a stinker - then watch out.

5. He wants to try to do everything himself (he is three, after all). As long as I let him give it a try, he's good at asking for help after he realizes that he can't do it: "I do it... help me."

6. A few days ago I would have said that we are completely potty trained, but alas, we are having a few too many accidents to claim such. Hopefully, with a diligent mother, we will be official within the next few weeks.

7. He is very silly. He loves to laugh and he has a pretty good sense of humor. Some times he surprises me with the things he comes up with. Of course, I can't think of a good example at the moment.

8. He always wants to eat the food from someone else's plate - even is it's the same exact thing that's on his own. He especially loves to sit close by when I'm feeding Elise and still her cheese, bananas, avocado... whatever he can get his thieving paws on.

9. He asks "Why?" a lot. Usually when I'm getting after him about something. And, he uses the most innocent voice, like he really had no clue that he shouldn't be running around with a knife. And, after you explain "why", he follows it with a big, "Oohhh", like, it makes so much sense to him now... not that it means he won't commit his crimes again.

10. He also answers everything with, "Because." If I ask him why he did something, or why he got in trouble, the answer is always, "Betause."

11. He is a little mimic to everything his brothers do - which is why I try to stress to them that they need to think about what they say/do, because he will inevitably copy them. It's pretty cute to listen to him as we are driving. He's like a little parrot, copying everyone's conversations.

12. When he runs, he punches his arms out to try and look like a train. At least I think that's how it started, but now he just does it out of habit. It's cute now... not so much if he's still doing it when he's twelve.

13. His voice is very expressive. Even though he has had difficulty with his speech, he has always had great inflection in his voice. When he repeats something back to you, he turns it into a question and his voice usually goes into his highest pitch, like he is shocked about what you have just told him. Or, say, he just went potty, he asks, "I get gogic bips (chocolate chips)?!", in an extremely high pitched voice. Hard to explain, but super cute.

14. Oh, and he is really into wearing makeup lately:

A little birthday fun at a park. Notice the identical, unexciting birthday cake as Isaac's. This year it's all about quick and easy (and gluten free - which is part of the unexciting :)

Too bad this picture is blurry - his face cracks me up!

isaac at seven

What a great kid! I am so blessed to have Isaac in my life and it's easy to list the reasons why. He has so many wonderful/unique qualities that make him who he is. Here is a list of things about Isaac at seven - mostly good, with just a few annoying ones... I have to keep it real, right? :) But, one thing is for certain - I love this kid to pieces - the good, the bad (which isn't much), and everything in between.

We had some cousins help us celebrate Isaac's birthday with an ATV ride (which covered them from head to toe in dirt) and some cake. After that we went on over to the carnival, where I managed to get sick enough to puke! No joke. What a wuss!

On with the list:

1. I think the word that best sums up Isaac is persistent. Many of the characteristics on this list all boil down to the fact that it is his nature to keep pushing, and pushing, and pushing... which puts a lot of pressure on us as his parents. If guided correctly, this could end up being a great quality, but if misguided, he'll just end up pushing people's buttons throughout his life.

2. Another word that strongly describes Isaac - inquisitive. I've mentioned before how Isaac is constantly asking questions. He has this dire need to know how everything - and I mean EVERYTHING - in this vast universe functions. I was talking to his new teacher today and she told me what a great kid he is and then adds, "And, he is so inquisitive!"

3. He does not like action heroes. And, he'll make sure you know this. But, Transformers are okay.

4. One of his most favorite activities is riding his bike. Which is why I was surprised that he wanted to go to Soldier Hollow so bad - there will be no more riding bikes to school. I guess he likes the thought of cross country skiing (which he has never done) more than riding his bike.

5. Oh wait, I thought of another word for him - sensitive. He gets emotional and is extremely sensitive to things like: spiritual moments/conversations/prayers, missing his dog or a grandpa he never knew, being in the outdoors, discussing the fact that we may eat our chickens someday or Asa holding said chickens by the neck... just to name a few.

5. He is a very social kid. He loves his friends (even if he just met them 5 minutes ago) and cousins. He wants in on any sort of social gathering he catches wind of and DOES NOT like to leave until everyone else has. You can almost guarantee an emotional scene of Isaac crying and begging to stay longer because there was something he didn't get to do before his departure. It doesn't matter how long we have been there, he will have his moment. I try to get him to understand the concept of overstaying your welcome, but he doesn't seem to get it in the slightest.

6. He loves to laugh - he's a pretty light hearted guy. Not to say that he can't be very serious - he can and is, but he loves a good joke, a funny story, and his main concern in life is to have a good time.

7. He is an engineer in the making. What kind of engineer is yet to be determined. If there is wires, pipes, water, electricity, engines, pumps, batteries, lights, explosives or tools involved, you have his undivided attention - whether you want it or not. He is fascinated/obsessed with figuring out how ev-er-y-thing works, what purposes they serve, and all the details about them. And when possible, he has to do this in a very hands on way - often requesting (or just going ahead without permission) to take things apart that are supposedly broken, or in need of his expertise.

9. I reckon that Isaac will be a big traveler/tourist when he grows up (fanny pack and all). Whenever he sees any sort of destination spot on TV, or hears of someone else's adventures, or watches shows like UP, he inevitably says, "Can we go there someday?" And, he is constantly talking of the places we have been and asking when we will go back. As of now, his favorite places are Moab and Zions, says he. Another thing about Isaac's traveling, is his need to know everything about the place he is visiting. He is that person who stops at every kiosk or trail sign to read all the facts.

10. He loves scary, suspenseful, or adventure type movies. He asked to watch my favorite movie a while back, so I popped in The Princess Bride, and he loved it. Which made me happy. It's exciting for me to have a kid old enough to enjoy things that I did back in the day. Of course, I did try to get him to watch What About Bob the next day, but it didn't do it for him. Which makes sense; it wasn't the humor in The Princess Bride that captured his interest - it was the adventure and fantastic special effects.

11. He doesn't handle the word 'No' very well. I know that most kids don't like to be told 'no', but Isaac will push and push and whine, to try to get us to change a decision, and it drives me crazy. What drives me crazy, is the fact that he consistently earns a consequence when he does this, but he still does it. Constantly. I know I need to learn to loosen up a lot, but come on!

12. One more annoying tendency of his (and then I'll stop complaining about my wonderful kid), is the frequent question, "How do you know?", after I've just answered one of his questions. Ahh! I know I'm not the most credible source of information, and I'm sure that I do answer many questions incorrectly, but I'm not too prideful to answer, "I don't know", when I really don't. So, the constant doubt of my intelligence is down right hurtful.

catching up (part 2)

1. Elise is growing up so very, extremely fast! She is NINE. MONTHS. OLD! When did this happen? Where was I? She's been crawling for a couple of months now and has even started to pull herself up to stand a couple of days ago. She's still cute, sweet, and pretty dang happy all around. Luke still can't seem to control his excitement around her and she still gets ultra excited whenever he's around. We love, love, love her!

A few things that she does, that I love, and need to capture on film before it's too late are: 1) She sucks on her lower lip when she starts to get hungry or tired - it's a sure sign that she is needing something. 2) One of my favorite things that she does is blow raspberries when she is on the verge of getting cranky... almost like a warning signal... I love it. 3) She does this funny squirming thing with her little body when she's happy. I call her my wiggle worm because of the way she wiggles from side to side... so cute.

2. One thing I love about my boys is how good they are at telling us how much they love us. How can you not feel good when you have 3 little shmoozers expressing their love for you constantly. The way Asa says it is too sweet: "Mommy! I sure (sir) love (wuv) you." And Luke... well, let's just hope his feeling never change: "Mommy, I love you. I'm sure glad you're not dead."

3. Isaac's got some mad skills. So, our DVD player broke a while back, and I set it aside to through out, but for some reason, never did. Isaac asked me if he could take it apart and try to fix it - I said sure, figuring it would keep him busy for an hour or so. Well, wouldn't you know it, the little handy man fixed it! Even at one moment when Adam told him to just through it away because it wasn't looking so good, he persevered, got it back together and we now have a working DVD player again. He was quite proud of himself, as was I.

4. As we were driving down the road, Isaac asked me if the van we passed was a police van. I told him that I thought it was a van full of convicts doing community service. Of course, he needed further details, so I told him how some people in jail have to do good things to help make up for the things they did wrong. Isaac's reply, "And sometimes they have to break rocks." You know, like the prisoners in the cartoons do... so funny.

5. So, my first Ragnar experience that I "trained" for? A big, fat DNF. I was so excited/nervous for the big race and in the end, I got sick and couldn't do my last leg. It still frustrates me to think about it. Really, the only reason I wanted to do the race was to get one of those stickers to put on my car to earn the respect of the general public. But it looks like I'll have to wait for next year to redeem myself and earn my sticker.

Life in pictures:

The boys first T-ball game... can you feel the excitement? Note the yawn from Isaac... and then there's Luke. Luke just refers to it as "Isaac's T-ball" now since he refuses to participate. At least Isaac finds some fun in it though.

Nap hair... but, still cute.

The boys scored some sweet trophies from Fast Track and Luke has carried his around with him non stop. He loves it so much I saw him trying to ride his scooter with it.

Elise's first time standing.

Asa's footwear choices are quite comical. Usually he grabs whatever pair of flip flops are by the door (I'm impressed at how well he is able to keep Adam's on), but I guess this time the only thing nearby were these knee pads. Why not? And, he didn't want a picture because he was mad that I took a hammer and nail away from him.

Elise is such a good sport - she puts up with Asa constantly insisting on holding her.

I had to include this picture, because it showcases Asa's LOVE of avocados (babacados). If Elise is eating some, he makes sure to stay close so that he can clean up any leftovers. And, when we have guacamole, he will always finish up whatever is left in the bowl.

catching up

Wow. I feel like I have so much to write about... or maybe it just seems like I've been really busy for the past few months, which makes me feel like I have so much to write about. So, in no particular order:

1. We have chickens! Lots and lots of chickens! Seventeen to be exact. You can't imagine what an exciting addition this has been to our family. Luke has been the most excited about it - and, true to his nature, he has become obsessed with egg collecting. It starts as soon as he wakes and continues until dusk. And, his enthusiasm beams with every. single. egg. "MOMMY! Aren't you SO glad that the chickens laid an egg?!?!"

Although, not as obvious as Luke's love for the chickens, Adam is quite taken with them as well. I was the one who had suggested that we get a chicken coupe, but Adam has been the one to take care of their every need - without me ever asking it of him. He even has a chicken forum that he now spends more time on then his beloved hunting/snowmobiling forums. I'm relieved that he has taken on this responsibility, because I have been busy with...

2. a garden! My weak attempts with a couple of small "practice" gardens haven't produced much, other than a few peas. This year is going to be different. I'm going big (or big-er). And, with my mom holding my hand along the way, I hope to not only gather some peas, but a few other things along the way. Now, I'm a realistic girl, so I'm not expecting to get anything out of at least half my plants... but, if I can get a few tomatoes and an ear of corn or two, all the hours of work this summer will be worth it.

3. The ol' Loveridge family reunion went down earlier this month. So much fun! Adam and I had the "privilege" of planning the big event. We decided to take the family down to Pinewood's (down by Brianhead - Adam has ATV's down there). It was a much needed vacation for our family. We had fun spending a day at Zion's, doing some Ranger riding, and getting attacked by mayflies while trying to catch some fish. We had tons o' fun just relaxing with my family, whom I think are pretty much the coolest people I know (aside from Adam's family, of course). And, of course, Isaac DID NOT like the fact that it had to end (neither did I). When I asked him what his favorite part of the trip was, he said, "The fire and the park (there was a playground at the lodge)." I'm glad it doesn't take much to make my boys happy.

4. Well. One of the more exciting things I did over the last couple of months (or years, for that matter), is go to the U2 concert with my brother, Matt. Adam ended up renting out some machines to some of their roadies and they told him they could get him and a friend into the concert. He knows I am a fan, so he told me to invite someone and go. Well, as I considered who to invite, I thought of Matt... and our days in Moroni, when he would play his collection of U2 cassettes for me - telling me various U2 facts that only a true fan would know. I felt cool that my older brother let me in on this super cool band. It was a time in my life when I was anything but cool (not that much has changed). We had recently moved, and I was painfully shy, so it took me a while to make any friends. I don't know what I would have done in those days without my siblings. Seriously.

Anyways, enough about my debilitating shyness. We had SO MUCH FUN! I must be getting old though, because instead of being ecstatic, like I should have been, upon receiving the news from Adam, my first thought was, "I'm not sure I want to go... I would be up pretty late... and, I might have to go out of my comfort zone and call someone I don't know (the roadie who gave him the tickets)" What?! I'm such a loser! Well, I knew I would regret it if I didn't go, so I mustered up a little life, and headed out. Oh, I'm so glad that I did! The girl gave us a backstage (or understage) tour and it was pretty dang cool. The concert was great - I think both of us were surprised by how much fun we had... and we were proud of ourselves for doing something as crazy and youthful as going to a concert (seriously, when did I become so old?).

5. Speaking of old... my boys are on a kick lately. Isaac has learned that there are a lot of things in his life that haven't always existed (imagine - no computer, cell phones, or DVRs in a home!). So, he continually asks me, "Did they have (fill in the blank), when you were little." My favorite was when he asked me if there were roads when I was little. Luke's constant question, lately, is "Mommy, did you used to do this (whatever he's doing at the moment) when you were little?" He loves hearing about what I did when I was his age.

An onslaught of pictures:

We managed to get the boys out for a ride before the snow was gone (May?!). Asa was definitely ready to head out.

Luke and Uncle Neil

Neil and Kilee. Poor Kilee.

Anybody's claustrophobia kicking in?

You know, I am almost intimidated by his web slingin', but then I notice the pink & purple flip flops, and his credibility goes down a notch. Thanks Dani, for the hand-me-downs - Asa loves them, as usual.

Luke graduating preschool. I was relieved by how much he learned this year. It just takes a loving professional to teach my children.

Luke and Drew

lukester turns 5

Five years old. FIVE. Why does that sound so old to me? Once again I'm surprised by how quickly my kids are growing up without me knowing it.

Luke is truly one of a kind. He has earned the title of my most loving kid and my most challenging kid (although, Asa has just about taken his place on the latter). He often leaves me scratching my head or pulling out my hair. But, he also makes me laugh and reminds me that I need to stop and smell the roses more often. He truly brings something special to our family and we are grateful for this sweet, loving little guy.

Here are some of the things that make Luke, Luke:

1. Luke LOVES his sister. L O V E S! I can't begin to describe just how in love with her he is. He literally cannot see her without going into a lengthy rambling of baby talk. Intense baby talk. I tend to intervene and tell him to take it down a bit, but Elise thinks he is hilarious. It's just the rest of us that it seams to bug.

His favorite nick name for her is "Cutie Miss". There are other similar names that I have mentioned before, but I wouldn't be able to count how many times in a given day we hear the words "CUTIE MISS! cutie miss. Cutie Miss!"

2. Second to the love he has for his sister, is his love of flowers. If he could have his way, he would transplant every flower/weed he found in our yard into a cup and keep it alive in our house - but, I've limited him to two. It's not enough to just pick the flower - he wants it to live, so he carefully tries to keep the roots intact.

3. Luke is a collector. I always joke that he is going to be a hoarder someday. He will collect the most random things, but his favorites are: feathers, rocks, bugs, leaves/flowers, and anything shiny, colorful, or beautiful. Endless amounts of baggies and jars have been filled with Luke's treasures.

4. He loves arts and crafts. It's interesting to see the difference in my boys as they get older, and one area that I see these differences the most is with their artwork. While Isaac tries to be meticulous in his artwork and doesn't handle mistakes very well, Luke is much more relaxed in his approach. He doesn't worry about making sure his colors are appropriate - the more the better, is his style. And, he displays his work proudly all over his room.

5. Once Luke gets something in is head, there is no deterring him. The words 'wait', 'hold on', 'later', and 'in a minute' are just about the worst possible things you could say to Luke. If given such an answer, he will usually proceed with his agenda anyways. It absolutely has to be done right at that very moment!

6. Luke is extremely affectionate. So much so, that he often inflicts pain from the act of hugging. It can get pretty intense. Adam's family has told stories of Adam as a child and how he was constantly hanging on them - craving affection. I imagine he must have been just like Luke as a kid.

7. It's always interesting to listen to Luke's interpretations of various subjects. He is always explaining how or why something is the way it is, and his reasoning can get pretty out there. He especially likes to speculate on why Heavenly Father made certain creatures. One that I heard today was, "Heavenly Father made rattle snakes so that they could make medicine for when someone gets bit my one, huh?"

8. That leads me to the next one: Luke ends almost every sentence with "huh?". He pretty much speaks in question by doing so. And, if you don't respond to his "huh", he'll keep saying "huh", until you acknowledge it. I guess he needs the reassurance that you are listening to him.

9. Luke is extremely loud. His volume control seems to be stuck on high. Even when you are just inches away from him, he talks as though you are in another room.

10. He is still a big fan of Spiderman. But, he's expanding his love to include ninjas.

My mom gave him a bouquet of flowers, and it ended up being one of his favorite gifts. I took this picture the next morning when I saw him admiring them. Did I mention how much he loves flowers?