Thursday, June 12, 2008

Toilet Training

Naomi's Ten Step Potty Process:
Step 1: Remove all clothing from the waist down.
Step 2: Place potty seat on the potty.
Step 3: Climb onto the potty.
Step 4: Wait for about 12 seconds to see if you really need to go.
Step 5: Grab about 1/2 the roll of toilet paper and shove it in the toilet.
Step 6: Jump off the toilet, run upstairs, and grab a new pair of clean clothes.
Step 7: Attempt to re-diaper and re-dress yourself. (If this doesn't work, no worries, just run around naked instead!)
Step 8: Step onto the stool to wash your hands.
Step 9: Rinse thoroughly.
Step 10: Grab the towel off the holder and dry your hands.

After proceeding through the 10 Step Potty Process clean and re-dressed, you may leave the restroom. Four important reminders:
1: Do NOT flush the toilet.
2: Do NOT turn the water in the sink off!
3: Do NOT return the towel to the towel hanger (You can't reach it anyway!)
4: If you accidentally make a mess on the toilet seat, grab the toilet brush and the strong smelling "bleachy" stuff, and make sure you clean it yourself!

Saturday, June 07, 2008

Early America

On our way home from Virginia Beach, we stopped off at Jamestown (America's earliest colony) and Colonial Williamsburg!


Tate is walking a path on Jamestown Island:


We witnessed replica ships of America's earliest settlers!
Tate and Naomi meander down memory lane in Williamsburg:


The kids in downtown Williamsburg!



One Blue Umbrella-ella-ella, eh, eh, eh

Friends on the beach, sharing the umbrella...as the song goes,

"I'll be your friend, gonna stick it out to the end..."



"...you can stand under my umbrella, ella, ella, eh, eh eh..."

Our "Click Moment"

Emily called this a "Click Moment." You know, the kind that you miss if you're a second too late? Tempted by exhaustion and a slew of other excuses not to drop everything and run to the beach for our third sunset, but knowing we only had a couple more sunsets to see, we dropped everything and sprinted to the boardwalk, over the dunes, and all the way to the edge of the world...to see God's Masterpiece. But what we really found there, was family...








Praise God that He adopted us all to be His Sons and Daughters, bringing us all into His family as Brothers and Sisters in Christ! We love you-Goode Girls! Thanks for making our week great!


The Virginia Aquarium on a rainy day...

The Goode girls, Dallas, and Naomi wait for a stingray! Tate-having no fear-pets one like he does this all the time!



Unfortunately, there was a Great White in the stingray tank, and we all went down...
I don't know why Emily thought that was funny...

Three friends at the beach!

Tate and Margaret-Jane getting a tan:


Playin' in the sand:

Woops! We lost M-J's feet!

Uh-Oh! Now we lost Naomi's hand!
M-J came to help Naomi find her hand! What a great friend!



The Cape Henry Lighthouse

Tate, Margaret-Jane, and Naomi securing the entrance to the beach!



We spent 5 days in Virginia Beach and were so excited to have our friends, Emily and her daughter, Margeret-Jane Aishu Goode join us! We were friends reuinited from our small group in Frederick, Maryland!



Tate and M-J walking to the beach!











Shelling on the beach

We recently returned from our Virginia Beach trip! We spent some time one morning walking on the beach, looking for shells!






They didn't find any shells under this little sandwall, but it sure was fun!

Congrats Tate-Class of 2008!

Tate graduated from Trinity Nursery School this May! He will be off to Summitview Elementary School (aka-The Happy School-it has a smiley face on the outside) this fall as a big shot Kindergartener!





Congrats to Daddy!

What we really liked about Daddy's graduation was watching him get "Hooded" in the "Hooding ceremony!" (And then we got to play with his hood)



Naomi was practicing for her graduation ceremony-Class of 2023
Tate practiced for graduation too! His preschool graduation was the following Wednesday!

The kids at the Grotto

Dallas finished his MBA from Mount Saint Mary's University this Spring! Here we are at the oldest Grotto in America right before his graduation ceremony!


We were so blessed to have Grandpa and Grandma Hills come up to stay with us for two weeks in May!
The kids stopped to pray at the Grotto
Naomi and Grandma Hills
Tate and Naomi running to the cross!

Tate the little soccer star

We signed Tate up for "Parent-Child Soccer" at the YMCA. We expected him to be pretty athletic because he's always loved to watch and try new sports. We did not, however, expect to see his MAD soccer skills they way they were expressed! He smoked all the 3-4 year olds on the field! He scored 6 or 7 goals every time we met! He was making up new soccer tricks! He was stealing the ball from opponents! It was AMAZING! The kid seriously has some SKILLS!

We signed him up for Waynesboro Soccer this fall...look for more pics later this year!

Our hike up Chimney Rock

We went on a hike up Chimney Rock in Maryland, which was over 2 and a half miles roundtrip. Half of it was almost straight up. Tate made it the whole way. Naomi made it to the part where it got really steep. Naomi and I both looked up the hill. She said, "Up!" I said, "Yep, it's really steep." When I turned around to look at her, she had her arms up for me to pick her up. So she rode the rest of the way in the backpack.





At the top of Chimney rock, a butterfly landed on my hand for a little bit of banana! (We couldn't get to the camera in time for that shot)

Tate the photographer!






Tate found the camera one day and began taking pictures around the house:










He found the backside of his rocker to be inspiring:



He even took pictures of himself:




Naomi tried to help him take a picture of herself:




After a little coaching, he gained a few skills to really take some great pics!