A Week in Review

We've had a great week, and I've been forgetting to post as we go, so here are some highlights.

Tuesday Alex turned 3 months old. Happy birthday! Every month we take a picture of him next to this care bear so we can see how much he's grown. I'll make a slide show once we've got a few more pictures.

Wednesday Esther and I got a tour of Trader Joe's. Esther's favorite part was when they let the kids attack a bunch of boxes with the price guns.

Thursday we visited a pool with some other kids in the branch. This was awesome! There was a little kid pool that only went up to William's waist complete with lifeguard. That meant I got to be the mom who hung out in the shade with the baby while the kids played. It was heavenly.

Friday we signed a lease for the home we'll be moving into next month. No pictures, sorry. I'm sure we'll be posting more about that later.

Saturday there was a free Detroit Symphony concert at the Metro Beach park. We had a fun time listening to great marches and playing with our Subway kids meal toys.

What's in a Name?

Last Sunday was Alex's naming and blessing. It's been great having this little guy in our family. We gave each of our children names that we hope they can live up to. Here is why we chose what we chose.

Esther Joy Grange. Queen Esther is my hero. There aren't many women with the faith and courage she had. We hope Esther can grow to be so strong. Her middle name Joy is partly to share my middle name with me, and partly because she introduced the joy of parenthood into our lives.

William Edward Grange. Edward was chosen after James Edward Talmage, an apostle who wrote Jesus the Christ. He's had a great influence in our lives, Cameron's in particular. Edward means "blessed protector." William means "protection" and seemed to go well with Edward. We hope he can grow to be a protector of those who need it and a witness of Jesus Christ.

Alexander Lewis Grange. Lewis was chosen after C.S. Lewis, the christian author. He's written many things that have affected both Cameron and I for the better. Lewis means "famous warrior." Alexander means "man's defender, or warrior," and usually makes people think of greatness. We hope that Alexander can be a great warrior, defending men from evil.

Zoo Day!

Yesterday we visited the Detroit Zoo with a bunch of friends from church. When Esther saw there was a butterfly pavilion we HAD to go in.

It was pretty cool in there. Figuratively speaking of course. It was actually very hot. The highlight was when a butterfly decided to land on me!

As they are siblings, Esther and William naturally tried to make the trip miserable for each other. Then Hallie had the brilliant idea to put Landon in my double stroller with Esther, while William got to ride in Landon's stroller. After that we mostly had peace. (Thanks Hallie!)



We saw hairy monkeys in their cages, and some less hairy monkeys out of the cages.

Eavesdropping

Overheard from the back of the van while driving home from Greenfield Village today:

Esther: William, hold this side of my sweater. Now pull and say, "Mine!"

William: Okay

Esther and William: Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! [etc.]

Esther: Now it's your turn. Let's fight over your blanket.

William: Okay.

Esther and William: Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! [etc.]

So all this time that I thought I was being a peacemaker, was I really just interrupting mutually enjoyed playtime?

It Rained on Our Parade

Yesterday I was making our plan for the week. That's something I do sometimes when I remember to, which makes our week go by with much less stress, fighting, and forgetting. I asked Esther what she wanted to do and she told me that since she didn't have a parade at Joy School graduation, she should have a "Starting Kindergarten" parade. She then went ahead and planned the details.

First we had to make flags. I'm not sure why since they sat on the table during our parade.

Then I was asked to please make a drum for William to play while Esther would play Cameron's penny whistle. It's amazing what you can do with an oatmeal container and some yarn.

It rained on our parade, but that didn't seem to bother anybody.

I've Got Joy

Saturday marked the end of an era for us. Esther graduated from Joy School. She has done great these past two years and developed into a very joyful child.

Here is Esther in the procession of graduands.

The ceremonial hat throwing of the graduates was a nice touch.