Help...

Does anyone have solutions or suggestions of how to deal with a very angry 5 year old? Lance gets soooo angry sometimes, and I try to cuddle him, distract him, put him in time-out, read to him, threaten him, etc, etc, etc. He gets this growl on and runs around hitting or saying he'll kill someone. Should I just beat it out of him????? (JK sort of!)

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My Baby is Four :(...

Joey is four years old today, although I had to remind him that it is now OK to be four. (We had a big discussion 2 months ago that he WAS NOT four yet!).

He got some Thomas toys and a game for his birthday, so our family room has been transformed to the Island of Sodor. It's almost 2:00 and he's still in his pj's (bad mom!). He got a phone call from Goeffrey the giraffe from Toys R Us, then from Grammy. Can you guess which call he was more excited about?!?!?! We are having Vietnamese for dinner tonight and an ice cream pie for a cake. Dad has a Silver Thread (see sidebar link) interview, so it will just be mom and the kids! What a kicked-back b-day!

Happy Birthday to my very sweet four-year-old with a nice shiner!!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

A happy Holiday wish to all our friends and family! We think of you at this wonderful season and wish you the very best, with all our love and hugs...

May you have a very merry season and have a wonderful new year!

My Christmas Wish List

1. Peace in my house for 30 minutes...
2. A package of paper cups so I don't have to wash cups.
3. Children who don't complain about doing chores.
4. Painted toenails.
5. A clean house without me having to do it!
6. A good hair day.
7. Hugs - NOT Zerbets!!!
8. More time with my friends and sister.
9. More time...
10. All my loved ones to know I love them and appreciate their influence in my life!

The Reason!!!!

So, this is the reason (one of them) we went to Arizona. We are the proud owners of a Toyota "Surburban". It's actually a Sequoia, but my brother has a Suburban so he calls my sister's Expedition a "Ford Suburban", so we jumped on the bandwagon.





We needed a vehicle we could take camping, and this one has eight seats, so our big, huge teenager can spread out, and I can separate those children who choose to fight while we are in the car...

So if you know anyone looking for a nice 2000 Ford Windstar van, it's for sale!

And, yes, it is our Christmas present to ourselves!

Our Thanksgiving Weekend

He must have been trying to shock me, because Thao suggested we go down to Arizona to spend thanksgiving with my sister. Four and half years ago he swore he wouldn't go back (he got a speeding ticket on that trip)! So I rushed through my mini-week to prepare to leave Wednesday am with my parents in tow (not literally).

We had a wonderful time enjoying each other and spending the first semi-Stowell Thanksgiving dinner in over eight years. And the weather was beautiful! Carri and mom made an awesome turkey dinner ( I helped a bit), Carri wowed us with her mastery of swimsuit making, Sam entertained and loved Joey, and the big girls were inseperable, and Uncle Brandon was awesome about taking Todd and Aaron hiking, then playing all kinds of sports in their huge "front yard".

We had a wonderful time!

On our way home, we stopped at the Grand Canyon to be thankful for God's amazing creations! If you have never been there - go!!! Next to Arches, Yosemite and Lake Tahoe, it's one of my favorites!

Now, on to the reality of finishing up the Reflections Art Contest for the school, doing laundry (endlessly), and getting ready for Christmas. Maybe tomorrow I'll tell you WHY Thao wanted to go to Arizona!!!!!!

I'm Baaaack!

hehehe...
I will now take back my blog...but it will have to be later! Todd has his own, and I need to post again. We had an ABSOLUTELY AMAZING time in Arizona for Thanksgiving, with a YUMMY turkey dinner. THANK YOU, EKBERGS! A few pleasant surprises like Sam and Joey bonding, fun watching Grandpa play baseball and watching my boy's shocked faces when I hit the baseball TWICE! It was great to spend time with Carri and Mom, and see how mellow Thao was about being there! I will put pictures on when I find my camera (I'm still unpacking)...