Sam Sam the Money-Making Man

Samuel has been earning money for the past several months in order to purchase a new portion of his favorite toy, his Geo-Trax. He is very focused on buying the airplane and remote control that comes with it. We have decided, with the advice of my mom, to capitalize on this desire and give him new chores and responsibilities around the house in order to earn it for himself. I have been amazed at what he is able to do. I'm sure we pay him way too much for these chores, but this is no cheap toy. It will take him until he's 15 to earn the money =) unless we pay him well. He unloads the dishwasher, laying everything on the counter for me to put away. He does the silverware minus the sharp knives. When it's time to load it up again, he puts in the soap and presses the button (these, I think, are his favorite parts of the dishwasher job). Sometimes I give him the job of "babysitting" Kara while I take a shower. Of course, he loves this one because he gets to be the boss! My mom has also been employing him to help with small chores in her bedroom. He gets paid a quarter to stack Pappy's formula and briefs in the closet bins. HOWEVER, I have been most recently amazed by his ability to do this.......

Buckle your seatbealts, everyone, this boy is FOLDING LAUNDRY!!!!!!

YAHOOOOOOO!!!! He's up to 14 dollars and something now. I can't wait for the day when we take all of the quarters and go to make our big purchase!! =) Great job, Buddy!!

Milkshake Contest

We don't often have friends over to visit. The kids make it a little harder as well as traveling every weekend when most people are off work and available to visit. Tonight, though, we invited a couple over to get to know them better. Andrea and I were friends in elementary school, actually. We have seen each other a few times over the years, but just since we moved home to Bellefonte, I have seen her a little more...mostly from attending the same Bible Study for Moms. We've also become friends on Facebook, so when I saw her status the other night (she reported she had just made the best peanut butter milkshake ever), I commented that Travis makes pretty good p. butter milkshakes too. We thought it would be the perfect time to set up a milkshake making contest after having dinner together =) It was great to meet Andrea's husband, Kevin, and spend some time getting to know their family. Samuel and Kara had a great time with their children, Kate and Christopher. We played puzzles and trains, watched Curious George and had the long-awaited "MILKSHAKE MAKING CONTEST"!! And the winner is........

(after blindfolding Sam for a taste test - wish I'd gotten a picture of that and getting Kate to taste both shakes - she wouldn't wear a blindfold....)

..............

ANDREA!!!!

I guess congratulations are in order, since we heckled you guys all night about who would make the best shake! It must be because you bought the ice cream (unfair advantage) =) heehee

Thanks, Kevin and Andrea, for a really fun night!

Bathtime

Since Kara's hair is getting longer, we're having some fun with it in the bathtub. Take a look...

After we did this, we let her see herself in the mirror. Now everytime we wash her hair, she wants to look in the mirror. We're having so much fun with her, especially now that she's getting a little bigger and can do more things. She and Sam are beginning to play more and more together. She also lets me do her hair in pigtails and other little hair-dos. It's fun being the mommy of a little girl. She loves to have her nails painted, and she's starting to request certain outfits. OH BOY! Here we go!

Camping with the Fam

Trav's mom and dad purchased a cabin in the mountains near Lock Haven, PA...which happens to be only about 45 minutes from our house =) We have had some really nice times there already with the family. Here's some pictures of our big sleepover with Ninny and Pappop and ALL EIGHT grandkids (the oldest just turned six in August!!). Yeah, it's kind of like a daycare when we're all together....

Pappop trying to maintain some kind of order during the tent set-up. Travis and his brother, Trent, slept out here the second night with 3 of the lunatic children. They couldn't move the next day....guess they're getting old! =)

Kara LOVES bubbles!