Craziness has entered the Pig household, and Asher’s caught the bug. He’s not sleeping, he’s refusing his bottle, and his attitude has suffered. But no one is immune. Let’s run down a list of the worst cases of Attitude-itis, shall wel?

Asher screams when not allowed to suck on cell phones (and most other times he doens’t get his way), and he bats away spoonfuls of food when its not to his liking, saying “Uh,oh.” But he’s yet to demonstrate good behavior on less sleep or an aptitude with sippy cups. (He is taking a few steps, now. And we are hoping he’ll be walking by Halloween.)

Emmett taken to yelling “Poopy pants” when he doesn’t getting his way, which, incidentally, is a bit better than Tessa who growls. None of us are sure where either learned their technique. And Riley is demanding, instead of asking nicely, often repeating himself until gets what he wants. (“More milk,” he’ll yell while sitting on the couch watching TV. “Get it, now. Please.”)

Riley and Tessa have also been fighting over the brushes. That’s right. Hair brushes. Riley’s growing his hair out and they both love to brush their hair. They especially like how soft the boar’s bristle brush makes their hair. Riley’s taken to sleeping with it, so that he can brush his hair whenever it gets messy. On the way to school one morning, Riley even told Mom that he didn’t want the wind to mess up his soft hair.

And, it was bound to happen. Tessa’s forthrightness has passed clear into Mean Girl territory. She’s been telling people, “I don’t like you.” Or she’ll say, “Sometimes I like you, but you’re not my friend.” Only slightly better is, “Mama, sometimes I like you and sometimes I like Daddy.” We are working on teaching her that with great power, comes great responsibility. Stay tuned.

Overall, these past few weeks have been good, with a few bumps. We are all looking forward to Halloween. The kids are entering a Pumpkin Decorating contest at their school. Each has their costume already. And all can’t wait til Pop-pop comes back into town to help then trick-or-treat. We may even put up some scary decorations outside.

Check back early next month, when we can report on Riley’s birthday, Halloween, Grandma Cheryl and Pop-pop’s visits, and a few trips to the dentist.

Later,
The Pigs

Mama, I think that chicken might beak me.
–Riley, at the corn maze where there were chickens

I’m your kid, and Asher’s your kid, and Riley’s your kid, and Emmett’s your kid–and Mommy’s your adult.
–Tessa, to Daddy

Yup, there it is. Kindergarten.
–Emmett, when turning down the street to his new school

Tessa, did you have a good day at school?
Yes, but I maybe didn’t listen too well.
–Tessa

School started, and Emmett is officially a kindergartener! He’s learning so much, but his favorite thing is the playground. And getting to ride the bus down the street for PE. He’s adjusting to the schedule and to the responsibilities. But he’s getting it. He even got the High-Five award for extraordinary listening just one week into the school year. He loves his uniform, too. It’s not much. Just a t-shirt or polo with the school insignia. But it makes him feel official. Yay!

Riley and Tessa are doing great too. Riley read his favorite Berenstain Bear book to his class, and he was the only one who could weave a potholder. The teacher marveled at his patience. And Tessa is–well–Tessa. Completely unapologetic in her unwavering self-esteem and knowledge that she possess all of the answers all of the time. We could all learn a thing or two from her.

We found a park that we go to regularly. It took a bit, but we finally found a place that’s big, not too crowded, and has a nature trail. We love to climb the tree there, bash the bushes with sticks, or slide down the super-tall slide. Baby Asher likes to crawl in the grass. Mom and Dad like that its big enough to keep him out of the wood chips. And Riley likes to ride his bike on the trails there. He’s really good at it.

We are all recovering from colds. Tessa, Mommy, and Asher were harder hit then the other boys. Asher even needed some respiratory treatments. But he’s doing great now. Good thing we’ve got the perfect care-giver in Daddy. Medical know-how and a loving touch. What a combination.

We are looking forward to school field trips (to the cider mill and local farm), Riley’s birthday, and Halloween. Grandma Cheryl is even visiting for Riley’s birthday. We love to play with her. (And she always brings special cookies and toys! You can’t beat that.)

With love,
The Pigs

I’ve had enough of this nonsense.
–Tessa after sliding, somewhat unsuccessfully, on a slide and into a pool

Winnie the Pooh, Winnie the Pooh, cubby little shubby all stuffed with fluff.
–Riley, singing Winnie’s theme song

Dada.
–Asher

Hi.
–Asher

I’d like a big bowl of “No” for breakfast.
–Tessa, responding to Erik asking if she wanted eggs for breakfast

Brothers don’t marry sisters. So I’m going to marry Mommy when I grow up.
–Riley

And I’ll marry Daddy.
–Tessa

No.
–Emmett, responding to Sarah asking if he was going to marry Mommy too

Oh, there’s no need to apologize.
–Tessa

Yes, I’m fantastic.
–Emmett, when told how great it was that he could read an entire thank you note out loud

But Mommy, this isn’t real. I can’t turn into a car with this.
–Riley, when opening his new transformers Halloween costume

Hi Everyone!

The doldrums of summer have arrived. It is hot, a bit humid, and the days are lazy ones. We tried to hold off on getting AC in our new house, but a 5 days stretch of 90+ degree weather has us all sweating and uncomfortable. Mom and Dad threw in the towel. Our AC will be installed this week. Until then, we are trying our hardest to hold in the cool of the evening and make it last throughout the day.

We spent July fourth in the neighborhood doing a bunch of stuff we’ve never done before. We rode in a bike parade! We decorated our bikes with streamers, balloons, and stars and we rode through the neighborhood. We loved showing off our bike riding skills. And afterwards, we went to a neighbor’s house for a BBQ, and played until we lit fireworks.

The next day Mom and Dad took us to Seattle for the night. We stopped at the aviation museum on the way there (Emmett loved the moon landing exhibit) and spent time in the Pacific Center museum on the way home. We even went to the Space Needle. But Emmett’s favorite was meeting Spiderman on the street. For most of the drive back, he asked why Spiderman couldn’t come home with us.

Little Asher did a great job hanging in the backpack, strapped to Dad’s back. So, though you don’t see much of him in the pictures, he was there the entire time. Only Isaac stayed home with a babysitter!

Asher turns one at the end of the month! We can’t believe it’s been an entire year… We are looking forward to celebrating with a visit by Pop-pop and Ms. Ann. Keep checking for pictures!

Stay cool,
The Pigs

Hi all!

Our Photostream has disappeared! Until we figure out a fix, go to https://www.flickr.com/photos/33925826@N02/ to access it.

Cross your fingers we fix it soon,
The Pigs

I can use my tongue. A tongue is a cleaner.
–Tessa, when asked to wash her hands

Mama
–Asher

I’m pretending to be the Mommy, and I’m going to make the rules. The first rule is: When you step in water, you will get wet. The second rule is: There are boots for snow and boots for rain. The third rule is: Umbrellas will keep us dry.
–Tessa

Wow, Tessa. That was a big yawn. Are you getting tired?
No, Daddy. That was a wake up yawn.
–Tessa

Mama, I just rode my bike around the park one hundred times without training wheels. I did a great job.
–Riley

Mama, your feet are purple. They look nervous.
–Tessa

We started summer camp last week. Its at the same place we will all go to school in the fall. And we were very excited for it. In addition to 3 full days each week, we are enrolled in soccer, gymnastics, ballet, and swimming. Riley told Mommy that he loved his new class. When she asked him who his new friends were, he said, “All of them, Mommy.” Emmett and Tessa are making new friends, too.

Both at school and at home, everyone has spent a lot of time Lego building lately. Emmett made Cinderella’s castle; Riley built trucks, cars, and boats; and Tessa made a farm with chickens and bunnies. We call ourselves Master Builders, just like in the Lego Movie–which we loved.

We especially liked the song from the Lego Movie, Everything is Awesome. And you can often hear Emmett singing it to himself. Its one of our new favorite songs. Another of our new favorites is How You Like Me Now. It is actually Asher’s favorite.

He, like Emmett before him, has become a dancing machine. Mommy uploaded a bit of video of him dancing. Check it out. When he really gets into it, he wiggles his hips and shoulders and shakes his head. He LOVES it. He’s also pulling himself up to standing now. We figure just a few more months before he’s furniture surfing and then walking…

Our big trip this last month was chartering a sail boat for Father’s Day. We sailed out to an island accessible only by boat and we hiked around. We saw seals, crabs, jellyfish, an eagle, and racoons. It was a great, and tiring, day. Everyone took turns steering the boat. Even Asher thought it was great fun.

We are looking forward to a little time off for the fourth of July. And Pop-pop and Ms. Ann promised to come visit soon. We can’t wait!

Enjoy the Sun!
The Pigs

From Riley:
“Hey, Dad. The Cannibal Gardens starts with C! C for Cannibal!”
–we’d just left the Botanical Gardens

“When I put my foot in my food it tickles the bottom of my foot.”

“Let me try to open it. Maybe I can use my teeth like a screwdriver.”

From Emmett:
“No, no, no! I wore pants yesterday. I don’t need to wear them again today!”
–when asked to put on some pants

From Tessa:

“Nobody likes to clean up, clean up, clean up. Nobody likes to clean up any messes.”
–sung to a tune of Tessa’s own making while cleaning up the toy room

“That’s so beautiful! But I’ve decided that I’ll never ever die.”
–after passing a cemetery and learning that when people are buried they help the grass and trees and flowers grow

“I can’t be a pillow because I have arms and legs. Pillows don’t have arms and legs.”
–when asked why Daddy couldn’t use her as a pillow

“Then I wont grow up so I can stay your Little Girl.”
–when told by Mommy that she’s getting too big to be carried everywhere and she won’t be little much longer

“It’s Asher’s uniform jammies!”
–when Asher wore an army onesie that’s camouflaged like Daddy’s Army uniform

“I was a good girl. I didn’t hit her or anything.”
–expressing the benchmark for behaving with a new babysitter

“My eye hurts because I jammed my finger into it!”

“If I open my mouth when there is milk in it, the milk comes out.”

“Emmett, dance with me or I’ll cut you.”
–said while holding a small plastic knife. something clearly learned in the prison cotillion.

We are all settling into our new home and our new routine. We get to bike up and down the street on our new bikes (Emmett got Ninja Turtles, Riley got Lightening McQueen, and Tessa got Minnie Mouse), and we have friends to stop and chat with along the way, but we have a teensy-weensy backyard to play in. Also, the houses are close together and we all have to use indoor voices even when we are outside, so as to not scare the neighbors with our craziness. So it’s different, but still the same.

Asher went to the doctor for his 9 month visit last week and he’s doing fantastic. He’s in the 50th percentile for everything, on a non-adjusted chart, which means he’s average for all 9 month olds. This is great in that Asher’s had 8 weeks less time to grow than most other 9 month olds, so we are all still thinking that when he fully catches up (around 2 years old) he’ll probably be closer to the 80th percentile for everything. He’s still napping a few times a day and sleeping through the night. So he’s got that going for him, which is nice.

We start our summer camp next month, and we are all looking forward to that. Truth be told, we are kind of bored without our ginormous backyard to play in. But at camp, we’ll do swim, gymnastic, dance, and basketball lessons. We’ll be crazy busy. And we’ll have a ton of new friends to play with and new teachers to bedevil. It’ll be wonderfully exhausting.

Until then, we’ve a new babysitter who will be helping out once Dad is at work full-time (which is next week). We miss our Pop-pop, Ms Ann, Hannah and Ashton, but we are looking forward to doing art projects and playing in our playhouse with Davey. Maybe she’ll even be brave enough to take up to the park! Stay tuned.

The Pigs

We’ve been so busy with Dad out-of-town, and then the move, and then cross country travel followed by hotel living that we’ve not blogged about how our baby is doing… But fear not! This is your Asher update. We are all Asher, all the time. And, believe us, it doesn’t get any better than that.

First, Asher is HUGE! His tummy is like a bowling ball. He high centers himself while army crawling across the floor. And he’s army crawling, and almost real crawling, a ton. Yes, there was that two week stretch that we didn’t want to put him down on the hotel floors (because let’s be honest, we don’t know what was there before), but now that we’ve moved into a new house (more on that later) he’s on the move. And while he’s moving, he loves to hold stuff in his fat little fists. A spoon is his favorite. But sunglasses are a close second. And then keys.

Second, Asher has teeth! Two of them, in case you couldn’t see in his latest pictures, they are on the bottom and right in front. So fantastically cute. Like teeny chicklets floating around in there. But beware lest you underestimate his bite. It hurts. A lot. Take it from us. Asher loves to grab fingers and bite them like they are sausages. And when he does this he laughs. Full, giggly, slap-happy laughs. Amazing.

He’s really taken to Tessa of late, as she’s the one who makes him laugh the most. She dances and narrates and all the while he watches and laughs. Not exactly helpful while he’s trying to eat. But otherwise, it’s great. He loves to jump like he’s in a bouncy castle, and everyone agrees that he has some strong, solid legs. Like he’s been practicing squats.

Lastly, he is an accomplished manipulator. He still prefers being held to being put down. Based on his screaming, you’d think that he was being cooked alive when on the floor. Then you reach down and pick him up and he’s all smiles and love. He’s been a bit more self sufficient lately, though. What with his crawling and holding his own bottle when drinking. If he thinks that you have an extra hand, though, he’ll drop that bottle and scream for you to hold it for him.

He’s due for his nine month visit at the end of the month. So check back and see how all of this wonderfulness is quantified by western medicine.

With love,
The Pigs

PS We gave up searching for our perfect house and bought something little and new. It’s nothing like what we’ve had before, but it has enough bedrooms and we moved in on Friday night. Now we’ll take our time and look for a big piece of land, preferably with water views or even on-the-water, and we’ll build the perfect Pig Palace. Keep checking back about that, as it will probably take at least a year for that to happen. In the meantime, we are determined to enjoy every minute of this adventure.