Resurrection Sunday

Easter Eve had ended with a very sad Bug being sent to bed... she didn't quite understand the Resurrection Cookies and why she had to leave them in the oven overnight. She was quite happy to discover them this morning as we finished our Easter devotion.Both kiddos were happy to open their Easter baskets from Grandma and Grandpa first thing. See how nicely Bug smiled when I told her the picture was for Grandma? (Yeah, none of the rest are worth posting!)Then it was time to get dressed for church. Such cheesy grins to go with their Easter outfits!
Once Papa got home from doing five church services, it was time to head to Nonnie and Gramps for a late Easter lunch. Mugger's favorite part of the meal was helping Aunt Jen make the whipped cream for dessert. Such a pro in the kitchen already!
Besides doing their egg hunt at Nonnie and Gramps' house, the kiddos also got Easter baskets from Nonnie and Gramps. (Can you see why Mama and Papa saved theirs until Monday morning?) Both Mugger and Bug enjoyed Bug's pop beads from Nonnie-- Mugger helped decorate Bug as well as himself!And here's our silly little Bug, in pop beads from head to toe! Happy Easter, everyone!

"Happy Easter Eve!"

...was Mugger's greeting to Bug this morning. Happy Easter Eve, indeed. Usually, we would have spent the morning at the church Easter Egg hunt, but since Mugger hadn't been on his antibiotic for strep throat for 24 hours, that option was out of the picture.

Plans for this evening's devotion time include our annual making of Resurrection Cookies, but this morning we made Tie-Dyed Easter Eggs, thanks to Family Fun.
First we put the eggs in a colander in the sink and sprayed them with vinegar. Then we dripped a drop of food coloring on to each egg and swished the eggs around in the colander. After letting the first color dry for 30 seconds, we did the same with the second color.
So here are Mugger and Bug with their yellow & green eggs and their red & blue eggs. And nobody has blue hands for church tomorrow!

Wordless Wednesday-- Biker Boys' Bliss!

One More Rose Parade Picture...

Just got this today from a friend of Nonnie's, so here at last is a good shot of Mugger and Bug's Papa as Joseph on the Lutheran Hour float in this year's Rose Parade:

What a Day at Disneyland!

Last week the kiddos and I went to Disneyland with Nonnie and Gramps (gotta love those annual passes for a few hours at a time with preschoolers...) Boy, what a day to forget my camera! It was the perfect day as we seemed to just breeze through all the rides and we learned that Mugger is a Roller Coaster Boy-- he LOVED his first time on the Matterhorn and Big Thunder. When we came off of Big Thunder, some Disneyland "cast members" even handed us a pair of Mouse ears (with the Year of a Million Dreams logo on them.) You can see Mugger, Nonnie, and I modeling ours in this pic:
So why are we standing in front of the Mark Twain riverboat? Because Mugger was invited up to the pilot house by the captain to "drive" it (which he will forever think he did, so don't ruin it for him!) He did a great job steering all the way around Tom Sawyer's island, and he and Bug both had fun blowing the whistle and ringing the bell.
The captain was fantastic and it was an experience none of us will ever forget! Nonnie told Mugger she had been coming to Disneyland since 1956 and she had never been up in the pilot house! Good thing Gramps had a camera on his cell phone!

Welcome family and friends!

Hi and thanks for visiting! Mugger and Bug will be so excited when I read them your comments (hint, hint!)

In case you're new to this blogging thing, let me point out a few things for you. On the left side of this page, if you click on either "Click here to have Mugger and Bug updates sent by email" or the "Subscribe in a reader" button, Mugger and Bug updates will be sent to you automatically.

If you see any pix you like, just double click and you'll see them full size. If you see any words in blue in a post, that means it's a link to tell you what I'm talking about.

The Old News and Labels columns on the lower left are just to help you find past posts, especially if you want to find the ones where we talk about you!

And, most important (to the kiddos at least), at the end of each post, it will say something like "0 Comments." If you click on that, you can post a little message to the kiddos. You can't post anonymously, so if you sign in with any e-mail account, it should let you post. I moderate all comments (to make sure you haven't slipped and used their real names, for one), so don't worry if your comment doesn't show up right away.

Enjoy! Feel free to post a comment here if you have any questions :)

Spring Fling (or how the secular world does Easter...)

This Little Light of Mine...

It sure is neat to watch Mugger and Bug grow in faith. Bug's new bedtime routine is to pray for everyone she knows! Usually she repeats after me line by line, but tonight, she prayed by herself: "Dear God, please be with Papa. Keep him safe and help him have good rest. In Your name we pray, amen."

Mugger has been excited to see our Resurrection Eggs make their reappearance as we prepare for Easter and has been teaching Bug what all the items inside the eggs mean. He has even gotten her just as excited as he is when he shouts, "The empty egg reminds us of the empty tomb!" Bug even tried to share this lesson with her fellow two year old buddies in Sunday School this morning when they had an "egg hunt" in class with a bunch of empty eggs.

Tuesday Night at Costco...

To set the scene: when we go through the check-out line at Costco, the kids (riding in the cart) go through on one side of the register, while Papa goes through the other side to pay. I go wherever the kiddos need me to-- they sometimes don't like sitting on the register side without one of us.

Mugger: Mama, we don't need you. You can go stand with Papa.
Bug: Mama, Papa doesn't need you. You can come stand with me!

Goofy girl!

Mugger's middle name? Perseverance!

OK, our little Mugger just blows me away sometimes... He's been out shooting baskets with his tennis ball on the patio. He started at 9:19 (he told me so!) and had me set the timer for 10:00. His final tally after 41 minutes of shooting? 500 -- on the nose!

Mugger's Big Week

Well, Mugger ended up having quite a big week! Monday was Potty Training Boot Camp Day for Bug, so Mugger got to have a day out with Mama at the Discovery Science Center. His favorite exhibit upstairs was this magnetic wall with ramps and balls:However, the exhibit he spent a solid 30 minutes at was this "audio-kinetic sculpture" that I think reminded him an awful lot of his Mousetrap game! He was mesmerized!
So, if Monday wasn't enough excitement, on Wednesday, he braved the drizzly weather for his first trip to Disney's California Adventure with Papa and Gramps. He couldn't stop talking about the Mulholland Madness roller coaster when he got home!

To cap it all off, on Friday he and Bug spent the night with Nonnie and Gramps so Mama and Papa could finally have a Date Night. Such excitement for a 4-year old!

Book #2!

Mugger just read his second book, Ten Little Ladybugs, which I think was actually one of Bug's birthday presents. (His first was Green Eggs and Ham.) He remembered quite a few words, sounded out most of the others, and figured out a few from the pictures or rhyming patterns. Woo hoo! Could this be the birth of a bookworm?

Birthdays at Disneyland

The best thing about my dad and I having our birthdays 2 days apart is the excuse to celebrate together! Though this year, with the Great Pneumonia Battle, we celebrated a week late. It was still worth it, as you can see:
Bug's favorite part of the day was bouncing with Tigger-- she's still talking about it over a week later!

And with that, grandparents, I am caught up. Sorry February isn't chronological, but it will have to do! I'll try to do better next time and not wait until the whole 2GB card is full!

Uncle Bryan! Aunt Elisha!

January meant lots of family visits, as Uncle Bryan and Aunt Elisha were able to come out from Nebraska. The kiddos loved having their aunt and uncle all to themselves-- and they were certainly happy to take them to Disneyland as well!

Fiddletown, Jan. 2008

Right after New Years, we were blessed to be able to get away for a few days to Northern California, to the tiny town of Fiddletown, to visit my Grandma and Uncle Harry. As you can see, Bug LOVES her Great-Grandma!Of course, she also loves Uncle Harry, her birthday buddy, and took great delight in asking him to read her the same Dora book over and over again!
As you can see, Bug has no problem making her own fun when cooped up inside, as here she rolls around on the floor with her beloved pillow and her favorite blanket:
Mugger's idea of entertainment is tackling Papa! We brought games and toys, but horseplay is Mugger's favorite.
The last day we were there, we had plenty of time to entertain ourselves as the power was out all day during a very blustery rainstorm. Here's Mugger mastering our new favorite medium, the pipe cleaner. They were fun in the car and while housebound!
Every trip to Fiddletown is always an adventure-- can't wait for the next one!

New Year's Day 2008: Papa as "Joseph"

Had you asked us in November, we never could have told you that this was how we'd be starting 2008:That's Papa on the Lutheran Hour Rose Parade float as Joseph, waving to the opposite side of the street. I got to sit in the bleachers (3rd row!) but had to leave the hotel just after 4 am to do so, so Mugger and Bug got to spend New Years with Gramps and Nonnie this year. They didn't get to tour the float barn before the parade, so here's the part of the back of the float that Papa got to help decorate! (Mugger wanted the pic for posterity.)

Christmas afternoon, 2007

So after a morning of opening family presents and going to church, it was time to head to Nonnie and Gramps for a Christmas dinner of roast duck-- thanks, Aunt Jen! Both Mugger and Bug loved it to our surprise-- we never know what they're going to love from one day to the next.

When it was time to open presents, Mugger was very excited for Gramps to open his Cookie of the Month Club. We delivered the first batch: train-shaped sugar cookies. Mugger is looking forward to our monthly baking adventures... and to sharing with Gramps.I think Bug was a little confused by the present I made for Aunt Jen: a felted bag made out of an old wool sweater. As purse-crazy as she is, I guess I should be glad she didn't try to take it from her!

Christmas morning, 2007

Christmas Trains- -the long-awaited Part 2...

So, at long last, here is Gramps' masterpiece for Christmas 2007. Notice that there are not one, not two, but THREE trains running simulateously! Is it any wonder that Mugger is mesmerized by it all?Here's another shot with the completed village...
Yet trains for Mugger and Bug are not a once-a-year affair, for the back room at Nonnie and Gramps' house is covered with them 365 days of the year. I love the S curves under the elevated bridge!
And as you can see, it's never the same layout twice. Here Bug is admiring Mugger's handiwork in a shot 3 weeks after the one above...
Goodness it's nice Nonnie and Gramps have so much space for playing trains so the kiddos can get their weekly fix!