I Think I'm Hearing "NO!" In My Sleep...oh no wait, that's just Charlie yelling from his crib.

Woah, is it almost October already? What happened!? Guess I'm already getting lazy with this blog... a good representation of most other things in my life. :)

Well, I have figured out a few things over the past couple of weeks:

1. Yelling, "NO! WE DON'T SAY NO!" to your child who says "NO" too much is not a very effective method.

2. Ditto with the grabbing-things-from-other-kids problem...grabbing something out of your child's hand after he has just grabbed it from another child's hand and saying, "We don't grab!" is not effective, either...your child will just look at you and then look at the grabbed item in your guilty hand like, "Oh, really, mom? We don't grab?"

3. Getting visibly angry, upset or frustrated only seems to encourage bad behavior even more.

4. Repeat # 1. Ooops.

5. Man, our child is stubborn!

6. Begging and pleading for good behavior and/or manners is futile.

7. Bad behavior is much worse when the child is teething - something I realized right after I wrote that last blog, when I looked into Charlie's mouth and saw four huge teeth emerging through red, swollen gums.

8. Even when they are "naughty", they are the sweetest, most amazing blessings in our lives - 1 spontaneous kiss makes up for 20 tantrums and 1 "fly-by" hug erases the memories of 10 wiggly diaper-changing wars.
9. I could not possibly love him any more than I do, and I thank God for him, "NO's" and all.

Really, though, things have gotten better. For the most part, we've gotten our sweet little boy back. I suppose the rest can be expected at this age, and we'll just have to keep working on "re-teaching" him the right ways to behave. The past few mornings, we have woken up to the sound of him in his crib saying, "NO! No. No. NO. NO! No." To himself. For no reason at all. Totally unprovoked. Fun times.

By the way, thanks for all the encouraging words at church this morning! I can't believe how many of you Cornerstone folks read our blog. What an awesome church family we have!!!

Well, what else have we been up to the past few weeks? Hmmm....

Hanging out in the pots and pans cupboard:

The creation of the "Big Kids Table":

Cheap Carnival Rides:

Hanging out & eating pizza with the cousins:

Finally finding a way to get Charlie to drink his milk (a big shout-out to whoever the genius is that invented the "curly straw"!):

The wonderfulness of backpacks!

(Yes, Blake's "backpack" happens to be a purple-colored, baby-doll bassinet-thingy, but he didn't know the difference - hey, if it hangs off of your back and makes you feel like a super cool big boy, it's a backpack...)

Playing in the rocks:

Fun baths:

Blake gets a little too wild and splashy for Charlie's liking:

Lots of dance parties:

By the way, I've got some AWESOME footage of Shawn's dance skills, but I don't know if I'd get away with posting it on here...

...oh, what's that you say? You want to see it? Really? Okay, well maybe just one short clip, a teaser" let's call it. I'm sure he won't mind...

And if you enjoyed that one, wait until you see his breakdancing moves!

Please, somebody tell me this is just a "stage"

Missing: Adorable 22-month-old boy named Charles, "Charlie" for short.

Likes to share toys with other children.
Says "Lub yoo" (love you) a lot.
Loves to laugh and wrestle and play.
Likes to ride in the car.

Loves to be tickled and held and kissed.
Settles into his bed nicely and peacefully during nap time and bed time.
When asked to come, comes happily.

Neatly places unwanted food items in the cup-holder spot of his highchair tray.
Takes binky at bed times and sometimes when riding in the car.
When handed something, says "dank doo" (thank you) very sweetly.

Found: 23-month-old boy (ironically, this child is also named Charles, "Charlie" for short)

Takes toys from other children.
Says "NO!!!" (no) a lot.
Likes to cry and whine and push.
Screams and writhes around as if in pain when put in car seat.
Becomes agitated when tickled, held or kissed unless HE is the one initiating.
Cries, throws tantrums, and "flops" when placed in bed - takes 20 - 30 minutes to stop crying and settle down to sleep.
When asked to come, cries and runs the other way.
Angrily flings unwanted food items from tray.
Binky seems to be permanently attached to the mouth - and when we are successful at prying it out, we usually end up quickly putting it BACK IN just to escape the ear-piercing screaming and whining that ensues.
When handed something, screams "NO!!!" and throws it back at whoever gave it to him.

Please, someone help us. We miss our sweet little boy desperately. If you have found him, please bring him back to us and we'll gladly trade you for the one WE have found.

Thank you,

Shawn and Marlene

Operation Yellow Jacket

These 2 guys may look like your ordinary, run-of-the-mill fellas. Yes, both are fathers, husbands, card-carrying members of the local library, avid video-game players, and decent drivers. On any given day, one might see them and think to themselves, "Yes, fine citizens, going about their daily business and then going home to their loving families and peaceful, quiet lives."

But one would be wrong.

For at night, their heroism shines through the darkness. They wield their flashlights and their shovels and their hazardous sprays and take on the evils that lurk in the neighborhood: The Yellow Jackets.

Earlier this very evening, urged on by the gentle prodding of their wives, Mike and Shawn took on The Nest That Was Hiding In The Bricks By The Mailbox. For the wives had grown weary of fending off angry hornets while fetching the mail.

The 2 heroes ventured out into the darkness, brave, yet unprepared for the magnitude of what they were about to face. Mike made an initial spray of The Nest That Was Hiding In The Bricks By The Mailbox. Shawn, bravely holding the flashlight, heard the low, angry buzzing and was becoming concerned. Mike took the shovel and smashed it in between the bricks, breaking apart The Nest That Was Hiding In The Bricks By The Mailbox. The buzzing became louder and angrier, and the ever-brave Shawn dropped the flashlight and took off running toward the street as fast as his strong warrior legs could carry him. However, Shawn was forgetting one important truth: mailboxes do not move out of the way when men come charging at them.

So, no, the following picture is not of multiple bee stings, as one might expect after such a dangerous operation (and as one's wife might expect when her husband comes running and screaming into the house, pulling up his shirt to reveal multiple welts on his shoulder). It is photographical evidenct of the wounds sustained from an encounter with a strong mailbox, when attacked at full force:

The aftermath of The Nest That Was Hiding In The Bricks By The Mailbox:

Those bees didn't stand a chance.

Who needs hands...

when you've got 2 perfectly good feet?

BIG MAAAAAAC

Need a good laugh?
So, I can't stop watching this...and I can't stop laughing...
Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this is hilarious!