Jumpin through January

I'm behind on the blog, but I refuse to give up now! So heres a quick-ish jaunt through January for some Hamblin Household Highlights:

Who is down to just ONE kid in diapers?

We are! Owen is officially potty trained. Shockingly enough, it was even fairly painless. It comes with a price though, the price being sanity and tp. On this particular day, I came down the stairs and could hear the boys giggling together. Usually that sound warms my heart, but when accompanied by the sound of a repeatedly flushing toilet, well, let's just say the warm feeling in my heart was replaced by suspicion and apprehension. I discovered Colby feeding the toilet paper into the bowl, while Owen kept flushing. Wearing no pants. Using up all the toilet paper. I waited to stop them until AFTER I got the picture. I knew it would be funny one day...

What do you even need a collarbone for anyways?

Apparently, everything. Owen tripped down ONE stair and managed to break his collarbone. The poor guy was in a lot of pain, and it made just about everything he had to do 10 times harder (like this new potty training situation…) Fortunately, kids heal fast and it wasn't too long before he was climbing all over the playground and riding his bike one handed. The kid has talent :)

What to do when the kids are putting their shoes on?

Take stair selfies of course! They all sit on this bottom step to get their shoes on. Since it is right after getting ready and right before leaving the house, they still look clean and presentable.

That all changes about 3.5 seconds after leaving the house, when someone inevitably finds some sand or mud or something to play in, so I chose to document this moment, in my poorly lit stairwell.

I love seeing their little characters shining through!

Hailey insisted on taking one of me too - cheese!    

What happens when your church time changes to 1:30 pm?

This. Of course, this is after we wrestle this screaming/running/loud little person through three hours of church. He's so tired after working so hard to make us look like crazy people at church, that he crashes once we're home :)    

Who says you can't grow corn in the desert?

Well, we didn't grow this, but it WAS grown in the UAE (most likely with the help of our friend Dan, or so we told the kids), so we went ahead and bought some. It was tasty! And Colby really appreciated his first corn on the cob experience.

Who wants to play super heroes?

I leave it to your imagination to guess what super powers each person possessed! I work part time as the school bus coordinator, and recently had a neighbor ask me (in all seriousness) if one of the job requirements was to watch all the kids who ride the bus after school. I told her no, that we just tend to have a lot of kids over to play regularly after school :)

Who's up for a trip to get close and personal with some 'wild' animals?

Our zoo is pretty cool. Sure, you can't get as close to the giraffes anymore, but the kids still had a blast feeding all kinds of animals. Colby was especially thrilled each time one of the animals ate his offering of whatever strange plat they let you feed them.

Hailey with her bestie :) Not the most flattering picture, but the only one I got!

Do you need help getting motivated to exercise? 

For a small fee, we'll lend you Colby. He's especially good at sitting on your back during push ups, and on your stomach during sit ups. Ken is trying to train him to do it the right way, but I personally think it is funnier the other way. Of course, I'm not the one he is "helping!"

Need household help?

We've been on a push lately to make sure the kids do a good job cleaning up after dinner, since it always looks like someone flung food all over the surrounding floor (probably because they DID). Hailey has developed her own technique for wiping down the table - not sure how effective it is after she steps all over it, but it is funny to watch!

What happens when Ken goes out of town for a week?

My friends step in. I know most of you can handle a week on your own with your eyes closed, but I break out in a cold sweat. My kids are good and all, but something about that 5 on 1 ratio just doesn't pan out so well for me. In what seemed like a choreographed dance, my friends showed up with food, conversation, and company, and quite literally saved my sanity. Not to share their secret, but I now know they are angels disguised as my fun loving friends. To the neighbor who cooked me lunch and just dropped off this beautiful meal right at lunch time, THANK YOU! To the friend who drove out of her way just to pop a dinner in my fridge, and called everyday and came up with fun activities, THANK YOU! To the friend who had us over for dinner and let me talk her ear off, THANK YOU! To the friend who had us over for dinner and didn't complain when my 1 year old destroyed her clean floor, THANK YOU! To the friend who came over 2 different nights to help with bath time/bedtime (worst time of day alone) even when it put her out and who brought me a 10 pm snack, THANK YOU! To all you friends who texted and called and hung out with me, THANK YOU! It may have been a small thing to you, but thanks for not laughing at the fact that I don't handle Ken's absence very well and for being my friends. You make Abu Dhabi AWESOME.

These are just some of the amazing people we know here through church. Love these people!