Todd has been gone a lot this week. He is busy with work and has had training. He has been leaving the house early in the morning and not getting home until 9 or 10. I think him being gone has been wearing on all of us. Yesterday I was working in the office on a few things and the boys were watching cartoons (or so I thought). After I finished up checking by email and everything, I went into the kitchen to find black marker all over my cabinets, counter top, and oven. I asked the boys what had happened. Landon said, "Huh?", totally oblivious to the fact that anything had happened. Cason said, "McKenna did it." Obviously a lie, due to the fact that McKenna is too short to write on top of the counter. I had Cason show me what pen he used. He brought me the sharpie, of course. After trying to clean it for about an hour, and trying everything I had on hand including finger nail polish remover, I headed to the store and bought a Magic Eraser Sponge which took it right off!

Today, while the boys were at preschool, I was in McKenna's room sorting through her clothes. I had been talking on the phone to a friend and left the phone laying in her room. After I picked up the boys, we went home to change clothes for their T-ball game. I heard the buttons on the phone beep as Cason headed towards me and handed me the phone. I told him that he should not be playing with the phone and went to hang it up. About 2 minutes later the phone rang. "This is the police department and we just received a 911 call from this number, is everything OK?" I assured the lady that everything was fine, and that I would have a talk with my 4 year old. Out of all 3 of my children, Cason is the mischievous one. He is very quiet and everyone talks about how sweet and polite he is. Most people don't believe that he is the one that you have to keep an eye on.

Sunday School

So, we took Cason for his first day in his new Sunday School class. He was actually supposed to be in another class, but I requested the same teachers that Landon had last year. They are an amazing family. The mother, father, and two children teach preschool Sunday School every week. Landon absolutely loved the class. And the teachers loved him. You could tell they really took a special interest in each one of the children. Each week when we would pick him up, they would tell us how smart Landon is, and that he always listens to the Bible story and answers all the questions. Landon loved playing with the son Cory. Seeing him was the highlight of his week. They would give the kids special treats, and would usually bring an extra one for Cason. You can see why we requested for Cason to be in their class.

The week before promotion Sunday, I spent time talking to the kids about their new classes and new teachers. I reminded Cason how much fun Landon had last year and told him he would get to play with Cory in Sunday School. He was so excited. So the day came and we took the kids to their class. When we went to pick Cason up, the teachers said that as soon as he came in he started asking where Cory was. They assured him that he would be coming soon. (They are convinced no one cares if they are there, only if there children are there). They also told us about the lesson. They talked about how Paul's friends got into trouble and were in jail and how he prayed for them. The teacher asked, "What do we do when are friends are in trouble?" Cason said, "Put them in Jail!" We all got a big laugh out of it...I guess mercy is not his spiritual gift! I think he would make a good police officer when he grows up.

Cason's B-day

Cason turned 3-years old. Wow, it is so hard to believe. He was born March 22, 2004. He was actually supposed to be born 2 days earlier. I was scheduled to be induced, and all of our family came to town. The night I was supposed to go in, the hospital called and said there were no beds available and to call back the next day. This went on for 2 days. Our families were sitting in my living room staring at me, waiting for me to give birth. They fed me spicy food, took be for long walks, anything they could think of. At least once an hour, my dad would say, "You call that hospital back and tell them you are coming in to have that baby". I was sure glad when they finally said there was room. I actually went in the night before, so that they could give me medicine to make me dilate. They also gave me sleeping medicine. It was great! I actually got a good nights sleep, and got away from all of the family, for a mini-vacation before the big day.

That next day, they induced labor. After they broke my water, I was ready for the epidural. All was well. At least until I started feeling a lot of pain. I realized I could move one of my legs and had complete feeling on that side of my body. Well, there wasn't really much they could do at that point, because I was ready to push. I started flipping out (not my best moment). With Landon, I had to push for about 3 hours, so the thought of enduring another 3 hours in that much pain freaked me out. The nurse told be to give a practice push. Then started yelling for me to stop. She held her hand on his head to keep him in. The doctor ran in the door, with no time to put anything on other than a mask, and caught Cason as he came flying out. Cason weighed 8 lbs 3 oz and was 21 inches long.

Cason is our middle-child. And probably the most strong willed of the three. But he can also be the sweetest, most helpful, and most loving. He plays with his little sister, helps fold the laundry, helps cook dinner, etc. Cason is also the most shy of the three. He goes to soccer and practices with Landon's team. He is actually probably one of the best players out there (yes, he is even better than his big brother). He is quite the little athlete. He has had a knack for throwing from an early age. When he was less than a year old, he threw a bottle and hit Todd's grandmother right in the head! I thought he was going to knock her out! Luckily, she was OK. Todd thinks he would make a good baseball player.

This past year in Cason's life has been an interesting one. He barely talked a year ago. In November we started potty training. Which was very difficult given how strong willed he is. This past December, Cason and Landon were rough housing and they fell and Cason hit his foot on the coffee table. He ended up breaking it in several places! He crawled for about a week, before he was able to walk using the boot. He is all healed now, but it was a major set back in the potty training department. I am so glad that as we celebrate his 3rd Birthday, he is potty trained and talking well. I am sure this next year will bring much more excitement!