Helper

Luke LOVES to help. He almost always wants to help with whatever chores we are doing around the house - putting laundry into the washing machine or dryer, setting the table, vacuuming, sweeping... you get the picture - Luke wants to be involved in the process. Last week we created a 'chore chart' for him. We listed things he can do to help around the house and earn a coin for his bank. Easy stuff like make his bed and pick up his playroom. He was so excited to help and get a coin for his bank that his chores were completed quickly and then several times over that afternoon! We love this characteristic. We're praying that it lasts through adolescence. (praying, not holding our breath) :) 

Helping Daddy mow the lawn

After they mowed the lawn the DeBoer boys came inside, drank lemonade, watched the Yankees and congratulated each other on being such hard workers. Ah, I love my boys.

Mud

When I was growing up my brother earned the nickname King Crud for always, always being filthy - covered in dirt. My children are following closely in his footsteps. Luke is normally sporting dirty knees and dirty fingernails, typical of most 3 year old boys. Elin, however, is quite the Mistress of Mud! If there is dirt or mud anywhere nearby (in abundance in our yard) she will find it, inspect it, taste test it and cover herself in it.

Pops and NeeNee gave Elin a beach ball sprinkler for her 1st birthday. The kids love it but I'm pretty sure that they love the fact that it sprinkles water onto the dirt-filled flower beds creating large quantities of soft, cool, squishy mud even more than the sprinkler itself. They play with the sprinkler for about 10 minutes or so and play in the mud for as long as I will allow them.  

I love how you see the sprinkler in the background of this picture while they are covering their limbs in mud. 

A muddy fu manchu. awesome. 

The second time they were even less excited about the sprinkler and practically went straight away to the mud. 

 I love her mischievous little look in this picture. Classic "I-know-you-don't-want-me-doing-this-but-I'm -going-to-do-it-anyway" type of look. 

And it got worse. Lots worse. 

Apparently Luke thought Elin needed a mud facial but didn't want to spring for the spa treatment, thus creating his own. nice.

 Doesn't she look like some tribal baby? 

Luke wasn't nearly as messy but he didn't have the help of an older sibling to rub mud all over him. :) Good thing Elin is so tolerant!  

They could have played out there for hours. When I finally decided enough was enough and we should get seriously cleaned up for dinner I had to strip them down and hose them off in the front yard (yes, I'm a redneck like that) before throwing them in the tub! The amount of dirt left in the bottom of our tub afterwards was astronomical.