Uniform

Girls just can't resist a man in uniform...

Late Night Party

They're all in bed right now, but not everyone is asleep. Jack is having some kind of wild party in his room right now. Over the last few minutes I've heard, "They're coming! Run, dinosaurs!" and "I sure to like to bounce!"

He thinks he's so sly. When he hears me coming down the hall to go yell at him, I can hear him scramble for his bed. He even has the nerve to pretend to be asleep by snoring.

Well played, little guy. Well played.

Handprints

We fell into this tradition by accident, but once I realized it could be a thing, I made it one. Every year on this date, I make the boys stamp their handprints on paper.

 

We started it in 2011 - Jack's first year on Earth. He was not quite 6 months old. The big boys were nearing 4.

 



Jason, Shawn, and Jack (left to right)
September 28, 2011



 

They were all so tiny then.

 

They keep getting bigger, these boys.  





Shawn, Jason, and Jack (left to right)
September 28, 2012



Bigger.

Shawn, Jason, and Jack (left to right)
September 28, 2013

And stronger every day.

September 28, 2014
Shawn, Jason, and Jack

It's hard to tell, I know, but each hand is at least a half an inch bigger than it was last year.

Their handprints are such a visual representation of how much they've changed, a tangible way of seeing the passage of time when sometimes it's so hard to grasp in day to day living of life.

 

These handprints tell the tale. Our boys are not so little anymore.

Cute Big Boy Saturday

Someone was excited about our trip to Target!

Actually, they all were excited to go, but you would never guess that from the pictures I tried to get of them. lol

Conversations With 6 Year Olds

We were watching television when he muttered something under his breath. Immediately his hand flew up to cover his mouth...

Him: Oh no! I just said the F word!

Isaac: What?

Him: I just said "fart!" I'm sorry!

Dramatic much?

Homework

I had to laugh at the picture Jason drew for tonight's homework. He got quite technical about it. "Mom, should I have a flat top or spikey hair?" lol.

It also cracks me up to see how he draws me. He always gives my hair the flip at the ends, and this time wanted to make sure he nailed his depiction of my tennis shoes.

Is this for me or for my mom?
"It's for me, mom." said Jason.

I think the picture also does a good job showing just how excited he is at the prospect of an upcoming birthday. ;)

Mostly Wordless Wednesday

Out of the blue, Jason decided that we needed to have a party tonight. He called us all into Jack's room, where he had everything all set up.

We ate some food. Jason served us some pizza and drinks.

We danced to the music.

And sang along to the songs.

We partied hard.

The party ended with imaginary ice cream and cake. Things got a little wild when everyone started throwing the cake and ice cream at each other. By the end, I was covered in the mess. Do you know how hard it is to get imaginary ice cream and cake out of your clothes, especially when you can't see it? ;)

It was a fun night, and Jason declared his party a rousing success!

Pictures Are Here! Pictures Are Here!

I will admit to anxiously awaiting the boys' school pictures this year. Today, we finally got the pictures! Like last year, I was so excited to see them; I could barely contain myself.

Before we get to this year's pictures, I think we should revisit last year's beauties. Here's Shawn...




And Jason (it always makes me chuckle to see this picture!)...

Here are the pictures from this year! First Shawn...

Look at how big he looks now?! Where is my baby? He looks so cute, and I have to say that it cracks me up that after all that stress over trying to get him to pull his front teeth, you can't even see he has teeth anyway. lol. The only thing I would change is the black bar behind his head; it was the chair in which he was sitting. (I'm seriously questioning the photographic abilities of this company because common sense would dictate for someone to get a different chair, but whatever.)

Here is Jason...

Jason looks so grown up, too. I love, love, LOVE how cute he looks in his shirt and tie. Plus, he is very proud of himself for smiling for the camera. lol! We may need to work a little more on his smile, but it is too cute nonetheless. ;)

These two always make me smile. I'm a lucky mama!

A Few Things I Learned Today

A slurbert goes a long way in motivating someone unwilling to finish homework.

Shawn has an incredibly ticklish back. "Writing" words on his back sends him into a writhing fit of giggles.

Jason thinks I am amazing because I can "read" what he writes on my back. To be fair, we're only talking about "reading" this week's spelling words. He didn't do too badly "reading" what I wrote on his back, either.

Jack recognizes and "reads" the word "is" when he sees it. Blew me away. It seems the littlest is learning right alongside his brothers.

A cupcake always makes the night. ;)

Daytime Destruction

From the other room Isaac heard, "Dad, Jack's taking off his sheets." I don't know what he expected to see when he got into the room, but I do know it wasn't this.


Shawn: "Jack, I don't think you should do that."

Shawn: "You really should get out of there. Dad's not going to like that."

Shawn: "I tried to tell him, Dad. He wouldn't listen!"

Jack: "I'm free!"

This kid tears up his room on a daily basis. I'm most impressed with his strength--it's not easy putting everything back, so I know it can't be easy to move everything around every day. We need to figure out how to harness this energy for good rather than for destruction. lol.

Cute Big Boy Saturday

It seems that the plague the big boys brought home this week has infected me, and I have spent much of the last 24 hours sleeping. I'm finally feeling better, although the whole sleeping the day away thing has made taking cute pictures of the boys a challenge. In other words, I got nada tonight.

But, though there is no picture documentation, the boys were still very cute. Both the big boys came in to spend  time with me in my bedroom this afternoon. They were so caring, rubbing my head, hugging on me, and generally acting very concerned that I feel better soon. 

Jack was feeling the love, too. He practically tackled me and laid his head on my chest to snuggle for a long while. 

Makes me smile to think about how sweet these boys are!

Flashback Friday

Three years ago today...

My little cutie pie was just a itty bitty thing!

Okay Then...

On tonight's edition of "Where Will We Find Jack?" I present this...

The futon mattress was on the floor. At first glance, we thought Jack was that little bump under that mattress. (Cue heart attack.) We were relieved to find Jack sleeping on the floor, with his legs under his bed.

Okie dokie, Jack, do whatever floats your boat.

Mostly Wordless Wednesday - Round 2.

Came home from work to find a sickie on our hands.

He wailed because he was sick.

He wailed because he'd get all of us sick, too.

Then he wailed because if we were sick we wouldn't be able to take care of him.

He wailed some more because his head hurt from all the wailing.

It would have been comical if he hadn't have been so pathetic. :(




Once we got home he took up residence on our couch where he spent the rest of the evening. Fortunately, he did feel better once I got some Advil in him. (We seriously should have bought stock in that stuff--we buy enough of it to make the company a huge profit.) Fingers crossed that he is able to get some rest tonight.

Sigh.

Here's hoping that this moves through his system quickly and skips everyone else.

Readin'

The boys' books came in yesterday. Jay is one happy camper.

 

He was so excited he read both yesterday and today. Then he said, "You know, mom, we have book orders every month. We'll get to order books next month, too!"

Um, I may have created a monster.

Conversations With 6 Year Olds

While sitting at the dinner table...

J: Mom, someone stuck their tongue at me at school today.

Me: Well, that wasn't nice, now was it?

J: No. It wasn't!

Isaac (giving me a knowing look): What was her name?

J: Molly.

Isaac: Was that the little girl who said hi to you this morning?

J: No, that was Emily.

Isaac (still giving me that knowing look): And so it begins...

If Isaac's experience in elementary school is any indication, it seems our boy may have been discovered by girls. Oh joy. I never should have let him go to school with that tie! lol

Conversations With 6 Year Olds

S, while talking to his dad: I really love Jason.

Isaac: Yeah, you love to annoy him.

S: (smiling his evil little grin) Uh huh! I do!

Cute Big Boy Saturday

A hand out the window while the car is on the move
is the best feeling in the world!

Spelling Test #2

Today the boys had their second spelling test. They were given 5 words: have, find, to, one, who. They practiced and practiced, and I'm proud to say that Jay missed zero on his test, while Shawn only missed one. (He missed "fine", which he KNOWS, but he added his OWN NAME to the word when he wrote it...which...you're killing me here, kid!)

Anyway, both the boys did really well, and we're very proud. :)

Freedom

This evening he was calling for us. "I'm stuck! I'm stuck!" he cried in a pitiful voice. I hurried in there not knowing what to think. When I saw him, though, I knew.

He was lying completely under the blanket that covers the futon in his room. I pulled the blanket back. With eyes half closed, he moaned, "I'm stuck," before he reached out to me.

I chuckled as I grabbed him under his arms and pulled him off the couch.

"I'm FREE! I'm FREE!" he exclaimed as I held him to me, laughing his belly laugh when I squeezed him tight.

Oh this boy of ours.

We are so lucky to have him in our lives.

Mostly Wordless Wednesday

I think these pictures do a great job speaking for themselves...

The boys rocked their first spelling test of their academic career! Way to go, boys!!!

So Proud!

We recently changed insurance, so we've had to work our way through appointments to meet the various doctors the boys have. Unfortunately, all of these appointments are quite a way from where we live, so the entire time away from our house due to driving, traffic, waiting, appointment, and return takes upward of 6.5-7.5 hours. Today we had another such (ha - Freudian slip. I actually wrote "suck.") meet and greet.

 

The boys were awesome and so well behaved. They handled HOURS of waiting like champs. They talked to other patients and were their charming selves. I was so proud of them!

 

We took them out for a late lunch at a restaurant as a reward. They were so excited!

 

We let them pick out whatever they wanted from the menu. Shawn chose spaghetti and French fries. Jay chose mini corn dogs and fresh fruit. (Who are these kids? So not what I would have expected!) Isaac also ordered a "pizza dip" appetizer that both kids loved, too. They even ordered dessert! We had so much fun talking and sharing food.

I remember a time not too long ago that taking the boys out to a restaurant on a good day would have been a challenge, and we would have NEVER attempted to do anything after a doctor appointment. They were so afraid of doctors that we'd all leave an appointment spent and drained. I am not exaggerating when I say that I would dread upcoming appointments for weeks because they were so bad. (In their defense, I can totally understand why they were so afraid of doctors. That knowledge didn't make it any easier to experience, though.)

Today I sat back and marveled at how much our dynamic duo has matured. I'm one proud mama!

Monday Moment

He likes to climb on the couch behind me and pull me back so I can squish him. He giggles and laughs big belly laughs.

He thinks it's pretty hilarious. 

I think it's pretty funny, too. :)



Conversations With 6 Year Olds

Him: Mom, do birthday wishes come true?

Me: Well, it depends what you ask for. Sometimes they do.

Him: I'm going to wish that Kyle Busch comes to my birthday.

Me: I don't think Kyle Busch will be able to come to your party, kiddo.

Him: (Sigh) Okay. I guess I'll wish for grandma then.

~~~

Him: (calling from the other room) Mom, can you come in here a second? I need some help.

Me: (entering his room) What is it?

Him: (pointing to a spot two feet behind him) I need that car. Could you get it for me?

Cute Big Boy Saturday

He wanted a shirt and tie for picture day, so I got then for him. Now he asking if he can wear fancy clothes to school every day. Um...this should be interesting!

(Ignore the pajama bottoms he's wearing. Lol)

Friday Five

Jason declared today that he needed a tie and a shirt to wear for picture day on Monday. He wants to look "fancy." Of course we don't have anything that would pass for a dress shirt, and we certainly don't have tie for him, so it looks like I get to go shopping this weekend.

I asked him if he was going to smile for the picture this year or if he was going to take one last year. He simply gave me his "Mother, please stop. You're embarrassing yourself." look and rolled his eyes. I'm taking the exchange as a sign that he'll smile this time. It can happen.

~~~

Shawn's two front teeth are very loose. I am doing all I can to help those teeth fall out before Monday, because a toothless school picture is a must have if you can work it. (Jason had already lost his teeth and gotten his adult teeth before he entered kinder!)

Fingers crossed for me (ok, us). A tie for one boy AND a toothless grin for another in a picture would totally make the school year!

~~~

Jack woke us up this morning with a "Hey! Hey! Are you awake?" It's totally cute until you realize that he's hollering at the top of his lungs and the sun hasn't even come up yet.

He is becoming a morning person.

Help me. That makes two of them! He is joining Shawn in the world of the early risers.

~~~

Yesterday (Thursday), during the math lesson, Shawn told his aide that he was going to rest, and then proceeded to put his head down on his desk and SLEPT for TWENTY minutes. (Mortifying much? Jeez.) We've since added discussions on how "we do not sleep at school" to our daily run down of do's and don'ts.

OMG. I totally blame* this on him being a morning person, you know. It is not right to get up at 6 am each morning.

*It was most likely a combination of being awakened by Jack at 4:30 am and some cough syrup he took before he went to school.

~~~

I also wanted to mention that the boys were rock stars at the appointment they had on Wednesday. The entire trip took approximately 7.5 hours, and yet they did very little complaining the entire time. The best news is that both boys let the nurses take their blood pressure! Shawn has never allowed any doctor to take his blood pressure, and Jason has only allowed it one other time. The fact that they both did it this time was pretty dang amazing for Isaac and I. Plus, they both laid on the exam table, another part of doctor trips that always scared them, without a peep! They were so brave!

We are so proud of them, too!

Their First Book Orders

With the boys' homework packet this week, there was a book order form. I glanced at it briefly before giving it to Jason to peruse. He oohed and aahed his way through it before finally asking if he could pick out something to order. I didn't think it would be any big deal; the prices that I saw were all in the $1 - $3 range. Besides, I fondly remember my own days looking through book flyers for the perfect book to pester my mom to buy me.

"Sure," I told him. "Pick out whatever you want."

I'm cringing as I type that, because of course Jason went right to work and found the most expensive item in the book. Behold his selection:

You're looking at a $14.00 set of 5 Hot Wheels books. Sigh.

In all honesty, I doubt there was any way my boy could have resisted the lure of the wheels that are hot. Actually putting race cars on the covers just sealed the deal. They had my boy the moment they put that picture in the flyer.

Thankfully, Shawn was a bit more modest about his selection when it was his turn. He went straight for the set of two menacing shark books.

 

They are now dying to get their books and they don't think there is any way possible they'd survive the two weeks they'll have to wait before they come. Well, it was Jason who doesn't think he'll be able to make it through the wait. Shawn was all what-evs about it. lol

I LOVE that I've got me some readers!

Mostly Wordless Wednesday - Tunnel Fun

This is a picture from before his haircut, but I like it and so I'm posting it. ;)

 



 

Playing in his nylon tunnel at grandma's house!