Two Down

Sammy threw up on the way in to school this morning. Poor little fellow. Daniel threw up this morning, but was able to hold down banana, applesauce and crackers throughout the day and was pretty energetic at the end of the day. Will it ever end!??? I am hoping tomorrow will be a better day.

The Rain is Here

The wind is blowing and the rain has been coming down since the morning. I love rainy days. The way the water streaks down the windows of my kitchen making everything look somehow greener and more alive. I can almost hear my plants sucking up all that precious water, thinking "at last, at last". I think everyone is glad the rain has come after a dry summer and fall.

But with the rain, also comes all the colds and flu and germs. Poor Daniel spent most of the day Saturday with his head over the toilet and still feels queasy and not quite right. The stomach flu is the pits I tell ya. I wish there was something I could do to help him feel better. If only the rain could wash away all the germs and yuckiness.

Mr. Charisma

It is sometimes weird to live with a celebrity. You can't go out in public without having this person upstage you, everyone wants a piece of this person, everyone wants to catch their eye, just an acknowledgment, that's all people are hoping for, dreaming of.

The celebrity in our house? Is it Suzy? Although she is the best thing that has ever happened to me, she falls short in the fame category to Mr. Charisma. Is it me? Nope, none of you were thinking that! 'Daniel?', you ask. Good guess, tons of reasons why he will one day rule the world, but sadly you are mistaken again.

Sammy.

While walking out of their school last week in our group were me, School Board president, church elder, Sunday School teacher. Not a peep from anyone. My mom, a Pastor at the church in which we are standing. Nothing. Daniel, recent recipient of the school wide VIP award. Crickets chirping. But when Sammy walks through the courtyard it gets ridiculous...

'Sammy, are you leaving already?'
'Hey Sammy!'
'Sammy!'
'Wanna play, Sammy?'

These things are coming from kids of all ages, preschoolers call out to him, middle schoolers (who are not known for their ability to acknowledge the world in any way) are high-fiving him. Teachers give him broad smiles. Parents give him enthusiastic hugs. It is weird, and it happens all the time. Really it has happened his whole life. I can remember carrying him around the neighborhood after he was born and having people pull their cars over to talk to me about him.

He is Mr. Charisma, if you don't believe me, just spend some time with him, you will know what it is like to be in the shadow of celebrity. What it is like to be captured by his spell.

Sammy, please use your super powers for good, not evil.

What's the big deal?

I wonder how far to go back with this story. Its origins lie many years ago (many to me right now is about three or four). When Daniel was three or four he cracked a tooth on a popcorn kernel. As a result of that he had a 'spacer' put in soon thereafter, to keep his other teeth from collapsing in on the gap. He loved to fool around with the spacer, and it repeatedly popped out, and we had to take him in to have it popped back in. Having finally had enough, the dentist cemented it in there so well that now I am a bit concerned that that sucker is never coming out. But, I have wandered off the path of my original story.

Because of the spacer, Daniel had to avoid chewy candies and gum. No big deal, he is more of a cookie aficionado like his father anyway. However, we recently realized that there is a massive gap (no pun intended) in Daniel's candy protocol knowledge.

Sammy loves gum. Loves it. Not as much as spicy things, but a lot. If he ever discovered spicy gum he might jump right out of his pants with excitement. So, for Sammy's recent sixth birthday, Suzy and I got him a gumball machine (good call on our part, it was a big hit). Daniel thought it was pretty cool too, so he ran upstairs, grabbed himself some coinage and returned to purchase his first gumball. Suzy and I were playing 'Sorry' (I ended up being the Sorry one), so we weren't paying the greatest of attention, but I soon realized that Daniel had shoved a decent percentage of his life savings in that gumball machine so I decided to check on him. My gaze wandered to his face as he walked around the room looking at and playing with all of Sammy's new loot. A tell-tale sign of gum chewers was missing. Warning flags were going off in my head. No chewing.

'Uh, Daniel, what did you do with your gum?'

'Oh, that wasn't gum, it was just candy.'

Having purchased said gumball machine and additional gum supplies, Suzy and I were pretty sure that it was gum, but Daniel is not often wrong, so I paused and thought things through for a while.

'I am pretty sure it was gum, what did you do with it?'

'It got soft and squishy, so I swallowed it.'

Now is when I remembered the common knowledge bestowed upon children of my generation, that gum was going to stay in his stomach forever. Thankfully I long ago rejected all knowledge imparted to me as a youngster and knew that eventually that gum would no longer be hanging around Daniel's innards.

'Daniel, that was gum, bud, you aren't supposed to swallow it. When you are done with it you go and throw it away.'

Daniel was looking at us like we were crazy, or trying to be funny.

'Why would you throw it away? Why don't you eat it?'

'That's just what you do, bud. Once it loses its flavor you chuck it... in a trashcan.'

Daniel, having seen his brother gush over gum for the last year or so, was by now very confused.

'What's the big deal, then?'

I don't know, bud, I don't know.

Now at least one more piece of parental wisdom has been imparted to my children. He knows how to call 911, he knows what to do in a fire. He knows how to make peanut butter crackers. Now he knows what to do with gum. My parenting duties are almost complete. Who's ready to learn how to drive?

Drunken Frat Party

Last night and this morning Suzy and I got a little view of what things will be like in about 14 years when both our boys will be in college.

In the span of one night the boys (some combination of them) accomplished all of this:

1. Breaking one of the slats in Papa's beautifully designed and built custom bunk bed (repeated jumping from the top bunk seems to be the culprit here).
2. Destroying a reading light (Daniel holding onto light switch while Sammy body slammed him from behind).
3. Drawing all over each other with pens (he started it!).
4. There also was a sleeping accident, but we won't mention that so I don't embarrass my youngest son (can blame this one on all the beer).

Please let me re-iterate that this all occurred during the course of ONE NIGHT! Some day I will look back on this and laugh... but not this day.

So far, so good...

The boys have been in school for 4 weeks now and so far, so good. Actually I should say so far, so great. The boys are really enjoying this school year. Great classes and great teachers. Neither one has complained about going to school or doing homework yet. I would say that's pretty good. They both have already grown so much. Both of their handwriting have improved and they are learning new things every day. They really are like sponges at this age. I am thankful they are so happy and blessed that they go to such a great school.

Yellow Fever

I am haunted by the color yellow. At night, when I wake up in a cold sweat it is not due to the fact that I have been reading The Bone Collector, by Jeffrey Deaver. The real source of my concern, the thought that dominates my walk to work...

The Yellow Card.

'Have the boys started playing soccer?'

Good guess, but no. Sammy has started kindergarten. If you get in trouble in his class you have to go 'flip your card', one infraction, yellow, two infractions, orange, three infractions, red. There was a time when my oldest child got a red card, but we don't mention that in our home anymore. It's better for everyone that way.

Back to Sammy. Sammy has been in school for a grand total of 11 days so far. Three of those days when I got home he had a forlorn look on his face. He knew that he had to face the music and fess up to his foul deeds. Usually I had received advance warning from one of my numerous sources, so I already knew all of the gory details. The sordid tales of picking at the tape on the floor in class, goofing off during chapel, turning off the lights on the other boys in the bathroom. The details stumbled out of Sammy with great shame. Even on the days where he escaped the sentence of the card flip there were discussions of 'almost flipping'. It seemed to me that few and far between were the days that Sammy was not on the edge of yellow.

On Monday when he received his third yellow card, which was two days in a row, and I think three out of four I had had enough.

'To your room!' I bellowed in a fit of rage (rage might be a bit of an exaggeration, frustration? consternation?). How to deal with this? The willfulness. The disobedience.

We had a long talk, there were tears, there were harsh words spoken, there were hugs exchanged, but in the end I think the talk was fruitful, and we came to an understanding. Then I had to stop talking with Suzy and go talk with Sammy.

'Sammy, you can't keep bringing home yellow cards, bud. It just can't keep happening.'

'I know, I just forget.'

'I know you are trying, and mama and your teacher say you have been behaving well for most of the day, but you have to make good choices, OK?'

'OK.'

Well, not to jinx anything, but my sage words of wisdom, my awesome parenting seemed to really have an impact. Tuesday, green card, baby! OK, it was only one day, I admit that, but we are talking about baby steps here. If he makes it today, that will be two days in a row!

Go, Sammy, you can do it!

Back to School

First day of school! First day of School!

The boys were ready and rearing and excited this morning. They had their uniforms on, their backpacks loaded and lunches ready.


Daniel barely gave me a departing glance when I dropped him off. Sammy was pretty wide-eyed, shy and quiet...at first. I actually got to stay for the morning and help out. There were a couple of criers, but once school got going and the parents got out of sight, they all seemed to settle in. Sammy did a great job, cutting and gluing and coloring.

I didn't even cry, although I think it helped that I stayed for the morning. We'll see how I do tomorrow.

My boys are growing up...

Unpacked, Mostly

It was hot today. I miss having the ocean breeze as my constant air conditioner. But I won't complain as it only hit 90 and for only a short while.

I've mostly got everything unpacked and put away. We are still trying to adjust to the time change. I had to drag myself out of bed at 8 and Dan and the boys didn't rouse until almost 9. Thankfully we have a full week before school starts. What?!! Can that be right? In one short week Daniel and Sammy will be off to school? Daniel a second grader and Sammy his first year of school? I am still a little sad/depressed about the whole thing. You know me and how I don't like change.

So we are slowing getting back into the groove of things. But I still am missing this:

And this:And today I could've really gone for one of these:

12 Years

It is hard to believe that 12 years ago today Dan and I got married. That seems like such a long time. I mean 12 years! I was just 23. But it has gone by in a blink.

Thanks for 12 wonderful years, baby! Looking forward to many, many, many more! Love you forever and always...

Little Swimmers

I love being able to walk to the pool. One of the many things I love about where I live. We have been able to go up to the pool quite often this summer and the boys have improved in their swimming so much. Sammy, who didn't even like to put his head under the water a month or so ago, is now jumping in and learning how to swim. And Daniel was able to swim from one side of the pool to the other (the short way) all by himself today. How cool is that?

When In Rome

Today was the last day of VBS (vacation bible school) at our church. For the last 5 days the boys have been learning about Paul and the underground church. They had a blast (they always do) and have been playing 'Rome' at home being Caesar, guards and undercover Christians. Here is Caesar (looking oh so serious) and his loyal guard:

Buzzzzz

Who are these clean cut boys? They couldn't be mine could they? Where is the thick shaggy hair you might ask. Well, I finally got around to buzzing it all off today. I certainly do not like cutting all that hair, but I love their soft fuzzy head when it is all said and done. And they look so darn cute too!

Sun and sand and seaweed, oh my!

Nana took the boys and I down to the Shores this morning. It was hot and crowded and wonderful. I just love the beach and so do the boys.

We wandered down the shore and even made it all the way to the tide pools (luckily it was low tide). Sammy loved all the seaweed and liked dragging, carrying and lugging large pieces of it around and Daniel loved splashing through the cool water and jumping the waves. Me, I just loved the sound of the crashing waves, the sand between my toes and the cool, misty sea breeze.