Off-Track Activities #1

The kids have been out of school for the last three weeks, so things have been busy here.  Let me tell you a little about it....

Well, okay, they're not ALWAYS busy!  Sometimes we relax enough that someone takes an impromptu nap.

Carson started asking about soccer a couple of months ago.  I thought it was just a passing fancy and he would soon forget about it.  Nope, he kept after me until I signed him up.  We are not athletes in this family.  None of us are very coordinated.  Carson spent the first couple of practices admiring his new uniform and shoes.  He still runs with his elbows out--lots of movement, not so much efficiency.  But that's okay.  He got some good exercise and obeyed the "Stingers'" number one rule:  have fun!

He spent a fair amount of game time hanging back with his pal, Maddie.  I have no idea what they talked about (thought I'd love to).  They just seemed to stick together a lot.

See what I mean??

Whew!  A thirsty little athlete.  The post-game snacks were a big bonus too.  Spencer was Carson's personal cheerleader.  He found a couple of friends at the soccer field and made a sign that said "Go Stingers  #6 Carson Sherman!  Run!"  He would hold the sign up and run from one end of the field to the other, cheering all the way. 

Spencer is just a funny, funny kid.  I don't know what he was doing dressed up like this, but it sure made me laugh, especially the look on his face!

Spencer is quite the little entrepreneur.  He began his own business called "Jobs Around the House."  Here is the advertisement:  "We can (1) Take out the trash for 10 cents (2) Clean the baseboards for $3 (3) Dust the house for $2.  Thank you!  Open Friday at 4:30 and Saturday 10:00 to 2:00 or call us at..."  My mom called that day and he picked up the phone and in his most professional voice greeted her "Jobs Around the House, this is Spencer."  Since he's been out of school he hasn't done much business though.  He's too busy playing! 

Once again, Parker is not easy to read with.  He was sitting there playing with Spencer's hair, but as soon as I tried to take a picture he decided to try and roll off the couch--yikes!

Parker

I've been a terrible blogger lately. A brief update on Parker: He LOVES puppies! He started making high-pitched meowing sounds at every animal he saw, so I tried to teach him to bark like a dog. Now he says, "Arf! Arf!" We had a little stuffed puppy that my grandma gave Spencer. Neither of the other kids showed much interest in it, but I got it out for Parker and he gave it lots of wet, open-mouthed kisses on the nose and hugged it to his chest. He gets excited about pictures of dogs and of course, he loves Dakota and laughs at her all the time.

He holds his play phone on the back of his neck and says, "Ha-wo!" He learned the word "ball" shortly before I got a bushel of peaches to can. He discovered the peaches and said, "Ball!" again and again as he tossed them across the floor. (I stopped him before he bruised more than 4 or 5!)

Anyway, here are some pictures from quite a while ago that were just too cute not to post.

This was at a restaurant called Kneaders. They have delicious sandwiches, soups, and salads. And Parker thoroughly enjoyed the raspberry cream cheese pie!

Perfectly pink, round baby cheeks are the best!

His brothers got a real hee-haw putting these glasses on him!

Too many boys in the tub again! Parker didn't want to be left out, so he went in and started throwing stuff in the water.

It's complicated to try to read with Parker. He wants to be too involved in the story!

He's very short!

Fishing for a Compliment

I just overheard the following exchange:

Carson: Hey Spencer, see this painting I did?

Spencer: Oh, hmm.

Carson: Are you amazed or anything??

I don't know if "amazed" would be the best word to describe Spencer's reaction, but that's what Carson was hoping for! I think everyone has experienced this situation. You're so proud of some accomplishment and you finally share your news with a special someone and they just don't react as strongly as you hoped. So you want to grab them by the shoulders and ask, "Are you amazed or anything??" Oh well.

First Day of School 2012

It's that time of year... already! The boys started school July 25. Spencer is now in third grade and so far he's he's having a good time. He finally lost his other front tooth, so now he has the typical vacancy in his smile. (I'll have to get a picture of that to put on here too.) He was in P.E. class when he decided to just pull it out. He keeps losing teeth and Parker keeps growing them--eventually they'll have the same number, right?

He says his teacher is funny because she does math problems backwards (gotta ask about that at parent-teacher conference)! She seems like a really cute lady.

Carson is in Kindergarten and he LOVES it!! It's fun to see him come running behind Spencer at the end of the day, pulling his little backpack and looking very scholarly and busy. He's been doing a lot more paperwork at home too. I separated his "school clothes" from his "play clothes" and he is very good about changing as soon as he gets home.

One day Andy made some (jokingly) chauvinistic remark and Carson piped up, "That's what men do!" How will I ever survive this house of boys?!

Aww, I love sleeping babies! When the kids are at school, Parker and I are free to play, play, play! I like taking him out and about, but it's getting embarrassing. He's started pointing at people and laughing, "HAHAHA!" I worry about this child. He may be the troublemaker. His latest tricks include: folding his arms for prayer and "bowing" his head (touching his cheek to his shoulder), making animal sounds which all sound the same (a soft, high-pitched "Ahhhh!"), and pretend eating (I think I mentioned that in an earlier post). Oh, and he also loves a game of peek-a-boo, even though his hands don't often land over his eyes.

Spencer was eating Pop Rocks tonight and of course, several of them fell on the floor. Dakota started licking them up and I could hear the little crackly sounds in her mouth! She has become such a good doggy, there really aren't any stories to tell about her. Well, except for the day she snatched a waffle off the counter top. That was a huge no-no! She likes to sleep in our room at night now, which is fine except for when she's dreaming. She must be chasing cats or something because she twitches a lot and makes little throat sounds. Silly puppy!

Family Pictures

Here are my favorites of our recent family pictures, for anyone who hasn't already seen them...

July

Year-round school makes the summers especially short, but this one has flown by faster than usual. We only have a week and half left!

Parker loves to "read." Several times a day, I find him in his room, perusing his basket of books. Sometimes they're even upside down, but enjoyable nonetheless. If he turns it right side up, it's like a whole new story!

I started putting one boy in the tub, and then another one wanted to bathe with him. I was against the idea (I envisioned water flying all over the bathroom and none of it in the tub), but Andy just undressed them all and plopped them in together! Naturally, he laughed and left me to contain the chaos.

Parker started sleeping in the "stinkbug position." I love it!

Fourth of July sparklers--light me up, Dad!

Andy is always giving me a hard time about the money I spend on clothing, home decor, etc. Guess what? He went to Walmart and bought a $50 aerial firework! It was spectacular...for about 30 seconds.

I don't think Carson had done sparklers before. So much fun! The smell of them brings back happy memories. We also let the kids stay up late one night to go to the carnival, and you'd think the little guys never got out. They were ecstatic! Then we stopped at Wendy's for a snack (I was thinking ice cream, but the boys ordered cheeseburgers!). We sat in the back of Andy's truck and watched the fireworks. They kept singing, "We get to stay up laaaate! Woo hoo!"

Parker's first chocolate chip cookie--mmm! He's learning to do lots of fun new things. He can finally do "roll 'em and roll 'em" for Pat-a-Cake. He also pretends to eat by sticking a finger in his mouth and making little chewing motions with his mouth. Our favorite new trick is blowing kisses. He smacks himself in the face with an open hand and laughs!

Smiles

I've been heavily involved in redecorating my living room, so I apologize for the lack of blogging. I'm refinishing furniture and making new window valances. It's very exciting, but time-consuming. The boys don't get into it, either. Just rearranging the furniture is troublesome to them.

I took the kids to the zoo one day when Spencer was off. Parker had a relaxing ride in his stroller. Wouldn't it be nice if someone just wheeled you wherever you wanted to go, offered beverages occasionally, and generally ensured your every comfort? As you can see, he's got it made in the shade!

Grandma insisted we ride the carousel. Spencer's favorite animal is the tiger. I couldn't get a decent picture of Carson, but he rode it too.

Parker looked so cute in his little sunhat, so I had to take a picture before he pulled it off.

This is one of those Norman Rockwell kind of things. If you can't read it very well, it says, "Sherman Detective Agency: Open Monday-Saturday 8am-5pm." Then he wrote "$100 per hour," but crossed it out and put "FREE!" He told me that Carson suggested maybe the price was a little steep, so he slashed it by 100%! I don't know if they ever got any business, but I do remember that when I called them in, they complained that they were just getting started on a "new case."

Dakota is the kids' furry footrest. She lies on the floor while they watch TV and they wiggle their toes in her fur.

Parker is becoming Mr. Mischief! He is very aware of what "no" means, and many times he smiles and says, "Huh!" The other day he dumped an entire bowl of Dakota's water all over the floor, and both of his brothers just stood there and laughed!

Guess who said "mama" over the weekend?? He had just finished eating lunch and I went to the sink to get a washcloth. He knew if I wiped his face clean he could get down and play. He got excited, wiggled his arms and legs, and exclaimed, "A Mama!"

All he wants for the Fourth of July is his two front teeth! He's only lost one, but the other one is getting there. We begged him for days to get that tooth out. Finally at school the kids all started chanting, "Pull it out! Pull it out!" Even the teacher got involved! Sometimes only peer pressure can convince a kid.

Last night we rented "Return of the Jedi" because the boys love Star Wars and hadn't seen it. Carson always roots for the bad guy, so Darth Vader is his favorite character. For anyone unfamiliar, Darth dies in the movie. Spencer started pointing at Carson, and at just that moment, Carson began wailing. He was heartbroken!

One more thing about Carson.... He told me that when he grows up he wants to be "a fighter-fighter because they have cool boots." Fighter-fighters=firefighters