Friday

A New Outlook on School

Talking about school with Chase, I ask, "So... Chase? You really like school?"

He says, "I don't just like it, I love it."

"Seriously? You're glad that Dad wanted you to try that school?" I say

With a huge smile he says, "Yeah, I probably won't be home schooling."

New Day, New Attitude

Waking Chase up for school went just as it always has: SLOW. He's not a morning person... well at least not when it has to do with getting up for school. After many attempts to pry his head out from under his blanket... I succeeded in getting him off to his first day of 2nd grade at his new school. On the way in, Aaron said that he was quiet and that he felt bad leaving him because he just looked kind of sad. We worried about him all day.

Then at 2:45, I picked him up in the multi-purpose room and saw a different Chase. Turns out that he had an awesome day... from building with LEGO's (his favorite) to chasing girls on the playground with all of his friends... there's nothing that wasn't fun. Shoot, his teacher is even "funny"! He didn't have one negative thing to say about his day... well, except for his enhancement: "Spanish, I wasn't looking forward to that...". Little does he know that when he can speak Spanish and we can't... he'll LOVE every second of it!!

So when asked how he liked school, his response: "It's GREAT!!!"

2009-08-26

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2009-08-25

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BIG Day!

Yesterday, I woke up Claire at 6:40 am to get ready for her first day of Kindergarten. She was so cute... tired, but so excited. Never once did she complain about being tired or have to be pushed to "get moving". Aaron said that she talked his ear off the whole way to school and was even ahead of him walking in!! When they got to her classroom, she pulled Dad in-- not from nervousness-- from excitement.

So our bossy girl only has one rule for her teacher: with another Claire in her class...she's just Claire, not Claire R..

The day was strange without our Claire Bear. The boys and I went to the barbershop, and to Target (yes, again!) to pick up some forgotten school supplies. That afternoon, the boys and I parked and waited outside on the benches of her school. Henri-- so used to going inside-- was bummed that we weren't walking inside to get her. From the moment we saw Claire, she was so happy. She walked with a hop in her step and kept talking about Chester the Raccoon. Her class-- like Chase's when he started Kindergarten-- went on a "search" around the school for Chester (he leaves clues all around the school... and in turn the kids explore without realizing they're touring the school :) ). So, her first day was a success and she can't wait to go back on Friday to meet all 18 of her friends!!

Once we got home, the kids and I went on a bike ride and took the baby chicks (now a week old!) in the backyard. Now, I wish I could say that the rest of the day was just as perfect as everything that preceded the evening... but it wasn't. After dinner, all of Chase's pent up emotions-- anxiety, fear, disappointment, anger-- about going to school poured out of him. He was a mess...so much so that it was like a 2 year old throwing a temper tantrum. He was so mean and bossy... but I know he didn't mean any of it. Claire helped cheer up the moment by saying, "Mom, I told Henri that we're on Mom's team." Thank goodness they recognized what he was doing was inappropriate. Thankfully, once we got him around for bed, read some books and cuddled... and after many BIG hugs... he calmed down.

While we were putting Claire and Chase to bed, Henri said that he wanted to sleep on his floor (just like his big sister). I told him "ok" and to grab his sleeping bag. After he didn't return, minutes later, I decided to check on him only to find him on his floor, in his sleeping bag... sound asleep. We all had a big day...

Another Weekend Update

Friday morning, the kids and I headed out on a mission to find Claire a lunch bag for school. I've been putting it off because Claire keeps saying that she doesn't want to go to school... and I'd be OK with her not going. Our first stop: Wal-Mart. Claire's reaction again, "What's Wal-Mart???" We never go there-- it's the largest on the East Coast, always busy, and SO trashy-- and I'm quite OK with her not knowing. Unfortunately, our trip to Wal-Mart was a wash... so we headed off to our trusty Target. Thankfully, they got a new shipment since our last visit-- only 3 days earlier! So she picked out a Disney Princess lunch bag and got a Hello Kitty Sigg water bottle. She's warming up to the idea of school now!

Saturday afternoon, Chase had a birthday party to go to. It was the first party that we've ever dropped Chase off at. Originally, we thought that he might be a little nervous getting dropped off at a friends house that he had never been before... but that wasn't the case. Aaron walked him up and before he could say "bye", Chase was off playing. So we left Chase at the "boys hangout" and we headed off to the car wash, shopping and Mellow Mushroom. After a heavy down pour (thank you Bill) and several hours later, we picked him up. He had lots of fun and now knows about Star Wars!!

Yesterday, Aaron had to make an emergency trip to Charleston for work. We were supposed to plant our fall garden, so he had Ryan come over and help me. Chase and I hoed and raked a bunch of weeds and Ryan tilled. Once Ryan finished tilling, he went swimming with the kids while I planted 3 types of lettuces, spinach, broccoli, and green beans. By the time I was finished with that, I was extremely worn out, so I didn't get finished with planting the entire garden. Luckily, the kids tired out at the same time and we headed inside to watch Curious George the movie. Really cute movie, btw. After dinner, the kids had to get all of the toys out of the pool. Henri was leaning over to get a toy and fell in. Chase jumped in-- clothes on-- to rescue him. Thinking that swimming with all their clothes on was a cool thing to do... all 3 kids jumped in fully clothed!! They had so much fun swimming and then rode their bikes sopping wet. During all of this, we took the baby chicks out into the freshly tilled garden. It's really amazing watching them jump for insects, scratch the dirt and give themselves dust baths. Watching them do all of those things, I thought about how amazing it is that they know how to do it all. No one teaches them... we got them the day after they hatched... they've never seen another chicken do those things... they just know how. Absolutely amazing.

Don't Want to Miss a Thing

Last night-- like so many before it-- when I put Henri to bed, he says that he's "not ready go bed". I tuck him in several times to have him come out of his room. He must fear that he's going to miss out on something. So, last night, he climbed into the chair and fidgeted for a moment. Then, I looked over to find this:

August 18-19, 2009

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Words of Henri

Lately, the kids have been playing cops while they ride their bikes and scooters around the driveway. Last night, Henri was riding his bike and he dumped it. He was laying on his side with the bike on top of him. I saw him look around and was waiting for him to start crying... but instead he said, "That... pretty cool trick. hehh."

Tuesday's Fortune

Whenever we go to the mall at lunch, it's inevitable that we eat Chinese (and Chick-fil-A for Claire and Henri). Aaron and I have become accustomed to giving our fortune cookies away to the kids. More than the cookie they get excited about the little piece of paper inside. This time even more so, since they had fortune cookies on "The Penguins of Madagascar".

Now whatever Chase and Claire's fortunes were... I can't remember except for the fact that they both said, "I don't get it" and "that doesn't even make sense."

But then I read Henri's to them: The night life is for you.

And they both responded, "Oh, yeah. That's so true."

August 14-15, 2009

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Henri on School

Discussing Henri being 3 and going to school, he says:

"I might not go to m&m school, it pretty far from Blockbusters."

Just Like Marzipan

For the past several days, the modeling clay has had a home at our breakfast table. Henri really enjoys smashing it, but Chase and I are having so much fun creating little creatures. So far we've made: Pig, penguin (I made Private and Claire turned him into Skipper by flattening his head!), chickens & coop, cat, whale, dogs, turtles... you name it... we can make it.

Where'd Farmer Chase Go?

For as long as I can remember, Chase has always wanted to be a farmer. Now, the type of farmer that he's wanted to be has changed, but he's never strayed from wanting to be a farmer when he grows up. However, today that changed.

"Mom, instead of a farmer... I think that I want to be a LEGO Power Miners designer."

Although his comment took me by surprise... it really shouldn't have. We've talked about this moment and figured it would come. And with his love for building things and drawing "inventions"... I suppose that I shouldn't be surprised at all.

Now, I just wonder if and when he's going to replace his John Deere tractors....

Chase's Tooth

While eating his chicken nuggets at Chick-Fil-A, Chase says, "What is this??"

I looked and almost said, 'Bone'... but I looked again and said, "It's your tooth!"

Aaron says, "Great, Dr. Bryan will be by tonight." The running joke is that our friend and dentist is the tooth fairy. Chase gave Aaron THAT look and smirked... knowing full and well that the tooth fairy isn't Dr. Bryan.

Lost tooth count: 3

Sprinkle Sprinkle

Growing up with no pool, my brother and I constantly played with the hose and sprinkler. Drenching ourselves to cool from the hot summer days. My kids-- having a pool and living near the ocean-- don't depend on those things to make summer more bearable. But today, they drenched themselves... clothes on and sopping wet...

2009-08-09

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Charleston

Just like last weekend, we packed up the truck and headed out of town. This time we headed south to Charleston, SC. Aaron had to go there to pick up a Rover that he bought... and being only a little over 3 hours away... we decided to make the most of it and stay all weekend. Now, we've both been to Charleston before, my last time was while I was in college and Aaron's with my friend Catherine on one of her 3 week stays.

On the way down, we stopped at Birds of Prey in Mount Pleasant. They have over 100 birds there... owls, eagles, vultures, hawks, you name it... that have all been rescued. It was a nice detour... kids got to stretch their legs and learn something at the same time.

Coming into Charleston was definitely a different experience from what I remember. There used to be this OLD bridge across the river... to keep it clean... it freaked me out! Before bridges were falling down, I always imagined the Charleston bridge collapsing or somehow driving off the edge (it was SO high and super narrow). Now, there is a nice beautiful bridge and for once going into Charleston... I felt safe :) However, Claire couldn't understand why she didn't get to see the "freaky" bridge and no matter how much we explained to her that she was born in 2004 and the bridge was torn down in 2005... she just didn't get WHY she didn't get to see it.

At the aquarium with the "new" Charleston bridge in the background.

When we got to our hotel (Indigo Inn), it was wine and cheese hour. Our joke was that we brought the "whine" and all we needed was cheese ;) Once we got settled, we walked over to the market in search of dinner. Chase said that he only wanted crab... so Charleston Crab House it was. And it was SO good. Of course, we all ate way too much. But Ben & Jerry's was calling. I skipped, because I knew the kids would never finish theirs... good call on my part. The day was long and it seemed that everyone was whooped... EXCEPT for Chase. At 11:06 PM, I heard him say, "I'm bored." Night owl, he is.

Saturday morning, we walked to the SC Aquarium. It was a HIKE for the kids (ok, Claire and Henri) and they were not having fun. We got there with Henri on Aaron's back. We spent a few hours exploring all of the aquatic creatures and those linked to the water... like a bald eagle... they even had 4 penguins. The kids were convinced that they were "Skipper", "Private", "Rico" and "Sworksy?"... the Penguins of Madagascar.

Henri and Claire loved the baby sea turtle so much that they had to give it a kiss.

Outside, there was a wishing well that had steps leading into it. We told the kids they could put their feet in. Next thing we knew, Henri was waist in and then laying down. It was hilarious and he was having so much fun. With Henri soaking wet and us dreading the walk back to the hotel, we decided to take a Pedicab (it's like a Rickshaw). The poor biker... I can't imagine how heavy the 5 of us must have been!!

Check out the "Please Stay Out of Water" sign.

For lunch, we ate at a bar that used to be a church! It was so strange, but very cool to be eating lunch in a church. We did a little shopping in the market, then started our walk to "Cupcake". Another LONG walk, that could not be taken by the little ones. Claire had a meltdown when she learned that the bouncy house and slides were closed... she fell on the brick pavers and skinned her elbow. I think all of Charleston heard her screaming.

We ate our cupcakes and then we hopped on another pedicab back to the hotel. Thank goodness for Pedicab... they're lifesavers... or maybe mindsavers. With worn out kids, we decided to drive into Land Rover... Aaron has this new thing with collecting shirts... some people do Hard Rock... he does Land Rover. The kids and I picked out a couple of convertibles while we were there. The kids really liked the Porsche... to them it's "Sally", but her "back seat" was a little tight for them. But I found my car... I'm now in love with the convertible Jaguar. On the way back to the hotel, Henri fell asleep. He took his first nap in months... had to wake him up for dinner. After dinner, we took a horse drawn carriage ride through Charleston. Amazing the things you see when you're not wrestling 3 kids or in a car. After another long day, we headed back to the hotel and watched "Finding Nemo".

Waiting for the carriage ride.

We turned out the lights at a little after 10 and then Chase said it, "I'm bored." I said, "You're such a night owl. Maybe we should build you a barn." Then Aaron added, "Yeah. And we can build it with boards (boreds)." Chase thought that was pretty funny... so we all went to sleep giggling.

Sunday morning, we all slept in. We got the kids swim suits on and headed down to the Charleston Waterfront Park. There they have a couple of fountains that are up to pool standards so that kids (and adults) can play in them. The kids had so much fun... and I'm sure it was the highlight of their trip to Charleston.

Butterflies

As I was clearing off my camera for our trip to Charleston tomorrow, I realized that I forgot about the butterflies.

4 years ago-- when we first started growing our own parsley-- we found caterpillars devouring it all. From that moment, we got a terrarium and would take the caterpillars and feed them parsley until they got so big that they stopped eating. They hang in a "j" and form their chrysalis. We wait and wait and then one day a black swallowtail butterfly emerges. Each year, we do the same thing... and it's just as exciting the 50th time as it was the 1st time. We had over 20 butterflies our first year... so no doubt we have seen at least 50.

So on Monday, a butterfly emerged from its cocoon (our 6th this year) and the kids set it free. To flit and flutter... to lay more eggs on our parsley... so that we can do it all over again.

Spinning

Last night, as we tucked Chase in for bed, Henri started spinning around in circles. He would stop to feel the dizziness and sometimes he would fall. He was so focused... almost like he was seeing how many times he could go around without falling. He, along with us, thought it was hilarious. Claire, never one to miss out on some fun, started spinning as well. Bumping into each other they fell to the floor laughing.

R.I.P

This evening, while I was cleaning up the kitchen from dinner. Aaron called me from outside. He said, "Soiree is dead." Of course, I thought he was joking. She was our biggest... I called her Big Mamma, the leader and best egg layer out of the four. But he said to me, "Why would I call you to joke about that." Out the back door I went, and sure enough... there she lay by our compost bin. Telling the kids went a lot smoother than expected. Chase responded, "Whoohoo... now we can get a rooster!" I couldn't believe it... in February when Sweetie Pie passed... he was in tears and writing something for her burial. A lot sure has changed in the months passing. Aaron took the kids and Soiree down to the "meadow" and buried her. I still can't believe it... down to 3 chickens. Chase and I wonder, "Who will be the leader now?"

Our Weekend Update

Friday morning, we packed up the truck and put the Rover on the trailer and headed to Virginia for ROAV (Rover Owners Association of VA) event and camping. It was about a 6 hour drive and everyone's first time in VA (well, besides Aaron). The kids kept busy in the truck with movies, road trip scavenger hunt and Where's Waldo books. Aaron and I played the "Great State Plate Hunt". The ride there went fairly smooth... navigation took us on what was supposed to be a main road... but we ended up winding around all of these 1 1/2 lane roads.

Once we wound up the mountain (VA Smokies), we come up over a hill and Aaron says, "See, Dirty Dancing." And there it was... if I had seen Baby I would have thought I was walking into a movie.

Then we passed all of the buildings and headed to the hotel's conservation area, where we would be camping. Up a steep muddy hill... four wheeling already. Once we reached the top of the mountain... at an elevation of 4000 feet (yes... we were in the clouds), we set up camp. Realizing that we forgot to pack a few things, we decided to take a ride into town (Pearisburg?). While we waited for our pizza at Pizza Hut (worst Pizza Hut in the world, btw), Aaron and Henri walked to Save-A-Lot to get our forgotten items. After dinner, we went to Wal-Mart to finish getting our forgotten items. Again, Claire had a Wal-Mart comment, "I hate Wal-Mart." I'm with her all the way. Although, it was quite the experience... small town... Friday night... shoot... that's the mall. By the time we got back to our campsite, we got a fire going and in no time the kids were ready for bed.... after, a jump around the tent!

View from the old stone clubhouse... the camp ground was a golf course that hadn't been used in over 30 years.

Saturday, I woke up to Henri, "It's morning guys. It's light." We got around and went 4-wheeling. Unsure of what the new Rover would do... we just went on the fire roads. I was happy about that... just mud and water. We went 2 times that day, and even had muddy water come up over the hood of the Rover. I think the kids were inspired by all of the mud, because when we got back to camp... Chase wanted to ride his bike through the mud. We obliged... big mistake... because then the next thing we know... we look over and all three were playing in the mud. Livid... Aaron and I were. No showers, no nothing for the kids to get cleaned. Luckily, it rained and we were able to clean them up... for the most part! After the rain cleared, we went on a walk. The day went fast, and we were all tired... so as soon as we ate our s'mores... we hit the (air) mattresses.

Early Sunday, it started raining. It was raining so hard, that I could barely sleep... the kids must have loved it... because they seemed to sleep forever. Packing up... it poured... and never once let up. Even on the drive home... we had small breaks in the rain. When we stopped for lunch, I said to Aaron, "Is this the same Wendy's that we ate at on Friday?", "No." He says. Then, like me he realized that it was the same exact Wendy's that we ate at 2 days earlier. Strange. The kids played "Road Trip Bingo" and Aaron and I finished our "plate hunt"... found 30 out of 50 states (yes, I even found Alaska!!) plus Ontario and Nova Scotia.

When we got home, we unpacked just in time. Then the rain finally caught up with us. The kids rode their bikes and chalk painted on the driveway.