Let's RIDE!

The BIG gifts for the boys this Christmas were their bicycles! Evan's is a "John Deeere" bike and Nathan's is a red "Tony Hawk". They both have training wheels for the time being, as Laura and I compromised - they come off at the end of the school year. (plus, both bikes came with them, so there was no additional purchase required)... As for the blue foam pieces in their hands, the little explorers found those in someone's Christmas packing trash down the street and decided they each needed a piece of the "treasure". One man's trash is another man's treasure - and then it usually becomes that man's trash!

Christmas Time

It's always an enjoyable time when family gathers for Christmas. Granny and Grandpa, Uncles and Aunts, and COUSINS!! Oh, yeah, and there's the whole presents thing, too! Here are some pics and captions...

Thanks for the rifle, Uncle Brad! I'm ready to go hunting!

You're never too young for an r/c car - fittingly, Nathan got the POLICE Mustang!

Just as fittingly, Evan got the speedy hot-rod Mustang!

With all the people here at Christmas, sometimes you just have to "let it out"!

If that doesn't work, there's always PIE!

Ahhhh... a sweet escape from the "hustle and bustle"!

Christmas Mice

The Children's Ministry at our church put on a Christmas play. The kids all dressed up as mice and sang Christmas favorites with lyrics re-written from a mouse's perspective and the grandpa mouse gathered all the "kids" around to hear his first-hand recollection of what it was like at Jesus' birth from his point-of-view...

Butt(on) Nose

It was already dark as the boys and I made our way home for the day, taking in the Christmas lights and decorations on display in our neighborhood along the way. Nathan exclaimed, "Look, Dad, there's a snowman over there!" I glanced at the 10' "Frosty" and began to sing the song:


Frosty the snowman, was a jolly happy soul
with a corn cob pipe and a button nose
and two eyes made out of coal...


Evan's snickering interrupted the song as he giggled, "Nathan! Daddy said 'butt-nose'!"
Nathan: "Dad! Evan just said, 'BUTT'!"

"Evan! I did NOT say 'butt', I said 'but-ton-nose'." (more giggling followed by Evan's softly repeating "butt-nose" a couple more times)


"OK, Boys! Lets sing a different song..."

BBQ Rolls

We enjoy having breakfast rolls from time to time - cinammon, orange (especially the orange!)... so I decided to try the caramel rolls recently. The oven was preheated to the right temp. The caramel was spread evenly over the bottom of the pan. The pan was placed onto the center rack. The timer was set at the lowest of the suggested range. I'm trying to let you know that I FOLLOWED THE DIRECTIONS!


Apparently, our oven runs a little hot! The rolls and the caramel were a tad "overdone". Ok, so they were pretty much TORCHED, but they were still edible (as far as I was concerned). Nathan was visibly upset about the anticipated caramel rolls...


"DADDY!?!"

(Yeah, buddy?)

"Who put BARBEQUE SAUCE on my ROLL?!"

Stand By Me

On our snow day, Nathan's school closed for the day because their main campus in Opelousas (20 minutes N of Lafayette) was shut down. Since Evan's daycare couldn't accomodate Nathan, he came to work with me! After dropping Evan off, I asked Nathan if he was excited about coming to work with me. He confirmed and then declared from the backseat, "Dad, I'm gonna stay by you all day today." (Ok, pal.) "And I'm gonna go where you go and walk where you walk, Dad!" "Ok, Nathan," I replied as I considered the depth of his statements beyond just this day... hoping to be the kind of man he'll one day be proud to have followed. He only wandered down the hall a couple of times all day and he's really good at shredding stuff!

Snow-nuts

After playing in the snow a little while, we had to come in and get ready for the day (school and work). I had picked up some donut holes that morning and the boys found them on the table. Evan was soooo excited and exlaimed to Laura, "Mommy! Snow makes DONUTS!"

SNOW DAY! (12.17.08)

Touch

Both of our boys have been very touch-oriented since birth. They both desire and give "meaningful touches" regularly. Hugs, kisses, holding hands, etc. They like to sit, stand, climb, and pull on me, too. Wrestling/ganging up on Daddy is a favorite ritual. But, when it comes to sleeping in the same bed with either or both of them, just know that they will likely try (yes, even in their sleep) to keep in constant contact with you, physically. Evan is the most aggressive and, well, I thought this moment captured on camera says all you need to know...

(yes, Evan is sound asleep, and no, his arm wasn't quite out of socket!)

Birthday Boys

Nathan & Evan had a combo-birthday party this year. We split the difference between the two dates and had a big John Deere party for them on the 15th, complete with balloons, hay bales, tractor tires and green and yellow cup-cakes. They played pin the wheel on the tractor, climbed over hay bales, tunneled through a cardboard box maze, and had a blast with their friends from church. Below are some select pics from the day...

Fly Boys

We took Nathan and Evan to the Sertoma Air Show at our local airport this weekend. What a day! They got to climb inside planes and helicopters. They examined wings, engines, and propellers. They watched a jet-truck, trick planes, and the Air Force Thunderbirds soar, spin and roar through the sky. Guess what they want for their birthdays now! Yep - barbie dolls! (RIGHT!) Airplanes and helicopters, baby! These boys are ready to fly!! Check out a few shots from our adventure below... (By the way, there are no earplugs or muffs that can protect you or your children from the bone-rattling thunder of the F-15, F/A-18, or F-16 jets... and we felt them all!)...

Mix and Match

The problem with having a mother who works in retail clothing is that you can't get away with many mis-matched outfits. I think Laura gave me a couple of shirts before she ever gave me a kiss! Anyway, now we have two pre-school boys who are extremely particular about what they wear. I don't remember being this way, but MAN, they don't want to wear clothes that don't "match". Just yesterday, I was helping Evan get ready for school and it was "paint the town red" day (see previous post). I had some red sweatpants, with a gray t-shirt for him. "No, Daddy, that shirt doesn't match." (Sure it does, gray goes with just about anything - just like blue jeans.) "NO, Daddy! I don't wanna wear it." I placed the shirt beside his pants and pointed out the matching red in the "Ragin' Cajuns" image and lettering on the front of the shirt. "Ok, I'll wear it." It would be cute if this was an isolated situation, but just earlier this week, Evan fussed about his juice box not matching his shirt - they were clashing shades of green. I'm ready for them to wear uniforms to school!

E for Evan

Evan is very proud to be himself. He is also very proud of his first initial. So much so, that anywhere we go, anytime he spots the letter E, he is sure to point it out. "Look, Daddy! That sign has a E on it!" (Yes, it does!) "That's a E for Evan!" (Well, E is used for other words and names, too. It's not just for Evan.) "Yes it is! E is for Evan!" In fact, anywhere there is an E, just know that it is for Evan and don't bother trying to argue with him. This all started when we began marking juice boxes, kids meal leftovers, etc., with N for Nathan and E for Evan. Now, if there's an E on any item, he thinks it's his! Just this morning, he wanted to wear a red shirt for "paint the town red" day at his school (Local University homecoming this weekend - colors are red, white and black). He pulled out Nathan's red polo shirt and put it on. (Evan, that shirt is too big for you - that's Nathan's shirt.) "No, it's my shirt - it has two E's on it." I checked the tag... sure enough, the label read, "GEORGE". I told him it was George's shirt, but he just crossed his arms and said, "NO. E is for Evan!" I did manage to change shirts on him, because the one he had on didn't match his pants. That's another blog altogether!

Give-Away Car

While riding with me in the car, Nathan asked about a family friend he saw driving a different car. I informed him that they still had their first car, but they really needed a second one and one of their friends gave them the car he saw. He really thought that was nice, and suggested we make one of our vehicles a "give-away car" to someone in need. Just as I was swelling a little with pride that he had suggested such generosity, he spoke up, "That way, we could get a new car!" I replied, "You think we need a new car?" "Yes," he said, "I'm thinking we can get a convertible!" How generous of him!

All About Faces

Some of you may be aware, but after several miscarriages, Laura was nervous going into the first ultrasound while pregnant with Nathan. She prayed, "God, will I ever get to see this baby's face?" as she went to the appointment. During the ultrasound, the technician commented that it was rare to see a baby's face at that stage of pregnancy but Nathan had turned his face toward the ultrasound! Laura felt it was an answer to her prayer and that we would indeed see this child born!
Since birth, Nathan has been interested in faces. I remember his asking at a very young age about a sitter who was coming to watch him, "What kind of face does she have?" He still asks about new people (teachers, sitters, doctors, etc.) before meeting them. AND, he will tell us if someone has a nice face or not. As sibling battles erupt, he often tells Evan, "I don't like your face, Evan!" We discourage him strongly about such personal verbal attacks.

Perhaps because of Nathan's face obsession, Evan often comments on faces, too. One recent evening, Nathan had missed his nap and was having an emotional meltdown. He lashed out at me verbally as he informed me that he was NOT taking a bath, he didn't want me to TOUCH him, he didn't LIKE me, and he didn't like my FACE! Recognizing his fatigue and emotional instability, I scooped him up, informed him of his foolish behavior and choice of words, issued the due consequences for his actions, bathed him and put him to bed. After this little ordeal, I sat down on the sofa with Evan, who climbed into my lap, hugged me tight, then looked into my eyes and said with all the heartfelt sincerity in the world, "Daddy, I love your face!"

The Faces of Evan

A couple of years ago (yes, this blog's been around...), I posted some of Nathan's facial expressions (view here) for our entertaiment. Now, Evan is at that age and enjoys making faces himself. Here are some of Evan's "face shots" from the last few months...

dog squeezing face

gardener face

buckethead

human water pistol (just ask Nathan)

bathtub thug pose

I-didn't-do-it face

Maybe-Nathan-did-it face

ok-I-did-it-but-I-know-you-still-love-me face

The "Nahawk"

You've all heard of the "mohawk" - when a guy (or girl, I guess) shaves the sides of his head, so that their is basically a "racing stripe" of hair down the center of his head. Nathan's seen that on a couple of friends and family members at various points in his young life. Though they're usually short-lived, most little boys have done this at some point in time - or at least thought about it. Well, Nathan has had some crazy bathtub hair from time to time, and I'll often soap up his hair and stick it up like a mohawk just for fun. One recent evening, Laura was bathing the boys when Nathan grabbed just a few strands of soapy locks and pulled them straight up into the air. "Look mommy! It's a Nahawk!" Below is a dry-hair version...

The Monitor

Nathan found the boys' old baby monitor in a drawer and asked if he could use it. He decided he'd use it to talk to us and Evan from around the house. He set up the receiver in the kitchen for Laura and I to hear, and proceeded to test out the transmitter from around the house. At first, he was frustrated that he couldn't hear us, but I explained the difference between the monitor concept and a "walkie-talkie". He especially enjoyed placing the receiver near Evan and bossing him around from anywhere in the house. Evan just got a kick out of hearing Nathan via the monitor. We decided it was time to put the monitor system away when the boys began using the receiver and transmitter in their daily hand-to-hand combat session. Evan got mad and threw the transmitter at Nathan, while Nathan swung the receiver around by it's cord like a bolo. For some reason, I just anticipate stitches down the road with those two. Anyway, the next day was Sunday ("Vineyard Day" to the boys - our church is The Lafayette Vineyard Church) and Nathan wanted to bring the monitor to church. Nathan, why would you want to bring the monitor with you to the Vineyard? "Because, Dad - that way, I can hear Evan call me from his class if he needs me." From my experience, if Evan wanted Nathan to hear him calling, the whole Children's wing would know it - no monitor needed!

All By Myself

Evan wants to do EVERYTHING "all by myself". Get in the car, get out of the car, use the potty, put on clothes, take off clothes... you name it, he can do it (according to him) all by himself. It's great when he can actually do it, but when his underwear are pulled on like a kiddie-thong, his socks are on sideways, his shoes are on the wrong feet, and his shirt is on backwards, we just can't let him go out that way! Aside from looking silly, he could hurt himself! (Although, I wonder if the "thong" thing could prevent "accidents")

Not-So Sweet Release

It was a Saturday morning. September 20th, 2008. The sky was overcast; football played in the background on the television. "Daddy, I need-a poop!" I'd heard that before - AFTER there had already been a "deposit". If at first you don't succeed... So I sat there in the bathroom, on the side of the tub, waiting for the usual, "I don't need-a poop" statement. All of a sudden, there was a look of strain mixed with fear of the unknown - "Daddy!" "It's ok, pal!" Evan bent over, looked between his legs into the bowl and looked back at me with a wide-eyed, super-surprised expression and then whispered in amazement, "I just pooped in-a potty!" "NAAAATHAAANNN!!!!" we called. He was so excited for Evan, too! We all did a happy dance in the bathroom and congratulated Evan with smiles, laughter and high-fives (followed by a group hand-washing). My little boy is becoming a MAN!

End of An Era

Ok, so it's not necessarily an "era" in the traditional sense, but it is a milestone for Evan! There was a bag with a note on it, left in his "cubby" on Tuesday at the daycare. The bag was full of unused pull-up/training diapers. The note read, "Evan doesn't need these any more, so we're sending them home." YYYYAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!!!! We've been working on his potty training for a while, and he's been urinating in the toilet regularly - both sitting and standing (oh, what fun that can be!). The problem has been that he just wouldn't poop on the pot! So, we asked if the bag and note meant he'd finally crossed that threshold. Nope. But, he's really doing well at not having accidents and he's so proud of his Lightning McQueen underwear assortment, that we couldn't get a pull-up on him if we wanted to. He's still using a diaper to sleep at night, but that's it. So, what about the poop? Well, it's been two days since the poop hit the... So, we think he's holding it. We just hope the impending release is over a toilet somewhere!

Most Of The Time...

While visiting Granny and Grandpa Hazlewood in Oxford, MS, Nathan was sharing what he'd been learning at school with Granny. He had told her about the wise and foolish child, and the question was asked, "Are you a wise child or a foolish child?" Nathan quickly replied, "Both. But, most of the time, I'm very wise!" We appreciate his honesty!

Peace, Be Still!

The boys are both learning to pray about various situations. They often remind us of things we need to pray for at bedtime: family members, specific needs("Uncle Brian's arm"), even things that don't make sense to us at the moment - and then come to our attention later. It's really cool to recognize their childlike, matter-of-fact faith. If they pray for something, they're not surprised if their prayers are answered in the manner they prayed for it. They're surprised if their prayers don't get the desired results. That gives us the opportunity to teach them of God's sovereignty and that His ways are higher than ours. As we were preparing to evacuate our home ahead of Hurricane Gustav ("we're going to visit Granny and Grandpa!"), Nathan had his usual long list of questions... "Is a hurricane like a tornado?" "Is it going to smash our house all up into little pieces and blow it away?" "Am I going to go to school in the hurricane?" "Can I bring some books and toys?"

Preparing for bed the night before we left, Laura read the boys the story of Jesus calming a storm. From their Children's Bible she read, "Jesus told the storm to stop. Right away it was calm." Nathan looked toward the window and yelled, "STOP, STORM!" He then informed Laura that the hurricane was not going to come now. Laura encouraged the boys to pray and ask Jesus to calm the hurricane and protect our home.

FYI: Though hurricane Gustav did come through Lafayette, our home, trees, power, etc. was left intact. Thanks for all of your prayers, too! Now, we just have to pray for IKE to dissipate!

Feel The Power

The boys and I were part of our church Vacation Bible School in late July. The theme for the VBS was "Power Lab - Experiencing Jesus' Miraculous Power". Each night, the kids learned a new truth from the Bible about Jesus' power. Each time they would discover a new truth, they would all raise their hand in the air and exclaim, "AHA!" The boys had such a great time learning and playing that they wanted to keep going to Power Lab even after it was over. They still love the songs and sing them regularly around the house. Playing the role of the wacky professor in each night's opening assembly, I colored my hair (head and face) a different color each night. Many of the kids got into the hair coloring, including the boys...

Catchin' Up

My apologies for the lapse (again)... new schedules, meetings, hurricane/evacuation... I've just not taken the time to blog! Anyway, I'll summarize the boys' school start-up: BOTH of the guys had GREAT first days at school! Surprisingly, Nathan loves his new school. He not only enjoys going, but he also gets excited about the "after care" program where he stays after school three days a week. He's been letting us know that "a wise child makes his parents very happy, but a foolish child makes his parents very sad"(sung to a cute little tune). He also is learning that a wise child obeys the instruction of teacher and parents "the first time, every time, and with a happy heart!" He's such a trooper, he hops out of the car and marches to his class without assistance in the mornings. He is not a "morning person" in that he jumps up ready to go, but if you wake him gently and sit with him a little while (Laura usually wakes him and rocks with him for about 20 min.), he warms up nicely in time to eat breakfast and head to school. When asked after week one how he liked his new school, Nathan replied, "I really like it, Dad!" I then asked if he liked it better than Fisher (his "old school") and he said, "Yes! I like it SO MUCH!"

Evan loves his "new school", too. He's actually still at Fisher, but he's moved to a new building and classroom. He's been doing better with his potty training (positive peer pressure), and he's making a name for himself at school, too. The teachers there have commented, "Evan is so different from Nathan!" Nathan was a quiet, thoughtful and compliant child there (there were some pretty strong and loud personalities in his K3 class). Evan, on the other hand, is one of those strong, loud personalities. He's a "jump first, consider the consequences later" kid. He's learning not to hit or throw toys at his friends and to not call other kids or his teachers "stupid".


Parenting tip: Both "Cars" and "The Lion King" have characters calling others "stupid".


In spite of some time-outs at school and spankings at home for his unacceptable behavior and attitude, Evan is doing great. He was only going three days a week, as last year, until this month. He fussed so much on the days Nathan went to school and he didn't ("I don't want to stay home - I want to go to my new school!") that we decided to let him go all week. We'll still keep him home some days to have "Evan days", but he seems to really enjoy the structure and time with the other kids.


More to come, but here are their first day of school pics...

The Final Countdown

Nathan visited his new class today. He met his teacher, Mrs. Mayers (pronounced "Myers"). He investigated the classroom, his seat, the toys and supplies, the restroom with a short potty, the playground and the John Deere all-terrain trikes. I asked him on the way to the orientation if he was excited about his new school. "I'm SO EXCITED, Daddy!!" was his reply. Though he went a little shy initially, I think he likes his new school, class and teacher so far. He even recognized a boy from his old school named Kyle, even though they were in different classes there. He's excited that he has a backpack and lunch bag and he's proud of his "graduating" to this new school. He did seem a little concerned for Evan still being at the old place, but encouraged Evan, "You're gonna be ok at my old school, buddy!" Evan doesn't seem to care, probably since they rarely saw each other during the day anyway. Pray for us and for the boys on Wednesday morning - new classes, new teachers, new classmates for both of them. I think they'll both do just fine.

Writer's Block

I don't know how else to describe the busy-ness of the last few weeks - preparing for and running an evening Vacation Bible School at our church with boys in tow(and fighting); shopping for the impossible school supplies list for Nathan's new school (K-4); attempting to keep our house in some order while the boys seem to stay one room ahead of us with their mess-making (and fighting). It's not that I haven't had things to blog about, my attempts have simply been blocked by the very subject matter that is our lives. So, I hope to catch up a little this week, but here's one of the latest discussions with Nathan...

"Daddy! I just farted!"
"Nathan, where did you learn that word?"
"I don't know... ____ says that when he toots."
"Well, I don't like you saying that. It doesn't sound very nice coming out of your mouth."
"What do I say when I toot?"
"You don't really need to say anything - usually the people around you are already aware of what you did."
"But, what if I need to tell Evan or somebody?"
"Tell them you tooted. You don't 'fart'."
"Do you fart?"
"Yes, but I'm a man. When you're a man, you'll fart. Little boys and girls don't "fart", they "toot"."
"What about mommy, does she fart?"
"Nope. Mommy is a lady. Ladies toot."
(Pause...)
"Daddy, can I foot (pronounced 'fute')?"
(Laughter at his persistence, imagination and creativity...)
"Sure, Nathan, you can 'foot'. Just don't do it too close to me!"

Look out, Westminster (Nathan's new school), here he comes!

Good Samerican

The boys have a really cool picture bible that we frequently read one or more stories from at bedtime. On a recent night, Nathan climbed into bed with the book and requested a particular story. "I wanna read the story about that hurt man with just his underwear on!" We knew immediately what he was talking about. Laura said, "That's the story about the Good Samaritan." "No," Nathan responded, "the one with the hurt man in the underwear!" "It's the same story, Nathan... it's the story about the Good Samaritan, who helped the hurt man." Nathan processed everything for a moment and said, "Ok, let's read about the Good Samerican!"

Sweet Boy

One of the nicknames Laura has used, at times, for Evan (and Nathan, but mostly Evan), is "sweet boy". He really is a sweet kid and, as agressive as he can be one minute, he is just as tender-hearted and loving the next. But his sweetness is not limited to his personality or even his love for sweet red grapes and watermelon. No, Evan's sweetness extends out to his sweet epidermis, as well! He has apparently inherited his dad's natural mosquito attractant! I remember sleeping in a tent with two other boys on a camping trip, with about ten mosquitos inside and I was the only one who got bitten. I know the signs: the whole family is outside and when we come in, only one of us has mosquito bites - all 8 of them! Unfortunately, he also has some sort of allergy that causes the bites to swell up with water blisters occasionally.
Please pray for Evan, that God might relieve him of his mosquito magnetism. Until then, I'll be giving him garlic pills and tobasco regularly. Maybe that will keep those nasty little vampires away from my boy!

Exhausted

We were getting the boys loaded up into the car to bring them to school. As I chased Evan down, he stopped at the rear of Nathan's Mustang PowerWheels car and commented, "Daddy! That Mustang has TWO exhausts!" "Yep," I replied, "that's because Nathan's got a Mustang GT!" As Laura was loading him into his car seat, he informed her, "Mommy, the Mustang has TWO exhausts!" "Wow, that's neat!" she replied. Then he completed his thought, "Evan only has ONE exhaust!" (And, Thank God for that!)

Evan's Independence Day

When Evan would relieve himself in a diaper, we would call it "tee-tee" or "poops". "Hey Evan, ya got poops?" I would ask if he seemed to be "low-riding". Lately, we don't have to ask if his diaper needs changing - we know right away when he runs by with a naked bottom! He's been tee-teeing on his little potty more and more regularly, and asking for "underwear like Nathan" in place of a diaper or pull-up. I dug out some hand-me-down underwear for him (it's not as bad as it might seem - Nathan was very clean!) and put a pair on him last week. He ran around yelling through the house, "I'm wearing UNDERWAYER!" He's also wanted some specialty underwear like Nathan (Cars, monster trucks, Scooby-Doo...) I promised, "When you start pooping in the potty, then we'll get you some monster truck underwear like Nathan!" Tonight (July 7, 2008), at approximately 7:05 PM, he went to his potty, pulled down his "underwayer" and went to work. No one was in there with him to encourage or help. Laura was in the kitchen, I was on the phone in our bedroom, and Nathan was outside. I was not surprised to see him coming around the corner naked from the waist down. He said, "Daddy, I got poops!" "What? Where?," I asked as I placed my phone conversation on hold. "Inna potty... and on my leg!" he whined, as he turned to show me his "dirt". He ran away from me down the hall to his bathroom, where I witnessed the deposit - in the bowl, on the seat, and on the floor. I guess he got so excited that he stood up to admire his "work" before he was finished. Anyway, I ignored the messiness of his mess and yelled excitedly, "YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT!" as we high-fived and jumped up and down (not in the poops). I gained my composure and called for Laura to come see (and help). Now, I've got to fulfill my promise: vvvvrrrrRRROOOOOMMM!!!!

Evan, the Entertainer

Evan loves to entertain. If he does something you find humorous, he'll be doing it all week! He has a thousand "funny faces", no doubt some of which he gleaned from his brother (revisit "express yourself" from 2006). Nathan has such an infectious laugh, that you can't help but want to make him keep laughing once he starts. Maybe that's why Evan loves to entertain Nathan the most. Whether trying to pee in the toilet while standing in the tub, gargling milk, blowing bubbles in his milk until it foams over the top of the glass and onto the table, running from mommy, or singing the Barney song (Evans version: "I love you, you love me, a happy FAM-A-LEEEE") sends Nathan (and often times the rest of us) into smiles and laughter. The biggest issue we have with Entertainer Evan is that Nathan comes up with some really crazy and sometimes dangerous ideas for Evan to attempt, and Evan's fearless enough to try anything once!

Scent of a Mommy

Evan was whining for Laura one evening while she was in the shower. Finally, she emerged, fresh and clean! Evan ran up to her and hugged her tightly. "Mommy, were you taking a shower?" Yes I was. "Mommy, are you all clean?" I sure am. "I wanna smell you, Mommy!" Ok. (Snifffff) "Mmmm, you smell nice, Mommy!" What do I smell like? (Big smile and loving tilt of his head toward her) "Scwambled Eggs!" (Better scwambled than hard-boiled, I guess!)

Old Enough To Drive

We'd been riding around The Villages in golf carts all week, because that's what you do when you're there. Nathan enjoyed riding next to me most of the time, asking a million questions along the way... "What are those bells for in that church?" "Are they loud?" "When do they ring?" "Why do they have a lighthouse at that lake?" "What makes it spin?" "Does it still spin when the light is off in the daytime?" "What makes the golf cart go?" "Where's the engine?" "Where's the exhaust (on the gas cart)?" "Does the electric golf cart have an exhaust?" "Can I see the batteries?" "Why does everybody drive golf carts here?" "How old is Grandad (after his birthday celebration)?" "When is my birthday?" "When I'm five, I'm gonna be old enough to drive a golf cart!" (Notice, that wasn't a question - in his mind!)

The Petting Pool, pt.2 (the brunette)

The day after "sasquatch", we were back at the same pool. Thankfully, hairy-man and his family were on a different schedule. There were however, two sisters (3 and 5), who arrived a little after us and began to play near us on the steps. The older girl was very friendly, and wanted to play with the boys. Nathan was acting shy, and Evan was off in the deep with Laura and his Aunt Leesa. When they came back near the steps, the older girl was helping Nathan and I channel water from the pool jet through a foam "noodle" to make a fountain. Evan arrived, and stared for a moment at the slightly older brunette beauty before him. He had a dazed look on his face, as if he'd never seen a girl before. He smiled and made a beeline for the young princess. Focused on the fountain with Nathan, the poor girl did not notice Evan until he reached out and stroked her tanned shoulder with a big, cheesy grin on his face. She turned toward him, and (after an awkward moment of silence and with a little prodding from Dad) he said, "I'm Evan! What's your name?" I don't know if we'll ever run into Alissa again, but I'm sure gonna keep a close eye on that boy around the ladies from now on!

The Petting Pool, pt.1 (Sasquatch)

We've been to a couple of petting zoo attractions over the last month - one at the fair (mostly goats), and one at the Zoo of Acadiana (what's with all the goats?). On our Florida vacation, we did not visit any petting zoo, in the traditional sense, but that did not stop Evan from petting...

We were fine, minding our own business at the neighborhood pool, enjoying vacation time with the boys, their Aunt Leesa and their grandma. This particular pool has a nice, large step area and our boys were playing on them with Laura and I. Another family arrived and the dad was trying to encourage his young son not to fear the water. He was showing him that he could play along the steps like Nathan and Evan, without being afraid of going under. As they moved toward us, I noticed Evan inching his way closer to the man's back. Now, understand this man was quite hairy, unlike Evan's dad (or mom). Before I could get to him, Evan reached out in amazement and rubbed his hand across the man's back. The man turned to Evan, who just smiled real big, looked at his shoulder, and gave another few pets. I called out, "Evan, what are you doing to that man?" He looked at me as if to say, "Dad, can you believe the hair on this guy?!" - AS HE STROKED THE MANS SHOULDER AGAIN! The man was very gracious, laughed, and said "He's ok. He's probably never seen anything with this much hair outside of the zoo before!" I simply smiled and laughed (how could I disagree?) and was thankful Evan didn't PULL!

The Puppy

Uncle Brian and Aunt Leesa have an 8 month old puppy named "Pebbles". She's a "Yorkapoo" (Hey, I'm not making this stuff up, I'm just reporting it! But, seriously, couldn't we add "a-poo" to the end of every breed of dog?). Anyway, Pebbles is full of excitement and bouncy energy, which makes Evan want to run and play with her and makes Nathan want to run away. Nathan spent most of his time climbing sofas, chairs, walls and me, trying to escape the ferocious hound...

Evan spent most of his time petting, chasing and grappling the poor little thing...

By the way, after the first night of interaction, I asked Evan if he had fun playing with the puppy. "Yeah," he replied, "I had fun with that doggie." Do you remember her name? "Pebble." That's pretty good, but actually, her name is "Pebbles" with an "s". He replied matter-of-factly, "No, it's Pebble." Evan, why do you think her name is "Pebble"? "'Cause it's just one!"

New Buddy

Evan made some new friends on our trip to Florida. The first of his new friends was his uncle Brian. We were eating supper and Evan was not doing very much eating himself. He kept trying to get down and run around the house, excited by the new surroundings and new people. His uncle Brian grabbed his plate and invited Evan to come sit by him. He then proceeded to feed Evan via planes, trains and automobiles as he sat next to him. From that time on, Evan was quick to follow, play with and ride along with Uncle Brian in his golf cart everywhere we went together. (He really liked his aunt Leesa, too!) It was nice to have a small break from being the only supervision for our little "busy bee"!

Cake and Ice Cream

Popcorn

1st Time On A Harley

Are We There Yet?

It had been a couple of years since we visited the boys' maternal grandparents in Florida, so we compared the flight/rental car cost to the gas/mental expenses of driving 12+ hours with our guys and opted for the latter. These are the adventures they'll remember for the rest of their lives! Me, too. I'll remember "Dad, are we almost there?" questions before we got to Baton Rouge. I'll remember I should have packed our not-quite-potty-trained two-year-old's clothes on the top of the trunked items (for the two times we had to do complete changes from over-filled diapers). I'll remember the one "surprise bag" toy we bought for along-the-way entertainment that did not have an identical pairing and the weeklong fight that followed over it. I'll remember their adventures (with us) on their grandparents' golfcart. I'll remember Nathan climbing to the top of the sofa to escape a tiny little dog named Pebbles, and Evan clutching the same dog one-handed by her belly fur (Look, Daddy, I holding the doggie!). I'll remember swimming pool adventures, Father's Day at the Magic Kingdom, and light-house hunting. I'll remember low-mounted light switches, grandfather clock pendulums, and low-mounted fan switches. I'll remember lighthouse adventures, splashing in fountains, echoes in tunnels, and the frog in the A/C fan (It's hard to stop a Trane!). I'll remember 20 minute potty breaks where no one went. I'll remember the value of "sippy cups" in the car, rain ponchos at amusement parks, and a family that weathered the storm of our boys' visit. (What doesn't kill you makes you stronger!) I'll share more specific snapshots (and pics) of our trip in the blogs ahead, but for now we're all glad to be home in one piece!

"Batend" Watch

I bought the boys some kid's meals from Whataburger and there were little "wrist launchers" inside - a plastic watch-like toy that shoots little plastic discs at the desired target (translation: your brother). The boys' uncle Brad got them set up with these things before they ate, so they basically did not eat until an hour later (thanks, brother!). Nathan announced, "Daddy! This is a Batend Watch!" (Huh?) "What, Nathan?" "It's a Batend Watch!" "Well, it's not a watch, buddy, it's a wrist launcher!" "No, dad, it's a Batend Watch! Tony has one, too!" Tony is a friend of the boys, and they had played at he and his brothers' recently. Tony is sort of between Nathan and Evan in age, and I guess his "batend watch" is a "pretend watch". I attempted to correct my son, the word wiz... "Nathan, I think you mean 'pretend' watch, not 'batend'." "No, Dad, it's 'batend', with a 'B' - 'Buh' - Ba-tend!"

Yep - he's all mine!

Fair Play

The Cajun Heartland State Fair is a week-long event that starts every Memorial Day weekend, with live music, lots of traveling fair rides and food, petting zoo, and that guy that makes art out of logs with his chainsaws (personally, I wonder if he's ever worked with ice). The boys had never been to a fair, with the carnival rides and all, so it was an exciting new adventure for all. The boys were first interested in the "Wild Mouse" ride - a fairly tame roller coaster - so we bought some ride tickets and headed for the line. Evan, of course, was too small to ride, but Nathan was tall enough to ride with an adult. Note: Being "tall enough" does not equate to "ready" to ride a particular attraction. Once we were near the line, Nathan decided to take a detour off to the side of the thing and see how it worked. Lots of gears, wheels, track, clicking, clacking, dips and turns... after watching several passes of the ride, Nathan quietly informed me he did not want to ride this one. "That's ok, Nathan! Let's go find some stuff you might want to ride!" I encouraged. And we sure did! The boys drove a "big rig" cab, with two steering wheels, lights and horn. Then my little speed junkies wanted to drive in a NASCAR race. The cars were lined up single file, and Nathan knew which one he wanted to drive - the green one! I was just about to load Evan in beside him, when Evan told me "No, I wanna drive dat one!" He pointed to the car behind Nathan's, so I belted him into it and moved outside the gate to watch. Somehow, in a momentary lapse of sanity, I failed to realize that these little kiddie racecars simply putt-putt around the "strait-away" of the little oval, but whip around the two corners. Not a problem if the boys are riding together. Probably not a problem if Evan had witnessed the cars in front of him do this first. The problem was that I placed him in a car with one of these whip-it turns right in front of him. So, just as I'm outside of the gate, standing next to Laura as we prepare to enjoy the boys enjoying their race, the operator hits the on button. There was no "here we go!" There was no, "ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!" There was not any indication that he was about to launch our sweet little "Boopy" into near orbit, unleashing such shock and awe on the kid that I could only wonder at the amount of counseling may be someday needed to undo my abandoning him to such torture. The ride was only a few minutes, but Evan cried for me to rescue him the ENTIRE TIME. Everyone around us felt so sorry for him, and I'm sure I'm off their ballot for "Dad of the week".

Thankfully, there was a petting zoo around the corner! After petting and feeding the "Baskin Robbins" petting zoo (it was mostly comprised of about 31 varieties of goat), Evan was better. He refused to get on any more "ride-a-vehicle-around-in-a-circle" rides, but he did go down the super slide with us a few times, and I'm pretty sure the overall memory will be a positive one! Nathan wants to know when we're going back.

Jelly Bean Bobo

Evan got chewed up by some mosquitos recently, and had several large bite blisters on his legs. Whether his scratching irritated one particular bite, or whether it swelled up without provocation is unknown. What I do know is that Evan woke up the following morning with a sizeable water blister on his shin. He hurried to show the rest of us his new growth, and exclaimed, "Mommy! Daddy! Look at my jelly bean bobo!"

Booger Nose

One thing about our boys is that they like to come up with creative entertainment. The downside is that, if they wake up before anyone else, they may create entertainment at the expense of those still sleeping. I remember faintly hearing Evan say, "wake up, Daddy!" in his little sing-song voice. I smiled and considered opening my eyes, just as his fingers opened one for me. Both boys were thoroughly amused by that trick, as I fumbled to protect myself from further probing.

Recently, Nathan woke up from his nap before Evan. It was a Sunday afternoon, and the whole family was napping together in our bed. Nathan pulled out a sizeable booger and Laura (also awake) asked him where he thought he was going to put it. The point she was trying to make was that he'd better not flick it, stick it or eat it. The idea was that he slip out of the bed and get a Kleenex or toilet paper or napkin to dispose of his little "nose goblin". Nathan had a different idea - he reached over and stuck it in Evan's nose while Evan was still sleeping! Thankfully, Evan is a heavy nostril breather when he sleeps, and the thing shot right out. Being out myself, I don't know what ultimately happened, but Laura was too tickled to notice where the thing ended up. I'd better go check my ears...

All The Marbles

We've been having to give Nathan lessons on stealing and lying recently. He took a couple of marbles from Party City (supposedly they were found loose somewhere). Nathan asked me to hold his marbles while he got into his car seat. "Where did you get these?" I asked. "They were just in a box in the store," he replied. "Son, that's called 'stealing' when we take things without permission or without paying for them. You have to take them back." I brought him back inside to return them and apologize to the clerk. "Daddy, can we just put them back where I got them?" Nope. I wanted him to hand them to the young man and apologize for taking them. He did a good job and seemed embarrassed enough that I felt he understood the lesson. Within an hour, at Walmart, we had an opportunity for review of said lesson, as he placed a wind-up flashlight in our basket while Laura and I were loading the purchased and bagged groceries. (It makes me wonder how many of those checkout area items go home with people who don't return them.) I had told him he could not get one of these flashlights on this trip, but he slipped it into the basket in hopes we'd bring it home and let him have it. I saw it a few short feet past the checkout. "Nathan, how did this flashlight get into our buggy?!" He lied, "Evan put it in there." In addition to our anti-theft policy, Nathan is learning is that lying always hurts (especially his bottom) more than telling the truth!

Quick Draw

Nathan and Evan were playing outside in the sprinkler. They got bored with it, so they changed out the sprinkler for the sprayer and watered the plants on the back porch (along with everything else out there). After that, Evan grabbed a broom and started sweeping the water off - I'm glad our boys are helpers! Nathan, meanwhile, decided to try out the different nozzle settings on the sprayer - mist, fan, flat, shower, jet! Yep, "jet" was his favorite! He could shoot clear across the yard with it! He could shoot over the fence with it - sorry, Carlos! Laura went out there to make sure he wasn't ruining our neighborly relationships. "Mommy! Look how fast it shoots!" he exclaimed, as he pointed it her direction. She's pretty quick, but she ain't quick enough for Outlaw Nathan! Being in the living room, I missed the excitement. All of a sudden, Laura was standing in the doorway, riddled with water pellets. I knew what had happened. We both smiled. "You get it next!" (I wonder if the other hose can stretch back there...)

Rain On Your Face

Nathan had been acting out a little all afternoon, and had been corrected twice on a particular issue. When he tested me again, I disciplined him firmly for the repeat offense. As Nathan sat in his chair crying, Evan watched the scene with curiosity and concern. "What happened to Nathan, Daddy?" "Nathan got in trouble for repeatedly disobeying Daddy and Mommy," I replied. Evan studied Nathan for a moment, then exclaimed, "Daddy! It's raining on Nathan's face!" I guess my "storm" brought a rain shower along with it!

Big Kids

Nathan identifies all children in one of three categories: Babies, Little Kids and Big Kids. I remember the first time he informed us he wasn't a baby anymore. At that time, there were only two categories: Babies and Big kids. Since going to preschool, he's added the little kids designation, and has determined that to be his place. Recently, though, he told me he's not really a little kid anymore - he's almost a big kid now. He's started calling Laura and I "Mom" and "Dad" more often than "Mommy" and "Daddy". Anyway, he's riding with me last week and, as we drove past a middle school with kids playing outside, he commented, "Dad! Look at those big kids! That's a big-kid school!" I informed him that it was called a "middle school", because that's where kids go who are too big for elementary and not yet ready for high school. A little later, we passed by a high school. There was much more parking lot area and cars. Nathan concluded, "Hey, Dad! That school is for really big kids! And, they can drive!" (Another category!) I told him it was a high school. "Yeah, and there's lots of really big kids there, Dad - like you!" (I assumed he meant "tall" like me, although he could have meant what he said - "really big kids like you") "Maybe there's some '37' kids like you, Daddy!" (yes, he knows my age) I laughed out loud and said, "Yeah, probably so, but the '37 kids' are the teachers. And, just for the record, I'm 38, if you count the womb time." (That should keep him thinking...)

Mother's Day

Nathan and Evan planted flowers in little cups, decorated with flowery paper and love notes for mommy at school. They painted pictures for her and picked out a card for her with two young brothers on the front - fighting in the bathtub! My favorite part of the mother's day preparation was when I asked them what they wanted to tell mommy, so I could write it in their card to her. Almost in unison, their first reply was, "I love mommy!" I wrote "I love you, mommy". Nathan then added, "I want to tell mommy 'thank you'." Simple, yet without prompting, I was proud of my four-year-old "getting it". His mother, as all of ours, is worthy of his thanks and his love. Happy Mothers' Day to all of our Moms, Stepmoms, Grandmas and Grannies. Happy Mothers' Day to our sisters, sister-in-law, aunts, cousins and friends. May your children always love you and have gratitude for the investments and sacrifices you've made in their lives. I know our family is grateful to you all!

Healing

Nathan is SOOOooooo much better! He's been sleeping through the night this week, after some in-the-night pain episodes over last weekend. He's starting to sound more like Nathan - the nasal, higher-pitched voice that came after the surgery is fading into the familiar tones we know. He's fighting with Evan without hesitation or fear of hurting anything again. And, his appetite is much more than we remember before his oft-swollen tonsils were cleared out. Oh, yeah, and his breath doesn't smell so bad anymore! (If that alone was an indicator, I know some adults who should have tonsillectomies asap!) Now, as summer approaches, our next endeavor with Nathan is to get the boy a bicycle. I just have to convince him and his mom that training wheels are for girls and sissies. (That's what my dad's approach was when I was four!) I remember being upset that I couldn't have them like the other kids in the neighborhood, but once I learned how to ride, I was the envy of them all. I had a freedom they did not know! So, I plan to teach him by the old hold-onto-the-seat-until-he-pedals-faster-than-I-can-keep-up-and-then-let-go-and-watch-him-slam-into-a-parked-truck method. (Why did my dad teach me to ride my bike in our apartment parking lot, anyway?) Maybe I'll take him to a nice, big, empty lot instead! Oh, and maybe I'll get him a helmet! (They only helmet I had when I was a kid was for football and baseball batting!) We haven't selected a bike just yet, so stay tuned.

What's For Supper?

As Nathan and Evan learn to discern what Laura and I are talking about, we're going to have to come up with a new code. Maybe we should learn a foreign language (as if they wouldn't learn it faster than we could)! For example, when considering letting the boys have and Icee or snocone, we can't spell it, because they've "cracked the code". Of course, how hard is it to crack the I-C-E-E code - it sounds the same way spelling or saying it. So, we were discussing what we were going to do for supper and, after hesitating to consider if they'd pick this one up, I offered, "P-I-Z-Z-A?" Laura shrugged, and Nathan piped up, "HEYYY..." "DANG IT!" I thought to myself, "another one bites the dust!" Just as I was considering entering the boy in a spelling bee, he finished his thought, "You wanna eat some letters?!"

Sick, sick, SICK!

As if the drama surrounding Nathan's tonsillectomy was not enough to deal with for the past week, it seems that Laura and I both got hit with some mean sinus crud and I got some sort of g.i. bug as a bonus! (In case you were wondering what was going on.) When we brought Nathan in for his surgery follow-up this morning, Laura asked about a piggy-back exam with our doctor. She ended up getting a shot (which Nathan was excited to witness). The doctor then looked at me and asked, "How are you feeling? You don't look too good!" I managed to avoid a shot, but got some antibiotics prescribed after a brief exam and review of my symptoms from the last week. I am happy to report that Nathan is improving, though, and got the non-dissolvable stitches in his ear removed today. The doctor gave him a good report and she thinks everything is healing great. Evan is doing fine, himself, and is finally appearing ready to potty train. He peed on (and around) his training potty last night - twice! YAY, I think.

Tonsils, Be Gone!

The night before Nathan's big surgery, Evan's stomach bug unleashed all it's fury - multiple pureed BM's and a 2:30 AM yak session in the middle of our bed! So, with the diaper changes, sheet changes and middle-of-the-night bathing, there was not much sleep for anyone except Nathan that night. Due to Evan's ills, Laura kept him home from daycare while I carted Nathan off to the surgery center solo. He was a real trooper! When it was time to go, he made me proud by going with the nurse and anesthesiologist all by himself. His surgery went very well, according to his doctor, and I was finally called back to recovery.

My son's world was seriously rocked! He was still coming out of anesthesia and moaning, drooling, hurting and scared. I did my best to comfort him, but the nurse did better than I when she shot a little painkiller into his IV. Considering he went into surgery about 9:20 AM, and we left around 12:15PM, I'd say things went quite well. He did puke on the ride home, but no blood was a comforting site. After we got him home, he did pretty well. We started on his hydrocodone and the games began! We soon realized that four-year-olds on narcotics are an emotional roller-coaster, and you never know what you're getting next!

One minute Nathan wanted nothing to drink, no one to talk to him or touch him, and just sat there as glazed over as a dozen Meche's donuts! Next thing you know, he's wanting to go outside, talk up a storm, ask a million questions about a million things, drink a gallon of tea (that's a good thing) and play with Evan. We had to reign in some of his sudden, manic behavior to keep him from hurting himself. We had feared the worst drama would be trying to get him to drink or eat anything. In reality, his biggest first day drama was when he cried 30 minutes b/c we couldn't let him have a cheeseburger! We compromised and let him eat some scrambled eggs and he helped make them with food coloring! (thanks, Dr. Seuss!)

The next two days proved to be pretty good. Evan got over his stomach woes, Nathan became a little more balanced and Laura and I caught up on some of our rest. In the photo below, you'll notice the covering over the left ear. When Nathan was born, the top portion of his left ear was adhesed together, as if someone pinched the top of his ear and it got stuck that way. We said that he was "earmarked" for us by God. We all know that kids can find enough to pick on each other about without giving any obvious reasons to do so. We decided, since he was going to be under anesthesia and his doctor also does reconstructive work, we would have his ear repaired at the same time of the other procedure. We've not removed it yet, but will on Friday.

Thanks for your prayers and encouragement. Continue to pray that Nathan's healing will be quick and complete. The sooner we get him off the drugs, the sooner we can have some sense of normality around here! Come to think of it, the next time he gets the manic talkative thing going, maybe we'll let him call some of his grandparents!!

Prayers for Nathan

Please keep Nathan in your prayers this week (along with the rest of us), as he is having a tonsillectomy/adnoidectomy Tuesday(April 22) at 7:30AM, and will need 7-10 days to recover (according to his doctor). Those of you that know Nathan well know full well that he can be somewhat melodramatic at times, so we're hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. It doesn't help that Evan has had some sort of stomach bug with diarrhea for the past two days! (When it rains, it poops!) I'll try to update Nathan's recovery status regularly for all of you.

Time for a Pedi?

Evan went running across the living room and tripped right into the sofa. There was nothing in his way, so he apparently just tripped on his own. As Laura picked him up to console him after he planted his face into the front of the couch, Nathan observed, "I think somebody needs to trim their toenails!"

Family Come-over

After a few weeks with no family visits, we had Friday night guests from Dallas family, Saturday afternoon visit from Paw-Paw and Nana Peck, and Sunday visit from Grandma and Grandad Soldner. On Saturday evening, as Nathan was assessing the first two visits and reminding us of the Sunday visit coming up the next day, he exclaimed excitedly, "Hey Mommy! We're just having a BIG Family Come-over this weekend!"

Honkin' Moose

Nathan and Laura were discussing the Backyardigans cartoon series, which is one of Laura's favorites (Nathan's, too - next to the John Deere series). So, they get on the issue of each of the characters' species and Laura informs Nathan that "Tasha" is a hippo and "Tyrone" is a moose. Nathan wanted to know what the difference was, so Laura informs him that a moose has "horns"(antlers). Nathan attempted to refute her claim, stating "No, he doesn't have horns! Tyrone has four ears!" Laura explained that he only has two ears and that the bigger objects on the side of his head were called "horns"(antlers, actually, but I'm not one to harp on such things ;-). So, Nathan thinks about it for about 1.3 seconds and says, "how does he make them honk?"

Keep Your Shirt On

Evan and I were hanging out at Girard Park (where the ducks are!) one recent Monday morning. He had a doctor appointment close by and Nathan was at school, so it was just the two of us. After chasing ducks and squirrels, dodging droppings along the sidewalk from the afore-mentioned creatures, and guarding Evan from diving into the pond (barely), it was time to leave. As we drove past the tennis/raquetball practice wall, Evan spotted a man on the court who had taken his shirt off... "DADDY! Dat man take a shirt off!" (Yes, he did, buddy!) "He need a keep a shirt on!" (Yes, son, he really does!) I only wish we'd been in earshot of the man - perhaps Evan could have saved him further embarassment!

Coming Out Party

Another week, another "Nathan's-got-a-fever-and-his-tonsils-are-swollen-red-and-pus-filled" episode! I had enough. Enough of my son getting sick. Enough of his apparent allergy to going outside for more than 20 minutes. I took matters into my own hands. Ok, so maybe I didn't take his tonsils into my own hands, but I did take those nasty critters (grotesquely encased in Nathan's throat) down to the specialist Laura and I go to for ENT/Allergy stuff. After a brief history discussion of Nathan's illnesses and a look inside, she informed us that those boogers should have probably come out some time ago and we needed to get them out asap. Though I dread trying to explain to Nathan ("Does Dr. Doucet have needles?") about having something cut out of his throat, I look forward to the day my son will be free from this cycle of sickness. Surgery is Tuesday, April 22, and hell-on-earth may ensue the following week with our "drama king". Thank you for your prayers!!

Deere John

Nathan has been really into a set of John Deere videos that cover pretty much anything and everything the company has ever made. Tractors, combines, farm equipment, construction and logging equipment, collectibles, etc. are all examined, explained, and explored. He and Evan like the little songs from the videos... "It's all about John Deere..." "Johnny Popper..." (a nickname for some of the early two-cylinder engines that made a popping sound when running). His favorite video this week is the one that features the logging equipment. I think he just likes to say, "feller-buncher", which is the name for a unit that can latch onto a tree, cut it at ground level, move to another one and continue the process for several trees before bringing them to a truck. Hence the name, "feller" -felling/cutting the tree, and "buncher" - bunching several cut trees together. (Troy, I guess you may have seen these before!) Anyway, Nathan is learning all about farm and construction and forestry equipment and I really didn't thing he'd be using this knowledge before age six. I was wrong. We passed by some new road construction recently and he was yelling from the back seat, "DADDY! HEY, DAD! Look at those doziers and excavators!!" Sure 'nuff, there were several of them out there. "Look at their big crawler tracks!" They were pretty big. Just then, he spotted a truck we'd not seen around here before... "LOOK, Daddy! They have an articulated dump truck!!" I laughed out loud and agreed with him as I considered how very articulate my four-year-old is!

Bump In The Night

"AAAAGGGHHHH!!!! DAAAADEEEE!!!" Nathan awoke @ 2:04 AM (or something close to it) screaming his head off. I jumped out of bed, scrambling to rescue him from what I assumed was a cough-induced vomiting episode. Or a nightmare. Or an intruder into our home. Or he somehow managed to fall off of the top bunk ("top bunk not for children under age 6", the instructions read.)... "I'm coming, Nathan!" I assured from the hall as the door tried to tackle me by the foot, sending me bouncing off the opposite side of the door frame and stumbling down the hall like a pinball off the walls. When I made it into his room, he was still in his bed - on the top bunk, thank God! I assessed the situation in the dark, patting around where he sat sobbing to see if there was vomit. Nope, thank God! I picked him up and held him, asking, "did you have a bad dream, pal?" Nope. He had relieved himself of quite a bit of fluid from the before-bed-watermelon and his nighttime diaper had reached the limit. (Parenting Tip: Don't feed your kid a bowl of watermelon less than 30 min. before bedtime!!) He wasn't leaking, thank God! At least not until I picked him up to comfort him - then the dam broke! On my shirt! (Dam! ;) Anyway, we (yes, Laura had joined us to see what force had unleashed itself on the two senior peckboys of the house and offer her support to us) got the two of us cleaned up, clothed anew, and back in bed in a few short minutes - all but forgetting the "bladder gone wild" episode. It's four days later, though, and my foot still hurts!

Making The Most Of It

At first, Evan was really upset about the whole mask-over-his-face-with-smoke-blowing-at-him-from-the-loud-nebulizer-pump thing. He would try to pull it off and fuss and cry the whole time. I think I ended up inhaling more of the medicine than he did. After a few times, though, he got quite used to it. He and Nathan would help set it up and turn it on and then find new ways to make the most of it. I think they've got a new "game" for David Letterman - the "What can we put on the nebulizer and watch it vibrate off" game! In the following photos it was my phone. They had such a blast that I concluded we'll never have to go to Chuck E. Cheese again!

Purpleberries

The boys are finally much better, health-wise. Nathan apparently caught the same thing Evan had a couple days later! (Who needs sleep, anyway?!) If there's been any encouragement with their cycling illnesses, it's that most of the families we know with little kids are all dealing with the same stuff. Now, we're just trying to boost their immune systems and get them on the path to lasting health! Laura was eating breakfast with Evan - waffles, blueberries... Evan asked, "wha's dat, mommy?" as he pointed toward the blueberries in a small bowl. "Those are berries," she replied. "Ah doze puhpuhl?"(are those purple) he asked. "Yes, I guess they are." (They do look more purple than blue - at least the previously frozen ones we had) A minute or two later, Laura asked, "Evan, would you like some of those blueberries?" He corrected her, "Doze not bluebewies, doze puhpuhl bewies!"

Broken Moon

We were outside the other night when Evan spotted the moon. "Look a dat moon!" he exclaimed, "wha happened to da moon, Daddy?" It was a quarter moon, so he was curious as to what happened to the rest of it. Checking Nathan's recent solar system studies (video and book we checked out from the library), I asked him what happened to the moon. I really thought he would tell us how the earth is casting a shadow over part of the moon, but he surprised me: "I guess it's just broken!"

Friday Night Fights

Actually, it could be any night, but the most recent bout was on a Friday night (or, technically, Saturday morning). Nathan was coughing fiercely - hacking would be a more appropriate description - and something had to be done. His cousins and their parents were visiting, along with their dog and pet rat (hey, don't ask me what possessed my neice to get herself a pet RAT). So, everyone's asleep at 3:48AM except for Nathan, me, and the rat (they're sort of nocturnal, I think). I guess Nathan wasn't quite as awake as I thought he was when I approached him in the dark with some cough syrup. "Sit up, pal, and take this medicine," I whispered. "NO!" he replied. "Son, sit up and take this," I said firmly, as I reached behind him to help him up. Now, I'm really not sure how the little cup of cough syrup did not end up all over us and the bed, but somehow it did not. What I am sure of is that my lip was still somewhat swollen the following morning from the elbow my boy threw at it while he remained asleep and non-medicated. I can only imagine he was dreaming of Evan.

Is That You, Daddy?

Evan's been sick again... feverish (103), congested, double ear infection, and now having to use a nebulizer for the next two weeks due to some wheezing in his lungs. I really hate this allergy crap! He was sleeping b/w Laura and I a couple of nights ago and I had just got up in the night and given him more fever reducing medicine and laid him back down. He was pretty hot, so I got a cool wash rag to place on his head and neck, in an effort to bring his temp down. He didn't fight, kick, cry out or even push away when I placed it on him. He just lay still and asked very clearly and softly, "Is dat you, Daddy?" "Yeah, buddy, it's me." And then he went right back to sleep...

Electric Gardening

We were all outside on a recent 80+ degree Spring afternoon. I was raking up leaves with Nathan and Evan's help, and Laura was digging up some tulip bulbs to store until the next planting. At that time, the following conversation ensued...



Nathan: "Mommy, what are you doing?"

Laura: "I'm digging up these tulip bulbs, so we can save them for later."

Nathan: "Tulip bulbs?"

Laura: "Yeah, see these little bulbs...", holding one out for him to examine.

Nathan: "What are you gonna do with them?"

Laura: "I'm going to put them in a paper bag and save them for later."

Nathan: (after a thoughtful pause) "How do you turn them on?"

Go Fly A Kite

It's been pretty windy lately, which sparked the idea in Nathan that we need to go fly a kite. So... we loaded everyone in the car this past Sunday afternoon and headed to the park with his Elmo kite. There's just nothing that scares the poop out of birds like running into a big, red, flying Elmo! (which can be dangerous for those below without a hat) We stopped along the way to pick up some snacks and more string. It's not that we didn't have any string, it's just that I learned to fly a kite from my dad, who believed if you could still make out the picture on the kite, you didn't have it high enough, really. So, I bought two more spools of string.

Now, the problem with flying a kite in a park (even a smaller, less poulated one) is that there are other things to do there. I remember flying my kite in a large, open field with nothing else around to do. At this park, there were slides, swings, field lights, bleachers, squeaky gates, trash on the ground, and a host of other distractions for two and four-year-old boys. Which left the older boy (me) with the kite. Thankfully, Laura was with us, or else I may have completely lost track of the boys.

Note: For those of you thinking, "Hey! This is supposed to be about the boys, not you! After all, it's the "Peck Boys Report", isn't it?", let me just say that I can shut this blog down in a heartbeat, so just give me a little latitude here! After all, there are three Peck Boys in our home!

After Nathan helped me launch it, I flew my (Nathan's) little Elmo kite as high as those three spools of string tied together would let me. I chased off birds, wowed little kids (and their parents), fought off shifting and dying winds, and lived to tell the tale, my friends! I managed to pull out of a near fatal down swoop, and salvaged a hard slam into a light tower (over the baseball diamond). I even let Nathan "steer" for a short while, until something else was "cooler" than flying a kite (like climbing to the top of the bleachers). Evan was busy picking up the trash that litterers had left on the ground and depositing it in the garbage can (a novel idea), so he really never engaged the kite except to look up and exclaim, "Look Mommy! Look dat Elmo kite!" He may not be able to clean up the world, but he sure cleaned up that little park!

The down side to all that string is that you have to reel it all back in. Unless, of course, you just cut the string and run! Don't worry, Elmo is safe at home (although I may have developed mild carpal tunnel syndrome).

More on the younger Peck Boys tomorrow...

Evan's Almighty Pen

If "the pen is mightier than the sword", I'd hate to see Evan get a sword into his hand! Ah, but how quickly we (translation: I) had forgotten Nathan's own fascination with leaving his mark (or anyone else's for that matter) on anything and everything at this age. Yes, in a momentary lack of sanity (or perhaps a simple lack of tidiness, which is a given constant with two preschool-aged boys) there was a cheap ball-point pen left down low somewhere. It could have been lying next to a shopping list, journal, or sudoku book (although I seriously doubt that last one as none of us play). It might have even been "out of reach" for Evan, according to my poor, deceived mind. Nevertheless, just as I was shushing Nathan to listen at the unusual quietness from sweet little Evan, I had that feeling. You know, that feeling you get when you know one of your kids is up to something they shouldn't be and you don't know what it is but you know it can't be a good thing because they're just too quiet and that is never a good thing (when they're awake)! I gave Nathan my full-lunged, full-cheeked sigh accompanied with my "this is just great!" frown and roll of the head as I called out, "EVAN! What are you doo-ing?!" I heard a mild commotion in the bathroom followed by little feet scampering toward us from the hall. "I right here, Daddy." "Great! But, what are you doing?" "I writin'!"

In a flash, I was in his immediate presence, relieving him of his instrument of folly (Proverbs 22:15a - "Folly is bound up in the heart of a child..."). I quickly assessed the damage - bathroom cabinet, drawers, toilet seat lid, rubber frog bath toy, training potty and step-stool. "Evan did it!" he informed me. "And Evan's gonna get it", I thought to myself. I knelt down and pulled him close as I informed him sternly that his actions were not acceptable and followed Proverbs 22:15b - "but the rod of discipline will drive it (that folly thing) far from him."

As it was bedtime, I postponed the cleanup, but I fully intend to include my little artist in that process! And, you know, our little "lefty" (he generally prefers his left hand for things like eating, painting, coloring...) sure has a nice-looking swirl!

Got Boots?

In case you missed the blog(s) chronicling Evan's history from conception, here's the nutshell: Evan was conceived at sea (on a cruise ship). We joked during his pregnancy about naming him something to do with water. The few we found that weren't Swahili or Sanscrit or something were just not our style. "Moses" means "drawn from the water", but come on - Moses?- talk about putting a lot of pressure on a kid! So, we named the boy Evan, which, according to the name websites means "God is gracious" in Hebrew and "Swift/Young Warrior/Well-born" in Gaelic/Celtic/Greek. (tmi?) To the point: He has always loved water! He likes to bathe in it, play in/with it, splash it, dump it (includes all liquids), play "will it float?" in it (includes all liquids), swim in it, etc. He had his first swimming lessons before age 2, and the instructors would say, "Evan sure is a true water-baby". You see, it doesn't matter if it's freezing cold outside (which happens only a few days a year here, but you get the point), if there is a drop, puddle or pond, the boy will swiftly find it. It doesn't matter to him if we have to be somewhere in five minutes. It doesn't matter to him if it's cold. And, apparently, it doesn't matter to him if his feet are soaked in his shoes and socks. It doesn't matter that I'm standing five feet away yelling, "NOOOOO........." So, today, we're going to buy some boots for the boy. And maybe a wetsuit. And now you'll all understand why he's in the same strange outfit in all his pictures between now and age ten.

Say WHAT?

The boys apparently fill up their word quota at home with us, as both of their teachers have informed us that they are not the talkative guys we are used to. I get "Nathan is very thoughtful and inquisitive - he's a really bright child" on occasion. I was also amazed recently when Evan's teachers were in shock that he was talking to me when I picked him up one afternoon. "EVAN TALKS?!" one of them asked. Well... we let his little kitty out of the bag, and apparently he landed on all fours! Today, just a few weeks removed from that "Evan talks?" encounter, I had a different comment at pickup time. "I think today is the first day we actually had to tell Evan to be quiet!" (And so it begins...) "But he sure has the sweetest voice - I just love to hear him talk!" Yes, I do to, except when he's telling me "no, I not go to school today!", etc. Speaking of Evan, I've got to go rescue him from Nathan's wrath... (I'm sure it will be blog fodder in a few days).

A Safe Place

I've frequently used the phrase, "in a safe place" in reply to the boys' questioning the whereabouts of various items I'd rather them not have at a particular moment, or season, or...ever! For example, if Nathan asked me where I put the remote to his truck after he repeatedly slammed it into the walls, chairs, and the rest of the family, I simply replied, "in a safe place". "Safe place" translates "safe from you". For another example, Evan asked recently, "Daddy, where is dat scwewdwivuh?" My reply, of course, "In a safe place."


Kid's these days are so quick to pick up on the things we say, aren't they? For yet another example, I had left my cell phone on the kitchen counter recently and when I returned for it, it was gone - gone, I tell ya! Nathan had been on the computer the whole time and Laura was in the back of the house, which meant one of two things - either I really couldn't remember where I left my phone, OR... EVAN had moved it somewhere. (Just so you know, Evan has been into hiding things lately - including himself) So, I hunted down the little guy and asked him, "Evan, do you know where my phone is?" He smiled and replied, "Mm-Hmm!" "Ok, buddy, Daddy needs you to show me where it is." His excited, hands-in-the-air reply: "Iss inna kitchen!" As I followed him back into the kitchen I inquired, "OK, Evan, but where in the kitchen?" He gave me a big, bright-eyed smile and said, "In a safe place!" I found it later between two sofa pillows and, no, we don't keep our sofa "inna kitchen"!

i, Evan

Evan can put away some food when he's hungry. After a few weeks of being sick, I was a little worried he was getting skinny on us. What was I worried about?! It might have taken a few days for him to get back to normal after getting well. I just wonder if, psychologically, we did anything to him as a baby to cause his obsession with stuffing his mouth with food, instead of taking reasonably sized bites. We cut his food up for him, but then he'll put six pieces of chicken in his mouth at once! We really have to stay on him at meals so he doesn't choke himself (or swallow Nathan whole, by accident!). One recent evening, Evan finished his meal, got down from his chair, and crawled up into my lap as I finished my supper. I thought he was just wanting to be close to me.


Nope.


He looked at me with his "sweet eyes", gave me a hug, and then turned toward my plate. "More carrots, Daddy!" This is my supper, Evan. "I want more carrots, Daddy!" I gave him a few. "Mooore carrots, Daddy!" He finished the last two bites. "I want more chicken, Daddy!" As I gave him a bite of my chicken, I commented, "You're a little piggy tonight, aren't you?!" He turned to me with a wrinkled brow and stern gaze and corrected me with his chicken-filled cheeks: "I not "piggy"! I Evan!"