Basket ball Basket ball Basket Dribble - Game Nite 2

Tonite was all about dribbling, passing, a little shooting, and a whole lotta cute kid athletes

Jack lacing up,

getting his game face on,
dribbling,

and getting set to shoot.

Harry getting a little shooting clinic,

stretching,

and getting his own game face on.

It was a little rough

and tumble

Harry taking the ball in

Their team going to shake hands with the other team

the handshaking line (Harry in front, Jack third)

Happy Weekend!

Deerhoof's Basket Ball Get Your Groove Back

And the forests will echo with laughter

I read a blog post this morning about the great gig that momming can be, and I made a real effort today. It paid off with a lot of laughing and pretty good behavior. It didn't hurt that they had several pretty ladies to flirt with, so thanx to everyone who contributed to our good day!

Led Zeppelin's Stairway To Heaven

To go down to the store - Tricky Tuesday

I'll admit that I'm sitting here wondering what I was thinking with this silly series....I'm an old dog and need some new trix, folks, so send 'em in please!


It was a normal day of errands and activities, so you're stuck with the mundane ones today.


I like to park near the cart return so that it's easier to load the bags, get the kids into the van, then return the cart without having to risk life and limb or kidnapping before I can get back to the van.


People often go 'aha' when they see the drinks loaded onto the side of the cart, but we can load UP a cart, so it's good to use all parts (I used the duoglide's underbasket and stroll'r swivel'rs to get thru stores the first year)






And just in case you're wondering, it is very rare indeed that they willingly get into the cart to ride....man, they are so big lately. They usually push around the little kid-sized carts if I'm patient enough - Harry gets the cold stuff while Jack gets the rest in his basket.

Happy Shopping!

Arlo Guthrie's Grocery Blues

I am the luckiest

Harry: I'm going to write YOU a thank you note, Mommy!
Me: For what, sweetie?
Harry: For doing all the things you do for me so good.
Me, having one of those moments of heart-stopping joy.

He's going to make a lot of people happy, which is a great gift for a lucky mommy :wub:

Ben Folds Five's The Luckiest

Behind the pantry door

So, Jen is at it again, throwing gauntlets and starting challenges and whatnot with pantry raids. This time she's trying to see behind doors that should be closed, after reading a post about stocking pantries. The deal is you can't reorganize or change anything, just take a picture of your pantry, as is. Well, in all it's glory....thank goodness I cleaned it out a few months ago!

the opened door, nothing fell out but the floor and top shelf are danger zones
the door's not so bad, but the boys' veggie/dessert row is looking a little crooked...hmm

top row (L-R) first aid kit, beverage mixes, pedialite, chips,

second row (L-R) breakfast fixins (oops, lemonade is on the wrong shelf), baking mixes, more breakfast stuff

third row (L-R) pastas, rice, box of kids' treats, peanut butter, crackers and party stuff

fourth row (L-R) cans, green, yellow, orange, brown/black veggies, weird stuff like sauer kraut and beets, salsa, refried beans, canned meats, Gerber meals, and soups

floor is all extras (L-R) paper products, condiments, sodas/drinks, breakfast, etc.

Now, that was completely enlightening, right? I saw a beautiful pantry today, which puts my little scrunched up one to shame, but at least it's better-stocked than Jen's HEheHE.

Live With Me

Have pity on a dinosaur - the return of Chompers!

If you've been around a while, you might remember our first visit from Chompers and some of his mischief. Well, it seems that his trips with the other students has helped to improve his overall behavior ;-)

This weekend was Jack's turn to take responsibility for the school dinosaur, Chompers, so of course we had to

introduce him to our favorite postal worker, Ms. Sharon (how 'bout them Eagles?!?)

share some lunch
show him how to do chores, like taking care of his chair,
proper hand-washing technique
and good tooth-brushing habits

before settling in for a good read

before naptime

Today, Jack showed him how to rock the Leapster

check the local weather forecast

before heading out on a house-hunting adventure

and having a little lunch at our favorite mexican restaurant (quatro, por favor, not cinqo)

Chompers apparently likes the candy ;-)

and got a brief reunion with Harry and some ninja friends

Jack is supposed to write a story and draw a picture, then the teachers will compile the stories from the children in a book. I'll post his story if it's fun!

Dean took them out on a little house recon while I de-Christmased yesterday. They were jamming to a local rock station and Jack was enjoying it all; every song seemed to be his 'favorite EVER!' Dean asked him if he liked a song as it began, and Jack said something to the effect of:

You don't have to ask if I like a song, just watch my feet and if they are tapping I like it. If they're tapping really fast, it's the best song I've ever heard!

Hank Williams Jr's Dinosaur

Who says five's not a real great time?

Does this question give you any idea how it went...

"Mommy, can I sleep in my jersey?"

They both really seemed to love it, and so many of their friends are playing that it was a little bit of a party for *me* too ;-) They lower the baskets but are using regular sized basketballs; the kids practice for 30 minutes then will play games for the remaining 30 minutes. It should be a fun introduction to the game! They eve ended up with their same numbers from Fall soccer: Harry's 5 and Jack's 6

Anticipation

He gets by with a little help from his DadJack gears up for a shot while Harry encourages him
Harry did some dribbling

Five from Sesame Street

Hoop Dreams (He Got Game)

With a little less attitude, one of us is treated to a statement like this from Jack every nite during the midnite pitstop....he says so many fun, crazy things I think I'm going to leave a notepad in the bathroom!

Man I had a crazy crazy dream dogg.

They start basketball tonite, and they're almost as excited as Dean ;-)


Here's a peek at Jack's first hoop dreams with Daddy and a little comparison shot with Mommy - he was 2 days old



Snoop Dogg

Like bookends

They were in a matchy mood today and found their overalls - funny how easy those were back in the day....why does no one think 5T overalls should have a fly? Grrr. At least they looked cute, right??

It was "Snow Day" at the library, and on the way Jack said 'I wished we lived on Snow Island where it snows all night and it snows all day'...from your lips, sweet boy! Next Thursday seems to hold our next hope...

Lunch involved a milk tower on Harry's part (remember those candy necklaces? I think it was a mistake....again with the grrr)

All the drama of bored 4yo's may be seen here ;-)

Then they decided to ham it up for the camera, and I thought of this song

Simon And Garfunkel's Old Friends

Old Friends

Old friends

Old friends

Sat on their park bench

Like bookends

A newspaper blown through the grass

Falls on the round toes

Of the high shoes

Of the old friends

Old friends

Winter companions

The old men

Lost in their overcoats

...

Can you imagine us years from today

Sharing a park bench quietly?

How terribly strange to be seventy

Old friends

Memory brushes the same years

Silently sharing the same fear...

And just about the time their misbehavior and silliness have worn me down to a frustrated grrr, they notice the sun shining thru the clouds and say it's been a long time and jump out of the van and do this:

(if it didn't work for some reason, they are complimenting the sun on a job well done - breaking up the clouds and shining after so long)

On the way home, Harry says "My behavior is getting nicer. Let's all have happy faces now!" Yes, let's :-)

Oh, The Guilt!

Jen's Spin Cycle topic for this week is 'guilt' - we all know it, sometimes it works for us and sometimes against. I'm feeling lazy, and not a bit guilty about it btw since I just got back from the gym (SayHA), so here's what you get from me this week.

Guilt, don't LUGit too long or far ;-)

Nirvana

Where do we go from here?

aka: How the Garmin has changed our lives

Harry's always been our go-guy - he wakes up most mornings asking where we're going that day and is always up for an adventure. Did I mention that he *loves* the Garmin?!

It has solved any slow buckling because he's decided that I'll turn it on as soon as he's buckled (not really, but hey, whatever works). It has solidified a lot of reading and directionality and math understanding - not just mine ;-) It has reduced my stress level despite growling at that lady who can't figure out that we have a drive and don't have to go off-road to get to our house. It has given us a chance to introduce some new words into our daily chats....recalculating, navigate, highlighted, etc. I haven't even shown them the cool phone, picture, and music features, or even used it to find our car yet LOL

Another big milestone has occurred over the last week. I took Harry to do some errands, and we had a good time talking - somehow we got around to working on his L's and he did such a great job that I was cheering like crazy. It stuck this time, and he's been self-correcting and doing a great job. I sort of miss his sweet voice saying "I wuv you, Mommy" but I'll take "LLL-ove" too. My speech path friend says it's really typical to have L's be lacking until 7yo or so, so we are ahead of the game :-)




David Bowie's Looking For Satellites

12/09/08 Jack: I'm so hungry my stomach is screaming all thru outer space! Harry: I need to get a Garmin for my Gator!

StART Me Up

It's good to get back into the groove, and their art started back up this week. These are their typical expressions recently, Jack being all serious and grumpy, Harry being all playful and silly.

I did catch them both in a serious moment while working with water colors

They were moving too fast for good phone pix, but this is a common game they play at the gym - pulling each other around on a parachute...they are looking so tall to me lately ::-)

I loved this picture of Jack taking a time-out
Harry takes a turn pulling Jack around. This is the gym where they will start playing basketball on Friday, so I guess they are supposed to look big, right?!

Harry playing his own version of Jenga

Rolling Stones

Big Shot - Tricky Tuesday

I recently heard of a trick to help reduce the fever and injection-site swelling or knots from the gazillion shots that kids endure. My brilliant friend Jackie credits a 'nameless old lady at Walmart,' but she swears it has worked for her own two loves. After the shot is given, rub some Vicks Vapor Rub onto the injection site.

I'd love to hear from others if this works - our next round is in March. HTH!

Billy Joel

'cause I'm a country boy

We were riding into town today, listening to the radio. They were both excited to hear Alan Jackson after the 24/7 Christmas carols of late. Humming and singing along, all's well, until:

J: Mommy, I've never let anyone get in my bed, and I took 'em for a ride, yet
M: (laughing, crying, eyes popping) That's true, sweetie.

Pile in my bed, I can take ya for a ride

Tiny HASAY update: 3 gyms last week, a couple of pounds despite being terrible. Back on the wagon tomorrow.

Alan Jackson's Country Boy

Our House(s)

Harry's on top - his first totally solo attempt. Jacke said that swoopy roof is 'the best roof I've ever seen!'

It's official, we've moved into the ability to use placemats and pencils to while away the minutes before ordering, after ordering and while otherwise waiting in restaurants - woohoo! Goodbye to the blue bag may be in our near future!

Crosby, Stills and Nash

I'd Like My Picture Took

We lucked into being in the right place at the right time the other day and got a free photo session with Kiddie Kandids - it was the easiest and best experience we've had with professional photogs, so get you to a KK if you can!

I want to thank you

We're working our way thru thank you notes, and it's a much easier process these days since I'm mostly down to stenography work ;-)

More of Jack's short-hand style of the moment

(oh, and the three smilies: "Harry's beside me because I like it when we're together" - I try to remind him of this thru the bickering)

Natalie Merchant's Kind and Generous

The Ballad Of The Three Amigos

It's fun to watch little kids grow up, and my friend Christina and I have had a chance to watch our three grow and change so much over the last three years. The boys got us together for lunch the other day and everyone had fun exchanging gifts, talking, chowing and checking out the new toys.

Zach and Harry playing with some old school toys

The Lightning McQueen computer Santa brought Jack

This is what they looked like heading to Zach's 2nd birthday party May 06 (I am too tired to find a picture of the three of them from that day, but it was a great party!)

Randy Newman

Everyday

We are not big on videos, but I'm trying to get better ;-) The boys' first vocal concert leaves a bit to be desired, but they are already working the microphones and developing a little (albeit stumbly) style....

My apologies to your ears and Rascal Flatts

Here's hoping your 2009 is filled with everyday miracles!

It May Sound Silly

We bought the boys this Giggle Gear Mega Mask, and it's been a big hit so far

Here's Harry's morning creation

and Jack's video rendition

Happy New Year from our sillies!

The McGuire Sisters