Sometimes you're the bug

It's a crazy, busy time and I feel a bit like the bug, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel...before the next big activity starts ;-)

We took a few minutes to hang out at the local library with Dean on Monday after the boys had school and we had a Day Date. Harry found the new computer they have in the Children's Library and dug it...I like the sun kissing his face, and this was his favorite of the pix I took.


If you're looking for an investment, maybe you should consider paper?? These are just the papers they have brought home in a month...I'm sure some ended up in a trash can and others are waiting for us at school.....Jack's pile is on the left, and just yesterday his teacher was telling me how surprised she was at the amount of paper she's using since she tends to do a lot of hands-on activities. About once a month, they go thru their papers and dump the ones they don't really want to save - I try to keep the more momentous ones, the 'firsts', and ones they have some story about. They have been really nostalgic lately, going thru their old preschool books and asking to make ones for the other grades. I'm not the scrapbookiest of moms, so I guess it's time to up my game ;-)
Their Destination Imagination (DI) project is about bugs this year, and my co-coach and I have had 'bugs on the brain' as she said in a recent email. Apparently, we also have bugs on the car! This guy hung on down the drive and back from the bus stop this morning....

Dire Straits' The Bug

Then you can monster mash

Harry's pal Sarah and her family had a party this afternoon and invited us all. The boys had a great time playing at their old preschool playground with lots of friends, getting their faces painted, and I had a great time visiting with friends and tasting all the great eats. Thank you Sandy and friends!

Checking themselves out in the car mirror...silly boys!

Bobby "Boris" Pickett's Monster Mash

of freeze tag in the dark

Their friend Aidan celebrated his 7th birthday, and our little laser tag warriors had a great time! It was their first attempt at the laser, and D&I even got to play....we'll be doing this again :-)

Dillon, Harry, Jack and the Birthday Boy, Aidan
There was a whole lotta happy going around today

They had a blast - thanx for including us, Allens!

Happy Birthday, Aidan! Welcome to 7 :-)

Suzanne Vega's Freeze Tag

You're always crazy like that

Harry had an infection this week, and we found out it was MRSA. He limped his way thru the fair and school, didn't shed a tear while we poked and prodded to get all of the infection out. It's almost gone after a week, and he's back to his wild and crazy self.....thankfully, it's not a competitive league ;-)

He started out looking serious....
...then practiced his Home Alone face....

...then had few pensive moments....

...a couple of CHARGEs...

....before trying to impress Daddy with his 'tall pants'! Sweet, silly boy!

Jewel's Foolish Games

Is sometimes fertile soil

The boys got pansies to plant for now and daffodils for the spring at a fair a couple of weeks ago....and we finally took a moment yesterday to see what will grow

They practiced for their spelling tests today....with their six words of the week (Jack corrected that C when he reread them this morning),

and their word study words. Harry had SC, SN, and SW words while Jack's class worked on long and short vowel sounds. His teacher commented on how improved his writing is - the boy likes to follow a plan :-)

It was a busy week, but a good one. I started volunteering at the local library, and went on a tour of the local food bank and community services, hoping to get involved in doing some good. A friend and I are coaching the Destination Imagination team, which starts in a couple of months. The weekend is going to be a wild one!

Kathy Matea's Seeds

You're playin' with your food

The boys' scout group worked on the food pyramid, and we did an experiment with foods - the kids smeared samples of all sorts of things to see which had the highest fat content (glowing after dry)...the only real surprise is how neat they actually were with it all ;-)

Weird Al Yankovich's Eat It

And the zookeeper is very fond of THEM

Jack's always had a thing for arranging his stuffed animals, and with the recent additions from fairs, he has spent the last two nites grouping and classifying and finding just the right spot for everyone. He assured me tonite that there was still room for him to sleep ;-)
Simon and Garfunkel's At The Zoo

We were headed for the state fair

I caught the State Fair with my three favorite men - despite the rain and Sweet Harry's limp, we had a good time.
Sometimes you just capture personalities perfectly in pix - flirty Dean, Harry saying bring on the rain, and Jack making himself cozy. I sure do love these boys!

Dean and Jack partnered up again for a trip on the ferris wheel....

while Harry and I snuggled and enjoyed the views. Who would have thought it would be so chilly this early?? I'll take any excuse, tho!

Our little daredevils - they tried a racier ride at the last fair but it wasn't a hit with any of us. I think Harry's going to be into wild rides, but Jack is not having it yet. There is a great comparison shot in the slide show to the right, but I couldn't find it in a previous post. The ones from the last two years are linked below :-)

I loved this picture of the two of them posing for Dean - have to see what it looked like from the front, but it had me humming LL's Ugly From The Front all afternoon ;-)

I think I may have a real problem with photoging them from standing in front of fair gates, but this one shows how gimpy Harry was thru the entire thing - what a trooper he was! - and the beginnings of the rain

Our little racers - they've updated some of the cars, but this is a little bit of racing history

Ever the safety boys - looking both ways!

At the last fair, the found the joys of funhouses, and were SO looking forward to this one, which also included a maze....well, the story ends with three of us laughing as Jack describes how he walked "STRAIGHT INTO A SEE-THRU WALL!" We tried to convince him it will be funny after his nose stops hurting ;-)

He worked it for a while...

...but I was able to distract him with a discussion of cartilage - "just like a shark!"....exactly, Daniel-san!

Harry just spent the whole time making funny faces

Who loves Fair Food??

Jack went thru the better part of a bag of cotton candy with no ill effects, but a whole lotta silly!

He drove in deference to Harry's bum leg, and did a great job with the bumper cars!

Then it was game time! Attempting a bottle lift game...anything with a fishing pole!

Jack popped balloons on 5 of 7 attempts, but he was too fast and I was too excited clapping for him to get any good pix. Suffice it to say, you do not want to challenge this kid!

The nice carny helped Harry balance on one leg

and Harry was just a *little* excited to make a few pops of his own!

Gotta love a Daddy Hug of Victory!

It rained, a lot, and I couldn't get any good pix, but kinda liked their shadows walking home

Day is done

and boys are still silly!

Here's what it looked like last year

and two years ago

(they are riding in the same #8 car)

Doug Supernaw's State Fair

The Shape HE'S In

Our sweet Harry has had a rough go of it the last week or so. He's always a favorite among the bugs, mosquitos, and bees...since he's so sweet! We're waiting for the culture to come back to know what has caused this last set of what appear to be bites that have gotten VERY infected. He had one last Saturday, one this Saturday followed by a trip to the doctor on Sunday, and another has started bothering him today...yikes! Poor guy limped all the way thru the fair and almost brought the house down screaming while Dean drained them tonite - not a tear, tho - what a cowboy!

"They must think I'm Bug Pie!"

He fell out on Saturday, and we're watching him closely - hoping for some definitive info about what's going on within the next day.

Hot Apple Pie's The Shape I'm In

TWO many fish in the TANKS

The boys have been patiently waiting for their first pets - we decided Betas were a good choice, and they were thrilled to pick out their own fish and decorate their new habitats!

They marveled at the cool new houses and grr'd at the need to wait 24 hours to condition the water Harry's gravel glows, so he kept the lite on all nite

After the big transfer, the intensity of the first feeding....

We're pleased to introduce .... Harry's Jerry (a la Tom's mouse friend - Jack wouldn't name his Tom, so Harry won a fish at the fair...pix to come)

...and Jack's Bullet, so named because he's so fast! Jack was particularly proud of his tank-decorating and how cool it looked that his turtle is munching on the orange plant ;-)

Good nite rituals. Happy to report everyone is still happily swimming today :-)

Too Many Fish In The Sea