This Shouldn't Be About Me, But It Is

I went to school on Thurday to help in Dare's art class. I was so happy to be there.

In their school in Utah, they didn't have a designated art room. So this was the first time I have been in an art room at an elementary school since I was going to elementary school. All the wonderful memories of being in art class came back to me. What a wonderful place to be! I started remembering why I went to college to be an art teacher. I had pretty much given up that idea until I went to volunteer that day. I loved being there. I loved everything about the room. I loved the kids' enthusiasm. I loved the teacher's cool, anything-goes attitude. I loved that the kids went outside with a pencil, paper, and a board to observe and draw trees.

I loved the caked on paint on the drying racks. Seriously. That means good things are happening there.

I loved the shelves and shelves, and stacks and stacks of art supplies. It was all I could do to not grab a paint brush and just paint.
I also loved that I was able to meet Dare's friends. I had one girl give me a flower, one girl give me a hug, and one girl stop to wait because she wanted to walk with me. And I will never forget the boy who said...

Boy - "Are you Dare's mom?"

Me - "Yes. I am."

Boy - "I am in love with her."

He was so matter of fact that I believed it to be true. Ha ha! He said it as if he was talking about the weather. Like, "Hey Dare's mom. It's raining." Later when I told Dare, she said, "I know." She told me that he tells her that all the time. It didn't phase her either.

Crystalized Onions

Here's a detail of the picture below. Love it.

Take a Hike

Just some more pictures of us. This time, on a mountain.

Check out Rhon. She's doing the I got my eyes on you gesture.

She's hilarious.

Sunny Idea

Or it could be Sonny Idea. I'm not sure which. G made up a game he always asks Mads to play. It's called Sonny Idea. No one really knows where he got it from, but he knows. I haven't even figured out how the game part of it works, but he always wants to play. The only thing we know is when he is playing he calls Mads "son". It is pretty funny. Especially since no one calls anyone son in this house. He has also been calling Mads, "Baby Baby Teenager." So strange.

It is pretty interesting spending my days alone with these boys. There has been so many changes since I had only 2 girls at home. Boys are different. I'm different. In a lot of ways it seems easier now, but in a lot of ways it's harder too. For example, I am way more laid back these days. That makes life easier. But the boys get bored easier too. They are not used to playing by themselves as much, and my endurance for "games" is shorter. That makes life harder. We are enjoying our time though. It is fun to really get to know their personalities more and more.

I thought I'd share pictures of them playing Super Smash Bros. Especially since the game is still a number one feature of G's prayers. I think Mads has grown out of praying for it, but I know when he hears G do it, he is deeply grateful. He says amen a little louder those nights. I wonder if he tells G to pray for it?

Detches

I like this picture.

They must have gone up and down this slide 20 times.

Thankfully, there were no lines.

We decided G looked like some kind of weird monkey!

It is not easy getting 5 children to look at the camera, let alone 9!

I thought we did pretty good with this one.

The fun day ended at Cheeburger Cheeburger.

That place will get a post of it's own sometime.

2 Things

SWEET

adjective

(of a person or action) pleasant and kind or thoughtful

Sometimes he can be so sweet.

Admittedly, it mostly happens when he is sleeping.

I love how is face is all squished on one side.

I could eat those lips right up.

**********

Racing...

Green Eggs and Ham

My second preschool lesson was on trying new things. First we tried yoga...

Those are some good-looking downward dogs.

Then we tried some foods that the boys might not have seen or tasted before...

T trying starfruit.

P was not a big fan of trying new things. But he was such a good sport.

I'm pretty sure I could have put just about anything on Y's plate and he would have eaten it. He had no problems at all. Maybe it's because he has already lived in 3 or 4 countries.

Sneak Peek

This is so exciting...

More to come.

Alto

B.A. plays the saxophone...

It's fun. She likes it.

I didn't surprise me that it took her several weeks to decide what instrument she wanted to play. She was wavering up until the last minute. At first it was baritone. Then it was trombone. Then sax, then trombone again. It was just like her. And just like her father. And just like her father, she chose saxophone. It was an exciting night when we picked it up. Nate helped her put it together and she was able to get nice toots out of it on her first try. Then all the other kids got a turn. There was a lot of spit-sharing that night.

We are all very happy for her. We'll see how it goes...

All Quiet

Skipping rocks on the Potomac.

Well, Nate was skipping rocks. Everyone else was giving their best shot.

We were amazed when we took the cross-country drive and realized what a river actually was. In Arizona and Utah, a river was a mostly dried up area with maybe a trickle of water at the bottom. The first river we crossed, on a real-life bridge, we were blown away at the size and amount of water. Since that first time, we've crossed many rivers, including the Mississippi. All huge. All wonderful. We cross the Potomac every time we go downtown. The kids are always impressed. The scenery around it is so freaking cool. The monuments, the buildings, the trees. And all the cool boats floating along. I hope they never take seeing such an awesome river for granted.

It was also cool getting to see it up close. And, of course, rocks were thrown.

P.S. Have I mentioned how much my kids like sticks?

Latitudes

This is G's new way of spending his time during dinner. I think the process of putting food on a fork, and then hauling it to his mouth must be boring for him. He loves food and loves to eat, but he just won't do it on his own. He is exactly like Dare. I remember having to sit there and feed her if I wanted her to eat. She still struggles a bit, but I don't feed her anymore. She would much rather talk, laugh, make jokes, be silly, etc., than work hard at the motions of eating. And now, I do the same with G. When I'm finished, I just grab his fork and start shoveling it in. Inevitably, he and Dare are always the last ones with food on their plate.