Wednesday: playgrounds

Today we went to playgrounds!

In the morning we joined Amy with her playground group.  The boys played on the normal equipment, but there was also a bandshell to run around in. For several minutes Joshua would run, come back, give Bear a hug, give me a hug, and start the cycle all over again.

. After nap time we went to a park that had several different little playgrounds and a walking trail. I liked the trail, the boys liked the playgrounds. At the end the girls tried teaching Isaac how to climb a tree. I don't think he got much farther than what you see in the picture.

All in all, it was a lovely day. There were a few more tears than normal, but for the most part they were justified and due to minor injuries.

Tuesday: a first - motion sickness

The boys and I left on vacation today.  We were able to fly, which made the whole trip wonderfully shorter and less stressful.

However.

I got air sick on the first leg.  I've been queasy a few times in the air, but usually don't get motion sick.  This time I did.  It was like the first three months of pregnancy...but only for an hour and a half.  (I'm not joking at all...it is exactly what I felt like when pregnant.)

Joshua got sick on the second leg.  That was worse because he didn't tell me that he wasn't feeling good.  Yay for wet wipes.  We were pretty close to landing by the time I had everything cleaned up...it was fine in the end. Bear had to go in the washer with everything else, but luckily Blue Bear was able to sub in without a problem.  And I didn't feel sick (mostly) during the second leg, so that helped a lot too.

But we were there so much faster!  It was worth it.

Monday: memorial day

We went to the Memorial day parade today.  Joshua clapped the whole time for everyone and it was sweet.  He might not yet understand why he's clapping, but he just kept on clapping.  The bands weren't too loud for him either, which surprised me a bit.  He wants to march in a parade next year.

Isaac also did an excellent job, waving the flag that he was given or clapping.

We went home and I touched up the deck with paint/stain.  (It's a weird combo.)  Isaac started helping me and I was glad for the company and the help, but he was all over the deck.  He left after about five minutes and I was able to finish much more methodically.  (In other news, the power washer started without significant problems.  Yay!)

We finished off the day with family for dinner.

Sunday: thunk

THUNK...THUNK.

Ben and I hear this in the office shortly after the kids have been put to bed.  It's loud.  We rush up the stairs and I'm expecting that someone fell out of bed.

We hear Joshua making noises and go in.  He's still in bed but starting to cry.  After a quick, confused glance around the room we discover that the light fixture, a hemisphere, had fallen off.  Both of us were surprised that a) it didn't break and b) it bounced.

I sat with Joshua for a few minutes while he recounted, several times and in detail, about how the light went boom when he was in bed and it was scary.  But I expect it was very scary and he was either just asleep or just about to fall asleep, a time when everything can be a bit scarier.

Saturday: manners

We're all playing Legos in the basement.

Joshua: I'd like pizza.
Ben: hmm, you didn't have a snack.
Amanda: Would you like to go get some fruit snacks?
Joshua: yeah!
Amanda: Can you ask Isaac if he would like some?
Joshua: Isaac, do you want some?
Isaac: No.
Ben: No thank you.
Isaac: No thank you.

Joshua is half way up the stairs.
Joshua: Thank you Dad.
Ben and I smile at the random thank you.
Joshua: Dad, do you want some fruit snacks?
Ben: sure

Several things interrupt him and he ends up downstairs before getting the fruit snacks.
Amanda: ok, did you want to get the fruit snacks now?
Joshua: yeah! and for Dad. But not Isaac.
Joshua: do you want some Mom?
Amanda: no thanks.

Friday: a comedy in review

Today was actually a pretty good day.

As we were pulling into the garage from our morning errands, I mentioned that this weekend was garage sale weekend in our neighborhood.  Isaac looked slightly shocked and said something like, "Are they going to take part of our garage?"  I thought he knew what a garage sale was, but apparently had forgotten.

So after nap time we got on the bikes and took off.  We just saw our first set, far but not too far, and were going up a little hill when "pop!"  The first thing I thought was that my bike pedal had fallen off.  Dad just put new ones on; maybe something wasn't quite right.  I looked down, and the pedal was unsurprisingly still there.  Then I realized that the pedals were spinning quite freely; the chain had broken.  I walked the bike the short distance to the garage sales.

We pushed the bikes back home.  Joshua was ready to be home and already had his shoes off by the time I realized the chain had fallen off my bike again.  I had just hung it over the middle bar and thought it was fine there.  Apparently not.  I scooped Joshua into the stroller and we started looking for it.

We got almost all the way back to the garage sales before finding it.  Ah well, I had been hoping for some exercise anyway.  We were running and walking when Isaac fell and complained that his ankle really hurt.  Isaac went in the stroller and I carried Joshua the rest of the way (about two houses worth).

Isaac seemed to be able to put some weight on it and said it only hurt medium at home, so we elevated it with a cool pack for a bit.  He started walking on it shortly after that, so thankfully everything seems to be ok.

One of the things we got at the garage sale was Mastermind.  Isaac likes to be the person that hides the pegs.  He's getting better at figuring out how to do the pegs that tell if you have a right color/location, but he isn't perfect at it yet.  Unfortunately, this game kind of needs you to be perfect at it.  I've won anyway, sometimes due to Ben's help and sometimes because I was able to guess what he did wrong.

Thursday: somewhat of a graduation

I've been seeing all these pictures of friends' kids graduating from preschool this last week.  Isaac did have a ceremony, but today was his last day of preschool

He's been excited about the last day for a week or so now, but apparently had some tears at nap time.  I understand them though...new things (like summer break especially) are fun, but it can be sad to know that something else is coming to an end.  I only got a picture with one of his teachers as the other wasn't there today.

Joshua might understand what's going on; I'm not completely sure.  I've said that he's done with the wobbler room and that it is summer vacation, but I haven't mentioned that next year he's in the 3 year old room.  Although he had some good times there, he has been rather sure about not going back for a few hours at a time lately.  Hopefully he just forgets.  I only got a picture of one of his teachers too.

To celebrate, we went out for dinner with ice cream.  Such excitement over ice cream!

Wednesday: DeGraaf

We went to DeGraaf Nature Center today.  Isaac liked taking pictures of the flowers.  Joshua enjoyed taking pictures too, but is still working on getting things centered.  It is nice having me in some of the pictures, even if several only have part of me in them.

Tuesday: picture

Joshua wanted to take several pictures today...

...of almost matching shark sandles.

...of him, Bear, and his medal.

...of me, Bear, and his medal.

Monday: last day of gymnastics

Today was the last day of gymnastics.

Joshua impressed me by doing the "high" balance beam twice without needing any help.  The second time he just zipped right along.

Both boys got to go to the older kids' area for the last little bit.  Isaac especially loved it...it might be enough to have him choose to come back later on.

The kids got to do some flying.  Joshua declined quite firmly.

They both jumped into the big foam pit.  Isaac's first run had him stopping on the vault...it reminded me of his gymnastics dive last summer.  There was also a long trampoline that they ran on.  And they got medals; both loved them, although Isaac seemed especially thrilled with his.



So, over the course of the year there was definite and obvious improvement.  We aren't doing the summer session due to other commitments, and right now I would be surprised if we start again next year.  I don't want Isaac to start kindergarten and an extra circular at the same time and I have a feeling that Joshua would enjoy a dance or music class more.  It will remain a viable option if the time is right though.

Sunday: Aunt C

Saturday: game

Today we went to play a board game in the morning.  We did it at Dad and Pat's house.  The game was fun and it was nice to get to know the people better.  Isaac and Joshua did excellently too...they played in the basement well.  They came up a few times to watch or have a snack, but didn't need too much attention.

So I let Isaac take a picture of some of his creations.

We have "a machine that makes smoke and sends it into space where it turns into food for the astronauts."

There was also a bee and a yellow flower from Duplos, but he used up his allotted amount of pictures on the first creation.

So here it is from another angle.

Friday: plans

Today's plan was to go to the playground.  It's been a lovely week and the kids were wearing shorts yesterday.  Well, at 10:00, a half hour before meeting time, the temperature was 46 deg.  We pulled out the hats and mittens and went anyway.

The kids had a great time, and I did too.  I don't think anyone got too cold, although Joshua did slide into a puddle near the end.  I had some spare pants, so we got to stay a few more minutes.  Isaac found that he could made hand prints on the sidewalk with the water from the puddle, and got his mittens soaking wet.  He took off his mittens, but then had no hand protection.  Everyone left shortly after that, so the timing was good.

Isaac and I packed lunches for Kids' Food Basket.  I don't think it's his favorite thing to do, but he still does it well.  Well, except for one sack dinner that had five cookies (instead of one).

This evening I changed some plans for a large trip semi-last minute.  The boys and I were going to visit a friend from college mid-June, but then other things changed and it worked better on our side to go the beginning of June.  Luckily, that worked for her schedule too.  So now I get to see her sooner!

Thursday: kindergarten assessment

Isaac had his kindergarten assessment today.  I had no idea what it would entail, so I was giving him example questions in the car...

How high can you count?
Do you know the alphabet?
What do you like to do?
Who is your best friend?
What is 2+2?
Who is the president?
What city do you live in?

ok, I didn't really think that they'd ask him who the president is, but it was the easiest social studies question I could think of.  He also said Michigan for the city that he lives in.

Apparently they only asked him to spell his name, count as high as he could, identify colors, and something with letters (out of alphabetical order).  However, he still remembered who the president was this evening when telling Ben.

Wednesday: donuts

This morning I talked to the boys about our options for the day.  Going outside to do some cleaning, groceries, closest beach, banana bread, biking to the playground were all options.  The boys decided on cleaning (since it was outside), groceries (for donuts), and a bike ride around the lake.

This morning we did some cleaning.  It involved water and brushes.  I gave the boys each a brush and let them have at it for about five minutes while I started more brushing elsewhere.  When I looked back at what they had done, I saw no noticeable difference.  What exactly were they doing that whole time?  Oh well.  Water.  Water is always fun.

After that we took a bike ride to the playground...Isaac changed his mind at the last minute.  I always catch my breath a bit when Isaac goes down a hill.  He loves them, but looks so unstable.  On our way home, Joshua started talking about what he wanted for lunch, as it was lunch time.

We got home and both of them looked at me like I was dumb for suggesting we go inside to have lunch instead of going to get donuts.  I told them I'd go, but there would be no complaining about being too hungry.  (They didn't.)

We made banana bread after rest time.

After dinner, Isaac wondered why we hadn't gone to the beach.  I told him that we couldn't do all the options...we had had a very busy day with the options we did choose.  For some reason this seemed to surprise him and it took him a while to wrap his head around it.

Tuesday: pictures

Our 13th anniversary picture.  The sun was a bit bright.

The boys getting spoiled by the grandparents.  They look rather sad about it.

Today I went through Isaac's bedroom and filled a tub full of stuff that I don't think he uses anymore but won't get rid of if I ask him.  I told him I was going to do it soon, and that if he noticed something missing he could ask for it.  So I'll keep the tub for a while, probably longer than I need to, and then get rid of the stuff. :)

Monday: 13th anniversary

Today is our 13th anniversary!  Dad (and Pat for a bit) watched the boys so Ben and I could get away for the night.  We went to a B&B in Grand Haven.  It was very nice.

(Hmm, my Google drive isn't seeing today's pictures of both of us.  Guess you'll have to wait until my computer and phone are talking again.)

Sunday: Mother's Day

I didn't get a picture with me and the boys, but it was a very nice day.  I got to sleep in.  The boys had gone to the store the day before to "pick out something Mom would like."  I ended up with Legos...and they're right, I do like them.

I also got a great quote from Isaac on the way to church.  We were talking about how, maybe when he's grandpa's age, he can go to the moon for a vacation.

"When I'm grandpa's age, I think Joshua will be a teenager."

Saturday: sprinklers

We got the sprinklers started on Saturday.  At the beginning, Isaac asked if he could run through them.  It was a cool morning, but I said yes anyway.  He usually doesn't like getting sprinkled and I thought it would be a short thing.

However, he had a great time.  Joshua followed him, and had a great time too!  Joshua got soaked, but everyone enjoyed getting the sprinklers started a bit more than normal.

Friday: yesterday

Amanda: Joshua, who was your special friend at school today?
Joshua: We win.
Amanda: We win?
Ben: ?
Amanda: Ah, Vivian.

They told me at pickup that the two spent the day together.  The friendship had been getting stronger over the last few weeks, but especially so yesterday.  I was even expecting Joshua to say Vivian, so was surprised that I didn't understand it properly.  They gave each other a nice hug when Joshua was leaving.

Isaac hasn't seemed to form quite such a close friendship, but lately he has been going to say good bye (again) to his friends after we get Joshua.  It's been nice to see that too.

Thursday: worms

Today was a home day for me and a school day for the boys. :)  I did quite a bit of work, although some of it was fun work and some of it not so fun work.

One thing I did was deal with the dirt that the worms made over the last year.  The worms are thriving.  (So if anyone else wanted some worms, I'd be happy to give you some.)

I had tried to separate the worms from the old dirt.  I thought I could be smart by putting another bucket on top of the old one as they are supposed to want to move upwards.  I've had it there for a while, so all the fresh food is up there too.  That didn't really work though.  I took a little bit longer than I was hoping for and extracted some of the worms from the old dirt, moving them into the new dirt bin, but stopped caring after a while.  Sorry worms.  I was a little surprised at the amount of dirt that was already in the new bin after the transfer; I might need to do a transfer again at the end of the summer.


Anyway, I filled up about 1/3 of a bucket with dirt.  It's not a lot, but there is a small bare patch in the front lawn that completely and randomly died last summer.  I think I'll use the dirt and some grass seed and see if anything grows.

Wednesday: quilt show

Today we went downtown again, mainly for the quilt show.  However, I also had the boys dress up in their Dutch costumes.  Neither were all that excited about it, but Isaac did it somewhat willingly and Joshua did it somewhat unwillingly.

We got there a few minutes early and went off in search of some tulips. (Joshua's expression really shows how he felt about this whole ordeal.)

Isaac started to get into it at this point.

We went looking for some more.  Joshua had just seen a bus, which is why he isn't pouting in this one.

Isaac also wanted the side with the purple tulips.  I think Joshua saw a police car and everyone was pointing at it.

I was ready to be done, but Isaac was now on a mission to be photographed with every group of tulips that we saw.

We enjoyed the quilt show.  Joshua kept asking when it would start; I think he was expecting music.  Isaac enjoyed figuring out which two he liked the most.

They also got to see how some old sewing machines worked.  And Isaac got rather excited when I said he could submit his hole quilt next year if he ever finished it.

We saw the finalists for the year's theme painting.  (I actually know the winner, so that is rather cool.)

We stopped by The Studio, a place for kids to make stuff.  It looks pretty cool; I think we'll try and go sometime.

We got out of the Arts Council and found more picture opportunities.  I felt like I couldn't tell Isaac no, since I made him get dressed up specifically for pictures.

Then Joshua escaped behind a tree and declared, "I'm in a forest!"  Finally, I got a smile from him.

Joshua also really wanted me in a picture with these large shoes.  Notice how significant parts of the costumes are now missing. :)

Tuesday: Tulip Time

It was nice out, so I took a short break from work to walk around the park.  Red tulips are my favorite.

Monday: today

Last night I wasn't feeling great, so I went to bed quite a bit early.  This morning I still wasn't feeling great, so I put on the TV, took some ibuprofen, and hopped back into bed for an hour.  My alarm went off and I started issuing instructions (i.e., get dressed/take off your pjs) so that we could get to gymnastics.  We weren't running late by any means, but we did need to keep moving.  When I came out of my room I went to find Joshua and help him.  I started to go in his room but Isaac said, "go away Mom." and I heard things like, "Here's your sleeve."  Isaac managed to get Joshua completely dressed, and in clothes that Joshua refuses to wear for me.  I was so proud of both of them.

Later in the afternoon I was put in jail.  In my bedroom, by myself.  It was terrible.  Although I was soon joined by another cell mate, my jail keeper was rather attentive.  He brought me water, an apple, more water, and some books before telling me it was time for bed.  When it was time to wake up I got some free time outside of my cell then exercise time, and then he read me a book before bed time again.

We went downtown for Tulip Time food, a yearly tradition with Ben's family.  Unfortunately, it was cold.  I think when we left the house it was 48 deg.  And this isn't food you can eat with mittens or gloves.  So we ate but didn't stay around much longer than that as everyone was cold.

Digger movie

Ben and the boys finished the digger a while ago.  It went significantly faster than Ben or I expected as the boys always wanted to work on it.

They periodically took pictures.

Saturday: race day!

We made it to race day.  We haven't been practicing lately because the weather got rainy (and cold).  I'm a wimp I guess.

I ran with Isaac.  We didn't stop, although we slowed down several times for a drink of water.  Isaac did a great job and probably finished in the middle...although it didn't help that the beginning was terrible.  They changed the route, which was great, but started the race in the tightest spot possible.  (Isaac did a better job with large strides when there were people to pass.)

Ben went with Joshua.  They ran for the first part and then walked the second.  Joshua ran at the very end, just passing someone at the end to come in second to last.  Telling him that he got a snack once he finished is what spurred him on.  For not doing much practicing he did a really good job and did the whole thing on his own without being carried.

The tulips are going to be perfect for Tulip Time!