Ten for Tuesday 8.26.08

1. On Friday night we had a little bit of craziness at our house (nothing new, I know). We threw together a fun end-of-summer party for the kids and Moms and really had a great time. I planned this on really short notice, so I was surprised at how many of our friends were able to come. We had hot dogs and Pot Luck for dinner, and then we set up the tents to sleep out in the backyard. I was worried that the kids might get bored since we don't have a swing set or trampoline, but they were just fine. It's amazing how kids can just play for hours with only each other for entertainment. The kids really had a good time, especially when the tents and flashlights came out. Of course, the kids didn't settle down until midnight, and they were miserably tired the next day, but I think it was worth it! I think we'll have to do this again some time. Hopefully my neighbors weren't too upset by all of the noise!

2. My kids are still trying to recover from an exhausting summer. Ty gave up naps months ago, but he has had several in the last few days. On Sunday he came home from church around 4:00 and Ty curled up on the couch and fell asleep. We woke him up for dinner at 5:30 and he just whined and cried until we put him up in his bed. He slept straight through the night. On Monday afternoon I was folding laundry and I went to put it away in the kids' closet, and noticed that Ty was fast asleep on his bed! I had to wake him up for dinner again. He never does that! Thank goodness he's been able to catch up on some sleep. Now if only Michael would follow suit. . .

3. Michael and I went to the school yesterday for a little back to school meeting and we were able to meet his teacher and see all of the other kids in his class. I think there were 7 kids from our ward in his class, and I'm glad that he's got a few familiar faces. I've heard wonderful things about his teacher, and I can tell Michael will have a great time in her class. Michael was so upset when it was time to leave the school and come home after just one hour. He really wanted to stay and play, and I literally had to drag him out of the classroom. That's a good sign, right?! When I told him that he has to wait until next Tuesday he said that he was so excited, and there was no way he could wait that long!

4. Reed's mom stopped by yesterday to bring the boys a few new shirts for school. They were so excited! We went next door to bring my neighbor something this morning, and Michael insisted on bringing all three of his shirts over to show Chuck and Jessica! Thanks for the gifts Becky!

5. Produce problem: We have fruits and veggies coming out of our ears right now! This is the best year we've ever had with our garden, and we've been getting a delivery from the farmer's market, and I had to buy a few extra things for the party on Friday, and we are trying so hard to eat it all! This is what we had for dinner on Sunday: sauteed zucchini and onions, fried zucchini, cucumber salad, tomatoes, green peppers, corn on the cob, and cantaloupe. Monday: summer squash, more cucumbers, more peppers, more tomatoes, and spinach. For lunch we've been making our way through peaches, grapes and mangoes. Tonight's dinner will probably include potatoes, green beans, and more of the peppers, tomatoes, squash and spinach. I may not have to make a main course all week! Good thing I'm eating all of this produce, because I'm feeling a bit guilty about the half pan of Jessica's Filthy Wilma that I inhaled all weekend long. By the way, does anyone know what I should do with an entire bag full of jalapeno peppers?

6. My neighbor Jessica let me borrow her Kitchenaid with the shredding attachment, and I shredded a whole bunch of zucchini for zucchini bread. What a time saver! I got over 15 cups of zucchini, and I even threw to two largest ones away because they were old. I stored it all in the freezer, with hopes that my life will slow down a bit and I can make some bread soon. Thanks Jess!

7. Blake said his first word this week! Can you guess what it is? No no! Big shocker. I'm telling you, I tell him no all day long. It's pretty cute.



8. Poor Blake, he's had a rough week. He got two new molars, a black eye, and. . .

9. A really bad haircut. Oh, I am so sad that I cut off his cute little curls! Seriously, every time I look at him I mourn for his hair. I finally bought some new clippers and gave the boys haircuts on Saturday morning. I decided to buy the cheap clippers that were on sale instead of just replacing my nice ones, and I'm regretting it now. Every one of the boys cried, and none of them ended up with a particularly good cut. I was just going to trim above Blake's ears and neck, but he was moving all over the place (probably freaking out because he saw his brother's screaming their guts out while I cut their hair!), and Reed was pretty vocal about the fact that Blake's hair was way too long. He really wanted me to just buzz it, and I really didn't want to, but I decided to give it a try with the longest extension. Blake's hair was just too long and fine, and the clippers weren't sharp enough so he ended up with short spots and long spots all over the place. His bangs are way too short, and I am so sad! He was screaming and moving all over, and I finally gave up and put the clippers down. I'm going to have to pay someone to fix it. . . and quick!

Before

After

10. Michael is having girl problems. . . he's actually having lots of problems right now, but I won't get into all of that. Anyway, I took him visiting teaching with me this afternoon, and when we pulled up to the house Michael remembered that there were a lot of little girls who live at this house, and completely refused to come inside. He said, "I have to be careful around girls, Mom." What the heck does that mean? Anyway, I finally got him out of the car and up the front steps, and the minute said little girls opened the door, Michael took off running down the sidewalk and around the corner. Aaargh! I seriously do not know what to do with this child right now. It's been a long while since I've read a parenting book, but I'm just out of ideas for him, and I have a feeling I might be checking out a few from the library shortly. Any good suggestions for this age group?

That's all for now!