ducks

I had all the boys gathered up and we were heading for the recovery center to see granny. I went back in the house to get my phone and I hear quacking. The neighbors have ducks, so it's a normal noise. Then I hear, I've got him followed by angry squawking. In the time it took me to go in grab my phone and come out, the boys had managed to catch the neighborhood ducks. They were happy with there catch and was parading them around the yard. Just as I am instructing the two knuckleheads to put down their fowl friends before they get dirty, Brock's duck craps down the front of him. From shoulder to toe. He loves animals but hates poop. Anytime he even thinks about poop he gags. Ridge of course knows this and proceeds to start mock gagging. Brock then throws up. So instead of jumping in the van, Brock jumps in the shower, again. After a 15 minute cleanup detour we load up in the van and head to IF. Clean of feathers and poop. I think this was my fault for forgetting my phone.

Right of Passage

It took about 36 hours of class time, 3 hours at a time. During allstar basketball. Which meant Ridge went from school to basketball to class to bed for about a month. But he did it, and survived. He received his hunters education certificate. He shot a perfect score on his final. 4 out of 4 in the center. Bullseye baby!. He is so happy and so relieved. That was a hard test for a 4th grader. Nice job buddy!

RUS

Ridge wanted a dog for his birthday. He knew he couldn't get one but he at least gave it a good try. When he finally came to grips with the fact that there was no puppy in his future he started making a list of alternates. beaver, badger, bear, bobcat, buffalo no, no ,no, no. After being shut down with each request as he went down his list, he came up with a hamster. I don't know how we decided this was OK but the second he could see there might be hope, he jumped on the train to easy street. Which means, Grandma. When ever the two words Grandma and birthday come together, there's going to be trouble, for me. Grandma was excited to get this for Ridge. She sometimes goes a little overboard though. She new if she just brought one, 3 others would be sad. If she bought 2, 2happy, 2sad. I don't need to keep doing the math, just know that I am now the care taker of 4 rodents of unusual size. What?! Exactly what I was thinking. The boys of course were so happy. They love them. I love them too. I love listening to the little wheel they're spinning in from about 10 pm to 8 am. of course the little buggers are nocturnal. They don't stop. If you get up anytime between 10pm and 8 am, that little wheel is going. I hope it doesn't create to much friction, I'm waiting for the fire alarm to go off because they spin it to the point of combustion. Not only are they nocturnal, they are biters, and they draw blood. Caleb won't touch them now (which is nice), the last time he did, he had one dangling from his finger. Mommy take it off, it's biting me. You can't just take one off btw, they have to release, even if you shake it a lot. I also love the fact that they are easy to find, not! Before Caleb was bitten, he kept setting one free. I would have to do a head count about every 30 minutes. 1, 2, 3, where is it? And then a pursing squirrel hunt. I have now hoened my cat instincts. I can sniff one of those fluff balls out anywhere. I learned that I can go on a total lock down in about 30 seconds. I also love that they smell. 4 hamsters create a lot of mess. 4 boys can't keep up with it. I love cleaning up cages every day. I keep one thought in my head now. The life span of hamsters is only about 12 months, I figure they are already about 6 months old, I love that.

bathroom pass

At my house I don't have the priviledge of privacy. We have had a little people in our house for too long. I always have a constant companion. When I do the laundry, someone's in my basket. When I do dishes, someone's in my dishwasher. When I use the bathroom, I usually have someone sitting on my lap. There are boundaries when you have a toddler.
The same basic rule applies as a mother. No boundaries. I am called to serve in any condition and under any circumstance. This especially applies to the bathroom. I don't need a bathroom pass. Most of the time there is never any forethought as someone enters the bathroom. They just rely on me to come through for them. Mom, I need soap, I need a towel, I need TP.
I always walk in the bathroom regardless of what type of activity is going on in there to give or retreive supplies.
Unfortunatley everyone that uses our bathroom, doesn't live here. And some of those people forget about the toddler factor, so it's always a shocker if they get interupted.

I was pulling up carpet in our basement on Saturday and was getting ready to clean the tile underneath. As I'm heading for the bathroom, I hear the door shut. I didn't think twice about going in there and grabbing cleaning supplies.
I start to open the door. It is pushed shut.
I open the door again. It is pushed shut. The only one that doesn't want me in potty with them is Shane. I just assume it is him. This time before I try again, I tell him I just want the cleaning towel above his head. Open the door, it shuts. what the heck? I tell him I just need the towel. Door shuts. I decided I was going to try one more time before I cussed him out. I try and the door shuts as I hear, "It's Dick!"
I didn't even know he was visiting. I can only imagine his horror, trying to keep me out of the bathroom. He was so startled by me trying to come in there he couldn't even tell me who he was.
All I could do was walk away laughing. I felt so bad, for at least a second. I could only imagine how awkward he must have felt. The kicker, the toilet keeps running it that bathroom. So instead of fixing it, we just turn the water on and off when needed. Of course, if I didn't know he was here, so I didn't have a chance to tell him. He had to come and find me and ask me how to flush the toilet. I had tears streaming down my face at this point. After I stopped laughing, I told him sorry and gave him flushing instructions.
This could have all been avoided I he would have just handed me the towel. I need to send Cooper over to spend more time with Grandpa.

He's a natural

Caleb has been asking all winter to go skiing. He watched as his brothers geared up and went out. He would sit at the window and watch them ski or try to follow them in his winter gear. We are loosing all our snow so I thought I'd better get him out or I would here about it all summer. The big boys went on a hike while we set out for Caleb's first skiing experience. Of course to every beginner it looks easier than it is. I can still remember the tears of Ridge and Brock when they were learning. They wanted to tackle the biggest hills and couldn't even stay standing. I was ready this time. I put on my "fuzzy gloves" and was prepared for the drama. I was amazed that it only took 3 tries to get the skis clipped on. He fell a couple of times and learned really fast how to stand up. So I loaded Cooper into his sled and off we go. It was too easy, I should be a ski instructor. I was basking in my glory, pulling Coop in his mushing sled, skiing side by side with my new skiing buddy. I was set for the day. Just as the sun started to shine and the birds started singing, Caleb went for about 200 yards and then said he couldn't ski any more. He was to sore. I just started giggling. How can he already know that excuse? We had more time in getting dressed than in ski time. It think this is what is known as "baby steps." I took off his skis and off he went, with the agonizing pain seeming to go away with every bound. Maybe next time we will make it 400 yards.

6" of fresh snow

This is probably the hardest time to live in Soda. 2 days before this picture it was 40 degrees and grass was starting to show. Then of course it snows 6 inches and drops 30 degrees. We could have sat home and cried, like I was about too, instead we loaded up and went on one last winter safari. Shane took Ridge and Brock and walked the tracks from Monsanto to Kelly Park. They were all packing heat, you never know when the scary rabbits will attack. I think it's kind of funny the whole boy thing. If you tell them to go walk for 2 miles, it turns into the ulitmate male meltdown. If you give them a gun they loose all track of time and space and could walk for days on end. men!

the best birthday present ever

My guys wanted to do something special for my birthday this year. They know I love their handmade gifts. It is so sweet of them to put so much work and effort and thinking into the perfect gift that would make me happy. The boys have worked in the shop for the last 2 weeks. They have carved, glued, nailed, used the band saw, and drill. This is what they made for me. It weighs about 10 lbs. They wanted to put it in the living room but luckily it didn't come with legs. I talked them into the fact that it would make a great bird feeder. So this spring we will place it in the garden. This is a gift that only a mother could love and appreciate. I love my boys. It makes me happy that they love me too.