Gavin's Six!

Where is the time going? Seriously? How is this kid possibly six years old?

We celebrated Gavin's birthday with his friends on the 5th. Gavin wasn't sure about celebrating on a day other than the real thing. There was a Primary party scheduled for his birthday so we talked him into it. This ended up being a huge blessing (see above post).

This time around, Gavin wanted to go somewhere for his party. I have to admit that I was relieved. We've done some elaborate parties the last two years. When I saw August on the calendar I had flashbacks to paper mache dinosaur eggs and images of myself in a flashy superhero outfit. Scarry. It was nice to load the boys up and take them to a place where they could exhaust themselves on their own. Two of Gavin's guests called at the last minute to say they weren't coming so Tristan and Jolie were each able to invite a friend. It was a good time.

Who Ever Said Summer Days Were Lazy?

I bought this Slip n Slide weeks ago and hid it in my closet. Somehow I knew the inevitable summer day would come... you know the one. The one in which there is nothing left to do and the entertainment committee is sick and tired of entertaining and needs some down time. Well, Saturday was the day. Tristan and Jolie were off on more exciting adventures and the little ones were left to sulk about being a bit to young.

I pulled this baby out et voila... hours and hours of self-contained fun (well, not hours and hours but any little bit helps).

I tried and tried to get decent photo of Mia at the bottom of the slide but she wouldn't stay there for long or hardly look anywhere in my direction. She knew her daredevil brother was seconds behind her and somehow sensed the danger.

Soccer

I thought I'd post some photos of our soccer season. Gavin played with the Green Swamp Monsters and had a fabulous time. It was his first taste of organized soccer. He wasn't much for offense but he has a fierce defensive strategy. Gavin loves taking the ball away from other players and if that doesn't work, he makes a b-line for the goal and stands in front of it, ready to deflect anything that could possibly come close. I often watched this, realizing the benefits of being a middle child and having bullying older siblings. He's definitely learned to defend himself and dish it back.

As a third grader, Jolie moved from a small field with a few rules to a HUGE field with many technicalities that were fiercely enforced (off sides, etc). She couldn't even wear jewelry (the horror!) It was a rough season for the Thin Mints. They didn't win a single game. In fact, it was a good game if they scored at all. Jolie was discouraged, and, this spring on the way home from one of her games she asked me if she could not play next year. My heart sank.

This summer I signed Jolie up (Gavin, too) for an indoor soccer camp. Our goal was to build her confidence and help her remember the fun of the game. She loved it. We're planning for her to play with her team this fall and I'm told that it will be easier since her team will no longer be the youngest in the league and they'll be used to the larger field. Here's to hoping.

I think I'm slated to coach Gavin's team this fall. They're (obviously) desperate for coaches. One of our friends coached both of the kids last season and I could tell it was waring on him. My contribution last year was taking the team photos. I hope I can be as handy with a whistle as I am with a camera.

One Fish, Two Fish

Has there ever been such a fickle blogger? I've thought many times about posting over the past several weeks but it just seems that I never have a moment to sit down and do it. I guess I'm so busy living life that I have a hard time sitting down and documenting it. Plus, to be honest, I don't feel like I have much of an audience.

Tristan spent yesterday fishing with Jerry in a place called Paradise (really). Jerry's friend owns a share in a private fishing and bird hunting ranch. I hear that Tristan landed about 20 fish, this one being one of the most prized. he became frustrated over the fact that he caught twice that many but wasn't able to land them all (still learning how to set the hook).

Just like all fishing trips, there was a story of the big one that got away. Tristan also apparently named all of the fish he caught: George, Fred and the like. He had to rename Fred when she lost some of her eggs while they were trying to get her hook out (the ranch is strictly catch and release). He was disturbed that the other fish ate the eggs. He told me this morning that fish are cannibals.

Tristan also quite enjoyed the catered lunch at the ranch: a meal which included fresh trout and what he said was the best cheesecake he'd ever eaten.

Stay tuned for updates on our comings and goings of the past few months. The laundry will just have to wait. Be patient, though. The pee pee accidents can't.

I May go crazy in May

The month of May is always so busy. The kids have already been on field trips and there are more to come. Gavin went to a children's museum, Jolie to a different children's museum and an orthodontist's office, and Tristan to the theater. Last week we sat through four hours of ballroom dance competition (Tristan)and this afternoon and tonight were Tristan and Jolie's chimes concert.

One of the benefits of their being in the Spectrum program is learning chimes. A few years ago the program got a $10,000 grant to put this together. The director plays in a chime group semi-professionally. She takes it very seriously. In fact, I've been hearing a lot of complaints about chimes lately because it's one of those activities that requires practice, practice and more practice. When there's a performance looming the kids end up being cheated out of recesses in order to get ready. There is nothing more hated around here than the person or activity responsible for taking away a recess!

The month of May is going to be a busy one. I'm helping Tristan's teacher with their opera (she heard I had experience with lights), a Transition Tea for PTA at Gavin's school, Spectrum Olympics (I'm in charge of Tug o War), a walk a thon, kindergarten testing, a talent show, Jolie's first research paper, state report exhibits (Tristan is doing Maryland), scout merit badge classes, Decade Day, field day at two schools, my cubmaster duties for cubs, and soccer practices and games for Jolie and Gavin.

I'd say that the lazy days of summer are looking pretty good but everyone who knows this brood knows better... being bored is even worse than being busy.

My Take on Burlap

The makings of this wreath have been sitting on my kitchen island (technically, it's a peninsula) for over a month. Dan has been very tolerant. If he hasn't learned anything else over the last fifteen years, it's not to mess with my creative carma.

Anyway, here it is... bright and cheerful, just what I was going for. I really wanted to do something with burlap since it's everywhere (have you seen what people are doing with burlap?) I cut the fabric with Stampin Up's Big Shot- I told Lorraine I'd make her a wreath if she let me borrow it. I just need to find the right shade of ribbon and hers will be finished.

Today was the perfect day to hang my cheery wreath since it's SNOWING AGAIN. It's a good thing I have more fabric to play with today or I might be depressed (fabric makes me happy, snow in almost-May does not.)

Drama, Drama Everywhere

Each spring the Spectrum program does a drama. When Tristan was in 3rd grade he was a 1920's dancer in Flappers to Rappers. Last year he was a very animated pirate in My Bed is a Boat. This year the drama was Hubbub on the Bookshelf. Tristan played a Chinese warrior and Jolie was a sneech.

Last year when I saw the drama for the first time (I couldn't go in 3rd grade because of my back injury) I was AMAZED. Tristan was dancing and acting and I knew it was nothing he'd learned from either Dan or I. I was very impressed with how the whole thing turned out. My favorite part of Hubbub was the little 3rd grade Sneeches. My contribution to the play was sewing sneech gloves out of yellow felt.

This year Tristan was disappointed that he didn't get a bigger part in the play. Every year it seems that his best friends get lead roles. I'd heard from a friend that a city near us was getting ready to do auditions for Willy Wonka so I encouraged Jolie and Tristan to try out. I enlisted the help of our teenage babysitters to help them with their music. They worked magic! The kids were so confident and prepared after working with Rosie & Livvy. They really built them up and gave them some good pointers. We went to the audition and Tristan ended up getting a callback. Jolie (being the singing, dancing fool that she is) wanted to be an Oompa Loompa all along so she wasn't too disappointed.

The best part of the audition process was when I was in the hall waiting for Tristan and his friend David. They were both in the callback audition in a closed room with paper over the windows. I had no idea what was going on. They were both trying out for Mike T.V., a hyper-active, disrespectful kid who's addicted to technology. They'd been in there a while and it was getting late. David came out in the hall to get a drink and I asked him what was going on. He told me it looked to be between Tristan and one other kid for the role of Augustus Gloop. I nearly fell over. Augustus is the fat German kid who finds the first Golden Ticket in the play. The thing is, Tristan is neither German nor fat. I just didn't see it.

Sure enough, Tristan was cast as Augustus Gloop and Jolie an Oompa Loompa. The next six weeks were very busy with rehearsals three nights a week plus Saturday mornings. By the time we got to the last two weeks of tech rehearsals and performances, we ate drank and slept Willy Wonka. I was in the sound booth every night helping with sound and lights. I also did the music editing for the musical director (had to refresh my knowledge of Adobe Audition). No wonder I laid awake each night with Willy Wonka songs running through my head.

We all have good memories of Willy Wonka. It was a great experience. One of my favorite memories of the play is when Tristan finally figured out how to melt chocolate. Augustus makes his exit from the play by falling into a chocolate river. Immediately before this, he dips his hands into the river to taste the "hot and cold running chocolate". He is told not to do so by Willy Wonka but being a fat little child with no self-restraint, he sneaks the chocolate while the rest of the group is looking the other way. When they discover Augustus sneaking the chocolate, Willy Wonka says, "Augustus, didn't I quite recently state that my super special chocolate was never to be touched by human hands? Especially yours?" Then Tristan (Augustus) looks up, chocolate is smeared all over his face and he replies, "Toooooo Late!" It took some practice for Tristan to get this right. In the first couple of performances you couldn't see chocolate on his face. Then one night he looked up and the chocolate was there. He got a good laugh from the audience. He figured out that if he put his hand in his pocket in the scene before this, with the chocolate in his hand, it was melted by the time he needed it on his face. That created a monster. Each performance there was more chocolate and more laughter. By the end of the play one of the stagehands told me she was wiping chocolate out of Tristan's nostrils, ears, and every other place it could possibly go.

Another memory is our constant singing of the Oompa Loompa songs: around the house, in the car, Mia singing them while the kids were at school, and by the last few performances we were all singing and dancing to them in the sound booth. Jolie was on the verge of laughing on stage because she could see us up there waving our arms and dancing.

**Need to get Willy Wonka photos from my dad- will hopefully post tomorrow**

Feeling Left Out

We'd finally got the kids to bed the other night and I was in the office checking my email. Out of nowhere I heard Gavin wailing from his bed, "Mommy, I feel left OUT." I thought he was referring to the fact that I made him turn off his light while Jolie and Tristan were both in other rooms reading. I went into an explanation of why he, a five year old, had to go to bed while his siblings were being allowed to stay up a little longer to read. Then he set things straight for me. He burst out, "I'm the only one who hasn't lost a tooth!" By that time nearly everyone had gathered in the doorway of our upstairs office. Jolie and Tristan and I looked at each other in disbelief. Gavin was SO suddenly distraught over this seemingly insignificant point that it was actually hard not to laugh. He was VERY emotional. This was a big deal. All of his little kindergarten friends have been losing teeth while Gavin is nowhere near losing any of his.

We got Gavin though his emotional crisis by sending the boys to their room to get back in bed. I asked Tristan to tell Gavin about his famous front tooth that he bumped when he was a toddler and which has continued to cause him problems. His braces and the retainer he wears at night are all partially related to this problem tooth.

In the meantime, I've been interrogating all of the little boys in the neighborhood about their teeth. I couldn't believe they'd all lost teeth this early. Gavin was right. Every kid who's played at our house this week has lost at least one or two teeth. I realized they're all older than Gavin, though. A lot of the boys in kindergarten are several months older then him. That's when I realized this is only the beginning. We have a long road ahead of us of feeling left out.

Having to wait until OCTOBER my entire growing up years, I can definitely relate.

Our Last Day

I have a vacation hangover. Mia and I both caught Gavin's chest cold and I feel like crap. I decided to spend the afternoon looking through my photos from our last day in San Diego rather than at the snow on our front lawn. Mother Nature insists on torturing me.

We spent Saturday in our familiar stomping grounds, La Jolla. We spent the afternoon at La Jolla Shores and headed to Nana and Papa's for dinner. As always, the kids had a fabulous time on the beach. The weather was a bit cool but they didn't notice. They worked on their sand castles and before long Tristan and Jolie were swimming in the ocean. Our land-locked garage houses two boogie boards so they have to put them to use when they have the opportunity. I also enjoyed watching Mia play in the surf, running away from the waves as they rolled in.

Dinner at my dad and Nancy's was a highlight. We had pizza off the grill (if you haven't tried it you're missing out), a great salad and brownie sundaes. The kids hit the hot tub and caught up with Nana in the kitchen. We love being invited to their place!