A New Play Yard!!

Our entire weekend we were outdoors.  Saturday, the weather was cold (35-40*) and it rained/sleeted or snowed most of the 8 hours we were outside.  A big thanks to my mother in law (and my mom) who watched Ares, my mom for keeping the fire going, A HUGE thanks to my father in law Doug, Adam,  Mike, Devon, Bryan, Justice, and my dad for all working tirelessly in the cold to get this project done.  We are grateful, and yes, we realize we're indebted to you all. 

I will stain it in a few weeks, along with removing some large rocks and mulch that is near the end of the slide.  It's OK where it's at right now, but if the boys put water on the slide, or a pool at the end of it, the large rocks will need to go. (Plus, the mulch makes it VERY hard to mow, so I'll be grateful to cut that flower bed out!!)



Grandpa Doug is making a tunnel for Ares to go through. 



This rock wall is killer.  It's going to be a long time before he can climb this without someone being 6" away.  My FIL is cut out of the picture, but directly behind him. 

Mr. Bubble-Man

A few weeks ago, Ares started calling himself Mr. Bubble-Man while at my parents' house.  My dad wanted to 'remember this moment forever' and asked me to put it up on my blog.  Of course, he didn't have to ask twice. 

When Ares was barely walking, the toy lawn mower was his favorite.  It is still his go to toy when he gets bored. 

Little Slugger

I'd like to apologize for being one of those people who is talking behind the camera.  This was taken with my phone, and to be honest, I was shocked that he hit the ball so hard my dad couldn't get out of the way in time.

My switch-hitting-just-turned-3-year-old (who even knows to switch his hands without being told) has one heck of an eye for baseball. He is already hitting line drives (right into grandpa's legs) and running. About 50% of the time he throws the bat, so we're working on that, but he has a drag bunt down.

The Next Randy Johnson! (But Cuter)

(another bragging post, beware).
Seeing as my child doesn't even know what a pitcher is, aside from something  I mix Sangria in   we pour Kool-Aid out of (lies, he doesn't get Kool-Aid yet), I may be putting the cart in front of the horse, but not only can my kid hit an amazing speed/distance (a video needs to be moved from my phone to the blog, I'm not sure how yet), but he is going to win the Warren Spahn Award.

I tried to get this kid to throw with his right hand, just to see how strong it is compared to his left (because, most kids his age switch back and forth) and he couldn't.  Not that he wouldn't, not that it was weak, he just couldn't.  He tried 4 times to throw with his right, but he sub consciously kept putting the ball into his left hand.  When he realized that it was in the wrong hand, he would switch to his right hand, and then, as he got ready to throw, again, he would switch hands.  He was getting so frustrated, because he couldn't throw with his right arm. (After the 4th time, he got it right, but he was WAY off target and it was really weak - yay).

So, a conundrum.  Do I buy two outfits to the Cy Young and Warren Spahn Award ceremonies in 2023? (2023 so he finishes college first.) Plus - Rookie of the Year?  Be ready people.  Be ready.

My One Apology

I went to Once Upon a Child last month to stock up on some clothes for the summer for Ares (I'm cheap, or frugal, whatever you want to call it - and I love those stores).  I got Ares a spinning bike too, so he can ride his indoor bicycle trainer while Adam rides his.  Last year, I bought lots of cute outfits, but they were all in different colors and you had to have certain shirts with certain shorts otherwise, it didn't work out.  With a boy who LOVES all things wet - it was tough for Adam to find things that matched when a change was warranted (or, when laundry was 1/2 done and he needed to dress Ares for school).

So here's my Apology --   I am sorry it might be confusing if one event is posted with another event and it appears there's yet another orange shirt, because, it's probably a different day, but a similar outfit.


Nearly every picture you see my kid in this summer will have brown and orange in it.  Not because I'm a Cleveland Browns fan (I am) but because those colors had the best selection of clothes, had lots of construction vehicles, Jeeps, (anything Jeep is good) or Tow-Mater on them, and had nice options to mix and match shorts and shirts for days he needs a change.
 
Adam really appreciates it though =).  I did buy a few things in different colors, but a very limited amount.  This should help too, on the days that Ares decides to pick out his own clothes.  He usually matches very well, but there's times where I think he's trying to be the male version of Punky Brewster. 

I can't believe I admitted to being a Browns fan in Public!  Yikes!!

Easter 2012

Better late than never, right?  A very laid back Easter for us this year.  We started the day off with an egg hunt in our own house.  Picked my parents up from their house and went to G.G's for a nice and quick lunch (with her homemade bread - YUM, kielbasa and this year, after 31 years of living, I finally tried the "monkey puke".  A horseradish/beet mixture.  After I quadrupled the amount of horseradish, it was pretty good on the kielbasa. )  We ended the day at my parents' house relaxing.  Well, except for the ducks outside of my parents' house, they didn't get much relaxation today. 



At the local Easter Egg hunt put on by the VFW at the community center.  They used mostly real eggs, but there were a few small eggs filled with a tootsie roll or a small smarty pack.  It couldn't have been more perfect.

He found the first egg immediately.  Although, it was in the corner of his lego/dinosaur table.

I'm surprised he found this one so easily.



Finally, he found his basket.  It was behind his tool table.

Some good stuff!

He chased those poor ducks for a long time.  I doubt they'll ever be back at the house.

Tough Mudder

Tough Mudder was this past weekend here in Cleveland.  Adam, my brother Justice and (follow this one) my son's friend's mother, Darah all ran the event.  It was in the 40's and low 50's, and rained most of the time.   We were all wet, but they were freezing shaking uncontrollably and they had been submerged in water MULTIPLE times.  Aside from scrapes, (lots of) bruising and a shoulder dislocated twice (Justice), they all made it through.  And I am SOO proud of them (and often question their sanity). 
**Update:  Adam has a nasty bout of Poison Ivy behind his knee.  It refuses to heal and now it's in his armpit.  Ewww.  We pray that Ares takes after his mommy and is for once, not allergic to something.**



Adam has just finished the race and is enjoying his Dos Equis as we walk to the buses to warm up.  He ran with this 'heat' blanket on.  He says that it only works if you have body heat first.  Oops.

It was crazy.  We were all soaked, but at least us spectators were dressed warmer.  The runners, were wet 10.5 miles of the 11.5 mile course.  Through barbed wire, log carries, monkey bars, rings, 20 foot leap into a lake, electrode shocks etc.    I do, however, get a mother of the year award, and this time it's not sarcasm, I seriously did something TOTALLY right!  Go. Me.

I brought Ares and Davis lots of food, and two trucks to play with.  I also had him in rain boots and a heavy rain jacket even though it wasn't supposed to rain until later in the afternoon.

halfway through, before the monkey bars, they're cold. very cold.

Adam is in the pink skirt far right, almost across, he made it.  Justice had just dislocated his shoulder for the first time before this obstacle, so he didn't make it far. 

The yellow strings down had as many as 10,000 volts of electricity going through them,  If the person next to you got shocked, it traveled through the water and you felt it too.  Adam says you couldn't get through there fast enough

VICTORY!

See, warm, waterproof clothes, truck, mud, and (not shown) food.
Mother. of. the. year.

We Got Approval!

With some conditions that we're not going to meet, but approval none-the-less.   I'm psyched!!

Replace the gangplank with a rock wall and the wave slide
with a super-fast (straight) slide. 

I'm going to make a chalkboard wall (not sure how yet) for the inside too, and probably paint a race track on the large platform so he can play with his cars on it. 

The Real Story

Unlike the post on Facebook that Adam made, here's the real story.

I accidently passed gas as I was picking Ares up into his carseat.  At the same time, his shoe falls off, and he screamed "Mommmy, you farted my shoe off!!" 

Milk and Eggs

OK, so my perfect child is really becoming a pain in the butt these past 6 months. Staph infection, peanut allergy, severe sleep apnea and, drum roll please, a new allergy to cows milk and eggs.  Lovely.  Although, this may explain the reflux as a child, his absolute hatred of eggs and his excessive farts, LMAO.  We haven't spoken with the doctor yet, but I read all of this on his chart online (well, not the fart part).  Of course one of his favorite foods is yogurt. and milkshakes. and cheese.  Please let's pray that a class 2 allergy is not bad. 

First Day of PreSchool!

Yesterday was Ares' first day of Preschool.  I had kind of known the day was coming, as last week I had to sign a form to allow him to transition to the next classroom, but when I asked when it would be, they said "Before June, it depends on when space opens up."  So when I went into his 'Vikings' classroom to get him yesterday after work and I was told he was in the gym, I got very excited for him.

Once I spotted him in the gym, I called out his name so we could get moving.  He ran away from me. (This is no surprise, as he always does this when I pick him up, it's like the nearly 11 hours at school isn't enough for him.) When he (and Davis) finally ran up to me, they were screaming "We're in Preschool! We're in Preschool!!!)  I didn't get a log for the day, which is really unusual, but I guess with the transition things were hectic.   Here's the rundown from these two boys:



This is the big playground.  The small one is on the other side of the gate
seen in the bottom corner.  The smaller one is under a big canopy to block
the sun.



Ares: We played outside! On the big playground! 



Davis: Yes!  We rode bicycles! 

Ares: With PEDALS!!

Davis: Yes! Pedals!
Both boys: PEDALS. PEDALS! PEDALS!! 

Me: What else did you do?

Ares: We didn't play with toys today. *sad face*

Davis: No toys, but we still played!

Ares: We counted!  On the carpet!  We counted letters on the carpet!

Davis:  One, two, three, four.....  We're in PRESCHOOL!!

Ares:  So mommy, how was your work day? **Side note:  I love that he asks me this every day, too cute, he doesn't really care, but it's sweet that he asks**

Later that day:

Me:  Did you do anything else at school?

Ares: We read a book.  But just one. The yellow soccer team. **and then he starts singing the Columbus Crew professional soccer team chant - no way that they sang or read anything like that in school  ADHD? Yes!**

Me: Ares, what did you have for lunch today? **He normally tells me everything.  Fish sticks and peas and fruit and milk or chicken nuggets and ketchup and peaches and milk etc.**

Ares: We had butter.  Brown Butter.

Me: What did you put this butter on? 
Ares:  Nofin, we put it on nofin, we just ate it.

Me:  Really?  You just ate butter?  Was there anything else?

Ares: A plate.  Brown butter on a plate.  They cut it too.  In half.  The plate. 
Me: So, you ate brown butter on a half of plate.

Ares: Yes.  Can I go play  now?

(I found out later they had mac 'n' cheese and peaches.)

It's so funny that these two boys seem to realize how important starting preschool is.  The teacher said that they were great listeners, participated and played well and seemed to really enjoy the class.  She also said that they were VERY good.  I'm so proud of Ares and Davis.  Good job boys!


I believe this is his new classroom - Pirates I.  It's slightly bigger than the other classrooms he's been in, but there's a lot of different stations to go to, so hopefully the Montessori program will still be a great fit for him. 



Star Wars - Blunder

A conversation between me and Adam when sitting in the car outside of Walmart while Ares slept.
Adam: *looking at his phone*   I know this doesn't mean much to you, but there is a Hans Solo in Carbonate iPhone case.  (1- I don't know what carbonate is, 2- neither of us have an iPhone and 3- well, you'll continue reading..)
Athena: Wait, which guy is that?
Adam:  You know, a little part of my heart just died a little bit
Athena: Not the Anikin guy, but the other guy?
Adam: Now you're mixing movies up
Athena: I know that Anikin is the dad - the bad guy
Adam: Out of the car!  I'll even keep it stopped for a little bit longer before we start moving.  The guy with Chewbaka? Harrison Ford? in the vest?  C'mon. 
Athena: *Making chewbaca sounds*
Adam:  Ugh, the guy without the light saber
Athena: *blank stare*  So not the dad? The other guy
Adam: No, not Darth Vader or Luke
Athena: Oh yeah, I forgot that guy
Adam:  This goes on your blog

-- What can I say, I don't like science fiction or fantasy movies or books.  So sue me!

Ares' Party

Ares' birthday parties were a success.  The only thing that didn't work out was that Grandma Jean and Papa weren't able to make the 6 hour trek up.  Ares was asking for you guys, because we told him you were coming, but he understood 'not feeling well' because he had been to the doctor a lot in the past few weeks.

We had 9 kids come to the party.  The biggest surprise was the balloon room.  Everyone loved kicking, throwing and swinging the balloons.  NO tears, aside when one or two broke and frightened them, but that was short lived. 

The kids made monsters out of pre-painted paper plates and pre-cut shapes plus googley eyeballs.

Ares Davis and Kenny working on their monsters

The kids actually made their own monster cupcakes.  I was worried that they would eat the cupcake before they even decorated them, but they didn't.  The monster body parts were so cool to them, that they all waited until it was decorated before they dug in.

Hannah's cupcake - so fun!!

Anna's fun cupcake =)

Kenny's cupcake

He was slightly upset that he couldn't eat it until we sang, but once we started singing, he soaked up the attention, that's daddy 

More monster cupcake fun!

cupcake makin' time

I didn't know they were doing this, but it seems they always jump off this chair into the pillows when they're over. 

After the kid party, we cleaned up, Adam ran to the store, Ares and I took a nap and we got ready for another 20 people to come over for the family party.  I'm waiting for my mom to post pictures of that.  Then I'll add them in.  

Party Prep - Exhaustion

Without my mom's help, the cake would probably have not been finished.

The cupcakes are done (I made 28 of them).

this frosting was waaay too hard to squeeze, I wish I knew there was a way to thin the frosting out.  Our  hands got cramps so badly.  I couldn't even open two of my fingers.  Towards the end of the cake frosting episode, I had to hold the frosting incorrecly to just finish.  My mom probably did more than half of the cake, I'm not sure why I have no pictures of her doing it.

Thank GOD for 9 foot islands, I cleaned it twice.  I didn't take pictures of the other counter tops.

Chocolate body parts - made with wilton chocolates, wilton frosting bags, a baking pan and wax paper.  Easy peasy!

Chocolate covered Marshmallow monsters

Elmo

Oscar the grouch

Monster beanbag game and balloon room (big hit!)

Monster settings (forks are inside the monster's mouth).

Ares' Monster cake.