Unexpected Easter Visitor

We were anticipating a bunny visitor. Instead we got Wile E. Coyote. This guy was running around the neighborhood when Adam & I came home from running errands this afternoon.  Adam pointed and said, "Doggie!" I watched as it ran past me and realized that not a scraggly-looking dog, but a COYOTE!  I immediately turned around and followed it. I got it to sit still in this neighbor's front yard for a minute so I could take some pictures. Then it ran back past me again. I went home and told Trevor what I saw. He got the motorcycle out and took Adam to go find it. We were waiting outside for him when Hunter said, "Mom I see something down the street that looks like a bunny." I looked and sure enough, our little friend was back.  He was running towards us, but got spooked by a car and turned around to run the other way.  Jacob decided that he would run after the coyote to catch up to it. I had a little chat with him about what "wild animal" means.  We watched it run back down the street as Trevor & Adam rounded the corner and got a front row view of it running past them. They turned around and followed it out to the main road. I'm sure the poor thing was lost and stuck in the maze of the neighborhood.  He acted like he didn't know which way to go.  Either that or he heard that a bunny of some sorts would be roaming the neighborhood tonight, stopping by each house to drop off a treat. I'm sure that would be a very exciting thing for a coyote to hear.

We were able to catch up to our expected visitor at Fry's this afternoon. My friend told me he was there and we raced over. We visited the one at the mall, but the $20 price tag for one picture of my child next to their bunny was a little more than I could swallow.  Especially since Adam had a death grip on me while we went over to say hi. I decided it wasn't worth it if only 2 of my boys were willing to pose. Enter this entirely FREE (although a bit scary-looking) Easter bunny! One thing the mall Easter bunny has going for him, is that he is not as evil looking. I was determined to get a photo of all 3 kids and that creepy bunny. I informed Adam that he could sit next to the Easter bunny and avoid the lap. He seemed OK with that.  While I stepped back to take the picture, he was having trouble getting on Hunter's lap. The "sweet" Easter bunny offered to help him get up. I thought it was offering to have Adam sit on his lap, cause you know, the Easter bunny doesn't talk. Adam was not keen on this idea in the least bit and started to panic. Then I was able to interpret the bunny's message that he was trying to help lift Adam onto Hunter's lap. By that time, Adam was completely freaked out and wouldn't let the Easter bunny touch him. I had to go over and help Adam get on Hunter's lap. I successfully snapped some pictures and we are good for Easter bunny photos for 2013 just in the nick of time. Phew! The Easter bunny gave the kids candy and I was able to convince Adam to give the Easter bunny a hug. Baby steps. He gets braver every year.

Late Valentine

Hunter sat down at the counter after school and told me he was making a Valentine for his girlfriend (even though it s March).
"Who is your girlfriend?" I asked him, nonchalantly, suddenly realizing that someday, he may not be so forthcoming with girlfriend talk.
"I can't tell you," he told me, "it would ruin the surprise."
"How would you telling me who your girlfriend is ruin the surprise." I asked.
He shyly said, "Because you're my girlfriend."
Awh!!! (Maybe Trevor doesn't have to know). A few moments later, he handed over his Valentine & my heart melted for the 2nd time this afternoon. It read, "I love you because you are my true love." I think I might've blushed! It was so sweet & made me feel so special. I went over & gave him a hug & kiss. It was one of the best late Valentines I have ever received. No offense Trevor! Hunter is the most sweet & thoughtful out of my boys. He loves to make people feel special & is always making presents to give to someone special. He is going to make a girl very happy someday!

They're BAAA-AAACKK!

We thought they had moved on. Apparently they were just hibernating.

Hello old friends! We missed our pet squirrels!

School Carnival

We went to our school carnival last Friday night. It is the 2nd year we have attended and it is becoming a fun tradition. Last year when we went, it was FREEZING once the sun went down! This year, I made sure to dress my kids warmly. It was such a nice night and they were a little overdressed!

Jacob started off at this rock wall, just like last year (this kid does not like change).

He almost made it to the top this year!

There were lots of fun games and they loved winning prizes! I just did a basement cleaning and got rid of a bunch of junky toys. Now we have some more! Hopefully they will break soon so they can find their way to the garbage!

After watching Hunter win some candy, Adam decided he wanted to play games too.

The only problem is, the candy wouldn't last long enough. He would gobble it down and then immediately ask for more. We found the perfect solution.

This baby lasted for DAYS! It was a wise investment. Of course all the boys needed to have one so I had 3 suckers sitting on my counter for days before they secretly ended up in the garbage.

Pinewood Derby

Well, Jacob's first Pinewood Derby was kind of a flop. We were all geared up and excited, until his car started to race...it lost every.single.race. It quickly turned from an exciting and happy experience to a sad and knot-in-the-stomach kind. Trevor & I felt so horrible for him. After video taping the first few races, I decided it was better to put my camera away! Not only was he losing, but he was losing by ALOT. It was very sad and heart-breaking. 

Jacob wasn't so excited about all the losing at first. We discovered that the wheels had been attached incorrectly and it was slowing his car down once it came off the ramp. He came and talked to Trevor and I'm not sure what was said, but he went back to the front to watch the races and the next thing I knew, his attitude toward losing turned 360 degrees.

I had so many people come up to me and tell me how impressed they were with Jacob's happy attitude even though he was not winning any races. I couldn't have been more proud of him if he had won all the races.

Near the end, with a little secret "help" by a loving and wonderful person, his car was able to win a few races. I think every single person in that room was just as excited for Jacob finally winning a race as I was. When he won, I heard the biggest cheer of the entire night. All the other boys were so compassionate to him and were so happy that he actually got to win. It was such a nice feeling.

I may or may not have gotten choked up.

As soon as Jacob found out that everyone was going to leave with a trophy, he was all smiles.

We learned such a great lesson from him tonight and we are SO proud of him! We also learned what NOT to do next year with his car so this doesn't happen again!!



Edjumaction

Hunter just came home from school and brushed his teeth. He normally only brushes them at morning & at night so I asked him why. He told me a dentist came to school today & told them they should brush their teeth after they eat snacks at home. Then as we are eating popcorn, he goes to get the box. I told him to put it away cause we have some in the bowl still. He told me he was trying to see if there was lots of sugar in the popcorn. I pulled out the box to show him where it listed the sugar (less than 1 gram..whew). Apparently, the dentist was also educating them on how to see if there was too much sugar in their snacks. I guess that's the extra stuff all-day kindergartners learn with all that extra time they are at school, as opposed to half-day K. When I was 5, I sure didn't know what food labels were or that they even existed! All-day kindergarten didn't exist back then either so maybe that's why. Not that I think it's a bad thing, but having a 5 year old checking our food labels for too much sugar is kind of intimidating!

Letters

My boys frequently make drawings & cards for people. The other day, Jacob made a card for his aunt Tiffaney & her roommate Kathleen, who is often called Kath. I could not stop laughing when I saw how he spelled Kath.