Boys in a Bag

Today, we got new bedding and the boys were all about the bag it came in. They kept asking if we would zip them up in it. They even took turns and took their blankies in with them. It was really hilarious. I'm not sure what it says about our kids/our life that they had a blast being zipped in a big bag...but they were enjoying themselves and having good clean fun, so...

4th Birthday Fun

That's right, my oldest little one turned four last week! Crazy!
We decided to do things a little differently this year for a couple reasons and not have a traditional birthday party. Instead, we found other ways to make his day fun and because of the weather and his daddy's work week, we ended up celebrating for three days--can't beat that! ;)

Day one included:
4 streamers and the #4 hanging in his doorway
a birthday banner

#4 pancakes

a trip to Toys R Us to redeem his train coupon (awesome b-day club treat!)
a stop at the Dollar Tree to get mylar balloons for the b-day boy, his buddy and his little brother
lunch w/ #4 jigglers

cupcakes w/ sprinkles (by request of course)
a visit from Grandma and Grandpa G.
pizza for dinner (by request)
Chocolate chip/butterscotch cookie cake

presents

a soccer game

Day 2:
a trip to a splash park nearby
more cupcakes

Day 3:
soccer game
a trip to the zoo with Mom, Dad, little bro and best buddy

He had a great time celebrating and is quite excited to be four! I'm amazed at how many things he can suddenly do independently, "because I'm four now!" :)

The Everyday Stuff

My boys crack me up on a regular basis, and because I know that a few of you--namely my parents and few random others--enjoy hearing about what they say and do, I thought I'd share. Here are just a few that come to mind:

At Target, buying a body pillow to replace the one I've had since freshman year of college--'97:
Jon says, "What's that, Mom?"
Me, "a body pillow--like the green one I have at home"
Jon, "oh, hey, I have a body!"

a little later,
Me, "You can have my old pillow"
Jon, "what about Sam? He has a body, too!"

In Walmart, discussing something random:
Me, "I don't know about that, Jon"
Jon, "Well, I do. I know all about that. I know everything."
Me, "hmph...yeah, you think you know everything, but you really don't."
Jon, "Yeah, you're right, I think I know everything."
Me *shaking head and laughing*

Sam is soon to be joining these posts, he's talking more and more.
The other day, he said to me, "Hey, Mama, where is my Daddy?" I think that's the longest grammatically correct sentence I have noticed him say as of yet.

I've really been trying to get them to share and take turns--story of my life at this point in time--and Jon frequently tells Sam he can have a turn "in a minute." Well, now, when Jon asks Sam to use a toy--train, car, etc--Sam's response is ALWAYS, "in mimit!"

Another lesson that Sam is learning is the importance of saying please and thank you. Unfortunately, he thinks saying them makes everything okay. A couple examples:
Me: "Sam, it's time to take your medicine"
Sam: "No thanks, Mama"
Me: "Yes, buddy, it's time for medicine, come here."
Sam: "No THANKS"

Another example: At Jon's soccer game, we forgot Sam's soccer ball for him to play with during the game, but he kept saying, "My ball, PLEASE!" and we'd say, "sorry it's at home." He'd say again, "PLEASE, please, my own soccer ball, Mama?" Please isn't really a magical word...

Jon is enjoying soccer but might not be as competitive as we had once thought. When we got home from his game yesterday, Pete asked who won and Jon looked up puzzled, then turned to me, "Who won, Mom?" (The other team won, but he was completely oblivious)

Another frequent conversation that Jon and I have is about arguing. His little nearly 4 year old brain wants to reason it's way out of doing things or out of trouble and I'm constantly fighting the, "but Mom..." with the "please don't argue with me." As a result, the other night, Jon was saying good night to Sam and we overhear him say, "Sam, don't argue with me, I'm going to sing Twinkle, Twinkle."

The other day, the boys and I had freezer pop/icee things (the things in the plastic tubes) and we ate them outside. There were only two chairs out in the grass where we were eating. Jon took one and I took the other, then Sam was sad, so I gave him my seat. Jon looked at me standing and said, "hey, Mom, you can sit here...but could I sit on your lap?" Any time, sweetie, any time!

Soccer Fun

Jon just started playing soccer last week. It's great--he's in a rec league in Cedarville that is for 4 and 5 year olds (he'll be four next week) and it's coached by the Cedarville Soccer players. The games are 3 times a week, but they're only 30 minutes long--which is perfect for their little attention spans! Here are some of the highlights so far:

He actually kicked the ball and had control for a second!

He threw the ball in--his first attempt went straight up and the boys were all laughing SO hard. It was really fun! :)


He's getting a bit tired--it was pretty hot!

Jon and his buddy from church, Sam Vine.

Summer fun at home

fishin' with Poppop