Chills and Thrills

Such a fun week!  The boys and I are VERY busy with our "Pennies of Time" Adventures.  We ended the week with what I call an Odyssey.  Check out the blog to see what we did.

Evy lost his first tooth! And, he stayed healthy all week.  Went to school every day!

We made some great new friends.  One of them taught our boys how to paint house numbers.  (he does it in a totally cool way!)

Found out that our pediatric dentist is a scammer.  Now, trying to get my money back. 

Evy ended a baseball class.  We are looking forward to a new class and a change in coaches!  You should see him in action.  He is FANTASTIC.  I'll try and get a video up soon.

I am continuing with a new therapy for my arm.  So far, so good.  It is called Airrosti.  In just over a week, I am out of all braces, using weights, and have really established some strength in my arm.  And, I get to wear some cool racing stripe tape up and down my arm.  I'm sure hoping that it continues to help me regain strength and mobility.  I am ready to be back to normal after almost 8 months of incapacitation.

As a family, we had a chance to go to a Ranger baseball game.  We always love going to sporting events.  There is never a dull moment between the boys and the actual game being played.

 

Cotton Candy!

 

Merritt charming the Texas Ranger girls, with his backwards shirt, backwards pants, and backwards shoes...and his beautiful smile

 

So cute and tired!

Posts in facebook for September:

September 27
Grateful for our dentist who helped us avoid a scheming dentist with our little one! He went above and beyond! Thank you, Dr.Nelson!

September 25
HGSE all the way! HGSE is not a diaper company. HGSE does not need to claim "hugs" in a name to show that the school is committed to achieving excellence in education. Don't like either? Then talk about it like I do: The Ed School

September 19
We just saw T-Rex arrive at The Heard, amid hundreds of butterflies!

September 17
When the pediatrician gave the positive verdict of a strep culture, she brought a new toothbrush with her at the same time. Brilliant!

September 13
Me: Merritt, how was the hearing test at school?
 
Merritt: Wike dis--beep, beep, beeeeeeep, beeeeeeeeeeep, beep, beep, beeeeeeep, beeep, beep, beeeeeeeeeeeeee!
 
Me: So, I guess you hear okay.
 
Merritt: Yeah.

It Is Called Self-Reliance, Mom!

Merritt, the master of all locks and impediments designed to keep kids under the age of 5 out of stuff, will never go hungry.  This was the third time this week that I found him making sure that his tummy didn't go hungry.  I am so glad that he is able to bust through the pantry lock.  I mean, I would hate for him to STARVE! 

Just as happy as a clam eating his favorite treat in bed, dried mangos.

Evy's First Tooth--Loss

It was a fantastic Sunday for Everett.  He lost his first tooth.  The tooth fairy left $0.50 and JEWELS!  The $0.50 Everett donated to a homeless shelter.

Austin, Our Beloved Austin

This summer we had a chance to visit Austin a couple of times.  These are pictures from our second visit where all of Erik's brothers and sister gathered to surprise his dad.  Awesome!

While Erik was working, I took the boys around town and visited some of my favorite spots.  The Nature Center, the Umlauf Sculpture Garden,

Can you see the lizard on the sculpture?  Evy could.  I couldn't.

 

 

There it is!

 

The boys completed a scavenger hunt along the way.

 

 

We gave Pa a big surprise when we were there!

 

Cousin TIME!

Later, the party moved to Dallas for more cousin time!

 

 

We also went to a great waterpark in Round Rock with our favorite guy group family.  Thanks, Morgans!  We went to the Austin Nature Center.  I made the boys take the trail to the Center and they made it all the way!  We also visited plenty of my favorite parks while we were there.  The only drawback:  no visit to EastSide Cafe.  That will *have* to happen next time!

Beach Living

Evy and I recently had a chance to go visit awesome Uncle Greg in Florida.  While we were there we played at the beach, fished in the rocks, learned the Lorax, swam in the pool, ate lots of good food (Chunky Lolas!), and visited a marine museum! 

Here are some photos of the highlights:

 

Our feathered dragon attacking a town.

 

Fierce Dragon Evy!

 

 

Evy, Uncle Greg, and Turtle

 

I thought he was going to try and take that coconut all the way back to Texas.

 

We reached the end of our walk, which was . . . I forget, like 2 or 3 miles.

 

Uncle Greg and Cooper were the absolute bests hosts!  We made several new friends and can't wait to see Uncle Greg again!

Tidbits

Whenever Merritt is having trouble (upset, scared, tired, overwhelmed), it is best if you just hold his hand or give him a hug.  It calms him right now.

He just walked in and said,"I hope you have good dream, Mom!"

Both boys will spontaneously say at different parts of the day,"I love you, Mom!"  I hope I remember that when the mouth-y-ness begins.

Perpetual Motion Merritt is in a full 5-point car seat restraint.  He will be until he graduates high school.  Maybe.

Right now, Erik, Evy, and Merritt are all laying down in Evy's room to "go to sleep."  They are each taking turns saying sweet things to one another.

Evy and Merritt were separated for the afternoon (one at a party and one at the pool).  When they were reunited, Evy said,"I missed you, Merritt!"

Merritt just walked back into the room,"Which would  you want, a bad dream about a witch or a monster?"  (One of our regular car games is "choices" where we ask a question with two options for an answer.  He is clearly not wanting to stay in bed.)

Evy is a champion money counter and loves to learn more about the value of coins.  He earned money by cleaning a water table that we sold to a secondhand toy store.  His cut:  $2.  His first thought was to buy toys for a boy that doesn't have any.

Evy doesn't like to eat breakfast.  Merritt loves my protein drinks.  Neither like the kale chips I made.

Merritt has rhythm.  Even with his head on my lap, overtired from a busy day, his hand is tapping out in time to music playing in the background.

Dinner Designed by Evy

On our last day of swimming as a family for the summer, we were trying to figure out what to have for dinner.  And, Evy piped up from the back seat.  I KNOW!!!!!

He picked the restaurant, A Taste of India, and our clothes for the evening!

We ended our evening with frozen yogurt!  It was a marvelous evening and we had a great time!

The Bros

Our amazing boys!

Evy is a questioner.  Always thoughtfully processing his world around him, he questions those pieces that don't add up.  Ever on the quest for truth and right, he does his best to make good choices and feels a strong sense of guilt and remorse when a bad choice is made.  He is the first to share, the first to step up to help, and has a giving personality.  He prefers a balance between chocolate and salt.  He loves the color red, eating macaroni and cheese, helping everyone around him, and going fishing!

Merritt uses the language of love.  If you tallied up everything he says in a day, most of the words would fall in the "love" category:  I love you, you're beautiful, how can I help, I'm sorry, I want a hug, give you a hug.  He is always in perpetual motion, and, yet, can sit for a surprisingly long time when lost in a book.  He loves to lipsync, always asks for the music to be "wow-der," and is the first to start our daily dance parties.  He loves sweet treats like Whoppers, dried mangos, and gum.  He loves almond milk, hates pickles, and prefers to do it by himself,"I GOT IT!"

They are the happiest when they are playing with each other.  The sweetest part of my day happens when we are at home after school, and they have time to play together.  They'll be superheroes, daredevils, ninjas, and spies.  There is always the inevitable argument or tussle or accidental maiming.  No matter the circumstance, they are almost always immediately back in each other's company ready to play some more.

So Sweet!

Erik and I went out recently and came home to find this:

I guess he missed us!

First Day of School

Everett recently started Kindergarten and he is loving it!  He teaches me all kinds of things when he gets home:  Zero the Hero, sign language movement for smart, the three sounds that "A" makes, and other tidbits that I love to hear about from him.

The first week of school was the pits for me.  Seriously.  I missed him so much! 

Here is Evy before school started on Meet the Teacher Night:

His teacher is AWESOME!

We had a "Starting School" Party at home the weekend before school started.  Here are some photos from that party!

When he grows up, he wants to be a policeman and own a restaurant!

Merritt was to be a wolf, or own a wolf, or be a wolf.  We aren't sure.

 

On the First Day of Kinder!!!

And, he was off!!  No tears from him.  He was ready to start learning and making friends.

On that day, Merritt and I did lots of things.  He also had time to entertain himself by doing this:

Every one had a great day!