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Smoothie Faces

Since we have been enjoying smoothies all week (the boys ask for them EVERY day), I thought that I would post a few pics of our smoothie faces.

Ahem, I don't mean to be rude, but you have a little somethin' on your face.

Corporal Punishment?

B has started an icky habit of calling people names. Every once in a while, it will be a nasty one, like "poopyhead." No one wants to be called a poopyhead! Then other times he just uses a nasty tone and says something like, "You're a bad boy!" or "You dumper!" I have tried curbing this habit several ways. Nothing has worked. Today I pulled out a little technique that I learned from my mother: Say something nasty, get a drop of Tabasco on your tongue. B was pretty upset when he learned his fate, but he bravely strolled over to receive the consequences of his actions. I felt pretty awful after I did it, but kept my cool. We don't spank our children (although I really feel like it sometimes), and I didn't think I would resort to a physical punishment for any misdeed. Hopefully this discomfort of a spicy tongue will keep the yucky language out of his mouth. If not, I guess I will have to think of something else. I feel like I am always trying to think of "something else." I love that little B's ability to challenge me.

The Purging of Toys

It is THAT time of year when I sort through my boy's toys and decide what stays and what goes. I plan on involving them in this yearly ritual someday. But, for now, I fear that everything would have to stay. So, while the boys were napping (even B!) I sifted through their beloved playthings and made piles of trash, cousin, charity, and toy box. A friend calls this process a toy genocide and she couldn't be more spot on! So far, the boys haven't missed the toys that have been removed. However, when they see them at their cousin's house they may become suspicious. Enjoy the lovely before and after pics! (PS - Emily, the after pic of the desk is coming. I promise.)

An Afternoon Treat

All the fixins for
A delicious fruit smoothie!

Yum!

It huffed, and it puffed...

And it blew a tree down!

And another...

And another...

And another...

And another!

These pictures were taken at my parent's house after an insane monsoon tore through town. She lost too many of her wonderful trees. I had to post the carnage.

Weekend at the cabin

We spent the last few days at the beautiful cabin! We had a few reasons for going up there. One was to have a nice weekend with the fam away from the heat and usual routines. The other was so that Amma Gramma (my mom-in-law) could "install" the quilts that she made for my parent's cabin. On a side note, Amma Gramma makes the prettiest quilts! She is quite talented and I always love to see what is on her current project wall at her house. Anyway, we started our trip Friday morning at 6am. Well, it was more like 6:30am. Until we get a vehicle that can hold more people than the 4 of us, we had to take 2 cars. Prince Charming was a good son and drove his mom's car. I drove the family truckster with the boys in back. We rocked out to some good tunes and were pretty hungry by the time we made it to the Payson airport. I did bring my camera along, but for some reason, I did not take many pictures. What was I thinking? We scarfed down some food and were lucky enough to get to see a plane taxi and take off! After eating, potty stops, and general lolly gagging, we made it back to the car for the remainder of our journey to the cabin. We made it to our destination around 10:30 and were greeted by my parents (Amee and Papa) and sis (Aunt J).

The boys went right to their toys and were immediately gobbled up by cabin life! After unpacking, so was I! The weather was perfect, the company was good, and I had the rest of the weekend to look forward to. After lunch at the club, Prince Charming and Dad went off to play a little golf. Apparently Prince Charming shot one of the best games of his life, 101. That includes hitting into the lake 4 times in a row, on the same hole of course. I brought a few projects to work on. While B rested and E napped, I got started on a stack of burp cloths that people have ordered for me. If I hadn't brought any projects, I would have spent my time sitting on the porch reading. Amma Gramma brought a few projects as well, so we kept each other busy.

The rest of our days were spent on morning walks, playing with dump trucks, playing on the playground, riding in the buggy, and working on various projects. I did manage to capture some video on the Flip at the playground. (I will post below.) The boys were having a blast on the zip line! My sister and I debated whether or not it could hold our weight. We decided not to test it out. After many turns, and some playing on the playground, E announced that he had to go to the bathroom. When asked if he had to poop, he said, "I did." Nice. So, off to the bathroom we went! Poop is fun when it is in underwear. Anyway, that was the only accident of the weekend! He even made it 4 and a half hours on the car ride! Sweet!

On our last evening at the cabin, we got to fly the RC airplane. Well, we watched Papa and Prince Charming fly it. There were a couple of good runs before Prince Charming flew it into a pine tree, about 40 feet up in the air! There were a few attempts at getting it down. Those involved throwing pine cones up to try to knock it out. That didn't work. Papa and Prince Charming did a little brainstorming and what ended up working was some twine tied to a wrench. Prince Charming got it down the next morning. YAY! That night we had the s'mores experience. B and E got their first taste of the delicious treat. B LOVED them and E wasn't too excited. He didn't like the sticky marshmallow. Boy did he miss out!

B has decided that any cold or rainy day warrants hot chocolate and s'mores. I think I might agree with him! Can you roast a marshmallow over the stove? That doesn't sound safe to me.

The weekend was fantastic. I really enjoyed getting out of town with my little family and I was very excited that Amma Gramma could join us. I hope the boys enjoy hanging out up there when they get older. B has told me that the cabin is his most favorite place. We will see if he still thinks so in 15 years.

We (more accurately Prince Charming and the boys) had an interesting lightning/thunder experience on the way home. We stopped in Payson for a potty break at a Safeway that has a Starbucks. Anyway, after pottying, Prince Charming took the boys to the car while I waited for my coffee treat to be made. Almost as soon as they were outside a HUGE thunder exploded overhead! When I finally made it in the car (slow barista) Prince Charming told me that he actually felt the electricity a split second before the thunder. He threw the boys in the car, climbed in himself, and buckled the boys from the front seat. He was certain that the next lightning bolt had his name on it! Thankfully the remainder of our didn't involve any more near death experiences. Only great tunes on the ipod.

Now we are home and getting back into the groove. B said to Prince Charming earlier today, "Start the Wii right now or you're fired!" Who is this bossy little boy and what has he done with my sweet B? I think it will take the week for him to get back into his role as 4 and a half year old boy. Hopefully he shakes the tyrant personality pretty quick. Now enjoy some video from the zip line.