Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

We're thankful for all of our boys and the chaos they bring! You'll have to forgive me for not letting Eamon do this craft with us last night. First he ate all the ends of the crayons, then he wrinkled up all the paper, then he tried to steal the glue and run away with it. We assume he is thankful for: brothers that don't beat him when he destroys their stuff, parents that love him even when he is a demon, a dog who is gentle and lovely to him even when he torments her, and food of every variety. Here's what the two big boys are thankful for:

Liam is thankful for: Mommy, Erin, Colin, Daddy and Eamon, Clara, Super Flying Racecars (???), Blocky and Robot (his imaginary friends) and Horses and Cows.


Colin is thankful for: David and Liam, Mommy, Daddy and Eamon, Bunk beds (which he doesn't have, but wishes he did), Santa (brown-noser!), Games, his Superhero Birthday Party, and his new Remote Control Racecar.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Crazy as a Three Ring Circus

Okay, to be truthful, it was really only a One Ring Circus. I am not quite sure if I am not remembering properly because I was so little and everything must have seemed so BIG to me, or if the Ringling Bros. have hit the skids with the economy such as it is like everyone else... but the circus wasn't quite as glamorous as I recall it to be. I used to go every year on my birthday and this year Colin won us free tickets from a drawing contest so we were thrilled to go for his birthday. The boys had a great deal of fun and enjoyed it. I'm not sure if the circus was as big a hit with them as the $10-bucks-a-pop light up toys we got them (and we didn't even spring for the $20 ones inside... we got sucked in by the guys hawking them "half price" outside. I'm just thankful that our knock-off toys (a laser gun and a sword) died in the first 48 hours... they were driving us insane anyway.) Fun was had, treats were digested and it was an enjoyable outing. I'm not sure I would go if I had to pay for it, but for a mostly free day out with the boy-os , it was worth it!


These two guys were probably the most impressive. They jumped ass over teakettle around their hoops as they revolved... I admit it, I gasped a number of times.


What happened to good old-fashioned clowns? I am rather afraid of them, myself, but our kids REALLY would have enjoyed the humor of 20 clowns in a clown car or the more slap-stick pouring of water over heads, etc. The main clown here was a French monsieur who was amusing, but not at their level. He did have a funny bicycle act, though, topped out by riding his mouse-sized bike through a ring of fire. Colin capped most of the performances by saying, "I have GOT to try that at home!"


They constructed a cage in the ring during intermission to keep us all safe from the big cats. They were magnificent and it just gets me everytime that they APPEAR to be cute, overgrown house cats... but I hope the woman with the whip gets combat pay because there is NOTHING you could do to convince me to snap my whip at those big fellas!



Liam had as much fun stuffing his face with popcorn as anything else, I think.


That lip! That lip is both the bane of my existence and the cherry on top of my gleeful Liam Sundae.


The elephants were always my favorite and they were still pretty great. Though I am slightly biased as I had JUST finished reading "Water for Elephants" before we went.


This girl got double pay as the Rope Mistress and the poor maiden who had look demure while some sharp-shooter shot a rose out of her hand with a semi automatic cross bow.

A true testament to Colin's overall enjoyment. The cotton candy sits forgotten in his hand while he ogles whatever act has mesmerized him. For that alone, it was a good day.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Colin's Super 5th Birthday!

Although turning five was unbelievably exciting for Colin, and somewhat sobering for the rest of us (Five. Five???? I can no longer live in denial. Four still somehow seems like a "preschooler", a "little kid", "my baby". But five??? Five is real, solid, genuine, hardcore KID material. Colin goes to kindergarten next year. It might as well be college. But I digress...) Anyway, it may have been exciting, but it sure didn't produce any nice photos. Here are the paltry few that I eeked out during his two birthday parties. Yes, two. I will say, though, that when we made our "Thankful Turkeys" tonight, one of the things Colin said he was thankful for was his "Superhero Birthday Party". So it might not have been photographically preserved for posterity, but it was memorable for him!



Colin showing us his lung capacity at his Preschool Friend party.


The gaggle of admirers from his class at school who came, ate, trampled and made merry.


Colin's Family Party. Yes, I know, for the first time, I did not go hog wild making his cake. I bought it from a grocery store. The horror! But I did buy all THREE superhero kits to go on top, not just ONE. :)


And I did make a tower of Superman confections. Though truth be told, I bought most of the decorations. Maybe I have finally exorcised my Martha Steward demon... or most likely, I was just overtaxed this month and ran out of time!


The birthday boy hoisting his favorite gift: Rhino Rampage. It's also my favorite gift: no batteries required!!

Scholastic Tradition

We got the boys school pictures back today and despite the fact I'm two weeks behind in blogging about everything ELSE around here (namely, Colin's birthday), I just HAD to put these photos up. They both did splendidly (we can't blame their hair for refusing to behave) which earned them an outing with Daddy. I think Colin chose bowling and Liam chose Chuck E Cheese... so we're ALL thrilled with the results.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Trick or Treat

My Three Heroes

Daddy took the trio trick or treating. Colin didn't mind that I had to work as he was enamored with the human bones I had in my car all week in preparation for an anatomy exam. He is probably the only kid in the world who asks to take real human bones for Show and Share at preschool. (I said no. Only because they were painstakingly labeled by me for the exam and I didn't want little fingers messing them up. Otherwise, honestly, I would have let him. I swear he knows more bone names than half my nursing students)

You couldn't possible imagine the fun that was had with glue and some old baby food jars I found WAY BACK in the cupboard.

The end result. Spooky. Perfect.

Creepy crawly critters for the boys' preschool party.

Spiders were VERY high on the fun list this year, as you can see.Who would have guessed that HOURS of fun could be had with a couple strings of licorice? I wonder if the cavities will be worth it? Probably.