South and North

The W. family has spent the last couple of days driving all over. Yesterday we headed about 1.5 hours south to go to IKEA.  I LOVE IKEA, but Duane and the boys have never been. The boys were very excited about it,  but Duane wasn't really. He was a good sport though because there was a dresser I wanted to get and I needed him to look at it first.

Other than the fact that Ryan needed two bathroom breaks on the drive down to the store, the road trip was uneventful, but I guess that's kind of what you want when the family is taking a drive. Ryan was pretty bored on the way, but as soon as we got out of the car in the parking lot of IKEA he exclaimed, "I've been waiting my whole life to come here!" Grandma and Grandpa H. went too and we had a pretty good time!

We weren't in the store 30 seconds before Ryan saw this light.

"Look at the light! It's like a giant snowball! I love it!" cried Ryan

We ate lunch at the cafe, then sent the boys to child care while the grown ups shopped.

Team Brothers at the IKEA cafe

I really liked the child care at IKEA, but they limit the time kids can be in there. I completely understand why, but that left at least an hour that they had to shop with us. They hung in there pretty well, but by the time we left, they were more than ready to go.

Today we (they royal "we" meaning "Duane") finished putting the dresser from IKEA together. Of course, the instructions on those things are never clear, so we had to call in an expert.

We also took a trip north to Mansfield today. We had a lovely afternoon visiting with my aunt and hanging around downtown.

Lunch at Coney Island with rainbow ice cream for dessert

We went to the carrousel and the boys had three rides each. They always rode side-by-side and on the same type of animal. Team Brothers indeed.

Ryan used his money on a little white stuffed kitten he has named V.I.  Apparently she is the sister of his other stuffed cat, Violet.

We went to the the Children's Museum too. VERY fun place for the kids. Here they are playing the piano in the entrance

Wesley rescuing some of animals in the vet area.

Ryan giving V.I. some kind of examination

Checking out the bugs

Possibly the only time we'll see Wesley work on a car.

It was such a nice afternoon. Wore us all out - but we had fun. We've headed north this vacation. We've headed south. I'll be  glad to stay in the middle for a few days.

The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of

 Let me tell you, the W. family sure knows how to do Spring Break right. Please read that last sentence with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

Today's major Spring Break excitement included a trip to the dentist for the boys, followed by haircuts. Do we know how to party, or what?

Expanding His Vocabulary

The following conversation took place during a family car ride.

Ryan: I just saw my name on the side of a building! I must be famous!

Mommy: Darling, you are more likely to be notorious.

Daddy:  Or infamous!

Take My Son - Please!

The first day of Spring Break did not exactly go as planned. In fact, it kind of made me wonder what the heck I was thinking when I took the whole week off to be with the boys. 

Wesley had a gigantic fit about making his bed. He makes his bed every single morning so I'm not really sure what the issue was. Whatever caused it, it ended with a screaming meltdown. Fabulous.

We planned to go to COSI today, but Wesley decided that he really didn't want to go to COSI. That wouldn't have been so bad, except Ryan really did want to go to COSI. To be honest, after the bed making thing, I had absolutely no desire to take Wesley anywhere, so I dumped him with Grandma and Grandpa very nicely asked Grandma and Grandpa if Wesley could please spend part of the day with them. Then Ryan and I headed out for a little Mommy/Ryan time.

Sometimes I forget how nice it is to only have one child with you. Ryan and I had such a good time together. We only did the things he wanted, nobody had to fight for attention and there absolutely no issues. None.

Mommy, Ryan and Violet waiting to go into the Adventure exhibit at COSI

Violet posing pretty

Ryan spent his money on a bunch of treasure rocks.

He very carefully selected three rocks of each color so he can keep one and he can give one to M. and one to E. (two little girls in his class) and then they will all match.

But I think there's another reason he wants to give them rocks.

After going to COSI, we stopped by the bookstore. Last Friday Ryan came home from school with a book store gift card. Apparently it was a gift from the reading specialist. Ryan desperately wanted to spend it on toys at the book store, but, being the mean mommy I am, I insisted that buy at least one book. It took us nearly 45 minutes at the store, but he finally decided on a paperback book and a small LEGO set - which made both of us happy.

We picked Wesley up from Grandma and Grandpa's and things went pretty well  until we actually got home (about a minute away). Wesley would not leave Ryan alone about the new LEGO set. Ryan bought it with the intent to share it with Wesley, but he wanted to play with it on his own first. Wesley  just could not accept that, so we wound up with more frustration and angry tears.

Thank goodness my nephew at his girlfriend showed up at Grandma and Grandpa's about then. Mikey is in the Air Force and he and Samantha are moving to Florida this week. They just came down from Cleveland for a quick visit before the move. Ryan went over to visit with them right away and the rest of us joined him once Wesley calmed down (and I had a quick nap.)

We had a bit of a chat with them, then headed home for dinner since Duane had a card night scheduled with some buddies. Dinner went well until Ryan hid his carrots in his napkin and when I asked if he ate them, he looked me in the eye and said he did. Then he walked towards the trashcan and said, "This is just the strawberry that got in my ketchup."  My mom alarm went off and I checked the napkin, where, needless to say, I found his carrots. Ryan got a very firm talking to and he lost some of his privileges for a few days. Duane and I will put up with a lot, but lying is NOT something we will tolerate.

After Ryan shed a bunch of tears, he ate his carrots and decided to suck up to me. He broke out some paints and went to work on a picture of Sanders for me.

Ryan called his painting "Sanders' New Life" since Sanders gets to be outdoors in it and when he was alive he was an indoors cat. It's a very sweet painting and I will treasure it - but he still doesn't get out of his punishment. Oh, and of course, Wesley has been a perfect angel since Ryan got in trouble. At least they tend to take turns acting up.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama.

I certainly did not use the curling iron to iron the buttonholes of a shirt I wanted to wear. And even if I did, there's no way that little stunt actually worked! And I know it didn't work more than one day in the past week.

I know my coffee habit has not sneaked back up to two cups a morning.

I did not spend the Friday before my vacation started trying very hard to appear busy at work.

There is no way the two dresses I ordered online actually fit when they arrived. And I certainly don't love them even more on me than I did online.

I did not eat nothing but bread, cheese, salami, wine and cookies one day. And there was no way it was glorious. 

Weekend Wrap Up

It's been another full weekend at the W. household, but 3/4 are on vacation this coming week, so a busy weekend didn't feel too bad at all.

Saturday was a day of soccer games, a 31 party (hosted by us) and an evening with some of my librarian friends. Overall pretty low key and very fun. 

We started off our Sunday by getting to church bright and early for Palm Sunday services. Wesley sang at two of the three services, so that pretty much took care of the morning.

Wesley (hiding behind a palm) and some of the children's choir kids

After church, we picked up Sho & Kei and headed to a military museum just south of town.  We met a couple of our other friends there and spent some time looking at artifacts from the Revolutionary War all the way to Sept. 11, 2001.  Wesley's favorite thing was a collection of glass eyes from the Civil War.

The gang

Sho checking out one of the helicopters

 

 

 

Wesley found a bird's nest in one of the helicopters

Memorial brick of a family friend

Memorial brick for the son of the previous friend, who was killed in Vietnam

The rest of the afternoon passed with open windows, a nap for me and yard work for Duane. We took a walk around the neighborhood after dinner and have friends coming over to watch a tv show soon. It's been a nice was to kick off vacation.

Totally My Kid

In addition to having a bit of a Facebook addiction, I am also completely obsessed with Pinterest. I usually spend my breakfast time eating and looking at Pinterest at the same time. I told you, it's a problem (not to mention I tend to drip yogurt on my iPad).

Anyhow, this morning I was scrolling through Pinterest and came across a picture that made Wesley stop in his tracks.

"Whoa, what is that?" he asked, looking over my shoulder.

"Nutella Marshmallow Pizza," I answered.

"Nutella? Marshmallow? Pizza?" he asked in disbelief. "What could be bad about that? I've gotta try it!"

Guess I know what we'll be making over break next week.

And in case you need the recipe, click here.

Stealing My Heart

Ryan went fora bike ride around the neighborhood this evening. In addition to telling him not to cross the street, I reminded him not to pick any flowers that weren't in our own yard. Both boys have a habit of giving me lots of flowers in the springtime, but I don't want them decimating the neighbor's gardens.

Ryan came in from his ride with his hand behind his back.

"Ok, this is not a lie," he began. Uh-huh. Sure. We believe you. "But I found this random flower on the sidewalk." 

Then he presented me with a daffodil, my favorite flower.

Yes, I know somewhere on our street there is a neighbor's yard that is one daffodil short, but it was so sweet that I just couldn't call his lie.  I just hope he picks the rest from our own yard.

Not All the World's a Stage

The other night Wesley worked himself into a complete state over a missing slipper-sock that he hasn't worn in months. He was stomping around and yelling and tearing his room apart looking for it. He was still wound up about the missing article of clothing and was practically in tears when it was time for bed.

I sat down on his bed and said, "Wesley, hon. It's a sock. It's not worth getting this worked up over. You need to let it go."

And then I did my very best Elsa impersonation from "Frozen"

Wesley looked at me, heaved a big sigh and said, "Mom, now isn't really the best time for singing."  Good grief, you'd think the kid had never seen a Disney movie before. It was the perfect time for singing. But, out of respect for my kiddo's feelings (and eardrums) I ended my performance early.

Hard to Please

How to make a librarian mom happy - say "I need to get a bookmark for this" when it's time to put your book up and get in the shower.

How to make a librarian mom cringe - follow the previous statement with "I can't find one, so I'll just use this" and reach for a dirty sock.

This is life with an eight year old. 

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama.

There is no way I am so spoiled by driving an SUV that I felt like a teeny little ant on the ground when I had to borrow my mom's Saturn for two days.

I did not have to ask my kids what day of the week it was because I honestly had no idea what-so-ever.

I have not discovered that something I feel strongly that I should do and need to do and is important to do, puts me in a very foul mood when I actually do it!

I am certainly not so  "type A" about the order I read my library books in, that I made of list of which books would be due next (and thus need to be read next) to refer to while the catalog was down for a few days.

Weekend Wrap Up - Photo Edition

Friday night dinner out

At least the "nut" part of Ryan's hat is correct

Eating yogurt at a school fundraiser

Saturday morning was COLD but Wesley helped pass out water to runners at a neighborhood 5K

Still cold for soccer games in the afternoon

Picking up shoe boxes on Sunday to use for a school project

Perfect night for dinner at our favorite food truck

The best guys in the world

Ryan's Cat Tales

Do you remember the cat at Cat Welfare that just loved Ryan and that he loved in return? He's been a bit obsessed with her lately, even though I told him we would not be getting another cat. He keeps asking how much it costs to adopt a cat there, which I would be worried about if Ryan was actually capable of saving any of his money instead of immediately spending it on Legos or Kindle apps. I've been very careful to tell him although you only pay a certain amount to Cat Welfare to be able to take the cat home, you still have to pay for food and vet visits and things like that as well.

Needless to say, I was relieved when I saw on Cat Welfare's Facebook page that Ryan's cat had been adopted. 

"Hey, Ryan! I have great news! Someone adopted Callie Anne. Now she has a forever home!"

"I wish we could have been her forever home," he told me.

"I know, buddy. But we aren't going to get another cat now."

"Can we go see her at her forever home?" he asked.

"Um...Ryan, she was adopted by some people and lives at their house now. I don't know who the people are and I certainly don't know where they live."

Ryan replied, "Well, maybe one of your friends knows them. Or you could look it up at work."

I guess he thinks librarians really can find out anything.

___________________________________________________________

Ryan: Mom! Guess what?! Ms. C. said that maybe I could bring one of our cats in for show and tell someday!

Mommy: (skeptically) She did? Ryan, exactly which cat of our cats do you think is going to let us put them in a container and drive them to school for your class to pet? The only cat I know of that would let us do that is Sanders and he's dead.

Ryan turns to the shelf where we keep the box of Sanders' ashes

Mommy: And you are NOT taking his box to school!

Like Father, Like Son

It's no secret that I am deeply in love with my husband and that I think he is just about the most wonderful man on the planet. Duane has a way of knowing the right thing to say to make me feel special, loved and like I am the most important person in the universe to him. I often say that I hope our boys grow into the kind of man their father is. Well, the other morning I got proof that they are on the right track.

We are FINALLY starting to see flowers bloom in our yard. Twice this week, Wesley has run out into the yard before getting in the car for school. He picks a flower and, very gallantly, hands it to me with an "I love you, Mom."

If that isn't enough to make your heart feel all mushy, check out what Ryan said the other morning. He and I were at the table eating breakfast when I looked across the table at him and said, "You know, Ryan, you're a pretty awesome kid."

Ryan got up, walked around the table and gave me a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Well, you have something to do with that," he told me. Then he went back to finish his breakfast like he hadn't just melted my heart.

Let me tell you, these kids are smooth.

If You're Happy and You Know It

Ryan has a way of always asking the big important questions. The other night he looked at Sadie sitting next to me on the couch and asked, "Why do cats always have a frown on their face?"

And of course, I wanted so badly to reply in meme form:

In Honor of National Poetry Month

I present to you an original poem by Wesley

Trees: A Sense Poem

Trees are green.

Trees sound like rustling in the wind.

Trees taste like red ripe strawberries.

It smells like nature.

They look like a long tall wooden stick with leafs.

All trees make me feel delighted.

You may commence with finger snapping. 

Bits and Pieces

Ryan: Mom, how can people people tell if a woman is having a boy baby or a girl baby when the baby is still in her tummy?

Mommy (after deciding that an ultrasound is easier to explain than a blood test and chromosomes): There is a special kind of x-ray called an ultrasound that they do on the mommy's tummy. They look at the picture and check to see whether or not there is a penis, and that's how they know.

Ryan (after gulping and staring at me in disbelief): Ummm...that's awkward.

Lead Me Not into Temptation

Now that I'm 40 - and I still can't believe I'm 40 - I've noticed I have to pay more attention to what I eat. The spicy food I adore gives me heartburn if I'm not careful. More than two alcoholic drinks will result in a hangover and even I can tell my metabolism is starting to slow a bit. I'm trying to up the fruits and veggies and whole grains and really watch portion sizes.This doesn't mean I don't eat junk and lovely baked goods and pure, wonderful carbs, but I try to limit it.

Last night after dinner, I was trying to decide what bit of sweetness I wanted to end my meal with. A small square of chocolate? A Girl Scout cookies? One of the leftover cupcakes that my mom made the other day? 

I opted for a small piece of chocolate, but I must have been looking longingly at the cupcakes because Ryan came up to me, patted my arm and said, "Go ahead and have a cupcake, Mom. You a deserve it." 

I hope I can count on Wesley to play angel to Ryan's devil.