Toothless

It is official:  Jersey #3 has lost his first tooth (by natural means).

He was showing me that it was barely hanging on, when it fell out of his mouth and landed on the pool deck while we were out swimming.  Fun stuff.

I have to make the disclaimer that this tooth fell out by natural means, because Jersey #3 has already lost 4 teeth by unnatural means.

At one point, he had a full set of teeth....

He was involved in a bicycle accident when he was 4.  He rode his bike down a climbing mountain at a park, and wiped out.

At first the top teeth were only loose.  The dentist was hoping he could save them.

Unfortunately, loose teeth are too much of a temptation for Jersey #3.  He wiggled the first one out quickly.

Others were not far behind.

One tooth managed to secure itself before he had a chance to get it out too.  So, he was left with 1 dangling tooth for a couple years.

That tooth came out last year.

According to the dentist, it is going to take a couple more years before the permanent top teeth are ready to emerge.

Thankfully, Jersey #3 does not seem to mind his unique smile.  It does not seem to touch his confidence the way that I feared it would.

He still can't pronounce the "th" sound.  I suppose teeth are required for that.

It may be interesting to see if he is able to talk and eat well when he actually had a full set of teeth again!

The Avengers

We have super heroes on the brain these days.  

Gone are the days of princess dress up.

Iron Man, The Hulk, and Spider Man have replaced them.

The Referee took us all to the movies to see The Avengers.  Since it is rated PG-13, we were not so sure the younger kids should see it.  After reading the reviews, we decided that since it wasn't gory, they should be OK.  

Our entire family had a blast at that movie.

Granted, the kids get excited about the idea of theater popcorn and a Coke.

But, the movie was awesome.  It kept everyone's attention.  Even Jersey #5 laughed at the funny parts.  He got it.  He took a nap during the middle of the movie, but enjoyed all the action scenes.

I didn't grow up with too much super hero stuff, and I am not usually very big into action adventure movies, but I really enjoyed The Avengers.  (I actually enjoyed the Iron Man movies too, and Green Lantern, so maybe I am into super hero movies and just didn't realize it.) 

The kids have been quoting lines out of the movie ever since.  

Jersey #5 was most amazed by The Hulk.  He likes to imitate him.  I managed to capture a video of him re-enacting one of Hulk's scenes in the movie....

Birthday Party Adventures

When we were discussing how Jersey #3 wanted to celebrate his birthday this year, he told me that he wanted a party at our house with 3 specific things:

1)  His cousin

2)  His friend from AWANA

3)  A Mario pinata

I totally feel like Mom of the Year right now, because I accomplished these requirements with gusto this year!  Jersey #3 is easy to please.

1)  I managed to borrow my nephew for the weekend, so he could attend the party.

2)  His friend from AWANA (his very first friend he ever made on his own), was able to attend the party and stay the night afterward.

3)  Even though I ordered a little Mario pinata online, we happened to find this massive Mario pinata at Walmart the day before the party.  I had to buy it, because it was SO cool.  (It turns out that was the best pinata I have ever experienced, so I will be getting more like it in the future).

We also invited other people to the birthday party, so it was a full house.  Our Pastor came over with his grill to cook hamburgers and hotdogs for me.  The Referee hung the big Mario pinata from a tree limb in the backyard.  There was plenty of food, friends, family, candy, and cake.

There was also a bit more excitement than I had planned.

One dog-loving child got too-close-for-comfort with my dog, and she snapped at him.  She managed to leave a couple scrapes on his nose, which bled a lot and sent him into hysterics.  His grandparents had brought him to the party, and this was their first visit to our home, so we did not make a good impression.  Thankfully, the grandparents (and also the child's parents) are all dog-loving folks who knew the dog was being defensive, and not aggressive.  The wounds were not deep, so the reaction was calm.  I was thankful for that.  When we saw the child later the next week, he spoke well of the party and my dog, so that was nice.

After the dog bite incident, we moved on to the pinata.  It seemed like a good idea at the time, but part way through the process I started to wonder if the hanging a pinata that was shaped like a man, from a tree in the backyard, and hitting it with a bat, was a bit violent.  The candy was tucked in the chest, belly, and butt region.  When an arm was knocked off, the crowd of children cheered.  That seemed odd.  They cheers grew wilder as each leg was knocked off, and yet no candy fell.  It really was a cool pinata, and held up well.  The kids were not blindfolded, and were hitting it with Jersey #3's new Louisville Slugger baseball bat his grandparents gave him for his birthday.  I had it stuffed so full of candy and toys that it rained tootsie rolls for 2 full minutes after the body cavity was actually busted open! 

When the party was over, and all the guests had left, Jersey #3 was able to enjoy a sleep-over with his cousin and his friend.  For the rest of the night, they pretty much played video games on the Wii.  They woke up early the next morning and immediately resumed playing video games.

When it was time to put on PJs and prepare for bed, 3 boys turned into super heroes and asked to sleep in the tent that Jersey #3 had just received for a birthday gift.  I tried to tell them that the wood floor would be pretty hard to sleep on.  They didn't seem to mind.

Much to Jersey #2's delight, she also got to enjoy a sleep-over with an AWANA friend, who happened to be the sister of Jersey #3's friend.  (Did I mention Mom of the Year?)  The girls had lots of fun together, without playing a single video game....which was good, because I doubt the boys would have shared the game system anyway.

 

Borrowing a Nephew

I asked my sister if I could borrow my nephew for the weekend.  It was a special occasion, since we are hosting Jersey #3's birthday party this weekend.

It is a strange request, but she obliged.

My nephew is only 3 months younger than Jersey #3, and they have always been crazy about each other. They even like to dress like twins.

When they are together, I am often asked if they are twins.  You should see the looks on people's faces when I answer, "No, they are cousins."  I can tell that folks are trying to figure out how we managed to get twin cousins....must be one of those inbred families!  Their facial expressions amuse me.

Since we don't live in the same town, we both drive to meet each other part-way to swap out kids.  My leg of the trip is shorter, but there is no good location to make it equally half way for us.  We meet at McDonalds, let the kids snack and play, then return home.  It is nice to have this opportunity.  Making that trip on a Friday evening and then again on Sunday afternoon is tiring.  Seeing how happy Jersey #3 is to have his cousin to wrestle with, makes it all worth it.  I hope they continue this friendship as they grow older. 

Trains

Last year, my formerly-obsessed-with-trains son informed me that he was no longer into trains.  He said he liked Mario instead.  Super Mario Brothers had replaced Thomas the Train.   

It is true that he has become quite the video game champion in recent years.  (Let's just say that the college guy who works at the gym's arcade childcare program looks forward to my son arriving during his shift, because they provide an element of competition to each other.)

Let me take a moment to add that even though I am not really a fan of video games myself, I am pleased that the Mario Brothers are fully dressed.  Thomas the train was always dressed modestly too, so I did not have to worry about such things like I do with the popular characters for girls.  (Such as when did Tinker Bell undergo breast augmentation?)  

It took me a while to reach this conclusion, but I decided it was time to get rid of the train table and majority of the train stuff.  Trains have been a huge part of our life, due to Jersey #3's obsession, for the past 4 years.  His younger brother does not seem as interested.  Although he likes trains, Jersey #5 loves cars instead.  Keeping with my major spring cleaning goal this month, it was time to let go of the train stuff. 

I told Jersey #3 to build me a big oval track in our living room, and then we would put that amount of track into a container, along with a few handfuls of his favorite trains.  We made a real nice container of train items to store on a shelf and bring out randomly.  I decided to sell off the rest of the train stuff.

Jersey #3 had a blast putting train track together.  For a kid who was no longer "into" trains, he sure enjoyed himself with the task.  I have a feeling that when I bring out the train bin once in a while, he will still enjoy building tracks and running trains along.

Exercise Some Patience

I told Jersey #3 to "exercise" some patience.  

He immediately dropped to the floor and began doing sit-ups.  

I laughed so hard that I had to wipe tears from my eyes.  I started laughing all over again as I tried to explain that exercising patience, is not like PE exercising.  Oh my!

Some days I am pretty certain I had children for my own entertainment.    

Double Set of Twin Cousins

Jersey #3 and Jersey #5 spent a couple days with their cousins, during Spring Break.

My sister had a son 3 months after I had Jersey #3.  

Her second son is 2 months older than Jersey #5.  

We did not plan it that way, but it sure makes visits quite interesting to have double sets of *twin* cousins.

The 6-year olds have been friends from the start.  Their attachment to each other is amazing, considering their different personalities and the fact that they do not see each other but a handful of times each year.  They keep each other entertained so much that Granny & PawPaw even have them visit together, for their summer visits.  

Even though my sister was sick during Spring Break, she managed to take the boys out and about.  They had a blast.

Funny 3-year old

Jersey #5 is every bit of 3-years old these days.

He is full of curiosity about the world, full of his own conclusions about how things should work, and full of thoughts and comments that often catch me off guard and make me laugh.

At the start of a school day last week, I was explaining the lesson plans for the day to each of the older kids.  Jersey #3 interrupted me and clarified that 3-year old do not have homework right?  I agreed.  We do not make our 3-year olds work on preschool workbooks and activities unless they want to.  Jersey #3 was happy with that answer, and resumed his playing.

Later that same afternoon, I was organizing the chore list and getting the kids started on their chore tasks.  Jersey #3 interrupted me and suggested that 3-year olds do not have homework......pause......and 3 year olds do not have to do chores, right?  

Nice try.

One of the meals delivered by friends recently was Frito Pie.  It comes with a nice chilli, meat and bean mixture, to eat with chips, or specifically with Fritos.  I had reheated some left-overs for lunch.  Jersey #5 ate his serving and asked for seconds.

As I was spooning more chili on his plate, I praised him for eating so well.  I told him that eating his meat and beans would help him grow big and strong.  

Jersey #5 corrected me by explaining,

"I eat more beans so I can fart."

Ah, boys!  I almost forgot how important farting was to them.

Growing Boys

Our boys are busy learning new skills lately.

Jersey #3 learned how to blow a bubble with his bubble gum.

He asked me if I would teach him how. So, we each got a piece of Bubble Yum and went to work on that important lesson. I was impressed by how he sat next to me and worked at it until he got it. He did not complain. He did not quit. It took him about 12 minutes to get that first bubble. He was so proud.

Jersey #5 decided that he was tired of having to have a sibling drive him around on the battery-powered vehicles at PawPaw & Granny's house. He figured out how to take one for a spin on his own. Clearly, a 2 year old should not be able to drive those things. It turns out, he handled it quite well. So, Granny encouraged him to drive the quad runner, so he could control the steering wheel a little easier. He did pretty well going around the yard. He did have an accident. He crashed into the side of the kiddie pool, then called for PawPaw to come rescue him. I am thankful to have many more years before he can get behind the wheel of a car.

Boys

I don't think I am cut out to be the mother of boys.

We will just ignore the fact that I am already blessed with 2 of them. I am pretty sure I am only suppose to raise girls. Boys are SO different.

This is the conversation I had with Jersey #3:

Me: "Jersey #3, go use the bathroom."

Jersey #3: "But, I don't need to go potty."

Me: "Then why are your hands in your pants?"

Jersey #3: "Oh, I just like to hold it."

I was rendered speechless. That is really rare for me.

Boys and Cars

Jersey #3 purchased this race car set at AWANA "store night."

As the kids participate in AWANA, they earn "shares" which are fake dollars. Periodically, they have store night, where they can spend their shares to purchase all kinds of trinkets and toys. It is a great incentive, and they have a blast.

Jersey #3 could not wait to get home and try out his new treasure.

I was a bit amused to discover that Daddy was enjoying trying it out too. It started as helping Jersey #3 put the racetrack set together. Before long, Daddy was racing the car and seeing how far it would go, while Jersey #3 negotiated for a turn too. Jersey #5 wanted in on the action, but was never fast enough to get a hold of that car.

It is funny how a grown man can re-live being a young boy, as soon as a race track appears on scene.

It was fun to see my boys playing cars together like that.

Man cub

Jersey #3 thinks he is all grown up now. At 5 years of age, he is certain that he can run with the boys.....or the men, in this case.

We had a work day at church this month. The men were working outdoors on the landscaping around the church. The women were working indoors, decorating and preparing for Vacation Bible School. We had the children indoors with us.

Jersey #3 asked if he could work outdoors with the men, instead.

He was so entertaining to me. He tried to move rock and trim bushes. He came indoors to get drinks when the men came in. He found a hat to wear too. Any time I suggested he help me with something, he reminded me that he was working outdoors with the men.

I think it is good for him to be working with the men like that. It is good that he sees men come together in teamwork to accomplish a task. A nice thing about this experience at a church work day is that the language and attitudes of the workers are good.

I'm not sure how helpful he was, being only 5 years old. But, he seemed to think he was quite an asset to the project.