The boy succesfully survived another year!

Today was another accomplishment in the life of Matthew - he survived another year! He has had a busy year too. He started kindergarten (twice), he moved, he learned how to swim (sort of), he has discovered he likes baseball, he no longer crashes in bed with mom and dad (he does that to his sisters now!), and he has developed a unique fondness for ... bubble wrap. More on that in just a bit.
So, the day started off early. Today, there was a "try-it-out" session for kids interested in playing baseball/softball. We asked Matthew if he might want to do that (and instead of answering "yes" or "no", he asked for chicken). SO, we took that as a "yes". He ended up having a blast! He also, we learned, can hit, throw, and try to catch with either hand. He didn't actually catch anything, but he tried. At least he didn't catch anything with his face (unlike his sisters). Afterwards, we made a stop at the store to get doughnuts and...cantaloupe. He LOVES LOVES LOVES cantaloupe. At Red Robin a few days ago, he requested melon INSTEAD OF FRIES!!! The server did a double-take in disbelief. This love of good food, however, does not extend to broccoli or anything else that looks like or is considered a vegetable. We're trying, and so far the girls have caved on a few things that are naturally green, but no luck with the boy yet.
During the day, we gave him one present at a time. He was excited to get some checks from Grandpa Terry and Grandma Irma (he was almost more excited that they fit PERFECTLY into his "treasure box"). He got a gift card from Grandma Mary (and he totally knows what those are and how to use them!) He got a few packages from Uncle Brian and Aunt Tarra (Star Wars Anakin and a Star Wars book). Then, we pulled out the ENTIRE STAR WARS MOVIE COLLECTION... and ANOTHER Anakin doll (but a slightly different one). He's calling them "The Anakins". He got a Schnauzer Webkinz he named "Bowser Junior". He also got "Ghostbusters." (Can you tell I had help from his sisters picking out some of the presents???) Later, we will be watching "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs". Right now, however, they are playing with his favorite toy: Bubble Wrap. I wish I were kidding, but he LOVES the stuff. Actually, they all do. We were at Home Depot a few weeks ago getting some science fair supplies and I saw some on sale for about a buck and realized, "Hey, this would be a great gag present." Turns out, it makes a great present present too.
Attached are a few pictures of the day. Hard to believe our "baby" is already 6!

Dad's older than mom...for a little while!

Dad is one year shy of being ALMOST a dirty old man. And, more importantly, he's older than mom!

Matthew inspected the cake (by smelling it) and declared it acceptable. Incidentally, this is how he approaches most anything prior to consumption. If you put something on the table he doesn't recognize or is not completely sure about, he will ask you, "Can I smell it?" We hope he grows out of this phase soon.

Dad got himself some cross-country skis and nice cards. Amanda was nice enough to build him a "Snowemon" (Bucky wasn't even afraid of it this time!) Mom and dad were also able to go out to dinner the night before (which has only happened about 3 times in our almost 14-year marriage!) We have a great babysitter who is across the street who made that possible. We're not sure how much she likes the situation, but so far it's worked out well.

All in all, not a bad birthday. And, tomorrow is a day off :) What a great present!

Lesson #440

This should be put on a sign and hung on the boy's bedroom door:

Lesson #440: NEVER, under ANY circumstances, let the boy sleep in your room or bed. You will be crowded out, the blankets will be kicked off, and you will either freeze to death or suffer injuries to your kidneys.

Julia and Allison learned this last night. Allison is limping around this morning. Julia at least tried to use her Teddy Bear as a failed blockade. Matthew is well rested and happy.

Some pictures

Here are a few pictures from Ava's visit and from our trip to Philadelphia!




We have several pictures of Ava and Allison in the snow. You will notice that in the picture with the reindeer they made (look closely, it does sort of resemble a reindeer if a reindeer were round and white and had been stabbed with sticks - give them credit, there was NO packing snow that day!) that Allison and Ava are dressed differently. Ava is dressed for the elements while Allison is dressed to catch pneumonia.

Merry Christmas!

"Julia is a genius!"

This phrase was uttered MORE than a few times this morning without even a HINT of sarcasm! Santa was here! His offerings? Way too much candy, Webkinz, two more sets of Wii controllers and nunchucks, and Mario and Sonic's Winter Olympic Games. Guess what? The winter games even has CURLING! Even more surprising is that our kids actually know what curling is AND enjoy it!

Julia is the child responsible for asking Santa to bring us two more sets of controllers (this is why her siblings have, albeit temporarily, granted her the status of "genius"). Santa, also being a genius, must have agreed that this would be a great gift. Our next several posts will probably involve examples about why you should never let 4 children all play Wii at the same time.

So, the morning started out QUITE well. Matthew has said at least 15 times, "This is the BEST CHRISTMAS EVER! I LOVE Christmas!" He has been a very happy boy today. He was thrilled to get some gift cards. Yes, even at 5 he totally knows what to do with those! His sisters were also quite happy and have already asked if they can go shopping. Today. They think they are going tomorrow (ha!)

We got games, we got movies, we got books, and we got toys. The kids all got pajamas. Aunt Stephanie, they wore your present to bed last night and I have to also share that when they saw the pictures of their cousins they all had the same reaction: "Ohh my gosh! Whoa! Zach looks so different! He's like older!" They also thought it was a great picture (and looked at me as if to say, "Mom, you totally need to learn how to use a camera properly! They look amazing, while we always look quizzical and pathetic!") Matthew was especially blown away by his Craftsman "instruction set" (see his picture). As Amanda opened one box, all the kids exclaimed excitedly, "70 servings of popcorn!!!" If only we'd known, right? Matthew at one point opened a present and exclaimed with confused glee, "A WHITE BOX!!???!! Ohhhhh,aaaaaaa, BOY!?!" A little later, we caught Amanda playing with the instruction set...

Our two elves are still with us to create mischief and wreak havoc upon our house. Yes, there are two elves now. Last year, Eugene came to live with us. This year, we were joined by his doppelganger Raymond (aka "Ug"). Allison seemed to think that Eugene may be lonely, and after a tearful plea for a friend to visit Santa somehow complied. The two elves are known for getting into all sorts of strange places and pulling pranks. We thought (hoped?) they had left, but they were found dangling by their feet in various parts of the house this morning (see picture).

We got lots of boxes and great gifts and again were reminded that we are truly blessed with a loving family. The kids even said, "I think we get too much from our family. We don't deserve it." I'm not making that up, by the way. Thank you to everyone for the gifts and we wish we could spend this day with all of our family.

Although we haven't planned it out yet, we will be taking another epic summer trip. Clark W. Griswold's got NOTHING on us!!!

Happy Holidays 2009

Below is the annual letter ...

Happy Holidays from NEW YORK! Yes, we moved again. We finally sold our home after “only” 6 months (which was slightly better than giving it away). For those keeping track, this is our 7th move in 14 years. We will be living in Rochester until the summer of 2011. After that….yeah, we’ll move again. Todd is now the Commanding Officer of NOSC Rochester. Although we do miss Georgia, we are already discovering new things we like about New York. We go hiking at the many local parks and visit the Farmer’s Market when we can. We also occasionally go on canoe trips on the Erie Canal. A few times each month, Todd volunteers for Habitat for Humanity and so far has only had to go to the emergency room once. After moving in mid-October, we finally have settled in. Winter is coming fast, and I’m sure we’ll have some adventures once the snow really starts to fall. Here’s a little about the kids this year…

Amanda
Age: 12 Grade: 7
Favorite color: Turquoise, aqua, or anything else between blue and green
Ambitions: Marine biologist (or anything having to do with dogs or fish)
Fallback: Hula hoop circus performer (see picture)
Favorite TV show: America’s Funniest Videos (AFV)
Sports played: Swimming, sleeping in, staying up all night
Hobbies: Reading, Chorus, Nintendo, Sleeping in, Nintendo, Wii, Nintendo, nagging mom for junk food
Foods I love: Fudge, pizza, mozzarella sticks, chicken, breadsticks, bread, pasta, and anything else involving carbs
Foods I hate: Potatoes, beans, McDonalds chicken nuggets, and pretty much all vegetables
People I admire: People who take care of animals, Mike Rowe from “Dirty Jobs”
Stuff I learned: Moving stinks, and Bucky is afraid of snowmen (but goes crazy when he eats snow)


Julia
Age: 10 Grade: 5 Favorite color: Green
Ambitions: Theoretical physicist (or, if the math is too hard, a biologist)
Fallback: An accountant (or, if the math is too hard, a lawyer)
Favorite TV show: The Land of the Lost (it’s vintage!)
Sports played: Swimming, softball, basketball, soccer
Hobbies: Reading, climbing trees, camping, falling out of trees, hiking, learning clarinet, murdering bugs
Foods I love: Potatoes, chicken, pizza, broccoli (seriously), corn, pie, cheese, cucumbers, all fruit
Foods I hate: Asparagus, beans, celery, garlic bread, anything they eat on survival shows
People I admire: Mom and Dad, Bucky, baby Hailey
Stuff I learned: I can’t remember anything that I learned this year. I’m blonde.

Allison
Age: 8 Grade: 3 Favorite color: Green
Ambitions: Farmer, or Navy Admiral
Fallback: Tree planter, or lottery winner
Sports played: Swimming, softball, basketball, soccer, running into stuff at recess every day
Hobbies: Running into more stuff, hiking, camping, running, canoeing, biking, crocheting
Foods I love: Pizza, broccoli (seriously), spaghetti, cheerios, chicken nuggets, hamburgers, beef stew
Foods I hate: Cheese, eggrolls, bacon, cherry pie, berries
People I admire: Grandma Irma
Stuff I learned: You can lose teeth by being hit in the face with a basketball.



Matthew
Age: 5 1/2 Grade: K Favorite color: Red
Ambitions: Policeman or Rock Star
Fallback: Jedi Warrior
Favorite TV show: Curious George and Dinosaur Train
Sports played: Swimming, soccer, interpretive dance, Wii golf, tennis, and baseball
Hobbies: Giving driving advice, hiking, going to Farmer’s Market, camping, practicing Jedi mind tricks
Foods I love: Oreo filling, Rice, Chicken, Cheeseburgers, French Fries, Gummy Bears, Hot Dogs
Foods I hate: Vegetables, cooking with disgusting sauce, cheese, dog food
People I admire: Bucky, Mom, Joshua, Ian, Yoda, Indiana Jones
Suff I learned: How to swim, ride a horse, and drive a golf cart; To quit touching refrigerator and heating knobs…maybe?!?

“Bucky”
Age: 2 1/2 Weight: 80 lbs Favorite color: Squirrel
Ambitions: To sleep and eat as much as possible while protecting my family that I do so love.
Hobbies: Licking people, standing on people, chewing stuff up, chasing balls, collecting ticks, being weird
Foods I love: I will eat anything. Literally anything. There is nothing I won’t at least try to ingest.
Stuff I’m afraid of: Snowmen, couches (especially sectionals), wheelbarrows, plastic buckets, brooms
Highlights of the year: I caught a squirrel! I now wish to catch more squirrels (and perhaps birds and rabbits).

Have a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year!

Todd, Kelly, Amanda, Julia, Allison, Matthew, and “Bucky”


The Lessons
#430 – Never let a 4-year old maintain possession of any remote control ever. You may never see it again, or you’ll find it 12 years later in the bottom of a suitcase or encased in shoe polish or buried in the mud in the backyard under the orange bucket so Bucky won’t get it. Guess where ours was???
#431 - Keep all 4-year old boys away from birthday cakes. If they don't flip them upside down or drop them, they will "take a peek" at it and take enough "tastes" that by the time you actually get around to eating the cake you'll have to re-frost it (if it's still intact).
#433: Don't buy blankets with tassels when you have a boy (who has access to scissors) who doesn't care for tassels.
#434: Do not be lazy and decide to "incinerate" all the leftover gunk in the grill by turning it on full-blast when said grill has the equivalent of a gallon of grease coating its inside. Propane+"gunk"+grease+crazy-from-trying-to-sell-house-mom=FIRE. Fire bad.
#435: Don't assume the refrigerator is broken if it's not running as it should AND there is a 5-year old boy living in the house.
#436: Always have a pen and something to write on within reach at all times. But, make sure that said pen is not a sharpie AND that it is not within reach of a 5-year old boy.
#437: When you are such a wimp that you cannot actually pull out your own loose tooth with your fingers, look no further than the bathroom drawer for a handy pair of fingernail clippers. They grip that tooth like a vise and will rip that baby right out! Also, FYI, tweezers are TOTALLY ineffective for pulling teeth.
#438: Never leave a 5 year old boy to his own devices when there is a nearly full container of Oreos that he will only eat the filling out of within his sphere of influence. Does anyone want an Oreo shells???

Quotes:
Polite Refusals: In Matthew's school today, they were asking the children what their favorite vegetable was. The children were not asked WHICH they liked but instead were asked to name a vegetable they liked. So, the teachers listed the vegetables and the names of the children who chose that particular vegetable. Then, at the bottom of the list, there is one last category. And, it's not a vegetable. It simply says, "No Thank You." Apparently, when asked what his favorite vegetable was, Matthew calmly and adamantly replied, "NO THANK YOU!"

So, Matthew likes Wii sports. A lot. He will play them all and it's funny to watch him. He really gets into it and tries SO hard. One day, he was playing Wii sports and had just finished playing a round of Wii golf when Todd walked in. Todd asked what he was up to, and Matthew responded matter-of-factly the progress of his game: "Yeah, I got a double-monkey."

"That's my dog Bucky. He's very weird." – Matthew

“Just a second-a-minute.” - Matthew

"Mom, can you throw a softball at my face?" and "Mom, do we have any pliers?" - Julia (trying to lose teeth)

Julia murmurs something I didn't catch to Allison. Allison loudly and adamantly responds: "It's not your business or concern Julia...whatever THAT means!"

"I broke my toe! It's awesome. Well, it doesn't feel awesome, but it's so cool. But, it doesn't look cool, it's disgusting." - Julia

Allison: "Ummmmmm." (visibly drooling contemplating a handful of popcorn)
Amanda: "Ohhhhh, no. Don't even think about it. And, it's not because I'll kill you. It's because it's hot."

"Sorry mom, a force is not with you." - Matthew

Memorable comments heard during our 60+ showings while selling our house…
1) “ Ohh, are we late?” (No, everyone shows up 3 hours late! In fact, some people just don’t show up at all. The spontaneity makes for great fun!)
2) “Did you ever think of putting a bathroom in the basement?” (Yes, we did. No, we won’t do it for you).
3) “You have radon?” (No, we just put in a radon mitigation system because it’s so aesthetically pleasing).
4) “Can we look at your house for a 5th time?” (Seriously? Uhh, no.)

Less #439...

It's been a few months, so we were due for one...

Lesson #439: Never let 5 year old boys use their parents' bathroom. There are so many reasons why. For example, they sometimes lock it up for no reason whatsoever! When asked why he locked the bathroom door upon exiting (preventing mom from using it to finish getting ready), Matthew had no good reason other than a shoulder shrug. He then stated, "I guess we have to break the door down now." Mom successfully opened the door without resorting to violence.

This happened right before he left for school, so it was still locked when he got on the bus. Upon his arrival home from school, the first thing he asked was, "Did you break the door down? Do we have to wait for dad?" I told him it was open, that it wasn't broken, and he was quite impressed.

National Toy Museum

Okay, we found it. We visited. We found the stick AND the ball. Sadly, there is not a display for the cardboard box. We also discovered that Amanda could fall back on being a hula hoop circus performer if any other career choice fell through. And, she really does NOT enjoy riding on kid trains. Lexi had a good time, and she even designed a life-sized Mrs. Potato Head.

Ohh, we also have an exciting announcement from the world of Bucky: For the first time in recorded history, Bucky caught a squirrel. He didn't know what to do with it and let it go. But, he caught it. It was magical...

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

NOTE: For those who have no idea why I put a picture of the stick and ball from the National Toy Musuem, watch the following video:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-november-16-2009/windowless-news-van-for-kids---the-ball

No internet....ARGHHHHHH!!

Okay, we are without internet until probably Thursday night. Sigh.....

Matthew-ese

Matthew has himself his own language. I thought I'd share a few memorable examples of it with you:

"Hotdonalds" = McDonalds
Example: "Ohh, I get a toy from Hotdonalds? Maybe?"

"Maybe" = We think he uses this as a period? He says it after just about everything.
Example: "I eat chocolate? Maybe?"

"By accident" = NOT by accident
Example: "She gave me a dollar, by accident." This actually means "I took a dollar from her. On purpose."

The last is not really a language, just something funny he said (and did). He likes to be tickled. And, you don't actually have to touch him for him to giggle uncontrollably. He also snorts when he wants you to stop tickling him. That's funny. But, last night, he was giggling so hard that he also "stepped on a frog". It was rather unpleasant, so we said, "Matthew, you stink!" He answered with, "No, that was just a tickle-fart!"

Ohhh - I had to just put that picture on of Brian. For those unfamilar with Reno 911, Brian is dressed up as officer Jim Dangle.

TLC

Bucky was having a rough day, so Matthew decided he needed some TLC...

The Squirrel

Here is the now infamous Niagara Falls black squirrel.

(This is your notice Santa. Ohh, and also Matthew is going to start making out a gigantic list of all the stuff his awful mom NEVER gets him!)

Niagara Falls

We took a quick trip to Niagara Falls today. We drove along Lake Ontario the long way (with almost no other cars) to get there and took the quick way (with cars and tolls) to get back. We took some pictures, ate lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, and endured an entire day of Matthew acting like one of the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. His new favorite word: "Maybe." He says it after everything. Example: "My name is Matthew. Maybe." or "I didn't eat the chocolate. Maybe." (with chocolate coating his face). He also chastised dad for "not winning" against the other cars on the road. I also endure such criticism when I am driving. We live in fear for that day a mere 10 years from now when the flying monkey takes the wheel...

Also, in addition to a hamster, another dog, and a LIVE fish it turns out that there is yet one more animal we NEED to have in our house: A Niagara Falls state park black squirrel. This is not to be confused with "fat squirrel", which is actually a flavor of beer made in Wisconsin.

I'm sure we'll go there again, and hopefully next time it'll be with updated passports so we can view it from Canada.

Happy Halloween!

We started trick-or-treating at 6pm. We are finished about an hour later. They are frozen. I am frozen. They kept asking, "Are we done yet?" Welcome to trick-or-treating in the north where frostbite is a legitimate concern!

Amanda at first wanted to be a "witch with no fashion sense". Instead, we convinced her to wear a 7-8 year old boy's ninja costume because that would certainly imply a lack of fashion sense. Julia wanted to be Darth Vader (yes, seriously). Allison wanted to be "Franken-doctor". She has some Frankenstein make-up on (but not much). Matthew was Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots and savior of the world. Did you know that Optimus Prime likes candy? He will run through leaf piles to get to a door and screams very loudly (after ringing the doorbell about 154 times at a particular house), "Trick-or Treat!!!" and/or "Happy Halloween! Do you have any candy?"

Our favorite house? The one handing out Chinese vegetarian health food (I wish I was joking - the closest thing I can approximate it to is "bean granola"....ummmmmm!) So far, only one group has come to our house and we've handed out a grand total of 8 pieces. I have about 15 bags of candy. It's a good thing I got a lot of Reeses and Snickers...

5-year old bus driving tips

Matthew has a super-cool bus driver named Joe. But, I guess Matthew must think Joe needs driving advice. As he was de-bussing, Matthew pointed at the nice little old lady walking down our street and told Joe, "Hey, don't hit that old lady."

Joe just laughed and said he'd be careful.

Matthew's SECOND first day of Kindergarten!

How many kids get to start kindergarten twice for reasons other than expulsion or not being potty trained? Well, Matthew was lucky enough to have this opportunity yesterday. He has a BOY teacher too! His name is Mr. Dreschler, or as the kids refer to him, "MR. D!" This is extra special because we also had a Mr. D at Timber Ridge (although he was the gym teacher). Matthew's room is big with lots of windows and just looks like fine all around. The girls were with us in the room when the rest of the class came in, and after a few odd looks at them I explained that they were trying to sneak into kindergarten with their brother but were just too old (they thought that as funny).

We took a few pictures. I HAD to take a picture of the sign about taking off boots - this school has been around for quite awhile and I just thought it was funny to see it and to see it worded the way it was (which is probably circa the 1940s!)

Amanda starts middle school tomorrow (don't expect pictures), and Julia and Allison should start on Thursday (I will try to get pictures).

Our new home

Here are some pictures of the house we now live in...

* The first pictures are of the outside of the house from Highland Ave. The whole way here, Matthew kept asking when we were going to ge to "the blue house".

* The kitchen is large with plenty of storage, and there is even a bump-out for plants and natural light. There's a fireplace and sitting area - just a nice little spot to relax.

* The basement actually has 3 rooms - and you can get a good look at the really neat stairs from the first basement room shot. Incidentally, we also apparently have a hot tub and sauna (who knew!?!) I don't think we'll use them much, but how cool is that to say you have your own indoor spa? There's another storage room and full bathroom in the basement too - plus a full garage. Yes, seriously.
* The family room and dining room are sort of one big room, but it's easily used for both purposes separately. Bucky has his bed in there and can be on any floor in seconds (if he wasn't afraid of going up or down the stairs, that is - he really is a clod and is literally afraid of stairs!) But, it's cute.
* Amanda's room has 2 closets. Actually, so does "the big room". It is long and large. Todd and I actually have 3 closets in our room. And, some bees in the bathroom...

* The big room is also either the room of Julia or Allison (or both) - they've slept in there a few times, but mostly just make a mess in it.

* "The bunk room" is either going to be Julia's room, or Allison's room, or both their room. Allison has to sleep with someone, not alone. Lately, they've all been piling together in Amanda's room (who for some reason doesn't seem to mind - or she just doesn't notice them with all the other clutter laying around - see her picture).
* Matthew's room has the dragon, and actually has a nook to the right and a sitting area to the left.

So, we will have room for people to visit if they are brave enough to come this far north. We will be visiting Niagara Falls sometime soon for the first time, hopefully when it's not below freezing.