Carolina Summer Morning

We recently hit the jackpot and were given some great hand-me-down wicker furniture with a bonus. As a 7th wedding anniversary gift, my parents let me (I mean us *wink*) pick out brand new cushions and set it all up with the store beforehand. I just walked into the store and picked out fabrics. After thirtycoughcough years, you would think my Mom would know me better! It felt incredible - like I was all alone in Publix without having to consider a Wal-mart budget. Dangerous. I'm not saying I'm an outdoor fabric snob, I'm just saying show me the Sunbrella.

So this morning, something wonderful happened. It was the first morning of Operation Porches Are For Grown-ups Too, and it was lovely. I generally let the kids watch cartoons in the morning until I can down a few caffeinated beverages and get my bearings. But this morning we went straight outside, and as I enjoyed my cup of tea, this is what I witnessed:

They can read!

They can write! (while wearing jewels!)

There can be peace without Blue's Clues. It's a miracle!!!!!!

Red Ryder

This morning I took the kids to Toys-R-Us to look for a few beat-the-heat water toys. When will I learn??? Although the store is helpful enough to put all outdoor toys right up front, I caved and made the dreaded lap around the store. I had Jack in the stroller, so I had a false sense of security. Generally, my thought process is: I can chase two as long as the third is strapped in a stroller.

We made it 75% around the toy store lap. Then, somewhere near the transformers, Jack saw this:

It was so big, it didn't fit with the regular bikes and electric vehicle nonsense. It needed a huge amount of floor space, so it just sat out in the aisle and waited for Jack to notice. I think he may have flipped the stroller upside down, I don't remember. It was just a blur that reminded me of the few WWF shows I've watched (when they used to steal the SNL time slot). Jack turned into a monster. The girls liked it too, but Jack acted like he finally found himself.

The vehicle didn't work, so I let Jack have his fun for almost 10 minutes while the girls pounded on computers. He refused to get out, and had his first scary full blown tantrum when I finally pulled him out. He kicked and screamed and some man looking at robots(?) told me you can't take a boy away from his toys. Um...whatever you say robot dude.

Jack still hasn't forgiven me. I never saw a price tag or anything so I looked it up just for giggles when we got home and discovered it's $750!!!!!! Seriously? Wow.

So Jack, I know you really want the Peg Perego Polaris Ranger RZR with 24 volts, nitrile traction, MP3 input and roll cage, but come on kid... you'll shoot your eye out. Daddy will take you on a tractor ride this weekend and we'll pretend like this never even happened...

Future You

Dear Mini Jay,
Want to know a secret? Someday, when you grow up, you're going to marry a Yankee and have three kids. Don't laugh, I'm not kidding. Want to know what else? You're going to be an awesome Dad. I love you...in the future...after the short shorts.

P.S. Super cool socks.

Happy Father's Day!!!!

Big Mike, You're No Monkey

Yesterday a gorilla escaped while Elizabeth was at zoo camp and the zoo went into lock down mode. No one was seriously hurt, and Elizabeth was totally unaware of the escape. The zoo shuffled all of the kids inside where they waited for Big Mike to return to his enclosure. I still feel nauseous about the whole thing, especially the fact that I was unaware of it all until hours later.

But it made me start thinking...

A week ago Amanda and Jack started looking for monkeys in the wild. What exactly did they know? This picture was taken three weeks ago in the gorilla exhibit. Now, I'm not saying they have special powers or anything. But they are young, so wouldn't it be understandable that any special powers would be unpredictable at this stage, or that they might confuse a gorilla for a monkey? Okay, nevermind, that's crazy talk. I'm sure there is a perfectly logical explanation for why, in the above picture, Jack was tapping this gorilla's head and saying "it shall be you."

The Jack

The Krabby Patty Cupcake!

For those who don't watch Spongebob, Spongebob works at The Krusty Krab making krabby patties. The characters either work at the Krusty Krab, or they eat there, or they are trying to steal the krabby patty secret formula.

Saying that Jack loves Spongebob is an understatement. I know, he is too young for Spongebob. After he was introduced to Spongebob last summer at the beach (when he was ONE!) he just became obsessed. He would recognize anything Spongebob on t-shirts, back packs, magazines, toys, anything - and scream "bubbob!!!!!" So we let him watch it with his sisters and he seriously cries when it's over. He really pays attention to the whole show, makes comments like "Pa-tick funny!" and talks about what happened when the show is over.

So, a krabby patty cupcake it had to be. It's very easy:

The bun is a vanilla cupcake (box mix) and the patty is a chocolate cupcake (also box mix). After the cupcakes are cooled, you cut the middle out of the vanilla cupcake so it looks more like a bun, add a few sesame seeds on top. I cut the top of the chocolate cupcakes off to use as my patties. I bought one tall container of whipped white frosting and divided into three bowls. I used red, green and yellow food coloring to turn the frosting into ketchup, lettuce and mustard. I assembled them with the kids, which was the funnest part. We just used spreaders for the frosting and repeated the order: Bottom bun, mustard, patty, ketchup, lettuce, top bun. Voila! Jack's very own krabby patty. Amanda wants her official cupcake to be the krabby patty now too.

Jack on his big day, officially two years old. It just happened so quickly! I swear it was just yesterday that he looked like this:

He was a good baby and now he is a good little man. He says "please" and "tank oooo" without having to be reminded, he is a great sleeper, he is nice to his sisters and comforts them if they are upset or hurt. He will pat their backs sweetly and ask "okay?" and sometimes he will even say "sowwy" even though he didn't do anything!

Happy Birthday Jack, we love you!

Also, I'm not sure why she is being so serious, but Elizabeth found this ball in the playroom. It is the exact ball that told the girls they would be having a brother. After the big ultrasound, we planned to give the girls a paper bag that would contain a pink ball if it was a sister, or a blue ball if it was a brother. I'll never forget the look on their faces when they pulled out the blue ball. Until that point, they had been praying for a sister. There were a few seconds of total silence, then the gears shifted and the girls start screaming with excitement about their soon to be baby brother. The girls were all about having a brother (a real bug squisher!) from that moment on.

Looking for Monkeys

While I was filling the car with gas today, Amanda and Jack played "let's see who can make Mommy lose her cool the fastest" and screamed "Mommy! Mama! Mooooooommy!" the entire time. As we drove away, I asked (in a very polite tone) "Can I please fill the car without you guys screaming like monkeys?" Jack's eyes got wide with excitement and he yelled "ah Monkey? Wheyyah? Wheyyah?" and this picture is what he looked like for the rest of the car ride.

As Jack frantically searched the passing trees for monkeys, Amanda would occasionally yell "there's one!" and Jack would respond "wheyyah?" They both seemed irritated when I told them there were no monkeys roaming around Lexington. Then we pulled up to Elizabeth's school and, in a rare occurence (a sure sign it is the last week of school), all of the kindergartners were on the playground at the same time. It was a loud, crazy, wild looking scene and I started laughing. Amanda and Jack didn't seem to notice the coincidence. We sat in the carpool line, 10 feet away from the playground, on the other side of a mental fence, watching a bunch of six-year-olds fly through the air. When we pulled away Jack said "ah monkey?" and Amanda said "over there!" and Jack said "wheyyah?" and Elizabeth said "I'm hungry and thirsty."

New York, I Love You!

I just found out that this movie is coming out this year. How did I not know this? Paris, je t'aime is one of my favorite movies. I even loved the movie poster so I framed it and hung it in Elizabeth's room. Now I find out there will be a New York, I Love You. And it looks good. Can't wait!