As you may recall, Wednesday nights are Kevin's Bike Night with the Guys, aka "Mommy Playtime with the Kids!" Our motto: While Dads Away, the Kids Will Play! Wednesday Night 5.12.10 started as no exception ~ we planned a picnic dinner in the park with our friend Lisa and her two girls, Rikki and Lily. But then the exception: Daddy rode in and joined us! What a nice surprise! We all had a BLAST! It was wonderful to enjoy the sunshine in the eve in a May filled with clouds and rain!
Collin's bedtime regime is fantastic! He never fusses, always stays in his room/bed, and seems to recognize that bedtime means bedtime (after he reads these days, of course!). And he genuinely seems to love bedtime because it means opportunity for snuggles and back rubs without the chaos of life circling around us. He loves this special time so much that when I got too large (I'm pregnant remember) (and clumsy) to climb to the top bunk and rub his back each night, he moved to the floor, where he's now been for several months. I expect he'll stay on the floor until I am back in shape to climb the ladder and resume back rubs in his top bunk again. So sweet!
Owen only three nights ago realized that he had no reason to be sleeping on the floor, where he'd moved the same night as his brother under the pretense that it'd be fun! Three nights ago he asked, "Will you rub my back if I'm in my bed?" Of course! And back to his bed he went. As long as Owie has not had a nap, his bedtime routine is also now perfect! To bed, to bed, to lay my sweet head!
And then there's Kate. I'll start by saying that even though she's not in her bed - or her room for that matter - she's still (at this point) turning out to be the easiest (at this stage). She never cries or fusses -- unless we close her door. Although she's moved to a big girl toddler bed, she sleeps most often on the floor "like the boys." She got her sleeping bag for her birthday, and she loves crawling into that lady bug bag! Starting two or three nights ago, she moved her baby into her room with her. The particular baby, from Grandma and Grandpa B, may have her room and cradle set up in the playroom downstairs, but she now goes to bed with Kate every night. 
TODAY - June 8
I included the certificates from Fall 2009 - just 6 months ago - so you could get an idea of how much they've grown! We had 6 (of 12) returning players this spring.
Then today, she started the morning off with a morning poo in our potty, a poo at the soccer field, and a poo during a playdate! I am even more amazed! It's so great that she's realizing the need to go despite the hubbub around her! 
Collin and I spent a beautiful day together Friday! After a morning at home (where he read and played, and I attended to telephone appointments and my email), he went to work with me (to interview an officer about a DUI) and got a badge that he proudly wore all day: Everson Junior Police Officer! Then we had lunch downtown, read books at Village Books, and combed the beach at Maritime Park. It was a lovely day!
Oh my goodNESS! Kate is recently finding her self apart from the rest of us. And what we're discovering is that when she's on a rampage (you know, upset because you said she could go outside once her shoes were on or that she could color on paper instead of her hand), you better WATCH OUT!! She's a little destructo machine! Literally, Collin could flop and wail for an hour straight, but he never threw anything besides his own body. And Owen always opted to move on after a few moments, so he was never been much of a tantrumer. But KATE. She's a whole other story, and I had to take her straight to her room to finish this tantrum ...
By the time she was done, nearly an hour had passed, the bed had been stood on end, all the books strewn across the floor, socks and toys dumps out of their baskets, clothes pulled from their shelf in the closet, dirty clothes littered throughout the room, the chair and ottoman toppled, and she was sooooo spent. She (and I) cleaned it all up before she was welcome to come out of her room. Thank goodness, she hasn't done it again ... (that was about three weeks ago).
Since the whole scenario blew me away (I admit it was somewhat amusing, too - is that weird of me??), I went straight to some research. One article in particular caught my attention. "There's a silver lining to every temperament, and it's your job (parents) to nurture her special character."
Frog and Toad came home from Collin's school Friday and joined our family for a weekend of fun! Collin's task was to keep a log of their activities in Frog and Toad's Journal and then share their adventures with his class Monday morning at Circle Time! What fun!
Collin woke up Saturday morning, ready to tackle his task and begin the adventure! First, he wrote: "5.1.10 - We went downstairs to wake Frog and Toad. Then we had flies and watched cartoons. What adventures will we have today?"
Collin was the only kid to actually log in the journal; all the other entries had been done by kids' parents. I was so proud of his independent "I can do it!" attitude! The whole weekend seemed to be fueled with his pride and efforts to show Frog and Toad a GREAT time! (*I did have to translate his entries on the bottom of the page as many of the words were misspelled, but it was clear and well thought out! He did amazing!)
"Then we go to soccer!"
"After that, we played hockey in the street with my friends."
High Five, Toad!
Collin's reading skills have skyrocketed over the past month or two. He went from books with 10 short sentences with short, simple words to books with short chapters and increasingly more difficult words! By Saturday night, Collin had already completed one whole Frog and Toad Book. When he went to bed, he asked if he could start another. He was in bed with his book at 8:30 pm. At 10:00 pm when I walked by, he was still awake reading, having read almost the entire second book! I told him lights out (and he did); he was up again at 6:15 am and reading before the rest of us even stirred (obviously I was up, but that was only because I am pregnant and get leg cramps every hour or so and need to stretch my legs out).
"5.2.10 - I woke Frog and Toad up early. We read for a bit, and then we had watched a show and did some chores. I went bowling with Frog and Toad! I bowled my first strike ever without the bumpers!"
"It was really fun."
"We ate flies for dinner. It was a good day."
Not on my field!
That's what I'm talking about! (Owen's Goal #4 at that point, I think!)
And let's run that play again (#5):
That one was for you!
Dominating:
Making it happen:
Owen fell on the ball:
Then got up - the whistle had not been blown - and put his hands in the air as if to say "I didn't touch it!" and we all shouted "Then keep going!" And so he did:
What an awesome game! Owen scored at least 6 goals again, and Collin had so many assists and focused on the defense (seeing as Owen had the offense covered). Every player on our team scored, and they were all passing - really passing! - for the first time ever! It was awesome!
