He Is Risen

Dear Mom and Dad,

Thank you for sending the boys Amazon gift cards for Easter. As soon as we got the codes applied to their Amazon accounts, both boys began shopping for apps, books, and music. Keagan bought an Easter egg hunt app and an UNO app. If he isn't hunting for Easter eggs, then he is playing card games on his Kindle. He also found a book on dogs that he bought and read in all of 15 minutes. We're all about non-fiction animal books; there can't possibly be any we haven't read in the school library.

Evan bought book three in the Sweet Farts series. After two books, it is somehow still funny. And he found a new series from the same author that he decided he had to have since reading about farts has proven to be so entertaining. But, by far, the best purchase was the $3.99 app for MONOPOLY. Evan has played for three days against unknown opponents, and I haven't had to move my little silver shoe along the game board all week. In fact, he is so taken by the app, he decided on Wednesday that I could pack up the marathon game that has been sitting on the leather ottomans for the past 15 days. For this, I will be eternally grateful!

Happy Easter! He is risen!

And my living room is now free of paper money!

He is risen indeed!

Baby Boy No More

We made it! The weather is perfect. The beach is beautiful. However, sometimes you must be taken out of your own environment to a new place to really "see" something.

At the resort we are surrounded by families, most are families with tweens and teens. As I sat on my lounge chair today, lulled to near sleep by the sound of the waves, I see this boy run towards me, and I say to myself, "One day my own boys will be this big." Slightly relieved I still had some time before I reached that half grown stage, I was shocked to find it was my own child now standing in front of me.

The signs have been there all along. He no longer orders from the kids' menu. I had to buy him an entire new set of school uniforms a week ago. This week I am buying a new set of summer shorts and t-shirts. Last night, I bought him a baseball cap to keep the sun out of his eyes, and we had to go to the men's section to find one that fit.

Lucky for me, though, he still finds it fun to cover his little brother in mud, and he still finds it just as much fun to have his brother reciprocate.

And lucky for me, I have one little guy who is still pleased as punch to be my baby boy.

Quote of the Day

Keagan: Mom, will you go running with me?

Me: I don't know, Keagan. You sure are fast!

Keagan: Don't worry. I'll turn around and come back for you. 

Spring Break Week

Day one of our spring break has commenced, and most would think a spring break week filled with dentist appointments, closet cleaning, science fair projects, and filing taxes, would be uneventful and rather drab. Not in this house.

For starters, we are on week two of our marathon Monopoly game. See? I told you. The excitement is really unbearable. I had a chance to go bankrupt last Thursday night and didn't. I don't know what I was thinking when I "accidentally" moved 10 spaces instead of 9 and totally skipped over Park Place and its $2000 fee. At that moment, for some unknown reason, I just couldn't lose. So I cheated. I justified it by saying the bonding time we experience over board games is worth it. I have kicked myself all weekend for that decision.

We bought new tennis shoes today. This is a very rewarding experience for a parent of a tween who hates to shop. Of course, both boys selected shoes with price tags nearing $60. I said, "Absolutely not. I am NOT paying that kind of money for some shoes." And then Evan pulled off his current pair of shoes, and I saw that every stitch of lining had worn away from the heels and the cushioned sole revealed daylight. I did what any responsible parent would do. I asked for a size 5 and 12 and we left with two new pairs of shoes.

I have also mediated two knock-down drag-out fights over a lost bouncy ball, and I made seven grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. I was thanked with, "Is that all you are going to make?"

Let me remember that the beach is awaiting our arrival. Only two more days and we will leave board games, tennis shoes and grilled cheese sandwiches behind for the sun, sand, and surf!

Godly Wisdom

This past week Keagan had a complete melt down about missing a soccer game to attend a track meet. It was only one game, and there are only four track meets this season. I tried rationalizing with him, and it totally back fired on me.

"Keagan, you are so very fast. God has given you a special gift, and by not running, you are not using your God-given talent. You should really think about that when you tell me you want to skip the meet."

Keagan stomps off to his room. A couple of minutes later he returns.

"Mom, I've been thinking about what you said. I know God made me fast, but He made me fast for the soccer field. Not the track. I want to run fast when I play soccer."

Needless to say, track has been scratched from the calendar, and I have learned to never argue God given talents with my seven year old. He is wiser than I.

We're Half Way There

Since Wes has been gone, I only cook two nights a week. We eat lots of left overs and lots of grilled cheese sandwiches or Cesear Salad from a bag. Tonight I found myself in the kitchen asking, "Are you boys gonna want to eat tonight?" While I awaited their response, I opened the fridge wondering how I could make beer and yogurt a presentable dinner when I saw the pizza box. SCORE!  I knew it was the right decision to buy two pizzas last night, and just like that the nightly dilemma is solved.

We are half way done with the deployment and half way done with my hiatus from cooking because just like Keagan, Wes is serious about his meats. Grilled cheese and salad won't be an acceptable dinner when he gets back home.

But I  will gladly buy out the meat department and whip up something fantastic when these guys and gals return!

Outdoor Fun

Something very exciting happened to us today. We actually saw the sun! To celebrate this, on our last day of spring break, we headed to Oatland Island Sanctuary right outside of Savannah. We invited our besties to join us and we did some hiking on the nature trails, 

we observed wild animals and got up and close with the domestic animals exhibit,

and just enjoyed being outdoors without fearing that we might float away.

Only 39 more school days and we'll have adventures like this planned for every day!