Happy Father's Day!

We spent a nice Father's Day together as a family. The girls helped me make our traditional breakfast in bed for Mike.
Of course, he had to share several bites of his breakfast with the three "moochers."
Sienna made a special mug/pencil holder at preschool and made an extra special personalized card.
This is what Sienna's card said:

My Dad is the Greatest!
My dad's name is Dada.
He is 64 years old.
My dad's job is to go to work and get seed packets.
His favorite food is Oreos.
He likes to drink rootbeer.
My dad's favorite sport is basketball.
When we are together, we like to play football and chase around the house.

Isabella made a delicious trail mix for Mike at school.

Elijah got Mike two sets of earmuffs for them to wear when he helps Mike cut the grass. "Dada sit tractor Jijah." (Translation: "Dada sit on the tractor with Elijah."

I made Mike a special Shutterfly book with pictures from our recent trip to Florida.

We went on a family bikeride, had lunch at Qdoba, and Mike had a massage before he took the girls to see Toy Story 3. We wrapped up the day with dinner at home. All in all, we enjoyed a very nice Father's Day together!

Dada/Petro/Michael (as Elijah has been calling him lately)-

We love you and we thank you for working so hard so that I can be home with our kids!!! We appreciate all that you do for us. Thanks for being the best dad (and husband) in the world!!

Happy Father's Day to my dad and father-in-law, too!!!!

Elijah the Smurf

This morning Isabella came to me and said, "Elijah is making himself into a Smurf... and not in a good way!"

That could only mean one thing...
Thankfully, Elijah doesn't typically draw on random things, but I guess that bare belly was too tempting!

"'Nuggle Choo Tom"

If there are two things that Elijah loves, they are our neighbor, Thomas, ("Tom!") and Thomas the Tank Engine ("Choo Choo Tom"). Elijah likes to watch "Choo Choo Tom" On Demand, and he loves his Thomas the Tank Engine blanket that he got from our friend, Jackson. At night we snuggle in Elijah's rocking chair under his Thomas the Tank Engine blanket while we read books. Elijah will say, " 'Nuggle Choo Tom." He was in heaven last night when Thomas was at our house at bedtime. Elijah got to 'nuggle with his two favorite things while Thomas read him some bedtime stories!!!

We got some new truck books from the library, and we learned that Dylan drives a tractor and Tyler drives a semi truck! We already know that "Henry drive dumptruck" and "Jackie drive trash truck!" Have I mentioned that "Joe drive big rig," too?

Boo Boo Bag

It's no secret that Elijah can be a bit aggressive. Sometimes a well-meaning hug can turn into a tight headlock and a tumble to the ground. Other times he pinches, pulls hair and bites other people whether he's frustrated or just looking for attention. We're working hard to curb these behaviors. After removing him from the situation and a short time-out, we tell him that he can't give people boo boos, and we have him give the person a gentle touch or a hug if he hurts someone. Lately, he's been going to our freezer to give a "boo boo bag" to his victim.

A couple of weeks ago, my car was side-swiped by a school bus when it was parked outside of Sienna's school. Elijah points to the dent and says, "Owie buts" (He says "buts" instead of "bus"). Last night after examining the dent, Elijah went and got the boo boo bag for the car! Now if only he could transfer that compassion to his friends!!!

Future Marching Band Members

When we were taking Giacomo for a walk last weekend, we ended up with an impromptu Memorial Day parade through our neighborhood. What started out with our three kids and Hope and Thomas from across the street turned into an 11 person (and 1 dog) parade complete with a variety of percussion instruments. We picked up five friends along the way! Isabella and the other first graders have been practicing for their Memorial Day concert at school, so they sang "You're a Grand Old Flag" at the top of their lungs throughout our entire neighborhood.

Is Luke (the red-head with the maracas) destined to be a drum major, or what?!?

This morning I went to the Memorial Day concert at Isabella's school. The second graders sang several songs and recited a couple of poems. The first graders sang two songs, too! They did a great job.

Isabella's friend, Sarah, is on the far left

John

For some reason, watching a bunch of children dressed in red, white and blue singing patriotic songs makes me teary-especially when the second graders ended with "Proud to be an American." Apparently, the same thing happens to my friends, Holly and Chris. I'm glad that I'm not the only one!! It was a nice little concert!

Museum of Science

Isabella had an early release day today and Sienna didn't have school, so we took advantage of the free afternoon and took a trip to the Museum of Science.

It was a little too bright to smile (or even look at the camera) for this picture.
Our future archaeologists?!?

We explored the physics of playground swings.

A museum employee approached us and asked us if one of the girls could test out his hovercraft that he would be using in an educational program for Kindergartners through second graders. Isabella was a little nervous, but she tested the hovercraft that was powered by a leaf blower. It was really cool!

Elijah liked the model train.

He practiced brushing the gigantic teeth, too.

Isabella wrote some secret messages in the Discovery Center.

Elijah steered the boat which was new since our last visit to the museum.

I think that Elijah startled that little girl when he yelled, "Ball!" at the ball floating over a blower.

Sienna tried to make a car with these cool foam blocks.

The girls worked together to build an elaborate ramp.

Although the weather was beautiful today, we enjoyed our afternoon at the Museum of Science. We only had to fight the field trip crowds for a little while and the Discovery Center was essentially empty. It was great!

Dog-sitting

Our friends are away for a long weekend, and Mike offered up our services to dog-sit their dog, Giacomo. Needless to say, the girls are thrilled!!!! I think I'm Giacomo's surrogate Mama for the weekend because he follows me everywhere! We're having fun with him, but it'll still be several years before we'll be ready for a dog of our own. Elijah is usually afraid of dogs, but he's getting used to Giacomo. He keeps waving at him saying, "Hi, doggie!"

Weekend Excitement

We had mulch delivered this weekend, so Elijah got a close-up view of a dump truck in action. Could that driver be Henry of "Henry drive dump truck" fame?!?

Elijah wasn't the only one who was mesmerized!

Elijah even helped spread some of the mulch.

"Henry drive dump truck"

Elijah is a big fan of any and all trucks. We've depleted our public library's supply of truck books. Elijah especially likes the books I Drive a Dump Truck and I Drive a Garbage Truck. The first line of the dump truck book is: My name is Henry and I drive a dumptruck. For weeks now, Elijah has been telling us, "Henry drive dump truck. Jackie drive trash truck!" I love how he says it, so I wanted to capture it on video before he outgrows his baby voice.

Surprise!!!!!