June...In Nutshell

It's October?  Seriously?  How'd that happen?  I put on a fleece this morning.  In my mind, I'm still wearing shorts and tank tops.  Yet I just filled out a form with my preferences for Parent/Teacher Conferences for the end of the 1st quarter of school.  I guess I should snap out of this dream world and face reality...it's Fall.  I'm a slacker.  There aren't enough hours in the day to do all that I want to.  I'm behind.  And not just on my blog.  Ugh.  I don't like reality.  Can't we live happily-ever-after in my little land of make-believe?
Okay...so what happened in June? 

Well...like I said before...I spent a lot...no, really...A LOT of time cleaning up not-so-fun stuff!

Ava took a little while catching on.  She earned the nickname "The Camel" after day 2.  She'd not go to the bathroom until I put a pullup on for bed.  Any accidents she had, it was because her bladder literally gave out.  And she'd be horrified that it had!

Eli was a quick study.  He figured out that he got a treat every time he went potty.  So...he'd let just enough out on the potty to earn a treat...eat it...then head back to his potty to earn another Swedish fish! (Hey, if I'm going to have candy in the house, it's going to be something I LOVE...so I can treat myself, too!)

Cole...well...like everything with Cole...potty training became a battle of wills.  He was defiant.  He'd "perform" if he wanted to...but ONLY if he wanted to.  Otherwise, he was perfectly happy watching me clean up after him while he got a fresh pair of underwear.

But June wasn't ONLY about potty-training.

(This is Zoe's buddy Kaylyn...she won't be back to ECES next year, but they'll stay friends, I'm sure of it!)

Zoe wrapped up 2nd grade...complete with a "Violin Chapel" to show us all how much she'd learned and improved.  I have a confession here.  The entire violin class (2nd, 3rd & 4th grade students) played a piece together at the end that brought me to tears.  No, I didn't get it on video, but if I find a parent that taped it, I'm posting it.  It was AMAZING.  Instead, you'll have to listen to his...just the 2nd grade beginner class...

Ty completed Kindergarten.  He LOVED his year with Mrs. Johnston...and she loved having him!

But the most shocking part of our June was Shane's departure from SONY.  Yes, after 16 years, he's no longer polishing up on his Japanese.  He wasn't looking for a new job, but Samsung came looking for him.  So there were a few days that we had Dad at home while we kicked off our summer.  It was a fun few days...for a few days.  But ummm...how do I say this nicely?  Well...I learned that Shane will NEVER have a job that he works solely at home.  At least not while I'm a SAHM.  Too much chaos for me.

Just like last year, we wrapped up June with a trip up to CT for Summer Bible Club and Camp Granddad.  Highlights will have to wait for my next post.

In the meantime, here are a few other random fun shots and clips from the month...

Trouble with a Capital "C"!

Yes, I know I owe you a ton and a half of posts.  I will.  I promise.  I'll sum up June, July and August and HOPEFULLY not have to review all of September.

In the meantime...yesterday HAS to be posted about!

See this cutie?

He looks so sweet and innocent, right?  Wrong!

I was upstairs making beds and Ava came up saying, "Cole in trouble.  Cole be naughty."  When she brought me downstairs, I made a disturbing, yet not so shocking discovery...

And there, right next to this beautiful work of art was it's creator.

He's not exactly sly!  By the time I cleaned him up (after all...he had preschool today...I couldn't send him looking like "Pierre") he'd moved on to another disaster so I moved on to putting sheets on Ty's bed.  You'll never guess who I found in Ty's room...Cole!  He was playing Lego's on Ty's bed...and he'd had an "accident".  Seriously.  So...I cleaned up Cole...and his mess...and waited to put sheets on the now wet (but newly scrubbed) mattress.

Determined to get SOMETHING done before nap time (theirs, not mine, unfortunately), I went downstairs to empty the dishwasher.  There were Eli & Ava playing nicely in the Family Room.  When they saw me come into the kitchen, I was greeted warmly with another, "Cole in trouble.  Cole be naughty" from Ava.  Great.  "Where is he, Ava?" 

"Outside!"

I kid you not, the boy had unlocked and opened the front door and was riding his tricycle on the driveway.  Underwear only.  Quite a sight.  But seriously, what am I supposed to do with this boy?  HOW am I going to contain him?

Memorial Day Weekend Update #1 - Hunter Mountain

Yes, it's been almost a week since Memorial Day...but we've been busy...

I promise I'm keeping really good notes on any progress.  The potty-training post will come...eventually!


For now, I return you to our original programming..Memorial Day Weekend...

Nothing kicks the summer off better than a good old fashion road trip, right?  When we were invited up to my Aunt and Uncle's "Country House" in Hunter, NY for the day Saturday, we couldn't wait.  Okay, maybe that's a bit of an overstatement...I was slightly worried...but was still excited...honest!

We loaded up and were on the road at the crack of dawn by 10:30.  In just under 2 hours, we were on one of the most beautiful roads in the Northeast...Route 23...heading up the mountain.  It was breath-taking...view and Shane's driving!  Seriously, he was so busy pointing out rivers, mountains and waterfalls to the kids that he wasn't even watching the double yellow line.  This is about the point that I really wished I'd insisted on driving!

We arrived safely and hit the ground running.  Actually, it was more like...tip-toeing. They shyly (is that a word) explored the house and walked around the yard while the rest of us got lunch set up.  Zoe had barely swallowed her last bite and she was off with (my cousin) Louise to the river.  Sure enough, children started following...

Helen and Cole just checkin' things out

Ava and "Ma Puh-dool"

Shane couldn't collect rocks fast enough for Cole to throw.  At least he was polite and would give one to Helen, too, "One you...One me..."

Eli liked helping Aunt Georgia keep track of any wildlife that was collected (i.e. Minnows) 

You'll never guess who was the first to fall in...I won't say his name, but it starts with a T and ends with a Y.

Cole and Uncle Tim checking out the view down river

Ava scooped water like it was her job.

Louise and Zoe

Eli

Ava

Cole

Grammy and Granddad

After everyone was sufficiently wet, it was back up to the house for some DRY relaxing time.

Some gardened...

Uncle Steven

Some played baseball...

Some read on the porch...

Helen and Ava learned all about the crazy adventures of Curious George

And some drew next year's fashion lines...

After dinner, there was another trip down to the river for the crazy kids and the crazy cousins (i.e. those over 3 y.o. and under 30 y.o.).

By 730p, we were back on the road, headed home.  What a success the day was.  Even without naps, the triplets were pleasant and well-behaved.  We had minimal meltdowns and no real temper tantrums.  No more than 10 miles down the road, all "babies" were sleeping and it didn't take long for Zoe and Ty to follow suit.

It was a great time with family...the way all holiday weekends should start!  Thanks so much for your hospitality, Aunt Georgia and Uncle Steven.  A big shout out to Louise and Helen, too.  Without you guys, Zoe and Ty would have been begging for fun parents, or Shane and I would be recovering from hypothermia.

Patriotic Chapel...Again!

Every year, each grade level is responsible for one "special" chapel at Eastern Christian Elementary School.  This year, the 2nd Grade (Zoe's class) did Thanksgiving Chapel. When Zoe was in Kindergarten, it was Christmas Chapel (holy cow, have I really been blogging that long?) and First Grade was Patriotic Chapel.  Every year, the chapels shuffle up.

This is Ty's first year having a chapel responsibility as a class.  And guess what the Kindergarten was dealt...Patriotic Chapel!  Not to worry, they were much different than Zoe's Memorial Day interpretation last year.  Yesterday was his big day...

Ty was VERY excited, to say the least.  He could barely sleep the night before.

The kids each were dressed to represent an aspect of our culture.  Ty was an American Indian.

Mrs. Johnston (Ty's teacher) and Mrs. Boonstra (the aide)

These brave women did an excellent job...keeping the 20 crazy Kindergartners from poking each other's eyes out with the flags...helping the kids learn and perform.  Ty was nervous, I could tell.  The hands in the pockets was a dead giveaway!

We all were proud of our kids.  Even Zoe said Ty did a good job!

Thank you, Mrs. Johnston!

Eli...The Goof Ball

In the past...I've been told I'm hard on Eli on my blog.  Apparently, I post a lot of pictures of him crying.  I looked back through about a years worth of posts, but couldn't find many.  Still, this weekend I found myself giggling at him a lot so I thought I'd show you why...

First...there's this crazy hat.

He wears it all the time...around the house...and even in his crib.

And anytime I take out the camera...all I hear is "cheeeeeeeeeese!"

But what really kills me is his love for leaf blowers.  This isn't a toy leaf blower.  And if it's EVER brought out...he claims it.  And until that battery dies...there's NO sharing it.

If you listen closely, you can hear Eli's answer when I ask him "Whatcha doin'?"  He says, "Messy..."