Arena Sports

Summer Edition, Day 19

 

We had a birthday party at 1pm today. Before that, we went to Fu Lin for some Chinese food. Slow service, which is unusual for them, but yummy food. 

 

The party was at Arena Sports. It's an indoor soccer center. The boys got to run around the field kicking balls around for a while, and then it was bouncy houses time. This place is cool because they serve beer for the parents. Unfortunately, I only got one picture.

We were actually pretty surprised with how well Vincent did on the field. At first, he seemed a little awkward, but then he was soon dribbling down the field with ease. It's a good thing we signed him up for soccer camp this summer. Maybe he'll actually enjoy it.

 

I went to work in the evening while the boys had their night home. They watched Jumanji, which scared Tyler.

 

I came home earlier than usual. At about 9pm, my mom called me to say that my uncle had passed away today. He was her sister's husband. It was expected, I guess, only, I thought he was doing better. Nobody told me that he started to fade quickly a couple days ago and that both my cousins rushed to Taiwan, hoping to be able to say their last good-byes. I'm deeply saddened for my cousins and aunt, even though I feel relieved that he can now rest peacefully, and his suffering has come to an end.

Day 18, Part 2

I picked the boys up early from camp. For their last day, they had a little "art walk" scheduled. When I came in, the boys were sitting on tarps on the floor, having a snack. They were so cute, and so into eating.

 This is what the boys had for their artwork:

I had planned to take the berry picking after camp, but it was drizzling in the morning. When I picked them up, it had stopped raining, but was pretty ugly out still. The boys said they wanted to go anyway, so we drove the 45 minutes out to the farm. We only had about an hour to pick, since I wanted to get back on the road in time to beat the traffic. And, we didn't anticipate that the raspberries would be ready, but apparently, we could pick them. They weren't great, but we picked quite a bit of raspberries. By the time we picked the strawberries we only had about 15 minutes. Nonetheless, for about $8, we came home with quite the loot. Berries are coming out of my ears!

Since they were all sweaty and had some dirt on their pants, not to mention yucky port-a-potty grossness on their clothing, this is how they rode home.

Last Day of Camp

Summer Edition, Day 18

No matter how hard I've tried this week, I have not been able to get the kids to camp on time. I mean, it's no big deal, but I like being punctual. It's something I've had little success with since I had Vincent. It's not just about me anymore. And, the thing is, even if we are running ahead, somehow, we end up running late. Such as today.

It took us 10 minutes to get through a traffic light in the arboretum. Yes, I know that spot gets congested, but everyday, it's different. I thought that since we were running ahead of schedule today, there would be no wait. So wrong. The upside, was that we got to hear the entirety of "Bohemian Rhapsody" while waiting.

This morning, unlike the last 4 days, Tyler could not have cared less about saying "good-bye" to me at drop off. It was like I suddenly ceased to exist when we walked into the bath house. I'm used to it with Vincent, but for Tyler to barely even notice me as I'm trying to give him a hug and kiss too me by surprise. At least, now I know he's comfortable and happy to be at camp, even if it's the last day. Too bad it's drizzling out, as the counselors were planning on taking them to the beach. Oh Seattle.

Tyler's New Do

Summer Edition, Day 17

I dropped the kiddos off at camp this morning, and rushed right back home to cook. I volunteered to cook dinner for friends who recently had a baby, and tonight was my night. On the menu: focaccia, minestrone soup, and peach crisp. Everything homemade from scratch. Woop woop!

I had made Tyler an appointment for a haircut a couple days ago. I had to rush back to pick up the boys a little early to get him to the appointment. Luckily, it's just around the block from camp. Still, we were a little late.

Here's Ty before:

 Notice, the poofy, matted hair in the back.

Less than 30 minutes, and an episode and a half of 'Dinosaur Train' later, a new look.

 

And, a very large cookie.

 

Vincent's cookie's not so small either.

We dropped off dinner around 5pm, and came home to eat our portions of it. Then, it was time to head to piano lessons for Vincent. His teacher said he did really well. I can only hope she wasn't just being nice. But, I think overall, he is doing well. I help him with practices, and he seems to get it. Sort of. It's all done quite simply at this stage, but at least he gets what he's learning.

Girl #2

Summer Edition, Day 17

Another fun day for the boys at camp! When I picked them up today, one of the counselors told me that Vincent has himself a little girlfriend. My response was, "Oh yeah, Ruby?" No. Apparently, today it was Sophia. She also told me, "The best was seeing him put his hand on her back and leading her outside." I could even imagine it. Vincent can be quite gentle with the ladies, when appropriate. Oh boy.

We dropped off Tyler at home, and then Vincent and I went to his dentist appointment. He had a follow up for his teeth that Tyler knocked loose a few months ago. Seems like they're fine. There's a chance that they will fall out sooner than nature had originally intended, due to the trauma. All that means is that his permanent teeth might take a little longer to grow in. But, there doesn't seem to be an infection, and he's not complaining of pain, so we are still in "monitor" mode. The dental staff loved him. 

This afternoon, Vincent had his tip test for karate. I think he did a really nice job. I feel like this was the best he has done for a test so far. They had only 4 moves, but he got them spot on. He even almost went in the wrong direction with his elbow throw move, but corrected himself quickly. I was super proud of him. He did have an issue with a little girl in the class, and cried. She was bugging him, and he tried several times to get her to leave him alone, but she persisted. I think he was so frustrated that he began to cry. But, his teacher kind of had him move on from the situation, and I was really impressed with how well and quickly he pulled it together and got through it.

I introduced the boys to Austin Powers this week. We watched the first half of the movie a couple days ago, and finished it tonight. I had forgotten how sexual it is. Oops! Luckily, they don't get it. They do think it's pretty funny. Tyler was a little scared, but Vincent understood that it was humorous.

Girl #1

Summer Edition, Day 16

Today, Vincent told me about a girl he met at camp: Ruby. He said that she's very nice, and his new friend. 

David and I had a sitter this evening. She got here at 5:30pm, and watched the boys while we chatted with a windows guy about new windows. 

Yes, new windows. I had no idea this could be such a difficult decision.  When we replaced the ones at our old house, it was a no brainer. The existing ones had broken seals, they were kind of ugly, and had no character. Our current ones are the originals from 1924. They all have character. The ones upstairs have those rope things on the sides. The ones downstairs have nice woodwork in the window grids. At least, we know that we are okay to replace the lovely ones upstairs with boring, plain looking vinyls. But, the downstairs windows have us a little stumped. In order to replicate something similar to what we have, it would cost A LOT. Or, we can save money, and some other stuff. It'll still look nice, but not quite so nice. And, probably not maintain the character they exude now. Although, I have to say, whoever painted them, did a pretty lousy job at it. Last week, I took a good look at them from the street, and said, "Let's just go with the vinyl! It'll look better than whatever we have now. What we have now looks like s@#*!" Um, but they have a lot of character...

Anyway, we had a sitter...We left the kids and had a most delicious dinner at Lark. We sat at the bar, chatted with Kelly and the other front of the house staff, and sat next to a very nice gentleman, dining alone, named Terry. He usually goes every other week with his partner, but his partner is currently in the south of France. He'll be meeting up with him later this week. So jealous.

But, we talked to Terry a bit about Chicago, and he got us excited to go there. The Chicago story is a long one, but we may be going there in August for a wedding.

Summer Camp!!

Summer Edition, Day 15

Vincent returned to the popular "Pre-Camp" put on by our nearby community center for the 3rd year today with Tyler joining him. We only signed up the boys for 2 weeks of it, but have been pretty excited for them. It's the first year they get to do camp together. They may not have another opportunity for a couple more years. Although, the 2nd we they're signed up, I actually ended up finding something different for Tyler to do. At least, they're not too far from each other, so I'm not trekking all over town.

Both boys did well at drop off. A few extra hugs and kisses for Tyler, a tiny bit of hesitation for Vincent, but still really good. When I picked them up, Vincent had already made new friends. He's so social.

 

Light-headed

Summer Edition, Day 14

Vincent seems like a different kid now that his hair is all gone. It's like a cloud was lifted off him. It's so weird. He seems so...cheery! Of course, I didn't have too much time with him since the cut. I was at work last night, and then went off to work, again, this morning. But, the time that I did spend with him, he seemed so bubbly. I don't know if it's cuz of the hair, but sure seems like it. And, he looks like such a little kid. Like the long hair made him more serious, and somber.

Cut

Summer Edition, Day 13

 

We attended a birthday party this morning for a little friend, Lexie, who turned three years old last week. It was so much fun, and we got to see several friends that we haven't been able to chat with for more than a few minutes just in passing in the past few months. Both boys did well. Vincent went right in and found his friends, while Tyler was a little shy. Nonetheless, he enjoyed all the toys and seeing Lexie. To my surprise, Vincent ate a big lunch. He had two slices of pizza, and some pretzels. Yes, two slices is a big deal for him.

 

After the party, I dropped the boys off at home, and headed to work. I got some rock star parking, right in front of Skillet, which is unrestricted, so it's difficult to come by. But, today, there was a moving truck parked in front, and I was able to weasel into a spot that was blocked by the truck. Rock Star.

While at work, I received a text message from David:

Yes, he gave Vincent a hair cut. Oh, and I just now noticed the hair on the floor! I didn't post the pictures I took of Vincent yesterday, since I hadn't uploaded them on to my computer, yet. But, I've got them in now. This was merely a day ago.

5 1/2

Summer Edition, Day 12

Vincent turned 5 1/2 today. As a little treat, we bought tickets to see "Brave" a few days ago, and told the kids about it yesterday. They were super excited, since they've been seeing the ads for it for a couple of months now.

But, before that, the kids went to school this morning. While they were there, I trekked up to Alderwood Mall for the grand opening of the new Lego store. Seriously? Why would I do such a thing? Because I'm a dork.

I got up there super early, and there wasn't anything happening. The postcard I got in the mail said the opening was going to be 11am. Since there was no line, and nobody standing around to give info, I decided to walk around a bit. I should have known better, seeing the partitions. I got myself a coffee, looked at the area where they were setting up to build the giant Yodo, and came back. A mere 25 minutes later, there were two sets of lines, and a lady handing out numbers. They were already on group 3. What?! Oh well. I got myself a number and waited.

An hour later, I walked out of the Lego store with a large bag of goodies I picked up for various birthdays coming up, a free t-shirt and a free Yoda Duplo brick. Yes, one single brick.

It was rainy all day today, so the boys and I spent the afternoon chilling, waiting to go see the movie. I had gotten Vincent a couple of new Ninjago guys called "booster packs," so he played with those while Tyler napped. I laid in bed reading "Catching Fire." I swore I wasn't going to read "The Hunger Games" series, or want to see the second movie, but I think I'm hooked.

At 4:45pm, we loaded into the car to head downtown. Here's a little Seattle tip: Pacific Place mall has a flat rate of $6 for parking if you enter after 5pm. The movie was starting at 5:25, so I had to time it just right. And, I did. We walked up to the box office just in time to find David going to the wrong line for our will call tickets. Tyler and I saved our seats while David and Vincent got popcorn. They made it just in time for the first preview.

And, the verdict? "Brave" was really good. A bit on the scary side. Nothing I expected. I guess I had no idea what the movie was really about, except about a red-headed gal who shoots arrows very well. And, I'm not entirely sure I think the title is that fitting. Maybe "Rebel Princess" would have been more accurate. Nonetheless, it's good. Worth seeing in the theater, so go.

The kids were super wound up after the movie, and since we didn't have to worry about the car, we went a block over to Blue C Sushi for a light dinner. Tyler talked NONSTOP. Okay, he didn't talk so much when he was eating, but that's all. Yappity, yap, yap, yap!

Happy half birthday, Vincent. We love our big 5 1/2 year old. At this age, you are very much into "battling." It's a sort of an art form to you. You set up these elaborate battles with your toys. Those participating range from Lego Ninjago characters, to Bakugon, to little Japense animal erasers, to rubber duckies, and just about any toy you think would be a fitting warrior.

You have one major chore that you do to earn a small weekly allowance. You are trying to save up for both the Ninjago Fire Temple (um, $119) and the Ninjago set with the green Ninja. I think it has some kind of large ship (also $119). We have warned you that it may take you about 2 years to get just one of those. You are not discouraged.

Every other day, you change your mind about who you will marry one day. Although, this week, you haven't said anybody. Maybe Soraya. Your favorite friend is Henry. You and Tyler are becoming better and better friends, but still argue a lot. It's expected.

You have pretty long hair right now. The longest it's ever been. Just yesterday, you agreed to let Daddy cut it for you. Daddy only, not Mama. Maybe a barber can do it.

Your favorite football team is still the Packers. You also seem to like the Red Socks, but possibly the Mariners, for baseball. You don't really have a favorite basketball team, but you like Lebron James, regardless of what others think.

You are still struggling a little bit with your speech, but improving a lot. The "th" sound gets you the most.

You take piano lessons, and seem to be enjoying it. You can play "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" by heart, which makes you very proud. And, we are so proud, too.

You continue to do karate, and enjoy it. You are getting better and better each time. We think your teacher has high hopes for you.

We hope you had a wonderful little day today. You seemed very happy and satisfied. Love love love you, baby.

Play Date #2, The Library, & The Community Center

Summer Edition, Day 11

Henry had also invited Vincent over to play this week. So, two days in a row, those boys got to hang out. I figured I might as well let them since next week is summer camp and Henry will be out of town. Vincent was pretty excited. Actually, Tyler was excited, too. Both boys went running into their house, ready to play. 

Sorry, Tyler, not you.

Instead, Tyler and I went to the gym. He got to play with all his girlfriends there, though. Incidentally, they're all blonde.

We picked up Vincent afterwards to come home for lunch. Since there was time before quiet time, and we didn't have afternoon plans, I decided for us to go to the library after lunch. Vincent loved this idea, saying, "I've been thinking about going to the library lately." Super!

I ended up having tons of stuff on hold, then found more, including some books on CD for the kids. Vincent picked out about 4 or 5 different comic books, while Tyler found about 4 or 5 board books. What a loot.

For dinner, we recipe tested grilled hanger steak with porcini mushrooms for Lark. YUM. I have to admit, I love steak. Ooh, and we got our first CSA box from Oxbow Farm today. Included in the box was a bunch of baby carrots. Those got wrapped in foil and thrown on the grill, too. Dee-lish. For dessert, super sweet strawberries came in our box, so I cut up those and whipped up some sweetened cream to go with them. Ooh la la.

Next, it's off to the community center with the boys. David stayed home and mowed the lawn. Much, much needed. 

Vincent had a really good piano lesson, according to his teacher. She has figured out that he likes routine, which they have now sort of developed, and it's helped him settle down. Tyler played outside during the lesson. It was still nice and warm out. He loved swinging like this...

 ...as if flying.

The boys went up this steep path on the way home. At first they were holding hands, getting ready to climb together, but quickly let go of each other, like it was a race. Of course. Tylie kept up pretty well, if you ask me.

When we got home, David was watching the NBA Finals. The boys joined him, but Tyler quickly got bored. I took him into the living room to listen to the books on CD we got at the library. He was so cute, snuggling up with Stitch.

 I love this. He looks like he's still just a year old here.

I'm not sure if he was actually even listening to the stories, but Tyler enjoyed the whole situation. Um, minus the part when Vincent came in and tried to take over turning the pages and not letting him have a turn. David took Vincent away. They two of them watched the Miami Heat win the championship.

First Day Of Summer!!

Summer Edition, Day 10

Ooh, Summer Solstice is on June 20th this year. And, just as a little piece of information, turns out that Winter Solstice 2006 was on the day Vincent was born. I kind of knew this, as someone once told me, but I never actually verified it until a few minutes ago. Still, I'm not entirely certain, but I'm gonna go with it.

Anywho...it's officially summer. And, as an added treat, our lovely star, The Sun, shined it's warm light upon Seattle today. 

Tyler went to preschool this morning. David dropped him off while Vincent and I stayed home and waited for Henry to arrive. Vincent had a play date. It went very well. Those boys get along very well, and are pretty silly together. I did feel like our house is a bit boring. Vincent had just (finally) organized his Legos a little this morning, and didn't want them getting messed up, again. Well, I'm not entirely sure if he didn't want them messed up, or if he thought I didn't want them messed up. I never said they couldn't play upstairs with them. I guess he just assumed. Instead, he brought down a few things he for him and Henry to share.

We dropped Henry off a couple hours later, then went to pick up Tyler. We got home, rested a short time, and I was rushing them back out the door. Totally selfish. I REALLY wanted to make it to the Columbia City Farmers' Market! We haven't been since the season started because we switched Vincent's karate class to Wednesday. I wanted to make sure I had enough time to get us down there and back in time for karate.

We got there early, so the boys ran around the grassy area a little, and I made them take pictures. Vincent's so silly.

I loved how Tyler said to me after this 3rd picture was taken, "My arms are like the sun, Mama!"

 Run, Baby, Run!

Afterwards, we stopped at Lark to pick up figs, then headed to karate class. Vincent did really well today. This class is much smaller, and the students are all about his level. A couple of boys are bigger than him, which helps set an example for him to follow. His moves are getting sharper, too.

Here's Vincent gearing up for a punch ("cross") and then running to the back of the line and doing a squat.

 Tyler was pretty good, too, so I let him play on my phone a bit. It doesn't show up in the picture, but his little body looked all chunky and baby-like while curled up like this. At least, it did from my point of view...not so much from the camera's.

Costco Trains

Summer Edition, Day 9

The boys and I went to ProClub, again, this morning. When we pulled up to the level we normally park in the garage, Tyler saw our friends', the Hildebrandts, car, and happily said, "Eva's here! Look, that's Eva's car. I was finking she be here, and she IS here." So sweet. He sure loves that little girl. And, she was happy to see both boys, too.

After the gym, we went to Costco. First, we stopped at the teriyaki place next door for lunch. The boys did pretty well eating there. We all shared a bento, and they had some miso soup as well. Vincent asked specifically for it.

Costco was crazy. We got gas, a car wash, and then shopped a little. In the gas station queue, a train came by. The boys were elated. Tyler said, "It's a diesel!" Then, he went on to tell Vincent of the gondolas passing by. They named the colors of the different train cars and gondolas. Then, Tyler said, "It's not a hoo hoo train, it's a honk train." Here they are watching the train go by with their lollipops from the teriyaki place.

I actually prefer not to go there with both kids. Not even with one, but that's better than two. And, the thing that gets me is that EVERY time we go, some stranger feels the need to talk my boys. First of all, I don't particularly care for strangers talking to my kids. Secondly, I have to pretend to be polite, when all I want to do is run in the opposite direction. Usually, I can't because we're in the checkout line. Lastly, people talk to the kids and it gets them all wound up, which then I have to deal with calming them down. Seriously, go talk to someone else's kids, will ya?

Tyler fell asleep on the way back from Costco. At 4pm, Abby arrived to babysit. She's been interning at Lark the past month or so, and when I found out she babysits, I swooped in. She's very sweet, and seemed to have done well with the boys.

David and I went to see The Avengers. That was fun.

Ho Hum Monday

Summer Edition, Day 8

 

-Pro Sports Club in the morning.

-Lunch at Taco Time. It's across the street from our next stop...

-Speech therapy for Vincent.

-Nap time/quiet time.

-Karate. A quick stop into Trader Joe's for some dinner provisions.

-Dinner: Trader Joe's carne asada with tortillas, homemade corn salsa, roasted fingerling potatoes, sauteed zucchini.

-XBox playing.

-David to karate.

-Bedtime routine.

 

Pretty much a typical Monday.

Father's Day

Summer Edition, Day 7

This morning, Tyler was up at the butt-crack of dawn. We were both so tired, and not ready to get up. Plus, he doesn't normally wake so early. So, we asked if he wanted to get in bed with us or go back to his bed. He chose to go back upstairs. 

Yay! And, I think he actually did fall asleep, because an hour later, the child that came down at the "normal" wake up time was Vincent. I got up with him, letting David sleep-in. When I asked him if Tyler was still asleep, he said, "Yes."

Vincent and I hung out in the living room, snuggling a bit, and talked about how the day went after I left yesterday. He told me about a game they played called, "Maka," or something. It involved wrestling.

Ty was up within the next half hour. The boys and I settled on getting David a not breakfast from McDonald's, rather than our usual Top Pot Doughnuts-on-special-occasions. 

It took me a moment to figure out what to get us all, then I waffled momentarily, and really pissed off the car behind me. First, he honked at me. Huh?! Then, I heard him yell something at me, like, "C'mon!" I was shocked and angry, but I refrained from telling him off. Really? Did he really need to get his fast food that fast? I'm sorry if I can't order my McDonald's breakfast as fast as he can, since we don't frequent that place so much, especially this early. And, then, under my breath, I wished high cholesterol on him. Sorry.

Anyway, David was nicely surprised to wake up to a hot breakfast. The kids were so excited to give him his gifts, but we waited until after David finished eating. By the way, neither of them really knew what they were having for breakfast, or so it seemed. Vincent took a bite of his hashbrown, his face lit up, and he said, in a surprised tone, "Mmmm, this is good!"

I got David a bunch of new shirts and a pair of pants. Tyler got him an insulated lunch sack. It was his idea. Well, his idea was a Thomas lunchbox, but this is more appropriate. Vincent got him a Lego chess set. It's super cool.

Vincent and David put the set together while Tyler and I hung out. Then, our babysitter showed up. Yup, I got us a sitter for Father's Day. We've been in need of a date, and David really wanted to get a nice buffet brunch. 

I got us a reservation to Palisades. We had some time before our reservation, so we went down to Golden Gardens, walked along the waterfront, and then sat on a bench and talked. He had been gone three days this week, and it was our first time really catching up since he came home. Brunch was wonderful. This place has a beautiful view of the marina and bay, into the downtown waterfront. There were two (huge) cruise ships parked nearby. They gave us a seat that faced the awesome view.

The boys had a good time with the sitter, and the rest of the after we just hung out at home. David and I took turns with each kid. We were so full from brunch, that we skipped dinner and just let the kids eat. Funny, they didn't even notice that we weren't eating. We did each have a cupcake for dessert. For Father's Day, they featured The 'Stache: chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and crumbled pretzels on top...with a little fondant mustache. David's favorite snack is pretzels, so we had to get it.

T-Ball Game & Biking

Summer Edition, Day 6

Vincent had his last t-ball game of the season today. It took all season, but somehow, on the last day, something seemed to click for Vincent. David said he did really well. In fact, all the kids seem to have a great game. 

Tyler and I hung out at home playing with Legos. 

After the game, we went out to grab some lunch at MedMix. We had heard rave reviews about this place, and have been wanting to try it out since it opened a few months ago. The verdict: So-So. Very long wait for our food, dry fried chicken, decent Mediterranean food, but didn't knock our socks off. Actually, the falafel I had was pretty good, and Tyler loved the hummus. I'm in no rush to go back, but I probably would, simply because I want the business to succeed. We actually really wanted it to be great. 

We had a little time left between lunch and when I had to go to work, so we took the boys to the school yard for a bit of biking. Vincent got a new, larger bike, so we put the training wheels back on the 12" for Tyler. He seemed to enjoy it.

Vincent, on the other hand, wasn't too into riding his new bike. It's a slight bit on the large side. We decided to upgrade him to an 18" instead of 16". He has a hard time reaching the ground, but he can. It's also faster. These two reasons combined, scare him out. Rather than stop and touch the ground, he just freaks and falls down. I got him to ride for a short while, and then he was done.

While I was gone at work, it was mainly the usual Saturday afternoon "boys' time" for them: iPad, wrestling, playing with trains, etc. Sounds like they had a nice evening.

Mortifying Moment & Murder Mystery

Summer Edition, Day 5

This morning, the boys went off to Mandarin preschool, while I got a morning to myself.

I think Vincent is getting the hang of this preschool. The first month, he struggled because it is so different from Secret Garden. Plus, Tyler started there first, which sort of makes it Ty's "territory," if you get me. Last week, Vincent got a sticker for participating, and his teacher said he improved greatly from the week before. The previous weeks, he was pretty disruptive, with 2 weeks ago being his worst. I was so happy to hear of improvement, and even happier this week to hear...well, not much. His teacher just smiled, nodded her head, and said, "He did well." Whew! He even had two stickers on his hands.

So, my mortifying moment came after I picked the boys up from school. I had to make a stop to pick up some photos. When we got to the house, Vincent said he had to use the bathroom. I asked if he could hold it, and apparently, he couldn't. When I walked up to the door, I didn't notice the box with my name on it sitting on the porch. I rang the door bell. Then, as we waited, Vincent said, "Mommy, what are those presents?" I looked down, and, well, you know. But, someone was heading to the door already, and Vincent asked if I could ask them for the bathroom. 

She kindly let us in, even though the lady of the house wasn't actually there. She leads us upstairs, and Vincent goes. But, he's taking kind of long, so I ask if he's alright. "No," he said. *Oh gosh.* "I peed on my pants." I tell him it's okay, but he's upset. I go in, and he's also peed on the floor. Now that I'm thinking about this, it really wasn't a big deal. But, the fact that I asked a total stranger if my child could go in and use her bathroom, and then he pees all over the floor...ugh. I couldn't have gotten us out of there any faster.

We came home for a little down time. 

My evening plan was to take them to Bellevue Square. I thought I'd get there much earlier, but, well, I have two small children. Things don't move as quickly as I imagined in my head. Nonetheless, we get there at a decent time, do a little poking around stores, and head to dinner. Tyler and I had originally decided on sushi, but he changed his mind. We had walked past McDonalds' on our way in, and I think that got them thinking. I convinced them to go to Red Robin.

Both ordered the exact same thing: corn dog and apple slices with milk. I sweet-talked our waiter into giving me the happy hour price on a pint, even though I wasn't sitting in the bar. "Are you sure you can't just give me that price? I would be in the bar, but...", pointing at my kiddos. 

The kids take their sweet time eating, so I decide to tell them a story: "The Billionaire's Curse." It's just a early-teens book I read recently, that I mistakenly thought would be a quick way to pass the time. But, I introduced the word "mystery" to them, and what that means. Vincent was very into the story. I think Tyler was, too. He also seemed a little nervous. 


I think the best part of this, and the reason I kept telling story, was how captivated Vincent was. When I would pause to help Tyler, or say something to the server, he would say, "Mama, please don't stop. Continue." And, when we would meet a new character, and I would describe him, he would say, "Oh! This guy seems like he could maybe be the bad guy, but he also seems so nice!" Like I could almost see the little thought bubble floating above his head with images of the story as he listened. And, he really liked the main character. "That Gerald. He does some cool things."


When the story was over, and we find out the bad guy gets away, he's a little confused. I explain that this is the first of 3 books. "Please, Mama, read the others so you can tell me what happens." Precious.

Even more precious. 

After these pictures were taken, Tyler's balloon slipped off his wrist. Luckily, there was a roof above us, and it didn't completely fly away. But, I couldn't reach it. It slowly floated closer and closer to the edge of floating up and away. Tyler's freaking out, and I'm looking around for an answer. Found. A table of three young, taller than me, guys. I ask for help, like I've got a cat stuck up in a tree or something, and one volunteers. He stood on a chair, and was about 2 inches off. His friends just sit and watch, offering no help (oh the youth of today). But, he is determined. He said, "I'm gettin' this. But, I'll need to jump..." Got it!

Lots O Childcare

Summer Edition, Day 4

The morning started off with going to the gym, again. There, the kids went to the day care. When that was done, I lugged them over to U Village's QFC, and dropped them off at yet another day care, so I could do some grocery shopping.

Lunch didn't even happen until almost 2pm. But, they had a pretty decent snack, between the two childcare centers, so they were fine. 

And, now, they're both parked on our bed, in front of the iPad. Childcare #3.

Am I already getting tired of "Summer Edition"?

Ice Skating

Summer Edition, Day 3

 

This morning, Vincent and I dropped Tyler off at preschool, then we went ice skating. It didn't last long, but I was proud that I took him out there, and proud of Vincent for trying so hard. He fell a ton of times, and even got pretty hurt at one point. He bumped his face on the ice, got a tiny fat lip, cried, but then got back on the ice to finish his lap.

 

While I was calming Vincent down, I received a phone call from Tyler's school that the water was out and that there would be no lunch for the kids. If I wanted to, I could pick him up now. So, we did.

It was only 11:30am when I got there, and we couldn't go home until 1pm, because I was getting the house cleaned. What to do? What to do?

There happened to be a 12:10pm showing of Madagascar 3 at the nearby theater. Sweet. So, I took the kiddos to the food court at the mall, got them fried rice and chow mien from...eek! Panda Express. For shame, Yang! But, hey, it was pretty cheap, they gave me 2 empty bowls, and I was able to divide up the food for the kids while in the theater. Yes, I let them eat their lunch while watching the movie. Oh, and they each got a pot sticker.

As for the movie? So good, and silly. Dreamworks studio has come a long way since "Shark Tales," which I thought was so awful, I couldn't get through the first half of the movie. Is that even Dreamworks?

Another short rest time this afternoon, then off to karate!

For dinner, we met friends at the ale house. The kids played, and I got a little "mommy" time with my friend...along with lots of stopping to tell the kids not to do this or that, take one to the bathroom, and then again, to the bathroom...Kids went right to bed tonight, though. 1 point for Mom. 

Imagine Kids Museum

Summer Edition, Day 2

We headed up north to Everett this morning to meet our friends, Sarah, Allysa and Abigail at the Imagine Kids Museum. What an awesome place! The boys really enjoyed it. They have this HUGE rooftop playground.

This is just half the roof! This was on the other half (along with some other stuff the boys didn't go play with).

There was so much to do there. The kids had a really good time in the construction room with the cars.

 There was also a water table room, a train table, model train, story time, a huge area with lots tables for eating, and several other neat exhibits. We spent a good portion of our day there, then went across the street to The Goodwill. Both kids picked out a toy for less than a buck and a half. Then, he went home.

Summer Break Begins

Although, is really summer break? 

First of all, it's cold here. There's barely any sunshine, some of the time there's light drizzle/rain, and most of the time, it's just plain cold. 

Secondly, it's not like the summer before kindergarten actually counts as summer break. I think a true summer break for us will be next summer, when Vincent has finished his first year of grade school, going 5 days a week, from 9am-3pm. That's truly a break from school. Not to say that the last 3 years of preschool hasn't been considered as school to me. It's just that it's pretty part-time.

Anyway, aside from what I consider to be really summer break, it's that time of year for us, nonetheless.

What do I have planned? Seems I'm still working on it! But, I'm thinking I'll post daily for the summer. I'll call this:

Our Team Hunt: "Summer Break" Edition

Day 1: Easing Into It

Despite my earlier complaints about it being cold, it was actually decently nice today.

We went to the gym first thing in the morning. Then, I drove through McDonald's and grabbed us lunch, and we took it to a playground. If I had remembered Marination Mobile was going to be at the park, I would have gotten us that instead. Well, probably not, since the line is always so long, full of Amazon employees, and the kids would probably reject it since it looks foreign.

After a little playground picnic, we drove to Wallingford, where Vincent has his first speech therapy session. He did really well, and according to the specialist, he has improved since February. She no longer has to go over some sounds with him that she originally said she would need to. Great news! His "th" is still an issue, but I knew that going in. Tyler enjoyed the toys and train table in the lobby.

After a short rest at home, we got ready for Vincent's karate lesson. While Vincent went to karate, Tyler and I went for a walk in the neighborhood. Gotta soak up the sun when we can!

The End Of An Era - AKA, Vincent Graduates Preschool

Vincent's graduation ceremony about to begin. Kids give parents all a big wave.

 Vincent went up for his diploma and gift.

 When we said he could pick anything he wanted to wear today, he chose Spiderman pajamas.

We have spent the last 3 years of our lives with Secret Garden Preschool. Today, our adventures there came to an end. Tyler will not be going there in the fall, as we originally planned, and Vincent had his last day of school today.

I feel like this last year really flew by. Before we knew it, school was over, and we're officially on summer break. It's, of course, raining today.

The school had a little ceremony for the children. The teachers made them each a diploma and a t-shirt with a drawing made by each kid. They also gave them a little thing of bubbles, and an Otter Pop (gross).

Unfortunately, Vincent was totally disruptive during the whole ceremony, and when he was called up, he acted like a goof ball. I'm sorry, but this was not my or David's proudest Vincent moment, when it really should have been. And, when all was said and done, David and I left the school with hardly a good-bye to most of the other parents, including ones we have really gotten to know and like through the years. 

Sigh. Definitely bittersweet. 

We have really enjoyed being a part of the Secret Garden community. Vincent has gotten a lot out of the program, especially this year. He LOVED school a ton, and loved the friendships he made there even more. He's lucky that he will go on to kindergarten with a handful of his classmates, which makes him very excited. We were so fortune to have such great, loving teachers to help guide Vincent through his first few years of school & socializing with other children. He thrived at this school. I know he will miss it very much. 

My big challenge this summer is to make sure he can still have the socialization he had at Secret Garden. Our plan is 2 days at Washington International School with Tyler, where he has already started to make some new friends, Pro Sports Club, where he will likely reunite with some of last year's older kids, and then hang out with me and Tyler. Wish me luck!

Here's Vincent's shining moment: