Sammy, Bloody Sammy!

Sammy, bloody Sammy!!! (You are suppose to sing this to the tune of "Sunday, Bloody Sunday"---Yes I am a U2 fan). No, Sam didn't get hurt. But as I have stated before he has a love for gore. His favorite shirt for the last two years has been a jackolantern shirt that he wears year round. When he draws pictures, which he loves to do, they are of Super Maizie dog or of monsters or people dying and hurt with blood coming out of them. He loves to draw Halloween pictures. Oooh my sweet sweet Sam. He constantly talks about blood. He is fascinated with it. Maybe it goes along with his old obsession with bandaids. I know all kids love them, but his teachers had to always have extra on hand to put on him for his pretend injuries. (Sam) "I'm bleeding!" he would say. (Me) "Where? I don't see anything." (Sam) "Here," he says pointing to a perfectly beautiful spot of skin with not as much as even a scratch or wrinkle on it. (Me) "I don't see anything." (Sam) "I'm bleeding! I need a bandaid!!!!" He would hold out and fuss for one for thirty minutes until I gave in.
Anyway, today the car ride conversation went like this. (Sam) "Look at my bandaid." (Max) "I see George the monkey." (Sam) "No it is bloooood. (Max) No its not. It's Curious George. See." (Sam) "No its blood. It's a blood design. (Max) It looks like a splat of paint from George's paint can." (Sam) "No, it's blood. His blood smashed out all over it, splat! Oooo gross."
See what I mean? Besides his long lasting kick on blood and gore, he is using the word dissolve often I have noticed. (e.g. yesterday---"The Coco puffs dissolve in my mouth. I really like the way they dissolve in my mouth. They really do!"). Yes, we have found that many things dissolve in your mouth. I have no idea how he learned this word and why he likes it so much.
Sam finally got his white belt---first belt---in karate. He had to go three times to class to get it. On his third day he didn't listen well to Mr. Lance so he didn't get it and had to try again on Tuesday when he did finally get it. It was a good learning experience for him, only with Sam, he never seems to really remember the consequences. It only lasts for a little while then he does the same stuff again. Oh I love the guy, but he does keep me on my toes.
Sam just finished his first swim class at his daycare and did well. He loves the water. Max just finished his first week at summer camp. He had fun, except that the kid that bulleyed him last year is there again and it started right back up. Ugh! I had a talk with the staff so they can keep an eye on the situation. I tried to not complain and be patient last year, but I won't let Max go through another summer like the last one. I have to put him in God's hands.
Well, enough of my yapping and gabbing. I hope everyone is having a great summer.

Boys, boys, boys

Today Max had his friend Elijah over to play. They had a great time. It was soo cute to watch them. They were swapping advice on how to get the most out of the fake toot sounds they made(e.g loudness and length of time). I never realized there were so many ways to make toot sounds. There is the regular mouth toot sound, the straw in the armpit blow technique, the fart gun--pulling your arm back and forth quickly with a gun finger pose, the regualr hand under your arm--"armpit fart" or as I like to call it the "chicken wing toot", then last, but not least, the back of the knee kick toot. Whew. I certainly got my education today. I just laughed and laughed inside---of course I couldn't let them know how cute it was.
I was a bad mom today. I am off and home with the kids since Max is in between school and summer camp. I let Sam stay home too, but forgot his first day of swim classes was this morning and missed it. Oooops! I can't keep it all together. Besides that we also took Maizie to the vet to get fixed today. The vet called and said she did fine and we will pick her up later. Sam meets with Mr. Lance today for a one on one Karate assessment to see if he is ready to start. I think I have my day cut out for me today. Did I say that I didn't have to work today? I guess work never ends at the official job or at home. Ha.

Too Hot

The last two days we have braved the brutal heat. Yes, summer has truly come to Tulsa. Friday the kids and I spent the day at the pool and got a great sunburn. Today we went to the zoo and sweated it out with the animals, panting and trying to find any spot of shade to rest in along the way. The animals looked as lethargic and drained from the heat as we did, laying around panting and baking in the sun. Not the best idea for the day. Even the kids complained and wanted to go home. No dragging them out of the zoo fussing as they usually do, wanting to stay longer. I guess you can't force fun. Sometimes it's just too hot! I am happy to be home in the air conditioning again.
On the way to the zoo, Sam cracked me up. He kept talking about how soft his hair felt today. He thought it must be because it (his hair) was very dry today. It sounded like a shampoo commercial that kept repeating itself in the backseat. Max has been doing something very nice, surprisingly sweet lately. Yes the kids are still in a love-hate tango, hence Sam giving Max a bloody nose the other weekend---Ugh! They are best buds and mortal enemies depending on the moment. It can change in a second, back and forth making my head spin. Anyway, Max's sweet expressions have been keeping me from going berserk. He randomly comes up to me with a very serious expression and quietly says, "Thank you mom," then gives me a big dramatic hug. I ask for what? And then he says something that I have done recently like...for letting me play on the computer, or for making me lunch,etc. I am stunned and softened instantly. Yes, it doesn't take much to melt me with these two. Thank God he made them so cute! Or else thay wouldn't have survived this long. Just joking. Anyway, it certainly helps to balance the diffcult times. My little "hot heads" need to learn to cool down, but I wouldn't trade them for anything.

Here are some new pictures of the kids.

Max's 7th Birthday!

He wanted a Roller skating party with a Mario and Luigi theme.Max and his best bud, Elijah. Aren't Besties great!Skating

Mario is a trademark not many bakeries have. Our solution:

Turtle and mushroom cupcakes!

Just like the game.All lit upMax just tested in Karate and moved up from a camo-purple belt to a camo-red belt!

Reverse thrust kickBoard breakThe new red beltSam in frog pose

Sam is hoping--or should I say hopping--to start karate soon!

Today he was already planning what he wanted to get at his next birthday---next February. Sorry kid, you have a wait ahead of you!

mad scientist

Last Thursday we had an unexpected day off of school (which meant no work for me). I watched Brook's kids so that she could work and the boys could all have fun playing. I decided to do a project. My family knows how I love PROJECTS. My kids ask for them sometimes. They can be art or crafts or science experiments. I got creative and googled "easy home science experiments" and it gave lots of web sites. I went with www.sciencebob.com/experiments/index.php It gave lots of great ideas. I chose to do two of them. They were really fun. You should try them too.

1. Bending Water with Static Electricity (I dubbed all of the boys Avatars since they were water benders---not quite air benders though). This is easy. You need only a dry plastic comb and a faucet. 1.) turn on faucet slowly so that you have a small stream of water flowing. 2.) comb through your hair 10-20 times (roughing up the hair for more static electricity helps, so does having thick hair). 3.) Now hold the comb close to the stream of water without touching it. The water flow should bend toward the comb. It looks cool. Now you are an official water bender!

2. Exploding Lunch Bag You will need 1small sandwich zip-lock bag (freezer bags work best), baking soda, warm water, vinegar, and a tissue. 1.) Put 1/4 cup of pretty warm water into the zip-lock bag. 2.) Add 1/2 cup vinegar to the water in the bag. 3.) Put 3 teaspoons of baking soda into the middle of the tissue and wrap it up into a pouch by folding the tissue around it. 4.)go outside or in the sink because messy. Work fast now! Partially zip up the bag closed but leaving enough room to slip the pouch of baking soda in. Put the pouch inside and quickly zip up the bag so completely closed. 6.) Put the bag on the ground or in the sink and step back. The bag will start to expand with gas and bubbles until it pops!

OK, besides doing these experiments, the next day, Friday, when I picked Sam up at preschool/daycare, they were doing science experiments so I stayed a little while and watched so Sam could see also. They did the mentos in diet coke experiment and we got to see the pop explode into a gush way high into the air. It was cool! Just another fun idea for a not so busy day.

It Is Finished!!!

Yeaaa! I just finished the novel I have been working on for the past year and a half to two years. I am sooo excited. I needed to tell someone, but it is so late so I had to post it and tell you! It is a novel about a ten year old boy in Rwanda Africa who loses his family in the genocide attacks by the Hutus against the Tutsi's. Eventually he ends up as a slave at a cocoa plantation and through some magic pages that are given to his uncle before the attacks, he comes to know Christ later in the novel. Anyway. That is a short summary. It feels so good to complete a project. I am already toying with ideas about my next project. I don't know if this novel is good enough to ever get published, or even if it is, if any publishing complany will even look at it with all the competition out there. It takes a lot to get them to invest in a new, unknown author. But at least it is done. I have done my part and leave the rest to God to use it as he will. Whew! Did I say I just finished it? Yeah, I am sooo happy.

Easter

Continuing to post pictures - these are from Easter at Mimi's house.