Inexplicable

Tomorrow is TJ's 11th birthday. Eleven. How is that possible?  It seems just like yesterday that he was running around the house with a yard stick (his favorite toy) and chattering on about the 'tees' (trees). 

TJ is having a pool party at an area high school on Sunday. He loves to swim and this was actually the most affordable party option I came up with. I told him yesterday that I was going to order a cake made out of two dozen cupcakes to feed the kids at the party. TJ requested that I get cupcakes that were white inside. He informed me he doesn't like chocolate cake. This was news to me, but I promised there would be no chocolate.

Tonight, Nolan had therapy and TJ and Sam had their first practice for the Christmas program at church. I was with Nolan and Bill had the other two. I asked him to stop by the grocery store on the way home so TJ could pick out a dessert for his birthday dinner tomorrow. That's right. I didn't bake. I haven't had the time, the energy, or the desire. 

I got home from therapy and was very surprised to see TJ picked out this cake:

Sure looks like a lot of chocolate for a kid who doesn't want a chocolate cake! Bill said he was surprised too. You know why TJ wanted this specific cake? He thought the name on the label was hysterical. 

TJ saw me looking at the cake and said, "Isn't that a funny name for a cake? But I sure hope there isn't chocolate cake under the frosting!"

Oh, my Dear. That's pretty much the point of Death by Chocolate!

Happy birthday, TJ!

Not a puppy!

Would someone please tell Copper that she is not a puppy? She puts everything in her mouth! Just last night, she got in trouble twice. 

I was sitting on the floor, doing my nails. I set down a wrapped chocolate Tootsie Roll Pop. Copper was in her bed just behind me. I thought she was chewing on her Nyla bone. I reached for my lollipop and it was gone. I turned toward the dog and was shocked to see she had unwrapped it and was happily gnawing on it. I snatched it away before she could determine how many licks it takes to get to the center. I was quite sad about throwing it away. It was the only Tootsie Roll Pop I found in the boys' Halloween candy.

I was applying some new Jamberry nail wraps and was using a nice new emery board. I finished applying the last wrap and reached for the emery board one last time. And it was gone. Once again, I turned toward Copper and found her gnawing on it. Seriously?! Was she trying to file her teeth? Wouldn't that be a painful sensation? Like fingernails on a chalkboard! 

I guess this story has a happy ending. She didn't actually ingest either item and my nails are super cute. 

Single white male seeks girlfriend

This afternoon, Nolan was sitting at the counter, working on his homework. He's supposed to read a story, then do a writing activity about the story. Nolan dislikes this because he has to read the same story several days in a row (and it's only interesting the first time) and he detests the writing portion because writing is so tedious for him. So he often gets sidetracked while he procrastinates. 

Today was no exception. He actually interrupted his own reading to ask, "Do you have to be in college before you have a girlfriend?"

I thought this was a pretty random question, but I told him I thought it would be okay if he went on dates in high school, as long as he was with groups of kids. 

Nolan said, "what about now?" I asked him what he meant. He replied, "I want a girlfriend now!" I started laughing. I asked him if there was any particular girl he liked. No, no one in particular. So I laughed again and told him that for now, he should just have girls as his friends.

Well, that answer was boring, but he let it go. I'm sure he'll ask again tomorrow if he's old enough then. 

Watch out, fellow first graders. Nolan is on the prowl!

Bad blogger

I know, I know. I've been really bad about blogging lately. I've been adjusting to having a dog in the family. Now that Copper is settling in, I've caught a cold and have zero motivation. 

So this will be short. Last night, we had a fall harvest party at church. We all had a great time. The boys were excited for this bonus opportunity to wear their costumes. 

Nolan wanted to be something 'evil' this year. I'm not a fan of gore, and he doesn't like to be scared, so we spent awhile searching before we found the right costume. Nolan is a vampire. I wanted to make it look authentic, so I put some white face paint on him to make him look pale. 

I had to do some convincing, because Nolan DID NOT want to wear makeup. But once I got it on him, he was impressed. His comment? "Wow. I look a little bit dead!"

Here's Nolan and Sam, the escaped prisoner. I will get more pictures next week. TJ was off being social and I didn't get a single picture of him. 

Dawdling is hereditary

The other night, I was trying to get the kids to ready themselves for bed. Sam was dawdling. This is not surprising, as Sam's head is usually somewhere else. This particular evening, he managed to put his pajamas on, but then became engrossed in an old State Farm map book I had given him and forgot all about brushing his teeth. 

Bill came upstairs to assist in the bedtime rituals. This is what I saw the next time I came down the hall. They were deep in a discussion on towns in Tennesee. Clearly, they are two of a kind. 

End of an era

Nolan has a loose tooth. A very loose tooth. My baby is about to lose his first tooth. He is so excited about it. I am feeling far more nostalgic. It's like we are leaving another stage of babyhood behind. 

Nolan had therapy tonight. He is usually the last patient on Wednesdays. Tonight the receptionist was locking up the back doors while Nolan was finishing up. He asked her what she was doing and she said, "I'm making sure the doors are all locked."

I could hear Nolan's reply from my spot in the waiting area. He sounded very wise. "Oh yes. You have to lock the doors to keep the bugs out."

The receptionist laughed and said, "Yes. That's exactly why we lock the doors."

Here's a picture of my sweet baby with all his baby teeth. 

Deep Thoughts by TJ and Nolan

Tonight at bedtime, Nolan asked me if I've ever met anyone who spoke British. 

At dinner tonight, we were talking about the Tigers game. TJ had a question about their opponent. But he either didn't know that word or couldn't think of it. Instead he said, 'what about the team they were versus-ing?'

Yesterday, Nolan asked me if he was six and a half. I told he almost was...he hits that crucial milestone on October 1. He said, 'okay, so am I six and an inch?'

Sam isn't feeling well today. I think he has a touch of the stomach flu. He's sleeping in my bed tonight because he gets panicky if he feels sick and I'm not right there with him. He was fine this morning though, and was in church with us. He was sitting right next to Bill and kept grilling him as to which pipe rank the organist was using at any given time. He shares his Dad's obsession with pipe organs.