Good News

It's too late at night for me to start a blog post, so I will keep this brief. Or not. I just had to share a major gardening DIY victory with you. I'm building a trellis for my brambles (finally!) and it's hard work. My body is soooooo tired.

I borrowed our neighbor's post hole digger, which the boys loved to see in action. Robert kept sticking his leg down into the hole as far as it would go. James tried it, too, but somehow accidentally got both legs into the hole, and Robert went crazy wanting to cram both of his legs down a three-foot-deep rabbit hole, too. Once he was in up to his hips, he asked me to step on his head to shove him in deeper.

Seriously, dude?

James was happy to step on him, by the way, and Robert tells me it worked well.

That was the first hole. It was the easy one. The second hole ran into some random brick/concrete/metal debris that my neighbor muscled through for me. Such a nice guy. Thanks, Wayne. We'll be delivering some cookies to him tomorrow when I return the post hole digger.

The third hole was a real doozy. That's the hole that put me in this world of hurt. In order to line up the three posts juuuuuust so, I had to put the final post in the middle of a buried tree stump. Not just any tree stump, either. A seriously tough hardwood stump from a tree that used to stand 20-30 feet tall. Ouch. I purchased a hatchet and hacked out part of the stump. Robert and James found the idea of me wielding a freakishly sharp ax fascinating. They tussled over who would get to stand closest to me while I hacked away.

Matthew napped through much of this, but spent a good amount of time in the front yard, too, today. He ate some mulch, shimmied over cobblestone borders, and whacked sticks on stuff. He even attempted to stand unassisted in the middle of our sloped driveway. He almost succeeded. I did not allow him anywhere near the ax :)

The hatchet wasn't enough, however, so I pulled out my cordless reciprocating saw. The boys liked that, too. Alice came out to play and begged Robert to join her in a "stranded pioneer" imaginary game. He just couldn't pull himself away from watching the saw...or the ax...or crawling through the thorny maze of raspberry canes...again and again. I chipped and sawed and pounded and dug around that silly stump for hours. Finally, finally, the hole was just right and I put the third post in place.

Ahhhh. So pretty.

The trellis is not done, but I already love it. I topped the 4x4 posts with some nifty caps I found in the DIY deck section at Home Depot. They're a nice touch. Very classy. Now to find a way to transport a 16-foot length of livestock fencing to my house...hmmmmm.

1082 Days!

So, um, I forgot to celebrate James' 1000th day on the blog. Or at all :( For shame! Fortunately, I did happen to take a picture of him on that glorious day, June 30th, 2015:

He's enjoying a couple grapes in this photo, so his cheeks are bulging and his eye dimples are deeper than ever. I love those eye dimples. I've written a lot about James recently on this blog so I don't have any more data to expound or explicate. His developing personality intrigues me, though, and I'm interested to see where he takes his strengths in life. His major strength right now is independence. He just up and does what he wants to do and he's so dang proud of himself for it.

And just for cuteness, I'm posting this quick peek at Robert and James in one of their more cooperatively playful moments. Bob and Loretta might recognize the tricycle...

Aching Arms

Alice did 83 push ups in a row this week. She had the highest number of push ups for the girls and the boys. She was stinkin' proud of herself and every adult she ran into after that moment learned about her amazing feat and rewarded her with the appropriate jaw-dropping gasp and verbal kudos.

Well, last night at bed time, Alice starts complaining that her arms hurt a little. We send her to bed anyway.

This morning at breakfast, she cannot bend her elbows. Either of them. She's sobbing and wailing at the pain. Sore muscles! She does eventually feed herself breakfast and get herself dressed, but she doesn't give me a real hug goodbye because it hurts too much.

Alice does not tolerate the slightest bit of pain. Zero pain threshold, this one. Knowing this, we send her to school anyway.

The neighbor friend that we walk with is also enrolled in the FitKids study and will be taking her push up test today. She's intent on beating Alice's record, even after Alice bemoaned her sore arms all the way to school. I find it interesting to see Alice wail about the pain but never once wish she had done fewer push ups. She wished quite often that the pain wasn't there, and she wished that there could be some other physical disability instead of the pain (weak, wibbly arms was one of her suggestions), but she did not regret accomplishing 83 push ups. I find that notable. And I look forward to seeing her after FitKids today...

[LATER]

So, Alice's arms are still sore, but her left one is pretty much functioning like normal. Alice came home from FitKids today with a prize. Apparently, she was the top female performer in three of the physical tests they had run everyone through: push-ups, curl-ups, and something called "pacer" that sounded a lot like a 50-meter dash. She now has her own FitKids t-shirt and a powerful determination to remain the strongest and fastest girl of the bunch. Who knew she had a competitive streak?

Me like two uh you

James: You hold me?

Me: (inward groan...he's 37 pounds now!) Sure! (I hold him chest to chest, he wraps his arms and legs around me)

James: Me like two uh you! (big, big hug around my neck, cheek on cheek)

Me: You want two of me?

James: No, me like you an' Massew. One, two uh you.

Me: Oh! I like you two, too.

James: (laughing) Der's not two uh me!

Me: (laughing) I mean I like you and I like Massew. Do you like James?

James: (pause...quizzical smile...pause some more) Me like all me uh here?

Me: Yah, do you like yourself?

James: (pause, smile wilts a little, voice lowers, like he's going to answer but he's not sure how I'll take his answer) Yeeeees. Me do.

Me: Oh, good.

James: (big grin, and a big, big hug again)

Applesauce

Last week, our family turned 80 gallons of free apples into 14 gallons of applesauce (2 gallons eaten fresh, 12 gallons canned). It was long, hot, sticky work over the course of 3-4 days, and we spent more money on take-out food than we should have, but that's how the cookie crumbled this year. I was surprised to find Alice and Robert were old enough to actually help.

Real help, not "help" help. Imagine that!

Robert cranking and Alice smooshing. They weren't afraid of the steam this year and they insisted that every batch much be sampled for quality control. James flirted with the idea of helping, but found the crank too tough to turn and the smooshing rod WAY more fun as a sword. Maybe you can try again next year, James.

Junior High Boys

I'm still afraid of junior high boys. There's a small cluster of them waiting for their bus as the kids and I walk to school every morning. I'm afraid they're going to shout out something mean at me. Or laugh at my outfit. Or call my kids stupid. I find myself running these scenarios in my head. Do I shout back? Do I ignore them? Do I find a new route to school?

Ugh.

They probably don't care about me. I'm an old lady with four little kids. But man, I'm terrified of them.

Bring a Friend to Lunch Day

I'm still trying to figure out Robert. Just when I think I understand where he's coming from, he does something completely different.

One thing is for certain: he gets anxious when he's faced with a new task that involves people or routines he doesn't know yet. Anxious in a way completely unknown to Alice. Robert has been turning in daily homework for the last few weeks, but when he wants to enter the poster contest, he brings his entry back home because he doesn't know how or when to hand it to his teacher. Really?! Apparently, entering a contest isn't part of the usual school routine and his teacher doesn't ask for it explicitly, so Robert kinda shoves it back into his bag and figures he won't enter the contest after all.

The painful thing is, I remember doing something almost exactly like that as a kid. Several times. And even once as an adult. I get that sunken-gut feeling again just thinking about it.

So! I know where's he's coming from. Sort of. His motives are still unclear to me. I can't always predict how he will respond in new situations. Like today. It was "Bring a Friend to Lunch Day" at his school. He didn't want to bring anyone, but I kept hassling him and asking him about it and he finally (hesitantly) chose me. His teacher invited us to come a little before lunch so we could see them turn in their homework. Robert smiled every time he saw me in his classroom. I could tell he liked having me there. But when it came time to go to the cafeteria and start eating, he said it felt like any other play date at a friend's house. We moved outside where some classmates sat down by him. I wanted to see him interact with classmates and excitedly show me all the bits of his school life, but he didn't. He wanted a drinking fountain. We found one, read a couple books at the Book Fair, then headed back out to the playground, "That's all I really wanted to do anyway," he said. I asked him if he wanted me to stay and watch him play. "Well, it's just like lunch recess now, so they will watch me. You can go." I left.

I was disappointed in the experience. It wasn't what I had expected. He wasn't who I expected to see. He was his "public" persona, not the Robert I see at home with his siblings. So, I asked him much later if he was glad he had invited me to come to "Bring a Friend to Lunch Day." He said "yes" with a genuine smile, so I believed him. But there was nothing much in the experience itself to show me that. Or maybe there was and I just wasn't seeing it. I have so much to learn about reading this kid.

He's too much like me and nothing like me all at once.

He's him.

Gotta remember that.

Walking Matthew!

Matthew has taken his first steps...and then some. I was dying to share the good news on the day it happened, but my computer was dead! Here he is walking towards a bunny cage (we were pet-sitting for a friend), then crawling over to see the camera:

I can't get enough of that breathy excitement and big, smiley face. This kid just makes me happy.

Well, a week later, Matthew has had a little more practice and we were able to make a game of it tonight. This clip is towards the end when he was already pretty tired. He wanted lots of hugs from me:

I love, love, love how he walks to Alice and Robert. And having him melt backwards onto me was pretty sweet, too. He did not, however, want to walk to James, even when James was in Bobby's lap. We finally coaxed Matthew to lean forward and stumble well enough that James was convinced it was walking. Whew, no hurt feelings.

I don't blame Matthew for his discerning reluctance. James is kinda rough on the little guy. Half the time he's trying to be mean (e.g. squeezing Matthew's hands or tackling his back half so he can't crawl away or yelling in his face to make him cry), and the other half of the time James is just loving too roughly (big, smothering hugs that knock Matthew over, slamming the bathroom door in his face to keep him away from the toilet, or handing/throwing toys to him and accidentally smacking him). Matthew has developed a special warning grunt/squeal just for James. It's a little like the sound you make when you're starting a new exercise routine with long, slow sit-ups. Nnnnnng-uh.

I just love this little man! Now that he's on the verge of toddlerhood, his hair suddenly looks way too shaggy. Time for his first haircut. You can look for that blog post soon ;)

Potty Training?

So, um, James is potty trained now. It happened way faster and more completely than I ever could have imagined. He just got it. Right away. It's freaking me out. Shouldn't I still be cleaning human waste from my carpets twice a week at this point?

All the things that I hate about potty training were completely bypassed this time: hourly "potty turns," cleaning solid waste from underwear (and the floor, and his legs, and my hands), accidents on furniture, accidents in the car, accidents out and about, urgent potty emergencies, bedwetting...totally not an issue with James. I'm completely flabbergasted!

Blown away.

He doesn't even ask for treats anymore. It's been 10 days. WHAT?!

Blind, Deaf and Dumb

My computer has been severely crippled for the last week or so. At first, I enjoyed the excuse to digitally disconnect from everything and spend time working on more analog projects. Four days later, I was feeling deaf and blind...I had no idea what was going on with my friends or extended family. A day after that, I realized I also felt voiceless. Silenced. I couldn't share any of my good news or struggles with anyone because I was digitally mute.

Then I remembered the telephone.

I called my mom and spilled out all my news in a whirlwind conversation that *almost* made me late picking up Robert from school.

That brief conversation was good, but not enough. I'm glad to be back online.

I knew I had become dependent on my computer for gathering information, but I never pegged it as a place where disseminating information was just as (if not more so) important to my happiness. I mean, I'm "me" all the time, right? Why should I feel any less "me" if I can't blog about potty training or making applesauce? Maybe it's composing an email or blog post that solidifies the experience for me? Dunno, but it's important.

Glad to be blogging again.

Our new front yard!

The Master Gardener walk this spring inspired me. I decided I was finally ready to commit to a new front yard, but not willing to do all the plant research and back-breaking work myself.

(Yes, I will design a chicken coop and construct it myself in my garage while 7 months pregnant, but please don't make me research ornamental plants and yard design manuals. I find the artistic side of design a little tedious and intimidating and exhausting.)

So, we called in the professionals at Country Arbors Nursery in Urbana to propose a design. I was not initially impressed with their service, but found the design attractive and simple and clean. Just what I wanted. And the price was right, too. They just finished the installation an hour ago:

Hostas, boxwoods, and an "accent boulder" line the front walk. There's an empty swath on the right for planting annuals.

Flagstone path from front porch to lawn, accent boulder, crisp lines around the trees.

Flagstone path from lawn to hose, serviceberry tree (edible berries!), a variety of visually-appealing ground covers, and a few hydrangeas under the cedar. Gotta find a better place for the hose box until these plants grow up and fill in a bit more.

Right side of the front (serviceberry, etc.)

Left side of the front

So, not only did they create new garden beds and select and arrange certain pretty plants just-so, but they managed to connect the new bed to our recent drainage work! It's a seamless and artistic blend of form and function.

They also took out all the river rock and corroded black plastic that had filled in the garden beds until now.

The installation included soaker hoses under the mulch for easy watering. How cool is THAT?!

And the nursery provides a full replacement guarantee for the plants for one year.

I am so, so, so pleased. So happy with the new look. So excited to learn how to care for these plants and keep these garden beds looking great.

First Full Week of School

Robert started kindergarten! He likes to go to school, he likes to come home, he likes his teacher, he likes a challenging new playground, and he especially likes all the neat little awards in place to promote positive behavior. He has come home happier and a little more mature this week. He even plays better with James, believe it or not.

Slinging on his backpack

We've made it a habit to play on the playground for half an hour after school. Robert loves the glider thingy (kinda like a zipline) where you hold on and jump over to the other side of the play structure. He does that back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. He's been doing fancy tricks with it, too, but fell and smacked his head last Friday. I have experienced few things more terrifying than picking up a sobbing child and watching blood stream down the back of his neck *shudder*. Once I got a good look at the wound, it wasn't so bad.

His newest "smile pose."

Anyway, we're still adjusting to the new routine, and this is just the honeymoon period, but it's been very, very good for all of us. So far. Yay!

Robert typically rides home in the stroller with Matthew. Kindergarten can be exhausting.

Robert wrote this note to his teacher, "Here is a fon for the fon boks. Frum Robert" I helped with some spelling and spacing. I also prepared as many tape strips as he needed.

Alice started 3rd grade. She likes the added responsibilities and freedoms that come with third grade: more homework, choosing who to sit with at lunch (younger grades must sit by classmates), Chrome books in class, and cursive writing. Oh, she loves cursive writing. Surprised? She's energetic, bold, and friendly. This girl completely embraces growing up. She makes it look so easy.

Eight looks great on this little lady.

Alice is also enrolled in a research study that is examining the relationship between physical fitness and cognitive performance. She gets to play active games with her friends for two hours after school...a total party for her. She comes home at dinner time tired, but not worn out. I miss her a little every day, but I don't miss the opportunity for Robert and James to develop a relationship outside of her presence. She's a dominant character, y'know, and it's neat to watch the boys experiment with their own fun and games together.

James, well, is getting used to more attention from me. I hear things like "I like you" and "You're my favorite" and "We're a family!" a lot more. There's so much love popping out of this kid's mouth! I really, really like that. Another benefit of having Alice and Robert in school is that I finally get to talk James through things without interruption. He's learning to cope with frustration and fear a little better. He still picks on Matthew a bit, but we're working on that. I like seeing him just be his casual, comfortable self. At the grocery store today, he was singing, "Fah-woh uh poffet, don't go away."

James checking out a stripey caterpillar he found.

James is taking swim lessons from our favorite swim teacher. It's interesting to watch him with other adults, especially adults asking him to do hard/scary things. He groans and whines a little, but complies pretty easily, and enjoys the praise at the end. Then he's proud of himself for doing something so difficult. I'm thinking we'll start potty training next week...ugh...ack...*sigh*...or never. I hate potty training. And I've never done it with a baby in the house. Will someone please come over and do it for me?

Normally, I require a helmet and shoes. Check out those dimples beneath his eyes!

Matthew is a peach. What more can I say? He enjoys the stroller ride as we drop off and pick up kids every day at school. He's crawling, pulling himself up on things, and eating, eating, eating. He had a well-baby checkup last week. Unfortunately, he's only 25th percentile for length. WHAT?! The doc wasn't too concerned since he's measured 25th-50th percentile for half of his life, and there's a lot of error in the process of stretching an infant as far as he'll go. It's not Matthew's absolute size that concerns me, it's his relative size to his two gigantic brothers. This boy will need to use something other than brute strength to hold his own with those two.

(Shhh. Don't tell anyone he got the last mini popsicle.)

As for me, the school day comes with a little more time and space for other things. I am in that weird spot where I'm looking for something more to do, but many of the things I want to do don't fit well into the little bit of time/energy I have. I've wasted a lot of time just staring at my planner feeling that I should be doing something right now, but what?!