Soccer

Lucas had his very first soccer game on Saturday.

It was also Ben's very first game as a coach.

They both did awesome!

I didn't really know what to expect from the game. I kind of figured it would be a bit of chaos with kids not really paying attention or just randomly kicking the ball, but it was a pretty good game.

Lucas tended to hang back a bit. He would get some kicks in, but would back away from the ball pretty quickly. He did do a good job of passing, and all of the kids worked really well together. I was really proud of him.

He had a lot of personal fans cheering him on, and he kept waving to us when he was on the sideline. I loved it! Ben didn't pay any attention to us, though.

It was a really fun game, and Lucas looked super cute in his uniform! Ben wasn't too sure about coaching at first, but I'm really glad that he did. It makes Lucas playing soccer so much more fun!

They Dress Themselves

I don't really care too much what my boys wear each day.

I'm semi-picky about what actually goes into their dressers, but if they want to wear outfits that don't really go together, then I usually don't complain much.

Ben doesn't always agree with me. He doesn't like to take totally dorky looking kids out in public. I figure that it is a fair trade off for not having to get them dressed myself, and they are kids so most people understand.

The last few days, however, Henry has been taking things a bit too far. He just grabs whatever shoes are handy and heads out the door. Twice now he has ended up with not only two left shoes, but one of his and one of Lucas'. I catch it once we have already left home, so he has to just wear them.

He use to be really bad about wearing clothes backwards or inside out. I had to give him the once over before letting him out the door. I'm thinking I'm going to have to back to that for awhile!

Independence

Josh is at a very independent point in his little life.

It just goes along with being two.

He insists on doing everything himself. Everything.

Most things he really can do himself like getting his own drink or climbing into his carseat. It's fine if he wants to do it. I have learned just to budget a little extra time for those sort of things.

There are other things that he just can't do yet--like putting on his socks and shoes and cutting up his food. I try to help him without him really knowing that I'm helping, but a lot of times he catches on to my trick. I try to limit those sort of challenges.

I don't really mind when he asks nicely to do things himself, but being two has also brought along a bit of sass to his mouth. Some days I feel like I hear nothing but screams of "I do it!" or "My turn!" come out of his mouth. I've learned that if I just tell him he's not being nice and walk away from him, he will eventually come up to me and nicely ask me to help him.

It's tough sometimes to let him do things on his own. I just have to remind myself that independence is a good thing. He really has figured out how to do a lot of things, plus he is getting some extra lessons in manners.

I must say, though, it is very useful when it involves picking up!

Personality for Sale

Last week my Aunt Michele had a garage/estate sale.

Her front yard was jam packed with things. Seriously, I don't know how she managed to cram so many "treasures" onto her front yard.

Henry and Olivia, who were helping out with the sale, decided that they wanted to have a sale of their own. They each walked around the garage sale and gathered up items to sale.

Olivia was pretty choosy about what she put in her sale. She had everything lined up nicely along the driveway and even managed to find herself a little bench to sit on.

Henry, on the other hand, seemed to just grab anything and everything that he could get his hands on. His garage sale was basically just a pile of random things thrown on the sidewalk--similar to what the real garage sale looked like Thursday morning!

Unfortunately neither one of them had much luck selling any of their items. They did give it a lot of effort though. They hollered out advertisements for their sale and as soon as someone would walk up they would take turns asking, "So, do you have any kids?" It was their slick way of trying to sale some of the many toys that they each had. Sadly, most of the people they asked were grandmas, so no luck there.

Finally I saw Henry with some money in his hand. I asked him excitedly if he finally sold something. The guy who was standing by him said "He sold me some personality!" Olivia also got paid for her cuteness!

They were both super excited, and really, for the two of them, that is a very fitting thing to make a profit on!

How to be Productive

I have to get stuff done today.

My house is too messy and I have too many other things that I want to/need to work on.

Henry vacuumed and helped me put things away, but after awhile he was bored. Josh was more concerned with stealing cereal than taking his toys to his room. I decided I needed to do the next best thing to having them be my helpers if I wanted to get stuff done.

They have been sitting on the back porch, blowing bubbles as I check things off my to do list.

It's really nice!

First Grade

Lucas started First Grade today.

It was a sad day for me--and also very stormy which is very unusual.

I asked him if he wanted me to meet him up at his school so I could see him get off of his bus and go into his classroom with him. He told me no. In fact, the last few days he has been saying that since he is six now, he could just get his own cereal and go out to the bus on his own if I just wanted to stay in bed. It's a nice offer, but there is no way I'm letting him out the door like that! Oh the independence of being six!

Actually putting him on the bus this year wasn't as hard as it was last year, but the overall transition to First Grade is a lot rougher on me than Kindergarten was. At least when he was in Kindergarten he was still home in the mornings. (I can't even say how hard it was for me to buy him a lunch box.)

With him being gone all day, things are going to seem so different. Most mornings we would all hang out, or Ben and I would each take a boy or two and get our errands ran and then meet back home for lunch. I loved that. We won't have that now--at least not with all three boys. I'm super sad about it.

When Luke finally got home from school he wouldn't really tell us what they did. It wasn't like he was annoyed with all of the questions, it was just all old news to him. He did tell us that he got to go to the School Nurse today because he had a bloody nose. That is unfortunate, but he wasn't really bothered by it.

He's pretty excited about First Grade. I'm excited for him, but I'm still pretty sad for myself. I'll be alright, though!

The Day Henry Discovered Cheerleaders

Last Thursday Ben, Gran, and I took the kids to Cici's for lunch.

While we were there a big group of cheerleaders came in. As soon as Henry saw them he could not take his eyes off of them!

Henry is normally the kind of kid who has no quiet voice. He always talks like you are on the other side of the room when really you are just across the table. With the cheerleaders so close, though, he kept walking over to me and whispering things ever so quietly into my ear. He'd ask one question, I would answer, he'd sit back down and watch them, and then a minute or two later he would get up and ask another. This is how the conversation went:

H--"Momma, those girls are really cute."
M--"They are."

H--"Are those the girls that do the flips?"
M--"Yeah, they're called cheerleaders."

H--"I really, really like cheerleaders."
M--"Do you?"
H--"Yeah."

H--"Can Olivia and I go talk to them when they are done eating?"
M--"No."

He wouldn't take his eyes off of those girls and he was talking so differently then he normally does. He didn't have all the loudness and excitement that he usually does. Plus, normally he would just try to chat with them whether they were eating or not. I kind of think he was nervous--and in love!

Henry is kind of girl crazy already, but I sort of thought that he'd wait awhile before he discovered the greatness of cheerleaders!

The Donut Whole

Gigi and I took the boys to a donut store tonight.

It wasn't just any donut store, though. It was one that was very retro-fab and had all kinds of crazy doughnuts like Maple Bacon, Rootbeer Float, Peanut Butter and Grape, to name a few.

We each picked out a donut and then got an extra one to round out our half dozen. We went to sit down and Josh Oliver claimed four (mine, Gigi's, his, and the extra one) all as his own. In order to get a bit, one of us would have to try to steal a piece and as he was distracted, the other one would really steal some. It worked out well!

The boys were especially excited about an old pinball machine. We didn't really think the boys would know how to play it, but Lucas was awesome! When I took my turn helping to push one of the sides, I was terrible!

It was a really fun outing and an awesome place to hang out! We did, however, almost lose a boy or two to a hungry lion!

And Now Luke's Six

Lucas turned six this past Wednesday.

It was a pretty good birthday for him!

It consisted of lots little celebrations spread out over the last week. We went to Kansas City to celebrate Luke and Grandpa J's birthdays. We went to a dinosaur restaurant where the boys got to dig for fossils--awesome! We also went to an outdoor play of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. It was a really great play and the weather was even perfect for it--oddly it got a little bit cold. Aunt Michele had a mini swim party for him and even bought him a cookie cake which is his favorite! On his birthday he got to go to an airplane restaurant where they got to play "in an actual cockpit!" Oh the bliss!

By the night of his birthday I think we were all birthday'd out. He didn't even want a cake on his birthday night because he had already had so much--actually he said, "Didn't we already have enough cake?" Even I was getting tired of it, and that is saying a lot!

He also got some pretty fabulous presents. Three of his big things were a bike, a skateboard, and a scooter, so now he has plenty of options when he's playing outside!

It's always a little hard for me when one of the boys gets older, but I also really love it. I secretly spend the day reliving the day that they were born--what happened at what time. I always wonder how old your kids have to be before you stop doing that. I don't really think I ever will. It's one of my favorite parts of the day!

I'm pretty impressed with my now 6 year old Lucas. He's a fabulous kid! He's smart, well behaved, and a huge help. I'm crazy about that boy! I just can't believe that he is now six.

Some pics from our many celebrations:

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

My mom is amazing with a sewing machine! She can sew just about anything you ask her to.

She has made a ton of dress-up clothes and Halloween costumes for my boys, but her favorite things to sew really are the girl costumes.

Unfortunately for my boys, she usually needs a model to try them on so she can make sure everything looks okay on them. Since we have no girls, my boys are her default!

Lucas use to not mind doing it, but now he has to have a really good bribe to even think about trying them on. Henry's not really much more cooperative. Luckily for her, though, Josh is a willing participant!

It's a crack up to watch him modeling the dresses and fairy wings. He will run to the mirror and do some spins, he even gets quite the walk going! They are just very different clothes then what he is use to!

I'm sure one day he will be so mad at us for putting them on him (I think Ben already is), but he doesn't mind and she needs to get a good look at her dresses, so it's a win-win for now!

I'm betting in another year he'll have to be bribed like the other boys! I don't know what she'll do then!

As a side: I just adore those little fat rolls on his wrists. I'm afraid they will be gone soon and then he will really no longer be my Baby Josh anymore. I feel like it's the last bit of baby left in him. What a sad day that will be.