My Son, the Thief.

My dad watched the boys after work for me today.

When I arrived, the boys told me that they were in trouble but no one would tell me why.

So later, my dad started like this "I'll tell you what happened if you promise not to do anything about it because I already did." And then he said "Well now that I started telling you I am having second thoughts."

I was so worried! Spit it out Dad! The anxiety was killing me! So he tells me that he had to go to the auto parts store and he took the boys along. When they got there, they went inside and Brenden proceeded to the candy section. He asked my dad if he could have some candy. My dad said no. Knowing Brenden, he probably asked 5 or 10 more times. My dad still said no.(Go Dad!) So when they left, they walked back to the car and Brenden asked if he could sit in the back seat instead of the front seat. (As an aside, I explained to my dad that Brenden isn't allowed to sit in the front seat at all EVER anymore!) My dad, realizing that no kid would rather sit in the back than the front watched Brenden carefully and noticed that he had STOLEN candy from the store!!!! OH MY!!!!! [As a kid I never took anything from anywhere so this was surprising!] So, my dad made Brenden go back in the store and tell the cashier that he had STOLEN the candy and that he was SORRY. The cashier proceeded to try to teach him a lesson by asking him if she should call the police. (Poor Brennie!) Apparently, Brenden just stood there and listened to her and replied with "I'm sorry." I asked my dad if he explained how WRONG stealing is to which he responded, "If Brenden didn't know that it is wrong to STEAL, he wouldn't have tried to hide it from me." So I guess the lesson was in taking the candy back in the store and telling the cashier that he was sorry for STEALING it.
To make me feel better, my mom told me that she and her sister filled their pockets with candy once when their grandma said "no" and my mom is the sweetest, most moral, most upstanding person I know so hey, there is hope for Bren yet! :)

Legos: Too Rich For My Blood!

Good thing the kids didn't actually want the Legos after they saw the Tech Deck skateboard ramp.


Today Brenden finished his second round of 5 happy notes!! Each time he accumulates 5 he gets a treat. He has been doing so well...I told him I am "over the moon" proud of him. I am also sooo proud of Ethan who brought home his progress report with shooting stars all over it. Not literally, but his teacher noted his EXCELLENT classroom behavior and AWESOME test scores! So, we took a trip to Target and personally, I really really wanted Legos. I wanted us to build something cool together. But surprisingly, they didn't want Legos. They wanted a ramp for their Tech Decks (and 4 more Tech Decks). So, what they wanted is what they gotted. :)

I ventured to the Lego isle though and I was shocked at how expensive they are! It was $40 bucks for a plain box of 'em! And some of the "special" boxes were like twice that!



Oh well, they are happy.

BTW, Ethan cut his finger today with the new pocket knife my dad bought him. He asked me to put that in this blog. ;)

Yahtzee!

Woohoo! I got a yahtzee tonight...go me! I actually had some spare time so I played Yahtzee with my son Ethan (I got out of Monopoly this time phew!). Brennie didn't want to play...he sort of marches to the beat of his own drum and he didn't feel like playing so he didn't. I have never known a kid to decline a fun family game of yahtzee but he suits himself! So anyway, I beat Ethan (Yes!)...but only because I am so incredibly lucky and I actually got the yahtzee. Sadly, he only came close. :) Here are a couple pics:

4 Fours Vs. 5 Fours!

Our Mexican Restaurant

This blog is great because I think someday it will help the boys remember the little things that we do (and it will help me remember too). Life's not all about the big fun trips we take...although those are totally great. Life is about the little things. Tonight, for example, we did a little shopping (maybe someday I'll blog about my addiction to lip gloss and Mac eyeshadow on The Other Side!), and I was going to take them to Cherry On Top again for a treat but they chose to have Tech Decks instead (little tiny finger skateboards). On the way home, I had to stop for salsa at our Mexican restaurant and we were starving so decided to stay for dinner. I have been going to this restaurant since I was a little girl. It is located in a strip mall next to an insurance place I think. The inside is defined by the use of lattice (painted green) and the dark green booths that are sunken in from too much sitting. The food is full of cheese and greasy goodness. It is hearty and homey and comforting. I think more than flavor or finesse, it is just the cheesy comfort that is irresistible. So we sat there and ate and it was fun. They are at an age now where going to dinner with them...without another adult...is actually fun. :) When I first got divorced, Ethan was 5 and Brenden was 2. At that time, going out to dinner without another adult wasn't exactly a great time. It was more like get in, eat, get out. But now, we can try to decide why the moon looks bigger tonight than it usually does and how Ethan likes being sick because he gets his own salsa. :)

Plant Dead; Fish Still Kickin

When Ethan was born nine and a half years ago, my Grandma Doris had a plant sent to the hospital. It was the Ethan Plant. It grew and grew and was beautiful, and I was very concerned about its well being since it was, in fact, the Ethan Plant. One day about a year ago, our puppy Harley knocked the Ethan Plant over and the main stalk broke in half. I was so sad! But, alas, there was a baby plant that had started growing next to the big one. I cherished it and was so thankful that the Ethan Plant would live on. Unfortunately, this baby Ethan Plant did not survive my last move. I think it is officially dead now and I am officially sad. :(

On a brighter note, the fish with no name has a new home. He no longer resides in the cereal container, but in his very own fish bowl with a plastic plant and everything. I told the man at the pet store that I wanted to buy another fish to keep my fish company and he suggested that I not do that...since they would just kill each other anyway! To this, my mom, who was with me at the time, replied "Well at least they'd be having fun!" Ah mom.

Cherry On Top

First let me say, I forgot to rotate that pic before I added it and now I can't figure out how to rotate it or delete it! Oh well.

My littlest baby boy collected FIVE happy notes at school. He actually received FIVE IN A ROW!! I promised him that I would take him to do something fun when he got to five. Some background: Brenden is rambuctious. He likes to climb. His mind and body are always on the move. On the third day of school this year I received a typed note from his teacher that told me about Brenden's not so good behavior. So, I made him a necklace (the boy loves jewlery hehe) made of yarn with laminated rules attached to it like "Respect Everyone" and "Make Smart Choices." We talk about the rules almost daily and he has been putting forth a lot of extra effort to get those happy notes. So....tonight I took him and Ethan to Cherry On Top which is a frozen yogurt shop with lots of choices and lots of toppings...all self serve. It was a lot of fun!!! As a side note, I already have many different concoctions made up in my mind...Peanut Butter yogurt with bananas and brownies, Cheescake yogurt with all kinds of fruit, and then there will have to be one trip where I just put tons of cereal on my frozen yogurt. :)

"And Beyond" Beautiful

Ok so this is the first night I have ever blogged...I mean, I have kept a handwritten journal for a while now, but online is is new for me...and
exciting! My handwritten journal has many entries about my kids and things they do and say so I imagine my blog will as well. Might as well get started with that!.... My son Brenden is one of the cutest kids I have ever seen! And on top of that, he has a great personality. He is a bit odd and a lot crazy, but he is adorable and he is my Brennie. Tonight while tucking him in, I gave him a kiss and he said to me "You're beautiful." With my heart melting, I replied "You're beautiful too" to which he responded "Yeah, and you're and beyond beautiful." For you parents who have seen Buzz Lightyear, you know what he was saying..."To infinity and beyond". He proceeded to try to explain himself, and I told him that I understood what he meant and that I loved him to infinity and beyond...

Fish and Fruit Loops

I moved recently...and took my one surviving fish with me. Not the disgusting fish tank he had been living in, just the fish in an old glass vase. So there he has been sitting, with little food and no room to move for five days. The guilt has been torturing me. Poor little fishy. He has no name. He has no real home. He has no friends. He has no food. So I have contemplated where to dump him. I can't dump him!! I wondered about releasing him into the wild and offered it as a suggestion to my kids. The oldest, Ethan who is giant and 9 years old immediately informed my 5 year old Brenden that if I do that, he will most definitely be eaten by a bigger fish. So Brenden insists that we keep his fish...and so there he sits. Tonight I decided that I had let the fish wade in his own waste for long enough but had nowhere to put him. After some quick thinking on my part, he ended up in an old tupperware-like cereal container with new water and everything! I leaned in to take a closer look at how happy he must have been and the scent of fruit loops filled my nose as I watched him peck his reflection in the side of the container. I shouldn't be allowed to own pets.