Library Day Surprises!

This week Library Day was full of surprises!  Both the boys reached two more goals on their summer reading logs and got little prizes for that, and then Pace officially finished his 1000 books before kindergarten!  He got his photo taken to go on the board, and an extra prize (a little book and pencil). Max finished 500 books on his 1000 books before kindergarten list, so he got a halfway prize, too (a little book and crayons).  

After reading time we discovered the Food Bank handing out free lunches on the field behind the library!  Free lunches all summer long--that'll probably become part of our Wednesday routine!  Pace rides his bike to the library and home again, about 4.5 miles total, and gets pretty hungry!

I thought reading 1000 books before kindergarten merited more than just a little book and a pencil, so we found a few more surprises for Pace.  We were getting some copies of keys done, and the key store doubled as a rockhounding/prospector store!  Pace's eyes grew as large as saucers as he saw geodes, crystals, trilobites, rocks, and books!  We picked out two books for Pace and the "Utah Rockhounder's Guide" for Daddy for Father's Day so the boys can enjoy more adventures together!

For reading 500 books, I ordered Max a Little Blue trumpet.  I'm not sure where or when this fascination began, I think from a book he has about colors.  There's a picture of a blue trumpet, and he has been begging for one, and tells me he dreams about getting one--this has been going on for at least 6 months, if not longer.  So I decided it was high time for that little blue trumpet and Max to be united!

Ok, so I ordered Max a little blue trumpet, and it was a bust.  At first he was happy, because it was blue.  Then he started playing it, and the buttons didn't play different notes, and it sounded like a harmonica, not a trumpet (and Max knows the difference), and so he was very dissatisfied, saying it was a "Baby Trumpet." 

So.  Round 2.  The next set of instruments weren't blue, but in order to find instruments that played different notes, we had to go sliver.  Max was very happy once he started playing and his fingers pushed buttons and different notes came out!  He's been practicing and can do a little 4-finger scale.  He keeps saying he wants to play a trumpet when he grows up, and I hope that sticks!  We might be in for a trumpet morning call!

In addition to being an aspiring trumpet-ist, Max is very engineer-minded.  He loves examining the nuts and bolts of toys, kitchen gadgets, electrical stuff, etc.  So his new instruments got the full examination treatment, a la flashlight. 

Blue Gesso Art Lab

"Mommy, are you painting the door blue so everyone know it's a fun place?"  Why, yes, yes I am.  Blue Gesso Art Lab!  Dreams do come true!  This room has been so fun to get together--tables and chairs super cheap from UVU, lots and lots of materials, and kids coming every Tuesday and Thursday for art projects!  We're exploring all sorts of artist movements and techniques!  

Getting it all ready.  Art chores are WAY more fun than house chores!  The boys spent 30 minutes straight sharpening pencils, always asking if each pencil was sharp enough.  I had to convince them too much sharpening wasn't good--it'd actually make the pencil completely disappear!

Lessons in lines and basic elements of shape, water color with oil pastel resist, and crazy Fauvist colors and silly faces.

Happy 4th Birthday Max!!

Our little Max is already FOUR!  He came into this world with such a strong, sweet spirit, and that strength has grown with him! 

He is full of headstrong determination, precision, sweetness, smarts, hilariousness, and, at times, the exact opposite of headstrong determination ("I can't, I'm just too tired!").  

Max is our little engineer.  He will get down on the ground so his head is level with wheels on a toy truck, or rockets on a space ship, or any other toy, and roll it back and forth, watching how the wheels roll, where they are connected, how they work, etc.  He asks me "Why?" and "How?" and "Who?" and "But...?" questions all day long.  All.  Day.  Long.    

He is not too shy to let you know who's right and wrong, "Yeah, Pace, I am right!  You are wrong!"  (hands on hips), but if he's mistaken, he's more than willing to recognize "Oh, Mommy, you are right and I am wrong!"  

He loves helping around the house with any and every job, sticking right by my side.  He likes drawers and doors closed, "Oops, Mommy, you forgotted!"  And if I've said something he knows has a more precise name, he'll say, "Actually, Mommy, did you mean _____?"  And I can only respond in the affirmative, because, yes, more precisely, I did mean that.  

The only way I can convince him to eat his whole plate of food is to "pattern eat".  A little game we devised: Take one bite of sandwich, then banana, then fruit snack, then drink.  Then he'll counter with "Two hand-wich, then one banana, then one foot 'nack, then drink."  I love that he still cuts off his "S's" in the beginning of words, it's keeping him in the adorable toddler phase a little bit longer! 

"Mama, give me a 'nuggle" (snuggle)

"I don't have a grubber!" (scrubber) 

"Mama, Pace 'guirt me!" (squirt--the most horrible offense ever)

Max wakes up in the morning in one of two ways: 1. moody and "shy", or 2. bright-eyed and bursting with facts.  He'll walk down the stairs, "And Mommy?  A 'dorm (storm) is when rain falls from the clouds, down and down."  "And Mommy?  Yewwow Wawwotails (yellow swallowtails) land on flowers and drink nectar."  "And Mommy?  The Earth orbits the sun, 'round and 'round, like this."  "And Mommy?  An asteroid explodes like this, boom!"  (complete with hand gestures and an enormous explosion sound).

His favorite questions lately are, "And Mommy?  Is this real?"  or, "Mommy, is this a dream?"  Not sure where this came from!  Maybe from watching cartoons, because he always asks if what's happening is real or not, and we explain it's just a show.  This should make the Santa thing a little bit easier... 

Max is my little lovebug, running up to me randomly throughout the day with a huge grin and arms outstretched, give me kisses, and squeeze me tight around my neck.  Oh, my sweet little boy!

Max forgot he likes the birthday glasses...

He woke up a little shy on his birthday and didn't like "all" the attention...(me and Pace).  Pace was more than willing to help Max open his presents!

And test out the rocket!

Help him hide from the Wooky

And set up the Gold Rush Nugget Bucket.  Pace was most enthralled by Uncle jon Erik's gift, and took it apart and put it back together over and over!

Then we had some cake for breakfast!  We spent some time thumbing through his baby book, and he saw that the birthday glasses weren't all that bad.

That evening we had our traditional birthday poppers and sparklers, and lots of treats outside with friends.

David took the boys out to test the gold nugget bucket and they had a great time (although no richer)!

Memorial Day Camping Trip!

 Utahns sure love camping on Memorial Day weekend.  We tried to get a camping spot in the campgrounds up Hobble Creek Canyon, but they were all full, probably reserved for weeks, if not months.  So we decided to keep on driving to the unrestricted park camping and found a great, quiet spot--much better than being cramped like sardines in the campgrounds.  The boys loved it!  We set up the tent, had a campfire dinner, jumped on the air mattresses before going to sleep, and snuggled up on a cold night.

The next morning David and Pace went exploring and took some National Geographic-esque photos.

We had a pancake breakfast and went butterfly hunting!