‘We got a bleeder’

That’s what Nick yelled as he ran out of the garage this afternoon.

“We got a bleeder.”

I really wasn’t surprised he was yelling this. Nick tends to be a bit of a drama queen when it comes to blood. I figured Zander had fallen and skinned a knee. Maybe even enough to actually warrant a band-aid. I wasn’t prepared for this:

Yep, I had a bleeder alright. Zander was holding onto his hand, wiping his tears and dripping blood all over the garage floor. Apparently, in the rush to grab their overnight bag (they were staying at my parents’ house that night) Nick slammed Zander’s finger in the door. But, not just in the door. In the lock. So instead of being smashed, it was cut. And bleeding. A lot. And I just hoped he didn’t need stitches.

I was very glad my parents were over to help. I ran inside for a wet rag while they kept Zander calm and corralled Ben. After I wrapped the finger I brought him inside (no need to have him bleed on the carpet if I can help it) to better assess the damage. It wasn’t pretty, but it also didn’t appear to be stitch worthy. The biggest concern is that the cut gash was on his first knuckle. I’m hoping the constant movement won’t keep it from healing.

Once we bandaged him up he was good as gold. Well, except for the blood in his hair. Ashley found that a few minutes later. I panicked. Again. Back in the bathroom we were all relieved to discover that the blood in his hair was from the blood on his finger and not from a new cut. So, I sent the clan (minus Ben) on their merry way and I cleaned up the mess (which is why I have no photos of the victim Zander). There was blood on both my arms, on Zander’s clothes

and all over the step stool he sat down on right after it happened. You can see it here on the round piece on the right and just a hint of it on the front of the step (don’t mind my disgustingly dirty drywall. Our garage needs a complete overhaul.)

And on the other side of the step ladder.

And this just looks like something out of a bad horror movie.

Our day with Dalton

The boys love having friends over, but it’s rare that they get to have a play date, let alone an extended play date. Today, though, they got six fun-filled hours with their buddy Dalton. His parents had some stuff to take care of with their littlest guy and my boys entertained Dalton to help give them a break. I think I can say that a loud good time was had by all.

The Day with Dalton (it was almost like a holiday) started about 11:30 with some inside play.

Then it was lunchtime (four different lunches for four different boys) …

and off to play outside while Ben took a nap. I figured it was the best way to ensure he actually got a nap.

Then it was back inside to cool down and have a snack. I made each of the boys individual microwave cupcakes and, as an extra special treat, gave them some ice cream (I said it was like a holiday).

Then, I did the unthinkable. I took four boys, all 6 and under, to the library. We had movies that were due and the boys still needed to check in this week for the summer reading program. I figured it couldn’t be too bad, right?

RIGHT!

The boys were awesome! They did the craft (a clip-on bat) …

… pretended to be superhero housekeepers …

… and just chillaxed in the stroller.

 

I still had an hour or so left with the whole crew when we got home so we headed back outside for some fun in the water.

Then the thunder started rumbling and the boys got a little scared. So we cleaned up the yard and headed inside to dry off.

But, when my camera flash went off while taking the photo above the boys got a little crazy. They thought the flash looked like lightning and proceeded to run around yelling screaming (they still have such high pitched voices at this age) while I snapped more pictures.

 

And when I ran out of memory on my card, I used the test button on my flash to set off a strobe like light that really caused them to go crazy. That might be why Dalton pulled out his zombie face.

Just 30 minutes after Dalton left Nick asked if he could come over again sometime. But, next time, he said, “can he stay for longer? He was only here for a little bit.” Umm … we’ll have to see about that.

Neighbor swap

Almost every day at 4:30 our backyard turns into a neighborhood playground. The now open yards (we took down the old chain link fence during a time when I wasn’t feeling much like taking pictures) have turned into a haven for my boys, our neighbors’ little girl and our other neighbors’ three little kids. It’s great. Us moms stand in the shade of the neighbors’ trees (our backyard has none) watching to two little people while the big kids (three first graders and one third grader) run out the last little bit of energy for the day.

Unfortunately, the heat has kept us inside the last few days. Fortunately, my boys have been continuing the play dates inside. Our neighbor girl came to our house today. Tomorrow the boys will go to her house. It’s great. While she is here they stay occupied and out of my hair. While they are there they stay occupied and out of my hair. Win/win for me and them. Today they danced and played Legos. Who knows what they will do at her house. I don’t care, as long as they have fun and stay there ‘til dinnertime.

 

Everyone loves the Imagination Movers music! Shh … even me. Those songs get stuck in my head all the time.

And, as per usual, Ben just kind of did his own cute little thing.

Preschool park day

Each year the preschoolers celebrate the end of the year with a trip to the park. Last year Nick’s class was freezing cold but this year was sunny and warm. We couldn’t have asked for a better day. Zander’s teacher, Mrs. Cushing, was smart and got the class picture out of the way as soon as we got to the park.

Then it was time for snacks and playing! This is one of Zander’s best friends, Mya. Her older brother is with Nick in kindergarten and her younger brother is just days older or younger than Ben!

You like those sunglasses? They’re mine. But, my sensitive-eyed little boy had to borrow them for part of the day to protect his little peepers. I’m thinking of getting him one of those chains that people attach their reading glasses to so he is never without.

This is how just about every picture with sun and no shades turns out.

           

This is Mrs. Cushing.

She’s kind of a fun lady!

I think Zander might miss her when he goes to “real” preschool next year.

Kindergarten concert

I was so excited that Nick finally had a concert at school. And even better – it was just the kindergartners! It’s not that I don’t like listening to other children sing out-of-tune. It’s just that if I had my choice I would only listen to mine. Horrible. Maybe. Honest. Always.

So, the short spring concert was filled with cute little songs (including a poem about bird poop and being glad that cows can’t fly) and happy little kids. Like this one. That cute little (and I do mean little) girl in brown is our neighbor. She smiled through the whole program.

Then there was my kid. He looked like he’d rather be learning sight words. And he hates learning to read. This was the closest I got to a smile through the whole thing. Then again, looking at this picture maybe it’s a boy thing. Only the little guy in the Hawkeye shirt is smiling.

And here is the whole group. All three kindergarten classes, minus a few kids on the left that even my wide angle lens wasn’t wide enough to capture.

Sleepy

Apparently this kid still needs his morning nap.

Fun at the fair

It is amazing how different a large(r) school fun fair is from a small private school. Last year we went to the preschool fun fair and it was sweet, but the kids were bored after just a little bit. The up side is that everything was relatively cheap.

This year was our first experience with the neighborhood elementary school fair. There were four blow-ups, including a slide, bouncy house, jousting arena and obstacle course.

              

There were the traditional fair games, like fishing over a wooden board and throwing bean bags into a 5 gallon bucket. There was also one that looked like a nose. You stuck your hand through the nostril and on the other side a woman was holding half-melted jell-o. GROSS. But, the boys loved it (of course).

Then there were the walks. Of course, there was a traditional cake walk, which we always stay far away from because of Nick’s allergy. There was a toy walk where kids could walk away with a pretty sweet gently used toy. And the book walk, run by the beloved librarian, where kids could walk in the circle and when the music stopped about 80 percent would get to choose a new book. My kids were in love. We came home with nearly a dozen new-to-us books. Made the $30 we spent on tickets for the other carnivalesque games totally worth it.