Summer evenings at Lagoon

We bought season passes to Lagoon this summer. Ben has taken James and Kate after work every couple of weeks throughout the summer. It's been a fun thing for all of them. By the time they get there, the hottest part of the day has passed. Most other kids on their way out, exhausted after a long, hot day at the Park, so James and Kate rarely have to wait long for a turn.

Kate and James are brave little souls. They love the Tidal Wave. Rock-O-Plane would make me loose my lunch, but James and Kate love it. Of course, all of the rides that are actually age-appropriate for them are hits as well -- Merry-go-round, boats, planes, Puff - the dragon roller coaster, Bulgy the Whale, etc. James likes the bumper cars and knows how they work. Kate likes them too, but is content to spin in a circle for the entire time.

Dad won't mind.

Sure. Go ahead. Suck away. Dad won't mind.

Fathers & Sons overnighter

James came upstairs fully-dressed and with a bag of toys Friday morning. He was ready to go camping with Ben and others in the neighborhood going to the annual Fathers & Sons overnighter. Although we told him they would be leaving after Ben came home from work, he had forgotten and was quite disappointed. I came home from work at 4:00. James had an enormous smile on his face as he watched the garage door open from his perch just outside the back door to the garage. When he realized Ben wasn't also home, another wave of disappointment, but less severe since he know the time was getting very close. Ben came home a short bit later and was received with the same couldn't-be-contained grin. James, of course, was already backed, and had been for hours. Ben quickly packed a few things and the boys were off.

The event did not disappoint. Four of James' friends in the neighborhood were there and they played nonstop until way past bedtime and then again when they woke up. He shared the licorice he'd taken with all who wanted a piece and he enthusiastically told me about all the food he'd eaten there. ("Meat and bread for dinner; ice creams sandwiches; and eggs, pancakes and bacon for breakfast.")

He's already excited for next year.

Special "Mom & Kate Night"

Mom and Kate spent this evening getting a mani/pedi (purple toes and pink fingers), eating at Wendy's (Kate's choice), doing a little shopping, and watching a DVD in Mom and Dad's bed with a box of Red Vines. We have had a wonderfully, fun night together. Kate would like to have Girls Night Out "sixty, seventy times more." Me too.



(James and Dad are on a Fathers & Sons camping overnighter. Hopefully, they're having as much fun as Kate and Mom are and also getting some pictures to post later. )

Sibling rivalry.

For the last several weeks, we've noticed increased competition between James and Kate. If James gets something (say a bite of some chocolate he caught me trying to eat undetected by children) but Kate does not, he makes sure she knows (i) that he got the thing, and (ii) that she did not. That, of course, as he intended it to do, sets her off.

Similarly, if something happens to Kate that does not happen to James, she makes sure he knows he missed out on that thing (i.e. an extra bedtime story). Last week James said the closing prayer in Primary. As I picked them up, he enthusiastically reported, "I got to talk in the microphone and Kate didn't." We also frequently hear, from one or the other of them, "You are mad at [Kate/James], but you are happy at me?" Or, on last week's hike, "I am a good hiker, but Kate is not. Right?"

Tonight's competition reached a new level. Kate asked if she could sleep in our room tonight. Ben said yes. James didn't hear the request, only Ben's answer, and said, "I want want Kate wants." Then Kate said, "Dad, when I wake up, can I have something James can't have?" James followed-on with, "I want whatever Kate has." Now they are jockeying for hypothetical advantages!

This sort of competition is happening all the time. Is there a constructive way for a parent to respond or intervene? Please help!

Sunday afternoon hike.

We live a half a block from a few trail heads. James and Ben explored one trail a few weeks ago and then, last week, brought Kate, Robert, Mom and Charlie along to see what they had seen. James had a blast leading the group.

Kate started whining for Ben or me to carry her less than five minutes into the hike. Robert probably hiked with more stamina and enthusiasm than she did. While resting in the shade, though, she did give some pretty cute smiles to the camera. The last photo is far more representative of her mood throughout the 45-minute jaunt.

The end of the hike includes an area developed for mountain bikes with several ramps and jumps. James was most excited to show us first-timers this portion of the hike. We all enjoyed climbing around on the ramps. Well, everyone except Kate who wanted us to go get the car and pick her up.

His Eminence William Joseph Cardinal Levada

Ben and I went to the Bishop's Dinner last night. The Cathedral of the Madeleine commemorated its 100th year with this and other events during the week. Mayor Becker couldn't attend the dinner, so Ben (and I) went in his place.

We happened to be socializing near the entrance when Cardinal Levada entered. The Cardinal is the highest ranking American at the Vatican and, I was told, is one of the highest ranking leaders in the entire Catholic church.
Shaking his hand wasn't my only encounter with the Cardinal. As it happened, I sat back to back with him at the dinner. Prior to things getting underway, the two of us were both standing near our chairs with no one else to talk to, except, as it turned out, each other. I probably spoke to him for 4 or 5 minutes. While he was extremely warm and kind, I was pretty nervous. What does one (anyone, but especially a non-Catholic) converse with a Cardinal about? We chatted a bit about the beautiful cathedral. Then I remembered I'd seen something about a student processional that took place earlier in the week and had received a snippet of news coverage that I happened to hear, so I told him about the great events that had been going on all week. Blah, blah, blah. It was awkward, but not embarrassingly so. It was cool.
Senator Orin Hatch was sitting next to the Cardinal, and almost back to back with me. He and I didn't exchange any words. I guess he had plenty of people to chat with prior to dinner and didn't find his way to his chair until it was time to sit. I think I would have had a harder time coming up with something to chat with him about.

"So Charlie can't lick me."

We're dog sitting. Again. Kate likes to have Charlie sleep in her room when he's at our house. James likes Charlie, but hasn't shown any interest in sharing his bedroom. Tonight he told everyone that it was his turn to have Charlie sleep in his room. Okay. Kate wasn't pleased, but fair is fair.

Ben went down to check on James a little while after putting the kids to bed and found James lying on his bed with his Spiderman suit on. He was finishing up by pulling the headpiece on over his head. Ben asked, "Why are you wearing that James?" James responded, "So Charlie can't lick me. Can you help me get the top on, Dad?"

In the end, James confessed he didn't want Charlie in his room. I'm not sure if he was trying to see why Kate thinks it so great or if he wanted to make her mad by getting something he knew she wanted. Unfortunately, the latter is more likely. They are good buddies, but they certainly seem to do all they can to push each other's buttons too.

Ben and I don't want Charlie licking us while we're sleeping either. Ben took Charlie to Kate's room for the night.

Happy Birthday, Robert!

We had a small birthday party for Robert today. Lunch, cake & ice cream, presents and an hour at the pool. Grandma and Grandpa Judd and almost all of the McAdams family were able to make it and we loved having them. It was fun to see how excited James and Kate were for Robert today. They reminded him throughout the day that it was his birthday and that he was now one year old.

One year ago tonight . . .

. . . I went to the hospital to give birth to this sweet little boy.
Tonight, he playfully grins at me from the bathtub as he dumps cupful after cupful of water over his back, lets me rock him to sleep, and peacefully slumbers until tomorrow. I love you, Robert.

Bruce changed his clothes again.

Bruce slept in Kate's room last night (in his cage, of course). Why didn't we think of this before? Kate's not an easy child to put to sleep. Ever. One of her most repeated requests is to sleep in our room because she doesn't want "to sleep all alone." Last night she had the great idea of bringing Bruce's cage to her nightstand because then, in her words, "I won't have to sleep alone." Brilliant, Kate! That's just what we did. This morning, she ran upstairs, Bruce in hand, to inform me that he had moved back into his shark shell. I guess he likes it better than the tiger outfit -- despite the loss of his tail, a broken nose, and a hairline fracture running the length of his shell.

Bruce

In June, Ben attended a work conference in Rhode Island. He promised something for the kids upon his return. He brought them a pet. Two actually. Hermit crabs. The kids named them Bruce and Spidey. (Nice carry-on luggage, Ben.) Bruce was housed in a shell painted to look like a shark. His name comes from the shark named Bruce on Finding Nemo. Spidey was housed in a shell painted like spider man - red with a black web and eyes. Two spare shells were also included for the pair because the crabs occasionally like to change homes.
Kate adores Bruce. You'd think this crab was a puppy the way she carries it around, asks to play with it first thing in the morning, throughout the day, and before going to bed at night. Bruce comes to Grandma's house. Bruce has a cage, but, according to Kate, he likes to spend time exercising in a large bucket inside and a plastic kids pool outside. She occasionally rocks Bruce to sleep. You might expect her to be a bit scared of a crab, especially when his legs and pinchers come stretching out of the shell while she's holding him. You also might expect her to think a crab is a bit of a creepy (no pun intended) kind of a pet. On both accounts, you would be wrong. She has been pinched once. She didn't like it, but it hasn't stopped her from loving the crustacean.
On Friday night, Ben took the kids out for a couple of hours. Upon their return, they discovered an amazing thing had happened in their absense. Bruce moved into one of the spare shells. As Kate says, "He changed clothes." He lives in a tiger shell now. Kate danced a jig. James was thrilled.

Here is Kate holding Bruce, now in the tiger shell, and also his old home - the shark shell.

Spidey, sadly, is missing. He's been missing since about 12 hours after meeting his owner. James was holding both Bruce and Spidey. Apparently, Bruce pinched him and he threw them both. Ben was with him, but didn't know James had been holding both crabs. Bruce's shark tail broke off in the fall. As James was recovering from the surprise, Ben superglued Bruce's tail back in place. That's right, superglue. Bruce was returned to his cage to recover. I came home from work just as the drama was winding down. "Where's Spidey?" I asked. It was then that we all learned that Spidey had been with James when Bruce flew. We have never been able to find Spidey. Is he still around? In our home somewhere? Alive?
Perhaps, someday, I hope in the very near future, this post will have a Part II. I'm quite anxious to resolve the mystery of Spidey's whereabouts.

Here is the empty shark shell. I can't help but wonder if Bruce moved out of it because the tail broke for a second time and he was dreading more superglue fumes. Also, I can now see a fine crack along the body of the shell. This poor crab has accidentally been dropped more than a few times. He must be a hearty creature.

Morgan County Fair

We went to the Morgan County Fair Saturday afternoon. Cousin Taylor spent the summer working on a farm. At the beginning of the summer, each farm worker gets a baby pig, which he or she owns and raises on the farm. At the end of the summer, the pigs are auctioned off at the Fair. Number 60 was Taylor's pig. He sold the hog for an impressive $700.00. Way to go, Taylor! There was also a fun petting zoo at the fair. The bunnies were the highlight, but the kids also got to get right up close with chicks, a baby goat, a donkey, and a pony.

S&S Shortline Railroad

Kate, James, Robert, Grandma and Grandpa Judd, Charlie (Grandpa's dog), and I went to the S&S Shortline Railroad on Saturday morning. Talk about a man with a hobby. Steve Flanders, the train conductor, has turned his residential property into a train yard and invites to public to enjoy (and subsidize) his pastime. Everyone enjoyed the 15-minute ride around the property, perhaps Robert very most. If you ever in the area - in the summer - on the first Saturday of the month - check it out.