May 29 Cal AND Aidan!

Wednesday:  Aidan ran a fever last night and was feeling all-around under the weather today, so he did not go to school. Instead, he came with Cal over to my house for the afternoon. Aidan was a little subdued, but he played quietly and nicely. We had a very nice few hours together.

Before drove over to pick the boys up, I noticed a LOT of activity at my bird feeders. Apparently, the Starlings have had "babies", although to look at them--they are HUGE--almost adult-sized. Here is how I KNOW they are babies, though. The "mom" or "dad" would go to my window feeder, pick up a peanut in its beak, and then fly over to the pole, where THREE "babies" had wide-open mouths waiting to be fed! The parent would plop a peanut into one mouth, and then the other two would have a FIT that they were not chosen first! This scene went on for 20 minutes (LOUDLY) and was amazing to watch. I had no idea Starling babies were that big. They were probably born weeks ago--but Starlings are BIG birds, and quite aggressive too--the smaller birds stay out of their way. I wish the squirrels would! The squirrels and chipmunks have been ruthless these last few weeks, eating almost all of the bird food I put in the feeders. I have ordered a new, four-pronged feeder with a squirrel guard to hopefully solve this dilemma.

The boys played really well together today. I only had to referee a few small spats, but nothing serious.

These guys are very good builders. Aidan is especially particular about the design of his buildings, and he does NOT want them messed with either. Thankfully, Cal is FOUR now and is growing in his understanding of how sad it can be when someone wrecks something you've worked hard to create.

Here is Cal modeling his Batman cape for me. Who thinks of this cool stuff for kids anyway? He loves this cape!

They boys played trains together too. I'm so glad I have these nice toys for them to enjoy.

You can see by this picture of Aidan that he doesn't feel "himself" quite yet. He and Cal both slept on the way back to their house.

This picture (below) I just took real quick with my phone. They kids were enjoying a program on their TV, laughing together, and it was just so sweet to see them all laughing together. 

Next week begins our new summer routine -- no more school! SO ... I need to gear up for this once-a-week, sometimes overwhelming visitation! It helps a lot that they are growing older and need less care and have fewer meltdowns, etc. I am praying that we have a good summer of visits together.

May 28 Dylan is FORTY!

Tuesday:  How is it possible that Dylan, my youngest child, 3rd much-loved son is 40??!?!?! Well! I could say it makes me feel super old ... but then, Dylan's birthday is not supposed to be about ME. So there.

I made Dylan a card for his birthday. I hope he likes it--I worked a long time on it. It's difficult, sometimes, to find just the right pictures or write adequate words to express true feelings sometimes. Perhaps it's that way for everyone. I mean, when I read Hallmark cards they SOUND complimentary and gracious but ... some of them are just plain weird--especially Mother's Day cards! No one is that perfect!

I chose these pictures because they are ones that I feel show his true self. Dylan is a writer, an artist with words (and music); he is always a student (I love this about him), often a teacher (and a good one at that); but he is also a husband and father (two of the most difficult "roles" he will ever live), a friend to many, a close friend to some--and all of this takes a lot of work. Oh--and I failed to mention that he has been working on his doctorate this year, so this "student" thing is taking a lot of effort on his part. I hope he knows that I am proud of him (not that it actually matters that much)--but truly, I have appreciated watching him grow into manhood.

I often tell people (it's actually my personal mantra) that "you are never too old to totally screw up your life!" because I did exactly that myself. And not just my life, but bad decisions I made had a negative impact on my sons as well. I take full responsibility for it--I know the Lord has forgiven me (which is a huge relief), and I've asked the boys to forgive me--but some things go beyond forgiveness, and that's all there is to it.

I took this card over to Dylan on the evening of his birthday, along with a small batch of chocolate chip cookies:

FRONT:

INSIDE:

BACK:

My favorite picture is the inside one--it was taken this past Christmas Day. Dylan is sitting on the steps of their great room watching his kiddos open some presents. The loving expression on his dear face is so precious. Sometimes being a dad can be downright overwhelming--and I pray for Dylan about this all the time--so I am always happy when I see him relaxed and just enjoying the moment.

The back of Dylan's card is a scan of a birth announcement I was "commissioned" to do for Dylan's friend, Micah, who was born the same year (September 1984). One night while Dylan slept, I held his little hand in mine and sketched what you see here. It's not super realistic, but it's the best I could do. I remember how softly Dylan slept as I did this sketch (he was always a sound sleeper). 

I love you, Dylan , and I am super thankful for you, dear son.

May 23 with KT

Thursday:  I am several days behind in this little blog post ... it was more than 5 days ago that I was with Kaity last Thursday afternoon and evening. This is how it went ...

Kaity, right off the bat, announced to me that she had broken up with Tyler. She said this with a smile on her face--kind of a relieved smile; but at the same time, a smile let me know she had something ELSE to tell me. And she did!

Kaity has always had many friends. She is very social and agreeable to people--so that's helpful in developing friendships. It's always good to have good friends, isn't it? Kaity has mentioned friends in her classroom all throughout the year: Sophie, another girl (but I forget her name), a few fellas (I've also forgotten their names), and GAGE. She has especially enjoyed GAGE and has told me he feels like a brother to her. They like to hang out and goof around together at school and in class. 

Well ... now it seems that Kaity views Gage more or less as a "boyfriend" and tells me that Gage wants her to be his "girlfriend." That's fine--don't misunderstand me. But it just seems like ... Kaity is a bit (just a little) obsessed with being in a relationship. Perhaps this is because she is almost 12. I am hoping this is a passing phase. It's not that I don't WANT Kaity to have friends -- it's just that the "coupling" of young girls and guys is so up-and-down and all-around, if you know what I mean. 

Back in the day (WAY back) when I was Kaity's age, we just had a lot of friends--boy and girl--yes, we had deep crushes--but nothing that was acknowledged or encouraged as "going out" together. We were KIDS, for goodness sake. It's difficult enough when kids reach actual dating age--like 16 or so--when they can drive to and from a dating activity together. But this 5th grade stuff is just ... beyond my understanding. PLUS, it makes for lots of hard feelings among everyone. It was just a few weeks ago that Kaity received a threatening text from a schoolmate who claimed she was going to beat her up at recess. WHY? All because Kaity was friends with this girl's "boyfriend." Thankfully, Kaity's dad handled that threat, with the school taking action as well. 

And another thing--Kaity asked if I would pick up Gage with her so that they could jump at Altitude together tonight. I asked where he lives and Kaity showed me on a map. He lives downtown! I have never met him! I don't know his family! I didn't have a chance to talk with Jesse about it! I said NO. I was kind about it, but I just can't drive downtown (to and from) so that Kaity and Gage can jump together. I have since checked with Jesse, and he agrees. 

I am asking the Lord to give me wisdom for our dear Kaity in these upcoming summer weeks and months. She is at such a vulnerable age. Please protect her, Lord, from every evil and show her how much You love her. 

May 22 A very full day

Wednesday:  Today was Cal's last day at GymCo preschool! He has had a very good year there, met lots of friends, and grown in his socialization skills! He has had super nice teachers too. 

This is the outside "yard" where the kids play when the weather permits. It's really cute to watch how the kids hang out in little friend groups and invent games to play with each other. There is a lot of running and kicking of balls, blowing bubbles, and playing "house" with each other.

Here is Cal, running to greet me! He is always, always, ALWAYS happy to see me. How nice is that?!

 We listen to beautiful music in my car as we drive over to my place. Cal has learned many of these songs and sings along with the music. He has a good grasp of rhythm and notes in general and really likes to sing. I love to hear him sing, "Jesus Strong and Kind." This is one of Kaity's favorites too.

Cal had been sitting very quietly on the window bench watching the birds ... I was in the kitchen and noticed his quietness and reached for my camera (because it was such a precious sight); but before I could snap the picture, he was on the move--so I missed the moment, at least on film--however, I can still see him in my mind's eye just quietly watching the birds. Cal can be a very serious little individual, and I find that he is interested in a lot of things that other children are not--like the names of birds, etc.

Cal wanted Sunny to see the birds, so he ran to the playroom to retrieve him. He loves this puppet.

Doesn't he look like a natural puppeteer with Sunny?

I've been having a lot of hip pain--which is nothing NEW, but it hurts more than I've experienced before; so find it difficult to keep up with this little guy sometimes. I decided PlayDoh would be a good sit-down activity; Cal really gets into PlayDoh. We combined our army guys with our playtime at the table ...

Cal thought it was cool that he could "bury" the army guys in the PlayDoh and then they could HIDE there and jump out when he was ready for war.

Meanwhile, I created some space alien PlayDoh creatures to join in on the battle ...

See how intense Cal is? He has an agenda, even when he is playing with PlayDoh!

Cal took his usual nap in my car on the drive to his house. I met the kids as they were getting off their bus and then we played in their house for awhile. Cal requested that I bring my rubber pig (Hammy) over to meet HIS rubber pig (Honkey) today, so some of the following pictures involve the pigs.

Cal was quite pleased to bring Hammy over to his very own house to get acquainted with all of his toys, etc. When you squeeze the middle of Hammy, he makes a snorting piggish kind of sound, which is very amusing (if you like that sort of thing).

THEIR rubber pig (Honkey) kind of makes a "honking" sound when he is squeezed; hence his name. He is a Polynesian kind of pig (notice the fancy Hawaiian kind of leia around his neck, his sunglasses, and he also has a funny pair of swimming trunks on his body). Erin is showing me the sounds Honkey makes when squeezed.

I kept calling their pig by various weird names because I was being goofy ... Erin was trying to mimic the sounds her pig could make ...

Cal was busy comparing the two pigs and decided that Hammy was a "rainbow" pig. We discovered that Honkey has no tail! How preposterous for a pig to have NO curly tail. We decided it was hiding in his swimming trunks.

Dylan has been at a work conference (out of town) since Sunday, so it's just been Kelly and the kiddos. Kelly brought home a roasted chicken and all sorts of other good food from Costco--we had a very enjoyable dinner together.

Brendan had a school concert tonight over at the Fine Arts Center. Kelly got Brendan there to the center early, and then I brought the other kids later. We had a little bit of difficulty finding Kelly inside the auditorium because it was so dark in there and there are so many levels of seating.

Brendan plays the clarinet with the fifth/sixth grade band. We somehow confused the timing of his group playing and missed it altogether! Brendan did not at all seem bothered by this, so that was okay.

I love you, Brendan! I'll come another time to hear you play.

I got back to my house at nearly 8PM completely happy but quite exhausted from our day. Life is good.

May 20 Julie's Garden

Monday:  I received an invitation for dinner a few weeks ago from my friend, Julie--the woman with the gorgeous gardens all around her house who I met through MNBS. Julie also invited Jen (another friend from MNBS) for dinner; so it was the three of us! Julie and her husband, Victor, are marvelous cooks; so Julie treated us to a wonderful Italian dinner, homemade in every way and delicious. We had wanted to eat outside on their terrace overlooking the gardens, but rain was definitely in the forecast--it held off just long enough for Jen and I to walk around in the gardens and take it all in before it began to pour.

Jen owns and runs a floral shop on the W. side (near the zoo) and knows so much about flowers--so she and Julie could name these ferns and ground cover and flowers with ease.

It's really peaceful back here--this is mostly behind their house; and beyond their property is a nice quiet meadow.

Here are the ladies! On the left is JEN, and JULIE is on the right. Julie puts a lot of work into this beautiful place.

I didn't take nearly half the pictures I would have taken if we'd had time to wander at our leisure. But we could hear the thunder and could feel the rain approaching; so we had to cut it short.

We enjoyed a delicious dinner--some kind of Italian pasta (meatless) with the most delicious sauce, an interesting salad, bread with seasoned oil; and then the desert was really over the top. Victor (Julie's husband) not only cooks, but he bakes as well. Their son's birthday was over the weekend, and they were able to save a few pieces of the strawberry cheesecake Victor made for him. I can't even describe the deliciousness! Victor had a meeting to attend, so it was just us ladies who enjoyed the dinner and fellowship together. Thankful for these friends!