Boys and their Toys

Thomas enjoys taking pictures and experimenting with the digital camera my mom has loaned us. I had to run to the store on Friday and he was watching the littles for a few and was in the bathroom with Benjamin. Not wanting to waste a moment of precious "mom away" time, Thomas grabbed the camera and began experimenting with our 3 paneled medicine cabinet mirror. I am rather impressed with the results!

Yesterday I wanted just a couple hours ALONE to try to work on clothes organization for myself - I have a bunch of categories right now : fits now, will fit further into pregnancy, post-baby, will fit me hopefully one year after birth, and HA, It ain't EVER gonna happen again! I need a chunk of alone time to fold, sort, and box for either storage or Goodwill. I have a hard time trying to do this when the boys are here because they want to "help" which means putting underwear on their heads, jumping on the bed while knocking over folded laundry, and laughing like maniacs. NOT real conducive to getting anything accomplished! Well, Norman and the boys went to Meadow Farm for a couple hours. When they got back, Benjamin was awake but tired, and Max, well.....

Today has been a LONG day. There was a fire at the RTD plant yesterday and paper delivery is a bit sketchy at this point. I got home from Applebee's around 9:30 last night, got to sleep around 11:30pm, and was up and at my distribution center at 3:30am. We got papers at 6:00, I got on route at 7:10, as opposed to my usual 5:30, and finished at 9:10am. After talking to about 60 % of my 342 customers, explaining the delay, I was quite done!! I came home, showered, and slept for a couple hours. When I got up, I went out back to check on the fellas. Norman had been busy, making Benjamin and Max swords! Benjamin LOVES swords and pretending to battle the "nasty guys". He is certainly my Warrior child. Thomas was never really interested in guns and the like, and Max would rather play with a ball of any kind. Benjamin is the child you hear about who, when not allowed toy guns, will make one out of a stick. He loves to play with sticks and swords and the like. He is VERY excited about his new toy, and Max is interested in his, too!Well, Max is napping, Benjamin is watching Shrek, Thomas is working on room cleaning and Norman is working in his shop, so I am off to work on clothes for a little while!


Oh, and later, Norman came in with a sword for Thomas. Just like the Three Musketeers!

At Least They Are Listening!

I really should know, by now, that I live with 3 parrots. They DO listen, and will throw what I say right back at me, usually at a very awkward time.

This morning, Benjamin and Thomas were having issues- I don't really even know over what, as I tune a lot of their back and forth quibbling out in the interest of letting them each learn how to deal with conflicts and resolve them. Anyway, Benjamin very LOUDLY yelled at Thomas, "STOP arguing with a 3 year old!" I really about fell out of my chair! I say this to Thomas quite often! He seems to have inherited my compulsion to argue until I am either 1) found to be correct, or 2) my opponent gives up. This works in a discussion about the dynamics of American Politics, or the reasons behind the Civil War. This DOES NOT work well when you are trying to reason or win an argument with a 3 year old! I pray my eldest some day learns this lesson. As of right now, he has not, and things can get a bit heated, with Thomas determined to convince Benjamin he is right, and Benjamin having none of it! Thomas usually stomps off in disgust, or ends up being head-butted by Benjamin, who then spends another 3 minutes in time-out! Make for an interesting day here in the Gallaher household!

Yesterday was Thursdays with Friends and we spent about 4 hours out at Three Lakes Park, a cool place to hang out with 3 lakes (tricky, huh?), 3 playgrounds, and a very neat newly restored Nature Center with aquarium. We had a good time with friends and enjoyed the pretty weather, then came home and napped!

Benjamin and Max on one side of the teeter bouncer.Holding on and ready....
Thomas standing on the other side, ready to launch!"We want to go back over THERE!!"Waiting patiently!Oh, and I have discovered that I have to be careful about stressing the need to smile for the camera to the little ones. When I got the camera out this morning to download my most recent pictures, Max started walking over to me looking like this:
Every time I pick up the camera, this is what I get:Then I asked Benjamin to smile and this was the result:When I asked Thomas to smile, he covered his head with a blanket and asked me to please go away. Yes, he IS 14!!

They Never Cease to Amaze Me!

Was I complaining last week about it being too cold to go to the pool? Could that have just been last Thursday?? Well, that is over and the heat is here! The high yesterday was like 95 and it is supposed to be warmer and more humid today! Great joy!

The problem with the heat is that the boys can't get outside and run nearly as much as they (and I!) need them too! Thomas has been going out in the evening to shoot hoops, and the littles get some time out there, but being inside all day with bundles of energy is just ASKING for trouble of one sort or another!

Yesterday I had not been feeling well and we all had a lazy, hanging out inside kind of day. Norman got home, got the boys covered in bug spray and took them outside while I made dinner. Thomas was playing basketball out front, and I was keeping an eye on Max and Ben out back with Norman in his shop. Well, I turned away and did some things, and when I turned back around, Benjamin was standing outside the shop door, fiddling with the hasp gizmo the padlock goes into to lock the door. He worked quite a bit, got the thing turned so the door could not be opened, them started strutting back toward the house. I saw Norman looking out the shop window, talking to Benjamin, and pointing. I went out back and asked Benjamin, as he unlocked the shop door to let Norman and Max out, if he locked Daddy in the shop. He said "No, I locked Max up. Norman was just there."

The whole story is that Max, who LOVES vacuums and the noise they make, turned on Norman's Shop Vac while Benjamin, who HATES vacuums, was in there and scared him, then laughed. Benjamin decided, rather that hit him and get a time out, which we have been doing A LOT these days, he would take revenge another way! If he's locked up, he can't bother him, huh?

What can you do but shake your head, and laugh, and tell Max NOT to scare Benjamin, and Benjamin NOT to lock up his brother, and tell Norman he may want to move the stuff away from the window, cause I see the need to of escape by window being a REAL possibility sometime soon!

Oh Boy!

One of our last safety strongholds is gone. Max can now open doorknobs. Great!

Let me start by saying Benjamin has been very adept at opening doorknobs since he was quite young, even using the key to open our inside deadbolts, to the point that we have to take the key out of the locks and hang it nearby, up high, so that Benjamin doesn't escape outside. I will spare you the heart-stopping story of how we discovered his early escape talents, but suffice it to say we have been VERY aware of locking doors behind us and making sure the keys are secure.

I was enjoying a rare trip to the bathroom by myself last night (TMI, I know!) when heard someone at the door yelling "MOMMY. MOMMY. MOMMY." I told Max I'd be out in a minute, the heard him fiddling with the doorknob. I giggled at his continuing persistence, right about the time the door popped open and a smiling, surprised Max said "HI!" Guess I will have to dig out the doorknob covers that Benjamin figured out how to pop off the knobs after about 6 days. We'll see how long it takes Max to figure them out!

It has been a rather slow week, trying to get settled back into something resembling a routine. We didn't get to go to Thursdays with Friends this week, as is was at a neighborhood pool and the HIGH yesterday was 69 degrees!! TOO cold for swimming! I'm sure our weekend will be jamfull of fun, so I am kind of enjoying the quiet!

We're BACK!!!

Yes, and although I planned on posting the last couple of days, it just hasn't worked out that way! I did set aside a bit of time today to say we are still alive and well, and returned safely home from a GREAT vacation!!

We got to Luray Sunday afternoon after driving through a lot of rainy mess. It worked out fine raining that first day, as we were busy unpacking and getting settled into our cabin. The "cabin" is a beautiful log home with 3 bedrooms and a lofted den. It has a full kitchen, living room, dining room, 2 baths, and a full unfinished basement that is perfect for ping-pong and riding tricycles. The front porch is wonderful, overlooking a beautiful stocked pond, and the side screened-in porch has an amazing stone fireplace. It is a WONDERFUL place to stay!Our cabin is tucked right behind those trees!

Our week was great, full of both activity and relaxation. We went fishing
-I caught my 1st largemouth bass and Thomas caught a good number of both bass and brim - and hot-tubbing - well, everyone but me hot-tubbed! The boys rode bikes and trikes (Thomas even did some downhill speedracing and WAY off-roading-i.e. crashing - with no real injuries!),
and we did some sightseeing from the beauty of a model T driving open-topped through the countryside!

We roasted marshmallows-Max loved them, Benjamin did not - and we found a GREAT playground we kicked around at in Luray. We had a super time, and while mom and Rich may never recover from the chaos that IS our everyday standard operating procedure, we enjoyed the time spent together. I got some great sunset pictures,


and thankfully, was NOT up and about to get any sunrise shots!! The boys enjoyed running up and down the gravel road that led to our cabin, and throwing rocks in the pond. It was a great time, and I came home rested and refreshed!

We got home Saturday afternoon and set about getting settled back in and unpacked. I ran some errands and picked up Sully and some groceries. When Thomas was getting a new trash can liner out of the utility room, he asked "Is there supposed to be all this water in here?" Uh, 4 inches of water all over the utility room floor, um, no, that is NOT a good thing!! Turns out the valve in the top of the water heater blew when we turned the water back on after we returned, and flooded the utility room, and up under the den floor. I took the boys to mom and Rich's, then Norman and I spent a lovely evening wet-vacing and drying things off. Welcome home, indeed! Nothing like a home repair issue to bring you right back into reality!

Funny sidebar, and a bit sad. I will preface this story by saying my all time favorite household helper is Downey's Wrinkle Releaser. The stuff is AMAZING and I LOVE it!! I no longer iron, not that I was a big ironer before, but that stuff eliminates the need to iron. Well, after the boys came home, they were checking out some of the things that were in the living room, waiting to be put back and there was the ironing board. Max walked up to it and looked and looked, and finally said "boat." No amount of discussion would persuade him that is was not a boat. Well, about 5 minutes after this discussion, Benjamin walked in and said "Is that a surfboard?" Why he thinks we would have a surfboard, I don't know, but I told Norman I may have to start ironing a couple of items each day, just to educate the children!! Oh well, I never claimed to be a great housekeeper! I'm way too busy chasing boys and buying 6 gallons of milk a week to iron!!

Sunday we decided to cap off our vacation week with a trip up to Kings Dominion. We met some friends there and Thomas went with the fellas to ride the BIG rides - Hypersonic XLC, Drop Zone, Shockwave, and Volcano, while Norman and I took the littles on their rides. Benjamin even rode his first roller coaster - once with me and once with Thomas! They grow up SO fast!!

Well, now I am off, back to cleaning and entertaining the masses! I work Applebee's tonight. Back to reality!!

T Minus 3 Hours and 45 Minutes!

We are meeting mom and Rich around noon to head up to the mountains outside Luray, VA for our vacation!! YAY!! I got up at 3:00 this morning, did my paper route in the pouring rain and wind remnants of Tropical Depression Barry, and am now in crazy rush to finish packing and getting the van ready mode!! We are headed for a lovely log home tucked away on the side of a mountain where I plan on sleeping past 4:00am, relaxing, and enjoying my family!! You all have a GREAT week and I'll be back next Saturday!!

Trying to Get Ready for Vacation!

What a crazy week! It always seems chaotic the week before vacation, getting everything in line to be away. This week alone, the van has been in to be inspected, the dog has been to the vet for 2 vaccinations, I have had a check-up, and Thomas has seen his orthodontist! Added to that is working at Applebee's, training my paper route sub, and just the normal, everyday chaos, and I am exhausted!!

We did make it to Thursdays with Friends yesterday and it was HOT!! 91 degrees by the time we left! Fun stuff! Here are a couple pictures of the boys out and about!
Well, I am headed on foot up to Firestone to pick up the van, then I will come get the boys, pick up some more ortho rubber bands for Thomas' teeth, stop by the bank for vacation cash, and pick up a few groceries. On Saturday, Thomas is volunteering at Civil War Days out at Dorey Park, dressing as an early baseball player for a vintage game demonstration. Norman will spend the day packing and getting the fishing equipment ready for the mountains. I will be running kids hither and yon, dropping Sully off at DogServices, packing, working Applebees 5:00 until 9pm, then delivering Sunday papers 2:30 am- 7 am Sunday. We head out of town at noon on Sunday and will be back late afternoon Saturday!! I CAN'T WAIT!! But I think I said that already!!!