Scout has been wanting to ride a bike for a long time, so I took him on a date. We headed to a grassy hill, and I ran along side him for a few runs, and tried to get him to do it on his own. I wish the fist time would have proved to be successful, but he had a lot of hesitations when I would let go.
Here he is trying to get the bike rolling by himself, but putting both legs on the pedals was a bit scary for him.
Here he is after a three feet solo ride once I let go of the handles.
The good news, is he was liking it. It might take a few more attempts, but hopefully he will nail it pretty soon.
(I’m sad to report that he was very cautious — more so than ever, and I am sure it is due to “the fall” off the swing. The poor guy has a mother who will make him overcome any fears, so we will be trying again soon.)
Our afternoon started off with me folding laundry and announcing for the kids to take their clothes off and stick their swimsuits on because we were going swimming. They were stoked, and Scout undressed and then announced he had to use the bathroom. Navy (the one without the slowed-down leg) ran in faster than Scout and sat on the potty first. She is the most out-of-control tease that has ever lived. And usually she really gets to Scout. But this time, I was really proud of Scout. He walked right in and said, “Navy, I said I had to use the potty first, so you better move, or I am going to go potty on you!” I heard this and went in to break it up as Navy was yelling. But by the time I got in there, Navy was hanging on to the side of the potty while Scout was going about his business. She looked at me with surprised eyes and was just about to tattle, when I said, “Navy, I guess you shouldn’t tease next time.”
So afterward, I made them “Best Friend It Out”. That means I better see them act like best friends before they get to go on with life. If I am really annoyed, they have to hold hands and yell “Best Friends” three times out loud. Somehow because they are doing it together, it makes them laugh and feel like they are on the same team.
This was the first attempt.
(Note: Navy put her own swimsuit on inside out.)
Then Scout went crazy.
Which sent Navy over the edge.
And the hugs turned into wrestling moves.
And the kisses were a little aggressive.
But for the moment — they were best friends.
And that moment led to an entire afternoon in the hot tub as true best friends.
My Big Boy has taken some big strides lately towards his independence.
First off, Skilly was feeding him his bottle when all of a sudden, he started feeding himself.
And then not two hours later, he rolled over about four times in a row. Even he was surprised! I’ll admit that he has rolled over before in his crib. And I know it because he started on his tummy and ended up on his back. But the first official time I actually saw it was today — just 6 days shy of turning 5 months old. It’s amazing that Scout rolled over at four days (a few times in a few days)– and regularly at four months. But Dash hasn’t even had a chance to get rolling, because he is held every second of the day unless he is sleeping.
(Sidenote: Dash is wearing the outfit I loved to put Scout in. This is where my love of cuddly outfits began. I bought it when we took Scout to Hong Kong, and he wore it nonstop after that. Anytime it was cold, I put him in his blue dog get up. Good to see it is going to good use again. But it doesn’t come out often because I really capitalized on the warm cuddly outfit sales this year, and it is one of many in Dash’s drawer.)
It is no secret that my kids are in the unders all day long — and that is because I make them put their underwear on. But Navy has started to cover up a bit more lately with one of her aprons. Glad we are taking a more modest approach to life.
There was a time when every single time I would drive through our gate, I would hear from the back seat, “Mom, can I run home?” It was either from a sweet little masculine voice, a mini girl voice, or sometimes in unison. I’ll admit, there were days, when all I wanted to do was quickly get into the driveway, but most often I would stop at the mailboxes and open up the slider for them to run. I was surprised to realize the other day, that it had been a very long time since I had any running requests from the back seat. So when I heard Cast Boy excitedly say, “Mom….Mom…I haven’t run home in a long time. Can I run home when we get through the gate?” I was SO excited! I stopped, let him out, drove by his side and yelled the usual, “Pump those arms! Whoa, you are running SO fast! I can barely keep up! Lift those legs and pump those arms!”
And there was my sweet little partly crippled boy with the most determined run I’ve seen.
It was a little slower than before. A little more labored than before. A little more awkward than before.
But he ended up in the same place he always does…
In my arms at Home Sweet Home.
I’ve had a framed picture of Micah as a baby for a long time.
It sits in the kid’s room.
Uncle RyRy is in town for a visit and took the picture to my mom and couldn’t believe how much it looked like Dash.
My poor mom was confused because she thought it was Dash.
The only reason she believed Ryan was because she knew she had never seen Dash dressed in the pictured outfit.
What do you think?
Are they twinners?
At first I thought he was admiring the picture of his dad, but maybe he just thought he was looking in the mirror!?
While Navy and I were perusing babies R Us one day, we found this spinning wheel. She fell in love, so I told her we could buy it for Dashy’s high chair.
This is the first time Dash has sat in his high chair (4 1/2 months), and the spinner has ended up being a total hit. He tries to turn it himself, and sometimes giggles when it gets going. Pretty good eye little girl of mine.
After a day at the beach, Britni and I took our kids (plus some) to Ruby’s for some grub.
I was utterly humiliated by the seven kids in one booth that were all beyond exhausted from a day of nonstop playing.
Between licking sugar from the table, me feeding smashed banana to Dash with my left hand while putting together a toy for Icka with my right, and Grey Gone Wild…we were quite the spectacle.
But nothing tops the most humiliating thing of all.
My dear old sis.
Hey — maybe you could get on some sort of television show!
I am not a beach person.
I’ve never been a beach person.
I will never be a beach person.
But when I can have shade on demand, I can pretend to be a beach person.
And with views like these:
Of Scout and Riley playing….
And Navy and Sydney playing….
My baby sucking away….
Kids having a blast exploring….
Or climbing….
Or just hanging out….
pretending is easy.
Can anything beat a baby with squishy cheeks and a somber demeanor seconds after he wakes up?
(By the way — Britni seriously asked who gets my mom’s robe in the will. After some serious discussion, we elected her to have it! We all decided we don’t want it because it smells like roast dinner! And besides, every night Scout and Icka ask that Nonnie live until she is 1,000, so it will be a long time before that robe is going anywhere!)
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