David and his arm

Today I got permission from David to post pictures of his broken arm.

So far he has had a gigantic blue cast for 4 weeks. This cast could not get wet and required a sling to hold in place.

Then David got a much smaller, red, fiberglass, waterproof cast.  This one he wore for 4 weeks.

Now today he was fitted for a splint.  This one is custom built for his arm and purple in color. He will have to wear the splint for 3-4 more weeks.

It has been a long road. David has taken it like a champ. So proud of his attitude. 

Making Fun at the Preschool Years

This September my youngest turns 5.
That means soon, for the first time in 11 years, I will no longer have a preschooler.
As wonderful as snuggles and sippie cups are, they pale in compairson to having your child mature in front of your eyes.

I admit I miss the smell of a clean baby head washed in Johnson and Johnson baby wash. That smell is soooo wonderful. But that is why I volunteered for the church nursery! (So bring me your babies Sunday at 9:30 I am scheduled this week!)

In an effort to celebrate this upcoming monumental moment. I wanted to post a link to the most funny fake movie trailer ever! (Thanks Uncle Luke for sharing this)

This movie trailer spoofs Dora the Explorer. Clearly one of the most annoying kid shows ever made.(in my humble opinion if you disagree you may not want to click on the below link)

Blogger beware if you have a preschooler at home you will want to have on headphones or watch when they are in bed. Not because the language is bad (ok there is one line for sure I wouldn't want my kids repeating at church) but their little beautiful perception of Dora will get crushed if they saw it. If this movie had been made, it would have been PG 13. (and I would've gladly paid a ticket price for it. :)

Additional warning: the comments, as most youtube videos, are less then wholesome reading. So if you wish to share this with an older kid who would find the humor in it, beware of their ability to read those comments! Some are most cringe worthy.

Now in addition to the spoiler alerts I will tell you that I find it so funny that the people who made this fake trailer are in college! That means they must have known Dora the Explorer from their youth or have siblings with whom they have watched the show.

Why is Dora always screaming when she talks anyway?

Here it is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnpTcrtsN3U&feature=g-logo-xit

Caleb plays Mickey Mouse March

Funny thing about this song.
Caleb did not know who Mickey Mouse really was/is.
So this tune made no sense to him nor was it nostalgic for me.
But none the less it was his assigned piano piece.

Sooooooooo - Here is Caleb playing "Mickey Mouse March" in synthesizer brass.

The dude never plays in regular piano except at his lesson. At first I thought we should buy him a "real" piano, but now I am convinced the whole reason he plays is because of all the cool tones. For now, I don't care. I just want him to continue to love to play and to learn how to read and play the music.

Here's the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CqRH2MilOY&feature=youtu.be

Freedom Fest!

All three of our boys realize what independence is all about.

Nathan listened along as Caleb did the founding fathers history class this past school year.

So now we don't have to try and have them realize what it is all about. In fact, whenever the flag goes by in a parade Nathan stands and puts his hand on his heart without even thinking about it. It is so heartwarming to me.

To celebrate our great nation, we attended Freedom Fest with the Hionis family and went to Evansville's local parade. Which I must say is amazing. We still have many WWII veterans who march or are riding in convertibles. Nathan asked:" You mean they went to WWII and came back? Not dead? Oh!"

Freedom Fest has all types of carnival rides and fun activities for the boys.

But it was HOT. Like 98 degrees. WOW.

So wonderful to have David be 11 years old. He has his own phone so was able to move about the festival with a buddy and without mom and dad. This allowed mom and dad to take Caleb and Nathan to their favorite rides and balloon animals, etc.

After persevering thru the extreme heat, the sun set to the most wonderful bug free evening. Since it hasn't rained in a very long time, the grass was more like hay. Not enough moisture for the mosquito's. We stayed for the most spectacular fire works show. And again as the boys all get older, no kid of ours cried thru the loud booms. They all enjoyed the show. Being a mom of older children, rocks!

More Lake Emily

Horray for waterproof casts! We returned to our beloved campground, but this time we were minus the thunderstorm and plus a waterproof cast. Oh yeah, much better!

The water was warm and so clean. I just love the water at Lake Emily. The lakes by us can't compare.

Since we went the week before the July 4th holiday, it was not crouded at all. We borrowed 2 military cots to sleep on this time. (Thank you Josh!) They are the BOMB! We normally blow up air mattresses but these things are so much better. We wouldn't be able to fit 5 of them in the big tent though, so for now we are keeping with the air mattresses.

I can see this camping thing being our yearly vacation. As the boys get older they do more of the work. Noone needs to be back at the site for naps anymore and they are all old enough to shower without freakin' out. So nice. We used to bring all kinds of toys too. But now they just play with sticks, play with the dog and swim. My favorite part is there is no tv, no video games and the gathering place is the fire ring.

Gone Fishin'

We may have been "sitting at the dock of the bay." as the song says but we were for sure not"watching the sun roll away waisting time..." 
We were catching some fish! We had a number of bites and near misses. After a moment of frustration we agreed it was time to  ask the Lord to assist our efforts to move from fish waiting to fish catching. Sure enough He did.

Nathan caught an 11 inch brooke trout and Caleb caught a  15 inch rainbow trout.  We grilled them up for supper.  It was some good eats! 

I am loving those 10 dollar spiderman fishing poles.  Those trout didn't give up without a fight. Those poles were bending but not breaking.

David turns 11

We had a quiet family celebration for Davids 11 th birthday. I am amazed at how fast time is moving now.
He begins middle school soon. Before I  know it he will be 18.  I am so pleased with his heart towards others and how his character is developing. He makes his momma proud.