2 out of 3

So, I had planned to write three funny Noel stories, as it turns out I can only think of two of them now that I have a spare moment to myself. So without further adieu or forgetfulness...

The first happend on Good Friday where, as Catholics, we venerate the cross. We do this by going forward in a line to kiss the feet of the crucified Jesus. As we went up Noel wanted to know what we were doing, so I told him we were kissing Jesus' boo-boos just like I did for him to make him feel better. Noel went up and dutifully kissed the feet of Christ, and as we walked back to our pew he loudly stated, "Jesus got bad boo-boos! How did Jesus get such bad boo-boos?"

The other little tale has been ongoing. Chris' sister is expecting her first baby any minute now. Everytime Noel sees her and we talk about the little boy in her tummy, he states that he has a little boy in his tummy. He has gotten more and more adamant about his little boy and the last time we were all together he insisted everyone be careful around his belly. He also told his Nanny that his baby was named "little Noel".

Hopefully, I will think of the other little funny and have a spare second to write it down. If not, there are plenty more where these came from.

An Easter Surprise!

If you knew me well, as the four people who follow this blog do. You would know I am the last person who would welcome a rodent into their house. So, I can honestly not explain what possessed me to decide to get the boys a bunny for Easter. Even more unlikely is the fact that Chris agreed to this wacky idea. So much so that all Chase could say all day is "I can't believe you got us a bunny, but I really can't believe Dad let you!"

Nevertheless, I became slightly obsessed with the notion of greeting the boys with their very own rabbit on Easter morning. So, a few phone calls and some internet research later and on

Saturday afternoon I picked up this little girl. I wanted to name her Maisy. Chase did not care for that, but offered Daisy. Noel wanted to name her Parker (coincidentally, his best friend's name).

The boys are totally infatuated. Buddy is not amused. And I am no longer the only girl in the house. Well, sort of, Daisy lives on the porch but comes in to hang out.

We had a wonderful Easter even though Chris' dad ended up in the hospital. We had much to be thankful for as his chest pain was not a heart attack but a warning sign of a blockage and as of this post he is recooperating at home.

And so it begins...

Last Thursday night Chase ran from the back of the house into the kitchen with a dramatic announcement. He has a mustache. Now, what he really has is the fuzz that every other person has on their upper lip. He insisted his was getting darker though and couldn't we see it? He then proceded to manuver his head around to try and catch the light just so. I finally admitted seeing "something" so the child would go to bed. Fast forward to Saturday when the family was preparing to head to the Mexican restaraunt. Chase comes from changing clothes into the living room with a look that can only be described as a mix of triumph and mischief. I immediately smell Chris' cologne. Yep, my nine year old was wearing Victoria's Secret's Very Sexy for Men. The next morning while getting ready for church he and his Dad argued over using the hair gel and once again I had a very good smelling son. Monday, being Monday, Chase barely managed to get out the door clothed much less go through his new grooming techniques. Alas, today though when I called for load up out ran Chase hair gelled into a faux hawk and smelling, you guessed it, Very Sexy. What the heck, two weeks ago I couldn't get the kid to take a bath!!! I am managing not to despair too much about this new found sense of maturity because Chase has taken to calling himself "Kid Cologne". As long as there is still "kid" in the title, I guess I will manage.

No One Likes Homework, but This is Ridiculous

I pulled Chase's homework folder out of his backpack last night to find this as his assignment. I immediately laughed until I cried. Fortunately, Chase was at soccer practice. Most parent's might be angry and alarmed at this, but I was certain it was just a spelling error. Chase is pretty sheltered at his little Christian school and is a notoriously bad speller. Sure enough, when he got home and I asked him what his reading homework was he said a "reading sheet".

The funny thing is his teacher checks to make sure they have written their assignments down, and has signed off on his paper. She has a great sense of humor so I sent her a funny note and am looking forward to her response.

I guess it is only a matter of time before I have to worry about language like this used on purpose. He is definitely getting bolder using "fart" instead of our preferred "toot". And then passionately arguing there is nothing wrong with that. I told you he was sheltered. He has also been nonchalantly throwing around the correct term for the male anatomy. It is incredibly hard to keep a straight face when your child is telling you that penis is a "biological term". I finally explained that, biology aside, it isn't a term you randomly bring up in conversation. And the adventures in the rearing of boys continues...

I Have it in Writing.

Noel is officially potty trained! I say officially because it is now on the potty chart at daycare. He has been doing a great job going to the potty for the last two and a half weeks. All it took, was peer pressure. His best friend is the other child who is potty trained on the chart. The week he came to school in big boy underwear, Noel demanded to start wearing it too. It was as easy as that. He is still sleeping in a diaper at night, and wakes up wet about half the time. I can live with that. So far we have had to pull over on the side of the road once and made Chase late for school once, but I suppose that is a fair trade to be finished with diaper duty.

The really strange thing is, unless Chris has a major change of heart or God totally intervenes, I may be done with diapers for good. I can't decide how I feel about that. Not the literal diapers part, but the fact I may never have another baby. Noel makes it very clear he is a "big boy" even if I am just lovingly calling him my baby. However, I am not so sure how he would truly feel about having that position usurped. The truth is, it is not mine to worry about, and I am sure God is shaking is head at me after teaching me that so clearly 3 or so years ago. So, for now I will enjoy my big boys and my respite from purchasing and changing diapers.

Family Photos and I am a "didiot"

We had a BLAST having family photos done on Sunday! Here are a few. Chase, who really dreaded the entire thing became America's Next Top Model striking poses before being asked. Noel could occasionally be bribed to stay in the shot with gummies. I can't believe how grown up and handsome my two fun sons are.

I fully intended the photos to be the bulk of the blog today, but on the way home, out of the blue, Noel said, "I can't talk to you mom you're a diditot." As I was thinking to myself 'did he just call me an idiot', he repeated "you're a didiot, mom". After some gentle correction, I was informed that Little Foot (character on Land Before Time) says it all the time, but I have my doubts.

More Profound Wisdom from the 9 yr, old

We are in the thick of potty training at our house. This is version, oh, 4.0 at least. Noel is doing great this go round, peepeeing very consistently and 3 poopoos in the potty, thank you very much. He should be, the entire thing has been on his terms, but I digress.
The real motivator of late is the big boy underwear. This morning Chase was supervising as I was getting Noel dressed. When it was underwear time, Noel became ecstatic and began to dance and chant about his drawers. Chase turned to me and matter of factly observed, "Give a kid some big boy pants, and they think they rule the world."

Snowy Forecast

Well, the forecast is calling for snow-AGAIN. So, in honor of that I am posting some photos from Snowpocalypse 2011. Our week of snow was a lot of fun. However I am fairly certain Chase will lose his mind if they have to make up another day of school. His school decided to go on MLK day and he pitched such a fit, you'd have thought HE marched in Montgomery! He is all for a snow day, but totally does not get the concept that those days have to be made up.

Speaking of Chase, he did his vision therapy tonight without complaint and spoke of the times when he complained about it for hours on end as far in the past. We had such a great conversation together during the therapy that it brought tears to my eyes because he was talking to me so maturely. I am totally amazed he was in such a good mood considering today was "Red Day" at his school and in his words he was the "only person at his school who was not wearing red." Oh well, he was at school, dressed and on time so I don't plan to lose any sleep tonight.

A no good, very bad day (week, month)?

The plague swept through our house the past week and a half. It started with Chris having the flu, the mid-point was Chase contracting strep, and lastly I came down with the flu and then a secondary bacterial infection. As is usually the case, mom got it the worst and the longest. I was literally in bed from Tuesday through Friday, and still wasn't too hot the entire weekend.
It was a horrible feeling on top of feeling horrible. Noel, who thankfully escaped the germs, was constantly trying to sneak into the bedroom where I was. He is currently obsessed with all things dinosaur, including The Land Before Time, and at one point I could here the characters singing a song about missing their families. In a matter of minutes, Noelly is trying to sneak into my bed. Chris and to come get him and he sobbed and sobbed like his little heart was breaking, and, of course, so did I.
Now that I am on the road to recovery, I am having a really hard time getting back on track. So is the family. At least I hope that is our problem. I am not, by nature, a positive person. I have to make a concerted effort to see the glass as half full. I have, in my adulthood, just come to recognize this as my personality and I do make that concerted effort. I fear Chase has inherited some of the less desireable traits of my personality and this is one of them. One "off" thing, no matter how minor can throw him into a downward spiral.
Last night the thing was he had written the date as 1-32-11 on his paper. I told him this couldn't be correct as no month has more then 31 days. Who would think this minor, really cute, little error could lead to a major meltdown? It did complete with tears, threatening punishments, etc. It seems his teacher did not change their classroom calendar, and he just could not admit or accept his responsibility and change the date. Have a I mentioned he is strong-willed? Remember those less than desireable traits from me...
Once we FINALLY got past the fact the date was February 1st and it would indeed have to be changed on the paper, Chase proceeded to throw a full-blown pity party about everything he percieved to be wrong in his life, including but not limited to: his vision therapy (another post), homework, the brevity of his summer vacation, the fact we do not spend enough time together as a family, and him mom is the only one who works outside the home. Ultimately, the discussion and fallout was ended by bedtime and things were back to semi-normal this morning.
I will admit it did open a floodgate of guilt, emotion, and questions. I will also admit this is one of many similar incidents. Am I raising a brat? Should I quit my job and stay home? Is Chase's rotten attitude my fault somehow? Or, is it what Chris suggested, just a bad day?

A Tale of Two Beds

So, sometime in, say, mid-September, we finally took down Noel's crib. This was NOT a lightly made decision as Noel loved his crib and slept in it so well. But let's face it, the kid is huge and he had totally outgrown his crib. We pulled the molded firetruck bed out of the basement, Noel was thrilled, and the first few days went deceptively well. Then reality set in. The child would not stay in his bed. And we aren't talking sit in the floor and look at books or play with toys. We are talking constantly getting up and traipsing into the living room. If he heard us coming, he would sprint to his room and slam the door. This would go on until late into the night, way past when Chris and I would want to go to sleep.

Eventually, we just started letting him sleep with Chase, as I am a big believer in whatever works for everyone to get a good night's sleep. They both seemed happy as clams with the arrangement so we decided to invest in a set of bunk beds. Finally we were able to pick them up in early December, and to say the boys were excited is a total understatement. Even now, more than a month later they switch from top to bottom bunk until they finally settle down in one. Nevermind, the fact we chose a twin over full model thinking they would at least sleep downstairs if they chose to sleep together, they are always two peas in a pod.

I am not naieve enough to think this brotherly love will last, but for now it warms my heart.

Semi-Silent Saturday

My resolution is not off to a banging start. I had decided to at least try to post one blog a week which makes this one a day late. Today we finally transferred our Christmas photos from the camera to the computer so today's theme is: Christmas Retrospective.

Noel turned three! We had cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday, but his big party comes in May when we celebrate his adoption.

I am fairly certain Noel's favorite part of Christmas was the cookies. He had one in had constantly for approx. 4 days.

Chase was thrilled with most of his gifts this particular one was a new Wii game from Grandma and Papa.

Santa was good to the boys as usual bringing new bedding for their bunk beds, which were an early Christmas gift in a way. Noel asked Santa for Dinosaur toys and a big shark for the bathtub. Chase wanted Legos, a new DVD player for the van, and surprises. Santa came through. And the last and most exciting Christmas surprise was a white Christmas. It snowed all day, huge wet flakes. Our Christmas dinner turned into a Christmas lunch so my brother could and Chris' family could come and go safely.

Semi Wordless Wednesday

Given this is the third snow day in a row, I had to do a little extra thinking about what day it was. This will be my first attempt at uploading a video to the blog. It is a little long, but if you hang on until the end you will see some totally sweet dance moves by one Noel Lammers at the end. This is our Gingerbread House attempt a few days before Christmas. You will have to follow the link because blogger would NOT let me upload here ; (
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=580905479112&saved

Resolutions

My New Year's Resolution is to bring back the blog! I do not usually make New Year's resolutions, but I have been feeling super horrible about my blog neglect. I have so much to report. Obviously the holidays, and Noel's big 3rd birthday. Anyways, I am glad to be back!
Just before Christmas I had an experience that led me to resolve to blog. So here is the story:
Noel is obviously becoming more self-aware. One day he saw a photo of a black man holding a child and said, "that is Noelly and Noelly's Daddy." I just laughed and told him his Daddy was in the bedroom. A few weeks later, at his parent teacher conference I shared the story with his teachers and encouraged them to be open about his adoption and race. A few days later, his teacher told me he had said one of his black schoolmate's father was his daddy.
On the way home Noel said to me, " I want to change colors." Immediately, my mind began to race with worry. I probed Noel and asked him why he wanted to change colors, and he said it was because Daddy wanted him to. Extra panic. Finally, I asked him what color he was going to change to and he said yellow. I was so upset at this point. I was thinking about pursuing counseling, and was nearly in tears that my sweet baby thought he needed to change colors.
I even went so far as to tell Noel that he was perfect and the we loved him no matter what and he never, ever had to change colors. I am telling you, I was beside myself. I am not sure why, but something made he think to ask Noel what color I was. The answer, pink. So then I asked what color Daddy was-green. Chase? Brown
So as it turns out we are just one colorful family and all is well in the world.