Six...

On August 27th Marcus turned 6!

And this is how he spent his day:

He was up bright and early for birthday pancakes and the opening of gifts. Then he was off to his 8th day of first grade (1st day without crying!) Charlie, Gwen and I took doughnuts to his class for a treat. Marcus was King for the day! And they did treat him like royalty.
After school he got to open a few more things. His favorite gift: the skateboard.
For the afternoon party we headed to Jump-On-It. This was the crew: Charlie, Marcus, Sumner, Isaac and Porter.

And then we came home for cake and ice cream.

Thanks to all who made Marcus's birthday great!

And I had the time of my life...

We spent all of last week in Island Park, Idaho. We stayed at my uncle's extremely sweet cabin. We played in the water all day every day. I didn't want to come home. Here are a few pics from the trip!

Only regret: We didn't wash the sheets.

First Day of First Grade...

Heaven help me.

A Day in the Life of Charles...

7:30 a.m.- 1st Breakfast

8 a.m.- tells Marcus his breath stinks

9:30 a.m.- plays in the rain

10 a.m.- 2nd Breakfast

11:30 a.m.- mini ice cream cone

11:35 a.m.- tells Marcus to 'drink his ice cream up like a man!'

noon- handful of chips

12:15 p.m.- 1st bowl of Ramen Noodles

12:19 p.m.- 2nd bowl of Ramen Noodles

12:30 p.m.- finishes off Grandpa's fries with fry sauce

1:30-3 p.m.- off to play with cousins (no notes on exactly what happened there.)

3:30 p.m.- finds an old bag of popcorn on the counter. Munches for a bit.

3:33 p.m.-begs for a snack pack of chocolate pudding. We're all out. Settles for chocolate chips.

4:30 p.m.- slice of left over pizza

6:00 p.m.- chicken nuggets with ranch

8:15 p.m.- large red otter pop

9:20 p.m.- chocolate milk

9:35 p.m.- fast asleep

Charlie was lucky today. He never gets to eat this 'good'. We usually have to throw some fruits 'n' vegis in there some where. Sheeeeesh!

Here's the deal...

If you're in Utah County this Saturday you MUST go here:

You got it...

Gwen's favorite things to do:

*Wiggle

*Talk

*Sit up (almost on her own)

*Stand up (with help)

*Sleep

*Eat

*Be on the move

This girl is a case for the record books!

She is so wiry and active. She's not a snuggler. And she doesn't like being held like a baby. She needs to be in the middle of it all. Always watching, always going. She's SO busy! Her personality is already showing and frankly, I'm a little scared.

And I don't think I've learned my lesson

So, I've told you about Marcus's friend Jordan before.

He's a saint of a child and only charges $5 to mow our third of an acre.

He really is a good kid.

And Marcus and Charles just love playing with him.

Sometimes Jordan forgets that he's 12, Marcus is almost 6 and Charles a mere 3.

We've encountered several occasions where the little boys have been hurt (trampoline, treadmill etc... )

But this one...this one takes the cake.

Marcus and Jordan were playing Wii. Marcus's turn to bowl. Jordan didn't want Marc to get a strike. Jordan throws a pillow at Marc. Marc's controller hits him in the tooth.

TOOTH. KNOCKED. OUT.

If only I would have known it was the last time I'd see that beautiful gap of his. Believe me. I would have taken lots of pictures of it.

A Kook Of A Mook

Yesterday was a fit of a day!

Marcus left us to find a "new Mom that was nicer to him."

He spent over an hour in 'time out' for the usual fighting and being annoying. I told him that I was trying to teach him a lesson, to be a better boy. But, no! He would have none of that. He yelled and screamed and tried telling me that I haven't ever taught him anything. I reminded him of a few things that (I know for sure) I have taught him. It wasn't good enough.

He stormed out of the house with 3 pairs of shorts on (for armor) and no shoes.

He made it 3 houses down only to return because he'd forgotten something. And then headed out again. He made it to the 3rd house down again and then turned around. By this point Charlie thought for sure he'd lost his big brother forever! Marcus came back inside to proclaim that he's NEVER learned anything from me! I tried to apologize for that saying I was sorry that he hadn't learned anything from me, but that wasn't MY problem. So off he went again (this time with shoes.) He decided to head in the other direction (maybe he could get farther.) He got next door only to turn around again! He stormed inside and said "OK, I'll stay!" To which I replied "No, really you don't have to. There are plenty of nice Moms in the neighborhood that would be glad to have you!" We argued some more and then again he was gone (this time with his scooter.) Charlie and I watched out the window. Me, quietly laughing my guts out and Charlie with big tears in his eyes. Would we ever see Marcus again? Oh yes! He had to tell SOMEONE about riding around the loop all by himself.

Gwenie Penny Pie

Gwen is 3 months old now. And it seems like we're really getting to know each other. We've come to an agreement: if I give her everything she needs exactly when she needs it then she'll give me everything I need too (like sleep and the occasional alone time.)
This girl is a true blessing to us all. Not only am I totally in love but Brent and the boys are too. It's just what we were missing... Sweetness.

Preparations

Each year for the 4th of July the boys get mohawks.

And luckily this year Gwen came with one too.

We even talked our best buds from the neighborhood into getting a mohawk too.

Porter, Jordan and Marcus

Marcus Thinks He's A Baller... (A T-Baller)...

...and he pretty much is!

Brent Thinks He's a Baller...

...and he pretty much is.

What Would You Do?

What would you do if you had a baby chick that grew hair straight up?