Ketchup? Catsup? CATCHUP!

The boys had their regular visit to the dentist last month and passed with flying colors. Our Dr.-Seuss-lookalike-dentist said that Logan will need braces at some point (doy) and Declan's got a couple loose teeth. Like a week after that visit, Declan lost his first tooth and it was a magical experience for all. At the dentist he also got his first dental x-rays. They went through about four of those stupid things you're supposed to bite down on in the right way before Declan understood that he's supposed to just hold it there in his mouth instead of flipping it around and chewing on it. Sometimes we have a listening problem.

Logan's developed quite the fear of spiders recently. He's always been sort of afraid of them, but lately it's been panicky. He came running into the kitchen one night breathing a little heavy like he was panicking and Chris and I asked him what the problem was. He said, "I'm just waiting in here while Declan kills a spider." As Chris and I looked at each other and asked Logan if he was really making his little brother kill a spider for him, we heard a faint thud from down the hallway followed immediately by Declan's voice calling, "It's ok, Logan! I got him!" And Logan happily scampered back to his room to continue whatever he and Declan had been playing. Well...ok, then.

We went bowling as a family a few Saturdays ago and had a blast. I won, but Chris thinks there should be an asterisk beside my win since I made judicious use of the bumpers put on our lane for the kids. And I'm like, "Use it if you got it!" The kids had so.much.fun! They had some sweet 80s music playing and the entire time that Declan was not bowling, he was dancing his pants off to the songs.

Declan got a scratch on his arm a few days ago when he learned about thorns on rosebushes. It was bleeding, and Logan wisely told Declan to lick the blood so it would get back inside his body. Good tip, Logan.

And can I say that I'm so freaking glad April is over because that means the end of April Fools jokes around here? Logan loved April Fool's Day so much that he decided the whole month of April was made for foolery. So I've been listening to things like, "Mommy! There's a spider on your shirt! APRIL FOOLS! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!" allllllll freaking month.

We dyed easter eggs, as requested (or demanded) by the kids. They had such a fun time with it. I remember having such a fun time with it when I was a kid, but now all I can think about is the potential mess. This is one of the ways I know I'm old. Anyway, in classic Logan style, he participated shirtless. I don't know what exactly my kids have against clothes, but I've finally decided on a compromise that they only have to be dressed when we leave the house or we have visitors over. The rest of the time they can underwear it up if they feel the need. And boy, do they feel the need.

Yay Six!

Me: Hey Declan, whatcha doin' today?
Declan: Oh, just turning six.

Since his last birthday, Dex has been to Rhode Island, been to Washington D.C., started Kindergarten, and started martial arts classes. He's grown a ton and looks more like a second or third grader than a Kindergartener. He's still best buddy to Logan and my most consistent shadow. He's incredibly kind and sweet, as long as you're not trying too hard to make him do something he definitely does not want to do.

Declan loves, LOVES, animals. He had a field trip to a big farm yesterday and assured his teacher that everything would be fine since he can communicate with cows. They some nature film in class a few weeks ago and after school Declan was telling me about some kind of bug where the mom leaves the babies after they're born and some of the babies get eaten by other bugs and he started crying at the thought of it. When he grows up he wants to be a "vetatarian"...or maybe a rock star.

With the combination of Declan's birthday and Mother's Day on its way, I of course am spending a lot of time thinking about how lucky I am to be mom to these kids. Yay!

Updates

I haven't put pictures up here in a long time. Our camera broke recently, so most of the pictures I have are from my phone which isn't the highest quality. But usually when I sit down to make a post, it's because I need to get some things out of my brain (this blog, I've realized, sort of works like Dumbledore's Penseive) and I'm in a hurry which is kind of the speed of life around here lately.

So, in the past month or so:

-The kids have started martial arts (Krav Maga, specifically) in an effort to improve their discipline, focus, confidence, blahblahblahwhatever else people do martial arts for. It's going well, for the most part. Logan takes it totally seriously and seems to have pretty good form for his kicks and punches and usually isn't the focus of the instructor's attention for doing it wrong. Declan's our Logan opposite. (I think you can all see where this is going.) He is the one in line twirling around with his mind off in space. He generally has to be reminded how to stand or how to move properly. We've got a ways to go with that kid, but he's at least trying and interested and has a lot of potential.

-We're on Spring Break and for the start of the week my BFF Maclaine came to visit us with her two youngest boys. The kids all fell in love and had a blast together. So much that when it was time for the Texans to re-Tex themselves, there were a lot of tears from mostly everyone except Maclaine and I. Logan and Declan have decided that Maclaine and her family feel like our family and can't they just be a part of our family even though they're not really? And how do I respond to that other than, "Sure." We're hoping to make a trip to Texas to return the visit in the summertime.

-We've known Logan has allergies for a while, but a recent visit to the doctor has added asthma to that. The asthma is aggravated by the allergies and our pediatrician got Logan on an inhaler routine to help relieve the insane amount of coughing he does, especially when he's trying to sleep. That was about a week ago and there's been a huge improvement and so far we're not needing the fast-acting inhaler. The asthma/allergies aren't a huge surprise, given the Ed-ness of Logan so we're rolling with it and doing fine.

-Logan is 78 lbs. and 54" tall; Declan is 70 lbs. and 50" tall.


Logan putting on his gloves.


Declan showing off in line.

Randoms

-Declan got out of the bathtub and wanted to comb his hair. I stood at the counter and watched him as he swept it this way and that, trying to find that certain je ne sais quoi. He got frustrated and I asked him what the problem was. "I don't like the sprouts." Your guess is as good as mine as to what the sprouts actually are, but they were making him *mad*. He wanted spikes, not sprouts. I told him that because his hair is kind of curly, it won't do straight spikes unless it's a lot shorter. We agreed to get him a haircut this weekend.

For the time being, he wanted to figure out a cool hairstyle, so I gave him a few minutes to figure it out. When I went back, I asked him how it was going and his response was that it still wasn't looking how he wanted it to. I asked what it was in particular he was thinking he could get it to look like. "Like it has fire. Like the tips of my hair are flames of fire." Words failed me; genetics failed him.

-Apparently the bus driver calls Declan "Little Logan" or "Little [Last Name]". For some reason that I can't articulate in any way, every time I think of that, I start giggling to myself. It makes me happy.

-Logan's been chugging along happily in school and doing very well. He's one of two kids in his class who have completed all 25 of his word lists for the year and is rocking the socks off his math progress. He loves school and at the same time loves his days off school. It's a contrast to Declan, who's made a visit to the principal's office two out of three days so far this week. Note: The third day was a snow day.

Things kids say

Over dinner the other night, Declan was being Declan and relaying every thought that came through his head to the rest of the family. Things like, "Socks go in between shoes and feet" and "Sometimes dogs are brown." When Declan took a bite of his bread and butter and then announced to us, "I like bread," Logan said in a very dry, monotonous manner, "That's a great story."
________

Recently Andrea made french dip sandwiches for Sunday dinner and after Declan was done eating, he walked up to Chris and said proudly (with a fabulous gesture that I wish I could express in words), "I almost barfed, but then I sucked it back up!"
________

DECLAN: I don't like wearing those things.
ME: What things?
DECLAN: Pants and shirts.
(This particular announcement after I found him in the kitchen completely naked.)

Testicles

A long time ago when Logan was 3ish, he was standing in the kitchen naked from the waist down. I don't remember the reason for the occasion, but if you know my boys at all, that's not a surprise. He was chitchatting with me and absent-mindedly feeling his parts. He then asked one of the funniest questions in my memory of my kids: "Mommy, what are these stripey things between my legs?" I've heard/read/been told the best way to handle these situations is give correct answers to the exact question a child asks - no more, no less. So I responded that they were testicles. After a minute of thought he asked what they were for, and the best answer I could come up with on the spot was something along the lines of: "When you grow up and decide you want to be a daddy, they'll help you make babies." Fine and dandy. Life went on.

Except.

Somewhere in the course of time, Logan relayed this particular information to Declan. Apparently we played a short game of telephone with it because one day recently Declan told me - out of nowhere - that those ball things between his legs were his babies and when he grows up he's going to have two babies because he has two of those. After dropping the 411 on me, he walked away to continue his life and I was left to consider his (and Logan's) interpretation of the issue. I decided it was best to let them continue with this misinformation since it's not hurting anyone, it's close enough to the truth, and they're too young to really have any sort of talk that will actually explain the facts. We're not ready for details.

Fast forward to tonight after dinner. Logan was adjusting himself and I asked him if there was a problem with his wing ding since he was needing to do that near the table? He said, in a voice *dripping* with know-it-all attitude that a 7-year-old can manage as well as a teenager, "Those things that are my babies? They're sticking to my leg and I'm trying to unstick them."

While listening to music in the car...

Logan: I don't get what "Love Shack" means.
Me: Uh, well, it's a shack where people go to kiss.
Logan: What the...? I'm never going to a love shack.