What Saturday mornings look like when...

....when you live with a Monkey and a Wolf.

Lemonade Stand

The funny thing about summer and blogging is that we do a lot of fun, great stuff and don't have time to talk about it.  Whooops!

Every summer the boys turn into businessmen and start a lemonade stand.  The Monkey takes it very seriously.  He plans the product output, site placement  and presentation.  He does the math and will patiently wait ALL day for customers.  He wants to make money for legos and nothing is going to stop him.  I don't even want to start thinking about what that means for the future.

The Wolf is there for advertising.  He puts his extra loud voice to good use, shouting, "LEMONADE FOR SALE!"  He even goes door-to-door in case the neighbors haven't heard him.  His personality is so big and he really knows how to reel in the customers.  If you ask him what his favorite job is, he'll say, "Taste testing."

The Rooster is not allowed near the stand and you know he's gotten too close when Monkey and Wolf yell, "BABYZILLA!!"

The neighbor friend, who we shall be thus forth referred to as The Weasel, wanted to charge a dollar.  We talked them down to 25 cents and then they started raking in the money!  I've seen people drop in $5 bills.  

Hellllllloooooo? Where are you guys?

I knew July was going to be busy, but sheesh!  The Monkey, Wolf and Rooster have been incredibly busy:  trips, swimming, biking, expoloring the world, making new friends, and big NEWS for one little Rooster.  Look for stories and pictures this weekend.

OH!  Guess who has a birthday this Sunday?

Rooooooster!

All American Summer

Yesterday marked the first official day of summer and we were blasted for the second day in a row with 90+ heat.  In a house with no air conditioning this means two things:  fans and popsicles.  I won't even tell you how many popsicles I personally ate.

Besides a few bouts of crankiness (mostly me and the baby Rooster), it has been an awesome start to the summer.  We've been learning about Italy and astronomy.  The boys made raviolis with Erin and have been working on a model of the solar system.  Their favorite planet is Venus because it is "Earth's evil twin."

This week's highlights are quintessentially American:  baseball games, catching fireflies, sparklers, and sprinklers.

 Monkey the Cub Scout

 We got to walk the field because it was Scouts Day!  Super cool!

 Rooster is the king.

 Baseball is intense.

 Swinging Rooster

 A Wolf in Spiderman's Clothing

 The Wolf can't be captured by modern cameras.

 Monkey the fire thrower.

 Spinning

 Ready

 Set

Go!

The First Day of Summer Break

...was lazy and relaxing.  Sleeping in, TV time, playing in the fort, reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," and a baseball game (where, yet again, they tried to recruit my Monkey for football...no thanks, buddy).  

Highlights included:  a surprise skype with Auntie Henry and Uncle Etienne in Dubai;

 

finding this little guy...

Rooster watering the flowers...

and Wolf Boy pleading not guilty to throwing dirt.

Solid start to an awesome summer.

The Characters

ZJ is 8 and has broken his arm twice already.  He insists on climbing everything he sees.  He is bright, thoughtful, sneaky and freakishly athletic for this family.  He devours books and loves to sing pop songs.  He drives me crazy with his perfectionism and tattle-taling.  He is my right hand man and roots me to who I want to be.  I could probably live and die in the freckles under his twinkling eyes.  He was born in the year of the monkey.

EJ is 5 and has dubbed himself "The Wolf".  He is quite small for his age, but I'm sure he doesn't know.  He is clever and spends hours creating worlds out of legos.  He is imaginative and incredibly smart.  He has been dealing with a terrible goblin infestation in our yard for going on 9 months.  He is impulsive and has a hulk size temper.  He challenges me and breaks my heart daily, only to make me fall in love with him all over again.  I could ride the waves of his giggles to the other side of the world.

RJ will be a year old in July.  He loves eating, cruising, clapping and eating more.  He is my baldest baby and the only one who bites.  He can be quite serious at times, but is extraordinarily witty for a baby. He has developed an interesting war cry or crow when he is on the hunt (usually for food), hence the name.  His brothers adore him and he knows it.  My heart skips a beat every time he wiggles his eyebrows at me.  He is a Mama's boy.