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.