Boy Heaven

Adam and Andrew had a special treat this weekend -- a mini-vacation! Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Kyle invited them to their house in Augusta, where the boys spent two days in Boy Heaven. Lindsay and Kyle are renting a house on a farm until they find a house to buy, and it is an ideal place for little boys to grub around. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

Adam and the resident longhorn

gearing up for fun on the farm

dueling tractors

what would a boys' weekend be without a truck?

exactly the reaction to horses I would've expected from both boys

Uncle Kyle showing the boys all the fish in the pond

the highlight of the weekend: first time fishing! Andrew with his first catch

Adam's first fish

bonus: grubbing around with worms. fishing is awesome.

getting the fish stink off the boys

it's too bad Adam didn't have any fun

Aunt Lindsay styled the boys' hair

not sure what's going on here...

Whew! That was just day one. The next day the boys were treated to putt putt golf, go carts, and a roller coaster. There were movies, cold pizza for breakfast, and probably all kinds of junk food I don't want to know about. Uncle Kyle contemplated eating a cricket or a worm to impress the boys while they fished, but Lindsay and I assured him that the boys' standards were way lower than that. So Kyle contented himself with burping for them. They were suitably delighted.

I asked the boys what they would say to Aunt Linsday and Uncle Kyle right now. In Andrew's words, "I liked fishing, and I liked going on the go-carts." Adam could not be reached for comment as there is a new Scooby Doo showing right now.

THANK YOU, AUNT LINDSAY AND UNCLE KYLE!

Toothrow Away Or Not...That Is the Question

Andrew has now lost two teeth. My sweet little baby's face is already changing and looking older. My friend Susan warned me this would happen when he lost teeth, so I was prepared. However, I was not prepared for the question of what to do with the lost baby teeth. When Andrew was born, Gangee gave him two little personalized silver keepsake boxes: one for his first curl and one for his first tooth. So the first tooth Andrew lost was easy -- I just popped it into its special little velvet-lined box and stuck it in Andrew's closet with his other baby mementos. Done.

But then Andrew ruined things by going and losing another tooth. There is no keepsake box for "Baby's Second Tooth." So now, sitting on my bathroom counter is that second little tooth. (The Tooth Fairy thoughtfully left it there for me after taking it from under Andrew's pillow.) And I am stumped as to what to do with it.

On the one hand, it really feels creepy to keep a collection of lost teeth. Because if I keep this one, I will have to commit to keep them all...and three kids times twenty baby teeth is...well, it's late and I don't want to do math, but I'm sure it's a lot. It just feels a little...I don't know...serial-killer-esque to hoard them. And where would I keep them? A plastic baggie doesn't seem dignified. I sure don't want them in my pajama drawer. Would having them made into a necklace be inappropriate? And what kind of earrings do you wear with a baby-tooth necklace?

But on the other hand, I pick up that little tooth, and it's...my sweet little baby's perfectly white, perfectly straight, perfectly perfect little tooth. The tooth that kept Andrew (and us) up nights as it came in. The tooth that we greeted with applause when it finally broke the surface. The tooth that signaled the end of the precious gummy baby grin and the beginning of the cheesy little toddler grin. And it's just sitting there on my counter -- a part of my boy. I can't bring myself to put it in the trash. It feels disrespectful and wrong just to throw it away.

So, there it is. Sorry, but this post will have no closure. Not tonight, anyway. The tooth will stay on my counter. Each morning for the next I don't know how many mornings, I will pick up the little tooth as I have done every morning for the past couple weeks and ponder again God's marvelous workmanship, my little guy's fleeting boyhood, and the question of what to do with this little tooth and the others that are surely to follow.

Aquaman

Showers at our house are oceans of fun.

She Didn't Mean It, Grandma...

A conversation with my daughter as I am putting her in her carseat:

Me: Who loves Libby? (I'm expecting the answer to be "Mama!")

Libby: Poppa Teef!

Me (a little surprised at the random answer but happy to hear it): Yes, Poppa Keith loves Libby! Who else loves Libby? Does Beppie love Libby?

Libby: Noooooooo. Poppa Teef!

Bubbie, Bibby, and Beppie

My aunt Barbara (Bubbie to her grandchildren) is in town! Libby and I were able to meet with her Great-Aunt Barbara and Grandma Betsy (Beppie) for coffee today.

Here they are -- Bubbie, Bibby, and Beppie:

Mother's Day: Behind the Scenes

Sunday was another in a series of really great Mother's Days. For the past seven years, I have felt loved and special on Mother's Day. This year was no exception. The last couple years, Steve and the boys have gone to an area grocery store to decorate a special Mother's Day cake for me. The first year they gave me the cake, Andrew asked breathlessly, "Isn't it the most BEAUTIFUL cake you've ever seen, Mom?" (It was.) This year they decorated a giant cookie cake. It is my favorite part of Mother's Day each year to see how excited the boys (and Steve!) get over this project.

I also got a beautiful necklace handstamped with the kids' names. My friend Alely made it. You can see her work here.

And...I got a new Bible. I have mixed feelings about this. I love my old Bible. I've had it since I was 17. I love looking through it and seeing underlined/highlighted passages and remembering why I marked them. I love how the old notes jotted in the margins bring to mind my beloved high school pastor preaching or the discussions we had with the girls' group that crowded into our college dorm room. There is even the note I wrote on the front page reminding myself to buy the study book we did in our first small group at our church. I know where everything is in that Bible. I might not always be able to cite something chapter and verse, but I can see it in my head and say, "That's in this book, on the left-hand side, about midway down the page" and turn right to it.

But, my sweet old Bible looks like this (missing cover thanks to Zoe, who ate it along with lots of copies of Guideposts back in her Christian Literature phase):

And I don't care. My friend Jen gets a kick out of seeing me with my ratty old Bible because she says it's just not like me. (To which I say, come on, Jen...you've seen the inside of my car. I'm really not that put-together!) However, in the past few weeks, my Bible has entered a new level of decrepitude. I really can't depend on it holding together any more, and I am afraid for its safety.

So, the kids got me this:

It's pink. It's called the Busy Mom's Bible. Like, like. I'm excited to think about what the notes and markings in this Bible might reveal about this current stage of life 15 or 20 years down the road. And I think it'll be a really good thing to read these new pages with new eyes.

I think it would be really great to attribute all this thoughtfulness every year to my kids, but I can't -- especially not Mother's Day 2003, when Andrew wasn't even born! No, the kids love Mother's Day, but they are still too little to arrange the kind of sweet Mother's Days I have experienced. The mastermind behind all my special days is Steve. I love how he encourages the kids to get excited to celebrate Mom! (I also love that he lets me sleep in and take a 3-hour nap on Mother's Day.) Thanks for being the Daddy behind Mother's Day, Steve!

Do I Hear Fairy Wings? **Update**

We are not sure whether to open the chimney flue or leave the front door unlocked...but tonight we are expecting our first visit from the tooth fairy.

That's right! This little guy:

Now looks like this (Bottom right...you may have to squint!):

**Update: To answer everyone's burning question, the tooth fairy did indeed come last night. She left Andrew two dollars since it was his first tooth. Future teeth will bring one dollar each -- unless he loses a tooth on Double Dollar Thursday, in which case the tooth fairy will bring two dollars.

Why I Can No Longer Look Andrew's Teacher in the Eye

The class: Kindergarten.

The assignment: Draw a picture of a scene from or the cover of your favorite book and write a sentence about why you like reading it.

The venue: Pictures and quotes from all the children will be displayed prominently in the main hallway outside the classroom.

The response from all the other students in the class: Appropriately reading-related.

Andrew's response (situated front and center on the wall at school):


Andrew's parents: Just waiting for the phone call from Children's Services.