Classic...

Little brother woke up big brother at 7am to prepare for their FIRST lemonade stand during our garage sale. It was a proud Mom day...they had clothes ready to go and came to the kitchen fully dressed. Ethan grabbed a doughnut for each of them and out they came carrying their supplies. Their first sale was a customer who gave them a $1 bill to keep. Ethan looked stumped, thinking he paid for lemonade and should have some :) What a great way to start their day! With a steady flow of people, Ethan began to ask people if they'd like some lemonade and of course very few turned him down. He counted back change and exchanged niceties. It wasn't long before Nolan followed suit. What great lil entrepreneurs they were! After the sale, Ethan ran into the house to count their money and discovered they made $18, which they both split equally. I was oozing with pride...love my boys!

Catching Up...

For those interested...This is what we've been up to for the last month or so...We always enjoy the annual Carillon Festival and Fireworks. We're fortunate to live nearby and can hear the bells periodically during the week and throughout the spring and summer. Anyway, the boys travel in style over to the park in our SUV Radio Flyer (gotta love gifts from Grandma and Grandpa) with glow sticks and all! Top notch fireworks AND better than any we've seen around here on the 4th of July.














































Next...

Out with the old, in with the new...We said good riddens to our old, very inefficient patio door (not too mention as my Dad put it, "It looks like crap"). Thanks to my Dad, brother and Uncle Tom we're now enjoying our new energy efficient, beautiful Marvin door :) Who knew a new door could bring such small joy, but it sure does...It rolls open oh so smooth, the screen is actually on the outside, no gaps for outside winged or 6 legged critters to crawl or fly through, and the BEST part is...(drum roll please)... no billy bar needed to keep the door 'locked'! Woohoo!

Slippers in Summer

Nolan started a trend over the winter...my slippers were the last thing off before slipping into the warm bed at night and the first things on my feet before hitting the floor in the morning. Nolan would often come in to "check" on me to see if I was awake and then one morning he just started handing me my slippers when I got up. With the warmer temps, I've worn them very little and haven't had them bedside for at least a few weeks. They've just been kinda here and there around the bedroom. Maybe since the mornings are brighter now, Nolan heads down stairs by himself, but this morning...I woke up to that familiar soft breathing sound towards the back of my head. Rolled over to see it was my Nolan suckin his two fingers, holding his baby bear in one hand and there behind him was a full length mirror giving me full view of what he was holding in the other...my slippers :) If time could just stand still...

Buds

The other day I took Nolan with me to help out in Ethan's class on a project for his teacher...having been there awhile, the kids were lining up to head outside and Nolan asked if he could go too. Thankfully Ethan's teacher was on it before I could reply and asked that he join them. Ethan was at the front of the line and began calling for him..."bud, bud over here". Then another friend or two wanted to help summon him, too, by referring to him as "bud". Ethan very politely, but firmly looked at his friends and said "you call him Nolan, not bud". Loved that! A little big brother pride showing, the good kind :) May they be lifetime buds...

SEVEN

Hard to believe my firstborn son is 7 today! Happy Birthday Ethan! He's been counting the days for a month I think...he decided to choose a lego theme for his party this year, so we sent out 6 invites to classmates. Saturday was the big party and we had 5 boys and one girl come to celebrate ringing in Ethan's 7th year. The kids started the party off with a lego hunt searching for duplo size legos hidden all around the yard. Next, everyone received a baggy with the same number of lego car parts to assemble a race car. Soon to follow was a lego car derby race to see whose car was the fastest. Josh engineered a wooden race track and ran the heats till we crowned a champion. The last game was a lego toss (much like Bozo's Grand Prize Game - loved that show!). What's a party without ice cream cake with chocolate chip cookie dough, no less :) Favorite gifts were his Agents Lego set and a square Bakugan.
It was a great day!

Double Lovin'

Picked up Nolan from pre-school the other day and he says "I'm double lovin' Jesus today". You see he had on his favorite cross necklaces (2 of them)... He's so good at loving unconditionally, not expecting anything in return. My 4 year old inspires me :)

2am Scare

Scene:
Hughson house
Setting:
Parent's bedroom
Time:
2:00 am
Characters:
Mom, Dad and 4 year old son

All is quiet and family is in a DEEP slumber...Enter 4 year old son...running into parent's bedroom crying. (Picture all of what you're about to read happening in half a milli-second)... Dad jerks upright, Mom is startled hearing running footsteps, and crying. Half out of it, she believes there's someone else coming after her son. She cowers into her husband believing her head may be in danger and screams twice while her husband summons their son towards him (why would he come closer, with Mom screaming in terror??) at the same time he 'protects' her from the 'intruder' by getting on top of her. He says in her ear "it's ok, it's ok". She snaps out of her moment of terror realizing her 4 year old was just reacting...to... a... bad... dream.

Oh, for the love of Pete! This is not the first time I've been scared out of a slumber because of Nolan having a bad dream, but this takes the cake. In the past, he's tiptoed into our room and stood at the side of the bed, my side of course, and I awake to the sound of 'someone' breathing heavy in my ear. Heart rate hits the fan! I'm appreciating Ethan's preferred way of seeking solace during bad dreams...he stays in bed, pulling up the covers over his face, and calls for us in an ascending manner...therefore allowing me to gently awaken and console him without a racing heart.

Oh, how different our kids can be!