Sorry Melissa- we have made the best oatmeal cookies ever! The boys LOVE them.

Sam is finally Mrs. Stephen Anderson! Her wedding was fabulous. I am very happy for both of them. The boys stayed with the Eagney's during the wedding. They seemed to have had a great time there.

Samantha and Stephen Anderson

September 30, 2006, Atlantic Center for the Arts, New Smyrna Beach, Florida

This week went by rather quickly. No major events. We spent the morning at Target and then took the boys to McDonald's for a quick lunch. Tonight is my friend Sam's wedding. She has had an extremely trying week. Her Monday started with a phone call in the middle of her teaching math class that she would not be able to get married where she originally planned as it would not be built in time! She had already pushed her date back just so she could get married there. I feel terrible for her, but she worked something out and I'm sure it will be wonderful! I only hope that the Atlantic Center for the Arts will go out of their way to make her wedding magnificant since it is not what she was hoping for! Chris' back is slowly recovering. He can at least stand straight up now! I even sacrificed my "leg pillow" last night. Okay, I don't know what I was thinking and probably should have let him borrow it weeks ago, but I never thought of it! I bought it when my back was bothering me when I was pregnant with the twins and it helped immensely. I can't believe that it was five years ago! My "babies" will be five in less than two months. I think them turning five is actually going to be harder for me than my 30th birthday was!

Ethan raced in the Rain Gutter Regatta today at Boy Scouts and I am proud to say that he came in 3rd Place. Here is one of the many photos I took...

Popcorn For Sale Now!

For those of you that would like to buy popcorn to support Ethan's Boy Scout troop, you can go to the site which is located at http://www.orderpopcorn.com and enter in the Order Key TEDEVMT. Doing this will give Ethan and his troop the credit for the sale.

Please remember to verify that you are giving Ethan the credit by clicking on the Order Key tab at the top of the page once you are logged in. It should say ETHAN S. -- CENTRAL FLORIDA if you are logged in correctly.

The selection on the site is not as great as it is in the paper catalog for some reason. If you don't see anything to your liking, let me know if you want to see the complete catalog and I can get you a copy over e-mail.

Ethan and I thank you in advance for your support!!! This is what helps the troop pay for all of their activities and camping trips throughout the year.






It's for me, you see.

We had a blast at Universal today. The kids even got to ride the ride that they have been dying to ride since we got our passes. Normally it has a 75 minute wait but today it was only 20 minutes! They seemed to like it a lot. I got to go through my favorite cave- twice! It was quite funny; I never knew there was a water feature in the cave and somehow it managed to shoot off right as Chris and Melissa were crossing the bridge! We all relaxed in the spa when we got home. We are planning a nice little night swim with the girls. Our days are numbered in the pool. Just over a month left. Normally the last week we can swim is the first week of November. The pool was 92 today so there are no signs of a cool down yet. Here are the kids enjoying the Jurassic area of Universal! More pictures to come. Chris has to convert them for me. Something about shooting in the raw... I don't know!

The boys are very happy that today is Friday. They are desperately hoping to go to Universal in the morning. Chris is torn about going since his back still hurts. He is a caver to the boys so I am sure we'll be going in the morning. Yesterday we watched Grey's Anatomy. It was so good! I didn't even cry for once. After school today we came straight home and jumped in the pool. It was so hot! Of course, once the sun started going down it felt freezing every time you got out of the pool. It looked like you were watching the boys in fast forward when they got out of the pool to get a toy or a snack. They moved really fast so they could get back into the toasty 92 degree pool! Tonight I made Chris one of his favorites for dinner. We had fried green tomato sandwiches. The last time we made them they weren't too great. This time they were much better. I think I'll have it perfected by my next attempt!

Thursday was the highly anticipated Grey's Anatomy season premiere!

Apparently, the boys wanted a moving fort and Hanzie was their only hope! Poor Hanzie was completely confused by it all. He is so tired from his nice long walk that he didn't know what was going on.

We have had a rainy afternoon! The rain is bringing a "cold front" so I can't complain! It will be dropping all the way down to 87 degrees this week. Bring out the winter clothes. Will and Noah decided to "moon bounce" while Ethan was at Cub Scouts tonight. They are enjoying themselves. Ethan usually is bossing them around and telling them what game they have to play in there so they are enjoying their "alone" time. Oh yeah, Grey's Anatomy is in 2 days!! Woohoo!!! Please contact me if you are interested in Cub Scout popcorn or Yankee Candles. Ethan is selling both. Popcorn is a Cub Scout fundraiser and the Yankee Candles are a school fundraiser.

I had to load the pictures one by one. This last one is of the ladies' man!

Chris' back is still bothering him so our weekend was pretty lame. We just hung out around the house for the most part. The boys begged me to take them to the dollar store on Saturday so I did that. Sunday we went swimming with the girls in the morning and yesterday afternoon I dropped Chris and the boys off to play tennis while I went grocery shopping. Noah was rather upset with Chris for hurting his leg wrist! Chris grabbed his ankle while they were wrestling. A reminder to all- the Grey's Anatomy season premiere is on Thursday!!! Flights are cheap and we are having a premiere party!!!

Well, blogger will only let me upload one picture at this time, so more will follow.

For homework tonight Ethan had to do a "senses" scavenger hunt. I thought you might enjoy his responses.
Something that smells pretty... "incense."
Something that tastes sweet... "cookies."
Something that feels bumpy..."the numbers on the phone."
Something that sounds loud..."my brothers."
Something that looks funny..."my brother Will."
Something that smells icky..."my brother Will."
Something that feels smooth..."my desk."
Something that we all like the sound of..."rain."
Something that looks symmetrical..."my dog."

Thankfully, this week has been very uneventful, so far! Ethan had Cub Scouts again yesterday. He gets home so late. They are normally in bed by 7:45 and on Cub Scout nights he isn't even getting home until nearly 8:30. He then is so grouchy and emotional on Wednesdays. This afternoon we went and swam with the girls at Bobbie's house. That broke up the afternoon nicely. We came home, made dinner, did homework, and played some games. It was then time for desert, books, and bed. Everyone was busy the entire night and there were no major meltdowns! Ethan just started the new Captain Underpants book- number 8. He thinks it is the funniest thing ever. The boys have also been into building forts since early this summer. They saw the new Mega Fort by Cranium and are now begging us non-stop for it! I guess at some point we'll have to break down and get it for them. Fort building certainly keeps them busy. Chris is already in bed. It may be a miracle. It's 8:15 and his normal bedtime is 1:00 or 2:00 am! He took some muscle relaxers for his back which is bothering him and promptly passed out on the living room floor.

Pure Blue Ranger power!!!

Last night Katie brought Gibbs over to play. He is so stinkin' cute. Hanzie was very tolerable and patient with him. He would let Gibbs play with his toys, but the first chance he got to get it back he went for it.

Too bad we weren't this close...

We have a lift off! We didn't go to the beach since everyone is sick. We just watched from the driveway.

Popcorn and Clifford- what could be better?

Well, we were back at the doctor's office again today. This time for Noah. His ears were fine, but he has tonsillitis. She put him on antibiotics for 10 days as well. Hopefully Will will stay healthy! We grabbed Will and rented The Dark Crystal on the way home from the doctor and Will and Noah are cuddled on the couch watching it now. They seem to really be into it. I've said their names 3 times each and haven't gotten a single response from them! In a few minutes we will be off to let out Loki and Boda, pick up Noah's medicine, pick up Ethan from school, and swing by the preschool to get Paige and Sophia. Thank goodness it's Friday and I get to sleep in tomorrow. I'm not feeling all that great myself!

Ethan was diagnosed with his first ear infection of the season. He started complaining that his ear hurt Sunday after Universal. I took him today, and sure enough, an ear infection! Let the fun of fall and winter begin!! I don't quite understand how the sickness sets in so long before the cool weather.

Some more pics from yesterday...

I had to ride at least one big kid roller coaster since there were no lines. I chose Dueling Dragons. The boys tested out the seats to try to get a feel for what I was going through. They decided that it wasn't thrilling enough and went over to Flying Unicorn to ride as many times as they could until I got off Dueling Dragons.

The boys are deathly afraid of the Jurassic Park dinosaurs! There is one coming out of the jungle ready to attack them!

Here come the super heroes!!! They couldn't wait to tell Pop-Pop Wayne about their mode of transportation!

Here the boys are with Cyclops. A bit of super hero trivia for you... his full name is Sly Fox Cyclops.

Here Will is testing out his newly learned Cyclops powers! Careful, if you look too closely you may come under his spell.

Yesterday was a lot of fun! The boys kept saying, "This is the best day ever." Okay, they say that when they are doing anything fun, but they clearly had a good day. We went to Universal in the morning. There were no lines so we got to do everything they love to do. They even got to ride the Flying Unicorn three times in a row. They were begging for fourth go at it, but Chris and Ethan were ready to move on! They got to see all of the super heroes ride in on their four wheelers for the first time. We have never caught them riding in after the many times that we have been there! After Universal, we headed to Tijuana Flats for lunch. The boys really like eating there. I think it may have something to do with the Pez that comes with the kids' meals, but I could be wrong! The boys crashed on the drive home. When we got home, Chris mowed the lawn and we got ready for our cook-out. The Eagney's and Dyett's came over. We played TV Scene It which was a lot of fun. The kids had a good time swimming and running around.

This morning I tried to take Hanzie for a nice long walk. I tried to go early before it got too hot but all of my planning just backfired. As soon as we got outside we got swarmed by mosquitoes. It was really quite disturbing. We only made it a outside of the neighborhood and then turned right back. Hanzie looked like he had black polk-a-dots all over him. Next time I know to wait until the dew dries. There is a fine line between when that happens and it gets too hot! We came home and jumped in the pool with the girls. No bugs in the pool screen! Perhaps we could walk laps around the pool!

Here Noah is waiting in line for the Dr. Suess Train. His hair got wet on the One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish ride so it's looking a little crazy.Here the bros are in Suess Landing.

Today had an interesting start. The kids started screaming that there was a snake in the toy room. I was hoping that they were wrong, but when we went in to investigate, sure enough there was a baby snake. Luckily Chris was home to do the catch and release. I might have just allowed it to be a house guest. I'm not a fan of reptiles so I would have just left it alone and hoped for the best! After Chris handled the snake, we headed off to the boys' favorite park. Radio Disney has made NSB it's official beach so they came to celebrate. It was sort of lame and very hot, so we didn't party with Radio Disney for long! We saw a million kids that we knew from school and let the kids play on the playground for a bit. Ethan saw two of his friends from his class on the playground. As it turns out, they were big fans of Ethan. They kept saying how cute he was and how they couldn't believe their favorite boy was at the park. I was laughing so hard listening to them gossip and giggle over him! Ethan finally let them chase him all around the park! On the way out, Tabitha said, "You are so cute and handsome!" Chris was quite proud! Will checking out his Radio Disney bag!


Ethan with Tabitha and Jade!

It's Friday!!! Okay, all that really translates into is that I'm exhausted. Ethan is having Emily spend the night tonight. The boys were super excited because she brought over her PS2 to play. Ethan is grounded from video games so he isn't too thrilled. Hanzie is as cute as ever and ready to camp-out with the kids.

Well, we have some sad children on our hands. Thanks to Ernesto, school has been cancelled for tomorrow. Oh dear! Sophia is ready to single handedly fight off the storm with her sword.

Will decided that he wanted to be a pirate during lunch today.

Exciting news...Noah can ride a bike on his own! We are partially at fault for his previous lack of interest in bike riding. Since he was always so happy and content riding his scooter, we never really pushed the bike thing. Not to mention, we only had two bikes that Ethan and Will were always riding. Well, since they have been riding bikes so much lately, he decided that he didn't want to be the only boy on a scooter anymore. Noah, being as self confident as he is, yelled, "Daddy- LET GO!!!" the second he got on the bike. After Chris convinced him that he might need some help getting started, he truly started concentrating. By the end of the block he was riding on his own! He is still a little erratic stopping. This is not at all surprising, after all, he didn't get the nickname Twitchy for no reason. In case you haven't seen Hoodwinked, you really need to. You will see why we call him Twitchy. You are probably wondering who was kind enough to give up their bike for Noah's use. Well, NO ONE was. Chris had to get a new bike for Will today. He REALLY needed a bigger one anyway.

Will's new ride...

Here Ethan is watching his brothers get settled onto their new bikes.

Clearly, the trick to learning how to ride your bike in 1/2 a block is all in the tongue.

Here Noah is cruising on his own. Notice that his tongue is still playing a crucial role in his success.

Well, the last week has whizzed by. It was full of meetings, errands, etc. Chris signed Ethan up for Cub Scouts on Thursday. He is very excited for that to start up. He continues to love the 1st grade and has gotten all sorts of special awards that he proudly shows off to us. Will and Noah are happy. They received their first homework of the year and are eager to be "big boys" like Ethan. Chris has been taking the boys on longer bike rides. They have been riding to Blockbuster and back which is just about 3.5 miles. Chris has been jogging while they ride bikes or scooters.

I have been trying to figure out the best interventions for the kids that I am working with this year. Some have some extreme needs. So far, so good. On Friday night Melissa and I took Katie out for her birthday dinner. Sure, we were a month late, but better late than never. On Saturday I went to my friend Sam's shower. It had a tea party theme. It was absolutely adorable and her cousins did a fantastic job putting it together. After the shower I picked up Melissa and we went to get our hair cut. We look totally different- kidding!

This week we have no major plans. Hopefully we will be watching another shuttle launch in the near future.

Does this look like the face of a sad dog that was recently viciously assaulted? Well it is! Don't believe anything Melissa says about the progress of her Dog Whisperer techniques on Boda. She (Boda, not Melissa) attacked my baby tonight. I must add that it was no way provoked. Hanzie may need therapy! He has a cut under his eye and a slash on his face. On to other news... Friday night I just crashed. I was so tired and I was trying to watch You've Got Mail. After being rudely interrupted by Chris' compulsive steam cleaning, I went to bed. Yesterday morning we picked up Ethan's friend Spencer at 10:00 a.m. Right around 2:30 they started BEGGING for him to spend the night. We caved pretty quickly to the four pleading boys and Spencer spent the night. He is very well behaved and it's nice for Ethan to play with a boy occasionally. The girls came over around dinner time and they all swam together for a bit. Then they all had pasta for dinner and watched the new Shaggy Dog. The adults got Mi Mexico take-out for dinner. It was very good! After we played Rummikub and Mike had his first win. Today we just swam and hung out at the house. Chris took the boys to the skatepark for a bit. Chris and Noah rode scooters and Ethan and Will rode their bikes. Somehow just 40 miles away, they received over 5" of rain today. Ask me how much we got, NONE!!! It has not rained for the longest time and has been a nice, toasty 95 without the heat index calculated in every single day! Hopefully this week will be a bit cooler!

Today was another successful school day. The boys all seemed happy at 2:30 so that is a good sign. I have been giving diagnostic tests to students new to our school. On a portion of the test I give them a word and they tell me what it means. I wish I could videotape some of their responses! You would be amazed by what they come up with. Ethan had Emily come home from school today. Will and Noah get a bit frustrated with the two of them. When they aren't trying to boss W & N around, they won't let them play. It's a good thing they have each other! After dinner and of course their snickerdoodle dessert (we made them yesterday after school) the boys jumped in the pool. They take turns with my raft and change it into a ton of different Universal rides. Today it was the Jurassic Park ride, the Popeye ride, the Jaws ride, and the Back to the Future ride.

Here is Ethan planning out their next adventure.

Here is Noah with his water gun. He likes to fill it up the day before and let it heat up in the sun all day so it's super hot when he squirts people. He takes evil to a whole new level.

Will was having fun posing for the camera.

The boys have had an easy transition into the new year. Ethan absolutely adores his new teacher. This school year has been a breeze with him, especially comparing it to our start last year! Will and Noah don't talk much about school but haven't complained either so I guess that is a good sign. Even Hanzie seems to be doing fine with being alone all day again. Once everyone gets used to waking up so early we'll be set! Ethan has already been setting up play dates. His friend Spencer begs to come home with us every day. We are trying to set up something for the weekend for them.

On Sunday we went to Universal. The boys were very excited that barely anyone was there. They have been dying to get on a bunch of rides at the Universal Studios park all summer but it was always too crowded. I refuse to wait 45-75 minutes to ride something. We got there just as they opened on Sunday and we did the entire park in less than 2 hours! After they rode everything they wanted to get on we ate the lunch we packed and headed home for Will & Noah's ice cream/meet the teacher party. We got home at 1:15, they jumped in the shower with Chris, and were out the door to meet the teacher at 1:50.

Hopefully this week will go as smoothly as the first two days have. They seem to be into the groove already. The pool certainly helps relax them after school. Good thing we have until November for that!

Today was a somewhat relaxing day after an insane week. We just hung out by the pool for most of the day. We had a nice dinner and even better dessert. Chris is having a camp out with the boys as I write this. Chris had to work this morning because he took off on Tuesday to stay home with the boys. Melissa SO KINDLY watched the boys on Wednesday and Thursday. The boys spent the entire day at school with me on Friday. So, the first week back is officially over for me and will just begin on Monday for the boys. Tomorrow morning we are heading to Universal for a couple hours. Will and Noah have their little back to school ice cream party tomorrow at 2:00 so we will have to make it home in time for that.

The boys are all enjoying their yummy strawberry shortcake dessert. That happens to be Noah's absolute favorite dessert. He ate every single bite without talking. Now that is a mini miracle!
Here are Chris and the boys in the toy room watching Mee-Shee for their camp out. They are really roughing it on the pull-out. Hopefully they will fall asleep shortly so they will be ready for Universal in the morning.
This box kept the boys busy for most of the day. This was their Ninja hide-out. Ethan was explaining to me all of his special Ninja senses and also told me how much harder it was to be a Ninja than a mom. How could I argue, oh that's right, I found a way! I explained to him that it was far more difficult to care for a high maintenance Ninja.

Well, the first day back was rather disappointing. Long story, but tomorrow should be better. Ethan is excited. His classroom door is directly across the sidewalk from mine. Talk about a short commute to class!!!

I had to share this picture with you. We read a ton of books tonight. After reading this one about dinosaurs, Noah shared his wisdom. There was a picture of a dinosaur fossil at the end and he said, "Yep, that's why we can't have a dinosaur for a pet, they're all stinked up!" He apparenty gets extinct confused with stinked!