He's His Own Person!

Owen's not right.  Let's just go ahead and put that out there.

And while we're at it, let's just go ahead and put it out there that he's my mini-me and totally my payback.  TOTALLY.

He doesn't care what people think.  And if he thinks that you are judging him on something, it will make him want to do it that much more.

But that part I like.  I like that he doesn't fall into peer pressure.  He is his own person.

But that could totally come back to bite me square in the a-double-snakes later on but for right now, it's pretty cool.

On Wednesdays, the kids at his school can wear a hat if they donate a dollar to the general fund that is used to help families in need.  I asked him which hat he was going to wear, thinking that he would choose the Redskins or something.

But, no.  He went straight for *my* pink Washington Nationals hat and put it on his head.

When I asked him if he was sure about that, he said definitely.  He said that he was wearing it to bring attention to women's breast cancer and he didn't care what the kids thought.

Well, he came home from school and, as expected, said that the kids made fun of him.  I asked him how he handled it, he said that he told them to be quiet and then informed then WHY he was wearing it.

He said that he would wear it again next Wednesday.  He doesn't care what they think.

So, today is wear sunglasses to school as part of the DARE awareness week.  Of course he's not going to wear just *any* pair of sunglasses!

Heh.  I love that kid!  :heart:

Picture Day

School picture day came and went and most kids were dressed in their finest attire.  Dresses and pretty bows for girls and "monkey suits" for the boys - ie Khakis and button down shirts.

Well, for most boys that is.  Owen and Shane dress themselves for picture day.  This year, I asked Owen what he was going to wear.

He responded that he was wearing a football jersey ~ just like he has every year. 

He goes on to tell me that he plans on wearing one every year in elementary school, middle school and high school.  And then he's going to wear a jersey when he gets his drivers license so his drivers license picture has a jersey on it as well.

That kid isn't right.  I feel sorry for his future wife, I mean football widow. 

Karma Sweet Karma

Lordy.  Busy, busy day today!

The best part was when I had to take Shane to school late.  Because there was a fire drill at the school, we had to sit in the van and wait for ALL of his classmates to go back into the school.  And they were all waving at him as they filed past him.  He was MORTIFIED.   The more they waved, the lower he sank into the seat. 

You know.  The seat RIGHT BESIDE ME!

Ha.  That my friends is how karma, sweet karma works her awesome magic in paying him back for LYING to me that I wasn't allowed to come and have lunch with him.

Ha!

Owen Has A Strategy

Owen had math homework the other day.  It was adding three digit numbers together.  (Like 234+425)

The teachers teach math in a variety of ways these days.  They give them several ways to figure out a problem and then leave it up to the kids to figure out the best way for them.

So I asked him how he was going to work out the problems.

He went and grabbed his calculator and said that he was going to use that.

I told him that he wasn't allowed to use the calculator.

He emphatically stated that he WAS allowed to use it.  He went onto explain that his teacher said that they may use any strategy that they want to use to get the answer.

And using the calculator was his strategy. 

:p

I guess his teacher is going to have to rephrase how she assigns homework.  I don't think that she took the literal kid into consideration when giving them their assignment.  lol

Chicago...All In Pictures!

Ken and I recently took a trip to Chicago.  Of course, I took approximately one million pictures.  Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration.  It was only 999,999.

There is so much to do in Chicago.  A good place to start is at the John Hancock Observatory where you can get a great overview of the city from the top of the building.  Oh.  And you can have a drink too.  :p

Stop by the Sports Authority if you get a chance.

And see how your girly hands stack up to Michael Jordan's.  :p

Or your girly man hands if the case may be.

 

Proof that beer pong is, in fact, a sport.

After you leave Sports Authority, head to Portillo's for lunch.

 

 And droll at the menu...

 And then go ahead and order yourself a hotdog and fries.  And go ahead and add a milkshake to that order because you've already consumed so many calories, you've blown it for the week anyway.

 

Take a stroll down Michigan Avenue and shop til you drop if you're so inclined.  (Tracy, Kelly and Traci, I'm talking to you!!!!)

Be sure to find the Billy Goat Tavern and have a drink. 

Did someone mention eating and drinking their way through the city?  First stop should be Gibsons Steak House.

Meat.  Sides.  Drinks.  Drooling just thinking about the meal...

Oh...and the desserts...the desserts...

Be sure to take an architectual boat cruise of the city.  The architecture of the city is just awesome!

My favorite picture from the boat tour.  See the window washers?  The picture really shows the size of the building.

That's our retirement house boat.  Right there on the left.  Bahahaha.

One of the many buildings represented in the exterior of the Chicago Tribune.

Instead of the Waffle House, head to Five Faces for a late night snack.  It's in the Gold Coast area.

Be sure to use the EL train.  It's an easy way to get around the city!

And I did say that we ate and drank our way through the city, right?  ;)

True Chicago style pizza is awesome!  Nothing like Unos that tries to fool East Coasters into their "version" of Chicago pizza.  Lou Malnarti's.  Um.  Enough said...

And when you're in Chicago, be sure to head to PJ Clarks for lunch and hang out with old friends that you haven't seen in a very, very long time.  Forget the sightseeing.  Football and beer in a local bar is sightseeing!

Chicago.  It's the place to be.  Of course we caught a Cubs game.  And I've already posted a few of my favorite pictures.  Chicago is definitely on the revisit list.  Seriously awesome!

The Mental Part of Sports...An Insightful Observation

Sometimes Owen says stuff that is so beyond his years that you wonder how he "gets" stuff.  I'm talking about his observations about the world around him and how things work.  He's so insightful sometimes.  It makes me say to myself "I *know* that this kid is going to be just fine in life".

We were talking about sports last night at the dinner table and what makes a good athlete and competitor.  He looks at us and says "it's the mental part of the game.  If your not mentally in it, you're not going to win regardless of what you do".

Well, yeah Owen.  That's exactly right.  But how does he as an 8 year old get that when most adults don't comprehend it?

And it's not like he doesn't acknowledge it for himself either.  I asked him about the game that he lost his composure in if he was mentally in the game or not.  He responded no that he definitely wasn't and said it was very difficult to get himself back into that particular game.  He said he was physically exhausted and he wasn't able to mentally compose himself.

He said that he didn't like that but that's the way sports goes because the mental part of the game was the hardest part of the game.

Wow?  Really?  Pretty insightful for an eight year old.  :up:

How A Mom Survives

As a mom, sometimes you have to do what you have to do in order to survive.

And sometimes that means hiding candy .... yes, candy .... from your children to be consumed at a later date.  You put it in a safe location so that only you can find it.  And you always hide it where you know that they will never find it...like near the cleaning supplies, vacuum cleaner or laundry basket.

The candy is most always chocolate in nature.  It has to be chocolate.

And you only bust into this secret candy stash when absolutely necessary.  Like when you're going to ground  your kids for the next three hundred years.  And only chocolate will save you.  And your kids more importantly.

Let's take today for example.

I snuck past Shane's room and went and found the hidden stash in my bathroom.  Unfortunately for me, he almost busted me.  And then, shamelessly, I stood in my bedroom doorway with my hand cupping the precious loot against the wall out of his vision so he didn't see it.

And then I gave him five more minutes to make his duck tape wallet (another story all together!) because I had to think fast and I knew that would buy me precious time.

Because I didn't want to share.

Would you want to share?  If you said yes, you're lying.

And if you're like me, after you find it, you go and hide (most likely in the laundry room or mechanics room in the basement) and eat it so they don't pester you to share it.

Because remember.  I said that I didn't want to share.

I didn't want to eat both of them (because I'm sure that I will need one of them at a different time!) so I had to make a choice.

Okay.  It really wasn't a choice.  There was only one choice.

What?  Stop looking at me weird.  Are you saying that you never hid some yummy piece of candy from your kids and then went and hid while you ate it?

You are a liar.  Or in denial.  ;)

PS - This post is dedicated to my former college roommate, friend and fellow candy hider, Liz. Thomason Smoak.  =)  

How To Avoid A Nap

In an effort to avoid taking her nap, this is what one naughty little girl did to pass her time...

Already showing that she may have some OCD traits.  Either that or she's prejudice.  All puppies must go together!

At least they're all tucked in snuggily for their nap!

 

But she's NOT tired...

 

Just ask her.

Oh well.  At least she wasn't being a creative art-eest this time!