Spidey Skills

I started this blanket back in October for Henry for his Christmas blanket gift. I got the pattern from my friend Alex and want to recommend it to Stacy, but only after she completes her degree and get more than 5 hours of sleep at night.
I thought I could complete this web by Christmas Day...but it was more like A Little After Epiphany.
Whatever.

Henry decided it was fine as a blanket, but he would rather have it as a rug...so it's on his floor. Where he walks on it.

And plays knights and army and football games on it. I want to explain the intricacies of the crocheted chevron stitch in-the-round, but for some reason, he doesn't care about that.

Oh well. Go Spidey Blanket Rug! You are well-loved by my sweet Spidey son!

JPW

While (mostly) every other kid dresses normally, mine needs to be John Parker Wilson at all times.

(I mean occasionally he is Greg McElroy or Julio Jones. And, no, he does not care that JP graduated. I asked.)

The Brigade

Hooray for TerraCycle and the CapriSun Brigade!

On the outside of the CapriSun box is information about a company called TerraCycle. They take rinsed-out CapriSun pouches and recycle them into backpacks, pencil holders, clipboards, etc. So cool. They even recycle oreo cookie package wrappers and old chip bags.

Again, so cool.

When we entered the soccer season last year, and started packing lunches and snacks for school, and CapriSuns began to litter our lives, TerraCycle came to the rescue!

What's even cooler than how already cool they are, they donate 2 cents to an organization you choose PER POUCH. I picked the default tree-hugger-love-the-earth organization they support, but hopefully can move my 2 cents to raise money for Henry's school.

Especially since his rocking kindergarten teacher is getting all the kids in his class to save their pouches every day and sends them home in a ziplock for me to rinse and mail in.

TerraCycle pays for the shipping and you mail them in once you have a hundred. Here's my envelope with 150 rinsed, flattened pouches. Yes, I am a recycling overachiever.

No School Yawl

When there is no school for whatever reason, sometimes I call my friend Stacy to see what's going on up in her 'hood.

Last Monday, I convinced Stacy to pack up her three kids and meet us at the park.



And it was awesome: weather, play, fun for all. We even had a whole conversation or two.



Henry needed some good tackling from Luke, Svea needed some good swinging and imaginary role play with Caleb.

And little Paul needed to fall down a lot.




That's Caleb, the tie-dye monkey.

And Paul after one of his many dives in a puddle.

And Svea and Caleb sharing the swing:

Thanks for a great play date Luke, Caleb and Paul! Best Monday yet in 2010.

Art in the Kitchen is the Best

Awesome hanger for recent artwork that is perfect for our kitchen:

Thanks Aunt Merpha!

Rock Band Garage Guitar Hero

Or something.

So we have Guitar Hero. And I don't know how to play it. But I, Husband is pretty awesome at it and the kids saw him play it once and now they have invented their own game of some Rock Star Wonder Something.

The only song they really play is "We Will, We Will ROCK YOU" and I'm not sure where they learned that song actually.

At least they take turns with the instruments...



...and they swap up rooms sometimes and haven't even fallen off of Henry's top bunk yet.



Sugar was rather unimpressed:



Rock on, fellow blog readers.

I Dress Myself, Yo.

And I totally wore this to school ALL DAY.

Love,

Svea

P.S. My Bobbie made this dress for my Mommy when she was little. But I don't know if she wore it to school. That big ruffle may have been in her way and all.

Quick Morning Portrait

Shred It, My Little Guitar Hero

Guess who got some new toys for Christmas?



I just noticed in the above photo that Sugar has Svea's slipper...



Yep, that's Henry playing with Brian's Christmas gift.



Brian is so nice to share.

The Hair Milestone

We achieved another milestone tonight with Svea.

She allowed Henry to come in her room to play, so he proceeded to set up an elaborate football game with two football fields and knights guarding the sidelines as the referees. And Alabama blocked all of Auburn's field goals.

Letting Henry in to play was a clever distraction so that she could do her own thing, which turned out to be cutting her hair.

When they heard me walking towards the room to announce dinner, Henry started jumping up and down squealing, "Svea's cutting her hair! Svea's cutting her hair!"

There was a lot of hair on the floor, but only some chopped off the sides in the end. It could have been way worse.

If you think about it, I never told her not to cut her hair.

Nobody got hurt.

She cleaned it up and can no longer have scissors in her room.

It'll grow back.

It took 10 full minutes to brush the tangles out in the morning no matter what we sprayed or soaked it with, so now we have at least 7 of those minutes back.

She won't wear braids or ponytails anyway.

In the big scheme of things, it's just hair.

(Svea was sitting on a stool for her haircut and after it was all over Henry realized she was done, so that meant he was done letting her borrow it from his room. He manipulated her off of it so she was crying and so Henry had to go straight to bed and when hugging me good night he said that really Aunt Beth was his Best Girl, not me, and that I needed to go tell her that SHE was his best friend, not Mommy. Seriously? Got that, Aunt Beth? You get the next 2,985 bedtimes. I am done with this day.)

Dude, seriously??

I was catching up on the ole blog of the kindergarten class and saw this Thanksgiving post.

Really, Henry? THAT is what you are thankful for?

How do I teach a five year old about the dangers of consumerism and the trickery of endorphins released with purchasing power?

We're having a strategy session tomorrow...

New Bunk Beds!

We dusted off Uncle Brad's old bunk beds, added some bolts, and voila - Henry has a new room!

Here he is, "patiently" waiting and trying not to get in the way before he could "help." Some of those pieces were heavy...

He cleaned it all up once we got the big stuff in place. This boy is one who loves order...even his race cars were strategically positioned for take off on his shelf.

He didn't want to lie down for a pose since the bottom bunk is for daytime rest, and the top bunk, for nighttime. And those sheets were still in the dryer. So many rules...

And here's Svea, a little cheesy for the camera and ultimately dissatisfied with her room since Henry got new beds. We rearranged her furniture and cleaned up the next day and that seemed acceptable to her.

She loves it when I clean her room because she is NOT one to love order if it means she has to participate. She is very gifted in getting all of the toys out and around the house - even in the lamps. Or in shoes. Plants. Bedside tables are her favorite.

Maybe I should let it go and give in to living in a museum of tacky plastic objects.

Carousel

We squeezed in one more Christmas activity with a carousel ride at the mall.



Henry chose the tallest horse and Svea, the sled that doesn't move at all but allows her to recline and sing loudly to the music.

Scooter Babes

Somebody got her very own scooter for Christmas (no more sharing with Henry, THANK HEAVENS)



and somebody else still does not care that his came from some sweet 7 year olds at a garage sale who wanted to buy better scooters and thought Henry should buy theirs.



Everybody wins!



Especially when Henry makes it to the bottom of the driveway first every time.