Family Fitness Night

Last Saturday night (or was it the Saturday before?) we held our first Family Fitness Night. It just might be our last Family Fitness Night, too. The bikes were loaded up in the truck, my running shoes were on my feet, and off to Veteran's park we went.

My very brilliant plan was for Kyle to ride bikes with the boys while I ran three laps around the "American Mile" trail. If you know my boys, though, you know that they LOOOOVE their momma, so my plan to jog off into the sunset didn't go over so well. On the first lap around the mile trail, I had Braden as my partner. We left Daddy and Garrett in the dust. Everytime I turned around to check their progress, they appeared smaller and smaller until I could just barely make out Garrett's fat little legs pedaling his bike. As Braden and I were completing our second lap, we caught up to Garrett and Daddy. Garrett was NOT happy and was NOT interested in the fact that I wanted to run one more lap. Instead, the whole family walked back to the truck where Braden and Daddy took advantage of the wide-open parking lot to ride some figure eights.

By this point we were starving and Family Fitness Night was somewhat of a bust. I decided we should make it Family Fun Night instead and go to Sonic. My again-brilliant plan was to park the truck, walk to the Sonic pavillion that is nestled against the Wolf Pen Creek jogging trail, and enjoy a picnic-style experience. The one flaw in my plan is that Kyle absolutely hates eating outside. Hates, hates, hates it. I don't know why I have such a hard time remember this little quirk about him, but I always forget it and am so surprised when he refuses to go along with my fun picnic ideas! We pulled truck into Sonic and ordered.

As I said, we'd given up on the Fitness component of the evening by this point which is a good thing because burgers and shakes were on sale for $2.99. Here is Kyle ordering with a bit of help from Braden:

Since we were parked, the boys took off their seatbelts and were crawling all over the truck. It turns out that taking pictures of booties is wildly hysterical. Here's one of the pics. This pic got a really good laugh even now when they saw the picture again. I have no idea what that spot is on Garrett's bootie.

After so much silliness in the truck, Daddy was ready to escape. Even eating outdoors sounded better to him than eating cooped up with some very wound-up little boys. We took our food over to the pavillion where we enjoyed a picnic after all.

Braden's Reading! Braden's cartwheeling!

Linsey here, Erin's sister, guest-blogging about my adorable nephews.

I want to be a fair aunt and write equally about Braden and Garrett, but I have to admit that I have more to say about Braden after my most recent trip. He's just growing up! Erin and Kyle finally enrolled Braden in gymnastics, which, being a former gymnast and coach myself, I'm really excited about. I actually coached for a semester in college at the same place he'll be going. Erin taught Braden how to do a handstand and now Braden is pretty fired up about gymnastics. We did some handstands and I tried to teach him how to tuck and roll out of it rather than crashing over backwards. Next we worked on cartwheels. I wish I had a "before" and "after" video but this "after" one will suffice. It took two tries. Notice the "hand, hand, foot, foot..."on the 2nd one. That was the goal. Now if only we could get those legs straight...



Now during all this Garrett came in and wanted to participate as well. I said "Garrett, can you do a roll?" and he promptly flung himself on the floor and started rolling sideways. I guess I'm a bad aunt because I didn't grab the camera to video tape that. Sorry Garrett.

Earlier in the day I took both boys to the teacher supply store. I knew this might be a terrible mistake but I'm always up for a challenge. Garrett narrated and picked up everything as we walked around the store "Look, dinosaurs...Look, cars...Look, books." Braden, however, started reading signs and posters everywhere. I looked at him stunned. "Braden" I asked, "How did you learn to read?" He looked at me like I was a total moron and said with a "duh" attitude "from books!"

As we got into bed that night (after Braden made up my bed in his room) Braden had a book with him. I crawled up next to him and asked if he could really read it. "It's just colors" he told me. But he could- he could read it! And it wasn't just colors, it was pieces of clothing and the word "oops" too. So then it was time to experiment...

I grabbed a book from his closet that looked like a beginning of first grade book (I teach 2nd grade so I know this stuff). Guess what!? He could read it! He knew words like "what" and "will." I have 2nd graders that still have trouble with those. He only got stumped on about 2 words (I remember one was "flashes"), which is when I realized he's not sounding out these words, he just remembers them. We'll have to work on some strategies. Okay so maybe there's a lot of kids that read before kindergarten but this is my nephew and I was proud! I bragged on him a lot and he just grinned and grinned.

He starts kindergarten and gymnastics class on the same day. What a big kid! "I'll be busy that day" he told me. Busy growing up...and I, for one, have mixed feelings about that. And I'm not even the mom.

Off to church!

On the way out the door this morning, Garrett grabbed one more article to accessorize his outfit...his "dragon hat." He LOVES this hat no matter the weather. He caught a glimpse of himself reflected in the truck door and said, "hey! I look like a beach dinosaur!"

He proudly sported the dragon hat all the way into the children's classrooms at church to the amusement of quite a few little old ladies.

This picture is a bit foggy because the camera fogged up as soon as I left the cool comfort of the house and walked into the muggy outdoors. Don't look at my poor cast iron plants in the background--it has just been too hot and sunny for them.

Braden has learned...

...to make his own sandwiches! This is a ketchup, cheese, and fruit snack sandwich. Braden has become very creative in the kitchen. He never has eaten the food I cook, and I don't often make something else for him. He likes to make what he calls "mixtures." He takes a bowl and adds a variety of foods to eat. A mixture might include things such as pretzels, cheerios, and cheese crackers, with a pop tart on top. He looks so very proud of his creation!

...to draw Target big rigs. He loves, loves, loves drawing big rigs, and his latest ones have been of the Target variety. Perhaps I spend a bit too much time (and money) at Target.

V-I-C-T-O-R-Y! That's the Poo-Poo Battle Cry!

Picture this: Me, Kyle, and Braden gather around Garrett's potty. Garrett sits on the potty, little feet on a stool. All of us tell him, "just push the poo-poo out, Garrett!" Braden offers to show him how it is done--and then actually shows him. Garrett returns to his potty, grabs the little green handles, grunts a time or two and....

...nothing.

We know he has to poop, he just won't do it in the potty. The offer of ice-cream hasn't been successful, so we upped the ante and offered a trip to Chuck-E-Cheese. Still nothing. Braden, however, now really wants him to go and is being the most patient and kind teacher of all.

All the poop talk must have worn the kid out, though, because he just crashed on his bed. Maybe when he wakes up, he'll feel the call and push it out, push it out, waaaaay out!

Thoughts on blogging...

A few weeks ago, Grandma Scheele wanted to know why I haven't updated my blog...

It's kinda complicated. One, our internet service has been acting crummy for weeks now. The guy has been here the last two days and seems to have fixed the problem. Two, I'm not sure if anyone actually reads this blog. I wondered if I was wasting my time. Three, posting on my blog reminds me of my mom, and that makes me sad. You see, I started this blog mainly for her to be able to see pics of the boys and read stories about their craziness. Since she died, I'm just not as motivated to post stuff.

Now that the internet is working again, and now that I know others want pictures/stories, I'll try to get better about it.

Here's a quick one: Right now, I'm at the breakfast table on the computer, and the boys are on the couch eating their third mini-bag of popcorn. A few minutes ago, Braden gave a big piece to Garrett and told him to deliver the mail to mommy. Garrett came running to me, I opened my mouth, and he put the popcorn in it. We repeated this a few times. All the while, he and Braden were yelling, "Mail for Mommy!" Sweet little boys.

D.C. trip days 4-7

I can't believe I never finished writing about our trip to D.C.!! I guess we were having so much fun that I didn't stop to update the blog!

Here's the lowdown...
On the evening of Friday (the day we spent doing the monuments/memorials with the boys), Kyle, Linsey, Matt, and I had a fabulous evening out. Thanks a bazillion, Dad and Janet, for watching the boys so we could go have fun! Linsey booked a room at a Holiday Inn on Rhode Island and 15th on Travelocity or some such site for a really good price. The four of us got a little dressed up and walked several blocks to a Metro station.

Life on the Metro is so strange. Most of the traveling (except for out in the suburbs) is underground so emerging from the Metro station is like unwrapping a big present. You have NO idea what is going to surface. Many of the Metro stations are very deep underground and have very long escalators up to the surface. All the Metro trains and stations look the same. Surfacing, though, opens up an entirely new world. One of my dream days in DC would be spent just riding the Metro, getting off at each station, and emerging to poke my head around (kinda like a prairie dog!).

On this evening, we emerged from the Metro at Chinatown, and wow! All of the sudden the world was full of people, sights, sounds, music, cars, etc. When we went down into the subway (at Farragut North or something), there weren't many people around as it was mostly a business district. Chinatown was such a change, but not very Chinese. It was mostly young, hip people going bar hopping or out to eat, or just, like us, exploring the city.

One of Linsey's friends had recommended a restaurant called Zenga, and described it as a Japanese-Mexican fusion restaurant. Kyle was NOT interested. He wanted to find a Chinese restaurant with, as he said, ducks hanging in the window. On a somewhat related note: One of the best Mexican restaurants we've ever eaten at was called Los Portales and was in the border town of Matamoras, Mexico. It had goats in the window. Well, it had cabrito in the window. So, his desire for ducks in the window as a sign of authentic Chinese restaurant made sense to me.

Linsey and I were able to talk some sense into him, thankfully. We attempted to convince him that we should eat at a known restaurant rather than just try some random place. We didn't get too far with our arguments until we happened to notice that we were standing in front of Zengo and the menu happened to be posted in the window. One glance at the menu was all it took to convince Kyle that Zengo would make an excellent choice for dinner.

Speaking of dinner...ours is ready. I'm going to post this now and then edit it later to add more.

Yummm.....grilled shrimp and veggies for dinner!

Okay. Back. Dinner was awesome. Thanks, Kyle!

To make a long story short, we had a great dinner at Zengo (http://www.modernmexican.com/zengodc/index.htm) and then went across the street to a way cool Irish pub called Fado (http://www.fadoirishpub.com/washington/image) The Stanley cup finals were on, and the place was packed with a huge variety of people. After a pint, we left and hopped back on the Metro. We ended up in the Adam's Morgan area of DC at a blues bar called the Madam's Organ (http://www.madamsorgan.com/). I keep describing the decor as a cross between the Dixie Chicken and a bordello (not that I've ever been to a bordello). After a few beers served in Mason jars, we were done for the night and took a cab back to the hotel.

The next morning, Kyle and I ambled about DC. It was nice to go at our own pace and not worry about the kids! We walked to Ford's Theater and from there to the Mall. After attempting to find meaning from some of the sculptures in the sculpture garden, Kyle wanted to see the Smithsonian castle building, and on our way there we discovered the most wonderful gardens adjacent to the building. AND it was Garden Fest 2009! I was in heaven! Kyle likes gardening, too, and I enjoyed exploring new plants with him. We began to miss the boys, though, so we went home in the early afternoon of Saturday.

In the meantime, the boys, Granddaddy and Grandma Janet were having a ball! Here's Braden's version of what they did:

"hmmm [lots of thinking going on now]. We watched some movies. We watched Night at the Museum and Bee Movie. I liked Night at the Museum. Some of the parts were scary, but it wasn't live. I think I had pizza for dinner. The next morning we got up and ate breakfast, and then we went to a park with Granddaddy. The park had a soccer field by it and I was on the big slide so I could see everybody playing soccer. There was a digger thing like the back of a backhoe. We had to sit on it and move the levers so the digger would move, and I was doing it for a long time like for twelve minutes, and then I got off and got back on. I did it a lot. Well, not a whole lot. It was green and yellow, like John Deere. And when you and daddy came home, and me and Garrett ran up to you and daddy, and me and Garrett were so excited."

That evening my cousin Kelli, her new baby Sebastian, her friend Megan, my stepbrother Steve, his new wife Anne, and Dad and Janet's good friend Mario all came over to celebrate Dad's 60th birthday. Dad grilled steaks, Matt grilled stuffed avocados, we had baked potatoes, and certainly some sort of veggies (but I've forgotten exactly). Dinner was great! The wine and conversation flowed, and the weather was perfect for dining on the deck.

On Sunday, the big Stutts boys, the little Stutts boys and I all rode the Metro back into D.C. to go to the Natural History museum. I was so excited to see their reactions to the dinosaurs, but I was a little disappointed. They didn't seem awestruck and amazed, like I had hoped. After hauling the kids through the museum, we walked across the Mall to the carousel, which was a big hit. The little boys and I rode while Kyle and Matt took pictures.

Sunday afternoon was pretty easy going, if I remember correctly. I think we mostly chilled at the house. Kyle and I take an evening walk around the neighborhood and oooohed and aaahed at the fancy houses and beautiful landscaping.

Monday was Great Falls day. Janet packed a picnic lunch for us, and we all (in two vehicles) drove to the C&O Canal National Historic Park (http://www.nps.gov/choh). We walked along the canal path admiring the ingenuity of our ancestors, and then walked down the trail to the Great Falls. I was significantly impressed by the falls we crossed over on bridges until Janet told me that those weren't the Great Falls. And they sure weren't! The Great Falls were pretty darn impressive. I hoped to see some kayakers come down them, but, alas, no such luck. Our picnic lunch was back by the canal path.

Afterwards, we thought about going to Roosevelt Island, but really bad traffic changed that plan, so we went to Gravelly Point Park in Arlington, VA instead. A nice description of the park can be found here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/misc-locations/gravelly-point-park,1028013.html. I have one problem with that article, though. It says parents may not want to stay long. I disagree. I could have stayed all day. The planes flying in just over our heads were soooooo dramatic and cool and just delightful! I loved, loved, loved it! One plane came in and made the turn a bit late and wasn't lined up with the runway and made me really, really nervous. They landed just fine, though.

That night, Kyle and I biked about 10 miles on the W & OD trail (http://www.nvrpa.org/parks/wod/index.php) I sure wish we had something like that where we live (and someone to watch our kids while we bike on it!).

Tuesday morning we got up earrrrrly to make our 8:05 flight. We were back in College Station shortly after noon. What a very great trip!

The next time I sit down to blog, I'll add pictures!