Pikes Peak

One of the most fantastic things about living in Colorado Springs is the amazing view every morning out our windows of Pikes Peak. We decided to take the boys up there as part of my Cayson's birthday. Logan, Tyler, and Tanner went to the top a couple of years ago when my parents came up to visit. It was the end of May, but by the time the cog made it to the top, the winds were blowing over 50mph sometimes, and the windchill was below zero! It was snowing like crazy and once we got up to a certain elevation, you couldn't see anything. Logan and Tyler-between living in Germany and Colorado-are used to brutal cold, so the snow and wind in their faces didn't bother them so much. Tanner-on the other hand-panicked and was insisting that he couldn't breathe! It was quite the ordeal!

This time was much better though, as you can tell by the pictures. Instead of winter coats, scarves, and gloves, all we needed were some sweatshirts and long pants. The temperature was 38degrees at the summit, but it wasn't all that bad. A thunderstorm had just passed through, so I think that's why it was cooler. We didn't realize how much stuff was at the summit because when we went before, it was snowing like crazy and everything was covered in snow and ice. So, it was nice to see more this time. The boys had some hot chocolate and donuts before we got on the cog to head back down. We had so much fun!



At the summit

My heart was racing while I was taking this picture. I was petrified of someone falling off!

Some pictures from the summit and the train.

More pictures from the train...we did not see all of this on our first trip a couple of years ago!

Bugz!

The first and second grade classes at Pikes Peak Elementary performed a musical called Bugz! It was such a great show to watch, not only because it was my own class, but because it was Tyler, too!! One of the perks to having Tyler at my school this year was being able to see him and Logan do everything. When I was at Pikes Peak and they were at Woodmen Hills, it was so much harder to be a part of their lives at school. Thank goodness I could always count on Ed to be there for them. I will miss Tyler and Logan this next school year. Since Logan will be going to Falcon Middle School, we decided it made more sense to send Tyler back to Woodmen Hills. Tyler wasn't too happy about leaving his new friends behind, but he will be able to make more neighborhood friends.

How times flies...

I think it has almost been a YEAR since the last time I posted--an entire year! So much as happened. I started-and finished-my first year of teaching second grade. I'll try to post some pictures from this school year later. Logan and Tyler had a phenomenal year, as well. I cannot believe Logan is starting middle school next year! I can still see his sweet little 2-year old face smiling at me. And Tyler-what a mess he is! He always has something going on in his head. He actually reminds me so much of Greg. They both earned excellent grades, and Tyler won the Accelerate Reader award for all of second grade 3 out of 4 times this year. We are very proud of both of them. These are their school pictures.

I am so blessed to have such sweet little boys to call my own. And-we are so lucky to have Ed in our lives to fill the void that was left when Greg died. I am so happy to he was willing to take on such an enormous responsibility-one that a lot of men would have turn their back on. We love him so much.

Well, I'm really going to try to catch up on what's been going on around here. I have pictures from Logan's graduation, Tyler's soccer, some trips, and other things that I would love to share!

Please don't vomit...please don't vomit!

Logan, Tyler, and Grandma Carol

Goofing off after graduation

Sure, I should have been crying. I should have been giddy with excitement. My little guy was graduating from kindergarten! Why was I instead praying to the Lord not to watch over my little guy as he enters first grade, but to not let him throw up all over the cute little girl in front of him? Let's rewind to yesterday morning:

7:55am-arrive at school

7:56am-Tyler runs into bathroom to throw up. Other boys in bathroom tattle on Tyler, saying he cut in line. Nice kids...

8:00am-bring Tyler crying out of the bathroom, deliver gifts to teachers, walking towards the front door

8:01am-notice Logan is on the phone in the office. Apparently he had a dress code violation. I guess windpants don't qualify for jeans day. This is what happens when mom doesn't do laundry.

8:03am-sign both children out of school because I'm not making a special trip home to wash jeans or to Old Navy to buy jeans. It's the next to last day of school. What could they possibly miss out on?

Later that afternoon:

2:00pm-Tyler eats 4 small chicken tenders from Burger King at the airport because he insists that he's fine and he's STARVING. Eh...what's a mom to do? Starve the kid? It didn't help when he started crying in the airport saying, "Why won't you get me something to eat? I SOOOOO hungry!" That'll get you votes for worst mom of the year for sure.

2:15pm-get Grandma at the Denver airport. Tyler is running around like a maniac.

2:50pm-arrive at Krispy Kreme in Lone Tree. We buy two dozen donuts. Tyler wants strawberry milk, but we talk him out of it.

3:00pm-back on the highway headed home. Tyler and Logan are happily eating their donuts in the backseat.

3:01pm-loud burp

3:02pm-Logan screams

3:02.10 sec-Tyler starts crying. Logan is gagging.

3:02. 20 sec-whip car over on side of the major highway going through Denver. Not the most responsible move as a mother, but one child had already puked, and the other way was threatening to.

3:03pm-refuse to remove vomit covered child from until vomit is cleaned off the seatbelt, lest it get sucked up into the magic slot seatbelts get sucked up into, allowing the vomit to transfer into that abyss. Cars speeding by at 85mph.

3:05pm-remove vomit covered child from car and hand to grandma, who is armed with baby wipes.

3:06pm-really take in the damage the car sustained from Tyler's vomit. Who knew so much could come from someone so little. Logan continues to gag. Grandma is cleaning Tyler, who wants to know where his donut went.

3:07pm-remove vomit carseat from car. Survey the damage. Realize Logan had thrown the headphones for the DVD player, Tyler's stuffed dog, Sonic the Hedgehog action figure, Bakugan carrying case, and my Coach purse all at Tyler's feet...direct in the line of fire. Awesome. Cars continue to blow past us. Tyler wants another donut.

3:15pm-used almost every babywipe in vomit cleanup. Tyler is as clean as possible. Grandma graciously cleaned up the carseat. Prepare to re-enter car.

3:16pm-look in trunk to find something to prevent another catastrophe...that I would have to cleanup...again. Locate a sheet in the trunk. Not sure why it's in there. Use the sheet to cover the smelly carseat and protect the carpet. Thinking I should have done this to begin with since the kid had already thrown up once...but refer back to my 5 year old standing on the side of I-70.

3:20pm-everyone back in car. Tyler's crying because he wants another donut. Pull out onto I-70.

3:21pm-engine light comes on in car.

Now do you see why I was praying my kid wouldn't puke all over the place at graduation? Sure, a good mom would have kept her kid home. But I am a GREAT mom. I realized this was a monumental moment in my child's life that he will look back on when he is older and be so glad he didn't miss it (that's what I keep telling myself at least). I put my fear of him throwing up on the backburner (okay maybe it was still on the front burner, but it was on simmer), brought my kid to school at the lastest moment and missed the kindergarten breakfast, as to not disrupt the fun with a sick kid. I wanted that kid to get his diploma. I am a GREAT mom. I kept my kid away from all the other kids. Changed him into his fancy clothes as the teacher was lining everyone up (good thing I brought another pair of undies...the damage was starting to drain out from his backside, if you know what I mean). I gave him a brief, albeit very specific, lecture regarding the urge to throw up or poo. It went something like this:

Me: "If you think you're going to throw up, walk off the stage."

Tyler: "The front of the stage?"

Me: "No, the back."

Tyler: "I don't know how to get out from the back."

Me: "Just get behind the curtain and I will come and get you."

Tyler: "But [the teacher] said we're not supposed to move."

Me: "It's okay if you're sick."

Tyler: "But I'm not sick."

Says the child who projectile vomited all over my car a mere 17 hours earlier.

Maybe he was better, but I wasn't taking the chance. That's why I'm the great mom, remember? I covered all my bases.

The ceremony was 15 minutes. They sang four songs, I think. (Remember, I was focused on any potential signal of a vomit face). They didn't even pass out their diplomas. We had to pick them up afterwards with a homework packet. Each child's name was called out, but...no handshake? No cute waves to mom and dad when they got their diplomas? No ooohs and ahhs over those tiny little people? No awards?

Maybe I was so focused on Tyler being sick that I wasn't able to truly enjoy this moment, and maybe that's why the ceremony seemed so, well...disappointing. Hey, I can only imagine how difficult it is to coordinate and choreograph 75 five and six-year-olds. I wasn't expecting a Broadway show. I love the three kindergarten teachers, and this wasn't their first rodeo. I'm sure there was a method to their madness...something I'm sure I will appreciate when I start teaching. But as a mom, it was a little bit disappointing. Sure, there were a lot of extenuating circumstances that altered my giddiness as a mommy, (the fact that we covered the seat in the truck in a rain poncho just to get to the school) but hopefully you know what I mean.

My baby boy graduated from kindergarten. Maybe the true extenuating circumstance was that this could potentially be the last time I see one of my own kids graduate from kindergarten.

Our family...I think Logan really wanted to be partying in his classroom with his friends instead of being at graduation.



Me and my little guys!



Me and the graduate...sans Mrs. Robinson.




The Graduate himself!

Of course he waved at us! Does this look like a sick kid?

Our Scouting Family!

Last night was Pack 228's Graduation. Logan finally became a Webelo, and Tyler became a Tiger Cub! Logan has really enjoyed Cub Scouts, and he is the first boy in his entire pack to earn ALL of the junior ranks-Bobcat, Tiger, Wolf, and Bear. Cub Scouts is a year-round project, and Logan really enjoys it. The entire family will be taking on a much bigger role in the fall. I will be Tyler's den leader for the Tigers. Ed is the assistant Cubmaster for the pack. It will definitele be a busy year for all of us!

The new Webelos I Den

Logan receiving his Webelos neckerchief and slide

Tyler receiving his Tiger compass, signifying his entry into the pack

Logan receiving his belt loops

My two Cub Scouts!

A Day with the Little Boys...

Well, the clock is ticking to the time my little boys will hop on a plane with their Grandma Carol and go visit their family in Michigan for two whole weeks. What am I going to do without my little guys? I have never been away from them for more than 48 hours. I am pretty sure it is bothering me WAY more than it is bothering them, and I try to put on a happy face when they ask, "Is it time to go to Michigan yet?" But this will be a great chance for Greg's family to see how much they've grown and just how much they are like their daddy (and I don't mean it is always in a good way!) Plus, I will be in classes five days a week until July 10th, so this will give me ample time to get a lot of work done before they get back. Their cousins from Texas, Tanner and Cayson, will be coming to stay with us in July, so I will definitely get my "little boy fix" by the end of the month!


I wanted to spend a special day with my little guys before they head out to Michigan. I finally have a break frolm classes, but they are still in school, so it was hard to find a time (and good weather) to go out in. But we committed to a special Sunday, and we had a great day! We started out making the early church service. We were a little late, so Tyler's class was already full. He went to big church with me, and he was so great. When I told him he would have to go into the big church with me, an interesting conversation ensued:

Tyler: "Is it hard in big church?"
Me: "What do you mean?"
Tyler: "Do they make you do hard work?"
Me: "No, it's fun! We sing and listen to the pastor talk."
Tyler: "Oh, okay. As long as I don't have to do any hard work. Kindergarten church is easy."

He was so good during the service. He was amazed by all the big screens around the sanctuary and was even more impressed by the people "in the big bathtub". They were having baptism, and we were sitting so close Tyler could see the people going under the water. When we got in the car, Tyler was telling Logan about big church:

Tyler: "Big church is fun. It's so easy."
Logan: "What did you do?"
Tyler: "We sang."
Logan: "What else?"
Tyler: "We saw the people get baptized. Now they get to go to Heaven."

Wow, I guess he really was listening!

After church, we went to La Casita, and then we went swimming. It was 78 degrees, but the wind was blowing, so it didn't feel so great once you got out of the water. After about an hour, Tyler came out shivering so badly that I had to wrap him in two towels. Logan had a blast going down the water slide. Of course, I forgot my camara in the car! After swimming, we went to see the new movie Up! in 3D. It was so cute. The boys love those silly glasses. Of course, what day wouldn't be complete without a trip to Toys R Us? I let the boys pick out some new Bakugan (which I still don't understand) to take to Michigan with them. Even I left with something...an IPOD arm holder and new earplugs. My earbuds always seem to disappear...after I let little boys borrow them for their handheld games!


The night ended with dinner at Zio's. Ed was home from Bandimere where he went for a Mopar car show and drag (which, in hindsight, I realized the boys would have loved to have seen Ed race) and met us for dinner. By 7:30pm, both boys were in bed sound asleep. It was a long, but very fun day! I am really going to miss these little guys when they're in Michigan.

They ain't no Little Indian Relays...but I guess they'll do.

Logan being ever so patient...so not a Smith trait!

Tyler getting his first "talking to" by his teacher. He wasn't happy about missing the bullseye.

Tyler falling. He did a lot of this.

Logan and his teacher doing the water balloon throw. Not to take anything away from their second place finish (the teacher dropped it, for the record), but with the exception of the pair next to them, everyone else failed to follow directions and managed to break their balloons before the second toss.

Like I said...Tyler was on the ground a lot.

Another weird station...bubbleology. Not sure what the purpose of it was.

Big Sponge/Baby pool/Bucket game...see story below!

Logan did a lot better on the bullseye game than Tyler did.

Tyler during the "pick up all this crap and run across the gym without falling" game. He never fell. That was in and of itself a victory.

Logan doing the big sponge/baby pool/bucket game...seriously, read below for this crazy event!

Like I said, they ain't the Little Indian Relays, but they'll do. Today was Field Day at the boys' school. I'll admit that they had some pretty weird stations, including the Vaseline/cotton ball combo that freaked Tyler out and the big sponge/baby pool/bucket game that I'll discuss in more detail later.

As usual, Tyler is a terrible "loser". Now, it is impossible to "lose" at field day. You're on teams, you have partners, or you work as a class. When Tyler didn't immediately score for his team during the bullseye station, he lost it. His teacher had to have a "talk" with him a couple of times. After about the 5th time, Mom took over, and the threat was issued: "Either you knock this fussing off, or you're going to come with me, and we will watch Logan finish with his class." Mom 1, Tyler 0

Logan, on the other hand, had a blast. He really enjoys field day, and it was really fun to watch him play around with his classmates. He really is a great team player, but he is also a very compassionate child. One little girl fell (big sponge/baby pool/bucket game--another story in itself), and Logan completely stopped what he was doing to check on her. He is such a sweet little boy. I know he is going to grow up to be a great man one day.

I do have to talk about the big sponge/baby pool/bucket game. Let me add in the other components to this game: kids, running, and concrete. Are you thinking this was a bad idea? Me too. You also have to take into account that it was in the 50's today, and the wind was blowing pretty good. One first grader lost his balance and completely fell into the pool. Tyler cried (of course) because another kindergarten hit him with the sponge and got his Super Mario shirt wet. The little girl in Logan's class who got hurt slid on the WET CONCRETE and spent the next hour in the nurse's office. The parent volunteer running the station let Logan's 3rd grade class have 10 seconds to "do what they wanted". Really? Is it a good idea to let a group of 8 and 9 years olds loose on a pool of water and sponges to hurl at each other? Well, the sponges didn't stand a chance because these boys made a beeline and dove in...to the baby pool...on concrete. Nice. Logan didn't stand a chance. Poor guy--I grabbed him by the hoodie I forced him to wear outside (because I'm the mean mom who knew he would get cold, and he did), practically closelining him to prevent him from following his fellow classmates. Maybe this was a good time for the "if everybody jumped off a bridge, would you?" speech. But in the mind of my 8 year old, all he could see was the frolicking fun his friends were having completely soaking each other. Poor kids...their next station was in the open field. You can refer back to the temperature and the gusting wind and decide whether I was completely right for preventing my child from becoming soaking wet. Logan might not be thanking me, but I'm sure Tricare Prime is.

Is there something wrong with your brain, or are you just crazy?

This was the questioned posed by my kindergartener to one of his teachers this week. Apparently she had marked a few math questions wrong on his worksheet that were right, and he was none too happy about it. First he asked her if something was wrong with her brain. When he told me about it, he said he thought she was just crazy.

This is not the first time Tyler has vented his frustration about his teachers. Let me stress that I love all of his teachers. They are all fantastic. However, Tyler does not really like to be corrected. (I have NO IDEA where he gets that from!) He got in trouble one day by his reading teacher because he was jumping on a couch. She sent him back to his homeroom to take a cube (their discipline system), and he lost it. He told his homeroom teacher, "MRS. POGUE DRIVES ME CRAZY!" He then told his teacher that Mrs. Pogue ALWAYS gets him in trouble and causes him to lose cubes. For the record, I don't think he gets in trouble much (that I'm aware of at least), but when he does...watch out!

I think he gets more upset because he knows I look at his hands in the afternoon and if there are not two stamps...I know he lost cubes. Is it okay that he fears the wrath of his mother for only coming home with one smily face stamp? Ehhh...whatever works, I guess!

So maybe the Summer Olympics aren't in his future...

Okay, so maybe we won't be seeing Tyler in the Track and Field portion of the Summer Olympics. He had a grand time running Landsharks until sprint night. Let's just say that speed has never been a strong strength in the Smith family. I'm pretty sure the only thing his Daddy ran from was his mom...and me. So, it should come as no surprise that sprint night ended with Tyler in tears.

I had a flashback to my little brother running summer track at Baylor...crying before he crossed the finish line last. I relived that moment with Tyler...and was lucky enough to catch a picture of it. I still can't figure out how to arrange the pictures how I want them...but I still wanted to share them!

Ed giving Tyler a post-race pep talk. It went something like this...

"You ran fast buddy!"

"Oh yeah? Then why was I last???" (followed by more tears)

Realizing he is last...

He started out so good!

Ready for First Grade!

I can hardly believe that my baby boy is about to graduate from Kindergarten. It was a real struggle deciding whether or not to enroll him in Kindergarten since he was only 4 when school started. He's a wee bit smaller than most of the kids in his class, but he has done so well this year that I am glad we went ahead and enrolled him. Congratulations my sweet little boy! We are so proud of you!

Tyler...My Track Star!

I just knew that at least ONE of my kids was going to be a runner. I was beginning to worry that my running gene had somehow been lost in the shuffle. My sweet little Tyler showed us how good he is! He ran the 400 meter at his track meet, and he did so good! He ran the entire way (laughing and talking to other runners as he made his way around the track, of course), even though it was below freezing, and the wind was blowing like crazy! We were so proud of him!

The best part was when he finished, and he thought the pack of crackers and bottled water they gave him was his prize. It was too funny!

My sweet boys...

I wanted to share some pictures of my sweet boys. I am so sad that they are getting so big. They are such handsome little men, and I love them more than life. Even when I am in the worst mood, these boys can cheer me up. I am so happy that they are thriving here in Colorado, and that they have such a great man in their lives to help them mature into great men themselves.

My baby boy Tyler

My big-little man Logan

Kangaroos, Koalas, and Kindergarteners...Oh My!

Tyler performed at his very first Paragon night with the kindergarten classes. Nothing is more entertaining than watching 75 five and six year olds try to say words like kookaburra and longitude. It was too cute! Here are some pictures...He refused to take off the sticker. He made a 100 on his spelling test that day and that was his reward.

Checking out his buddy's loose tooth. He's anxious for one of his teeth to fall out. I didn't have the heart to tell him that Logan was almost out of second grade before he lost his first tooth, and it was knocked out. Who knows how long it would've taken. I guess it's all that milk they drink!
Tyler diarama for the Great Barrier Reef. He and Ed did a great job!

He was so proud of his diarama!

Tyler...oh, Tyler...

So Tyler, who we affectionately refer to as "Greg Jr." never ceases to amaze me. Ed and I have decided that he is just like his Daddy was. That sarcasm and dry humor that Greg had is what sticks out the most. The best though, is that he's funny and he doesn't even realize it. Take this incident for example...

While we're in the car, Tyler starts talking VERY LOUD to his brother. After a couple of warnings, I finally went into serious mom discipline mode. I said, "STOP YELLING!" (Okay, so I know that yelling at them to get them to stop yelling probably isn't effective, but I'm still a work in progress!) Tyler, in his most Greg-like way said, "But Mom, all my sentences have exclamation marks at the end!" How do you argue with that? I never thought he would be able to use his education against me. Darn it...