What they wore & a Star

Since I recently picked up Archy's turquoise sweater at the thrift store I wanted him to wear it before it gets to hot for it. I had everyone wear turquoise. They weren't real happy to take this picture but are they ever? Zany was already asleep so she wasn't in this photo she also wore turquoise.

Quinton back, McCoy left, Declan right, Archy front

Zany

Quinton had his Boy Scouts of America Court of Honor. They have one about every six months or so. 

Scouting Quint

His scout leader awarded him, his star and four merit badges. Quinton is very self motivated to get his merit badges (thank goodness). He really enjoys the scout program. 

Merit Badges: Physical Fitness, Family Life, Cooking, First Aid

Star Scout Rank

Quinton with Merit Badges

Doesn't this photo look like it is right from Moonrise Kingdom!

Little Leaguer McCoy

It was opening day for little league and this year McCoy is the only Carlton playing as Declan is playing basketball and Quinton is doing track.  McCoy was so excited for his first game that he got dressed for his game three hours before he needed to get ready. Eddy is being an assistant coach for McCoy's team. 

Getting ready for the game McCoy is number 10, Eddy is in black with the clipboard.

McCoy is standing far left looking at the pitching machine. This is the first year they have used a pitching machine and the first time they have gotten to hit off it so it was a little intimidating. I knew that Eddy was itching to try it out and sure enough before half the game was over he was running the pitching machine. The slowest setting on it was 37 mph which was quite a bit faster than the boys were used to. A few catchers had to leave the field with injured hands.  

McCoy swings at a pitch.

He really loved playing and is looking forward to his next game!

The Jump Test

 Archy is a slender little guy who hates for his pants to be loose at all. So anytime he gets dressed night or day he does the jump test. In which he puts on one layer at a time then jumps to make sure they are not going down. He could be dressed for the day having already done his jump test decide to take a bath then get re-dressed in the same clothes but before he puts them on again he has to test them. There is some legitimacy to his testing procedures as the two brothers who came right before him have a different body type especially in the backside area. Archy's body type is more like his oldest brother Quinton (lean). We are big believers in hand me downs so sometimes things are a little stretched out.  Archy and I frequently disagree about whether things are tight enough. For example today, he had been wearing this outfit (you see below) all day and then he told me his shorts were to loose and he needed new ones. I disagreed thinking of how quickly laundry accumulates and told him just to keep wearing them.

He begins jumping in front of me.

Within two jumps the shorts have failed. I realized the handy elastic tighteners have become unbuttoned and his shorts are to loose.

He is double checking my work of tightening his shorts.

Archy was down to his last pair which are a bit big on him and he didn't want wear them. His regular jump test didn't give him the failing result he wanted so he took me out to the trampoline to show me they were two big. Happily for me they didn't go down and he had to keep wearing them.

The Napless Baby Thief

 McCoy has been collecting these little WWE wrestlers for three years now and he has amassed quite a few of them considering he is the only one who has been buying/receiving these. Although the toys are communal after opening them and anyone can play with them the ties remain if only in a vague sense.  He set them up and wanted me to take a picture of it.

McCoy carefully stacks the wrestlers using prop tables.

It held and didn't fall over.

Wee Archy didn't have a nap today and so he hit full slytherin mode and stole Zany's baby doll from her and she was chasing him around the house trying to get it back. 

Ha-ha I got the baby!

This really upset Zany and she cries loudly!

This photo shows her true feelings.

Suddenly it is a three way fight for the doll and Archy viciously pulls McCoys ear which makes McCoy cry. If your keeping track that's two people Archy made cry in as many minutes. I ask Archy why did you pull Coy's ear?

 He shrugs. 

I have to sort them out and have them make up.

Zany gets her doll back and is very relieved and cuddles it.

She is murmuring soothing words to her baby that I couldn't quite make out. 

After she has settled her baby down, she decides to share with Archy and gives the baby to him. Archy is not longer interested in the baby. He lays on the couch and soon falls asleep. Peace is restored!

Thank goodness it is Friday, I am so looking forward to the weekend. I am hosting bookclub this coming thursday so I have to get my ducks in a row and finish up several projects and do some real cleaning. Here's hoping I can sleep in just a bit though!

Apple Ban, Painted Piggies & Kid Projects

I quit buying processed snack food a couple of years ago simply because they (the kids) ate it and were still hungry and it was expensive. No more granola bars or even cheese sticks. Now they can eat all the produce they want apple, bananas, plums, grapes, carrots etc. after they eat a produce item they can have a yogurt or slice of homemade (thank you bread machine) bread. I had to limit apples to one a day though because they were whipping through those. I recently bought a case of pink lady apples (one of my favorite types of apple) a whole forty pound box of lovely pink apples. Accordingly, I lifted the apple ban from one to however many they wanted to eat since I don't have room in the fridge for all those and want them to get eaten. Today as I was folding laundry I looked out the window and saw McCoy getting on the trampoline with two apples. I asked him if both of them were for him and he said yes since they could eat as many as they wanted. 

McCoy with apple #3 (in a one hour period)

Zany's new favorite thing is reading books and she has the attention span to listen to a whole book actually several books in a row so it is really fun to read to her.

She loves horses right now and calls them Ha-Has.

We painted her piggies today she is quite pleased about it.

Here is McCoy's finished painted and distressed chair. After he painted it, I sanded it to let the red show through and sealed it with matte spray sealer.

Declan's finished chair. After I distressed it, I rubbed some wood gel stain on and then sealed it.

Quinton's table that Eddy distressed.

I used a stencil  and spray paint to make this flowered pattern then I sealed it.

The boys all did a great job painting there projects and they had fun doing it. Now if only they would show such enthusiasm for piano practice.

Project: Archway

Archway Before

We added this molding (two rosettes and fluted piece) to the archway about five years ago. Plan A: We were going to order some custom archway molding but we couldn't because the archway isn't perfect as the previous owners of our house made it themselves when they took out a window for the addition. Plan B: Have Eddy make a custom molding in a college woods class. Plan C: Paint it like there is molding (cheapest option). We went with plan c but I could never decide how to do it. Then one day I was sitting and looking at it when a light-bulb went off: scallops.

Archway After

So cut a circle out of a heavy catalog cover (H & M) then I folded it in half and drew the scallops all the way around with a pencil. Then I hand painted it trying to be careful instead of taping it. It's not perfect but I am happy with it. It had always bothered me not to have the arch molding. 

When I was in high school, I went to Disneyland and had my silhouette made. I decided if my family ever went to Disneyland I would get their silhouettes made. This last summer we went to Disneyland and I had a chance to do it. You sit looking at a wall and a nice lady with a sharp pair of scissors, looks at you and proceeds to cut an exact likeness of you freehand. It really is amazing and it only takes a couple of minutes. 

Archy (left) & Zany (right)

Declan (left) & McCoy (right)

Rhiannon (left) & Quinton (right)

Eddy

Eddy really hates his silhouette which is my fault. Eddy has curly hair but when we went to Disneyland he wore a baseball cap and it flatten his hair. I told the cutter lady that he really had curly hair and if she could do it like it was curly. Eddy only has curly hair on the top as he keeps it short on the back but she didn't know that, hence the Afro. In fact, Eddy didn't even want to take this photo of the silhouette but I insisted. I really like having the silhouettes; it is my favorite kind of souvenir. I also go for those hand drawings and costumed photos at various venues. 

Gila River Outing

When I was in high school and college, I went to the Gila River (just a mile from my childhood home) quite often. We would have cookouts, swim, or go tubing and it was a lot of fun. It has been many years since I had been to the river so we decided to take the boys for an outing to the river. Pa and Ashlee came along and Nona stayed home and watched Zany while she napped. Sometimes the Gila dries up in the summer but right now it was lovely and cool; about knee high on a adult. 

Declan, Quinton, Archy, Eddy, and Coy test out the water.

Pa (sneak attack) splashes McCoy.

McCoy gets some payback.

Pa tries out a new mustache style.

What does the moss smell like? Pa says it smells like doodoo.

Declan, the dare devil, jumps off the embankment. Right above Declan you can see baby willows that have been cut off at an angle. Those were cut by a beaver who had a home in the embankment. We didn't see him but Pa was fascinated by the beaver and his habits. 

McCoy and Archy look on admiringly as Declan jumps in (splash at bottom). 

They found a nice muddy spot to play in.

McCoy shows his muddy muscles.

Archy said on the way home he didn't like river swimming and next time wants to go to a real pool. Everyone else had a real enjoyable time and the weather was lovely!

Dragonfruit & bubbles

What they wore

I didn't get this photo until after church when we got home so its not the best photo. I let everyone chose their own outfits.

While we were sitting in sacrament meeting at church I noticed Declan had a loose tooth. I told him he needed to start wiggling it because his new tooth was coming in. He tried wiggling it and out it popped. This is the second time he pulled out his own tooth he was pretty proud of that. 

McCoy created a lego castle he wanted me to take a picture of it. It even has a waterfall (tower of single legos on the left).

Declan holding a dragonfruit.

We went to Duncan after church for a visit and while there we all got to try dragonfruit for the first time.

After watching a youtube video on how to cut it, we cut it up and handed out a piece to everyone.

Pa conveniently drops his piece thinking there were no more but don't worry we had more. Ashlee found it really funny. If you have never had dragonfruit before it is similar to a kiwi with small seeds but tastes more like a cucumber.  I liked the texture but the taste was disappointing.

Archy is horrified by its sliminess.

McCoy tries a bite as does Quinton.

Pa thinks its nasty.

After the dragon fruit tasting, we had a  bubble blowing contest using four different wands. Coy won with the biggest bubble blown using the kazoo.  That's a rare and genuine smile from our teenager.