JustJessie

Flag Football Practice

Grayson had his first flag football practice last night.  He was a little skeptical about going to begin with, and I was worried we were in for a long season of whining.  He ended up having a blast!  He played hard; he has a great coach; the whole team is made up of nice boys.

Here Grayson is getting ready to take the ball, see?  The quarterback is about to hand it off to him...

But wait, no!  His drama skills even come in handy on the football field as he fakes out the other team.  They all chased him down to take his flags, while the little guy in white and blue took the ball down the field for a touchdown.  Grayson was as proud of his fake as the other guy was of his touchdown.  Jeff was elated that Grayson enjoyed playing so much.  He has never cared to watch the sport, and Jeff is such a die hard fan that of course he wanted Grayson to like it too.  I think we're in for a fun couple of months.

Mmm... Summer

Waking up late and stumbling into the kitchen to start the coffee and homemade wheat bread...

Having lunch on the screened porch in our jammies...

Topping off the day with puddle jumping at the grandparent's house...

I am so glad it's summer!

The Boys' New Pad

vMy mom and dad have the perfect backyard for kids.  I've told you about it before, I know.  This weekend Mom had a brainstorm to make it even better.  See, they have an arbor that used to have really sour grapes growing on it, but that has been totally useless for a couple of years now.  The boys were always climbing on it and hanging off it and stuff.

So, Mom came up with a great idea.  Why not add a floor and a ladder and make the thing into a sort of clubhouse?  She got my carpenter brother involved and what they came up with is the perfect play structure for the boys! 

They spent nearly the whole weekend in their "treehouse" playing Spiderwick, pirates, taking naps, and having picnic lunches.  I love that the whole project cost my mom a box of nails and that was it.  She (for some odd reason) had a bunch of spare lumber that they used for the floor and ladder.  I also love that my brother built it and got to experience the grateful hugs and squeals of his nephews when they saw it.   

Imaginations Gone Wild!

For the past few weeks, Grayson and I have been reading the Spiderwick Chronicles for his bedtime stories.  He LOVES them so much!  The hero of the series is Jared Grace who has a twin brother named Simon.  If you don't know, these books are chocked full of all things faerie: good creatures like sprites and brownies, bad creatures like goblins and ogres.  We just started book four of five, and Grayson's imagination has been set on fire! 

He and Grant call each other Jared and Simon about 60% of the time now, and they spend all their outdoor play time fighting goblins and meeting with elves and sprites.  Grayson has made his own Field Guide of fantastical creatures with wonderful illustrations. 

I have never seen a child as enthralled with a story as Grayson is with this one.  I love how his imagination is so vivid that in his mind he is Jared Grace, and there really are fantastical creatures all around us.  I wish so much for him to stay this way as long as possible.  I know he has to grow up one day, but not yet...

Two months to go

It's spring break for Grayson right now, and we are just loving every minute of it.  I know we made the right choice putting him in school, but I have so missed having him at home.  This was the first morning in ages that we've had the tv off, imaginations on, art supplies out.  The boys painted page after page of pictures, and have not bickered with each other one time.

I am looking forward to summer when we'll have two whole months filled with days like these.  Only two months to go...

Top o' the mornin' to you

Every year on St. Patrick's Day, little leprechauns sneak into our house and cook us breakfast.  It seems they're fond of green, because everything they serve us, from our eggs to our milk is a very unnatural shade of green.  The first year they came, they served green ham as well, but no one could bring themselves to eat what looked like putrid pig.

Grayson still chooses to believe that little leprechauns help me in the kitchen, and that the food is turned green by magic.  I love that he's still willing to play along.  Grant on the other hand didn't even notice there was anything unusual about the food.  He just ate it up as usual!  I'm sure there will  be lots of pranks and pinches blamed on the wee folk in our house today!

So, from the McClure and Bean blood running through my veins, I wish you a very Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Sunday Sweetness

I love baking in the morning with my boys.  I can't even imagine that I used to cook breakfast without four extra helping hands.  It's fun now to watch Grayson instructing Grant in the jobs he used to do, and then learning to do bigger boy things himself.

I don't know why working together in the kitchen creates such a peaceful, bonding atmosphere, but I love every bit of it: chairs pushed up to the counter, three hands stirring every bowl, trying to even out batter after someone sneaks in an extra cup of sugar or flour, wondering why the batter turned brown and then noticing the empty coffee cup sitting beside the bowl.  I imagine it's very different from baking with little girls, and I would say it's MUCH more fun.

On the other side

You know me, how I always have to look on the bright side, no matter how annoying it becomes?  As it turns out, that's even true when my little guys are sick.  Before Grant came down with the funk, I left him at my parents' house while Grayson and I went to the doctor.  In the waiting room, Grayson and I snuggled together under his blanket and looked at our favorite craft magazine,then we got the giggles playing rock, paper, scissors.  We read lots of books, and when we got to our exam room we pretended a brownie lived there.  Grayson laid down and watched, smiling ear to ear, while I looked in all the nooks and crannies for the brownie. 

The next day when Grant was sick as well, it was so sweet the way they interacted with each other.  They snuggled down in their blanket fort with a pile of books and a couple of flashlights, and there they stayed until we made them go to bed. 

Even though I would never wish them sick, the extra cuddle time is precious.  The sweet little voices asking for Mommy and the sleepovers in Mommy's bed are things I will treasure in my memory.  Yep, even in sickness we can find things to be thankful for.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Stealing Some Sunshine

Today is the kind of day that makes me want to stay inside and stick my nose in a book.  It's gray and snowy and muddy outside.  Yesterday, though, now that was a different story!  We had one of those wonderful rare winter days when the wind wasn't blowing, the sun was shining, and the temperature was in the high 60's.  It was WONDERFUL!  As soon as the boys finished lunch, we rushed outside and soaked up every bit of sunshine we could hold.  They rode their bikes, played ball, and were able to be as loud as they wanted with no consequences.  We also used this recipe to make some sidewalk paint, which they loved.  The paint itself was much thinner than the stuff we have bought at the store, but they loved that they helped make it.

 

It is so funny watching two boys playing at such different stages in maturity.  Grant wanted me to help him paint rainbows and a "skew bus", while Grayson was experimenting with the splatter patterns the different brushes made (if you know their personalities, you know how backwards this sounds). They both enjoyed splatter painting the trees to use up the rest of the paint!  I was so thankful for the sunshine, and today I will just be thankful for a warm home from which to watch the snow.