Chicken Eggs

Gathering the first egg,

a very momentous occasion

especially in the life of the 7 year old

who found it.

His celebration could be heard by all the neighbors,

I am certain.

We are lucky he didn't drop it

with all of his jumping and running and yelling.

We should thank 

a red chicken

for the first.

Now the other chickens have followed suit.

Three eggs total last week,

three eggs a day this week.

Last Day of School!

Farewell to school . . .

 Let Summer Begin!

Entrepreneur

Kacin has started another business.
I thought after a day or two,
he would abandon the idea
but he is insistent that this will be his summer job.

How did he become the "the Expert at Cleaning Toilets"?
Well, one day he asked to earn money.
I told him he could clean the toilet
and a job really well done would earn him more money.
When he was finished that toilet was sparkling.
I gave him a dollar.
And he was so proud of his work.

The next day,
he got on the computer to design his flier.
He did it all himself.
Except to ask which phone number to put on there
and to double check his spelling of the word "toilet".
We printed it out and he drew his pictures--
him and a toilet.

I asked him what he was charging.
He said $20 for each toilet he cleans.
After explaining to him all that you can buy for $20
he dropped his price to $15.
After explaining that he needs to be fair to his customers,
he brought his price down to $7.
After explaining that if he gives everyone a good deal
he would attract more customers
and that if he does a great job he could earn tips
or raise his prices later
he settled at $1.50 a toilet.

So if you are looking for
an Expert Toilet Cleaner,
I know a guy.

The Sun Does Come Out Sometimes

Either I should whine and complain more often
because it yields great results
or
I just need to remember
to hold on a little longer
because all bad days end
and sometimes the sun does come out.

Of his own accord,
one day at the end of last week,
E took a day off of work to stay home
to do yard work.
It was lovely having him home.
He came with me to drop the boys off at school.
He walked with me back to the school when Kacin forgot his lunch.
We ate lunch, ran errands,
and did get that yard work done together.

We postponed Saturday's rock-climbing adventure
because of the rain
and instead drove into Snohomish
for a couple of hours
to eat lunch and PIE.
yummy pie.

It started pouring on us
as we browsed shops.
We were very very wet when we got back into the car.
Kyler hung his socks to dry as we drove to the movie theater.

And then to end the day
we used the free tickets the boys got from school
to watch the Aquasox game.
The sky miraculously cleared
and the sun was shining on us during the whole game.

I am so tempted to make a list right now of all the things I want to complain about. It would be a long list too. But then later I would go back and read it and be embarrassed that I felt the need to post about laundry and husbands not at home and cramps and a screaming child and a serious lack of ice cream in our freezer life's little everyday challenges. I know very well how blessed I am. But I also know that if tomorrow morning it is not sunny I am hopping on a plane to AZ.

The Caldecott Challenge

It is quite the accomplishment for an 8 year old.
He read all 74 Caldecott award winners
(1938-2011)
+1 when he accidently checked out the wrong book.
But that is not all.
He read them all
AND also
reflected on all 74
(+1 and +a couple he reflected on twice
because he forgot he already had written about them).

At first, Ky was so excited about this challenge.
Then the excitement fizzled out.
Then he dreaded being told which books he had to read.
Then he got in a rhythm and felt good about it.
Then he felt worried he wouldn't finish.
And finally, the last two weeks,
he became determined and motivated himself
to get his final 18 done.
He worked hard
and we think he is awesome for sticking with it
and finishing.
Kyler rocks!

Chef's K

Kacin loves to create his own recipes in the kitchen.

On this day, he wanted to make a treat.

He ended up baking a cake.

But not a plain ol' cake. 

Never.

His secret ingredients were marshmellows and chocolate kisses.

This was one of the best recipes he's come up with.

When it was finished,

we were too busy eating to take pictures. :)

Kyler's usually not too interested in cooking,

but when he saw Kacin in the kitchen

he decided to join us.

He volunteered to make a mac and cheese for dinner.

He chose out the pasta shells and a variety of cheeses

and, with just a tiny bit of guidance, added a little of this and that.

 And dinner was served.