Happenings

We've had another busy week in the Luther household, and it's already almost time to start another week! I don't have any pictures of the boys to show, but I do have a few stories from the week.

It hasn't been a good week for electronics in our house. One night this week Dylan was doing his business in the bathroom, and he was playing his Leapster while doing so. I didn't think anything of it, until I went to check on him a few minutes later. He looked at me, wide-eyed, and stuttered out "Uhhhh, my leapster is drying off!" I asked what he meant by that and where it was. He pointed under a towel on the counter. I lifted the towel to discover a soaking wet Leapster. Apparently it needed to be washed, and thus, ruined. I took it apart and tried to dry the motherboard to no avail. I feel really bad for Dylan, as I'm sure he had no idea he'd never get to play it again, and in his defense, I never actually said "Don't get your Leapster wet." SO...that may have to be on his Christmas list again this coming year. Maybe just maybe I'll take pity on him before then. He really was enjoying it a lot.

The other electronic device that was ruined this week is my new touch phone. 13 days old and I dropped it, and the plasma type screen is now broken. Very frustrating. We seem to have a hard time keeping nice things in working order around here.

A funny story from this week was a result of Dylan realizing some of his toys mysteriously disappear and reappear. I have been trying to cycle our toys a bit, and the play kitchen was put away before Christmas. I went to the basement to retrieve a confiscated box of cars, and that must have turned on a lightbulb in Dylan's head. He narrowed his eyes and very seriously asked me "Where's my kitchen?" I guess the jig is up on the basement.

Yesterday we loaded up the bikes and bike trailer and went for a 17 mile (roundtrip) ride. It was so nice to get out and ride. The boys both fell asleep, and it gave Brian and I a chance to talk without little voices yelling over the top of our conversation. We stopped for a picnic lunch and then headed home.

Brody - well, what can I say about Mr. Brody. Or Spitfire as I call him. Today as we were leaving our friends house, Brody had to give a toy back to the boy who lives there. He was so mad, he thrashed around a bit on the floor, I finally stuffed him into his car seat, and that's when he started puking. He was so upset he literally puked all over himself and his car seat. Not sure what else there is to say about that...

And finally, we will soon have a fun addition to our yard:

The photo is one I found online, nope, don't know those children. We bought this playset today. It's pretty basic as far as wooden playsets go, but it has everything the boys need, and best of all, it fits the budget. We had a little help from Oma and my Grandpa Wennerstrom(the boys Great-Grandpa Paul) too, so that was very nice. We are not interested in a super expensive set, with the instability of Brian's job right now, we didn't want to invest too much only to possibly be moving away in the next year. Before Brian can start assembling it, we need to get a landscaping company out to level a part of our yard. We hope within the next three weeks to have it up and ready. I'm sure that amount of time will be slow torture for the kids, but with Brian scheduled to travel next week for business, it's the soonest we can manage.

Father's Day Weekend 2009

We had a great Father's Day weekend. We left Friday morning for the cabin, and didn't come home until almost 8 p.m. on Sunday! We eeked every moment of fun and relaxation out of the weekend as we could!

The boys always have fun running around and exploring anything that might be new at the cabin.

Grandma read the boys a few books before quiet time


Saturday morning we did something new - we all went out on Lake Galena on a pontoon boat. The marina rents the boats by the hour, and even provides the life jackets. We all had a great time out on the water. We saw deer drinking from the edge of the lake, fish in the water, big birds of prey looking for a meal, and many fisherman! Including this one...

Here, my little plaid prepsters were watching the scenery go by.

Back at the cabin, we swam, played tennis, went for a short walk in the rain, watched movies, played games, and ate some really good food. I think it was just the break we all needed from another stressful week in Rockford.

Brody, ever the daredevil, proved I'm not exaggerating when I tell stories about his daring feats:

We almost had to take Brody in for his first stitches. While out on the boat, he grabbed my pop can and hooked his finger around the sharp part. I didn't know he had done that, and tried to take the can away from him. His poor little finger was sliced open at the bend, and bled heavily for quite some time. As we were on our way to the hospital in town, he tore his band-aid off, and his finger was no longer bleeding. It was a pretty good cut, and today (Tuesday) is starting to heal up. I kept thinking this sure wasn't going to be the first time this kid will need stitches...

Sunday, we had a really nice day too. The weather wasn't as cooperative, but we still had a lot of fun. We are looking forward to getting back to the cabin as soon as possible!

No More High Chair!

Look who is refusing to sit in his high chair anymore!

Such a big boy. When I try to put him in the high chair he arches his back and howls "NO!!"

We made a last minute trip to MN this past weekend. I needed a little TLC from my mommy. We didn't make many plans, just went and hung out. The one big thing we did was go to the Jackson Street Roundhouse. It is an old roundhouse with a fully functioning turntable. Though trains are Dylan's passion, I thought it was really exciting to see the turntable because Dylan plays with one all the time on his train table.

There were several full size train cars on display, as well as six train tables. Dylan wanted to play on the train tables for most of the time, but we did manage to drag him away to see the other displays.

I can't figure out how to reorder these pictures, so there are two out of order. Dylan helped Oma water her many flowers.

Brody is sporting some new preppy duds!

Back at the Roundhouse...

Watching the turntable in action. We were able to take a train ride, and this was the engine that took us down the track.

We had a really nice time in MN. The drive was terrible, both ways...sigh. Brody is not a good rider. He screams most of the way off and on, it's terrible. We took our time and stopped on many breaks to kick around the soccer ball, but still, he isn't pleasant.

Regardless of the drive (if I somehow manage to block that from my mind), we had a really great time. It was so nice to not have plans, to just spend time hanging out.

And tomorrow morning, back to real life!

Bring out the sand box!

Last week, we decided it was time to break out the sandbox for the summer. Daddy set it up and the boys supervised.

They had fun and almost refused to come in at the end of the evening. Dusk came and we finally dragged them inside for a quick bath.

Martin Park

Here's my Jack Handy thought of the day: It's funny how stepping on a toy (barefoot) hurts less after a glass of wine.

Also, this weight watchers thing isn't so bad. Why can't I seem to remember that when I'm not following the plan? Why did it take me so long to drag my butt into that meeting to get started? So glad I did. I'm feeling so much better physically. Had my weigh-in today, and after two weeks I'm down 5 lbs already! It takes a lot of discipline, but I can honestly say I'm not going hungry. It's just about making smarter choices...

We went to a really fun park this morning. What really sticks with me about this morning is how different the boys are, and their playing style. At this age, Dylan was so cautious, and still is about certain things. The swings for example - as a toddler, Dylan never liked the swings, and even now will only swing on his belly, very slowly. He seriously dislikes swinging too fast sitting upright. Brody on the other hand, loves to be swung high in the air, his little wisps of hair blowing in the wind. He'll do anything, attempt anything, go anywhere, including going down big slides. He at least has the sense of mind to go down on his belly.

Woof Woof!