Raz-Kids - A reading and Saving $ Game

Hahahaha wow I guess the struggle with saving $ starts early! Rylan is playing a reading game. Each time he reads a book he get's stars to buy stuff for his virtual rocket ship.

After a couple hours of reading...
Rylan: I have 720 stars now and I am saving up for a whole new world for my rocket ship!!!!
Me: Wow great job! How many do you need to save up?
Rylan: Hrmm I forgot! I better go check and let you know!
Rylan: *Silence*
Rylan: *Silence*
Rylan: *Silence*
Me: Did you find out how many you need?
Rylan: Oops...I only have 20 now and I need 2000 
Me: Oh what happened?
Rylan: Well I just wanted some other stuff right now! BUT I still want a whole new world too! *sigh*
Rylan:*double sigh* But I think I need a break now...
Me: Haha unfortunately I understand your problem all too well.
Rylan: What? You are a grown-up though!
Me: Haha right? I am last time I checked!  But apparently it still happens to grown-ups sometimes too...

This is what his rocket ship looks like inside right now. He bought everything that is in it with stars. When he clicks on some of the things they do things. 

This is where he picks which book to read, listen to, and take a quiz on. He is on level D right now. Lee likes Raz- Kids too but he isn't quite as into it as Rylan is right now. Whenever Rylan want's to do it though it seems like Lee get's more interested so hopefully that will keep happening! 

Winter Wonderland Lights

Today from their advent calendar the boys got some craft books with ideas on what to make with boxes and paper plates. And then we went over to Nana & Grandpops for dinner. It's a new tradition we have been doing for the last 4-5 weeks. We plan what to make on Monday...my parents get the ingredients then we come over and cook it for them. It's really wonderful because it get's us to see my parents more often. Helps us with not having to worry about getting ingredients for a dinner a week and helps my parents by them not having to cook a dinner one night a week.

After dinner we took a drive to go see Winter Wonderland in Woodinville. My parent's live in Woodinville so it was a fairly short drive.  Winter Wonderland is a private home in a neighborhood that is unbelievable. When you drive in there are signs that ask you to tune into a specific radio station and the music played is what the lights flicker to! The boys favorite part was the large moving Thomas the Train! My favorite was probably the Santa that looked real in the window but was actually playing on a tv. Funny thing is when I first saw it I believed it was a real person but when my Dad (Grandpop) tried to point him out to Lee the problem was that Lee was looking for a real person and could tell that the one on a tv screen wasn't real so he was trying to look past it! On the way to the amazing house we had the boys point out whenever they saw other houses that were decorated of course they got really into this game! It was really cute hearing them squeal with excitement and direct us where to look! Lee saw a house that was a very classic design and very cutely cried out that it looked JUST like a gingerbread house!

Loving Lola

Today on the way home from school. We drove by some kids and....

Rylan: That's the girl that always chases me and catches me a lot!
Me: Oh really? Do you know her name?
Rylan: I don't!
Me: What does she do when she catches you?!
Lee: Oh she doesn't chase me anymore. Her name is Angie or An-ja-leee-nah! My name is in her name! Does she give you a big squeezie hug when she catches you?
Rylan: Nope she just puts me into pretend jail.
Lee: She is in my class and she is friends with Lola. Does Lola chase you?
Rylan: Yes sometimes!
Lee: I am in love with Lola...
Rylan: Oh no....you can't be. She chases me!
Lee: I am just going to find a flower to pick for her someday and give her another note that says "'I LOVE YOU"
Me: Another note?
Lee: YES
Me: Rylan do you think it is mean when girls chase you?
Rylan: Yes it scares me! He can't love a girl that chases me!
Me: Usually girls like you if they chase you. Maybe you should ask Angelina or Lola if they are trying to be mean when they chase you next time!

When we got home Lee decided he is actually going to pretend he doesn't love Lola instead so that she doesn't chase him.

Old Pictures from June...

This is old news but I came across them again and had to post them in case I wasn't blogging yet back in June.

This is what Lee gave Michael for this last Fathers Day!

 This is a picture of Michael!

Snowflake Lane

Yesterday the boys opened their advent calendar drawer and found a note that explained that we were going to eat dinner and head over to Snowflake Lane in Bellevue http://www.bellevuecollection.com/SnowflakeLane/ with some fresh hot apple cider in a thermos.

There were drummers and men on stilts walking around a stage with people singing and dancing and a person dressed up like a snowman and one like a dog a lady in a princess outfit snowflake lights moving around and bright Christmas Colored lights shining onto the buildings. The best part was the snow machines. The boys couldn't believe it was real snow falling.  Rylan was convinced it was paper and Lee thought for sure it was made of  bubbles! 

One of  the ladies dressed like a fairy gave the boys a lollipop we were proud of them for not eating it right away and asking us if it was ok to take one from her. 

 Watching the snow fall. 

 Rylan was having a great time trying to stay away from the snowflake lights that were moving around on the ground. He would try to jump over them! 

 Lee with his hand out trying to catch some snow! He finally caught some and said it felt like a bubble! 

 The tall guy with the cymbals was walking on stilts! He stopped for a minute to have the boys jump up to give him a high five! They both were pretty proud they jumped high enough!

 Haha Lee was making some pretty cute faces. We call them "stranger danger" faces. Ya know since we tell him not to talk to strangers or take candy from strangers it was a little confusing!

 Haha here is another cute Lee face! 

I was pointing out a group of dancers and some more drummers that were drumming from inside a truck for the dancers.

Standing up where the drummers were after the show was over.

Afterwards since we were at the mall we decided to let the boys go inside and look around in GameStop for a little bit which of course they loved! The mall decorated the inside with some reindeer flying which both boys thought was pretty cool.  And Lee asked if he could try going on the escalators again on the way back to the car. He said, " I want to try and not be a coward this time!" I was surprised to hear him say that word. I assured him that he was just being cautious not really a coward! He tried again and did a lot better at it so he was proud of himself! 

Progress!

There was an issue at recess with Lee one other boy Dylan and Rylan. It ended in Lee getting written up for punching and Dylan being written up for punching as well.

I contacted the school counselor to explain the situation and to see if she had any input. Actually  she had some fairly positive feedback about Lee's progress!

We still need to keep working with him on talking about feelings in a constructive way instead of acting on them. But it is so wonderful to hear from someone outside of the situation say that he has been making such progress!

Here is the email I received from the school counselor:

I’m sorry boys had rough recess but how sweet that Rylan wanted help Lee by reporting Dylan. Also, what a progress Lee has made. Asking for alone time and asking Rylan to use different word since “his fault” could be his trigger word.

You guys have done amazing job.  Not many 1^st grade kids can verbalize these things.  I know he is still using his hands and hurtful words but he is becoming more aware of his feelings and triggers.  J

Soo Chin

School Counselor

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Another thing we are working out with the boys is how to spend time playing alone sometimes. Michael pointed out pretty early on that it seemed like Rylan needs some time to play whatever he wants after school for a little while before playing with Lee and "compromising" on games to play. Part of it is that Rylan is obsessed with making all kinds of games up on his white board calendar. He writes all kinds of math equations and point systems ect..on it and uses magnets for all different types of games usually his games have some sort of video game spin to it. Lee has been going back to trains a bit lately and Rylan is pretty over trains at the moment. I think mostly it is that Lee likes to lead in games and Rylan wants to lead by playing by himself sometimes. But it seems like Lee always wants to play with someone else. It is very rare for him to choose to play by himself. It started to become a problem because Lee would get angry at him if he didn't want to play right away. And we had to explain that it is ok to not play with each other all the time. That it is normal since they play with each other so much, ( It is exciting to think that if we end up sharing property with my parents at some point each boy will be able to have their own room!)  Now Lee doesn't get upset with Rylan he just tries to entice him with all different compromises, deals and ideas. It is pretty cute if he doesn't get upset when Rylan declines. He will try to entice Rylan by letting him bring whatever it is he is playing with into his game or by offering up a toy that he doesn't normally like to share.  Today when he was trying to convince Rylan to play his game instead of what Rylan was playing he started to whisper. Sometimes that isn't a good thing so I asked what they were whispering about in a curious light hearted voice and Lee said, " Oh nothing just just man talk...kid-man talk I mean!" hehe 

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The snack drawer in the fridge that is dedicated to only the kids is still probably the greatest idea I have ever thought of! Right now it is full of baggies with carrots, celery, bell peppers, grape tomatoes, broccoli, some mandarins and apples. Whenever the kids want a snack (sometimes because they didn't eat all their dinner or we are making dinner and they smell it so naturally they become hungry and can't wait) we tell them they can have a snack from the drawer and most of the time the snack turns out to be healthier than the dinner anyway!

Lee idiosyncrasy: He loves to eat grape tomatoes and recently decided they taste better if he sucks all the juice out of them first. Normally this would gross me out but if that makes him like grape tomatoes even more so be it! 

Decorating the Christmas Tree

We rushed after picking up Lee from the ferry on Sunday to pick out a tree and cut it down at a UPick  farm in Woodinville but ended up getting there just after they allow people to cut their own and all the pre-cut ones were way too pricey so we ended up getting a tree over at Home Depot instead! That didn't stop Lee from noticing there were complimentary candy canes and grabbed one for himself as well as Rylan. In the truck on the way to Home Depot they were playing with their candy canes pretending they were hooks and were trying to "hook" each other with them. Michael and I had a chuckle when Lee exclaimed, " I am going to hook you! You know...because I am a hooker!" 

The boys picked it out, and decorated it almost completely by themselves! Nana (my Mom Nancy) got them those "Mario & Luigi" Christmas hats for them last year. Since then the M & L stickers she put on them have fallen off but they still LOVE them. Lee wore his to school today, it was adorable! 

I don't remember if I posted this picture on here yet...or if I just posted it on facebook. This is another of Lee's favorite hats. Both boys love wearing hats and gloves. Rylan insisted on wearing his new gloves to sleep and Lee wore his Luigi santa hat to bed! 

Watching the movie: Wall e

Tonight is movie night Lee called out look Wall e is getting close to Eunice! (aka Venus)

Lee informed us that robots can breathe in outer space while we watched Wall e .

Sometimes lee's hands are too wet from washing them he can't get the door open to the bathroom and he get's really worked up about it and used to cry and scream. He has gotten a lot better at asking for help instead. Rylan helped him this time and Lee gave him huge hugs and kisses!

Rylan forgot to bring home his school pictures and Lee said: " don't worry he looks the same as me only with yellow hair!" haha

Here they are:

Advent Calendar

I turned a jewelry tool organizer into an advent calendar and then told my crafty blogger friend about it and she asked me if should could blog about it and I told her it wasn't the cutest so she gave me some cool christmassy paper to use instead and I revamped it!

We started it on the 8th since it took me that long to figure out what to use  to make it! 

On the 8th they got pancakes sausage and eggs for dinner, the 9th they got special steamed milk cocoa (Michael makes it the BEST) and to pick a new book, on the 10th they got to go to Nana & Grandpops for dinner and create/play the Snowman Game 

On the 11th they got to make sugar cookies with Christmas cookie cutters and decorate them with sprinkles! On the 12th they got new matching beanie hats and to each got to pick out a new book

Today after we  pick up Lee we will go to a U Cut Christmas Tree farm! I made some fresh apple juice from apples a friend gave us and made mulled cider so we will bring that with to keep us warm! 

We will see how much Christmas we can fit into the week since we don't get both boys at the same time during winter break or Christmas Day :-( 

On the way to drop Lee off with Sheela on Friday he made an airplane for Rylan. We thought that was pretty sweet so we had to take a picture of them with their airplanes! 

Surprise art - Snowflake chains - Personalized Drinking Glasses - Advent Calendar

This morning Lee ever so sweetly announced to me that after school he was going to make some things for me. I thought he probably would forget even though he has a pretty amazing memory. But when he got home from school he actually remembered and asked Dad if he wanted to help too! He drew this adorable picture with flowers, bees and butterflies  and used some of my wedding scrapbooking stamps. The 8 is from today's advent calendar drawer.  And on the back he scribbled a bunch of pinks and purples and explained to me that he used all the colors girls usually like!

December crept up on us too quickly this year! I have been wanting to make an Advent Calendar for the kids but couldn't think of anyway to do one ourselves until last night! They opened the drawer for today and were excited to find out we are having breakfast for dinner! Pancakes eggs and sausage.

Sometimes we save jars to use as glasses. They are actually really great for the kids because they don't seem to break very easily even  on our hard wood floor. I wasn't intending on saving an olive jar just because it wasn't all that pretty and it was tall and slender. But Michael gave it to Lee with some water in it and with the label on it still. Lee loved it so much because he really loves olives. So later we saved a jar from some pasta sauce because Rylan loves pasta. It's so cute how they love their personalized glasses that didn't cost us anything! ;)

Lee, Michael and I cut some snowflakes today to make a chain to use as decoration. Michael made one that had Lee's name cut into it and Lee made one that was heart shaped that he announced looked just like a butterfly and flew it over to me to kiss my nose! Aww a butterfly kiss! :)

Rylan asked me to make him another book to write in and so Lee also asked for one. They got really excited because I found some thicker paper to use as as cover and I used a different type of washi tape to cover the staples on the binding. Then when I went back to my desk Lee worked for a bit and then brought over a notepad he had made for me!

Jokes and other cute conversations

On the way to drop off Lee in Edmonds and then Rylan in Bellevue right after the boys talked about some pretty adorable things.

They still are not quite grasping the concept of a joke. I read a bunch of kid jokes to them in the car and explained why they were funny and then they would try to come up with their own jokes for example Rylan said, "What was the monkey playing in the bath tub? He was playing inside the drain! HAHAHAHAA....you know that thing that sucks up all the bath water? Get it? HAHA"

Then Lee told us his favorite part of his school day today is that he did a project about Africa. He explained that last week they did a different project about Mexico. Then he said that another way of saying Mexico is Meh-kee-ko and then Rylan chimed in and said that he learned that same thing! I said oh are you talking about Meh-hee-co? They both basically told me I didn't know what I was talking about haha!

Lee was eating an orange in the car and they both started cracking up because Rylan said, "ooooo your orange is all naked now because you took all his orange peel clothes!"

We were talking about all the festive things we want to do before Christmas and Lee announced that he wants to go iceskating but not with skates but by sliding on his hands!"

After we dropped off Lee in Edmonds, Rylan said, "Did you know Bellevue has a school?  I know because the bus said so.(I assume that means the driver announced a stop by a school) And then he told us that some schools cost money to go to. And then we explained that college costs money. And he very sweetly asked if he can live with us when he is grown up. 

My Birthday was Awesome

This post is late,  my birthday was right before Thanksgiving. I used to dislike that a bit because everyone seemed to be too busy for my birthday because they were too busy thinking about Thanksgiving.  My parents always remembered of course, and they always made me feel special with a celebration. But when I was younger I put more importance than necessary on celebrating with friends or a boyfriend.

Now I really love my birthday being so close to Thanksgiving!

I think a big part of it is our family. They are the best present. The kids made me cards and gave me lots of hugs and kisses  and Michael made me a DELICIOUS dinner and started on a promise to do some serious cleaning and organizing our house.  My friend Crystal took me to lunch the next day and my friend Tina paid for lunch as a present another day and then it was Thanksgiving and I got to enjoy it over at my parents house!  It feels like I got a week long celebration of my birthday! 

Here are the sweet cards from Lee and Rylan :-) 

This one is from Lee. He didn't want me to open it right away so it would be a surprise. The little drawing is of the pigeon who loves hot dogs that hides in all the books by one of the authors the boys love Mo Willems. 

 This is what he drew inside. He was sure to give Rylan and I yellow hair. I love how he labeled me as "Mom" but then wrote "I love you Paige "

 And then he wrote "Happy Birthday" on the back! 

Here is Rylan's card: 

I really appreciate the waves he drew on the front. He isn't usually into art as much as Lee so he doesn't usually draw extra details like that. He made sure to point it out to me that he added them for "decoration".

 He drew all four of us and labeled Michael as Dad :) Then he wrote I love you Mom I love you more your birthday is in 24 (there are a few words I will have to ask him to translate for me again)

And this is the back: 

It say s I love you I love myself I like solids haha! He has been learning about solids and liquids in school as well as learning about loving himself! 

I got lot's of group hugs and kisses! They attacked me! <3