Fun With Our Sons: Once Upon a 4-Wheeler

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Once Upon a 4-Wheeler

A couple of weeks ago we escaped to the cabin for a day of 4-wheeling together. I must admit, I wasn't looking forward to spending the day in the cold. But when a mom has all boys, she does what the boys do. Looking back on this day, I'm SO glad I got over myself and went along with my family. We had the very best day together. A storybook day. Once upon a time. . .

Aaron being Aaron

Braylen being Braylen :)

Ginger couldn't get enough! She ran and ran and ran!

Aaron rode first, then he drove Daddy around!

Kaleb would drive this 4-wheeler all day if we let him.

Derek pulled the boys in the sled. I even took a turn in the sled!

There's something special about spending a winter day at the cabin.
I love this picture of Aaron riding in the sled behind Derek.

At the end of the day, I impressed my boys with my driving. I want them to learn from me that girls can do these things too! The one thing I didn't do was chow down on jerky. The boys (and Ginger) wanted no other snack but jerky. Good thing I packed some peanut butter crackers for myself. :)

Derek went to a lot of work to arrange this family outing, and I'm so thankful he did. I hope our boys will remember these fun days. I'd like to stop time right here and keep them like this forever. I guess the best I can do is capture the memories through pictures and writing. It's my way of remembering once upon a time. . .

1 comment:

Eric said...: Hey! I hadn't read your blog in a little while so I was doing some catching up! And it made me sad that each post was so great, yet each one had 0 comments. Then I thought to myself, "self, you could comment on one!" So here I am, even though I know you're busy right now with another thing.

I really love the way you document your life. It's really the reason I started doing this kind of thing too, even though my original intention was just to post pictures (and I don't post nearly as much as I'd like to). And looking back I'm glad that I did because I'm amazed at how much I've already forgotten.

Anyway it's really cool to see this window into your lives, especially because we hardly see each other. I keep thinking about how Braylen was 10 months old when I graduated, and now Will is almost 10 months now. I even found the video I took of Braylen crawling around my dorm room. Then I look at the exploits your boys are into and even though I know better, it still feels like it'll take forever for Will to do those kinds of things. Fact is, Amber is already sad at how big he is now. I better be ready for some serious nostalgia ahead!! One thing I've always looked forward to is playing basketball with Will. The pictures of your hoop just made me think of that again!

Anyway, I love you, and I want you to know that I read EVERY post and appreciate every one - even though my comments are few and far between :) Can't wait to see you for real next month!; February 27, 2012 at 7:49 AM

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What I've Learned While Raising Boys

You know you're a Cub Scout mom when you end up teaching the salesperon which neckerchief slide goes with which age level.

The boys want to be just like dad, but they want to snuggle with mom.

Snuggling and cuddling can quickly turn into a tickling match with daddy, but mommy avoids the tickling to keep snuggling longer.

A carpeted floor always turns into a wrestling mat.

I don't care how old (or how young) you are; if you are male, you will wrestle on the carpeted floor.

I've never heard the words 'belch' and 'fart' more in my life. Nor the sound effects those words represent.

They'll carry toads and eat dog food. Hand them a toilet brush and they think it's gross.

Why mop the boys' bathroom floor when I can wait for them to do it for me? Three showers later, a towel makes a nice mop.

Courtesy flush=an adult walks by the boys' bathroom and flushes the toilet. Courtesy flushes are standard around here.

Hearing me count to 5 changes my child's behavior, if only for a moment.

I get more practice counting to 5 than I did when I was learning how to count.

Pull-ups should never go in the dryer.

Vacuuming the pull-up pieces out of the dryer at midnight is not unheard of.

Rocks, cars, coins, chapstick, crayons, army men, kleenex, and stickers are all washable, but shouldn't be.

If I want a child to be sick, give him clean sheets.

Band-aids really do make it all better.

My camera batteries will die at the worst time. Like they did at my wedding and the birth of my first son.

When I get mad at my son for spilling his drink, I'll spill mine that same day.

Just when I'm ready to sit down with my lunch, my kids need cleaned up from finishing theirs.

The game "I Spy" works great in a restaurant; not in a moving car.

Dandelion bouquets should be checked for ants before gracing my kitchen counter.

I should always accept a dandelion from my son with delight, for someday they will just be weeds in my yard.

I really do have eyes in the back of my head.

The messier the better--living room, kitchen, toy room--for it means my kids are here with me.

I never turn away a hug from my son--soon enough he won't offer them to me.

Things are always better in the morning.

I can never find the scotch tape in my kitchen drawer, but my son has at least 3 rolls in his desk.

My 5 year old can remember attending a funeral when he was 3, but he can't remember to flush the toilet or shut the front door.

I shouldn't be surprised that my 5 year old thinks I was friends with Mary, mother of Jesus, when he thinks 7 year olds are big kids.

Hiding a purchase from an inquisitive child looks like shoplifting.

The number of bathrooms in a home should equal the number of children. All 3 bathrooms have been used at the same time more than I ever would have imagined.

I'm a selfish, self-centered person. God's cure for that? My 3 blessings.

They really are little for just a little while. . .