Tuesday, April 1, 2008

January 2008

January update…

We had a wonderful Christmas holiday. We decided years ago that we would not travel at Christmas, and every year I am thankful. Makes things much more relaxing and focused.

We’ve been having fairly cold weather and there has been snow in all the hills around the lake. The boys have learned how to check the local weather forecast on the internet, and get very excited every time there is a prediction for “possible snow flurries”, but have been sorely disappointed so far. We’re planning a trip to visit friends near Leavenworth next month, so they’ll get a chance to whoop it up in the snow over there!

The boys’ latest obsession is a late Christmas gift we got them… a computer game. I don’t know what it is with boys and shooting things, but I’m sure it’s in their blood somehow. I’m not too keen on the violent nature of many of the games I’ve seen (a bit of an understatement there!) but we have arrived at a happy compromise: Lego Star Wars. They can blast, shoot, and light-saber fight to their hearts’ content, because when they do hit their target, the “victim” (enemy!) just breaks into Lego pieces. I’m okay with this.

I love this time of year… no big holidays on the horizon to be preparing for, too cold and wet to do major yard projects, haven’t started the frenzy of spring soccer yet (!), and it’s still pretty dark outside, but warm and cozy inside. Things are pretty relaxed. Well, as relaxed as things get with boys around…

There is just never a dull moment here! Yes, they will spend many (relatively) quiet hours building with their Legos, and for that I am truly thankful. But, the boys are just generally a bundle of energy and enthusiasm.

The funny thing about boys, though, is the noise is different than girls’. Certainly the boys are not quiet… far from it. But we had some friends over for dinner with a 3-year-old girl, and my boys actually (politely, mind you) asked if the mother if she could get the little girl to be quieter! I think it’s the pitch – the shrieky noises. All the shooting, exploding, crashing sounds they make don’t seem to register, but one (happy) girl with a high-pitched giggle was more than they could take!

They do have a tender side, though – especially Gunnar, my little social butterfly. As I put him to bed the other night, he said to me: “Mom, there’s three kids I know I’m going to be friends with – Caleb (a 1-year-old), Ben (a friend’s newborn that he hasn’t even seen yet), and Stephanie’s baby (won’t be born until August!) But that’s Gunnar, ready to love them, and confident that they will want to be his friends. =0)

All for now….

Julie and the boys

PS My friend, Alicia, in Tennessee, sent me these three reasons people choose to homeschool:

1. The teacher is just sooooo cool!
2. The Principal is kinda cute.
3. My children preferred this lunch program.

No comments: