There’s my #14, at bat.  Ross enjoyed playing t-ball this year and what a difference a year makes.  He has quite the arm this year, and is getting the “swing” of swinging the bat!  Next year he will play “coach pitch” and not t-ball.

Here he is on base.  Francesca is Ross’ biggest cheerleader and she can not wait to turn 5 until she can play.  She is going to be so disappointed that it won’t be this next summer.

Really blurry, I know - it was hard to get a shot of him running.  The team went to Lisa’s Homemade Italian Ice after the last game for some yummy Italian ice.  At that my friends, is the end of the season.  Now we are trying to decide if Ross should sign up for Soccer again in the fall or football.  He wants to try football - he was too young last year and it’s only flag football.  Why is my little guy drawn to football and hockey? Boys are so different from girls.

While I did this…..

Ross did that……

I finally put down tile on the floor by the basement and back door.  Ross had other home improvements in mind.  As I was working, he asked me if he could have a peephole in his door so he could look out.  I told him to ask his dad.  A short time later I heard a scratching noise.  When I looked in his room he had a toy screwdriver and was scraping around the marker line on his door.  He had drawn a large rectangle on his door and was trying to break through.  I explained to him that this wasn’t a peephole and that considering how large he was trying to make it, he could surely see out but we could also see in very well. See the blue above it?  A piece of construction paper so he could cover the hole and you couldn’t see in.  Least he’s got a plan.

The certificate makes it official!  Ross has officially graduated from kindergarten.  He is now a big 1st grader.  All that’s left is to pick up report cards on Friday.

My kindergarten graduate and me!

Ross and Miss Bultinck - what a lovely, wonderful teacher.  Thank you, Miss Bultinck, for taking such good care of Ross this year!  We love you!

Memorial Day 2010

We remember all who have given their lives so that we may have our freedom.

My dad was in World War II, and my brother Ray (above) was in Vietnam.   Two of the bravest men I know (miss you dad).

I am constantly looking for ideas to incorporate in Ross and Francesca’s rooms and I love the look of Pottery Barn and Land of Nod. Mainstream, I know, but cute none-the-less.  I was looking at the Land of Nod website and just now realized they offer wallpaper. Could have been that way for a while - I just never realized it before.  I like the idea of Land of Nod offering wallpaper, as I like their asthetic. These two are kind of cute and can be found here http://www.landofnod.com/wallpaper/kids/1.

I’d like the alphabet better if it wasn’t the Greek alphabet and if it was offered in more color choices.  The frame one is cute but a little to busy for my purposes.  What I especially like is this one below.  At first glance it’s nothing special, but as you read what it is - PRESTO.  It’s textured to look as if it’s bead board, and it’s paintable.  Super cool.

I’d love to see Land of Nod offer more prints, maybe some cute florals.  I would also love to see what Pottery Barn would do with a wallpaper line - for kids and adults.  I think that would be awesome!  I know the design purists would probably cringe at the thought but for those of us who like the look of these stores, it would be an easy solution to a design dilemma.

Ross made this for me today.  In case you can’t read this it says:

I NO iT iS NOT MUDRSDAY HeRe iS YOUR MUDRSDAY PRESENTS.

Best.Present.Ever.  And, he spelled everything all by himself!  I love this.  He even took the foam dots from the middle of the flowers and used them as spots on the giraffe.  I am one lucky girl, I know all you other mudrs out there can relate.

Sometimes they fight so hard I think one of them is really going to get hurt.  And then, there are moments like this.  They love each other so very much and Francesca will give Ross a kiss and a hug “just because”.  Or Ross will join in a tea party simply because he was asked.  It’s times like these that make me forget about the times when they are swinging and kicking at each other.

This past Friday was Cub Scout Fly Up night.  Ross earned his Tiger Cub Badge - a big accomplishment and he was very proud.  Ross also had his very first loose tooth.  It was loose for awhile, the Saturday before flyup he went to the Bulls game and I thought he would lose it that night.  He didn’t.  In fact he held onto the tooth with all his might- he ate around it - he did anything he could to avoid losing the tooth.  Friday at the Pack meeting, one of the older Cub Scouts kept trying to pick him up.  He bumped Ross in the mouth and out came the tooth.  And Ross did what any boy would do with his first tooth.  He threw it away.

When I asked him why he threw it away, he said it was broken.  I then looked in his mouth to see if only part of it came out - nope, it was all gone.  Best I can figure it was so small that it looked to him like it was just part of a tooth.  We went home and wrote a note to the tooth fairy, explaining what had happened to the tooth and just where the garbage can was so she could retrieve it.  She must have found it because when Ross woke up the note was gone and a dollar was under his pillow.  Hopefully, he won’t toss the next one.

“Old Buckethead” in better days.  With unseasonably warm weather these last few days, the snowman that the kids built is no longer in good shape.  Let’s just say that he’s off to the North Pole to return again someday!  But how cute the children are!  There is nothing cuter than kids dressed head to toe in snow suits!

While I was on my self-imposed, not-on-purpose blogging break, lots of stuff happened.  One very important thing was that Ross had his karate test and earned two stripes on his belt.  It was his very first test and it was very official.  He didn’t know how he did until he went to his karate class the week following the test.  His Sensei had a little ceremony for the kids who tested and then congratulated Ross on earning two stripes. He then very officially added his stripes (just like orange duct tape - ha!) to his belt.

Here he is with his Sensei looking all proud.  Congratulations Ross - way to go!