This is what we are doing today. Hope yours is just as sweet!

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I usually try not to tell the negative stuff about these guys and stay focused on the positive. But for the past week, Elliot has been pooping in his pants. Nasty! So much so that he wears diapers again. We’ve tried admonishing him, praising him, bribing him, punishing him, lecturing him… nothing has worked. So we spent the past week with no TV or computer time so he could “think about” going to the potty when he has to poop. Well today is the last day of the week and he was still pooping in his diaper. I told him how his friends are going to laugh at him and not want to be his friend if they know that he wears a diaper. We had another little boy over to play and I sent them into the bathroom to potty after lunch. The other boy said “Ew, you still wear a diaper!” To which Elliot responded quite thoughtfully, “That’s just the difference between you and me.”

Who can be mad at this little stinker?

Trav, of course, is no angel. Elliot loves music and singing but Trav always rains on his parade by saying that he hates music. Elliot said “I want to sing Old MacDonald Had a Farm.” And Trav said, “I want to spit!”

And sometimes they actually work together to make a good team. Elliot said, “I’m going to be a train conductor when I grow up.” And Trav said, “I’ll be the freight!”

Last weekend we went to Mt. Baker and hiked up to the Ice Caves! Here are some photos I took with my phone. I think Fletch got some more professional-looking ones that we might post later.

And here is a nice picture that someone took of Fletch and me at Summer Thanksgiving. Two lovebirds!

In an attempt to become full-blown yuppies and to find something to do together where we equally excel, Fletch and I have taken up golf!

These cherubs love legos!

They also made some new stepping stones to replace the one from Father’s Day. Oh the artistry!

By the way, here are pictures from when Trav had his tubes put in his ears. They were on Fletch’s phone so never quite made it to the blog when it happened. He was so good that day and there were plenty of toys for him to play with while we waited for him to be wheeled back. The surgery took all of five minutes. As soon as he was under anesthesia, the nurse took us directly to the recovery room where he showed up in no time. He was a trooper! We just had his follow-up appointment this past week and were told that everything in his ears has cleared up, the audiologist reported perfect hearing. I can report that he doesn’t fall down as often. Also he is sensitive to sounds so he claims to hate music and never wants the radio on. The Blue Angels are flying around our neighborhood this weekend and he has not appreciated the loud noises they make. We are just happy that he is healthy!

 We went to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens to check out the new suspension bridge today. We looked down at the ravine.

Then the kids ran across and back.

And then they ran across and back again.

We trotted through the rest of the garden and came upon this little door. Trav knocked but nobody was home.

We found a new playground where we had a picnic lunch and swung on the cool zip line. Weeee!

After that we rested poolside. (My poor children are the only ones in full swimsuit regalia.)

Finally, art.

As temperatures here soar up to almost 70 degrees, we are forced to take cover and eat as many frozen treats as the day will allow. Elliot turns his Popsicle into the Empire State Building.

Trav acquired a frozen yogurt goatee at Yogurtland!

The boys also recently received a gift from their Nana that held water balloons. The entire neighborhood got in on the action. First, the girls took charge. They took the water balloons, filled them all up, and distributed them. They made up a game that made no sense to adults but was understood by all the kids. Everyone was happy and wet by the end of the game. I guess Elliot needed his helmet to play!

Nana also sent the boys a Bugathon! What fun! Here they are with their bugs.

Then we went to the Point Defiance Zoo and had a real live Bugathon with this millipede!

There were some silly monkeys at the zoo.

Sharks!

And the biggest spiders I’ve ever seen!

Elliot’s quotable, confident quotes:

Did you know that I have rad moves even though I don’t have a surfboard?

Mom did you know that I’m a scientist about everything, but more important I’m waterproof, but more important than that I’m a fisherman?

Trav, I’m trying to fan you away with my toe.

(my attempts to teach Elliot stranger danger keep failing.)
Mom I have secret karate moves that will make the strangers dead or dying.

We went to a party before the fireworks on Wednesday, and one of the families brought sparklers for the kids. It was fun to watch the kids with their first sparklers!

Elliot’s attention was divided between the sparkler and the angry bird.

Later, we went to the park to watch fireworks. This was the kids’ first time to see fireworks in person. Naturally we had to buy the light saber with the ten thousand percent markup. Worth it!! Look at the joy!

See that we wore sweaters and jackets? I guess summer starts on July 5 around here. It was still cold on the fourth.

Also: fireworks started at 10 pm. There was still a little daylight when they began!

Today: back to the grind. We made a gingerbread house. Isn’t that what you were expecting? Here, the boys are acting like they don’t have candy in their mouths.

Here, the gingerbread man’s legs and arms were falling off since the kit was 6 months old.

The shirts I ordered for the kids to wear today haven’t arrived yet, so I dressed Elliot in his flag shirt that Cassel bought the kids last year. Elliot told me “everyone might think I’m Captain America!” so matter of fact. Of course that’s what they’ll think!

Here’s what the kids have been doing this week while school is out. We pitted some cherries.

Shopped for crafts.

Hunted for treasure.

And planted flower gardens.

Actually they are cactus gardens.

We are still potty training and have some sticker charts to show progress, which is slow. So we are home a lot. Playing and working as a team!

Elliot started taking swimming lessons yesterday. He had a great time! Afterward, we moved the trundle bed into Trav’s room and all the toys into Elliot’s room so that now the boys are sharing a bedroom and have a separate room for toys.