Kicking Off Summer Break

I know a lot of this is our perception of things, but it has been amazing to me how two weeks ago it felt like we were having a cooler than average spring and then some time in the last week or so it feels like we've jumped straight into July. I know one morning during the last week of school I woke up and the house was definitely chilly -- so much so that I turned the heat on for an hour to make it comfortable for everyone else -- and by that afternoon the temperature hit 90°F and we haven't looked back. Ready or not, summer is here.

MOWER DRIVER TRAINING. I remember the first time I let Ben solo on the mower. We were in Pauline's side yard. He had been riding double with me and steering the mower for some time. We had been over some mower safety and since he was steering it well I decided to slip off the back of the mower. He drove about ten feet before realizing I was gone. He stopped and looked at me. I motioned him on and he mowed with the biggest grin on his face.

Nate's turn to solo was in Aunt Mar's yard on Monday. We mowed a couple of laps around the perimeter of the area I wanted him to cut, then I stopped and got off. He looked at me and I motioned him on. He sat there with his mouth wide open for a moment and then said, "I'm not ready to mow by myself."

I said, "Yes, I believe you are."

He wound up mowing for about half an hour and did a great job (and he's had much less experience steering from my lap). It was a big day for him.

PACKING. Vicki and the kids took a three day/two night trip to Pigeon Forge this week to enjoy Dollywood (I stayed home due to work). They left Tuesday and came back Thursday.

Tuesday morning I was going over the packing list Vicki had made up for the kids with Ben. After the third item Ben stopped me and said, "I know. I've packed everything on the list. I've even folded it, which was very irritating, because if Mom looked through my bag I didn't want her to see my underwear."

I really wanted to ask if he thought she closes her eyes when she's doing laundry. He also streaks up the stairs naked after taking a shower.

DOLLYWOOD. Last year Vicki took the kids to Holiday World and they were asking to go back this year, but Dollywood offers a deal where if you arrive at the park after 3:00 your tickets are good for the next day. She also found a hotel that offered discounts for Dollywood guests so the trip was all set.

I think the last time we visited Dollywood Jenna was in a stroller so this was a new experience for all of the kids. When I talked to them Tuesday night they told me it had been a fun day. The crowds were low and they got to ride more than they expected. Wednesday proved to be just as fun.

Jenna really enjoyed the Mystery Mine, the Barnstormer, the Tennessee Tornado, and Adventure Mountain. Nate also enjoyed Adventure Mountain as well as River Rampage, the race cars, and the Mountain Slidewinder. Ben never could decide on a favorite and said the whole park was fun, but Jenna said the two of them really enjoyed the roller coasters.

BASEBALL IS OVER. Ben played his last baseball game of the season yesterday. While his team's win-loss record leaves a lot of be desired I think all the boys had fun and it looked like they all made a lot of improvements. I've said this here before, but Ben got the opportunity to play every infield position except pitcher this year. He made plenty of mistakes, but he made a lot of good plays too. Thinking back over the season Ben commented that he thought it worked out well that his team wasn't one of the best. As he observed he probably wouldn't have gotten the chance to play so many infield positions. He certainly wants to play again next year. Right now he wants us to sign him up for fall soccer ... oh, boy!

IT'S ALL CRAP. “Crap” is not what we consider a "nice" word. Vicki and I don't use it in our normal speech and we don't let the kids use it unchallenged, however, the other day it worked it's way into a kitchen table conversation which got everyone laughing.

Ben almost never drinks any carbonated drinks (the boys complain that they're too "spicy"), but he came home from his last ball game with a free hot dog and Coke. While drinking his Coke he decided to read the nutrition label aloud and have everyone guess how many calories, etc. were in the drink. He messed up when he got to "carbs" and said "crap." He immediately knew something wasn't right which got all the giggling started. Nutritionally speaking, Vicki was correct when she said, "Oh, it's all crab," but that made the kids giggle all the more.

A moment later Nate asked, "What's crap?" When Jenna enlightened him he started giggling all over again.

Joe