This is the kind of post that happens when you 1. Continue to Take Pictures and 2. Compose Stuff (in your head) for a blog, but 3. Do not actually get around to doing the posts. This should have been 5 separate topics. Therefore, I will try to split them up a bit for easy reading :)

Post 1: Crazy for Crazy Bones
So...I had never seen or heard of crazy bones until I went to our favorite toy store with the boys one day. I was intrigued by this big display of carrying bags, tins, a game book etc....but I still could NOT tell what these things were all about. That's because the actual "bones" come in bags like trading cards and you can't see what they are until you open them. I bought a pack, which contained 3 little guys, to investigate. The "original" game is based on an ancient Roman children's game, played with actual bones, called tabas. I checked out the crazy bones web site and it turns out that there are tons of ways to play with these things. We pull them out every few days and make up a new game (or race them down the matchbox car track or....um....carry them around in a variety of containers <-- Aiden). Here is a game we made up called "Roll a Bone". First, line up the crazy bones on the floor...(aren't they funny!)

Then take turns rolling a ball at the line. Keep any of the bones that you knock over. Don't move any bones that slide out of place, but don't fall down. Play until all the bones have been knocked over. Count your bones to see who won!
As always, my pictures are pretty bad (lighting), but you can see the yellow ball on the floor that Aiden just rolled....and yes, that is my folded laundry in the background.






Post 2: Fun With Shaving Cream

The older boys went to a summer camp in the mornings all last week. It was a rough start for both of them. Logan wasn't keen on participating, decided camp was boring and refused to make the craft on Monday. We talked about how fun is often about attitude and that if you THINK something is fun, it's much easier to have fun doing it. If you THINK something is boring, well of course you're going to dislike it. After our talk, Logan decided to think that camp was fun. He participated in all the activities and was excited to go each day. He liked it so much, they are going again next week for "Super Hero Week". Yeah Logan!

Aiden's issue stemmed mostly from the fact that he was at camp with ALL the neighborhood kids including his best friend, and personality twin, AJ. Aiden got written up the first day for wrestling around with "another camper". Since that is pretty much how Aiden and AJ communicate with each other (a big bear hug that disintegrates into falling on the ground...and actually doesn't involve much wrestling...), I figured that "the other camper" was probably AJ. He went to camp for the rest of the week with a list of things he couldn't do. He would name them for me on the way "1. no wrestling....etc" He did a great job and had a "much improved" stamp of approval from the girls running the camp by the end of the week.

On Thursday, I told the boys that I would have a special surprise for them if they both had a good day at camp (which means getting a sticker from the counselors). When they proudly showed me their dinosaur stickers at pick-up, I happily showed them the 2 cans of shaving cream I bought at Walgreen's. After lunch, we dragged the wagon, Brady's car and the cozy coupe around to the back yard to play car wash for a little bit. Ella and AJ came down...we even brought out some spray bottles left over from the get messy party. I was surprised at how fast you can use up two cans of shaving cream!

Post 3: Matchy-Matchy Me

Why am I compelled to make everything match? When I do stuff like this, it makes me think of team sports, pictures of ballet recital outfits....and cheerleaders. Like..is this a trait left over from my own cheerleading days when we all had to wear the exact same bow the exact same way?? ....or is this a god-given trait and potentially one of the reasons why I was drawn to cheerleading?? The bottom line is that I like to match stuff...and by "stuff," I mean my children...and by "match" I think I mostly mean coordinate....cause doing all the same color is too confusing. These are the morning milk cups ready for filling.
Post 4: Camp Invasion

As mentioned previously, the boys went to summer camp last week. Of the 10 campers in the class, 7 of them were from our neighborhood. On the last day, the parents were invited to come for a picnic.

I was dying laughing because my boys never eat hot dogs in buns. Aiden attacked his from the top...like a hamburger. I better get started on proper dog-eating form if they want to represent at the Cubs game next month!
Auntie Denna was in for the day. She came to the picnic too!! Here she is smooching crazy-hot-dog-eatin' Aiden.I took about 20 group shots of our gang...and I have to post several of them because they're pretty funny. Here are the kids sitting relatively still: Now the exodus from the table. This is Ella yelling "Camp is fun!!" AJ jumps off the back, Aiden jumps off the front. Logan yells and preps for his jump.Ella jumps (Aiden and AJ are actually now back ON the table, ready to jump again...Logan is gone...Maddie poses...Jack observes) Jack jumps. Aiden and AJ eye their next move, Maddie slides off the end. Auntie Denna and Brady play around. A few more minutes of fun before we all head home.
Post 5: Family Fun Magazine Rocks