Happy FIFTH Birthday, Cole!

Well, despite yesterday's post, Cole didn't entertain me much today in the way of age confusion.  He woke up this morning knowing that he is now five and that yes, he will be six on his next birthday.  Am I kind of a bad mom for wishing it had been the other way?

Well, let's start back on Sunday - the "extra" birthday.  Beginning with the cake drama.

Because there is always cake drama.

Over the past few months Cole has really been into the game Bejeweled.  He'd play forever on his computer, figuring out the puzzles and then trying to play them faster and faster.  I even caught him recording himself with my phone while playing the game.  So it was no surprise when he requested a bejeweled cake.

At first I thought it would be easy.  Just buy some jewel-shaped candy and slap it on a cake, right?  Wrong.  I could not find jewel shaped candy anywhere!  Not in stores nor online.  Dang.  For about half a second I thought about buying molds and making the candy for the cake, but then I came back to reality.  I mean, I love the kid, but I didn't want to spend the weekend with Dad and Susie here making candy for a cake. Sheesh.

So then I thought "Why not just buy some of those big fake rhinestones and slap those on the cake?"  Okay, not as cool and jewel candy, but still.  It'd get the job done.  Only I couldn't find what I was looking for anywhere.  At least, not at a reasonable price.  Hobby Lobby and Michaels apparently only sell fancy-shmancy-overpriced rhinestones.  So whatever.

I was getting a little desperate when lightening struck - the kid loves numbers, so why not make him a number 5 cake?  I brought it up to him and he totally bought it.  (I think this may have happened only because in the last week or so he has lost interest in Bejeweled.  Thank goodness!)  So I searched Pinterest and found some ways to make a cake look like the number five and was all set for that when Susie, brilliant woman that she is, mentioned just making cupcakes in the shape of a five.

Genius.

Like the giant M&Ms in the middle?  I let Cole pick those out.  They were a big hit.

The kids were so excited to have cupcakes - I may have to do this more often.

We sang happy birthday and Cole blew out the candles and opened presents.  His latest obsession - UNO - was encouraged with a new set of Angry Birds UNO cards.  Because the only thing cooler than UNO is Angry Birds UNO. (Notice the sunglasses.  He still wears them all the time.  Unless I make him take them off.)

Spencer gave him some glow in the dark stars for his ceiling.  Which we still have yet to put up... oops.

He also got a green shirt with a big 5 on the front, which of course I never took a picture of.  Dang.  Well, I'm sure it'll show up on the blog some day.  Dad and Susie gave him a Hot Wheels set that he luuurves.  He also got one of my old digital cameras, which he's been having a lot of fun with.  Yesterday he figured out how to use the flash and for a while there it was like living with the paparazzi.

Poor Cole didn't get any extra presents today, but I made sure he still felt loved!  We started with a special pancake breakfast, complete with confetti sprinkles and a candle to blow out.

Shirts are obviously optional at the Madsen household.  And look at that mop of blond hair!

Here he is, showing how old he is today!  (He tried to hold up 6 fingers at first, but he eventually got it!)

We had a really busy day today.  Tomorrow is the last day of school, and it seems like the less schoolwork the kids do, the more busy it is for moms.  This morning was the school talent show, which Spencer participated in.  I took Tess and Cole and prepared for the worst.  You know what?  They weren't that bad.  They were wiggly and squirmy and had to have snacks, but for the most part they sat quietly and watched all of the acts.  And how was the show?  Well, about what you would expect from an elementary talent show.  I might be biased, but Spencer was exceptional. ;)

Well, the talent show went on and on and on, and finally, after an hour and fourty-five minutes I decided I was pressing my luck and should probably get the kids out of there before things fell apart.  (That whole mom-sense thing kicked in; I knew things were going to get ugly soon.)  So we snuck out after Marcella's recitation of "Invictus".  (Pretty heavy stuff for a second grader - impressive!  Or, as Lance said when I told him about it "Yeah, that sounds like something a Wallin would do.")

Anywho, we got outside and Cole was immediately very sad that Josh and Spencer weren't coming home with us.  It was all I could do to get him to the car.  I talked about going home and having fun playing, but that just made Tess and Cole even unhappier.  And then I thought "Hey, they've had to sit in a loud, uncomfortable auditorium for a LONG time.  They deserve a treat."

That's when Fun Mom took over.  Fun Mom ignores all the stuff she needs to get done and is instead spontaneous and, well, fun.  Fun Mom announced we were going to the park!  And there was much rejoicing.

We played on the playground for a while and then checked out the zoo for a bit.

And then we went on the train!  A grand treat, because usually we only go as a whole family.  But Fun Mom was in charge and she decided you only turn five once - how could she turn down the birthday boy's request for a train ride?!

Awkward selfies were taken.

It was very bright and hot and Fun Mom wished she had brought some sunscreen.

But no matter, because we had tickets and were going on the train!

It was a grand and glorious ride.  It also made us very hungry.  I asked Cole what he would like for lunch, and without hesitation he exclaimed "McDonald's!!!"

I have to admit that Fun Mom paused for a second because she knew we were going out to eat that night for his birthday dinner, but then she looked at that little blond haired and blue eyed boy who had surprised her by coming early five years ago and there was no way she could say no.  So off to McDonald's we went.

A happy time was had.  And Happy Meals were consumed.  And does anyone else think the side of this Happy Meal box is more than a little creepy?

I didn't get anymore pictures of the day, which was spent cleaning up around the house, going to Spencer's end of the year party, playing UNO and Add A Bug games, and going to Dairy Queen for dinner (also Cole's choice).  But that's fitting for the third child, right?  He's pretty lucky to have gotten this much attention!  (Poor neglected third child...)

Mr. Cole surprised us all by coming three days before my scheduled c-section, and he's kept me on my toes ever since.  He's certainly not been the easiest child to raise, but somehow through all of the time outs and tantrums and challenges it's just made me love him more. (Hey, the harder you work on something the more you care about it's outcome, right?)

Cole is fun and entertaining.  He is busy and active.  He's curious about the world and especially about how things like doors and other simple machines work.  We sometimes joke that he's an evil super-villain in training. Or a mechanical engineer, one of the two.  He's very, very bright.  Too bright for his own good sometimes.  He can be very caring and happy, and when he's in the right mood (which is more and more often) he can be very helpful.  He's stubborn and independent, but loves to snuggle and cuddle.  He likes to sing when he thinks no one is listening.  (I've caught him belting out "Let It Go" and "Love Is An Open Door" more than once.)  He loves the color green and likes to wear clothes that are too big. He follows his big brothers around like a little puppy, but gives as good as he gets in back yard battles. (Let's be honest here - he's often the instigator.)  He loves the water and would take five baths a day if I let him.  He'd also eat an entire watermelon if I let him.

I sure love this blond boy of mine.

Happy, happy birthday, Cole!

How Old Are You?

This is just a quickie post so I don't forget what happened...

So on Sunday we celebrated Cole's birthday a little early because Grandpa and Grandma were here.  (More adults = less leftover cake and ice cream = a good thing.)

I thought Cole understood that this was an early birthday.  But I guess I should have taken him more seriously when he claimed it was his "extra" birthday.  Because tonight at dinner when Lance asked him what tomorrow was Cole said "It's my birthday.  I'll turn 6!"

Wait, what?

We asked again and tried to explain, but he would have none of it.  He even counted up to six, just to remind Lance that SIX comes after FIVE, which he clearly turned on Sunday, so obviously he will be six tomorrow.

I just about fell out of my chair laughing, this tickled me so.

What is it with this boy?  If you'll remember, last year he refused to turn four and now he's skipping years.  I'm pretty interested to see how things turn out tomorrow.

Sprinkler Season!

The first sprinkler runs of the season are always the happiest.

Conner Prairie

On Saturday we decided to take a trip to Conner Prairie.  I had always wanted to go and this seemed like a good day to go.  (We had originally thought about going to the Children's Museum or the Indy Zoo, but since it's race weekend we decided it would be prudent to stay away from Indy.  What race?  What race?!?  The Indy 500!  The race, if you live here.  Ah, life as a Hoosier.)

The kids didn't want to go at first - complain complain complain!  (Well, Spencer and Josh.  Tess and Cole are still young enough to be happy to go just about anywhere.)  The neighbors got a trampoline that they wanted to spend all day jumping on and there were computer games to be played!  Mean mother that I am, I made them go anyway.  And, surprise surprise, everyone had a great time!  

I realized that afternoon that my family is getting old enough to make outings like this quite enjoyable.  Sure, we didn't last all day, but we were there - and everyone behaved - for a good five hours. Life is good.

We started out in the Discovery Station that showed what life was like in Indiana in the early 1950's.  The kids had a great time because everything was very hands-on.  They could touch and look at everything!

Josh testing out an old-timey radio.

Tess checking out the old-timey fridge.  All of the kids were more impressed with the fake cake than with the fridge itself.  My dad said he grew up with a fridge like this.

Playing with electrical circuits - Cole particularly liked this.  We're pretty sure he's going to grow up to be an evil super villain some day.  Or an engineer, one of the two.

Spencer was pretty proud of his three-way circuitry.

The kids quite liked the hot air balloon section.  We didn't go on the balloon ride - it was ridiculously expensive - but I did get an actual picture of all four kids together in this pretend balloon.  Miracle!

True story, the first airmail took place in Lafayette, IN.  Pretty awesome claim to fame.

Then we checked out the animal barn at the Conner homestead. We all got a kick out of this goat who kept sticking his head into the very middle of the hay.  We're easily amused.

We were also amused when Josh put his head into the place where you put sheep to shear them.  We need one of these for haircut nights!

Cole and Spencer playing some checkers at the tavern.  All throughout the park were actors who did a great job at staying in character; the tavern owner was pretty fun.  For a minute we couldn't find Tess and he told us if she was asleep upstairs we'd have to pay for a room for her.  (A whopping 12 cents!)

Tess was upstairs, but not asleep.  She was just testing out all of the beds, just like Goldilocks.  This one was too soft.

This one was too hard.

Ah, just right!  (Not really - it wasn't tight enough and she could barely get out!)

We moseyed down to the Civil War section and saw some cute oxen along the way.  We agreed we all liked them better than the smelly, hairy pigs we saw earlier.

We tried to get a family picture, but apparently Spencer and Josh didn't want to be part of our family just then.

Apparently a little town in Indiana was raided by Confederate soldiers at some point during the war, and this was what this section was about.  First the boys had to enlist and get their uniforms and supplies.  I went a little crazy with the pictures, but they were just so darn cute.  Especially Cole in his sunglasses.

I think Spencer was enjoying himself, but he wouldn't really smile for the pictures.  I guess enlisting is serious work.

So cute with his glasses and cap!

Soldiers had to carry a lot of stuff!

That boy in the sunglasses.  So cute!

 
Standing at attention!  (The actors here were really great.)

Getting ready to go to war.

By this point Tess had a full belly from lunch and was ready for a nap.  Not that she would nap, but she sure needed one!

Next it was time to learn basic drills with their rifles.

Cole could barely hold his rifle - it was as tall as he is!

They weren't the most disciplined of soldiers, especially with the quarter turns.

Then they marched up the road and learned how to load and fire their guns. It was pretty impressive. (I'm just glad the kids had wooden rifles - I'm pretty sure Spencer would have loved a real one!)

We looked at a few more things and walked around a bit.  By 3pm everyone was pretty much tired and done and ready for an exciting tram ride back to the park entrance.

It was a great day and we all had a lot of fun.  (Josh told me several times throughout the day "Mommy, I'm having so much fun!")  Thank you so much for the great family outing, Grandpa and Grandma!

Grandpa ElRay & Grandma Susie Visit

Grandpa ElRay and Grandma Susie are here for a visit this weekend.  Hooray!

Yesterday they went to see Spencer's class put on some Greek plays while Tess and I went and got our hair done did.  (I had already rescheduled my hair appointment a couple of times when the teacher let us know about the Greek plays.  I love Spencer, but there was no way I was going to Taiwan with bad hair.) ((Vanity, thy name is woman!))

This morning my dad and I put in the last of my garden, with a little help from Tess.  And by help I mean Tess got dirty and stepped on the seeds and stuff.  But that's okay, because I've never had a garden without the help of a toddler; it's all I know.

After that I got an ominous call from the school - apparently Spencer was really nauseous and needed to come home.  Grandma and Grandpa to the rescue again!  Although I had to go down there in my not-too-clean gardening clothes, at least I didn't have to take Tess and Cole with me!  Spencer looked a bit green when I picked him up.  But my sympathy faded when he explained that he felt fine all morning until they started watching a movie and eating doughnuts (multiple) and drinking chocolate milk.  That, combined with the Pink Walrus frozen yogurt from the night before and the FIVE pancakes he ate this morning, plus the summer cold he's been battling, no wonder he felt sick!  Within an hour of being home he was feeling much better.  Harumph.  But since it was a Friday and it's the end of the school year, I just kept him home and let him play on computer.

Grandma, Tess, and Cole and I went to Moe's for lunch while Spencer recuperated (read: played Minecraft) at home.  Both kids were so well behaved!  It's so nice to be able to go out to eat and not have to worry too much about their behavior anymore.  (Well, usually...)

This afternoon we dragged all four children down to Columbian Park Zoo.  It was a quick trip, but a good one because all of the animals were getting fed and it was super cute.  You could tell all those animals knew it was feeding time - the goats were going crazy, bleating at the workers.  The pig squealed and grunted and demanded her food.  (That was Tess's favorite.)  The cutest were the river otters - they literally banged on the windows to the little building in their area, demanding their dinner!

Anywho, no one wants to read about zoo animals.  What you want to see are pictures of my children!  (Haha, okay, yeah.)  Well, here's my Hoosier crew:

How appropriate they're on a tractor!

Of course, no pictures with Grandpa and Grandma yet.  Sheesh.  Hopefully tomorrow we can rectify this.

The Kids Clean Their Rooms Every Tuesday Morning

This is Josh and Cole's room Wednesday morning.  (Trust me, it's worse than the picture shows.)

I'm fighting a losing battle. Constantly.

Poor Garden

My poor garden.  For the first time ever I've lost plants to a late freeze.  I waited for the last freeze date and the weatherman said it wouldn't freeze, but one cold morning last week took out my jalapeno and watermelon.

A moment of silence is appreciated.

It rained pretty much non-stop last week, too, so now the soil is all hard and dry and angry.  What a sad looking garden I have.

Fortunately, the tomatoes are fine. (Homegrown tomatoes are why I garden at all.) Ignore the empty tomato cages - they're waiting for the fancy tomato plants I ordered from Burpee.  I just hope they come before we head out to Taiwan.

Last year I had to battle varmints.  This year I get the feeling I will be battling the elements. *sigh*

Good Kids

I know I often focus this blog on the misbehavior of my children. Let's face it - it's pretty entertaining.

But today I feel like I should mention just how good Tess and Cole can be when needed.  (Their older brothers (a.k.a. Laman and Lemuel) don't get a mention here because they were pretty rotten today.  And not in an entertaining way.) ((In fact, in a very, very obnoxious way.))

Anywho, since I've been called into Relief Society I've had the chance to go out and help a lot of sisters, often times without much notice.  This is fine and I'm happy to serve, but this means I often have Tess and Cole with me.  In times past they have been little hellions while running errands and such.  But lately?  They've been sooo very good!  And I haven't even had to bribe them or anything!

This could be a case of them just getting older and being able to behave more.  But I also suspect this is just part of the blessings of service.  Either way, I'll take it.

And I'll continue to take these two cuties, too.