Comrade!

I was in the shower this morning when Spencer rushed in. (Which, as you know, is one of my most favorite things in the world.)

Spencer (super excited): Mommy! Mommy!

Me: I. Am. In. The. Shower.

Spencer: Mommy! Have you didn't know that you can do three forward flips with a pike off of the platform?

Me: Wha...?

Spencer: Yeah, it's so cool.

At which point he rushed out.

I got out of the shower and dressed. I found the boys watching the world series of platform diving (or something like that) on TV. They were enthralled. I was amused.

Me: So, are you cheering for the Americans?

Spencer: No. China will win. They always win.

(Side note: I'm pretty sure the whole "China always wins" thing was something he heard an announcer say.)

Me: Okay, Comrade. Say hi to Mao for me.

Spencer: No, I'm Spencer, not Comrade!

Josh: Comrade Mao! Comrade Mao! Dive off the platform! Swimming!

Last Day of Preschool

Today was Spencer's last day of preschool. As you can see, he was so excited he turned into 'Dark Vader'. The prospect of a summer of sleeping in*, playing all day, and then becoming a Kindergartener? Who wouldn't be excited?


Poor Dark was disinvited to preschool by a certain unreasonable mother, so he was left in the mini van. Just in case you were wondering.

A big thanks to Ms. Kris and Ms. Kathy for being such wonderful preschool teachers for the past two years. Spencer learned a lot, gained many new skills, and, most importantly, got out of my hair for a few hours each week. Oh, I mean acquired a love of school and learning.


Kindergarten, here we come!

*Side note: the only days I ever have to wake Spencer up are school days. He'd sleep until 9am if I let him. Otherwise he's up with the sun. What's up with that?

Something

We had dinner at a friend's house this evening. Spencer was so enthralled with the Sponge Bob cartoons that were playing downstairs that he completely missed dessert.

Of course he didn't notice this until it was time to go home. This, plus the fact that it was an hour past his bedtime, made for a ride home full of whining and crying. Specifically Spencer repeating over and over "Waaaahhhhh! I want dessert! Waaaahhh!!! Dessert!"

Not wanting to be left out of the action, Josh decided to join in. (Even though he was perfectly fine.) "Waaaaahh! I want... something!"

Literally. He said "something".

Awesome.

Awkward Family Photos

I just spent 20 minutes browsing through this new site I found: Awkward Family Photos, which is full of just what the title claims. Seriously, what were some of these people thinking? Did they actually pay for these portraits?

I love it. Have fun.

Just Say No

Poor Josh. It seems like all he heard today was "No" and "Don't" and "STOP!" But it can't be helped - sometimes those are the only reasonable responses I can give to this crazy little kid. He just goes from one insane choice to another. I swear that sometimes he has crazy bees in his head, leading him from one scene of destruction to the next.

Here a few of my favorites from today:

• Stop throwing rocks at cars!
• Stop trying to hang on the stirrups! (In my OB/GYN's office.)
• No. You may not have chocolate chips for lunch.
• Don't hit your brother on the head with the light saber.
• Don't hit your brother on the head with the toy hammer.
• STOP HITTING YOUR BROTHER!!!
• No, you may not have the light saber or hammer back.
• Do NOT jump on mommy's tummy.
• No, mommy's tummy is not a chair.
• Stop jumping on the piano. That is NOT how we play the piano.
• No more licking. Ever.
• No, I will not read "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie" for the fifth time. Sorry.
• No, you may not play outside during the severe electrical thunderstorm.
  

Despite all of this, I was able to give him at least one good 'yes' today:

• Yes, you can snuggle up to mommy and take a nap with me this afternoon.

And he did, making all of the other no's, don'ts, and stops worth the effort.

Self-Portrait Tuesday: Week 36

Oy. I am officially nine months pregnant. Huzzah!

Some day I will start taking self-portraits of my face again. But not until the pregnancy induced roundness is gone. A girl's gotta have some standards.

In other news...

I've discovered the fun of enhancing the different genetic traits the boys have received from Lance and I. For example, did you know that Josh actually has fairly curly hair? (Just like his daddy.)


I've let it start growing out, and he sometimes let's me style it. (It's often poofy and large by the end of the day, but it's cute in the morning!)

Spencer, on the other hand, has inherited my thick and coarse horse hair. We're goin' for the teen-heart-throb-with-long-messy-hair look for him.


Spencer also has my blue eyes, but Josh has his daddy's hazel eyes. Spencer is (generally) sweet and good-natured, just like his momma and daddy. (Quit laughing.) Josh is... well, Josh, and we're not quite sure where he gets all of his Joshiness from. But we're (generally) glad he has it!

It's exciting to wonder what traits this next little Madsen bambino will have - curly or straight hair? Blue or hazel eyes? Good-natured or a little fuss-pot? Only a few more weeks to find out!

Preschool Program

In the interest of full disclosure, today's post is mostly eye-candy for the grandparents. Or those of you who like to see Spencer being goofy. (i.e. Spencer being... himself. :)

Today was the end of the year Preschool Program. The kids showed some of what they learned and sang several cute songs. It was fun to watch all of the children and their different personalities: some were real hams, like Spencer; some just sat in their chairs, a bit too nervous to do much else; and some just went through the motions, obviously bored and ready to head on to Kindergarten.

We were kind of far from Spence so the pictures aren't the best, but they do show his personality well!


And here's Spencer's favorite song: "I'm a Nut". Way cute.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Josh had a blast at the program - mainly because he was able to play with lots of the toys and the sand table during the entire 30 minutes. (Which was fine with Lance and I - the chairs we sat on were tiny; no way we could have contained Josh on our lap on one of those!)


At the end of the program each child received a diploma. Good job, Spencer!