Is That You...

I thought I'd been keeping up reasonably well with brushing Harley's fur.  When I took him into the groomers, he was a total mop-top.  When I told the groomer I would like him trimmed to about 2-3 inches long, she said he was pretty matted, but she'd do what she could.  When I went back to pick him up, I was seriously speechless.  I was looking around at the other kennels to see if the dog that was jumping around like crazy in front of me was really Harley. When I stood there with my mouth open in complete shock, she said, "He really had to be shaved.  If you keep brushing him as it grows out, his hair can be longer."

I kept looking at Harley the whole way home, like I was taking home the wrong dog.  The funniest reaction was Eli's.  When he got home from school and saw this skinny shaved dog bounding toward him, he said, "Harley, is that you?"  He really wasn't sure.

We're getting used to the short-hair version of Harley, but the family all agrees he looks better with that long wavy hair.  Fortunately, it does grow out...

From this...

...to this

These Are the Moments...

Most of the days it seems like it's just survival of the fittest.  Life with young children just seems to be cleaning up a mess, then breaking up a fight between siblings, then intervening just in time to save a child from a major injury, then time to feed them another meal, etc.

Once in a while, there are the delightful moments that I hope are the ones that pervade my memories once the children are older...

Funny Find...

While looking through a drawer in my room, I found a notebook we used to write down funny things the kids said.  Reading through brought about many a laugh.  I think my favorite was something Eli said when he was 3-years-old.  He had slipped while climbing into the Suburban and had taken quite a fall.  When I asked him if he was okay, he said, "I'm not dead, but I need a doctor."

We've been repeating and laughing about that one for days...

There's More Than One Way to Wear Pajamas...

And you thought there was only one way to wear pajamas...

A Toothless Milestone...

Eli is very happy to have reached the all-important milestone of being toothless.  His first and second teeth on the bottom came out pretty close together.  He is quite delighted with the money and bubblegum the Tooth Fairy has left in exchange for his teeth.

The Mother of a Sunbeam and CTR...

Asher has graduated from Nursery and is Big Boy Primary in the Sunbeam class.  He is nervous, he just barely got comfortable going to Nursery class.

Eli is now CTR age and likes the kids in his class.

Scouts...They're All Quirky

With the eighth birthday not only does baptism become an option, but so does participation in Boy Scouts. Although I did grow up with three younger brothers, the whole world of Scouting is a mystery to me.  Terms like "den" "troop" "Bear" Cub" "Wolf" were all familiar to me, but I had no idea their meaning and order.

Oakley's first big event was the Pine Wood Derby- which I know is the Super Bowl of Scouting. Scott did not disappoint with his performance. Scott spent a tremendous amount of time researching on the internet and making sure he got just the right accessories. He tried to get Oakley involved, but he wasn't near as interested as Scott was hoping.

Oakley's car was a star performer. He won every heat it was run in, but wasn't the overall winner. After each heat he would go in the storage closet and call Grandma to give her a report of how he was doing. Because he had won each time, Oakley was not happy when he didn't win. The concept is a tough one for an 8 year-old to get- and Oakley doesn't like to lose.

The most enlightening part of the experience for me was discovering all boys are quirky. All boys make obnoxious noises and are loud. All boys have annoying behavior. Sometimes I think my boys are so weird there is no way they are human- they have to be aliens. After attending my first Pine Wood Derby I now know the truth- all little boys are loud, obnoxious, annoying, and quirky. The Beeson Boys are par for the course.