The youth of today have it too easy.

Case in point...

Today, Nolan and I were in the kitchen getting lunch ready for the fam. He asked if he could have a whole can of soda. To which I replied, "no, a half a can is plenty for you". A few minutes later I started to pour a whole can of soda for Connor into a giant glass with ice. Nolan looked at me and said..."Hey, that's not fair. Why does Dad get a whole can?" I looked him in the eyes and said "Daddy's been hard at work today in the yard so he deserves a whole can. I haven't seen you do any work today Nolan." He instantly responded by rolling his eyes and saying "Oh REALLY? Have you ever licked a WHOLE lollipop before? It's a lot of work, mom. I mean really. It was not easy to keep from biting into that sucker ya know."

Oh my good golly. I just busted up. One of my favorite things about being a mom is getting to hear these little gems from time to time. You just never know what zinger is going to come out of their mouths, they crack me up.

The Seahawks have nothing on my boys...

Lately, Nick and Nolan have been spending their valuable recess time at school playing touch football with their friends. Each day after school they fill me in on the details of their games.

Well last week was a stellar week on the good ol' elementary school gridiron for my boys.

Nick was all smiles when he told me he had made THREE touchdowns all within the boundaries of the lunchtime recess...I'm sure it had something to do with the well rounded lunch his mom lovingly packed for him! (This was a big deal, because only a few days prior, he was feeling like a football flop...and even said he just didn't have "the build" to be good at football.)

And Nolan, well, he too entered the end zone that day with a smile on his face and a football in his grasp...He could hardly wait to show me the celebratory dance he displayed after his big touchdown. The following video is obviously a re-creation, but I think you get a pretty good idea of just how kooky Nolan can be...Enjoy.

Maybe I'm being a little un-Fair

There is an event that happens 'round these parts every single year.

Kids of all ages squeal at the thought of attending this event.

My boys are no exception. They beg and plead each and every year hoping their mom will cave in to their wishes.

I cringe at the first sight of anything advertising it's existence.

It is....

The Puyallup Fair.

Ya...I know, I'm such an old fuddy duddy. You ask yourself...why does she despise the fair so much?

I mean really who doesn't love sitting in traffic in po-dunk-ville only to be followed by an exhausting search of a little piece of some one's front yard to park your car. That is the exact moment that the money in your wallet starts to effortlessly disappear for the next several hours.

After entering the main gate, you're senses are a flutter with the sight of about a BILLION people, the smell of deep fried twinkies, the sound of an infomercial salesman touting the miracle of his knife set that can cut through pennies.

You finally get used to the barnyard scent filling the air and decide to take the kiddos to the rides. (It's always better to visit the rides BEFORE finding a bite to eat...) Isn't it wrong for the carnies to charge more for their rides than Walt Disney charges for his?

I mean really, would you rather go to the movies or buy 50 seconds of pure stomach turning bliss only achieved from riding the scrambler? Hmmmmm.

Next thing you know, it's time to go in search of some overpriced, artery clogging grub. Should you visit the Sausage Shack? Earthquake Burger? Or perhaps the Krusty Pup? I swear the only vegetables at the fair are the ones on display proudly wearing blue ribbons.

Anybody up for winning a Nascar mirror? How 'bout an inflatable trumpet? You only have to toss a one inch ring around the neck of a two inch wide bottle! That is after you've paid the kid behind the counter three bucks to make you look like a total uncoordinated loser.

This is the point at which your feet start screaming at you... You would sit down to give them a break, but finding real estate to rest your derriere is not an easy task given the fairground is filled with half the state of Washington.

Awww...So much fun to be had.

--------

So what did we do today?

ALL OF THE ABOVE, and you know what?

I'd do it again in a heartbeat because of this...

Pure fair induced joy!

We really had a fun day, it's amazing that contagious laughter and smiles can help make something you dislike into a great time.

Gotta love kids!

Happiness is...

Having this view of the sunshine through your favorite tree while swinging in a hammock on your day off!Finding this little note on the fridge from a sweet, red-headed boy....
(I love how he wrote "please respond" at the top)


As you can see, I've had a nice day so far...and it is only 10:45 am. Gotta love that!

And We're Off!

The boys are off and running to school this week! Nick sprung outta bed at 6 am on the first day, he was completely ready for the school day even before my feet hit the floor!

Nolan, on the other hand, takes after his mother... He likes to take the "more sleep the better" approach to the first day of school.

They both had a great first day... It's shaping up to be a good year.

As for me, I'm just off and running.
Or at least that is my new goal...

Here are my new best friends.

They will be gracing my feet and hitting the pavement starting tomorrow morning.

Connor took me to a cool shoe store in Tacoma this afternoon that helps you pick the perfect running shoe. They watch how you run, then decide what type of shoe would work best for your running stance and foot shape.

And we all know that my foot shape is completely CRAZY.

So crazy in fact, that I even wondered if they would sell any shoes to fit my freaky wide, high arched feet.

Well they do. And OH. MY. GOODNESS. They are the most comfy shoes I've ever worn. I didn't know shoes could feel so fabulous.

Let's hope I feel the same way about these beauties after my run tomorrow...

Hammer Time Is Over!

We finally finished! We've spent a great deal of our Summer hammering, measuring, sawing, and swearing while working on our new and improved fence. Take a look at our handy work...

This is obviously a BEFORE picture. We knew it was time to replace it because anytime the boys threw a ball at the fence, part of the fence would come crumbling down!
Pretty sad excuse for a fence... Rotten and hanging by a thread.

But lucky for us, we had some helping hands along the way.

Thanks Gary for all of your generous help!

We also need to send a big thank you out to our friends David and Bill who also spent an afternoon sweatin' and helping us build this massive fence.

STATS: 320 linear feet

675 fence boards

2700 nails

6 gates

countless sore muscles

But look how pretty it turned out!

Connor did a fabulous job, he is a perfectionist and it shows!

Go ahead kids, just try to knock this puppy down...

Ahhh... it feels so good to be done. Now hand me a cold beer and a lounge chair so I can put my feet up and relax in our beautiful back yard.

Connor, you rock! I hope you get a smile on your face every time you look out across the lawn at the awesome fence you created.