Becoming a man is hard work

Nathan has decided he is old enough to mow the lawn on his own. He is 9 years old after all.
So who am I to stand in his way of doing his manly duties?
Brandon tried it out as well but found out he's not quite strong enough. Or tall enough. But he gave it his best effort.
Nathan though, he is strong enough. And tall enough (barely). He gave it his best effort and mowed the entire back yard. He is so proud of himself and I'm so excited that I have some help! He mowed and I trimmed and Brandon cheered us on. Then we went and got a chocolate milkshakes.
I'm going to have to see what other manly things around the house Nathan can do.

I mustache you a question...

Never mind...I'll shave it for later.

This was the boys' first full week of school. Nathan was student of the week in his class for showing responsibility and Brandon missed 2 days because he was sick with the croup.
So far, school is pretty fun.
Their mom tells corny jokes though. But they are still young enough to think she's pretty darn funny.
I wonder how much longer that will last?

First Day of School

D day finally arrived.
The boys woke up before the alarm went off, dressed and ready with goofy grins on their faces.
Only a few (hundred) tears were shed (by me).  
I was so excited to see them get off the bus. They raced up to the house and jumped into my arms. It was the best part of my day.
Nathan's favorite part was seeing his friends and playing at recess.
Brandon's favorite part was making new friends and playing at recess.
And they both can't wait to do it all over again tomorrow.

1 more day

1 more day until school starts.
We get to meet the teachers tonight and drop off school supplies.
I'm still crying.
It still sucks.

2 more days

2 more days until school starts.
I started crying 2 days ago.
It sucks.

Toes in the water

If the boys had to choose between spending the night at Nana and Papaw's or hanging out with their dear loving mama, I think know I would be tossed aside like yesterdays news. But who wouldn't? They got to swim, cook out, roast marshmallows, shop for new toys, eat ice cream three times in one day, camp out on the floor, eat more junk food and do all the things that I don't let them do. I kinda wished I spent the night too. I want to eat ice cream three times in one day...

Since I was all alone and bored, I sat on the back deck a shared a beer with my best buddy Samson. He likes to act like an only child when the boys are gone.

Then Brian came home and we were bored together. It was nice. We don't get a lot of alone time. But it's always funny when we do, because all we do is talk about the kids and wonder what they're doing.

Hot summer

This summer has been insanely hot. Crazy hot! In the 100's hot! We had a few days of cool 80-90 degree relief but today it's 95 and humid. It kinda sucks.
Other than the weather, we've had a nice summer. Last week we had out of town family here. The boys were in heaven! Grandpa, Penny and David drove down from MN and Uncle Rick and Auna were here from CT. We went to movies, the arcade, had a cook out and just hung out enjoying each others company. It was really nice having everyone together and really sad to see everyone leave.
Now we are getting ready for school. Just a couple more weeks and Nathan will be a big 4th grader and Brandon will start kindergarten. Crayons, glue sticks and number 2 pencils will need to be bought along with Kleenex for the first day of school. I may need a tissue or two to get me through the day. I'll now be handing off both of my children to strangers. It just doesn't feel right. But I suppose those apron strings need to be cut. And I may be a tad bit dramatic about the stranger part. Just a tad though.