the knight and his noble steed

We got these swords and sheilds at Toys R Us - they were on clearance for a good price so both boys have a set now. They're foam so even if they get hit with one it doesn't hurt that bad. We got Gumbo, the horse, at the Dollar Tree. Oliver rode around all day trying to find a dragon to fight but alas there were none in this fair land.

So he went outside to practice his sword skills.

playing outside

This was actually a few weeks ago. We took a walk and when we got back the boys were still so full of energy that we let them stay out and run around. They chased each other all over the yard. I don't know what they were playing but they sure were having fun.

Bob found a lightning bug and the boys were very fascinated by it. It took a while to catch one since there were only two or three but Bob finally got one. Oliver wasn't afraid to touch it like he usually is. We let it go when they were done looking at it.

eating right

I'm thinking of changing our diet (as a family) starting June 1. I've been reading books and watching documentaries about food and I'm really disgusted! We will probably go meatless for the most part and start shopping for produce at the local farmer's market. For those of you in this area that's NOT the one on Sandy Ridge Rd in High Point - if you read the labels their food is NOT local.
I'm also cutting out excess sugar - no more soda, no more cake/cookies, no more white bread/pasta. I'll also try to avoid high fructose corn syrup and other artificial sweeteners.
I'm not sure what my goal is time-wise at this point but I'm thinking 30 days. This is going to be really hard - have you checked labels for HFCS before? It's in everything!
Anyway, I'll try to keep up with daily menus...maybe I'll start a new blog for that.

The playground

After we tromped through the woods for about an hour we found a playground. The boys and I hung out while Bob went to get the car. Oliver made a friend, a boy named Kendall, and they had fun running around together. Oliver is getting very good at climbing.

Not wanting to be outdone, Wyatt also climbed the ladder (with Bob closeby)

His favorite is still the tunnel, though. I love the static in his hair and he made just the goofiest face!

Oliver is doing lots of "big boy" things - he'll balance on just about anything. He went a good way around the playground on this edge.

Mother's Day Adventure!!

Setting out on our adventure in "the JUNGLE" on Mother's Day. It was pretty warm out. We had a little picnic before we hit the trail and we packed plenty of water in our backpacks. Oliver, Wyatt and Bob all had a backpack but Wyatt got tired of carrying his so I ended up with it.

Adventure boy!

The boys held hands so no one would get too far ahead. They look too cute together.

All the boys heading off right at the end of the trip.

the insectarium

We went into the insectarium to see the butterfiles but there were lots of other things there as well. Water bugs, a rhino beetle, bees, ladybugs. These were all on display outside the actual butterfly area. I think the kind of freaked Oliver out.

We saw lots of butterflies but I think the coolest one was this guy. The boys watched him crawl out of the cocoon!

digging for fossils...

One feature of the Dino trail is that you can dig in this big pit area. They brought the dirt in from a beach somewhere and it's REALLY old dirt. There are tons of fossilized corals, shells and even sharks teeth!

lost in Spaaaaace

There were a few activities like "get the spaceship to the planet" - where both were revolving at different speeds and you had to calculate when to eject the ship (a little ball) so it would go to the planet (a wooden thing with a hole to catch the ball), and another one where you had to adjust the orbit of a space shuttle so that it would dock at the space station. The boys just liked pushing the buttons on those things. They also liked the model of the mood lander.
There was a model of a little space ship and the boys peeked out at me!

The inside wasn't that cool, it just had a few buttons and switches that didn't do anything. I think the last time we were here it talked. oh well, the boys seemed to like it although they didn't spend a lot of time in there.

cooking over the fire...

Here's Oliver cooking his hot dog over the fire. He was a little scared to get even remotely close to the fire at first but as he realized it wouldn't burn him from afar he inched up until his hot dog was actually being heated.

This is one of the sweet potatoes we cooked in the coals. I didn't have any foil so I just threw them in and hoped for the best. They turned out so delicious! Even the burnt crispy part was sweet so it didn't matter if a little blackened outside got mixed in with the soft yummy inside.

After dinner (which also included cantaloupe) the boys got a real treat! We toasted marshmallows! Wyatt got bored about two seconds in but he sure did like to eat them. Oliver was very patient and waited until at least two sides of the marshmallow were toasty brown. He loved the gooey inside.

Oliver got to cook his own dinner. He overcame his fear of fire. He was very proud of himself!

Oliver being Oliver

He's adorable. and so sweet.

Playing outside

Oliver got these dump trucks for his birthday from Grampa Steve one year. He took them out to the sand table and they just have a ball!
Wyatt seems to really enjoy them, too. He makes the bulldozer fly sometimes. I don't know what's up with that kid. The boys really shared so well - and usually do when they are at the sand table.
They went out front because it was sunnier and warmer and kicked this ball around for a while until Bob got home. This was after we had lunch (cheese and humus sandwiches and salad) and naps (two and a half hours) and I cut Oliver's hair. He calls himself fuzzy peach head now.

the solar oven

We built this from a kit (obviously) but it didn't work because it kept getting shady wherever I would put it. We tried to cook an egg but it did NOTHING. The egg was completely uncooked when I cracked it. We're going to try again tomorrow in a different spot. I found one that stays sunny for about 6 hours.

Oliver whacked himself with a hammer

This is two days later. He'd barely let us look at it until then. He was helping hammer stakes for the garden when he did this. I was inside and heard his scream. I ran out immediately and there he was crying and wailing. We put Mr. Bump (a cold pack) on it but the finger still swelled up to about twice its normal size.

the finished product.

We still have tomatoes to plant in there but it's a bit cold today and they aren't very big so we're waiting. Here's everything as it stands now. The gourds on the far left, cucumbers next and then carrots. The fake snake is to help keep chipmunks, birds, squirrels and who knows what else out.

After the boys had fun watering the garden with the hose and digging up worms to put in it they did a "we just made a garden" dance. They made up a song to the tune of "we just got a letter" from Blues Clues and danced away!