I can't remember what I was doing, but the other day Max got into the markers. Thank heaven for washable markers. That stuff comes off with tears!! No soap neccessary. He wrote on the table, his clothes, and all over himself. Once he realized he was in trouble, he was no longer all smiles.
This is me, trying not to laugh. I'm terrible at discipline. He just looks so cute. Once he saw it, he didn't seem to like it.
Check out his arm. Little rascal.
This is Ben with his new "cool" hairstyle. Not sure where he got the idea, but we aim to please.
A couple weeks ago Ben got into trouble on the bus. The Vice Prince emailed me and said that she would be calling him into her office to talk about the bus rules. I talked to him about it before he went to school so that he would know what was up. Then, I took myself over to the school to sit in on the meeting. The VP walks to Ben's class to get him and when he walks in her office he looks at me and says/does nothing. She ask him if it was okay if I sat in on their chat. He said, "No.". She was alarmed (probably thinking that I beat him) and asked him why and he said, "because she will maybe talk to me about it agaaaaain." So I told him that we wouldn't talk about it anymore and went in the other office to wait. While I am out there several of the different office ladies begin talking to me and telling me how great Ben is and that they think he is so funny and charming. In my mind I am rolling my eyes!! I am thinking to myself....why do all these people know who Ben is? He is in afternoon Kindergarten and school has only been in session for 2.5 months. But whatever, I said thank you, and thought nothing more. The VP comes out with Ben and she looks like it is taking everything in her not to laugh hysterically. She sends him off and he heads out to recess, but not before chatting it up with all the office staff and walking off as if he owns the place. The VP starts laughing and telling me how great, smart, and funny he is, etc. Uh huh...okay.
In the meantime, Ben is having a substitute teacher for the week, and so I go to visit her. She tells me that everything is going great except that Ben tries to run things a bit. I am NOT surprised by this information at all.
Then a couple days later, it was the fundraiser at Chuck E. Cheese. Thank you PTA for advertising this SO well. We head to the Chuckster and Jeremy played the games with Ben. On the way home Jeremy and I were talking and Jeremy mentioned that it was weird how many kids knew Ben. I asked him what he meant and he said that tons of kids knew him, all ages. Big kids, older kids, kids that looked Ben's age, etc. We kinda chuckled and then later Jeremy made the perfect parallel. Ben is Ferris Bueller. It is true! He has everyone snowed, except us. The people at school, church, friends. When we leave the chapel at church we walk past the back row of older folk and they all reach out to him, say hi, and start up conversations. They all know who he is and they all think he is charming with the exception of a few, I'm sure. Kids, for the most part, seem to like him and know who he is. How do they know him, you ask? We have absolutely NO idea. I would start calling him Ferris, but Mr. Questions would ask why.
Raising Ferris is no easy task, but it sure is entertaining!!
This morning we had the following converstation:
Ben: Mom, you rule and boys drool.
Me: What?
Ben: You rule and I drool.
Me: Where did you hear that?
Ben: A girl said it on the bus.
Me: What does that mean?
Ben: I think drool is a mean word.
Me: Well then, that's not very nice of her to say.
Guess who can reach doorbells now!! Look out. He has been trying to reach ours for a long time. How fitting that now, on Halloween, he learns that he can reach them. Yikes! The dirt on his bum is not intentional. He took a nasty fall on a nasty, now dead, slug.
I don't want to sound too prideful (I said "too prideful"), but apparently we knocked at a house that didn't have candy, but they saw the boys and by the time we were 2 houses away, this lady came up and said that she didn't have candy, but that the boys were so cute that she wanted to give them something. They got money and Ben was THRILLED!!! He has a big trip planned for the $1 store now.
Very cute they are. I have to toot my own horn. I have altered several costumes, but Max's Yoda costume is the first that I made completely by myself. I even made his hat without a pattern. 
Mr. Independent (a new thing for him lately) wanted to carry his own basket and light saber. When we tried to carry the basket...he freaked out. The handle moves, so he kept dropping candy. One of us stayed behind and picked up the escaping candy.
I carved Max's "gunkin" and Jeremy carved Ben's.
Too tired to walk home, but not too tired to start digging in to the goods!!
We hope you had a Happy Halloween and may the force be with you!!!
Pumpkin launcher.
The boys in the the wheelbarrow. Their idea. Lazy dudes!! 
I had to throw this in. Mr.Social at the Primary Halloween party. He had to climb under the chairs to get back there.
The other night Jeremy was out teaching some flying and the boys got lucky....a trip to the craft store. It actually turned out to be really fun for them. The store had these big black spiders that drop down from the ceiling when you clap and then it climbs back up the string. Oh and it's eyes light up. Anyway, they were clearance, so we got one. Ben has been very disappointed in my lack of Halloween decorations (not my favorite holiday). So, when Jeremy got home, we were all set up. We had the spider hanging from the ceiling, lights out, and we were hidden (with the camera) on the stairs. Jeremy unlocked the door, Ben clapped and well the picture tells the rest!! I'm not a huge Halloween fan, but I am always up for a good scare! 
Who knew a chair could be so fun? Okay, even I have fun on this chair. The boys love it. The video below is Max just being cute. Notice the real quiet whisper of "I love you" at the end.
**Note the placement of the office sticker on the middle magazine. I don't really want to get political on here, but.....at the beginning of September we took Max for a surgery follow-up appointment. In the middle of liberal Portland, I found this in a doctor's office. ;)
Max-10 days old. I still want to call him baby. It's amazing how fast they fill up their crib. Happy 2nd Birthday to my sweet Maxibear. I love his cute giggle, big eyes, curly hair, sweet kisses and hugs, shy personality, and how all of a sudden he is calling me Monny. He is our little love and we love him so much!!
We got away!! Jeremy took me away to Seaside, OR. It was beautiful! We had a room with an ocean view and the weather was amazing. We thought it was going to be colder, but it was sunny and warm. Thanks Mom and Dad for coming and watching the boys so we could enjoy this time together!
Our view
The next day we drove down the coast. We went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. The cheese was great, but the ice cream was fab. They had some flavors I didn't know about and they were yummy!!
Cannon Beach....where part of the movie "The Goonies" was shot.
I pulled out the Thomas costume that we had and Max was thrilled. He, like his big brother, is a huge train fan!!
I am a lucky girl. Look how cute my group of boys are!!
Because Ben always request a "funny one". Here is the funny one.
This is what happens when you ask Max to smile.
This is my baby. I don't want to stop calling him my baby!
I am not afraid of coyotes, until they are not afraid of me. The other day we were waiting for the school bus and I looked about 30 yards down the road to see this coyote running after us. I told Ben to run home and I turned and grabbed Max. At that very moment, a lady driving down the street saw the coyote and slammed on her brakes. She popped up out of the moon roof in her car and yelled, "is that a coyote?" I yelled, "YES!!" and she started to yell at it. He saw her car and turned and ran away. I will never forget the look on that mutts face when he was running towards us. He was not scared of us or our size. I called animal control and they said that city coyotes are becoming less and less afraid of people. People are feeding them, or people are feeding squirrels not realizing that they are also feeding coyotes and the coyotes stay around and are not afraid. I don't know what was on that coyotes mind, but I feel so blessed that I didn't have to find out. I am so thankful for the sweet lady driving by that took the time to stop and help us. With the advice from the animal control and police I now go to the bus stop with pepper spray.
A little career update: The airline Jeremy works for is in the process of phasing out the plane he flies. It has been good and bad. Good because in the last 5 months Jeremy has been home 90% of the time. My boys have no idea what a job is. Ben thinks we get money/paid because we are nice. Bad because our paycheck has been drastically less. But that is all over soon. He is currently in training for a different plane. It is very similar to the old one, but fits twice as many passengers and is twice as long. He is anxious to get back in the air, but sad to be gone again. It has been really fun to have him around so much!
My cute husband. Please do not turn on the prop!
Halloween is upon us and it's time for a good scare. Ok, it's time for a good laugh for Mom and Dad. Jeremy jumped out and I snapped a picture. Poor Ben. Actually, he loved it and the picture below is "The Scare", take 2, because he asked us to do it again.
I officially have a Kindergarten student. I can't believe my little Benny is already there. I was so excited for him until about 2 weeks ago, when I decided "I" wasn't ready. I wasn't sure I was ready to share my role as his teacher, or let him ride the bus, or let him be in a big school without me. I love this little guy. Being his Mommy has been and is such a blessing.
