Tall tales

Last night at dinner, I was asking Emery what he did at school.  This was the conversation.

M: Emery, what did you do at school today?
E: Nothing.
M: Nothing?
E: Well, we did this science project with water, and we spilled some. We spilled so much water that the room flooded and the hall flooded and it flooded clear outside. The fire truck and police came. And, an ambulance came but the only way it could get to the school was on a ferry.
M: Really?
E: Yeah, Mom.
M: Did you come up with that all by yourself?
E: Yeah (giggling), but I tried to make it sound like it really happened.

Grammy has a birthday

It was so fun to have my mom here on her birthday. We didn't celebrate a lot, but we did go out to dinner where the wait staff gave her a great Yee-Haw for her special day. We also ate Eclair Cake for dessert. Thanks for that recipe, Lanae!

And one of Papa and Saya.

Emery goes to school

Emery started kindergarten last Tuesday (August 30). Clint and I took him to school together, but I was such a wreck by the time we got to the parking lot, I sat in the car and sobbed while Emery took his dad to show him his cool new classroom. We only took a couple of pictures in the car, and none inside. Emery loves school and when we asked him what he learned he replied, "We're not to that part yet, it's only the first week."

On Thursday, at the end of the day, Emery's class was returning from music class when the bell rang. All the big kids (his elementary goes up to 6th grade, so there are some big kids) swarmed the halls and Emery and his buddy were separated from the rest of his class. He and "the shouting girl" wandered all the way around the school, out onto the playground, and in a different door before an aide found them. Emery was crying because his buddy kept shouting at him to go faster, but he didn't know where to go. He told me when he got home that he didn't like his buddy anymore. I told him that sometimes when people are scared they yell. He said he would give her one more chance. The next day he came home to report that she had yelled at some other kids during a game they were playing. She must just be a yeller.

We love his teacher and he is really happy at school. Chani misses him and he misses her, so when he comes home from school, I get at least a solid hour of nice playing before I hear any arguing.

In one week......

My most amazing parents did all of this:

1 chicken coop (with 7 laying hens) and fenced run.


1 sandbox (birthday gift for Chani and Emery to share)



1 fruit room with more than 10 shelves (more will be coming at the end of September)

1 set of garage steps

1 clown costume (with no pattern) with a cool clown hat (see Chani's birthday post)

2 sets of cowboy dress ups (chaps, vests, and a skirt)

Chani turns 4

On Sunday, August 28, Chani turned four. She's been asking for weeks when her birthday would be here. For the past four weeks she's been telling people, "In two weeks it's my birthday." This last week has been a count down and on Sunday, she had to count down the hours until we would let her open her presents.

Chani has been asking for dress-ups for about 6 months. I purchased 5 princess dresses from a friend, and a witch costume with hat, and then my amazingly talented mother came to town and turned some $2 fabric into the cutest clown costume in the world, and a cute little cowboy/cowgirl set of chaps and a vest and a skirt and a vest. The presents were rounded out by Grandma and Grandpa sending dress up slippers, a necklace, and some fancy white gloves. Emery got Chani a huge box of sandbox toys to go in the new sandbox from Grammy and Papa, and Saya got Chani a fairy wand and a fancy ring.

Chani didn't want birthday cake, she wanted birthday cupcakes. That made my life a lot easier this week, so we had pink cupcakes (strawberry) with pink buttercream, and butterfly sprinkles that Chani picked out herself. She also picked out cool fairy wand candles.

Chani said it was the best birthday ever. This morning she promptly asked me when it would be her birthday again.