cadet camp....

i know, i'm stating the obvious but boys are dirty little creatures. dirty,i tell you. last weekend, all the boys were off to Cadet camp.(even jack who is technically not old enough to go to camp but since his buddy, Erik's dad is the head councilor,he got to go. yeah for connections!). they left on thursday night and i picked them up there on sunday. yes, that's right, four days,no kids. what does that equal?? time & freedom to do whatever i wanted, WHEN i wanted to do it. did i LOVE that time? well,i'm hesitant to say it but yes, yes i did. do i want to do it again anytime soon? nope. missed them too much. saturday was a big ol' thunder and lightning storm (something us folks from the pacific northwest don't get to experience often). since rye headed up camp to spend the night with the boys, i was able to sit out on my front porch and watch the storm roll on by. it was surreal, it was magical, it was lonely. there, i said it. i hated watching it alone. no one to 'ooooo & aaahhhh' with. i know,that had the boys been here with me, i would have enjoyed it all the more. hearing their little yelps of laughter seem to make everything more fun.

on sunday afternoon, all parents were invited to come up to Sumas Mountain (where cadet camp is located) to see & experience what the boys did.

there are some things a mother just shouldn't know.

dirt. yup, there was that.
danger. some of that too.
but fun, oh the fun they had.

i don't know what i was expecting. maybe 3 ginormous hugs perhaps??
mamma got very little lovin! a tiny hug from the 7 and 9 year olds. a slight-half wave, half look, from across the campsite from the 10, going on 17 year old. that's ok, i know i was missed. i just KNOW it. i'm SURE they must have missed all the everyday prodding telling them to brush their teeth, comb your hair, CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES! (not to mention that underwear changing is also IMPORTANT!) however,when you are camping with 25 other boys/men, no one seems to think that any of that is necessary.
4 days, no mothers.
good times.
go figure.

they were all so excited to show me their sleeping accommodations. (filth, pure filth). i couldn't believe that they would lay their pretty little heads on those pillows) and the toilets, don't even get me started.(funny side note, 2 of the 3 admitted that the toilets were, and i quote, "DISGUSTING").

all that being said, i would send them back tomorrow. not because i need some 'mom time' but because the JOY that they experienced that weekend was worth the mounds of laundry and the hours (yes, hours) of worry. they did things that only little boys could appreciate. (learning how LIVE chickens make it to our dining table, zip-lining (i was jealous of that one), shot bb guns, mammoth slide & slides, hiking,soccer games,archery and the list goes on....priceless, forever fun memories for my boys. we have amazing men at our church that take the time, out of their busy lives to make this happen for these boys. for that we are grateful.

awards were handed out on the final day.

MAX:DIRTIEST FEET. (look closely folks, it's not gangrene, it's dirt.)

JACK:CLEANEST TENT. i'm thinking they must have been DESPERATE to give out that award to someone. i saw his tent, and i can hardly believe that others were worse.
however, he (and buddy, erik)won the award and he was proud. good enough for me.

THE LIKKEL BOYS AS A WHOLE: pyromaniacs. yup, they are lovers of FIRE. i'm not even sure what to say about that. i guess that explains why i can NEVER find a book of matches when i'm wanting to light my candles. sam admitted that "it looks really cool when you spray 'Off-bug-spray' on a fire. oh my, pray for safety at the likkels.

i'm glad that i have boys. wouldn't trade them for the world. they sometimes stink and they are a tad bit messy but oh so,creative and wonderfully curious. their whole lives are just a book of adventures, just waiting to happen. oh,they are dear little creatures.

girls night out!

for my birthday, 'my girls' took me out for a sappy chick flick (my sisters keeper...TOTAL girl movie. all guys...be warned...it'll make you sob!) and drinks afterwards at New York Pizza.
thanks for a fun night friends. for those of you who were TOO TIRED (i won't mention names..you know who you are.), we missed you. :)

the tooth fairy doesn't exist...

ok, i can be a 'kill-joy', i admit it.
my children don't believe in Santa, they think the Easter Bunny is a farce and they absolutely think the Tooth Fairy is a joke. yup, we are the parents that 'rain on parades'.

however, a small part of me, thought that just maybe, jack believed that it was someone, other than ME, putting that cold hard cash under his pillow. after all, kids need SOMETHING 'make believe' to 'believe in'.
well, he doesn't.
this dear little boy of mine, has a mouth full of semi-loose teeth right now. teeth that are hanging on by the last fiber of their being. tonight, he was moving it about(sorry kath and cindy, i KNOW you're GAGGING right now!), watching it 'hang'. max told him to "move it sideways and PULL". off he runs, acting as if he's not hearing a word of advice. about 10 mins. later, he taps me on the arm, shoots me that darling little grin and sets his tooth (and bloody tissue) in front of me! all proud like!! we did the whole 'you're-so-brave-you've-pulled-a-tooth-dance'! oh,the joy!

so, i go to tuck him in tonight and here's the conversation that took place............

"mom, i know that the tooth fairy ISN'T real!"

"really, how do you know that?"

"well, i JUST do. and you know what? i even know what happens when YOU (yells out the word, YOU!) leave my room, with my tooth!"

"oh, what's that?"

"YOU take it downstairs, pull out all the gross stuff at the top of the garbage can, take my tooth that's in the plastic bag, and you put it WAY at the bottom, then you take all the gross stuff and cover it back up. you think i don't know that you do that, but i do."

"honey, that is such a interesting thought".

SERIOUSLY, fellow parents, what in the world was i SUPPOSED to say??? i was laughing SO hard that i could hardly muster up the 'good nights and i love you's'.
the more i would laugh, the more he's say, "seriously mom, she isn't real!"

too cute. just too cute.

Fun Lakes....

we spent a wonderful 5 days in sunny eastern Washington, camping at Sun Lakes. our annual trip that we take with the likkels. once again, a FAB time! sunny, HOT, early morning (thanks dear!) and everning (thanks taryn!) fishing, max being totally & completyly OBSESSED with the family of ants under the trailer (if you feed them, THEY WILL COME!), a roaring game of stock market, many taking turns on mom & dad's scooters, my dear hubby, taking corners tos sharp on the boat (on purpose!) to flood out the kiddos sitting in the front. (sorry about the carpet in the boat, gary),it wouldn't be a trip without stopping at the B & B fruit stand.there was mini-golfing (yeah, for a MAX WIN!),reading cindy's list of all the different things people were reading (see her blog!) watching an amazing lightning storm. ya know, typical vacation highlights!

one of the best things this year was jack learning to knee-board! this has been something we've been trying to talk him into this for about 2 years but he would have nothing to do with it!! the other boys have been up on the board since they were 4 and 5 so they weren't sure what the big deal was. (it's ok jack, mommy is 39 and there isn't enough money in this world to get me up there!) ok, so we had to PAY him to try it but it was money well spent. :) as soon as he uttered the words, "maybe i'll try it" in front of his brothers,he was committed. no taking it back. no promising to 'try it next year'.sam and max did such a great job encouraging him. at one point, i think he regretted ever saying it, but he was a trooper and followed thru. the big day arrived and he was quiet as a mouse, out on the boat, leading up to it. i know he was scared to death but he wasn't about to be outdone by his brothers. thankfully, he popped right up. (that happens when you weigh 60 lbs!) we were SO proud of him!!

we all spent more time out on the boat this year than we normally do. it's was so bloody hot. my mom even got in the tube. yes, mom, i MUST post pictures! :)
here's to another great vacation.....