There isn't much that can get any of us out of bed before 7:30 am. I know, many of you are up and have half your day finished by 7:30, but that's just not how we work now days. There was a time when we all woke early and enjoyed (sort of) some time before the sun had fully risen. Naps are no longer taken, so the boys sleep longer at night, and R.C. and I are staying up later due to school schedules and just plain old restless nights, so mornings are pretty quiet around here.

This morning though, the alarm went off at 7:00 am, and after hitting the snooze 3 times, we finally rolled out of bed, dressed and headed out the door. All of us. We got up this early so that we could go stand in line. It was a bitterly cold day with snow and wind blowing, but we stood in line, along with at least 50 other people (not counting the 100's that got there before us and the 100's that came after us) all to...what? See a new release movie we had all been dying to see? NO. See a living dinosaur just discovered and brought to Providence for the public to see? No. All the chefs from Food Network signing autographs and kissing babies? No. What then could be so great to get all 4 of us happily out the door so early? FREE BREAKFAST! That's right! Denny's was giving away free breakfast today from 6am-2pm (you still have time to go!!) and we were not about to pass up anything free. It seemed like everyone was there...even the kids behind us in line admitted to skipping school so they could get breakfast. Sure, I've had better breakfasts in my life, but it's a thrill to walk out with sticky faced boys (from the syrup) and full tummies and only have to pay for coffee and juice.

This is where the boys like to sit when it gets a little chilly in the house. We put a blanket over the radiator and they warm their little bottoms for a few minutes. It really is a nice place to sit! (Yes, it's just another day of costume wearing for Maxwell.)

During our puzzle party Maxwell spent most of his time doing this...

He sneezed his way through all the puzzles, but still did a good portion of the work.

And, Russell with 2 less teeth in his mouth. His new ones are coming in very quickly.


Other than this we have very little to report about. We are feeling better and I am spending a good part of my time disinfecting everything so the sick germs don't come back for another round.

2 in one day just to inform you all that Russell has now lost his second baby tooth! Both bottom middle teeth are now gone, but have no fear, his new "big boy teeth" are showing already. Both of them. I hope the tooth fairy can stay awake late enough tonight to collect the tiny tooth and leave a quarter. Rumor has it she's kind of tired.
(The computer is acting up AGAIN. Otherwise there would be a picture.)

It finally happened. Sickness has found us. We had been lucky thus far without so much as a sniffle since we left Greenville. Thursday Maxwell started complaining of a "hurt tummy" and refused to eat much of anything. Sure enough, he woke Friday morning with a stuffed and drippy nose, slight fever and still a "hurt tummy". Today he is miserable and Russell is quickly following Max onto the sick train. (How convenient...R.C. woke before us today and left for NYC and will be home very late tonight. On one hand I am glad he is out of here so that he can hopefully steer clear of this sickness, but on the other hand with 2 sick boys I am a bit jealous that he gets to leave and I get to stay and wipe noses, hand out meds, and listen to sick whinning all day long. Yes, I know, I know, I know, this is what mothers do. I am happy to care for the boys, that's why I said I am only "a BIT jealous".)

So, what do we do when people aren't feeling well? We have a puzzle party! This morning we decided we would stay in our jammies, get out our big tote of puzzles and try to do all of them. We spent 3 hours straight sitting on the living room floor doing puzzle after puzzle. We ended up getting 12 puzzles done. Some were simple 24 piece ones, some were a little tricky with 200 pieces. One thing was agreed upon as we were finishing up our last one, we are puzzle experts. Maxwell even decided that he wants to be a puzzle put-er toghther-er (yes, I know that's not a real word...but to Max it is) when he is older. I didn't shoot down his dreams, all I did was tell him it might be difficult to get a job putting puzzles together, but Russell was quick, very quick, to correct me. You see, Russell remembers a store in the mall that sells only puzzles. It's a neat store to look in, but we have never once seen anyone purchase a puzzle from this store. So, what does the one employee do while watching over the store? She does a puzzle! Thanks to Russell for reminding me that Maxwell's dream is not too far fetched. Leave it to Russell to come up with a solution to everything.

I think the rest of the afternoon/evening will be spent under a blanket on the couch watching endless hours of kid movies. I have been feeling like I to am ready to board the sick train, but I like to believe that if I ignore all the signs/feelings, then I will not be handed a boarding pass for this train. Let's hope it works...

One thing I really miss about Greenville: Free air.

My tires seemed a bit low so we went to the gas station to check them and put some air in if necessary. I needed just a little bit in each and it cost me $0.75 to use their air machine for 3 minutes. I miss the days of taking 10+ minutes to check and fill my tires at Casey's and not be charged a penny. Nothing is free here. NOTHING. Not even air. I am waiting for the day when I step out my door and someone is there to collect a quarter from me so I can take a walk on their sidewalks.

We have a few pets we are watching for a few days.
One fish and one frog.



They are fun to watch. Well, the frog is fun to watch. The fish is kind of boring, but the frog is entertaining. He stays underwater 24/7 and has great webbed feet which Max pretends to tickle from outside the container. Our neighbors went out of town for a few days and asked if we could keep an eye on them. The boys are really excited! We are trying to come up with names for them since their owners haven't officially named them after having them for a few years. So far Max wants to name them Froggy and Fishy (so original). Russell thinks the fish should be named Mary and the frog Gizmo. Nothing is official yet since they have to agree.

Let's hope they can stand the constant tapping on the side of the tank, faces pressed up against their tank, and little fingers poking in their water from time to time. If they can make it here, they can make it anywhere.

Max is usually not the best person to play hide and seek with. If he is the counter he counts as fast as he can, while following you so he knows where you are hiding. If he is the hider, he gets in his spot, but as soon as he hears you stop counting he jumps out and gives himself away. Either way, a game of hide and seek does not take too long to play with Max.

However, today Max and I were home alone and he decided he was up for a game of hide and seek. I'm never one to turn down hide and seek so I asked if he wanted to count or hide first. Hide, of course! As I was counting I could hear him shuffling around in his bedroom and then, all of the sudden, silence. I yelled ready or not here I come, and started calling his name, which usually gets him to jump out at you and the game is done. I looked for a few minutes and could honestly not find him. I thought I had looked everywhere, but then as I passed through the bathroom for the 3rd time I noticed something....



I sat on the edge of the tub and waited to see how long he could be quiet and hide. He had to have known I was right outside his towel wall, but he stayed quiet and still for several minutes, I even had enough time to go get the camera so I could capture his face when he popped out...

Russell (finally) lost his tooth!!

The tooth fairy will come tonight. Russell is now making a special box to put his tooth in. He is concerned that if he just puts it under his pillow (like every other kid in the world) it may fall between his bed and the wall and land on Max's head, which would result in the tooth fairy not finding it, which would mean no quarter in the morning. So he decided to play it safe and make a special (really big) box to put his tiny tooth in. He also drew a picture of Spiderman on the box so any tooth robber will be scared off. He is always one step ahead of the game!

Without further ado, let me introduce you to toothless Russell....

Every kid makes butter at some point in their schooling. I remember doing this in kindergarten, and I had also found, on the kindergarten website I get my science ideas from, that they also thought kindergarten was a great age to make butter. All it takes is some heavy cream, salt (if desired), a jar with a lid and some shaking. When I announced that we were going to make butter the boys were thrilled and immediately ran to get a piece of bread, not thinking about the work they had to do in order to get this tasty butter.

I split the cream into 2 jars, handed them each a jar and let them shake it. We were having a great time! We had arms shaking, and soon whole bodies were shaking, jumping and dancing their way to fresh butter. Now, what they didn't tell me, and what I didn't remember from school, was that kids are only interested in shaking a jar of cream for about 5 min. If you have a classroom filled with 20-25 kids and each kid shakes the jar for 1-2 minutes this would be perfect. But, with only 3 people in our "class" I think you can imagine what happened. The boys shook for about 5 minutes and then I got to shake both jars for the remaining 20-30 minutes. It was well worth it though! We have delicious butter to top all our breads and we all can say we "made" it.

Max was really enjoying his time shaking the cream at first.


Russell shows the pain and hardship you have to go through in order to get freshly shaken butter.

Today was the inauguration. I'm sure that is not new news to anyone. I'm not going to tell you how excited I was and that I was glued to CNN all morning and afternoon. I'm not even going to tell you that I was moved to tear when seeing the mass of people gathering for miles in D.C. just to be able to say they were apart of this historic event, or the feeling of great hope as President Obama spoke of change that our country needs so badly.

Instead I will tell you how Russell and Maxwell responded to this historic event. (Yes, we did spend the morning and part of the afternoon in front of the T.V.. We did our school work on the living room floor, with the T.V. on...don't judge me.)

Every time Sen. Diane Feinstein stood up both boys would yell, "not her again!"

Maxwell LOVED Aretha Franklin singing. He bobbed his head along with her and when she was done gave out an enthusiastic "WOW".

Russell loved when they would show the little Obama girls. Maybe it's a crush, or maybe he thinks it's pretty neat that they are just kids and get to be there. Who knows.

Maxwell was disappointed in the people who were looking around during the prayer. He kept saying "busted!" when the camera would catch one of these "naughty" people.

The most exciting part for each of them was hearing the word DEMOCRACY. This is a topic we have been covering in school. They (especially Russell) know what this word means and really got a kick out of hearing it used in Obama's speech.

As I was explaining how Obama was being sworn in and would hold office (if all goes as planned) for 4 years and then he can chose to run again (or not) and others will have the chance to run also, yada yada yada... Russell decided this sounds like a game. He thinks it would be a great idea for us to play the game someday. HaHaHa!!

As they scanned the mass of people who had gathered I asked the boys "how do you think these people are feeling?" Each boy immediately responded that they looked happy, very happy. I think they were right.

Sure, not everyone is as enthusiastic about this new president as some. Time will tell if all this hoopla was for good reason or not. But right now, it seems change is coming and any change will be welcome.

These 2 boys are great at playing pretend. This week we played less legos and more role playing. Russell has transformed into Mike Rowe, the host of Dirty Jobs, a favorite show of all in our home. Russell puts on his "Mike Rowe outfit" and comes up with dirty jobs he is going to complete. So far the dirty jobs he has come up with are: cleaning the toilet, scraping an oil rig, cleaning up after horses and combing a goat. I guess these are what a 6 year old finds repulsive. I don't know if some of these jobs would make it to the actual show, they may not be dirty enough. Maxwell loves to make sound effects that accompany these dirty jobs.

The next of our role playing is airplane pilot. Sure, every kid plays airplane pilot at some point in their lives, but it was during this time of pilot playing that the quote of the week came out. Russell had donned his pilot hat and got behind the wheel of his very own airplane. He soon realized that something was wrong and quickly announced to his crew and passengers, "Well, I have good news and bad news. The good news is we are landing immediately. The bad news is we are crash landing (crash landing was said with a sense of complete terror)." Along with this we have Max yelling as if he were really going down.

Max is still Peter Pan. He just can't get enough of that boy who is never going to grow up. He has worn his costume almost daily since Halloween. At times Max will get angry if you don't refer to him as Peter. Russell even helped him make a bag full of pixie dust (TINY pieces of paper colored yellow) that he felt the need to sprinkle all over the house. Nice.

These have been a welcome change. I enjoy Spiderman, don't get me wrong, but it's nice to have a break from the web slinging and building jumping. Who knows what will come next...

When R.C. is home for supper I usually try to make a little nicer meal than I would make if it is just the boys and I. Tonight we had salmon, mashed potatoes (because Max will only eat potatoes if they are mashed), salad with homemade lemon/dill/mustard vinaigrette, and some crusty bread. It was delicious...to all but Max. Max ate his bread, and potatoes, but his fish sat untouched on his plate. Our normal coaxing didn't seem to be working, so it was time to pull out a move from my childhood, one my dad had perfected.

Here's what you do. Tell the child you don't think they can do ________ by the time you get back. No child wants to give their parent the satisfaction of knowing they can't do something, so they prove they can do this thing. The child is happy they proved their parent wrong and the parent is happy their little scheme worked.

Here's how my little scheme when down...

Me: "Max, I bet you can't make one bite of fish disappear before I turn back around." (I was facing away from him.)
I waited a few moments, giving him some extra time and thinking about how smart I was to pull this little trick out of my hat. I knew my dad would be proud as I thought back to all the times this was used on me as a child and worked beautifully.
As I turned to face Max I was surprised to see all his fish still sitting, by this time cold, on his plate. Max didn't waste much time in speaking up about my scheme.
"Well, I guess that didn't work", was all he had to say. I would expect this response from a 12 year old, not a 3 year old.

Max:1 Mom:0
What's your secret Pops?

To the 2 women standing behind me at the post office:

1. I am in fact the mother of these 2 little boys.
2. Yes, my son is wearing a costume...in public! (Heaven forbid!)
3. Yes, this boy is school age, and no he was not in school when we were at the post office.
4. I am not too young to home school or be a mother.
5. Next time you decide to talk about a person, make sure they are not standing less than 2 feet in front of you.

If you couldn't tell, I had a very....annoying (to say the least) experience at the post office today. People assume I am too young, and keeping my children from school. Even when I told them I was the mother and home school, they still felt the need to whisper (very loudly) and criticize someone (us) who they had never seen before. These people annoy me to no end.

I know, I know...stick to writing about happy go lucky, carefree days, Melissa. But, hey, days like this are also a part of life as we Saylers live it.

Friday was the perfect school day. Well, as perfect as they get in this house anyways. Everyone awoke and began the day in a good mood. Breakfast was eaten, clothes were changed and the workbooks were taken out of the cupboard. On most days, school is a fun time, and both boys enjoy doing their work, but also look forward to the end of the day when we put the books away and get the toys out. Friday was different. The workbooks stayed out longer than usual and I had to put them away while both boys cried and wanted to keep going on their work. They love their new curriculum and if given the chance, they would work through it in week, instead of the 4-5 months it is supposed to take. After hours of doing workbooks, and to stop the crying, we donned our newsie apparel, turned on our newsie CD and had a 45 minute newsie dance off (exhausting!!). After dancing nonstop, we (mainly I) were tired and decided to do some more work. We worked on word searches, crosswords, and I Spy until supper time. Their little brains were smoking by the end of the night from all the work they did, but they each said they had a really fun day. If you didn't already know...these boys are awesome!

Diligent little workers...who are also very funny.

I'm surprised people have been so interested in "the loose tooth", and you have been checking in to see if the tooth fairy has come yet. I assure you, it is still loose and it is still in the gums, lined up with all the other pearly white baby teeth. It seems to get more loose each day and the fear of eating apples and carrots has set in with Russell. You have all been so kind in reminding us that we can speed this process up by simply tying a string to his tooth and pulling. I, for one, am not too crazy about this idea. I don't think you should ever have to tie a string to a part of your body and pull. Bringing a door knob into the mix only makes it seem more strange to me. Has anyone ever gone to the doctor and he prescribed a string and door knob in order to feel better? I didn't think so. So, we are very patiently awaiting the day when this tiny little tooth releases it's roots from the gums and falls into Russell's hand. Until then, we wait...

It's back to school time for everyone in our house.

R.C. took his sack lunch and headed off to the studio and class this morning. It's back to his busy schedule. It was GREAT to have him home for a few weeks with us!!

Russell and Max got back to work this morning also. We started out by doing a bit of review and then dove right into some new topics. It's good to be back in "learning mode" after a week and a half break. During our break we did do a few science experiments. We grew rocks in a tank and chiseled away rock in order to uncover and identify several rocks and gems. I am certain we have a paleontologist and geologist in the making.







After a busy day back to school we were able to relax a bit this afternoon. Each of the boys put on their costumes (again) and we headed outside to build a snowman and have a snowball fight with the remaining snow in our back "yard". Surely running and dodging snowballs counts as gym class. Right?! Hot cocoa and an art project finished up our day. Who said school has to be boring?



(This thing on Maxwell's shoulder is Tinkerbell. Russell made it and taped it on Max. Up close it looks more like Tinkerbell.)

It's New Years Eve once again and I can not help but think of the past year. It has been a year of change for all of us in the Sayler home. At times all this change is overwhelming and I find myself thinking, "what are we thinking/doing?" But I remember that change is part of life and yes, it may be hard and scary, but it is also very very exciting.

Maxwell started out the year by being very shy and quiet. He was 2 years old and didn't say much of anything. He clung to me, needed me to sit with him until he fell asleep and was just a very quiet child. He is now talking nonstop. For those of you who can't imagine Max ever uttering a word, trust me, he talks more than Russell at times. Max is also no longer a baby. Yes, I know, he's 3 and just being 3 kicks him out of the baby category, but all "baby activities" are no longer acceptable. He does not like to have help getting dressed, he does not like to hold hands, and the days of me sitting on his bed while he falls asleep are gone. He knows he is a big boy and loves to prove it to people by jumping off big rocks, going potty on his own and carrying a full gallon of milk to the table, with no help.

Russell is, in most ways, the same old Russell he has always been (which is a good thing!). He still loves dinosaurs and Spiderman and wearing costumes on any given day. He is learning so much though! He started the year attending preschool at the public school where he had the best teacher anyone could ask for. If all teachers could be like this preschool teacher, the world would be filled with kids who WANT to go to school and love to learn. She got him started on the right track for school and that is the best thing anyone could ask for! Which brings us to Russell's big change...homeschooling. He is doing so well and seems to enjoy it. He is adding, reading, and writing sentences. He can also tell you all about the weather, time, and land masses. Russell is also very helpful around the house. He used to do nothing to contribute to a meal, but he is setting the table now and pouring drinks.

R.C. was able to quit his job in 2008 and instantly became a happier person. Yes, he was able to quit a 40 hour a week job, but he is now putting in well over 40 hours in grad school. Even with more hours "working" he is still much happier since now he doesn't have to sit on the phone all day long. R.C. finished off his first semester with straight A's!!! Let's see another 3 semesters of straight A's (I know he is more than capable of doing this)!!

As for me, well, I didn't have many monumental things happen in 2008. I have been able to carry a gallon of milk to the table for some time now. I have been able to read for a number of years, and I didn't just get straight A's. I feel like a good part of the year I spent packing boxes, unpacking boxes, sorting boxes and condensing boxes. I think I might have our home set up just right in about 2 years, just as R.C. is ready to graduate and we will move again. I also took on the task of homeschooling Russell. I am very happy with how Russell is learning, except when people ask him what he is learning. I cringe when I hear this question because each and every time it is asked Russell will answer, "I don't know". This part of homeschooling drives me nuts!

My top 2 strengths (according to the Strengths Finder test taken at Greenville College) are positivity and adaptability. These were put to the test this year and for the most part, I think I kept a fairly positive outlook on things and have adapted some what well to Rhode Island in the past few months.

Tonight we will ring in the new year with sparkling blueberry juice (for the boys) snacks and maybe a game of scrabble (exciting time, right?!). I have yet to come up with a great new years resolution. Usually I don't come up with one until about Easter time, and by then I feel it is too late to start something different, so I tell myself I will use it has my resolution for next year. I then forget about it by the next new years and I once again have nothing to declare my resolution. It's a cycle that never stops...

Late Christmas night I picked my sister, Chris, up at the airport. She decided to spend part of her Christmas break from teaching to come visit us in Rhode Island, and we were happy she did. The boys were really excited and stayed up until 11:15 PM to greet aunt Chrissy when she walked through the door. We were able to have our guest here for 5 days, but it went so fast. We tried to show her all that Providence has to offer, but I'm sure we forgot something so she will have to come back in the summer. We spent one afternoon at the beach, followed by ice cream from our favorite ice cream parlor. It was a chilly day, but very enjoyable.

Highlights:

• The beach and ice cream (as mentioned above).
• R.C. stayed home with the boys so Chris and I could shop/walk around the mall.
• A walk around our neighborhood on a 50 degree day. It was such great weather!
• A tour of downtown and RISD.
• Playing Seinfeld Scene It. I proved to the queen of all Seinfeld!
• We found a great outlet mall not too far from home.
• I treated Chris to caviar. It was delicious!! (OK, so I just led the way to the free sample of caviar at Whole Foods, where we ran in quick to grab a gallon of milk. Caviar is caviar though...and if it's free it's all the better in my book.)
• Russell scolded Chris about not recycling her pop bottle. It makes me proud!
• Maxwell was the Hi-Ho-Cherry-O champion.
  

We hope that Chris had a good trip and will spread the word so more people come visit us. Thanks for coming Chris! Enjoy your new shoes!

Here are just a few pictures of our day at the beach. Each time we go to the beach we end up bringing back half the beach in a bucket...








Also...

I'm sure you noticed that we were all in our coats, hats, scarves and mittens. It was a cool day, but lovely for a walk on the beach. A walk. Some men (boys?) decided they were going to brave the frigid ocean waters and take a dip. What a couple of crazies!! Max saw these intelligent (do you sense any sarcasm?) people and decided he wanted to get in the water also. He was very upset when I told him no. He decided that he would settle for getting as close to the water as possible, and running before it touched his boots, though.

This is the only picture I took of the swimmers...hard to make out...

This morning was Christmas morning, as if you all didn't know that. 7:30 AM rolled around and 2 little boys were standing at our bedside, just starring at me (why they always come to my side of the bed and wake me up first I just don't understand). I knew what they wanted, but thought that I could buy myself a few more minutes of sleep by telling Max he had to get his pull-up off and put his underpants on before we could go see if Santa had come. Russell was on top of things and had already helped Max get changed (what a nice big brother! On any other day he would not have done this...) so there was nothing that I could do but get up.

Santa did, in fact, come to Providence, ate all the cookies left out, and also gave the carrot to Rudolph. The presents were soon all opened and then the "playing with the toys" began. I must admit, I'm kind of a boring person when it comes to lots of new things all at once. I immediately go into "mommy mode" and want one toy out at a time. But before that can happen, I want people dressed and messes cleaned up. The boys were in luck though...daddy was in charge. I excused myself to the kitchen to get Christmas dinner made while R.C. was in charge of the boys. He allowed them to stay in their pj's (which they are STILL in. We have no company and nowhere to go so why not?) and get out all their toys at one time. I smiled and shook my head when legos were rolling under my feet in the kitchen and I was asked for batteries every 5 minutes. I now understand why mom and dad wanted to get things in the oven and a few other kitchen chores done before we attacked the presents. As a kid I never understood why we had to wait at the top of the stairs, for what seemed like eternity, while these chores were done. I now understand that once the presents are opened nothing gets done and the mess, no matter how clean you have your home the night before, just gets worse and worse. Paper and boxes are everywhere. Even if you don't have too many presents to open, the paper will take over. I find paper scraps in the bathroom and under pillows. Oh well...it happens once a year.

Russell got a robe. He really wanted one and he looks like a little bachelor in this one sipping coffee (OK...so it's juice).

Max...kind of excited about legos

The one gift they both REALLY REALLY wanted

A super cheap knight dress up set that Max loved when he saw it in the store. It is flimsy and will not protect him from his enemies, but he thinks he is tough stuff when he puts it on...

Soon the sword was used to open presents. R.C. with his nice warm hat and Max with a harmonica.

Even after all the presents, singing, reading Christmas stories and baking, I had a hard time getting in the Christmas mood. We all felt a little strange not having any other family around to visit with or share a meal with. Every other year we have spent Christmas day, and the days leading up to Christmas, with family, so having a quiet day was different. I did get a GREAT surprise when I checked the messages on my phone and I heard my uncle Kenny singing O Holy Night. When uncle Kenny sings O Holy Night he can make a grown man cry. He has been singing this song in church every Christmas since, well, I can't remember a Christmas that he hasn't sung it. I thought this year I would have to get through Christmas without hearing it, until this afternoon. Thank you Kenny!

A good and relaxing day was had by all.

My sister, Chris, is flying to Providence tonight! I am going to pick her up in just a few hours and she will stay and visit for a few days. We are all very excited, but wonder where she will put her suitcase once she gets here (she is not one to travel light...).

(this is a spoof of this blog)

We used to pay $60 for a 7 foot tree, but this year things changed...
We found a place where you can buy any Norfolk Pine for $15, so we decided to go all out. When we got our tree home we had to find a box to set it upon so that it could be seen from the window. $15 for a 3 foot tree!

~ M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S ~