Today was a great day. Much to be thankful for. We are home now and quite tired. More to come.

Today, as we were stuck in traffic on the Mass Pike, we had snow falling on our windshield. Yes!! SNOW!! We had a beautiful drive on the back roads of Massachusetts and then spent a few hours at Mass MoCA viewing art and meeting up with some friends. I will write more on this trip later, maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day.

I cracked.

I'm not happy that I did this.

I realize that I am much weaker than I thought I was.

This morning R.C. put on some Christmas music. Not just any Christmas music. Bing Crosby. Bing Crosby is my all time favorite Christmas singer. He's pretty much the king of all Christmas music. White Christmas is a favorite Christmas movie, in which Bing stars along with other great actors/singers. Tied for first place with White Christmas is Home Alone, in which little Kevin McCallister stands at the mirror in a huge green towel singing White Christmas. Then there is the Little Drummer Boy duet sung with David Bowie. Let us also not forget about the White Christmas CD in which there are more great songs sung by Bing Crosby than I can mention here. Bing has a hand in each of these and is wonderful!

Hearing Bing sing White Christmas was just too much for me. I had always done so well with not listening to Christmas music until Thanksgiving night, but this morning I realized that I had fallen off the wagon. Bing had pushed me off. I thought listening to one song would be harmless but I realized I had a problem when I was searching for all my favorite Christmas music and trying to sing alone with Alvin and the Chipmunks. My voice sounds like a chipmunk since I lost it a few days ago, and it still is not back, but I was determined to squeak out all the words I could. It started with Bing singing about dreaming of a White Christmas and it just began to snowball from there.

Thanks Bing and R.c..

It would be safe to say that if I was writing a "things I'm thankful for" list, at the top of the list would be my sisters. (Don't let this go to your head guys :) ) I talk with one or each of them everyday, sometimes multiple times a day. Sometimes as I am laying on the couch trying to stay awake as I wait for R.C. to come home from the studio, sometimes as I am making supper or trying to figure out what to make for supper. Sure, when we were growing up we had our moments when we would fight and pinch and refuse to let the other borrow clothing, but even during our younger years I was always thankful that they were my sisters. 


Today I asked the boys to make a list of things they are thankful for. I was going into this hoping that my boys would feel the same way toward each other as I felt toward my sisters. I knew they would write down their favorite toys, but I hoped to see "my brother" somewhere on the list. Russell did not let me down. The number one thing that Russell is thankful for is "Maxwell". This makes sense being that they play together everyday, share bunk beds, and bathe together. Maxwell looked at Russell's paper and saw his name. "That's my name!" he yelled in delight. This was nice. They were both happy. Max was happy that he made the top of Russell's list, and Russell was happy that Max thought it was so cool.


Oh, yeah. You are probably wondering what was on Max's list. 


Maps.


According to Max, maps are the number one thing that he is thankful for. What? How old is this kid? I knew he liked maps since this is his favorite thing to study in school, but I never would have thought that maps would beat Russell. Maybe it is because maps is easier to write than Russell, or maybe it was because Max likes to try and get a rise out of Russell. Whatever it was, they both had a great laugh and it was obvious that they were both thankful for each other.

We kicked off our Saturday with some spilled coffee and a quick train ride to Boston. The boys seemed to think that our train car smelled horrible (which it did) so they decided the best way to make their ride tolerable was to hold a piece of gum under their nose so all they smelled was "winter fresh" goodness.
Our first order of business was a subway ride to Fenway Park. Baseball can officially be over for the season now that we have seen the stadium. We walked around the stadium then hopped another train to take us down to the Museum of Science.

At the Museum of Science we enjoyed exploring animals, planets, wind, light, sound, weight, bridge building, and all other things relating to science.

This was a real skeleton that a woman was kind enough to talk with the boys about. Max was very excited to touch the bones, but Russell was a bit creeped out.


Just in case you were thinking that Russell is through the "dino period", well, think again. Dinosaurs have definitely taken a back burner to some other interests that he has now, but the excitement still bubbles over when he sees skeletons and models of prehistoric animals.


Of all the things to see in the museum the boys found a Where's Waldo poster (a new obsession for the boys). They spend all of 10 seconds looking before they spotted Waldo, Odlaw, and Wizard White beard. They are pretty much the best Where's Waldo finders ever.

And then, there was Harry Potter. Oh, yes! There was a fabulous Harry Potter exhibition! They had props and sets from the Harry Potter movies. It was so fun to see the actual props that they used in the movies and see just how detailed everything is/was.

Some of the items we saw:

• Harry's wand and eye glasses
  
• School robes worn by all the actors (Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Prof Snape, Prof McGonagall, etc. )
• Hermione's time turner
• Acceptance letter
• Box with quidditch balls and the golden snitch
  
• Nimbus 2000 and 2001
• Goblet of fire
• Golden egg
• All costumes worn to the ball (in the Goblet of Fire).
• Quidditch robes
• All characters wands
• Hagrids hut, dragon egg and chair.
• Buckbeak
  
• Fawkes the phoenix
  
• Huge wizard chess pieces
• The sorting hat
• Death Eater robes
• Marauder's map
• Harry and Ron's beds and trunks
• Voldemort's costume
• The triwizard cup
• Kreacher the house elf
• Lucius Malfoy's cane with the serpent head
  
• Much much more
  

Any prop you can think of, they had it, and we saw it. The boys were able to hold Harry's wand and swish it around while R.C. and I pulled mandrakes out of their pots. We got to sit in Hagrid's huge chair and Russell jumped at the opportunity to play a game of quidditch, and he actually scored a goal!! We could take no pictures inside the Harry Potter exhibition, but out in the main hall they had this wizard chess piece.
After the museum it was dark and getting late, so we decided to roam the streets of Boston until we were tired and wanted to go home. We decided to go to Haymarket and take a walk through the rows of produce and smell the fresh fish that was out for sale. It was SO packed but so exciting to see. We walked through the square where they were getting ready to light the Christmas tree, but decided not to stop to watch. We were getting tired so we headed back to the train station, via the very long way, and waited for our train. We snacked on granola bars and almonds, and watched as a homeless man would pick up plastic bottles and slam them down on the ground like he was spiking a football, until our train came.

The boys, once again, did wonderful! There was no whining and no crying and so(SO SO SO) much walking. Within 10 minutes of being on the train Russell was sound asleep and as soon as Max found a comfy place on R.C.'s lap, he too fell fast asleep.

We spent the day in Boston today. It was a very quickly planned trip, but very fun none the less. I will tell all about it tomorrow.

I feel I need to prepare an acceptance speech. Do I thank the academy? Do I thank my friends and family? Do I thank all my fans? Who do I dedicate this award to?

What award, you ask?

Well, It has come to my attention that I win the "best mom ever" award. Whoa! What?! I know, I didn't see that one coming either! But, it seems to Russell that I am all that, and a bag of chips. For the last week he has been saying, "Mom, you are the best mom ever" followed with a very sweet hug.

Nice, huh? Well, it is, but (oh yes, there is a but) it's funny how this phrase has come out now that he sees more toys in stores, on T.V., and in magazines. You see, what I didn't mention before, is how the rest of the conversation goes between Russell and I. Let me fill you in:

Russell, "Mom, you're the best mom ever."

Me, "Awww, thanks Russell."

Russell, "You know, I've been thinking about my Christmas list...."

Do you see why I say it is nice, but....?

He is beginning the "buttering" process for Christmas. I refuse to talk with him about presents yet, but he's a smart guy and is working his charm until he gets the go ahead to discuss presents. Until that day I pretend I don't hear anything after I am told I am the best mom ever. He is obviously hoping that I remember all the hugs and kind words when I am walking the Lego aisle in Target.

I think the fact that I ignore him during this time means that I automatically get my award taken away. My reign as "best" was very short lived.

We had company for supper last night and I kid you not, this was a conversation that took place between the boys:

Russell: "We are going to be neighbors when we get older Max."
Max: "No, I'm going to live far far away from you." (evil laughing from Max, but in good fun.)
Russell: "What about our plan, Max?" (said with great concern)
Max: "No."
Adult: "What plan is that?"
Russell: "We are going to live next door to each other and work at Toys-r-us."
Max: "I don't want to anymore."
Russell: "Who am I going to sit by at lunch?"

Russell is kind of panicking that his life dream of working at Toys-r-us with Max is not going to work out. I guess he has fears of eating lunch alone. I have a fear that these conversations will be leaked and no one will come for supper anymore. (Although I did just leak it myself...)

The boys and I spent our morning in Firestone getting our oil changed and getting a squeaky belt changed. I assumed it would take 45 minutes, maybe an hour. Well, it took much longer than expected. MUCH LONGER! The boys were great during the wait (obviously, right?! haha) and made all the men working get a good laugh.

How?

Well, as we sat in the waiting area we saw them drive our little "birdman" car into the stall and begin lifting it into the air. As soon as the tires left the floor Max yelled out, "OUR CAR IS FLYING!!!" Both boys burst into laughter and kept talking about how Harry Potter was in the car making it fly. As I said in a previous post, Max has a VERY contagious laugh and soon everyone was laughing and Max and Russell were crying they were laughing so hard. All because a car was up on a jack. One man later told me that he was thrilled that the boys found the car in the air so funny. He said that as a child he too thought that cars in "the shop" were flying. He told me that seeing the boys laugh so hard took him back to his younger years and often forgets that such little things make kids laugh.

The best part of this...
They gave me a quote for the work they were going to do and it was $____. When they were finished and I went to the counter to pay the total was $20 less than I was earlier told. Could it have been because my boys made all these men laugh and put them in a good mood? I'm not sure, but I am going to instruct the boys to bust up laughing in the grocery store, at the eye doctor, dentist, and Target. I'm going to be saving some serious cash now, I can feel it.

Today in our history/geography lesson we are moving on from Egypt into Mesopotamia. Our first lesson is learning about what Mesopotamia means. If you didn't know, Mesopotamia means "the land between the rivers". The 2 rivers Mesopotamia lays between are the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

After discussing this topic for 30 minutes I gave the boys a verbal quiz on what we had just read/discussed. Max was asked the question, "what are the names of the 2 rivers we have been talking about?" This was an easy question just so I could see if he had absorbed any information that we had just gone over.

His answer:

"The Tigris and the Alfredo rivers."

After this answer it was hard to keep the boys from thinking about food. Russell answered his questions properly, but it was obvious he was dreaming about floating down a river of alfredo.

Also, as I was putting away the cleaning supplies after giving the bathroom a good scrubbing, Russell approached me with some good information. He told me, "I know you just cleaned the bathroom so I didn't pee on the seat this time."

This makes me wonder what he does on the days when he knows that I didn't just clean the bathroom. Oh, little boys are wonderful.

I truly cannot believe that my little Maxwell Graham is 4.

4!

Four!

Last year at this time he was refusing to turn 3. He hated the idea of being 3. We could not utter the word 3 or he would get very angry and cry. This year he is accepting of the fact that he is getting older, although he is moving a bit faster than I would like. He wants to be 41. Yes, 41 years old is the preferred age this year. I don't know where he came up with this, but he even wanted me to check and make sure I have 41 candles for his cake (Which I do not.).

Well, once again, enjoy this slide show. This time of Maxwell. The song playing is his favorite at the moment, but his favorite changes often so by the time you see this, he might not like the song anymore...although I think he will.

R.C. is home from NYC, everyone is feeling better and we rearranged the living room. We hung out together all day which was very nice after having a long/tiring few days here at home with the boys while R.C. was gone.

We all piled into our tiny kitchen for a before bed snack of cheese and crackers and now R.C. and I are finishing our night watching some of our favorite Seinfeld episodes.

I almost forgot to post tonight (Thanks for the reminder Chris) so my mind is not thinking about blogging, it's thinking about bed. Tomorrows post will be much better, and much earlier.... :)

A favorite quote from today:

"Mom, if we were having a race, running in place, I'm pretty sure I could beat you." Russell

I'm not sure if he is thinking that I am so stinking athletic that he could only beat me if I was running in place, or if he thinks that running in place is all I could handle. I'm not sure if this is going to be a challenge of stamina or speed, but either way I plan on taking him up on this challenge just to see who the better runner in place is. I'm not going to let him win just because he's a child, I'm going to give running in place all I have and hopefully kick his little running in place butt.

As a child I hated to be sick. I hated to admit I was sick. I would try everything to hide that I was not feeling well. My mother is smart though and always knew when I was not feeling well. She would call me out on it and I would be so angry/sad that I had been found out. I still do it today. I don't know why I have such a hard time admitting that I might have caught a sick bug. A few years back I went months knowing that I had a hernia, but didn't go to the doctor to have them confirm this. I did eventually go and had to have surgery. I guess I think that if I ignore feelings of sickness/pain then whatever I may have will just go away. Sometimes I think this works, but sometimes it doesn't and I have to admit defeat.

It seems I have passes this "trait" onto Maxwell. He awoke this morning obviously not feeling well. When I asked him if he was feeling ok he would answer with "I'm fine". Eventually though he admitted (after crying for over an hour) that he had a soar throat and tummy. After getting a confirmation from the good old thermometer that he has a fever, he was tucked into the couch and will remain there for the day. When I check on him he quietly says, "I feel good", but he's not fooling anyone. This boy is sick...I just hope he gets over it by Monday so he can enjoy his birthday.

I don't want to blog today.
Really I don't.
R.C. leaves early tomorrow morning for NYC until late Saturday night. (for class) Ugh.
We are going to a show opening tonight and maybe stick around for some "open studios". Maybe not.
I'm tired.
Not one day this week have I been able to stay awake to greet R.C. in the evening (early morning) when we gets home. Oops.
My "baby boy" turns 4 in 4 days. Sigh. (Double sigh!!)
I'm determined to not miss a day. Yes, this counts.

This week we are studying Egypt. The boys love it, mainly because we talk about taking organs out of bodies and wrapping mummies. We have studied hieroglyphics, Cairo, and the Nile. Pharaohs and pyramids are the favorite topic though. After our lessons yesterday I asked Russell to build a pyramid out of Legos. He did an awesome job! This pyramid not only looks great, but inside there is a "pharaoh" and gold coins for his afterlife. This base was picked specifically because the Nile is running through it.
Since the taking of this picture another pyramid was added to the other side of the Nile. Both boys think we need to take a field trip to Egypt to see the pyramids and the Great Sphinx.

When I was in grade school there were several boys in my class who would read Goosebumps books. I never liked them. In fact, I hated them. I hated them so much that even in grade school I told myself that when I had kids (someday) they would never read these horrible books. I loved to read as a child (and still do) and hoped that my kids would loathe these books as much as I did and instead begin reading on Emerson, Steinbeck, and Shakespeare (only kidding! Stan and Jane Bernstein would do (and has done) just fine.).

Well, things have changed. Yesterday Russell was eying the Goosebumps section at the library and I found myself telling him that he could get one. WHAT!? He was so excited! He carried it home and immediately planted himself on the couch and began reading it to Max.

There is nothing better than seeing your 2 kids cuddled under a blanket enjoying a book together. Whether that book is by Tolstoy, Bernstein, or R.L. Stine, reading anything is better than watching mindless T.V., in my book. But, that's just me...

Yesterday afternoon I told Maxwell that I thought he looked nice. He picked out his own clothes and actually matched, didn't have on sweatpants, and didn't have 5 layers of t-shirts on, so I thought a compliment would do him some good.

"I've looked better other days."

That's the response I got from him. I guess he felt he could have done better.

It's nice having a husband who can fix anything.

A few weeks ago I was driving around doing some errands when I hit something. I have no idea what it was that I hit. I didn't see anything in the road, but whatever it was put a hole in the side of my car. Not a huge hole and not horribly noticeable, but it is a hole none the less and it also tore off some molding on the side of the door. R.C. told me it looks like I was in a battle on the high seas and a canon ball hit the side of the car. Luckily there was no damage to the car other than this cosmetic blemish. Performance wise it is still driving like a great little car with 100,000+ miles on it.

But, as I said, my husband can fix anything. Today he was kind enough to do his work from home so that he can take periodic breaks to go outside and "Bondo" and "Epoxy" our car back to it's beautiful self.

The bathroom door was also a big fix that R.C. completed recently. I'm usually not one to close doors in the house unless it is to keep smoke, due to cooking, from reaching the smoke detectors; but now I like to close the bathroom door just because it closes so nicely.

Thank R.C.

(I'm really running low on blog-able material)

We took advantage of "free day" at the zoo today. It was a beautiful autumn morning and most of the animals were still out for viewing, but some had already been moved for the winter months.

It was a good zoo. They had all the normal zoo animals, zebras, elephants, monkeys, etc. They also had "the farmyard". Many zoos have areas like this where they have cows, sheep, pigs, donkeys, etc. on display. I always thought they were kind of funny. Coming from a farming community I saw cows, sheep, pigs, etc. everyday. I assumed the rest of the world knew what these animals were and knew that they really were not that interesting. Why would people go to a zoo with exotic animals all around them and choose to stare at a beef cow instead? Today as we walked into "the farmyard" I thought I had figured it out. It made me feel at home. For ten minutes I felt like I was back in Wisconsin looking at John and Carrie's cows. I was just waiting for the puppy to run up behind me and start biting my pant legs and freaking the boys out. People like me who sometimes miss the smell of cows can be comforted for just a few minutes. How nice of the zoo people to think of others and want to comfort them in this way. That's what this area was made for, right?

Wrong. I was so very very wrong. They have these "farmland" areas in zoos because people really are clueless about simple, everyday farm animals. As we were standing at a fence looking at a pig, a woman came and stood beside us. She had a question she wanted answered and it went a little something like this:

"Is that a rabbit?"

REALLY lady (A grown woman in her 40's, and very serious. This was not a joke to her)? You are staring at an animal with a snout, curly tail, and covered in mud and you think it is a rabbit? The farmland area is important for people like this. I never realized that some people don't know what a pig is. Obviously she also does not know what a rabbit looks like. Maybe she doesn't know what a squirrel or a dog looks like either. What is this world coming to??