Day One of Summer Holiday Break

5:15 am: Boy #3 awake, give him Tylenol, assuming it's teeth
5:30 am: Boy #3 not happy, decide to feed him and put him in bed with me
6:30 am: I am still awake as Boy #3 continues to hit my face
6:35 am: Hear legos in Boy #1 and #2 room
6:50 am: Boy #3 in crib and sleeping, I slip into bed
6:59 am: Boy #1 in my room. Bug in his bedroom. He crawls into bed with me followed by B#2.
7:30 am: Decided to get up and make french toast
8:30 am: Step into shower
8:33 am: B2 swings bathroom door open with stool and diego seat. He needs the potty. A not so sweet aroma enters the room.
8:37: B1 comes in and argues with B2 b/c he needs the toilet. Wonder what is wrong with the other two toilets in the house.
8:40: Out of shower. Hear B3 screaming for breakfast.
8:50: Trying to get all boys dressed. Referring a fight between B1 and B2. Explain that this is not a race, yet B1 continues to taunt B2 b/c he "won". Time out needed.
9:30: Head out to get babysitter. Can't find B2's shoes (he has 6 pairs!)
10:00: In hairdresser's chair with a hot coffee. Ahh, two hours of peace.
12:00: Back home. All are hungry again. Throw PBJ at B1 and B2. Feed B3. Get bread out for myself and B1 comes in. Bees. Take care of it and come back in. Get knife and Peanut Butter. B1 in again. Apples on the ground. No use in trying to eat lunch. Will try later.

This is only half the day. Will they all go like this? Must set a new precedence for summer holiday schedule tomorrow. I've forgotten what a house of 3 boys is like and I refuse to let them overtake me!

Schools Out For the Summer!

Ah, yes, we are finally on summer holiday! While I am a little misty eyed about Jacob completing his first year at school, I'm also super excited to be done with it. You see, there are two types of mums here in England. The first are those who are so excited to not have to do the school run, make the lunches, etc. The second are also excited, but their number one emotion is fear. Fear of what to do with a child who will eventually whine with boredom within three weeks. I am with the first party. As I laid in bed last night I couldn't sleep...when I picked up Jacob from school I was more exicted than him! Remember getting out of school when you were a kid and singing the Alice Cooper classic "Schools out for the summer!"? Well, that was me today in my big beast of a mini van. Shades on, windows down, and a slightly embarrassed kid in the back!

This is the beginning of 5 weeks of blissfully easing into the day (versus the usual shot gun approach) and spending some good times with the boys. Let's hope it's as blissful as I hope it will be!

Aiden's Sports Day

Sports Day is a big thing in this country and it's not just primary school, but nursery as well! So, this past Wednesday I was on the field again. This time at Aiden's school. He was VERY apprehensive about participating, so it took a lot of coaxing on my part to get him to do the race. He decided to go for it in the horsey race and the full-on running race. If only he would have run in a straight line, he would have won it. That is the great thing about Aiden - he could care less if he wins. Look how happy the ole chap is. Ah, to be 3 again!

Swim, Jacob, Swim!

Jacob has been taking swim lessons for the past 3 months and loves it! He goes every Monday after school to Ms. Maura's, who teaches out of the pool in her back garden. She is a spunky Irish woman, which is exactly what Jacob needs to get him moving. Parents got to watch at the last lesson on Monday. Here are some of his best moves, even though he forgot his goggles!

Jacob Sports Day at School

The rain stopped long enough on Tuesday so that Jacob could have sports day at school. The kids were all dressed in their "house" colors, so Jacob was representing the red house. On his first race, he ended up dead last. Then, on the relay race, he started first, but, well, it wasn't pretty. Finally, he represented the red house well by taking them from last to first on the all important EGG AND SPOON RACE!! (And I didn't get it on video!)After that was the mums race and I ended up loosing due to forgetting to wear a belt. Hard to run with your trousers falling down! Athletics just don't run in the genes!

Things Said Over and Over

Today I realized that I say the same things over and over. It's no wonder the boys don't listen to me anymore - I'm starting to tune myself out! So, I'm going to try to find new ways to say them. Here they are (in no particular order):

1. Get dressed.
2. Put the seat down.
3. Did you flush?
4. Are you dressed yet?
5. Eat your vegetables.
6. Stop burping, you'll throw up.
7. Can you hear me?
8. Just eat it!
9. Stop whining.
10. Shut the door!
11. Just say your sorry to your brother.
12. Who didn't flush?!

Legoland on the Fourth!

The Fourth of July is definitely my favorite holiday, so even though we are living in England we decided to still celebrate! We took Jacob out of school (terrible mother, I know!) and surprised the boys by going to Legoland for the day. The weather was unbelievable good, which is rare here. We had a blast riding the dino dipper rollercoaster, but Jacob wanted to go on "the big one." So, Tom and him waited 1 1/2 hours while Jeb, Aiden and I headed to Duploland to ride on some smaller rides. Jacob, surprisingly, loved the rollercoaster! We headed onwards for 'the great dig', which let the boys dig ball using an small excavator (Aiden was in his element!). A few more rides and then we ended with the Viking water ride, which we all got soaked on (except Tom and Jeb who watched and laughed!). Tom has been dreaming of going to Legoland since he was a kid, so we spent an hour in the Lego village where different parts of the world were miniturized using legos. We left the park with a bag of new Legos (they get you every time!) and 3 knackered boys (2 parents too). A fourth of July to remember. Oh, and we even saw a few fireworks at night here in town!