All about JACK

I had to. Saw these “camp fire” oversized marshmellows at the grocery store and I did a very bad thing…I bought the bag. I thought to myself “how cool would this size marshmellow be for a yummy reward for going potty on the toilet at school??!”

Yes, they are HUGE, like the size of a closed fist huge…when I realized it was gonna take two air tight storage containers to house these bad boys…I thought, “W-O-W that’s a lot of sugar I’m gonna just gonna hand over to my kid”…

but I did it anyways…
At first…he scowled at it…I honestly don’t even think he knew what it was, then quickly he said “Marshmellow Mum?!”

Nom! Nom!

happy, happy, joy, joy……..

until Mama stops off at the store to run an errand on the way home from school and finds this happy face covered in slimy what’s left of an attacked marshmellow…and a boy who’s NOT so “mellow”? Omg….it was a train wreck. He was beside himself, covered in white goo…it was E-v-e-r-y-where, all over his face, his hands, his tee shirt, his shorts, the car seat, and ALL over the window! Yes, he finger painted the back seat window with marshmellow goo…just lovely!
I suppose I deserve it, right? I mean what was I thinking?! I didn’t even once think to turn around in the car while he was eating it…we were singing and having a gay old time all the way  to the store… or so I thought…Poor kid was a wreck, after wet wipe mayhem I decided to take Arlin Jack into the store with me…

yet another bad idea.

We left, after getting what we needed. Not even out of the parking lot the Captain was fast asleep.

I totally felt bad…I totally just knocked my kid out with a sugar high!?

Aw, it’s good to be back home with the Captain…A few days away is awesome, but Chad and I both started getting the Arlin itch, it just feels funny not waking him up in the morning. These pictures are lunch time after a morning at his new day care/school.

I couldn’t figure out why he was holding his shirt up… until I caught him spoon feeding mini meatballs to his belly button… When I asked him what he was doing….he said,

“Dat food n’ me Belly!”

Oh he makes me laugh…

after Arlin’s nap today he was Mama’s sou chef, we made Split Pea soup from scratch. (It was yummy)

he had to hydrate quite often…with milk breaks but hey hard work calls for breaks, right?

I’m getting the business here for stopping the “help” process to take a picture…

He really is a great helper, he LOVES to help (or feel like he’s helping you) but man it’s hard to stay focused and not skip ingredients with his speedy little paws trying to swipe knives every time I turn my head! He’s quick I tell ya.

Mom…I’m sure you’ll get a chuckle out of this picture…(what was it Tony put in his boots? Peaches??!ahhaha)

Mmm hmmm, Yep, those are raspberries in his cowboy boots.

this is his “I didn’t do it Mama” face…I get it all the time lately.

another dress fitting…

I had to add more fabric onto the head piece…and blanket stitch the eyes, I switched em’ to a cream fleece looks better than the felt.

costume is finished! Pictures tomorrow!!

Arlin started his 1st day of Montessori yesterday. Summer session ended last week and he had a few days at home with Mama. Although we really enjoyed ourselves the first day or two, I think we started driving each other nuts. Arlin loves to go to school!

He takes pride in carrying his own bag in…Mama calls him her “Big Boy” when he stays on track and we actually get our bag into the right cubby without disturbing anyone else.

That’s Ms. Cecily on the left, she’ll be taking over for Ms. Lindsay when she leaves to have her baby girl. And next, holding the basket…that’s Camille or Millie! Arlin has a new pal to play with, Faith and Tom’s (Abby’s good friends) little girl. Watching Millie yesterday morning reminded me of Arlin the first day, she was on overload…wanted to check it all out!

Mr. Trouble.

Mama made the Captain a personalized tote, the school asked for no backpacks…

I picked him up today from the school yard. I could see everyone but Arlin. I asked Cecily is Arlin out here…Yes he’s over on the playground slide, and as she went to point, he wasn’t there….but just to the right of the playground you could see his little tushie sticking up in the air…his head was buried in the tomato garden. Captain found the grape tomato bush, thorns don’t scare him! I plucked him out of the garden. He had a couple tomatoes squirreled away in his mouth and he had seeds smeared all over his tee-shirt. Who knows how many he ate. Boy was he mad at Mama for picking him up to go home.

We’ve had a real picnic potty training. But we’re committed.

But see, I’ve been feeding him tomatoes here at the house. Yah. I didn’t know there was a free-for-all buffet tomato bush in the school yard.

Let’s just say we got lots of potty practice in today.

the Captains first bagel and cream cheese…

I do believe it was love at first sight…

chew Arlin…chew…was all I could say while watching the feast.

We’re working on potty training. It’s a real treat to be Mama right now. Today he pee’d on my foot.

not funny…

o.k. laugh. We’re making progress…

I think.

another week has come and nearly passed, it’s been busy to say the least. Arlin’s wearing a new shirt I bought him from Old Navy, they’re having a crazy blow out summer sale…I figured for $1.99 I couldn’t pass it up, we’ll just add a long sleeve under it for Fall.

mmm, beans…this was our last dinner with Papa before he had to leave again for business. All Chad’s recent work travel has been rough on the Captain, and it makes me realize just how awesome of a Papa Chad is. This morning when we left for school Chad put him in his car seat and said …“Papa’s gotta get on an airplane and go to work o.k.?..Papa see you in awhile buddy…I love you.“

As we drove around the corner Arlin started crying…”Papa!Papa!” he cried the whole drive to school, real crocodile tears *ugh* and when we pulled up to school all he was saying over and over was, “work,work,work.“

this is pretending to be a “truck” one with a forklift…with he’s food tray, it’s great fun.

I took him shopping Tuesday when it was raining to pick him up a cheap fire truck toy of some sort, something that maybe made sounds and was small enough for travel. I thought it’d be good to have some visual/verbal lessons because Arlin Jack can’t seem to say the word “truck” correctly, we’re working on it though…”cruck”, is what most often comes out, however, the other day when moseying up and down the isles of Big Lots it was “caw-ick” sounds like “cock” he was very animated and repeating the word over and over… louder and louder. I couldn’t toss a fire truck into his lap of the shopping cart fast enough!…I was dying laughing and so were the other shoppers around me.

O.k. o.k. shhhhhhhsh. Arlin here’s a fire “truck” just for you…

Arlin’s favorite words this week; “yeah” (means I want), Paw-mer (Palmer), cruck (truck), cracker (any food he sees), Peee-ease (please), tank u (thank you), Mama, Papa, work, poo-poo…and of course “No.”

We frequent Pete’s Greek Central in Denver and “Pete” has taken a liking to Arlin Jack, he was playing around making Arlin’s new dinosaur figurines disappear into the restaurant window behind us…with all the teasing the Captain was a trooper and won not only a soft spot in his heart but dessert on the house!

Arlin Jack’s first soda experience (a little bit of sprite and cherry) don’t cha love the powered mustache?

so happy. one hand on the cookie, mmmm, and one on the soda!

Chad was leaning back in his chair laughing away….

not kidding, this is Arlin Jack mimicking Papa…we all were laughing, he is such a funny character!

poor Stell was in a bummer of a mood when she got to our house with some bad news that her doggie Rudi died Saturday, only a puppy he supposedly died in an accident in the quarry above their house in the mountains. We gave her lots of hugs and Arlin Jack worked his magic with her and before we knew it we had plenty of giggles…

we drove to Target after dinner to grab some last minute things for Stella’s big day at camp…wow were they ramped up on a sugar high followed by a major meltdown in the toy section by Arlin Jack.

Oh my! 

Arlin…….that’s not a hat.

the aftermath.

My guy got bit again today at school… *sigh* I’m over this whole biting thing. Really, I am. Arlin’s teacher calls him the “gentle giant” according to her and the classroom assistant he’s always a happy go lucky guy and when he gets hurt (or bit) he’s a wounded soldier…we gotta change that Arlin Jack! Say NO! NO Biting! Arlin actually does say “bite” and sadly enough it’s prolly’ the cutest darn word he says just the way he says it I guess. He points at his cheek and says…Mama….”b-Y-te… Owie” Ugh, breaks my heart when this guy hurts.

Lunch at the Larsen’s

Grapes…these monkey’s love grapes!

Palmer Sioux was over for the afternoon. It was so nice to have a yard for the two of them to kick around a soccer ball. I got some better pictures of the two of them, I’ll try uploading them tomorrow…Chad and Stella are frantically waiting for Mama so we can START the movie!