Who knew?

I was bemoaning my lack of time to do... pretty much anything... last night, and I finished it up with "where am I going to find the time to do THAT?".

... to which my brilliant child replied, "you can get some on eBay".

when we finished laughing our asses off, I asked James, "do you even know what eBay is?", to which he replied in negative, but in such a way as if to imply "but I don't know that matters, it's just a fact".

Famous times 2

I guess when you're that photogenic, this kind of thing is going to happen...

Camp!

Man, the summer is off to a busy start! So far, YMCA camp ROCKS, and James looooves it. It is just about as much work as school, though! Every day, we pack him like he's going off to war (change of clothes swimstuff, towel, etc crammed into hiking backpack and a hard-shell cooler for lunch, snacks, etc).

Monday was awesome, he had a great day and loved the fact that they did "bones and arrows".

Tuesday we were late (new mattress arrived Monday.. felt soooo gooood), but good day!

Wednesday also pretty good, he made a birdhouse, and lost his camp necklace AND waterbottle!

Thursday we got The Call, informing us that James had hit two kids and needed to go home early. awesome.

Friday seemed like it was going to be another good day, but apparently he got bitten by a bug and was VERY distraught. I called and spoke to him, and when I asked what would make him feel better, there was about a nanosecond hesitation, followed by "ice cream!". Promises of post-camp ice cream, and a kiss while he held the phone up to the booboo made it better, along with the reminder that they still had to do their egg drops today, and he didn't want to miss out. And on we go!

So cool stuff about camp this week:

Their theme is Explore Science, and they did the Diet Coke and Mentos thing!

Bones and Arrows!

Swimming EVERY day!

Some crazy song about swallowing a worm in your soda

Another funny song that involves making up your own dance moves (lots of songs)

Birdhouse!

Today they are doing an egg drop, so we sent him with a box, masking tape, and bubble wrap!

Tuesday, one of the counselors called, just to tell us what a great time James was having, and that they loved having him! Today, Nick came up when I dropped James off and introduced himself, and told me how much he loved having James in the huddle, that he was always smiling! These counselors are INSANELY nice, polite, and just great all around!

Mellow Fellow

Merle's not too big on rawhides. It may be because Blue snags his before he can get his lips near them, and then Blue will growl if Merle tries to get his own rawhide BACK from Blue.

So Sterling made it a point to place Merle's rawhide in his mouth... at which point he just sorta sat like that for about a good 5-10 mins. Weirdo.

Quasi-famous

Today, my little buddy ran his first race with me. We did the Race for the Cure today, and I took a quick picture of him while we walked over, and sent it to Sterling. HE sent it to WRAL, and here it is..

http://www.wral.com/news/local/image_gallery/7771320/

(Check out picture #5)

We had a great time, we ran about half of the race, and James LOVED the fact that there were sprinklers enroute! Because getting there is such a bear, we parked at the Museum of Art and took the greenway trail over, so all told, we've logged about 6 or 7 miles today. I am sooooo ready for bed! James could probably do it all again and not bat an eye.

James of the jungle...

I hate that this isn't better focused, but I love it anyway! That boy has no fear!

Don't worry about us, we live with a SUPERHERO!

Man, superhero jammies AND a cape? Talk about heaven for a 6yr old boy! We spent a little time this evening relaxing by... jumping off of the bed! Hehehe... not the best way to calm down in the evening, but doggone he's so cute and happy! I could photograph him all day. Thanks again, Miss Bethany, for the very awesome cape!

Sure is a beautiful smile...

... but something's missing. IT'S HIS TOOTH!! James lost his first tooth about 10 minutes ago. He's been walking around wiggling the nasty thing for the last week or so (it's been *kinda* loose for nearly a month now), and he finally just popped the thing out (thank goodness, because seriously... NASTY!). So he is walking on air and the Tooth Fairy visits tonight!

no no, it's not a big deal...

Funny crap our kid says...

This week, James exited the tub and requested a belly button cleaning. I reached for the baby oil and he asked "what's that?". I said, "it's baby oil", to which he replied, "BABY oil?!?! I need KID oil!".

Sterling and James were driving home from the Y yesterday and they passed a soccer field where some kids were playing. Sterling asked if James would like to play, and he said, "yes, when I'm 6". Sterling reminded James that he now WAS 6, and James responded (with open hands), "well, what are you waiting for? sign me up!".

Like mother, like daughter

Can anyone guess whose little girl that is, next to Elizabeth? I know, there's NO resemblance!

Also, welcome to the world, Marshall James McMellon! Virginia's little brother joined us this past Tuesday, April 27, and he's the cutest little bug you've ever seen! Congrats, McM's!

Look, it's just a flower, it's not like I LIKE you or anything...

James picked this for his lady friend, Felicity, before going to her house for an Easter egg hunt (yes, this is a month old), but was less than thrilled when I asked to take picture of it...

Dalmatians!

James appeared in his first school musical last night, "101 Dalmatians". Man, that was alot of cuteness squashed into one elementary school multi-purpose room! It was awfully cute, the house was packed, and next time we will get there MUCH sooner! Did manage to sneak a few good pics, though. Here's a taste, the rest are in the photo album.

Busted!

"oh... I totally didn't see you standing there with the camera... dang"

Pups!

I can't believe they were the size of a sneaker when we got them, because at 6mths old, they are already BIG BOYS! Yep, our newest family members are 6mths old. We keep comparing them to Becky and Moose, and they do have many traits that remind us of our old friends, but they also definitely their own dogs with their own little quirks.

Merle is 100% stubborn-ass hound. He's soft and snuggly and has awesome pettable ears, and will ignore you until you are blue in the face. For a while, I actually thought he might have a hearing problem, but amazingly, he can hear the words "biscuit" and "food" from the other side of the block. He is very food-motivated (even by Beagle standards), and he's the one who's normally trying to sneak a bite (often successfully) from James' plate / hand / mouth.

Blue is very sweet and high-strung... wound tight as a tick! He is constantly on high alert, and has taken over as the home security system. He's extremely submissive with us, yet he and Merle take turns, between themselves, being the Alpha. He can't stand to see someone else get attention, nor does he ever get enough of it himself! It's his nose I typically find attached to the back of my knee wherever I go.

Both dogs get along amazingly well with the cat! Merle likes to snuggle with him during naps, and Blue enjoys BEING GROOMED. Yes, Newkie likes to grab Blues head between his paws and lick him from nose to neck! And Blue enjoys this immensely! It's pretty damned funny.

There are days when I really question the sanity of taking on two puppies with the same energy level as my son, but mostly, I'm happy we added them to our family.

What a nice compliment... NOT!

I walked downstairs this morning, after taking a shower and getting dressed (granted, these two tasks typically don't happen until Daddy and James have left the house), and James said "Good morning, Mommy, you look nice today!". "Thank you, James!", "you're welcome... that means you're dressed". nice.

Excuse me, I think you're in my spot...

What quirky little pups we have! Apparently, there are assigned spot when eating which CANNOT be ignored! They both like to stand on the left side of the bowl, and Merle likes to be leaning on the wall, with Blue sortof sandwiching him in there. The other day, Sterling went to feed the dogs, and somehow, Merle missed out on his wall spot... so he just didn't eat. He stood there and watched Blue scarf down the entire bowl of food because he wasn't in the right spot! So of course, Sterling had to get *another* scoop of food just for Merle, and hold Blue out of the way while Merle got his.

Weirdos!

How hot IS it?

It's been very hot lately. Spring came in and stomped on us with a one-two combination of heat and pollen! James and I were driving around the other day and I commented, "Man, James, it's hot! Do you see how hot it is?" (pointing to the thermometer in the Jeep), and he asked,"is it *freakin'* hot?".

Legal?

Everyone's kid rides in the cart this way, right?

Playing with your food

So we're ordering deli meat at the counter in Lowe's the other day, and James says, "Mommy, look at this"... and here's what I see when I turn around..

...he said "I'm a Salaaaammmiii Zooombiiie"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JAMES!!!

Happy 6th Birthday to my very big boy! You are the funniest, silliest, SWEETEST, and smartest little man I know. It's a rare day when we don't see a smile, and I'm just not sure we could have been any luckier. Mommy and Daddy love you, and we hope you never change!