E's Lunch Requests

One morning this week, E was running late getting ready for school.  Thomas had her write down both what she wanted for breakfast and what she wanted in her lunch box so he could start preparing them before E came downstairs. Below was her order . . .

I doubt many other fourth graders around the country would request a lunch of edamame, apple-apple flavored squeezable applesauce, two marshmallows, sugar snap peas and graham crackers!

Maine

This past weekend, Thomas and I escaped to Maine

and left the kids at home with Mimi and Papa.  We based ourselves out of Boothbay Harbor, a picturesque village in mid-coastal Maine.

With very little cellphone coverage and internet service available in town, we were truly able to get-away from all of the "noise" at home.  The gorgeous scenery of Maine helped us relax

and eating lobster at nearly every meal did not hurt!  We stayed at a B&B in town

with a view of the harbor from our room.

After exploring Boothbay Harbor, we also ventured outside of town and visited Camden, Wiscasset, and Pemaquid Point

and its lighthouse (below).

We finished our final day in Maine with a restful but scenic three-hour, 44-mile boat ride around the Kennebec River and the Atlantic Ocean.  Due to the quickly changing tides and the potential for overwhelming fog, navigational tools along the waterways are key. 

 

We loved our time in Maine and look forward to making a return trip in the coming years!

Persuasive Writing

Ever since the Summer Olympics in London this past summer, Eleanor has been obsessed with gymnastics. Unfortunately for her, she expressed an interest too late in the summer for me to sign her up for any formal gymnastics class. Instead, she and her friends do gymnastics every day at recess  One afternoon a few weeks ago, E came home reporting that the PE teacher now prohibited gymnastics on the playground during recess for liability reasons. Eleanor was very disappointed by this decision, especially since the boys were still allowed to play tackle football.  E felt that the girls had a legitimate argument to make. I convinced Eleanor to practice her persuasive writing skills by writing her PE teacher a letter to argue her viewpoint. Here is her letter: The next day she went to school without the letter, as she wanted to confirm the supposed directive from the PE teacher first. Eleanor learned, instead, that the PE teacher had not offered those instructions and that the girls were free to do gymnastics whenever and wherever they liked on the playground.

H's Library Book Choice

On Fridays after school this fall, Hayes attends Chess Club for kindergartners and first graders at his school.  From what Hayes has shared with me, the 10 or so children in attendance spend most of their time playing chess against each other.  The majority of the kids are in the club to learn the game.  Hayes, on the other hand, has a great grasp of the game (hence his undefeated record so far).

Hayes's toughest chess opponents are not schoolmates but Thomas, Granddaddy and Papa.  I had to chuckle when Hayes brought this book home from the school's library earlier this week, as he works to gain a strategic advantage over his chess elders.

Think he's competitive?!

Ben's First Game Report

As I have previously reported, there was great anticipation leading up to Ben's first-ever organized sports game on Sunday. The hype was so great that I'm not sure reality came close. Ben's first foray onto the soccer field came at the goalie position for the Green Machine. I don't know if he volunteered for it or it was just his luck, but it was not exactly the way I had envisioned that his first few minutes of soccer would play out.

Unfortunately for Ben, a four-year-old Pele was the star of the other team. Pele dribbled right down the field (yes, dribble is the operative word here especially since it was four-year-old soccer) and scored two back-to-back goals on Ben. I think I snapped this picture after the first goal. You can tell he was a little discouraged. With two older siblings who play soccer, Ben knows what a goal means. After the second goal, he turned to Thomas who was sitting just outside the other goal post, with tears in his eyes. Thankfully, with some quick cheers and a few thumb-ups, Ben realized that all was okay, and he continued on with the game. He showed off his powerful goal kicks two or three times before it was time for him to switch positions. I think he was relieved when he finally got a chance to play in the field as running after a ball was what he knew about soccer. Though he has the most rambunctious personality of our three kids, you would not have picked up on that watching him play. He ran alongside the ball, forgetting that he himself, actually could go after it. (At his first four-year-old soccer game, Hayes, on the other hand, was like a steam roller, actively plowing through anyone who was in his way as he chased after the ball.)

Many of the boys and girls on Ben's team are third children and all of the older siblings and parents were on the sidelines screaming at the tops of their lungs during the game. I frankly think these sweet children were overwhelmed by their crazy families screaming all sorts of nonsense at them! In the end though, Ben was all smiles as he was happy to have his first game under his belt.

Ben's First Uniform

On Thursday, Ben came home from school with his first-ever organized sports uniform. He was beyond thrilled. The moment Thomas walked in the door from a trip later that afternoon, Ben raced upstairs to change into his uniform so that he could officially unveil it to us a few days early, before his first game on Sunday. He wanted this moment well-documented so he requested that I get my camera to snap his picture . . . so I did. This four-year-old is more than ready to play some soccer!

Eleanor's 2012-2013 Posted Goals

Eleanor has spent some time this week up in her room as she tries to get it "organized". The other morning, after Eleanor and Hayes had caught the bus, I went upstairs as I usually do to turn off all of the lights they've left on and make beds if I need to. On her vanity, I found this list taped to the mirror, offering a glimpse into the mind of nine-and-a-half-year-old Eleanor.

Ben's First Day

On Wednesday, Ben's school year officially began. His first day of Pre-K went smoothly, probably because he was responsible for the snack basket on that first day (he picked apple slices and cheese sticks to serve his classmates) and was therefore the line leader and star of the day as well. Phew!

AJC Decatur Book Festival

On Sunday of the Labor Day holiday weekend we decided to attend the AJC Decatur Book Festival. Though this was the festival's seventh year, we were first-time visitors, attracted by the lure of some famous authors in the children's genre. Sunday's guest author line-up included Dav Pilkey, the author of Hayes's current favorite series, Captain Underpants. We weren't the only ones drawn by the presence of Dav Pilkey as the line to get his autograph and his new book skirted around the park. While we waited to meet him, the kids dove into their new Captain Underpants books. Finally, it was our turn. Ben went first. He puffed out his chest to give the air of confidence though I think he was feeling just the opposite. Dav threw him a curve ball by asking four-year-old Ben what his favorite Captain Underpants book was. Ben's quick response? The one in Dav's hands.

Next, it was Hayes's turn. He asked Dav what Captain Underpants book was his favorite to write. Dav's answer? His just-released Captain Underpants book that we were able to buy at the book festival.

Finally, it was Eleanor's turn. She posed the question, "Will you start a new series once you are done writing the final Captain Underpants book?" (The last Captain Underpants book in the series will be released in 2013.) He told Eleanor that he would not create a new series but add to the already existing series he has created.

Wouldn't you know that immediately after getting Dav's autograph, we got to meet Captain Underpants in person!
After this star sighting and since the line was so short right next door to Dav Pilkey, Eleanor jumped into the line to meet Bad Kitty's author Nick Bruel. We all agreed that I should mark the family calendar for a return trip to the AJC Decatur Book Festival over Labor Day weekend 2013!

Hayes's Favorite Fruit Update

At the end of each year, I create a blog book of my posts from the past 12 months. The kids love to read these books around the house. I can always tell that they have opened one when I hear three kids chuckling together from the family room.

This past week, Hayes came across his favorite fruit rankings from 2010 and informed me that an official change in the rankings needed to be recorded. As a refresher, his top 4 fruits from September 2010 were watermelon, peaches, and apples followed by strawberries. The newest top 4 list of Hayes's favorite fruits, for those of you keeping track at home, are (drum roll, please) . . .

1. Peaches
2. Strawberries
3. Apples
4. Watermelon

Thanks for the update, Hayes!

DragonCon Parade

DragonCon (the largest convention focusing on science fiction and fantasy gaming, comics, books and movies in the world) took over downtown Atlanta over the Labor Day holiday weekend. In what has become a Carroll family tradition, we and what felt like the rest of Atlanta lined Peachtree Street's sidewalks to witness the annual DragonCon parade. The kids brought their light sabers, and Eleanor even donned her Yoda mask from last Halloween to feel like they were a part of the festivities. Each year, the crowds have grown exponentially. This year, we even heard about people arriving around 7am (the parade starts at 10) to claim prime spots along the parade route.
For the first 20 minutes or so of the parade, we were able to squeeze the kids through the five layers of adults lining the street to find spots on the actual road. After missing those first 20 minutes because we just could not see behind so many people, we adults decided to follow the kids' lead. The only way we could make our way through the crowd was with the promise that we would sit directly on the road and not impede anyone's parade viewing pleasure.

Finally, I was able to snap some pictures! I missed many of the superheroes though because they were early in the parade line-up. The Hunger Games section was a crowd-pleaser this year. I read in a newspaper article this weekend that Ghostbusters is feeling a resurgence since work is being done on another possible sequel. We spent a minute or two trying to explain the Stay-Puft Marshmallow character from the movie to the kids, but when they gave us blank stares, we just quit trying.
Back to the Future and its DeLorean was one of my parade favorites, and I made a mental note to let the kids see that movie. The kids were impressed with Lou Ferrigno's muscles after I explained to them that the man sitting on the car played the Hulk on TV. Hayes claims that his favorite person in the entire parade was this guy . . .even though the majority of the Star Wars themed-parade goers were towards the end. Another crowd favorite is the Periodic Table of Elements. This group had a cleverly-costumed person for each element in the table. Towards the end of the parade, the kids realized that the parade participants were willing to give high-fivesor even have light saber/sword fights. All in all, the parade is always a quirky way to kick-start our holiday weekend!