Third Best Friend

How many best friends can one boy have?

Well, if you are my Ben, you attract a lot of best friends.  One of his strongest abilities is his ease in making friends.  He loves everyone and it seems everyone loves him as well.

I remember his kindergarten teacher last year telling me that she finally had to set up a rotation system during "circle time" so that enough kids got the chance to sit by him.  Too many arguments were erupting at story time.

This year, yet again, we have a brand new location, brand new school, brand new teacher, brand new friends, same old problem: too many kids want to be his best friend.

This was humorously pointed out at his birthday party last weekend.

I know it is not always done to open presents during the birthday party, but Ben insisted this be part of the "schedule" of his party, so the shirtless and soggy boys (shirtless and soggy from the fairly intense water fight they had) all crowded as close to Ben as possible, each shoving their presents in his face, encouraging him to "Open mine first, Ben!  You're going to LOVE it!"

The gifts were all perfect; just what a 7-year old boy dreams of: transformers, legos, light sabers, and spy gear.  He was quite pleased with the loot.

What really got to Matt and me though was one of the cards.  It read

"Dear Ben,
Happy Birthday
Your third friend
Jake"

When we saw that card, Matt and I just laughed.  I asked Jake what "third friend" meant and he clearly explained that although Mitchell is his "first best friend" and Luke is his "second best friend," he proudly boasted possessing the title of "third best friend!"

At this point, the other boys chimed in with their placings:

"Yeah!  I'm his 5th best friend!"

"I'm his 4th!"

"No you're not, I am!"

Clearly, they have all sorted this out before and most of them have no problem with their standings.  Each are pretty happy just to be in there somewhere.

The Fun is in the Wrapping!

My big boy just got a whole year older! It's true! He aged a year overnight! He went to bed only six years old, and woke up a 7-year-old! Pretty sure that is the way my kids picture getting older. It's a fun notion.

I just have to say, that although Ben loves his birthday - the attention, the gifts, the cake and ice cream, just "feeling special," I think Mitchell might love his birthday just as much!

All throughout the week leading up to the big day, Mitchell was busy busy. Finding treasures and wrapping them up. It was sweet that he was picking out treasures from his collection, but the ways he wrapped them was so cute! He used cardboard and colored paper; paper plates and napkins; electrical tape and about an entire roll of scotch tape.

When gift opening time came, these gifts had to come first. He just couldn't wait to deliver them to Ben. We had to go all over the house, retrieving the gifts from their hiding places he stashed them in. He had so many hidden that we even missed one. I just found it on my shoe shelf in my closet.

I am so thankful my boys have brothers. I pray nothing ever comes or stays between them.

Saved the Best (or Most Annoying) For Last

Although I set and stuck to a budget this Christmas, I couldn't help but feeling a bit overwhelmed as I was placing the wrapped gifts under the tree a few days before Christmas morning. Many of them were just little things, but I started to think there were too many presents for each one to be fully appreciated.

So I hid two of them high up in the branches of the tree.

Then I forgot about them!

After the chaos of opening presents was over, we had all eaten breakfast, and were sitting around feeling fat and happy, I suddenly rememered about them! I called Mitchell over and told him I thought I saw one last present hiding in the tree. His face lit up and he went running into the Christmas room. After a few minutes, he came skipping back in with a small, wrapped gift clutched in his hands, and a huge grin on his face. "Mom! You were right! There is one last one left and it has my name on it!"

I had actually not only forgotten I put one there, but also what was in it, so I was almost as excited as Mitchell was! When he tore off the paper, he discovered a neat little wooden box with a shiny harmonica in it. "Oh mom! This was JUST what I was wanting! I thought you forgot!"

We then experienced the excitement of an unexpected and hidden gift all over again when Ben got in on the action and discovered his nestled in the branches as well.

I think I will always save a small gift and hide it up in the tree for later. I'm pretty sure that was Mitchell's favorite gift this year!

Dragon Makes a Friend: A Play For Dad

My handsome hubby had a birthday this weekend! While I personally am not one to make a huge deal about birthdays, my boys are just crazy about them - their own, each other's, mine, Matt's, really anyone's as long as they get to be a part of it!

The boys woke up bright and early, eager to FINALLY give dad their present they were so excited about and that we had all wrapped up (and then rewrapped after Jack thought it was for him) the day before. As happy as Matt was to receive his thoughtful gifts from his sons, (Mitchell wanted to keep wrapping up more and more of his toys to give him, plus they both made him 3 or 4 cards each, plus the knife) I think the boys might have been even more excited. Mitchell's feet were just dancing around all morning. He just could not stand still and was hopping around and spinning and grinning and... just being so Mitchell.

After the presents, it was time to get down to the entertainment: the play they worked so hard on all week! Remember my fairy wings? Well, it was time to get them out of hiding, get them on, get costumes on, set up the stage, get the props, and paint Mitchell's face! It was like a party around here!

We had a blast. Ben remembered every one of his lines, Mitchell looked fabulous as Jack Skellington in his tuxedo, the sets turned out so nice, and our front porch was just the perfect stage as daddy and Jack and Uncle Carl sat down below in the audience, cheering us on.

I am so proud of my boys. They love their dad so much and were so excited to do this for him. They are already planning their next production and I have heard rumors of a space theme with an astronaut dog and a space alien. I wouldn't be surprised if a dragon or skeleton made it in there too somehow...

Secrets

Matt's birthday is coming up. For the boys, this momentous occasion is only slightly less exciting than their own birthdays. We love sitting around while Dad is at work, talking about him and what kind of things he might like as presents for this big day.

This year, the boys have come up with some good ideas: a motorcycle, a bicycle, a helmet, weights, track shoes, a sword, and a space ship (Mitchell is quite mad about outer space right now...)

The boys and I decided that they could chip in some of their own money to get dad a pocket knife (that's almost a sword, right?) and I ordered one online. Today, it arrived.

I wasn't thinking when I opened up the package (if I had been thinking, I would not have opened it up in front of them) but when they saw what was in there, they were beside themselves with excitement! Three reasons why they were so excited: 1. a package came in the mail, 2. it was dad's present, and 3. it was a knife!

They wanted to hold it and "try it out" and open and close it. They wanted to carry it around in their pockets. Jack just wanted to get a turn to hold it (yeah right.) They wanted to wrap it and give it to him as soon as he got home!

I convinced them that it would be more special if we wait until his actual birthday to give him his gift, so we put it away somewhere secret and swore to each other not to talk about it at all to dad. This is where Ben gave Mitchell a stern look and with an even sterner voice said, "Mitchell, you can't spoil the surprise! You can't talk about it at all! You can't ruin it! Do you even know how to keep a secret?"

Well, half way through dinner tonight, Mitchell started to leak. It was just too much to keep quiet. "Hey Dad! We got you a birthday present but I'm not going to tell you what it is!" This is when Ben started evil-eyeing him. "We got the packadidge today, but we hid it away and it's a secret!" This is where Ben told Mitchell to stop talking.

I am sure Mitchell thought he was changing the subject here and wasn't spoiling anything, but his next comment made Matt and me laugh, and Ben punch him in the arm. "So maybe when I'm a man, I could have a pocket knife too?"

Matt pretended to be none the wiser and we eventually got Mitchell to start talking about something un-knife or birthday related, but it must be heavy on his mind because it came up again later, when he and dad were having some "dude time" doing a project together down in the basement. "Dad, we should get some knives to work on stuff together... But I'm not going to tell you what we got you for your birthday!"

I wonder how often "knives" will come up in conversation in the next couple weeks...

Just Doing A Little Re-Arranging

Because we are traveling to see family this year, Christmas is coming early to the Norquist family  Don't worry, we've already alerted Santa.

For obvious reasons (Jack), I have not put the presents out until just last night, but with the amount of fun the big boys are having with the presents even still in their wrappings, I wish I could have put them out weeks ago!

Ever since they discovered them this morning, the boys have been shaking, guessing, sorting, laughing, and constantly re-arranging their piles of presents.  Ben especially keeps coming up with new ways to group his loot: size, color of paper, weight...  At one point, I asked him what he was so busy with over there and he said, "Oh, just doing a little re-arranging!"

And They Play Christmas Music Too!

We bought my Christmas present early this year.  Do I care that there was no element of surprise or that I have no present under the tree?  Nope!  I'd much rather get something I really want/need and start using it the day it gets here, rather than wasting wrapping paper and waiting weeks.

I have been so grateful for my new boots every morning when I slosh through the snow and slush on our walk to school.  They were a tad more expensive than other boots of their kind, but they were the ones I wanted and they were my Christmas gift!

They have been well worth the money already, but this morning, I discovered a brand new feature I didn't realize they had!  I left Jack playing with my IPhone on the floor while I refilled my coffee cup, and when I returned, I found a grinning Jack, no visible phone, and a singing boot!  From the dark depths of my tall, black boot came the sounds of Bing Crosby crooning "Oh, Holy Night!"  Jack thought it was pretty funny and we played that game all morning until time to wake the big boys for school.

A Girl Could Get Used To This

About a week ago, Matt and the boys started having secret meetings without me - "no girls allowed" type of thing.  They had important plans to discuss and afterwards, secrets to keep from mommy, lest they spoil the surprise.  So off Daddy went on a trip for a few days while the boys bravely attempted to keep their secret.  I'm pretty sure Mitchell wasn't paying too much attention in the first place while the plans were being made so it was not too difficult for him to keep his thoughts off of it and his mouth shut.  Ben, however, was very excited about it and kept wanting to drop hints to me without actually giving the secret away.  He'd bring it up at funny times and try to get me to guess what they were planning and then trying to find ways to give me clues without actually giving it away.  It was all very cute, I must say.

Matt returned home from his trip late a few nights later, but got up very early the next morning and woke the boys up.  Their special plan was to make mommy coffee and breakfast and have it ready by the time she woke up.  Well, they of course were not able to accomplish this without waking me, but I did enjoy staying in bed while the smell of coffee and breakfast wafted up to me.  I could hear all sorts of whisper laughs and hushed giggles and quiet instructions on how to best crack an egg or how to brew coffee.  They were having a great time down there before sunrise.  After a while,  Mitchell carefully climbed the stairs to my room, bringing a hot cup of coffee to me with a giant smile on his face.  He told me to sit up and drink my coffee but don't come downstairs yet!  "We aren't quite ready!  You just relax with this special coffee!  Bye!"

Well, I usually make cereal for breakfast - the clean up is minimal and I have a lot to do in the mornings.  But this breakfast was delicious and huge.  It was even worth the giant amount of mess that was left covering my kitchen from counter to counter.   The boys were so proud of what they had done for me and it was such a fun, early time together for us all.

Since then, the boys have been finding little special things to do for me all on their own.  Today was a perfectly cute example of this.  Matt took the boys out to the park this afternoon and when they returned, Mitchell and Ben had picked out "beautiful leaves for mommy" that they carefully brought home without smashing them.  Matt said it was funny how excited they got when they saw the leaves, came up with the idea that I would love them, and then spent time picking out the best ones to bring home for me.  My leaves made it home in one piece, despite their brittleness, were presented to me with much hugging and smiling, and are sitting prettily in my kitchen window.  It is times like this that I love being a mommy, especially to my sweet, thoughtful, and loving boys.  

Secret Plans for Fathers' Day

I love my dad because...

he is silly

he rough-houses with me

he is strong

he is fast

he takes care of me

he has a Porshe        - Ben's card

Ben was very excited at the idea of Fathers' Day today.  I think maybe it was all the hushity-hush, whispering in each other's ears, don't spoil the surprises for daddy that got him so into it.  The first thing he wanted to do when we woke up turn on Matt's favorite songs, but to "blast them because that is the way daddy likes it!"  He couldn't believe we had to actually wait until after church to get started on all the secret plans he had in his head!

After going to church, making a big breakfast together (it took two attempts at the scrambled eggs as the first bowl of raw eggs somehow made it all over Ben's shirt, the counter, the floor, the cupboards...), making cards, giving presents, and some father/son bonding/wrestling time, I must say, we were all pretty pooped!

I joke that every day is Fathers' Day, but in all seriousness, I am sincerely thankful for my husband, who is such a great father to our little boys.  There really should be more days to specifically celebrate how hard he works and how much he loves his family. Our boys love their dad so much and were so excited to be doing special things for him all day today.  Ben kept pulling me off to another room to whisper more of his secret plans for his dad in my ear today.  He just couldn't get enough of coming up with more and more things dad might like.  

We love you, Matt.  Thank you for being such a strong and loving father to Ben, Mitchell, and Jack.  I love to watch them become more and more like you as they grow.