A Bribe

 With a generous bribe scholarship from my mom I am the new owner of my own personal laptop.  For those of you who have been living in the present this might seem like not that big of a deal but I have been without a computer for several years.  I have become completely tech inept and have a lot of learning to do.  The deal is that I get to keep the computer as long as I keep the photos of the grandkids coming.  So here are some moments that I have been holding onto for longer than I would like to admit.

The girls had spirit week at school and one of the days came with a challenge to dress like your favorite decade.  Ridiculous!
How do kids that haven't lived a single decade have any idea what to choose.  This is clearly one of those projects that parents are supposed to do and pretend that it was the kids idea.  I asked their opinions and then completely forgot about it until Thursday morning when they were supposed to be getting ready.  Brandon said we should send them dressed like cave men.  I thought that maybe they could wear their princess dress up clothes and say they were from the middle ages but the Elsa and Anna lapel buttons were clearly not authentic.  I did a quick scan of the closet and ended up with a pretty decent plan.  Daisy wore a 'disco' dress that has been handed down from Joanna and Rocky wore a Beatles shirt.  Mom win, right?  Apparently dress like your favorite decade wasn't a win because with the exception of two kids that were wearing their pants backward Criss Cross style every other kid was wearing their regular clothes.  Apparently there really is no time like the present.
Rosy wanted to dress up too.  Lovely.

 Ike participated in a study in the behavioral science lab.  He had to wear a vest for 3 adorable days.  I couldn't help but squeal every time I put it on him.  I got payed some good money for this and all I had to do was let my kid wear a recording device that recorded everything we said and did.
I thought that I would always be conscious of the recording and be on my best behavior but it was less than one day before I was yelling at Rosy and singing and gossiping just like I always do.  I feel a tiny bit of pride in knowing that the grad students that were listening probably got a kick out of it.  I am not sure what they were studying but if it was how stay-at-home moms try to keep from going insane I think they got some good data.  Now I am going to find whoever I need to talk to about how I can sign up to be a grad student that has the job of eavesdropping.  Or I guess I could get a job working in reality TV.

For his efforts Ike got to choose a book.  He had a clear preference for this one.  He went right to it and after he picked it he wouldn't let it go.  All those hours of working as a mobile recording unit really payed off for us all.

Rocky recruited all of her stuffed friends to participate as audience members in her fashion show and put on the dress that I never let her wear.  Whenever she puts it on it seems to fancy for where we are going.  This most likely stems from the fact that we hardly go anywhere and also that we live in Eugene where business casual means that you wear your nicest pair of yoga pants.

 Ike later commandeered the runway for more important business.  This is the one and only time he has ever fallen asleep on the floor.  He has slept in his high chair, his jumper and in a laundry basket but this is the first time in front of an audience.

 He just keeps getting cuter and cuter.  And also he just keeps getting into everything.  He is on constant attack.  No bottom shelf is safe, no toilet paper roll is secure while he is on the prowl.  Keep your cords hidden and your flip flops in a high place because he is worse than a puppy when it comes to chewing on them.  Outside he will sprint crawl to the stairways and eat the neighbors plants if you turn your head for a second.  The neighborhood babysitting club has long since given up on their Ike games because he doesn't ever want to do things the way they do.  He prefers to be on the ground shoving dirt in his mouth which, by the way, completely freaks Rosy out.

 We have completed another season of soccer.  I didn't take any photos because everything looked exactly like last season.  It seemed redundant.  Also I was too busy chasing Ike.
Rocky had a good time playing but Daisy wasn't as into it this time.  She whined about going to practice and games.  We were all counting down the days until the last game.  I told her that she doesn't have to play next season but she does have to finish this one.  The prospect of not signing up in the fall was appealing to me because to be honest being a soccer mom kind of bites.  So there we were in the middle of the second half when Daisy scored a goal and her world changed.  It got even better when her coach gave her a medal.  For the rest of the day she wore her uniform and wouldn't take it off.  She introduced herself at a party as a soccer player and was dripping with the sincerest kind of pride that only kids her age can have.  It was so endearing that I get a little swell in my soul just typing about it.
Damn you soccer!  We are never going to get away.

Same shirt different day

Oh Man!  I can't help but love em.