When you have a nine year old boy....

Life gets interesting. Alek doesn't seem to get as much face time as the others do, but he gets plenty of attention. In the last few weeks, we've had a pet baby red eared slider turtle. We've had a black fuzzy caterpillar spend the night in a pickle jar.

I've become used to the strange tattles of his sister. Yesterday it was, "Mommm.... Alek and Brandon found a dead rat and I think they skinned it's tail!"

I've become used to seeing boys in trees and ropes and pulleys dangling below them. I've had to figure out exactly how the NEW garage door was broken. I've learned that boy sneakers can actually cause your washing machine to stink for WEEKS. I've learned to recognize the sound of nine year olds scaling the gate instead of opening it. I've watched David fish for a bicycle in the creek behind the house using a rope and a wall hook after this explanation: "I was riding my bike and then I was on the ground, but my bike was under the water. Don't know how it happened." (It's a good 10 foot drop and about 4 feet of water.)

I've learned how to make a three dimensional land and water forms project.

I've learned the value of a bowl of dewberries. The gathering of these particular berries required three nine year old boys, a run in with "a gray snake that swam in the water," and the discovery that the wire cattle fence on the far side of the creek is electrified. "I thought Cody was punching my arm! But it was a shock going up my arm!" But let me tell you that during the sleepover that occurred that night, I watched these three boys savor every single berry that they ate.

And in their attempt to ensure the ever-growing number of gray hairs on my head continues to grow, the following afternoon Alek and Brandon wrecked their bikes and broke Brandon's thumb.

And so, you see, while the photos aren't as cute as the three year old's impish grins, the stories are rather interesting.... even harrowing....

I can't wait until summer.................