Bowles Blog

The Bus, The Bus, the B-U-S!

Well, it finally arrived, again.  The 2nd first day of school. sorta.  Today was the first day that everyone had school, meaning staggered entry for kindergarteners (aka extended vacation) is over and school is in session--for the next 13 years.  Don't tell Cuyler that.  He's already saying that they do the same thing everyday.  I think he was really digging the "one day of school, five days off" schedule.  Not to worry buddy, 3 day weekend ahead!

Anyway, everyone rode the bus today!  Mommy, Daddy, and Jake all walked down to the bus stop to see the kids pile on and drive away.  Without so much as a look back.  But that's ok.  And yes, I pinned an index card to each boy's backpack with their name, teacher, grade, bus # for am and pm, and my cell phone number on it.  Just in case.  I mean they ride 2 different buses each day, each has a 4 digit number.  Not like the old days of "Bus 3" or "Bus 12" or 1-Adam-12 or whatever. 

As I look at these pictures a few things come to mind...

Not so good things about the bus:

• I just noticed that the bus driver is wearing flip flops.  Did she get the memo about proper footwear for DRIVING A BUS FULL OF CHILDREN??  Was there a memo?
• There aren't any seat belts on the school bus. 
• We are the last stop to be picked up in the morning so the choice of seats isn't great.  We saw that W,C, & E had to walk pretty far to the back of the bus.

Good things about the bus:

• We are the first stop to be dropped off in the afternoon so they don't spend too much time driving in the bus.
• All 3 of my children made it home on the bus today.  Unfortunately our almost 6 year old neighbor, Gee Hoon, did not.  My kids filed off the bus and we crossed the street to head up the hill home.  Kept looking back to see if Gee Hoon emerged.  When he didn't, his mom got on the bus to look for him.  At this point the boys were practically home so I had to leave.  Ebby and I went back to check a few minutes later and saw his mom pulling out of the driveway.  Not sure if he was at school or on the wrong bus.  Either thing is scary.  I took the opportunity to reiterate to Ebby that if both of the boys weren't on the bus in the afternoon she is to speak up to an adult right away.  They take care not to misplace any children, especially the little ones.  Cuyler has a bus shaped necklace to wear with his name, teacher, and bus number on it.  Will had a piece of wide masking tape across his chest with his bus number written in black marker.  Minimalist but effective.
• Taking the bus saves Mommy's gas!  After all, how wasteful is it to sit in a carpool line for 20+ minutes everyday, idling?!? 

As for the actual day at school it seemed to go smoothly.  Info trickles out from the boys but I do know that they ate lunch (the one I sent with them) and brought home folders with work from the day and notices.  Will had homework in his backpack as well.  It was a piece of construction paper with the words "Will likes..." written on the top.  The assignment involved cutting pictures from magazines/catalogs and glueing them to the paper.  Showing himself to be quite the diligent student, Will settled right down to work and did the whole thing with minimal assistance.  And it's not even due until next Wednesday.  Go Will!

One other note:  Ebby and Daddy took a bike ride to the end of the Peninsula (or maybe the peninsula) and back tonight.  That's a total distance of about 7.5 miles.  And yes, we had been in the pool just before she went.  She's obviously in training for a longer distance triathlon.  Then she came home and told me she needed junk food to eat because Daddy told her she couldn't stay 65 pounds forever.  Grasping the teachable moment, I told her about building muscle vs. fat and extoled the virtues of protein, fruit and vegetables.  She then ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, carrots, applesauce and milk for dinner.  Followed by a bowl of mint M&M ice cream for dessert.  It's all about the balance, right...

And if this post is full of spellin' errs, I'm soggy!

They Said It

Random quotes from the past day or two...

Will:  "I have 10 puppy love for Jakie.  Cuyler said I have 8 puppy love but I have 10.  That's the most."

Cuyler:  " Can I tell you somefing?  I was born to not like grapes."

And Cuyler again:  "I love Ebby 1000 and Mommy 1...I love Daddy 2000 and Mommy 1000.  No, Daddy 100 and Mommy 1."

Daddy:  "I'll stick with my original number"

Mommy:  "I have a list of furniture I'd like to move..."

Mommy (to Ebby):  "Are you making any new friends in your class at school?  I haven't really heard you talk about anyone."

Ebby (smiles):  "Just Connor.  He's from my class last year.  We play tag at recess."

Mommy (raising eyebrow):  "Does anyone else play?"

Ebby:  "Yes, Juan."

Circle Time

If you've been to visit  you know we have a large island shaped like a circle in the cul-de-sac opposite our house.  Perhaps you recall that it slopes down and part of it is on the "main" road.  Maybe you know that the boys are getting to be pretty good bike riders.  Maybe you were at the Bowles Birthday celebration and recall that Bubbe and Pa gave the boys a plasma car.  You might even know that Ebby's new hobby is rollerblading.  Do you see where this is going?

Kids+Downhill+Wheels=BIG LOAD O' FUN

They love going out to ride after dinner, once it has cooled off.  They have a lot of fun and are getting plenty of exercise so it's all good.  So of course we have to add some things to the mix.  First we add other kids.  That's fun--usually.  First there's Selena from across the street.  She is 8 going on 35 and an excellent (seriously) teacher/coach.  She's teaching Ebby to rollerblade and encouraging her to practice.  Then there's Katie, almost 8.  2 girls plus 1 girl = 3 girls.  And one pair of rollerblades.  Well, now 2 pairs because we bought a pink pair for Ebby on Saturday.  Anyway 3 girls is often not a good number, lots of feeling left out etc. etc.  Then add to the mix Selena's younger brother, Luca (aka John Angus Jr according to Daddy), age 5.  Apparently when he pedals his bike it makes is voice really loud.  As in he can't stop screeching as he rides around and around.  And then Luca wants to ride the "formula mobile"--at which point so does whatever boy is on the bike.  Insert crying here.  Then they run back and forth across the street to get props (wiffle ball bats, jump ropes) to play Power Rangers with.  As the boys are riding around the circle like little speed demons the girls are trying to have rollerblading lessons.  Several requests are made to have the boys play someplace else  and to stop trying to run into the girls.  Someplace else often turns into the sidewalk--which has an even steeper hill to ride the plasma car down and requires the rider to pull a Fred Flintstone and put down his feet to stop himself before careening past the lamp post and to the next block.  Then that's gets boring so the boys return to the circle and start the riding/screeching/taunting all over again.  Did I mention that there are actual cars that also use this road?

When does Daylight Savings Time end?

Gone But Not Forgotten

The Game Cube.  We sent it on a long vacation over a week ago.  Too much screaming/fighting/craziness when they were playing Mario Party 6--or whatever it is.  Told them the GameCube is gone, it might be back sometime when they're older.  Will keeps asking if we put it back on eBay. In the meantime, Mario, Luigi and the gang live on.  And on.  Yesterday the boys didn't come downstairs until 11:45 am (C slept until 9:30 but that's another story).  They were playing "Marios".  They have repurposed nearly every toy in the playroom to make their own Mario World.  Fisher Price people = Mario, Luigi, Wario and other characters.  They can spin, jump and run just like the video game.  Tomy Gyro Gears = spinning Mario flowers (or something like that).  Fisher Price Castle = Mario castle.  Steel balls from Magnetix = Goombas.  Not really sure what a Goomba is in the game but they spent a lot of time separating out the balls from the magnet sticks.  In a case of evil turning into good, the GameCube, in its absence, is the springboard for hours of creative play.  Take that [insert name of leading parenting expert]!

Of course all that quiet, creative play is great but that's not the funniest part.  No, no.  I was laughing so hard I was crying yesterday when W & C were doing the "Mario run" around the family room.  I guess they are imitating the game but they look hysterical.  To run like a Mario you have to  make fists with both hands, bend your elbows and tuck them close to your rib cage.  Then  you stick out your chest and tilt up your chin.  Next you run like a crazy boy (which is like an video game character that can only move his legs from the knees down).  It helps it you're topless and have an expression of delight & mischief.  Even funnier is when all three kids and Daddy line up and parade thru the house doing the Mario run---topless.

Bringin' Home the Hardware

After a 3 year hiatus from triathlons, Bob is back with a vengeance.  He's a little older, a little meatier, but all that adds up to a new age group and special subcategory!  That's right, he's holding the plaque he won for taking 2nd place in the Master's Clydesdale division at the Lake Norman YMCA Triathlon.  While some might call this division the "old" (over 40) and "fat" (over 200 lbs) division, they are probably jealous that they didn't complete this event in a chip time of just under 1hour 35 minutes. Go Daddy go!

(Special note:  whereas a few years ago a sprint triathlon would just be a warm up for the day, after racing yesterday RLB downed a bunch of ibuprofen and was forced to retreat to bed to nap for several hours.  He reported that it took almost as much out of him as mowing the lawn...)

Pictures:  Daddy charging to the finish line, Daddy outkicking the guy in the backwards baseball cap at the line, and Daddy surrounded by his biggest fans Will, Ebby and Cuyler (who were taken from their beds at 6am in order to be in position to cheer by 7am).  Unfortunately I didn't take a picture of the most bizzare thing I'd ever seen at a race:  a baby lamb on a leash.  Bob/Rob gave "Lambchop" a few pats on the head and then commented to the 5 week old mutton's owner, "He looks tasty".  Nice...

A few new pictures

of Bob/Rob working out in our home gym...

and this is the Tower of Power he's been wanting...

Images courtesy of:

http://weirdbabe.typepad.com/threadbared/

How to Scam Lunch from CMS

Tonight for dinner Will had corn and a hotdog.  When I put his plate down he said, "I had corn today in the cafeteria."  Funny, I sent him with a lunch and it included peanut butter crackers, grapes, & pudding but not corn.  I asked him what he was talking about.  Apparently he forgot his lunch bag in the classroom because at lunch he said to his teacher, Ms. Snyder, "What about my lunch?" And she took him to the lunch line and presto, he had a hot lunch. He said he had corn and chicken and ketchup at lunch in the cafeteria.  I guess that explains why he was eating crackers, grapes and juice on the way home in the car.  And to think I was worried he'd gone hungry...

How was school?

That's what I asked Cuyler, Will and Ebby after we got home (1 hour and 7 minutes after I left to pick them up at the school that is 2 miles away.  Gotta love the carpool line).

Cuyler:  It was so great!  I'm the personal winner of the school day!  Please give me a good report...please...I was a good boy!

Will:  Happy!  Exciting!  Puppy Love!

Ebby:  Are you kiddin'?  It was cool, school never drools!

A few photos and some notes:  Will is wearing white dino shirt.  Cuyler is wearing red/camo shirt (not the # on his shirt Pa).  Ebby is wearing pink shoes.  Cuyler wouldn't stay still to have his picture taken until Ebby told him it might be in the newspaper.  Will is following the Cougar paws into school. 

Finally, contrary to popular belief (mine), school does not make you tired.  It makes you hyper-bouncing-off-the-walls-excited for the first hour you're home.  Better head to the pool!

Anyway, everyone had a good day but only Ebby gets to do it over again tomorrow (via the bus).  The boys are on vacation until Wednesday...

So far today

Went rug shopping with the hubby (no luck), bought a block of beeswax, took Jake for a walk around the neighborhood and scanned the computer for viruses (next time I'll know I have to block off over 2 hours for that!).  Oh, and...

DROPPED THE KIDS OFF AT SCHOOL!

Yes, it's the first day of school and life as the Bowles children know it is about to change--a lot! We drove them to school today and walked everyone into their classroom.  Ebby was the first one up and dressed this morning and was a BIG help rousing the boys and getting them moving (a 25 minute project).  Will was the middle of the road boy, took him a while to motivate but then fairly excited about school.  Cuyler.  Yes, Cuyler.  He refused to get out of bed.  Refused to get dressed.  Made a lot of whiny grunt noises.  Ate 4 chocolate chips (don't ask) and 3 shredded mini wheat biscuits for breakfast.  He did finish his whole glass of chocolate milk.  Didn't want to pose for pictures. I feel we were headed for another "bad hair day" when Cuyler and Will spotted a new addition to their backpacks.  Last night we talked about putting their first initial onto their backpacks.  They were very excited so I decided to surprise them and do it last night.  I chose a letter stamp, picked out each boy's favorite color of paint and stamped their initial onto a piece of fabric.  I then cut each letter out into a rectangle and brought it to the sewing machine where I sewed a W patch and a C patch onto each boy's backpack.  Looked very cute I thought.  I was wrong.  They both hated it and wanted them off right away.  We told them they were being ungrateful and slightly ridiculous and they'd have to deal with it until tonight.  Yeah.  Guess who was sitting in the back seat of the car with 2 backpacks, a seam ripper and my good fabric scissors on the way to school?!?!

Anyway we arrived early and actually had to wait outside the doors for school to open up.  Along with out 50 other people.  The boys both seemed happy in their classrooms and we were able to give hugs and leave without incident.  Ebby walked into her classroom and immediately noticed she was the only girl.  She was clingy and shy but managed to wave when one of her classmates from last year said hi to her.  Miss Wallace was looking like quite the strict and business-like woman on a  mission.  She was smartly dressed in a white sleeveless top and very stylish black pants.  And she either was wearing her cell phone wireless hands-free device on her ear or a classroom microphone...I'm thinking they fulfilled my request for a teacher that would challenge Ebby and make her work.  Wonder what Miss Wallace does during her time off...

I'll post pictures after school--time for me to leave now and get in the car pool line to pick up the cherubs and hear all about the first day!

Alert...of sorts

This afternoon the doorbell rang.  It was Ebby's friend from across the street.  She had on her rollerblades and she couldn't come in.  So I had the door open to talk to her.  Cuyler came down to investigate.  He was apparently very upset I was standing there with the door open because he kept shouting to me, "Mama, you're letting the PC out!"