Ballet Practice

Tuesday is Lily's normal ballet day. It's one of my favorite days because I get a free hour in the evening. I usually stay at work until around 5:45 and then pick Lily up from her practice in downtown Cary at 6:15. Tonight was a little different because she had the theater rehearsal. This meant that we had to be in Holly Springs by 6:15. It's about a 30 minute drive with no traffic and 5:30 PM is one of the few times of the day when we have legitimate traffic in this area. We ate a quick dinner and hit the road.

We ended up getting there in 30 minutes anyway, so it worked out well except that they were running 10 minutes behind schedule. Lily hung out with a friend and I ducked into the Holly Springs branch of the library to do a little work for the church. I also got some reading done. In other words, it was like my normal Tuesday but with the time on the end instead of the beginning.

When we got home we found things were going fairly well, but Noah started giving Lily some grief. He ended up going to bed without his favorite stuffed animal because he tried kicking Lily to get past her and get it out of her room. That was not going to fly. He spent a good five minutes yelling for it, but I told him that he had to close the door or else he would get a spanking. That kept him in his room, but Lily really got him to be quiet by telling him a story about his animals. Basically, she spun an allegory to explain to him what was going on. She was quite proud of herself for getting him to quiet down, and rightly so.

The two of them are both major blessings in our lives. The only problem is that their synergy can cause problems. Tonight it ended up working out OK, after being not OK for a while.

The Old Ball Game

Noah and I had an All-American Memorial Day in the sense that we took in a ballgame. We got some free tickets to see the Carolina Mudcats. Lily was playing with her friend Grace and Amanda was indifferent, so Noah and I got to hang out a little bit. We got there a bit late, but only missed the first 2 batters. Once again, Noah did not like the fireworks during the National Anthem. I also warned him when one of the Mudcats hit a home run.

The weather was interesting. It was a hot, muggy day, but we were in the shade. Around the third inning a storm started brewing and we heard some distant thunder, but we never got wet. Noah was very nervous during that time, but I kept trying to reassure him that we would not be struck by lightning since lightning would prefer to hit the nearby water tower with a lightning rod on top. We sat through the whole game, though it was disappointing to see the Mudcats lose 4-3. At least they got the tying run on base in the ninth inning.

Noah and I capped off the evening with a trip to Chick-fil-A. He wasn't sure about where he wanted to eat, but was very happy with that idea. I wasn't about to go to Burger King just so he could get nuggets. Amanda and Lily enjoyed some Firehouse Subs and Lily made some concoction with cherry and Sprite to drink. A splendid time was had by all.

Quiet Time

Noah got himself into trouble today. He had trouble following directions this morning, so he lost his electronics time today. Later, he snuck up to his room with Amanda's phone so he could get a little contraband electronics time in. His consequence is a week without electronics and he has to spend an hour every afternoon in his room by himself. This is how I found him today.

End of Grade

We got the results of the EOG test today. Lily got a 4 in both math and reading. A 3 is a passing grade, so this means she did very well. She is also going to be in the gifted program next year, and we are very happy about that too. She needs to be stretched a little bit, but she doesn't like it when we stretch her. I think this is going to be a good thing for her next year.

It's hard to believe, but Noah will be in kindergarten at Northwoods next year. They're growing up!

Koalaty Reader

Lily has managed to win 2 awards this year, which is pretty good considering they only have 4 of these assemblies each year. There are a bunch of awards and some of them are for showing up and behaving. I'm proud to say that Lily won for being an excellent reader. Here is a photo of her with her certificate.

Pomp and Circumstance

Today is Noah's last day of preschool. It's strange to consider, but it's really his last day ever. He is going to be a kindergartener next year. The good news is that he has made a couple of really good friends that he still sees often. Amanda is going in for the party today. As a gift for the teachers she spray-painted two clay pots white and then pasted photos of the kids on them. Another mom is providing the plants for the pots. They figure that these will be nice remembrances for the teachers.

After school there is a party at Bond Park, which is basically across the street from the school. This should be fun, but it's a good thing that Noah's bath night was deferred from last night to tonight. We're supposed to be in the low 90s today, which is fitting for this time of year. I'm sure that he will have a lot of sweaty fun with his compadres from preschool.

And so begins the summer. Lily only has 2 more weeks as well. The good news is that we have several fun trips planned, plus there is always the free bowling.

Difficult Dinner

Noah had a rough evening yesterday. He had a lot of attitude at dinner and had kind of a funny way of expressing it. He acted like he was going to shoot a bow and arrow at Amanda. I'm not sure where that came from, but it wasn't good. At another point he shook his left fist at her. Finally, Amanda had enough and sent him to his room without treat.

After it was all over Lily said, "He's acting like me!" She, however, was a perfect angel. It was something of a role-reversal, but he was a little tired and just had a bad day. It happens to the best of us.

Our Boy Oreo

We're now one week into life with a dog. For the most part, it is has been a lot of fun. He has a fair number of accidents and is not eager to poop outside, but we're working on it. Lily and I are scheduled to take the class at PetSmart starting on Sunday, June 17. It should be a good time.

We took him to a graduation party at Lake Wheeler Park this past Saturday. The experience was almost surreal for us after life with Duncan. He just chilled under a picnic table. The only negative was that his long fur was a mulch magnet. Also, he still gets carsick pretty easily. The good news is that he made the one mile trip to and from North Cary Park on Sunday. At least he can handle that much. We'll work up to longer trips.

Lily is particularly enjoying him, though she is a bit jealous that he is drawn toward me. I am the alpha dog for him, after all. Plus, he and I spend time together in the early morning. I also get down on the floor and wrestle with him. We bond in the mornings, though I don't appreciate the little presents he sometimes leaves on the rug.

My favorite trait is that he loves to snuggle. If I'm doing something on my computer in the basement he will just lay on my lap and go to sleep. This will be a great character trait come winter!