I don't want to tell you

Both of our boys occasionally are in the "I don't want to tell you" mood. How was school today? "I don't want to tell you, Daddy." How did you hurt your knee? "I don't want to tell you, Daddy." This is, apparently, typical.

But just now Olin took the cake.

"Daddy, I'm hungry. I'm really hungry."
What do you want?
"I don't want to tell you."
Do you want some crackers?
"I DON'T WANT YOU TO TELL ME EITHER!"

(pause)

"DADDY I AM HUNGRY."

(pause)

"DDDDAAAAADDDDDDDDDDDDYYYYYYY I AAAAAM HUUUUUUNNNGRY."

How about some cheese?
"NNNNNOOOOO I don't want to tell you anything."

(stumped)

"Put it in my hands, Daddy."

He stands there, eyes squinted shut, hands out, concentrating.
I get a piece of string cheese, peel the wrapper, put it in his hands.

Smile.

"Thanks, Daddy. That's what I wanted. CHEEEESE!"

I wish I had it on tape.

Rainy Day: Hit the Climbing Gym...

So the whole family went to Planet Granite to get out of the rain. Olin's first time, but he actually took to it quite well. And Anna thought he looked really cute in the shoes...

Perhaps they aren't ethnic Sherpas, but they had a good time. Now we just have the rest of the afternoon...

Super Natural Masquerade at the Academy of Science

We all had a treat last night and went to the Academy of Science for a Halloween party... Max was a Giants pitcher and Olin was Buzz... here is a photo essay:

Step and Upblock: Max Earns his Yellow Belt!

We are very proud of Max today.

After almost exactly 1 year of karate he earned his "solid" yellow belt today! This is the real deal. For the first 9 months he was in "Little Ninjas" where they mostly played around, but 3 months ago his teacher asked him to try Youth Karate, where you actually have to earn your stripes, and most kids start a bit older.

Some of you who have been around Max recently have seen plenty of his moves. But here is a little video of him in action earning his belt. And check out the size of the other kids...

Go Max!

First Day of School (First Take)

Today was Max's first day of kindergarten and Olin's first day of preschool. Max woke and proudly put on his uniform (gray shorts, navy knee socks, white polo and navy v-neck - with the Stuart Hall logo). Seeing him in this uniform brought tears to my eyes. Olin woke up on the wrong side of the bed and was perplexed why he didn't have an "outfit" for school like Max. Max and I headed off to Stuart Hall and Olin screamed bloody murder for 40 minutes. David walked him into MCH and the crying stopped and he was so excited to hang cloths pins on a clothes line (you gotta love montessori). He made it through the day unscathed with no tears..he played, sat in circle, ate lunch and rode the yellow bus to the park. Max and I picked him up at 1:30 and he told us that he ate with Ryan, sat next to Nora and that teacher Brianne didn't go to the park but teacher Kathleen did sit with him on the bus. Oh yes and he told me that he went poop at school and that nobody went with him. I then asked who wiped him. "wipe?" he said..."uh nobody"...nice start to school. At least he didn't have a poopsident.
Max's day was short but sweet. He didn't reveal much except that the whole school had a meeting and the kindergartners stood up and everyone clapped for them. He also said "they told us that they had been waiting for us...and mommy, I already knew that." He also mentioned that they went to heaven today. That one threw me. Heaven? I casually asked. "Yes, Heaven mommy. You know the playground on the top. They call it heaven because it is so high up and so beautiful" (rated one of the top 10 most beautiful playground views in the country- unobstructed view of the bay and golden gate bridge). Turns out it's called Highland but Max still insists it's heaven. His teachers are Mrs. Ivry and Miss Hayes, two young, sweet, pretty women who have a gift to cast a spell over 20 rowdy little 5-6 year old boys. I was so proud of both my little guys today. It was a bittersweet day. Both my babies went to school. Now, mommy is planning a midday trip to the movies -- alone :)

First Day of School Photos: Act 1 (Max)

First we snapped a photo in the back yard:

Max's day started first, so we got him in the car with Anna, and they were off!

Max wonders why Mommy is taking so long...

he explains that he chose the school mostly for the view,

strikes a pose,

and begs Mommy to hurry up!

This is my cubby...

and then he is lost in thought.

First Day of School Photos: Act 2 (Olin)

When Anna left with Max for Stuart Hall, and Olin realized I was going to take him in a different car, he melted. "All of us go in the car, ALL. OF. US." He screamed the whole car ride, and clutched onto my shoulder like a koala bear as I pulled him out.

I forced the in-front-of-the-door photo op:

Then I signed him in...

Still in koala mode...

I forgot a picture, so labeled his cubby with a "rocket." Then he started to get excited.

Continued with the rockets. His first whiteboard!

And then it was over. He found the snack table. Unassisted, he made himself a plate.

I t0ld him I was leaving, and he just gave me an absent-minded hug. Bye Daddy.