I Won the Sandbox!

Not true.
But I have fond memories of that hilarious Ernie and Bert sketch from Sesame Street circa 1970. Check it out here.
So, we didn't win it. Nor did we eat it. But, we did buy one from Target with Ben's birthday moolah from Grandma & Papa, Great-Grandmo and the McCollums. Thanks guys!

Putting it together was ridiculously easy. Allen wrenches and those little internal nuts you just pop into the predrilled holes are brilliant. Ben and Will were very into helping build the sandbox. "I'm a worker!" Ben makes sure you know his role when he's pretending. We're used to "workers" around here with all the new construction going on. There is a new house going up (well, it's up, they are currently roofing) in the lot that aligns with our backyard. So, this was a great project for us right now. The best part was when upon opening the box, we found TRUSSES! Watching the crane lift and place the trusses on the new houses is the most exciting part of the building process for the boys. So, it was ultra cool to have our own to lift and place. "I'm a crane!"

Now that it's placed and filled, it's been non-stop sand play here. As the ultimate open-ended play material, I am happily observing and enjoying the boys' interactions with both the sand and each other.

Oh, be still my constructivist heart!

Ben is FOUR! (How did this happen?)

We had a party today after the Nap. As requested, there were balloons. And hats. Presents, naturally. Singing, blowing of candles (one single blow this year--yippee!), and the most awesome yellow digger cake you ever saw. It did not look like this:

This is the inspiration, however. Ben saw this cake in Family Fun magazine and HAD to have it. No matter how gently I would try to lead him toward something a bit more baker-friendly, his mind was made up. The baking part wasn't that tough, really (even though Family Fun tells you to use a frozen pound cake and some twinkies to put it together!) It was the decorating and assembling that was tricky.

Due to ongoing intestinal "issues", the boys are both on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. The SCD is also a popular alternative treatment for autism, so a two-fer for us. The diet is all about healing the gut, whereby any stray molecule of an illegal food could screw up the delicate balance of good/bad bacteria in your intestines and you're back at square one, so you must, according to Elaine Gottschall, the diet's author, follow the diet with "fanatical adherence". There are no complex carbs allowed on this diet. The idea is a bit daunting at first. So that's no sugar, no grains, no starch. We are already also dairy-free. Holy Moly! Now, go forth and make cake--ha!

But, I did it! It's banana cake with honey frosting. The wheels, dozer, and excavator claw are made from pumpkin muffins. I decorated with raisins and fruit leather. Wheeeeeee! It's not exactly magazine quality stuff, but the man of the hour was satisfied. Along with his partner in crime, who has requested both a dump truck and a crane truck for his birthday. Um, yeah. We'll see about that.

Other highlights included trucks, trains, and cars, naturally, with a little bit of wistful storytelling of May 9th, 2004. I knew it would go by fast, but wow. This blog helps keep me ever-mindful to soak it all up. Every insane little minute.

And my favorite part of today wasn't captured on film, but I will record it here since I bet it's the last birthday he lets me do it. I rocked my baby to sleep in our rocker with his head on my chest. Sigh.

Eye Color Update!

So, here we are at six months. Back in November, I speculated what color these peepers would end up looking like. I was surprised that they were not the deep brown her brothers' were at that age. I mused on the possibility of them staying blue, and even found a study that said it was possible, even if neither parent had blue eyes. But, hooray! They're greenish! Just like her mama--see?

Now we get to wait for her hair to grow. :)