Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

One component of the summer reading program at the library is a weekly drawing. To get an entry, you have to guess what is in the feely box. You can get an additional entry my naming the cartoon character on the wall. Bradley got both right last week and a few days later, the library called to tell us he won. The prize is a baseball toss. He really enjoyed playing with it on Sunday.

What the @#$% is that?

Ben has continued his habit of being stricken by unusual afflictions. After we came home from Millenium Park, Ben voluntarily sat on the potty, which never happens. A few minutes later he exclaimed, "I have green poop!" He was very excited about it. What is modern, concerned parent to do? Search Google. You would be amazed at the number of results that comes back with. There are two possible causes for Ben's condition
1) Green stool often indicates that food has passed through the intestines faster than normal, before it could be changed from green to brown.
2) Food coloring - Ben did have one bite of a blue slushie the day before.

Cars 2

The holiday weekend was pretty busy for us: Cardboard Boat Regatta, Swimming, Kline Creek Farm, hiking, and the parade. On the night of the 3rd, we went to the drive-in for the first time this year. Since it is the height of summer, the movie didn't start until almost 9 and the boys were up past 11. The good news is that boys slept in some. It was only an hour extra, but that was a lot more than I expected based on past experience.

Went to the pool today...

...Ben learned about "shrinkage".

Bradley Heim, Ph. D.

I found out today that there is an economist named Bradley Heim. It is bad enough that there is a doppelgänger out there, but this guys works at IU!

Comic Genius

When Christine's college roommate Kathy was visiting, Bradley asked me for scissors, paper, markers, and tape. After a few minutes working in secret in the computer room, Bradley came up with this. He got a big laugh from all the grown-ups.

Just Like Daddy

He's only six, but before long Bradley is going to have more Legos than Daddy. These are just the Legos he got from his friends for his most recent birthday.

Back in the 1800's

For a while, Bradley used to talk about the 1800's a lot. To see what life was like in the 1800's, we went to Naper Settlement on Mother's Day. The boys sat in on a recreation of a classroom lesson for the late 1800's. They didn't like it, but I loved it. The lesson started off by repeating this list of rules. My favorites are 2, 4, 7, 10. I am sure my parents would have said the same.

SEAL Team Six

Ben has always been good at threatening people. With this skill, the only profession he would be suited for is mafia enforcer. However, another career path has opened up for him. One of his favorite threats is "I am going to shoot you in the eyeball." Which, apparently, the Navy SEALS do. Ben has also developed an affinity for the quiet game. That could come in very handy for tracking tangos.

Sinkcritic.com

Every time we use a public bathroom, Ben comments on the sink. Key dimensions include height of sink, depth of sink, and height of soap. The height of the paper towel dispenser is usually not considered. If everything meets his approval, he will proclaim, "They made a nice sink for me." Many places have a low sink, but the soap is too far back or the paper towels are too high. Here is an example of a 5 star sink at the Kohl's Children's Museum.