Whose Blog is this?

i get it. the pictures are outdated. the ages are wrong it the side bar. we have a new addition to our family. this blog is so outdated.
i'll get there.

in the meantime, henry & charlie are spewing funny, smart, silly, awesome things all of the time and i find it extremely difficult to keep up on being amazed and humored by them, and also doing them justice by documenting here.  they are so much funnier than i am, and i want to get it right.  i'll get there.

i find, probably like most parents, that the time period between breakfast and school drop offs is a very creative, talkative time for my kids.  they have their very deepest thoughts during this window. often times, i feel like the 3 of us are on an acid trip (not that I would know) hurling through space and time, stopping to pick a daisy and maybe our nose, with a quick stop in the philosophical swimming pool to float on the water that god built before we land 180 degrees from where we started (i'm serious, they are deep thinkers and can be more distracting in the car, if you hop on their crazy train, than texting and driving (not that I would know).    i have a difficult time figuring out if they are freaking brilliant, deep thinkers, or if they are just kids saying whatever happens to come to mind completely unaware of what they are saying. or, most likely, they are just effing with me.

today, the topic of discussion was "when I am a daddy" to which i quickly qualified with "after high school, college, securing a job, meeting a good partner...etc, etc." which led us to the "what do i want to do when i grow up" topic.  charlie announced, sadly as he probably knew it would disappoint me, that he doesn't want to be a doctor. ok fine. i told him i'm ok with that and that i just want them to do something that they enjoy doing.  this is when i realized my kid henry is either really smart or really not  when he announced "well then i want to just stay at home and collect money".

and i'll just leave that one alone. for now.

Merry Christmas

Love, The Barton's

Friday Night Debauchery

it's friday night. we have a big weekend planned, including the hunt for the 

most beautiful christmas tree (which has the makings for an excellent time

considering nate insists on hauling the family thru the woods on a u-cut adventure

AND it is raining like its never rained before. yea!), and uncle t arrives tomorrow!

the boys were starting to resemble yetis from the neck up, 

so a haircut was in order. times two. 

which just happened to be next door to their favorite pizza place. 

i feel sadness for the day when charlie figures out that the games require money.

i'm not saying whoooo, but someone has a small love affair with parmesan cheese.

in preparation for uncle t's visit, a swiffer session was in order. little did we know, 

we were in for so, so much more.

now, i'm not saying we are lazy, or dirty people. ok, maybe we have a somewhat 

laissez-faire approach to home repairs and general maintenance (we are working on this).

a couple of months ago (don't judge), our brand new hardwoods in front of our 

food machine started to buckle, but just a bit. naturally, our first instinct was "the wood is settling"

"the wood is reacting to the weather" i even think i heard nate say the words "expand" and "contract".

never was our first thought that there was a leak.

there was a leak.

though only a tiny leak, more like a "mist" of sorts, it was apparently what 

was causing the hardwoods to funk-ti-fy.

the swiffer found the leak when it pulled a bit of gunky wall from under the fridge.

so, i scooted it out and all hell broke loose.

spray going left and right, the floor flooding fast, i think i even heard thunder.

not really.

what really happened, happened in total slo-mo. 

nate taking spray to the face as he tried to kink the water hose

trying to tell me to "get a clamp! get a clamp!"

i didn't even know what that mean. 

but i didn't hear him because i was running in circles with my hands

above my head screeching like i had just seen a snake.

several minutes later, the madness stopped 

and the mopping up began.

 why is this important? because it took up way too much time

and after the crisis was averted i didn't feel like doing anything else.

and they had very, very important worlds to save

from zombies.

sorry t, at least your sheets are clean.

Thankful

while there is no possible way to include all of the things that I am thankful for here, 

here are a few that are on the forefront of my mind today. 

 family. i'm thankful for my family. that my parents raised me in a way that in turn helped me make good choices, pick a good partner, live with purpose, work hard, and teach and instill values and manners in my own children.

thankful that my own boys are happy, healthy, spunky, confident and LOVE 

their cousins and are always looking forward to the next time they get to see them. 

they are all good, sweet, happy souls.and i love all of them and their creators.

thankful that my entry way is ALWAYS dirty and littered with leaves.

if it wasn't, it may mean that i don't have people constantly coming in and out.

thankful that my little guys are still so little and naive that when asked what they are thankful for, say exactly what is on their mind that they time. hence, "breakfast" and "flag football".

but mostly thankful that they make me laugh constantly and rarely does an hour go by when we don't hear their belly laughs coming from somewhere in the house. i love their belly laughs. 

and while i often forget to be thankful for this, and sometimes long for pretty, organized, simple  

bookshelves, i am thankful that my bookshelves look like this. vomiting art supplies, full of games and puzzles and when i sweep, i find more lego parts than anything else. we live in a happy, creative house. for that, i am thankful.

                                                   

i always envisioned my formal living room to be a place of peace and serenity. with structured furniture and warm blankets where people would want to nap and read. instead, i often hear the scraping sounds of furniture on the floor as charlie rearranges the room, so that he can play basketball. i am thankful for our awesome house that has a basketball room and thankful that i'm getting better at not longing for a pretty living room....because there will be plenty of time for that when my boys are grown. for now, we will just invite our guests to sit on or play basketball. in our living room.

i am especially thankful for nate. a constant, reliable, loving, playful, fun husband, partner and father to our boys.  the rock of our family who is excellent at reminding all of us what is important in this life.

happy thanksgiving.

Tin Tops and Tattoos

In just another typical Thursday Night at the Barton House...

Henry practiced his reading with Mom and Dad

on his Take Home Reader

Which, I think is important to note are the WORST
g-dam stories of ALL TIME.

I mean, by the 3rd read, when "Matt hits the Tin Top"

or "Sam sits on the pad", 

I want to shove the "Tin Top" down "Matt's" pie hole 

and poor "Matt" is just a wee "Tot"! 

Anyway...as Henry speeds through the horrible reading homework...

THIS ONE...

Was quietly emptying his sticker book 

onto his arms making "tattoos".

Now, who had more fun?

Exactly.

Halloween 2012

HAPPY HALLOWEEN 2012

Love, the Zombies

Saturday in Seaside....in video

Six Years Old

Today, you turned 6 YEARS OLD. Six years ago today, our lives changed forever and in a way that that we never expected. You impact people. We consider ourselves the luckiest parents on earth to be trusted to raise such an amazing boy. We don’t take this job lightly, and enjoy every second of it. Since birth, you’ve projected a sweet, calm quiet. You continue to be an observer of people and activities and then quietly try on your own in private. You have become a perfectionist who is not satisfied with anything but what you pictured in your mind. You are very, very artistic and creative and could spend most hours of the day quietly drawing battle scenes, castles, or daddy cooking on the BBQ. You love to build Lego creations and play with marbles or anything that resembles a long lost shiny treasure. You love fantasy worlds of pirates, space ships and zombies. You are still an awesome sleeper, but dislike waking up in the morning. You are the best snuggler in the house and can form into any shape to be physically close to people you love.
This has been a big year of learning and growing. Learning is something that you have grown to love and it shows in your enthusiasm when you read, count, add, subtract and spell from memory. You’ve gained confidence in your friendships and abilities and as a result have grown a bigger “voice” that is really fun to watch.
When you were little, I wanted you to stay little. But, the older you get, the more I enjoy seeing who have and will become. It is an honor to be your parent. We love you to the moon and back and can’t wait to see what the next year has in store for you. Happy Birthday Henry!

Love,
Mom & Dad

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Happy Birthday to the Daddy, the Husband, and the Best Friend.
You make our world a much better place.
You are the very best lego-builder, coach, wrestler, snuggler,
dinner cooker, tooth puller, butt-wiper, driver, dream builder, routine maker,
voice of reason, friend, movie companion, deep conversation partner, supporter,
bug killer, completely 100% no doubt about it engaged father, husband and best friend
anybody could ever ask for.

Thank you for being born. We wouldn't be us without you.

Love, the mommy and your boys.

Faces

of Charlie

Henry lost a tooth....And Charlie pulled it.

Yep, Charlie pulled it.

Ya see, Henry has had a dangling tooth for several weeks now. The last couple of days,

it has been sticking straight OUT, but he refused to pull it. It was like a cartoon tooth.

Tonight, he bit into a piece of bread and pushed the tooth beyond the point of return.

It was bleeding and bleeding, but still connected by a corner.

Nate jumped into action:

floss, gauze,

paper towels, patience,

empathy, a large bribe,

and a dose or frustration later, the tooth was still not free.

Where was I?

I was cowered in the corner of the kitchen

in a tight fetal position rocking left to right

singing nursery rhymes

because the thought of that tooth coming out of my baby's gums

creeps me out.

Don't judge.

So Henry moved to a quiet area

and started working on it himself.

At one point, he thought he swallowed it.

And then Charlie offered to help.

And he pulled it.

And we lost it.

But then we found it.

In the couch.

Thank Goodness - that could have been really, really bad.

And here is the interview after all of the drama:

An Interview

A behind the scenes peek into the minds of a 3 and 5 year old.

They light up my world so much that I am required to share it with you

by law.

Fire Ball in the Sky

One day, the rain stopped, the clouds parted

and a large fire ball in the sky shone its heated loveliness upon us.

When this happens, you drop everything and go outside

because without warning, the clouds eat the fireball and you never know

how many weeks you'll have to wait to see it again.

Saturday, we celebrated the fire ball by walking the first day

of the farmers market.

There are no vegetables there yet, but they had flowers, and music

and food and a super happy family.

And then Henry, with the super duper powers that he has,

unleashed his "park-dar" (park radar) and led us here:

A great day of filling our Vitamin D tanks that will hopefully

keep us trucking for the week.

First T-Ball Game

Saturday was Henry's very first T-Ball game.

"T" stands for "Take a Break on your behind in the outfield",

but more on that later.

Batters 2, 3 and 4:

"Oh bat, let's smash the holy spit out of that ball. All right?"

Batter up!

Rounding the bases, just slightly ahead of his too big helmet:

I didn't know this until Saturday, but the bases are like

little mini trampolines making it impossible to stand still

on them.

Left field.

During the game.

Look alive kids!

The best part was, this was their ready position.

Before this, they were all laying down.

It was one of the most entertaining games I've every seen.

I think it ended in a 42-42 tie.

And every kid that rounded 3rd base just wanted to know "how much longer?"

Henry either doesn't know you have to touch home plate,

or doesn't know that home plate exists because every time he rounded

3rd, he ran straight to his bench and all of the parents and coaches

simultaneously stood up and pointed him home.

Sweet, innocent T-Ball.

Two very proud parents.

Go Braves!

A weekend with Ted E. Bear

This weekend, Charlie was chosen by his class to care for the

class bear, Ted E. Bear.

He was to take Ted every where he went, care for him and

journal about his weekend with Ted.

Friday night, Ted took our family out to dinner.

Ted wanted a loud family atmosphere, so he chose Red Robin.

A little cheap if you ask me.

We questioned Ted's manners, sitting on the table and all.

Henry trying wrestle Ted off of the table.

Ted had abnormally short arms which are fluffy and barely reach

his mouth, so Charlie had to feed him.

Mandarin oranges.

That Ted, he's a funny, funny bear.

Here he is doing french fry tricks.

Charlie and Ted E. had a slumber party Friday night.

Charlie cared deeply for this bear and wished him sweet dreams.

We later learned that Ted E. has a deviated septum which causes him

to snore like a trucker, so Charlie slept very little.

In an effort to get the sweetest picture, I told Charlie to pretend

like he was sleeping next to Ted E.

I think it is safe to say that acting is not in Charlie's future.

Saturday, Ted E. joined us at Henry's T-ball practice.

Since there was a park nearby, Ted insisted that

we play at the park instead because he thought watching

T-ball practice was B-O-R-I-N-G.

Wee!!!

Ted E. was built for plastic slides with his furry

rear and all.

Ted E. loved underdogs!

Until he learned with the bark dust tasted like.

Then we just stuck to the simple basics.

Sunday, we tried to pass Ted E. off as "under 3" and saw

Rio. It was a great movie, but Ted E. chews his popcorn

just as loud as Charlie does and drew unnecessary attention

to our motley crew.

We had a great weekend with Ted E.

Tomorrow, Charlie will present his weekend with Ted E. to his class

and Ted E. will prepare for another weekend with a Roosh Friend.