Keeping a clean room....

So, Grandma hands me a bag today and says Brantley has to earn this. I say Ok, what does he have to do? He has to keep his room clean for a week and he can have it. By the way, Roger says the new Superman movie is good and we should take Brantley. We might have to do that in the next few weeks.













So here is a picture of his room today, after I picked it up. It was trashed at the party today.

The Family Birthday Party

Well, today was the family birthday party. Each year we get the family together for Brantley's birthday. This year we are having 2 parties: the family party and a party with his school friends. So we all got together today for BBQ and birthday cake. I know we should grill hamburgers or something, but BBQ is just so easy. You've never seen a child so excited before. Brantley could hardly contain himself. He loves having all the family around, but he wouldn't be a kid if he wasn't excited about presents. So here he is before he blew out the candles on his cake. It's hard to believe he's going to be 5 years old. And here he is opening presents. Some of the words out of his mouth were Awesome, Cool, Finally, and my personal favorite - This rocks. Happy Birthday Brantley!

Brantley's new roommate

We finally rearranged Brantley's room - again. I had to take a picture because it's never this clean.

Next step is to get his closet organized. I have a plan, I just have to get in the mood to do it when I have the time to do it.

While we were rearranging, Brantley was helping. He kept asking if he could put Hermie in his room. I figured, why now. I told him he has to make sure he had food and water now. Here's Hermie's new spot in the house.

Swim Lessons

Today was Brantley's first swim lesson. He's been getting around the pool just fine with his ring and his swim trainer (if I can get him to wear it!) but I really wanted him to start swimming without the flotation aids. I found out that a girl in my office used to give swim lessons while in college so I immediately asked if she would be willing to come out and give Brantley lessons. She agreed and was just as excited about it as Brantley was. It was the first thing out of his mouth this morning, and all he could talk about as soon as I picked him up today. He did really well, but I think he was paying a little too much attention to me on the side of the pool. I didn't get in because I figured he really wouldn't listen, so I watched from the side. He did really well and is fearlessly jumping in the pool now - without his ring! Here is a picture after we got home and he already changed into his sleepy clothes. He should sleep good tonight, if I can get him in bed!

The Zoo with our cousins

Saturday we spent several hours at the zoo with our cousins from Texas and Mt. Juliet. We had such a good time, despite the heat. The favorite exhibit this time was the Lorikeets, except for Brantley. I think the Meerkats are always his favorite. There was even a baby Meerkat there this weekend. So cute and small. Check out the pictures here. You don't have to log in to see them.

Trouble

Brantley got in trouble today on the field trip. At the beginning of summer camp we were told that if any of the children could not behave on the trips, they would not be allowed to go. Well, Brantley wasn't listening today so he does not get to go on the next field trip. At least it's just one he can't go on. And, it's just as well because the next field trip is bowling, and we all know what happened the last time we went bowling. I was hoping that he would tell me about it without me having to ask about it but he didn't. He just asked me if I was mad at him. I said no, why would I be mad at him and he said I don't know. He even lied to me when I asked about it. He said the field trip was fine. I asked if he got in trouble on the field trip and he said no. After some more prodding, he admitted what happened and was very upset about it. Punishment: no bowling field trip next week and no TV tonight. I'm thinking I should have done a bit more though.

Hermie

We've had our hermit crab, Hermie, for 3 years now. At least, I think it's been three years. He has molted 3 times but I swear he's not any bigger than we we got him. Brantley likes to get him out every now and then but mostly we just watch him in the aquarium. Look what that crazy crab is trying to do....

Swimming

I bought Brantley this cool swim suit.




















I put it on him to go to the pool today and he was not happy at all. I finally told him he better straighten up or we wouldn't be going to the pool. He was upset about it. He said people would laugh at him and that it made him look like he had a big belly. I told him he had to at least try it. If he didn't like it, I would put his other suit on. Well, guess what! He can swim! The suit is great. You still have to watch pretty closely because it won't completely keep him from going under. He has to move his arms and legs, but it works great and he can swim!

Fun in the pool

It's going to be a good summer in the pool. Brantley is loving it. We spent several hours in the pool at grandma's this weekend. I bought these super soaker flash flood water guns and Nathan had one so we had a water gun fight it the pool. The water guns are as big a Brantley, but that didn't stop him. Everyone had fun, and even grandma go into the water gun fight. Brantley really enjoyed it. He's fearless this summer when it comes to jumping in.

Learning to Slurp!

When you were young, wasn't it the most fun thing to slurp spaghetti. Brantley is just now trying to slurp and he makes the funniest face when he does it. And yes, his plate does have a hamburger on it. I gave him some of my spaghetti to eat.

What will I be when I grow up...

I forgot to include this on the graduation post. The program that day had a list of the children in Brantley's class. Beside each name was what they were most likely to be when they grow up. Anyone care to take a guess what was beside Brantley's name?

Zoo

Since our daycare had an inservice day today, I took the day off and we went to the zoo with one of Brantley's best friends. We had a blast. The Zoo has really improved since the last time we went and it looks like they are working on a couple of new exhibits. We spent 6 hours there today! It was so hot, we were drenched with sweat. The day was really nice until Brantley had a meltdown in the gift shop which continued into the car on the way home. It's been so long since he has acted that way, it must have been because he was so tired.

Pre-Kindergarten Graduation

Okay, I admit it's silly. Having a graduation for a pre-kindergarten? Who does that? Well, we went today for Brantley's graduation. It was cute and all, but I don't think any of the kids actually wanted to do it. Here is Brantley with his teachers.














And here he is with his friend Alyssa who he has been there with since they were both babies.














And here is the graduate!

Quotable Quotes and Thunderstorms

Brantley has developed a fear of thunderstorms. He really dislikes thunder. It started prior to the big hail storm, but I think the big hail storm topped it off. He's very concerned about the weather and wants to see the radar. He even knows what some of the colors mean. We had a storm with some small hail in Charleston. Brantley was hanging out in the bathroom scared to death. Finally, we hooked up my MP3 player and he started listening to music. That helped. The next night we were out to dinner and it started to lightning again. Brantley wouldn't eat and I kept telling him to eat his dinner. Finally he said "I'm taking my food back to the condo and I'm going to eat it in the bathroom!" Matt and daddy might be able to correct me if I didn't get the quote exactly right. Well, today we are having some thunderstorms with some small hail. Look at where Brantley is....

Vacation pics

More pics. I think I ran out of storage at Kodak and Yahoo is unlimited.

Vacation pics

Here are some pics. Just click on the album - you don't need to log in.

Back from vacation

It's always hard getting back from vacation. We came back a day early so Brantley could go to his last baseball game. It was hot! Now he's in a bad mood. Early bedtime I hope, cause he needs it. Vacation was fun though. We went to the aquarium and hung out on the beach. Brantley learned how to throw a Frisbee and saw live starfish in the ocean. I'll post a photo album as soon as I have time.

Bracken Assessment

I think he's ready for kindergarten.

Mother's Day

Here is the inside of my mother's day card from Brantley:

Battin' a thousand...

Another great game with the Dodgers. Everyone was there to play today and the kids were hitting great. Since the opposing team only had 5 people there we actually got to play 3 innings today. Brantley didn't need the tee at all today. He had some great hits and he's actually running well too, except for looking at me as he is running to first base. And, check out this kid trying to get Brantley out while he's standing on first base. The other coach apparently doesn't know we don't have outs in this level.

The Dentist

Ahh...the dreaded word...dentist. I personally do not like going to the dentist. I can't stand having their rubber hands in my mouth. But, no matter how much we dislike the dentist, we have to go. So, today Brantley had his third dentist appointment. The first time he went was a year and a half ago because I was afraid he had a cavity. He didn't have a cavity, and he also didn't let them clean his teeth. They were able to clean the spot that I thought might be a cavity and the dentist was able to look at his teeth. The second visit he actually got his teeth cleaned. He was very polite and said "No thank you" when they tried to clean his teeth. He kept trying to get out of the chair. But, the hygienist was able to clean his teeth and put on the fluoride treatment. Both times, I was with him the whole time. So, today we were waiting in the waiting room and they called for Brantley. We get up and I follow behind Brantley and the hygienist says "He goes by himself now." Yeah I said thinking she was talking about how he went willingly with me following behind instead of dragging him in. I kept walking with them and she looked and me and said again "He goes by himself now." Huh....what did you just say. She repeated herself again and I of course say I don't think he will do well. The hygienist assured me she would come get me if he didn't do well and sent me back to the waiting room. I was upset. I sat there the whole time thinking I'm finding him a new dentist. The receptionist could tell I was upset. Another child started crying and I knew it wasn't Brantley because I know his cry but the receptionist made sure to tell me it wasn't Brantley. So, they call me back when the cleaning was done and the dentist was going to see him. Brantley was laying in the chair looking at the flat screen tv mounted on the wall. He said to me "Mommy...they have American Idol" and he smiled real big. One of the morning shows was showing clips from AI and he got to watch while she cleaned his teeth. She said he did great and he was covered in stickers. The dentist checked him out and then asked what it was about one of his teeth the hygienist had mentioned. They noticed that one of his front teeth was a little discolored and asked if he had fallen. He did fall 2 years ago. It was on the playground at school and his mouth was bleeding and got blood all over his jacket. We had taken him to the doctor and the doctor just looked at it and said it would heal nicely. Well, apparently it damaged his tooth a bit. They took an x-ray just to check it and the root of the tooth has already started to be absorbed. The dentist said as long as the tooth doesn't bother Brantley, it will probably just fall out sooner that normal which is about age 7. The x-ray was pretty cool because you could see all of his permanent teeth behind the baby teeth. After that, we left and I think Brantley enjoyed it. I realized how silly I was. He probably is much easier to work with without me being there. I just wasn't ready for that. He's only 4!

Another great game with the Dodgers

The weather was nice today, except it was a bit windy. The field was dry so the dust kept blowing in our faces. Here are a few pictures of practice before the game. Anyone see anything wrong in the last picture? That was taken during the game. It may be too small for you to notice the problem.

Baseball bats are dangerous..even the plastic ones....

Well, remember a year ago when Lilli hit Brantley in the head with the plastic baseball bat - right in the forehead. He had a huge swelling pop up from it. Well, Brantley was playing with Ben and his little brother Chase and guess what. Brantley hit Chase in the cheek. He must have hit him hard because he left a huge red mark on his cheek. Luckily it didn't get his nose or his eye. Chase cried for a little while and forget all about it. Very resilient. I think he's probably going to have a nice bruise tomorrow. Brantley was all tore up about it. It was an accident, but you would have thought Brantley was the one hurt. He was so upset that he hit Chase. I of course had to lecture him when we got home. I'm always telling him that Chase is still a baby (he's 2) and that he has to be careful around him. I thought he was going to start crying again when I was lecturing him. He really did feel bad about it. What can you do - boys will be boys.

Bowling gone bad.

Well, today was Brantley's friend's birthday party at the bowling alley. This was Brantley's first trip to the bowling alley. All was great until Brantley got hurt. He wasn't listening, as usual. The lanes they were bowling on were mini lanes. For some reason the balls were not all coming all the way back up so they were staying in between the lanes. So, the boys decided to go and get them. I went in and sent the boys back and put all the balls up in the hopper or whatever you call it. The balls still kept getting stuck, so Brantley decides to go get one and WHAM, gets hit with another one. His pinky finger was smashed between two mini bowling bowls. He cried and cried. We finally had to leave early. I almost didn't take him to the ER but it looked really bad. I decided to err on the side of caution and just make sure that it wasn't broken. We were there for 2 and a half hours. As we were sitting there, other more critical cases came in. A pregnant lady came in. Not sure if she was in labor, I only heard her say her baby wasn't due for another month. They took her right back. Then, a man came in with his daughter, went right up to the desk and slammed down a bottle of tylenol, I think, and told them his daughter just took a bottle of medicine. She went back pretty quick. I sure she's regretting it now - probably got her stomach pumped. Then a couple came in with a baby, and I think I heard them say she had swallowed something, was having trouble breathing and was blowing bubbles. Then the kid started screaming. Obviously not choking - she wouldn't be screaming like that. Then she started turning colors - some kind of rash I guess. I figured she was just turning red because she was screaming so much. The dad was all freaked out and went to the desk saying she was getting worse and they needed to see someone right then. They got her back pretty quickly. Then a girl in a soccer uniform came in with an injury. We got to go in before her. We had to see 6 different people just to get an x-ray of Brantley's pinky finger. While we were waiting for the x-ray, another girl in the same soccer uniform came in. Must have been a rough soccer game. Finally, we got and x-ray and nothing was broken. Just a really bad bruise. They wrapped it up and sent us on our way. I think that baby was still screaming when we left. Hope they figure out what she swallowed.

Mystery solved...sort of...

Remember the patch of red bumps. We saw a dermatologist today and he's pretty sure that it's a molluscum. Right now it's almost gone. He said if the bumps return again, they can freeze them like they do with warts to remove them. It will make it clear up faster, but since it is a virus, there's not really much else they can do except let it run its course. At least the spot is tiny and hasn't spread anywhere else. It looks like it can get pretty nasty. Since it's been almost 2 months since it first showed up, hopefully it will be gone for good this time.

Mommy...give me those poinky things

Huh? I learned a new word today. Brantley is still sick so we are trying to find indoor activities. I really don't know how stay-at-home moms do it. I've been playing this game called Polar Bowler. Brantley thinks it's funny and wants to play. I kept telling him that I would show him how when he gets older - thinking the concept of how to play the game would be over his head. So, I decided to let him try. In the second game he got a cold turkey and scored 175! Granted, the computer game is a lot easier that the game in real life, but I was impressed. Now he is playing with play doh and he has various kitchen things playing with it. I was straightening up his coloring books when he says "Mommy, give me those poinky things you gave me before." Okay. What the heck is he talking about. "I'll show you. Come in here mommy." Can anyone guess what poinky things are? I'll post the answer later. :)

No Sounds game today

Brantley is still sick. He missed t-ball yesterday and the Easter egg hunt yesterday in Cookeville, and today he is missing the Sounds play. He's very upset about it. He laid in his bed and sulked about it. He kept saying he was better now - between barky coughs. He was up about 6:00 this morning and sounded awful. I loaded him up with medicine and he went back to sleep. Since he's coughing now it probably isn't strep, but who know what it is. Gotta love the non-specific viral illness. Those just have to run their course. I have a feeling we'll be home tomorrow. Lawson is going to try to take him to the game Thursday evening. He's so upset because he says that will take so long!

The rash is back...

Well, the small red bumps that Brantley had came back for the fourth time. We noticed it last night. I decided this time not to treat it and to take him back to the doctor. Brantley's pediatrician's office has a walk-in clinic open on Saturdays which is nice. Brantley also started running a fever last night. He said his head hurt and his tummy hurt. Classic strep symptoms. The last time he had strep he had those exact symptoms. We went to the doctor and his rapid strep and the test they sent off were both negative. Not even a week later we were back in the doctor's office and it was strep. So, this morning we went to the doctor. We saw a physicians assistant. I guess they are like nurse practitioners. I like them because they are so thorough. She looked at the rash and said it wasn't a bug or spider bite like the doctor thought a month ago. It can't be because it keeps coming back. She is referring us to a dermatologist to find out what it is. She also did a strep test since he had the classic symptoms. It of course was negative. Brantley hasn't eaten hardly anything today. I'm betting we'll be back at the doctor by Friday. Oh, we also had to miss t-ball pictures and his game. And, we were going to go to Cookeville but decided against it in case he does end up with strep. I'd hate for him to pass it to his cousins.

Sleep

At what point in our lives do we begin to crave sleep? After a very long, full day, Brantley still doesn't want to go to bed. It was 8:00. If he sat still for 2 minutes he'd probably pass out. Yet, he still does not want to go to bed. I listened to 4 songs with him and gave him a hug good night. Daddy went in and gave him a hug. He was out. Sleep. It's a good thing.

Kindergarten Preview

Tonight was the night that we learned about the school Brantley will go to and how thinks work in kindergarten. We got to take a tour of the school and the kindergarten classrooms. The classrooms looked very similar to his classroom now. When we walked into the school, the first thing Brantley saw was the gym. "Wow" he said. We went in the gym and he started running around. Then we toured the classrooms which he was very impressed with. We also got to see the playground, library, and cafeteria. Brantley is very excited about kindergarten. He kept saying that he wanted to live there. Now, we just have to make decisions about riding the bus, taking to school, before and after care.....Too many things to think about. I can't take it. I need that boo hoo breakfast(the first day of school) they were talking about now.

T-ball - Game 1

I missed Brantley's first game because I was waiting on the furniture people - again. But, since Lawson didn't get to go to any games last year because of school, I gave him the choice of going to the game or waiting for the furniture people. He picked the game. It was unseasonably cold since we had just had those horrible storms the day before. Opening ceremonies were cancelled and a lot of the morning games were cancelled, but Brantley got to play his game. Lawson said he got 2 or 3 really good hits - no T anymore. He even picked up a grounder and threw it to first. That would be an out if we kept track of that kind of thing. And, since we don't keep score we won! Go Dodgers!

Hail Storm cont'd

I really need to find a better way to share videos. Maybe I will figure it out some day, but for now I'm using clipshack.com. It's limited in what you can upload so the quality of this video isn't very good, but I think you can get the idea.

Hail Storm

We were hit with golf ball sized hail today. Here is a picture of one about 15 minutes after the hail stopped. Brant's hand is about 2 1/2 inches across. Huge! I've never seen hail that big in my life. Lawson's car got dinged pretty good. My car was in the garage, thank goodness. We'll have to have our roof checked after that storm. I'm working on putting a video up. Lawson was standing in the front doorway video taping it. The wind was blowing away so it was safe.

She Says This Words

I admit it. I'm a car singer. Not a good one, but I just can't help myself. Brantley usually tells me to stop. Today, he was singing along with me. He has a few songs he likes that I put on a CD for him. He likes Should I Stay or Should I go, Angel by Shaggy, and Since You Been Gone. His new favorite song is from the second Scooby Doo movie - Words to Me by Sugar Ray. It's funny to hear him sing it. Now, we are both car singers.

Quotable Quotes

It's Saturday morning, 6:45 A.M. I really don't want to get up yet. Lawson has gone to the gym and here comes Brantley. In an attempt to get him to go back to sleep, I let him crawl in bed with me. He lays there for a little while, asking when we can get up. Finally he yawns. I say, "See, you're still sleepy too!." To which Brantley replies, "That was not even a yawn. That was taking a deep breath." Smarty pants.

Later that morning, I'm on the phone with my mom. She says to tell Brantley she hopes he has a good time at T-ball today. Brantley pulls up his short legs and looks at his band aids. He shakes his head and says, "I don't know if I can even run anymore." He still won't let me take the band aids off. And, during practice Brantley asks me if I told Coach Waldo about his shots. I said yep, both of your coaches know that you got 2 shots yesterday. Yep, keep milkin' it.

Hey...that's my line!

Brantley got his last 2 required immunizations today. He has known for a while that he had 2 left and that he would probably get them in July. Well, kindergarten registration is Monday. So, to have a complete shot record we went ahead and got the shots today. Yesterday, on the way home, he brought up the shots for some reason. I said, "Speaking of those shots, we are going to the doctor's office tomorrow to get them so you can get them out of the way and we won't have to worry about them anymore." He proceeded to get upset about it. He asked if shots were bad for you. I explained that shots are very good for you and that they keep us from getting really bad diseases. After hearing that the shots are good for you, he felt better. He even said to me last night that he liked shots. So today, I picked him up after lunch and we headed to the doctor's office. He told me he was going to be big and brave. He was really good until the nurse actually got the shot out and he saw it. I told him just to close his eyes and breathe deep. Too late. He was freaking out. So, I hugged him and held his arms while one nurse held his legs and another did the shots. It sounds more dramatic than it really was. He cried and cried. As I was getting his shot record and the shot fact sheets, the one nurse helped him down and took him to the stickers. Since he got 2 shots, he got to get 2 stickers. That helped a bit. I had to go into work for just a few minutes so I took Brantley with me. He went limping by Nicole's desk, probably so she would feel sorry for him. It must have worked because she gave him M & Ms and Cheetos. And Roberta gave him a 'cherry' sucker. It was really strawberry but we told him it was cherry. Then he went and got chocolate from Heather's candy bowl. It's a wonder I could contain him after all of that! He was milking it when we got home. I had to pick him up and pick him in his seat for dinner. He sat upstairs on the couch with daddy and barely got up. And, when he went to bed he usually asks to go get water but this time he asked daddy to get water for him. Just pitiful. Hope those thighs are better for tomorrow's T-ball practice!

Oh, I almost forgot the "Hey, that's my line part." We went grocery shopping after we left my office and on the way I looked back and Brantley was dozing off. I asked him if he wanted to go home for a nap instead and he said "I'm just resting my eyes!" and I say "Hey, that's my line!"

Get your game face on!

Raising a neat freak?

Here's the scenario. Brantley wants fruit snacks. I keep them in a Tupperware container in the pantry. He goes into the pantry and the tup container is empty. I tell him there are two boxes of fruit snacks under the container. He proceeds to open the boxes and put the packages of fruit snacks in the tup container, then puts it back in the pantry. He puts the empty boxes in the trash. I'm so proud! Another example, for those familiar with Brantley's Bs. He has one drawer in his room designated for Bs. I had tried to put some of his summer pajamas in there, but he removed them. Also, the Bs can't be haphazardly thrown in the drawer. Each one must be folder and placed in the drawer. Now if we could just apply this concept to the rest of his room. Hey, we're getting there.

T-ball

Once again it was freezing for practice. I think the sun came out for about 5 minutes. It's amazing the difference that the sun makes. The cleats must have made a difference because Brantley was running like the wind today. Just look at that stride! We did have one meltdown because mommy forgot his water bottle. Not a good thing. But hey, mommy can't remember everything, now can she. The kids are doing so well already. We have one more practice before opening day. I predict an undefeated season - just like last year! (For those that aren't familiar, we don't keep score so we win every game. I think they may start keeping score in the next age level.)

Brantley's Artwork

I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like these stick figures - talk about long legs! Brantley says Mommy is on the left. Daddy is in the middle and he is the short one.

Conversations I don't want to have...

Brantley's questions and comments in the car today:

Mommy, I want a little brother. How are we going to get a little brother in your tummy?
Mommy, when you get married, do you have a baby in your tummy?
Mommy, I want you to get married again so you'll have a baby in your tummy.

Wasn't that a fun ride home.

Maturity

Conversation in the car on the way home from school:

B: "Mommy."
M: Turning the radio down "Yes..."
B: "I wanted to tell you about naptime today."
M: Already knowing what happened at naptime because it was written on his daily report "Uh huh..."
B: "I got in trouble at naptime."
M:"What happened? Were you talking?"
B:"I was talking to Michael. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to be disappointed in me."
M: Did he just say that? "Well, you know that you don't have to sleep at nap time, but you have to lay down and be quiet. I know it's hard because you don't really need a nap anymore, but you do need some rest and quiet time. Thank you for telling me. I want you to tell me things like this. I might be disappointed, but it's better that you tell me so we can talk about it."
B:"Okay."

How could I be disappointed with that!

Quotable Quotes

Whenever Brantley needs to do some business in the bathroom, he has to practically strip. Today, he's half naked about to walk through Grandma's house and and I stop him and tell him to put his underwear on. He messes around, and I, already being a little irritated with other things, say "Put your underwear on before I spank your bare bottom." He says to me "I don't have a 'bear' bottom. I have a people bottom." Smarty pants.

T-ball

Welcome to Spring baseball! It was cold for practice this morning. But, the kids did great. Brantley's attention span was lacking this morning. All he wanted to do was hit, but what's new about that. He did a great job and is all about hitting being pitched to. He doesn't want a tee anymore. We went to Academy Sports to find him some cleats - 'cause everyone else has them and why not? He's about wore out his tennis shoes anyway so I figure we can save his tennis shoes and he can wear cleats in the clay. I found some Nike ones that had a removable pad in the back that gives them another half size. So, the shoes are basically a size too big but with the pad in the back he has a half size of growing room. We also got a red equipment bag to hold all of his stuff. Last week, they had a pole with a ball on the end that they were using with the kids. I saw one at the Academy called the Hit-a-way Target Swing Trainer. It came with a DVD. It wasn't expensive so I grabbed one. We were out in the yard practicing and I think it will really help him with his swing, especially since I can't pitch. I can hold that and help him practice. I really do try to pitch but I'm not good at it. I just put the DVD in and he sat right down to watch it. The guy is explaining the basics of how to stand and where your arms should be. Brantley keeps asking "When's he going to hit the ball?" One track mind.

Playing with bugs

A couple of years ago, Brantley participated in a study at the Peabody College Dept. of Psychology and Human Development. The study was to see if a 2 year old understood that what he saw on a TV was real. So, they showed him a room that was set up like a living room. A camera was set up in that room. In another room was a TV. He watched the TV and the girl hid a stuffed animal in the room. The test was to see if he understood what he was watching on TV was actually what was happening in the next room. If I remember correctly, he totally didn't understand. Interesting experiment. So, when they called me a couple weeks ago about another study, I said Brantley could participate. This study was about different ways of teaching patterns. They used different colors of different bugs to make patterns. Then, Brantley was supposed to tell them what came next. First she asked him to count the different bugs and then to tell her the colors. Then she asked him what each bug was. A couple he didn't know. Then she would put down some bugs in a pattern - yellow dragonfly, yellow dragonfly, red beetle, yellow dragonfly, yellow dragonfly. Then Brantley was supposed to tell her what came next. The practice one he got right so I'm thinking this will be easy. Then, he started missing them. The problem was that he didn't understand what she wanted. She would put them down and ask which one came next, but he would just pick whichever one he wanted to come next. There were 3 ways they were conducting the test. Brantley was supposed to explain to himself how to tell which bug came next and they would tape record what he said. He wasn't about to do that. I think one of the other 2 ways they are testing was that the subject was to explain to the tester how to tell what came next. I'm not sure what the 3rd way was. I don't think he understood that she wanted him to follow the pattern to tell her which one came next. Curiosity got the better of me and while we waited for American Idol to come on I decided to do my own test. I took the cars that Brantley was playing with and put them in a pattern and I would ask Brantley what came next. So, it would be fire truck, fire truck, car, fire truck or red car red car green car red car and so on. Interestingly enough, he got them all. So, my question is this - did he not understand what she was asking him to do or was he just toying with her? Hmmmm....

Go Dodgers! (the t-ball team that is)

Wow! What a great practice. There are 4 kids, including Brantley, back from last year. They are the youngest ones from last year that got off track because of the new birthday cutoff. Everyone was ready to play yesterday. There is also a girl on the team this year and I bet she can knock the pants of some of these boys. I was surprised that Brantley actually remembered what he learned last year. Here are some action shots...

Spring is sprung!

I don't need a nap!

After a day at home and afternoon with the cousins....

Cousins

I took the day off today to meet the furniture people, again (long unrelated story), and I decided to keep Brantley home. My sister called yesterday and said they would be in town today. Since my niece and nephew are on a year round schedule, they are currently on a 3-week break. So, this afternoon, we met them at Chuck E. Cheeses. The kids had a good time and they gave their tickets to Brantley. I have saved his tickets each time rather than him get some little piece of junk. He doesn't even know that you turn in the tickets to get stuff. With the tickets from today, he has almost 1000 tickets. The sad thing is that even with that many tickets, you can't really get anything good. I was looking at the little ticket receipts and I have some are dated in 2004. I'm betting that was the first time he went. Although we have several receipts, they are all from only 5 days there. Not too bad over the course of 2 years. One day, Brantley really got into feeding the ticket eater so we have a lot of receipts that are just for a few tickets. In a couple more years maybe he will have enough tickets to get something good!

Brantley was right....

About 3 weeks ago I noticed a small cluster of red bumps on Brant's inner thigh. He told me he had a bug bite. Well, I thought 'I don't know what kind of bug would bite you this time of year, but okay. ' Well, 3 or 4 days later it was still there so I got on the internet to try to figure out what it was. The description for ringworm on the body is a small cluster of red bumps. Exactly what Brantley had - about the size of a quarter. So, I go to the pharmacy and pick up so anti-fungal cream. I even asked the advice of the pharmacist who agreed that's what it probably was. He told me it would take a couple of weeks to clear and that I would need to continue the cream for a couple weeks after the rash was gone because the fungus would still be there even though it looked healed. So, two weeks of cream later the rash is still there. In fact, it was a little worse. So, I called the doctor and he wanted to see him. After looking at it, he said that he could not say definitively that it was a bite, but he tended to agree with Brantley! He said it looked more like a spider bite! Why would I possibly think that a cluster of tiny red bumps was a spider bite? Since the rash was old, the doctor was not 100% sure but he said to put a hydrocortisone cream on it for a week. If it didn't clear, then he wanted to see him back. So, last night we started the hydrocortisone cream, and the rash looks a little better this morning. Go figure!

American Idol

Well, we watched the Idol together tonight. It's weird watching something with Brantley that's not a kids show, although Idol is rated G. Brant would ask me during each performance if I liked her song. Most I wasn't very impressed with, but Madisa was very good. After her performance, Brant looked very sad. I looked at him and he said "She sings better than me. :(" Oh Brantley, you've got a long time to practice. Of course while I was putting him to bed he proceeded to tell me that he sings better than everyone!

American Idol

This is the first year that I have taken an interest in American Idol. Brantley watched part of it with me one evening and now he wants to watch it every day. Every day he asks if he can watch that movie where the boys and girls sing. And I say "American Idol?" He says, "yeah, can I watch it." While giving him his bath today, he says that I should go on American Idol. I told him you have to be able to sing to go on the show. He says he is going to go on the show and proceeds to start making up a song. "Mommy, do you like that song?" I say, "Yes, that's a very good song." Brantley says, "But, maybe they won't like my song." I say, "I think they would. You are very good." He proceeds to make up another song. Keep up the creative juices!

Saturday night in the country

You probably have to be from the country to appreciate this story, but I think it's funny. We spent the night with my parents Saturday. For dinner, my dad wanted to go out. There is this new place called Cheddars and they haven't been there yet. Mom says it will be too busy - it's Saturday night. So, how about the Sam's Club. Yes, I'm talking about Sam's Warehouse club. They have these pizzas you can buy, bring home and bake that are really good. You can also have them bake them there and eat them there. Mom had one in the freezer, so I said we should just bake that one. We decided to do that and then go out for desert at the Dairy Queen. (Joe Dirt fans can appreciate that!) Well, the pizza didn't turn out right. Lesson learned - bring home the Sam's pizza and bake it, don't freeze it! Well, we ate it anyway. The crust got a little crispy. It reminded me of National Lampoons Christmas Vacation when they are trying to eat the turkey that had cooked for a week. Get the picture? After dinner, Brantley had a game of soccer in the kitchen with Grandma. Funny how grandparents are so much more fun that parents. He kept calling her Grammy (not sure where that came from) and saying "Grammy's losing!" He also kept changing the rules on how to score points. After the game it was off to the Dairy Queen. It had been so long since I had ice cream from there. Yummy! Dad got the large caramel sundae, Mom got a medium cone, I got a small hot fudge sundae and Brantley got a kids cone dipped in chocolate which he proceed not to touch. So, mom took the chocolate and I took the ice cream. Couldn't let it waste! How's that for a Saturday night?