I asked Nolan what he thought he might like to get for his dad for Christmas - to which he responded promptly, "A Golf Course!"
Okay, right....we'll get right on that. That is exactly the budget I had in mind. :-)
What a thoughtful son.
Nolan started kindergarten in July, and although I'm a bit late getting these posted, I'm patting myself on the back that I actually posted them before he starts first grade! So, if you'll forgive me for a moment of self congratulatoriness - Good job, Karla! (BTW, if that word isn't in the dictionary, I think it certainly should be!)
To tell you the truth, I was quite sick to my stomach that first day!....Probably more than Nolan! But we all made it! And school has been a great adventure so far!
Life - in the eyes of a five-year-old:
Babies turn into kids.
Kids turn into teenagers.
Teenagers turn into adults.
Adults turn into old people.
And old people turn into dead people!
Nolan filled me in on all the shcoop about "revenge". You're gonna love this one.
Nolan:
...by Nolan
-Mom, I know why Heavenly Father gave us ants! He didn't want the whole world to be covered with crumbs!
-Did you know fireman aren't allowed to go camping??? It's because they put out too many fires, so they'd put out the campfire!
-I asked Macy if she showed Nolan her painted fingernails. Before she could respond, Nolan said, disgusted,"Yeah...when I walk behind her all I smell is walking fingernail polish!"
Nolan has been having trouble going to sleep; he says he dreams about monsters. We've had several conversations about the fact that monsters aren't real, dreams aren't real, etc.
He usually listens to primary songs in his room at night, but one night he chose the Jack Johnson CD instead. Later he came in our room, practically crying! He told us he couldn't sleep because he was afraid of dreaming about monsters. Once again, we explained monsters aren't real - to which he replied emphatically,
"But Jack Johnson said, 'DREAMS are made out of REAL THINGS!' "
(from Jack Johnson's Better Together song)
And of course, Jack Johnson knows more than Mom and Dad!
Any ideas for dealing with monsters?
We were getting ready to come inside after working in the yard and playing in the sandbox. Nolan was absolutely covered in sand, because he and Macy were trying to bury his entire body. He thought it was great to be so dirty, and started dancing around, then started singing at the top of his lungs, "I'm the dirtiest dancer! I'm the dirtiest dancer!" over and over again. Macy thought it looked like so much fun, so of course she joined in. So there were two of them yelling in our backyard,
After I let Nolan and Macy out of time-out today for fighting (again), Nolan came up to me, "Mom, I need to tell you something -- Everything that Macy does is ruining my future!" Seriously, I had to turn my head to disguise my laughter. Do you think he even knows what that means????
One of Nolan's favorite things is when Daddy pitches him baseballs. He's actually getting quite good (Nolan, that is), and we have to duck on several occasions to avoid getting hit with his speed-balls. While he was practicing tonight, one of his hits almost made it all the way over the house. Nolan announced that we should call him "FLAME BALL"! I thought this was hilarious!
So here he is, my very own Flame Ball, perhaps the next "Will the Thrill", "Big Cat", "Frenchie", or "Big Papi" (there's my attempt at impressing Jer)........p l a y b a l l !
According to Nolan that's what I'll be driving next week at this time! He told Jeremy today he knew what they should buy me for my birthday, then whispered a secret in his ear so I wouldn't hear - a new Volkswagon Beetle car! He knows I think it would be fun to have a Bug, so the perfect solution: buy Mom one for her birthday! :-) I thought it was pretty cute that Nolan came up with this by himself, and what a fun present would that be!
latest self-portrait
One more great Nolan outtake:
During the closing prayer of the afternoon session of LDS General Conference today, we hear Nolan, "Come on, guy! End the prayer! I can't keep my arms folded any longer! "
Things have been a little crazy this past month or so. Proof - I can't say I have ever reached the point on my digital camera that it said "out of memory" because I haven't downloaded my pictures for so long. Needless to say, when I've had a spare moment to blog, I haven't had another spare moment to download pictures. Solution: no post.
Now that I've actually downloaded the images, here are some of my favorite pictures taken before summer slipped away from us.
I love that Macy isn't afraid to get in the water. Late in the afternoon, we were wrapping up our trip on the lake with one last turn for anyone who wanted to get in the water again. When Jer asked who was next, Macy gave her favorite line, "I do!" because she wanted to get back on the tube. She was excited to ride with Aunt Leslie. Check out those goggles! Vogue.
Macy only lasted about five minutes with the chalk 
If you don't know about Karl Malonic, see the side bar under 'looking for something' (at the bottom). Here's what he's up to this week:
p.s. Nolan now has another pretend relative. His name is "Uncle", not Uncle 'so-and-so', just Uncle. We'll see how long he'll be around. FYI - He's made a few appearances this week already. He and Karl Malonic seem to get along well.
Nolan and Macy found something to keep them busy during lunch, besides eating, that is. These are pics of their self-invented whistles from their mac-n-cheese noodles. You wouldn't know from Nolan's picture how much they had been laughing at their genious invention!
Later Nolan was asking me about a family friend, who has severe food allergies.
Nolan: Mom, why is Nathan allergic to eggs and nuts?
Me: Some people's bodies handle food differently than others. If they eat the things their bodies don't like, then they could get really sick and have to go to the hospital.
Nolan: Well, did you know that I'm allergic to beer and coffee? (Pause) It's okay though, because we don't drink those anyway.
