Hot dogs and broccoli

Hello from Lawrence, and happy unofficial beginning of summer to you all. We watch in anticipation while the city prepares to open the big community swimming pool just two blocks from our house. Until now, the boys have only known it as "the doggie bath," because they saw it on the last day of the season, when the city allowed pet owners to bring their dogs for a swim.



April's cold spell is a distant memory, and we've enjoyed some wonderful outdoor activities this month. The above picture shows the Kras Connection: Conner and Carson with their buddies Ben and Chris. We had a wonderful early evening with the Parrack family this month. It is consistently amazing to think that these four guys were in a Siberian orphanage together not so long ago. We look forward to many Kras Connections in the years to come.

It's true. They seem to enjoy the box more than the gift held within. Especially when the box is big enough to play house in. This box served for a couple weeks as the primary source of front yard entertainment. To be fair, there was no gift held within this box. A neighbor was having furnature delivered, and offered Conner and Carson the empty box. Very thankful boys. We benefit from a wonderful neighborhood, which has embraced these little guys and made walks around the block a different adventure every time.

Who says our house is too small for big toys? (Mummy and Daddy do, actually.) But here you see the boys showing their delight with a big fire truck puzzle that Consty gave them. We have a fire station a few blocks from us, so the boys hear the sirens regularly and always perk up in hopes they might see a truck. Earlier this month, the city sponsored a big truck day, where families were allowed to climb into fire trucks, police cars, dump trucks, tractors, trash trucks, etc. The boys were in absolute heaven.

Yep, we've discovered stickers. When the boys do something especially good, they get to add a sticker to their sticker book. The grinny guy pictured above had a very big day not long ago, when he graduated to big boy pants and a big boy bed. We still have to diligently watch the clock and encourage him to "pee pee like Papa" every 30 to 60 minutes. (too much information?) But he has had minimal accidents. The big boy bed...not so good. His older brother has spoiled us by showing no interest in leaving his bed once he's in it. Carson likes leaving his quite a bit. The day he chose to play with the bedroom fan during naptime was the day the big boy bed went bye bye and he's back in the crib for now.

Here's the guy that never leaves his bed, always tells us when he needs to go to the potty, and tattles on his brother when rules are broken. That's not to say he is 100% angel. Conner, having spent almost 3 years in the orphanage, does not seem to yet be completely comfortable in his new environment. He is a sweet, smart little dude. But he also has an exceptional memory and lots of nervous tendencies. We have learned some methods to help him understand he's here to stay, and that he can feel safe with us. We hope that, as we near our one year anniversary, he will continue to gain confidence in us and become less nervous.

Wow, we've made it all the way to the last picture and still haven't explained the title of this entry! Above, you see the boys having their morning milk and holding hands. That'll melt your heart. Mealtimes continue to be very pleasant, and we keep thinking that will change abruptly one day. Ok, we haven't totally transitioned away from feeding them...so that contributes a great deal to the pleasantness. But they do get to feed themselves frequently and seem to be perfectly happy eating whatever we offer. To Daddy's amazement, last week we had to say something to the boys that might never have been said in the history of parenthood:

"Boys, you have to eat more hot dog before you can have another piece of broccoli."