Ingenuity

Christopher has discovered another useful role for his toy miner helmet -- a reading light to use in bed at night. I am thrilled to have him use his miner helmet in this way, as it keeps him reading and reading each night at bedtime. Clever....

Math Blocks

While I'm reading our homeschool literature, Christopher builds "creations" with our math blocks. He builds something new every day, and -- in case you're wondering -- he still listens to the story being read and can tell you everything about the material after I'm done reading. He's smart like that.

The Old Testament Tabernacle

A battleship

A battleship

The University of Tennessee football field

Should I Be Worried?

Found this on the kitchen counter last week... oh, my son, my son....

Unintentional...

Last night, Christopher, I mean Darth Vader, was telling me a long
list of "stuff" he wants.

Mommy: Wow, you need a job!

Darth Vader: Why?

Mommy: To buy all the stuff you want.

Darth Vader: I have a job... YOU!

Mommy laughs.

Darth Vader: Why are you laughing? That wasn't supposed to be funny.

Growing Up

Christopher just got glasses! Isn't he handsome?

In the Doghouse

Not happy with Miss Lexi! After peacefully living here for two years, last week she suddenly decided to become impatient with not being let back in the house quickly enough after going outside to use the bathroom. I heard some loud scraping noises, and by the time I got to the kitchen, this is what I found....

Midnight Spy

Christopher's most recent disguise... his midnight spying outfit... beware....

Take a GFS baseball cap and add two miniature flashlights,
secured with duct tape...

Add some laser-lit nighttime goggles, and Voila!
You have an amazing nighttime spy outfit. 

This well-lit hat could be useful in a number of everyday situations!

The whole get-up... by the way, Christopher has
requested some black duct tape. I see his point.

Cardboard Warfare

Christopher has been watching the old t.v. show "Rat Patrol" lately, and his creative juices have been flowing as a result. Guns and grenades... more cardboard and more duct tape!

Hand grenade

Pulling the pin!

The pocket clip

Cute little soldier with a grenade in his pocket....

His gun

With removable gun cartridge

Some sort of tank

Rotating machine gun...

Christopher demonstrating the machine gun

Grenades and other ammo

 

"Army Jeep" with gun rack

Driving the General Lee

Christopher loves the General Lee, the 1969 Dodge Charger driven fast and furiously by the Duke boys in The Dukes of Hazzard. Just for fun, he recently built his own General Lee simulator in our garage....

The front seats, with a view of the steering wheel and C.B. radio

The steering wheel (anchored by a CARS gardening mat), complete with
a genuine "01" General Lee "Dixie" horn from Cooter's Place in Gatlinburg! 

Steering that wild car....

A close-up of Christopher's C.B. radio

"Breaker One, Breaker One...."

Growing Boy

Christopher had his 8-year-old doctor well-check last week, just after his birthday, and he's a very healthy little boy. His first visit to this doctor's office was eight years ago, when he was just a few days old and would fit in the crook of my arm. And now look at him!

He's in the 93rd percentile for height. If he continues to follow the same growth curve he's been on for the last several years, he'll be 6'1" or 6'2" in the end! Amazing!

Graduation

We've been seeing lots of high school graduations and elementary school graduations and kindergarten graduations lately... and we've had a graduation of our own!

Sarabeth now meets all the State of Michigan requirements for using the lap and shoulder belt in a vehicle:

• She is 4 feet, 10 inches tall (the state requirement is 4 feet, 9 inches)
• She is able to wear the lap belt low across her upper thighs
• She is able to wear the shoulder belt across her collar bone (not touching her neck or off the shoulder)
• She is able to sit with her bottom scooted all the way back against the seat back and have her knees bent at the edge of the vehicle seat

Good-bye booster seat! Congratulations, Sarabeth!

Expedition Workshop Adventures

Today Christopher designed a workshop for himself out in the garage, and one of his first projects has been digging into the "Expedition" archaeology kit he received from his Aunt Aya in Tennessee.

His creativity is adorable... although I did notice he had commandeered my tape and kitchen shears for his own personal use.

Vintage 70s

Sarabeth has always loved looking at my old ballet costumes from the 1970s, and for many years it was hard to imagine that she would ever grow big enough to wear them herself. Well, the time has come. She is in the 4th grade now, and here she is, wearing my ballet recital costume from when I was in 4th grade. Can't quite decide how I feel about this....