Thanksgiving with Mer & Pop

This year we celebrated Thanksgiving with Mer and Pop in Louisiana. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there. We were able to share in all of the blessings of 2009 with our family and friends.

We also were able to take K to his first LSU football game (thanks to Aunt Trish and Uncle Chuck). At first he was super excited. This was followed by his usual "taking it all in" mode - complete with binoculars provided by Uncle Chuck. In the end, he was smiling and annoyed with the crazy Arkansas fans in front of us. It was an interesting game...over time and a win for the Tigers.

As my mom now says, we thought K might go to LSU, but this seals the deal. A real tiger, a beautiful campus, crazy fans, and a win...what more could you ask for?

Report Card Time for the Wilhelmi Boys

A couple of weeks ago the big boys received their first report cards of the year. I was laying on the praise for K and J as we headed to art class when Mighty let me know his concerns. Looking in the rear view mirror, I could tell that something was bothering him. He said, "Mommy...where is my report card?" I quickly explained that 2 year old children do not go to school, and therefore, do not receive a report card. He wouldn't accept that as an answer (even though I tried to praise him equally). His reply came immediately..."I NEED one."

I called Nanny to let her know that we might "need" a report card. She promised to deliver by the time we got home. I let Mighty know that he would be getting a report card on that very day. He said with a giant smile, "When I get it, I'm gonna scream like a girl!"

A Little Information Goes a Long Way

You never know what you might find in the Thursday folder each week. Sometimes we find assignments completed without much effort. Sometimes we find keepsakes. Recently, I found a treasure. It could have been easily discarded as it was written on the back of a seemingly unimportant comprehension worksheet about cowboys.

K had a connection to cowboys and decided to write about it on the back of the page. Here is what I found.



It reads:
I want to go to my uncle's ranch. His ranch is cross-W R, that stands for White Ranch. He has his own website on the internet. He has videos of himself and pictures of himself. Here is what you type in: Bill White rancher - search.

We all know he doesn't have his own website and even if he did, it wouldn't have pictures or videos of himself. He is a hard working, humble man. K idolizes him (as do other little guys at our house, some even call him "Hat.") Uncle Bill has been featured in quite a few news stories following the recent hurricanes. He does seem to have an online presence, even though he didn't ask for it.

In this case, a little information does seem to go a long way. A cute way, but not necessarily accurate.

Hallowen

We enjoyed Halloween with friends and family. We began the night with a street party. Our neighbors gathered for some good food, conversation, and costume watching. As the day turned into evening, everyone began the neighborhood walk. We figured out quickly that we had two distinct groups - the fast group and the slow group. Mighty and I became the slow group with our friends, Emily and Grace. Daddy and Aunt Brooke were the fast group with several older boys (and a stroller). Kind of like the story of the tortoise and hare, the slow group won in the end. We convinced them to skip quite a few houses so we could win the race and get home first.

The Boys

Grim Reaper - broken costume after about 5 minutes with the neighborhood boys

G.I. Joe

Some people call this the UPS man, others call it the "PS" man...we had many comments from strangers about "what Brown can do for you."

The yearly pumpkin carving contest...some things never change. The contest always involves only one man against himself and the clock.

J set up a movie screen for the kiddos in the backyard for after trick-or-treating. Carter was the last man standing. We'll have to remember this trick for next year!

Fall Festival 2009

The school Fall Festival is always fun and somewhat overwhelming. This year was a little different because Mighty was old enough to participate and to walk on his own two feet. A stroller in that place is a nightmare! It is the first year in the last seven years that we haven't had to worry about a baby during the festivities.



J participated in the hair painting. You can also get a good view of Mighty's black eye in this one. He had a small potty training incident...fell off the toilet and hit his face on the side of the bath tub. Ouch!


K ready for battle.


The battle...

One man down. I think Irecognize those tennis shoes.

Seussical the Musical

K's second grade musical had a Dr. Seuss theme. He doesn't ever overperform or even perform at these events. He is rather shy when it comes to things like this. At home he will sing in very animated ways with an audience of 5. School is completely different. We are lucky if we can see a few hand movements to accompany the songs. It was fun to watch. At least for most of us...

Thomas and Mighty

In October, Mighty and I went to Burnet to see Thomas the Train. The weather did not cooperate and I wasn't really sure it was going to be a big deal for him. In fact the whole drive to Burnet, I was almost laughing to myself about the comedy of errors this day was probably going to be. Mighty occasionally plays with the many trains we have at home, but he isn't really a Thomas fanatic. I thought he would be most excited about getting to ride a real steam train. Last year, we both missed the Polar Express train ride due to the yucky stomach virus we were passing around our house. Back to the story...

He LOVED it and discovered a new found love of Duplo Legos in the process. We visited the gift store before we left. He still wasn't really sold on Thomas, but he chose a small green train out of a crazy assortment of possibilities. It was fate. He was able to hand pick the train with the important responsibility of removing trash - Whiff. He is still my little garbage man!

I had to bribe him to leave the Legos and head for home. I promised a stop at Target to pick up a few Legos for home, as his brothers' Legos are too small and the baby Mega Blocks are apparently too big. Mighty's day got about ten million times better (if that was even possible). Target had a Duplo Lego Garbage Truck. What a day! He went on and on about what a wonderful day it had been and it was only lunch time. He rode the rest of the way home with his Boppy, Whiff, and his new garbage truck.

It was a GREAT day for both of us!

TRF 2009

At the beginning of October, we plan on a trip to Winnie for the Texas Rice Festival. This year was a little unusual. The rain got the best of the TRF, but it didn't get the best of us. We were able to spend some quality time with our family. The boys always enjoy their "cousin time!"



The Meaux and The Wilhelmi Boys (minus Mighty)



Playing Games in the Carnival Area

Nan, Gran, and BB brought our guys to the festival on Friday morning. J and I arrived later that night. Here BB, Gran, and Mighty are taking a break from the heat and festivities.

The TRF is always about seeing old friends.

K decided to ride the scariest ride in the park. I wasn't too sure he would survive, as he doesn't usually enjoy things like this. I almost couldn't watch, but...

He made it! I think his face tells the best story of all!

San Antonio Zoo

In September we made a trip to the San Antonio zoo with our cousins. We hadn't been there in about 3 years. In spite of the fact that it was extremely hot, we had a great time. The boys enjoyed seeing the animals and riding the train.

Mighty, J, and K on a Komodo Dragon

We took a cousin picture in front of the hippo viewing window.

Mighty and Hollis enjoying their thumbs at the zoo...

Friends Forever!

1st Art Show

J had his first Art Show in August. We know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are biased when it comes to his artwork, but we think he's doing quite well. We only intended for his art lessons to last for the summer, but it was evident that he was in this for the long haul.

After dropping him off for class one day, I called Jeremy to say I had experienced a rare moment...the kind you do not have very often as a parent. The moment when you absolutely know that what you've done is right. I know that art is right for this little guy. He beams the entire way to his lesson and is crushed when his time is over.

This is one parenting decision we will never have to question.

Mighty isms

Mighty has come up with some really great phrases and comments that we just have to share.

• When something exciting or shocking is happening, he says..."Hold my cow!" Obviously this one is supposed to be "Holy cow!"




• One evening as we were saying prayers, he added an interesting twist to the Hail Mary. Instead of saying, "Blessed art thou amongst women," he said, "I really want to go swimming."




• He loves telling "secrets" these days. He doesn't really know what secrets are, but he knows it's a good trick to con his mom. Every night when I'm tucking him in bed, he asks me to lay with him for a few minutes so we can tell secrets. How could I refuse?



• Today he was playing with a friend at K's soccer game. He was sharing all of the functions of his new Lego trash truck when I heard him say, "I have a hundred dollar bill at home." For the record, he doesn't. I think he must have stolen the idea from K's Christmas list.

Where in the World is the Wilhelmi Family?

We've been everywhere, doing everything. We had a wonderful end to our summer, but you probably don't know it. I've been so busy that I didn't have time to post any of our exciting news. I still don't really have a second to lose, but I miss sharing our funny stories. A few pictures will have to suffice for the time lapse.



We reintroduced ourselves to the local water park toward the end of the summer. Next summer should be fun.



Our boys at Nan and Gran's house while mom and dad were at CLH Alumni Camp

A Mighty Moo sandwich

This is our traditional first day of school picture. I think K is supposed to be showing 1st day of 2nd grade, and I think J is a little confused (should be 1st day of kindergarten...a tricky one for the fingers).

Father's Day

We had the pleasure of delivering a group Father's Day gift to Pop this year, and we enjoyed every minute of it. We all went in on a gift that would be near and dear to his heart - a forever brick at CLH.



Mighty petting a kitten at the zoo.

Mer with K and J at the zoo.

Pop and J fishing in the lower lake.

Mer and Mighty were the only ones to catch a fish. He wasn't quite sure what to think of it.

Our Engineer

K is constantly building and revising things for his own amusement - at school, at home, and in his own mind. Many of his dreams do not come to fruition because we don't have the correct tools to make it happen or because he doesn't have the patience to explain to us what might be needed or required (literally what our role in his latest project might be). He is ever the perfectionist.

This is his latest project. The best part of witnessing it was that when he wasn't immediately successful, he thought about giving up but didn't.


This was the revised plan after a couple of attempts.



He let his friend take the maiden voyage.

A successful 1 man boat. Not good enough...can it hold 2 men?

Yes, but not for long. A few seconds later they were sinking.