The Truth About Boys


My boys eat fish sticks or chicken nuggets at least four nights a week. They pick their noses and were born with the innate sense that farts are hilarious. The house is always cluttered, there are always crumbs in the seats of the car and sticky fingerprints on the windows. Sometimes they like to read books; most of the time books make good frisbees or weapons. Every toy in the house is missing at least one peice, making your brother cry is good entertainment and timeout is usually worth whatever you did to get there. Welcome to the Chretien house. Mothers have this constant voice in their head telling them that they could do better, their house could be cleaner, their waist smaller, and their kids more polite. I fall into this trap almost daily, and I am slowly learning that my success not measured by these standards. I may not be the perfect mom, but I know that my boys are happy. They know that they are loved, and they love each other. All day long they will fight over the same toy, the same book, the same spot on the couch. But, when evening comes, and they have sleepy eyes, jammied feet, and sweet smelling hair damp from bathtime, I know that we must be doing something right. This blog is dedicated to two sweet boys learning, playing, growing, and finding their place in the world, and to their mommy learning how to guide them.



Sunday, August 12, 2012

Simple things

As was the theme this summer, we recently had a super hot day where we were all bored to death in a house where the A/C just couldn't keep up, and we needed to get out before we drove each other nuts.  I've been running out of ideas that are cheap or free, fun, and most of all, cool!  It started out as a quick trip to the pharmacy, and I was thinking of heading to the library (again).  Aiden was babbling in the back seat about seeing ducks at a recent preschool field trip, and it dawned on me that we haven't gone to feed the ducks at the Bass Pro pond once this year!  So, we stopped for sandwiches and hauled our picnic to Waterfall Park behind Bass Pro Shop.  One of the best things about this park is that there are a lot of trees and shade, which helped keep us bearably cool on this sweltering day.  We ate our lunch, and made sure to save most of the bread for the ducks.  I also had a box of crackers stashed in the van that proved very convenient.  After lunch, we spend a good 45 minutes feeding the ducks and watching them swim and "water ski" as they landed in the water.  Cole was so cute, as we walked back to the park he called behind him, "bye-bye, duckies!  I hope your bellies are all full now!"  The boys played in the park for a bit, but by that time it was nearing 100 degrees, and playing in the park was too hot to be fun.  I thought about going home, but decided to take advantage of the free air conditioner at Bass Pro, plus killing some more time out of the house was appealing.  We headed in and the boys ran around checking out the rivers and ponds, and gazing at the huge tank of fish.  We made our way upstairs where we cooled off with some bottled water and rock candy.  The boys sat in big wicker rockers in front of floor to ceiling panoramic windows and were strangely quiet as they took in the scenery.  It was so sweet, and really made me anxious to take them camping!  They reminded me of little old men, rocking in their rockers in front of a lake, playing checkers, and talking quietly together.  For being free fun, we had such a sweet day.





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2 comments:

  1. JulieAugust 12, 2012 at 11:43 PM

    I love Bass Pro shop! The fudge store is dangerous! Sounds like a great day for the boys :)

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  2. SueAugust 12, 2012 at 11:58 PM

    Tricia your writing is so good and between that and the pictures you make me cry every time. Keep blogging.

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