Yes, those are the BSer kids. And yes, those are lightsabers. Oh yes, they are swinging them in the house. But it looks so cool!
I never know from day to day what geek habits or traits my children will gain from me. Marcus taking to the lightsaber is no suprise, but I didn't know how Alya would handle it. The answer is: Quite well. They both make me so proud.
Actually, Alya has two Star Wars books that are in bedtime reading rotation. And both of them have a few Star Wars action figures, as well as having seen most of Empire Strikes Back and a few episodes of Clone Wars. So their education in the ways of the force continue quite well.
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As for the 4th of July, we were brave souls and took them both down to the lakefront to watch the fireworks go off on the third - which is Milwaukee's biggest show.
Not only were they well behaved, but they also really enjoyed the fireworks. The only downside was that the show was over an hour long, and the kids got bored after a certain point. Explosions are great, but even a Michael Bay movie knows that there needs some pacing.
But since these fireworks just didn't know when to quit - both kids laid down and took a small nap by the end of the show. Yes, that's right - Alya and Marcus slept through the 3rd of July firework finale. Amazing.
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On the 4th proper, we went to Sasha's Aunt Jan & Uncle Tom's house for their yearly picnic. Tons of fun for all, as they always throw a great party. Lots of family to catch up with and see how all the former little ones have grown over time.
Plus, with four dogs running around, it help in the continuing program to get Alya not quite so scared of dogs. Initially there was a lot of screaming as Cloe came up to say "Hello!" right off the bat. But by midday, Alya was pretty calm and by the end of the day, she didn't really seem frightened by them at all. More exposure is good.
Unfortunately, Marcus was not feeling so well. He was really under the weather all day long. And if you see in the picture above that Sasha is wet, well so is Marcus and that's all my fault.
On of the traditions of the 4th of July picnic is the water balloon toss. So, Sasha and I were throwing a small water balloon back and forth as the distance kept growing between all the contestants. Well the kids certainly didn't want to be left out, so Marcus was hanging onto the front of Sasha's legs.
When I made that last toss, I knew there would be trouble as I had accidentally put a bunch of spin on the balloon - which is a bad thing.
And my aim was true - which made it worse.
So when the water balloon arrived at it's final destination, it was in Sasha hands right in front of her chin. And when it burst, it went straight down on top of Marcus's head.
Yes, the scream from that boy's mouth was quite loud. But we couldn't help but laugh the scene. The poor guy.
Anyway, just a few pictures and memories to share from a very nice weekend.
Be seeing you,
Jon
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