Callahan's Journal

Callahan ate ground beef, whole wheat elbow noodles, bite of peas/carrots, and ate applesauce. Well the night was short and the morning was shorter - ha - so the Blog may be shorter. To fill a little space I took a picture of their lunch plate so you can see the amount of food I serve. Let's just say my servings far exceed the Federal Food Program guidelines!! Dang, those servings are so small. Anyhow we don't often talk about the food served here, so here's a picture of the Lunch today and all the kids get the same amount. So if I report they eat  all  of a serving you can know they are eating a lot of food!! :) So I have a silly routine during Daycare when I have to use the Bathroom. I always say, "Ok kids I'm going to the bathroom and Miles is in charge." Or whoever I choose for that day!! This morning Cal was the only one here and I told him I was going to the bathroom and he asked, "Who's in charge!?" LOL. I told him it was his turn.  This n...

Callahan ate two servings of French toast and two servings of strawberries for breakfast. For lunch he ate a large serving of Hearty Paleo Stew with meat, cauliflower, broccoli, sweet potatoes, green beans, carrots, and tomatoes. He ate saltines and pineapple/mango.   Svea had Cal involved in her make-believe play and she told Cal to "go get Grandfather." So Callahan walked over to Miles - who was not involved in their play and was totally baffled by this remark - "Svea needs you Grandfather." LOL. Dang that was funny.  This first picture is leftover from yesterday afternoon and all three kids are under the cozy corner rug; even though you can only see Cal's feet! :) Second picture: This is what Cal and Miles would prefer to do with the blocks; carry them to the top of legos table and toss them off or tip them over. So we (me - with the boys supplying the blocks) built a nice structure for them to play in. Ha. We went for a walk this morning and met "Rosie...

Callahan ate bites of waffle and ate grapes for breakfast. For lunch he ate chicken, two servings of whole wheat tortilla, ate two servings of corn, and ate apple bites.  First picture: Svea was working on coloring a coffee filter and then we sprayed water on it to watch the colors run. The boys wanted to join her so they were doing Art 30 minutes before breakfast. Their pieces all came out very pretty. Avilene started it yesterday afternoon and her masterpiece is on the table although I didn't intentionally put it into the picture!! Ha.  Next picture; Cal and Miles were pushing the chair together around and around. Cal is just enough bigger that Miles has to go pretty fast to keep up, but at least they were going in the same direction! Earlier they were going in opposite directions!! Silly boys!! Following picture: Ok, Cal is NOT in this picture, but Svea was discussing their conflict over the scooter at soccer practice! Look at her face! :) She said, "Cal why were you doing ...

Callahan ate most of kix cereal and ate fruit cocktail for breakfast. For lunch he ate two servings of ground turkey, ate whole wheat hamburger bun, tomatoes, and two servings of cherries. Svea sharing random information at breakfast: "I like unicorns, eagles, and bluebirds." Haha. "Well thank you. Does anyone else feel like sharing things they like?" :) Cal quotes from this morning:  "Gary, I want to play John Denver music while I snuggle with you." I like how you think Cal!! :) Alexa, You heard the boy! Play it!! :) On a walk this morning Cal said, "Gary, look at that Jeep." "How did you know it was a Jeep?" Cal said, "Just like Tu Tu." However, it was NOT white so he was recognizing the shape and style. Good observation Cal. It was the same in shape and style. We did a toy, book, and puzzle exchange this weekend and just like I've said every two weeks for years now, "the kids stayed busy all morning." Haha. (T...

Callahan ate two servings of whole wheat toast and ate mangoes for breakfast. For lunch he ate ground beef with marinara sauce on whole wheat spaghetti noodles, ate riced cauliflower, and fruit salad. Cal was pointing at the smoke alarm and said, "Can we do fireworks!?! Can we do fireworks!?! I want to do it! I want to do it!" Haha. Yes we can do a fire drill. :) And we did. Yesterday Svea was laying face down on the slide outside and bring to belly-crawl up the slide. And of course that was not working. She finally said, "It's NOT no use!" (There's the ole' double negative!) That really made me laugh; it was so cute. Callahan was already on the climber and he reached down and was able to assist in pulling her up. Thanks Cal!! Svea was trying to coax Cal into wearing a tutu and dancing with her. (He did yesterday, but wasn't really interested today!) Svea said, "Cal!! If you don't wear this tutu you can NOT get up on stage!!" Then she...

Callahan ate blueberry bagel and three servings of grapes for breakfast. For lunch he ate shrimp, brown rice smothered in blackberry juice, ate broccoli, and blackberries. The big girls may be gone, but the tradition continues; smother the rice with berry juice. :) Here's the story behind the first picture. And it's what they've been doing every day for over a week. Cal said, "How bout we build a cave!?!" Which means; we the boys lay here and you Svea build it!! Haha. And that's the way she wants it!! If they try to help she instructs them to "get back in the cave!" Haha. Second picture is more of the same with a bit of a twist. She is now going to build "Grandma's House" and that is always by the block cabinet. (The "cave" is always in the cozy corner.) However, before she can build Grandma's House they have to destroy the cave and the Boys are all over that. Apparently she knows they're good at that!! Haha. I like th...

Callahan ate bran cereal and several raisins for breakfast. For lunch he ate half of his chicken, half of his whole wheat pita bread, ate cucumbers, and two servings of pears. I've mentioned several times about Svea the Queen being the boss and Cal frequently does defer to her. However not always and here's an example. Cal was building with the blocks and told Svea it was a "vacuum." Svea said, "Well it looks like a bed." Cal said, "No it's a vacuum." "Looks like a bed." "No it's a vacuum." When it comes to vacuum cleaners he's an expert and he'll back down to no one. Haha.  I have a couple notes and a picture left over from Friday afternoon.  Svea said, "Cal! Do you wanna wrestle? I'll be gentle with you." LOL. I roared! Svea was adorned with several purses and looking at herself in the mirror; and obviously impressed too! She said, "Hey Cal, I'm the fanciest person in the world." So ...

Callahan ate most of cream of wheat cereal and ate dried plums for breakfast. For lunch he ate some chicken, some brown rice, most of his carrots, and ate some pineapple.  Cal and Svea were at the window waiting to wave at Momma Maddy and Cal just randomly said, "My Mom is not mad!" LOL! Well that's good news for all of us. :)  First picture: If you look closely you can see Svea is setting up the blocks in domino style like she has watched the big girls do in the past. (And it worked perfectly when Svea pushed them over!!) Miles was playing it safe and staying behind her!! Good idea Miles! You can see Cal in the distance and he would occasionally help or hinder. Svea would yell, "Cal! Cal! Not like that!" The kids wanted to go the open field beside Meadow Hill School again - which is great because it's just around the corner!! There isn't any play equipment there, but they still like the benches, running in the open space, and the rocks!! Svea and Cal li...

Callahan ate two servings of waffle and two servings of Mango/Strawberry for breakfast. For lunch he ate three servings of ground turkey, ate whole wheat tortillas, half of his sweet potatoes, and ate cherries. I have a stool for the kids to wash before meals at the kitchen sink. So I guide Miles' and Cal's hands and when I feel resistance I tell them to put their hands under the water, or soap, and then sometimes I say, "Don't fight me." Cal of course remembers all of that and he sounded so proud at Lunch as he washed he said, "I didn't even fight you!" Haha. Thank you. I appreciate that!! I was showing Cal a video of my Grandson Gideon running across the lawn. (Buck naked of course- rednecks! Ha - they live in a rural setting.) They've had LOTS of rain in Louisiana, the ground is saturated, and water standing on the lawn; and it was raining in the video. Gideon fell face-first and it was pretty funny. Callahan asked, "Why do they have the ...

Callahan ate two servings of French toast and two servings of strawberries - mixed together - for breakfast. For lunch he ate hamburger stew with meat, green beans, tomatoes, carrots, and potatoes. He ate whole wheat dinner roll and two servings of fruit cocktail. Washing up for breakfast Cal said, "Gary you did a good job helping me wash." Well thank you for your vote of confidence. :) This first picture is left over from yesterday afternoon and the boys had held hands a couple of times in the house. I wasn't able to get a picture, but then they did it again outside coming up the sidewalk. Cal said, "Miles, you're my friend." So sweet. However don't make the mistake of thinking this will result in less conflict!! I've never seen that happen yet and I've witnessed lots of hugs and handholding over the years. Hahaha. I think I'm a realist, not cynical. I do believe it's sincere in the moment. :) I'd take a dollar for every time this mo...

Callahan ate two servings of cinnamon/raisin English muffin and two servings of grapes for breakfast. For lunch he ate pulled pork, whole wheat toast, beets, and applesauce. Svea was getting frustrated with Cal and Miles (primarily Cal) at the Lunch table because they were making goofy sounds and NOT listening enough to what Svea had to say. She said, "Gary!! I keep asking Cal and Miles a question, but they keep bothering my question." It was hard not to laugh at that!! Svea accused me of this first a few days ago and now Cal said it too!! When they can't find one of the food toys they say, "Gary did you throw one of these cookies away!?!" (Very accusatory attitude!! Hahaha) No, I didn't throw any of our goofy food toys away. You've got them scattered all over the place!! You'll have to search!! Ha. This morning Cal found a cookie and acted surprised: "Gary! You didn't throw the cookie away!" Yes! Big surprise there Cal!! Haha. First pi...

Callahan ate two servings of corn chex cereal and ate peaches for breakfast. For lunch he ate ground beef, whole wheat hamburger bun, no tomato, and ate mandarin oranges.   First picture: We did a book, puzzle, and toy exchange this weekend and as usual the kids were very engaged and busy. Cal was here for several minutes by himself, but I don't think he noticed. Second picture; Lauralea had a morning appointment and parked in front. Cal ran to greet her when she returned. With his rabbit ears riding low. Haha. At least he's consistent; that's how he always wears them!!  Next picture: Svea had put on these bracelets and Cal was apparently impressed; "You're SO strong." Haha. (I don't think that's the "look" she was going for!) Following picture: Svea built a "cave" again for all of them to play in. And she was real sweet to make sure she invited Miles too! "Miles, you can come in." :) Next picture: We were outside for awhi...