More Lego-ness

You finally got out the Minecraft Lego set you received from Max & his family, from 2 birthday parties ago - what can I say, everything in its own time. :)

I helped you minimally, including just providing a container for the parts, and helping you put some final bits together.

You worked steadily and pretty intently for quite a few hours.

It was good to see you set your mind to something and keep at it till you were done.

The animal enclosure.

Skelly

Steve

The finished product and the proud Master Builder.

We have a farm area, watched over by Skelly, 

and the animal enclosure with Steve with his farm equipment and treasure chest.

Let's take a closer look at those animals now.

And the mini waterfall irrigation thingy,

Our harvest of wheat, sugar cane and carrots,

a peek into the treasure chest,

and one last look at the two best friends.

Lego Adventures

It all started with the Lego Challenge ( yeah, I haven't posted that week as yet ), but you've rediscovered the fascination with legos.  Just like I've rediscovered my camera!

So this ( and the next post ), will be highlighting stuff you've done in the last few days :)

You made a Police Station and a bunch of guys watching a movie projected onto a Big Screen TV. Just go with it for now.

Just a bunch of guys, hanging out.

I like this dude and the contraptions on his hands.

I like it so much, here he is from another angle.

And let's focus on these guns while we're at it.
And speaking of focus, let's shift ours to that blurry guy in the background.

This one with the pageboy haircut, just chillin' in his er, fire truck?

Or his be-helmeted friend who seems to to be in need of some sprucing up.

And then, there is THIS guy.  I LOVE him! He is the projector operator and seems pretty enthusiastic about his job. You had asked for help with the projector, and so yeah, that's my doing, but you get the credit for choosing which pieces to use.

These two guys are just enjoying the flick.

Just look at the smiles on their faces. 

And just what are they watching?

Star Wars, the Force Awakens.

And then there's THIS guy, who's recording the whole thing for posterity. :)

and from the best vantage point he can find.

Here's a couple of other projects you attempted - An island ( a work in progress )

and a statue/sculpture!

Good Grief, are we to THAT stage already??

In conjuction with you showering independently, there may have been another reason behind this milestone.

A few weeks ago, I started getting a whiff of "adult odor" around you, but didn't think much of it at first.  Daddy didn't think he smelt anything,* but I was pretty sure there were some smells wafting off of you.

Then, I started smelling it more and more, and decided that it needed some seeing to.

So, came the "let me sniff you all over and see what's going on" test.

What can I say but, "GOOD LORD!"

On the one hand, I was appalled, but on the other hand, I was worried.  WHY DOES MY 8 YEAR OLD HAVE UNDERARM ODORS LIKE A GROWN UP???

I don't recall having such odoriferousness growing up, ( although I did have stinky sweaty feet from being in covered school shoes all day long, but I blame that on living in a hot, humid, tropical country. )

You are an active child, but it's not like you're running miles or shooting hoops for hours on end!

So, as anyone would in these circumstances, I GOOGLED!

I was quite relieved to find out that around 8 years old is when all this funkiness might begin.

I also found out that East Asians like myself, are waaaaaaaay ( like 80% or so ) less prone to the stinky armpit scourge than say, our Western counterparts. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but you have the "wet earwax" thingy as well, like a Western person would, instead of the dry variety like I do. And while we're at it, you certainly did not get your amazing hair from me either. Daddy says let's hope you don't get the genetic predisposition for short sightedness from my side of the family.

I AM all broken up inside that my little boy is maturing sooner than I am willing to let go of his little-hood,**

but at the same time I'm a little anxious about all the explaining I'd have to do once "the time" comes.

Nevertheless, you were good natured enough about it, and so we are being conscientious about showering and changing our clothes every day, and so far, it has made a big difference.

HURRAY!!!!

*smelt vs smelled

*and yes, I have already boxed away your old picture books with a very heavy heart*

Grade 2 Week 49 ( July 23th - 29th )

We have started on the "The Creature from My Closet" series, and so far you are enjoying the books.

You loves silliness, and there's plenty of that at the library :)

We continue to explore other cultures and countries,

and also some old faithfuls.

Since you love to read anyway, we filled out the Summer Reading Club log in the Summer edition of HEB's Buddy Magazine, and sent it in.  You were thrilled when less than 2 weeks later, a package came in the mail, addressed to YOU!  You received a certificate and a nifty T-Shirt, which you put on right away :)

Here's an update on the herbs that we planted.  They're starting to peek out of the soil,

and in just another day or so, they peeked out even more!

We read in just about any position we desire,

revel in smoothie mustaches,

and love our Teddy Soft Bakes!

Grade 2 Week 48 ( July 16th - 22nd )

I am grateful to live in a town where library services are readily available and free for residents.  An added bonus are the various amenities, including one which we use ALL the time, the Interlibrary Loan system. Now THAT is a blessing.

We would not have been able to complete the various series of books that the little boy enjoys. 

One would think that with all the time that we have spent at the library, and the amount of children's books that we have borrowed over time, that we could never find anything else new or interesting, but it's as if the library has a bottomless abyss of books.

I have been trying to include more and more stories from a wide variety of nations and cultures into our reading, and am thankful that they keep your attention well.

You still love your little tent that you have had for ages, and could fit into so nicely when you were little.
Fitting into it isn't quite as simple as before, seeing how you are quickly catching up to MY size, but where there is a will, there is a way.

We haven't been doing school so intensely during the summer, but we still get some work done, seeing how we are doing #YearRoundSchool

You still love to doodle in your work, sometimes before you are done with the actual work.  It's cute and imaginative, and so I allow you to do it, while keeping an eye to make sure you actually do more work than doodling.

You continue to fill up  your Crazy Comix book,

and introduce the readers to more and more ways to draw and doodle.

Here you are, sketching in one of your sketch pads.  Notice the wet hair? You have started to shower by yourself for a few weeks now.  You expressed interest in showering by yourself, and at first I stayed outside the shower stall to keep an eye, give encouragement and pointers, and slowly transitioning to you doing everything by yourself.  Now, I still stay close by, but you are in there by yourself from start till finish.

We were at the library the other day, when they were decorating little pots to plant herb seeds in.  We took several home with us as we had arrived late, to do when we got home. There was Parsley, Basil, Cilantro and Dill seeds.

We both decorated 2 cups each,


and you transfered the soil we had brought back with us, into the cups, as well as scattered the seeds into the cups and covering the seeds with soil carefully.


I try to encourage and teach and mold you to be as sweet and good a person as I can, but many times, it seems like YOU are the one teaching me patience and kindness and forgiveness.

Stay sweet and we love you muchly, little boy.