"Just don't think about it dad.."

I walked into the kitchen a few moments ago to find my youngest drawing and coloring. It's one of his favorite things to do.

I asked him what he was doing and, after a long pause, got "the look" and he said, "it's a surprise."

My response was a question. "Oh, is it a surprise for me on Fathers' Day?"

Longer pause...

[sigh] "Dad, just don't think about it." [long pause and sigh] "Don't think about if it might be for you or not and then it won't bother you."

After I recovered from my laughter I left him alone.

Eventually he came in and offered me this as a gift.

Sandals

Ian has rediscovered sandals lately.

He's a true California boy in that he HATES to wear socks...or shoes, for that matter.

Kiley pulled new sandals out for him yesterday and his eyes got big. "You mean I don't have to wear socks with these?! sweet!"

So he wore his sandals to church on Sunday.

This morning (Monday), he donned the sandals again and announced, "Mom, someone told me at church that my sandals are just like God's sandals!"

Who knew?! 

Sandals can make me more like God...

Meta...what?

I walked downstairs on Saturday night to catch the tail end of a brother-on-brother argument.

I hear B look at his younger brother and say, "I'm going to kill you if you do that again..."

Then, he spots me coming down the stairs and he adds, in a louder voice to make sure I can hear...

"I'm speaking metaphorically of course..."

Guess he's learning SOMETHING at school...

2 Things Dad

Ian was waiting in bed for me this morning, much later than he should have been. When I went to tell him to hurry up he said, "Dad, I've been waiting to tell you something."

"What was it you wanted to tell me?"

"Two things you need to know dad."

"Really?"

"Yes, the first things is 'everyday you need to treat me like a king, and the second is everyday you need to have my clothes laid out and ready when I wake up."

I think there's some reality coming his way soon...

What's that noise?

So, after Brendon and I came home from our recent Sutter Fort Adventure we crashed, or at least I did.

He sat and read. I turned the TV on for some background noise and promptly fell asleep.

I found out later that when Kiley walked into the room Brendon asked, "Why does dad make that weird noise when he sleeps?"

She replied, "Dad snores."

"That's really annoying..."

"I know, tell me about it."

My family loves me... I think.

Connecting in 1846

Brendon and I had an incredible 24 hours this week (actually it was closer to 28 hours).

As mentioned in the previous post, his class was part of the ELP (Enviromental Living Program) this week.

I arrived at the Fort bright and early on Tuesday morning in full 1846 regalia. I was dressed as a Norwegian Immigrant (I figured it wasn't much of a stretch) thanks to my wife's creativity in sewing and finding a costume. Once there, the parents prepared the Fort for the arrival of the "wagon train" from across the country. 

We had spent a day training with the docents earlier in the year. There were "teams" of parents who learned specific trades that were common to the era. The teams positioned themselves around the Fort in various stations that would have been common back in the day. Here's an incomplete list of our stations: Blacksmith, grain mill, carpentry, rope-making, bakery, butter-making, trade store, fur-trading/trapping, corn-husk doll making, and more.

I was partnered with two other parents to teach rope-making. We crammed a bunch of rope-making facts in our heads and quickly learned the art... and it is indeed an art. Did you know that Columbus carried over 15 miles of rope on his ship alone? But I digress...

The kids soon arrived at the front gate in covered wagons. We poured out the gate to use, what the fort manager described to the kids, as "magic boxes" that doing something called "taking a picture."

Once the formal welcome was over, the kids spent the next 7 hours going from station to station, learning life at the Fort. Each child was a specific character who had been documented as part of Sutter's Fort. They had done research and were to pretend to be that individual for the day. They did a fantastic job.

Kiley came and helped for a while. Which was somewhat of a chore on her part as any parent coming had to be in costume. So she got all dressed up for 2 hours.

About noon, we paused to fire the cannon (which set off car alarms all over the area) and eat some old-fashioned lunch. Then, it was back to learning the trades.

At dinner time, their principal showed up in full 1846 garb and led them in tug-o-war, sack races and more until dinner was ready. Dinner featured bread and butter made by the kids during the day.

After dinner, we gathered around the fire with a fiddler and guitarist to learn some folk songs. Then we moved inside to learn how to square dance... THAT was an experience for them.

As late night drew near, we put the kids in two big rooms in their sleeping bags.

But, in the interest of helping them understand what life was like... we woke them up in groups until late in the night to walk guard duty. There were scenarios we arranged in which they discovered people breaking in, checked on prisoners in the jail and so on. 

I was one of the fortunate ones who talked the girls into feeling sorry for me and letting me out of jail and feeding my in the kitchen because I was hungry. You can always get them to feel sorry for you...

In the morning we feasted on sticky buns and bread which they had made in the outdoor fire-oven, cleaned up the fort and headed back to the school. 

Brendon and I crashed about 12:30 at home. Well... I crashed. He had gotten sleep during the night. I hadn't...

It was an incredible memory for my son and I. And a great learning experience for him that has fostered some great conversation this week. The time Brendon and I spent together has connected us in some great new ways this week.

Pictures are posted on Facebook...

MLK Weekend Trip

We surprised the boys with a last minute trip this last weekend. Kiley and I packed the van and had it ready to go when we got home from Sunday celebrations. They knew something was up, but didn't know what, when or where.

We drove to Reno, where a friend had found a deal on a hotel room at Circus Circus. Once there, we headed to the Circus Midway and played the evening away. There were circus acts to watch and loads of carnival games. The deal included some 2 for 1 tickets for the games, so we set about to see what we could win.

One of our favorite games was "the fishing game." Basically, they have a bunch of metal discs that float on a current in a circle. We were given a "fishing pole" which had a magnet on the end. If you snagged a yellow disk, you received a small prize (which anyone could do), but if you snagged a red disk all by itself (which is much more difficult) you received a bigger prize. This was one of my dad's favorite games at the county fair growing up and he had it dialed in. He had taught me well...we walked away with two armloads full of stuffed animals.

Once Ian went to bed, Brendon and I headed down for another round and won another several prizes. He had his heart set on a guitar that was won by knocking down 3 blocks with a bean bag...problem is, neither of us could hit the blocks! So much for that...

The next morning, we played a few more games and ate brunch at the buffet. It was fun to watch the contrast in the boys at the buffet. Brendon comes back with breads and goodies, but Ian comes back with fruit and oatmeal. :-)

We stopped in at Cabela's to look at the stuffed animals on the way back and then met some friends near Boreal where we found some very hard packed, but deep snow. We played there for several hours. Ian headed right for the top and sledded down over and over and over until finally he hit his head on my kneecap so hard that he cried for quite a while. After that he was done, but we were a few minutes from leaving anyway. Brendon and his friend played with snow ball makers and did their best to start a war with the parents. I don't think they expected their mom's to be quite as good as they were at taking them out with snow balls. :-)

When we got back in the van after stopping for a quick dinner at KFC, the boys pronounced, "This was the best day ever!" That always makes you feel good as a parent.

Best of 2008

The Skor Family had some great moments in 2008. Here are some of my favorite memories:

• Our first trip with our new little camper to Monterey in the Spring. Ian was running a temperature. It was raining, but it's a moment we still talk about.
• Camping on the Beach at Seal Rock, Or. The boys and I got up early the next morning and braved the rain to wander on the beach with very low tide. We discovered thousands of star fish and had lots of moments of wonder.
• Taking Grammy & Grandma Virginia to Florence, Or for Thanksgiving. Through the gracious gift of a friend, we had a beautiful little beach bungalow where we celebrated Thanksgiving.
• I carried Ian through a mile of stairs and winding pathways in Wind Cave after he puked all over the ancient walls...
• Sitting on the 2nd story balcony of Old Faithful Inn eating old fashioned ice cream with Kiley's folks while we watched Old Faithful go off one more time in the sunset.
• Following a swerving Dodge Durango through the Nebraska pasture - realizing that our children were driving (under their Papa's supervision, of course).
• Floating the Niobrara River with Brendon - just father and son.
• Ian's first day of Kindergarten with Mrs. Stevenson. He was so proud that he was finally going to school!
• Hearing Brendon and Ian declare on Christmas Day (knowing that this year we intentionally spent less), "This is the best Christmas ever!"
• The hundreds, if not thousands, of snuggles, hugs, kisses and moments with my beautiful bride and my two precious boys. We have been blessed beyond imagination.

There are more, but these are the ones that have come to mind over the last few weeks.

Adventures at MacWorld

I'm spending the day by myself at a haven for Techy Geeks...at least those who love Macs - MacWorld, San Francisco.

As I write, I'm surrounded by more macs, iPhones and iPods than I've ever seen...and, what's amazing to me is people are from every walk of life. Every age, every background...you name it.

I'm also hearing conversations about tech stuff that I have no idea how to interpret. :-)

I'm looking forward to a day just to wander, and, believe it or not...to listen. I try to take a day at the beginning of every year just to go off by myself and listen for the Spirit's voice for the coming year. He's been so good to us, and I've been sensing for some time that a new chapter for the Skor family is just around the corner. I'm anxious to hear what He has to say today as I wander and He and I have our ongoing dialogue throughout the day.

How much fun is this? I get to spend the day alone with my Heavenly Father AND enjoy geek gadgets galore!

Six Flags!

On Friday, December 26th, we chose to surprise the boys with a trip to Six Flags - Discovery Kingdom.

We had told them we were going to do something, but did not tell them what, where, when or how until we pulled in the gates. This last fall, Kiley and I had purchased some very discounted tickets at a charity auction we attended for a ministry the church supports, so we figured we would put them to good use.

It was a fairly cool day for Northern California, but at least it was dry. We bundled up and headed in...we didn't leave home until noon and so arrived mid-afternoon, which was just about perfect for us as, none of us are "ride" people except me (Mike), so the day was mainly spent wandering around the animals and the games.

The highlights of the day were according to plan. We saw the Christmas Sea Lion show, the Christmas Dolphin Show and, of course, the Christmas Shouka (the killer whale) show. At the Dolphin show, a vendor came by selling stuffed dolphins with santa hats. I grit my teeth expecting the usual, "dad can we pleeeeasee have one?!" They asked, but politely, and had great attitudes. I wasn't about to spend a ton of money on overpriced stuff animals...wasn't I surprised when she told me the price and it was cheaper than it would have been at Wal-Mart!! Soooo, since they had good attitudes...I chased the vendor down and spoiled my kids (and felt good about it, since it was cheaper than I expected!). It didn't help that Kiley, who normally is the one saying, "that's too expensive..." gave me a look from those big beautiful eyes that said, "I think they deserve it." So much for the cash in my pocket...

My two highlights of the day, were buying hot chocolate and mini-doughnuts and then going on a roller-coaster (despite going by myself). I had to have at least one thrill.

We were home by 8 pm and the boys were worn out. It was another great Christmas memory for us to end a year of a million incredible memories. 

Christmas Morning

There's been much happening around the Skor household since our last blog post. I'll take some time over the Christmas break to update you all on events and memories.

We'll be posting some Christmas pics on Facebook later today or tomorrow as well.

Here's a couple of memories from Christmas Morning:

• Ian opened up an electric toothbrush and yelled, "I've always wanted a 'try me!'" We tried to figure out what he meant and asked. He pointed out the words on the front of the toothbrush...you guessed it, they were "try me!"
• Brendon came dramatically down the stair gasping and fainting repeatedly, which made us wonder what was going on. He came into the family room and declared, dramatically, "I've been shot" -- he had a velcro vest from his Nerf Shooter on and had carefully place 2 dozen Nerf bullet/darts all over the vest as if he'd been shot. Then he repeatedly collapsed on the floor declaring, "I'm dying!"

And the Verdict is...

Well, Brendon didn't win his race for Student Council Treasurer. He was pretty disappointed and hurt. I think what hurt the most was the fact that the boy who won had once claimed to be Brendon's good friend, but who, in the campaign, said and done some pretty mean things.

Brendon's sense of justice kicked in and pointed out that this boy had broken the campaigning rules and, according to those rules, should have been withdrawn from the campaign by the teacher.

To Brendon's credit, his whole class was upset by the results... they wanted him to win. His teacher gave him some space to recover his disappointment (I think she was disappointed too - she likes him a lot). He also was excited for several of his friends who were elected to other posts and congratulated them.

Life lessons are never easy are they?!

We had a "boys movie night" when I got home from work to celebrate how proud we were of Brendon. We watched Return of The Jedi and fought with light-sabers in the living room.

Welcome to politics Brendon...

Brendon for Treasurer

Brendon is running for Treasurer of his school student council. It's been a great learning experience for him. He's justice oriented like his parents and so hearing his classmates promise things that they can't deliver really bugs him. He's convinced that people will vote for him because he doesn't resort to jokes and impossible promises that others have, and whom, he's convinced, can't/won't do the job.

We've had many discussions about doing the right thing, but that the right thing isn't always rewarded by the people around us -- in other words, doing the right thing may not get him voted into office, but that doing the right thing is still always the best path.

This weekend, he worked on his campaign speech. I thought you'd enjoy reading it (note that it has to be two minutes or less). He'll be giving it in front of the entire school. He's justifiably nervous, but he's resolved that this is what he should do.

Speech for Student Council Treasurer By Brendon Skor November 17, 2008 Hi! My name is Brendon Skor and I’m here to tell you why I believe I will be a great Student Council Treasurer and why I believe you should vote for me.
You know those rich people we always see on TV? Who counts their money? Do you know? Well, if they were real, I would count their money.
If you vote for me I will work hard to listen to each person and to represent you well.
I want you to know that you can trust me. I am honest, kind and I really care about doing a good job for our school and you. You can trust me to work hard to keep track of our student council money because I am honest and because I like math (and I think I’m good at it!)
There are a lot of great people who you can vote for Student Council and for treasurer. I ask that you would vote for me, Brendon Skor, for Treasurer because I will help our school become an even better school.
Do you think our school is a great school?! (pause) Do you, I can’t hear you?! (pause)
I do too! I think it’s a GREAT school!
I think we have GREAT teachers!
I think that you, my friends, are the BEST!
And, as Treasurer, I will work hard to make us better!
Remember, when you vote for Treasurer this week. GET MORE AND VOTE FOR BRENDON SKOR!
Thank you.

Crumpled Paper and Carving Pumpkins

This last Friday Kiley and I were picking up kids from school. We had picked up Ian and were hanging around visiting with parents while we waited for Brendon's class to let out.

Ian was playing with one of his classmates and I noticed him pull a crumpled up piece of paper out of his pocket and hand it to his friend. They talked about it excitedly for a moment and then his friend ran the paper over to his mom, with whom Kiley was visiting.

The mom opened the crumpled paper and I noticed it was an invitation to our Pumpkin Carving Sunday in a couple weeks. I cringed at the crumpled paper and was about ready to try and apologize for my son keeping it wadded up in his pocket all day, when the mom ready it and looked up at Kiley and said, "Can we come to this?" (What were going to say to that?!)

She went on to unpack her story for us. She shared with us some of her background, upbringing and religion and then said, "My husband and I have been thinking about helping our kids find some direction and we'd like to try your church. We see your church everywhere in our community and want to try it." She had some other questions about what to expect, and then committed to coming to try it out for her family.

I was convicted. We have known this family for several years and slowly built a relationship with them.

But my five-year-old son, with the bold innocence that only a child has, made a simple ask of a friend and it may very well make an eternal difference.

I'm proud of him.

It was later that his teacher (who happens to be a friend) told us how Ian was running around to everyone on the playground and inviting them. When they would turn him down, there was no discouragement, he simply went on to ask the next person.

Oh to have the faith of a child....

Jesus Moments

So, I've been attempting to use car rides to school for some teaching moments.

My latest endeavor has been to challenge the boys on the way to school to think about one thing they can do that day that Jesus would want them to do. I promise to ask them after school.

So, on the first day we were sitting around the supper table together and I asked the question, "What did you do today that you think Jesus wanted you to do?"

Brendon -- "I invited a friend to go to AWANA because I thought it might be good for him and he might enjoy it..." and then, a little quieter, "...and I get points when he comes."

Ok, he's close, but the motivation needs some help. :-)

Ian -- (said without any hesitation or thought) "I went to the library!"

"You think going to the library was what Jesus wanted you to do today?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Because I got a book called 'Backyard Detective' that teaches me about the stuff in my backyard that God made."

Hmmm...his associative skills astound me, but I probably have some more work to do as we drive in the mornings.

Slash?

It seems like all my current family stories are about Ian and a bathroom. I guess that's just the season of life for the Skor Family these days.

Last night, Ian was taking a bath and stepped out to go to the bathroom.

I was in talking to Brendon when I heard the Ian "bathroom yell" but this time it was different. When I heard it, I looked into the hall and locked eyes with Kiley as if to ask, "Did I just hear what I thought I heard?" She nodded her head...we both promptly about fell over laughing at our child.

So what did he yell? I'll tell you in a minute...but let me ask you, after I tell you, answer this question for me...where did he learn THIS?

Here's what he yelled (I'm typing it word for word as he said it):

"I'm done going potty slash taking a bath!"

Slash?

What's he learning in Kindergarten these days?

Laughing at my children

Tonight both boys made me laugh:

• Brendon learned that he can't winner in a towel-snapping duel with his dad. No welts, bruises or broken skin...but when dad has a wet towel in his hand...Brendon has a newly-found respect!
• Ian was showing me his "aquarium display" in his room. Many of his animals set up in various displays which he talked me through. As I saw what looked like a T-rex with a lizard in his mouth he said, "This dinosaur likes to try and eat this lizard but he's too squishy to be eaten."

Warning - Gross boy content

I apologize for the rather gross content of this post, but it made us laugh so hard, we just HAD to record it.

Ian and Brendon spent the night with my mom (Esther) recently. While there, Ian had the urge to go to the bathroom. After a little while, the expected yell came from the bathroom, "Done going pooooottttyyy!" (A little background...Ian has not yet learned how to wipe himself. When he yells, "Done going potty!" he means, "come and clean me up please!").

My mom went in and proceeded to wipe Ian's little bottom. She did it just once and declared he was ready.

Ian looked at her questioningly, "Are you sure I'm clean?"
Mom responded, "Yes, you are."
"But it was only once."
"I know, but you're clean, you can pull your pants up."

She began to help him pull his pants up when she heard, "Yep, you're right, I'm clean!"

She looked up to see Ian holding his finger in front of his face...examining it for any signn of "uncleanness."

We'll leave the rest to your imagination.

That's our boy...

Field Trip

Ian went on his first field trip this week with his kindergarten class. He was pretty excited about it for a few days before and has been since.

They went to the "B" Street Theater downtown Sacramento. My description of the place is that it's "live PBS." Not sure how they make any money. They're probably government supported with an arts grant or something. It's off in a little corner of downtown in kind of a warehouse.

They did a production for the kids called "Go Dog Go!" based on the popular kids' book by that title. It was cute and they did a very good job.

I took the morning off of work and Kiley and I met the bus at the theater (they only allow three parents to ride the bus at a time and there is such a clamor for parents to ride that they do a kind of lottery). 

As we sat in the theater during the intermission with Ian, I asked him what his favorite part of the field trip was. I expected to have him talk about the play. Instead, as usual, he surprised me.

"Dad, we rode on a big bus! There were three of us in a seat and we bounced and we had our own window, but only the top of it goes up and down...and it was SO much fun."

Guess we know what the fun parts of a field trip are now...

Goodbye...

Well, last night the boys and I made the trek over to my folks' house to say goodbye to a friend.

Just over a week and a half ago, we listed our camper on Craigslist. There was a lot of interest which, we knew, meant that it would soon sell. It seemed like everyday last week and even over the holiday weekend, we were trekking over to mom and dads to set up the trailer for another potential buyer (why couldn't they have gotten together and come together so we only had to set it up once? - ha!).

The first time Kiley and I set it up, some cotton fell out of the seems from the cotton trees at the campground we loved in Buffalo, WA. Sand poured out from the beaches of Oregon. We could smell the salty beach air mixed with the fresh scent of Redwood trees. It was a little overwhelming as the memories flooded back so fresh and I had to stop for a moment and, again, thank my heavenly Father for so many incredible moments with my family.

Finally, on Saturday, a couple came and offered us full price. At the time, I had two other families who were rushing over wanting to buy it as well.

So last night they came and picked up their new camper that I pray will be full of blessings and memories for their family. The boys and I stood and watched it leave, probably not as sad as we expected to be, but still somewhat sentimental.

It does help that we sold it for several hundred dollars than we paid for it. :-)