our little beasts in the wilds

oh. 

hey. 

so, apparently, i have a blog. 

i seem to have forgotten that. 

the good news is, i start classes next week, so we should really be on the up and up for the next few years...

anyway. 

it seems as though i went in here a month or so ago and uploaded some photos. 

and then never looked back. 

so, here are some old photos. . . 

in July, we took a little "staycation" and had some fun in the Columbus area. 

early in the week, we also went out to The Wilds and did an open-air tour. 

it was a really great time and the boys had a blast!

look at that mug. 

The Wilds is a conservation center in Ohio, and the tour started out looking a lot like this. 

and this. 

and, when we came upon our first animals. . . this. 

fortunately, the rest of them that day turned to face in our direction. 

there were occasional stops where we were able to get out and explore. 

and even feed the animals. :) 

and, at one point, ben made this face. 
i'm not sure what this particular face is. 
angry? debonair? 
but here you have it. 

me, my grey hair, and the boys. 
ben still looks uncertain about everything. 
perhaps it was the tiger behind us. 

again. 
ben. 
oh, ben.
also: important life updates. . . 
ben, formerly known has benny, has asked to be called ben moving forward. 


that's better. 
this is the smile we usually see. 

too. much. 
love them. 

this was benny's favorite stop. :)
ok. 
for real. 
i just typed "benny." 
ugh. 
this is going to take a while. 

i love some sassy signage. 

they gave us a little guide to keep track of all the animals we saw. 
clearly, anth took the wheel on this one. 

this gem came UP to the bus. 
and started pecking (do ostriches peck?) at the bolts on the outside of the bus. 
neat. 

the giraffe wasn't cooperating. 

while we were off having our family adventure, rocky was off having. . . his own. 
so we picked up our very sleepy, and slightly high, puppy on the way home. 

more summer antics to come. . .

in, like, november. 

a lesson in democracy: puppy naming

for years, we told the boys that they could have a dog if we lived closer to work. 

we moved last summer. 

and now find ourselves living closer to work. 

the boys reminded us we have been overdue on a certain promise. 

we considered the current state of our lives. . . 

the boys have been potty trained and sleeping through the night for years. 

why embrace this sense of stability?

so. . . 

we are getting a puppy. 

more specifically, we are bringing home a puppy this friday.

we are pretty darn excited. 

not surprisingly, one of the biggest topics floating around the Savvy house has been "what shall we name the puppy?"

in an effort not to make this a boring conversation, all four of us wanted/liked different names. 

even different kinds of names. 

this was becoming problematic. 

until, of course, bernie pulled out his BA in Political Science and guided us through a multi-layered voting process. 

at the dinner table. 

here's what that looked like. . . 

ROUND 1: 

everyone put forward their suggestions for names. 

bernie wrote a master list of said names. 

here it is: 

in case you can't read the awesome green ink we used for this process, here are some highlights: 

bernie and I suggested some typical names: Tucker, Parker, Oscar, Obi

"Windmaker 626" - Ben

"Rudy, but only if he has a pink or red nose" - Ben

"Sonic, Link, Tails" - Anth

"Ketchup Wonder" - Ben

"Paul" - i have no idea. 

"Hairy Potter" - Anth

"Syrup Guy" - Ben

"Astin/Sanford" - it appears that Bernie got bored around #43

ROUND 2

after we all felt that we had added our potential names to the list, Bernie read through each name and we voted if it was one we would seriously consider. 

those are the tally marks on the long name list. 

shockingly, not many of the names received more than one vote. . . 

ROUND 3 

we moved forward with the ones that had 3 or 4 votes. 

bernie made ballots: 

of course, before i could properly cast my votes, i had to test out the names i was considering: 

(turns out it is "Obi Wan" and not "Obie Wan." oops)

but, then, the votes were in: 

ROUND 4: 

by a final vote of hands, we landed on Rocky. 

now, i imagine some people will think this little pup of ours is named after a certain boxer. 

not true. 

rocky was actually anthony's suggestion. 

becuase he has a teddy bear named Rocky.

it was given to him when he was just days old by a friend of the family, Ankita Rakhe, and her mom. 

their name isn't actually pronounced "rocky," but...details.

so, almost 8 years later, we have a dog, named after a bear, named after a friend in Northern California. 

even better?

benny panicked about a week after we selected the name. 

he realized that, because of a mark on the dog's back, he really wanted to call him Bolt. 

which, as you can see, was not even on the final ballot. 

we all compromised and agreed that our new family member could be Rocky B. Savarese. 

forever making him seem like he was named after Rocky Balboa. 

so, friends, meet our not-like-the-boxer Boston Terrier, Rocky: 

5 weeks

8 weeks

i'm certain there will be more posts to come as we all learn to take care of him together. . . 

little blue folder: goodbye, winter

this little gem of an in-class assignment came home recently in anth's blue folder.

it's the draft of his "letter to Winter."

precious.

 

i concur on the ice storms.

anth's not 6 anymore!!!

so.

anth started baseball practice today. 

on his SEVENTH birthday!!!!! 

cute.

seeing as he is starting baseball, it seemed like a good time to put up a post about his basketball season.

and because we are busy prepping birthday extravaganza fun, this was an easy way to post.

daddy played assistant coach.

precious.

 

anth spent equal parts time chatting and playing.

love this kid.

 

you can almost see the look of shock on his face. . .

and the awesome on-court expressions just keep coming...

anth in action.

i love that bern looks about 9 feet tall here.

and genuinely happy to be back out on the court.

intense.

but totally ready.

the last-game-of-the-season awards.

he was so proud.

:)

his adoring fan.

 

my favorite boys.

ever.

i still remember my little sister's 7th birthday.

mainly because, as i walked into the house after riding the bus home, all 40 pounds of her burst through the garage door to declare, "I'M NOT 6 ANYMORE!"

last night, my mom told anth, "when you wake up in the morning, you won't be six anymore."

dead pan, he responded, "obviously."

a very happiest of birthdays to my serious but sweet birthday boy!

darn you, logic

these days, anth is quick to cite the Golden Rule.
overall, we find this to be a positive thing.

tonight we ran into a snag.
i ran to grab a washcloth and walked back into the restroom while the boys were getting ready to brush their teeth.
benny was in the process of running out the door crying.
anth was in the process of avoiding eye contact with me.
when i finally managed to get a full report of what happened, i determined that benny had smacked anth in the rear, and anth had, in turn, squeezed his arm.

the boys were both sent to individual spots to sit and think about their choices.
as expected, they went to these places and thought about when they could stop sitting there.
when i went in to process with anthony, he was adamant.
"mom! benny hurt me, so i returned the favor! i treated him like he treated me!"
pause.
then, as though this would make it all better,  "i was using the Golden Rule!"

i mean, he had a point.
not one i could condone, but i did kind of give him two silent points for thinking on his feet.

this i believe. or at least anth does.

today, i stayed home with benny. 
he has pink eye. 
ick. 
he has had a great deal of fun ordering around via his brother's walkie-talkies that Aunt Katie sent him for Christmas. 
most of the time, he was in a 2-3 foot range from me. 


aside from the perk of having a rare day with just benny, cooties and all, it also gave me a chance to finally install all of the fun work done by the lovely OSU student Kendall Hendricks to overhaul My Savvy Boys.
thank you SO MUCH, Kendall. 
i love it!
there is still more tweaking and adjustments to come as i figure out the side bar and signatures and other goodies. 
but i just couldn't wait any longer. 


it also gave me a minute to write this post that i've been meaning to for some time...
almost a year and a half ago, i did a post modeled after the "This I Believe" series on NPR. 
here it is, along with an explanation of the exercise.  
and here is the follow-up from October 2010. 
and here is part 3, from December 2010. 
anth was 5 years old when i did this. 
on April 11th, we will have a handsome little 7-year-old in our midst. 
it seemed like a good time to revisit and see what was going on in that head of his. 


i went to a conference in January, MMI, that reminded me of this exercise.
yep, it's mid-March. 
when i say i'm behind on life, i mean it. :) 
so, here is what our little big man believes, as of January 26, 2012: 


I Believe: 
   1. video games are fun. that is all.                                                                                            
          (this was quickly followed by, "i'm trying to be funny, just so you know.) then, 
   2. there needs to be more funniness. there's not enough of it in the world.
then, anth looked at me for a little while, and said, "i think i need you to give me some starters." 
so, i did....
this is what anth believes about the following:


reading - reading books are fun to find out what it lead you to in your mind. and seeing the pictures. 


family - there will always be love and playing in our family. and you should encourage your little brother. 


being a kid - being a kid is fun because you can pretty much do whatever you want. (pause) until grown ups lead you by example and teach you better stuff. 


how to treat people - you should treat people with our school's Golden Rule. (we have since explained that this exists beyond the walls of his school.) if you don't like it, don't do it to other people. 


love - love is something that you should always use. it's nice not to be mean. love creates a lot of goodness. 


laughing- making jokes is funny. like knock knock jokes. they create happiness. and sometimes they create healthiness because if you laugh for a minute, it creates health. 


teachers - teachers encourage you and help you learn. unless you don't listen. then they only get mad. 


anth  - i believe i am special because i'm great at art. i'm going to be an artist. 

yes, anth. 

you are special. 

he's got the moves like Vader

last night, i shared a (larger) version of this picture.

anth drew this in class last fall.

and i buried it in a pile of things-to-do-someday.

i recently found it while looking for some other thing to do.

(mind you, i forgot what that was once when i found this, so go me.)

anyway.

this drawing reminded me of a story that Kelsey told me recently.

if you don't remember, Kelsey one of a handful of students who have that special spot that being both an RA/RM and Off The Lake member can earn them.

and, she happens to babysit my little men on occasion.

and has previously received a lesson in proper fasion terminology from anth.

so.

she and her sister were over babysitting.

and anth asked them to come down to the basement.

here, he picked up his lightsaber and turned it on.

kelsey instinctively grabbed the other light saber and turned it on.

she held it out at him, ready to engage in the typical Darth Vader/Luke scene.

anth, being anth, would have none of it.

he immediately looked at kelsey as thought she had three heads, and asked her and her sister to take a seat on the couch.

"i think it will be better, and safer, if we just took turns showing off our light saber moves. i'll go first."

he then made his way over to our light switch at the bottom of the basement stairs and slid down both sides, dimming the entire basement.

he then took his place in the middle of the floor, facing his babysitting team.

he put his saber up in the air.

and then, with anth's usual intensity, he gave them his most sincere combination of "cool light saber moves" he could muster.

this from the kid who tells me he will never be on stage. 

fail photo: a couple things to chew on

the conference i am currently attended has dug into the area of connecting the heart to the mind.
folks who know me will know that this means that i am enjoying MMI immensely.
it has given me a ton to "chew on" and some more to bring back to campus.

the conference also happens to be in Florida.
i've been told a few times to enjoy the sunshine while i am here.
so far, i have deeply enjoyed seeing the sun in a very blue sky.
sadly, it has been mostly out of the conference center windows.
but, i'll take it.

in the mean time, let me phone in another post.
from a break here in the conference center.
that i should probably be using to talk to other humans.
oops.

here is a young anth enjoying the beach on a family trip to San Clemente, California.



and, speaking of "chewing on" things, here is anth learning that the beach isn't quite as tasty as it looks.



happy Tuesday, and here's to s little sunshine, wherever you are!

minding his manners

earlier this year, anth had to have a baby tooth pulled to make room for a permanent tooth that was growing in behind it. 

like most little boys, he was concerned about his clothes getting stained.

the whole ordeal actually wasn't much of an ordeal at all, and anth was thrilled to get $5 from the tooth fairy for his troubles.

recently, anth has had a new permanent tooth growing in on the other side.

and his baby tooth didn't look like it would loosen up on it's own.

until the last week or so.

and, little victories, he lost it last night.

during dinner.

(gross.)

(approximately 10 minutes later, benny decided to pretend to be a dog and crawl around on the floor on all fours. in his footie pajamas. and one of his knees slipped on our flooring. and he landed flat on his face. this resulted in all of our emergency "icies" being used at the same time.)

anyway.

anth lost his tooth.

we were getting him ready for bed, and he remembered that my colleague, Curtis, had told him he would get more money if he wrote the Tooth Fairy a thank you note.

we had already explained to him that the tooth fairy leaving him $5 was a one-time deal.

but, he insisted on being polite.

"just in case it works each time."

in an effort to reward his kindness, the tooth fairy left anth $2.

suffice it to say, anthony was displeased with his meager earnings.
bern reminded him to practice gratitude.
i told him that this was a 800% increase on what we used to get.
and, bless his heart, he looked horrified at the thought of getting a quarter and ran straight to his piggy bank  to deposit his cash.

art and other junk

below is the photo i was looking for after i broke my phone and spilled water all over my desk.

i've shared that anth loves to craft.

each day at latchkey, one of his teachers offers a different project.

and each day, anth completes said project before wandering off to other adventures.

recently, i picked him up and he had a little brown lunch bag with his name on it.

this usually means he is bringing home either a fragile or particularly glittery project.

i asked him what was inside the bag.

"oh! mom! it's a christmas ornament! it's really pretty."

(pause.)

"in a junky sort of way."



diving right in

it is once again Mirror Lake Jump Night here at Ohio State.
on my end, this night involves being on campus, usually from about 10pm to 1 or 2am, to help support my staff who working to keep our students safe.
more specifically, it involves me hoping that all of our students come out of the experience safe and sound.
i wrote about this in more detail last year on the night after the jump. 

perhaps, after a night of observing, i will have more to add to this list tomorrow.
perhaps not.
when anth asked me to remind him what "jump night" was again today, i did. 
he asked, "don't they all know that that's just kind of gross? and could make them sick?"
(the answer? i assume yes. but most college students are not in the business of taking advice from 6-year-olds.)

anyway, on a night that is filled with a full spectrum of choices made by our students, i am choosing to share a video of one particular student who currently has my heart.
anth.
one of the lovely RAs i have worked with at OSU is Allison Gering.
she is currently in a class that has tasked her with meeting with a K-2nd(ish) grade student to do reading assessments.
we offered to share anth for the cause, and he has had fun doing his last two "tests" with her.
he has done really well.
too well, actually.
to the point that Allison left our house a looking a tad bit stressed because she didn't bring books that were hard enough.
she has her last appointment with anth tomorrow morning, and i told her i would see if i could find some reading materials that were more challenging for him.
i quickly realized that most of the books in his room were ones that he was now able to read.
so i grabbed the hardest one i could find.

but first, like the nerd that i am totally comfortable being, i asked him to wait while i got out my phone to record.
if he was going to be able to read this particular book, i wanted to be able to catch it on film.
so, here you go.

i don't think i did much to help allison, but i am so proud of my little man.

i'm a sucker for handwritten notes

seriously. 
i am. 
kind words are wonderful. 
a nice email is amazing. 
but i miss the art of the handwritten note. 


i received one in the mail recently from my favorite buttface in Wisconsin. 
it was a handmade card with the simple little message inside. 
to the effect of remember when we used to make bean dip and do crafts. (because how can one really achieve their full creative potential sans bean dip?)
and it made my day. 


this came home in anthony's backpack this week. 
from a friend at school. 
asking for a play date. 

it kind of made my week. 

punch line

at the top of each month, we do a little family dinner date. 
we usually end up at Las Margaritas. 
but, tonight, we opted for Rooster's. 
their tag line is "a fun, casual joint."
and, really, it is. 
it also has wings for mom and dad, nachos for anth, and grilled cheese for benny. 
an all-around savvy crowd pleaser. 


because Rooster's is both fun and casual, part of their decor includes a random smattering of white pieces of paper with random quotations/jokes printed on them in black ink. 
anth, being the little reader that he is, was taking in his environment and reading the ones near our table. 
suddenly, he laughed. 
"oh dad. listen to this one, it's hilarious..."


(insert terrible picture from phone camera)

can't read it? 
allow me to assist. 
it says this:
3 words you never want to hear when making love. "honey, i'm home!"


anth read this for all of us to enjoy. 
"man. that's funny."
now, i KNOW he has no idea what makes this funny to the adults in the room. 
but, i am quite curious what makes it funny to him.
(while also frightened to ask.)