Colby and the Not so Tall Tale of the New Magic Shoes

There once was a little boy named Colby. 

 Colby was blessed with a huge personality crammed into a 

itty bitty little body.

One day Colby's family went on a trip to a magical place called Lego Land.

Lego Land was made especially for little boys.

...but mostly for little boys OVER 40 inches tall.

Unfortunately, because of his vertical challenges, Colby was not 40 inches and could not ride most of the rides in the magical land of Legos.

 This made Colby very very sad...obviously.

But Colby's dad was a softie of the worst kind.

(Yep...had to sneak in a Chick Fil A picture somewhere.  You knew I was going to do it.)

He felt sorry for the short little Colby and bribed him to be happy with a ninja lego set.

It worked.

 Colby soon forgot his under tall woes and rode "kiddie" rides made for toddlers much younger than his almost five year old mature self.

 He had a fabulous time and wore himself out at the Lego Land Park.

But Colby's dad did not forget the sad crying short little boy and decided to grant Colby his wildest dream...height.

He drove to a nearby outlet mall and bought Colby the tallest shoes he could find.

They were Magic shoes.

And who needs to eat vegetables and meat to get taller when you have Magic shoes?

Apparently NOT Colby. 

But magic tallness comes with a price- the shoes were hideous. 

The were the kind Colby's fashion forward mother would never approve of. 

They lit up AND had characters on them.  ICK.

But they were the tallest. 

 So on the second day at Lego Land, Colby was miraculously 40 inches tall and was able to ride the rides he had always dreamed of...like the Dragon roller coaster.

Joy.

Here he is waiting (hanging) in line.

And his parents were happy because they didn't have to listen to Colby whining about not riding rides...or wanting more lego sets.

(Ok, the lego set thing is a lie.  He still whined, but the happy ending sounded so much better this way.)

And about Colby's mother...

she did INDEED wear flats to Lego Land.

She figured no one would believe her without pictorial proof.

 And this picture is included just for fun.

Colby's mother has a thing for goatees- even lego ones.

The End

6 little boys- new buddies- and WAY too many electronic devices

The Ward family has three little boys just like us- each of them around the same age as our boys.

They also have a little girl two months older than Saylor who was also left home with a loving grandma.

It was perfect for traveling because each boy had a buddy.

(And in later years, Saylor will have a buddy too. )

We have found our traveling friends for sure!

Here are all the boys at Lego Land.

The cutest bunch of heroes I have ever seen.

A large amount of time for the boys was spent soaking in the hot tub.

(I wonder if they will hate this picture when they get older.)

They also spent a lot of time eating!

Do you have any idea how much food six little boys can put down?

A lot.

Despite the possessed look on his face, Andrew had a wonderful time with his friend Corban.

These two were inseparable the entire trip.

It was also great, because they were old enough to to off on their own.  We didn't worry too much about them because we knew they were together.

Even at Kid Vegas I knew they would watch out for one another.

Corban even shared some of his winnings with Andrew- see the tickets shoved in Andrew's front pocket?  These tickets could be turned in for prizes.  Steve and I could have gone to the dollar store, spent three dollars and saved ourselves a bucket load...but the boys' fun time was worth the ridiculous amount of cash we paid for dinner and tokens for our kids to legally gamble.

Dave and Buster have a racket going.

Can it get any better?

Two boys...two iphone...fun all afternoon.

Inseparable.

The day after we got back to Twin, Andrew and Corban competed in the District Pinewood Derby.

We are pleased to announce that Corban won second place over all.

Congratulations Corban!

Andrew brought home a blue ribbon with what he called a "harsh" word written on it...PARTICIPANT.

I laughed.

Last, but certainly not least- between these boys' dads, there was a plethora of electronic devices to go around at our rental house.  

This scene was a common one.

My favorite picture over all from the entire vacation?

This one.

 They were watching Lego robots or something.  Obviously a pass time I will never understand because I am a moldy girl.

California Trip part 1 of who knows how many...it really all depends how modivated I am.

We're back from our fabulous California vacation extravaganza that can pretty much be summed up in one picture.

Yep, it was 62 degrees outside and life was awesome for five days.

(coming back to snow and 30 degree weather will not be talked about due to my high level of disgust)

In short, our vacation included  Lego Land,  San Diego Wildlife Animal Park, the beach, a whole lot of ice cream, a jacuzzi full of little boys, many many hours on I Pads or DS' and one lunch at a little place called Dave and Busters that I am for certain was only created to get small children ready for gambling.  

And all of this was spent with some amazing friends of ours, the Wards.  

We had a wonderful time- which was only made better by our beloved Say Say being left at home in Idaho with my mother.  16 month olds and 15 hour car rides to California do not mix.

I've been stewing over how to post all our fun filled adventures. 

I think I'm going to do it a little different because I like to be different.   

And I may have come up with something that just might work.

Here goes...      

    

Part 1: Dixon Family Vacation through the many faces of Carter Dixon.

No seriously...this kid can pull some really good ones.

Flamingos can be stinky.

Beaches can be harsh.

A day at the "mall" however fabulous the mall is...is no replacement for Lego Land.

Dang that rainy weather.  

"Can we get to the real rides already?"

What happens at Dave and Busters, stays at Dave and Busters

(Seriously this place was Vegas for 8 year olds)

Lego Land Drivers Licence!  

Ahhhhh Yeahhhhhh.

(check out the face on his licence- hilarious)

Eating apple fries with whipped cream takes concentration.

Swirly boat rides are fun.

(but not for mom...she get motion sick, so she takes all the pictures)

Long lines are not.

Buffaloes are also stinky...even ones just made of Lego's.

Being over 40 inches is sweet.

Rides are even sweeter.

Life is awesome when you are seven and at Lego Land with your dad.

(Carter waited an entire year for this picture.  He wanted one just like Andrew had taken last year.)

Well our vacation is starting. Because I have this handy dandy I phone, I can post from the road...but not while Im driving of course. Say is at my moms, the work on the
basement is still continuing and we just ate at Chick fil A. Let the fun begin.

Next food stop- Vegas- In & Out!
Because my vacations revolve around food.

random pictures from around the house...and how I was wrangled into eating in an establishment named after animal fencing.

So what has been going on around our house lately?

Tons.

But I won't even write about the science fair.  It's sucking my will to live.

I'll discuss it when it is over.

However, this was a really fun scene on Friday.  Our sheet rock was delivered.

And because of that delivery we have....

ceilings!!!!

The sheet rock will be finished by Tuesday and Dave (I'm on a first name basis with my sheet rock guy...probably because I don't know his last name.) will start the taping and texturing on Wednesday.

And whenever I have the feeling like maybe we should be saving money instead of spending it on a basement, I look at this next picture and remind myself why we are finishing the basement.

...yes, in the sleeping bag.  

And to make matters worse, the tooth fairy doesn't give kids who sleep on the floor as much money as kids who sleep in beds.  Andrew only made a dollar on that tooth he pulled out himself at school.

I didn't know the tooth fairy is prejudiced against poor kids.

Speaking of poor kids, my poor kids had to work on Saturday.  Steve and I were sick of their complaining and silliness in the car while running errands, so we made them clean out the window wells when we got home.  

They thought they were tortured.  But not near as tortured as I was listening to them complain how we only got them a hamburger at Sonic and not fries and a drink.

Ungrateful little....

Andrew wouldn't even look at me when I was taking pictures.  Most likely because he was the lucky child who had to clean out the dead mice.

(don't gasp...he wore gloves)

Colby had to pick up trash on the lot across the street.  

The little blond man wearing gloves is my nephew.  He was hyper in the car along with the rest of them, so he got a pair of gloves and was put to work too.

(we're mean)

I've been telling my friends that my basement family room looks like an episode from Hoarders. 

I wasn't kidding.  I'm grateful the dead mice were on the outside of this window and not on the inside...we would have had a camera crew and a therapist at our door in no time.

I've learned how to use the camera on my phone.

It's not the greatest, but it is easier to carry around at the park.

We have had a few "warm" days this last week and have spent some good quality hours playing outside and trying to keep little hands warm.

...no sympathy for children who choose not to wear coats.

Saylor is bow legged and short legged.

Love her.

She taunted the tiny dog who lives next to the park.

Her head was smooshed between these bars forever.

This is a gift from my 10 year old.

He likes to write messages in my bathroom mirror after he showers.

These fine words are lyrics from a Phineas and Ferb song.

Thanks Andrew.  Just like the kitchen door, you will be cleaning my mirror as well.

Lastly...the moment you have all been waiting for, the reason I was wrangled into eating in animal fencing- my darling mother in law.

She had a birthday and wanted us to meet her for dinner at the

"Golden Corral."

(heavy on the corral, light on the golden)

I went because I love this woman...a lot.

She even hugged me in the restaurant and told me she knew it was a sacrifice for me to be there. 

laughing laughing laughing

I could rant a lot about this place,  but I will be brief and use short incomplete sentences.

(if you didn't already think I am a royal snob, you now will)

I saw a member of ZZ Top.  (I hope his beard did not touch the food)

I also saw tattooed boobs.  (I didn't realize you could tattoo boobs)

Three mohawks in one establishment is three too many.

I haven't used forks that hashed since elementary school...that or right out of my own disposal.

If I wanted to stand in line for food, I would have gone to a ward party.

We saw way too many people we know...I'm not sure if I am more embarrassed for them or for me.

Next time (is there going to be a next time?) I am going to ask to sit in the non-pet hair section.

Despite my objections, (mostly buffet type- too many people- feels like the county fair) the food was actually really good (the food I dared put on my plate because I saw the person who touched the serving spoon before me).   My kids had a blast (Colby got plain noodles and white rice, of course he was happy) and my husband would love to take me there again on a date...if I would let him get away with it.

Happy Birthday Margie.  I really do love you. 

And for you, I would go to the Golden Corral every weekend if you asked.

(but I will bring more hand sanitizer this time and a change of clothes so I can sit in my car)

Question of the month- heck, the year- an other new stuff.

While running errands today Colby asked me a very serious question in a very serious voice.

"Mom, when is Saylor going to grow her peeps?"

uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh........wellllllllll.......hmmmm.......

It was the longest two second pause known to mankind. 

How do you handle THAT???

"Colby, Saylor isn't going to grow a peeps.  She is a girl, and girls don't have peeps like you."

"WHHAAATTT?  GIRLS DON'T HAVE PEEPS!?"

(Oh how I wish I could have that response recorded for future use.  You know...first dates, wedding videos, class reunions...events like that.)

No Colby, your darling precious little sister is not like a starfish or lizard that can grow extra "parts" when needed.  You and her were born with the "stuff" you have.  And I own the pictures to prove it.

...this conversation will be continued at a later date.

Like in five years. 

(Yikes)

Speaking of parts....

Colby's underwear situation has been bleak.  He has been wearing his size 2T-3T whitey tighties since he was (how embarrassing is this to admit) potty trained at two.

He is a creature of habit and if something is new, different, scratcy, funny, bumpy, lumpy, scary or unliking to His Highness's taste in one form or another- Colby will not have it.

And his fetish for old comfy undies is no exception.  Every pair of undies this boy wears is frayed, thread bare, faded and too tight.  (And let's not mention the fact that almost all these pairs were hand-me-downs from Carter.  Ewww.)

The kicker was the rash his tighty tighty tighty whiteys were rubbing on his skin.

Finally on Tuesday, Colby agreed to wear new undies.

BUT...not the beautiful, soft, thick, overpriced, extra cozy pairs I purchased for just this occasion from high end stores like Gap and Gymboree...oh no.  Those would never do.

Sadly, we had to go to Target and buy the stiff, cheap, scratchy undies covered in his favorite "My mother lets me watch too much TV" characters.

We came home with 10 pairs of cheaply made fun filled briefs, hand picked by Colby.

These are what will be covering my son's hind end for the next year or so...when I can again convince him to wear something "different".

(ok...the Lego Star Wars are kind of cool)

The Colbsters is happy.

And, Saylor could use a sister for more than one reason.

(not going to happen)

By chance if anyone is wondering where Colby gets his aversion to new things, let me spin a tale and tell you.

This is my new IPhone.

The new IPhone I cried large sobbing tears of frustration over when my husband purchased and activated without my permission.

(ask my mother...this is not an exaggeration)

But just like underwear, I have no choice.  My old phone doesn't work anymore just like Colby's old underwear went into the trash can.   We are both stuck with something outside our comfort zone.

But...I can text now and Colby doesn't have a rash.