Potty-training chronicles

The Moose, just as he was about to go to the bathroom:

"INCOMING!"

How to play it cool, dad edition

Kids will test your sanity. There will be times when you are so proud of your kids that you want to squeeze them until their ears pop off, and there will be times when you are so upset/disappointed/angry/about-to-lose-your-mind with them that you want to squeeze them until their ears pop off.
So what do you do to keep your cool? Any good dad worth his salt knows to shrug his shoulders, shake his head and walk away, a plan that works with any situation. Hey, life is out of your control. Just let go.

UPDATE: Mrs. Wahoo wanted to know the motivation behind this post, and really there's nothing much to it. Sometimes, like today, the kids are great, and sometimes, like yesterday, the kids aren't so great. Sometimes (I've used sometimes three times already in three sentences) we dwell too much on why are kids are the way they are. In the over-analyzing, we lose sight that they're kids. We try to make things better for them (we're really not apathetic losers letting their kids wander through the great unknown) but most things are beyond our control. They will find their way, for better or worse, with guidance from us (for better or worse). 
I'm rambling. Sorry.

8 a.m. breakdown

Old Wahoo's family celebrated the first morning-before-school breakdown of the new year in vintage style, complete with screaming, yelling and punching. Yep, mornings are great around here. Thankfully, the third-grader added some unintended wit by capping his tantrum with a classic quote: "Don't make me regret this, which I will."

Details are unimportant

The first-grader couldn't wait to tell me he made a new friend at school today.
"What's his name," I asked.
"I don't know," he said. "But he likes 'Star Wars: Clone Wars.'"

The Young Reader

The third-grader enjoying a book at his new desk. He finished his evening by reading for about 90 minutes. He's looking at a science book, of course.

Rules of Engagement, Part 23

In the midst of a brother-vs.-brother meltdown outside of church (because who doesn't want to brawl after listening to a sermon about community and understanding), the first-grader laid down the rules of engagement to his older brother. "I hate to have to do this now," he said, "but now I have to throw my shoe at you."

Words of the Week

I started reading "Tom Sawyer" to the boys. They're not too interested in the story, but Tom definitely reminds me of the soon-to-be third-grader.

"Although my book is intended mainly for the entertainment of boys and girls, I hope it will not be shunned by men and women on that account, for part of my plan has been to try to pleasantly remind adults of what they once were themselves, and of how they felt and thought and talked, and what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in."
- Mark Twain, in the preface to "Tom Sawyer"