Seth survives to five

There have been many times, I hate to admit, during the last five years, when I would have happily flagged down a passing gypsy caravan and asked them to haul this child off. That Old Testament story of Joseph of Egypt? Well, maybe his brothers had just heard "the whiny voice" one too many times. Digging a pit and packing him off to the pyramids doesn't seem too extreme a reaction, really. Tyler says he's too much like me, which is why I have a lower tolerance for his moping. (And the first person who agrees that I whine or mope gets clobbered.)

To be fair, Seth has a lot of really great traits. He is a stellar worker. He loves to help, and will often go above and beyond his chore list. He is athletic and coordinated. He loves attention, especially linked to a camera, and his blue eyes and white-blond hair pop him out of any crowd. He plays with Charlotte and is always willing to do any little favor I ask (lately this means running up and down the stairs a lot to get/put away some item).

His birthday in July was a big day. We went through our usual birthday traditions: presents laid out at the breakfast table, his choice of meals, the outing he planned, and cake and ice cream. Bless this child who wanted an off-the-shelf cake from Costco. The best $15 I spent and 15 hours I saved all month.

Seth chose Liberty Land, a small local amusement park, for his outing. We played miniature golf, laser tag, rode the roller coaster, rides, bumper boats, over and over.


Showing off his Pokemon shirt, Spiderman sunglasses, and flip-flops. I hate flip-flops--and all sandals between my toes--so I've never bought them for the kids. So these had the aura of "forbidden fruit" since he's the only one in the family who has flip-flops.