Sam's been reading the Lightning Thief series...

December 05, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam's been reading the Lightning Thief series and really getting into Greek mythology. We also dusted off our Magic cards and played a bit. Add to the mix an upcoming computer game project involving a card game, and you end up with Sam making his own Greek-themed magic cards.

It's been good for his typing and research skills. He's even doing a book report that requires an art project, but I think he'd like to keep the card creation thing as his "just for fun" project.

Last night Sam ended up punching our stove wh...

December 02, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Last night Sam ended up punching our stove while reaching for a hand cloth. I asked him if the stove had offended him somehow, but he was in too much pain to laugh. We gave him Tylenol and a bag of frozen corn to put on it, along with sagely advice to hit something softer next time ("Like your sister," Jamie added).

Fortunately by this morning he was mostly better, so no permanent damage.

Sam turned 10 years old today

November 26, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam turned 10 years old today. "I'm a decade old," he informed us this morning. We're having a small family birthday party for him tonight, then a series of birthday parties during each of the Thanksgiving gatherings. Finally, he has a bunch of play dates this weekend where gifts will likely exchange hands.

I've been very proud of Sam lately. He's a smart, funny, responsible kid with lots of different interests.

His fencing is going well. I think he likes it a lot more than soccer, and he's improved immensely since he started. I think he'd be interested in going more often, though it's challenging to fit it all in. Perhaps when he's a little older we can both go to the Eugene Fencing Club together.

The other day he ran out of computer time and declared his boredom. I asked if he wanted to play Magic, so we broke out my old cards and gave it a go. As I played, I realized that there was a ton of math, reading, and logical thinking involved. We played a year or so ago and he needed a lot of help. Now he was able to build his own deck and really challenge me.

School is going well for him too. He's a voracious reader and is very good at spelling. Math is more of a challenge, but he typically understands everything. Mostly it's just that he hasn't memorized all the multiplication and division tables, so that slows him down. From a social aspect, he likes going to school and hanging out with friends. I'm glad he's so enthusiastic.

Sam had the strangest dream today

September 07, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam had the strangest dream today.

Sam starts his first day of school today

September 03, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam starts his first day of school today. He didn't want to go to the ice cream social last night (and instead played Resident Evil), so he won't know who his teacher is until he shows up this morning.

There are a few changes this time around. For starters, he's bringing his own lunch. Jamie has a chart of acceptable food and the two of us were packing our respective lunches last night. The other switch is that he's going to be taken to school by Sophia's mom and Sam, Sophia, and Emma will be picked up by Jamie in the afternoon. Hopefully that's fun for everyone and saves a little gas. Sam and Sophia seem to share a common love of Nerf guns, video games, and weird YouTube videos.

Sam let me know that I was the best dad ever ...

July 23, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam let me know that I was the best dad ever last night. This was after countless rounds of epic Nerf gun battles in the basement. There's something satisfying as a parent in unleashing a volley of foam darts at one's child. Most of the rounds ended in wild yelling, laughter, and the mock screams of the dying.

Sam's last fencing class was last night. I didn't have Emma, so I mostly just watched him the entire hour. It was fun, as he's become one of the better students in the class. He's got his parry and riposte down, and his footwork and stance are pretty good. Some day I'd like to join the Eugene Fencing Club with him. Maybe when he's a little older.

Sam was swinging on the hammock the other day...

July 09, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam was swinging on the hammock the other day, doing somewhat wild stunts. I think he was pretty tired, as it was late in the day after the 4th of July, so he was a little wonky. Unfortunately he fell off and hit his head fairly hard. At first I thought it wasn't serious, but after we took off some of the dirt, we iced it down and put Polysporin on it later that day.

The good news is that it's healed up nicely in the last few days and I think he learned a valuable lesson about the usefulness of being boring.

Sam was loaned an ukulele by Yayoe and given ...

June 26, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam was loaned an ukulele by Yayoe and given brief lessons. This morning when I was sick I was woken up by his practicing, but it was such happy music that I had to hula into his room and smile.

Later on he did some more practicing outside for Emma and I. It's fun watching him get the hang of it, though towards the end he was getting a little frustrated with rapid chord changes.

Sam was actually excited to talk about school...

May 15, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam was actually excited to talk about school yesterday. Stan Love, an astronaut, came to visit his school. Crest Drive got to send along a poster into space, so Stan returned to give it back to the kids and talk to them about his experience.

Sam was talking about things like Stan's faceplate and how he'd have to open and close it repeatedly as they orbited the earth every 45 minutes. Later on I asked Sam if he wanted to be an astronaut when he grew up. "No, I'd probably get sick."

Here's a video of Sam playing with a toy of h...

April 08, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Here's a video of Sam playing with a toy of his: What's most interesting is that this weird ball thing once had a light inside and a cloth mesh around it. The intended play activity was to squeeze it and tiny bumps would squish through the mesh. Pretty soon the mesh came off and it became "squishy ball". We'd turn off the lights in the basement, activate the inner light, and play catch. After that, Sam unplugged the ball, letting out the gel and removing the lights. The light is now sitting on his dresser. As for the ball itself, well, it is no more.

While we were at Powell's books, I wanted to ...

April 02, 2008 by Adam in Sam

While we were at Powell's books, I wanted to be left in peace while I browsed for books. Glancing over at a display featuring zombie-themed books, I recognized the Zombie Survival Guide, which I'd heard about. "Here, read this," I said and passed it to him.

Well, he has. Every free moment over the last week he's been pouring over the chapters on the history of zombies, weapons, defense, and the like. I even got him to go on a bike ride, pointing out that bikes are the preferred vehicle after a zombie outbreak (zombies don't move so fast).

Of course Emma and I were recruited into several "play pretend" games. For some reason, Sam preferred to be the zombie most of the time.

Sam got his spelling test home last night and...

March 21, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam got his spelling test home last night and I noticed he'd missed one of the non-challenge words. I told him I was very proud of him. He looked at me funny, wondering why I'd be proud that he'd got one wrong. I replied that it was the first time this year that he'd missed one.

Sam's been doing relatively well these days. Fencing has been on hold for a couple weeks, but he's looking forward to starting up again. I might lure him over to the Eugene Fencing Club some days, as I'd love to fence with him.

Sam had a wart frozen last night

February 20, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam had a wart frozen last night. The now sell these kits where you mix a couple chemicals together and get the tip of this applicator really cold. You then press it against the wart for 20 seconds or so and theoretically it falls off a week or two later.

Sam was all excited to give it a try, and Jamie demanded to do it (claiming I wouldn't read the instructions fully). Unfortunately it ended up being somewhat painful and he's not very enthusiastic about trying it again. Hopefully it works and doesn't need another application.

After he finished his homework and was looking somewhat pitiful with his sniffly nose and sore foot, I asked him what he wanted to do in the hour before bed. "I want to go downstairs and program and have you help me." With a smile, I took him to the basement where we worked on the Lego Star Wars game he was making in Scratch. He's a chip off the old block.

Sam's been perfecting a punch-proof vest ov...

February 11, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam and I just finished a bike ride and now h...

January 13, 2008 by Adam in Sam

Sam and I just finished a bike ride and now he's across the street playing with Ben and Sebastian. He loves riding his new bike, and it was his idea to ride when Jamie announced she needed us to go to pick things up from some stores. We took a detour on the Amazon path past Roosevelt Middle school. It was kind of fun riding around the part of town, as I have fond memories of going over there when I was a kid. Maybe I'll take him to Riverview street for the full nostalgia effect.

As an aside, I found an online retailer that was selling Guitar Hero at a reasonable price, so it should be heading our way soon.

Jamie got Sam a reading chair for his bed

January 11, 2008 by Adam in Sam