The Stepford Kids

When I got home from work last night, I was greeted by Hallie at the top of the stairs. She said, "Hello Daddy. How was your day today?" I noticed that she was in her pajamas. She told me that she had already taken her bath and put on her pajamas. Blake then said that he had taken his bath too, but hadn't yet put on his pajamas. He then added that he would go and do it now so I wouldn't have to ask him later. Then they exited the room to play with Andrew and Daniel.

Jaime pulled me aside and told me that the Blake and Hallie had been great ever since she got home. She went on to say that both of them unloaded and loaded the dishwasher and had been playing great together without any arguing. They jumped at every chance to do something to help her cook dinner and had cleaned up the downstairs of the house.

A few minutes later they came downstairs and asked if there was anything else that they could do to help with dinner. Jaime asked them to set the table and they replied, "We would love to." Then they worked together and got it done, complete with knives, spoons, forks and drinks for everyone. Once dinner was ready, we sat down to eat. The kids went on and on about how wonderful everything tasted. All through dinner, we heard, "yes sir" this and "yes ma'am" that, "please may I have some more of these wonderful beans", "this is the best chicken that I have ever eaten", "mommy, you are the best cook in the whole world", etc, etc, etc. After a while, I looked at Jaime and asked if it said Echols on the mailbox or Stepford. Who were the robot kids and where were mine?

After dinner, they brought us cards that they had made. On one side was our name. On the other was something they had written about us. Jaime's card said "Mommy, your cooking skills are awesome." My card said, "Daddy, your baseball skills are great and remind me of Chipper Jones." It was hard not to laugh at all of their thoughtfulness, but we managed to do it.

Throughout the whole night, they were the most polite, well-mannered, kind, sweet kids you have ever seen. We thanked them for being so great that night and wondered how long it would last. Today, they were back to normal. I wonder how long I need to charge the batteries to get a few extra days of that behavior.

10 years old

Today is Blake's birthday and he is 10 years old! It is hard to believe he is 10 already.

This morning when he woke up we fixed his favorite breakfast, pigs in a blanket. He then had a great morning with Hal and their summer babysitter. They made some fantastic sugar cookies and I know they had a great time doing it. After Blake's 10 year old well child visit to the Doctor, Blake thought we were headed to Chuck E Cheese for dinner. But, much to his surprise, he came home to a surprise birthday party. He was very surprised and very excited. We ate some pizza, opened some presents and then we sang Happy Birthday. Watch to the end of the clip below and you will see his biggest surprise!

Blake said this was his best birthday ever (he says that every year) but I do think it was one of the best.

Blake, we love you so much. We are so blessed that we get to be your parents and watch you grow. You have grown up so much this past year. I love that you love to eat what I cook and you try everything! You are enjoying school so much and are learning more every day. You are such a good artist and you amaze me every day with your pictures and drawings. Our lives changed 10 years ago today when you were born and I can't wait to see how you grow in the next ten years!