Busy week. Short post.

Wow ... a lot happened this past week.

I'll apologize in advance for a delayed blog update and short narrative. (I didn't get this done last night so I'm "borrowing" wireless from the nursing home next to school to wrap it up today. Hopefully they won't notice me on their network until I get finished. Oh, and hopefully Mom and Dad didn't notice that I grabbed the laptop before we left this morning!)

Earlier this week Mom and Dad tried to explain the subtleties of "Rock Paper Scissors" to me. I'm not sure I get the point of this game ...

Saturday was a great day! Mom and I ran errands while Dad worked in the yard then we all went to the park!

That afternoon I got to go to Grandma Maggy's because Mom put together a surprise birthday party for Dad! Dad raved about what a fun time he had and, looking at the photos, it sure seemed like everyone was happy to be there. (The adults all had what looked like sippy cups in every photo ... weird.)

Keeping with an earlier theme Grandma took me to her favorite park, too! (It was a great day to be a little boy!)

Among other things, Grandma bought me a fun cow plate that I got to eat breakfast on Sunday morning!

Mom and Dad came to get me and I showed them some of the photos Grandma took of me. She got some good ones!

Later yesterday afternoon I got to play outside with Mom while Dad played golf. Here I am modeling my cool sandals ...

... and here I am modeling my new hat!

One last thought before I go ... always make time to smell the flowers.

Pierce

Peanut, peanut butter ... JELLY!

Hello everyone. There is much to cover so I'm going to skip the pleasantries and jump right in.

I've been working on a lot of teeth so grumpiness, combined with a fever and cough kept me home from school a couple of days this past week.

Monday brought an end to the ugliest NCAA tournament bracket ever. At least I finished ahead of Mom and Dad in the Flynn Wright office pool, but given my totals that wasn't anything to brag about.

On Tuesday Mom, Dad and I filled out our family majors pool sheets for the year. We track prize money for five players each across each of the four golf majors and it is a lot of fun. This year I picked a good group of guys and am currently in second place. (I do need to get better about "talking smack" ... Mom and Dad really give it to each other and I really don't have much to add.)

Wednesday, continuing my new passion for sports betting, I entered the Flynn Wright office Masters pool. Now that the final standings are in I would like to make it known that I once again wiped Mom and Dad out. I ended up just out of the money but am sure that the next chance I get I'm going to hit it big.

Anyway, back to the week that was. I stayed home with Mom Tuesday but got to spend some time outside in the Cozy Coupe. That was a lot of fun.

Tuesday night Grant came over for a few hours. Here we are getting all wound up. I really liked chasing Grant around but seeing the basket reminded me that I needed to find some pants.

After terrorizing Mom and Dad we took baths, got into jammies and read but Grant's Dad picked him up so he didn't spend the night.

Saturday Mom and I went to a baby shower for Amanda, Grant's Mom who is having twins in a few weeks. (I learned something on Saturday ... little boys don't have to like baby showers.)

That afternoon Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Dave stopped over! They were in town to see George Strait and Reba McEntire. Grandpa brought me a nice seed corn hat ...

... and Grandma helped me with my bubbles.

Mom and Dad were going to the show too so I spent the night with Grandma Maggy! It was a lot of fun because she took me to the park. I really liked the slide. (Thanks to her friend Janice for taking this photo.)

While I was at Grandma's Mom and Dad were at the show. Here Mom is sharing a smile with longtime friend Kristen.

By all accounts George Strait continues to be an attractive fellow.

I think Mom and Dad were kind of glad that I was at Grandma Maggy's because they got to go out for a big, greasy breakfast. (For some reason they both felt that it was something they needed to do.)

Before we left Grandma's I played a new song for everyone.

You'll notice a nice vertical line above my right eye in this photo. I ran into the corner of a wall when I got home and have a nice straight-line bruise on my noggin. It hurt but Mom and Dad gave me hugs. I also got my first PB&J sandwich out of the deal! (Frankly, after such an amazing, wonderful, tasty, awesome, cool, "where have you been all my life" sandwich experience I'll take a noggin bruise in exchange for wheat bread, creamy peanut butter and strawberry jelly any day of the week.)

After a much needed nap I curled up with Dad to watch "... the final round of The Masters, live from Augusta in high definition and with limited commercial interruption thanks to the generous support of corporate partners AT&T, Exxon-Mobile and IBM ..." (Can you tell we heard that a few times during the broadcast?)

Anyway, this is Dad's favorite golf thing of the entire year. I actually think I saw him get misty-eyed listening to Jim Nantz.

Somehow this afternoon we also managed a trip to Dahl's and ... drum roll, please ...

... our first stop at Snookies this season!

It was a busy afternoon but all ended well because I got to help cook dinner. As Mom worked in the kitchen and Dad grilled I put together a nice water and oatmeal mixture. Seeing that we had plenty to eat I went ahead and dumped it on the patio so the squirrels could enjoy a home cooked meal.

Well, that's it. Another week gone by. I hope everyone has a good week and remembers to wear their seatbelts, use their turn signals and share the road with our friends on motorcycles. (After my outings in the Cozy Coupe I know how crazy some drivers are!)

Pierce

That damn bunny ...

Hello, all. I hope everyone had a good week. Mine started out great but has ended in a fairly traumatic fashion.

More on that later, but let's start with some more information about the trash and recycling containers I have in the backyard. I showed y'all how I take them to the curb in an earlier post but also wanted to show how I inspect them daily.

One thing about trash and recycling ... you can never be too on top of things. I make sure both are exactly where they should be and aren't too full every night after school.

My friend (and our neighbor) Debbie has a puppy named Max. I've been meaning to welcome him to the neighborhood so I picked up some stuff at our Bone-A-Patreat as a gift. I took it to him Wednesday after I inspected the trash and recycling.

Afterwards we went to dinner at Hyperion and I got my first look at the golf course this year. It was fun to watch folks play as we ate.

Friday was Grandma Maggy's birthday so she came over for dinner. She also brought me some Easter gifts. I hadn't seen her since she got back from Texas so there was a lot to catch up on. (After a long week I was pretty sleepy, so we didn't get to talk as long as I wanted to.)

Easter egg coloring on Saturday afternoon was fun. The kit came with a crayon for drawing on the eggs then Mom would help me get them colored.

I got pretty good at it by the end!

Not bad!
Last night we went to the Fletcher's for food and fun. Grant's dad Justin organized an Easter egg hunt just for us!

It was a lot of fun! Grant and I both found lots of eggs!

Mom helped me with my loot after we were done.

You could be 1 or 100 but if you're a guy body humor never goes out of style. Here I am with Grant enjoying a good laugh.

Some gifts were dropped off after I went to bed last night. I got some great things but didn't understand the funny ears that Mom and Dad had me wear. Little did I know what was in store later this afternoon!

After gifts and a nice breakfast (thanks Mom!) we went to church. The music was excellent. Grandma Maggy sang in the choir (first row just to the left of the conductor) and Dad served communion.

Oh. Yes. That damn bunny. After prying me with gifts this morning I was to meet him at Hyperion's Easter brunch with Mom, Dad and Grandma Maggy.

Nobody told me he was 8' tall, furry and had such a big tooth. I do not like him at all and will be rethinking my approach to Easter next year. (Please note how supportive Mom and Dad were. Dad is laughing. Mom is photographing. I'm dying on the inside.)

Have a great week everyone. Keep an eye out for that damn bunny ... he's a scary dude! (If you feel like you need to cry when you see him go ahead.)

Oh, and one more thing. I'm looking for new parents. I've had mine for about 16 months now and they continually expect me to come inside when it gets dark, eat my food, sleep at night, etc. They also weren't that supportive when that damn bunny scared me this afternoon. If anyone can offer another arrangement call my cell.

Thanks.

Pierce

Spring has sprung!

Well, I think Spring is officially here. Things are growing in the yard, I'm going outside almost every day at school and everyone is in a better mood.

This week went by fast! Tuesday morning Dad and I took Grandma Maggy to the airport so she could get on a plane to go to Austin.

Friday night we had family pizza night and I tried to show Mom and Dad how to make a hat out of an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper.

Saturday started out with the delivery and installation of a new dishwasher! (Mom and Dad were a little too excited if you ask me.) I tried to get them to let me keep the old one but they said no.

In the afternoon we ran errands and I caught up on sleep while we were driving.

That night Mom and Dad went with the Dillons to visit our friend Mary so Andrea came over. Before they left I got to open my mail from Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Dave. (I felt really great because I got more mail than Mom or Dad on Saturday!)

Today Mom taught Sunday School so Dad and I met her at church. It was Palm Sunday and I got my own palm.

Afterwards I had to show Mom and Dad how to run their new toy. (Geez, parents just don't get technology.)

After my nap we went to the Iowa Energy game! Here is a photo from our trip in December...

... and here is today! I look older, don't you think?!

Today provided a great chance for another "then and now" photo. Last year, on March 17 I helped dad grill.

Today we grilled for the first time in 2010!

Mom and I also came up with a fun new game to play while Dad is grilling. (I can do a lot more than I could last year.)

Finally, here is a photo of Grandma Maggy in Austin today. 1st row, L-R, Grandma Maggy, Great Uncle Ken Pierce, Great Aunt Penny Pierce. 2nd row, L-R, Aunt Emily, First Cousin-Once Removed Robin (Pierce) Fruehe.

Photo courtesy of Matthew Miller

Have a great week, all.

Oh, one more thing ... I finally found a great resource for all of those Smokey and the Bandit quotes I've been looking for. I tell ya, the first thing I'm going to buy when I get an allowance is that DVD. Classic!

Pierce.

The call of the auctioneer ...

I got my first pair of "big boy" shoes this week. Thick soled. Velcro straps. Darn attractive, if I must say so myself. Here I am after putting them on for the first time. It was hard to walk! (Thanks for the St. Patrick's Day card, Grandma Maggy!)

After the rain last week we had snow this week! Mom, Dad and I went to Grandma and Grandpa's Friday after school. Clayton's auction was going to take place "come hell or high water" so Saturday everyone was out of the house early and did their best to make things go smoothly. Before you can bid you have to "get a number" and register. Both Uncle Eric and Dad got numbers and I got to go with them.

There were 14 hayracks full of things plus furniture and appliances to sell. Uncle Tim (in the orange) stopped by to see how things were going. It was a long day for Grandma and Grandpa.

I went on a quick tour of things but it was cold so I just told Mom and Dad what I wanted and left them to bid. I was really lucky because I got to spend most of the day warm in the house with Clayton.


There were cars as far as the eye could see!

After the auction everyone came over. I did my best to keep them entertained but just had to go to bed and left them to carry on their party without me.

Overnight the Easter Bunny came! (A bit early this year.) I got to cuddle with Uncle Eric a bit as he read me one of my Easter books.

As Mom and Dad loaded the car Grandpa Dave and I watched some of the films Dad posted on earlier blogs. (I sure wish someone would have told me several months ago that I waddled when I walk. Geez, I look like a penquin!)

Before getting home Mom, Dad and I went to Hoover High School and saw Grandma Maggy play in the Greater Des Moines Community Band. I really liked the music but after a couple of numbers I had to get up and move around. After three hours in the car sitting was the last thing I wanted to do.

Mom and Dad took turns following me as I went on a self-directed tour of the building. Dad kept trying to tell me about high school but he wasn't making sense. He and Mom agreed that there is a certain smell to a high school (much like there is a certain smell to a preschool).

You can see Grandma playing flute to the right of the conductor.

When we got home it was really nice out! I ran around while Mom and Dad unloaded the car then helped Dad roll the recycling to the curb.

One last thing ... at the auction Mom picked up some old toys she played with as a girl at Clayton's house. Imagine her pride as she finally got something she built to look like the picture on the side of the box! ($40 and 25 years later she has a special feeling of success. Good for you Mom ... yep, good for you.)

That's all folks ...

Let's all try and be the windshield, not the bug this week.

Pierce