We have to get one more post in before June 2015 is gone for good!  We had a fun family vacation to the Lake last week.  It was nice to be away, and Grandma and Grandpa joined us so that it wasn't so much work for Mom and Dad.  
Full Photo Album

Preston's highlights:
-Debbie joined us for the first weekend!  Yay!!
- We did a lot of swimming and had mostly nice weather
- On the rainy day we went to a cool museum in Pittsfield that had an awesome aquarium, a section of kids activities, and some awesome animals.  Then Mom and Grandma wanted to visit the vanilla store to buy vanilla and stuff.
- We also took a road trip to Mt. Greylock - the tallest mountain in Massachusetts.  You can drive up it, so we didn't have to hike.  Once we were on the top there was a monument and a lot of paths that twisted in and out of the woods.  Grandpa and I played a lot of hide and seek and I basically ran everywhere. 
- Treasure Hunts!  The pirates came to visit us a few times!  One time they left a scavenger hunt where we had to follow the bird signs to find the treasure (candy sticks)
- Daddy and I built a birdhouse!  There are a lot of extras scraps of wood and antique tools at the lake.  Daddy is always up for a challenge.
- Hiking on the Blue Diamond trail - There's a story here.  One night Grandma and Grandpa and I went on a canoe trip together.  We visited otter cove!  On the shore I could see some blue diamonds nailed on some trees.  I knew immediately that they were clues and that we should follow them!  It was getting too dark to follow the path that night, so we decided to take our hike in the morning.  
After breakfast we all piled into two canoes; Luke sat in Mommy's lap.  He was fussy because of his life preserver.  We canoed over to the special dock near otter cove and found the first blue diamond.  I was the LEADER for our hike, and I did an awesome job.  I found every blue diamond to make sure that we stayed on the path, and I always checked in with my group to make sure that everyone was ok behind me!  We ended up going all the way to the big rocks and the wooden pathways through the swamp.  The pitchers plants were out!  They are plants that EAT BUGS.  After that we headed back to the canoes and back to home.  It was a really good hike!
- Catching fish.  Daddy caught a HUGE large mouth bass (Mommy and Daddy can attest that I am not exaggerating here.  This guy was big by Dyken standards).  I wanted to eat him for dinner, but Daddy felt bad and threw him back in.
- We also saw a very cool catfish in the beach area.  Daddy stirred up the beach by shoveling some sand and clay, so the catfish was enjoying some of the goodies that had floated to the top of water.  He was having such a yummy meal he didn't pay any attention to us.  They are usually bottom dwellers, so Mom and Dad weren't sure if he was alive a first.  He was confirmed alive when he swam away fast from the bucket with which we tried to capture him.
- And finally - we took an awesome Train ride on Father's Day with 7 passenger cars pulled by an Alco Road Switcher.  The day was made more fun by having chasers on the ground.  On the trip out Debbie chased the train.  She even climbed out into a stream to get a good picture of the train on a bridge.  And on the way back Grandpa chased the train.  He became famous.  All the passengers knew his name by the end of the trip and would look for him at all of the grade crossings.  It was a fun trip.
Here are some pictures of my highlights:

Luke's Highlights:
- I get to sleep in Mom and Dad's room, and here I use the term "sleep" loosely.  I am a good sleeper, just like Mom ordered when she got pregnant with me, but only when I don't have an audience.  When they are right there in the room with me I don't understand why they won't just get up and party with me at 5 am.  Come on, Parents!  They usually pass me off to Grandma and Grandpa who are more willing to be early risers - just because I'm cute.
- Wheel barrow rides with Grandpa to check the mailbox - I even fell asleep on one (on account of my 5am wake up calls, most mornings I didn't last until after lunch for a nap)
- Swinging in the hammock
- Climbing in the baby pool with all of my clothes on
- Shoulder rides on our Blue Diamond Hike
- Blueberries (It's one of my first words!)
- Choo-choos!  I love to look at all the pictures of the choo-choos that were in the bedroom that I shared with Mom and Dad.  I would show anyone who would follow me in there to point at them.  I also love all of the choo-choo magazines that are on the porch (there are quite a few for those of you wondering if it is possible to have more than one Trains Magazine available at all times for riveting reading)
- Taking out ALL of the bowls from the bowl cabinet, then attempting to put the cat food in them.  Grandma always intervened with Cheerios.  
- Art projects with Mom and Grandma.  I still haven't figure out arts and crafts. -See Video Below
- Climbing the stairs to the porch 
- Climbing the stairs to the other porch
- Attempting to climb the ladder to the loft
- Climbing up on the stool! This was one of my favorite "show off" tricks of the week.  I needed helping getting down... every.time. - See Video Below
- Finding rocks and then throwing them into the lake.  And generally throwing anything I can find.
- The fishies at my level at the aquarium
- Playing in the dry-docked rowboat - I bonked the corner of my eye pretty good, though
- Not canoeing.  I mean, boating is fun, but the life preserver is torture.
- Playing with Daddy

I came home from the lake with my first splinter right on the top of my big toe.  I guess this is what happens when I start walking in bare feet in the summer time.  Mom did a thorough inspection of my splinter and called in Dad for a second opinion.  They decided that they would not attempt to extract it, and instead put a Dora band-aid on it with a little bit of ointment.  I can’t tell which is worse, an extraction or an invasion of my foot space with a sticky band-aid.  I just wanted that horrible thing OFF!  Then mom put a sock on my foot and within seconds I forgot all about it: out of sight, out of mind.  I went to school without giving it a second thought.  Then at bath time, Mom took my sock off and there it was!   That band-aid was invading my space again!  Thankfully, she removed the band-aid and put me in the tub.  Then she squeezed my toe for a second and I yelled “STOP!”  She was already finished taking the splinter out.  And we all went on with our lives. 

In other news, the Lake was fun this weekend!  Mom, Preston, and I went by ourselves to visit with Uncle Ted, Aunt Rachel, Liora, Talia and Aunt Debbie.  Grandma and Grandpa were there for the first day, too.  We only went for one night, so it ended up being a LOT of driving.  I wasn’t happy about being in the car on the way home, but we all survived.  We had fun splashing in the baby pool, throwing rocks, taking wheelbarrow rides, and playing with all the lake toys.  I don’t nap well at the lake, and I’m generally fussy from all the teething businesses that has been going on.  My favorite toy at the lake is the green and red dump truck; it was Preston’s favorite, too, when he was my age.  I know how to climb in the water shed to get it out all by myself. 

Mom has to admit that I am pretty self-reliant and independent (you could also say stubborn and uncooperative, but I am just a 1 year old).  I’m starting to be deliberately naughty, which is both cute and not cute.  I like to throw things, and I do it for all sorts of reasons.  1) It’s fun to throw rocks into the water to make a splash 2) When I’m done with something what else am I supposed to do with it? 3) When I get mad at something clearly throwing it is the best way to handle the situation 4) If Mom tells me not to throw something, I throw it.  Many of these reasons also go for hitting, and my throwing and hitting tend to get worse when I am tired.  I also like to see what kind of rise I can get out of Mom.    

This morning Daddy dropped me off at day care.  He put me down in the lobby so he could help Preston put our lunches in the fridge, but I didn’t hang around for that.  I marched down the hallway and knocked on the door until Daddy came to open it for me.  Then I marched to the door to my classroom and knocked on it until Daddy came to open it for me.  Then I marched into my classroom, went straight to the corner by the slide, found a toy, and didn’t so much as glance at Daddy when he tried to say good-bye.  I had things-to-do!

Preston’s Powers:

“Mommy!  Can you read me some books?”
“Sure, Preston, pick out a few books that you’d like to read”
“Well, I don’t have my reading powers yet, Mommy, that’s why I need you to help me read books, right?  I have my robot powers, and my climbing powers, and my dancing powers.  I just don’t have my reading powers.”
“Would you like me to help you get your reading powers?”
“Well, there are too many letters and words for me, my powers are still dead”
“I think with a lot of practice your reading powers will get a lot stronger, and you can read books just like me”
“Can we get books that only have ONE word?  Then I can practice my reading powers”
“Sure, kiddo, the next time we go to the library we will look for some books that you can try to read”

So I suppose I’m in search of books and suggestions for a 4.5 year old who wants to get his reading powers.  Any suggestions?  He’s still working on letters, too, so we have a long way to go, but I’m proud of him for at least wanting to learn.

I’m also very proud of him for something he did at the grocery store last night.  We stopped in the baby aisle for some wipes and of course they have a shelf of cheap toys.  He asked me if we could by a track for his racecars, and after I said that it wasn’t something I wanted to spend money on he said he would ask Daddy.  I ignored it and let him carry the toy around with him for the rest of the trip.  After a few minutes he announced that he was going to go put the toy back where he found it in the baby aisle.  I didn’t ask or even suggest that he put it back, he just decided that it was the right thing to do.  I told him I was very proud of him for making a responsible decision.  He was a little sad and said that he wanted to ask Santa for the track, but that was it!  

Over the weekend Preston and John played a riveting game of cops and robbers.  It started when John build a golden bird statue and then pretended to go to sleep.  Preston stealth-fully swiped the statue and hid it in a secret place.  When he turned to wake John and inform him of the missing statue Preston was surprised to find ANOTHER golden bird statue in it's place.  The game evolved.  John started building security systems for his increasingly valuable works of art.  Preston kept foiling the security systems, sometimes with the help of Mom.  He started leaving clues behind that would help John to find the statues again.  And after he managed to pull off one of the biggest and most elaborate art heists in history he left one final  clue:
Daddy "Look for the giant "O" to find the golden bird statues" 

He got so wrapped up in the game, that he didn't think twice when he drew with crayon on the door to secret safe.  
We couldn't even be mad at him, and he very willingly helped to wash it off.

Lukey Luke is teething, that could be the end of the story.  He's fussy a lot of the time.  He had a gross cold last week with loads of boogs - even the kind that come out of his eyes, lovely, I know - but seems to be recovering from that.  He's just miserable from the teething, and I wish there was something I could do for him.  
When he's not miserable, he's super cute as usual.  He definitely has his own style.  He likes to look at books, but not read them.  Tonight at bed time I sat in his rocker while he climbed in an out of my lap with 17 different books - one at a time of course.  He likes to climb down, find a new book, hand it to me, climb back in my lap, page through the book while he talks or sings to himself, throw the book onto the floor, climb down *repeat.*  If I try to read the book to him he literally tells me to "stop," and if I try to turn the pages he gets mad, closes the book on my hands and throws it.  Sometimes he'll let me participate, if the book is really worth his time.  If is has things that he is supposed to touch or buttons to push then it is worth his time to look at every page.  Otherwise the book is not worthy! 
I've gotten used to his system, and I've decided that as long as we are going through the motions of book reading and discovery I'll let him take the lead for now.  He's clearly interested, but he has his own agenda.  Maybe it's second child syndrome to some extent.  He is so used to Preston taking away whatever awesome toy he finds to play with that now he is over protective of everything he can get his hands on.  

We went to a picnic with some of my work friends over the weekend and had fun playing with some new friends.
 

From Preston:
We have a lot of photos to share from Memorial Day weekend at the Lake!  We had an awesome time and even played in the water despite some chilly water temperatures.  Us boys don't mind the cold!  We just get out and warm up when we need to.  We spent the weekend with Grandma and Grandpa and Debbie.  Luke is enjoying many of the fun camp activities that I used to enjoy as tiny toddler, and I love exploring some more big kid activities.  Daddy went fishing and caught 4 fish (although we are pretty sure he just caught the same two fish on two different days).  He even fixed up an ancient fishing rod (with the help of google) in order to catch some fish.  The real hero of our fishing adventures, though, is Mommy.  She was the one who dug up ALL of the worms.  She knew exactly where to find them - under logs.  
We took a few canoe rides, one of which lead to a hike to the BIG rocks.  I ascended the tricky big rock for the first time!  Yeah to being 4!  We also spent some time with Stella.  It's fun to play with her.  
Here are some photos and you can see the full album HERE:  

The other exciting thing that happened last week is that I finished the spring semester at Gymnastics and got a MEDAL.  It's special to me, and I love it.  I'm so proud of myself! 

From Luke:

I LOVE my Grandpa.  But it makes completely sense, because he is the funnest grown-up that I have ever met.  He taught me how to through rocks in to the lake, make a SPLASH, and then CLAP for my accomplishments.  It's the best game ever. In fact, ever since I have been practicing my throwing skills with everything I can find.  
I got my second hair cut while we were at the lake.  Haircuts for both Preston and me always start out pretty well but end with horribly with crying and hair in mouths and flailing arms.  This haircut was no different.  But I do look cute now that it is all done!  
I also learned about wagon rides, and it didn't take me long to find all of the toys in the shed and start digging in the sand.  I loved the dump trucks!  
I also enjoyed swinging in the hammock, chasing birds around the lawn, reaching for the fishies that we kept alive in the bucket, and playing ball with Debbie and Grandma.  
I did not enjoy napping.  There were way too many other things to be doing.  But as a result I was pretty tantrummy in the afternoon.  Mom says I'm getting the terrible two's early.  

From Mom and Dad:

The other night John was making up some songs while playing along to a small plastic guitar.  Preston was playing along for a little bit and then it was bed time.  The next morning John was spying on Preston as he played and sang a song about his new favorite brio engine - an orange and black diesel that he adorably refers to as "the ABC Pumpkin Train."  John was bummed that he didn't get the song on video, but we'll try if we ever catch him in the mood again.

Super Secret Surprises!
John asked Preston to feed the cats.  Preston did not agree.  So John said "Alright, well, whoever feeds the cats gets a super secret surprise!" and headed for the pantry to get the din-din.  Preston raced over to the pantry and beat John.  He hurriedly fed the cats and the asked what the Super Secret Surprise was.  John said "For your Super Secret Surprise YOU get to mop the floor!!!"   Preston was SO excited.  He got the mop out of the laundry room and cleaned the whole floor.  He even made sure that his little brother didn't leave any footprints!  
You know you are awesome parents when you get your kid to do 2 chores for the price of nothing!

Luke Stories
We let Luke have a pacifier in the evenings as he gets ready for bed.  He needs it for a few minutes especially as he starts to really cut back on nursing.  Tonight he had his pacifier and Preston was poking at it.  Luke took it out of his mouth long enough to yell "Stop" and swat at his pesty big brother before putting it back in his mouth.  That's a good first word for a 1 year old, right?  I'm going to be in trouble with this one.  

He also likes to be outside with me when I check on my gardens and we get some fresh air together in the evening.  He saw me planting a basil plant and got really excited about the dirt.  For the rest of the night he kept picking up handfuls of dirt and handing them to me like a good helper.   I also mentioned that he loves to chase birds around the yard.  One day one of my boys will actually catch one.

This past weekend (the weekend after Memorial Day) John was sick at home and I took the boys to Mom and Dads house for the day.  We went to my old Elementary school for a fundraising fair and rode some live steamers!  Preston and Grandpa were instantly enthralled with the rolling stock, so the rest of us, Me, Luke, Mom, and Debbie, walked through the little cluster of vendors and then went inside to see the school.  It looks SO much smaller than it did when I went there.  Luke was a little nervous about his first live steamer ride.  There's not much holding you in, but the train goes slowly.  He also doesn't like car washes, so I suppose it all in the environment.  He's uncomfortable with the unfamiliar.  Mommy was a hero again that day.  We didn't head home until after dinner, so it was late, and I still managed to stop at the grocery store with two tired little boys to buy bland foods and fluids for my sick husband at home.  It was a long, but fun day.