Unde-FEAT-ed

Wow, do I ever have a ton of posts that I have planned and failed to actually write. Anyway, way back in in the beginning of April, we took our boys to a local, seasonal attraction called the IX Indoor Amusement Park. It is just what it sounds like, an amusement park inside. There were lots of rides, giant inflatables, over-priced food and games, free shows, a complete lack of waterfountains so that they could gouge you by charging $5 for a bottle of water... you know, an amusement park. Regrettably, we only got a few good pictures:

Despite our poor picture-taking prowess while there, the boys had a fabulous time. We sat through a very small portion of the big cat show (lame!) but we watched all of the Cirque Shanghai show (cool!). The Cirque show left an indelible impression as demonstrated by our boys and their acrobat-inspired feats over the next several days. During the show they saw things like this...

http://fivepuddles.com/category/acrobats/

...and then I walked into the kitchen to find them doing this:

At least they were using a spotter, right?

One of our favorite parts of the show was the series of bike tricks ending with twelve girls on one bike.

http://chicagotheaterbeat.com/2012/06/03/review-cirque-shanghai-year-of-the-dragon-navy-pier/

 I found Elijah and David John doing some interesting things on their trikes, but at least they weren't trying to fit multiple riders.

Finally, Gabriel was obviously impressed by the silks:

http://timeoutchicagokids.com/things-to-do/promotions/49669/cirque-shanghai-extreme-discount-tickets

He rigged up his own aparatus in the back yard using an old jump rope. He would then climb up the little slide, swing out on the jump rope and kick the slide out of the way. I don't think the pictures completely do it justice. It looked dangerous. Most mothers would have probably put a stop to this insanity, but I have been desensitized to physical endangerment. With four boys, it happens.

As you can see, my boys are fearless and a little wild. Those of you who know our family well know that they can all climb just about anything. Even Benjamin at 14 months can climb into and out of his highchair independently and has successfully climbed onto the fourth shelf up on our tall bookcase. I'm not sure if there is a daredevil gene, but I think they all have it. Talking about their recent feats of testosterone awesomeness reminds me of a conversation I had with the twins a while back:

"Mom, we, um, accidentally drew on the wall."

"Okay... can you show me where you 'accidentally' drew on the wall?"

They took me by the hand and led me to the doorway into our kitchen. There were crayon marks on the underside of the door frame. Lots of them. In three different colors. They cannot reach the top part of the door frame, even with a chair. This means that they "accidentally" shimmied up the door jamb, while "accidentally" having a crayon in their mouths, and when they reached the top, they held on with their legs and then "accidentally" took the crayon out of their mouth and scribbled.

I can't even remember how I responded other than awe at their ingenuity and shimmying skills. Climbing up the walls is an old trick, and one that they use to scare uninitiated babysitters. Just last night, Benjamin pulled one over on the sitters by climbing on top of the kitchen table and dumping milk everywhere. If had to guess, I'd say the score is probably Ricks Boys: 10, Babysitters: 0. 

I'm not always sure where they get their crazy ideas and I can't always find logic in their actions but I guess as long as they are little boys, they will remain undefeated.