What we've been up to {Part 2}

We have been playing t-ball! Well, one of us has...the other three have been watching! It's been a fun season, even if several games were rained out and scheduling got a little crazy. Sam has one more game left this season and we have see vast improvement for all the Riverbats this season. Sam even got the game ball twice...one for getting an out when he was playing second...he was paying attention enough to get an out!! His coach's goal for the season was for each kid to have fun (which should really be the goal for any sport in this age group, right?), and he achieved that and more.

Go Riverbats!

Easter 2011

Bronchitis, egg dying, crazy thunderstorms, tornado warnings, baskets, celebrating at church and a bunny cake...what a lovely weekend :)

winter to spring

Goodbye basketball...

Hello t-ball!

Although, the freezing rain has started and we're supposed to accumulate snow tonight. Hopefully we'll see our awesome spring weather again soon!

Kentucky snow!!!

We got a little treat last weekend as we decorated the house for Christmas...SNOW!!!!! We had declared it Christmas pj day: a day that would not include changing into real clothes and leaving the house but would include Christmas decorating, hot chocolate and Christmas movies. Our bonus was the snow, though. The kids suckered me into going out with them...how could I not when Grace was sitting on a sled in the middle of the yard crying because she couldn't get it to move by herself? While I was out there, we ended up building a little friend in the yard:

Don't mind my awful outfit and lack of makeup...it WAS Christmas pj day, afterall!

Molly was not fond of our snowman. After getting annoyed with being pelted with snowball after snowball by her boy, she had already gone inside when we started building the snowman. First she barked uncontrollably at our snow friend from the living room window. Then, when she finally worked up the courage to go outside, she ran around in giant circles barking at him for several minutes, before crouching low to the ground, sneaking over to him, then jumping up in an attempt to steal his carrot nose! No one ever accused her of being the smartest dog in the neighborhood. :)

and so it begins...

On a rainy, yucky Wednesday, my big boy started kindergarten this week. I can hardly believe it. He had a great first three days and is pretty proud of himself that he never moved to yellow or red on the discipline chart this week :) So are we. Of course I documented the morning...

Here he is with his Mama who has kind of been a mess this week worrying about the new possibilities of exposures to food allergens that come with eating in a cafeteria with a bunch of grubby kindergarteners.

I'm working on dealing with that, though. Eventually, I'm sure I'll be more at ease. Sam's new teacher has been really great at making sure she's educated about his allergies and taking precautions to ensure he stays safe, so that has help immensely.

And really, my kid is so grown up, now! He knows what he needs to do to keep himself safe while learning at the same time. It blows my mind what one little boy is capable of after just five short years!

I'm already counting the days until the end of the year, but I'm sure by the end we'll be surprised about how fast this year will have flown by. I'm sure of this because that's how it's gone for the last five...

more time at the pool

Just wanted to share a few more pool pics from the past couple of weeks. I swear I won't post them EVERY time we go, but thought the fact that the kids and I appeared in a photo AT THE SAME TIME merited a post. Special thanks to our neighbor, Erin, who snapped these pics of us last week when she, Liz and teeny-tiny-water-baby Savanna joined us at the pool.

And since I know how hard it can be for a mama to actually appear in a photo with her baby, I grabbed one of Erin and Savanna on the occasion of Savanna's first outing to the pool!

At break time:

Sam going UNDER WATER! (That's the very top of his heading sticking out in the middle):
Grace swimming with teach:

Good times. This mama is thoroughly enjoying summer 2010 thus far...even if it has been as hot as the frickin' sun around here!

Thankful Thursday

I'm taking a queue from Chrissi this week and mentioning a couple things I am VERY thankful for this week:

1. I'm so thankful that old friends, Jill and Mike (and little Lauren!) decided to stop and stay at our house this past Saturday as they were passing through the area on the way to MI. Having a chance to catch up was awesome. Seeing the footage of the tornadoes that touched down in lower MI and northern OH that night and realizing that they weren't driving right through the middle of that chaos because they decided to stop was even better.

2. I'm very thankful this week that DTE Energy and the threatening-to-strike union workers came to a tentative contract agreement. This released my dad from being stuck on DTE property for the next several weeks so that we can actually see him when we head to MI for a family visit in a few weeks.

Good week. :)

change in weather

We started the day with rain in the forecast and dance pictures on the agenda. So, everyone was bathed right after breakfast since Grace had to get all prettied up for her photo shoot and I was pretty sure that the rain would hit and they wouldn't be playing outside after lunch. I snapped a quick photo of Grace all decked out on our way out the door:

When we got home, though, the sun was shining and it was warming right up. So, I hustled the kids out to the backyard to play where they remained, virtually fight-free, for the next 2-1/2 hours!! Gave Mama some time to do a little work, blog, and get some laundry and cleaning done! It also gave them ample time to get good and muddy, which doesn't quite translate in these photos, but the ring in the tub later proved it!

Yes, the patio is mud-covered, as well...that's what happens with these two around plus a crazy mutt who is thrilled to DIG!

Anyway, we ended the afternoon with both getting themselves bathed, again, and dinner. I was happy that the beautiful weather stuck around a little longer than expected! And I can't wait to get the dance pictures back from this morning...they all looked too cute in all their frills!

a teaser day...

Arriving home to 60° weather after our weekend trip to Columbus was a pleasant surprise! Good for a little bike/scooter-riding and dog-walking...even if it did only last for a day...

movie watching on a cold day...

Just the three of them...

SNOW!!

This is rare for here...we usually just get a dusting. So, the kids were thrilled to be able to go out and play in the snow this morning.

Testing out the sled we bought to take to MI over the holidays:

Sam making a snow ball and Grace digging for dog poo (we told her to stay out of the back corner where Molly likes to take care of her business!):

Molly even participated...she was thrilled to run around in the snow this morning for an hour and a half, refusing to come in. Here she is, passed out while the kids played outside:

somebody's feeling a little depressed about the rainy weather today

aaaaaannnnd...we're done.

Time for me to catch up on my fall posts, since the kids have Christmas programs coming up!

Nov. 7 marked Sam's last game of his very first soccer season (and my dad's b-day...Happy Birthday, again, Dad!). He ended the season on a high note, scoring one goal (which he celebrated with everyone on the field and the sidelines for a good three minutes) and paying close attention and cheering on his fellow teammates during game time when he wasn't playing. Our neighbors even came for a little while to watch him play, which thrilled him. We were also treated to BEAUTIFUL weather at this game, as well.

Overall, we were happy that he started to learn the game a little and learned how to be part of a team (and also that he learned to lay off the pushing!).

And he was happy that he GOT A TROPHY!!!

I can't say for sure, though, whether he'll want to play again in the spring...we'll let him decide. At this age, he is just thrilled to play and wants to be involved in any sport. So, the possibilities are endless...baseball, soccer, football in the fall...we shall see!

because every princess has her admirers...

The day before Grace's birthday, we threw a backyard party with a princess theme, per her request. The funny part is that, of all the kids that were invited, only the boys ended up attending. Oh well, they didn't mind that the cake was a pink castle or that they had to eat it off of Disney princess plates, because...well...it was still cake, so who cares, right?

The cake was made by our friend, Erin, and it was amazing!

Grace's birthday is at the very end of May which is officially summer where we currently live. We could have never counted on being able to include the sprinkler and a kiddie pool in Ohio or Michigan at this time of year! All of the kids and the adults had fun and thankfully, no one was injured in the process of busting the piñata open.

It may be the last time I ask Kris to retrieve a whiffle bat from the garage, though, if I can expect him to return with a broom handle, instead!
Funny final story: Since the party was held the day before Grace's actual birthday, everyone who called her to wish her a happy birthday on Sunday had to argue with her that yes, it was her birthday and no, it was not over yesterday!