Good-Bye Car Seat, Hello Booster

Addie has been asking for a booster seat for awhile- and I really wanted her to get to the 40lb mark. Clearly at 5 1/2 it's rather crazy for her to still be in a full-fledged car seat, so we decided to make the Big Switch in time for her preschool graduation.

Shopping for booster seats can be difficult, so we stopped at McDonald's for their .49 kiddie ice cream cone first- yay!!

Reading the booklet on the booster seat- love her desire to learn!

SO excited to be in a car seat!!

Thumbs up the next day while riding to school!!

Alden is not to be left out- he is excited to have Addie's old car seat- and he is now wanting a booster seat, which he will get when he turns 4 as he will be 4 AND 40lbs then!

Preschool Graduate Pics

I cannot believe Addie is "graduating" preschool next Friday!! How in the world can she be old enough for kindergarten?

Her class- several kids are missing- they don't all come every day, a good number of them only come 2 or 3 days a week- and yet, Addie is friends with them all!

I am so thankful for such a fantastic preschool! Addie has learned so much- not just academics which are important, but more importantly people skills- she can work with all different kinds of kids (just look at her class- multiple ethnic backgrounds and religions are represented), how to follow directions from someone not me, how to be a leader, how to stand-up for herself, how to be empathetic, how to live for Jesus without cramming it down someones throat, etc. Seeing all the invaluable life lessons she has learned in just this one year is why I am so thankful for her school- and I can't wait for kindergarten, and 1st grade and 2nd grade...! It isn't always easy to "train up a child in the way they should go" but since it's what God commands, I know He will protect her and I know it's what best for her! Look out world, here she comes!!

Beach Attempt #1

The company Al works for is amazing- simply amazing!! They asked him to come to Virginia Beach to cover that office this week- they ASKED, not demanded. They even allowed him to book 1 day early, Sunday, so that 1)he could get to the office early Monday morning and more importantly, 2)we could go to the beach on Sunday and have a place to clean-up before the 2 hour ride home!!

Sunday morning dawned rather moistly (read this raining). The forecast called for showers until noonish so we decided to still go for it. The rain we drove through to get there was torrential!! My car, which was covered in some sort of tree sap, was totally clean by the time we made it to VA Beach!! Thankfully Al's hotel room was ready- so we trouped up there to come up with a Plan B since it was still pouring with no signs of letting up, and it was already 10.30am.

The kids thought his set-up was pretty sweet- and we agreed! He had a full kitchen, dining table, pull-out couch, desk, tv, and a separate bathroom and bedroom!

We were going to head to a local mall, one, ironically we used to go to when we lived on the Eastern Shore and had to come "across the bay" for something, when we passed a man, dripping wet and smelling of chlorine. From the hotel's website, it looked like the pool was outside- but we decided to check it out and SCORE! the pool is INSIDE!! We promptly put our suits on and spent the next hour watching the kids swim from one side of the pool to the other. They had a blast swimming and making friends with 2 little boys who also came down to burn off some energy. Around noon the rain stopped and the sun came out- so we cleaned up and headed to The Beach!!

My little fish- they are doing SO well swimming!!

Ready to go to the beach- the elevator was the best to them since it was super shiny.... Ahh to be so easily entertained!!

Drumroll- here is it- THE BEACH!! As we were driving around looking for a place to park, Addie kept commenting on how she had missed this place, on how she had missed that shop, how that spot was her old favorite, etc. The funny thing is that she has NEVER been to VA Beach before- I guess all beach towns must look alike to her- Ocean City, Rehoboth, etc.

Since it had just poured, the sand, wherever you went, was perfect for building sandcastles, which is what Alden was adamant we do- so we did. I left my camera in the car and I forgot to get Al to take pictures of him building- he is so going to be an architect when he grows up!! We put our toes in the water- which was freeeeeeezing- and then the kids decided to start hunting for shells.... They had a blast- which is what we were going for!! It ended up being the perfect day- not crowded- but enough people to be entertaining, not sweltering hot- but warm enough you enjoyed the ocean breeze, and oodles of sand to dig in and shells to find!

After playing on the beach for a little over an hour, we had a great lunch at a little restaurant, strolled some more on The Boardwalk, and topped it off with Kohr Brother's Frozen Custard. It wasn't what we had planned, but it was a great time, and that's what really counts!! The kids were totally tuckered out and snoozed almost the entire trip home.

We will most certainly go back this summer, and hopefully it won't rain the first few hours we get there- but if it does, we know how to still have a good time!

Happy Birthday, Al!

For what feels like the first time in ages, Al had his birthday and he wasn't 1)working or 2)moving!! In honor of this, we had a cookout and invited our good friends Mike and Karen to come and celebrate with us!!

Here Karen is so graciously modeling the great spread that we had- turkey burgers and all the trimmings, pasta salad, baked beans, watermelon & chips- yummy!!

The Kids Table- Avery is still stuck with us at the grown-up table, but not for long!!

Singing to Al- that cake is from Sam's and Karen picked it out- and yes, it was just as amazing as it looks!!

I love this pic- we all helped him blow out his candles!!

After this, Al and Mike went to play a round of golf while Karen and I got to put the kids down for a nap. We did end the evening by swimming at the pool and eating pizza- the kids were happy with that and that made Al happy!

Al is such an amazing man- I am thrilled, honored and humbled to be his friend and wife! It's been an amazing set of birthday's we have spent together- and I look forward to what God has in store for the next 80-something birthdays!!

Memorial Day Weekend!

Memorial Day weekend- what an amazing weekend- amazingly traveled, amazingly fun, amazingly fast!!

Saturday we woke up at 3am and were on the road by 3.30am- all in an attempt to miss as much traffic as possible- and it worked!! The kids did great- they went back to sleep for a few hours once we put them in their carseats.

Here is Alden enjoying a breakfast of champions- Cars Cheezits!! He has his precious NiNi wrapped around his neck- what more can a man ask for??

I love this pic- all 3 of my "children" doing something different. It was a great trip up- Al was such a trouper to drive and let the rest of us snooze.

Once in NY we had our standard, NY bagels for breakfast, and then headed off to a local strip mall where an airport is as well- there was a HUGE airshow happening on Jones Beach and all the airplanes were taking off and landing at this airport! We got to see a good number of planes all without the hassle of the actual air show!! Alden was in heaven!

After some naps (not for me, I got a pedicure- ahhh!) we relaxed in the backyard and enjoyed the perfect weather!

Addie even got 85 year old Nonnie to come and sit outside!! Nonnie will do just about anything these 2 kids ask of her!

After a yummy dinner, the kids decided to "help" PopPop undo some damage they did last summer- throwing white rocks from around the pool- into his red rock area. They thought it was a great job- and were even more thrilled when he gave them money!!

After much debate, we decided to leave Sunday evening at bedtime- once again in hopes of missing traffic- and once again, it worked! We rolled in a little after 2am. Yes, we made it to and from NY in a little under 48 hours- it was well worth it!

This means that we had all day Monday to actually RELAX! The kids were thrilled to go to the pool- and since it's been sooooo hot lately, the pool temp was actually refreshing not numbing.

See what I mean by it being an amazing weekend? We are so blessed to have family close and the ability to go see them time to time!

Whew- What a Weekend!!

Whew- we have had quite the weekend- full of Dr visits, friends, flowers, and yummy food!

We actually started to celebrate the weekend on Thursday night by making chocolate chip cookies!! Don't tell my kids, but they think you always put in 1/2 the butter, wheat germ, and healthy flour!

Since Alden was STILL having massive bloody noses after being cauterized the previous Friday, the ENT had us come back in so he could take a look- there will be a whole other post dedicated to this situation- I won't get into it here- I want to think happy thoughts!! Here is my boy waiting- he's so adorable!!

This is a bubble whistle- the toy company wants to torture parents and their surrounding neighbors. Thankfully it didn't last long and quickly broke...

Since both kids had had Strep Throat, they needed new toothbrushes. I had heard about these, but this was the first time I got them- and I will FOREVER buy them! The kids can pinch the bottom of the toothbrush, and then the toothbrush blinks (the whole thing blinks- it's supppppper cool) for a full minute. My kids LOVE brushing their teeth for the full time now- yay! And an added bonus is that if the electricity goes out, I know where I can go and find something that lights up quickly!

Sunday... I went to the Dr (I had a severe sinus infection, which combined with my allergies made for a mess- but thanks to drugs, everything is now fine)- Al took the kids to church- where Alden proceeded to have a massive bloody nose coming back from Children's Church (it was his 3rd since his visit to the ENT 2 days before). Never a dull moment!!

After Sunday, The Boys came!! This was clearly the highlight of the weekend! Addie adores "her" boys, our good friends from the Eastern Shore. They were driving through town and stopped for lunch. These 3 boys (their oldest isn't pictured) are the most amazing boys I have ever met. They played dolls with Addie, t-ball with Alden in the backyard, colored with the kids, etc. All happily- amazing for middle school boys!!

Once The Boys left, we headed to Home Depot. The kids are studying gardening at school and have been after me to plant some flowers. If you know me and my lack of green-thumb, feel free to laugh here...

Our house has window boxes- a perfect place to plant flowers! The kids were VERY intent on putting in the new soil, evening it out, etc. My Secret Pal at school had given me a bucket, pink shovel (how awesome!), pink gardening gloves, and green pepper seeds. The shovel was put to good use- and Alden has taken it upon himself to plant the pepper seeds- I'm not sure where, but they are in the yard somewhere....

What's it gonna take? Team work!!

Despite being sick and Alden's bloody noses, this was a fantastic weekend!! I am SO looking forward to the summer when we can do more of this fun stuff!!

Summing Up My School

This book bag sums up the area where I work perfectly.... Quilted, like Vera Bradly, coordinating ribbon, fancy embroidered name- all done on camo. What a study of contrasts!!