QUOTE

A friend of mine has this quote at the bottom of his emails...today for some reason it really made me chuckle!!

"Some people are like Slinkies ...Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs."

SCOUTS & A MILE

Jake had a Scout pack meeting last night. It was with all of the Scouts at Hansen. They did an obstacle course & he couldn't have had more fun with his friends if had tried! It is going to be a LONG year with these Tiger Scouts. They all have LOTS of energy!! There are 14 in our den that I am co-leading with my friend Sophie. After last night, I'm not sure why I signed up.



I was at the school this afternoon working on some carnival things for Friday night & was getting ready to leave when I saw Jake's class out on the track getting ready to run the timed mile. I stayed to watch, of course. He was the fastest kid and ran it in 8 minutes 29 seconds. He lapped a couple of kids & never walked once. Mrs. Dickens, his PE teacher said that is the fastest time for a 1st grade boy this year. He was pretty pumped when he came in first (he's pretty competitive). She will post the times later this week & if he really is #1, it will make his day.

MARATHON










It was PERFECT weather for Scott's 2nd marathon run! It was about 55 degrees, cloudy, little wind and no rain. He did AWESOME!! He finished the 26+ mile course is 3 hours 43 minutes (4 minutes quicker than last year). My future sister in law, Kim & I met Scott at various points on the course to hand him energy gels & bars. It is quite the rush trying to beat him to the next point on the course. We met up with him at while he was crossing the bridge at mile 1 (we were in the car driving by him) miles 4, 8, 11, 13, 20, 22, 24 & at the finish line. He looked great each & every time we saw him & even was cracking jokes at miles 13 & 20! He says he feels pretty good, his legs are a bit sore (no kidding), but feeling good!! The kids & I are SO proud of him. He is off of work tomorrow & Tuesday in case he needs it to recover. Here are some pictures of him on the course.












RAMS VS. STEELERS
Jake had another football game on Saturday against the Steeler, which is a bunch of kids that he knows from St. Pat's school. He had a couple of good plays, he caught a pass and ran for a small gain & he had a great handoff that accounted for a 1st down. He was pretty pumped up about that. They did lose by 1 touchdown, but he was o.k. with that after Scott chatted with him about winning & losing!

DINNER WITH THE GREEN GIRLS
My parents kept the kids overnight last night so that Scott & I could go to dinner with my brother Michael & his fiance Kim and the Green girls (my childhood friends, who are sisters...there are 5 girls...only 3 were at dinner last night) and their spouses. We had a nice visit...Scott really enjoys hanging out with his old roommate from college, Gopher (who married a Green girl).

Catching Up

It has been awhile since my last post...we've been keeping really busy this week. Here's what has been going on!

Monday:
Allie had preschool on Monday morning. After school, we killed a couple of hours at the library. Allie got started on a computer game and I couldn't get her to stop. It was fun though. We found 3 books, checked them out and were on our way. We had to stop by Jake's school to count raffle tickets for next week's carnival and pick Jake up. We stopped home long enough to go through book bags and eat dinner before heading back over to Hansen for a playground fundraising meeting, which lasted much longer than I anticipated. We accomplished a lot...let's just hope we can raise the money we need for the playground. Who knew that a SAFE playground would cost $200,000??? And who knew that the district doesn't pay for ANY of it????

Tuesday:
Allie had her 5 year check up and shots on Tuesday morning. She did really well. The first 2 shots were given without a tear being shed...the MMR didn't go as well! She let out a loud scream and burst into tears. The nurse told me that on would burn so I kind of expected it. When Jake got his shots it took several people to hold him down...not Allie!! After shots, we ran some errands and stopped by Hansen to count raffle tickets again and pick up Jake. We went to soccer and then I dropped Jake at football practice. Allie & I came home & met a new babysitter (Alishia, Kim's cousin) and she watched Allie (& Jake after football) so I could go to a PTA meeting. Both kids LOVED Alishia.

Wednesday:
Allie's preschool class walked to the library, so I helped out and walked along. There are 26 kids now in her class and a lot of "active" kids so it took some extra volunteers to get them the 3 blocks to the library. Allie and I stopped by Hansen again to count raffle tickets and pick up Jake. Jake had a friend, Ben over to play for awhile. After an early dinner Jake ran over to his friend Paul's house for about an hour, then climbed the fence back home. We loaded up the car and took Jake to his first Wednesday night religion class. Allie and I intended to kill the 1 hour+ by running an errand, but I got talking to a friend while Allie and her daughter Olivia played on the playground at St. Pat's. Next thing we knew, it was time to pick up the kids! Jake says he LOVES religion class...of course his friends Ben, Dylan, Carter & Luke are in his class (also some girls, Abby, Natalie & Katie).

Thursday
Allie & I dropped Jake at school and rushed across town to be at the dentist by 9:00. Allie had her 6 month check up and is doing great!! I had my check up after Allie's and got a good report too! We then ran a couple of errands on that side of town before stopping for lunch with Sophie & Abbie. After lunch, we stopped by Hansen to once again count raffle ticket (do you see a pattern)! Sophie dropped Abbie here and I ran the girls to dance while she picked the boys up from school. After dance we were off to soccer and it started to rain right at the end. After soccer, we ran over to Open House at Jake's school where we checked out his classroom. Then, it was off to football practice. By this time, it was POURING!! I tried to talk Jake into skipping practice, but he wouldn't hear of it. Allie & I sat in the car while Jake played football in the rain. He got into the car after practice & exclaimed "That was the BEST football game EVER!!!" I guess 6 year olds like rainy football!!

Today
Today is pretty quiet. The kids are off to school, Scott is at work & I'm here alone! That is unusual! Later, I'll go to Hansen to count raffle tickets and pick Jake up. Tonight, I'm meeting several other moms for a "Girl's Night Out" at the local sushi & martini bar (fortunately for me they serve sandwiches & beer too). Scott is staying home with the kids!

The weekend
Tomorrow Jake's football team plays the Steelers and he is pumped. Right after the game we head to my parent's house to drop the kids off for the weekend. We are then off to stay with Michael & Kim. We are having dinner with the Green girls and their spouses Saturday night. Sunday morning is Scott's big marathon. Kim & I will be his groupies and follow him all over the course with energy bars & gel. Mom & Dad will bring the kids down for the end of the race so that they can cheer him on. He took Monday & Tuesday off to recover from running 26+ miles.

That's it for us...it will be next week before I post again & I'll have some pictures I'm sure!

RAMS VS. VIKINGS

Jake's 2nd flag football game turned out MUCH better than his first! The team worked together and played really well. They beat the Vikings 46-12!! Jake had a carry and almost caught a "Hail Mary" throw at the tail end of the game. He was in the end zone & SO bummed that he missed it. Of course, he can barely catch a football thrown directly to him...this one required a jump & catch...it probably wasn't ever going to happen!! Next week we play the Steelers, which should be a fun one...there a several of Jake's friends on that team from St. Pat's!

FRIENDS OVER

Jake had a busy day on Friday. He didn't have school, but had his friend Paul over in the morning. They walked over to their friend Ben's house for his birthday party. Ben walked back here with the boys and stayed the rest of the afternoon. They played really well together...had a little too much running inside and then outside, but at least there wasn't any fighting! (l to r: Paul, Jake, Ben).


FERRARI'S & JOKERS

A group of us went out to dinner at Ferrari's and to comedy night at Joker's last night for my friend Sophie's birthday. We left the kids at Sophie's house with a sitter. Had a great time! The comedian was a hypnotist, which was SO funny! No one in our group was brave enough to be hypnotized & it was probably a good thing!!!

SOCCER

We had soccer last night (& dance & football practice). Both kids did well at soccer. Jake is a bit of a ball hog, probably because no one objects. He has very little control over the ball & truly believes that if he kicks it HARD it is much better!! The kids on his team actually tried some passes last night, which has never happened. Allie on the other hand LOVES soccer IF she is the goalie otherwise she isn't too thrilled about running up & down the field while possibly getting kicked...I wonder where she gets that from???

MOM'S FILING CABINET

Jake is learning about short term & long term memory in school. He came home telling me all about your brain's filing cabinets. I listened and chuckled thinking that Mrs. Wyckoff used a good analogy if Jake is actually talking to me about something he learned in school. Later that night, he was asking me 20 questions and I said "Jake, I just don't remember" and he followed up with "Mom, your filing cabinet is just too full". I think that may have been an insult from a 6 year old!!

He is also teaching me all about ROY G BIV. For those like Scott that have NO CLUE what I'm refering to, it is the colors of the rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo & Violet). I did remember what ROY G BIV stood for, so my filing cabinet must not be overflowing!!!

RAMS VS BRONCOS
Jacob and his team played their first flag football game yesterday morning. They did really well for their first time playing football. Jake didn't have any outstanding plays to speak of, but he tried his best and played a decent game (he didn't screw up). The Rams (his team) ended up losing in OT and since Jake is REALLY competitive, he was MAD!!!!

BROCK'S BIRTHDAY BASH


Jake went to his buddy Brock's 7th birthday party yesterday. It was held at Tilt in the mall where they have Black Light Mini Golf & an arcade. It was heaven for the 8 1st grade boys that were there. A little bit chaotic for the moms that chaperoned!! I was pretty proud of Jake...his friend Will ran through his token in about 10 minutes and won NO tickets (for prizes) because he chose to play video games that didn't give tickets. Jake felt bad & let Will play his games with him and gave him some of his tickets as well. It made me realize that he is a good friend!! A proud mommy moment!

The picture is of the kids (l-r: Carter, Dylan, Jake, Ben, Will, Brock, Sam, Mason)..yes their take home gift was a Superman shirt...they thought they were pretty cool!

PRE BALLET

Allie started pre ballet at Kinetic Energy last night. She has a small class which is great for her...less distractions. She was SO excited that she got to work on all of the dance positions PLUS do a plie. She told me all about how to position your feet WHILE holding onto the bar. It could be a very exciting year for her at dance!! The best part in her mind is that she gets to perform in June "on the BIG stage" (her recital).

We have Jake's first football game tomorrow. He informed me that they "better beat the Broncos or practice WON'T be fun on Tuesday". I wonder if that was the coach talking??? After football, Jake is going to a birthday party with several friends. I'm sure it is the first of many this school year!

SOCCER STARTS

The kids started soccer on Tuesday afternoon. Jake ended up on the dark blue team and Allie on the light blue team. I am able to yell "GO BLUE" from any point on the soccer sidelines & can say that I was rooting for each child! Both kids have improved from the Spring season. Allie tries just a little harder than last time...she really like being the goalie though and isn't afraid to stop the ball. Jake on the other hand is SOOOOO competitive and wants to be running with the action, not waiting in a goal to get to play.

Tonight we have Allie's first night of dance. Right after dance we race to soccer. After soccer, we run Jake to football practice (his first game is Saturday). After practice we will stop by Godfather's for Hansen pizza night (a monthly fundraiser) and take a pizza to go...after all we HAVE to support Hansen :)

35 YEARS

My parents celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary on Monday. What an accomplishment! We celebrated the weekend before and gave them a rock with Fischer etched on it. We also put their wedding picture and a current photo of them in the local paper...they were surprised!! Best wishes to them and may they last another 35 years with each other!!

BREASTS

Yes, you read that correctly...Allie has a new obsession...take a look at the pictures...she came into my room this morning very proud of her new breasts...so proud that she ASKED me to take pictures!!!












On different note...the kids are enjoying school a lot. Jake survived his first week of football practice. His first game is next Saturday. Both kids start soccer on Tuesday and Allie starts dance on Thursday.

Yesterday, Allie and I ran some errands after she was done with preschool and found ourselves in the library. It had been awhile since we stopped there. We came home with 3 books. One that is sure to be a new favorite "Walter the Farting Dog & the Yard Sale". Thanks to Aunt Tracy for turning us onto this series!!!

FLAG FOOTBALL

Jake had his 1st flag football practice last night. He was a little disappointed to learn that his team was the Rams and not the Raiders, but at least it wasn't the Chiefs! He is on a team with both Hansen kids and N. Cedar kids. There were too many Hansen kids & not enough NC kids so they combined them. It is a bit of a pain since their practices are at NC, not at Hansen like the rest of the Hansen kids!

I've attached a picture of him with his new mouthpiece in.

KID'S DAY

We spent last weekend at my parent's house and were able to go to the annual Kid's Day celebration. The kids got to march in a parade (with our friends Gopher, Annette, Amy & their kids), go bowling, eat lunch, get tattoos and ride on carnival rides. The kids each won money in a raffle ($5 each) and my nephew Ben won the grand prize, a boy's bike!! Jake was really excited for Ben (he's only 2 & didn't really understand). It rained most of the day, but they still had fun and can't wait 'til next year!

ALLIE'S FIRST DAY

Allie's first day of preschool was on Friday. She is going 3 mornings per week to St. Pat's. There are 24 kids in her class, which is a lot of 4 & 5 year olds!! She has the same teachers as last year (Mrs. Phillips, Mrs. Welter & Mrs. Patterson) and a lot of her classmates are the same as well. She can hardly wait to go again tomorrow!!

The kids and I spent the weekend with my family. It was Kid's Day, the annual celebration in my hometown. I'll post some pictures from the carnival and other events tomorrow sometime!

SCHOOL

Yesterday when Jake got home from school our conversation went something like this...

"How was your first day of school?"
"Fine"
"Do you like Mrs. Wyckoff?"
"Yes"
"Did you see your old friends?"
"Yes"
"Who did you sit by at lunch?"
"Sophia & Dayna"
"Who did you play with at recess?"
"Paul, Brock & Dylan"
"What was your favorite part of the day?"
"Recess...can I have some ice cream?"

SO...I gave him some ice cream (he was trapped & forced to talk)& I was able to find out the following things (with a lot of questioning on my part)...

*he beat a 2nd grader at tetherball
*he thinks McKenna likes him...she sits really close to him
*corn dogs at lunch AREN'T good
*there is a girl in his class that can't eat peanuts
*there is NO free choice time in first grade (free play)
*there is NO rest time in 1st grade (which is why he is tired).
*he has gym tomorrow & can't wait!!

Soon after gathering that information, the phone rang & it was Adam wanting him to come over to play on the slip n slide...off he went!

Tomorrow Allie starts the 3 mornings per week class at St. Pat's. She can't wait & I'm guessing our after-school conversation will have her talking A LOT!! I'll post tomorrow!

JAKE GOES TO FIRST GRADE

Today was Jake's big day...he's in FIRST GRADE! He was so excited this morning & woke me up at 6:15!! After waiting until 8:15, we finally left to walk to school. He reluctantly allowed me to take my yearly pictures (by the Hansen sign, at his desk, with his teacher etc.) He was a little upset to find that he has to sit by 2 girls...not boys. I'm guessing his teacher knows better than to put boys together! Finally, Mrs. Wyckoff asked if Jake would like to go outside with his friends & he bolted out the door. He didn't even say goodbye to me or Allie!! I'm anxious for 2:15 to roll around so that I can find out how his day went. I'm guessing as usual, he'll give me very little information!!

Allie & I are off to run errands and have lunch together. She starts school on Friday & can't wait!

TOMORROW....

Tomorrow Jake starts 1st grade. Why does that sound SOOOOO much older than Kindergarten?? He is really excited, although he did mention that he wasn't sure where Mrs. Wyckoff's room was & that it would be a good idea for me to walk him there. Like I wouldn't??? I will be walking him to his classroom until he tells me that I no longer can!

I included his picture from last year's first day with our beloved Miss Pins. We'll miss her dearly, but knowing Mrs. Wyckoff, it will be an awesome year!

Look for an update tomorrow!!

SOUTH CAROLINA










We just returned home from a week at Kiawah Island, South Carolina. We went with Scott's entire family (there were 20 in all) to celebrate his Grandmother's 80th birthday. We all stayed in a HUGE 10 bedroom ocean front beach house. Each room had a beautiful view of the ocean.

We went into Charleston a couple of times and took a boat ride through Charleston Harbor going past the Battery, Patriot's Point, Fort Sumter and other sites. We also visited the South Carolina Aquarium where the kids got to pet a snake & see all sorts of fish, sharks and other sea creatures. We spent some time at Patriot's Point Naval Museum where we toured a submarine, air craft carrier and a destroyer. It was really hot that day, so we didn't stay too long there!

While at Kiawah Island, we typically walked around the beach, swam in the ocean, laid in the sun, hunted for shells, caught crabs, swung in the hammock, shopped, ate & had fun!!


We saw dolphins playing in the ocean, an alligator swimming in a lagoon, a jelly fish washed up on shore & several deer crossing the roads. A lot of nature for a girl that isn't too fond of it!!!!

There were only a few mild "issues" during the week...2 people are pretty sure that they got stung by a jelly fish, one ended up with sand in their eyes (bad enough that they ended up having it removed by a doctor), Allie got a fever and was in bed an entire day, Jake got the stomach flu and spent a day in bed and managed to pass it on to his cousin!!

All in all, a great week...we are glad to be home though! I've picked some of my favorite pictures from the week...I took well over 400 so this is just a small sample :)! I'm sure over the course of the next few days that I'll be posting more!