Graduation

Last week Erin had an official "graduation" from kindergarten. I figured it would be kinda corny, I mean, Kindergarten graduation? But it was very cute. All the teachers read off the names of each of the kids in his/her class. They got to walk across the stage and get a "diploma" from the principal and they had a professional photographer and everything. The principal even gave a little speech at the beginning. Then all the kids stood up and sang 5 or 6 songs that they had been working on.

We were so lucky this year that Erin had THE BEST teacher. She was simply wonderful. She created a loving and warm environment where all of the kids clearly wanted to be at school. Erin learned so much from her. She started school not interested in reading at all and finished above the required level for kindergarten. She also made some wonderful friends. I'm hoping that Erin gets just as lucky next year. I asked Miss. Smiley if she'll be around in two years for Jeffrey and she said she's not sure. I certainly hope she is, because I'd love for him to have the opportunity to learn from her as well.

So here are some pictures and a video of her big day. The friend she's with in the songs is Brandon. They've been best buddies since early on in Kindergarten. It's quite cute to watch them play together and I'm glad she's found a best buddy.

Hamming it up with Brandon

Status Update

Jeffrey finally had his annual physical last week (yeah I know his birthday was over a month ago but combine busy doctors with stupid insurance people and well...you know). Our pediatrician does the big Kindergarten physical at 4 instead of 5 because often the kids are 4 when you register them for school. At least with Jeff I was prepared, poor Erin got surprised that she needed 4 shots when I thought she didn't need any.

Basic stats: Weight - 37.5 lbs -- yep that's 3 pounds heavier than his sister. Height - 43" -- yep that's the same height. No wonder people keep asking if they are twins.

The Dr. gave him a good bill of health. The hearing and vision tests went off without a hitch. We talked about the wasp sting (of course I forgot the camera so I had to describe it). We're going to watch Jeff pretty closely, but because it was a wasp, there's no history of allergies to stings in immediate family, and the swelling dropped after a few hours he didn't seem to think we needed to run out and buy an epi. pen.

We did discover that Jeffrey does have a skin condition called Mollescum Comtagiosum. These are the small bumps that he gets on his back, and now his neck, that have gotten infected a few times. We've now got an $80 cream to put on them. Hopefully that will last us for the next few millennium. His body should start fighting off the virus in the next few months and we won't see them any more.

Jeff also had to get 4 shots as menioned above. The Dr's office has this procedure down to a science. It takes 2 nurses, 1 care-giver/mom, 1 blankie and about 15 seconds to get all 4 shots in. He was very good. He did shout and scream, but didn't carry on too long. And for that the nurse rewarded him with 5 stickers, 1 book, 2 pencils and a toothbrush. Pretty sweet deal if I might say so.

So that's it for another year. Hopefully no visits are needed between (this year I think we only went in once...if that). That is unless he gets stung by another wasp and we discover that he IS allergic to them.

End of School Year Fun

As we reached the end of Erin's school year the first few days of June, there were lots of fun activities. The kids had a special field trip to a big wooden playground (knows as Kids Castle). Although the day was chilly and dreary they still had a ton of fun playing around. Erin also got to participate in her first Field Day. Jeffrey and I went to watch the games at Field Day and it was so much fun to see the kids playing. They had a dance party where one of the teachers taught them some silly dances and also just let them dance around the cafeteria. The PE teachers led a class vs. class tug-of-war. Watching 5 and 6 year olds at tug of war is hilarious. Finally one of the teachers organized a bunch of relay races, most involving water. This was Erin's favorite part of the day. She got totally soaked - which was the whole point. I also found much humor in the teacher's "release" during the water relays. I think the teachers were doing just as much soaking (including dousing the principal) as the students were.

So here are a few pictures from her field trip and then Field Day.

With her best friend Brandon

Carrying a "boiling" chicken in the relay races

She's the orange shirt in the middle of the picture....next to the blond girl in the yellow shirt.

Boy meets wasp

Unfortunately Jeffrey had his first run-in with a wasp yesterday. We always have had wasps around the house. Might be something to do with the yellow siding, might have something to do with the deck, who knows. What I do know, is that Jeffrey got too close to one who was building a nest and it retaliated.

There was some mighty screaming and it took us a few minutes to get him to tell us where it stung him. Finally he was able to explain that he got stung on the lip. We would have figured it out within a minute or two as his lip swelled up to about 4 times regular size. I quickly got him a freezer pop (glad Tom bought some that morning) to numb the sting. Then gave him some Motrin to hopefully help the swelling and made a baking soda paste to put on his lip. Poor kiddo was miserable. He still wanted to come to auditions for the summer show though (and after he felt better he even insisted on singing for the director).

Since it swelled up so badly we are going to watch him pretty closely for any other stings. A few parents mentioned that allergies often start with a slower reaction and can build in the future. He has a doctor's appointment on Friday so I'll mention it at that point.

He's much better today. Poor kiddo.

Regular Picture

Stage One

A Few Minutes Later

Shades of...

Back in February Erin was studying about Abraham Lincoln (Presidents Day) and Martin Luther King Jr. The process of talking with her about MLK provoked some interesting thoughts. When do kids start differentiating by race? Does she see, or realize the difference? How do we teach her about such an important person as MLK and not discuss race?

Her teacher dealt with it quite well. They learned that he gave an important speech. They learned that he dreamed all children to be able to go to school together. I talked with her about his passion for teaching peace. I think she grasped the important concepts.

Fast forward to just last week (June). Erin was working on a project for school. She was drawing a picture of herself.

"Armone has brown skin" she said. Armone is in Erin's class. Has been since September. Yet it took until June for Erin to think enough of her physical appearance to mention it.

"Jonathan has brown skin too."

Tom was walking by, and paused. I didn't say anything. I wanted to see what Erin was going to say next. It ended up something like "Mommy, can you pass me the blue pencil, I need to make my blue pants." So I said something like

"So Armone and Jonathan look different than you?"
Erin -- "Yep" (still coloring away on her drawing)
Me -- "And that's OK right?"
Erin -- "Yep"

That was it. The conversation had ended. I'm hoping I handled it correctly. Erin certainly doesn't seem concerned with it. Actually, the topic hasn't resurfaced since that short conversation. But I know now that her vision has broadened somewhat. She's noticing and recognizing that people are taller or shorter, lighter or darker skinned, blonde or brunette. She's seeing that there's a great big world out there full of so many different people and adventures. I'm watching my baby grow from a little girl into a young lady, right before my eyes. And how amazing it is to watch.

Off to "Meet College"

Last weekend was reunion at Allegheny. Tom and I haven't been back in 12 years. With rumors that our choir director, Chief, will be retiring soon, we decided this would be an important year to go back for the reunion choir. We brought the kids with us so that they could meet some of our friends from school.

Grandma came down from New York to play with the kids so that Mommy and Daddy could go to the rehearsals for the choir. We spent most of Friday and Saturday at rehearsals. Aunt Katie and cousin Will even came down for the day on Friday. They got to swim in the pool together and even take a trip to a nearby spillway and feed the carp.


It was important to us to show the kids around campus. We went for a walk Saturday afternoon and showed them were mommy and daddy first met. We also showed them where Daddy proposed to mommy (the bench is still there). Saturday evening we got to hang out with some college friends and their own families. Erin has seen pictures of "Mr. Jeff", heard him on the radio and even talked to him on the phone when she wanted him to play "Over the Rainbow" for her. We also got the chance to meet his family.



On Sunday before we headed back to the 'Ville Erin and Jeff wanted to show us the spillway with the carp. Honestly I thought it was rather disgusting. There were thousands of carp just swimming on top of each other. Waiting to be fed bread. We bought two loaves of bread and went through it in about 15 minutes.





So we had a special weekend. The kids got to spend some time with Grandma and Tom and I got to reconnect with some very special people from college. We promise it won't be 12 years again.

The results are in....

After a belated trip to the pediatrician for her annual check up we got there today. The Dr. is really pleased with how Erin is doing. Had some tips to fight off the headaches too (water, water and more water).

Of course my biggest concern...and always is...Erin's weight.

^^^^drum roll please^^^^

A whopping 34.5 pounds. I think the nurse could see the concern on my face as soon as Erin stepped off the scale. Really she's 6. 34 pounds? She only gained 4 pounds from this time last year. She shouldn't even be in a booster seat. She should be harnessed still.

Dr. Q. is not at all concerned. Erin's perfectly healthy. Her skin is good color. Her fine and gross motor skills are right on target. Her mental abilities are outstanding. She's just tiny.

I was hoping that maybe, just maybe we'd be a little closer to 40 pounds. Maybe by the time she's 8?

Knock Knock

Here is the full collection of jokes that the kids like to tell. I'm fully aware that this really is the full list because we spent 8 hours in the car/restaurants today and I heard them all. Again, and again, and again.

Erin: Hey Mommy, want to hear a joke?
Mommy: Sure honey.

E: Knock Knock
M: Who's there?
E: Boo
M: Boo who?
E: long pause to remember the rest of the joke....."Don't cry, it's only me."

E: Wanna hear another one?
M: Sure
E: Knock Knock
M: Who's there?
E: Banana
M: (oh dear....not THIS one) Banana who?
E: Knock Knock
M: Who's There?
E: Banana....etc...like 3 more times. FINALLY
E: Knock Knock.
M: Who's there?
E: Orange?
M: Orange who?
E: Orange you glad I didn't say banana again? Ha Ha Ha!!!! I'm so funny!!!!

Now Jeff feels the need to get in on the mix.
J: Hey Mommy!!!! Knock Knock.
M: Who's there?
J: Cars.
M: Cars who?
J: Just cars. (clearly he doesn't really get the idea)

E: My turn again mommy!!!!! Knock Knock.
M: Who's there?
E: Orange?
M: Orange who?
E: Knock Knock
M: Who's there?
E: Orange.
M: Orange who?
E: Knock Knock
M: Who's there?
E: Strawberry!!!
M: Strawberry who?
E: Strawberry you glad I didn't say orange again?

Clearly she doesn't really get the jokes either.

Fun Family Day

It was so gorgeous Saturday that we planned a fun family day. Erin had the early soccer game and was done by 10:30. Tom has been talking about visiting a working flour mill that's about an hour away. We went to the mill about 6 or 7 years ago and hadn't been back since. I decided if we were going to drive out to the mill we should make a day of it and do some geocaching. So I printed off the caches, loaded up the caching backpack, grabbed some new batteries for the GPS and we headed off right after soccer.

The kids enjoy the caching. It usually brings us to some cool and new places. This mill is over in the Valley with some gorgeous views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Erin and Jeff really enjoyed the mill. They got to explore outside and see the sluice and the huge wheel. Inside there is a little shop but the kids could see some of the workings there as well. The owner still operates the mill....with water power, but not when the store is open because it gets too dusty.

We spent the rest of the afternoon hitting a series of history caches that were located near historic markers in the county. We even ran into the owner of one of the caches and we chatted with him for a while. He was very nice and pointed us in the right direction for a cache that we'd not been able to find earlier in the day.

We headed back to one more cache. With the few tips from the owner I was finally able to spot it. As we approached it from a different direction we saw a small historic park nearby. This one also had a small mill. The kids really wanted to stop there before heading home. So we went down there and they hopped out of the van and started running around and exploring all the little buildings. It was very cool. It reminded me a little of myself when I was a little girl running around the "battlefield" at Concord and Lexington. Not sure I really grasped what was surrounding me, but I found it very cool. The kids were the same way. They loved the mill building and could see more of how it worked inside. There was an agricultural workshop that they also thought was neat.

The last thing we did was follow a path to the mill pond. Erin especially liked the little walk. We saw some ducks and learned about the habitat surrounding the mill pond.

At one of the stops, the kids got a hold of my camera. Of course I discovered some "fantastic shots" worth sharing when I got home.





On the way home we stopped for some BBQ at a place just across the mountain on 33. We stopped once last year and really liked it. Erin was even willing to try the kids BBQ platter.

Of course we had to deal with the general whining that comes with a long day. And the fighting in the back seat never seems to end some times. But all in all we had a really fun day exploring another area of our cool state of Virginia.

Splish Splash

Jeff has really been loving his swimming lessons this spring. He's made quite a bit of progress, but a few weeks ago I thought we'd hit a lull. He still loved swimming, but was not really interested in progressing and learning more. He just wanted to play around and sink under the water. Being only 4 years old I realize the desire to just play in the water. He doesn't really feel the need to swim. It's all about fun.

Today was the last lesson for this session. Jeffrey was all excited for class today. He has had a new instructor these last two weeks. She's really good, but very strict. Makes the kids stay "behind the line" unless it's their turn. And if he jumped too early, he'd have to sit out for a jump. He wasn't as fond of her as he was the girl he'd had since February.

Today on the way into lessons we talked about how he'd have Miss Lizzy again. And she really wanted him to try some new things today. He said he'd try floating on his back (his big issue of recent lessons). And he did, I was quite proud of him.

At the end of the lesson they always do jumps. It's Jeff's favorite part of the lesson. He'll jump in the opposite direction of the instructor as far as he can. Today for his final jump the instructor had just walked the other 2 boys across the pool. She stood at the far side of the pool, made clear eye contact with Jeffrey and told him she wanted him to jump in and swim across. Of course I'd decided to leave the camera at home today thinking there wasn't going to be anything new.

Jeff made sure he understood what she wanted him to do and went for it. He jumped in, bobbed up and started swimming. He stretched himself out. Brought his arms out of the water to "scoop" and swam about 25 feet to Miss Lizzy. I was so proud of him. He went from just wanting to sit on the bottom of the pool to trying to keep himself near the top and really using his arms.

We're taking a few weeks off, and then we will get back into lessons in June. Erin's going to take some too. She got some new goggles for her birthday and it seems that might make a big difference in her willingness to get wet. We'll see.

Peter Pan

I am Youth. I am Joy. I am Freedom!!!

Well Peter Pan has been over for a week now. We are sad it is over, but glad to be done with the craziness. It was so much fun. Erin was just the cutest darned Tinkerbell. And I was the proudest mommy on earth. There was a TON that she had to learn and remember, much of it without talking. Almost all pantomime. She learned the her dances really well too. Tom as Captain Hook was fantastic. Of course all the kids were obsessed with him and thought he was just the funnest person ever. We got a few pictures and some videos. I'll save the videos for a later time but wanted to share some of the pictures today.

Where's Meghan?

Tink Doesn't Like Wendy

She Does Love Captain Hook

You Shut Me In the Wardrobe!!

Drinking the Poison

Erin's Birthday

Early last Monday morning I was awakened by a little bird chirping in my ear.

"Mommy guess what? I'm 6 now."

She just couldn't wait past 6:30 to fill me in on the news. Since she had school that morning I stumbled out of bed and got her some breakfast. Uncle Jeff and Rylie were still visiting, so Rylie joined us for breakfast. Erin was very excited to get to school because she knew she'd get a crown and get to be the line leader all day. What more could a birthday girl ask for.

The family joined her at school for snack. Erin had made brownies to share with the class on her birthday. Rylie and Jeffrey enjoyed visiting the school and meeting some of Erin's friends. They even got to play a game in the cafeteria after snack since it was raining and they couldn't have recess outside. Later, at lunch, I brought Erin some chicken nuggets and strawberries and sat with her while she ate lunch. She'd been waiting for me to come for lunch on her birthday, apparently that's what the cool kids' moms do.

After school we played around until dinner -- Roast Chicken, Corn and cheesy potatos. What Erin wanted. Finally after dinner we let her have her presents. The DS was a big hit, but mommy played a mean joke and gave her an empty box. The real reason is that I had taken it out of the box to charge it for her so she wouldn't have to wait. Most of her presents from Mommy and Daddy were DS related. She got 3 games and an extra one from Uncle Jeff and Aunt Robyn. Add in a new shirt and a couple of books and we've got a great birthday.

Happy Birthday Miss Boo!!!!

The Birthday Party

We had THE Birthday party last weekend. We contemplated doing two seperate parties. Erin really wanted a bowling party, but we explained that she could only invite 4 friends if we did that. Jeffrey has never had a party before so was happy with anything. We decided to hold a joint party at the park for both kids. They each invited 10 friends from school. We had about 15 kids show up total.

Of course it threatened to rain all week. The forecast claimed rain, rain, rain. I did my "Rain Go Away" dance and we ended up with a great day. It was a little warm but we had plenty of water and lemonade. The kids played on the playground for a while, ran around with bubbles, took some whacks at the pinata (which gave in much more quickly this year, but at least everyone got a whack), watched daddy juggle and played everyone's favorite game.....tackle Tom.

It was great to watch all the kids just run around and have fun. Laid back and relaxed, that's the way to hold a party. Don't know how long we'll be able to do the combined party (or if we'll even want to do it again) but we're very glad it worked out this time.

Erin and Brandon Climbing UP The Slide

Get Daddy!!!!

Stand Back Daddy, I'm Gonna Whack It

It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time

Loving The Swings

A Visit from Daddy's Family

Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Jeff and Cousin Rylie all came down to visit this past weekend. Aunt Robyn and Cousin Avery were supposed to come along, but Avery came down with bronchitis and they had to stay home - we missed them. Feel better Avery.

We celebrated the birthdays together and everyone came to see Tom and Erin in their final night of Peter Pan. They all really enjoyed it and were so proud of Erin for being such a cute Tinkerbell.

Grandma and Grandpa got Erin and Jeff new bikes for their birthdays. We surprised the kids by taking them to ToysRUs and letting them pick out their own bikes. Erin really just wanted to stay home and play with Cousin Rylie, but we convinced her this little trip would be fun. It didn't take long to pick out the bikes once we found the right sizes. Erin, with her long legs has a 16" bike that's white and blue...super cute. Jeffrey's all torso so the 16" Cars bike was too big for him, he was perfectly happy with a 14" Diego bike though. After about two minutes of riding around the store, the kids were pros on the bikes. So much so, we rode them right out the door. Once we got home we let them ride them around the deck.



On Saturday we had a birthday party for the kids. Both got to invite 10 friends from school. We had about 14 kids total. After that we headed out to dinner at the "Fire Place" for our Mother's Day/Erin's Birthday Dinner. Cousin Rylie was so tired, she slept through the whole dinner.


Sunday morning Grandma and Grandpa stayed for a Mother's Day breakfast. Then they had to head home. After that the rest of us took a walk to the bridge and down to the lake. Jeffrey collected rocks. Rylie picked flowers. Erin collected caterpillars...one still living upstairs in a jar.

On Monday we celebrated Erin's birthday together in the afternoon and then headed over to visit some friends in the evening.


All 3 kids slept on the floor in Erin's room. Even Erin. She couldn't miss out on the fun, so no one slept in her bed. We loved seeing them all play and sleep together so well. We don't get to see Cousin Rylie very often so both Erin and Jeffrey really loved the time they had to play with her. They played Pets, hide & seek, mommy & baby, Princesses, shared the V-Smile, blew bubbles....it was great.


We can't wait until we all get to play together again.

Happy Birthday Erin!!!

Happy 6th Birthday Miss Boo

Erin's 25 Things

1 -- I have almost 100 Little Pet Shop Pets...and I still love when I get more.

2 -- I scored my first goal in soccer this spring.

3 -- I am actually NOT the shortest person in my Kindergarten class. I'm second.

4 -- I have a very good friend in class named Brandon. Mommy's best friend in Kindergarten was named Brandon.

5 -- I'm super ticklish and LOVE being tickled.

6 -- At bedtime, now instead of listening to 2 stories, I read one to mommy and daddy first.

7 -- I got my first big role in a play as Tinkerbell in Peter Pan.

8 -- I think my daddy is the funniest and funnest person ever.

9 -- I like to pick up caterpillars and bring them home to keep in a jar.

10 -- My favorite movies range from High School Musical to The Incredibles and Last Unicorn.

11 -- I know how to play lots of games on the computer and have 3 Webkinz.

12 -- You can no longer call me a "big" sister by either weight or height. But I'm still older.

13 -- Cooking with daddy is one of my favorite things to do.

14 -- I want to be a chef when I grow up.

15 -- I can write my first and last name and know close to 100 words on sight.

16 -- I like practicing cartwheels in the living room.

17 -- I'll stay up talking all night during sleep overs with Oma.

18 -- I'm known to sing Simon & Garfunkel's Cecilia very loudly in public venues.

19 -- I love to swing at the playground, and if you get me started I'll keep myself going for a long time.

20 -- I want a Nintendo DS for my birthday and, I'm getting a . . . DS!!!

21 -- I have interesting thoughts on the life (and death) of Abraham Lincoln see History Lesson for more details.

22 -- I haven't cut my hair all year. It's getting long.

23 -- My teacher's name is Miss. Smiley. Best name for a Kindergarten teacher ever.

24 -- Rather than listen to kids music I prefer Simon and Garfunkel or even Queen (but Rocknoceros is still OK)

25 -- I will always be my mommy and daddy's special little Boo.

Jeffrey's Special Day

Jeffrey had a really busy day on his birthday last week, but it was super special. He got to go to school and have all his friends sing him "Happy Birthday". Just to make sure everyone knew the words he sang himself Happy Birthday a few times first. At school he got a Birthday Crown and brought in cupcakes to share with his friends.

After school it was time for swimming. He LOVES swimming so this helped make his birthday extra special. He wasn't too happy about having to take his crown off in the pool, but I explained that it would probably get wet in the pool and he wouldn't be able to wear it again. So he gave in. He did get a special "Birthday Smoothie" at the gym before we headed to pick Erin up from school.

The kids got some play time after Erin got home from school, and then we headed in to dinner at Jeffrey's favorite place....Red Robin. Really, the burgers are pretty good, the kids can make noise and there's a 6 foot Red Robin that walks around the restaurant. What more could you want? Jeffrey ordered a pizza and even tried some onion rings. Of course the Birthday Ice Cream Sundae was the only thing that got completely finished.



After dinner we were finally all together and Jeffrey got to open his gifts from mommy and daddy. He loves his pocket V-Smile. The cars and Leggos were a big hit too.



This was a great day. Jeffrey was so excited to tell everyone that it was his birthday, and I mean everyone. Watching the pure exuberance about it was amazing. We're so glad you had a special day Bud.

Happy Birthday Jeffrey!!!

Jeffrey's 25 things.

1 -- I love anything with wheels. Cars, trucks, trains, tractors, buses. You name it. If it has wheels, I'm obsessed with it.
2 -- I have too many favorite movies, Wall*E, Cars, Peter Pan, Incredibles are just a few.
3 -- I haven't worn Pull-ups for over a month, and occasionally will even get up in the middle of the night to pee.
4 -- Reading by myself or with sister, mommy or daddy is still one of my favorite things to do.
5 -- I can sing the entire Hook's Tango from Peter Pan.
6 -- When I listen to the score to Wall*E I can tell you exactly what is happening during the movie according to the music.
7 -- I like to make shapes like Dinosaurs, Pirate Ships, or the Axiom out of my grilled cheese sandwiches.
8 -- I wear a shoe size 11, and shirt size 5/6. I'm a big guy.
9 -- I'm the same height as my big sister (actually a smidgen taller).
10 -- I will tell you my favorite color is black, but I usually pick out things that are blue.
11 -- If mommy would let me, I could play on the computer all day.
12 -- I can 'almost' swim by myself, but I would much rather sink to the bottom of the pool.
13 -- Whenever I see a Hershey's Bar or a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup I scream, "Chocolate World!!!!"
14 - -My best friend is Sage and we can get into all kinds of trouble together.
15 -- When I go to sleep I still need Blankie (and Doodle, Wally, my Lightning McQueen pillow and red Lightning McQueen blanket)
16 -- I take a nap for mommy at least a couple days a week.
17 -- I told my mommy I want a puppy. She said no.
18 -- I love going to preschool. My favorite time at school is recess.
19 -- I can almost write my name, but I'm only willing to write Jeff (not Jeffrey) but don't call me Jeff.
20 -- I want to do whatever my sister is going. She's my best sister.
21 -- I love the word "actually" and make frequent use of it.
22 -- I like to sing and have pretty good pitch.
23 -- I love bowling and mini golf and continually beg mommy to take me to one or the other.
24 -- What I want most for my birthday is to ride a train...I'm getting a hand held V-Smile system.
25 -- I may make things difficult for mommy and daddy at times, but I really do love them.

Birthdays with Noni, Grandpa, Oma and Uncle Jon

We got to celebrate our birthdays with mommy's family when they came down to see Peter Pan. It was a very pretty afternoon so we sat on the back deck and relaxed together. We love being able to spend time with our family. Here are a few pictures from the afternoon.