Change of Plans

We had a fun Memorial Day weekend planned.  Of course, we celebrated Eve's birthday.  I'll post on that separately.  Our plan was to leave Sunday morning for Charleston for some good fun beach time.  We went with Grandma and Grandpa Bucky last year on Eve's birthday, and it seemed like a good tradition to start.  Saturday morning I checked the weather and found a tropical storm off  the coast.  Nothing threatening, but 70% chance of rain doesn't make for a fun trip to the beach.  Fortunately we hadn't mentioned it to the kids, and could cancel without penalty, so we'll take a rain check on that fun trip.  Things seem to work out, of course. 
Saturday late afternoon we went for our first trip to the pool.  WOW it was crowded!  I was a little stressed counting 1, 2, 3...1, 2, 3...1, 2, 3.  We came home all accounted for.  Eve is doing great, about where she left off last year.  Ellie wanted nothing to do with swimming, but was very happy sitting on the stairs splashing.  John was turning flips under water!  I couldn't believe it when I saw it.  We've never tried to teach him, he just did it.  Most of the time he ends up sideways, but sometimes he makes it all the way around, forward and backward!  Wow.
Then, yesterday we went to a BBQ with friends.  They had a zip line in the back yard, trampoline, sparklers, glow sticks, fruit pizza, and smores.  Ummmm, that's almost like Disney world.  We enjoyed their company so much, we checked our watches at 9:30 and figured we should get the kids home to bed (oops!).  Another successful night all in the same room. 
Today was field trip day (part of my "try to be a little more structured this summer" plan...we'll see how long it lasts this summer).  We went to the Swamp Rabbit Trail to ride bikes.  John went with Daddy, and I pushed Ellie in the stroller while Eve rode her bike.  It was a HUGE success for John.  He loved it!  They rode almost 4.5 miles!  Eve was pretty miserable and pitched several fits.  I estimate we went, at most, 3/4 of a mile.  We had several snacks along the way, though (including yummy chocolate and fresh peaches John picked out for us at their turn-around point), and finished up in the children's garden downtown, so we all left thinking it was a fun time. 
Another afternoon at the pool, and we're all ready for a good holiday nap. 
I would be remiss to fail to mention the significance of today.  I've tried several times, rather unsuccessfully, to explain days like today to the kids.  Both of my parents are/were veterans, as well as both of my grandfathers.  Every time I think of those who serve in the military I am struck by two thoughts, how I could never be so brave, and how thankful I am that they were and are.  There are no words to express the gratitude for those who sacrifice so much (both in active service, and in family service) to preserve the peace and freedom that we daily take for granted.

Silly John

Last night I warned John that if he didn't tell me about something that had happened at school, he couldn't watch fun TV.  Well, he didn't tell me.  I broke the news (only moments later, mind you) that he wouldn't be watching fun TV.  He was very upset and said through his tears, "But I didn't think it was a proper deal!"  "Not fair" I've heard plent of times, but "a proper deal"?  I almost let him see me laugh.
Tonight I haphazardly put my hair up in a clip just to get it off my neck while I fixed dinner for the kids.  I'm sure it looked a little crazy, but that's par for the course.  Eve asked why my hair was like that. I told her because I was hot.  John said, "You scribble scrabbled it."  Cracked me up, but it's probably about the best description I've ever heard of my hair.

How Much Can We Squeeze?

How much can we squeeze into a week?  It's been crazy, and rather emotional for me.  I'd like to blame it all on pregnancy hormones, but a good bit I'll have to blame on John and Eve's phenomenal teachers this year.  Anyway, let the squeezing begin!  We started off by seeing how much fun and shrimp we could squeeze.  The answer was...A LOT!  Yum!

 This has been quite a tradition for us on or near Memorial Day.  It moved from NC with college friends to home the day Eve was born, and has become a fun tradition with our friends at home.

 This year the kids actually enjoyed playing on their own quite a bit, and we enjoyed being able to enjoy each others' company a bit more than in years past.

 Carys is such a cute!

 What's a southern picnic without watermelon?  I don't know.  I've never heard of such a thing and it sounds crazy to me.

 Look, Dad, I got my hand a little dirty (Krispy Kremes with ice cream and chocolate.  Mrs. Suzie is the Sugar Bomb!)

 During the week we squeezed in end of the year program for Eve (I only to video, no stills), and Kindergarten graduation for John.  I really can't say how much I loved their teachers.  Mrs. Storch kneeling and Mrs. Howell standing.  John really didn't want to pause for a picture.  They gave superlatives all related to candy.  He got the Life Savers award for being so helpful to his teachers.  Anyway, about their teachers, I can't imagine any other teachers (and I'll include John's teachers from last year) being so patient and loving to the kids.  They genuinely listened to the kids' stories, and even cried when they hugged the kids goodbye today, the last day of school.  I couldn't even look at them without tearing up.  They were so so very wonderful.

 There's my handsome grad...home from the last day of school.

 Our new tradition, 2 years running, is the summer do.  It hit 90 today.  I think this was a nice treat.
Tonight we also chased the balloons and had a blast doing it; although we had to wait forever for them to launch.  The weather was hot, but perfect balloon weather.  I counted at least 30 balloons, and they were beautiful as always.  Unfortunately, you'll miss out on hundreds of pictures because I left the camera card at home.  We had a great time, though, and this year John was brave enough to go close to the balloon, just holding his hands over his ears when they fired the burner.  Ellie and Eve were a little nervous about the noise, but a little distance and they were fine.

 AND, how much can we squeeze in one room?  Since school's out, as a late birthday present for Ellie and early one for Eve, they each got a new big girl bed, and all three kids are now in the same room.  Our neighbors graciously gave us the beds, and we got matching linens for the girls.  We still need to rearrange wall decorations a bit.  I was pleased at how everything fit.

 John helped assemble the beds and was excited they'd all be sharing.

 Eve was thrilled and immediately bouncing on the bed.  She's been in a toddler bed for a long time now, but it's the crib with the front off, so this still seems like more of a big girl bed, and the lady bug comforter is fun.

Ellie was also trilled and immediately bouncing.  They were all pretty wound up for quite some time, at least an hour or so.  They were still going when it was time for us to go watch the balloons.  Tonight we got home late from balloon chasing and still had to eat, so I didn't close their door until 9:22.  I'd say within 20 minutes they were fairly quiet, just a bump here and there, but up until then it was clear that waiting for the summer but not waiting for October was a good idea.  They're going to love it.  Whew!  I'm emotionally spent!

Go Gators!

Here is a selection of WAY too many soccer pictures.  The season is over.  The Alligators actually improved a HUGE amount from the first practice and ended up "winning" almost all of their games (of course we don't keep score, but John screamed out how many goals the team had accrued after each was scored).

 Eve spent a lot of time on the team blanket, which was where she typically requested to be.  This is the face she makes when she realizes someone is watching her.  I suppose if you're a little self conscious and don't know what else to do, stick out your tongue.

 It was fun to watch John and Eve interact.  They often were tackling each other rather than listening to the coach, but it was still fun to watch them have fun together.

 Fist pumps with the assistant coach.  John never scored a goal, but he worked really hard chasing the ball and really enjoyed when his buddies scored.

 Gooooooooo Alligators! (likely their favorite part of the soccer experience)

 This is how Eve spent a lot of her time on the field.  Sometime close to when I took this the ball was coming straight toward her and we yelled, "Eve, get the ball!" just before it hit her square in the back.  She never bothered to turn around and see it coming.

 John was hard core.  I did learn not to call their names, though.  During one game I was cheering for him.  He was running sort of toward me, the ball sort of perpendicular to me.  He lifted his head to wave and had no idea he was close to the ball.  Just as the grinned ear to ear and waved, he stepped on the ball and fell.  We all couldn't help but laugh (he was OK, of course).

 During the last game Coach Tyler gave Eve a little pep talk.  Something like, "Eve, do me a favor, try to run toward the ball."

 The boys on the blanked played Rock Paper Scissors

And Eve RAN toward the ball!  It was her biggest success of the season.  I suspect it was because they used her ball in this quarter, but that's neither here nor there.  Because of that Eve got the "Most Improved Girl" award, and John got the "Best All Around Boy" award.  Fun season!

I Forgot

I forgot in the last post to record Ellie's 2 year stats.  Weight 29.5 lb. (83 percentile), height 33" (37 percentile).  She's so petite...and adorably chunky.

Ellie is TWO!

Since Eve's birthday is tomorrow, I probably ought to go ahead and catch up on Ellie's birthday.  Ellie is officially terrible!  She's really not terrible, she's just two.  She didn't know what to expect for her birthday, but as I suspected once she got presents, cake, and ice cream, she's been very interested in birthdays.  We went to McDonalds (her favorite) for lunch, then just a small family celebration pizza and party in the evening.  I love her facial expressions in the first few pictures of card and gift opening.

 Ellie LOVES LOVES LOVES these glasses from Aunt Michelle.  She really enjoyed everything (as you can see on her face), but these glasses were, and still are, a super hit!

 John and Eve were dying to help.  Ellie opened a little, then gladly let them help when they offered.

 It's my party, and I'll cry if I want to!  I can't remember what happened here.  Maybe we took the toys away to make room for the cake?  She recovered pretty quickly.

Here she is with the bear John and Eve gave her in the hospital when they met her for the first time.  That's one of the sweetest faces (and some of the sweetest thighs) I know.  We can't hardly go anywhere without people stopping us to ooh and ahh over this sweet and silly little girl.  People are amazed at how much, and how well she talks.  Even the pediatrician was impressed; although, after the first few minutes she was very leary of him and didn't want to say anything any more...until she started screaming (she did NOT enjoy the pediatrician).  Not only does she talk a lot, but she understands a lot.  At the pediatrician I felt a little silly, but I started to explain to her that she'd get a shot and it would hurt, but it would go away and we'd get a treat.  In a whimpering voice she said, "O-tay", and cried for the shot, but clearly understood that she'd get through it and a treat was coming.  Ellie still loves to make people laugh, and is quite good at it, both with what she says and her physical expressions.  She's quite a ham.  She's turning into quite a snuggle bug as long as it's on her terms.  She comes up to me often to give me sweet hugs and kisses.  She loves fun TV.  She loves her brother and sister and wants to copy everything they do.  Sometimes this is good, sometimes not.  Well before she turned two she had already learned to say, "I'm telling Mom!", and she knew what it meant.  She loves dressing up and wearing her princess shoes.  She's still pretty dependent, by choice, but is starting a little rebellion of her own.  She's been repeating "NO!" in a pretty nasty tone for a while, mostly after hearing Eve say it, but now she's doing that a bit on her own.  She's not a big fan of getting in the car seat.  She does have very nice manners...always saying "please", "thank you", and "you're welcome".  I so wish I could share her humor on the blog, but it's not something I can put my finger on.  A lot of it is just who she is, and how she says things.  She is an absolute joy.  Happy Birthday, Ellie.  We love you so much!  You are the best Mother's Day gift I will ever receive and such a blessing from God!

Catching Up In Pictures

Here are several pictures of minor events I've taken lately.  Spring is making it's way into summer.  What a fun time!

 Hot Friday afternoon and fresh strawberries means ICE CREAM!  The girls kept a good eye on the ice level.

 For Mother's Day, John and Eve made flower pots in their class and gave it to me during their program.  The program was so sweet, but never a dull moment in preschool or kindergarten.  During Eve's portion one kids was crying hysterically because the little girl beside him got a little crazy with the motions and whacked him in the face.  During John's portion a poor little girl in the front started throwing up on the stage.  Happy Mother's Day :)
I thought these pots were so pretty and sweet.  They also help the kids fill out a questionnaire about their mom.  According to John, my favorite color is green (not really), I like to spend time with him, my favorite TV show is football (spot on!), I weigh 77 lbs (also spot on!), I'm 17 years old (on a roll, John!), my favorite food is spaghetti, I cook a lot of stuff, and I clean up a lot.

 Eve's pot had a few pictures of her, a little poem about mothers, and a message from her, "Dear Mommy, I love you.  I love playing with you.  You are pretty.  Love, Eve"  How sweet is that?  According to Eve, my favorite color is green (not sure where they got that from), What do I like to do?  Take a shower (that one cracked me up), my favorite TV show is what Daddy likes to watch, I weigh 10 lbs, am 32 years old, my favorite food is bagels, I cook cereal bars (nice), I like to go to the "Y" and school, and I clean dishes.  Apparently my children have a higher opinion of my cleanliness and hygeine.

 Not sure I have many pictures of Ellie sleeping.  I had to catch her this one morning.  She was just too darn cute to not take a picture.

 Here is the aftermath.

 And they call it "beauty" sleep.  It takes "product" to tame that beast.  Poor thing seems to have Mama's crazy hair.

 Buck let the band in the church retreat for the 5th and 6th graders.  We went up to the camp for the day to hang out.  It was so much fun!  John and Eve loved swimming in the freezing water (kudos to Buck for taking one for the team...I stayed far away).  Eve had her first run-in with a leach, but was very brave and didn't freak out when her toe was all bloody.  John braved the water slide.  It was a straight, but long and pretty steep slide down the bank into the lake.  On his first trip down, he had a look of terror on his face.  When he came up from under the water, I acted extra excited fearing he was going to be traumatized.  Surprisingly (to me), he came up with a look of glee on his face and couldn't wait to go again, and again, and again.  We also went out on paddle boats and kayaks, which they loved.  In the evening we got to watch Buck play with the band.  The kids absolutely loved it and loved to sing along.  I love that this is the music they enjoy.  On their way out, I was carrying things to the car and turned around and saw this.  I hadn't asked them to hold hands or anything.  It was just completely spontaneously sweet.

Later we got lots and lots of rain at our house, and in the evening found this right outside the back door.  GROSS! and awesome at the same time.  I've never seen a slug that huge!

When Laughter and Terror Collide

As usual, I have lots to catch up on.  Quickly, though, so I don't forget...
There are many moments when laughter and terror collide in parenting.  Yesterday was one.  I was in the kitchen and Eve came downstairs.  She had been quiet upstairs for a while (begin the terror).  She came into the kitchen and said to me, "Mom, can I please speak with you upstairs in your room?"  On the one hand, that's a terrifying question.  My immediate thought...WHAT HAS SHE DONE!?!  On the other hand, the way she said it was absolutely hysterical.  How old is she ?!  Fortunately when we went upstairs, she took me over to some bags on my bedroom floor with party favors I had just gotten for her birthday party.  She had seen them and just wanted to know what they were and if they were for her.  Whew!  I've noticed she's done this a few times.  I guess she's wising up that sometimes when she tries to describe something to me I have no idea what she's talking about, so now she just skips the trouble and goes to show me.

More Jammin'

I think for a bit strawberry jam was my pregnancy obsession.  I had to bribe the kids into going back to the strawberry patch (this time it was hot and less desirable) because I NEEDED more strawberries to make more jam.

 This time I had a helper.  Eve has been wanting to help with everything lately.  She's a great little helper.

 And she really enjoyed it.

Oh, and we tasted a few along the way.  Now that I have 30 jars or so, I think we're good for a while.

Did I Mention?

Several small things I'm not sure if I've mentioned already.
John recently learned to tie his shoes, and is speeding down our driveway and around the cul-de-sac on his bike...greatly increasing the grey count on my head (he's already better on a bike than me...not saying much).
Ellie has had another tooth, bottom right incisor (?), and is working on the bottom left.  It's poking through.  If I had a nickel for every time someone mentioned how cute she or her thighs were over the past few weeks, we'd be retiring on a deserted island soon.
Eve is wanting to help with everything.  I'm trying to capitalize on it, but until I learn how to do that properly, it's making more of a mess most of the time.  This summer, though, I expect the bottom 2-3 feet of the house to be spotless.
With Mother's day, two birthdays, and the end of school coming up (Kindergarten graduation, and saying goodbye to 4 teachers that have been SO dear to us this year and poured so much into John and Eve), I've been excessively weepy.  I'm blaming at least a good percentage on hormones.  Surely May won't always be this emotional for me...right?

A Father's Love / A Father's Protection

I had to take a few pictures of the sweet necklace dads gave to their daughters for the Daddy Daughter dance.  Eve loves hers dearly.

 The back says "BELOVED", because she is loved so much by her earthly father and her heavenly father.

The wire is singed because Eve has kept the necklace with her ever since she got it.  This past weekend (only a day or two after receiving it), she started screaming hysterically in her room during nap time.  I asked if she was hurt, she said no, that she had broken her necklace and couldn't wear it anymore.  After confirming she wasn't hurt, I told her to be quiet and we'd look at it after nap time.  Later, Eve and John walked downstairs to show me.  "What happened?" I asked.  "I stuck it in the fan." she said.  They have a box fan in their room.  Then John piped up.  "Actually she wrapped it around the cord and there was smoke."  Come to find out, there was a small gap between the plug and the outlet, so a small portion of the plug was exposed and she thought it would be a good idea to wrap her necklace around it.  So now she has a memento not only of how much she is loved, but also of how God has protected her.  That's my "E.R."  We really should've thought more of her initials.