This year's Spring Break was pretty quiet overall. Dennis couldn't take off work because of various other vacations this year…a Europe trip he has in May, a trip to Indy he goes to every August, the beach in July and then we are surprising the kids with a Disney trip in Novemeber (Shhh…don't tell, we aren't going to tell them until right before we go).
So, it was really just me and the kids. Monday, we went to the library to pick up some good books for the week.
Tuesday, we took them to Ticonderoga Farms in Chantilly and we really had the BEST day. The weather was great and there was so much to do. We took a hay ride, which went through a swamp, the kids couldn't believe it! They did some slides down a hill, jumped on some huge bounce pillows, raced some carts, went through a maze and we saw some animals. Leah is really my only animal lover. She absolutely loved trying to feed the animals. She also kept talking to them…"Hi goat, what are you doing?" Logan, who likes animals the least, spent the whole time far away in the stroller!
Because the kids were so good, I also treated them to ice cream!
Wednesday night, we drove up to Holly's house in Maryland and spent the night. We got up the next morning and went in to Baltimore with Holly's family and my parents. We spent the day at the aquarium, having a nice lunch and walking along the harbor, we also watched a street performance with was great.
The rest of the vacation was just spent hanging out at home and outside too!
Oh, we also moved Leah to her big girl bed! I was so sad to get rid of the crib. She probably could have fit in it another year, but we decided to move her the same time we did the boys, because we knew we didn't have any issues with the transition with them at that age. Sure enough, she did great too. She was a little nervous when we turned the lights off, but I gave her her lovie and asked if she wanted Minnie Mouse and then she was fine. I can't believe we are saying goodbye to a nursery set we have had for 10 years! I don't think being done with the baby stage will ever be easy:-(.
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Monday, March 30, 2015
Logan's 5th Birthday!
Logan at 5 is a funny kid. He is pretty serious a lot of the time. He doesn't talk a lot but he isn't as shy or as sensitive as his older brothers either.
Logan is incredibly street smart and independent. I am pretty sure he could probably survive a long time on his own if he needed to. He already makes his breakfast and sometimes his lunch on his own.
He is becoming an excellent big brother to Leah. He loves to play with her and is very loving too. He really makes my life so much easier most days because he helps me take care of her. Logan at this point goes back and forth between playing with Leah and playing with his big brothers.
He tends to be more of a home body like me. He would choose to stay inside and play then to go to a play date if you ask him. But, he always has fun once he is there. He loves to build things with all sizes of legos and he is also really into video and computer games (too much if you ask me).
Logan is in the 50% for height and weight. I believe he was 40lbs at his appointment. Not too long ago we registered him for Kindergarten and he is so ready to go! He can't wait to get on the bus with his brothers. September can't come fast enough for him.
This year Logan really wanted to have a birthday party with his friends. Since his class only has 12 kids in it, we decided to invite the whole class a long with his cousins. They had so much fun at the sport bounce place near us (Logan's pick). He had been talking about his Birthday for a year so he was very excited the day was finally here! Then some of his cousins came back to our house and played some more here. It was a great day!
Logan is incredibly street smart and independent. I am pretty sure he could probably survive a long time on his own if he needed to. He already makes his breakfast and sometimes his lunch on his own.
He is becoming an excellent big brother to Leah. He loves to play with her and is very loving too. He really makes my life so much easier most days because he helps me take care of her. Logan at this point goes back and forth between playing with Leah and playing with his big brothers.
He tends to be more of a home body like me. He would choose to stay inside and play then to go to a play date if you ask him. But, he always has fun once he is there. He loves to build things with all sizes of legos and he is also really into video and computer games (too much if you ask me).
Logan is in the 50% for height and weight. I believe he was 40lbs at his appointment. Not too long ago we registered him for Kindergarten and he is so ready to go! He can't wait to get on the bus with his brothers. September can't come fast enough for him.
This year Logan really wanted to have a birthday party with his friends. Since his class only has 12 kids in it, we decided to invite the whole class a long with his cousins. They had so much fun at the sport bounce place near us (Logan's pick). He had been talking about his Birthday for a year so he was very excited the day was finally here! Then some of his cousins came back to our house and played some more here. It was a great day!
Friday, February 6, 2015
Report Cards and Update on Kids
A few things to update on...
My back has been a lot better. The pain is still there, occasionally I will sit right on a bad spot and jump up in pain. But, for the most part I can do all my daily activities now. Thank goodness!
Colin and Evan got their report cards yesterday. I am so grateful for smart kids! Colin got all A's except a B in Math...so he got honor roll! I was annoyed with the B in Math because that is his best subject and the teacher knows it, he even wrote that the B was all because of rushing and silly mistakes, he knows the material. So, we have to work on that, but I am sure that will be a constant struggle with him. Anyway, very happy with his grades, he does great in school and is pretty responsible these days with getting all his homework done and doing it all pretty independently.
Evan doesn't get A's and B's yet, but he got all 0's (Outstanding), on his report card for his main subjects. Again, really proud of him. Evan has a great memory that serves him well in school. He doesn't love doing homework, he has a short attention span for it, but he gets it done, I am sure this will improve as he gets older and has a longer attention span. But, for the most part homework has been pretty stress free this year. This school system is much easier then they are used to and the homework is less to, so it has been a pretty easy year this year.
Despite school being fairly easy, I haven't gotten any reports from either kid of any bad behavior. Both teachers had nice things to say about them, so that makes me so happy!
A week ago, I also had a teacher conference for Logan. Because of school being closed that day for snow, it was over the phone. His teacher said he was one of the strongest in his class and that she has absolutely no concerns about his readiness for Kindergarten! For those that know Logan, he is VERY independent. He doesn't like to spend much time doing any learning activities with me, he quits pretty quickly once he doesn't know something. I think because he is so independent it frustrates him to not know how to read. He wants to be able to do everything his brothers do. So, I really don't know how much he actually knows. Recently, he is starting to write his letters and draw more, so I think he is really starting to want to learn. He knows all his letters, just doesn't know all the sounds they make yet, but, I have a feeling he is going to take off in the next few months...
Leah...well, don't want to leave this girl out...Leah is so fun. She is super girly, she loves wearing necklaces and bracelets. She also loves shoes. She always wants to wear sparkly shoes and church shoes. I need to hide these, because I do not like when her clothes and shoes don't match! I like girls dressed pretty conservatively, I do not like sparkly shoes or sparkly clothes, character clothes, or loud colors. The only reason she even has some of these shoes/clothes is hand me downs. I prefer more classic clothing. But, this girl, loves all things girly!
Leah loves Mickey/Minnie still and all those characters. She is also starting to learn the names of the princesses like Cinderella and Aurora. She calls her "Sleeping Booty". Leah will say "I'm fine" or "I will be fine" if she wants to do something herself. She is sassy and is not afraid to yell at her big brothers. The love to pester her, but they also are extremely loving toward her and helpful with her. I am so grateful for that. Leah loves to dance (yay for this!), she also loves to sing ("Let it go" is her favorite).
Ok, I guess I have written enough, I could go on and on about my kids...will add pics soon.
My back has been a lot better. The pain is still there, occasionally I will sit right on a bad spot and jump up in pain. But, for the most part I can do all my daily activities now. Thank goodness!
Colin and Evan got their report cards yesterday. I am so grateful for smart kids! Colin got all A's except a B in Math...so he got honor roll! I was annoyed with the B in Math because that is his best subject and the teacher knows it, he even wrote that the B was all because of rushing and silly mistakes, he knows the material. So, we have to work on that, but I am sure that will be a constant struggle with him. Anyway, very happy with his grades, he does great in school and is pretty responsible these days with getting all his homework done and doing it all pretty independently.
Evan doesn't get A's and B's yet, but he got all 0's (Outstanding), on his report card for his main subjects. Again, really proud of him. Evan has a great memory that serves him well in school. He doesn't love doing homework, he has a short attention span for it, but he gets it done, I am sure this will improve as he gets older and has a longer attention span. But, for the most part homework has been pretty stress free this year. This school system is much easier then they are used to and the homework is less to, so it has been a pretty easy year this year.
Despite school being fairly easy, I haven't gotten any reports from either kid of any bad behavior. Both teachers had nice things to say about them, so that makes me so happy!
A week ago, I also had a teacher conference for Logan. Because of school being closed that day for snow, it was over the phone. His teacher said he was one of the strongest in his class and that she has absolutely no concerns about his readiness for Kindergarten! For those that know Logan, he is VERY independent. He doesn't like to spend much time doing any learning activities with me, he quits pretty quickly once he doesn't know something. I think because he is so independent it frustrates him to not know how to read. He wants to be able to do everything his brothers do. So, I really don't know how much he actually knows. Recently, he is starting to write his letters and draw more, so I think he is really starting to want to learn. He knows all his letters, just doesn't know all the sounds they make yet, but, I have a feeling he is going to take off in the next few months...
Leah...well, don't want to leave this girl out...Leah is so fun. She is super girly, she loves wearing necklaces and bracelets. She also loves shoes. She always wants to wear sparkly shoes and church shoes. I need to hide these, because I do not like when her clothes and shoes don't match! I like girls dressed pretty conservatively, I do not like sparkly shoes or sparkly clothes, character clothes, or loud colors. The only reason she even has some of these shoes/clothes is hand me downs. I prefer more classic clothing. But, this girl, loves all things girly!
Leah loves Mickey/Minnie still and all those characters. She is also starting to learn the names of the princesses like Cinderella and Aurora. She calls her "Sleeping Booty". Leah will say "I'm fine" or "I will be fine" if she wants to do something herself. She is sassy and is not afraid to yell at her big brothers. The love to pester her, but they also are extremely loving toward her and helpful with her. I am so grateful for that. Leah loves to dance (yay for this!), she also loves to sing ("Let it go" is her favorite).
Ok, I guess I have written enough, I could go on and on about my kids...will add pics soon.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Play Dates are Dangerous.
The last few weeks have been some of the roughest I have experienced so far. I was at a play date about 2 1/2 weeks ago and I slipped on her basement stairs landing on my bottom and then bouncing a few steps. The pain was like nothing I have ever felt before and took the breath out of me. It was at the end of the playdate any way so I gathered up the kids and left not fully realizing how bad it was. Well, as soon as I tried to lift Leah into the car and get myself in the car I had incredible pain. I was in tears the whole way home, to which Logan replied, "Why did you say you were ok?"
I powered through and got the kids home and fed lunch, Logan offered to make them sandwiches, he is such an awesome kid! Then I got him to school (again getting in and out of the car was excruciating). Logan said, "When I get home from school, I will carry Leah for you". I then got Leah down for a nap and spent a couple hours laying on ice. I chose not to go to the doctor because I know that even if it was fractured or bruised the treatment is the same. Tailbone injuries are just very painful and can last 4-8 weeks (sometimes longer), so there is nothing to do but ice, aleve and rest. Unfortunately, rest has been very hard. When you are a mom of 4 and spend 12 hours of your day alone with your kids, there isn't any time for rest. Well, that's not true, we have spent many days laying on the couch watching movies to rest, but I still have to feed them and take them places, etc…
The next morning, my mom, hearing I got hurt, texted me and asked if I wanted her to come spend the day and help since her schools were out for snow. She was a huge help taking Logan to and from school and the kids to and from church class and lifting Leah up into her crib for me. I was so bad at that point Evan had to help me off the toilet and Colin was helping me get up from the couch. Luckily, since then, I can do those things independently, but the pain is constant. I can walk normally, so no one would know how much pain I am in, but it is still very much there. The worst is bending to pick something up, lifting anything, stairs, sitting on a couch and getting up and down. I also am really struggling to get any sleep. I never realized how many times I have to bend during the day, but now that I can't do it, I am watching the house get messier and messier and that is adding to my stress. Every time I try to do some cleaning I flare it up.
I now have much sympathy for people with back pain and with chronic pain, because it is really rough. Moms don't have time for this. I have dishes that need to be washed constantly, kids to shuffle places, meals to make, constant cleaning to do, laundry every day, and yet all these things are so painful to do. I think on top of the pain the cold weather, the lack of sleep and the many hours Dennis is gone are all really causing me to have the blues lately. I am grateful for his job, but being alone with the kids from the time we wake up till almost 7 pm every day is exhausting, especially now being in pain.
I'm really struggling lately also to figure out how to make everything work. I am noticing that everyone here in Nova that has a lot of kids (and lets face some who only have 1-2 kids too) either has a Nanny, Au Pair or a Grandparent that helps them out. For the most part, except for the very rare occasion or one of us is out of town, it is just Dennis and I on our own. Well, lets face it, most of the time it is just me on my own, but Dennis does help a lot on the weekends.
Anyway, as Spring comes we will have 3 kids in sports, not sure how I am going to get them all to and from practices and then games on the Saturdays. Then come fall I am planning to go back to work part time and I am stressing about how to make that work too. Part of the reason I stopped working is that it was so stressful to have to call in when kids were sick or when school is out. I always hated to have to take the day off. Then there is Summer break….we can't afford to pay for 4 kids summer camp. So, I am not sure what we are going to do, maybe try to find a part time Nanny for the summers? The costs of things here in Nova are really getting to me to. Day care is so expensive and next year we have to pay for both Logan and Leah, since I don't have anyone to watch Leah and Logan's Kindergarten is only half day here.
So, between sports and school costs and daycare costs and house stuff, I feel like we are throwing our money away these days. I am trying to really cut back where I can, but it is a struggle with a big family living here. So, that is another reason I didn't go to the doctor, I don't want to pay for an X-ray that isn't going to change anything.
Oh well, I could go on and on…but point is, things have been rough. I am hoping this heals up quick so I can keep up with all the busy times coming up once sports start back up…
(oh and once I can sit a bit longer, I will update my blog, I have posts written, just need to add the pictures to them)
I powered through and got the kids home and fed lunch, Logan offered to make them sandwiches, he is such an awesome kid! Then I got him to school (again getting in and out of the car was excruciating). Logan said, "When I get home from school, I will carry Leah for you". I then got Leah down for a nap and spent a couple hours laying on ice. I chose not to go to the doctor because I know that even if it was fractured or bruised the treatment is the same. Tailbone injuries are just very painful and can last 4-8 weeks (sometimes longer), so there is nothing to do but ice, aleve and rest. Unfortunately, rest has been very hard. When you are a mom of 4 and spend 12 hours of your day alone with your kids, there isn't any time for rest. Well, that's not true, we have spent many days laying on the couch watching movies to rest, but I still have to feed them and take them places, etc…
The next morning, my mom, hearing I got hurt, texted me and asked if I wanted her to come spend the day and help since her schools were out for snow. She was a huge help taking Logan to and from school and the kids to and from church class and lifting Leah up into her crib for me. I was so bad at that point Evan had to help me off the toilet and Colin was helping me get up from the couch. Luckily, since then, I can do those things independently, but the pain is constant. I can walk normally, so no one would know how much pain I am in, but it is still very much there. The worst is bending to pick something up, lifting anything, stairs, sitting on a couch and getting up and down. I also am really struggling to get any sleep. I never realized how many times I have to bend during the day, but now that I can't do it, I am watching the house get messier and messier and that is adding to my stress. Every time I try to do some cleaning I flare it up.
I now have much sympathy for people with back pain and with chronic pain, because it is really rough. Moms don't have time for this. I have dishes that need to be washed constantly, kids to shuffle places, meals to make, constant cleaning to do, laundry every day, and yet all these things are so painful to do. I think on top of the pain the cold weather, the lack of sleep and the many hours Dennis is gone are all really causing me to have the blues lately. I am grateful for his job, but being alone with the kids from the time we wake up till almost 7 pm every day is exhausting, especially now being in pain.
I'm really struggling lately also to figure out how to make everything work. I am noticing that everyone here in Nova that has a lot of kids (and lets face some who only have 1-2 kids too) either has a Nanny, Au Pair or a Grandparent that helps them out. For the most part, except for the very rare occasion or one of us is out of town, it is just Dennis and I on our own. Well, lets face it, most of the time it is just me on my own, but Dennis does help a lot on the weekends.
Anyway, as Spring comes we will have 3 kids in sports, not sure how I am going to get them all to and from practices and then games on the Saturdays. Then come fall I am planning to go back to work part time and I am stressing about how to make that work too. Part of the reason I stopped working is that it was so stressful to have to call in when kids were sick or when school is out. I always hated to have to take the day off. Then there is Summer break….we can't afford to pay for 4 kids summer camp. So, I am not sure what we are going to do, maybe try to find a part time Nanny for the summers? The costs of things here in Nova are really getting to me to. Day care is so expensive and next year we have to pay for both Logan and Leah, since I don't have anyone to watch Leah and Logan's Kindergarten is only half day here.
So, between sports and school costs and daycare costs and house stuff, I feel like we are throwing our money away these days. I am trying to really cut back where I can, but it is a struggle with a big family living here. So, that is another reason I didn't go to the doctor, I don't want to pay for an X-ray that isn't going to change anything.
Oh well, I could go on and on…but point is, things have been rough. I am hoping this heals up quick so I can keep up with all the busy times coming up once sports start back up…
(oh and once I can sit a bit longer, I will update my blog, I have posts written, just need to add the pictures to them)
Monday, December 8, 2014
George is Back!
This past weekend was fairly quiet overall. Saturday morning we did go to the kids school for a really fun event. They had a holiday shop where kids can go in and shop for their siblings or parents or whoever and each gift is less than $5. Then it gets wrapped up before they ever come out. The boys had so much fun doing this and I think it will make Christmas morning very special for them to get gifts from each other that they picked out and pay for themselves. The event also had various crafts and activities for the kids and a raffle and silent auction. We were excited to find out the next day that we won a 4 person VIP pass, including a pre game and post game "experience" and a signed soccer ball from DC United. So, we look forward to going to that next season.
Then, Logan had a birthday party for one of the girls in our play group. He had a blast doing that. I was a bit embarrassed to show up at the birthday party with him in full (tiger) makeup. When he said he wanted to get it done at the boys school, I completely wasn't thinking about the birthday party he was going straight to! Oh well!
The rest of the day was spent running errands and doing things around the house.
Sunday morning the kids were super excited to see that their elf, George, was making an appearance again this year! George brought them donuts and presents with Christmas PJ's in it! He also wrote a letter reminding them to be good.
Sunday evening we brought dinner and dessert over to Aunt Meghan, who was recovering from foot surgery. Without sports right now our weekends are relatively calm, which is a nice change of pace.
Then, Logan had a birthday party for one of the girls in our play group. He had a blast doing that. I was a bit embarrassed to show up at the birthday party with him in full (tiger) makeup. When he said he wanted to get it done at the boys school, I completely wasn't thinking about the birthday party he was going straight to! Oh well!
The rest of the day was spent running errands and doing things around the house.
Sunday morning the kids were super excited to see that their elf, George, was making an appearance again this year! George brought them donuts and presents with Christmas PJ's in it! He also wrote a letter reminding them to be good.
Sunday evening we brought dinner and dessert over to Aunt Meghan, who was recovering from foot surgery. Without sports right now our weekends are relatively calm, which is a nice change of pace.
Friday, December 5, 2014
Visit to Santa
I took the younger two to the mall today to pick up a few gifts and we decided to see Santa too. Leah was unsure the whole time in line, but was hanging in there because of the promise that Santa had lollipops. Well, as soon as she was placed on Santa's lap she started crying! But, those make for the best Santa pictures anyway! Logan did great, he was super excited to see Santa and told him very quietly that he wanted a Max the Tow Truck.
Here are a couple other photos of these two recently…
Here are a couple other photos of these two recently…
Monday, December 1, 2014
Thanksgiving break…(and Loggie takes home turtles)
Logan was so excited last Monday when I picked him up from school because he got to take home the class turtles. They aren't real, they are stuffed turtles, in case you were wondering. Their names are Shelby and Shelton. Logan got to have them all week. He took them to Thanksgiving dinners, he took them to the movie theater when Dennis took all the boys on Friday, and he slept with them each night. He had so much fun filling out their journal with all the adventures they did over the week.
Thanksgiving break was really nice. Besides taking the kids to the movie, we decorated for Christmas. I convinced Dennis that since we were staying put for the holidays and even hosting my family for Christmas dinner that it was time to get a real tree and not pull out our pathetic skinny artificial one. He reluctantly agreed and we had fun picking one out on Saturday and decorating on Sunday. I always love pulling out all the ornaments that have so many memories attached to them. It is always a fun day for the kids too! So far Leah has stayed away from all the ornaments, hopefully it continues! She loves when it is lit up though!
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| At the movies…not a great pic! |
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