First Day of Kindergarten

Carter had his first day of Kindergarten on Friday August 27th. The class was divided into three groups each attending one full day that week beginning on Wed. The following Monday the whole class was together. I really liked that they were in a small group to start out. Supposedly, they had a scavenger hunt through the school showing the kids all around and ending with a sucker hidden in their classroom.

A few weeks earlier, Jeremy and I took Carter out to buy school supplies. Afterwards, the three of us went to dinner and when we got home, he packed his bag right away. As you can see by the picture, he was really happy even toting around a heavy bag! We had such an awesome time with him. His favorite thing were the gym shoes, which have laces and stay at school!
The morning of his first day, he asked for homemade waffles with powdered sugar. I wouldn't let him put his shirt on until we were about to walk out the door for fear of him getting dirty.
The famous family banana shot. I've probably told this story already, but my mom has a picture from her first day of college holding bananas. For some reason, it's become a tradition on the first day of school. I had to run out the night before b/c we were out of bananas!
Leah gave him a big hug. She has a big adjustment ahead of her too. They usually play together all afternoon while Brooks and Elliot nap. So, now I'm hoping to give her more one on one Mommy time, which also means less time to get things done. Hopefully she can be my helper.

Here we are on the ride to school. Jeremy followed us so we could drop him off together.

Unloading...
yes, you're getting the play by play

Running up the steps..as you can see, he was pretty excited. He continues to run every day since.

Leah wanted to be in the picture. She already can't wait till next year.

In the doorway of his classroom. Leah and Elliot wanted to run in too.

One last hug from teary Mom. I actually held it together pretty well. I think had he ridden the bus, it would have been harder.

Leah and I had a tea-party in the afternoon with Brooks. We missed Carter so much and we were counting down the hours till 3. I couldn't wait to hear about his first day. Little did I know, boys give very little feedback!


We picked him up after school and he was all smiles. He said he had fun, but mostly only mentioned the playground and lunch time, two of the highlights apparantly. I kept asking him questions and he was so quiet and so tired. I finally gave up and realized he'll talk when he's ready. The first thing he did when we got home was change his clothes. Here he is at dinner with the red plate. We could tell he was excited, but really wanted to hear about his day. Carter's teacher said she would email us with suggested questions to ask about their day. I'm looking forward to those emails!


A few nights later, he came downstairs after we put them to bed and said he wanted to tell me about school. So, I of course dropped everything thinking this may never happen again. :-) We sat on the couch and he told me all kinds of things like where he sits, who he plays with, the computers, how he loves his locker, free choice, the library and the smart board. That was the best, hearing him explain what he likes and why. He seemed older. I know it's the beginning of many new experiences for him, adventures for sure. We're excited and look forward to all that's ahead.

Jeremy came inside later and I told him how Carter had come downstairs to talk about school. His response was, "he just wanted to stay up later!" Probably true, but I'll take what I can get. Quiet time with Carter is rare these days.

Brooks - 7 Months

Brooks, now 7 months old, is rapidly changing. He sits up really well and is getting bored with the exersaucer. He sits and plays for a while and then reaches forward landing on his tummy. He's starting to push up and get his hips slightly off the ground and can rotate around to reach different toys.

Brooks is a big drooler, which I'm thinking means more teeth. I usually change him a few times each day b/c his shirt is soaked. Bibs don't work great b/c he pulls them off. We gave him another haircut this week. I think it was his fourth one. I wish he'd use the calories towards chunking up rather than growing hair!! He's long and lean at the moment and super cute! :-)

He's starting to "talk" more and lights up when the other kids are around. I gave him crackers one night and he loved them! After asking my doctor about food at his 6 ms visit, he said hold off for a bit on the solids till 7-8 months. So, this week we introduced Puffs and cheerios. He thought both were delicious.

Sleeping is inconsistent. He mostly does about 8 hours, occasionally 10 or 11. A few times a week he still gets up at 2 or 3. I'm attributing it to teeth, him being sick and me getting mastitis (again!). We're all healthy now, so hopefully things will get better and better on that front. It's amazing what a difference uninterrupted sleep makes.

Happy 7 months Brooks!!!

T Minus 2 Days

Just wanted to quickly capture some thoughts as Carter approaches his very first day of Kindergarten, something I've anticipated with mixed emotion for years now. Is it too late to change my mind and keep him home till college? Kidding of course. Well, sort of.

He's very excited and doesn't seem to have any concerns. We've gone through the open house, kindergarten meeting, orientation & met the new teacher. The teacher from last year has decided to be a stay-at-home dad, which is great for his new baby, but what about our kindergarteners! Again, kidding, sort of. I was really excited for Carter to have a male teacher this year, so I'm slightly disappointed with the change. However, we did meet the new teacher Mrs. Herpey, and she seems really nice and very kindergartenish.

I get butterflies in my stomach every time I think about him going. He'll hopefully love it. He's done well at pre-school and I'm assuming this will be the same. It's just a long day away from home. Pre-school was 2.5 hrs and home for lunch. Now, he'll be gone for 7 hrs every day. We'll miss him!

On the bright side, he'll be learning so many great things and meeting new friends, playing at recess and running around in gym class. I could say all the cliche things like, "he's gotten so big" and "I can't believe he's already going to kindergarten" and "I wish he'd stay little forever". They'd all be true. So, after many firsts with Carter, we're about to experience another first, the first day of Kindergarten this Friday morning. I better go charge the camera and get the tissues ready.

Elliot Turns Two

Elliot turned 2 on June 26th. Here he is with Dad blowing out their birthday candles. Jeremy turned 31 the same day. We had a party on Sunday for them both. He was so cute while we sang to them.

This is his birthday party cupcake.

"Cheese!"

We actually had a nice afternoon outside. Later, a thunderstorm rolled in and the kids ended up on the deck dancing in the rain. I was a party pooper and brought everyone in...just worried about the lightning.

Here they are opening presents.

A bubble mower!!! We used to have one of these for Carter, but it broke and then I accidentally ran it over with the car. Put your toys away kids! He was so psyched about the new one.

This is Elliot with cousin Jake in our backyard. Aunt Anna and Uncle Steve bought him this giraffe pool for his birthday. With the hot summer we're having, it's been a huge hit.

Here are Gma and Pop-pop with Elliot

Jeremy's Grandpa and wife Betty brought Elliot some new books for his birthday. Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, The Lion and the Mouse and a foam car for the bath. Betty read the books to the kids after dinner. They love new books!!

Yes, camo and tie die. We're very fashionable!

Here's Elliot with his twin cousins, Sam and Jake doing one of their favorite things, push trucks!!

Elliot and Jake, playing in Jake's driveway

We visited the Greenville zoo on v/c. Elliot thought the snake was super cool.

Happy Birthday Elliot. You are just the sweetest two-year old! I can't get over how well you are beginning to talk and all the new things you can do.

You love your baby bear from Great Grandma and sleep with him every night. Your favorite toys are the loader truck, the red shovel and the orange wheelbarrow.

Your favorite things to eat are pizza, bananas and oatmeal....chips too if that counts as food. I'm honestly just happy you're eating better. You haven't always enjoyed food, and getting you to eat a meal has been a battle most of the time. About the time you started talking, you also started eating, not sure why there's a correlation.

You've been trying to count and sing your ABC's, which is hilarious to hear. Now if we could just get you potty trained!!! So far, no interest...hopefully before the end of summer.

You just passed level 1 in swimming lessons. Way to go putting your head in the water!! After each class, you look back and wave, shouting, "Bye Claire, Bye Sam!" to your instructors. You like to stand on the edge of the baby pool and yell, "Mom, watch this!" and then jump in. I laugh and you do it again, never gets old.

Recently, you started doing somersaults and we're working on pedaling your little tricycle.

Your personality reminds me so much of your dad. You always like to clown around and laugh. If we yell at you for something, you start to choke up and cry, almost in this sweet apologetic way. You're a big sweetheart for such a little guy. Your name definition suits you.....Elliot means charmer all the way.

It's so much fun to watch you grow and change. We love you to pieces Elliot!

Brooks - 6 Months

Brooks is now 6 months old! We were down in SC when he turned 6 months and we spent some time visiting my grandparents. I just took Brooks with me to see them since the other kids get a little rambunctious and I wanted to be able to have a conversation. Also, my grandma gives them chocolate and cookies while we're there, only adding to the energy levels. :-)

We had a really nice visit! Notice in the pic a lot of drool on his shirt. My grandma said he must be teething. I thought no way b/c my kids usually get teeth around 9 months. Grandmas know best b/c just after we returned home only a few days later, Brooks got his first tooth on July 28th! The second one arrived Sunday August 1st.

Jeremy and Brooks at the pool on vacation.

We started baby food just after 5 months. He's now getting the hang of it. I feed him rice cereal and fruit for breakfast. Then a veggie mixed with a bit of cereal for lunch and dinner. He doesn't eat a lot each time but is starting to eat more and more. Here he is with a carrot mustache!

Brooks sleeps from about 8pm to 5am on a good night and still gets up around 1 or 2am occasionally. It was rough on v/c because he slept in a pack-in-play and got up a lot. I guess some of the waking up could have been due to teeth now looking back. It's always a guessing game. He's doing better now that we're home.

Brooks is also starting to sit up. He falls over after a few seconds, but loves to play with his toys and read books this way.

Happy 6 months Brooks!

Photos

Brooks finally got some professional photos! A friend of mine's brother and sister-in-law have a photography business. They currently live in NY, but are moving back to Ohio. In order to boost their business here, Mandy hosted a photo shoot at her house. I was going to have the whole family get pics, but since Carter scraped up his face, I just ended up taking Brooks. I wasn't that optimistic afterwards, but was pleasantly surprised when she sent me the results. They turned out pretty good. Here are the pics. Once going to the link, type Brooks into the search and our pics will appear. I took some with him too.

http://metzger.zenfolio.com/

They also have another business, designing name photos...you've probably seen these before, pretty cool.

http://www.fotobet.com/

Brooks - 5 Months

Brooks turned 5 months back on June 24th. This month has been so busy! Summer is cruising along now with daily trips to the pool for swim lessons. Brooks has been such a trooper, hanging out in the shade in his stroller. He takes a bottle well so I usually pump, feed him when we get there and then he plays while I take a class with Elliot. Carter and Leah take classes too, but I don't have to get in with them.

Brooks is starting to sleep much better usually only getting up once each night. We planned to let him cry it out by now, but I frankly am getting wimpier with each kid. Not sure how that's possible. I also want to make sure he's getting enough to eat since he's still on the smaller size. I plan to take him in for a weight check tomorrow or Thur. Perhaps if he's jumped up a bit, I'll get tougher with the sleep. For now, I take all the snuggle time I can get!
His new favorite thing, the exersaucer, same one for all four kids. It's had plenty of abuse, but going strong. This is the best toy ever. Every one of our kids has loved it, Brooks included. He really likes chewing on the mirror. The kids are playing with him more and more. Leah calls him "Brooksie Bomb"....no idea why, maybe just has a good ring to it. He's getting a lot of nicknames. Brookser, Brooksie, Brooksie Baby, Sweet Little Punkin' Head. :-)

We also introduced him to grass during some tummy time recently. Here he is with a tear, snot and some spit up all in the same picture.

We attempted to feed him cereal on June 25. As you can see, he maybe swallowed a total of one bite.

We keep trying about once every few days. I'd like to get him sort of eating around 6 months, only a few weeks to go!

Happy 5 Months Brooks!

A day away!

A few weeks ago, Jeremy and I went to a local spa to celebrate our birthdays. Time together was what we both really needed so we decided to forgo presents and just get away, even for only a few hours. Ginger so generously agreed to watch the kids for us.

We had lunch first on the patio at Gamekeepers. Lettuce wedge and crab cakes. It doesn't get any better! Jeremy had the bison burger, definitely a favorite. The weather was perfect for sitting outside and we enjoyed a nice conversation and some cold beer. Most of the time, we end up talking after the kids go to bed and the house is quiet. We're both usually pretty tired by then. So, it was nice to have lunch, the time of day we both still have energy!

After lunch, we headed over to the Walden Spa for a massage and scrub. We did the couples package. I didn't really know what to expect since we'd never been there before. It was the nicest spa I've ever been to, better than the honeymoon. I don't know if it's because the spa was so nice or I just appreciate relaxation more now that I have kids. The customer service was unbelievable. They made us feel like we were the only people there, even though we knew otherwise. We weren't rushed through. When we got there, she brought us wine and scotch and we got to relax for a while first. I noticed the music right away. It was classical and the song I walked down the aisle to. Crazy. The treatments were wonderful!! After the massage, we had time to get ready before heading back to the munchkins.

Here we are at lunch

A few shots of the room. We never left the room once we arrived, which was so convenient. We would have loved to take the whirlpool tub and steam shower home with us!

The comfy robes were the best!

As we were getting ready, Ginger called to tell us about Carter's spill. He was pushing his bulldozer down the sidewalk. The blade of the dozer slipped into the crack in the sidewalk and he went flying over the top skidding on his face. Luckily, all the scrapes were superficial, but he bled a lot and was really shaken. So, we rushed home to reality.

We enjoyed it so much, I think we're going to combine birthdays, our anniv, mother's day and father's day from now on into one big get-away together each year!! We'll just do cards on the holiday and then enjoy some time away together as the present.

Memorial Day Weekend

My parents hosted a bbq picnic with Jeremy's family too and we celebrated my birthday. It was so nice for both sides of the family to get together.

The kids had a big game of wiffle ball in the front yard. I couldn't tell who was having more fun actually, the kids or adults. Most of the kids hadn't played before so they had to teach them the basics, including how to run the bases. Here's Carter up at bat.

Brooks with Pop-pop

After the game, Grandpa took the kids fishing. This is Carter's latest obsession. He asks every day, "when are we going fishing?" Luckily Uncle Mike will be here next week. He can't wait to fish with more of his cousins. Jeremy and I crack up when he talks about the fish he has caught so far. He's already exaggerating the size of the fish!!

Here's Leah with her first fish....I think ever. Way to go Leah!!

Hayden's Big Catch!
Blossom Festival. Jeremy with Carter and Leah. Jer kept rocking their seat and Carter did not think it was funny! He got a little scared this year.

Memorial Day Parade. Here are all the kids waiting for the candy to start flying their way. Carter and Leah are in the middle.