The Newman Family

Halloween

2011-12-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

Once again I am behind but at least thought I should get the Halloween post up before Christmas. Alex and Ava had a very fun Halloween, with Trunk or Treating, class parties, pumpkin carving and of course, trick or treating. They got a mountain of candy, which made them very happy and will probably last them until next Halloween.

This year Ava was a unicorn and Alex was Darth Vadar (yes, I realize Darth Vadar uses a red light saber, but I refused to buy Alex another one).

The kids with their pumpkins and their haul for the night-not too shabby considering they also have their Trunk or Treating buckets inside.

Two Wheels!

2011-10-06T18:09:00.000-07:00

At long last, Alex has learned to ride a bike. I feel guilty that it has taken me this long to teach him. We have tried in the past but after falling a couple of times, Alex's confidence diminished and his enthusiasm to learn dwindled, so I put it off. This spring, though, I bought him a new bike to try and get him excited again. It worked but he was really nervous about falling again and really did not want to try. However, this past Labor Day, I was determined to have him learn. We went to the local school parking lot where the surface was flat and where there was a lot of room to practice. After a lot of encouragement and a few threats, Alex got the hang of it and is now a happy bike rider. Way to go, Alex!

First days

2011-10-04T11:30:00.000-07:00

Alex started 3rd grade this year and Ava is in her 3rd year of preschool (she missed the kindergarten cut-off by 3 weeks). Both were excited for the new school year and I now have 2 kids in school everyday. It's really nice. After going back and forth for much of the summer, it was decided that Alex would return to the charter school, and so far so good. He has had a much better start this year than last and I really like his teacher-which makes a huge difference. Ava is back at Little Lamb and loves it there. Since she goes everyday, it will really help her get used to kindergarten next year.

Ava's 5th

2011-09-22T10:59:00.000-07:00

My little girl turned 5 in August and I can't believe it. I know I say this every year but it's true! It goes by so fast! My babies are growing up! We had a pretty low-key celebration this year. Since Ava's birthday fell on a Sunday, we went out for pizza on Friday (her choice) and then on Sunday, she got to decide what we had for dinner (pizza, again). Afterwards, we had ice cream cake and Ava got to open her presents.

Ava is a really sweet girl who will talk to anyone and everyone. She is very inquisitive and is usually asking a question of who, what, where, why, how about pretty much everything. She loves animals, coloring, playing outside, swimming, riding her bike, playing dress-up, and helping others. Ava is a wonderful little girl and I'm so blessed to have her!

Some of Ava's favorite things:
Color: Pink and purple
Animal: Horses
Song: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (I kid you not)
Food: Pizza, hard boiled eggs, blueberries
Disney princess: Sleeping Beauty

Time for cake and presents!

Canada: Part 2

2011-09-04T19:32:00.001-07:00

About 3 weeks after we got back from our first trip to Canada, we went back. My uncle and his family were there visiting from Hong Kong and since we hadn't seen them in 3 years, we made another trip out to Canada. My uncle has 2 boys, Max and Markus, ages 11 and 8, and all the kids got along and had a great time together. We were really busy during our week long stay. We picked some more blueberries, had a bonfire, roasted marshmallows and made some s'mores. The kids had a camp out in the backyard. We went to Montreal and saw the Lion King. We visited the Insectarium and saw ginormous bugs, went hiking, rode some ponies, celebrated Ava's birthday, and went to the waterpark. It was a wonderful trip and I'm so glad that Alex and Ava were able to spend time with their cousins.

Canada: Part 1

2011-08-28T14:25:00.000-07:00

Right after my New York trip, I came back and the kids and I moved into our new house. My mom and step-dad came down to help and after that we all drove back to Canada. Since it was a long drive, we stopped overnight in Niagara Falls. The kids loved it and as it was also the 4th of July, we got to see fireworks over the Falls. After we made it to my mom's, we got season passes to the waterpark there. I think that was the kids' favorite thing we did during our visit. Alex, Ava and I went 4 times and had a lot of fun each time. We also managed to go blueberry picking and went to the Science Center in Montreal and saw the Indiana Jones exhibit.

Niagara Falls.

Alex and his Indiana Jones whip.

Goofing off in Montreal.

Picking blueberries.

At the waterpark.

I heart NY

2011-08-25T17:33:00.000-07:00

I grew up in Connecticut, about an hour outside of NYC so I've been there countless times. However, I've never gone with my 3 good friends-Melanie, Monica, and Cristina, until this June. We've been friends since college and were all at a friend's wedding last summer when we decided to get together every few years. New York was the city of choice and honestly, it was one of the best trips ever. So what did the four of us do? Eat and shop, of course! We ate at some pretty fantastic places and shopped in Greenwich Village and Soho. We also managed to see a couple of Broadway plays and visit the Guggenheim. It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to our next trip! Also, I was having so much fun that I never got a picture of the four of us. Maybe next time. : )

FYI

2011-08-23T18:29:00.000-07:00

Just in case you didn't know-Shane and I are getting a divorce. I realize only a handful of people read my blog (and I'm cool with that) but I'm not one of those people who lay out all their issues on their facebook page. I'm doing it here because my blog is partly a journal for me so I don't have to write in an actual journal. Anyway, Shane and I have been separated since January, our house has been sold and the kids and I moved into an absolutely craptacular apartment for 6 months while I decided what to do. I felt like the best thing was to stay in Indiana and we have moved into a great house. We are all settled in and school has started for Alex and I start working part-time in September and plan to find a full-time job next year when Ava starts kindergarten. So, while this definitely hasn't been the best year, the decision was definitely for the best.

Graduation! (Well, sort of)

2011-08-06T21:16:00.000-07:00

So Ava graduated preschool this past May. She had a great year, wonderful teachers and learned a lot. However, since she misses the kindergarten cut-off by 3 weeks, she will have another year of preschool. At least it will be everyday. Anyway, the graduation ceremony was very cute. There were no gowns, just handmade caps (white cardstock and paper bowl). The kids sang some songs and then the diplomas were handed out. I was only able to get a fuzzy picture of Ava receiving her diploma which is okay since she will be graduating again next year.

Ava with her teacher, Mrs. Gottlieb.

Ava with her other teacher, Mrs. Fagg.

Diploma!

Baptism

2011-07-31T20:00:00.000-07:00

About a week and half after he turned 8, Alex was baptized. It was a very special day and as Alex said, it was the "most important day of his life" (thus far). My mom and stepdad came down for the occasion and a number of Alex's friends attended the baptism. The third times the charm as it took that many times to get Alex all the way under the water! I think Alex recognized the importance of being baptized and was really looking forward to it. He had a wonderful day and couldn't stop smiling. I am very proud of him and the decision he made to be baptized.

Ready to be baptized!

Some of Alex's friends who came.

8!!!!!!!

2011-06-14T18:25:00.000-07:00

After a year long countdown (I'm not kidding), Alex turned 8 on May 5. To say that he was looking forward to this birthday is an understatement; he could not wait to turn 8 because 1. he would be getting baptized and 2. he would finally get to go to cub scouts. For his birthday, Ava and I went up to his school and brought him McDonald's for lunch. After school we went to Chuck E Cheeses and Alex brought his friend, Gabe. After pizza and games, we went home and had some ice cream cake and opened presents. It was a great birthday!
Fun facts about Alex: he's thoughtful, helpful, good big brother (most of the time), is good at math, likes to read, loves swimming, is very inquisitive-he wants to know everything-unfortunately, I do not know everything, very into Pokemon cards, and wants to be a scientist when he grows up.

It's Pinkatastic!

2011-06-12T18:52:00.000-07:00

Ok-so it's been a few months since my last post. While we have been doing stuff these past 6 months, I've gotten into this bad habit of blogging all of those things pretty much all at the same time. Anyway, a couple months ago while searching for some Pinkalicious books for Ava, I saw that there was a Pinkalicious musical and it was playing in Chicago. I thought it would be a fun mother-daughter outing so I got tickets to the show. My friend, Brandi and her daughter, Sibley came with us and we had a great time. I wasn't sure if Ava would like it or not because the actors did not look like the characters in the book but she loved it!

Waiting for the show to start.

Ava and her friend, Sibley outside the theatre. Of course we went on the coldest and rainiest day in April!

A Disney World Christmas

2011-02-06T20:23:00.000-08:00

There is only one word to describe Christmas in Indiana: cold. I do not like cold. Fortunately, Alex thought it would be a great idea to go somewhere fun for Christmas. He told my mom of his wishes and it wasn't too hard to convince her that it would be beneficial to all if we went somewhere warm. We decided on Florida and made plans to visit Disney World, Epcot, Universal Studios, and the Space Center. Alex and Ava had a wonderful time-loved Disney, loved Universal. Alex especially liked the Harry Potter World there. The rides were so much fun (the kids rode on some of them several times) and Alex rode on his first "real" roller coaster ride (meaning he went upside-down). Needless to say, both were worn out by the end of the trip but want to return soon!

The start of our trip. I surprised the kids with a limo ride to the airport. They loved it!

Dumbo ride with Uncle Tristan.

Snow White's Scary Adventure...scary for a 4 year-old, no one else.

Princess dress.

Carousel.

Teacup ride.

Disney at night.

Epcot!

The house we stayed at had a pool. It was actually too cold to swim, but the kids didn't care!

Harry Potter World at Universal. I have to say it was very cool!

Waiting for the Spiderman ride to start.

Jurassic Park.

Dr. Seuss world at Universal-Uncle Tristan was such a good sport!

Space Center.

Worn out by all the fun!

Christmas concerts

2011-02-02T13:06:00.000-08:00

One of the things I like best about Christmas time are the school concerts. Who doesn't like seeing their kid up on stage performing? Besides, I think it's very sweet to see children singing songs celebrating this season. Alex's concert was first and we totally scored and got 2nd row seats. I could actually hear Alex singing. The kids had their homemade maracas for the song, "Feliz Navidad" and I think they did a great job!

Can you see Alex? He's in the back row and all the way on the left.

Ava's concert was the following week and there's something about preschoolers performing that makes it so entertaining. It was a very cute concert and Ava did a great job singing all of the songs and doing all of the hand motions.

Snow!

2011-01-30T20:20:00.000-08:00

Winter has arrived and with it comes the snow. Actually, the snow usually arrives before winter, much to my chagrin and much to my kids enjoyment. We had a couple of dustings and about an inch or so before we actually got some real snow fall. As always, Alex and Ava could not wait to go outside and play. I stayed indoors and watched from the window...it's way too cold out there for me!

Halloween

2011-01-13T20:05:00.001-08:00

Halloween always means lots of kids, lots of parties, and of course, lots of candy. This year Alex was Anakin Skywalker and Ava was a butterfly. They had a great time celebrating at school parties, trunk-or-treating at church, and trick-or-treating with friends.

School parties

Trunk-or-Treating

Trick-or-treating with friends.

We even squeezed in some pumpkin carving. I think next year I will buy a kit!

Autumn

2011-01-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the crisp weather, leaves changing color, and the anticipation of the holidays. There are so many fun activities to do this time of year, from apple picking to hayrides to picking out pumpkins. However, it is also a very busy time of year with the start of school, homework, and activities that I always feel guilty for not doing more with the kids during this time. This year I was determined to do some fun fall things and so we went to County Line Orchard. We went on a Saturday which meant it was super busy but the kids had a blast going through the corn maze, visiting the farm animals, and riding on the tractor.

Chinese, gymnastics, and glasses

2011-01-03T19:46:00.000-08:00

With the start of the new school year comes afterschool activities (or in Ava's case, before school activities). Alex isn't home until about 4 everyday (4:30 when it's my turn to carpool), and once homework is done, there isn't much time for activities. However, I did sign him up for Chinese lessons (his choice) once a week, which he really enjoys. He has learned numbers, colors, a bunch of phrases and how to play mah-jongg. Alex also got glasses this fall and I'm including a picture of him in his new specs. Doesn't he look cute?

Last year, Ava got to watch Alex participate in a few activities and I felt guilty for not signing her up for anything (actually, she was in swimming but didn't want to do it after a couple of lessons). So, this year I signed her up for gymnastics and she loves it. She has also been more open to swimming so I signed her and Alex up for weekly lessons. My kids love the water and I think if they could they would be swimming everyday.

First days

2011-01-02T20:04:00.001-08:00

I'm slowly but surely catching up with my posts. I've made it to the first day of school, so I'm only 4 months behind! Anyway, Alex started a new school the end of August. I decided to send him to the new charter school that was opening, thinking that he would learn more with different teaching methods. It was a hard decision as I loved his old school and he did really well there. Fortunately, Alex loves his new school; however, I don't love it quite as much. Oh well, we'll see how the rest of the year goes.

Ava started her second year of preschool after Labor Day. She is in the same preschool Alex was in and has the same teachers. She was excited for school to start and to make new friends. I'm excited for 2 1/2 hours to myself, three times a week!

Ava's 4th

2010-12-12T20:45:00.000-08:00

Can you believe my little girl is now 4? I can't. My kids are growing up so quickly and I am often surprised by how fast time flies. Anyway, this year for her birthday, Ava wanted to play miniature golf and in the days (and weeks) before her birthday, she kept confirming those plans with me. Needless to say, she was a little excited. Finally, the big day arrived and in the morning we went shopping and my mom got her some new shoes (what can I say, she is a girl). We ate lunch at Subway (one of her favorite places) and then we went to play mini golf. It took a while for Ava to get the hang of the game but she had a fun time. Afterward, we had dinner at Applebee's (her choice) and then home for ice cream cake and presents. Happy birthday to our little nut!

Fun facts about Ava: favorite colors-pink, purple, and brown; favorite foods-oatmeal, cheese sticks, blueberries, hot dogs, fruit snacks; favorite place to eat-Subway; favorite activities-swimming, being read to. She loves Scooby-Doo, Dora, and Strawberry Shortcake. She loves animals-dogs, cats, and especially horses; she's definitely a mommy's girl and is never far from my side; she loves to help out around the house; she likes all the "girly" things-shoes, dresses, dolls but she also likes to play outside and get dirty (she informed me, "Mommy, I like the mud".). We had a bunch of frogs in our yard this summer and Ava had no problem picking them up, while her older brother refused to touch them. Ava is also one mean Uno player and usually wins when we play (and no, I don't let her win!).

Uncle Nolan's visit

2010-12-12T20:28:00.000-08:00

My younger brother, Nolan, came out for a weekend visit in August. Unfortunately, it was the weekend of my triathlon and I couldn't do as much with him as I would have liked. However, the kids were super excited to have their uncle visit and kept him pretty occupied. Despite our lack of time, we were able to go out for a celebratory post-triathlon dinner and sneak in a short trip to Chicago. Hopefully, the next time he comes out, we will be able to hang out some more.

Triathlon!

2010-12-07T19:30:00.001-08:00

The previous summer, I had a crazy idea to do a triathlon. I wanted to accomplish some sort of athletic feat but I didn't want to do a marathon (4 hours of running? no thanks). So I decided on a triathlon because it sounded just as impressive as a marathon but wouldn't take as long to do. The problem was that I didn't have a bike and hadn't actually swam (laps) in 20 years! I signed up for adult swim lessons late last fall, which helped me tremendously. I also discovered that I really enjoyed swimming. I didn't buy my bike until June, 2 months before my triathlon. I figured that the biking part would be easy...I didn't take into account that the tires on racing bikes are thinner than others making it harder to balance. I was a bit wobbly my first day out but thank goodness, it didn't take long to get used to the bike. The day of my triathlon arrived and I felt nervous but pretty prepared. I signed up to do a sprint triathlon, which is a 1/4 mile swim, 12.6 bike ride, and a 5k run and it was probably the most difficult thing, physically, I have ever done. During my run, I swore I would never do another triathlon. However, when I crossed the finish line and felt that huge sense of accomplishment, I thought that there may be more triathlons in my future.

Utah

2010-12-07T18:59:00.000-08:00

When I was in college, I had the best group of friends. Seventeen years later, they are still some of the coolest people I know. We've all kept in touch over the years and have gone to each others weddings. This past July, my friend, Sarah, got married. It had been several years since we were all together (since the last wedding). It was a wonderful weekend trip, catching up and reminiscing with old friends.

Canada

2010-11-07T19:11:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it's been a month or 2 or 5. I've been seriously slacking, I know, as this post is from our summer trip to Canada. I hope never to get this far behind again. Anyway, every July the kids and I go up to Canada to visit my mom and step-dad. Alex and Ava love going and were especially excited to be spending 2 weeks there instead of one. Since we had more time, we got to go on more excurtions. We took a day trip to Vermont and visited the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, where the kids got to see how teddy bears are made and then they were able to pick out a bear and make one themselves. Next, we visited the Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory and took a tour to see how the ice cream was made. At the conclusion of the tour we were all given a sample. Really yummy!

We also went to the Botanical Gardens in Montreal and I wasn't sure how Alex and Ava would like it but they really enjoyed themselves. They really liked walking through the gardens and loved watching all the huge fish swimming around in the ponds.

We also went to the Parc Safari again this year. It's a fun place that the kids really love. We decided to go to the swimming area first and Alex and Ava must have gone down the water slide a million times. We went to the safari part towards the end of the day and unfortunately, by that time, most of the animals weren't hungry anymore. Alex and Ava were only able to feed a few animals but they still had a great time.

Alex and Ava went swimming a lot during our visit-at a friends' home, the local park, and even in my mom's koi pond! They had a fun trip and want to go back for a longer time next year.

Mother's Day Tea

2010-05-31T20:35:00.000-07:00

Ava's preschool has a yearly Mother's Day Tea in which the mom's come and have tea (or water) and snacks with the kids. Ava gave me a handmade placemat along with a Mother's Day plant she made. She also filled out a sheet that describes me. According to her my favorite colors are blue and green, my favorite food is meat, and she loves me because I play with her. She was pretty accurate. Afterward, Ava along with her classmates sang us a few songs about mommies-very cute. It was a fun get together and time spent with my little girl.

7!!!

2010-05-30T20:15:00.001-07:00

Once again I've been slacking in my blogging duties and am only now posting about Alex's birthday, which was on the 5th of this month. Hey, I've been busy (for real!). Since Alex didn't have a party this year (yeah, I know, mean mom) I told him he could pick a museum to go to and he chose the Museum of Science and Industry. We had a great time there and on his birthday Ava and I took him lunch at school, and later we all went to Chuck E' Cheeses followed by ice cream cake and presents at home.
It's hard to believe my little guy is 7. He is such a sweet and thoughtful child and is growing up so fast. He loves: his little sister, helping others, the color green, chicken nuggets, swimming, ice cream, Yu-Gi-Oh, Magic Tree House, old school cartoons (i.e. Tom and Jerry), playing outside. He can't wait to: be in the 2nd grade, turn 8 (ha!), be baptized, be a Cub Scout.

At the Museum of Science & Industry.

Tornado!

With Dad in the huge combine.

Climbing the rock wall.

Watching their toys being made.

McDonald's for lunch.

Giving Chuck E' a hug.

Playing air hockey with Dad.

Ava's favorite ride which she rode like 20 times.

Making a wish.

One of his presents: Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon cards.

We believe...

2010-04-23T22:04:00.000-07:00

This year our primary challenged all the kids to learn the 13 Articles of Faith by the end of the year. They've done this challenge before but this is the first year Alex took any interest in it. He was very determined to learn them all and studied them diligently, in the car and often after I put him to bed. He even came up with 2 more Articles of Faith but I told him he didn't have to recite those to the Primary Presidency. : ) Well, Alex's hard work paid off as he reached his goal this past Sunday! Way to go Alex! I am very proud of you!

Easter

2010-04-06T20:50:00.000-07:00

Easter arrived and brought with it candy, General Conference, and more candy. We started the day off with Easter baskets filled with goodies. Then, Shane and I were able to watch the Sunday morning session of conference before we headed up to Illinois for Easter dinner with his dad. We had a yummy dinner...ham, steak, potatoes, and two of my favorites, deviled eggs and shrimp cocktail. Alex and Ava ate just enough that would allow them to get dessert. This was followed by more Easter baskets and of course, more candy. We had a lovely holiday spent listening to our Church leaders and being with our family.

Easter morning.

The Easter Bunny makes an appearance at dinner.

Family pictures.

Egg Hunt

2010-04-06T20:25:00.000-07:00

A few days before Easter, Ava's preschool had an egg hunt for the kids. She decorated her own egg carton and we filled a dozen plastic eggs with candy and brought it to school. She was very excited for the egg hunt but got a bit upset when she saw that the eggs she brought were no longer in her carton. She was fine after the egg hunt started and she realized that she would be filling up her egg carton again. Needless to say, Ava couldn't wait to go home and see what goodies were inside the eggs she found.

Waiting for the hunt to begin.

How many eggs to do I have now?

Hooray! A carton full of eggs.

Spring Break

2010-03-29T19:01:00.000-07:00

Last week was spring break and I was really looking forward to it. Why? Well, for several reasons, 1. No school bus to catch (meaning I can sleep in). 2. No homework. 3. Lots of fun things planned. We had a fun-packed week spent with friends and just ourselves. We started our break with a visit to Liberty Zone and lunch at Pizza Hut with my friend Amy and her boys, Ian, Luke, and Mason. The next day I took Alex and Ava to Bellaboo's, which is an indoor play area-very fun. The kids enjoyed painting, making pizza's, grocery shopping, and making their own "mud pies".

Can you find Ava?

My construction workers.

Eating their mud pies.

Wednesday was a trip to Chicago for a yearly allergy checkup for Alex and lunch at the Rainforest Cafe afterwards.

The next day we went to the Curious Kid's Museum in Michigan with my friend Amy and her 3 boys again. The kids had fun exploring and playing around with the different exhibits.

Ian, Alex, Ava, and Luke-ready to have some fun!

Bubble boy.

Bubble girl.

Getting ready for blast off.

Reporting the news.

Ava getting checked out by Luke.

Alex and Ian-disc jockeys.

On Friday our friends came over for some video gaming and the boys had a good time playing Lego Star Wars, Super Mario, and Mario Kart. We ended the week with an Easter egg hunt on Saturday at our subdivision park. Alex and Ava had fun collecting eggs and now have a nice little stash of candy.

Getting ready for the big hunt.

Lots of eggs=lots of candy!

It was a great week but I am glad to be back to our normal daily routine. :)

Too cute not to post

2010-03-26T22:48:00.000-07:00

This is what I found when I peeked in Ava's room tonight...

Typical Ava

Black Eyed Peas

2010-03-21T19:07:00.000-07:00

After 2 years of blogging, I think this is the first post that isn't about the kids and is just about me (can you tell I don't get out much?). I love the Black Eyed Peas, they were coming to Chicago, and thanks to my father-in-law, I got tickets to see them. I took my friend, Brandi, and all I can say is that it was an awesome concert!

Posing with the BEP

We had really good seats!

Fergie.

It was a bit crowded...

Preschool...again

2010-02-01T19:43:00.001-08:00

Well, Ava started a new preschool at the beginning of the year. It's the same one that Alex attended and I am so glad that Ava is able to go there as well. She even has the same teachers Alex had. Ava is adjusting well to her new school. She is learning tons, making new friends, and is always excited to go. : )

Christmas

2010-01-03T18:26:00.000-08:00

Christmas came way too fast this year. Or maybe I just waited too long to do all of my holiday shopping. In any case, I felt like it just snuck up on me and that I didn't have enough time to do all the things I needed to do. Fortunately, everything got done on time and we headed up to Shane's dad's on Christmas Eve to spend the night there. Alex and Ava were sure to leave out cookies for Santa and were very excited for him to come, so falling asleep and staying asleep was a bit of a challenge that night.
The next morning the kids showed great will power by having breakfast first and then opening their presents. Alex got the Wii he had asked for (it was by far his favorite present, followed by the Uno cards.) Ava's favorite presents were the animal books, Little People tree house, and the talking/roaring dinosaur (she's really into dinosaurs).
We had a nice holiday spending time with family, opening presents and eating a yummy Christmas breakfast, made by me (why, yes, I can cook!).

Opening presents at granddaddy's house.

Alex's reaction when he got the Wii.

What luck! Santa came to our house as well! Alex loves his Star Wars stuff and Ava loves her Little People.

Even Sam got a few presents.

Let it snow!

2009-12-20T19:49:00.000-08:00

I guess I shouldn't complain that it is nearly Christmas and this is the first snow of the season. I'm all for snow at Christmastime as long as it disappears soon afterward. Alex and Ava are of a different opinion and were super excited about the snow and wanted to go play in it even though it barely covered the grass. So we got their snow gear on and they played around in the yard. They had a lot of fun sledding down the little hill in our front yard, throwing snowballs at mommy and daddy and building a snowman. While I would be quite happy if it didn't snow anymore this season, I'm sure that Alex and Ava can't wait for more to come.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-30T20:11:00.000-08:00

I know I've said it before, but I love Thanksgiving. To be more specific, I love the food at Thanksgiving, probably because I never have to cook it. This year was no different as we traveled up to Illinois to spend the holiday with Shane's dad. However, the day was also marked with sadness as it is the first holiday without Shane's mom, who passed away last month. We miss her greatly and know that the holidays will not be the same without her.

As I talked with Alex and Ava about what they were thankful for, they mentioned their family and named specific people. I think this year especially, I am thankful for my family and grateful for the time we have shared together.

2 Teeth, 1 Week

2009-11-15T20:05:00.000-08:00

Yep, that's right, Alex lost 2 teeth in 1 week. They have been falling out left and right or rather up and down. Last Sunday, his top tooth finally fell out and then last night, a bottom tooth fell out. However, since the tooth came out while Alex was sleeping and has yet to be found, we are assuming that he swallowed it. Alex was not to be deterred by the situation and wrote the Tooth Fairy a letter explaining what had happened. We think she'll understand. : )

Leaf pile!

2009-11-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

Today was the first warm day in a while, so we decided to take advantage of it and clean up our yard, which needed some serious raking. We tackled the front yard first and were able to rake up the majority of the leaves (who knew one tree could have so many leaves). Alex and Ava were a big help with putting the leaves into bags and picking up sticks. After we finished there I raked the kids a big leaf pile that they could jump in. They had a lot of fun playing around in there and we never got around to cleaning up the backyard. Oh well, hopefully it will be nice next weekend...

On your marks, get set....

Playing in the leaf pile.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T19:31:00.000-07:00

Yes! Halloween is here and Alex and Ava couldn't wait to dress up again and go trick-or-treating. They were very excited to get more candy (kids these days really don't get enough sugar) and had a lot of fun going from house to house. Since we live in a pretty big subdivision, we only went down a couple of streets and even then, Alex and Ava got a nice stash of candy. When combined with the candy they received the previous evening from trunk or treating, the kids got a pretty big haul and Alex declared that this was the "best Halloween ever", so I think tonight was a success. :)

Before: buckets empty. On our way to go trick-or-treating.

After: buckets full. Look at all our candy!

Trunk or Treat!

2009-10-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

Tonight was our ward's annual Halloween party. The kids were very excited to dress up and go "trunk or treating". This year Alex decided to be Darth Vadar as he has become quite the Star Wars fan. He vacillated between that and a mummy but ultimately went with Darth Vadar. Ava wanted to be a mummy as well (surprise, surprise) but when she saw the Sponge Bob costume, she changed her mind. We all had fun at the party. Shane made his awesome chili for the cook-off contest and although he didn't win, I still think his was the best. Alex and Ava had a lot of fun playing with friends, eating yummy treats, and trunk or treating. They got a nice little stash of candy and I predict that by tomorrow night we will be in complete candy overload.

Sponge Bob and Darth Vadar

Alex with his friends, Joshua and Ian.

Ava enjoying her cupcake. Well, the icing on the cupcake, anyway.

Bee Sting

2009-09-20T18:25:00.000-07:00

I think that just about every kid, sooner or later will get stung. Today it was Alex's turn. He and Ava were playing in the backyard when she came back into the house crying hysterically, telling Shane that he had to help Alex. Shane, of course, got really worried and was about to go outside when Alex came back in. He was patting at his shirt and when Shane took it off, a wasp flew out. I guess the wasp flew into the sleeve of his t-shirt and couldn't get out. Needless to say, Alex got stung, not just once but 4 times! OUCH! He was very brave about it, only a few tears and I think poor little Ava was more traumatized than he was. I cleaned up the stings and gave Alex some Benadryl, just in case he had an allergic reaction. Shane found the wasp and smushed it and a little while later, I found another wasp flying around our house, so there might have been 2 in his shirt! Yikes! The good news is that Alex is fine, there was no allergic reaction and you can hardly see the stings anymore.

Preschool!

2009-09-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

This past week Ava started preschool. I know that I say this all the time about my kids but I can't believe that she is old enough to go! It was something she had been looking forward to all summer. Ava was very excited but when we got there she got a bit nervous (which is normal for her) and wasn't quite ready to go into her classroom. After a couple of minutes, she was fine and when I picked her up 2 hours later she was very happy and told me that they talked about animals (which are one of her favorite things). I'm glad she is enjoying school and learning new things and making new friends.

Ava's New Bed

2009-09-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

At last! I had been seriously slacking in getting Ava a bed, mostly because I thought she wouldn't stay in it and would just get out and run around. However, as she is now 3, it's pretty silly to keep her in a crib (considering Alex moved to a bed when he was 2). We got her a toddler bed because the twin seemed too big for her and if she fell out, she would be close to the ground. Needless to say, Ava was very excited to have her own bed and to go to sleep in it.

Ava's 3rd Birthday

2009-08-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

Well, Ava celebrated her 3rd birthday on the 21st. Can you believe it? I can't. The past twelve months really flew by and can be summed up in one sentence: "I do it myself, mommy." Yes, Ava is quite an independent little girl. She does almost everything by herself. We are still working on potty training but when she decides to use the toilet, she wants to do it herself.
Ava has grown and learned so much this past year. She loves to run and jump and play and do whatever her big brother is doing. She loves to talk on the phone and try on shoes (what can I say, she is a girl). Ava absolutely loves all kinds of animals but she is particular to cats. Her favorite movies right now include Lion King 1 & 2 and Finding Nemo. She loves yogurt, cheese, hot dogs, and chocolate. Her favorite color is pink (I think) and she says green but I think that's because it's Alex's favorite color. :) Ava has been a joy in our lives and is too cute for words. We love her dearly! Happy Birthday, Peanut!

1st Day of 1st

2009-08-21T20:39:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that Alex started the first grade this week. The summer has flown by as well as the last 6 years! Alex was excited about going back to school and I'm excited for him as he gets to learn new things and make new friends. However, I did get a little teary eyed as he got on the bus the first morning (I'm predicting this will be a yearly occurrence), feeling sad and happy at the same time...

When he got off the bus that afternoon, Alex reported that he had a great day and I'm glad that the school year is off to a good start!

East Coast Road Trip

2009-08-15T19:09:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally did it. After months of talking about it, Shane and I packed up the kids and the car and drove out to the east coast. We stopped in Ohio overnight and the next morning went over to Kirtland and literally took a picture of the temple and left. Maybe next time we will be able to visit there a little longer. We got into Connecticut that night and the next day we met up with our friends Matt and Lora and their 2 girls, Gracie and Lizzie. The guys spent the day playing golf and Lora and I took the kids to Stepping Stones Children's Museum. The kids had a great time playing with all the neat things in the museum and afterwards, we all had dinner at my favorite pizza place...Paradise Pizza. Yum!
A couple days later, Shane and I took the kids to the Norwalk Maritime Aquarium. Alex and Ava loved seeing all the animals and they especially enjoyed petting the sting rays. That evening my step-mother threw a little party for Ava since her birthday was coming up and we got to visit with some family.
We left the next morning and after a quick stop to visit my grandmother in Queens, we were on our way to Maryland/Delaware. What should have been a 4 1/2 hour drive wound up to be a wee bit longer as our GPS took us to the tip of NJ and wanted us to get on a ferry to Delaware! Maybe next time it will take us to the airport and have us get on a plane! Needless to say we were not thrilled at having to drive back around but we made it to Shane's uncle's house.
We spent the next 2 days at the beach and the kids (and Shane) had a blast playing in the water. Alex also got a fishing lesson from his great-uncle Mike and was able to drive his boat. We went to the boardwalk in Ocean City, MD and the kids got to play some games and go on a few rides. When we left for home that Friday, we were all a little pooped out and couldn't wait to sleep in our own beds. However, we had a wonderful trip and enjoyed visiting with family and friends, eating ourselves silly (mmmm, Friendly's), and just spending time with each other.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Canada

2009-07-27T18:52:00.000-07:00

Well, we made what is starting to be our annual trip to Canada to visit my mom and step-dad. They had a bunch of fun things planned for the kids. We went to the zoo, train museum, parc safari, and the water park. Alex and Ava had a great time and enjoyed their stay with "Pau Pau and Goong Goong."

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Swim Time!

2009-07-15T08:21:00.000-07:00

For the month of June I had the kids enrolled in swimming lessons. This was Ava's first year and since she wasn't yet 3, I had to take the class with her. We had a lot of fun together and she and Alex absolutely love being in the water. Alex did great in his swimming class as well. He was able to swim the whole length of the pool on his own and advanced to the next level!

A Trip to the Zoo

2009-06-29T16:27:00.000-07:00

Alex and Ava love animals. Maybe it's because they act like a couple of monkeys themselves. Anyway, we went up to Chicago last week and visited the Lincoln Park Zoo. Actually, Alex had to see an allergist that day and since he gets a little nervous going to the doctor's, I thought a trip to the zoo afterward would be a fun thing for him to look forward to. It also helped that both places were only 5 minutes away from each other.
I last took Alex to this zoo 5 years earlier, for his first birthday. On that visit we didn't see many animals as he was more interested in chasing the pigeons. This time, however, we saw just about every animal there. The kids had a great time, though Ava was a little sad that she couldn't pet the giraffe. : )

If a tree could talk...

2009-06-24T08:37:00.000-07:00

This was the name of Alex's school play and appropriately enough, he played a tree. It was a cute little play not only about trees but about the environment in general. Although he was nervous a few days before the play, Alex did a great job and nailed his line.

If a tree could talk what would it say?

"Don't chop me down, just walk away!"

I know karates

2009-05-24T21:20:00.000-07:00

I have been seriously slacking in my blog duties and am only now posting about Alex's birthday, which was on the 5th. It is hard to believe that Alex is already 6! He is a great kid and Shane and I are so blessed to be his parents. He is kind and thoughtful and loves to help out around the house. He is a wonderful big brother to Ava and is always looking out for her. Alex loves those As-seen-on-tv products and is always telling me that we "need" them ("Mommy look," he points to the tv, "we need that!"). Alex is also quite persistent and succeeded this year in wearing me down to consent to a birthday party (he only had been talking about one for 6 months).

We had the party at a karate place and invited friends from school and Alex's primary class. The kids had a blast as the instructor had them running around playing games and teaching them some karate moves. Alex even got to cut his cake with a sword. It was a fun day and a great birthday for our little guy! Happy Birthday, Alex!

Egg Hunt

2009-04-05T18:38:00.001-07:00

Easter is right around the corner so I thought it would be fun to take Alex and Ava down to Fair Oaks Farm for an Easter egg hunt. I think every other parent in Indiana had the same idea because the place was crowded but the kids had a great time. Ava's egg hunt lasted 10 seconds, literally. Alex's was about 20 seconds. However, there was other stuff to do and we even got to see a baby calf being born.

"You mean the egg hunt is over already?"

Waiting for the hunt to begin...

Going for a ride on the train.

Driving a tractor.

R.I.P. Chia-Pet

2009-03-31T18:39:00.000-07:00

Well, we gave it our best shot but we knew this day was coming. The chia-pet is no more. After 3 failed attempts, I chucked the thing into the trash. It is currently in the garbage bin at the end of our driveway waiting for tomorrow's garbage pickup. We followed the directions and at first, little sprouts began to appear as it did the other 2 times we tried. Afterward, though, it just stopped growing. How disappointing! However, this has not dampened Alex's enthusiasm for As-Seen-on-TV products. : )

Museum outing

2009-03-25T20:46:00.000-07:00

In continuation of our spring break activities, I took the kids to the Curious Kids Museum which is about an hour away in Michigan. Again, my friend Amy and her 3 boys came with us. What fun! The museum isn't very big but there's so much to do that we pretty much spent the whole day there. It's a hands-on place, which is perfect for kids and they all got to play around with all the stuff they had there.

My little geisha, Ava.

Alex in a hut in the "rainforest".

Reporting the news...

In the bubble chamber.

One of their favorite rooms-the apple orchard.

Ava, Luke, Ian, Alex, and Mason-what a fun day at the museum!

Let's Jump!

2009-03-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

This week is spring break and since Alex has a week off of school, I planned a few fun outings for the kids. Today we went to the Jump Zone which as you can guess is a place filled with enormous inflatables where children can jump to their hearts content. I invited my friend, Amy and her 3 boys to come along and for about 2 hours, those kids jumped and jumped and jumped. Honestly, if there weren't a whole bunch of other parents around, I would have been jumping, too. It just looks like a lot of fun!

Alex and Ava having fun jumping around.

Alex and his friend, Ian.

Taking a lunch break, then it's back to jumping!

Lost Tooth

2009-03-18T19:54:00.000-07:00

Well, today Alex lost his very first tooth. Hooray! It had been wobbly for about a month and we kept wiggling and waiting for it to fall out and today it did. It actually fell out at school, during gym (it was the first thing Alex told me when he got off the bus this afternoon) and he got a certificate and a little tooth-shaped container to put it in. Naturally, Alex is very excited and he put his tooth under his pillow tonight and is waiting for the tooth fairy to come.

This isn't the greatest picture but Alex was getting a little tired standing there with his mouth open while I tried to take his picture. Anyway, it was the bottom tooth and you probably cannot see the space too well as the big tooth has already been growing in.

Chia, Take 3

2009-03-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

They say the third time's the charm, right? Let's hope so. After 2 failed attempts, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this time something will grow. However, I'm beginning to think that it's not us but the seeds. I mean all we really had to do was water it everyday and Alex was very diligent at that. Well, we shall see...

Our silly little girl

2009-03-09T10:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, Ava has quite the sense of humor. This is what she looked like when I went to get her out of bed this morning...

...and she was saying, "Ooooooooo, I'm a ghost!" But instead of scaring me, she just made me laugh.

And this is what she looked like when I checked on her last night...

See that black and white thing poking out from her pajama top? That's her little kitty-pretty much her constant companion for the past 2 months. I got it for a buck at Target and out of all the toys she has, this one is her favorite. Go figure. As you can see, Ava likes to put things down her tops; this kitty is no exception. Do not ask me why...

She did it!

2009-02-12T20:45:00.000-08:00

Well, it has finally happened. Tonight, right before her bath, Ava sat on the toilet and peed. Hallelujah. I've been waiting for quite some time for this to happen. Whenever I would ask Ava if she wanted to use the potty, she usually would say, "No thanks" or if she did, she would just sit on the toilet and ask for toilet paper and sit some more and then ask for more toilet paper and then she would say she was done. She was going the same route tonight when I thought tickling her might help and it did. Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she will use the potty tomorrow.

Meet Robin

2009-02-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

So Alex has this friend named Robin. Here they are together.

Can't you see him? Don't worry, neither can I. Robin is invisible. (I'd actually be a bit worried if you could see him). Robin has been hanging out with us for about a month and a half now. He likes to play tag, Simon says, red light, green light, and a whole bunch of other games with us. Sometimes it can be hard trying to tag someone who's invisible but Alex is very good at telling us Robin's whereabouts. I thought the whole imaginary friend thing would be a little confusing for Ava but she's catching on. I'm not sure how long Robin will be with us but I don't mind having him around. He's very well-mannered and I often forget that he's here.

Chia-Pet, Take Two

2009-01-22T18:28:00.000-08:00

Ok, I really don't know what happened. We followed the directions and everything but somehow Alex's chia pet didn't grow. There were a few sparse sprouts on the sides and legs but that's about it (it definitely did not look like the ones on tv and I'll spare you a picture of our sad looking chia). Fortunately the kit comes with extra seeds so I washed off all the old ones and we spread the new ones on. We are keeping our fingers crossed that it will grow this time around. However, I think this has been a good lesson for Alex, like the old adage says, if at first you don't succeed...

Knock, knock

2009-01-20T16:28:00.000-08:00

For a while now, Alex has really been into knock, knock jokes. Unfortunately, I only know about 3 of them. Anyway, Ava soon got into it as well but after telling us who was there, she would just smile and laugh. Now we just do the knock, knock jokes without the punchline, which I guess means that they're not really jokes anymore but the kids like thinking up who is there (it's usually a family member or cartoon character).
Anyway, for the past couple of days, we have been talking to Alex about how we are getting a new president. He already knew that Barack Obama was elected but he will still ask about John McCain and we have to remind him that he lost the election and that Obama won. Then he'll ask about George Bush and we told him that Bush is done being president and that it's Obama's turn. Well, I was watching the inauguration today with the kids when Ava says, "Knock, knock" and I reply, "Who's there?" and she says, "Barack Obama." I had to laugh. I guess she's interested in politics, too.

Chia-Pet Revisited

2009-01-06T20:08:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I wrote that Alex wanted a chia-pet for Christmas. Well, my mom read my post and decided that she would get him one. I'm glad that she did not decide to get me aquaglobes as well. She and my step-dad came down for New Year's and as promised, my mom got Alex a chia-pet. Alex was so excited that we had to do it right away. It has been almost a week since we put the seeds on the chia-pet and everyday Alex (and Ava) check to see if anything has started to grow. Hopefully soon we will have a plant in the shape of a dog. I shall keep you all posted.

Christmas

2009-01-06T19:50:00.000-08:00

We had a quiet Christmas this year (well, as quiet as it can be with 2 kids and new toys). We usually spend the day at Shane's parents (Mom-Mom and Granddaddy) house but his mother was taken to the hospital on Christmas Eve with a blood infection. She was diagnosed with lung cancer in September and while the chemo has been successful in significantly reducing the size of her tumor, she has been beset by a number of infections. We were able to get together with them after the new year so the kids could open their presents. As you can see, Santa was extra generous this year as this may be mom-mom's last Christmas with us. We hope not. We love her and hope that we have many more holidays with her.

The kids got a bunch of great gifts. Ava got her very first American Girl doll and a play kitchen that looks a lot better than my real one. Alex got his first Nintendo (I think Santa forgot about my ban on video games), which of course he loves. (Sigh) It starts already...

Getting ready for Santa

2008-12-24T20:14:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve is finally here and the kids are anxiously awaiting for Santa's arrival. However, we had to do a few things before he gets here. First we made a gingerbread house. I know that has nothing to do with Santa coming but I thought it would be a fun activity for the kids. They had fun decorating the house and towards the end couldn't resist a couple pieces of candy. Then we had to sprinkle reindeer food on our lawn so the reindeer would have something to munch on. Next we made cookies for Santa (we can't forget about that!). Alex and Ava had a few as well. I told them it was okay because Santa couldn't eat all those cookies himself. Before the kids went to bed we put the cookies in the living room near the Christmas tree. Now we are ready and looking forward to Christmas morning.

Ch-ch-ch-chia!

2008-12-18T18:14:00.000-08:00

Ah, the power of advertising. Tonight Alex informed me that he wanted a Chia Pet for Christmas. Seriously? A Chia Pet? He has also been telling me for over a month now that he wants Moon Sand as well and that it 'never dries up'. How convenient. And when I mentioned that I couldn't grow anything, he told me that I should get Aquaglobes because they help water the plants for you. Huh. The child is like a walking advertisement for those As Seen on TV products. Well, as for Alex and his random wish list, I told him that Santa has already gotten all of his presents (which is completely true!), so the Chia Pet will have to wait.
Anyway, here are a couple pictures of the kids and the Christmas tree. We actually put it up the weekend after Thanksgiving but in my laziness, I am only now just posting it.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T18:25:00.000-08:00

I love Thanksgiving, maybe even a little bit more than Christmas. Why, you may ask? Because it is the only day of the year where you can eat yourself silly and not feel guilty afterward. Anyway, we had a lovely Thanksgiving with Shane's parents and what made it so lovely, besides spending time with them, was that I only had to bring an apple pie (at least it was made from scratch!). I don't have any pictures to share because I forgot my camera but I'm including something Alex did at school. It's a turkey feather which reads: Alex N. is thankful for, and he wrote in 'my Ava'. I thought that was really sweet and it makes me remember how grateful I am for my two little kids and the great relationship they have with each other.

First snow

2008-11-18T22:00:00.000-08:00

We here in Valparaiso, IN live in some weird Bermuda Triangle of weather. Whenever there is a storm heading for the Chicago area, we seem to get the worst of it. Today was no different. While Chicago got nothing, we woke up to 6 inches of snow. SNOW! :( In my opinion, November is way too early for that sort of thing. However, I'm sure you can guess what was Alex and Ava's reaction. Yup. SNOW! : ) Of course we had to go outside, it was the first snowfall. The kids had fun playing and sledding down the hill in our front yard but now it is time for the snow to melt and not return until next year (I know, wishful thinking).

Bye-bye, Binkie!

2008-11-16T17:50:00.000-08:00

At last! We are done with binkies! Any of you who have children with this attachment disorder know how difficult it can be to rid them of the binkie. I am pleased to say that things went very smoothly with Ava. She still will ask for it at nap time and bedtime, (it's only been 2 days) but I tell her that it's broken and we had to throw it away (she did bite a rather large hole in it). Then she'll say, "All gone?" and I say "Yes, all gone." And that's that. No tears, no tantrum. Now if we can only get her to use the potty...

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T19:42:00.000-07:00

I love Halloween. I think it's partly because my birthday is a few days before but also because it ushers in the whole holiday season. As a kid I loved trick or treating (hey, who didn't?) and now I love dressing up my own children and taking them out. We had a fun week filled with pumpkin carving, the annual trunk or treating party at our church, a Halloween party and parade for Alex at his school, and to top it all off, trick or treating in our neighborhood. For their costumes this year, Alex was a Power Ranger, which is kind of funny because he doesn't even watch the show, and Ava was a ladybug. I didn't mean for them to color coordinate so well, it just happened that way.

Oooooooh, GHOSTS!

2008-10-30T12:54:00.000-07:00

Did you know that our house is haunted? Yes, it's true. I've never been a big believer in paranormal activity but after seeing these two apparitions, I can no longer deny it. However, I did expect the ghosts to be a little taller.

What the hank?!

2008-10-17T20:49:00.000-07:00

You know how children love to copy what you say? Such it is with Alex (and Ava). Apparently, I have a tendency to say 'what the heck' a lot and Alex has picked up on that. However, when he says it, it comes out as 'what the hank' which is usually followed by 'you gotta be kidding me'. He generally only says it when he's irritated about something which, unfortunately was a lot this week. Anyway, Shane and I like it so much that we've started saying it, too. Hey, why not, what the hank.

Hayride!

2008-10-12T17:43:00.000-07:00

I know that I haven't blogged in a while but hey, my life isn't too interesting. Anyway, our home owners association put together a hayride for everyone in our subdivision. I thought this would be a fun fall activity for the kids. The weather was perfect and Alex and Ava enjoyed the hayride but they enjoyed throwing the hay around even more.

Alex with his friend, Tanner.

Happy Birthday, Ava!

2008-08-24T20:30:00.001-07:00

Well, our little peanut turned 2 and we had little barbecue to celebrate her birthday. Shane's parents, as well as our friends, Amy and Dave and their 3 boys came over for the party. I can't believe Ava's already 2 and I'm amazed to see how much she has learned in the past year. She is one busy child and loves to talk, especially on the phone (she is such a girl in that way). Ava is an expert climber and will go to great heights, literally, to get what she wants. She is quite clever (I often think that she is too smart for her own good) and she has her own little sense of humor. She loves her big brother and can usually be found following him around. Anyway, we all had a fun time and Ava enjoyed opening her presents, with Alex's help, of course!

First Day of School

2008-08-24T20:07:00.000-07:00

Alex started kindergarten on the 21st (which also coincided with Ava's 2nd birthday). We had been talking about this day for months and now it was finally here. Alex was very excited to start school and to ride on the bus. I, on the other hand, was a little nervous about him going on the bus and wanted to cry (but I didn't) as I sent him off on his first day. He had a great day, likes his teacher, Mrs. Pullins, and made a couple new friends. I'm very excited for him as he is learning and being exposed to new and fun things. Still, it's hard to believe that my little guy is growing up.

A Day at the Beach

2008-08-15T18:53:00.000-07:00

Alex and Ava absolutely love the water. In fact, whenever Ava sees water, whether it be a lake or a pool she'll say "Swim! Swim!". I think she's trying to tell me something. Anyway, one of their favorite things to do is to go to the beach. However, we were pretty busy this summer and haven't been able to go very often. Now we are nearing the end of summer and Alex starts kindergarten next week, so I decided that we needed to go to the beach at least one more time. The kids were a little excited. We had a great time playing in the water and Alex is pretty fearless when it comes to playing in the waves (and yes, that is Lake Michigan...who knew a lake could have waves like that).

Camp

2008-08-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

Besides soccer, Alex has been in camp for 4 weeks. It was everyday for 4 hours and it gave Alex the opportunity to hang out with other kids his age and to do fun things. His favorite things to do were the climbing wall and playing 'Duck, Duck, Goose'. Here he is showing off the t-shirt he tie-dyed on the last day of camp.

Soccer

2008-08-15T18:39:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks Alex has been taking soccer lessons. It's just once a week, one hour lessons where they teach the kids how to play and the rules of the game. Alex really enjoyed playing and he's pretty good, too! He scored a goal when he played one-on-one with another child and he scored another goal when they played on teams. David Beckham better watch his back!

Oh, Canada!

2008-07-16T18:58:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to Canada for a week to visit my mom and step-dad, eh. We went to the zoo and saw a bunch of animals, the water park, and a safari park where we saw even more animals. The safari was pretty cool in that you drive through the park and the animals come right up to your car (and sometimes inside it) and you can feed them. The kids were a little nervous at first but after a couple of tries they got the hang of it. I think that was Alex and Ava's favorite part.

Looking for the turtle

So my mom has this Japanese garden in her yard complete with a tea house and koi pond. Someone had given her a turtle a while ago and it had been living a peaceful existence in my mom's pond until the arrival of Alex and Ava. Everyday Alex wanted to go outside and see the turtle and everyday he would ask if we could catch the turtle. We did catch it a couple of times so the kids could see it up close but after that I told them we needed to leave the turtle alone and to just watch him in the water.

Getting ready to throw some rocks

Another favorite activity of Alex and Ava's was throwing rocks into the pond. That didn't drive my mom crazy or anything.

Swimming!

2008-07-02T19:37:00.000-07:00

For the past month Alex has been taking swimming lessons at the YMCA. It would be an understatement to say that he likes water. I think Alex would be perfectly content to live life as a fish if he could...except that fishes can swim and Alex, well...he's gettin' there. He can jump into the pool without any help (hey, the kids are only 4 &5, it can be a little intimidating) and he can also swim the length of the pool (and back) with the help of a noodle or floatie belt. I'm very proud of his accomplishments. He might grow fins after all...

Here's my little fish swimming with his noodle.

Okay, I had to put in a picture of Ava because I don't think I did in the last couple of posts. Here she is eating her lunch while Alex is in his swim lesson.

Go Fly a Kite!

2008-06-05T18:50:00.001-07:00

Alex got a kite as one of his birthday presents and would ask me if he could fly it when there was even a hint of a breeze. Finally, on Memorial Day weekend, it was windy enough and Alex got to fly his kite around.

Preschool Graduation

2008-05-30T18:54:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go? It seemed like only yesterday that Alex was beginning his first day of preschool. Now, after 2 years of learning letters and numbers and a whole bunch of other stuff, Alex graduated from preschool and received his diploma. I can't believe it. I actually can't believe that there is a preschool graduation but the ceremony was really sweet and Alex looked cute wearing his cap. Anyway, next up for Alex is a summer full of swimming lessons, soccer, and playing outside before he begins the rigors of kindergarten in the fall.
Here is Alex receiving his diploma.

Alex with his teachers, Mrs. Gottlieb and Mrs. Fagg.

Mmmmm, Donuts!

2008-05-29T17:40:00.000-07:00

Alex and Ava love donuts. A lot. They get very excited when it's donut day and they get to have donuts for breakfast. They are particular to chocolate but on this day we just had the powdered kind and they didn't seem to mind. In fact, I don't think that bag of donuts lasted a full day (ok, ok, I ate some, too).

Ava Still Thinks It's Winter

2008-05-28T19:02:00.000-07:00

Ok, Ava really doesn't think it's still winter. In fact, I doubt she is aware of the seasonal changes. Anyway, she really likes this hat. It had been in the car during the winter and she would put it on whenever we went somewhere. Now that it is warmer, I took the hat out of the car and Ava found it and of course, put it on her head.
Ava is crazy about these boots, too. She always wants to wear them and I usually don't let her. However, this particular day she really wanted to wear these boots and Shane convinced me to let her. After I put them on I had to laugh because Ava looked so silly (but very cute) running around with shorts and winter boots. But she was happy, which is all that matters.

Happy Birthday Alex!!!

2008-05-28T18:53:00.001-07:00

Alex turned 5 on May 5th and we had a little celebration that day where we had a cake and Alex opened his presents. That following Saturday we had some friends over for a barbecue or as Alex likes to call any get together, a "hot dog party" (if any of you are familiar with the pigeon books). And yes, we did have hot dogs.

Hong Kong

2008-05-14T11:35:00.000-07:00

Yes, we took a family trip to Hong Kong in April and in case you're wondering, it's a 15-hour flight (direct) from Chicago. The reason was to celebrate my grandmother's 80th birthday and for a family reunion. My grandmother has 8 children and when you include their spouses and their children, the number of people gets pretty high. Almost everyone was able to make it. We had a traditional Chinese banquet to celebrate her birthday and I really enjoyed seeing family I hadn't seen in years, including 2 cousins who were born in the 11 years since I'd been there last.

I think the trip was a good experience for the kids. It took them a little while to get used to their new surroundings and Ava was able to eat some Chinese cuisine. Alex, however, did not eat one bite of Chinese food. Not one. Fortunately, we usually wound up eating at American restaurants so Alex did not starve. Food issues aside, the kids had a fun time visiting Disneyland, Ocean Park, Victoria's Peak, and swimming in the hotel pool. I have to thank my uncles Alfie and Henry and their wives Colleen and Mandy for taking us around the city. I know Ava won't remember a thing but hopefully, Alex will remember a few snippets of the vacation.

For pictures of our trip, just click on the play button.

Make a Smilebox photobook

Happy Easter

2008-05-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

We had a nice Easter, celebrating it with Shane's parents at their country club. The club brought in some farm animals for the children to see. The kids loved the animals, especially Ava, who has grown to be quite the animal lover. The Easter Bunny also made an appearance and while Alex was excited to see him, Ava was a little nervous at first. Once she realized that the Easter Bunny gave out candy, she was very happy to see him.
Ava loves cupcakes. Actually, she loves the frosting on the cupcakes. She pretty much abandoned this cupcake once the frosting was gone.

Alex's Christmas Program

2008-05-13T19:44:00.000-07:00

Alex took part in his preschool's Christmas program and it was one of the sweetest things I've ever seen. The pictures aren't so great as I was sitting in one of the middle rows, so if you can't tell, Alex is dressed up as a sheep.

Christmas 2007

2008-05-13T19:27:00.000-07:00

I love Christmas, it's one of my favorite times of the year. I think it's especially fun when you have little kids. Alex is really into Santa, reindeer, and of course, presents. However, he is also learning why we celebrate Christmas which is the most important point. Ava is still a little young to understand everything but she did enjoy decorating the tree. We had a wonderful holiday and the kids were thoroughly spoiled by Shane's parents. : ) Somehow Alex and Ava's playroom seems to get smaller and smaller...

Brrrrrr!

2008-05-12T18:50:00.000-07:00

Since it is now May, I can actually look at these pictures without shivering. We had the coldest winter ever and I hate cold weather. Unfortunately, my children do not seem to mind and Alex has a particular fondness for snow. So, whenever the weather was "nice" (at least 30 degress), I would bundle them up and take them outside.

Welcome to Our Blog!

2008-05-12T18:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, I was supposed to have started this blog months ago but I got busy (well, not really, I was just lazy). I love reading my friends' blogs and thought it would be fun to start one of my own. Anyway, I'm excited about our family blog and hope that you all will enjoy it, too.