Ten on Tuesday

1. Last week we were leaving the doctor's office and see a woman and her three day old baby. This woman was in pretty rough shape and could barely move. Amelia takes one look at her and says "What's the matter with her? She can't even walk." I explained as nicely and as PG-4 as I could that this woman just had a baby. Amelia's response "Who wants to have a baby if you have to walk around looking like that!?"

2. We got stomped on the soccer field this weekend. I don't think our girls scored a single goal. But they were very good sports about it and played their little hearts out. I was really proud of their determination and grace on the field. They were frustrated but still kept fighting.

3. Will's Sunday school teacher is pregnant and due this winter. We found out last week she is having a little boy and naming him Will (a family name for her too). I asked my Will what he wanted the baby to be and he said "an Owl". When I told him the baby was a boy and going to be named Will too, he got very excited. Now there are three Wills and he is happy to count them off for you.

4. Bella earned her vest in Sparks this Sunday. She was very proud of her accomplishment. She has been working really hard to memorize her verses.

5. Drew starts MMO today. I know, I know. I was going to hold off and send him to preschool in the fall. The ladies have been requesting him and when a Tuesday opened up, I decided to scoop it up. He loved going this summer. Will loves Drew's teachers (his from last year) and I'm preparing myself for the jealousy of Drew getting to stay with Rah-Rah and Pat-Pat.

6. Amelia had a tea party at school today. She had to dress up for the occasion and practice good manners. She was excited about this for days and had a great time at the party.

7. Will is really enjoying the big boy room at preschool. He loves to paint and when I pick him up every day he is so excited to show me the artwork he made that day. Last week all of the kids painted a sun and they are hanging from the ceiling. Will loves all the sunshines in his classroom.

8. Thanks to all that have pledged or donated money to Bella this week. She has actually enjoyed calling you and is excited to run on Thursday morning. Jason and I are a little disappointed that neither or us can make it because of prior scheduling conflicts.

9. Now that Drew is walking everywhere nothing in our house is safe. His favorite spots to play are the trash, toilet and anywhere in the kitchen. He absolutely loves emptying my un-childproofed cabinets. Ugh, we're going to have to find some way to keep him out.

10. Bella is cursed with a long, narrow foot. As I've previously stated she's very particular about footwear and is currently just shy of the big girls sizes at the shoe store. She's pretty sad about this fact because little girls shoes are mostly Mary Janes. My fashionista is tired of Mary Janes. She drools over and asks to try on the same pair of sparkly black flats every time we're in the store. Finally, this year they fit and I've never seen someone so excited over a pair of shoes.

Ten on Tuesday

1. Bella scored two goals in her soccer game this weekend. She was so happy and so proud of herself. We were pretty proud of her too.

2. The kids enjoyed a visit from Sammy on Friday night. They have been begging for her to come over to babysit for weeks now. Jason and I finally had somewhere to go and she was available. They love Sammy and are already asking when she's coming back to watch them. Bella and Amelia don't understand why she can't come over for a regular playdate when I'm home.

3. Jason officially said goodbye to his unit Friday night. His boss lives down the street from us and he's working at the book store with another one of his friends, so he's not going to be totally lost in civilian life. His first week of classes went well.

4. Bella is the T letter expert for her kindergarten class. Whew. I'm excited we were randomly chosen for T and not X. She can write Tt fairly well already and is working on the sounds. We have to take in a picture of something that begins with "T" and she wanted to take a picture of an actual tree in our backyard. We also have to take in a piece of environmental print that begins with "T" and she chose Twizzlers. She wanted to take a picture of Target, her favorite store.

5. The girls are really enjoying AWANA at church. They love memorizing their bible versus each week and I'm amazed at how quickly they can accomplish this. Bella memorized John 3:16 in two days. This week we're going to try to memorize two bible verses.

6. We finally seem to have a drop in temperature here. It is supposed to be in the 90s all week. When I've gone out to walk all week it's been rather chilly. I must be acclimating to the southern climate finally. Oh dear.

7. If you've been reading my blog for any length of time you've heard me complain about the lunatics on the road. And I mean lunatics. They pull some of the craziest driving maneuvers that I have ever seen. If you aren't used to seeing them you're usually stuck staring with your mouth open or literally biting your tongue at the craziness. So I'm driving to church the other day through miles of construction. I miss my first turn option and realize traffic is backed up and there is no way I can turn at the second. If you're from the north clearly you're going to drive to the next light and turn around. Not me. I whipped a left hand turn and sat and patiently waited for oncoming traffic to allow me to cross three lanes. And you know what, they did. Driving like a local.

8. We're a few weeks away from the start of college football. Usually one of my favorite times of year. This year I am dreading it. We live in the land of the defending National Champions and if they weren't annoying enough last season, I know they will be this year. I'm just hoping someone takes them down a few notches quickly so I don't have to hear about their superior football excellence again. All season.

9. We are currently participating in our first school fundraiser. I know this is a great opportunity for the school and I really hope the parents are getting behind it. I dread having Bella call and ask for donations. That pep rally must have worked because she was ready to go. (She's so unlike her mother, the former university fundraiser.) Be forewarned family members, if you get a call from one of your favorite five year olds asking you to help her "run laps for school" this is what it's for :)

10. Drew and I have a lunch date tomorrow with one of my favorite newborns and her beautiful mama. I correctly guessed her arrival at our local news station's contest and I can't wait to get my hands on that sweet girl again. I love newborn babies and I seriously think I could hold them all day long. Drew can only tolerate so much and then he turns a bit jealous.

soccer

We had our first soccer game of the season last week. It was a 9:30 game and it was H-O-T. I like the set up so much better this year. Thirty minutes of practice and thirty minutes of game. Bella is much more interested in playing and much more excited to be out on the field. Last year we had practice twice a week and a game and she got burnt out very quickly. She is on a team with six other girls this year and loves it so far. The fashionista was concerned about the uniforms. Last year they had hunter green and she was hoping for purple this year. When I told her they were green again, she kind of wrinkled her nose at me. The lime green with bright blue has seemed to appease her however. Her shoes, of course, are pink again.
She is much more aggressive this year on the field and happier to be out there. Last year she wanted to play puppy and was more interested in picking flowers than kicking the soccer ball. This year she is all all over the ball, even if she's heading towards the wrong goal. She's not using her hands at all and she's got a great attitude so far. We're excited for the season!

a little perspective

Being a military wife myself this hit me in the heart like a ton of bricks. This has been my child, this has been my family. I thought of our friends still serving overseas and their families waiting for them at home. I've lost count of the exact number of tours they've been on. Their courage, their strength their faith is unwavering. I'm re-posting this for you.
Until they all come home.

Ten on Tuesday

1. Drew is walking as you can see in the video below. He's not completely steady on his feet but he's getting there. He'll be chasing after his big brother and sisters any day now.

2. We ended the week at the pool for a birthday party. What a great way to spend Friday night in the summer.

3. Bella loved her first week of kindergarten. She loves her teacher, her friends and riding the bus home.

4. Bella has homework every night. She's practicing her penmanship every night and is trying so hard to get better.

5. Amelia finished her first week of big girl preschool. She loves being upstairs and is hoping to learn to write all her letters this year.

6. Will loves to paint in his new class. He is learning to share toys more with his friends and follow directions from his teachers.

7. Jason has officially started classes and doesn't think they are going to be too difficult, just time consuming.

8. Amelia loves puzzles. She puts several together every afternoon after nap and she is getting faster and faster at them. I'm not a puzzle person at all and I'm really impressed with her almost four puzzle skills.

9. If you are a person that prays, please keep my good friend in your prayers. She's currently pregnant with her second baby, in her 28th week and on bedrest. Drew has his appointment with the pediatric surgeon in two weeks. We will find out then when his belly button surgery will be scheduled. This is a minor procedure, complicated by his asthma.

10. Several people have been asking me lately about weight loss. It's getting a little embarrassing because I'm finally getting back to what I normally look like. If you know me here, I've apparently lost a dramatic amount of weight since I've been pregnant. If you know me before the four kids in five years, I look pretty much like I always did. No one seems to believe this since I'm so large pregnant and that's how they're used to seeing me. Either way, thank you for the very nice compliments but I promise you I have no big secrets to share. I'm not taking a magic drug. I don't and have never done any of the popular proven weight loss plans. I watch what I eat but I believe in eating everything in moderation. If I want a brownie, I eat a brownie. I just don't eat an entire pan. I drink diet soda, water and milk. I tried P90X and loathed every minute of it. Really, I just walk. A lot. Four miles, at least five days a week with some enjoyable company. So for the inquiring minds, there you go :)