Ready for Kindergarten

Our little man is growing up and is all ready for Kindergarten!

This morning we completed our final step in preparing for the big day. Ben had his school physical. It all went great, especially since Ben had his 5 year old shots last year! The doctor checked him all over and gave him a big thumbs up. She had him draw her a picture and write and spell his name. He weighed in at 44 pounds and is 45 inches tall. Not super tall, but hopefully he won't be the smallest in his class. He should be one of the oldest though since he turns 6 in less than two weeks!

We are looking forward to next weeks Kindergarten Popsicle Playdate at his school where he will hopefully make some new friends. Then he starts school on September 8th. He can't wait!

A few people have asked what we are doing about school this year. We decided to enroll him in the public school that is just a half mile down the road. The girls and I will be able to walk him to school every morning. Nick can help too this fall while he is still a full time grad student! We looked into Christian/Catholic schools in the area, but they are just way too pricey-especially considering that we haven't yet sold our house in Kansas! His school has great reviews on the Internet, and the few parents I have spoken to have great things to say about it! Ben wanted to be home schooled for a few fleeting weeks, mostly because he didn't want to learn to tie his shoes! Silly boy. That aside, I don't think I could give home schooling the attention it warrants!

We are looking forward to a great school year!

Itty Bitty Addie

Our kids have never set any records when it comes to weight and height. They are happy to stay in about the 20th percentile. Sophie even ventured into the 5oth when she turned 2. However, Addie seems content to hang out way down at the bottom. Last week at her check-up, she weighed in at 10 pounds, 15 ounces, and was 23.5 inches long. That puts her in the 5th percentile. So, at five months old, she is just an itty bit!

It worries me slightly that she is so dainty, but I know she will catch up soon. Plus, she is as healthy as can be and is very strong. Ben goes to the doctor tomorrow for his school check-up, and I plan on asking them to re-weigh little Addie. Nick and I have tried at home and think she weighs more like 12 or 13 pounds, but it's hard trying to weigh her on the bathroom scale. The Doctor didn't seem too concerned, especially since Addie has great head control and can roll over both directions. This morning she was even trying to low crawl to a toy in front of her! We are going to try and give her a bottle of formula every day since right now she nurses exclusively. Hopefully we can get this Itty Bit to put on some weight!

For now, we will enjoy our Itty Bitty Addie as she is. When she puts on some weight there will only be more to love!

Growing Up

Last week Sophie did a little growing up. In an effort to tame her unruly mess of hair after a long nap, I tried to put her hair into pig tails. We had some success, and she was thrilled with her new do! The problem is that she has much more hair on the right side of her head. It's odd, but I'm sure it will even out someday!

Her she is sporting her new look!

Later in the week Sophie accompanied me on a trip to the beauty store Ulta. I needed to pick up some shampoo, and I though she would like to go for a ride. We grabbed the shampoo and then wandered aimlessly around the store looking at 'pretty' things. We eventually stumbled upon the nail polish. I decided to grab a bottle of base coat. Rather boring, but I was all out. We headed up to the cash register to pay, and Sophie grabbed the polish and stated "My nails!". I told her that it was for Mommy and then asked her if she would like some. Her response was "Yes, I want pink!". So, we ventured back to the polish aisle and she immediately pointed to the sweetest color of baby pink. She was so proud of our purchase, she couldn't wait get home and show it to Daddy.

Of course we had to immediately paint her toes (nails will come when she is done sucking her thumb!). She is still so thrilled with her pink toes!

Her she is holding her new bottle of polish!

And the finished result!

I can't believe how fast she is growing! After our beach trip I think her toes may need some freshening up! More on that trip to come!

Sophie's Big Girl Bed

We have been waiting for just the right time to move Sophie to a bigger bed. Adeline has been sleeping in the pack-n-play since birth, and that hardly seems fair now that she is nearing 5 months old. But with the move and all, we wanted Sophie to get used to her new room and get used to sharing her room with Addie (she was in with us in Kansas). We've been settled for about a month now, and the room sharing is going as well as can be expected, so this weekend, we finally decided to switch things around.

I debated and debated on what type of bed to buy for Sophie. Down the line, I would like for her and Addie to have matching beds, but that is still 2 years away. Also, I didn't think the girls room would be big enough for all of their furniture, plus a twin bed right now. So, we settled on a darling juvenile bed from IKEA. It will expand into a twin size, but right now we have it on the smallest position, so it is a little longer than a crib mattress (but much wider). Lets face it-our kids aren't setting any records in the height department, so it will work just great for Sophie. Ben tested it out, and he fits too!

We bought the bed last Friday, but didn't assemble it until Sunday night. We talked about it all weekend, and Sophie was very excited. By the time Sunday night rolled around, she could hardly contain her excitement for her new bed.

Nick promised that Ben could help him assemble the bed. Benny proved to be a great help! Nick didn't bargain on Sophie, Smokey and I helping too, but he still managed to get it together.




Taking a little break while Daddy finishes with the bed frame.





Yeah! Sophie is so excited for her new bed!

We immediately moved Sophie's favorite blankets, elephant and Daddy doll to her new bed. Once she had her things, she had no problem 'giving' Adeline her crib. However, she really wanted to 'share' her new bed.

The girls were so cute in Sophie's new bed together!

We were worried whether Sophie would stay in her new bed once we put her down last night. But to our surprise, things went very smoothly. She is now near the end of her first successful nap in her new bed too! Once we are sure she is settled, we will fix the crib up for Addie. Addie did sleep in it last night, but it still needs to have the bumper put back in. I also have cute wallpaper letters to hang over Addie's side of the room now.

I hope we have continued success!

Weekend Fun

We are taking advantage of our free weekends, and are trying to see the sites. Two weekends ago we took the Metro into D.C. and went to the National Zoo. I am not sure what was more fun for the kids-riding the train, or seeing the animals. I'll have to admit that our trip was a bit of an endurance test. The train and zoo were both very crowded, and it was a hot, humid day. Aside from that, we managed to have a great time!

Ben was really excited about seeing the Giant Pandas. He had not seen a panda before and was fascinated by the exhibit. He showed a lot of interest in learning about their vanishing habitat. It never ceases to amaze me his comprehension of things. He is still asking me questions about it a week and a half later.

Ben and a Giant Panda

Sophie had fun with some new found freedom. She spent most of the day out of her stroller. She's never had to ride in it much, and isn't very fond. Nick and I are struggling trying to find the best way to transport three kids on our adventures. We have a double stroller, but Sophie faces backwards and can't see anything. So on this trip, we took two small strollers. One for Addie, and an umbrella stroller for Sophie. Only problem was that Sophie didn't want to ride. That left us in a bit of a quandary because now we had two kids loose, two strollers to push, and only two adults to contain the chaos. Sometimes I put Addie in a baby carrier, but lately it's been just too hot, and our excursions are way to long to keep her in it all day. Any mommy suggestions???






Eventually, we found a system that worked for us to travel around the zoo and managed to see most of the animals. Ben's favorites were the reptiles and amphibians. He loved looking at the snakes. I had to practically pull him away from them! Ugh! I don't know where he gets it from. I would rather not visit the reptiles! Sophie loved the elephants and tigers and did not like the gorillas at all! She watched them intently until a silverback male came in and showed some aggression towards another gorilla in the pen. It's too bad she wanted to leave because there was a rather new baby that was adorable!



In between weekend trips, we finished up a round of swimming lessons. Both kids did wonderful and progressed so much. Ben moved on to the next level and started more lessons today. Sophie is very adventurous in the water, but just isn't tall enough or coordinated enough to do much more that Level 1 right now. She did start another round of lessons though to keep her confidence in the water high. After their last lesson Thursday, the had a little party to celebrate. The teachers handed out certificates and had doughnuts for the kids. Sophie thoroughly enjoyed her first Krispy Kreme doughnut and of course, Ben didn't try one. He doesn't know what he is missing!






Then on Thursday evening, we had our first visitors! My parents drove down from Michigan for the weekend. It's great to be only 10 hours from home. It is totally drivable in one day. It's been awhile since we have been this close. The kids were super excited to see Grandma and Big Pa, ever though it had only been a few weeks since they last saw them. They anxiously paced the front windows waiting for them to pull in. After all, we had a fun weekend ahead.




Friday we ventured out early to give Nick the day to finish a big paper that was due by Saturday morning. I wasn't up for driving into D.C. without Nick, so we decided to stay close to home. We ventured up to Mount Vernon, home of George Washington. Venture wouldn't be the best word, it's really just 4 miles up the road. My parents and I had visited Mount Vernon when I was a child, but that was so long ago, I didn't remember much about it. It's located on a very beautiful property on the Potomac River. The grounds and gardens are fun to walk through. Ben and Sophie had more fun than I thought they would touring the mansion. As usual, questions abounded from Ben. We looked at most of the out buildings, peeked in a few gardens and then decided to get lunch. It was a nice day, but just too hot for Addie in the baby carrier.

On the front porch of Mount Vernon

Running through the gardens

Saturday we drove into D.C. to tour the National Museum of Natural History (aka 'The Dinosaur Museum'). We thought that Benny's favorite exhibit would be the fossils, but instead he loved the Ocean Hall and the Insect Zoo. Sophie loved the insects too, but most of the displays were 'Yucky' in her words. Because of some parking difficulties, we ended up taking the Metro part way home which made both kids happy and all adults hot, frustrated and worn out. We had a great visit, but will have to go back to see everything. Good thing we have three years!

Admiring a mastadon fossil

Studying the insect display

Facinated by a horn worm

Sunday we went to church and spent the rest of the day relaxing indoors due to very stormy weather and very tired adults!

Grandma and Big Pa had to head home Monday morning, but not before they went to swimming lessons! They couldn't resist staying to watch the kids in the pool. The kids were so proud to show off their new swimming skills. We miss you already Grandma and Big Pa!

A Skirmish

Last weekend we took advantage of the beautiful Virginia weather and headed to Fort Ward for a Civil War re-enactment. We were looking for a Saturday activity that wouldn't take all day and completely wear us out. Fort Ward is just up the road from us, and Ben loves anything to do with the military so it seemed like a good choice for us.

Fort Ward isn't a very big fort. It was used during the Civil War to protect the Capitol from the South. We were able to walk around and view the various activities going on. The kids watched a cannon firing demonstration, although they never actually fired the cannon. Bummer.

Later we watched a drill by the 5th New York infantry Zouave. Benny loved their red uniforms.

Benny had the opportunity to practice his rifle carrying skills. He loved the one on one attention he received from the re-enactor.

Finally, we watched the 3rd U.S. Infantry perform a skirmish firing drill. This was the highlight of the day! The soldier's used blanks, so they actually fired their weapons. Every time a rifle fired Sophie would exclaim "POW!".

We couldn't leave without a little souvenir, and since Benny loves to dress up and roll play, a Civil War era hat seemed the perfect fit! Although, we aren't sure why he chose one from the South! To his credit, he did chose a Cavalry hat.

More fun to come!

A Recap in Photos

I'm feeling a little crunched for time these days.....There is so much to do while our busy, busy two year old is napping. So, I decided to recap our last few weeks in photos!

Nick and Sophie at a Junction City General's Game

A little sibling rivalry-Ben and Sophie fighting over who will hold Addie for this 4th of July photo.

Happier Moments....

4th of July-Ben made these Indian hats for everyone at the BBQ-11 people. He was very excited to find goose feathers down by the river and decided that everyone needed a hat for the 4th of July. Oma happily obliged and spelled out everyone's name for him to write, so we could each have our own personalized hat! Even Addie had her own hat!


Sophie playing baseball with Uncle Matt

Ben at the Air and Space Museum by the Wright's first plane.

Sophie had to have her picture taken too!

Nick and Addie in front of The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Nick enjoying a Father's Day beer at the Fish Market in Old Towne Alexandria

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Arlington National Cemetery

The girls new pretty yellow room

Ben's new room-he's over being mad that he doesn't have the same curtains from his room in Kansas!

And finally, our new house!

Nick is enjoying his grad school classes that he started this past week. He has night classes Monday thru Thursday, but Wednesday's class meets online, so he doesn't have to travel all the way to Capitol Hill for school. He is home all day with us, and will be until New Years. After that, he will have both grad classes, and will work during the day on the Hill. We are enjoying our time together very, very much. Our biggest challenge has been trying to make and eat dinner by 4:30 each day before he leaves for school. I'm sure we will figure it out. He gets up really early to do his reading and schoolwork before the kids wake up.

We are still working on unpacking, but are getting closer to being done every day. The basement still needs a lot of attention, but we will get to it soon.

We have enjoyed seeing old friends from previous duty stations. We have had a few dinners with the Childress Family (from Anna Log-under our friend's blogs), who were stationed with us in Germany. They have a daughter Anna, who is a year older than Sophie, and a son, Joshua who is three days older than Addie. Anna is such a sweet girl, and we look forward to many play dates and more fun times.

We have also met up for lunch with the Garcia family, also from Germany. Kenny was a platoon sergeant in Nick's troop, and his wife Sandy is a lovey German woman. They have two girls, Kira and Kelly, who are one year older, and one year younger than Ben. Ben had a great time with them this week at Uno's Pizza. We also look forward to spending more time with them.

Further afield is my friend Angie, who was stationed with us at Fort Riley. Currently he husband, Theron is on a short deployment to Afghanistan and should be home by the end of the summer. Nick looks forward to catching up with him. Angie came down from Maryland on moving day to help me unpack. Thanks Angie!

We have only had one major outing with the kids. We took them to the National Air and Space Museum, and they had a blast! There was so much to see and do, I think we will have to make several trips before we see it all. Thank goodness, the admission to the Smithsonian museums is free! We took the metro into the city, and that in itself was a huge treat for the kids. We had a great time, but the trip made us all very, very tired. It's two days later, and I think we are still recovering. We can't wait for more adventures.....