Summer Catch-up

I just can't get into a routine with blogging anymore..have to make it more of a priority I guess. I really would like to (and do enjoy now)be able to look back on these posts and remember the goofy things the kids did growing up. Must.focus.more! :)

So..our summer so far:


Celebrated a birthday



Opened presents



and more presents (a new bike helmet)

made tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes

slept :)

got candy at Opie's

saw the largest granite formation in the U.S. - the astronauts can even see it from space!

climbed a rock on a camping trip

watched movies with friends (Beezus and Ramona - Summer and Emma)

fell off the back of the truck onto a large rock, causing a trip to the ER, the pediatrican and a heart attack for the parents

another birthday...

Diego, of course!

...complete with Dora presents of all varieties!

...shared Slushees at Sams Club

...went for a walk

Phew, we've been busy..maybe we should do more of the sleeping!;-)

Hugs,
Katie

The Start of the Crazy Season...

It seems like everyone gets all stressed at Christmas time, or Thanksgiving - all the family coming to visit, gifts to buy, and more..but for me, the end of the school year and the beginning of Summer Vacation is my stressor. Buy tons of presents on a budget - easy. Decorate and entertain and cook for a bunch - ha. I do it everyday. No sweat. Entertain 5 kids in million degree temperatures without spending an arm and a leg (camp is out) while gas prices are hovering at $4/gallon? I'd rather be committed. Seriously. I don't think I will survive. I'm as planned as I can and I'm going to spend these last 4 days..well 3.5 since they get out at 11 on Thursday...I think that's just a joke they play on parents. Bring them in, sit in the house for an hour or two and stress and then come pick them back up...anyway, I'm going to spend the next 3.5 days cleaning and getting everything re-organized. The hardest thing for me this summer is the fact that we are TRYING to sell the house..which means keeping it clean on the off (and because of the market, the very off)chance that someone wants to see it..with 5 kids all playing different things. I'm thinking about structuring our days just like a school - playtime, recess, meals, storytime, arts/crafts, field trips. Mondays will be our outside in the morning, library after lunch and then either roller skating (it's Christian Music night at the rink for $2 a person, free skate rental) or bowling (we have free kids bowling and we have a pass for Fred and I..looking for cheap bowling shoes because $4.35 a pair adds up quickly on 7 feet!) We'll rotate one week skate, one week bowling. Then Tuesday and Thursday will be hang at home days and Wednesday will be another Augusta day but with the $1 Summer Movie in the morning and then grocery shopping since the sale flyers start that day. Friday, Saturday and Sunday will depend on the money left for the week but we'll try to throw in some park visits, musuems,etc. Swimming and playing outside will be their primary activity...until it reaches a million degrees...then we'll have to revisit the activities! For my sake more than theirs! :)

Here's some pics of what we've been up to - more on the end of school conferences next time!

 Owen and his best buddy, Ricky and some girl that Owen was very upset snuck into the picture..I think her name is Chauncey?

 Abby blowing bubbles with one of her crew, Ashland Reese

 Joey enjoying a little snowcone and popcorn at the end of the year party

 Joey bouncing his little heart out

 Joey and his teachers, Ms. Barbara and Ms. Andrea

 Abby eating..or smearing...a very blue cupcake

 Kaitlin doing face painting at the end of the year party (Abby chose pink of course)

 Emma minus one tooth (and soon to be the one next to it also!)

 Emma's End of Year Awards - Best Daily Effort and Star Reader

 Joey getting a green basketball..

 Just another pic of Joey in the sack race...I just love it that much. And to be fair, he won the first one..I just didn't get a picture. :)

Owen at Pre-K

Bad Blogger...

So I managed to wean myself off of all soda..well, all soda except Sprite..and that is only 1 a day. And I don't really think of it as a soda...it's more like sugary lemon water, right? :) Hey, it's better than Dr. Pepper and Diet Pepsi! This month is 30 minutes of exercise a day (and I have stocked up on dvds, ideas, and a wii game or two) and NO fast food...but I had to cheat today - it was Owen's parent's lunch day at school and I promised him last week that I would bring him something from a eat-out place so I had to..but tomm is no more fast food. Does Chick-fil-a count as fast food? Hmmm....just teasing...a little.

Only 15 more days of school before I have all 5 kids home all day while trying to sell a house and keep it clean. HAHA. It's okay to laugh..I did. Then I cried. ;-) Not really. But I'm sure that will happen around Day 2 of Summer Break...I think the whole end of the world thing on the 21st is because it's the 2nd day after summer break begins here and I may lose my mind...that's my current theory anyway.

So..here's some pics of why I have been absent blogger....

 Pre-K Singing at PTO Meeting

 Kaitlin and Elizabeth at Acteens Camping Trip

 Catching Crawdads in the creek

 Joey's Class..Joey is apparently going to fly home from the field trip..

 Abby watching the fish

 Joey feeding the fish

 What I feel like I break up all day between the boys..and Emma and Owen..and Emma and Kaitlin..

 Watching the Elephants

 Right before the giraffe tried to snack on Joey's hair..which yes, needs a cut. :)

 The beach on Spring Break

 Owen and his buddy the sea turtle

 Emma and the turtle..I think the turtle felt the forced smile from Emma..he was much more photogenic for O

Owen doing his "chore"..taking the garbage out...obviously the Batman outfit is part of his uniform..I think.

Hugs from us,

Katie

A Monday in Pictures



Abby and her best friend, Dora at the Y130 Playtime

  

Starting out on our hike at Mistletoe State Park





 

Emma



Abby

Abby and her walking stick

Owen the Navigator

This was where Joey told everyone "Whatever you do, DON'T LOOK DOWN!" He was maybe 5" off the ground.

Owen rescuing Joey from the ravine and certain death

Always the gentleman - using his walking stick to move a bush out of the way for Abby

Ten on Tuesday Time

Here goes:
1. Round two of the pre-K drawing was today..drumroll please...we moved from spot 100 (barely squeezing in..there were 100 slots) to number 73! YAY! BUT the Governor is now talking about making pre-k a half day program and I really, really do not like that. I was looking forward to having the boys in school so I could focus on Emma and Kaitlin during the day with Abby in the half-day preschool. Plus it makes running errands in Augusta next to impossible....hoping they figure it all out soon!

2. We have signed all the paperwork for Fred's MEB retirement..they rated him at 60% (not sure if I mentioned that already?) which is good, but still a big crunch. Yikes. We are just waiting on all the paperwork to come back from San Antonio now with his retirement date and benefits forms, etc.

3. Then we have to wait for his leave check to come through..we are cashing in his 60 days and using it to buy a new car...hoping it comes through quickly because...

4. Our van is dying. :( Yep, Lightning McQueen is barely hanging on...4 sensors, 2 tires, and some brakes all need replacing and the transmission is acting up again. Just trying to narrow it down between a large SUV (suburban), another minivan, or a bigger conversion or 12 passenger type van. They all offer lots of good pros/cons and we are trying to narrow them all down.

5. We are getting an iPhone..Yep, we are joining the craze. I like all the benefits - camera, GPS, music, internet, phone, etc. that it offers and my contract is coming up on it's renewal date AND my current phone is on it's last legs. I think they plan it that way..seriously, the thing is possessed. Turns off and on when it wants to, takes random pictures..fun stuff.

6. Emma is going to homeschool next year with Kaitlin. We are leaning towards the Calvert Curriculum for her. She's very excited about it. Owen wants to also, but we have decided to stay with public schools until at least the end of 1st grade. Then they can come home if we think it's a good fit for them - case by case basis. :) And how much Mom can handle!

7. We have been doing great with coupons lately - got 2 FREE pairs of jeans today from Target...which brings me to number

8. The jeans are actually too small for me. It's part of my plan. I have to lose this weight and I figure it will give me some motivation. I'm starting an aerobics class on Thursday, riding my bike, walking the track at the church. I really want to give up the soda but it's K.I.L.L.I.N.G. M.E.

9. Kaitlin survived her first youth group trip - skiing!! First ski trip and first youth trip. I'm really old. : ) She loved it! They are scheduled to go to Massachusetts in July to help with a VBS there and will get to go to Maine to see a lighthouse, Sleepy Hollow, the Red Sox field, Boston, etc. It'll be so cool for her!

10. Emma got in a fight with her best friend at school. Well, Faith told her (for no reason according to Emma), that she didn't want to be friends anymore and took back the eraser she gave her. Emma's solution? "I know how to fix it Mom. I'll just wait till tommorrow and we'll be friends again. Faith always forgets everything." Must have worked because they were back to trading stickers and pencils the very next day. ;-) Ah, the simple life of a 6-almost-7 year old.

See you later!
Hugs,
KT

It's Friday Five Time

Okay, here's the updates - it's pretty much sick, sick, and more sick. It started with Abby and Emma and has quickly moved through the ranks all the way to Fred who went (finally) to the doctor today and got some meds for his brochitis - Kaitlin and I are still the only healthy ones although I'm fighting a sore throat. I'm trying the ignore it and it will go away treatment. :)

1. I am on an organizing kick this week - new menu boards, chore boards, and more. We are going to a daily game plan - I can't function in chaos and that's what it's been lately. Time to get back into a routine.

2. We've started couponing and have created quite a stockpile in the pantry. I got 8 boxes of pasta for FREE yesterday at the store. Then went to Target and spent $70, but save $56. We have enough food for 56 days in the freezers so I think we are on a roll. I figure the more I stock up now, the better it will be to only have to buy sales/loss leaders after we are on the lower income.

3. Fred finally got his paperwork back from the M.E.B. in San Antonio. They rated him at 60% which doesn't suck - it means we keep our insurance (currently only $460 a year), but it's still a heck of a paycut. Disability doesn't include housing or food, so it's only 60% of his base pay. We are hoping to supplement with VA disability and social security, but it will take awhile to do that so it's going to be tight for a while. At least we are a little closer to being able to move on to whatever is next.

4. Emma is playing basketball for Upward at the church and is doing really well. She wasn't sure of the whole point to going back and forth when there was a basket right there in front of her, but now she knows the rules and it's much easier. :)

5. We had a thunderstorm the other day and I've made a little wager that it will snow sometime in the next week...fingers crossed :)

Next week we should have more kid updates, it's been a little slow with everyone just laying on the couch watching tv and sleeping. Hopefully the fevers, coughs and runny noses will go away this weekend in time for Valentines' Day parties! <3

Hugs
Katie

Five on Friday

1. Emma lost her second tooth finally! : ) At school and she pulled it herself - she was so proud. Kaitlin likes that she gets to play tooth fairy because if we go up the stairs we always hit the creaky spot and she stirs, so Kait can sneak over there and do it without much touble. Thank goodness for big sisters! :)

2. We have to register Joey for Pre-K next week at Maxwell. It's a lottery again this year. It will be really hard to explain to him why he can't go to the same school that Owen and Emma went to if he doesn't get in. February 17th is the big drawing. It's going to be a long day...hopefully he's not one of the last ones drawn like Owen was.

3. Owen is going to a birthday party for Richard tomm. I believe, from what I'm told, that Richard is his best friend and they like to play superheros on the playground. And I also believe that Paige is going to be there...she is Owen's "not my girlfriend" ;-) And she's got really, really long hair. And she likes the monkey bars.

4. Abby alternates between being a girly girl who loves her baby dolls and a lumberjack. Seriously. She does this hunched up walk when she's pretending to be someone else (like if Emma and she are playing dolls)and she looks like a lumberjack. It's pretty amusing to watch..

5. Kaitlin finally has a bike..and she loves it. I've had to push her but she's finally going around the neighborhood and getting some fresh air. :) And she's loving it! She's going skiing with her youth group in a few weeks to Wintergreen and she's busy, busy. I can't believe that in 3 short years she'll be driving a car...or at least legally able to....

Alrighty, that's everyone - Fred's packet is FINALLY being sent to San Antonio so we should hear something soon. Fingers crossed and prayers said that it is a good rating the first time and we don't have to appeal it. I'm finally starting to feel a little bit better after surgery, pulmonary embolism, strep, bronchitis, viral infection and God knows what else (oh, pink eye). My lung function test still isn't completely normal and I'm going to be seeing a geneticist to do some testing for genetic diseases like Marfan's and other connective tissue disorders. Hopefully they'll find something so I can stop feeling crazy! :)

Hugs
Katie