Riley's Art Show

On Thursday, Riley's school had their annual art show where the students showed off their creations. Parents were invited to come to the school and view the artwork. Each child had 2 of their drawings on the wall, and we found Riley's right away. She drew one picture of a cake with hearts flying around and the other was of her family underneath a rainbow. 

At first glace, we all thought she did a great job on her pictures. There was Jeremy, Riley, Mom and...wait, who was the last one? Let's see...Riley, Jeremy and Mom all had black/brown hair. The other person, who was a boy, had gray hair. Riley explained that was Dad.

That was the funniest thing I've heard in a very long time. I only wish I took my camera with!

Happy Birthday, Uncle D!

Today is Uncle D's birthday, so the kids recorded him a message. We weren't able to talk with him today, as he and Casey are enjoying a vacation in Sri Lanka. But I was able to talk to him on my birthday earlier this month. They'll be home for a bit in July, and I don't know who is more excited: me or the kids! (Except I think Jeremy is more excited to have someone play hockey with him!)

So happy birthday to my favorite little brother. I hope this year finds continued happiness, adventure, success and love. We love you very much!

 

Jeremy's Birthday Party

Almost a month later, I'm finally writing about Jeremy's party! We had a beautiful day for the party, but the weather still wasn't warm enough to open up the house. Ah, life in the Midwest! This was the last year for a full-on family party, since we stopped doing it when Riley entered kindergarten. You know, what's good for one is good for the other. It's only fair. :)

We all had such a great time with all our friends and family. It's always nice to catch up and let the kids play. Perhaps the best part for me was when Phil's brother complimented my guacamole. So a special shout-out to Casey for the recipe (and honestly, several people have commented on other occasions about how good it is. Thanks!) And thanks to all who made the celebration memorable. Jeremy had a wonderful fifth birthday!

Mike with Isabella and Fiona. Isabella couldn't get enough of Mike!

The birthday boy!

Jeremy and Caden.

Caden

Checking out some of his toys.

Looking at the camera.

Dad trying to set up the Toy Story characters.

Riley.

Riley on Skates!

I'm so terribly behind on here. One of these days I'll have time to be current on here. I recently took up another freelancing gig, which is great in the grand-scheme of things, but it doesn't allow for a lot of free time. Not that I had a lot of free time to begin with! Anyway...

Last month, Riley and her best friend Lauren went ice skating with their dads. They met in preschool and were lucky enough to be in the same kindergarten class last year. And I say lucky because the school the girls go to has 19 kindergarten classes! Crazy. Although they weren't in the same class this year, Lauren's mom and I have made sure the girls get together occasionally.

Lauren's mom and I are very close friends, and Lauren happens to have a younger brother who's just a few months younger than Jeremy. We all love getting together and catching up, so the moms and boys played and chatted while the dads and daughters went ice skating. The girls did this last year, and they had a great time again this year. We capped off the evening with some pizza at Lauren's house.

Riley and Lauren.

The girls.

Dad and daughter.

The girls being cautious.

Holding hands.

Happy Birthday, Big Guy

Today is Jeremy's 5th birthday. As always, here's Jeremy through the years:

At the hospital

 

3 months

6 months

9 months

1 year old

18 months

2 years old

2.5 years old

3 years old (and sick)

3.5 years old

4 years old

5 years old

 

 

 

 

 

He's really come into his own this year. He's succeeding in school, he's a whiz at math (seriously, ask the boy to add stuff, and he can tell you. Ask him how many minutes until a specific time, and he can tell you.), he's doing very well at hockey for not even skating a year and cannot get enough of hockey. Really. The boy insists on watching hockey highlights on TV in the morning, much to Riley's dismay. He loves board games, from Chutes and Ladders to Memory to Trouble to Uno, he's an endless source of game playing.

We spent some of today doing all that he wanted to. We played games, we watched hockey, the kids built a fort, we went out for ice cream and then played some hockey outside. He chose his favorite dinner, which is pizza and bread sticks from a local pizza place. Of course it just so happens that Riley doesn't like that pizza, so she said for her birthday, she's picking food that Jeremy doesn't like. Good luck with that, as Jeremy eats pretty much everything!

I'm no longer ashamed to admit he's not my baby anymore. He's my guy. I'm so very blessed that I'm home with the kids. I've watched him and helped him become the boy that he is today. I'm there from breakfast to taking him to school to suiting him up for hockey to even coming home to play street hockey, it's me. He's really the best boy I could've hoped for. I'll always have the memories of him as a baby, but now my baby is 5. I love you, Big Guy.

A Whole Hand

We're coming off the sugar high of Jeremy's 5th birthday party (crazy, huh?), and while sitting at the dinner table, Jeremy was waxing prophetically about his age.

"Mom, in a few days I'm going to be a whole hand-full."

To which Riley replies, "I'm almost two whole hand-fulls."

Some days, they have no idea how accurate they are. :)

My Babies

Most days pass in such a blur that I can't even remember all the things we did that day. What did we have for breakfast/lunch/dinner? What errands did we run today? Did Riley finish her homework? What stories did the kids hear today?

And as the school year is beginning to wind down, I'm realizing just how quickly time does fly. I look at that picture above and am amazed at how quickly the kids have grown. They are each other's best friends on most days, and they can keep each other entertained for hours. Wasn't it just yesterday that they needed me every step along the way? Wasn't it my hand that they reached for? Wasn't it me that they reached their arms up to and wanted to be held? Didn't I constantly hear "Mama, Mama, Mama" all day long?

Don't even get me started on Jeremy starting kindergarten in the fall because I just might lose it.

I'd like to think that we've done a good job in shaping their lives so far. It's still a work in progress (aren't we all?), but when they can play nicely with not only each other but friends, it's a true sign that we've done well in raising them. They're very well behaved, they're kind and considerate, they share and are overall good kids.

Some days it's just hard to believe they're not little babies anymore. But I guess they'll always be my babies. Guess I can live with that.