Haircut for Hannah

I suggested several times that Hannah might like to have shorter hair this summer, but she refused every time.  Finally, Scott asked her, "You do know that hair grows back, right?"  She said, "Oh....then, yes, we can cut it."  :)  I showed her pictures of how cute it was when we cut it two years ago, but she wants it to be long when school starts.  We compromised with taking off 3 or 4 inches.

May 2014 - look at how cute!

I love that little face!

Other Things I Didn't Post

I went on a field trip with Micah's class to Hale Farm and Village, where they got to learn about a variety of things from the 1800's.  It was actually quite fun.  :)

It was like "Little House on the Prairie" in real life.  :)

the doctor was a little creepy

Micah and Christian being punished for misbehaving in the one-room schoolhouse

Hannah "graduated" from preschool

such sweet girls!

Hannah's best bud - three seconds before the picture they were grinning and hugging each other.

She also finished her soccer season with two goals in each of her two last games.

Micah finished his soccer season and was invited to participate in an "all-star" camp, which he really enjoyed.


Micah and Hannah went to Grandparent Camp (get the full scoop here: http://gurleygrandparentcamp.blogspot.com/)

This week the older kids are enjoying Summer XP at our friends' house, while I am cleaning pee off the floor repeatedly potty training Matthew.

That's it!  I'm caught up!

My Baby Turned Three

I have a feeling that every birthday that Matthew has will come as a shock to me.  How could my baby be three already?  When we asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday, he said, "Banilla ice cream with Carter and Jackson and you guys [gesturing to our family]".  We were happy to oblige and also throw in cake and presents.

I made the "3", and the big kids decorated.

Micah took the card from the gift and offered to read it to Matthew.  Matthew snatched it from his hand, saying "No.  I read it myself."  He then held it up and "read", "Happy Birthday, Matthew!"  He was pretty proud of himself when we started laughing and told him he had read it correctly.  :)

Matthew at age 3....

- his favorite color is blue

- favorite foods include raspberries, yogurt, macaroni and cheese, and ice cream

- he says his best friend is Adi from church, but really it's Hannah (don't tell Micah!)

- is scared of anyone wearing a mask 

- has been to so many soccer practices, games, and camps for his siblings that he thinks he's on a team

- is not potty trained....yet...we're working on it.....pray for me...

- usually takes a 2 hour nap

- loves to run, ride his "motorcycle", and wrestle

- expresses himself clearly and frequently at home, but refuses to talk anywhere else  (that is, when I'm present.  I'm told that when I leave the room, he becomes chatty again)

- still loves to be snuggled, hugged, kissed, and rocked.  And I'm pretending that it will never change. :)

Shameless Bragging

I have underestimated Micah's ability to run.
When he told me he wanted to work up to running a 5K (3.1 miles), I thought, "Maybe this year.  Maybe not until next year."  Then I took him for a 2 mile jog, and he wasn't tired when we were done.  Ok, I thought.  I'll sign him up for a race, but I'm not sure he can do the whole thing without stopping.  I told Scott to start looking for us at the finish line sometime after 30 minutes.  Wrong again.
Micah ran the entire race in 28:36!!  For the last half mile, I could barely keep up with him!  I'm so proud of him.  Yes, for his ability, but more for his perseverance, hard work, and his willingness to listen to me and be coached.  He finished 3rd in the under-14 age group for boys, and he was the youngest racer for both boys and girls.
Oh, and then someone jokingly asked him if he was going to run the 1 mile fun run, too.  He looked at me and said, "Can I?"  I agreed, but told him to listen to his body, slow down or walk if he didn't feel good.  Yeah, right.  He ran his fastest mile ever - 8:45.
As soon as we got home, he went for a bike ride.  Then later we went swimming.  The next morning he pointed to his calf and said, "My legs kind of hurt a little".  Hmm.  I wonder why.

they had sidewalk chalk at the start line

Scott took a great video of Micah's finish.  Hopefully this link works. 

They've gotten bigger from last year!

Micah's new friend was running the fun run, too.  Thanks to his mom for these great pictures of the start and finish!

Micah finishing the mile

And let's not forget that Hannah did a great job, too!  She ran the mile in about 10 minutes.

New House!

Well, we moved 3 weeks ago, so it's probably about time to blog about it. :)  The days/weeks leading up to the move were a bit stressful for me.  Scott was traveling some, and for some reason all the rest of the life things - 3 kids and their schools and sports and needs - just carried on as usual.  Once we finally reached the moment that the moving trucks arrived and it was out of my hands, I felt very relieved.
My parents were here for most of the week, and they were an immense help.  They packed, cleaned, chauffeured, entertained kids, and made my to-do lists disappear.

last breakfast in the old house

loading up the trucks

We had a great crew of movers.  They were friendly and helpful and never stopped!  

the new house!

we monopolized the entire cul-de-sac and some of the street with all the service people

my mom helped the kids plant flowers by the front door.  it looks so nice, and you know it would just be weeds right now if it were left up to me.  :)

The kids all had to share one room for a little over a week while we had some work done upstairs.  They really handled it well.  Actually, the whole transition was much smoother than I anticipated.  It helps that our next door neighbors have a boy Micah's age and a girl Hannah's age.  :)  And we all love spending much less time in the car.  

Hannah and Matthew keeping busy

water fight with our new neighbors

hanging out with Jackson and McKinley