It's my Birthday (well, it was 2 days ago)

On July 21, I turned 39. Yikes. One more year until the infamous forty. My first job was at a fast food restaurant called Hardees. To lure in the senior clientele, once a week they would host Bingo in the dining area. Apparently, I spoke loudly and clearly and became the regulars' preferred "caller".  Whenever I called N40, everyone would shout in a silly voice, "foooooorrrrtyy". Finally, I asked why and they said it was because after 40 it's all downhill. At the time 40 was decades away. Now, it is right around the corner <sigh>. But, I digress, this blog is not about getting older, it is about how much I love my birthday.

Once a year, I give myself permission to be completely lazy and selfish. Well, maybe I do it more than once a year, but once a year it is guilt-free (maybe on Mother's Day too, but to a lesser degree). I don't really care about presents, but I love the opportunity to dictate exactly what we are going to do and to not have to listen to any complaints. Everyone knows that in this house, on your birthday, you make the rules, within reason of course. This year, I wanted to go to Annapolis, see the State House and the Naval Academy and have lunch at PF Changs. Thomas took the day off from work, but we decided to do Annapolis on Friday and my actual birthday was Thursday, so I finagled two special days.

Thursday, I woke up and decided I felt like going on a bike ride. Jack was awake, so he and I headed to Three Notch Trail and enjoyed a leisurely hour-long ride. Jack was great company and we had a good time. Meanwhile, Thomas and the girls were at home making my requested cake--strawberry with chocolate frosting, all from scratch. When Jack and I returned, it was time for my second requested activity--the Six Flags water park. Me and the older kids rode my favorite ride three times in a row while Thomas happily watched Luke. And, I didn't even feel (too) bad about it! We spent about 3.5 fun hours there. Our plan was to have a snack and then spend some time in the regular park. But, after our snack, I decided I wanted to go home and have a family movie night. There was some slight disappointment, but everyone knew it was my call. And, I made it without really giving much consideration to anyone else's feelings. We told them we'd come back to the regular park the following day after our Annapolis adventure, and they were happy to go home and have cake, so it wasn't a huge deal.

We didn't bring towels, so everyone was laying in the sun to dry off. Luke saw the way Thomas and Jack were laying and decided to join in.

We got home and I picked the movie--Tangled. Again, I didn't ask anyone what they wanted to watch, I just chose a movie I liked and no one complained. We had our cake and ice cream. My wonderful neighbor brought me homemade cobbler and Brewsters ice cream. I can't imagine a better day! Obviously, I tried not to be a jerk or do anything that would be unpleasant for people, but it really was nice to just spent a day doing what I wanted to when I wanted to without having to consider everyone's thoughts and feelings. I certainly wouldn't want to be that way every day, but I think a couple of times a year is good. Plus, it gives the kids an opportunity to put their needs aside and be giving, which honestly is good for them. Thomas always works hard to make occasions special and my birthday was no exception, he changed all the diapers, handled the kids disagreements and worked hard to make it nice. He spent a long time making me an awesome cake and making sure I felt loved all day.

Friday, we did all my requested activities in Annapolis. I loved seeing the spot where Washington resigned his military commission and handed power back to Congress. I wonder what our country would be like today if he hadn't set that precedent? The state building was beautiful, the girls especially appreciated all the chandeliers and ornate fixtures.

The favorite chandelier.

Standing where G.W. stood. I only took one picture and didn't realize it was blurry.

After the State House, we walked over to the Naval Academy, toured the visitor's center and walked around the campus. The highlight was going to the chapel and seeing the impressive crypt of John Paul Jones (founder of the Navy). From there, we headed to PF Changs. Yum!

If you see a face cutout...

every single child...

even the littlest ones...

must stick their head in and ask for a picture.

 We were done by 2, so we went to Six Flags. It was a great day, but, it was HOT; the heat index was close to 100.  Ironically, they were celebrating Christmas in July.  We went to a Christmas sing-along and the kids posed with Santa. We got home around bedtime.

Daffy and Bugs came to the show!

This is actually a really good Santa photo. Too bad it is July and not December.

Thomas took some pictures with Luke. I can't decide which is my favorite, so here's the top 2:

Thomas took some pictures with Luke, I can't decide 

Saturday was Thomas' birthday, but we were neglectful toward him. He didn't want a cake and we spent a lot of the day cleaning the house. It gets pretty rough around here, especially in the summer. The lawn needed to be mowed and that was how Thomas spent his birthday morning. The kids made him cards and I had a small gift for him, but honestly, it wasn't the best day. His normal requested activities all take place outside and it is really too hot to spend an entire day outdoors. We will have to make it up to him.

His best friend arrived with his family Saturday night and now (Sunday) they are off in DC. Luke didn't fall asleep until after 10 last night, so there was no way he could do a DC trip today without making everyone miserable, so I volunteered to stay behind. Hence, I get to catch up a bit on blogging.

What to do, no School!

Six weeks from today, school starts. Not that I'm counting. Well, I am, but that doesn't mean I am wishing time away. Summer break has been great (yes, another weak "rhyme"). We scheduled our time this year with one week of an organized camp followed by two weeks of nothing on our calendar. A third of the way through, we have completed our first rotation. So far, I would say it is a success.

During our two weeks of unscheduled time, we went to the pool, library, Ann Marie Gardens, and local parks. We met Thomas for lunch one day at Nicoletti's and we enjoyed not having to be anywhere at any specific time. We also had one amazing day at the Six Flags water park--the forecast was for rain, but we decided to risk it. The rain, and the crowds, stayed away resulting in a perfect (non)storm for an amusement park visit. We found something to do every morning and I think everyone enjoyed the more relaxed pace. The kids were left to the own devices each afternoon and forced to make their own fun, which most days they did. One afternoon, they spent hours reading through my old blogs. They were sooooo amused at all the funny stories starring them. Kara and Anna especially loved reading about the time I let Anna work on potty training with Kara. I had kind of forgotten about it and I am sure the memory would have been gone forever if I had not written about it. I am so glad that when we moved to Maryland I was encouraged by some friends to start the blog (Debby, Sarah and Cecilia have probably long since forgotten that fateful conversation at one of our book clubs, but I remember!). It makes me want to write more about the everyday little stuff.

For example, yesterday Anna and Kara put on a fashion show. They took laps around our upstairs, throwing kisses and striking poses. They named their looks things like, teacher's pet, vacation, fancy style, workout and going shopping. The grand finale was "sailor girls" where they came out together, each wearing something with a sailboat theme, a pink dress for Anna and a blue skirt with a white sailing shirt for Kara. They spent hours putting together their looks and practicing how they would pose. Luke got involved as well, mainly running in circles and waiting for Thomas to reach out and grab him. He would squeal and run past us, staring at Thomas, just waiting. Meanwhile, Jack was downstairs playing the newly purchased Minecraft. 

Now, the big kids are at their first week of St. Johns. Luke is in his second, and final, week at his future preschool--it worked out really well this year, his first week was during VBS and his second week was while the other kids had camp at St. Johns. Unfortunately, they don't offer anything in August, so it will be just him and me when the big kids do their final week of camp. Luke has not been as enthusiastic as he was the first week and he actually cried when I dropped him off yesterday. They said he quickly recovered and he seemed to be having fun when I picked him up. He always responds with a "yes" when we ask if he likes it and he was very excited to put his artwork on the refrigerator.

Luke rode the "fast choo choo" at Six Flags. I think he had a love/hate relationship with the ride.

Second time he rode with Jack. Then, he was done.

Antietam

Our little history buff.

On the 3rd of July, we headed to Antietam. For their birthdays, we generally let the kids choose between a party and going somewhere. Kara almost always chooses a party and Jack and Anna almost always choose to go somewhere. With their 9th birthday a few months away, we asked J & A what they wanted this year. Anna said Great Wolf Lodge and Jack said a visit to Antietam. We told him that we could do that without it counting as his birthday and asked him what his next choice was. He named another battlefield, the name of which escapes me (I just asked him and he said Chancellorsville and the Wilderness. I dare not tell him I have no idea what those battles are.).

Anyway, on July 3rd, we decided to make good on the promise. We planned a day similar to Gettysburg. We got everyone up a little early and headed out. We arrived just before 10 and watched the introductory movie. Then, we browsed the museum. It was small, but very interesting. There was a piece of a wooden fence rail with musket balls wedged in. There was also a long display case with items found from a neighboring farm. There was a picture of the farmer (I estimate it was taken in the 1950s, but I am not sure) and he was quoted as saying, "I must have gotten down from my tractor a thousand times to pick up some item or another." The items included a family bible, belt buckles, other uniform pieces and lots of weapons/musket balls. As most know, the Civil War is the first one where photography was used and of course there were pictures. The pictures changed the public perception of war forever, taking away the romanticism and belief that death was quick and bloodless.

After the museum, we explored outside. A church that was central in the battle was just steps away from the Visitor's Center and it was amazing to realize we were standing precisely in the spot where some of those pictures took place, complete with the small white church as a backdrop. We did the little walk around the church and a few monuments and then left the Visitor's Center.

The Dunker Church is in the background.

This was Thomas' favorite.

The draping was a flag, see the stars?

We drove a few miles to another central part of the battle--Burnside Bridge. It was also prominently featured in the pictures and we were very excited to walk on it, unfortunately, it was closed for repairs. We did walk down to it and because the area is still so untouched, it was easy to picture the scene.

We didn't get a picture, because it was full of construction equipment, but here's a nice one thanks to Google.

We had our picnic lunch and set out for walk.  There are several marked hikes in the area and we chose one that followed the Antietam (a creek). It was 1.7 miles and fairly level. Luke walked about half of it and everyone else held up great. We saw some people tubing in the river, but it was mostly quiet and peaceful. Again, it was easy to imagine the scene of thousands of marching soldiers.

The family who obliged.

Luke alternated between running ahead and lagging behind.

We were done around 2 and headed home, stopping at Wegmans on the way home because I wanted to see what the hype was all about (it was pretty impressive!).

On the 4th, we were all extremely excited to go to Stratford Hall, but the forecasted rain kept us away. We stayed close to home and enjoyed a quiet day. Thomas was home on Monday, the 5th and again it was rain.

Another All about Luke

First day of camp

It has been a busy week for Luke. I signed him for "preschool" next year. Since he's only 2, it would more aptly be called "toddler socialization" or "free time for Mom." He is going to go 3 times a week for about 2 hours. To give him a preview, I signed him for a couple of weeks of their summer camp. His first session was last week. I was nervous for him, but he loved it! We dropped the older kids off at VBS and he wanted to stay with them. But, he was pacified when I told him that I was going to take him to his own camp. He never looked back. Literally. I took him into the classroom, he went over to a bead toy and wouldn't even look up when I said goodbye, he was already too engrossed. So, I am glad he will be going in the fall. I plan on using 2 days for the gym and 1 day to volunteer at the school. I am excited!

He has also had a language explosion. His favorite phrase is "I need". Generally, this is followed by something he wants.
One day, he will learn the difference between a want and a need, but not today Zurg. His most commonly used are:

I need phone (my cell phone)
I need milk
I need food
I need shoes (whenever he wants to go outside)
I need help

Basically, that is all he needs to get by in life.

He also likes to say "my turn," whenever he wants to take over whatever someone else is going (t.v., listening to a song, dancing, etc.). "My turn" is second only to "mine" in Luke's lexicon. He is very independent and likes to dictate whatever is happening around him. For example, if he is dancing, no one else is allowed to dance without his permission. He will no longer let me keep a hand on him while he's riding the carousel, slapping my hand away if I put it in the proximity of his person. He now calls himself by name, but he pronounces his name "Loot".

He can count to 10, if you consider 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10 counting :) And, he has two television shows he loves--Super Why and Team UmiZoomi. Thanks to Super Why, he knows most of his letters, so I am considering it time well spent.

Thomas was home from work on Friday and so I was going to leave Luke home while I dropped the older kids off at VBS. Luke saw he was about to be left and immediately began crying (I neeeeed shoes). He followed us to the door in hysterics. Thomas then asked him if he wanted to watch Super Why. The crying stopped instantly and he waved and said "bye mom" as he ran to the living room.  The kid loves some Super Readers.

One more story, probably more about Jack than Luke. Earlier in the week, Luke threw a wooden block at Jack. The corner hit Jack in the face and Jack immediately started crying (those suckers hurt!). I was in the other room and heard Jack yelling, "I just really want to hit you right now...but I know I can't." I came to investigate and determined Luke needed to sit in time-out. I put him on the bottom step and he started howling in indignation. After a short time out, I told him to give Jack a hug, which he did. Everything was better. Just one of those little stories to memorialize. It is good to know that Jack can exhibit self-control, even in the event of extreme provocation.

Could anyone ever stay mad at this face?

Summer break and a visit from two Kocs

Thomas' best friend since childhood called him last month to say that he had to attend a meeting in DC. Since he had to be out our way, he decided to turn it into a mini vacation. He flew out on Friday night with his 7-year old daughter Karoline. Karoline is just a month older than Kara, so our kids were extremely excited.

Saturday, we took them to St Mary's City. As always, we had a great time. We had Sonic for lunch and came home to put Luke down for a nap. I stayed with Luke while everyone else went to the beach at Solomon's. After that, Kevin and Karoline wanted to go to the Saturday mass and my girls decided they wanted to give it a try as well. Thomas didn't want to leave Kevin with 3 kids, so he went along. It was a very busy day!

Standard photo on the Maryland Dove

Sunday, we went to Six Flags. It was incredibly crowded! More crowded than I remember Kings Dominion being. The ride times were still manageable, but because the park is kind of crammed into a small area, it felt really busy. We didn't even get our (kinda sorta free, since we bought a meal plan) dinner, because the lines for every food service place were literally out the door. But, we still had a lot of fun.We grabbed some Papa Johns pizza on our way home and ended the evening with a karaoke party.

Everyone thought I was being nice for volunteering to stay with Luke. Ha! Luke was asleep and I went and had a soda in a quiet, air-conditioned restaurant while they stood in line for the river ride.

I told Kara she looked like a celebrity in disguise...

So, Anna decided to try as well.

Monday was Kevin's meeting in DC and Thomas also had to work. I took the kids to Ann Marie Gardens and a park. Ann Marie has their Fairy Festival and we enjoyed trying to find all 60 fairy houses. We played at their wooded area for a while and then went to the park next door for a picnic lunch. One of Jack's classmates was there and they enjoyed playing together. It is always so funny when kids see their friends outside of school, it's like they aren't quite sure what to do. 

I love the play area at the gardens. The kids had a blast making fairy houses and putting on shows.

The girls had contests to see who could last the longest on this thing pretty much the entire 90 minutes we were at the park (if you're wondering--it was Kara).

Tuesday we went to DC. We went to Natural History, the Archives and then walked around the memorials. We also took a quick peak inside American History so Kevin and Karoline could see the flag that inspired our National Anthem. 

With President Lincoln

Obligatory silly photo with the Washington Monument in the background.

Their flight left Wednesday afternoon, so we just stuck close to home. We were all sorry to see them go. Thomas remarked on how much he missed having a friend to do things with. I told him he should make more of an effort with the people here and he responded, "I don't need any new friends, I have a perfectly good one--he just lives in Kansas." Not a surprising response. I (obviously) love my family, but I also enjoy my friends. I like meeting up with them at the park, or having book club or seeing the occasional girls night movie. I wish he had that as well. Of course, it's a slippery slope, I wouldn't want him to suddenly start playing golf every Saturday, but a nice once-a-month outing would be a good compromise.

Thanks to the visit, our summer break is off to a good start. I had another job interview last week. I think it went okay. Once again, I don't have experience in the practice area (acquisitions), but I do have some things going for me, so we shall see. I put my odds around 50%. Of course, I have no basis for that. The things I see in my favor are: they are hiring for multiple positions, I have experience working with the military, and I am local.  My HUGE drawback is the lack of specific experience. So I guess it just depends on the pool of candidates, which I know is kind of a "duh" statement.

That sums up week 1. The kids are at VBS this week, which they are enjoying. I surprised them with a trip to the pool yesterday and they have been doing their "Bridge the Gap" workbooks to hopefully maintain everything they  learned in their previous grades. 1.5 weeks down, 8.5 to go!

Two more photos, just for fun.

During our walk one night, Luke decided to forgo his scooter, stroller and trike in order to push his lawnmower through the neighborhood.

Everyone diligently working on their father's day book for Thomas.

The End of the School Year and Spring Sports and Parenting Woes

June 10th, the eagerly awaited last day of school, finally arrived. The kids were all both happy and sad. It was a good year for them. They liked their teachers and their classmates and were generally happy to go each day. Of course, summer is fun and magical, so they were excited to be done as well. The day was bittersweet for them, and me as well. I enjoy summer break and the freedom from routine, but it can be difficult to find ways to occupy them for the long weeks of summer. I am not one who believes in entertaining my children, but I also don't want to spend all day, every day at home, because that's not fun for any of us. Then, there's the complaining and fighting that seem to coincide with long hours spent in each other's company, although I don't think it's ever as bad as I anticipate. We shall see. Last year, there were 9 weeks of summer and the kids had enough camp, swim lessons, and VBS to occupy all but 3 of them. This year, summer is 10 weeks and only 3 are accounted for--we have no vacations planned and nothing too exciting on the horizon (other than a possible visit from my sister and her family).

The kids all had great report cards. Jack and Anna far exceeded the benchmark for reading speed. In the words of Jack's teacher, he blew it away (benchmark was 111 and he reads 256!). Anna wasn't too far behind. Kara's report card was not specific, it basically just said that she was on target and to keep up the good work. All of our kids love to read, for which I am incredibly thankful. They also did well in their other subjects. So, no complaints on the report card front. I sometimes worry about them getting burned out on school. Third grade starts all the testing requirements. I don't have a problem with testing, but I want my kids to keep enjoying learning for the joy that is gaining knowledge and I think testing can suck the joy right out of that. As said above, we shall see.

One story I want to memorialize--Kara knew on the last day of school there would be a contest in art class. She decided what she was going to draw (an owl) and began teaching herself how to draw it the way she wanted. She practiced daily for about a week. She even did timed trials, so she would be really prepared. Unfortunately, I got involved and made suggestions. I think I was much more harmful than helpful and I kind of took away the uniqueness of her idea. She did not win the contest, but she did a cute drawing, of which she was proud. Jack and Anna had the same contest, but neither one gave it much thought, Kara just really loves to win and is going to make sure that if she doesn't, it wasn't because she didn't put forth the effort.

To celebrate the last day of school, one of our neighbors threw an impromptu pizza. The kids ate pizza and candy, played outside, and watched Zootopia. It was a nice way to end the year.

The girls both wore the same outfits they'd had on the first day. Anna's dress was way too short, so she had to put some long shorts underneath.

Kara's was also shorter. Also, notice how her shirt covered all but 2 buttons at the beginning of the year, and at the end 3 (almost 4) were showing.

Luke insisted on holding the sign, using his favorite phrase "my turn" (it's always Luke's turn!)

Jack wasn't interested in trying to find the clothes he'd worn on the first day. Look how much tanner he was in August!

In other news, the spring sports season has (finally) ended. Anna played her last soccer game yesterday. I think it is a relief to all of us that it is over. While she showed some improvement at practices, games were a bit rough. However, she generally had a positive attitude and she never quit, which I think is a far more important skill. It was difficult at first for me to watch her struggle. In one of my poorer parental moments, she got in the car after a particularly brutal game and asked if I thought she did a good job. She had served as goalie and the other team scored a lot during her time at the post (and during others time as goalie as well, it was a slaughter).  However, she never quit, and kept trying to stop their kicks. Ignoring that crucial fact, I responded with something like, "no you did terrible, the coach had to yell at you after every goal to remind you what to do with the ball. And, even when you stopped the ball, you kept throwing it to their players who would then just kick it right in the goal." Her little face fell and her mood changed and I felt like a jerk. I told myself I was just being honest, but I knew I could have found different words. Later that night, when I tucked her in, I apologized and told her I had focused on all the wrong things and that she did have a good game because she kept trying and never quit. 

She knew she wasn't a strong player and that soccer wasn't going to be her forte, but she never complained about going to practices or games. I felt frustrated because I didn't feel like she gave it 100%. I am not sure what my point is, I don't think either of us experienced any growth from the experience. Although, I was reminded again that I need to be a parent to the child I have, and not try and mold that child into the one I think I should have. And, I do know that I would rather have the kid with the good attitude than the kid who is a great player but a poor sport.

Jack had a very successful season at baseball. He showed a lot of improvement and really enjoyed himself. He is a good hitter and a great defensive player. Kara, unfortunately, did not really enjoy baseball this year. I think I mentioned this, but she grew more and more fearful of batting. She enjoyed being in the outfield, but despised batting. As a result, she stopped being able to hit the ball. I don't think she will play any more baseball or softball, at least not for a while.

Gettysburg

We did a quick day trip to Gettysburg last weekend. We had the kids get up a bit early so we could beat the rain and the crowds (it was over Memorial Day weekend). It took us a little over 2 hours to get there. The drive was pleasant on a Sunday morning. We had the kids eat breakfast in the car and we were sitting down to the movie in the Visitor's Center for the 9:45 showing.

After the movie, we were shuffled up to see the Cyclorama. The Cyclorama is a giant panoramic painting depicting the battle field at Gettsyburg. There was a short audio and parts of the painting would light up to illustrate what the audio described. It was originally painted in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the battle (1883). However, the one on display has been restored and I don't think it was the original from 1883. It was 42 feet tall and about 300 feet in circumference and very impressive. Luke did not enjoy the movie or the painting. He kept his hands over his ears the entire time and was very relieved when we left the show.

From there we looked around the gift shop and briefly toured the museum. The girls and Luke had reached their maximum educational input and were ready to get outside. We had a cd with an audio tour, but quickly discovered that it was way too much information and too long for the kids, so we just listened to bits and pieces. Jack really wanted to see Little Round Top so we spent a while exploring that site. The view is pretty untainted and it was easy to imagine what it was like for the soldiers there. We also spent a long time in the cemetery and we found the spot where Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address.

Overall, we spent about 4 hours there, 1.5 in the Visitor's Center and 2.5 driving around and exploring the massive battle field. It was a good trip and the kids were well-behaved. The town was really cute and I think it would be fun to go up and spend a night or two to really explore the area. There was really too much to take in in one day, plus there is a lot of information. It was difficult for me to stay focused and I am an adult with a genuine interest. Thomas said the nerd in him would like to do the battlefield over 3 days, which is how long the battle lasted. We would see the sites that corresponded to each day of the battle, I think he is on to something with that plan. Anyway, it was a nice day trip and we all learned a lot. It was also a good trip to take over Memorial Day (the masses would agree as it was crowded!). We want to make sure our kids know the true purpose of the day.

Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate for us to take our annual trip to George Washington's birthplace, so we stuck close to home for the other two days of the holiday weekend.