Philadelphia Day 1

We had our second annual Philadelphia trip this week. With the kids not starting school until after Labor Day, it seemed like a good time to take advantage of a long weekend. I already had Friday off from work and took Thursday as well (nothing like asking for time off five weeks into a job, but we had planned this trip before I even had a start date and my boss was fine with it). We left just before 6am Thursday morning and drove straight to our first destination--Six Flags Great Adventure.

Unfortunately, our navigation took us on some weird route right through Downtown Baltimore. Not convenient at all at 730 on a weekday morning! But, we survived and were able to make up some time, thanks to light traffic, on the rest of the drive. We had hoped to arrive at 1000, to make it through security in order to be in line for passholder early admission at 1015. Instead, we managed to walk into the park right at 1030. Fortunately, the crowds were light and we were able to ride everything we wanted to ride. Unfortunately, Thomas had a terrible headache and wasn't able to ride anything until well into the evening .  There were two roller coasters I really wanted to try. Last time we were there, one was broken and the other had a really long line all day, so that was my wish list for the day.

Our first stop was the parachute ride. It lifts you 250 feet into the air and then slowly lowers you. Everyone but Thomas rode. The height requirement is only 36", and it is a pretty big thrill ride for a 3-year old, so Luke was very happy. Then, we moved on to our first coaster--El Toro. El Toro is a massive wooden roller coaster. Me, Jack and Anna decided to brave it. Anna was super nervous. In fact, as we started up the big hill, she started sobbing. I tried to reach out to hold her hand and she screamed (literally screamed) at me to get my hand off of her! She later told me it was because she wanted me to hold on so I didn't fall off the ride. But, after the first big drop, she was fine. In fact, since there was no line, we stayed on and rode a second time. It was pretty amazing. Definitely among the best roller coasters I've ever ridden.

Anna and El Toro

We did some little kid rides next and the log flume and had our lunch. Kara tried some of the smaller roller coasters and was happy to find she enjoyed them. We made our way to the other side of the park to try the next big coaster on my list--Nitro. This time, Anna opted to stay and ride the smaller rides with Luke, so it was just me and Jack. It was amazing! Probably my favorite of all time. It was smooth and fun and just awesome. We rode twice. Jack wanted to keep going, but I was ready to rejoin the family. Next we headed to their newest ride. I wasn't expecting a lot, but it was pretty awesome too! It was a shooting, virtual reality type ride, similar to Men in Black at Universal or Buzz Lightyear at Magic Kingdom. Honestly, it was on caliber with those rides, which surprised me.

If my camera didn't darken everything, this could have been a great shot.

In line for Escape from Metropolis

Me, Jack and Kara then tried the two dark rides. One was a mouse coaster, which I hated, but the kids liked. The second one, Skull Mountain is an indoor dark coaster, and it was pretty good, although the people behind us screamed hysterically the entire ride. Kara really liked it and got Anna to go back and ride with her a second time. She has become such a thrill seeker this year! Luke loved all the little kid rides. There was one he rode last year that terrified him. It is a tiny drop tower. When I say tiny, it is designed for little kids. It lifts them probably 15 feet up and drops them in little short bursts. Last year, he was fine when it lifted him, but started crying inconsolably when the drops started. They had to stop the ride and take him off. This year, he loved it! He put his hands in the air and smiled. It was such a great contrast.

Our brace little boy :)

We had dinner, then Thomas decided he was ready to try a couple of things. First, he did the shooting ride. He wasn't as impressed as I was, but enjoyed it. Since that didn't bother his head, he decided he needed to ride Kingda Ka, which is the tallest, fastest roller coaster in the United States (until recently, it was #1 in the world). I was definitely not interested in trying that! But, Jack decided he needed to go along. Me and the girls tried to talk them out of it, but they persisted. I was almost afraid to watch, fearing I would see someone fly right out of their seat. But, somehow they survived and, they even enjoyed it. We bought Jack a shirt to celebrate his ride on the country's tallest, fastest coaster, which, he intends to wear on the first day of school. Next time, they want to try the world's tallest drop tower. Yikes!

This picture doesn't do the 486 foot drop justice...

By now, it was after 7 and had been a very long day. We decided to call it good and head to our hotel. We had walked over 20,000 steps and 8+ miles. It was a very fun day.

August

So, I have no pictures to offer, but we have been cramming lots of fun into our weekends. Last week, we went back to Mount Vernon, this visit we focused on the gardens and the Education Center. And, of course, we had to stop on our way home to get some Krispy Kreme. We will be in trouble if they ever actually build the Krispy Kreme they promised in our county. Yesterday, we went into the city and did the Art and Natural History Museums. I can't imagine living this close to DC and not taking advantage of the city on a regular basis. I think it is one of the definite perks of living here. We had a great time and have found a parking garage we like that makes it easier when we want to drive in. More importantly, the older three kids have gotten much better at museums. They are more tolerant and patient when others want to see something and now that the three of them are such awesome readers, they find things much more interesting. It is fun to watch them grow. Of course, we still have little Luke, who is a typical 3-year old. But, he likes being out and about and as long as he isn't overly tired or hungry, he isn't too awful.

As far as our nonweekend time, the babysitting/work situation is going well. We had to do a sitter switch and were glad that Summer was willing to take over. She has been watching our kids for 5 years now! It's nice for us to have someone we trust so completely to watch the kids. Unfortunately, she can't continue once school starts, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that the situation continues to go well. The worst part of working for me has always been the stress of worrying about childcare. And, Thomas and I are still getting used to trying to get everything done in the compressed afternoon/evening hours. Luke will be starting at a full-time preschool when school begins, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that he likes it. But, for now, everything is good and hopefully that trend continues. Luke is definitely the wild card in this situation and I will breathe a sigh of relief if he is happy at his new "school."

In other news, Anna has decided to opt out of STEM. We had a list of things we wanted her to work on during the summer to prepare. Ultimately, she decided it was not worth it. Particularly when she realized that the work over the summer was just a small sampling of what she could expect in the fall. She felt a big sense of relief after deciding to return to HES. She is looking forward to being in a familiar setting with her friends and doing after-school activities and not feeling so much pressure. Thomas and I were never convinced that STEM would be a good fit for her, and honestly it will be a relief to not have the kids at different schools next year. Parenting is a tough business, always wanting to make sure you are making the best decisions!

Speaking of school, back to school shopping has been the bane of my existence the past few weeks. I don't mind buying supplies, but I am not a fan of having to go to three different stores to get them! And, I am still missing a yellow prong plastic folder (I know they have them at Staples--my third shopping location, but I didn't realize Kara needed one too, so I have to go back). I never did find any fine point dry-erase black markers. They must be on every shopping list, because they were sold out at Target, Walmart and Staples. I don't recall it ever being this difficult before. But, I think we will be ready.

It's hard to believe that there are only two weeks left of summer break. I enjoy the lazier pace of summer and especially enjoy not having to pack lunches and backpacks. But, I think everyone is ready to go back and it will be nice to get into our fall routine. Although, we do still have a few fun things planned for our last 2 weeks :)

First Week Back at Work & A Picture Summary

Monday, July 24th marked my first day of full-time work in almost 7 years. Thanks to the Reserves, I have had brief stints of employment, but there was always an end date. Not any more. Well, I suppose an end date could be 2037 when I turn 60 and retire. One week down, 1040 to go! ;)

It was a good first week. My first two days were spent in an orientation with other new employees from all departments. I was the only person in my profession. Since then, I have mostly been reading instructional manuals and following people to their meetings. Soon, I will have computer access and then I imagine I will have to do actual work. It is strange to be starting over again at the ripe middle age of 40. I don't feel old, but I am older than the majority of my coworkers and at a different stage in life. But, I don't mind, I have had good experiences to this point and am grateful for both the time I spent in the workforce and the time spent at home.

I think I am going to enjoy working, although it is kind of a bummer to come home and still have to deal with all the chaos that awaits (Thomas isn't saying "I told you so"... yet. I should have been more sympathetic before forcing him to jump right in after work). The kids have made a few comments about wishing I was still home, but overall they seem happy and content with the arrangements we have made for them. Of course, this whole arrangement is in its infancy, but I think it will be even easier when school starts. Well, easier for me, since I will only feel like I am missing out on time with Luke instead of all four of them.

We have done a lot that I haven't written about and I am falling way behind. So, perhaps a picture summary is in order:

One weekend we checked out a sunflower maze. Most of the kids were scared of the thousand of bees that were flying around, but Kara, Thomas and Luke made it through.

We shall call him Simba, err, I mean Luke.

I love that our new dentist schedules the kids (almost) simultaneously. All 4 were free of cavities, but Kara does have to get a baby tooth pulled to make room for an adult one :(

Love, love, LOVE this picture Thomas took of Luke

Thomas' good friends the Koc's came out for a visit. We had a great trip to DC that included a tour of the Capitol building.

They also went to Mount Vernon (while I was slaving away at work)

Unfortunately, their visit was marked by a lot of rain. But, the kids enjoyed going to the indoor pool and stomping in the puddles.

Cirque Italia

I subscribe to all kinds of "deal" alerts. Most, I have no recollection of signing up for and they generally get deleted without being read. Every once in a while, I will open up a Groupon or Travel Zoo e-mail. Especially Travel Zoo because they describe vacations I like to pretend I am seriously considering.

Last week, I opened a Travel Zoo e-mail to see an event in Waldorf. Generally, everything is in DC and beyond, so I was pretty excited. It was Cirque Italia. I thought it sounded like an outstanding way to spend a Saturday afternoon. I made a Facebook post to alert local friends of this awesome deal, and our favorite family across the street said they would like to join us. This was perfect, because I had been looking for a fun outing to take them on as a way of saying thanks for our awesome weekend in West Virginia.

We bought tickets for the Saturday afternoon show. They have a tent they bring from city to city and it was set up in the Regency Stadium parking lot. The kids were super excited. We didn't know exactly what to expect, so we tried to limit their expectations, we especially wanted them to know there would be no animals present.

The show was super fun. We are big fans of America's Got Talent and the older kids remarked that they felt like they were watching a live show. There were lots of interesting stunts. Luke was the only one who didn't really have fun. He was mad because we didn't buy them any food or light up toys. We had told the kids that the treat was going to the show and then dinner after, so the older kids knew not to ask for anything. Of course, Luke doesn't have the same self-control. He really wanted some popcorn or cotton candy or something, anything! I am not a fan of buying food at events like that. One, it's overpriced and it adds up quick with 4 kids. Two, it's distracting. I want them (and me!) to be able to focus on the show. Three, in this particular case, everyone had a good snack before we went and I told them we were going to Cafe Rio after so I didn't want them to be full of junk food right before dinner.

Luke did enjoy some of it. They had silly entertainment while they were setting up between acts. One skit involved two silly characters dancing to snipets from a variety of songs (Gangam Style, YMCA, Macarena, Single Ladies, etc.). Luke got up and danced in the aisle and had a great time. Another time, they ran around shooting each other, and the audience, with water guns. Luke loved that! There was a trampoline number he was entertained by and he was happier the second half than the first. The rest of us enjoyed pretty much everything. There were a few acts that they could have eliminated in my opinion, mostly due to redundancy, and Thomas thought the pace was a little off (i.e. big exciting dangerous stunts followed by slow music and a girl dancing with ribbons) but overall we thought it was great. We would definitely go again.

One with the tent in the background.

Inside waiting patiently for the show to start. It was a small, circular arena. We had great seats near the front.

I loved the guy spinning this prism. It looked all lasery, which unfortuantely didn't translate in the pictures.

One of the "slow" acts.

This guy was my favorite. I don't know what it's called, but we referred to it as the wheel of death in our conversations after.

An amazing hand balancer.

This seemed to be our faces during a lot of the show. But, this particular picture was taken while we watched the act below.

He did successfully balance on all those tubes.

After the show, everyone came out with a banner announcing their country of origin. It was pretty cool, there were lots of different countries represented.

We didn't get pictures of all the acts, but I think that is a good sample. There was a juggler Jack loved and Kara really enjoyed a tight rope walker. There were roller skaters and I am sure I am forgetting a lot of others.

The show lasted about two hours and then we headed to dinner. We always have fun with the Wills family, so it was nice to have a night out with them. And, I finally got to try the shrimp tacos. They were good and I can't wait until our local Cafe Rio opens! We got home right after bedtime and proclaimed the day a huge success!

Summer!

We are about five weeks in to the longest summer break in (my) record. This summer is twelve weeks from the last day of school until the first day of the next school year. Personally, I am not a fan of long summer breaks. If I had my way, the kids would do year round school with 3 weeks off in each season. I think it would help with knowledge retention and, while I do enjoy summer, I love the fun of the other seasons as well.  When I looked at the calendar for next year, they have 6 days off for winter break. That's it. Six measly days. It seems so sad to try and compress holiday fun into 6 days, especially since all of them come after Christmas when it feels kind of anticlimactic to be out singing carols or looking at lights. But, I digress.

The kids have had one week of VBS and one week of camp. For camp, which was this week, Jack did Minecraft, Kara did Spies and Detectives and Anna did Candy Making. Even Luke had a camp this week--Camping Camp, but his was at his preschool. Everyone had a great time. The camps only last a few hours in the morning, but they were always so eager to tell me everything they did that day. They have one more camp later in the summer. The rest of our time has just been lots of trips to the library, park and other nearby activities.

The girls and Luke also did swim lessons. We tried evening this time, which was a pain. Luke started at 5:30, so we had to eat an early dinner and race out the door. I signed the girls up for level 2, but they probably should have been in 3. They both got a bit better at their freestyle and side breathing. Kara worked on diving and got better at that as well. They enjoyed it and it was a good use of time, but next year I think we might just do private lessons. Luke was in preschool level 1. Mostly, we wanted him to develop some water safety skills and gain a healthy fear of the water (fear is probably the wrong word, but we want him to realize pools are dangerous if you can't swim). I am not sure we accomplished that, but he had fun. For two weeks he begged them to let the class jump off the diving board. He was the only one in his class with this desire. They finally indulged him on the last day and he was thrilled.

Because life can't be all play, we also made them a checklist of items that they must accomplish each day. They (mostly Jack and Anna) complain about it every day, which drives me nuts. But, last year, all three of them told me how glad they were that they hadn't forgotten as much as some of their classmates and that they were thankful that they had done some work over the summer. The "work" part of what I am asking shouldn't take them very long. They generally spend more time complaining than they do working. This parenthood thing is a constant, uphill battle.

Sample from Jack's cheklist

He beat his previous typing record! Slowly but surely, they are making progress.

We have also done a few trips to Six Flags and that is always fun. Anna was finally tall enough to ride Superman. She was very nervous and initially did not want to go. We convinced her to give it a try. And, she loved it! It is a really awesome roller coaster, definitely in my top 3. I like that it doesn't go upside down. It has two really large hills and seems to go on forever. Thomas rode with her and she was so glad she tried it.

Anna is up there somewhere. Thomas texted me so I would know when to take the picture.

Luke also tried a new ride--the river raft. I stayed with our stuff and I saw him float past, he looked so nervous! I was convinced, 100% sure he was not going to like it. But, he did! He got off happy and said he loved it.

Jack and I tried the new giant swings. They go up 240 feet. Neither of us loved it, he was nervous his swing was going to break (we had a nice conversation going down trying to decide at which height we could survive a fall) and I got dizzy. There are lots of circular rides and I had had my fill. Kara was tall enough to ride the Wild Bull Ride, which is similar to a scrambler, but up in the air (another dizzying ride). I'm not sure why it has a 52" requirement, but it bummed Kara out last year that she couldn't ride. So, all the kids got to try something new!

Wonder Woman

Exercise Goals and a Room Change

Approximately 100 days ago a neighbor of mine mentioned she was going to start an exercise challenge. The challenge would require her to exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes a day for 100 days in a row. Any form of exercise counted, cleaning the house, going for a walk, whatever physical activity you wanted. I thought that sounded like a great idea. With my weight at an all time high (no small fete for someone who has struggled since adolescence) I decided to join in. I bought myself some posterboard and made a goal chart. Then, I set my own parameters. 30 minutes seemed reasonable, but for me, I decided it had to be "real" exercise. My heart rate had to get well into the cardio zone for a sustained period or I had to be lifting weights for it to count.

And, I did it! Well, almost--I exercised for the next 96/100 days. I exercised on vacation and when I was sick. I exercised tired and sore. I was motivated! But, I didn't see the grand changes I expected. I lost a measly 9 pounds. Which, is certainly better than nothing, but not the results I hoped for. And, all those pounds came in the first 5 weeks. I had a perfect exercise streak going until week 12 (86 days in a row to be exact), then I was tired of it. None of workouts sounded fun and I was sick of a stagnant scale. So, I decided to take a day off. I felt guilty and was back on track the next day. Then, in the final week, I missed 3 days. Honestly, I just didn't care anymore. I felt like 90+ days was good enough and I was sick of exercise.

This was sad to me because for my entire adult life, I have enjoyed exercise. And, for the most part, I have been consistent. I would say I generally exercised 4-5/week for the past 15 years. But, I am still obese. With this history, I should have realized that 100 days of exercise alone would not make a big impact for me. I have never exercised that much, but it's not like exercise was foreign to my system. What I really need to change is my eating habits. So, I am embarking on a new challenge--90 days of food tracking. I will still exercise 4-5x weekly, but I am okay with missing days here and there. I am hoping a few days off will erase the tedium that exercise became to me during the 100 day challenge.

And, on to other news. We have removed Luke's crib! He has been using it as a toddler bed for quite some time, but we decided it was time to remove it all together. And, for about the 5th time in the 3 years, we have a new sleeping arrangement. Anna is still in her room (she's the only one who hasn't moved around the house), Kara is back to her old room upstairs and Luke and Jack are in what used to be Jack's room. So far, everyone is happy. Luke and Jack have been sharing a room for the past 6 months or so, but it had been in Kara's room because that is where the crib was. Kara had bounced between Anna's room, Jack's room and the basement bedroom. Only Anna was sleeping in her actual room. Everyone else slept in one room and had their clothes and belongings in another. It was quite confusing! This weekend, we finally moved things around. We aren't done yet. Kara still has her clothes in the basement until we buy her another dresser, but we are a lot closer.

Obviously, the arrangement that made the most sense, on paper at least, was Anna and Kara sharing a room. They are the same gender and only 16 months apart in age, but we tried that and it did not go well. Both desperately need their own space. On the other hand, Jack really wanted to share a room with someone. He and Kara shared for a while and got along well, but we knew that was not a long-term solution. That left Luke and Jack as the best remaining option. So far, everyone is happy.

Here are all the combinations we have tried since Luke was born:

1. A&K sharing a room, L alone, J alone. Everyone's stuff where they slept. Much discord in the girl's room.
2. J&K sharing, L alone, A alone. K's stuff still in A's room.
3. Everyone alone, K in basement. Everyone's stuff where they slept.
4. K grew lonely in basement, moved back in with J. But, her stuff remained in basement.
5. J in with L, K in J's room, A in her room. Only A's belongings are where she slept.
6. All kids back to their pre-Luke room, Luke moves in with Jack.

There has been a lot of furniture moving in this house! The girls still sometimes have "sleepovers" with each other, but everyone now has a designated space. So, when we tell them to go their rooms, they no longer have to say "which room." Once we have Kara's dresser in place, I am hoping they stay put for at least the next 3 years!

NKOTB and my Friend Jennifer

When I was 10 my family moved from Massachusetts to Florida. It was a very difficult time for me. I loved Massachusetts and was not excited about living in a new place, even if it was only 45 minutes from Disney World. We moved just before Christmas. My parents did not want us to spend Winter Break worrying about starting a new school, so they enrolled my brother and I on the last day before the break started. We checked into Garden Grove elementary and I was escorted to the cafeteria where I met my new teacher, Mrs. O'Neal. Mrs. O'Neal introduced me to a girl named Jennifer. Jennifer was basically tasked with being my friend. And, so she was. She showed me the ropes and eased my transition. We shared a love of reading and became close friends. As the years passed, we had our ups and downs, I can certainly remember some angry fights. But, somehow we always managed to remain close.

We shared many experiences. One of our favorites took place when we were 12. The year was 1989 and New Kids on the Block had become a global phenomenon with their Album "Hanging Tough." Jennifer and I were big fans. When their tour was announced, we knew we just had to see them. Of course, a million other girls felt the same. We knew that if we wanted tickets we were going to have to work for them. Somehow we convinced my family to take us to Specs, the local record store where we camped out overnight for tickets (well before the days of click and refresh). We bough the best seats available, which were somewhere in the nosebleed section of a stadium in Tampa. And, on the appointed day, we decked ourselves out in our New Kids gear and headed to the concert (my poor older sister Kim had the pleasure of taking us). 

While we had fun, our New Kids infatuation was slowly fading. And, probably by the next year, we had taken down our posters of Donny, Jon, Jordan, Danny and Joey and replaced them with the newest fad. In 1994, the band split, but as high school juniors, we had bigger things to worry about. Yet we always retained the fond memories of camping outside of Specs and singing "Hangin Tough" with tens of thousands of screaming girls.

And, despite the demise of our mutual infatuation for the band, our friendship remained intact. We watched each other mature, eventually get married, have children, join the Navy (both of us, but at different times), and make multiple moves. We shared many happy moments and some incredibly low ones. When Thomas deployed, I invited Jennifer to come and live with me in Maryland to help me with the kids. She happily agreed and while here met her future husband. We shared another milestone when we had our youngest children just months apart. Our latest commonality is turning 40 this year. For Jennifer, that big event happens today (well, it did on June 30th, when I wrote this), which means that for me, it is exactly 3 weeks away.

To celebrate our birthdays, Jennifer's husband Chris thought it would be fun for us to go to a NKOTB concert. He bought us tickets to their show in DC, which, fortunately, did not require him to sleep on the ground. We made a day of the event, going up early to browse the National Portrait Gallery and explore a bit of China Town.

Then, just like we did 28 years ago, we went to a concert. This time, we were plenty old enough to drive ourselves. Although, it would have been fun if Kim could've gone. The concert was so much fun! We saw Boyz II Men and Paula Abdul as the opening acts. Both were great and brought back some good memories. Despite being 55, Paula is an amazing dancer and entertainer. We enjoyed their performances, but were anxious for the main event. The crowd counted down 10.. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and than they appeared! Our childhood crushes in the same building! There were just as many screaming fans as is 1989, but the audience was definitely a more mature one.

They played some of their new music, which we were not familiar with. I was happy to see that the group appeared to be enjoying performing, they went out into the crowd, shaking hands and exchanging hugs. About halfway through the show, they announced it was time for a change. They did a costume change and came back out wearing some old school denim outfits. Then, they announced it was time to turn back the clock. This was what we had been waiting for! They ran through their older music and finally got to grand finale, songs from Hanging Tough, with the title song being the grand finale. It was an amazing moment to be raising our hands in the air singing along, just as we had done more than 25 years ago. 

It was fun to celebrate turning 40 in a way that allowed me to take such a fun stroll down memory lane!

Taken from our fifth grade class photo

High school aged

In Chinatown celebrating turning 40