My Reason for a Perfect Weekend

Jason was able to help organize the first annual Pump and Run 5K here in town. He made wooden signs and took ownership of what he was in charge of. Part of him missed out on the run, but he is doing a full marathon next weekend, check blog next week. :) He also was able to watch the entire NCAA division II championship game on TV to see our Alma Mater, Findlay, win the game.

Chrissy got to go shopping with friends and eat at PF Chang's all afternoon/evening on Saturday. It was a nice break to prepare for a week without the traveling husband.

Caitlin started off her weekend by being picked up at school and bringing Lucy home with her. Lucy spent the night. They played outside for hours on the trampoline, and going around the neighborhood. She then participated in the Girl Scout Water Stop at the Pump and Run. It was a ton of fun! She was also able to hang out with big Carly all day at the Smith's house on Saturday. Carly is in 6th grade and Caitlin felt like big stuff hanging out with her.

Carson fun weekend started on Sunday with standing on the altar at church with mom and Stephanie. He was able to come up and stand with me the whole time during the scrutiny. He was so GOOD! Then the real deals came... his dad took him to the Train Show and the University of Findlay Jazz ensemble. He had a blast! He took lots of pictures, so I will be posting them later. What a ham... At dinner last evening he proclaimed, "the weather is just miserable" and that really made us chuckle.

Carly's weekend was pretty uneventful. She took her baby for a walk around the block in the stroller. It is just amazing how grown up she looks pushing that little stroller around!

Is There a Professional in the House?

I would like to think that in a few years, there may be...

Caitlin came home from tennis lessons last week to proclaim to the housetops that Coach Hayes is moving her to the 9-12 year old group. Each group a proper name (current Future Stars), but I prefer to use the age group term because Caitlin is still 7. She said to Coach, "I am only going to be 8 in September, you do know that right?" Coach told "Catie with a C" (he is the only one who calls her this) that he goes by ability, not age. Caitlin was beaming to know that she was going to be with the "older" kids. We are so proud of her and she truly loves it!

I heard her at dinner last night groaning that basketball is over. I did not have the heart to tell her that soccer season was right around the corner, because I loved hearing her sadness over basketball being over. I love her enthusiasm for any sport that she plays. Her dad certainly does too.

I am sure I constantly gloat about the good things, and we all know there are good and bad. Caitlin is just doing so well in school and sports and we just want to savor these moments because it won't always be perfect. I know, the older they get the harder it gets.

Changing of the Seasons

Spring has sprung, so that took us to Wal-Mart to go in search of a bigger "big-boy" bike for Carson. After going around the block with him on his little bike and seeing how exhausting it was for him to keep up with us, we felt it was time for a big bike. He was so excited to go shopping especially since his behavior had improved so much. (We did not have one timeout last week on the step - been a problem since his little sister encroaches in on his space many times). He even bought a kickstand to go with it since we were trying it out on two-wheels without the trainers. Exciting times!

You can also tell when spring has arrived since the big green box has been pulled from the shelves in the garage. The trampoline has risen again, with a new escape proof hatch for Carly. She now spends many minutes screaming at the sliding door to "JUMP." She loves to be on it just like her older siblings, but since the broken arm it makes me a little nervous.

It is also warming up when the kids are insistent that it is shorts weather, ugh! I am picking my battles so if you see the Koomen kids running around in shorts, they do really have parents with good judgement.

I forgot to mention the best part about the bike shopping, we left the class rabbit "Travel" in the bike section. Caitlin brought Travel home for the week from Mrs. Greer's class and we decided to take her out for a little adventure, oops! Well at least we remembered her before we left the parking lot!

The "Buppy" vs. The "Potty"

Who will win? Will she be able to give up the pacifer a.k.a "BUPPY" before she is 21 months, or will she be potty trained before the time expires with the "buppy?" She proclaims everytime the diaper comes off she wants to go potty... so now she does it and she tries even when she does not have to go. We have even had to sing the "bye-bye song" when she surprised herself and went #2. The pacifier has been downgraded to bedtime only use, so we have hurdled a major step. Stay tuned and see who wins the showdown. Did I mention they don't make Pull-Ups to fit that less than 20 pound teeny thing?

I Spy...

It is a famous game in our house, in our car, and sometimes in church in times of desperation. Carson and Caitlin love to play it. It creates the best distractions and passes a little bit of extra time that needs to be spent. This time though I am not playing the game, but spying a change in Carson... could it be? Do we have room for more of these in our house? Can a blondie really look cute with them? WHAT is IT you ASK? FRECKLES! Last week we were outside enjoying a 70 degree day for about four hours. I watched him play his hardest, then we came inside and there they were. The cutest freckles on his face. I remember when we moved to Findlay almost five years ago and it happened to Caitlin too. She started getting freckles and they were just a delightful little addition to that red hair. I mean do they really have a chance with Jason and Chrissy as parents who are loaded with freckles? Yes, a blondie can really look cute with freckles... he has enough cheek space for freckles beside those cute little dimples.

The Chair, the Stool, the DOG?

She uses everything, and anything to climb onto to reach whatever destination is that she is going for. I am tired and distraught over this because we are two weeks out from cast removal and I am finding her in places that should not be reached by a 20 month old. "Challenge" is a great word to describe Carly. She has mood swings, tantrums, but is still the cutest little red-headed stinker in the house. I laugh when I say she is easy going... she is with schedules and meals, etc. She just has this certain evilness about her that worries me. I will probably sit back and chuckle over this entry someday... but c'mon Carly, Philly was not meant to climb onto to get you onto the kitchen counter!

A Few Questions for the Wee Lads

Answers by Caitlin - 7 and Carson - newly 4

1. What is something mom always says to you?
Caitlin - "I love you."
Carson - "Go to the door and see if there is a train coming Carson."

2. What makes mom happy?
Caitlin - "do my chores without you asking"
Carson - "ME"

3. What makes mom sad?
Caitlin - "when we don't listen"
Carson - "when our power goes out"

4. What does your mom do to make you laugh?
Caitlin - "tickle me"
Carson - "you toot"

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Caitlin - "you had red hair"
Carson - "you played with dolls"

6. How old is your mom?
Caitlin - "31"
Carson - "8" but the day before he told Stephanie "60"

7. How tall is your mom?
Caitlin - "72 inches
"Carson - "2"

8. What is your mom's favorite thing to do?
Caitlin - "take naps"
Carson - "wash dishes"

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
Caitlin - "miss me because your helper is not home"
Carson - "clean up"

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Caitlin - "famous figure skater"
Carson - "race car driver"

11. What is your mom really good at?
Caitlin - "always finding anything everyone else cannot"
Carson - "skating"

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Caitlin - "you are good at everything"
Carson - "putting screws in the wall"

13. What does your mom do for a job?
Caitlin - "take care of the three of us and daddy"
Carson - "clean dishes and cook lunch"

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
Caitlin - "hot dogs, no PIZZA"
Carson - "carrots, beans, and milk"

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
Caitlin - "cook the best food in the world"
Carson - "you read to me a lot"

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Caitlin - "Daphne from Scooby Doo"
Carson - "Tom from Tom and Jerry"

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Caitlin - "we read books and play Wii"
Carson - "play games"

18. How are you and your mom the same?
Caitlin - "same eyes"
Carson - "brown hair"

19. How are you and your mom different?
Caitlin - "you are tall I am small"
Carson - "we do not match"

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Caitlin - "you give me presents at times I don't need them"
Carson - "you lay with me"

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Caitlin - "Game night with friends"
Carson - "eat dinner somewhere"

22. What does your mom do for you?
Caitlin - "help me with my homework"
Carson - "read to me"

23. What is the best thing about your mom?
Caitlin - "you are the most loving mother"
Carson - "you make food for all of us" (the way to a man's heart is through his stomach:)

24. What is the worst thing about your mom?
Caitlin - "(laughing) pimples, there is nothing worse about you but your pimples"
Carson - "you stink sometimes"

25. What is your moms favorite thing to do?
Caitlin - "go shopping"
Carson - "eat ice cream"

The Delinquent Blogger, The Trumpet, and The Healer...

Why yes I am a delinquent blogger, thank you. I have everything stored in my giant memory bank, and it is about to explode (for various reasons). We have survived Family Reading Night, then event that I chaired at St. Michael this year. It was a success, and now I may just be able to return to normalcy, whatever that is in this house. Well at least I will have more time to blog.

The kids are doing well. Carson is happy at four, any surprises? He has a new sidekick that makes a tremendous amount of noise. He received a trumpet, a real trumpet, from his grandpa Jeff and Teresa. He loves it, and man can he make some serious music. We were so shocked when he got it because we did not think that he could produce enough wind, we were way off. He has inherited the Davis wind... no stoppin' him. It was a funny thing though because it was damaged in shipment and we had to go through some hoops returning it and getting a new one, but throughout all of it he learned patience. So now he has a steel drum, a saxophone, a trumpet, some cymbals, a piano, a drum, a harmonica, and a recorder. Can I just say, NOISE???

Carson is also spending a lot of time writing on paper, and getting ready for "basketball practice." His imagination runs wild, and I love it. He sits for stories and loves to be read to at night. His love for books has been passed on from his sister. We went shopping at Tractor Supply the other day, he loves that place. He bought a truck and horse trailer and some Breyer horses, all with his birthday money. He was so proud! Today when we went to the children's liturgy at St. Mike's, he was able to wear dress shorts! He LOVES shorts, and when we were on the way home... his most famous line "can I put on basketball shorts?"

Caitlin is zipping right through first grade. The academics don't challenge, but she is learning the challenges of friends. It is the whole tattling age, and "I am not your friend" things that I don't like for her to deal with at school. All facts of life I am sure! I gave her a kiss at school and she wiped her mouth after that, I told her she is not allowed to wipe off my kisses, and she said "I am allowed to wipe of that lipstick." She was Dani's first passenger on Wednesday, Danielle got her license and picked Caitlin up at tennis lessons. She was so excited to get to ride in the car driven by Dani. She has given up chewing gum for Lent, and she doing a GREAT job. She still continues to help with Carly, loves her brother and is highly annoyed by him too!

Carly is CAST FREE! Yeah she no longer has that bulky weapon on her arm. She seems much happier, but still ornery. She continues to mimic everything you say, but carries on conversation with anyone like she is five. We are no longer using the polka dot highchair, she is now at the table with the rest of us. The baby stages are gone and we are becoming a full-fledge toddler. I cannot believe it... the diaper bag is getting smaller too!

The kids went to Fort Rapids Waterpark with Grandma Kathie last weekend. They had a great time with their cousins, Cassie and Tim. Caitlin was independent and off on all the water rides, Carson enjoyed the rides he was tall enough for and Carly is purely a water LOVER! All three of them will be so fun this summer at the pool! Thank you for a fun weekend Grandma!