My boys are both in school...so sad!

My almost 5 years old started Kindergarten today! He was happy to go and see his friends and new teachers. I wasn't worried about his drop off at all. Jack, on the other hand, I was so anxious. He is going to the Toddler Program at GLTW. Because of his birthday he can't start pre-school yet, but I think more socializing with kids will be good and help with his speech. Hunter started pre-school at about the same age, minus a month, but they are both on opposite sides of the cut-off date. He will come home after lunch for a nap before they we have to pick Hunter up. It's so cool to see what Jack will learn this year...Keeping with the Montessori philosophy there are no "toys" in the classroom. He will learn to set the table, clean up after himself, toilet training more consistently (YAY!), baking, shapes, colors, letters, numbers, etc. This morning I made Nick go with me b/c I didn't want to do it alone in case there were tears (either me or him). It went very well. I think he was in the classroom and we were gone before he realized we were not there. We said bye and he said bye and off he went! I went back with our nanny to pick him up b/c I wanted to see him and see how things went. I spied on him for a minute and he was playing happily. They said he cried a few times off and on, but he found a teacher to cuddle with and read with and he calmed down...so far so good! We'll see what tomorrow brings. 

 Daddy made breakfast with eggs and toast...and kiwi :)

 Hunter's first day of school breakfast :)

 I just wanted a nice picture, but Hunter wanted to stick out his tongue...so whatever! 

 Big brother is so funny, so he copies him...I kept asking Jack about school and he would make his "no" noise (sounds like uh-uh) and shakes his head. I'm kind of glad he makes that noise rather than shouting no at me.

 There was mass chaos on Plymouth Road this morning making us almost late when we should have been 10 minutes early for pictures....darn. It was one lane, I had to go a different way, and I was very stressed. Everyone who knows me well knows I do NOT like to be late. I like to be five minutes early. My sister and I are both very punctual due to having a mother who is perpetually late (hope she doesn't read this!) ha. I was freaking out needless to say. A few rushed pictures while trying to get lunch boxes, backpacks, forms, sunscreen on, etc...oh well. 

 Jack's backpack is so big for him...he likes to carry it though. 

We dropped Hunter off outside with his teachers b/c they all lined up out there on the first day, but we take Jack into his classroom. Last year and years prior I always used the car line drop off which is super convenient, but this year I will just take both kids in to their classrooms. It will for sure take me a few extra minutes each day. 

This was from late last week when he got to visit his teacher and classroom for a few minutes.

My babies are growing up!! Lots of things to think about for Hunter--he'll be in first grade before I know it and have to decide on which direction to go for him. Hoping and praying for a successful year and kids who enjoy their class and teachers. 

 

Fifteen minutes of fame and some other cute pictures

This morning we had a really cool opportunity to have the kids be in an upcoming clothing catalog. My Urban Toddler is coming out with their fall catalog and Hunter and Jack will both be in it!! I know the owner b/c we belong to the same pool and our kids play together a lot (our nannies are good friends and her nanny used to be our nanny), so she asked if we would want to do it. The other neat thing was that the boy in the upper left of the picture below is Rosa's neighbor, but also in Hunter's class! Small world. Anyway, they had three outfit changes and lots of pictures. I can't wait to see how it comes out. Here is my low quality cell phone picture of one of the outfits, but I'll for sure be posting the final ones once I see them. I'm SO excited!! 

 Sometimes Jack is not that photogenic although of course I think he's adorable...but he did really good for these pictures!! 

 Here is my cutie pie blowing bubbles on me the other night :) I love his facial expressions! 

  Trying so hard! 

Yay, I did it! 

 This kid also LOVES "Sally" at Meijer. I hate going to Meijer with a passion. The one by us is somewhat ghetto, the employees seem to move at 2mph, and I just can't stand it there. I can bribe Jack to be good while I shop if he knows he can ride the horse afterwards! 

 This is awesome! 

 

A good day

Just being honest....my kids don't usually play that well together. The fact that Jack is still not talking a ton (although MUCH improved recently) and Hunter just "doesn't like having a little brother" makes life difficult at times. The last two days have been good though! Hunter seems to want to engage more with Jack, share with him, and boss him around--and Jack happily obliges. Last night Nick had to show some people one of our rentals, so the kids and I were on our own for dinner and part of the evening. We had fun--a make believe car wash in the driveway. I was the "supervisor" and they were my "workers".

 We brought out some bikes and tractors to wash...

 Hunter took his job seriously. 

My car was parked in the garage, but Jack kept going in and trying to wash it, so I pulled it out and let them go at it. It's about time they earn their keep around here! 

I asked Hunter what he charges for a car wash and he said "Eight pennies". I told him that was a great deal and he should charge $5. 

All of our stuff out to dry...

 Speaking of getting paid, Nick gives Hunter a penny for each weed that he pulls. I can't pull weeds b/c of my back, so Nick has to do it all...or enlist the kids for help. Hunter had about 50 pennies here and wanted to put them in his piggy bank. Then Jack wanted to help. I wasn't thrilled about the money being on the high chair, but I didn't want to ruin a good thing (i.e. sharing and playing together nicely). 

Hunter was trying to give away his pennies to Jack and I told him it should not give away his money--unless it's to church or charity (or given homeless people like Nick enjoys making fun of me for!)

 In other not-so-good news....I think we have two nail biters. Both kids have started doing this. I clipped their nails super short to try to make them stop, but no luck yet. Yuck. I suppose I should not be surprised since Nick and I both grew up biting our nails. It drives me nuts though!!! 

 

Grand Haven with the family--minus Hunter

We went to Grand Haven for the weekend and had a great time! We left on Friday early afternoon...Nick took Hunter to meet his mom and he stayed with Gammy Dori for the weekend. Nick, Jack and I went to meet my parents at their boat in Grand Haven. We wanted to stay on the boat and it's just impossible to do with both boys at their ages. I feel slightly guilty about this, but Hunter had fun at Gammy's and we didn't even tell him where we were (and he didn't ask, so we didn't even lie!)

Jack and I slept in the spare room on the boat, Nick ended up (passed out??) on the couch, and it worked out just great. Friday night we took the dingy over to the boardwalk, ate dinner, and got some popcorn (see below). Saturday we went to breakfast, took Jack to the splash pad area, the beach, went for a nice long boat ride, went to the pig roast at the marina, and then went to get ice cream--and roasted marshmallows...fun day! Sunday we went out on Lake Michigan for a nice ride (the water was really choppy on Saturday so we went to Spring Lake instead of Lake Michigan). Thanks mom and dad for having us--we had a lot of fun!! Thanks Gammy Dori for taking Hunter--it made our weekend easier and he had a great time!! 

These are the pictures from my iphone....I have more on my camera whenever I find time to upload them.

 Jack had fun eating lots and lots of marshmallows!

 Sunday we left around noon and Jack was asleep in the car within 20 minutes. 

My mom and I sat out on the front of the boat on Saturday and watched this huge barge come in...it was so neat (I have better pictures on my camera). These boats are SO huge and amazing to see right up close. 

 We went to this neat little popcorn place on Friday night. My dad is obsessed with it and wants to open one in Brighton (or in his shop). They have lots of flavors and we bought the most popular one called "fruit salad". It tastes like popcorn dipped in candy. It was yummy! I brought some home and this kept the kids quiet last night after baths before bed. 

It looks gross, but it is oh-so-good. Seriously. You just have to take my word. I'm sure my kids will get at least one cavity from this, but I'm sure they would think it was worth it. ha. 

Fall Ball!

Hunter starts "fall ball" tonight. They practice on Wednesday nights for an hour and then have a "big game" on September 29th. As I was thinking about it, I realized I never posted these pictures from the June 23rd game! I didn't have my camera (b/c it was being replaced), so these are all from my phone. My mom took pictures, but not sure I'll get those, so here are mine :)

Hunter and Nana before his game...

 Up to bat! 

He has quite the audience of people who love him! 

Nick and I were there along with Jack, Nana, Grandpa, Emily, Gigi, and of course Emily's dog (Madison). 

I think this is a good picture of my mom and Gigi :)

We made it! Happy Anniversary :)

Today is our 8 year anniversary. We started dating in May of 1999 and got married in August 2004. Time flies when you are (or not?) having fun. I think back to when we first met...so in love, not a care in the world! SO MUCH has changed--good and not-so-good. A house, two kids, stressful jobs, and a LOT of responsibility. I won't lie, it's been a tough year (not so much the seven year itch, but the 7  "our kids are crazy year"). We joke and promise to never leave each other b/c neither of us wants to raise the kids alone!! The kids and issues with them that we've had this year have taken a toll. I hope to look back in five years and say "we did it!!" I'm sure we will. It's tough when you have a lot on your plate, a stressful job, my back issues--especially with surgery this year, and come home to a stressful environment with kids who have a ton of energy. Don't get me wrong, we have a really good life. Things could be a lot worse and I try to pray and keep that in perspective. We live in our dream house, have mostly healthy kids, good jobs, family, etc. We don't have a lot of family help lately which I've realized over this past year is a real struggle for us. We have to hire a lot of help.  I'm not trying to have a pity party or play victim, but it's not easy right now. I feel like we have so much going on and it's hard for me to find babysitters that I can leave the kids with. We had our kids and they are ours, so I am not trying to pass off things onto other people, but I won't lie and say I'm not extremely JEALOUS of the friends who have A LOT of family help. I wish my mother-in-law lived closer b/c she is retired and could help us more. My parents are just really busy with work and travel a lot. We are not quitters and I know things will get easier. I still remember my surgeon telling me (he has three boys) that if we can make it through these few years we'll be good to go. We just keep chugging along! We need to have more date nights b/c things are good when we can go have fun together. I know I'm just typing this on a tough day as the last five days I've been going at 110% all day long. But then again, I signed up for this work and kid thing, so I shouldn't feel sorry for myself! How come no one tells you BEFORE you have kids how hard it is???? It is crazy b/c last night I had a dream that I was not working anymore and life was all peaches and cream...and I know it wouldn't be, but it would be a little less stressful.
There is no one I'd rather be going through this craziness with....Nick is awesome about giving me a break (aka "mommy time out") when I need one. I am more emotional, stressed, anxious, and add pain issues into it, and I'm sure I'm not the easiest person to live with! I love you Nick!!! Can't wait for our date tonight!!!!!!!

Just some random stuff

We had a very busy weekend! I got home from a CRAZY work day on Friday at 4:30 pm and had to leave again at 5pm to go to a fundraiser with Nick. We sort of had a "date" night I guess you could call it, with a lot of other people. I bid on a cool piece of art and it looks really cool in our dining room :) Saturday I picked up my anniversary gift to myself (8 years tomorrow!!!). Nick bought his own gift and I bought my own gift, so we are even and just going out to dinner tomorrow night, thanks to Groupon. Ha! He got a car in June and I got a new ring that I am in love with. I didn't know these were our anniversary gifts until a few days ago by the way. I should have waited till after our anniversary to get the ring and then he would have had to get me something! I won't complain though. Then after I picked that up on Saturday my mom came over for a bit, took Hunter to a bday party at Jump City, went to the movies, and it was bedtime. Yesterday we did the usual with church, I met a friend for lunch, and then went to the pool with my parents....Go go go....way too much these past few days. 

 Here is Hunter at his friend's birthday party. Christian goes to GLTW and they seem to talk about each other a lot, so we wanted to go to his party. Plus Hunter LOVES Jump City. It was cute b/c the mom said "Sorry, most everyone here is Korean". It's totally cool with us. Hey, Hunter plays with a boy, En-ling, two doors down who doesn't speak English, but I guess boys playing doesn't require them to speak the same language anyway! Check out Hunter's face...he was totally drenched in sweat and red face. The kid does not take a break. 

 Hunter on the way home from Jump City. I opened the car doors and let him sleep at home. It was cool out, so don't worry. 

 We went to the pool last night...this is my goofy child. 

 Julie filled up a little pool and put soap in it the other day....he's pretending to be Santa. 

 Julie took Jack to meet up with Allison and Monica at County Farm park...I can't get over how cute they are!!! 

 I would like to plan their wedding now...

This was at our family reunion a few weeks ago. Jack fell asleep on the way there and we put him in Aunt Emily's bed where he slept for several hours. It was so cute!

Well, Nick and I made it through the "7 year itch" as "they" call it...as long as we make it through the day today. More on that tomorrow. It's been a heck of a year, but we did it--ha!