1st Six Weeks Update

Wow, we had an EXTREMELY busy first six weeks of school. I think I've been trained in everything possible. I had to attend training for Junior Achievement, Popcorn Sales, How to be a Catechist, Faith Formation Lesson Planning, and PTA General Leadership Training. I spent lots and lots of hours volunteering both at the school and at home. We also kicked off our scouting year with our Rally Night and first Pack meeting. We also volunteered at the Alzheimer's Walk and had our first den meeting. The weather also cooled down enough for us to make a long overdue trip to the Houston zoo. We're definitely hoping to get back several times this fall.

Thankfully all of us have adjusted to the new morning routine of getting up and getting ready for school. Unfortunately, the boys only catch the bus half the time. I just can't bring myself to wake them up if they were up late the night before. They do ride the bus home ever day so they have that time with their friends. A new traffic light was installed at the intersection where the school is which has made morning drop offs a lot quicker than last year.

John seems to have FINALLY figured out life at the big school. The first few weeks were rough for him. Lots of marks (notes in his folder about which rules were broken that day). Thankfully the last three weeks have been a complete 180 and not a single mark. I think he's having a wonderful time in Kindergarten now that he's figured out how to obey the rules.

James' class had it's own share of upheaval this year. His teacher found out she was ill and decided she couldn't continue the rest of the year. James had a long term sub for a couple of weeks and then a new teacher was found. The parents get to meet her next week which will be lots of fun. I've seen his teacher a couple of times in the hallways and cafeteria and she seems nice.

Jude and Jonah are both doing well with big brothers being gone at school all day. We've settled into a nice little routine. They get up in the morning and they eat breakfast while seeing the older boys off to school. We usually run errands in the morning before Jonah's morning nap. Once he wakes up, they eat lunch and and try to do any other errands before they both go down for a nap around 2. Those 2 hours are my time to get stuff done around the house in peace and quiet. I try to clean or do laundry or work on my Scentsy business while no one is asking me for snacks or drinks.

Well that's about all for now. I'll see what photos we've taken in the last few weeks. Hopefully another update will come before the second six weeks ends.

Jonah's First Birthday

We can hardly believe that our last baby boy is one year old already. Where did the year go?? As much as it was a celebration of his birth, it was also a celebration of us surviving our first year as parents of four. In the last month Jonah has definitely said good-bye to baby food and is officially off formula. He's drinking whole milk bottles three to four times a day. We've had to introduce juice because the milk makes him constipated. I'm hoping we find a good balance of milk, juice and water in the next week. Jonah is making strides towards walking and is now pushing his little rolling toys around. No independent steps yet. He now has four teeth and is working on two more. One interesting thing is that he seems to be getting his top teeth before his bottom ones. All our other boys got bottom teeth before top teeth. Jonah still takes two naps a day although some days he fights either the morning or the afternoon nap and ends up only taking one. Thankfully Jonah is not a paci addict like Jude was and only takes it when it's time to sleep. Jonah spent his first birthday sleeping in and then going to the Picture People to take photos. Afterwards we met up with Daddy for lunch and then home for a good nap. We ate dinner at McDonald's that night so the older boys could play on the playground and Jonah took down two chicken nuggets on his own. He's such a good eater. He also enjoyed some of my strawberry banana smoothie. He had a nice visit with Poppa Mike, Mimi and Aunt Sarah before calling it a night. The next day he got to spend some quality time with Poppa, Gammie and Aunt Jocelyn who gave him a push toy to use at their house.

From August and September Blog Photos

First weeks of school

James and John officially started school on August 22nd. John was really excited to start Kindergarten but James was hoping summer vacation would last a little longer. Jude, Jonah and I walked the boys to school that morning and got them all settled in their classrooms. Afterwards the little boys and I went to the back to school social held in the cafeteria. It was nice to catch up with some of the other moms for a bit before walking back home. The boys both had a great first day and rode the bus home together. The first two weeks have gone well so far. John is still adjusting to the new classroom rules and gets a mark or two each day but I know once he figures it out, he'll be fine just like James. James has only gotten two marks so for. Both for talking. His teacher last year was a talkative person herself but his teacher this year is more reserved so he has to get used to a more calm classroom. All in all, the year is off to a great start. Here are some photos from the first day of school.

From August and September Blog Photos

From August and September Blog Photos

From August and September Blog Photos

From August and September Blog Photos

Jonah at 11 months

Well, actually 11 and a half months. Sorry for being so late with this post. Jonah's word for month 11 is TEETH!!! He now has four of them!!! Two on top and two on bottom. Unfortunately, teething seems to be quite painful for Jonah and I have to give him Tylenol far more often than I did any of the other boys. Another new development this month has been the end of baby food. He wants absolutely nothing to do with it. Now he just gets small bites of whatever we're eating. He loves cheese, graham crackers, and macaroni and cheese the most but will eat just about anything we serve him. He's also become very vocal about what he wants and doesn't want. He's quite the opinionated baby boy. I recently moved Jonah up to size 18 month clothes as his pajamas were getting a bit short. It feels like just yesterday Jude was wearing those same exact clothes. Then I remember, it was just a short 15 months ago. There's not much more going on in Jonah's world other than his big brothers are heading back to school in a week so things will be a lot calmer at home. No major steps towards walking. He does like to push things around and walk behind them but no unassisted steps yet.

Niagara Falls

We closed out our vacation with a quick drive up to Niagara Falls, NY before going back to Cleveland, OH to catch our plane home. The falls were AMAZING!!! Just an incredible sight to see. We did the Maid of the Mist boat ride and wore the blue ponchos to keep ourselves from getting soaked. I must admit I had no idea there were American falls and Canadian falls. I just thought there was the horseshoe and that was it. The American falls were very beautiful with all the rocks at the bottom. We were kind of on the side of the boat so we didn't get a great view of the horseshoe but it was incredible seeing that huge waterfall. Afterward the boat ride we decided to take a nice walk to the little island between the two falls and eat at the restaurant there. It was called Top of the Falls and we had a great view of none other than the top of the horseshoe falls. It was kind of a long walk so we opted to take the trolley back to the main attraction area. As many of you know, Brian is an aquarium nut so of course we had to check out the aquarium they had there. It was slightly disappointing but best to see it than regret skipping it. By the time we made it back to the car, the lines to get back into the US from Canada were long and very slow moving so we decided crossing the border wasn't worth the risk of missing our flight home. We then began the long drive back through NY and PA on into OH. It was a fantastic trip and the boys got to cross 4 states off their lists. The flight home got delayed (issue with the brakes) so we got home later than expected. We were all finally home and in bed around 2 am Monday morning. Everyone slept in the following morning and slowly got the day started. We wanted to say a HUMONGOUS thank you to my parents for keeping Jude and Jonah for a whole week so we could have an easier time traveling.

Kristen and Darren's Wedding

Thursday morning we hopped back in the car and began the long drive to Pennsylvania. We definitely took the long way there but it was worth it to drive through a small section of West Virginia. The terrain there was incredible. Lots of gorgeous hills and deep valleys. We ate lunch in Wheeling, WV so we have officially visited the state. We made it to our hotel near Grove City around 3 that afternoon. We unloaded the car and then headed to Darren's Uncle Dave's house where they were setting up the tent and getting ready for the wedding. We visited for a little bit and got to meet lots of Darren's family members. We then parted ways for our Bachelor and Bachelorette evenings. Kristen and I dropped of the boys with all the other kids and headed to dinner with the ladies while Brian and Darren headed out to the lake for a gathering with the guys. Lots of fun was had by all that evening.

Friday was spent running around getting last minute things for the wedding as well as setting up tables and chairs for the next day. Even though we were missing some key members of the wedding party, somehow we managed to start the rehearsal on time with everyone there. And we were done in 45 minutes!!! A storm was blowing in so even though we could have walked to the restaurant (just down the hill from Uncle Dave's house) we all drove. Dinner was super yummy and everyone enjoyed relaxing after a long, incredibly hot day.

Saturday morning bright and early, Kristen and Darren's friend, Tom, arrived to pick me up at the hotel. She had arranged a spa day for us that included a facial (a first for me), a massage, a pedicure and manicure followed by lunch and then having our hair done for the wedding. We had a fantastic time. We almost never get to do anything just the two of us. After we finished, Tom picked us up and took us to Darren's grandparents house to get changed and all ready for the wedding. Kristen was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen. The dress was absolutely perfect!! Being the super efficient moms/engineers that we are, we actually finished early and just hung around a bit before driving over to Uncle Dave's for the wedding. The ceremony went off without a hitch and I even managed to hold in the tears. Everyone there was so happy to see Kristen and Darren become husband and wife. The reception was lots of fun. Some of the guys grilled up burgers and hot dogs and we had a bunch of side dishes. Thankfully Dave and Sherry have a pool so the kids could keep cool. James swam for four hours straight and actually missed eating dinner. Once the sun went down, the guys broke out the fireworks. It was lots of fun but the heat had really taken it's toll and we had to call it quits around 9:30. Thankfully there was a McDonald's just down the street from our hotel so we picked up some food for the boys. We all showered and finally called it a night around 11. It was a long and exhausting day (it was so hot and humid) but we couldn't have been happier to be there to witness the marriage of wonderful friends.

Ohio visit

Ever since we got married, Brian has been talking about taking a trip to Ohio to see the ancestral Hadley farm. With Kristen and Darren's wedding taking place in PA, we decided to leave a few days early so we could spend some time in Ohio. During his preparations, Brian got in touch with a cousin of his dad's who now lives and takes care of the Hadley farm. They graciously hosted Brian, James, John and I for two nights and took us to all the important sites in and around Wilmington. We had a wonderful time getting to know Christine and her husband Gene. They took us to the cemetery and showed us where all of Brian's ancestors are buried. We also got to see the Friends of Springfield Meeting House (Quaker). After that we headed to the Hadley farm which Christine and her sisters care for. It is a state historical site and is very much like a museum/heritage center. We got to see some great old farm equipment in the barn and lots of old photos, clothes, and other household items the Hadleys of old used in their everyday lives. This was actually the home that Christine and her sisters grew up in. It was so great to see actual photos of Brian's ancestors as well as the clothes they wore and the tools they used to run their farm. Once we finished up there, it was time for lunch so we headed into town to eat and then toured Wilmington College where Christine was on the board for several years. Again, we got to learn more about the Quaker religion and about the Hadley family. Once we finished up there, we went to visit one of Christine's sisters who lives in the house that Grandpa Hadley grew up in!! It was so need to be sitting in the same house he lived in before moving to Arizona. Brian even got to take home a brick from the basement. After a lovely visit with her, it was time to get cleaned up and head to Christine's other sister's house for dinner. Again, we had a wonderful visit and had a great time getting to know them. They have all had such interesting lives and it was great to meet them. I know we are looking forward to another visit in a few years once Jude and Jonah are old enough to appreciate the history.