Spring Soccer

Yes, spring soccer ended ages ago, but I am slow on the photo uploading, so there ya go.

Let's start with Ben. His season actually started when it was about 50 degrees out and raining. I didn't take a lot of pics. Toward the end of the season, as the weather warmed and the rain stopped, I took my hands out of my rain coat pockets. I actually got out the camera and caught this one. I like it because, despite this kid's size, immediately after I hit the button, Ben stole the ball. Yes:)


However, he got tired of being the smallest kid out there. Tired of the weather. Tired of the practices. And kind of tired of soccer in general. He says there will be no more soccer in his future, but he may change his mind this fall. We shall see.

Will and Kate played soccer too. There was usually a game between their games, and we often spent about 3 hours at the field on Saturday mornings.

Will is really intense about his soccer.

After two years of waiting, Kate finally got to play. She had a ball. She also liked posing for pictures.

And in between the games, Ben and I did a lot of this:

We had a great soccer season. All three kids played hard and learned a lot. Well done, guys!

School's Out, School's Out

Yes, I know I should have posted this like three weeks ago or something, but for some reason, I can't get any writing done with 3+ kids in the house. Of course, it could've had something to do with some new books I was reading (ok, obsessed with). And the one week that the kids were at the grandparents' and I could write? My computer crashed. So, yeah, my writing took a back seat. It happens.

But back to my topic: School's Out!

I know I am supposed to say, "I can't believe another school year has come and gone," but that would be a lie. Because I think this was the longest school year ever. Between my babysitting schedule, the homework assignments that never seemed to change, and a desire for warm weather in all of our hearts, we would have to say that summer was way over-due.


It would, however, be true to say that I can't believe how much my children have grown and learned this year.

Kate NaNa has now decided she is Kate. Not Kathryn. Not Katie. Not NaNa. Not any combination of the above. Just Kate. I am sure it is a phase, but if I use anything else she asks, "Why are you calling me that?"

Her end of the year program was a on a day that I was working, so Tim, Will, and I took Mr. O, Mr. A, and Miss O (ages 1,2,&3) to hear Kate sing. You can tell by the photo how thrilled she was to stand up in front of a crowd of strangers and sing about jungle animals.

"You want me to do motions? You have got to be kidding me."

Her certificate stated that she wants to be a firefighter when she grows up. I assumed that she picked that career because it was the first one she thought of, but I could be wrong. In the past few weeks she has told me no less than a dozen times how she and her friend, Vanessa, are both going to be firefighters and live at the fire house. I suppose we shall see.

Her teacher and SLP both raved about how far she has come in terms of her ability to communicate with adults and peers. Plus, on her report card she scored "Mastery" in every single preschool skill. She asked if that meant she could go ahead and go to kindergarten next year since she already knows everything. It's a wonder she Will don't share genetic code.

Speaking of Will, he wrapped up his kindergarten year, receiving the "Loving to Write" award. He is reading easy reader books, and carries around a stack of Wimpy Kid books everywhere he goes, just like his brother.

He is still a huge help to me with the small children. When they are sad, he cheers them up. When they are thirsty, he finds their sippy cup. They adore him.

Ben didn't have an end-of-year program, so I don't have any photos, but he is still reading and writing and drawing comics like crazy. He got the "Whoppers Award" for his class. That means he loves to make up and tell stories. And no, in this case that is not a euphemism for big fat lies. He still wants to be an author when he grows up. He will be a third grader in the fall, and is obsessed with Transformers and Star Wars, as he should be.

And now is the part where I am supposed to talk about how we have two whole months to relax and do nothing, except for the fact that we are down to about six weeks of vacation. But I plan on squeezing in as much relaxing and doing nothing as is humanly possible. Wish me luck.

The Garden

It won't be long now:)

I Do Know Everything

I could've sworn I told this story before, but I can't seem to find it. Regardless, it always makes me laugh, and it speaks volumes about my son's personality.

I was terrible at potty training my boys. I thought I was a good mother until I attempted to teach my them to use the toilet, but that's when I discovered the truth. My children had only been allowing me to think I was in charge. In reality, they and their bodily functions were in control.

As with anything Will does, potty training involved lots of discussion (aka, arguments). One day we were standing next to the toilet having one such discussion. He was telling me I was wrong in my description of some finer point of his bathroom use. At some point I threw up my hands in exasperation and said, "Fine! You're right. You know everything, don't you?"

He got this really thoughtful expression on his face as though a brand new thought had just occurred to him. "Huh. I do know everything!"