Saturday, July 05, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Summer Update
Is summer really here? Holy shnikes, I think it is...the kids are out of school, the temps are warming up, and a vacation nears. Hoorah! So, I wanted to get some happenings posted before we head out...SOON! June was busy with festive days at school...I think Eric was too fast and stayed out of Daddy's sight so we didn't get pictures of him then. Jesse had a big exciting graduation day and picnic, officially turning to full school days for next year! Jon suprisingly got a Life Saver Award as well! Report cards were excellent for both and just about the only thing Eric needed to improve on (the record) was his handwriting and he even raised that up! They are smart, quick and amusing much of the time...always keeping us on our toes. Now they have their pedal to the metal with bike riding too!
They went to VBS at our church the week after school in the evenings but had to trade off some nights with baseball games as that came to a close. It wasn't real hot which actually worked out good for that and they both had lots of fun. Jon helped with the opening and closing music some of those evenings and Eric ended up with a solo (sort of). The other boys pointed to him and he made this Elvis kind of sound...I video-ed it so you'll have to check it out sometime.
Anyway, that's our scoop for now...more to come soon!
They went to VBS at our church the week after school in the evenings but had to trade off some nights with baseball games as that came to a close. It wasn't real hot which actually worked out good for that and they both had lots of fun. Jon helped with the opening and closing music some of those evenings and Eric ended up with a solo (sort of). The other boys pointed to him and he made this Elvis kind of sound...I video-ed it so you'll have to check it out sometime.
Anyway, that's our scoop for now...more to come soon!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Bike Riding Fun!
Today we went to the elementary school parking lot to practice bike riding. I even took my bike though it hasn't been used in so long I couldn't get the tires to hold air.
Jesse was off and "running" right away. He has a little bike with training wheels. I moved them up a little bit and he was still going strong. He's not ready to have them off yet (we tried that once) but is having a lot of fun and getting better.
Eric is using a bigger bike with training wheels. He is still very hesitant and leans a lot but we did figure out some positioning issues that helped him out a little bit. After spending some time with that (and Eric getting frustrated more than once) we took a break and played a rousing game of Uno in the back of the Jeep.
After that I decided to move them to the grassy knoll. There is a baseball field at the school and a sloping, grassy area right beside it. I started them out on a gentle slope first and made them do that three times before moving up to the "bunny" slope. This actually seemed to work very well. It allowed them to have some momentum and focus more on just balancing and steering. Eric had been deathly afraid to ride without his training wheels on the level ground. They are not the highest quality and started to bend from riding down the hills. He barely noticed this at first and when he did, I assured him that he had been riding that way for several times and would be fine. In fact, when he wasn't looking, I bent them up more so he wasn't using them at all! (Funny, we were just talking on the way there, about Dumbo and how he didn't really need the "magic feather" to fly and that sooner or later Eric would learn the same thing about his training wheels.)
They both had a great time and there was only one minor crash. Below are two videos showing them riding down the hill. Unfortunately there is a delay when I started to record (using a cell phone) so it comes in when they are half way down the hill, but you'll still get the idea. Jesse was still using the training wheels but was going quite fast and was doing well at balancing. Eric was not using his at all by this time. They are both proud (as am I) and we came home and celebrated by having ice cream sundaes!
Jesse was off and "running" right away. He has a little bike with training wheels. I moved them up a little bit and he was still going strong. He's not ready to have them off yet (we tried that once) but is having a lot of fun and getting better.
Eric is using a bigger bike with training wheels. He is still very hesitant and leans a lot but we did figure out some positioning issues that helped him out a little bit. After spending some time with that (and Eric getting frustrated more than once) we took a break and played a rousing game of Uno in the back of the Jeep.
After that I decided to move them to the grassy knoll. There is a baseball field at the school and a sloping, grassy area right beside it. I started them out on a gentle slope first and made them do that three times before moving up to the "bunny" slope. This actually seemed to work very well. It allowed them to have some momentum and focus more on just balancing and steering. Eric had been deathly afraid to ride without his training wheels on the level ground. They are not the highest quality and started to bend from riding down the hills. He barely noticed this at first and when he did, I assured him that he had been riding that way for several times and would be fine. In fact, when he wasn't looking, I bent them up more so he wasn't using them at all! (Funny, we were just talking on the way there, about Dumbo and how he didn't really need the "magic feather" to fly and that sooner or later Eric would learn the same thing about his training wheels.)
They both had a great time and there was only one minor crash. Below are two videos showing them riding down the hill. Unfortunately there is a delay when I started to record (using a cell phone) so it comes in when they are half way down the hill, but you'll still get the idea. Jesse was still using the training wheels but was going quite fast and was doing well at balancing. Eric was not using his at all by this time. They are both proud (as am I) and we came home and celebrated by having ice cream sundaes!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Now Hear This!
Jesse tends to say this instead of "Listen!" - and often, it is quite a declaration. WOW...have we been busy!?! This has been a jam-packed month, let alone just over this past holiday weekend. First, let me back up to Mother's Day of which I received recognition well beyond my expectations. I not only got to go to a Pens playoff game, but I was also invited to a special school event by Jesse and his class. That was terrific, fun and then there was even more! The boys gave me even more wonderful and creative gifts on that day. Jesse seemed to "monitor" me that day to always make sure I was happy or find out if he could do something to bring even more of a smile to my face - VERY SWEET!!!
The next week, we helped Grammy pick up a friend at the airport so we got to have a short visit with them. After that, Grandma and Grandpa came out for a weekend visit too. Time moved so quickly we didn't even get the camera out for those :( Fortunately, when Eric was in his third grade concert, we did remember to capture some footage of that. He did great playing his recorder and singing. Jesse is always his biggest fan cheering very loud for him.
That brings us to this past weekend --*B*U*S*Y*!!!! Aunt Christie brought the kids down for a long weekend visit. This started off with making some colorful cookies and Joe going to school with Jesse on Friday. They came down to the North Shore that afternoon where I met them for a picnic lunch and then after that, they went to the Science Center (which was kind of like the zoo with so many fieldtrip busloads of kids). The next morning, we actually went to the (real) zoo. Jesse had a game in the afternoon and then we all needed somewhat of a rest/break by Saturday evening. Christie and I went to the Cheesecake Factory. Jon agreed to watch the kids for us to be able to go in exchange for a piece of their cheesecake....DONE DEAL!!! I also agreed to get up early after that and crew for the hot air balloon since the weather had shaped up and at the last minute, I also got to ride for this Sunday morning flight which was calm and beautiful. After that, I returned to our house (which by then I would not describe as calm or beautiful). Shortly after this, my brother came down and we all went to the Science Center which was enough to keep us all busy again. After than, we sort of picnicked as Jon cooked out for us - with yummy BBQ chicken, corn on the cob and watermelon. After a fun (and busy) visit, they all headed back north then to probably try to "relax" for the rest of the holiday weekend. However, we decided to venture out again - this time to the Drive-In movies. We took our s'more maker to enjoy sweet treats as our pre-movie entertainment. Jesse was the first to tire out during the Indiana Jones movie but I was a close second (with being up before 5am for the morning flight). I really wanted to see Made of Honor which was the second movie but just couldn't keep my eyes open enough to do so. Jon was the only one who made it through this double feature event but it was still fun trying. It was a late night, therefore a late morning for us all but today we're just taking it in as a holiday (we actually get two in a row!) and making the most of it with some down home family time. Cheers!
The next week, we helped Grammy pick up a friend at the airport so we got to have a short visit with them. After that, Grandma and Grandpa came out for a weekend visit too. Time moved so quickly we didn't even get the camera out for those :( Fortunately, when Eric was in his third grade concert, we did remember to capture some footage of that. He did great playing his recorder and singing. Jesse is always his biggest fan cheering very loud for him.
That brings us to this past weekend --*B*U*S*Y*!!!! Aunt Christie brought the kids down for a long weekend visit. This started off with making some colorful cookies and Joe going to school with Jesse on Friday. They came down to the North Shore that afternoon where I met them for a picnic lunch and then after that, they went to the Science Center (which was kind of like the zoo with so many fieldtrip busloads of kids). The next morning, we actually went to the (real) zoo. Jesse had a game in the afternoon and then we all needed somewhat of a rest/break by Saturday evening. Christie and I went to the Cheesecake Factory. Jon agreed to watch the kids for us to be able to go in exchange for a piece of their cheesecake....DONE DEAL!!! I also agreed to get up early after that and crew for the hot air balloon since the weather had shaped up and at the last minute, I also got to ride for this Sunday morning flight which was calm and beautiful. After that, I returned to our house (which by then I would not describe as calm or beautiful). Shortly after this, my brother came down and we all went to the Science Center which was enough to keep us all busy again. After than, we sort of picnicked as Jon cooked out for us - with yummy BBQ chicken, corn on the cob and watermelon. After a fun (and busy) visit, they all headed back north then to probably try to "relax" for the rest of the holiday weekend. However, we decided to venture out again - this time to the Drive-In movies. We took our s'more maker to enjoy sweet treats as our pre-movie entertainment. Jesse was the first to tire out during the Indiana Jones movie but I was a close second (with being up before 5am for the morning flight). I really wanted to see Made of Honor which was the second movie but just couldn't keep my eyes open enough to do so. Jon was the only one who made it through this double feature event but it was still fun trying. It was a late night, therefore a late morning for us all but today we're just taking it in as a holiday (we actually get two in a row!) and making the most of it with some down home family time. Cheers!
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