Richard's birthday

Richard is now 6! It's so fun to see the progress he's making.We did some fun activities the day before since his birthday was on a Sunday. We went miniature golfing, which he was so excited about. He was upset that I dared to add other activities to the day. We also ate at McDonalds.

His favorite birthday present was a Lego set.

He's already had a lot of fun with this game.

He wanted a strawberry cake with strawberries in the shape of a target. You can't tell, but there's a lone strawberry in the middle of the cake behind the candle.

We had my mom at the house for the day. Some extended family came for cake and fun.

Labor Day

We went up the canyon close to where I grew up for Labor Day and got together with my cousins. Only in a small town do I think kids would have the chance to meet and play with their 3rd cousins. We had a great time! My kids loved a swing someone tied to a tree and asked to go on it over and over. Marie was the most excited by that.

Peter found the Cheetos and pulled them off the table. 

All my kids were quite taken with the four-wheeler. I'm sure they would love it if we got one. However, I've seen way too many wicked accidents by very experienced riders as I've worked in the ICU. One night when I was the charge nurse, we had 4 ATV accidents admitted. I don't mind if they ride once in a while, but I don't want to own them.

soccer

Richard is playing soccer right now. His last game is this next week. He's had SO MUCH FUN! He loves to go. I don't think he really knows more than that he needs to kick the ball in the goal. However, he does his very best. He's not very assertive and certainly not the largest kid. However, he tries as hard as his little heart can. I'm so glad he's had a good experience.

First days of school

My kids started school. Just like everyone else's kids. Richard has fun at kindergarten but says he isn't learning anything. He probably is and it's just cleverly hidden in fun activities.

Audrey is ecstatic to finally be in school after watching Richard go to preschool for two years. Her teachers have complimented her ability to write. They could tell I've been working with her.

I love having my kids in school, because they get along better when they're not with each other all day every day. I love going shopping with just two kids.

bathrooms

You know what I HATE?! The size of a child's bladder. It gives only a moments notice when it needs to be emptied, and it must be emptied NOW! Regardless of the fact a bathroom was conveniently located 2 minutes earlier. Regardless of the fact it is no longer in any way convenient to go back to said bathroom. It must be emptied NOW! There is something to be said for diapers...

smiles

You know what makes me smile?
Hearing my three-year-old and one-year-old say "Go Richard!" during a soccer game. Repeatedly. Very loud. We may be noisy, but at least he has cheerleaders!

Houston

We traveled to Houston to visit Scott's parents. I was amazed at how well the kids did in the car! I was expecting all kinds of mutiny. However, the DVD system that came with our car was totally worth the extra cost! We watched/listened to movies almost the entire drive. What a life saver!

We played in their pool. The kids had a lot of fun! I could tell improvements in their confidence and ability from the first day to the last day of our trip. Marie and Peter were very timid the first day and it took a lot of encouragement to get them to stay in the water. By the last day, they required almost one-on-one supervision, because they wouldn't even stay on the shallow ledge. They couldn't balance well in their life jackets, and so they needed an adult to keep them safe. Marie was especially fearless.

Marie would gather every floating device should could hold in her arms.
Notice the one on her wrist that is WAY too big.

Peter loved to go for rides.

I went to my brother's white coat ceremony to start off medical school. I was glad I could represent our family.

He's getting his coat here.

We also went to Galveston. The air and the water were so much warmer than the Pacific! The sand burned our feet. Peter hated the water in the Pacific, but he would crawl around in the water in the Gulf. They all had a great time! We got extremely sandy, but that's what happens at the beach.

We went to the Space Center. Marie and Peter were a little young for the experience, but Richard and Audrey seemed excited to be seeing space stuff. 

We went to the Children's Museum. We had to divide and conquer, because Marie and Peter were too young for most of the exhibits. Richard and Audrey were too old for the Tot area. I don't have any pictures of Marie and Peter, because they were with Scott's parents.

We went to a nearby park with water features. The kids had fun with that until Richard got stung by a fire ant and then was paranoid about getting stung again.

Scott's parents wanted to do a birthday party for the kids since they can't ever be there for the actual day. So, we went to Target and the kids picked out their presents. Then we had my brother and his wife over for dinner and we went swimming. The next day, we played Pin the Tail and had a silly string fight.

Remember this? This was Peter's response to his first birthday cake.

Yea, he got over the fear of cake! He ate cupcakes as fast as we would give them to him!

So, we had a great trip!