4th of July

The other morning Sydney was insistent that she eat cereal with milk on the couch.  They can have cereal on the couch but not with milk.  She was crying non stop. Austin say her upset and came up with a solution on his own.  He got her baby dolls and the baby doll high chair from upstairs and we were all going to sit at the little table.  Brian was already running late for work but he felt bad for me so he went to get the milk.  The milk jug slipped out of his hands and landed on the floor.  The milk jug split open and milk was everywhere.  It was a a mess!  Sydney continued to cry uncontrollably.  We were not happy.  Brian stayed and cleaned it all up (which required us to pull out the fridge to get underneath it).  Austin was sad he didn't have anymore milk.  Oh what a morning!

The beginning of the summer has been cool and wet.  It rained almost everyday in June.  I haven't minded too much that it's been cool but that doesn't give us much swimming time.  We have been able to get in some Wild Water swimming but not as much as usual.  Hopefully it will warm up.

Sydney doesn't like taking naps.  Many days she will not nap for me.  Or when she does, it takes me over an hour to get her to sleep.  That drives me crazy.  I need that hour to get something done.  So now I let her play in her room if she insists.  She is crankier in the evenings but I can't do it.  Probably in the fall or winter sometime Austin is going to have to give up his naps.  When that happens, she won't be taking naps either.

The Sunday before the 4th of July are always Fairlawn's fireworks.  That is our favorite firework show in the area.  We know where to park and get there and listen to the band.  The kids run around and play with their glow sticks.  Then we watch fireworks.  We had a great night.

The Friday before the 4th I worked.  It was a good day for me to work. Brian and my mom were home with the kids.  They all had a good day.

On the 4th of July, we went to the Stow Parade.  It's may favorite parade.  I always went growing up.  Brian and I found a great place to sit and have been bringing the kids to it for 3 years now.  We get donuts in the morning.  The parade hands out so much candy it's crazy.  The kids really enjoy it.  Then that night, we went to Solon for the fireworks.  Where we watch them, there's a lot of playgrounds around.  The kids love that.  They play on them for an hour before the fireworks show.  We had a great holiday week!

Austin and Sydney have a pretend friend named Sony Pie.  It developed last year at Sesame Place's hotel.  Austin would say that Sony Pie was out in the hallway.  They are interacting with him a little it more.  His name comes up about once a week.  Austin told me that Sony Pie is seeing fireworks after we see the this year.  I had a lot of pretend friends growing up.  It will be interesting to see if Austin and Sydney do too.

The kids played T-ball for the first time this year.  It was difficult for us because of the Cavs games.  I was Austin's coach which was nice for me and Austin but was harder for Brian and poor Sydney would be left alone with her team at times so Brian could get a picture of Austin.  The kids fields were far apart and we were often racing out of there to get to a Cavs game downtown.  I don't think I will do coaching again when both kids are playing at the same time.  They only had 4 games this year because of the rain too.  It has been a very raining summer.  Brian did not mind since he is not a fan of baseball at all, but the kids enjoyed it.

Sesame Place

One of our favorite trips last year was Sesame Place.  We went in June and it worked out great.  With the Cavs in the finals and us hoping there would be a parade this year it was hard to plan Seasme Place.  I finally decided on a weekend that the price was reasonable but knew there could be a chance we would need to cancel it depending on the Cavs.  Since the Cavs ended up loosing before the deadline to cancel, our trip went on as scheduled.

The next issue with it was the weather.  It has been a very wet summer so far.  The weekend we went, a topical depression was coming up from Texas.  It was supposed to rain all day Sunday.  We decided to leave early on Saturday and spend Saturday evening in the park to make up for what we may miss on Sunday.  By some miracle, it only rained Saturday night for 8 hours while we were sleeping.  We had no rain, just it was very hot and humid.

We left around 8 am on Saturday.  We arrived around 3 pm to our hotel.  It was about 30 minutes away from Sesame Place.  It was a very nice Holiday Inn Express.  After we checked in, we went to Burger King for dinner.  The kids were being rotten.  They were excited about getting to the park.  After a quick dinner, we went to the park.  The weather was perfect, cloudy and warm.  The kids rode some rides.  Then we watched the night parade.  The night time parade is awesome.  The kids love it!

Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel.  Austin enjoyed using the pancake making machine.  He would push the button and a pancake would be made.  After breakfast, we went to the park.  In the morning, it wasn't too busy.

 The kids rode on amusement rides.  Austin loves the roller coaster.  He rode that over 10 times during the weekend.  Sydney liked flying rockets, flying Elmo's, and the flying swings. She was scared to try the swings but we tried it with her and she loved it.  Austin and Sydney also enjoyed going down the slides there.  Brian and I only let them do that for a while because they can do that at home.  Finally we convinced them to ride other things.

In the afternoon, it was hot.  Then we went to the water park side.   The kids liked the lazy river.  It was nice because the inter tubes were their size.  Then we convinced Sydney to ride the big rubber duck slide with us.  She was a little scared at times but in the end she even said it was a "little fun" (although we couldn't convince her to ride it again).  Then the kids played in the smaller water slide area with the big bucket.  The only issue was the pavement was extremely hot and rocky.  Next year, I'm bring water shoes to walk from area to area.

After the water park, we had dinner. We rode some rides.  Then it was time for the nighttime parade again.  It was a fun day.

Monday was the hottest day.  We knew that going into the trip.  We planned to see some shows and send more time in the water park.  Again in the morning we rode rides while the lines were not long.  Then we saw a show.  Sydney just loved it especially seeing Elmo.  Sydney really likes Elmo!  Austin was just okay with it.  He was getting tired and hungry so that didn't help.  Then we had some lunch.

After lunch we went to the water park.  This time Brian took Austin on some bigger water slides.  It was 3 ft deep at the bottom of the slide.  Brian was nervous about that because Austin can't swim.  He watched other kids do it.  The lifeguard comes closer when asked and it worked out fine.  We were impressed that Austin did it.  He rode it 3 times.  Austin really enjoys more adventurous rides.  Sydney not so much.  We hung out in the little slide area with about 3 bathroom breaks in between.

After the water park, Sydney took a nap.  Austin couldn't fall asleep.  They kept making announcements about lost children.  It's actually interesting because even after being home for a few weeks Austin can recite that announcement verbatim.

We had to wake Sydney up from her nap for our character dinner.  That did not go over too well with Sydney.  She was slow to wake up.  The character dinner was okay however I enjoyed it better last year.  It was a mess because they changed our seats after we had already setup and were getting food.  Then Abby came over early at our new location and we were not quite ready, but it worked out.  I'm not sure next year we are going to do the character meal.  I guess it will depend on if Sydney still really enjoys the characters.

After dinner, we decided to leave.  It had been a busy 2.5 days.  Austin really wanted to swim in the hotel pool.  It was his choice on whether to see the parade again or go swimming at the hotel.  He chose swimming.  After swimming, we even took the kids for ice cream,  We ended up at Friendly's. Per Austin's request, we ate inside.  It ended up to be a very nice evening.

It was a great weekend in Sesame Place.  I highly recommend it for anyone with young kids.

Cavs in the Finals (4.4 years and 2.85 years)

The post season with the Cavs has been a lot of fun.  Austin and Sydney has really enjoyed it too. The Cavs being in the finals was awesome and exhausting.  All the home games did not start until 9pm.  A few away games started at 8 pm.  We took the kids to the watch parties.  It was a great opportunity for them to see the finals without the cost and really late nights.

The Cavs do a great job with the watch parties.  We really enjoy Fred McLeod and Austin Carr doing the commentary.  The kids get to get their hair painted and a Cavs tattoo.  The love all the snacks they get.  The snacks really help them be able to watch the entire game.  I find it amazing that a 2 and 4 year old can watch the entire game.  They have never watched an entire movie at one sitting yet but they can watch the Cavs game.

During the timeouts, the entertainment at the Q is just like regular games.  The have the T-Shirt toss.  Brian was holding Austin and a t-shirt was thrown right at Austin.  Brian was nervous if Austin was going to be able to catch it himself.  This was Austin's opportunity to get it.  If he dropped it, likely someone would get it.  Luckily Austin caught it himself.  He was so proud.  And so were we!

The watch party ended up going into overtime.  Austin started to fall asleep a little bit but Sydney was still pretty awake.  Brian told Austin if they won, he would be able to give strangers high fives.  Austin was really excited about that.  The Cavs ended up winning and Austin and Brian went all over the Q giving people high fives!

Brian and I went to all the home finals games ourselves.  Luckily our neighbor was able to watch the kids.  Since the games were so late, it worked out well for everyone.  The kids had fun with her and her kids.  

We were really sad the Cavs did not win the finals.  But given the injuries to Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, it was impressive they made it so far.  It's great to live in Cleveland and be able to experience this. It was great family memories.  We can't wait to see what next year brings!

Our local library has a summer time reading program.  I read to the kids for at least 20 minutes a day and then the kids color in a clock.  Then each week, they get a prize, a popsicle, and a coupon for food somewhere.  The kids really love doing this.  They enjoy reading and picking out their books.  Now when I take the kids to the doctors I bring lots of library books.  We just sit and lobby or room just reading the books.  They are so good.  Before when I didn't have anything for them to do they would torment each other, scream or run around.  Now we just sit there and read.  It makes me so happy!  I'm so grateful for our great library and getting the kids to enjoy reading so much.

Last summer, we we were so desperate to get Austin to poop in the potty we got Austin a fireman's pole for his swing set.  Brian told him as soon as he did that they would put it up.  Well that never happened until Thanksgiving.  Since it was cold outside and he just did it because he wanted too not because of the fireman's pole, it was never put up.  Austin loves fireman poles at the parks.  Brian decided to put it up for him.  Austin loved helping put it up.  He also loves being able to play on it.  Sydney can't go down herself yet but Austin definitely can.  Kids still enjoy their swing set.  It's nice when I am making dinner that they can play on it and I can see them.  It was a lot of work to make but so glad Brian did that!

Also this year, Austin decided he wanted to grow some plants and/or flowers.  I was planning on getting a pot from the store and letting him do that.  Brian thought, "why don't we just make them a garden?"  Brian built them a garden on the side of the house.  He also made sure that the deer and rabbits won't be able to get in.  It has a door with a lock.  It's amazing.  It's a large garden that the kids planted corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, green beans, tomatoes, cucumber, and carrots.  They had fun with that. Hopefully we will actually grow something.  I don't have a green thumb so we'll see what happens.

We also took the kids strawberry picking twice.  They loved apple picking so much we decided to try strawberry picking.  The loved it too!  It is cool to get fresh fruit and watch them pick their own.

Hello Spring and Welcome Summer

The month of May is already over, I cannot believe it!  We have been so busy enjoying this beautiful spring I didn't have time to blog.  Spring came on suddenly this year and it became hot quick.  It was awesome!  We love the seasons of the year but when the warm weather finally comes it's amazing!

My mom went to Alaska for the month of May to visit with Aunt Betty.  The kids miss her.  We still have been visiting Papa every week.  He has come along to some of our activities too.  The kids enjoy the Sunday breakfasts at their house.  They get pancakes, eggs, chocolate milk, and donuts.  What could be better?  Since the weather has been nice, we have been walking to the park after breakfast.  Austin and Sydney really like walking Gizmo.  He's a great dog for that.  He never pulls them and everyone enjoys their walk.

I had a great Mother's day!  Their school also does muffins with mom.  It's great they do that but I always feel horrible because it's difficult for me to go. I get to work between 7-7:30 am.  Brian always takes them to school.  I talked with Austin about the muffins with mom since he understands. We decided to buy our own muffins at home and have them together. I am so glad it worked out.  The school does a nice job making gifts for us.  Austin made a key chain with his fingerprint on it and Sydney has a picture of her in a frame holding flowers.  They were both very cute.  Brian made me a photo book of the past year of pictures with just me and the kids.  It's always great to look at those pictures nicely in a book.

We went to a Cavs watch party on Mother's day.  Lebron James hit a buzzer beater to win the game against Chicago.  It was quite exciting and everyone went crazy.  The Cavs do a great job with the watch parties.  Austin and Sydney like them too.  They have become huge Cavs fans.  They can watch the entire games now.  They need a lot of snacks to entertain them but they do sit in their seats.  At the watch parties, Austin caught a t-shirt all by himself they were throwing out too.  He was so proud!

The Cavs post season run has been unbelievable.  We are so excited about it.  Brian and I have went to all the home games.  Austin and Sydney went to 2-3 playoff games and numerous watch parties.  They really likes it.  Because of the price of tickets and it being crowded we had to sit separate with the kids at the home games.  We realized the kids act better when they are separate though.  It's great the Cavs are going to the NBA finals.  We are really hoping for a championship this year.  The kids would love to go to the parade!

In May, we went to see Thomas the Train.  The weather wasn't the best but it didn't rain.  We arrived early so we could get the kids picture with Thomas.  Then they jumped in the bouncy houses for a while. Kaitlyn's family joined us on Thomas.  My dad came too however he couldn't go on the train because I didn't have enough tickets and couldn't get more on the same train.  He was okay with that.  He got to watch the people while we rode the train.  After our Thomas adventure we went to McDonald's for lunch.  The kids were excited about that.

On Memorial Day weekend, we went to the zoo for kids day. It was extremely busy however the kids had fun.  They enjoy the zoo.  Brian does not get to go often.  It was a nice family morning there.  We left the zoo because we were planning on buying a camper.  Unfortunately the camper did not work out.  Brian and I were bummed but we believe everything happens for a reason. It's not our time to have a camper.  We are planning on buying one next year.  Brian needs to get a bigger vehicle first to be able to pull it,

On Memorial day, Austin had a friend's birthday party.  It was really nice because they invited Sydney.  It was at a local park.  Spider-man even showed up.  The party was great.  Everyone had a great time.  I really like the kids childcare school.  We have met some great people and the kids have learned a lot.  I am so lucky to be able to work part time to allow the kids to go to school while I can continue my career.  I am truly grateful.  It has been the best for our family to have the best of both worlds of staying home versus working.

Austin and Sydney did tot soccer though our rec center this month.  It was every Tuesday night.  It was nice because it was the first year that Sydney could play too. They had fun with it.  Austin did a great job participating.  He did what he was told and didn't need us to be right with him like last year.  It was refreshing to see.

Austin now completely buckle his 5 point car seat now by himself in a timely manner.  It's great. He buckles himself while I buckle Sydney.

Cavs Playoffs and Atlanta 4.25 years and 2.75 years)

The Cavs are in the playoffs for the first time since Austin was born.  This is a new adventure for us.  Last time they were in the playoffs, basketball was our second job.  We were at every playoff game and almost all watch parties.  We never missed a game.  This time it's a little different.  While we are fortunate to still have tickets to each game it's different watching them.  For being 2 and 4 years old, Austin and Sydney do great.  But they still need "things" during the game.

Since we have taken them to about 10 games throughout the season, they know exactly what to expect during the games.  They really like going and it's great we can bring them with us.  They have been to two playoff games so far.  During the playoffs, we have to sit apart and it works out better.  We have 2 season tickets and Brian bought 2 more as a playoff pack so we have 4 seats to all playoff games.  When they are sitting next to each other, they touch one another and get in trouble.  When they are just with one of us, they are fabulous.

We really hope the Cavs go all the way this year.  Being the kids to the parade would be awesome.  However if they don't it will be okay because Ausin and Sydney will keep us busy.  We won't have too much time to dwell on it.

A few weeks ago, we traveled to Atlanta to visit Brian's family.  We flew down on Saturday morning.  While at the gate, they said our plane had mechanical problems and would be delayed.  Then they got a new plane quickly but there were storms in Atlanta and we could not take off.  It was very nice of them to allow us to deplane and re board.  That was great with the kids.  Even though they travel great the less then on the plane the better.  Finally after a 2 hour delay, we were headed to Atlanta.

It was nice because Melissa, Camden, and Graham came to Atlanta to visit too.  It was the first time meeting Graham.  He's such a cutie and a fabulous baby.  He has awesome hair.  We got to spend all Saturday afternoon with everyone.  It was great seeing everyone.  Jim lives on a lake house about 2 hours from Atlanta.  We all stayed there for the night.  We went out of his boat.  The kids enjoyed it.  We had dinner. Then the kids made smores for the first time on a campfire.

On Sunday, we hung out on the lake most of the day.  They Austin and Sydney went tubing with Daddy for the first time.  It was behind the pontoon boat so it never went that fast.  Austin absolutely loved it.  Sydney liked it too but wasn't so sure at times.   We stopped at a playroom off the beach.  It was cool to dock the boat on the beach.  Austin had to pee and there were no bathrooms.  It was also the first time he learned to pee on a tree.  Luckily he did not like it too much and doesn't really want to do it again.

We had such a great time in Atlanta visiting everyone.  We don't get to see them often.  We hope to maybe go back next year.  It makes us miss Brian's Dad.  We have to believe things would be so much different if he was still here.  It really sucks for Brian that he doesn't have any immediate family near by.

We also visited the dentist last week for a check up.  The kids did a good job.  Best of all, no one had any cavities.  It's great the kids like the dentist  Austin and Sydney have all their teeth.  The average age of loosing baby teeth is 6.  I'm sad to think that is not far off for Austin.  Sydney's teeth are well aligned right now.  Let's hope the permanent teeth are also like that.

Happy Easter (4 years and 2.5 years)

Our daycare has developed a PTO again.  I think it's a great way to be involved in the school.  I feel it's important for me to be involved. I like getting to know more of the teachers and planning fun activities for the kids.  We organized a school dance.  It was supposed to be for Valentine's Day but the day it was scheduled it was a snow day so it was rescheduled for the end of March.

Brian took pictures at the dance for all the families.  Pictures are very important to us.  Brian does a really great job taking pictures.  Austin likes to be like his daddy and he had "his" camera around his neck and helped take pictures too.  It's an older camera Brian doesn't use anymore, but it still is a $500 DSLR camera so Austin looks quite legit holding it.  He understands he needs to be careful with it and always wear the strap.  The kids had fun dancing around.  When it was over, Austin said he wanted to do it again.  That makes it all worth it!

Our city did not have a community Easter egg hunt this year.  However Kaitlyn's family did and invited us over.  Austin and Sydney loved collecting the eggs.  At first, Sydney did not know what to do.  Then she got the hang of it loved it.  Austin collected the most but we evened it out in the end.

An outlet mall had an Easter egg hunt.  Kids went into stores and collected eggs.  They had fun doing that.  They would run to the store.  They also had an Easter bunny outside for pictures. We stood in line for the Easter bunny.  Kids in front of us were scared of him but Austin and Sydney ran up to him and got their picture with him.  It's great that are not scared of him.  It was cold that day but everyone still had fun!

On Easter morning the kids woke up and went to find their Easter baskets.  Austin found his basket first under the slide.  Then Austin helped Sydney find her basket on the coat rack.  Then after it warmed up a little bit they went outside and found eggs and some outside toys of Pogo stick, chalk, and a T-ball set.  After dinner, we went down to my parents for dinner.  They got Easter baskets there too.  The kids had a great Easter.

Lake Farm Park has a spring program for little kids.  I took them for a half day program with my local mommy group.  The kids could have milked a cow but they were too scared.  They learned about spring and planted a plant.  They saw baby animals.  We had a packed lunch there too.  After it was over they played in the inside playground.  It was a neat educational program.

We had some opportunities to go to Sky Zone too.  I took them one day for an hour and Brian took them there too for an hour another day.  Austin liked playing basketball.  Sydney enjoyed jumping on the trampolines.  They burned a lot of energy and were tired afterwards.

We also took the kids to the IX Center indoor amusement park.  It was really good for them.  They had several rides they could both ride.  It's interesting because there is only a certain window they both can ride the rides before they are too big.  Austin and Sydney had a great time there.  I am so happy we took them.

All about Austin and Sydney

This blog post I am going talk about Austin and Sydney.

Austin is now 4 years old.  He likes playing with wooden train tracks in the house.  He really enjoys his computer and playing ABC Mouse and Reading Eggs.  He enjoys that his computer has a password that he can type in himself.

His favorite books are Pete the Cats and truck books from the library.  He really enjoys library time every week and picking out his own books.  We have even started getting letter boxes from the library each week.  They usually check out 20-25 books a week now.  On days I am off with them, we read around 20-30 minutes a day.

Austin's favorite color is green and he tells us that.  Before now, we have just assumed what his favorite color is but now he tells us.  Austin likes to play basketball.  He can shoot the ball pretty well for a 4 year old.  He has good form.  He enjoys putting his Cavs jersey and playing the Austin and Sydney Cavaliers.

Austin likes to cook.  He can pour ingredients in the bowl and mix them around.  He likes making cookies, banana bread, and dinners.

Austin favorite foods are cereal in the morning.  He likes to eat it on the couch while watching his Kindle. For lunch he likes ham sandwiches with mayo, chicken nuggets, peanut butter and jelly or hot dogs.  For dinners he like pasta, chicken, meatloaf, and sometimes sloppy joes.  He use to really like sloppy joes but now not as much.  He also likes sweets especially ice cream!

When he talks everyone can easily understands him.  He likes to say,"I was thinking we should..." when he wants to do something.  They had a babysitter the other day and he was able to help show and explain how everything works at our house.  He asks lots of questions and always wants to know why.  He remembers our cruise and trips to Disney because he will make references to them.  He has a very good memory.  He loves to travel.  He really enjoys riding on airplanes.  It's been over a month since our last plane and he says it's been so long since our last plane ride.

When putting him to bed he asked, "Mommy will i grow tonight"?  I said "I don't know".  He said, "yes mommy each night I grow and get a little bit bigger".  And he is completely right.  It makes me sad.  He will never be were he was today.  Each day is truly a gift.  I am loving where they are right now.  They are so awesome!

Sydney is 2.5 years old.  She loves to do everything Austin is doing. But she definitely has her own personality and it's her way or no way. She communicates very well for 2.5 years old.  She talks in complete sentences and 95% of the time we can understand her.  Austin understands her 99% of time.  If we don't understand her we ask Austin.  

She knows the days of the week and can count to 10 in English and Spanish. She loves Dora and between Dora and school she is learning some Spanish.  She loves to say “I’m going to do it”.  She usually remembers better things short term than Austin or at least she expresses it more.  If I ask what the stories were about during story time at dinner Sydney usually tells us but Austin does not.  She knows the days of the weeks from the days of the week song.  She is learning the months of the year. 

Sydney has always loved books.  When she is sad, books comfort her.  She loves being read too.  She likes reading books to herself too.  She doesn't know how to read but she will make a humming sound while looking at all the pages.  Her favorite books are Dora the Explorer, Pete the Cat, and Strawberry Shortcake.  She doesn't like going to nap or bed because she always wants more books. 

Sydney loves to play outside.  She likes to ride her small pink tricycle.  I bought it last year on my mommy website.  This year I thought it would be too small but it works perfect for her.  She loves it.  She pedals as fast and she can.  It’s really the cutest thing!  She also loves to play in the sand.  They have a little sand table and can play on it for a long time.  She likes driving the cozy coup too.  We have a swing in the front yard and she loves to swing.  She really likes it when Daddy does a “Daddy underdog”. She loves to swim.  She is only 1 swim class level behind Austin.  She is not afraid of the water.  She would swim everyday if she could.  

Sydney eats about the same things as Austin.  However she does not like sauce on her noodles and that includes macaroni and cheese.  She likes just plain noodles.  She likes hot dogs more than Austin.  She likes to eat peas whereas Austin likes to eat carrots.  They both love corn.  She likes to eat strawberries, grapes, cantaloupe, and watermelon.  They both love “oranges from the cupboard” (canned mandarin oranges).   She likes mommy cereal which is frosted shredded wheat.  She prefers her cereal with milk whereas Austin likes his dry. 

She has an opinion on what she wears.  If she does not like it, she will not wear it.  She also loves to wear her sunglasses upside down even when she is going to sleep. When going to sleep she likes to hand someone's hand, have her sunglasses on upside down, and hold her princess light that projects onto the ceiling. 

She refuses to nap for us sometimes.  It takes her a long time to fall asleep.  She is like her Daddy.  She likes to sleep in and gets up closer to 8 am when we let her.  She goes to bed a little before 10 pm.  She is always the more difficult one to get to sleep.  She usually wants mommy to put her to bed and Austin usually wants daddy.  Sometimes we switch but if they both agree we keep it as is to keep them happy.  When we travel, Austin and Sydney sleep in the same bed on the floor.  

Sydney weighs 25 pounds and almost 36 inches tall.  Austin is 40 inches tall and weighs 40 pounds.  Sydney always seems so lite but really is not after we carry her for a while.  We rarely use our stroller now only for traveling or at the zoo.  When we walk around the block in the evenings the kids ride their bikes.  It’s good exercise for them.  We like to keep them as active.  It's good for everyone.