Mr. and Mrs. Cool!

Here the kids are prior to going to our friends' neighborhood to swim. Both kids are fish and very good swimmers--especially Jack! Anya is well on her way however.

What is quite funny about this whole deal is Anya was theoretically supposed to be taking a nap and was to come later with Duane. However, that was not part of her agenda. The next thing you know, there's Anya on the front porch ALL dressed and ready to go. I know what you're thinking, OK, so she was probably dressed before taking her nap, and you would be correct. However, she was not dressed in swim gear. This was quite a deal because that meant her going into her closet, finding her swim diaper (still wears one in the pool only), finding her swim suit, AND getting it all on by herself without our knowledge. Once this scenario was complete, she walked out the front door and announced that she was ready to go. Clearly our agenda was not going to be a hurdle in stopping a 2 year old from swimming, so off the 4 of us went! Although I was skeptical about what mood she was going to be in with no nap, I was quite impressed with her ability to decipher what she needed to do in order to leave with Jack. Oh yeah, in order to get out of her room, she needed to also get out of the baby gate that blocks her door. How did she do this--none other than kicking at it until it fell down of course. This too took some effort as it's snug. After the great depths she went through, who could say no?

As you can see, Anya is Ms. Fashion in her pink sunglasses and frilly swim suit. Note, for every good picture, Jack requires a goofy one. It's almost part of the deal of taking a picture.

Cub Scout Crossover!

Today Jack got to officially crossover from a Tiger Cub to a Wolf Cub. For those not familiar with scouting, Jack, who is a member of Pack 81, had to meet certain requirements throughout the year in order to officially move up the ranks. Cub Scouts, and scouting in general, require dedication and a lot of time, and Jack faced those challenges well. He thoroughly enjoys all of the activities. His scarf changed from orange to yellow and he got to move his clothes pin up to the next level. He's in his baseball pants because right after this ceremony he had a game. If they win today, they are in the championship tomorrow!

Part of today's activities included the Raingutter Regata. The boats were kits that the kids had to put together and decorate to their liking. As you can see, they are required to use a straw in order to make their wind for the sail. I am happy to say, Jack won first place for the Tiger Cubs! He got a ribbon, a patch, and I believe one or two more items.

The Mug Shot and Some Other Fun Photos!

I don't have anything overly earth shattering to say today, but I wanted to show everyone Jack's mug shot on his school's website. This picture has been up all year, and I don't know how much longer it'll be there. Of course he's too cute, and I want him to stay up there, but I guess it's only fair to let others have their chance.

This picture doesn't really relate to anything other than this was taken a little under 3 years ago, and it's just a cute picture I found of the two.

Here's another classic picture taken at Fiesta Texas last year. This is Jack's friend Bodhi, and the two were so embarrassed to have this pretty lady coming up to them wanting to take a picture. Jack was so embarrassed that he almost snorted like a pig. Finally the two Joe Cools decided they could handle the extreme embarrassment for the sake of my picture need. Thanks to Wonder Woman for playing along!

Miscellaneous Pictures and Videos!

I am playing major catch-up with everything, but it's still better late than never!

To start, here is a video of Anya getting her haircut this past Saturday. This was a giant leap since for months she would not let me get her haircut. She would be all excited then freeze and freak out when we got to the place. Anyway, she finally decided that my haircuts now longer were making the grade (and she was right), so she informed me that she was ready. I was half way expecting the usual result, but she got right up on that seat and away we went. Despite that fact that she was a wiggle worm and had to look at everyone else's business, he did a fabulous job and her hair is very pretty now! This man has done Jack's hair in the past, he does a great job and he's very good with kids.

Here we have one of Anya's photos that was taken by none other than Anya herself. She is a camera junky.


Here are the kids at Enchanted Rock.


Last Sunday we went to Sea World in San Antonio; here's a picture of Jack riding Shamu. We had a great day playing at the waterpark and riding a few rides. I even talked Jack into riding the Steel Eel, which took some convincing and bribing him with ice cream. He was white during the ride and he couldn't even scream, but once we were done he said "that was awesome." Had the line not been so long, we would have rode it again and again. I am a roller coaster fanatic!

One Smart Cookie!

Today Duane and I had our parent/teacher conference with Jack's teacher, Mrs. Phillips. She had nothing but beaming remarks to say about him, and on more than one occassion she said how awesome he is! She even said she wanted to put a brick on his head so she could keep him past this year. To say the least, we are thrilled with all her comments and very proud of Jack for all he has achieved this year!

His has positively progressed in every area, and she said he has extremely strong reading and math skills, and he is always up for a challenge and never complains.

I think the thing that got us the most excited was when she discussed and showed us his achievement test scores. In basically every category he was ABOVE average, and he scored ABOVE average in one particular category that most kids only score average in! He is one smart cookie!

On Friday, May 29th, Jack will complete First Grade and move onto Second, and he'll have the fabulous Mrs. Hammel to lead the way next year.

To end, Jack has made us even prouder today!

Can it really be the end of the year already?

It's hard to believe that Jack's First Grade year will come to a close in a 2 short weeks! It seems like we were just getting his school supplies in order, and now we are starting to get everything packed up to head home! This picture was taken on the first day; he appears to be less than amused, but in reality, Jack loves school and excels really well. Maybe it's the reality of early mornings?! Techinically he is only supposed to be a Kindergartener this year, and here he is finishing First Grade with flying colors.

As always, his teacher, Mrs. Phillips, had the room decorated to the tee with this year being a movie theme. Walle greated the kids.

Jack's ticket to success!

Exploring a bit before the true work begins. Notice that he has no lower teeth in this picture.

The wonderful Mrs. Phillips!

Mother's Day Gifts!

I had a very nice Mother's Day, and I received some pretty cool gifts from the kids. Anya, the inspiring artist, drew a nice picture entitled "Anya's Mommy 2009." I am not sure if my big head in this picture is implying something or not?! At least I am complete with legs, arms, and all my facial needs. Besides the awesome drawing, I got a card, pictures taken of her and her friends at schools, and some other cute little artwork.

Jack, who is also a very creative little dude, gave me a nice arrangement of flowers. The best part about these flowers is they will always be around since they are actually made from pens! He made this at school and was very excited to bring them home. The flowers were also accompanied by a cool card.

We spent the afternoon with some friends and the kids swam all day long until they could swim no more. All-in-all, it was a relaxing day despite the morning starting off with a few " I don't care to listen routines."

Some "Oldies" but Goodies

Who knows with Anya, but it appears she is getting ready for a hurricane that could potentially hit the kitchen.

A few months back Jack went to get his hair cut at a local barbershop that recently opened this past January. Lucky for him, the shoe shiner just happened to be setting up shop for the first time too, and Jack was fortunate enough to be his first customer in that location. He walked out of there all spiffed up with a new hair cut and classy boots!

The "itches"

As many of you know, on Easter Sunday Anya decided to have a meeting with our front porch step. This rendevous ended up with us having an nice 3 hour stint in the emergency room while we waited for her to get stitched up. She was running around the waiting room like a wild child with a blood-stained Easter dress; you'd never had known she was about to get 7 stitches--which she affectionately calls "itches."

Well, the process leading up to the stitches wasn't bad, but the actual stitch up was did not overly amuse her or her brother. Despite all the screaming at both ends, they both seemed no worse for wear.

The picture is pre-itches. It looks like a minor cut, but the kid managed to crack it to the bone! What else did she accomplish in all of this--that's right, she beat her brother to stiches!

The start of a new era!

After initially starting a blog in the Fall of 2008, my writing went dry. I decided to try the venture again so people (especially the Wisconsinites) can see what's going on with Big J and Little A! We shall see how this adventure rolls.