2015-16 Update

In the dictionary, under the word slacker, there is a picture of me along with the title of this blog.  I’m a slacker on updating.  I’m sorry.

Here’s a bullet update of what we have been up to this past year.

August:

*We spent 2 weeks in WY!

*Joe and I went to Las Vegas for our 10 year anniversary!  While there we had our vows renewed by Elvis.  A dream come true for me!

September:

*Ella started 3rd grade…how is this even possible?

*AJ started attending preschool and I (Katie) started teaching 3 year old preschool.  I never would have even considered sending Ella to preschool at 1 year old.  AJ, on the other hand, is such a social butterfly that he is simply not satisfied with moms company all day every day.  He needs to be around other kids his age.  Going to preschool has been really good for him and he really enjoys it.

October:

*Halloween!!!  Ella was Princess Leia and AJ was Luke Skywalker.

*AJ broke his foot.  Seriously, this kid is all over the place with activity, so I can’t say we were really surprised.  Maybe we were surprised that it happened when he was only 1, but in all honesty, I don’t think this will be his last broken bone.  His favorite activity is to climb onto the arm of the couch and yell, “3-2-1 Blast Off!!!” then he jumps off of the couch arm and onto the seat.  This kids guardian angels are working overtime!

November:

*Election Day - For the past 9 months Joe had been running for the Virginia State Senate.  Unfortunately he lost his race, but it was a fantastic experience and we are so glad he ran.  We learned so much through the process and had a lot of fun.

December:

*AJ turned 2 years old!  We had a great baseball themed birthday party with all of his friends.

*AJ had his first preschool Christmas concert.  Before hand I was informed that he would either sit there like a deer in headlights, or stand up and throw his baby doll on the floor.  Fortunately he did the former.  He looked so cute in his red suspenders and bow tie!

*For Christmas we went to Texas and spent the holiday with my brother and his family, and my parents.  It was great to be together!

*While in Texas we went to see Star Wars Episode VII.  Ella was instantly hooked and can’t wait to get the DVD.

*It was at this time that Ella declared that she will no longer wear smocked dresses.  She thinks she’s too old for them.  I told her that she had to wear smocking one more time because she had a Christmas dress that perfectly matched AJ’s bow tie.  After that she never had to wear smocking again.  I’m a sad mom that this phase has passed.

January:

*Back to School!

*I celebrated Elvis’ birthday by going out to lunch with some friends who are also Elvis fans.  This is becoming a tradition that I really enjoy!

February:

*I took a trip to Georgia to celebrate Joe’s little sister who was about to have her first baby.  It was a great girls weekend away.

March:

*Spring Break!  Ella declared that we are “lame” because we never go anywhere for Spring Break.  We tried to do one fun activity every day, so we weren’t stuck in the house.  But we didn’t do any exciting travel.

*Happy Easter!  It was another great celebration at First Baptist Church in Alexandria.  The Easter Bunny came to our house and brought special treats for the kids.  Notably, AJ got a Mickey Mouse lego train, and Ella got a Minions Fart Gun (what was the Easter Bunny thinking?).

April:

*Star Wars VII DVD came out, so I surprised Ella by buying it without her knowing.  Within 5 minutes of bringing the DVD home and showing it to Ella, AJ broke our one and only DVD player.  Such is life with a very active 2 year old.

*We took our annual visit to Cincinnati.  Ella had surgery on her throat while we were there.  It was her first surgery with a new doctor, so we were all a bit nervous.  I’m happy to report that everything went well and she has recovered nicely.  She also had her yearly visit with the EB clinic.  She has had great weight gain (for the first time in several years) and her skin has been really stable.  Everyone was really pleased with where she is right now.

May:

*I turned 39…how did this happen?

*The preschool year ended for AJ and me.  AJ will continue going to preschool summer camp for the next month while I stay home and take care of some home projects.

Ok, that should bring you up to speed.  Ella has about a month left in school, so we’ll start planning our summer bucket list soon.  We already have a lot of fun activities planned.

Both kids are doing really well.  AJ has started talking more and more.  He is constantly moving!  The only time he is still is when he’s eating or sleeping.  Ella is reading just as much as ever and is doing really well in school.  She struggles with math, but works really hard and is improving.  She is a fun kid to be around.  Joe and I are just doing what we do.  Life is busy but a lot of fun.