Big Week

Reggie started Kindergarten on Monday!!! His teacher is Mrs. Pierson and it seems like she will be a perfect fit for Reggie. He was already raising his hand during circle time and got some sort of prize for running laps. Who is this kid? His teacher volunteered at VBS this summer, so he recognized her and I think that helped. He also has a buddy from pre-school in his class, so they’ve been playing a lot together. I’ve already met several parents and one was Ainsley’s Sunday School Teacher. School is about a mile from the house, so we’ve been riding bikes :o). Ryan took off Reggie’s training wheels on Sunday, so he was a little hesitant, but now he’s great. He just needs to figure out how to start. Every Wed., he starts at 8:10, so that will be a little bit of a challenge! Ainsley will start pre-school after Labor Day, so we’ll be up and out by 9. So much for enjoying our slow mornings :o(. I guess we’ll have Monday and Friday :o). It is so interesting that I’ve been waiting for the day Reggie goes to school because then I’ll finally get a break, but now, I’m a little sad. We are losing our freedom and are going to be bound by school schedules. Not only that, but we’re losing a lot of play time, which again, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but when are we going to play??? I’m sure we’ll figure it out.

Ryan survived his softball game, but was very glad his teammates were yelling, "don't run!" over and over. He managed to hit a double, so you can just imagine how far he must have hit the ball! His team lost, so no more worries until next spring :o).

Update on Ryan-2 months post surgery

Last night was the first night I saw Ryan walking and could hardly tell anything happened. He wasn’t even limping!!! He has physical therapy twice a week and is making great progress. We were talking about softball the other night because his team is in the playoffs and one of the guys is on vacation and they are in need of another player. So, he decided to ask his physical therapist what she thought, expecting her to say no way! But, instead, she said, “Let’s take a look at your swing.” Kinda weird they have a bat there, but whatever. I guess he swung so hard something flew off of it and bounced all over the gym, hitting one of the trainers, so she said he could hit, but to not even think about even walking fast. Is that crazy or what? He plays tonight and hopefully, nothing exciting happens!
He also went for his first real bike ride (not at the gym) a few nights ago and was excited to really be able to work up a sweat. Unfortunately, it will be awhile until he is able to anything but the bike. He is still frustrated that it swells and is very stiff in the morning, but overall, he is making a great recovery.

We have a swimmer!!!

I can’t believe it…I took the kids to the pool a couple days ago and Reggie found the deepest place he could and started to swim. He immediately went underwater, which usually results in serious freaking out, but not that day. He got right back up and was so proud that he held his breath. I think he quickly figured out that he’s much heavier without his life jacket, so he just worked a little harder. He was swimming half the length of the kiddy pool over and over. It was amazing!!! To watch the video, go to http://www.arrtwade.blogspot.com/:

Then, Ainsley decided she wanted to go down the slide in the water. I couldn’t get her to do it before we left. She went once and that was it…she kept going and going, probably 25 times. We had such a fun day at the pool :o)!
I have to share a funny little story. Reggie and I were playing motorcycles outside and I was jumping off of our porch box, trying to land upright. We did this for a good 10 minutes, so probably 20 times and then Reggie said a little prayer, “God, can you make this motorcycle land upright?” Of course I was thinking and wondering if I should tell Reggie that God isn’t super concerned about whether your motorcycle lands upright or not, but I decided to remain silent. I haven’t heard him say a prayer before, so I didn’t want to crush his hopes. Sure enough, the next jump, the motorcycle landed upright. To which Reggie said with a big smile on his face, “Hmmm, I guess my prayer worked!” God never ceases to amaze me…there’s nothing too small for him to be concerned about. It is also a good reminder that when we pray and truly believe something will happen, it will!!! If we could all be like children……

First week back

We had a busy week unpacking, shopping and trying to get life back in order. Reggie had a golf camp every morning, so that kept us busy too. I don't think he's going to be the next tiger woods:

We visited with the Bliss family everyday because the golf course was right by there house. Reggie got his Michael fix and Ainsley and Sam actually started playing together, so that was fun to see. Sarah and I got caught up on life and that was good too :o). The kids have enjoyed their rooms, toys and the bounce house...it is always a bit like Christmas when we come home.
Reggie does a very good job of being happy where he is and understanding that grandma and grandpa and our friends there are too far away to play with, but Ainsley is having a harder time. She has asked for Grandma several times and wants to play with Maggie. I'm glad they are coming for a visit, so we can tell her they'll be here soon!

It was very, very hot and I think it felt hotter than it actually was because we didn't have a lake to swim in! My tan is already starting to fade :o(. The evenings are great because it is still 80, so being outside in the evening is very pleasant. We went to the market and had our usual snow cone and kettle corn and stocked up on fruit for the week. Ryan has discovered pluots and really enjoys them :o). We've also been eating grapes from our backyard and they are delicious!

I had my rhuematology appointment and he confirmed I have Ankylosing Spondylitis, but he was surprised that my x-rays looked so good and since I wasn't having pain that day, he really didn't do much for me. So, I might just do physical therapy on my own and see if I can see a Naturopath to give me some ideas on how to slow the process and have pain relief when things flare up. A little frustrating that you have to figure these things out for yourself...what is the point in going to the doctor these days???

Summer summed up in a loooong post....

Wow, a lot has happened since our last post.....we've had nothing but sunshine, even 100 degree weather a few days!!! Didn't we leave Livermore to avoid the heat???? At least we had the lake to cool off in :o). Time has really gone fast :o(. I can't believe our time at the lake came and went. It was so wonderful to spend so much time with family and enjoy the lake and the peacefulness of being there. There's not much better than sitting and looking at the lake in the morning, just relaxing (it didn't happen that often!).

Ryan came for a short 4 day visit. It was great to have him here and he was off his crutches and into his boot, so he made some great progress, so great that no one wanted to tell him what he could/couldn't do because they didn't want to be liable if something happened. He was a bit frustrated and ended up walking a bit without his boot. We didn't do too much while he was here, except went to his birthday dinner with his mom/brothers at Skipper's. Mmmm, how I love their clam chowder :o). We swam a lot and Ryan found that it really helped his Achilles feel better. Then we had birthday dinner at the lake and Ryan chose his usual, lasagna and banana cream pie. He was supposed to fly out early Monday morning, but he had to make a last minute trip to Little Rock, Arkansas, so we got to spend a little extra time with him. We had plans to visit Sarah/Ashen/Torin that morning, so he came along. Ainsley was a little clingy, but Reggie had a blast. It was a hot day, so they played in the pool :o). I also had a great visit with Sarah. As chaotic as it is when we are in town, it has been great to see friends and catch up.
We spent a few days at Liha/Wade/Maggie's and enjoyed the Mukilteo beaches and parks. We went to the water park near their house again this year and the kids had a great time. It doesn't seem to matter where they are...they have a good time, just hanging out and playing. They love to explore the yard and play with all Maggie's toys. Reggie and Maggie have become quite the playmates :o). They've also been to the lake a lot and for some reason Maggie and Ainsley are better playmates at the lake. Reggie is very good about watching out for Ainsley and Maggie, so they go off and play for long periods of time and Reggie intervenes when they are struggling and I have heard him problem solve with them and it is just great!

There's a Kangaroo farm in Arlington that we visited one Sat. morning. We met up with Jenisa, Lacey and the kids, Aunt Pam and the Rinehardt's. We saw all kinds of animals...ostrich, lemur, kangaroos, pony's, goats, llama's and alpaca, turkey's (no, not the kids!). It was a very interesting place and the kids had a great time. Reggie had his first experience on a tree swing and we got some big smiles from him.

We also spent lots of time on the party boat. Reggie asked if we could build a lake in California, so we could have a party boat too. Hmm....If it were only that easy! Reggie and Ainsley love to drive the boat and Ainsley dances to the music and waves to all the people on shore. We rescued a piece of wood and a tennis ball from the lake and they were our treasures :o). We also took several rides in the canoe and went down the outlet, all the way to the log jam. We didn't see any beavers, but we saw plenty of beaver trails. They got a lot more comfortable being in a rocking boat. We spent hours everyday, building in the sand and swimming in the lake. About 2 weeks before we left, Reggie decided he wanted to swim. We put a life jacket on him and off he went, swimming for hours at a time. There's was a trampoline about 100 feet out from the beach and he had no problem going out there and circling it, even though it was over his head. We played the "ball" game, where I would throw the ball and he would swim to get it or we would race to get it. I think we're going to start serious swim lessons soon. He told my mom he never wanted to leave the water! What a difference a year makes. Ainsley made slower progress, floating in her life jacket. She would giggle and laugh hysterically trying to keep her face out of the water. She loved the shallow water and would "swim" and dance and jump around, splashing and throwing herself all over the place :o). The beach/water was a big hit with all of our visiting friends. My friend from high school, Megan, came up with her kids and Reggie had so much fun playing with the boys. He was doing stuff I never thought he would do. Amazing what can happen when they see other kids doing things. Kellen and Abby and their families also came to the lake for a visit and the kids had a ball, playing in the sand and water. Again, it was so nice to visit with friends :o).

Grandma Peggy came to the lake for a visit and played with the kids all day! They had a great time (after Ainsley finally warmed up-she can be a stinker sometimes!). Reggie was very happy to skip quiet time and read books with Grandma! A couple weeks later, she took them to the movies. I never got the full story, but in Ainsley's words, "Weggie was hiding undew the chair and it was weally woud!" They just don't seem to be movie theatre kids....maybe someday. They left early and went to McDonald's and that was a big hit. Being at my parents, 1/2 hour from anything doesn't make it easy to go out to dinner! They even got a toy and had ice cream, so all was good :o).

We missed the fair this year in Pleasanton and they moved the Skagit fair out a week, so I was very sad because it looked like we weren't going to get to go to a fair. Then, we saw in the paper that Stanwood/Camano was having a fair, so we HAD to go. It was a very small fair, but perfect for the kids. They had a stage and had different performers every hour. When we got there, a country singer and his daughter were performing and grandma, maggie and ainsley were very excited to dance. Ainsley just kept going and he asked her to go up on stage and then she freaked out and ran away. The girls rode some rides by themselves and Reggie went on his first roller coaster by himself. It was a very exciting day. Later, we went and watched some tap dancers and they were great. The last group we watched was a bunch of kids, from age 8-16, who were dancing and singing. Ainlsey was watching and mimicking their dance moves. I think it is time to get her into dance!!! Reggie was soooo bored and just wanted to go on the rides! It will be interesting to try to keep them both happy at that kind of event. We did manage to find a pirate show and boat building station and Reggie could have stayed there all day!!!

Ryan arrived that week on Wednesday and we were all very happy to see him. He did, however, bring the cloudy weather. Poor guy didn't get to enjoy the sunshine at all! I think he was happy to be there no matter what the weather. That Friday, we went to my mom's work picnic. Ryan enjoyed the food, the kids enjoyed the bounce house and face painting and winning prizes and Ainsley enjoyed dancing to the music. Maggie was once again the only brave one who would ride a pony...someday! We did get a big laugh watching Reggie and Ainsley do the wheelbarrow race :o).

On Sat. the 8th, we had Ainsley's birthday party. I packed up quite a bit Friday and Sat. morning, so I was feeling pretty good about the trip home, which made her party much more enjoyable. We had such a nice time visiting with family and friends one last time (until Christmas). As you'll notice from the cake, Ainsley is really into shoes. Since we've been home, I've had to argue with her everyday about the shoes Grandma Peggy got her-they are too big and she wants to wear them out of the house. Is this just the beginning? After an early BBQ dinner and cake, we headed over to the firehall for the dance where Ainsley admired her sparkling shoes all evening. Ainsley, Maggie, Cadia, Grandma Irene and Grandma Pam boogeyed, while Charlie and Reggie threw rocks in a hole outside. Could boys and girls be anymore different!

We woke up early the next morning and were on the road by 8:30! I was sad to go, but also excited to get back. We had such a wonderful summer and it did go too fast, but school starts for Reggie in a week and a half, so we couldn't have stayed longer, even if we wanted to! A big thanks to mom and dad who put up with us all summer. Thank you for letting them come up and snuggle with you in bed every morning (like you had a choice!), so I could sleep a little longer :o). They will have wonderful memories of their summers at the lake.We had a nice drive back, stopped for lunch and dinner and ran around a bit. The kids were so good in the car and we didn't have to turn on a movie until after dinner! We arrived at home at 12:07 (Ryan won our ETA bet-he guessed exactly), so we made great time.