And so, the bargain hunting begins

Last weekend Ryan took the kids to coffee and Reggie said, “Wait Dad, I have to get my wallet.” Ryan was a bit confused and asked him why. He responded, “In case we see a garage sale.” Today I decided to take Reggie with me and we went to a few garage sales. He got some star wars trading cards for $.50 and an erector set. We were looking at the erector set for awhile to see what all was in it and we found lots of pieces and 2 motors, but it was missing all the wheels. Reggie asked how much they wanted for it and she said $5. I informed her that the wheels were missing and I wasn’t sure what he could build. It was quiet for a moment and then she asked what he wanted to pay for it. He thought for a minute and said, “$2”. She was very surprised by his response and said, “Wow, you are a good negotiator.” They settled on $3. Go Reggie!!! I had a big smile inside. He spent all afternoon building and was talking about what he was going to build tomorrow :o). We also ended up getting a free kid’s table that is quite large and decided to put it in his room, so now he has a nice work table. He is very excited about his room now and I’m glad he has a big table to do all his building projects and arts/crafts.

He has been busy having playdates with friends and attending cub scouts since school started. We’ve been trying to get him to play basketball, but he just isn’t into sports. He is still running at school, but I need to sign him up for swimming (the only thing he will agree to do!).

Reggie has been obsessed with Star Wars lately and is ready for Halloween:

Ryan's old star wars toys:

Ainsley wanted to come with us today, but she couldn’t find her money. We are trying to teach them some responsibility, so she didn’t get to go and was very upset. It didn’t help that they had a sleepover last night at a friends’ house and I think she was up until at least 9:30 and then woke up at 6:30. So, it was probably best that she stayed home and took a little nap. Ryan and I enjoyed our free night…went to the movies and relaxed!

Ainsley has been in her own little world the last few weeks; working on school stuff, talking on her “cell phone” and doing really important stuff. It has been great because she has been very independent, but getting her to eat or get ready to go has been a challenge. She is very focused and homework with her is a dream! Reggie has been pretty good lately as well, but he never enjoyed it like she does :o).

Ainsley started soccer and really likes it. The first game, she bit her nails almost the entire time, but has improved quite a bit since then. She has also been going to gymnastics and is really excelling in that. She is super strong and is actually learning some skills now. And then there is swimming. Her lessons were such a struggle in the spring, but a couple weeks ago she turned into a fish while swimming in our friends’ pool. We put a smaller swim vest on her and she has to work a bunch harder now, but I think she loves it even more, going underwater and everything! It will be interesting to see what she chooses to do for an activity next year.

Swimming at Bill and Stacey's (Ryan's old boss):

Ryan started his job a couple weeks ago and life is so different!!! He can actually enjoy his evenings and hasn’t really worked at night yet (let’s hope this continues). He is going through a bit of withdrawal and misses his buddies, but I think he has realized how unhealthy his work/life balance was. It is nice to have him present :o).