may 24

we had gavin's 3 year well visit with dr. fix today.  gavin is such a good patient.  he likes to see dr. fix.  look at that smile :)  gavin was 35.4 lbs. and 39.5" tall today.  he grew 3 lbs. and 3 inches this past year.      his growth rate is slowing - he used to grow 3 lbs. and 3 inches in 3-6 months!  a sure sign that gavin is definitely not a baby anymore!!

may 23

happy birthday to gram vicki!  we surprised mom with a little birthday celebration today at her house.  the kids and i went to heather's after school, but we didn't tell mom.  not only was it mom's birthday, but it was also the day mom officially moved into her house.  we let stella nap and waited until later in the afternoon when we knew the movers would be finished.  then we drove down groesbeck rd. (past grandma & grandpa's old house) to rahn's greenhouse.  being there brought back so many memories of my grandparents.  we picked out a beautiful "lipstick" plant for mom as a housewarming gift and then went over to surprise her.  one problem.  mom wasn't home.  we waited and waited, and then finally i called her because we were worried she was never coming home!  i had to give away the surprise.  mom was at target buying some new things for the house, so i told her she had to come straight home because we were all there waiting for her!  so, she did.  and it was still a nice surprise.  we had dinner together, sang happy birthday and had cake and enjoyed a beautiful evening outside in mom's backyard.  it was a special day.  one i was happy to be a part of and one i will always remember.

may 22

gavin's last day of school!  that's a really hard thing to believe.  gavin has really grown to love preschool, and i'm so glad he had a chance to experience it 2 days a week this year.  he was the youngest in his class, but both his teachers say you'd never know it.  having joey in his class really helped, although we often got reports that they had a hard time keeping their hands to themselves and liked to be aggressive with one another.  cousins!  we'll always remember mrs. fries and mrs. brennan fondly - gavin's very first teachers.  i couldn't be happier with our experience at mt. washington presbyterian preschool.

may 21

memorial day is just around the corner, but summer is already upon us.  it's been hot.  we've been eating great summertime food like tomatoes, corn and strawberries.  we've been having dinner outside.  tonight we even found a turtle in our yard, which was very exciting for the kids.  cute little turtle.

may 20

back-to-back days of soccer games for brooke this weekend.  she had another outstanding game today, and lots of the family was there to see her.  aunt heather, uncle danny, stella, aunt megan, uncle zach, chase, joey, jackson and gram vicki all came to see brooke play!  brooke was thrilled.  brooke dominated the game, scored lots of goals and gave us all a lot to cheer about!  it was really hot out, and i was so proud of the way brooke played despite the heat.

may 19

first things first - brooke had a soccer game this morning, and she scored 5 goals!!!!  for weeks i've been struggled with the fact that brooke was very content to just run around the field and have a good time.  she showed no desire to ever get a foot on the ball, let alone score a goal.  i've been working on building up her confidence and encouraging her to focus on the ball without being too overbearing (hopefully!).  this morning i told her to remember to "run to the ball, kick the ball, run to the ball, kick the ball."  i also told her that we'd get ice cream if she scored a goal.  well, i have no idea if it was something i said or the promise of ice cream or just the fact that something happened to click with brooke today, but all of a sudden she turned it on out there on the field.  bob and kaye were there to see her, and we were all so proud of the way brooke played!  i couldn't stop screaming and cheering for my girl :)  we all headed to graeter's after the game to celebrate brooke's great game.  unfortunately, gavin awakened from his catnap in the car and proceeded to walk into graeter's with kevin and throw up all over the floor :(  kind of put a damper on things.

thankfully, bob and kaye were there to take care of the kids so that kevin and i could join the rest of my family for a night out on the town to celebrate mom's 60th birthday.  6 0 !!!!!  What a big birthday.  We had dinner downtown at the new Christian Morlein Lagerhouse.  It was a beautiful night, and the city was buzzing.  We had beautiful views of the river and a very nice meal.  After dinner we hit some bars for some drinks, music and fun.  It has been SO long since we've all been out together, and it was great to have some quality adult time with some of people i love most in this world!

may 18

so much time spent with family this week...  cousins are such a blessing!  tonight we had so much fun watching jackson's baseball game.  i was really impressed with how jackson and his team played.  it was fun to cheer for jackson and watch the other kids having fun on the sidelines.  reminded me so much of my childhood spent on and around baseball fields.

may 17

we went to the cincinnati nature center for the first time ever today.  boy, have we been missing out!  i would definitely say this is one of the best places i've ever been in cincinnati.  last year they opened this wonderful outdoor playscape, which is just perfect for kids.  rocks and water and logs - awesome for climbing, balancing, exploring, splashing!  there are trails and ponds and beauty every direction you look.  we all loved it.  it was fun to spend the afternoon there with heather, megan and all the kids.  it was as close to a perfect day as i could imagine.

may 16

gavin's last day of soccer with coach russell.  i have absolutely loved this experience for gavin.  coach russell is amazing with these kids, and gavin adores him.  we've had a lot of fun spending an hour out here every wednesday afternoon.  we pick brooke up from school, drive on over to kellogg ave. and have a picnic lunch on the lawn or in the car.  we've had chilly days, really warm days and lots of days in between.  after soccer we run home for gavin's nap (boy is he tired after soccer!), and then we turn around and come back to the very same spot for brooke's soccer practice with hammer fc and coach russell.  i think our wednesday routine has given me a pretty good taste of what it's like to be a soccer mom!

may 15

a slower paced day today.  school, soccer practice, bike rides.  the life of a young family...

may 14

bar bar and gigi were babysitters extraordinaire today!  we had a family painting day at mom's house today, and thankfully bar bar and gigi stepped in to watch all the kids while me, heather, danny & zach helped mom get her house ready to move back into.  we worked hard all day and got the living room, dining room, hallway and bedrooms painted.  the paint colors turned out to be perfect, and mom was very happy with the result.  i'm pretty sure i quadrupled my painting experience today :)  it was fun and rewarding to see the improvements in the house!  i'm pretty sure the kids thought it was fun to be without moms & dads all day, too :)  thanks, bar bar & gigi!  after a day of hard work we all had dinner together at heather & danny's, and then the kids and i rode home with zach & the boys.  the car ride home was one of the best parts of my day.  i loved looking at the kids in the car together - brooke & jackson in the back, joey and gavin in the 2nd row.  they asked me and zach for lots of stories "about when we were little."  it was fun recollecting and sharing memories with my brother and our kids.

may 13

what a treat to spend mother's day with all of the wonderful women on my side of the family!  i had a really great day.  brooke, gavin and kevin gave me a beautiful dress this morning, which i happily wore all day.  it's the perfect dress in the perfect color and so special to me because brooke went shopping with kevin and picked it out.  my family made me feel very special today.

may 12

my beautiful family took me out to dinner tonight at el coyote to celebrate mother's day.  we had a great day that started with snuggles in bed followed by brooke's soccer game and then a great night out.  i am one lucky mama :)