Disney On Ice

I had purchased tickets for Disney on Ice several months ago but also booked it the same weekend as my girls trip.   This caused a slight inconvience in that we had to leave from Savannah, GA at 10 so I could get back to make it to the show.  It was a little stressful trying to get back and we were a little later than I had hoped but we still had time to get downtown, though we were only in our seats 5 minutes before the start of the show.  This was actually good since Ethan didn’t want to sit still for the whole time. 

The girls were excited to go and said that they kind of remembered going when they were younger (I think they were in Kindergarten so that would have been 4 years ago).  The first part was Toy Story and Ethan loved seeing the slinky dog he kept shouting ‘dog’ ‘dog’ when it would skate by.  The next section was Ariel which was very colorful and well done.  We got some popcorn to eat since it was close to dinner time and the 2 buckets cost $20.  The girls wanted an olaf snowcone which was $15 each and we already have Minnie mouse cups from the last time so they did not give us a hard time when we said no.  Olivia said she might want one for Christmas which is fine I’m sure we can find one cheaper if she still wants one by then.  After intermission they had Cars which kept Ethan’s attention, and then the final section was Anna and Elsa which was good and the girl’s favorite (Olivia’s because of Olaf).  Ethan lost interest during this part and was walking in front of all of us back and forth and climbing in our laps and pushing Savannah out of her chair.  Savannah finally just left her chair and sat on Scott’s lap so Ethan could sit in her chair which suited him for about 2 minutes.  It was a good show and when Mickey and Minnie came back out at the end Ethan watched that part.  We were all impressed with the ice skating and Savannah said as we were walking out that she didn’t realize until the end of the show that they weren’t actually the ones singing.

Traffic was light and getting home was easy, we grabbed some chicken on the way home and discussed our favorite parts.  Ethan must have liked the singing because he hummed and sang most of the way home.

Hurricane Florence

It has been a very eventful week as hurricane Florence decided to head toward the Carolinas.  We first heard about the hurricane when Lynn and Dick arrived on 9/8 in Charlotte.  He said that they had talked about canceling the class he was suppose to teach.  Scott and I were both clueless we had not heard about a hurricane.  Over the next few days though that is all we heard about.  It was a category 4 hurricane and was moving slowly toward the Carolina coast.  As with other hurricanes they can't predict it's path entirely so it was uncertain if it would come toward Charlotte.  Dick's classes in Charlotte went as planned but his class in Durham for Thursday and Friday was cancelled.  They headed back to Boston ahead of the storm Thursday morning.  The hurricane hit Wilmington, NC Thursday night but was moving so slowly we did not get any rain until Friday night.  They had closed school on Friday as a precaution to the storm and the girls had fun playing outside in the wind.  It would get gusty for a while and then die down and come back.  They tried flying a kite but it wasn't constant wind so it didn't do well.  Olivia decided to make her own kite and she came out with a plastic bag and a string tied to the handle.  It actually worked pretty well so her sisters decided to try it and then when Sarah and her 3 kids came over they made more for them.  It was a cheap and fun activity and Sarah and I were able to visit in peace while they all played outside with their 'kites'.  Ethan had fun playing with his new cozy coupe that Paw-Paw and Nana found at a yard sale but he wan't interested in flying a kite.



The hurricane moved slowly dumping tons of rain on NC.  In Charlotte we got 5-10 inches of rain, at the fire station down the road they recorded 8.88 inches of rain from 6pm Saturday to 6pm Sunday.  We had a small lake in our backyard but it did not make it up to the house and our lights only went out for a minute one time and then came back on.  There were lots of trees down around Charlotte and I had to turn around once on my way to work Monday due to a down tree across the road.  We've heard a few friends that had leaks from the roof but nothing major here in Charlotte.  Wilmington, Lumberton, and Fayetteville have all had a lot of flooding and the rivers are still very high so I know there will be lots of damage out that way.

9th Birthday Party

This year the girls were asking for a sleepover for their birthday party.  We actually decided to do a 5-10 Pajama and Pizza party instead of a full sleepover so they could invite a few more girls.  Plus they had sleep-away church camp the week before and so it would need to be on a Saturday night which I figured would be hard to do with church on Sunday. 

We had the schedule all planned out, the girls would arrive at 5 and make their own pizzas for dinner.  Then they would work on a craft while they waited for their pizza to cook.  After that we would do presents and cake so my parents could leave with Ethan.  After presents and cake we would do 2 more crafts and then watch a movie. 

Kathy arrived Friday night and we worked on the cake a little that night as there had been a small mishap with 2 of the layers of cake and so the pillows weren’t fluffy.  We ended up just cooking another chocolate cake and adding that to the 2 flat pillows and it turned out fine.  Unfortunately Kathy started feeling bad late Friday night and by Saturday morning she was sick and had no voice.  We went yard sale shopping for a while but then came home and Kathy slept for a while.  We ended up getting a little behind on finishing the cake so it wasn’t done until after the girls arrived but it was ready before we did gifts.  

The evening went pretty well as planned a couple of things I didn’t consider was how loud 11 girls would be and also that they would be hungry and instead of waiting for their pizzas they filled up on the Dominos pizza we bought for the adults.  This left us with lots of little kid pizzas as they only ate a few bites, not a big deal though.  While they were waiting on their pizza we worked on a suncatcher craft (I’m always looking for crafts I can hang outside).   They all turned out really cute and the girls enjoyed making them.  We then had them open presents, they got all kinds of craft things.  Amanda and her girls got them a huge box of baking supplies, a game and a tie dye kit.  My parents got them cute clip lights to attach to their new bunkbeds which they loved.  Scott and I bought them a printer so they could print pictures from their cameras and Kathy got them mini scrapbooks for their pictures.  After presents we did cake, each girl got to pick their flavor and color of the fondant for their layer.  Emma was aqua and picked strawberry cake, Olivia was purple and picked vanilla cake with chocolate chips and savannah picked pink with chocolate cake.  They all opted to eat the chocolate cake though. 

After cake we had the girls take turns doing a leather working craft that Kathy had brought, it was their favorite and no one had done that kind of craft before.  They made little leather keychains and most of them put their initial or initials on their keychain.  The other girls worked on pillowcases we had each girl a pillowcase to put their name on and then have each girl sign their pillowcase.  They all loved the crafts so much that we got a late start on the movie.  We had borrowed my dad’s projector to watch Princess Diaries outside but as we were setting it up it started to rain.  We let them watch it outside for about 15 minutes thinking the drizzle might blow by but it just kept on raining lightly so we finally gave up and brought them inside to watch the movie.  We served them juice boxes, popcorn, and candy during the movie.  Unfortunately most girls had to leave before the end of the movie but I think they were pretty tired as no one seemed to mind much.  The girls and Bethany (who was staying the night) finished watching it after everyone left. 

I think the girls had fun and I’m glad we just did a 5-10 party and not a full sleepover so I could actually get some rest.  We all slept in until almost 10am since Ethan wasn’t there to wake us up.

9 years old

The girls turned 9 on a Tuesday, on Monday night I tried to wait up after they went to sleep so that I could put up some banners.  Savannah would not go to sleep so finally at 11 I told her she would just have to help and not be surprised.  We hung up a few birthday banners and then did some crepe paper in the doorway.  She enjoyed helping so it worked out fine.  Their birthday wasn’t very eventful they had Music and Arts Camp so they did that until 4pm then we went to Golden Corral, their new favorite restaurant, for dinner. 

We also did Happy Days again this year but we waited until after their birthday to start those.  On their happy day they get to choose what we eat for dinner and we sing to them.  They also get to open gifts from their sisters and maybe a gift or two from mom and dad.  They really embrace their happy days and enjoy it being all about them.  This year was Savannah’s turn to go first she chose to have hobos for dinner.  She got a diary and a bracelet making kit from us.  Emma made her some earrings and Olivia bought her a book and watergun.  Emma was next and she chose chicken pot pie, she likes the mini frozen ones from the grocery store so we bought a few of those for everyone.  She got a weave-loom and sewing craft from us.  Savannah gave her a photo book and Olivia got her a watergun and 2 dollars to buy a book.  Olivia was last she chose tacos for dinner and helped make a blackberry cobbler for dessert.  She received a toolbox and lego tape from us.  Savannah got her a photo book and Emma also made her a pair of earrings.

The girls have matured a lot this past year in a lot of ways.  First they grew not only taller but also have filled out especially Olivia and Savannah, Emma is still just very petite.  They have also matured a lot in their responsibilities at home they have a few chores they do every day and a few chores every week.  We have also started letting them stay by themselves for up to an hour while we run errands with Ethan.  They are great sisters to Ethan and enjoy playing with him, he just loves playing with them. 

Emma:  57 lb (24%)  4' 6" (73%) She is still my sweet girl that loves to cuddle and snuggle.  I am impressed often with her creative side, the other day I walked downstairs and she had made a loom out of cardboard.  She had read about it in a book and followed the instructions and made it herself.  She had gotten some cardboard from the garage and cut the lines and then used her yarn to make a little blanket.  Emma still has her breakdowns and we are working through that.  She gets frustrated when things don’t work out her way or if she can’t make something perfect.

Olivia: 78 lb  (82%)  4' 6" (73%) She is our little helper and daddy’s girl.  She loves to work in the garage with him or help him on projects.  Olivia is very easy to get along with and though she hasn’t bonded with a particular friend everyone likes her.  I will say though that sometimes her helpfulness is more about getting sticks (10 sticks =$1), she likes to have money and save money too.  Olivia is an animal lover and has decided she wants to be a vet.  She seems to really love dogs and I hate that her allergies prevent her from having one.  We have noticed since Cuddles death that when she goes to my moms house with the 3 cats she gets puffy eyes and congested fast.  Spending the night there is difficult for her because she starts to feel congested so she can only do one night. 

 

Savannah: 77 lb (81%)  4' 5" (58%) I have seen Savannah mature a lot socially this past year.  She has some good friends and now will even talk to her best friend Ana on the phone occasionally.  She loves to play barbies and occasionally one of her sisters will join her.  Even Olivia will play a little if she can play with the animals.  She likes to be busy and wants to know every day what the plan for that day is going to be.  She has taken an interest in first aid which I am definitely encouraging.  We could use some medical expertise in this family. 

Roux Reunion

We had planned our Boston trip to coincide with the Roux reunion that was held on July 8^th.  The reunion was held at Dick’s cousin Kathy’s house which is on lake Shirley in MA.

 

The last reunion was about 15 years ago so this was my first reunion for Scott’s family.  It was very nice and there was a good turnout of about 50 people.  Scott’s brother and sister and their families came as well as his cousins Cindy and Judy whom we had seen on the 4^th of July.

 

The lake was a perfect place to have everyone gather.  The weather was beautiful in the mid 80s and the water was warm.  The kids got to canoe and kayak before lunch.  Scott even took Ethan out in a kayak and he seemed to like it.

 

After lunch they swam and fished until it was time for pictures.  Emma caught a fish and she was super excited, she has been fishing a few times with Scott but this was her first catch and it was a pretty good size too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kathy's son Scott lived at the house next door and had this awesome slide and platform that the kids played on.  The tallest platform was 30 feet and all my girls jumped off.  After pictures there were boat rides for everyone.  Scott, Ethan and I went on the pontoon boat with his parents and some other relatives.  We rode around the lake and Ethan feel asleep on our ride.  When we got back I was able to lay him down on a bed in the house and he slept for another hour which was a good break for me.

 

I had wanted to go water skiing mainly to just prove to myself that I could still do it.  It has probably been almost 20 years since I last skied and I use to really enjoy it when my dad had his boat.  The kids went tubing and some of the adults too.  They had room for another tuber and since I was the last one left they took me to do that before skiing.  I may have been tubing once but it would have been in highschool so I don’t really remember.  It was a lot of fun especially since Dick kept getting knocked off his tube.  They took me out skiing next and I got up on my first try but only for like 2 seconds.  I got up the next time and stayed up a few minutes.  We passed a jet ski and I got hit by a big wave so I fell.  I got up again and this time probably stayed up the longest it was fun but I was getting tired and so I wasn’t able to get up again after that time I was just too tired and old I guess.  It was great I was so glad to get the opportunity.  Chris was in the boat with his camera so he got some good pictures even some of me crashing. 

 

Scott and his girlfriend took turns on their wakeboards and did a few tricks they were good and fun to watch.  The kids went back out on the last trip to watch Scott wakeboard and Chris also got some good pictures of him.

 

We ended up eating dinner at the lake with all the leftovers from lunch.  We ended the day with a game of volleyball which I haven’t played in a while but thoroughly enjoyed.  We all left exhausted but happy it was a great end to a great trip.

More Teeth and Less Teeth

Ethan has all 4 molars are coming in at the same time.  His poor gums are swollen and red and he has been pretty fussy too.  We have been giving him so tylenol to help him at night and also gave him benadryl one night just so he could get a full nights rest (and us too).

Olivia is also losing her teeth.  The funny thing is that she is losing her 1 year molars she lost both bottom ones with one week in April.  So Ethan is gaining molars and the girls are losing theirs.

Top left  - 3/30/18
Top right  - 3/4/18
Bottom left - 4/7/18
Bottom right  3/7/18

15 Months

Our little guy is 15 months old and we just can't imagine him not being a part of our family.  At his last dr appt he weighed 24.0 pounds.  He is getting tall and thin just like his sisters.

He has his first year molars on the top coming in and they look painful.  He has been fussy and wanting to nurse (or use mom as a pacifier) more lately so I think that is how he soothes himself.  He is doing great at going to bed now and hardly fusses when we lay him down.  Nap time is still a struggle he cries for a long time and sometimes sleeps for an hour but then sometimes not.  At daycare I'm told he sleeps 2-3 hours so he just won't sleep for us I guess.

He has had several haircuts by Aunt Stephanie, his hair is a little curly and pretty thick.

His favorite thing is the vacuum, he has 2 toy vacuums his favorite is the one from nana and paw-paw that is a Hoover that makes noise.  He loves the real vacuum and will follow you around and try to push it around.  He knows it is kept in Scott's office so if he escapes from the baby gate he make a bee-line to the vacuum.  He also discovered the hand-held vacuum we keep upstairs.  He carries it around and tries to plug it randomly into the wall.  He know it is plugged in but doesn't know it needs an outlet.

His sisters still love him to pieces and are very good at playing with him and they often take turns watching him on the weekends so Scott and I can get the house picked up.  He is a good listener now and is trying to communicate.  He has several words he can say including: more, down/done, up.  He likes to throw things, which is ok if it is a ball but often he'll pick up anything he can find and throw it.  If he gets mad he will look for anything to throw, I think he has a little temper already.

Snow

Last week we got 4.5 inches of snow on Wednesday morning.  The girls were so excited and were out playing in it right after breakfast even though only an inch had really fallen by then.  This year they were able to dress themselves and only needed help with their gloves and boots.  That was nice because I had to get Ethan dressed which was not easy especially trying to put on his boots.  Ethan liked the snow but had trouble walking in it so he preferred to be carried.

I made snow cream that afternoon, the girls had put a bowl on the patio to collect snow so we had a good start and then I got some more off the top of the cars.  Ethan tried his first snow cream and guess what, he liked it too!

Wednesday night it got really cold so the snow froze which made for good sledding on Thursday morning.  Ethan had daycare so that allowed us all to go across the street to sled at the soccer fields.  It started to warm up though that afternoon and most of the snow was gone by Thursday night.