tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898902942237686212024-02-19T18:58:34.144-05:00Life with A and EEricahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.comBlogger192125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-59813618376133292992018-01-08T18:29:00.000-05:002018-01-08T20:01:38.604-05:00Evan - 2017 Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Evan had an amazing 2017. He is now 12 and has grown in so many ways. He is a kind, funny, fun, silly, part kid, part grown up almost teenager.<br />
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<li>School - Evan completed 5th grade and is working through 6th grade in homeschool. He has really hit his stride. He likes math and reading, and his writing is really coming along. (Evan will be starting Algebra I in a few months!) He also takes classes at co-op: Creative Writing, Outdoor Survival, Greek Mythology, and Art; and classes at Mason: Gym and Spanish. This Spring, he competed in the Invention Convention and was selected to go to the state competition at the Ohio State Fair!</li>
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<li>Sports - Evan continues to play soccer and loves it. He decided to take a step up from SAY this year and joined a select team. We are excited to see what the new season will bring. In addition, this year he became a SAY soccer referee. Evan also enjoys all kinds of activities including rock climbing. </li>
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<li>Scouts - 2017 was a big change for Evan with Scouts. He graduated from Cub Scouts - completing all 5 years and his Arrow of Light. Choosing a Boy Scout troop was a difficult decision. The boys that he was with for the last 5 years, including his best friend, all split into 3 different troops. Evan ultimately chose the one that he felt would be best for him and he has been super happy there. He has gone on many cool camping adventures, has advanced to Tenderfoot rank, went for a week of summer camp with no contact home (!), and was recently elected patrol leader of his group. </li>
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<li>Awesome big brother and cousin - Evan is the best big brother and big cousin. He is such a great leader for the kids in our family. Leah and Hudson especially love the special attention that Evan gives to them. He is so patient and kind with them. </li>
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<li>Friends - Evan is blessed with so many great friends. He has his two best buddies that are all all back together again after one moved back from out of town. They recently celebrated their birthdays together with a Good Mythical Morning - Will it Cupcake? party. Check out the video <a href="https://youtu.be/gwUsaKOHvos">here</a>. He best church buddy Brayden recently moved, but they are staying in touch. He also has great friends from co-op and family friends Kelly and Nicole. We are so thankful that he has so many good people surrounding him as he grows up. </li>
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<li>Outdoor fun - Evan is so adventurous. He loves camping, hiking, and anything with water. Here are a few snapshots from some of his many adventures. </li>
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<li>Other fun stuff - </li>
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<li>Church camp - Evan also went to church camp this summer. He had an amazing time. All the leaders talked about he stepped up and really embraced serving and bible study. He is super excited to go back next year. </li>
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<li>Building a computer - Doug and Evan built a computer together this fall! They spend many hours researching parts, ordering, and putting it together. It's currently up and running and Evan is really enjoying it!</li>
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<li>FC Cincinnati - Evan enjoyed going to FC Cincinnati games this year with Doug and his dad. They had season tickets and really enjoyed their time together. </li>
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-69194567065758123732018-01-08T15:32:00.002-05:002018-01-08T19:50:44.048-05:00Ainsley - 2017 Review2017 was an awesome year for Ainsley. She is becoming a confident, funny, hard working girl. It's been so fun to watch her grow. She has such a fun personality - not afraid to say what she's thinking and still has her crazy reaction faces.<br />
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Here are some of the many highlights from the year!<br />
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<ul>
<li>Gymnastics! Ainlsey LOVES gymnastics - truly loves it. After hours of practicing in the gym, she comes home and does more gymnastics! She has even created her own gym in the basement. </li>
<ul>
<li>In 2016-2017, she joined her first competitive gymnastics team and had a fantastic experience. The coaches were amazing, her teammates and their families were so sweet and formed a tight supportive group, and Ainsley was super successful. We were always so proud to hear from the coaches how hard she worked with a great attitude. At State Championships, she came in 1st in place all around, on bars, and on beam and qualified to compete in the regional championships!</li>
<li>In July, Ainsley made the hard choice to switch gyms to a join different team. Her previous coaches moved to another city and it was a good time to make the switch. It was an extremely hard decision. She moved to a larger gym and a more competitive level, and she has rose to the challenge has been excelling so far! Although the gym different, her love for gymnastics continues to grow, and we can't wait to see where it will take her. </li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">School - Ainsley continued homeschooling in 2nd and 3rd grade. She works hard, enjoys going to co-op, and has really taken off with reading this year. Her favorite subject is math and her least favorite subject is spelling. Poppy is teaching science and social studies. Ainsley also takes specials at Mason - Art and STEM. We enjoy the flexibility of homeschooling - going to the Children's Theater, outdoor exploring, reading through Little House and doing pioneer activities, going to museums and field trips with friends. Plus, with 12 hours a week of gymnastics, it's nice to have extra time with our girl!</li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>8th Birthday - Ainsley celebrated her 8th birthday in April! She had a great family party and then celebrated with her two good friends having a small party and then going to the trampoline park!</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EYP6hEmDXoM/WlOWORb7JtI/AAAAAAAAXSI/xhx2rHPevqkfwonIZ77OuQQHi-6ILHXMACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_6675.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EYP6hEmDXoM/WlOWORb7JtI/AAAAAAAAXSI/xhx2rHPevqkfwonIZ77OuQQHi-6ILHXMACLcBGAs/s320/IMG_6675.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y1es3HFdteA/WlOWOSRzHjI/AAAAAAAAXSE/ow34rrgYhEQT-oG3loxTcdB002QJ9Zq1QCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_6653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y1es3HFdteA/WlOWOSRzHjI/AAAAAAAAXSE/ow34rrgYhEQT-oG3loxTcdB002QJ9Zq1QCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_6653.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
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<ul>
<li>Trips - We did a lot of traveling in 2017! </li>
<ul>
<li>For gymnastics, we traveled to Columbus, Nashville, Akron, and Peoria. These were great trips filled with gymnastics friends and swimming in all the indoor pools. :)</li>
<li>We traveled with Nani and Poppy on a Caribbean cruise in February. </li>
<li>We visited Norris lake in the summer the Weis family. </li>
<li>In September, we went to Chicago and St. Joseph, MI. The highlight of Chicago for Ainlsey was visiting the America Girl store! We spent hours in the store where Ainsley selected her first AG doll - Tenney!</li>
<li>In November, we traveled to Disney and had such a magical vacation. </li>
</ul>
</ul>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc6ztljBJNyipbV84jwFKAgZx6MwvIpQZTftCRzB5KglXj1Y8yPdTCHHen2bv5HOkT-mygXZ0WBXOXqCDFD2QkhWlRKt8PtLrA0mRVWJxdSLx4uv5qEsqfpYcr-6RLaT_CSug3SYmHpLU/s1600/IMG_4043.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc6ztljBJNyipbV84jwFKAgZx6MwvIpQZTftCRzB5KglXj1Y8yPdTCHHen2bv5HOkT-mygXZ0WBXOXqCDFD2QkhWlRKt8PtLrA0mRVWJxdSLx4uv5qEsqfpYcr-6RLaT_CSug3SYmHpLU/s320/IMG_4043.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--cyVi-SM1PM/WlOWJePq8MI/AAAAAAAAXRc/O-aDJE-_0_cScDQHeCWgCdfQ8SoZpwByACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_5988.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--cyVi-SM1PM/WlOWJePq8MI/AAAAAAAAXRc/O-aDJE-_0_cScDQHeCWgCdfQ8SoZpwByACLcBGAs/s320/IMG_5988.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Aq07Wq3bhKw/WlOWJnNcWBI/AAAAAAAAXRg/5NPAmuzcaZIQPRKHf5F8NHgUgxjxBx7tQCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_6178.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Aq07Wq3bhKw/WlOWJnNcWBI/AAAAAAAAXRg/5NPAmuzcaZIQPRKHf5F8NHgUgxjxBx7tQCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_6178.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B2-4zgCQJus/WlOWYbikgYI/AAAAAAAAXS8/fGiJ2ZBsx9wCOu4WStJJ4AtGZZMO_6DUgCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_8019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B2-4zgCQJus/WlOWYbikgYI/AAAAAAAAXS8/fGiJ2ZBsx9wCOu4WStJJ4AtGZZMO_6DUgCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_8019.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHl-bRwjpuU/WlOWTyityYI/AAAAAAAAXSk/CxRwDeVEO-4WvfCftSaR-RgInsE67YT7wCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_7654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHl-bRwjpuU/WlOWTyityYI/AAAAAAAAXSk/CxRwDeVEO-4WvfCftSaR-RgInsE67YT7wCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_7654.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMHYPfBWypIn2sBEqFpId2VmUIiYeH00h-L28xQVwDeuF21iL6LZVWNCKPf9escYr-Qv9nGXQvu_OTBTGayhXI_M2-Ejbqi5_81Cbapbrstps5028k1Ka_1O8SuenvBQmSsQsk-jefq0/s1600/IMG_7830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMHYPfBWypIn2sBEqFpId2VmUIiYeH00h-L28xQVwDeuF21iL6LZVWNCKPf9escYr-Qv9nGXQvu_OTBTGayhXI_M2-Ejbqi5_81Cbapbrstps5028k1Ka_1O8SuenvBQmSsQsk-jefq0/s320/IMG_7830.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
<ul>
<li>Friends - Ainsley is blessed to have such good friends - neighbors, homeschool, and gymnastics friends. They love to do gymnastics, play house, barbies, and American Girl. </li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dESb2S3A9Pw/WlOWLHAlS6I/AAAAAAAAXRs/VsQAdwdxd0YeFZ7_p743CMF4MU_BG8p3QCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_6494.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dESb2S3A9Pw/WlOWLHAlS6I/AAAAAAAAXRs/VsQAdwdxd0YeFZ7_p743CMF4MU_BG8p3QCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_6494.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UcdkTXY_WbI/WlOWXsWe1JI/AAAAAAAAXS4/FaKcV70OGZM5vhK61-4fZU-bk72d_xEpgCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_7966.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UcdkTXY_WbI/WlOWXsWe1JI/AAAAAAAAXS4/FaKcV70OGZM5vhK61-4fZU-bk72d_xEpgCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_7966.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NaKUW_XM8z4/WlOWSp03kUI/AAAAAAAAXSg/9ftYaUJzo0AgG5FlQjMTw7kp6qVi_zExgCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_7565.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NaKUW_XM8z4/WlOWSp03kUI/AAAAAAAAXSg/9ftYaUJzo0AgG5FlQjMTw7kp6qVi_zExgCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_7565.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li>Just a few of the other fun things we did last year included: </li>
<ul>
<li>FC Cincinnati games! Doug and Evan has season tickets and Ainlsey enjoyed coming along and cheering!</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9VXIdaNZ9-zr2h21YrGTzBEfLFS742aSa02XcNfLtUOjLWwkcVTNj4oT8NlWLkrcgo0mjtWQfe3_FnKBjF40-iZ97wGuk4Dy1IMT3G8xCzVx0R-DMVZ7uVac22QLn0ABtcKLmKIC_htk/s1600/IMG_4006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9VXIdaNZ9-zr2h21YrGTzBEfLFS742aSa02XcNfLtUOjLWwkcVTNj4oT8NlWLkrcgo0mjtWQfe3_FnKBjF40-iZ97wGuk4Dy1IMT3G8xCzVx0R-DMVZ7uVac22QLn0ABtcKLmKIC_htk/s320/IMG_4006.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<ul><ul>
<li>Hiking - with all the wonderful, mild weather, we did lots of hiking. While not Ainsley's favorite, she hung in there on most of our exploring. :) </li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Kings Island - We spent lots of time at Kings Island this summer, both the rides and the waterpark. It such a great place to connect with friends and be outside. We are so lucky to have it so close by and get to go so often. </li>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Lost teeth - Christmas 2016 was the Christmas of "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth". She's not afraid to wiggle her teeth out and even lost a tooth at Chad and Jen's at Thanksgiving. </li>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Here are a few other highlights from the last year: </li>
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-35618852780760414602016-08-31T18:41:00.000-04:002018-01-08T18:45:28.693-05:00Evan's Solo Trip - Seattle 2016Evan took his first solo trip to visit his best friend in Seattle in August 2016. It was so hard to put him on the plane by himself, but he did so well and we knew he was heading to an awesome family that would take such good care of him. Here are some photos from the many fun things he got to experience.<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-36421458659783538562016-05-23T11:28:00.000-04:002016-05-23T21:24:29.567-04:00Ainsley - 7!!Our baby is 7!! Crazy!! This past 6 months can be summed up in two words - gymnastics and homeschool. :)<br />
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Ainsley decided to try her 1st grade year doing homeschool. It's actually been a better transition than I could imagine having both kids home. We are able to have lots of flexibility in going places and hands on learning. The kids have developed a great bond. Ainsley has really grown this year in her schooling - she is doing a great job with her reading. I love to listen to her. :) She is also doing well at co-op - taking math, art, animal studies, and nature studies - and enjoying her time with other kids.<br />
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Gymnastics is the other word the sums up Ainsley's year. She started gymnastics in late August, and hasn't stopped!! She is doing so well, quickly progressing and most importantly, smiling through most practices. :) Our basement has been transformed into a gym. There isn't a day that goes by that she isn't flipping, cartwheeling, or doing a back walk over. Ainsley has definitely found her "thing" and I can't wait to see where it takes her!<br />
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Ainlsey continues to be independent. She has a dry wit, and it's interesting to her what she'll say next. She continues to make the best, craziest faces in reaction to whatever is going on.<br />
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Ainsley loves her cousins so much. She has really enjoyed Abigail as she grows - I think she enjoys taking on the "big sister" role.<br />
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Ainsley's 7th birthday party was a gymnastics party. We had her friends over to do gymnastics in the basement, followed by a family party. Unfortunately, Ainsley wasn't feeling so well and fell asleep during her party. We appreciated all the family and friends coming over. We celebrated on her actual birthday at Cheesecake Factory - her new favorite.<br />
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Ainsley and Evan continue to be friends - mostly playing great together. I love the bond that the two of them are forming!<br />
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When Ainsley's not doing gymnastics, she likes to bake, hang out with her friends, be an honorary cub scout, and go to Kings Island (48" this year!!).<br />
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Ainsley is the perfect mix of sweetness and wit. She is a joy to watch grow up. I can definitely see her growing up - I'd love to slow it down, but I know I can't. Right now, we are trying to enjoy every moment we can!<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-29850734259844479192016-05-23T10:22:00.000-04:002016-05-23T21:24:45.378-04:00Evan - 10-1/2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Summer has arrived at the Ross household!! We are all looking forward to a great summer following a great school year!</div>
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Evan is 10-1/2 and just finished up 4th grade. We has another great year filled with lots of learning at home and out in the world. Our big change this year came around Christmas, when we switched from online school to true homeschool. I think we are all enjoying the new way. Evan is doing great as usual - he is flying through Pre-Algebra and science, and his writing is really seeing awesome improvement. I have been blessed to have Poppy help me out teaching. At co-op, he really enjoyed his classes - Sea Creatures, gym, art, and Classic Lit book club. (I enjoyed teaching Algebra I and II.)</div>
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For sports, Evan has been rocking soccer his fall and spring seasons! We love to watch him play, and he has a pretty great coach (Dad)! He decided not to play basketball, and instead is taking a boys athletic tumbling/ninja warrior class. He loves it and is learning to flip and jump all over the basement. He has a great front and back tuck on the trampoline!</div>
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He has gotten really strong - learned to mow the grass, is helpful carrying things. I think he's stronger then me. :) The COSI strength test may have proved it. </div>
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He has also continued on with Scouts - with only 1/2 a year left until he moves to Boy Scouts. :( We love all the activities including Pinewood Derby and campouts. We have really grown to love all the boys and families in the group. </div>
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Evan still has his two best buddies, and has added Kelly to his friends to skype and play online with. He is either very active - running around like crazy - or happy to be playing on his computer. And, if we are ever near water, Evan is instantly wet!</div>
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Evan continues to be an awesome big brother. We have loved having both kids home this year - it's been great seeing the bond with each other grow. </div>
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Evan is continuing to grow into an awesome young man! He is a great thinker, and can be so sweet. We are blessed to have him as our son!!</div>
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-59753110480777110092015-11-07T10:52:00.002-05:002015-11-07T11:02:57.396-05:00Ainsley at 6-1/2Here are a few things Ainsley has been up to in the last 6 months:<br />
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Ainsley had her dance recital in May. She loves performing, especially with her cousin Mya!<br />
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Ainsley had a blast at the lake this year, and had fun doing anything with water. </div>
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She lost her first two teeth!</div>
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Had lots of fun at KI!<br />
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Went to several summer camps with friends:<br />
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In August, Ainsley started gymnastics and we think she's found her passion! We can't keep her right side up. :) </div>
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-72452519739475690392015-11-07T10:29:00.001-05:002015-11-07T10:41:10.494-05:00Evan is 10!!!I saw it every post, but 10! Evan is 10! I really, really don't know how that happened. I do know that it has come too quickly.<br />
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If you ask Evan what he loves at 10, it's pretty simple - playing with his friends and Minecraft. (The ultimate fun is playing Minecraft <u>with</u> his friends.) He loves running around and playing any type of game - frisbee, basketball, football, wiffleball, dodgeball - with friends, Dad, Poppy or Grandpa.<br />
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Evan played soccer in the spring and the fall, and had another two great seasons.<br />
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This fall, Evan tried out ultimate frisbee and really enjoyed it. I think he'll be playing again in the spring. </div>
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A few months ago, we upgraded Evan's room. He really needed a desk, and had been asking about a loft bed for a long time. We surprised him one day with a new loft bed! He loved his new space and can often be found at his desk. Here is the before and after: </div>
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Evan finally has a boy cousin!!! Hudson was born in June. I am sure they will be buddies as they grow up. </div>
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Evan continues to do Cub Scouts. We all love how family friendly the group is! We have fun hiking, camping out, learning new things, and even selling popcorn. Here are some pictures from the Heritage Day parade:<br />
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We had another AMAZING summer together filled with:<br />
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<li>Seattle!!! We were so lucky to spend a week and a half with our great friends in Seattle. The city is gorgeous, but the memories and fun that we had were priceless!</li>
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<li>Lots of summer camps</li>
<li>A fun trip to the lake where Evan learned to knee board. It was to great to see him work hard, not give up, and finally accomplish it! It helped that he caught on before Dad. :) </li>
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<li>Tons of trips to KI </li>
<li>Enjoying the food plan at KI</li>
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<li>After KI, stopping at Speedway. (Both kids prefer Icees over ice cream - crazy kids!)</li>
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For Evan's actual birthday, he wanted a sleepover with his best friend. I think it was a great success!<br />
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We are having so much fun with Evan at this stage. It's amazing to see him starting to really figure out who he is, what he likes, and how to handle situations and emotions. It's not always easy, as we all navigate between childhood and becoming a teenager. When we see Evan making the right choice, using self control, or making a good tough decision, it's nice to know he is on the right path. We know it's part of him growing up.<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-62188714166540191832015-04-21T19:01:00.001-04:002015-04-21T19:01:32.138-04:00Evan - 9-1/2Happy Spring!! It's been awhile since our last update and Evan is now 9-1/2.<br />
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We have had so much fun these last 8 months! Here are some of the highlights:<br />
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<u>School </u>- Evan is doing homeschool again this year. We both enjoy the time we get to spend together and the flexibility that homeschooling provides. (**Bragging here - Evan is 2 full grade levels ahead in math and he it doing so great.) He is also excelling in reading and science. I love to see him learn, even if a few days are difficult. We are still attending Learning Tree, and this year Evan is taking Lego, Art, Gym, and Little House. (I'm teaching Pre-Algebra, Algebra I, and Algebra II and really love it.)<br />
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<u>Sports </u>- Evan is still playing SAY soccer and enjoys that pace. He played in the fall and now in the spring and Doug assistant coached both his teams. He also played Upward basketball in the winter and also did archery for awhile in the fall.<br />
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<u>Scouts </u>- Evan is also still participating in Cub Scouts. We all had a great time at the fall campout in John Bryan State park. He did really well in at the Pinewood Derby in winter - placing 3rd place out of all the scouts. He even went to collect maple syrup this year. He has some great friends and it's been a wonderful group to be part of.<br />
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<u>Friends </u>- His two best buddies are still Tyler and Zachary. We are so lucky to have these great boys in his life. They all play so well together. Zachary lives right down the street, and as and added bonus Ainsley and Zachary's little sister are great friends as well. Tyler moved to Seattle in the fall, but the boys have kept the friendship going with weekly Skype dates and a fun Christmas visit.<br />
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<u>Interests </u>- This year, Evan joined a First Lego League team and is having fun learning and working with the group. His favorite item by far is his iPad - preferring that to even a movie or TV show. He also loved to connect online and play Minecraft with his friends. Thankfully, when he is unplugged, he still just likes to play - he loves riding bikes, shooting hoops, running around outside and making up games with his sister.<br />
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<u>Fun Activities</u> - We have done so many fun things this year. For his birthday, Evan had an archery tag birthday party, where the boys and their dads faced off!. We also attended 3 plays at the Cincinnati Children's Theater. Through our homeschooling group, Evan got to visit the Post Office Tour and National Underground Freedom center. We've spend several Friday afternoons rollerskating. In the winter, we were able to go snow tubing as will as skiing for the first time!<br />
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We are really enjoying watching Evan grow and the young man his is becoming. He has a wonderful heart and is an amazing brother to Ainsley. We love you Evan!!<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-44780859031291697602015-04-21T19:01:00.000-04:002015-04-21T19:01:22.073-04:00Ainsley is 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ainsley Just celebrated her 6th birthday and we are really enjoying watching her grow up! She is smart and has a quick wit, and she keeps us smiling with all her singing and dancing!!<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">Ainsley embarked on a new adventure this year - kindergarten!! She has a sweet teacher - Mrs. Grabeman - and a nice class. We have been impressed to see how much she has grown in ability to read this year. She has worked her way through the levels of "just right" books and will try books at home with lots of determination.</span><br />
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This year, Ainsley is taking dance once again with her cousin, Mya. The girls are learning ballet and tap and enjoy seeing each other each week. We are looking forward to their recital in May. Ainlsey still loves to tumble on her own. This winter she tested herself - doing 100 cartwheels in a row, doing headstands for more than a minute, and attempting handstands.<br />
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She also tried cheer-leading this year for Upward basketball. He favorite cheer was "A-W-E-S-O-M-E, Awesome, Awesome, To-ta-lly," She had fun learning the cheers and dance routines. I think she will participate again next year.<br />
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This year, Ainsley tried Daisy Girl Scouts with mom as one of her leaders. It is a nice group of girls - all 15 of them! Ainsley enjoys the crafts and activities, but I think a smaller group might be better for next year.<br />
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Her best friends are Angel and Mya. Now, when friends come over, they disappear for hours on end playing mom and kid, reenacting Frozen, playing school or vacation. It's wonderful to see the imagination. She also loves her two younger cousins - Leah and Abigail.<br />
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Ainsley even loves to play even by herself. He choice of playing changes - dress up, Barbies, and American girl dolls are a few of her favorites.She also loves to play with Evan, but their play is a bit different. :) They both love each other, and play well together almost all the time.<br />
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We are really enjoying the kids at their ages - we try to be intentional about doing lots of activities, adventures, and trips with the kids since they are so excited about seeing new things, and are just plan fun to be around. We have been lucky to make so many great memories - lots of trips to Kings Island, going to Disney World and Destin, visiting friends, Disney on Ice, rollerskating, skiing, snow tubing, theater, the museum and downtown, and new parks just to name a few,<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-31860049183977869042015-01-06T00:00:00.003-05:002015-01-06T00:00:47.641-05:00Christmas 2014We just wrapped up another fabulous Christmas season. We had a wonderful break, and were so blessed to spend time with family and friends. We are thankful that everyone is healthy and happy! I wanted to capture those memories so we can look back in years to come. <br />
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Around the week before Thanksgiving, the kids and I started asking Doug to put up the tree... we try to hold out for the day after Thanksgiving, but never seem to make it. This year, the kids got to put up their little trees in their rooms a week or so early.<br />
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This year, before our big (12') tree went up, Doug and I had the fun job of un-lighting the tree. After 10 years, the pre-lit tree was only half pre-lit, and we spent many hours in the basement cutting off the lights. It was worth it though! We all love our big tree. It should be good for many years to come, even if it is a little more work to light the tree when we put it up.<br />
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We got to do so many fun things to celebrate the season this year:<br />
**We went to the Children's Theatre to see "The Snow Queen" with Nani, followed by a visit to the Museum Center. Ainsley didn't want to visit Santa, but had fun interacting with Pouge and Patter, the talking reindeer.<br />
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**We were treated to the Festival of Lights by Doug's work. We hadn't been in a few years, and everyone really enjoyed the light displays and animals. Added bonus - we won $100 for going!<br />
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**For the second time, we were able to attend Santa's Candyland at Prasco. We love seeing the Christmas story, visiting Santa, and eating lots of candy!<br />
**We made our annual Gingerbread house with Chad, Jen and Abigail. Each kid got to make their own house this year. We're not sure if they got more candy on their houses or in their mouths.<br />
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**Ainsley and I attended Awaited. We both loved the show and enjoyed singing along to the songs.<br />
**Our family enjoyed the annual Cub Scout skating party. Our kids can both skate independently which makes it fun for all!<br />
**Ainsley and I attended the Nutcracker with Mya and Robin. The girls loved the show, especially the Sugar Plum fairy.<br />
** We spent Christmas Eve Eve and New Years Eve with our good friends from Seattle and neighbors down the street. We all had so much fun visiting and attending church together. The kids all played while we all got to visit. We are so thankful for the time we had together. The kids and adults all love each other so much.<br />
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This year was quiet different because Evan was in the know about Santa. He was asking questions, and then ended up reading something in a book that caused us to confess. It definitely made things different, but he was a great sport. He told us multiple times that he enjoyed knowing and being in on it. He even helped be assemble Ainsley's dollhouse.<br />
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Ainsley's top wish from Santa this year was a fold-up beach. This is something that she made up. She said it was a beach to play on that folds up into a bag. It made things interesting, but I think Santa figured it out.<br />
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One of the things that Doug and I have a love/hate relationship with each year is Twinkle, our elf. :) Ask us every night, and ugh.. but each morning, the joy we get seeing Ainsley search the house makes it worthwhile. (He landed in our pantry in this picture.)<br />
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Of course, we had a fabulous time celebrating Christmas Eve with extended family, Christmas Day with the Ross family, and Christmas day after with the Weis family. We love having the time together to make memories, and everyone is so generous.<br />
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There are a couple of moments we will remember most about this Christmas. First, Evan could not fall asleep the night before because he was so excited. It was somewhere around 1:00am when he finally fell asleep. Ainsley didn't fall asleep until much later than usual as well. We thought we were all going to be very tired the next day since the kids would be getting up so early. To our surprise, we were the first ones awake. The kids didn't come out of their rooms until after 9:00!<br />
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The second moment happened Christmas morning. Before the first present was unwrapped, it touched our heart to see Evan bow down and pray before a single thing was opened, without any prompting from us. Ainsley even followed his lead and did the same.<br />
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We are all so thankful for the real reason for this season, and it was so special to see our kids embracing it as well.Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-31942260241256150942014-08-25T10:11:00.000-04:002015-04-21T10:11:58.360-04:00Destin - August 2014In August, before school began, we were able to spend a wonderful vacation week Destin, FL. We went with Nani and Poppy, and I think everyone had a wonderful time. The weather was great and the memories spent together were even better.<br />
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We got to take some family pictures on the beach:<br />
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We were had a great balcony overlooking the ocean, and the kids loved to sit out and watch the waves.<br />
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The pool was steps away from the ocean, which was wonderful!!<br />
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Our lunch and the pool one day.. we always had enough food!<br />
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We were so thankful to be able to go to the beach and make wonderful memories with our family!!</div>
Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-52851734318270537222014-07-23T15:57:00.002-04:002014-07-23T15:57:41.650-04:00Evan - 8.75 Time for another update on Evan!! As I mentioned, Evan is 8.75. :) That's appropriate since he's our math kiddo.<br />
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Evan finished up 2nd grade in May and did awesome. We did school at home again this year. His favorite subject continues to be math and he also enjoys science and reading. He surprised us and loved Gifted and Talented Language Arts. He was able to have book discussions and present his writing to other peers. He did great!! Writing is still his least favorite, but we figured out it's not writing, but handwriting that's not his cup of tea.<br />
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Evan played basketball with Upward again this year and was on the same team as his best friend, Zachary. He really improved this year and even made the first basket for his team.<br />
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He also played soccer this spring, which was fun but was rained out a lot. He continues to take archery classes and has really improved. He even took 2 weeks of archery camp this summer!<br />
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We have all had the chance to try out some fun activities over the last few months. Both kids loved rollerskating, and we went several times to home school skate. In February, we tried out snow tubing at Perfect North with our good friends. We all had a blast and stayed until it closed.We also tried out ice skating, which was a bit more challenging than rollerskating!<br />
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We joined Lifetime for the summer, and Evan has loved swimming, racquetball, and doing the climbing wall! He is really good at climbing and I even took a belaying class so that he could climb more challenging routes.<br />
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We were also lucky to go to the lake once again this summer and Evan was an expert on the tube. He also enjoyed jumping off the 12' cliff - over and over!<br />
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Evan continues to do Cub Scouts and has a blast. He had a great performance at the Pinewood Derby, and enjoyed a lock-in (where Evan and Doug stayed up all night), and camping at Wright Patt (well, sort-of - the grass was feet tall so we just decided to stay late).<br />
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We had the best time at Disney. You can see more <a href="http://life-with-e.blogspot.com/2014/07/disney-2014.html">here</a>. Evan told us when we got home that it was his favorite days ever. His favorite ride was the Rock-n-Rollercoaster and he had a blast doing Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom.<br />
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Speaking of rides, Evan hit 52 inches at Kings Island! He is tall enough to ride the new rollercoaster - the Banshee. (He was even one of the 1st 5000 riders, earning a tee shirt that he's been wearing to sleep in all summer.) Due to rider swap, Evan has lucked out getting to ride double all summer. His favorite seat it in the front and he's easily ridden it over 40 times.<br />
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Evan said goodbye to his first best friend, Tyler, this summer who moved to Seattle. We squeezed a ton of fun into the weeks before he left, and we have been face-timing to keep in touch. They are going to move back, so we are thankful for that!!<br />
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Evan is definitely growing up. It's fun to see him challenge himself to try new things. He likes to get things right the first time, but is learning to not give up when something is tough. Sometimes he just likes acting like a crazy boy!! He also still has his sweet spirit. He still loves to snuggle at night and is great with younger kids. We love him so very much!!<br />
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Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-15034753699270945142014-07-23T15:55:00.002-04:002014-07-23T15:55:50.409-04:00Ainsley is 5!!Ainsley turned 5 in April. Five! She celebrated with a family party along with a small friend party. She had a few of her good friends, Mya, Leah, Angel, and Mia over for a tea party. It was so fun to have a girly party, with "tea" (water), fancy dress ups, and dancing. I think it was a success!<br />
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Since December, Ainsley had been taking dance class, which she loved. Every week, she was so excited to go to class. (She also was in class with Mya.) In June, Ainsley had her first recital. It was awesome! She had the biggest smile the whole time. - it was so precious! I may have had a few tears after watching her dance.<br />
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In the spring, Ainsley decided that she wanted to ride a two wheeler. She is a very determined little girl when she wants to do something! After a week or two of practice, she was able to accomplish it! She now zips around the neighborhood with all the big kids.<br />
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In the winter, Ainsley learned to roller skate. She was once again determined to keep up with the other kids and not have me help her around the rink.<br />
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Ainsley, Evan, Nani and I have enjoyed going to the Cincy Children's Theater. We have seen Annie Jr, the Night Before Christmas, and Pinkalicious. Ainsley loved going! Her face lights up when she is watching the shows. Speaking of shows, Ainsley also loved the move Frozen! We were able to see the movie 3 times in the theater, and even got a chance to dress up for the sing-a-long.<br />
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In May, our family had such a wonderful time at Disney. Ainsley's favorites were meeting Ariel, the Ariel ride, and meeting all the other princesses. :) She also was selected to play the part of the Beast with Belle and loved the parades. She tried out Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain, but once was enough. We were proud of her for trying! (She was not so crazy about the live studio shows at Hollywood Studios.) Watching her face light up and experience everything was so special. I think Doug and I will always treasure those memories. <br />
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In May, Ainsley finished up preschool! She had a wonderful year. She was in class with Mya and loved going each day. She has learned so much this year. She can write her first and last name, and is able to read the first few BOB books by herself. We can't wait to see where kindergarten takes her!<br />
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Here is a sample of her writing. These are all words that she wrote herself (without us telling her spelling, etc).<br />
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This summer, Ainsley got to go to Safety Town with Mya, Angel, and Chloe where she had a blast. We also joined Lifetime - she has enjoyed climbing and swimming. Ainsley is extremely determined to make her way up the rock wall. Just yesterday, Ainsley passed her swim test swimming 25m without touching the sides. (Can you see a pattern with the determination? :)) We were also lucky to go to the lake again this year, which really helped Ainsley learn to swim.<br />
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At home, Ainsley loves to play! She is so good playing independently and with friends. She loves play pretend games like house, mommies, kitchen, going on a trip, and barbies. She also loves to dress up and pick out her own outfits.<br />
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Ainsley is such a joy! She is the perfect combination of sweet and independence. Either Doug or I still snuggles with her each night. She cares about other people and has the best dimpled smile. We love this little girl!</div>
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Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-42142344153369409522014-07-21T15:10:00.000-04:002014-07-21T15:11:17.668-04:00Disney 2014We were so lucky to be able to take the kids to Disney in May. We had a FANTASTIC time and loved every minute. So many great memories were made. We wanted to remember as much as we could, so we created a photobook of our memories:<br />
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.Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-79457737858123471862014-02-03T21:07:00.000-05:002014-02-03T21:33:28.884-05:00Evan - 8 and a little bit..<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHRYLw1HRgE0kh3gp8vykfD4JNtX6CF-9HEZMhXddm-_B1hVQc84tWnRuPEv0-w2ELb_dgmDVMKDHcNhZGYUE2YqQ10zGfywzn6ko-tL7awDaJcJQgesbPYGz-fVOjJf-wSQYduX0fAGc/s1600/DSC_9582.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHRYLw1HRgE0kh3gp8vykfD4JNtX6CF-9HEZMhXddm-_B1hVQc84tWnRuPEv0-w2ELb_dgmDVMKDHcNhZGYUE2YqQ10zGfywzn6ko-tL7awDaJcJQgesbPYGz-fVOjJf-wSQYduX0fAGc/s1600/DSC_9582.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I can't believe it's time for another post! Evan is now 8 and growing up way too fast. :) He is still our sweet boy, but is definitely becoming more grown up and independent each day. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSrKVd_bz1v7nRUdCz2nJ2YIcX7Rg886ctilJcX6xO2XAjUCHTZO4b4YdBsEGxZygI6kZXz9bYpkPuZa41jwX5VXZH-oKkFfMyA8BC4hibRhwB8qwRnaHyt1ZTEyNBxwc3y_Pg_96c94/s1600/DSC_9848.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSrKVd_bz1v7nRUdCz2nJ2YIcX7Rg886ctilJcX6xO2XAjUCHTZO4b4YdBsEGxZygI6kZXz9bYpkPuZa41jwX5VXZH-oKkFfMyA8BC4hibRhwB8qwRnaHyt1ZTEyNBxwc3y_Pg_96c94/s1600/DSC_9848.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">All about Evan at 8...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- Evan and Doug have become "board game geeks". (I like to play as well.) The games that they play are mostly complex strategy games. Evan has a great attention span and is very good! (He wins at least half the time. :))</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- The ipad has quickly become Evan's favorite free time activity. He would pick that any day over TV or Wii. His favorite apps are Minecraft, Dragonvale and he loved facetiming with his friends. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN9FWHIaO-6CjMhjyjuord09MvhU7DDUmCZ9GP129W4BAhtrjhISZAkCyplP7qb48ig1F4AeZ2Ffeh7Fic5nhZPBXj4jV5YglrEbANViS0d8gBgxX_DY7nat9oP45XEN449FRXRdUNkl0/s1600/DSC_0648.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN9FWHIaO-6CjMhjyjuord09MvhU7DDUmCZ9GP129W4BAhtrjhISZAkCyplP7qb48ig1F4AeZ2Ffeh7Fic5nhZPBXj4jV5YglrEbANViS0d8gBgxX_DY7nat9oP45XEN449FRXRdUNkl0/s1600/DSC_0648.JPG" height="320" width="187" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- Evan still loves Cub Scouts and it's been keeping him busy. This fall, he sold lots of popcorn, made a Rain Gutter Regatta boat (which won his den), participated in the Fishing Derby, had fun camping in the rain with Doug, and just recently completed his second Pinewood Derby. (He came in 5th in the pack.) Most of all, he has a great group of boys that he gets to spend time with! </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWZ8CbJWFbrfzi_ZhOg4-2DDXV5mLT_NNhN_lo3Nb60p-dhXlw-bejudEjfYM6PNWNQxgDti8pVZEveCaY1poxopyFRIDiF8DkWmyjVKg1EPIho-ZMpPiQyVjSX9rGyCfPDwsVvST06s/s1600/DSC_0143.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWZ8CbJWFbrfzi_ZhOg4-2DDXV5mLT_NNhN_lo3Nb60p-dhXlw-bejudEjfYM6PNWNQxgDti8pVZEveCaY1poxopyFRIDiF8DkWmyjVKg1EPIho-ZMpPiQyVjSX9rGyCfPDwsVvST06s/s1600/DSC_0143.JPG" height="320" width="211" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- Evan played soccer again in the fall and plans to keep playing in the spring as well. He got to play with one of this best friends, and had a blast. He also starting taking archery, which he also loves! </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3m2fgLaVoZE/Uu8RZbdc57I/AAAAAAAADxo/WBv8PVWiRvI/s1600/DSC_0369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3m2fgLaVoZE/Uu8RZbdc57I/AAAAAAAADxo/WBv8PVWiRvI/s1600/DSC_0369.JPG" height="265" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- We are continuing eschooling and doing co-op for second grade. (Evan wanted to keep doing this, so we did!) He loves math (already in 4th grade) and science, but is also really progressing in Language Arts. He's even doing gifted and talented Language Arts, which has been awesome for him. He gets to write and discuss books with his classmates once a week. He also loves doing science each week with Poppy, which is a great way for him to learn from someone else.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LmIh-9sYscU/Uu8Ravsy3_I/AAAAAAAADyQ/-jNoWj8X2U8/s1600/DSC_9727.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LmIh-9sYscU/Uu8Ravsy3_I/AAAAAAAADyQ/-jNoWj8X2U8/s1600/DSC_9727.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">-Evan and I recently finished reading Harry Potter, which we both really enjoyed. Now, Doug and Evan are reading through the Chronicles or Narnia, which he is loving as well! It's been great to have that special time reading with him, especially as he gets more independent reading on his own. </span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7XuAteWtU-k/Uu8RctwQXZI/AAAAAAAADy4/rgelcXJ8GJw/s1600/DSC_9985.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7XuAteWtU-k/Uu8RctwQXZI/AAAAAAAADy4/rgelcXJ8GJw/s1600/DSC_9985.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NUb_2hmGMio/Uu8RZU1NhTI/AAAAAAAADxs/awn3s1kjY2w/s1600/DSC_0542.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NUb_2hmGMio/Uu8RZU1NhTI/AAAAAAAADxs/awn3s1kjY2w/s1600/DSC_0542.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- He has his two best friends, who he loves to play with. He loves to play with other kids as well and pretty much gets along with everyone. He has also really come out of his shell and is quick to make friends in any situation. Of course, he is the best big brother! He is really patient with Ainsley and is loving and inclusive. He is also the sweetest big cousin and such a caring boy. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-NHkGOz0UC-nE90wPL429HIIVL8aRsHDlbG4FztI8yWpGFS37uyCxN1itLSokn7zZCJoUgvRnBVKt8YBOe-F6gu31yE6jIv46nIvsJxw2oOH0oKVCP557ea8sAZx7cY41u8bEEiadBo/s1600/DSC_9881.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-NHkGOz0UC-nE90wPL429HIIVL8aRsHDlbG4FztI8yWpGFS37uyCxN1itLSokn7zZCJoUgvRnBVKt8YBOe-F6gu31yE6jIv46nIvsJxw2oOH0oKVCP557ea8sAZx7cY41u8bEEiadBo/s1600/DSC_9881.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">- We celebrated Evan's birthday with a sleepover/outing to Skyzone with his two best friends, as well as family dodge ball birthday party at home. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWXr6cyWm6ZyID5usE6ZQhUIGOajkHZacwxLZuWfdjDQ771lT5BToomvzw9Z3mw6BbTSXHtoQ9PYocsE6j5qraEzC0Gnx0DHvIeO9iuCkviek6lMlE6one2seO_Hsb8KOzNnLzNw4lVWo/s1600/DSC_9607.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWXr6cyWm6ZyID5usE6ZQhUIGOajkHZacwxLZuWfdjDQ771lT5BToomvzw9Z3mw6BbTSXHtoQ9PYocsE6j5qraEzC0Gnx0DHvIeO9iuCkviek6lMlE6one2seO_Hsb8KOzNnLzNw4lVWo/s1600/DSC_9607.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-5LpDuyU6mxG1Fz6JbNHAoX2peATYo0yZb-lgJ8_SZASe8V5Boba72nWe8qbNuVCINSs1tdZRVrnG6w15-f6EYTK684rk9iMG526dCuqIh8zZdfSpAC3UcE__WHGnBqor9FzsCxblyc4/s1600/DSC_9891.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-5LpDuyU6mxG1Fz6JbNHAoX2peATYo0yZb-lgJ8_SZASe8V5Boba72nWe8qbNuVCINSs1tdZRVrnG6w15-f6EYTK684rk9iMG526dCuqIh8zZdfSpAC3UcE__WHGnBqor9FzsCxblyc4/s1600/DSC_9891.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We love you Evan! We hope 8 is great!!</span></div>
Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-59290359051544742322014-02-03T20:11:00.002-05:002014-02-03T21:31:37.595-05:00Ainsley - 4 and 3/4th<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ainsley has really come into her own these past few months and we've had the pleasure of watching her grow up before our eyes. She's always had a shy disposition around new people and situations, but she's becoming more comfortable and more willing to try out new things. Of course, at home, it's a different story. If she don't want to do something, it's really hard to convince her otherwise. :) She's still easy most of the time, and is always making up smile with those big dimples. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- She LOVES dancing and dress-up! Those are her two favorite things. Anything girly and fancy, and she's game. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OlWDpCx3RGM/Uu8RBRvW8mI/AAAAAAAADwQ/s0V1gUU1CY0/s1600/DSC_0106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OlWDpCx3RGM/Uu8RBRvW8mI/AAAAAAAADwQ/s0V1gUU1CY0/s1600/DSC_0106.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Ainsley besties are Mya and Angel. The girls love to play dress up (of course) and have tea parties. There is such a difference with boys and girls playing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Ainsley and Evan also still play so nicely together. We love to see their brother/sister relationship so strong. They have their moments, but they are always game for running around in the bounce house or being silly together. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- We tried out soccer this year. Doug coached Ainsley and we thought that she'd really like it. She was excited going in, but it turns out that her favorite part of soccer is waving to her fans. :) It was cute to watch, and she did get to play with 3 of our neighbors, which was great. We may try again ... in a few years.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DpZCvWg8Nz8/Uu8RCgFkp-I/AAAAAAAADwk/GM-h7M2Ixrc/s1600/DSC_9516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DpZCvWg8Nz8/Uu8RCgFkp-I/AAAAAAAADwk/GM-h7M2Ixrc/s1600/DSC_9516.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rjuAAjtXH-4/Uu8RC-Fik0I/AAAAAAAADws/SZoti01J8Kc/s1600/DSC_9540.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rjuAAjtXH-4/Uu8RC-Fik0I/AAAAAAAADws/SZoti01J8Kc/s1600/DSC_9540.JPG" height="320" width="182" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: black;">-She's back at preschool this year, now 4 days a week. She really likes to take her time and do a good job, and loves to go with Mya. She is learning so much and she loves to spell things out. ("Mom, how do you spell ...") Her printing is really improving and she also loves to pretend to read. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Over the summer, Ainsley become quite </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">the swimmer and was very brave - going down the huge waterslide at KI!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- I took Ainsley to see Annie Jr and the Nutcracker. I think she's going to be my theater buddy!! She loved both, and loves to sing along to the songs. Speaking of singing along, our favorite movie/songs are from Frozen!! Ainsley loved the movie, and loves the songs!! It's been fun to see her so into something. Of course, Ariel is still her favorite princess. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- We have found one activity that Ainsley loves.. no surprise, it's dance class. She is taking ballet and tap, and is loving every minute of it! Her favorite part is free dance, where she gets to dance around and show off her moves!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We love you Miss A!!</span></div>
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Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-7833720304454760542013-12-07T00:08:00.002-05:002013-12-07T00:08:36.301-05:00Pretty Perfect Christmas EveningEvan and Ainsley - I don't want to forget tonight. The snow was coming down all day, and the outside of our house looked magical. Doug got off work early, and we were all snug at home. We had pancakes for dinner, which turned into lots of fun as we made crazy shapes and added chocolate chips. We decorated the tree. Everyone helped, we listened to music and talked about what the ornaments meant to us. We snuggled up to watch the Polar Express with popcorn. Our little family, all cozy on the couch. I loved watching both of your faces watch the movie. Ainsley, covering your eyes at the loud and scary parts, and snuggling in my arms the whole time. Watching Evan entranced with the story. I am so blessed. Thank you God for my amazing family and making memories that I hope I remember forever.Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-33457868429390593502013-09-13T10:29:00.003-04:002013-09-13T10:29:30.043-04:00Summer Bucket ListAt the beginning of the year, our family made a bucket list of things we wanted to do this summer. We didn't get to them all, added a few not on the list, and had a <i>fantastic </i>summer!<br />
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Here's what we did check off the list:<br />
- Putt-putt<br />
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- Going to the lake<br />
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- Tuckers for ice cream<br />
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- Tried banana splits<br />
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- Young's Dairy<br />
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- Roasted marshmallows<br />
- Coney Island<br />
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- Ohio State Fair<br />
- Luminations (downtown at Washington Park/Music Hall)<br />
- COSI - MythBusters<br />
- Rootbeer Stand<br />
- Bike Ride at the Loveland bike trail<br />
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Of course, we had lots of trips to KI (the rides mostly this year - cooler weather and Evan now rides the big rides). Lots of playing outside, and we had the little backyard pool up for a bit. We even played in a rainstorm!<br />
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In case you're interested, the ones we didn't get to were: KI movie in the wave pool (too cold), family raft ride at KI, put out our travel bug, sleep in tent in our backyard, drive in movie, reds game, creeking, and find a waterfall. We might cross a few off in the fall. :)<br />
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All and all - another AMAZING summer!Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-30961926384101190012013-07-02T14:26:00.000-04:002013-07-02T16:16:16.747-04:00Evan - 7 and 3/4th<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Evan at almost 8.. A few things about our big kid..<br />
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- Evan finished up 1st grade and his first year homeschooling. It went way better than expected. He learned a lot, progressing like crazy in math. (He finished up half way through 3rd grade math.) He did great in his other subjects as well and has become quite a good reader. His least favorite subject is writing, but we're working on it. It was also great to see him grow throughout the year. He was able to do lots of extras (museums, science experiments with Poppy). He also really enjoyed Learning Tree co-op, making lots of new friends and learning new things. (And thank goodness I didn't have to teach Art!)<br />
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- Evan played soccer in the fall and basketball (Upward) in the winter, and we took a break off in the spring. It was nice for us all to have a break, having free nights all spring long!<br />
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- Evan continues to do, and love, Cub Scouts. He is in a den with his two best friend, and he has a blast. He built his first Pinewood Derby car (with lots of help from Dad) and ended up placing 6th out of his whole pack. He has also gone camping, built a boat for the regatta, and done lots of go-see-its (bank, museum, fire house).<br />
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- We have a new kid at Kings Island! As of the beginning of the year, Evan hadn't even rode the Beastie. He will now ride everything - the Racer, Stunt Coaster, even the Beast! It's been a blast riding the big kid rides with him. <br />
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- Evan's been losing his teeth! He lost the first wrestling with Poppy, he pulled the second and third ones himself, and the 4th one popped out on the boat at Norris Lake.<br />
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- Evan continues to be the best big brother (and big cousin). He his so kind and patient.<br />
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- We've had a busy summer so far, with Evan going to Nature Camp, MAD camp, and Cub Scout Camp. He has a few more to go too. Of course, we're trying to squeeze swimming in as much as possible. <br />
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Evan continues to be our sweet, inquisitive, full of life boy.. and we are loving every minute of it!<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-27142656436232397692013-07-02T13:06:00.001-04:002013-07-02T16:14:21.963-04:00Ainsley - 4 (and a 1/4th)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ainsley is 4.. it's pretty unbelievable. We both look at her and are so amazing by how she's grown, her beauty inside and out, and the little girl she is becoming.<br />
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- Ainsley finished up her first year of preschool in May. She loved school and her teachers and friends (especially Mya). She also attended Learning Tree this year with Evan and me, and made lots of new friends there. From her teachers, I hear that she really likes to concentrate on her work and complete it entirely. She also wants to always write her own name.<br />
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- Some of Ainsley's favorite things to play are dress up, her play kitchen and her tea set. She has also recently become interested in make-up (oh boy). She will play independently for awhile, but also loves to play with Evan, following whatever he's doing. Another favorite thing for Ainsley is to sing and dance and put on a performance for us all. Of course, she has developed a love for princesses, with Ariel being her favorite. She also loves to pick out her own outfits.<br />
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- Ainsley and Evan have a wonderful brother/sister bond. They play together great most days. Ainsley does things Evan would never do at that age (ride big rides and KI, watch movies, play ipod), because they just love to play together. <br />
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- Ainsley's best friend is still her cousin Mya. They are inseparable! It's been fun to watch them play. Now, when they have a playdate, they will disappear into their room and not come out for hours. They are too busy playing babies, princesses, doctor, or rescue. She has also started having playdates with other her other friends and it's fun to watch her turn into a "big kid" hosting her friends.<br />
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- At A's 4 year check up, she was right on track. She is 39" (tall enough for some of the bigger rides at KI) and 36 pounds.<br />
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- Ainsley is still a water bug and loves to swim. She also loves to ride her bike and swing on the swingset. Another favorite is finding bugs and taking care of them. <br />
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- I would say that Ainsley is 90% easy and 10% opinionated. :) Most of the time, she is go with the flow, will follow along with Evan's activies or places, and is just easy. I would say 10% of the time, she has an opinion, and there is no changing it! You just have to let her decide, and that's the only way. She is also shy in most new situations, but will usually warm up in 15 minutes or so.<br />
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Ainsley is really such a joy! She still makes us laugh with her crazy faces and funny comments. We love our Ainsley!<br />
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With her new baby cousin, Abigail. She loves her!!!</div>
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-31893565492268732502013-01-13T14:59:00.004-05:002013-01-13T15:04:30.561-05:00Ainsley - 3 and 3/4ths...When I look back at Ainsley's 3 year post, I can't believe how much she has grow into a little lady. We are so blessed to have a sweet little girl!<br />
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- Ainsley is SO much fun! She is a little person, so observant, and is always surprising us with her sweet take on life. She can be opinionated, but for the most part, is an easy little girl.<br />
- Ainsley started preschool this year, going 2 days a week with her cousin, and bestie, Mya. She loves her teachers and all the things she is learning. She sings the little songs from her school (Open, Shut Them Prayer; The Days of the Week) and prays each night "because her teacher told her to". She also goes to co-op with me once a week and I volunteer in her classroom. I love to get to see her with the other 3 year olds. She is a very good listener, and spends lots of times doing each of the activities.<br />
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- She also took a ballet class over the summer, and loved every minute. I cried the first time I saw her dance. She took a tumbling class this fall with her cousin and she loved that as well. <br />
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- She has completely mastered writing her name, and frequently "writes" us all kinds of letters. She also loves to draw pictures on paper or on the whiteboard and color. <br />
- Ainsley's favorite toys lately are her dress ups and her play kitchen. She loves put on shows for us all dressed up, dancing around and singing. The more accessories the better! She will also serve you tea or pizza if you head on over to her kitchen.<br />
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- Her favorite princess is Ariel, but she likes them all. She just watched her first princess movie, Cinderella. <br />
- She also likes to pretend to be a baby. She wants us to hold her, sit her in the baby doll highchair, and treat her like a baby.<br />
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- She loves to sing and ride her bicycle as well. <br />
- Over the summer, Ainsley became quite the swimmer at the pool. She loved her puddle jumpers for the first half of the summer, and then discovered she knew how to jump under the water. She will go under the water for 3-4 seconds and push herself through the water. I can't wait to see how much she'll improve this summer!<br />
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- Ainsley got her hair cut for the first time over the summer. I was so upset that I cut it too short, and now I look back and love it.<br />
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- Following her own footsteps with potty training herself, she gave up her pacifiers on her own this summer. She woke up one day and told me she was done, so we gave them away to Chad and Jen's baby. She never looked back, even though I was very nervous!<br />
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- She loves to play with Evan. They are such buddies and I am so thankful for their wonderful relationship. I hope this continues as they both get older. She also loves her cousin Mya, It is so fun to see the two girls together.<br />
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Ainsley is definitely a little girl now, and we are all having so much fun with her! Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-30741960179383589372013-01-13T14:11:00.001-05:002013-01-13T16:42:09.106-05:00Evan - 7 (and a 1/4) :) Evan turned 7 in October which still seems pretty unreal! He is such a great boy. We love him and are so very proud of him.<br />
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It's been a long time since we've posted, so we have a lot of cover!<br />
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<u>Activities</u><br />
- Evan played soccer in the spring (instead of baseball), and then again in the fall. (Doug coached both his teams.) He is currently playing Upward basketball for his second season. It's been fun to watch him start to really start to pick up on both sports.<br />
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- In addition, he learned to really swim this summer (passed the 12' deep swimming test), took a tumbling class, and really enjoys indoor rock climbing. He is quite determined when he gets on the wall to always make it to the top. He will stay up on trying over and over.<br />
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- Evan also started Cub Scouts this year, joining a Pack with his two best buddies. He is having a great time. He got to camp out with Dad in the fall and his boat won the award for best pirate theme in the regatta. He's working on his Derby Car right now. Most of all, he loves having time with his two friends. <br />
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<u>School</u><br />
- Our biggest change in the last year has been to Evan's school. He has been doing 1st grade this year at home! I won't go into all the details here, but we chose to try homeschool out this year for a number of reasons, to give him more individual attention and learning plan, more time to explore his interests, more time as a family, to name a few.<br />
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- School has been going much better than expected. Evan is excelling at school. Math is still his favorite. (He is placed in 2nd grade math, but we are already working on 3 grade concepts.) His reading has also greatly improved. It's fun to see him reading everything in site and he recently just finished reading his 1st Magic Tree House chapter book on his own.Writing is still his least favorite, but he is improving in that as well. <br />
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- We are also attending a co-op once a week where he gets to socialize and learn from other parents. (At first he wasn't sure he wanted to go, as usual, but has now decided that he loves it.) He takes a class on the 50 States, Art, Science Investigators, and Math Movers. <br />
- On the days A has preschool, Evan knows it's time to get serious about school. Poppy also comes up at least once a week to help Evan with lessons or watch Ainsley while we do school. It's been great having the ability to take lots of field trips, play outside, and try new things.<br />
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<u><br /></u>
<u>Fun Stuff</u><br />
- Evan has made new friends this year at co-op as well as staying friends with his buddies and neighbors.<br />
- He still loves anything outside, especially if it involves water! He has also gotten really fast on his two wheel bike, zooming around the neighborhood. He loves hiking as well.<br />
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- He loves Pokemon, and finally learned how to play after months of sorting cards. Looking through his cards is still a favorite activity.<br />
- He will play DS, Wii, or iPod, but in small spurts. His favorite TV shows are Wild Kratts, Phineas and Ferb, and Mythbusters. <br />
- He doesn't really play with many toys, but is always coming up with something to play using a few items and his imagination. <br />
- He plays so well with Ainsley. He is very patient with her, but they are starting to get more and more on level with each other. They love coming up with pretend scenarios and now playing on our finished basement! I would say that this has been one of the biggest advantages of homeschooling. He's also great with kids of any age. He will play with the older kids across the street and will play with his cousins or Ainsley's friends. <br />
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- For his 7th birthday, we had a sleepover with his two best friends. They did a scavenger hunt during they day and slept in tents in the basement at night. I think all the boys had a great time. <br />
- After at least 5 years of the same haircut, Evan decided to change it up! He looks so handsome and much older. We're still experimenting to figure out which way he likes it, but the bowl cut is gone. <br />
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- At his 7 year checkup, he hit 4 feet tall! He's also around 55 pounds, on track with everything developmentally, and still had his allergies (yuck) and slight asthma (which acted up this winter - boo). <br />
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We pretty much consider ourselves to be the luckiest parents to have such a great boy who is "all boy" with such a tender heart. We love you Evan!<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-79088508351316243502013-01-11T15:47:00.000-05:002013-01-13T15:48:27.793-05:00Brother & SisterWe are so blessed with the most amazing family. I am so lucky to have a wonderful husband, and two great kids. The one thing I have been especially thankful for these past few months is the sweet relationship between Evan and Ainsley. Sure, they occasionally fight, but all in all, they are such good friends. They play together so well coming up with all kinds of plans and scenarios.<br />
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I love seeing them together and I pray they stay good friends throughout their lives.<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-18987879181519927902012-12-31T15:51:00.000-05:002015-11-07T10:30:26.502-05:00Christmas 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789890294223768621.post-23397468325343901422012-09-03T15:06:00.000-04:002013-01-13T15:48:50.297-05:00Summer 2012We had an amazing 2012 summer! I think we packed as much in as we possible could.<br />
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Here are a few of the highlights:<br />
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<li> Evan went to 3 camps, Safety Town, and VBS. It was a little busy, but most were in the morning so we could get to the pool by the afternoon. Ainsley also got to take a summer dance class for some fun.</li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>Both kids are water bugs! Evan took swimming lessons to learn the correct way to swim. Before the lesson, he could make it across the pool, but it didn't look pretty. He was able to pass the deep end test at the pool, allowing him to climb the rock wall and jump off the diving board, and to swim in the 12' deep end! Ainsley is even more of a dare-devil, trying to keep up her big brother. She loved her puddle jumpers, for part of the summer. With them, she could swim by herself all over the pool and KI waterpark. She also is getting really close to being able to swim. She will dunk her head under over and over and propel herself through the water. (She will stay under for several seconds.) As soon as she figures out how to take a breath, she will be swimming. </li>
<li>We spent lots of time at KI and KI waterpark this summer. Ainsley loved the rides this year, and it was so much for to watch her. Both kids loved the waterpark, especially the wave pool and the sand volleyball courts.</li>
</ul>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jbTfJhV6Fc0/UPMYkFednVI/AAAAAAAADfg/Wyj3aFkGmbo/s1600/DSC_4574.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jbTfJhV6Fc0/UPMYkFednVI/AAAAAAAADfg/Wyj3aFkGmbo/s200/DSC_4574.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV49ShFb8tm6nkVnicl8KzqHBBYnAxNcfgefms1LXROUBVmLlVFqmJQWWcq19vIAVr0pejF9jZJNNtRghgFW_liZpbk9uoY7qdOXuYReC77-JDpZ4NA4wQB17VTcn4cAMpwjP9blFWhnY/s1600/DSC_4571.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV49ShFb8tm6nkVnicl8KzqHBBYnAxNcfgefms1LXROUBVmLlVFqmJQWWcq19vIAVr0pejF9jZJNNtRghgFW_liZpbk9uoY7qdOXuYReC77-JDpZ4NA4wQB17VTcn4cAMpwjP9blFWhnY/s200/DSC_4571.JPG" width="132" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4UNQ7Ng2np0/UPMYkIvL5aI/AAAAAAAADfk/WhLVZlCNabU/s1600/DSC_4585.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4UNQ7Ng2np0/UPMYkIvL5aI/AAAAAAAADfk/WhLVZlCNabU/s200/DSC_4585.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
<ul>
<li>We attempted a garden this summer, but it was too hot, so we didn't do very well. </li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>Halfway through the summer, we got passes to the Mason pool. The kids had a blast! Evan's favorite was the rock wall, which you climb up out of the water, and then fall into the water. Ainsley loved being able to walk around in the huge part of the pool that is 3' deep. It was so nice for the kids to be able to swim since the waterpark at KI was always so packed.</li>
<li>One of the kids favorite things was just playing outside with the neighborhood kids. </li>
<li>We headed down to Norris Lake for a long weekend with Erica's family and Aunt Diane and Uncle Charlie's boat. We had a blast! Evan was seriously crazy on the tube, not wanting to get off for a minute. The last day, he was tubing with Uncle Chad and decided to stand up on the tube - his own idea. </li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>We ended up the summer with a trip to Brown County/Columbus IN, which was also so much fun hiking and swimming at the hotel. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xPIoafeI0E98Sz508Moj7PHW4XQ40eRSY8ffxCsOL60UDoHFP_Ord7mfxvMmMUbt15oMeZtY0irL963Tn7b9EEwFoOmWZ9If024IKz83WG58gvRcTgIDATWdZkP6R3cxE_ejgvKfyS4/s1600/DSC_5092.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></li>
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We did so many other fun things with our family and friends. It was one of the best summers yet!<br />
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<br />Ericahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08854623978795428671noreply@blogger.com0