My Little Builders

 Most people who know my kids know that Will is obsessed with cars and trains and all the infrastructure needed to support them.  Fi, like a good sister, goes along with it all and plays like a champ.

Lately, we've expanded the train/car empire to include building cities for them.  These are some of their latest attempts - I'm constantly impressed by his good engineering skills and creativity.

This first one is a double-decker bridge made out of foam blocks provided by one of Brent's suppliers (it's the greatest thing ever - that box of foam blocks has been wonderful.  I think the supplier should patent it as a kids toy).  We're impressed they got it to stand up and even more impressed that the dog didn't knock it over (it was up for a week).

Our next one is Will's latest train (a new model called Power Trains - more are on the Xmas list).  He and Reid started building a city around the track one afternoon.  They even included a sky scraper (see on the far right?) - very cool.  As Bismark likes to lay on the hearth, unfortunately, the sky scraper got knocked down a fair bit (major drama and blaming of Fi ensued.)

Our final photo is with our "classic" Thomas track - many thanks again to Grandpa Tom for building our awesome table.  Will and I actually created this track last year - he found a picture of it and wanted to recreate it.  He did most of the work himself based on the picture.

I'm very proud and impressed with all that he's created.  I can't wait to see what he makes next. :)

Party Weekend

This past weekend was all about partying!  We started Friday off with a playdate after school with Reid - the kids were great and played Legos and trains the whole time.  He left and it was time to get ready for the Knights and Princess party.

Matt and Jenny's church has a banquet every year just for the kids - it's all Renaissance themed and the place was completely decked out - the walls looked like brick, there were suits of armor, and tons of iron screens with candles (fake).  The girls were extremely excited about dressing like princesses.  Despite her Disney outfits, Fi decided to wear one of the gorgeous sari's Auntie Reshma and Uncle Steve got her, along with her rhinestone tiara and princess heels.  When she walked in (to trumpet fanfare no less), I overheard one little girl say, "She looks like Princess Jasmine."  So cute.  Ember had one a sparkly pink party dress with a crown, dangly earrings, bracelets, and heels.

Mikah dressed the party too - he had an awesome knight outfit,  complete with a mesh head covering and ninja sword.  I thought Will might want to carry a sword, but he wasn't as excited about this adventure - we really had to talk him into it, even with Mikah there.

They ended up having a great time and the adults got to enjoy dinner together (with free babysitting) for 2 hours.  Good deal. Hopefully Will may want to do it again next year - I know Fi does.

Saturday, Fi and I went to Anderson (about 45 min south - where Clemson is) for a classmate's birthday party.  Bella had a hula theme and all the girls got grass skirts, leis, and hair clips.  It was really cute to see them running around the backyard all dressed up.

We finished up the weekend with a Lentz reunion.  We hadn't seen Barry and Cathy in awhile (they had a super busy summer traveling and so did we), so they came over for Sunday dinner.  I really, really love the idea of Sunday dinner and wish I could get more of them organized with friends and family.  I made a roast and Cathy made these awesome scalloped potatoes with ham.  Katherine joined us too, which made it even better - and she brought cake (which was delicious).  We all had fun catching up and hope it won't be that long in between visits again.

Gymnastics!

 After watching a TON of Olympics and hearing about gymnastics from her friend Ember, Fi decided she'd like to try it too.  Normally we only let the kids pick one activity at a time to try/do and she'd already committed to another year of dance.  But, she was so excited (and I got a really good deal) that we said Ok for a fall term of gymnastics.

As usual, she is the tallest kid in her class of 4 year olds (they had to raise the little parallel bar up just for her).  And, so far, the least flexible - gets that from her parents. :)  But, she tried everything- balance beam, hand stands, mini cartwheels (they have a cute mat with hands and feet on it to help direct them), and a spring board.  Then they went in the big gym to jump on the super long trampoline and jump in the foam pits.

We've done 3 classes so far and she's having a great time.

August Activities

Before we went back to school, we had some more summer fun.  Fi went to a classmate's birthday party.  There was a water-bouncy house (pretty cool - I had never seen one of those before), squirt guns, a kiddie pool, and a sand table.  If that wasn't enough, there was a small bulldozer parked in the driveway.  All the kids thought this was the greatest thing EVER - especially Will.  He asked if we could get one too - so silly!  The last really fun thing was a "karate" station - they had set up foam sheets from the hardware store and held them for the kids to "chop."  It was a hit and really cute how much the kids got into it.

It wouldn't be the end of summer without one last Greenville Drive game either.  Despite going to several games this year, we hadn't gone as a family yet.  Brent took Will to a couple games, Fi to a couple games, and me to a couple games but I really wanted to make sure we all went together.  It was cloudy when we got there and after we had already eaten hot dogs, they put the tarp on the field.  Never a good sign.  We waited for an announcement - which never came - but after about 30 minutes (and no rain), they pulled the tarp up.  While they were grooming the field, it actually started to rain - awesome.  We sat in the sprinkles (the kids were so patient) and they finally started the game.  We watched for a little while, played for a little while, and watched some more.  We left before the end of the game (it was late) and everyone had a good time.  So glad to continue sharing baseball as a family.

We've also managed to get to the pool a couple more times - still no word on when it's closing so maybe we can sneak in one or two more.  It's been an amazing summer at the pool with the Estrems.  Jenny and I sit back and chat while the kids all play - love it!  Will and Fi have become good swimmers this summer (which I hope to keep up with swim lessons this fall and winter).  Will and Mikah built an awesome boat (they've made a couple this year but this is the first one I got a picture of).  Fi and Ember have done all kinds of crazy things too - my favorite is when they jump in together yelling, "JINKIES!" Makes me smile.

School Days

With the end of summer (middle of Aug. down here in the South), it's time to head back to school.

We're back at Bethel again and are looking forward to a less crowded school (they opened a new elementary school this year and pulled from Bethel).  Will's a big 1st grader this year - so proud.  He's in a classroom with only one teacher for the first time (good luck Mrs. Sammons) and has a big boy desk for the first time too.  It was a little strange not to see the big round tables for the first time.

I was a little concerned when we went to Meet the Teacher night - the playground bully is in Will's class.  Now, it's really the bully's brother, but they used to tag team Will on the playground last year.  I explained the situation to the teacher, verbally and in writing, and volunteered to be room mom to help keep an eye on things.

I'm happy to report that 3 weeks into the school year everything seems fine - in the classroom, on the bus, and on the playground.  I guess 3 months away from each other makes a difference.  Will's even eating lunch and playing on the playground with him now.  Everyone can join me in a big sigh of relief.

Other than the playground boy, Will only knew one other kid from his class last year - I couldn't believe that in a school as large as Bethel that he didn't know more kids.  We were also sad our friend Mikah wasn't in his class - 4 more years of elementary to try. :)

He's made lots of friends and his favorite part of school so far is recess - the older kids get to play on 2 different play grounds and Will thinks that's awesome.  He was very proud to show that to us at the Open House yesterday.

Sofia started another year at Disciples CDC, going Mon - Thurs from 9-1.  It's a big change in our schedule but we're getting used to it and she truly loves it.  Although on her first day, she told me she was ready for Kindergarten - she wanted to join her friend Ember who started K5 this year.

Fi's in a much larger class this year - 18 kids instead of 8.  But, she has 3 teachers and is doing well.  Miss Angie's class has 3 hermit crabs and a fish, so that's exciting for all the kids.

I'm getting back into a routine (tough after a summer off of activities) and getting everyone out the door by 7:30 - the Maxwell's are not morning people. :)

We know it's going to be a great year and we're excited for everything the kids are going to do and learn - they're growing up so fast.

Up to date

Well, I think we're mostly up to date.  We've had an awesome, busy summer.  When we weren't traveling, we played with Reid (and Jaime); with Mikah and Ember (and Matt and Jenny).  We swam; we rode bikes; we played trains; we built Legos; we played doll house.  We went to parks and the Children's Museum.  I know some parents are ready for the summer to be over, but we've been so busy that I really wouldn't mind a couple more weeks here at home.

On a random note, I have to apologize for not updating my reading list.  I have read some books this year (please see the Shelfari list on the right hand side), but am nowhere near the book count I had last year.  This is my explanation - I am being haunted by Jerry Maxwell.  Yup, haunted.  I have a shelf and a half of new, unread books that I just can't get into.  And, I think it's because I haven't finished his book yet.  I made it to Chapter 7 when everything happened last year.  Then, I just couldn't finish it (for emotional reasons).  Because of that, I think he's not letting me get into anything old or new until I read The Perfect Lion (honestly, even Twilight or Harry Potter just isn't working and that's not right - those are my "clear your head" books.)  So, I will be diving back into the life of John Pelham and we'll see how we got from there.

August - Camp Grandma

After the wedding, my parents took the kids from VA back to MI for a week at Camp Grandma.  Which meant Brent and I didn't have kids for a week, even though he had to work (poor guy).  It was awesome!  I slept (a lot) and got some work done on projects around the house (you know the kind that always get put off because you're busy with the every day).

Brent and I also went out a lot -- look:
Monday - Greenville Drive game.  It was rainy so we hit a bar by the ballpark that we both like, had some good food, and 2 hrs later, the game started.  I got to see an hour and a half of a good game before we had to head home - Brent had to work this week.
Tuesday - Brent cooked me dinner. We found a Japanese grocery store and he cooked me lots of yummy food
Wednesday - We had Korean BBQ for dinner (awesome new restaurant) and then went to the Dark Knight movie.  Good food and OK movie (I think my expectations were too high - it was a good movie).
Thursday - We went to Bonefish Grill.
Friday - We went out on the the town.  We went to a fun Belgium restaurant that has great food and an extensive/intimidating Belgium beer list and then we walked around a little bit.  We found a new popcorn store (yum!) and listened to some great music before calling it a night.

We met Mom, Dad, and the kids in Lexington, KY Saturday and drove home Sunday.  The kids had a great time at Camp Grandma and can't wait to do it again next year.  We can't either, but we don't think we can afford 2 weeks of partying. ;)  Guess we'll have to stay in a couple nights next summer.