Noah lost his first tooth today! Actually, Steve pulled it, but it was time. At his last dental appt. a few weeks ago, we were told that he already had 2 1/2 6 year molars and 2 nights ago I noticed that his right front tooth was loose and the new one was poking through. He was a trooper and even helped wiggle the tooth back and forth. As soon as it was out he felt so much better and proud of himself.

Football Highlights

Jakob and Noah played their first Upward football games Saturday. They did awesome! Jakob threw for a TD and intercepted a pass. Noah ran through the defense for an awesome TD (but I didn't get it on video). It was fun and the weather was perfect!

Clip from Noah's latest game

Gooooooal

Noah scored a goal last night!!! He was so happy. You have to watch the high-fiving and celebration all the way down the field. We're so proud of him. He had 4 or 5 shots on goal before the score and he finally made it! Ice cream was called for after all that.

Gotta love it!

Finally...

Finally, this planter box is fixed and planted! After the dogs and the kids dug in the dirt and spilled a lot of it all over the porch, Steve fixed the bottom of the planter and I got it filled back up. I bought plants at the Amish Nursery and got it put back together. I might still go back and get a few more small things, but it's pretty much done. I need to put more dirt in some of the other planters along with some smaller plants. The tall plants are 'Moonbeams" and they will have yellow flowers, the 2 medium plants have green and burgundy leaves and should have purple flowers, and the 4 small ones will have white and apricot flowers.

Keely and Bocce have decide to try and dig their way to China - or at least find the snakes and rabbits that are along the way. They have been digging all over the yard and getting very dirty in the process. Keely was tired after I interrupted her latest attempt. I started their frontline yesterday, so they should be safe from the ticks.

Bocce thinks she owns the place. I guess the chairs are more comfy that the grass, but hey, at least she not on the table... this time.
Steve set up the croquet set Sunday. He even mowed the grass low.
Noah and Ben were taking a break from playing.
We've been spending some more time outside in the evenings because of the nice weather and even eating on the porch when it's warm enough. The boys like it and it's a nice change of scenery.
The boys have even kind of enjoyed doing their chores around the house. It's not too much for them to handle so they are getting used to pitching in around the house. They really don't complain about setting the table and feeding the dogs as much as they do when they have to clean their toys up. Noah and Ben have been helping make dinner, and made veggie kabobs the other night. And Jakob has been checking the garden for strawberries every night. I bought some watermellon plants today for Jakob to plant so hopefully in about 2 months he'll get to start checking for them too.

Buggy

After soccer and the Mutt Strut today, we went to the Amish Nursery for free home made ice cream! The boys really wanted to have a buggy ride, and when it was their turn the still wanted to go on it! (Which is a big step for all of them!) The nursery has tons of flowers and trees and vegetable plants to choose from. We didn't get anything this time, but I will definitely go back and next year I'll try to get most of my plants there.

For the Mutt Strut, I took Bocce to the park and they had some little contests, biggest paws, cutest costume, most mixed breeds, most like owner, and so on, none of which she won. It was a fundraiser for the Humane Society. One little girl won the prize for highest donation with $500! And then there was a quick walk around the downtown area to promote the cause. It was fun, but I again got sunburned... oops! And Bocce was so tired when we got back that she couldn't muster up the energy to jump into the chair with me before she zonked out.

Upward Soccer

Noah has played 3 outdoor soccer games. He enjoys it as long as it isn't muddy or wet on the field. Last week it was very wet - the rain stopped just in time for the games to start. Noah didn't like to get wet and muddy so he avoided the puddles to the best of his ability. We told him not to worry about the mud but it takes a while for him to change his ways and he tried to stay clean. Today, it was wet on the field, even though they pumped a lot of water off and put down straw. He did a little better and his shoes were pretty muddy when he was done. He did a great job and really kicked the ball hard.

So Cathy was bored...

Cathy was bored one day after I sent out these pictures a while ago and made this cute comic strip out of them. I thought it was neat and finally decided to put it on the blog.

Yough Extreme Adventure Race

A rare post by Steve.
Last weekend Court and headed to Ohiopyle State Park (SW Pennsylvania) for an adventure race. The Yough Extreme Adventure Race consists of trail running, mountain biking, kayaking, rappelling and (very little) orienteering. It was a long, hilly race (took us almost 10.5 hours) and exhausting! Overall, we traveled about 40 miles. We ended up placing 8th for our division. I'll let you guess how many (few) teams there were in our division :) Here are some pics of the area.

Garden time again

The weather has gotten a lot warmer and it's time to start gardening again. WooHoo! My beans and peas aren't doing so well since I probably planted them too early. Only 2 plants (I think the beans) have sprouted and one has almost been completely taken care of by the deer.
My lettuce is doing a whole lot better but it's slow going. I started more lettuce seeds in planters on the porch and in the house so hopefully they will go into the garden soon.
I also started eggplant and bell peppers in the house and should be able to plant them in the garden in a couple weeks.
Noah and Ben and I planted 9 broccoli plants today and can't wait for them to start producing, but we'll have to. And Ben planted a dirt clump and is calling it broccoli, we'll keep our fingers crossed for that one to grow.
I noticed that the strawberries are blooming so I decided to weed the row today. I found many new plants growing off to the sides thanks to the rabbits. And I found what I think are carrots (thanks again, rabbits?) but they are not anywhere near where I planted carrot seeds last year (which didn't grow either) so maybe they are not carrots but I left them alone for now.
Coming soon, tomatoes and anything else I can find that should taste good and has a chance of growing in my garden.
If my garden doesn't produce any thing again this year, I might just try a container garden on the porch next year. That seemed to work in KC when I tried it.
The boys got trees from school today, for Arbor Day, and we'll try to find a good place to plant them tomorrow.

Upward Awards ceremony

As awards ceremonies for children's sports leagues go, they are generally pretty boring. The 2 we have been to this year were actually pretty good. The football ceremony had a former professional player from the area. He spoke and took pictures with all the kids and signed autographs.

If that wasn't good enough... the basketball awards ceremony was a special treat for us (being from KC and all). KC Wolf, the mascot of the Kansas City Chiefs was the entertainment and speaker for the evening. He came out and interacted with the crowd before the ceremony began and then showed a highlight reel and then took off his costume and spoke to the kids about being an Christian and what it's like being a professional goof-ball. He even let one of the kids put on his stinky costume. Jakob didn't raise his hand for that. It was pretty cool. Every couple of days Ben says that he wants KC Wolf and his friends to come to our house... Sorry, don't think that's gonna happen, kiddo.

St. Patty's Parade '09

We took our 2nd annual trip to Dublin, OH, Saturday for the parade. The boys had fun, the dogs not so much. Keely barked at every other dog she saw, and even jumped over Noah to get at one. Bocce was afraid of the drums - which are kind of my favorite part.

After the parade we headed to the Brazenhead Pub again. The entertainment was dancers from the Dublin School of Irish Dance who were trying to earn money for a trip to Ireland. Those girls had some fast feet!

We dined on garlic fries and fish and chips. And Jakob ate most of a cheeseburger that was as big as his head! It was a great time.

BocceThe boys waving at a fire truckKeely and SteveNoah in a moodHead-sized cheeseburgerSteve and Noahpooped pooches on the way home

spring fever

The weather has been so nice lately, that I have been trying to get the flower beds and boxes. Ben was a big help yesterday picking up the dead branches in the flower garden. Bocce was wondering what was going on because her chew toys were disappearing, but she got over it. Today, I took on the boxes on the back porch. I cleared out all the dead plants and moved one plant to a different box. Then, I decided to do what I have wanted and needed to do since we moved in. Apparently, the bottom had fallen out of the large box so the dirt was falling out. I took all the dirt out and it filled 5 planters, boxes and tubs. Steve will figure out how to fix it and get it all done so I can finally get flowers back in it and beautify the porch. And I demolished the broken trellis and pulled up the dead ivy.

This is the planter box from the top with the falling bottom still in it

This is the rotten particle board bottom

I also planted some seeds in peet pots a few weeks ago but now I'm afraid I did it too soon and they will die before I can get the garden ready to plant. I guess I should start tilling soon.
I hope my thumb of death starts turning a little greener soon!
Noah and Ben also played outside a lot while I was working. They played with the tire swing in the woods and also sat the giant log at the edge of the woods and turned it into a motorcycle. It was fun. They played with the dogs and rode their scooters. I hope the weather holds so we can play outside more.

So I closed the back of the car...

...and the glass shattered! I never realized I was so strong! I took the recycling to the drop off and put the bins back in the car. I closed the door and got the scare of my life. The glass shattered all over the back of the car and the ground. It was a good thing that no one was sitting in the back seat or they would have been littered with glass. I cleaned up all the glass and it's getting fixed tomorrow. Hopefully the rain will hold off!

Beautiful Saturday afternoon

Jakob played his last basketball game today. He did really well. He doesn't remember how many baskets he scored, but that's ok. He was a good team player today. Everyone worked well together and they did a great job today.

Pre-game huddle and prayer Going back in after some coaching from Dad

Patiently waiting for a rebound

Noah and Ben got to eat PushPops

which made them very, very sticky

After the game, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful, 80 degree weather and go to the park. We had a little picnic and the kids got to play. There were a lot of people enjoying the day. We took the dogs and they had a nice time too. Keely was pretty mellow and took it all in. Bocce enjoyed all the petting from the kids and did not like it when people would walk away from her, even if they hadn't been with her in the first place. She did a lot of barking and whining, but it tired her out sufficiently.
It's been a pretty good day.

Soccer

Noah had his first soccer game of the season last night. He was so excited and was even mad when he had practice because it wasn't a real game. He did great and his team won 2-1! He played 2 quarters and seemed a little timid during the first but he almost scored a goal. During the 2nd quarter he played he got to kick the ball off to start. He did a lot of tripping over the lines and falling on the floor. We went out to eat pizza after and he ate a whole 6 inch cheese pizza that he was supposed to share with Ben. Last week we went and got them the same thing - Ben ate 3 pieces, plus 2 pieces of Steve's pizza and Noah would only eat 1 piece. The video we have of the game isn't very good so I'm not going to post it right now. We may do a highlight reel at the end of the season (in 3 weeks).

Poor Noah

Noah and Ben had their well checks at the doctor yesterday afternoon. Noah ended up with mild ear infections and and had to get 2 shots in each leg :( Poor guy. They could hear him crying in the waiting room. Fortunately, he was asleep withing 15 minutes of leaving the doctor's office. And he got a cool alligator finger puppet for his trouble.

He seems much better today and doesn't seem to have any pain in his legs.

Noah's Birthday

Today is Noah's 5th birthday! He had a pretty good day. He got to bring cupcakes to school. The weather was decent so he played outside for a little while. We had homemade Chinese food - pot stickers, moo shu noodles, and cashew chicken - for dinner. And a giant soccer ball cake for dessert. He enjoyed Skyping with Oma and Opa, and he actually let me hold the phone to his ear long enough to let Nana say Happy Birthday to him.
He opened presents which included a soccer ball, blanket, Madagascar 2 dvd, a puzzle, and a Cars toy.
Now he is in bed singing and banging on the wall trying to keep himself awake.
It's been a long day, but totally worth it!

She fights like a girl

Bocce and Keely were taking advantage of the nice weather today.

Keely found a stick and Bocce tried to steal it.

They were playing around pretty roughly and Bocce got a little carried away.
She really got some air under her.
They had a little stretch. And a snuggle.

Then they were tired.

And now they are passed out.

Lake Katherine After the Ice

Steve, Noah, and Ben decided to go for a hike Sunday afternoon because the weather was beautiful and, as we all know, Steve gets stir crazy when he's cooped up. They caught the end of the icicles from the ice storm. Noah and Ben said they had a good time.
Good Brother Time

Storm Clouds

This evening a storm rolled in with wind gust forecast to be 60 to 75 miles per hour. This forecast prompted Wellston (where Steve's plant is) City Schools to call for school to be dismissed 2 hours early today. I didn't know why until the 5 O'clock news said that the buildings had suffered some damage in the last storms that lead to the discovery that the buildings (only about 5 years old) were built with not enough steel supports. It's really no wonder with the lack of building codes in this area that such an oversight could be made. Unfortunately, it had to be in school buildings where children spend a majority of their time.

The news also pointed out that the high winds could lead to more power outages due to the weekend tree limbs.
I did manage to see some beautiful pictures of the clouds as they rolled through.

Introducing Bocce

This is Bocce (after Andrea Boccelli). She's a cute little Boxer puppy. Her mom was a 3-legged Boxer named Maggie! It was so meant to be.
Keely has been very tolerant and they even snuggled a little on the way home from picking her up.

She played with Noah and Ben so much that she already had to take a nap - she snores! She loves her new bed. She is so sweet and cute.

Ben likes to carry her around and he's making sure she doesn't try to go up the stairs. Noah was curling up on the couch and whining just like Bocce.
I can tell the boys are going to have a lot of fun with her and Keely.

Let there be power!

We finally got electricity back this afternoon. We couldn't be happier - except there was a lot of cleaning to do. I got the fridge and freezer cleaned out and a lot of laundry done. Jakob had a hard night on Monday when he was going to sleep. It is hard to sleep 4 different places in 6 nights and it caught up with him. He just wanted to go home and sleep in his own bed. Everybody is OK tonight though. And we are all glad to be home.

Big Ben is the Big 3!

Ben's 3rd birthday was a good day. This was his tractor cake. I couldn't make the right color green so this had to do. Since it was his peanut butter birthday we had peanut butter pancakes for lunch and I put Reece's Pieces around the cake.

Ben got some fun gifts including 'Brown Bear, Polar Bear What Do You See?' game...And Gator Golf, and a new train and tracks for the Geo Trax system.

Everybody enjoyed the cake, ice cream and Reece's.

Ben was very tired by the end of the day. He talked on the phone with Nana, and Skyped on the computer with Oma and Opa, and Kevin, Sandi, and Emma. He loves watching himself on the Skype camera.