WOW...that's alot of words!

Well, where do I begin? It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything so there’s so much to write about if I can remember it all. Here goes!

Jack:
At 5 ½, this boy is growing every day. I swear he gets taller overnight. He’s like 45 inches tall and weighs about 53 lbs! He wears a 13 shoe!! He still loves school and usually stays at aftercare on Mondays and plays until the girls get up from nap.

Last week (Thursday, April 3), Jeff and I picked him up from school and went to Newburgh Elementary to Kindergarten Roundup. Jeff knows me well…he brought a box of tissues for me! :-) I did ok though because I didn’t have to leave him!! We had to sign in (all electronically) and then go to the library. The Principal just happened to be in there and walked us to the library. He told Jack that they had a #1 boys basketball team! Once in the library, I had to fill out lots of paperwork along with providing Jack’s birth certificate, Social Security card and immunization records. When filling out the paperwork, I started to get nervous about when filling out information about buses and lunch. I’m so afraid he’s going to get lost in the shuffle. He and Jeff sat and looked at books from the shelves. He was in heaven! Warrick County is still going to be half day Kindergarten next year so I’m a little worried about how I’m going to do it all. I requested mornings but we’ll see. If he goes in the morning, he can ride the bus to school which I would prefer because then I know he got to school. If he goes in the afternoon, he can ride the bus home and then I’ll worry about getting him from the bus stop to home when I’m at work! After we finished signing him up, we went to the Kindergarten area. They have a “Gathering” area that is brightly painted and then there are 2 classrooms. We went into both and he just played like he’s been going there forever. The rooms were definitely a lot bigger than TH so he’ll like that. We met both teachers and they were VERY nice. He has to go back Friday, May 9th at noon to take a Lollipop screening test and we’ll find out then if he’s morning or afternoon and which teacher he’ll get. As we were leaving, his final question was “Where are the basketball goals?”! He also found out that he would be a Wildcat so he was VERY excited to be a Wildcat like Troy from “High School Musical”. The next day, he told his friends and teachers at TH that his name was now Troy!! :-) We took a few pictures and he was very good. Another milestone with him…it’s so sad!

Jack’s about to start getting very busy! Tonight we start T-ball practice, and in May, he’s going to start playing golf with the Evansville Junior Golf Association. Jeff and he have been outside practicing baseball and Jeff just said last night that he’s going to be VERY good this year. I just hope he doesn’t hurt anyone!! They also went to play Par 3 a week or so ago and Jeff said he got a true Par 3. He’s just too good!

Things at Totten Hall are winding down. April 18th is his Spring Program and then May 14th is graduation. I’m so not going to be able to make it through that with dry eyes!

Abby:
Miss Abby is still a little pistol. She’s so funny. She rolls her eyes at you and when you ask her a question, she’s say “Ummm…NO!” She is horrible about running from me. Jeff said he’s a little worried that she won’t have many friends when she gets older because she’s a “loner” and just wants to play by herself. She gets irritated with people/things easily (not sure where she gets that!). When she gets mad, she squeals at the top of her lungs! When she does something wrong like pulls Ally’s hair, she just laughs and takes off running! We’re going to have our hands full! She’s such a pretty little girl. Her eyes are so pretty and she’s so petite. She now gets her hair trimmed about every 10 weeks. It’s growing…slowly but surely! Little Bit is now 2 ½ and weighs a whopping 25 lbs! She’s 34 inches tall and wears a size 6 shoe.

Ally:
Miss Ally is such a social butterfly. She always talks to people and answers for Abby. If someone asks her name, she says “I Ally Beth” and then says “Her Abby Dawn”. I’m a little afraid that Ally will always try to do the talking for Abby and Abby won’t be able to get more sociable. Ally’s hair is soooooo gorgeous. I’d kill for that hair! She loves her baby dolls and TV! When all 3 kids are playing, Ally does exactly what Jack does. She follows his every word. Abby could care less! She’s a talker for sure! I can’t even list the amount of things she is saying. Big Momma is now 2 ½ and weighs 33 lbs! She’s 37 inches tall and wears a size 7-8 shoe. Needless to say, she towers Abby!

Girls:
The girls are going to be starting Kindermusik in May. I think they are going to LOVE it…especially Ally. It’s a 5 week course so it’ll be quick and fun. Then, in the fall, they will start going 2 days a week to Totten Hall!! I cannot believe they are old enough to do that! Jane Hayes will be there teacher and they will love it. They are already so comfortable there that it’ll be no big deal (for them anyway!).

Dylen:
After being sick all Sunday night, February 10th, and going to her weekly appt on Monday, Lori’s doctor decided to go ahead and induce Monday night. She went to the hospital Monday night, February 11th, at 8pm to begin Cervidil. She was 1-2cm upon arrival and had light contractions throughout the night. At 6am Tuesday morning, February 12th, they finally started Pitocin. By 10am, she was 4cm and had her epidural. The baby's heart rate was great and she was completely comfortable. Well, at 5:00pm, when her doctor came to check on her, she was still 4-5cm! So, after another hour and a half, she and the doctor decided a C-Section was best. At 6:40, they had her all prepped and she was being wheeled back to the OR. At 7:30, Mom came out and said she had a beautiful baby boy...Dylen Michael, 7 lbs, 6 oz, 20 in, 7:05pm. He's an absolute beauty!! Our kids absolutely love him so much. Believe it or not, Abby is the best with him. She can’t keep her hands off him. He’s a very sweet baby and we love him so much!

Grandma Dot:
Back in February, Grandma Dot went for a routine Mammogram and they found a spot. After a biopsy, they found that it was breast cancer. She had immediate surgery to get it removed and they said they got it all. Needless to say, we were all very upset. But, things are good now. She refused Chemo and Radiation so we’ll just keep praying that everything stays this way!

Us:
We have several camping trips planned this summer already. We also have our annual Cardinals game planned. But, our big event is that we are going to Sandals Whitehouse in Jamaica in November to celebrate Jeff’s 40th birthday! We are SOOOOOOO excited!! This is something I’ve always wanted to do and since we never had a honeymoon, this is finally it! We got the honeymoon suite and cannot wait!! It’s a 4 day trip right before Thanksgiving. We’ll miss the kiddos but we are really looking forward to it.

Jeff is helping coach Jack’s T-ball team again this year. I’m sure he’ll be involved in the Golf Assoc too. Jack keeps him on his toes!

We had all those pine trees pulled up last fall so this year, we are cleaning up and getting a fence put up. Needless to say, it’s always something and it’s always expensive! We also got a new Washer and Dryer and I love it (after Derr Heating and Air came out and cleaned out the pipes under the house)!

I still love my new job. It’s so different than my job at Berry. I’m definitely involved in LOTS of Internet decision making. Probably way more than I’m qualified to be involved in!

Jeff is working on the side building Vacation Rental websites. He’s hoping they really take off!

Guess that’s it for now. I know there’s so much more that I could write about what the kids are saying and doing but can’t remember it all right now. I need to do this more often!