done

Back in January, Jake started weekly allergy shots.  Right after school, we'd drive down to NW Asthma and Allergy, wait until his name was called for shots, then wait the required 30 minutes in the waiting room.  After that we had to dash out and get back just in time to pick up Ali from school after dropping off Jake at home for piano lessons.  

I am happy to report that we are FINISHED with the first six months of shots!!  WOO HOO!!  Now they are monthly and he will finish them when he is 18 years old.  They have made a positive difference and we are grateful for modern medicine!

Looking back, here's a picture of Drew shortly after we started our weekly treks...

 

 and this picture was from today!

I think they might miss seeing us in the office every week.  You kinda get attached to seeing  cute kids for 6 months.

rock 'n' roll

The morning started out at 4:30 a.m., we left at 5, picked up some friends, and got to Seattle before 6:00 a.m.  It was already a GORGEOUS day.

Funny how we got the only true sunny day.

Steve hooked us up with some sweet pre-race treatment at the Amazon offices a block and a half away from the starting line (including restrooms sans lines).

Race time was 7:00 a.m. or after, depending on your corral number to control the sea of people.

I was the first to leave and was happy to meet my goal of completing the 13.1 miles under 2 hours (1:57:22).

 I was pretty excited about all of the yummy treats after the race.

After refueling, I met up with our old friend, Matt Molen and our new friend, Dan Lemon (who flew in from Arizona to race and to document the way only Matt can with his photos) to wait for Steve to cross the finish line...

 

which he did at an amazing time of 3:50:37!!  It was Steve's first marathon and he did AWESOME!!

 We were all very impressed!!

 I had to pose with the super athlete.

Ahhhhh--finished!!

Definitely a good exercise in mental and physical toughness for a Saturday morning.

smile, smile, laugh

Made me smile:

Ali just sat and stared at Drew in the car.

Made me smile:

Big brothers are fun to watch with little bros.

Made me laugh:

Emmy came down this morning and I thought her capris were a little tight.  I thought they were cute, but couldn't remember which ones they were.  I figured they were a pair from last year.  Later that afternoon we went to the Outlets to do a little shopping.  When she was trying on a pair of pants, I discovered that Emmy's tight capris were actually Drew's 18-24 months pants!!  I had been looking for them for weeks!!  They somehow ended up in Emmy's drawer and she put them on.  I could not stop laughing!  Her response:  "No wonder they were too tight when I sat down!"

drew

What can I say?  He's the littlest and we're together the most.  

Not for long, though.

School is out on June 18!!!

Hallelujah!

moments

Issaquah Little League CHAMPS!!

Oakland A's vs. Orioles/15-5

(even though we hadn't beat them during the season!)

This coveted championship game was made up of many sweet moments.

Like Jake smacking the ball into the outfield,

 playing first base like a pro

 and getting some amazing outs,

 seeing the final score and watching the champs slap hands with a "good game,"

 seeing Jake and his teammates lined up on the field afterward for the medal ceremony,

 hearing his name and seeing him get his medal,

 and remembering the start of the season in March and the wins and losses that got them here.

We are so proud of you, Jake!

 

Congrats on a great season, CHAMP!

preschool grad

Emmy is officially a preschool graduate.  

It's hard to believe that 2 years of preschool is gone!  Just like that.  Look how much she has changed (and how much her hair has grown)!

We are grateful for wonderful teachers (Mrs. Miller and Ms. Gigi)

 and good friends.

 

 Emmy wants to be a preschool teacher and a mom, her favorite color is aqua, and her favorite part of preschool was the arts and crafts station.

 Emmy is off to great things in kindergarten!

parenting

I don't know if it's having a tween or a baby that has made me really disect and evaluate my parenting.  Normally I don't read self-help books.  I figure if you say family prayer, have family home evening, do family scripture study, fulfill your calling, go to church, eat dinner together, be nice, do your family history, food storage and visiting teaching, you will just naturally develop into the best person and parent you can be!

But lately I've been interested to know more about strategies of parenting and how I can be better.  After reading parts of some parenting books, I am really wondering why we are just allowed to have children on our own, with no official training or classes!  And although I don't believe there is one "right" way to parent, I have definitely learned some good things and gained some good insights.

For example, I've been inspired by Sis. Hinckley's advice when it comes to parenting, "whenever possible say yes, they are only kids once!"  In one of the books I've been reading, there's a section called, "Watch Out for Too Many Nos."  There is a list of alternative things to say instead of flat out saying just NO.

I took one of the examples from the book's section called, "Helping Children Deal With Their Feelings," combined it with the alternative answers to No, and tried it out with Emmy yesterday at Fred Meyer.

She loves these animals with big eyes and she really, really wanted this cat.  Instead of just saying NO and dealing with her sadness and disappointment, we decided to take a picture of it and I typed it in my phone notes that Emmy really wants this cat.  Now with the picture and my notes, I will not forget that Emmy loves this cat and she can look at it whenever she wants.  She can show Ali, too, and most importantly, she can think about if she wants this cat more than any other big-eyed animal (one day).  Sooo, I didn't say no, but we didn't walk out of the store with the cat, and Emmy was thrilled with her picture.

Will this always work?  Probably not.  Will I want to take a picture of every little thing Emmy wants to buy (a pack of Starbursts)?  Probably not.  And I think sometimes a flat out NO is okay. Sometimes a NO will have to do.  But I am glad I can add some tools in our parenting belt.  There's lots of room for those!  Yes?