Emma's [Almost] Toothless Grin

Emma finally lost her 3rd baby tooth.  Her upper left tooth has been loose for weeks now.  And these last final days it had just been hanging on by a thread.

Literally.

By a flippin' thread.

It totally gives me the heebie-jeebies.  I can tolerate poopie-covered hands, vomit-infested car seats, splinters of all shapes and sizes.  But show me a dangling baby tooth, and I flip out!

So Andy finally twisted it out.

And left our big girl with a wonderful, semi-toothless grin!

Kindergarten Mass

The two Kindergarten classes hosted Mass last week.  Emma a had a speaking part during the petitions, and she did such a fantastic job.  Especially considering that her part was changed at the last minute due to the tragedies that happened in Moore, OK.  She was supposed to pray for the military; instead she prayed for the families affected by the tornadoes.

Just when I think I can't be any more proud of my baby girl, she goes and shines even brighter.  While all of the children were just precious, the majority were hard to understand as they spoke into the microphone.

But when Emma stepped up there, A) you could see her perfectly because she's so tall and B) she spoke clearly and slowly.  She only tripped over one word.  "God," which she oftentimes confuses with "good."

Dear Lord, Be with the people in Oklahoma who have been affected by the tornadoes, may they feel God is with them as they try to rebuild their lives and communities.  We pray to the Lord.

Cookie Awards

At our last Girl Scout meeting, Katie the Cookie Mom, presented the girls with their Cookie Awards.  It was pretty precious.....seeing these girlies get all excited for a bandana.  Or a wristlet.  Or a patch.

Doesn't matter.

It was something special that they earned.

That they'll cherish forever.

Or 24 hours.

Our Super Seller, Josie.
Sold over 400 boxes!!!

Emma sold over 170 boxes, coming in 2nd behind Josie.

And here's Miss Miranda, selling over 100 boxes.

Same with Isabelle, selling over 100 boxes.

Mary Kate & Veronica, proudly posing as Super Sellers!

Mary, Cait, Grace, Ava Marie, Ava P., Ellery, Maura, & Sydney all posing  with
Cookie Mom Katie for hitting the troop average goal of 25 boxes.

Swickheimer Summer Fun List

This summer is sure to be the best yet!  Between Papa watching the kids (THANKS DAD!!!), vacation, CYO Camp, Vacation Bible School, the pool, the zoo, the children's museum.......phew, that's a lot.....we're sure to have an action-packed summer!

And just because I love a good check-list, here's our 2013 Summer Fun List.

Swickheimer Summer Fun List

1.        Go on vacation

2.       Do a century ride. In one day. That's 100 miles

3.       Take weekly trips to the pool

4.       Have a family and friend cookout

5.       Get a sno cone

6.       Go to the Indiana State Fair

7.       Go on a picnic at Fort Benjamin Harrison

8.       Have a summer date night with the hubs. Complete with wine and an evening stroll. Anywhere

9.       Go to the Fishers Fire Station

10.    Go to an outdoor concert at White River

11.     Take a walk along the canal

12.    Play miniature golf

13.    Roast marshmallows over a fire and make s’mores

14.    Go to the Binford Farmer’s Market

15.    Go kayaking at Papa & Grandma Ann’s river cottage

16.    Go camping

17.    Go fishing

18.    Watch a summer blockbuster (Monsters University?) at the theater

19.    Go to an Indians game

20.   Play in the sprinkler / make a yard “water park”

21.    Have a water balloon fight

22.   Homemade carwash

23.   Make Play-Doh

24.   Catch lightening bugs

25.   Make forts

26.   Go to library

27.   VBS – Kingdom Rock

Field Trip to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The final field trip to round out a wonderful Kindergarten year, was spent at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  It was a perfect day, and we couldn't have asked for better weather!

The Godaddy.com car was a big hit with the kids.
Every time it went by, the kids would shout "GO DADDY, GO"

Typical size difference between Emma and a classmate.
Here she poses with Grace D.
Let's hope she gets her dad's athleticism!

Teacher Appreciation at SPX

In honor of the fantastic teachers at St. Pius X, we held a catered dinner for the teachers to enjoy.  To add a little charm to the evening, the school board challenged us (the parents) of each grade to a fun, little competition.  Each grade was to decorate a table, then the teachers would vote on their favorite, and then that grade would win a pizza party!

There were some really clever themes and ideas that the parents had.  Some went all out (the "Beach Theme": where they brought live fish in and placed them in cylinders on the table...along with real sand and beach balls hanging from the ceiling), some went classic ("School Lunch/Cafeteria": lunch trays, milk cartons, library books, and the American flag), and some went with royalty ("Fit for a King/Queen": crown, cape, jewels, gold coins, "real" crystal eatery).

"School Cafeteria"

"Thank you for helping us grow"

"Fit for a King"

"Willy Wonka / Golden Ticket"

"Burlap and Herb Garden"

"Chalkboard and Teachers (are the best)"

"Hands Down, Teachers are the Greatest"

So who was the winner out of all these fantastic tables?!?

Why the Kindergarten table that Alicia Wilson & I decorated!  Theme: The Great Gatsby.  I guess the teachers just LOVED it.  They wore their pearls and hats the entire time and had a ball!

Love all the vintage pieces (hat box, gloves, crochet set).
Special thanks to my mom for the lovely (80's) hats!

The invitation, made by yours truly, reads:
"It is Mr. Gatsby's distinct pleasure to cordially invite you to
Faculty Appreciation Dinner
Friday, May 7, 2013
7:00pm
Ross Hall
St. Pius X
7200 Sarto Drive
Indianapolis"

When Ya Gotta Go....

......ya gotta go!

Drew has made a new friend (Issac) at Emma's softball games.  His older sister and Emma are teammates, so Drew & Issac get to play with each other for an hour at least three times a week.  Which is great, because I don't have to entertain him the entire time.  He and Issac love to do "boy" things:
- Karate chop weeds
- hunt for rolly-pollies
- play ninjas with sticks
And last night was no different......they were off playing with dirt in the little playground area.  I always check every few minutes to make sure he's okay and within a reasonable amount of distance from me.

So as I'm looking over my should, what do I see?!?

Drew, proceeding to pull his pants down.

At first I was like, "What?!? Is he? Wait. He IS."

Oh my Gawd.

Drew was starting to take his pants off, and was just about to pull his little underpants down to take a leak!!!

I couldn't believe what I was seeing!

Andy takes off running towards him.  He's frozen still, wondering what all the fuss is about.

Meanwhile, I'm in stitches with my mom and Issac's dad.....just laughing hysterically at what we just witnessed.

Because, hey.  When ya gotta go, ya gotta go!

Happy Mother's Day

We had a lovely Mother's Day this year.  It started quietly ...as the kids had a sleepover at Grandma's house.  It's always so weird when the kids are away.  It's like Andy & I don't know what to do with ourselves!

So what do two hot, young lovers do when the kids are away?!?

Why, go to the grocery store of course!

That WAS what you were thinking, right?

Grocery shopping without a 6 and 4 year nagging at your side for a box of animal crackers down the cookie aisle -or- a box of Toy Story gummies down the fruit snacks aisle -or- some Snackables in the deli section....is, well, H-E-A-V-E-N.

After our rendezvous at Kroger, we had brunch at "End of the Line," formally known as Shelby Street Cafe.

My baby girl.

It's like you're my mirror.
My mirror's staring back at me.

Then we came back home for some relaxation.  Or yard work, as I call it.

No really.

I love to work in the yard.  Andy does too.  We actually argue over who gets to mow the lawn.

True story.

So after winning the yard war, I opened up my super-fantastic gifts.  I must say that Drew's gift won Most Original.  But Andy's came in a close second, with the award for Most Cleverly wrapped.

• Drew's gift to Momma: one of our coffee mugs that he put his Picasso stamp on.  It's going to be worth millions one day, guaranteed.
• Emma's gift to Momma: a flower planted in a soup can that she decorated herself.  Complete with a picture of her attached to it.
• Andy's gift to Momma: a new pair of Reef flip flops.  (That Emma picked out.)  Wrapped in Christmas paper.  Secured with packing tape.

My Mother's Day Loot

My world, my life, my heart.

Rookie Run 2013

For the second straight year, Emma raced in the Rookie Run.  As a big, bad six year old, she had to run 1/5th of a mile this year.....as opposed to the 2 blocks that she had to run last year.

So how did she do?

She kicked some mayjah Rookie bootie! 

Yeah, she complained a little.  But so did I.  

Yeah, she may have been over it half way through the run.  I've done that too.

She's my amazing little Rookie Runner.  The cutest one there is!

I LOVE HER!!!!!!
LOVE HER. LOVE HER. LOVE HER.

Nearing the finish line

Great action shot!

Get after it, girl.
Don't let a BOY beat you!

Happy 4th birthday, Drewbie!

To My Sweet Baby Boy Drewbie,

How blessed we are, to have you in our lives for four years now.  How could it possibly have gone by so fast?  How could you possibly be FOUR YEARS OLD?  To me, it seems as though you were born just yesterday.

Words cannot possibly describe how much you mean to me.  You are truly your momma's baby boy.  While you have grown so much this year, both emotionally and physically, you are still my baby boy.  My sweet, sweet baby boy.  You have such a sweet nature about you Drewbie, but yet you are ALL BOY.  Your love for rolly-pollies and spiders gives me the heebie-geebies.  But yet, it warms my heart just the same.

From the "Engine Turtles," to fire trucks, to out-running your big Sissy, you are my little man with the dimple that I love more than anything.

Love,
Momma

Drew's 4th Birthday Party

For months now, Drew has been wanting a “Hot Wheels” themed Birthday Party.  Which isn't surprising, given the fact that anything with wheels, wings, or multiple legs (as in BUG legs) is all that the kid plays with.  (Aside from his devices, or course.)  

I was in luck, when it came to hunt for some decorations.  With this being the month of May, and us living in Indianapolis, every other item at all the craft stores were race-related.  So I scored big when it came to checkered banners and black-and-white decor.  

Some of the hot-ticket gifts this year included:

• a brand new "big boy" bike
• a jumbo "Fun Ball"
• Teenage Mutant "Engine" Turtles action figures
• Teenage Mutant "Engine" Turtles dress-up gear
• Teenage Mutant "Engine" Turtles movie
• Hot Wheels 
• Teenage Mutant "Engine" Turtles book

Let me just stop there.  Once he opened this book, he completed stopped in fascination, looking at each page ever so intently.  He could have cared less that there were still more presents to be opened.  All of his concentration was solely on this book.  Nothing else but "Engine Turtles" seemed to matter to him.

In fact, the next morning this book was the first thing he grabbed when he woke up.  He took it downstairs to breakfast with him.  He took it in the car to drop Sissy off at school.  He even took it into school with him, showing it off to all his friends.  To say that he loves this book, would be an understatement.

Drew is beyond blessed with all the toys and love that his family has for him.  It was a great day and a great way to celebrate 4 years with our Drewbie-Doo.

Birthday boy with all his loot!

I'm FOUR!

They were out of the "Hot Wheels" cake at Kroger, so I picked the next best thing.
Trucks.
And Dirt.
Together, with sugar.

So these photos won't go in the order I want. But this was taken at about 5:00.
He put himself to bed, he was so exhausted from all the fun!

Getting Daddy with the "Engine Turtle" weapons.

Such a good big Sissy, Emma is!

Here he is this morning. Holding his "Engine Turtle" book, while watching his new movie.
He couldn't be any more happy!