it only happens once in a lifetime.

they are firsts!

we have celebrated a hand full of them in the past few weeks.

alexander’s first soccer camp

he loved

every minute.

every hour.

every day.

can you tell?

the crazy came out of our little friend dc; jumping from his first bridge.

23 feet…not too shabby my boy.

new schools. new teachers. new friends.

it’s the first day of school for our first grader and fourth grader. 

also our first sidewalk of inspiration for all those who cared to enjoy it as much as we did making it.

dc scores his first goal. ever!

z-man wanted a taste of victory so he too scored his first goal. ever!

a visit to the new seattle wheel was a first for all of us!

enjoying it with grandparents and cousins made it all the sweeter.

 

i competed in my first official half marathon in 1:48 minutes.

reese enjoys her first chocolate beater.  it will definitely not be her last.

and here we have it, the first of many three stooges (or better known as stoogies) show!

be sure to request a show next time you stop by.

you can enjoy your first, and only.

you are really missing out until you do.

Birthday in the City

A handsome, kind and incredibly creative boy turned seven!! 

This was a party he said he will always remember.

His favorite friends joined us at our condo in the city to celebrate with him.  The place was filled with excitement, none of his buddies had seen Reston from so high up.

Their favorite party memories were playing water gun battles in the city fountain, water relay games and the scavenger hunt through the 40 floors of the high-rise condo.

The boys crammed in the elevator. Fun.

The winners of the scavenger hunt!

He’s in heaven now that he’s SEVEN!!

What we love about you:

You’re a peacemaker. 

Your eyes smile when you talk. 

Your quick wit, and unintentional humor.

You do push-ups when you can’t sleep. What are you going to do with all your muscles?!

You taught Alexander how to armpit fart. (That was from Alexander)  He is so proud of his new trick.

You have passion.

You’re a willing learner.

Your sweetness is contagious, and your little sister truly appreciates it most.

We are incredibly proud of you!

designer, builder extraordinaire

 

he’s on break right now.

you can find him somewhere between the board games isle and the matchbox cars isle at target. 

it’s the Lego isle and that is where he is dreaming his life away. 

his dream job:  designing for Lego

his career highlights include:

• his very own “Cool Creations” photo flip book published by zgb productions
• during a lego building demonstration at a lego store, he actually helped the lego employee fix his creation because he had missed a vital step.
• hours and hours of practice building ships, bases, cars and warriors for his little (and older) brothers.

• a spot at the Reston Regional Library “Share your Hobby” monthly booth.  His display was up for the whole month of April.  He visited it weekly and gave onlookers a tour of his work. 

 

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his vision for the next Lego line….Robot Ville.

         

sunny days

it’s been sunny and 75 everyday for the past 2 weeks.  that’s synonymous for pure happiness for us.

who needs vacation when we have vacation weather in March?

the kids have different bus times, which means each gets their own ride with dad to the bus. 

our happy-go-lucky 6-yr-old squeals like the pig from the geico commercial,

“weeeeee. weeeeee. weeee.”

until Jon reminds him, “zman, we are here”.

“oh, thanks dad.”

Toothless!

 

“It finally happened. I’ve waited more than eight and a half long years to loose my first front tooth!” 

Dallin declared himself amazing and awesome all at the same time because he could drink his milk with a straw through the hole in the top of his gum line.

His brothers were only impressed for a few short days when his younger brother, now six, lost his first front tooth…and then the other one. Both front teeth gone like that.

Since Alexander knocked his front tooth out at eighteen months old all my boys were toothless at the same time.

That doesn’t happen too often.  They are considering an early retirement with all the $ they have made in the tooth loosing business.

we eat chlorine for breakfast

It was another memorable summer of swim team.

Swimsuits, goggles and caps were on before eight and they were in the 73 degree pool doing laps.  (That sounds like my worst nightmare, I despise waking up early and swimming in cold water).

The music, timers, concession stand and the buzz of the crowd always made the meets full of excitement.

For our veteran swimmer the hype never phased him. Warm-ups, waiting area and then the race was over under 30 seconds.

For our other swimmer, who was one of the youngest on the team, each race was a chance to get a better time….which would earn him more Pokeman cards. (Yes, we are pretty big on bribes).

His routine:

Equipment check.

Stare down the competitors.  His eyes say it all, “Are you ready to eat my bubbles?”

Visualizing the race.

Then comes the gun and the impressive dive/jump.

Phew!  He made it. Now he can finish the waterproof chocolate frosting he left on his cheek. 

Heat winner!

When she catches a glimpse of her brother’s face, this is her reaction. 

Defiantly the happiest fan in the crowd.

Great work boys!