Happy Halloween!!!!

WHOA! It's already Halloween! This year is flying by!! Before we know it we'll be celebrating Thanksgiving, Christmas and then ringing in the new year!! But, for now we'll just focus on this past weekd. We had another great week! School and work kind of felt like they could have drug on forever last week. But then the evenings seemed to disappear in an instant....

Adam visited the orthopedic doctor on Friday. After a few blood test and x-rays he feels confident that his elbows and one knee are just suffering from Tendonitis. He said people can suffer for two years with tendonitis before feeling any relief - boo! The other knee he wasn't so sure about so he referred Adam to a Rheumatologist. Apparently Rheumatologist keep very busy, Adam got the first open appointment, but it's over a month away. So in the mean time he is to treat the symptoms.

I picked up Ryann Friday afternoon. We were all so excited to have her for the weekend! She didn't really have much new to share... when I asked her how student council was going she said she didn't really know. She was afraid she had missed a few meetings... so I told her to talk with the teacher that was over STUCO and see if that had happened. So hopefully she'll stop in this week and put her fears to rest. School is still going good. And she is VERY much looking forward to getting out and doing some trick or treating tonight! I can not get over how grown up this kid is getting! Check her out at Aiden's Saturday game...

SO GROWN UP!

Aiden had a great week. He is also VERY EXCITED about getting out and trick or treating tonight! I'm willing to bet he'll put on his costume as soon as we get home today. He had two great games over the weekend. He played keeper the first half of his game on Saturday. The boys won 3 to 0. On Sunday his team didn't win, which was a bit of a bummer because they really out played the other team. The final score was 5 to 2. Aiden had some really great plays during his Sunday game. Oh, and I had to share - because I thought this was hysterical! Over the weekend we went to Pei Wei, after Aiden opened his fortune cookie, read his fortune to himself and then said, "I got a fact!"

 Ha! Well, at least he has a great deal of confidence.... LOL!!

That's about all for us now. We hope you have a great week, and a Happy Halloween. I'll post with pictures from tonight soon.

Crazy weekend!!

Friday wrapped up Aiden’s first fundraiser for this school year. He participated in his first ever fun run. Thanks for all the support from you guys that were able to pledge/donate. Luckily for all our wallets the fun run team caps the kids at 36 laps. Adam and I both HAD to be at work on Friday, and were not able to be at the school during the actual run, but I got several text from friends that said Aiden was a wild man, he ran more laps than anyone- and had to be forced to come off the track for a water break. He ended up running 46 laps, (3 miles)! Good job buddy!!

Aiden's class - Ries' Rockstars! (he is in the back row - far left)

Coleman and Aiden before the run

Friday after school Aiden helped me and the rest of the PTA ladies get the school ready for our fall festival. We worked very hard, then Saturday I headed back up to the school around 1 to help finish up all the set up for our 4:00 start time. In the mean time Adam and Aiden headed to Aiden’s soccer game. From what I’ve heard this was a tough game, (Aiden’s team started the game with just 4 player) the other team was rough, and the ref was making a lot of questionable calls. In the end our boys were able to pull of a 3 to 1 win. They had to overcome a lot for this win – so Aiden was very happy. He actually got to play keeper, the second half of the game. From what I heard he did a really great job, and more importantly he LOVED doing it! After the game the boys came to the fall festival. Aiden had a blast! He had been really excited about the festival, and was excited to show all his friends his costume. I was busy volunteering, and didn’t get to spend to much time with my little man. I worked the festival for 7 hours so by the time we got home I was worn out and ready for bed.

Daddy and Aiden getting to the festival

Playing in the silly string corral

Will, Nate and Aiden

More silly string fun!

Saturday night we had a crazy storm so Aiden’s Sunday game was cancelled. We enjoyed our morning off and that afternoon headed to Drew's birthday party. It was at an ice skating rink. Aiden was really excited and nervous because he had never been ice skating before. However, he did awesome! He fell a few times, but all in all he did great. I was a little shocked by how well he caught on. He and one other little boy from the party were able to skate all over with no help. The rest of the boys were a sight to see! They were all over the place – it was great entertainment for the parents that’s for sure!

Yesterday Aiden visited the dentist. He is just over 4 feet tall and 55lbs. His teeth are looking great, the dentist was happy with his adult teeth that have come in and currently his two front teeth on top are both loose! Sounds like the tooth fairy will know the route to our house very well over the next few months.

Aiden spent all of last week working on a special school project. He had to research the Polar Regions and then present his findings to his class on Friday. He did the research on his own, and wrote what he called a script all by himself, and then he created his visual aide. It is SO hard not to jump in and correct the misspelled words, or straighten the pictures – but it was also really exciting to watch him figure it all out. The only help he had was getting him to safe websites to do the research and I had to show him how to use my di-cut machine to make the title for his poster. The rest was all him!!

On a totally different note, Adam and I believe Aiden has developed a lactose sensitivity. So we’ll be doing more in the next few weeks to examine the possibility of that……… more to come on that I’m sure.

I don’t have any news on Ryann, but we get her this weekend so hopefully I’ll have some news and pictures to share soon! Adam and I are still doing well. Adam FINALLY made an appointment to see an orthopedic doctor about his knees and elbows. He has been in pretty much constant pain for over a year now. Originally his doctor told him he was just getting older, and it would take longer to heal. I’ve been pestering him to go for a 2nd opinion, so I’m THRILLED that he finally is! Hopefully he’ll get some real answers. Other than that it’s just work, and being Aiden’s personal assistant. (LOL) 

We hope you’re all doing great, and enjoying this wonderful fall like weather we’ve been blessed with!

Pumpkin patch/ Soccer game

We were totally bummed to learn the pumpkin patch we normal visit would not be open this year. So Adam and I set out to find another great pumpkin patch. We decided on Mainstay Farm, about 45 minutes south of our house. It has a bounce pillow, three story fort, lots of slides, peddle go carts, mazes, hay rides, swings, kid sized spider "web" and tons of other things to play on, and lets not forget pumpkins! We were all very excited to check out the "new" pumpkin patch. It's important you understand that going to the pumpkin patch is one of Ryann's favorite traditions - so this place really needed to FUN. It sounded great. One of the reasons we opted to drive nearly an hour is because this patch has an admission fee - this was important to us, because Adam and I hate crowds, and the kids hate standing in line, so a free place was out of the question. 

We arrived, parked and headed for the entrance. The place had JUST opened, so we did have to stand in line :( But it moved quickly - so the kids were happy.  

See, happy kids!

The bounce pillow was our first stop, this thing was FUN!!!!!

After that we went through the first maze. The boys were the first ones out. Then we grabbed some lunch, and head for the hay ride. There was a long line - and it didn't move nearly as fast as the one at the entrance, so the kids were less than happy about that. The hayride drops you off on anther area that included the 3 story fort, swings, mazes, spider web, peddle go carts and slides. We hung out in this area for several hours.

 Ryann and Adam racing

 Aiden and I racing

Below, the kids coming out of the slide.

 both kiddos with their baby pumpkins.

This pumpkin patch had a ton to offer, and after food and drinks cost about 3x what our normal pumpkin patch cost us. On the way home we asked the kids what they thought about Mainstay, and both said they had fun. Aiden said he likes the "old" pumpkin patch better, because they have a train. And Ryann wasn't sure which one she liked better. This was very shocking to Adam and I because this place had way more to offer playing wise than the other place..and we figured they would both want Mainstay to be the place we return year after year - but I don't think that's the case. Hopefully they did enjoy their day - but I guess we'll be going back to our "old" pumpkin patch next year.

Last week we took a week off from soccer. We didn't go to one practice, and didn't do any extra practice at home. I think we all needed a little break. Aiden had a game Sunday, and he couldn't wait to get out on the pitch! His team had to play a man down the entire game... but they managed an impressive 7-0 win! Aiden had a great game, and scored two goals!!!

 Below is a picture of him scoring one of his goals.. really wished I would have captured the ball in the picture....

The rest of our week was pretty uneventful. Aiden is in the middle of a school fundraiser. He is collecting pledges for a fun run, and he is super excited! The run is on Friday. Saturday we have the Fall Festival at school, Sunday his best bud Drew is having a birthday party, he'll also have two soccer games squeezed in there somewhere too. I had several other things I wanted to update on here, but for the life of me I can't remember any of them right now, so I guess that's if for us right now.  I'll post more pictures again soon!

WE GOT RAIN!!!!

Let me start by saying, Thank you Lord for this rain!! I loved how everything seemed slow down, not just for our little family, but everyone I’ve talked to. It seemed as though the whole city just took a step back, and enjoyed our rainy gift.

Friday was a half day of school for Aiden, and report card day! Academically Aiden did wonderfully. He isn’t old enough to receive number grades yet. But, he scored all M’s (mastery) in the academic areas, although this is what we expected. However, he scored S’s (satisfactory) in all areas concerning conduct. I’ve mentioned this before, and his teacher and I have talked about it. We all believe this problem is stemming from not being challenged in his school work. He is finishing his work so fast, and has an exuberate amount of time to get in trouble. His teacher has told me she is actually finding it challenging to find work to keep him busy. We know she can’t completely change her lesson plans for him – but she is committed to trying her hardest to alter what she can for him. I also believe he has learned that he doesn’t really have to listen during instruction time to be able to complete his work correctly, and this is causing problems else where – like at home, (although that is another topic for another day). He and I have been talking everyday about his conduct – so hopefully he can get his mouth- and ears under control very soon. Because regardless of the amount of time he has to sit at his desk and be quite, he needs to be able to do that…. Hopefully this will be the last time I have this type of update concerning Aiden.

Ryann also received her Report card Friday, and I read on her Mom’s blog this morning she received all A’s!! I’m pretty positive she also got great marks for her conduct, because she always has. I also read that Ryann started horse back riding lessons over the weekend. I just know she was beside herself with excitement!! Her mother could not have picked a better time to start these lessons, because the last time we had her she told me she wanted to learn how to ride a horse – but she had no idea how to do that! I can NOT wait to get her this weekend and hear all about her horse riding adventure!!

I mentioned in my last post that I was having some issues with my camera’s memory card. I don’t know HOW it happened, but somehow all my pictures stored on the stupid thing disappeared. Therefore I don’t have any of the pictures that I was hoping to share *sad face*. So, I’ll be heading to the store before the weekend to pick up a new memory card, and hopefully have some pictures to share at the end of the week.

I’ll update again soon. Until then we hope you’re all doing wonderfully!

Tripp

One day a few weeks back I was reading one of my favorite blogs. The lady was blogging about many things, one of which was that she was nomitated on Babble.com for "The Moms who are changing the world" poll they were doing at the time. I hoped on over to see what the heck Babble was, and to cast my vote. When I landed on Babble I started reading about all these amazing mothers, each being nominated for one reason or another. Then I happened upon Courtney Roth, she was being nominated in the inspiration category. I read her story, and it became very clear to me why she had so many votes. Since then, the polls have closed, and Courtney ended up winning the vote, $5,000 to the charity of her choice. I've been following Courtney's blog ever since that day, and praying for her and her little man Tripp. I encourage each of you to click on over and read a little bit about Courtney and Tripp, and remember them in your prayers.

Courtney's blog is about her son Tripp, and his daily struggle to live. Tripp was born on May 14, 2009. He was diagnosed with a rare genetic skin disease called Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa or "EB." Any type of friction on his skin or mucous membranes causes blisters. Courtney was told he would not live to be a year old. Tripp is now two, and truly fights to live every day. There isn't a day he goes without horrible pain. I must warn you the pictures are heart breaking, and if you head over to do some reading be sure to have a box of Kleenex handy. Before reading Courtney and Tripp's story I never knew this horrible disease existed. If you can't stomach to read Courtney's blog, please remember them in your prayers tonight, and pass their story on to all your friends and family. This little family needs our prayers.

The last week.........

Last Sunday was our seven year wedding anniversary! Aiden hung out with Papa and Gamma, and Adam and I got a hotel in Frisco for the weekend. Adam and I rarely get more than a few hours alone together, so our anniversary trip is something we look forward to all year. Saturday we headed out to Pizza Hut Park to watch FC Dallas take on the Houston Dynamo. Sadly FC couldn’t pull off the win, but it was a great game. The rest of the weekend we spent doing pretty much what ever we wanted – a nice change from our usually “scheduled down the second” weekends. While Adam and I were enjoying some time away Aiden had a soccer game in Grand Prairie. I don’t know if was due to the long drive to the fields, or prior commitments but not all of our boys showed up, and they only had 2 subs – and with the much larger field they had to play on, our boys tired quickly, and just could not keep up with the other team. So, sadly they lost.

This past week seemed to drag on forever. I don’t know if it was because we were coming off such an awesome weekend, or what but Friday couldn’t get here soon enough! Aiden got his folder signed TWICE last week. If you know Aiden at all you’ll understand just how out of character this is. I don’t know if he is acting out due to boredom, or if he is just testing his limits but we’re hoping with consistency from us, and the punishments put in place that he has learned his lesson and he won’t have another week like this. We have a parent teacher conference tomorrow, not because of his behavior; it’s just that time of year for all the teachers to meet one on one with the parents. We’re really looking forward to this meeting; we’ve got to get more challenging work coming home with Aiden.

Friday Aiden’s school hosted a Grandparent’s breakfast. Papa drove up and took Aiden to school, where they enjoyed breakfast together. Hopefully I’ll have a picture to share soon! Friday Aiden’s class also hosted FRIday, FRIday stands for:

Family and Friends

Read together at

Independence Elementary



Aiden was really excited this FRIday fell on Adam’s off Friday, and he was able to come read to his class. Adam brought his childhood favorite, “Are You My Mother” to read to his group. Adam said he was shocked by the kids attentiveness. Here are just a few pictures Mrs. Ries was able to snap of Adam and the kids.

Ryann was here this weekend. She is still doing great! We needed some help with a student council project so she and I spent some time working on a suggestion box. It’s so fun working with her on projects like this. She seems to be really enjoying being part of the student council and has lots of ideas she wants to share. I just can NOT get over how big she is getting! I took some pictures of her I was hoping to share, but I’m fearful that something is wrong with my memory card. Every time I try to upload pictures from it my computer freezes up. I’m going to see what I can do about that, and hopefully have pictures to share of Ryann soon!

I was also hoping to share a few pictures from Aiden’s soccer games from this weekend. Saturday his Barcelona team had two games. They tied one, and won the other. Then yesterday his Odyssey team had a game, which they won! Pretty good weekend in soccer for our little guy.

The first six weeks of school is now OVER, (it flew by)! I’ll be posting grade soon. But until then, we hope you are all doing fantastic!