barrett: 103 months old

I'm ridiculously late in posting for Barrett!  Every year, December hits, and I think I'm ahead of the game because Christmas cards are mailed and presents are wrapped, and I can take it easy.  But nope, December came in like a runaway train, and we've been slammed with activities and fun events.  

Barrett started tennis last month, and is enjoying his weekly lessons very much.  He is starting baseball in the spring, and Britton took him to the park today to teach him batting.  It was so sweet, and completely her idea!  He's still into the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series, and every week brings a new one home from the school library to read.  And his newest project is creating a cruise ship model out of the many cardboard boxes that show up regularly on our doorstep, aptly named "The Cardboard Majesty."

Checking out Christmas lights with his friend Walker

Likes:  ham and cheese paninis, bike riding - we had a goal to ride all the way to the soccer fields (about 3 miles each way) and did it today!

Dislikes:  doing math homework

148 months old

We are three weeks away from Christmas, in that weird in-between time between Thanksgiving and Christmas when we've had a taste of vacation and just need more!  But no, Britton is gearing up for her Winter Band Concert this week, and finals starting the week after.  We've planned to do a whole lot of nothing over winter break, except for a few volunteering gigs for NCL.  We're also planning spring sports, and Britton has decided to do another season of softball!  She's also going to do weekly swim conditioning with a coach in preparation for swim team season.  So this spring is shaping up to be a busy one!

Likes:  playing on Babbel app to learn new languages (she's currently on French and reports that Russian is hard); "The Babysitter's Club" graphic novels - new ones at the book fair!

Dislikes:  Getting up early on the weekends - we had to get up earlier than usual for the elementary school's "Breakfast with Santa"

barrett: 102 months old

Can you believe that next week Barrett gets his braces taken off??  He's had them way less time than Britton, and she's none too happy that he's getting his off first.  I'm so used to seeing him in braces that I will miss that metal-filled mouth.  Barrett has really gotten into reading chapter books lately, and started out with the "Dogman" series.  While his teacher questions the utility of graphic novels, we think a kid reading, whether it be a graphic novel or regular book or the back of a cereal box, is always a good thing.  He's now really into the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series, though because of library availability, he's reading them completely out of order.  I appreciate that they aren't written where you have to read them in sequential order!

Barrett has really enjoyed watching Britton's softball games, so I think he's ready to sign up for baseball in the spring!  Our neighborhood is also putting together tennis lessons, and I signed Barrett up!  He loved tennis camp last summer, so I hope he enjoys expanding on his skills throughout the winter. 

Face painting at the zoo!

Likes:  the beautiful colder weather we had last weekend, going to the zoo, running at the park

Dislikes:  lasagna

147 months old

A few days late, which seems to be the norm now!  We had such a busy end to October - our NCL mother/daughter tea party, a visit from Cammy, a band concert, and Halloween!  Britton dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood for Halloween, and roamed the neighborhood with her friend Olivia, the first time without a parent tagging along.  We used our new fog machine and the hubs created a cold box which made the fog roll out low to the ground.  It was so eery and we got a ton of compliments on the effect!

Britton was feeling under the weather for this monthly photo - she's got a head cold, and as it is these days, we of course tested her for covid at the first sign of a runny nose.  Barrett got his first dose of vaccine today, so we're still careful not to risk exposing him unnecessarily.  

Britton's still got her softball final tournament, but the games were cancelled on Saturday because of the field conditions.  They are pretty far north of where we live, so maybe they got rain, I'm not sure, but the final games were cancelled so we went to the zoo!  First round of tournament games start tomorrow night.

Likes:  watercolor painting, playing with make up

Dislikes:  band sectionals at 7:40 am Friday mornings, being sick

barrett: 101 months old

If you read Britton's post, then you know why this post is also late!  Frankly, after a week of sleeping in and too many boat drinks, I'm just proud of myself for remembering to post at all.  Barrett joined his school's book club this month!  They are reading "The Incredibly Dead Pets of Rex Dexter" by Aaron Reynolds.  He's really gotten into chapter books, and lately we've traded roles at night, where instead of me reading to him, he reads me his books!  He loves the "Dog Man" series, Judy Moody books, and the "Diary of a Pug" series.

Barrett recently made chocolate chip cookies with Memaw, all by himself!  When I bake, I can sometimes get him to bake with me, and he likes measuring the ingredients the most. 

Likes:  reading, delivering "boo baskets" to neighborhood friends

Dislikes:  having to clean his glasses

146 months old

Let's pretend like I took this picture on October 2nd, and not today!  Truth be told, the hubs and I were on a much-needed vacation for the last week, so I wasn't home to actually take the picture on the 2nd.  October is turning out to be quite the busy month for Britton!  Softball games are in full swing, including double headers on multiple days.  The season is relatively short (over by the end of October, depending on tournament finals), so we're headed to games and practice multiple times per week.  And we've signed up for a lot of volunteering hours this month for NCL (National Charity League).  This week and next we're making 6 dozen cookies for the local hospital!  Ok, admittedly, I'm making the cookies, but I love baking so I don't mind sharing the credit.  

Britton has a band "hauntcert" where they will be performing spooky songs, and they get to dress up in costume!  So Britton has decided to be Little Red Riding Hood for both the concert and Halloween.

Likes:  softball, dyeing her hair bright red (Valentine by Unicorn Hair), going to the Spirit Halloween store

Dislikes:  getting sunburned at the softball games

 

barrett: 100 months old

Third grader over here!  Barrett is back in school, and most excited to learn multiplication.  His school isn't requiring masks (ugh), so he wears a N95 mask every day, which is especially irritating when it makes your glasses fog up.  But strangely enough, he's used to it, and I do wonder if and when covid ever goes away, he may feel like something is missing when the mask goes away.  

Barrett wasn't really excited about soccer last spring, so we decided to sit it out this fall.  But we have been able to finally get into the tennis courts (it's a long saga about a key fob and my ignored requests for almost a year), and he's learning to play tennis.  I'm not the best teacher, but I can teach him the basics, and the hubs and Britton do batting practice in the other tennis court.  I'm thinking that he'll be ready for some baseball in the spring!  

Likes:  Roblox, talking about Roblox, getting an allowance

Dislikes:  homework

 

145 months old

What can I say?  Yep, I'm a week late with Britton's monthly post, and I can squarely blame my delinquency on school starting and the chaos that comes with it!  Britton is enjoying the 7th grade, and actually got to start the school year this year in person.  She's back to playing the clarinet in symphonic band, and gets to dissect a frog in science!  

Britton has also started softball for the fall season.  I'm proud of her for trying something new!  She's got natural talent (the hubs played baseball - she didn't get the talent from me and my horrible 5th grade softball skills!), and has been practicing throwing and batting on the weekends.  Games start in October, and I'm ready to see her in action!  

Disclaimer - this is not a real wound!!!  Britton got a special effects makeup kit for Christmas, and worked on some gory wounds this weekend.  She added the staples to make it even more gruesome!  I'm looking forward to seeing what she pulls off for Halloween.

*THIS IS NOT REAL*

Likes:  special effects makeup (especially latex), new friends on her softball team, taking Barrett to the library

Dislikes: assigned seats on the bus

barrett: 99 months old

Here's my soon-to-be third grader!  We find out who Barrett's teacher will be this year tomorrow, and meet her at the "Meet the Teacher" event tomorrow night.  As you may know from the news, Texas's governor has issued an executive order preventing schools from requiring masks, even though Texas is a hotspot of covid infections.  I'm nervous for Barrett to go to school this year, no doubt, because unlike Britton, he's too young to be vaccinated.  Virtual school is only scheduled for a month and a half, which feels too disruptive.  So, we've stocked up on N95 masks, hand wipes and sanitizer, and discussed with Barrett how important it is to protect himself while he's at school.  

To celebrate the end of summer, we went to the aquarium on Saturday!  Barrett loves jellyfish because Britton loves jellyfish, but his best find at the aquarium was the axolotl!  I didn't even know they had one, let alone two of these adorable axolotls.

Barrett has started playing Roblox, and loves it when Britton will hop onto Roblox too and play with him. He still plays Minecraft too, and boy, is it going to be an interesting transition for him to be back at school without the electronic entertainment.  We've been reading the "Rainbow Fairy Magic" series lately, and we can get through the books pretty quickly.  Luckily, the library has a ton of them!

Likes:  axolotls, telling me about Roblox worlds, going on bike rides after dinner

Dislikes:  my key fob not working and stopping us from getting to play tennis

britton: 12 years old!

Geez Louise, not only did I forget to post Britton's monthly picture, it was her birthday no less!  And I forgot Barrett's too.  So, let's remedy this, shall we?

Britton is now 12 years old!  She decided that this year, she didn't want a big party.  She wanted to go bowling with some friends and the family, do cake, open presents, go to In-N-Out Burger for dinner, then go to the new Jungle Cruise movie.  A full day of celebration!  

Birthday sprinkle pancakes - a tradition!

Britton may not have had a big birthday party (in fact, one of her two friends she invited had to cancel due to covid exposure), but that didn't stop us from decorating and theming it out.  Britton's favorite animal now is the jellyfish, and it was a surprisingly fun birthday theme for me to run with!

This week, Britton starts 7th grade!!!  Next month, she's also starting softball, which has her both nervous and excited, since she's never played before.  She reads more books than anyone (adult or kid) I know ridiculously fast, and remembers every book too.  She finds obscure bands on You Tube, falls in love with them, memorizes lyrics, and for that she is definitely her mother's daughter.  Britton is still playing the clarinet - she made it into the symphonic band for this school year!  And while she's still shy and because of that can come off as detached or uninterested, she's super silly, sweet, and loving with friends and family.

Likes:  Sanrio characters, her new phone, playing Roblox with Barrett (this might be his "like" more than hers)

Dislikes:  waking up early, having to ride the bus this school year

 

barrett: 98 months old

Barrett has been camp-happy this summer - I think I was trying to make it up to both him and Britton about every single thing ever being cancelled last summer.  He's been to "Mission to Mars" camp, tennis camp, and adventure camp which was entirely outdoors.  I think he's camped out, which is fine, because he's hanging out with Memaw and PawPaw for the rest of the summer.  This was Barrett's first season on swim team, and he learned the strokes really easily.  His best is the backstroke!  He's hooked on the swim meets (might have something to do with the snow cone truck) which is great, because both kids are doing swim team every year.  It's such great exercise, plus they learn to compete, set goals, and celebrate achievements!

Likes:  Super Mario Brothers, playing tennis with his new racquet, discovering new bike trails with me

Dislikes:  having his braces tightened 

143 months old

It recently occurred to us that Britton's 12th birthday is in a month!!  I feel like this summer is flying by (maybe just because last summer didn't?) and it snuck up on me.  She doesn't want to do a big party, and instead we're going to plan a fun day out, dinner, then cake at home, with family and her best friend.  It's been an intense summer of fun - Britton spent two weeks at sleepaway camp, then came back to softball camp.  I also enrolled her in a theatre camp, which she wanted nothing to do with after the first day.  Well, not every camp can be a winner, so I'm happy that the first two worked out so well!  Britton was excited to make it back home for the last swim meet of the season.

This year, Britton and I applied for and were accepted into the National Charity League (NCL), a philanthropy organization for women and their daughters.  We will be in NCL from 7th grade until high school graduation, and have to volunteer a certain number of hours per year, and attend monthly meetings.  My friend told me that it's a good idea to try and get a jump on your hours over the summer, when schedules are a bit less hectic than the school year.  We've volunteered at a charity resale shop, restocking the clothing racks, and also went to the animal shelter to read to the cats.  Britton and her best friend also made the animal shelter some fleece blankets, dog toys, and bandannas, last weekend.  

Likes:  reading to the cats, racing Barrett in the pool, sleeping in

Dislikes:  theatre camp that requires her to write a script and original song

barrett: 97 months old

Barrett finished up his soccer season this weekend, and I tell you what, it felt like the longest soccer season ever!  We tried out a new soccer org in town, and they have practice and the games back-to-back on Saturdays, which I thought would be really convenient.  But when that Texas heat hits, sitting out in the middle of a non-shaded field was brutal.

But while soccer is winding down, swim team is heating up!  Every morning I wake up Barrett at 6:30 am so he can get to swim practice at 7:00 am.  Next week he starts his first summer camp next week, and they include a golf and tennis camp, a "Mission to Mars" camp, a science camp, and an adventure camp!  I had to cobble together camps this summer, and luckily Memaw and PawPaw are helping out with transportation and watching the kids when they aren't in camp.

Likes:  Minecraft (especially when Britton will discuss strategies and characters with him)

Dislikes:  cold pools in the morning

 

142 months old

 

It's officially summer vacation for this girl!  She's living her best life right now - sleeping in, swimming every day, and getting ready for summer camp.  After researching forever, the hubs and I found a fantastic camp out in Hill Country, and Britton is going for two weeks this year.  I've planned on spending all day Friday packing her steamer trunk and ironing name labels into her clothes, towels, and sheets.  Every day she'll get to go horseback riding, swimming, and a rotation of tons of activities like archery, canoeing, riflery, pottery, and crafting.

But before she goes, she's got her first official swim meet tomorrow night!  Britton is in 7 events tomorrow, including the IM and relay, and her times were good at the practice meet.  She loves freestyle and detests backstroke, but in the IM, she'll have to do all four strokes.  Good luck!

Likes:  Nella the cat, Face Timing on her iPad with her friends, Arizona green tea

Dislikes:  the amount of different camps I've signed her up for this summer - sleep away, theater, softball, and art!

barrett: 8 years old!

Eight years ago, I gave birth to this amazing kid, who blazed into this world at 10 pounds, 10 ounces and 23 inches long, nicknamed "The Toddler" by the hospital nursery.  My gentle giant.  Barrett is an incredibly sensitive and loving second-grader, who loves every dog and cat he meets, and finds friends at every playground.  He's the most empathetic kid I've ever known, and has been known to cry as easily during movies as me!  He let's me snuggle him every morning in the "boogernook" (a term I think my mom made up, and which just means snuggling up real close).  

Barrett is funny, sweet, helps out without being asked, and if you think I'm making him out to be all sunshine and roses, well, I am.  If he has any faults, he came by them honestly, and inherited my knack for occasional laziness and his sister's reticence of doing homework until the last possible minute.  He's genuinely curious, growing carrots in our neighborhood garden and reading encyclopedias about ships.  Barrett's favorite clothes are his pajamas, and he knows how to get cozy and comfortable.   

Sprinkle pancakes for breakfast!

Barrett has a strong creative streak too.  He's been taking an Outschool Pokemon class, where he gets to make clay Pokemon figurines.  He draws and paints all the time, and loves hanging his pictures up around the house.  But his ultimate love is Legos, and he has a natural talent when it comes to creating characters and scenes out of Legos.  He does love the kits, but he also isn't beholden to the instruction manual.

The school marquee has his name up for his birthday, but the computerized sign is impossible to photograph

Likes:  Pokemon, Super Mario Brothers, Bruce Cameron books, swim team, riding his bike

Dislikes:  jumping into the cold water at swim team practice

 

141 months old

 

We're slowly creeping towards the last few weeks of school, and I mean slowly because it's not going nearly fast enough for the kids, and it's coming way too soon for me!  Now that I'm working from home, I've got to find day camps and fun activities for the kids, so they don't spend all summer staring at iPads and holing up in their rooms, and I can actually get some work finished without being guilt-tripped into endless drives to Target for snacks and park trips.  

Britton starts swim team tomorrow!  And halfway through the season, she'll be headed to sleep away camp in the Texas hill country.  Neither kid is excited about getting into a cold pool tomorrow, but I'm ready for them both to get back into the water.  The winter storm destroyed our pool heater, so it's been a while since we have been in the pool.

Likes:  the cat, reading every book she can get her hands on

Dislikes:  every single day camp I find in the local area (but not the sleep away camp - that's a like!)

barrett: 95 months old

We are a mere ONE MONTH away from Barrett turning 8!!  Granted, the last year has been a bit of a Groundhog Day-eque blur, but seriously - where does the time go?  Because every morning, upon being woken up (like Sadie before him, Barrett is not a self-starter), Barrett and I snuggle in the booger nook, which is him being cuddled up on my lap in his bedroom chair.  And every morning, I notice how much bigger he is than the extremely-large baby (10 lbs, 10 oz) he was, and I find it completely unfair that he's getting so much older so fast.  Maybe it's hardest with your youngest, because you know there are a whole host of "last times" you're heading towards.

Enough about my whining - onto Barrett!  He starts soccer back up this Saturday!  We got new cleats last week, and while his Crocs are a size 3, his new cleats are a size 5, so clearly I have not been keeping up with his growing feet.  He and his BFF Walker are completely into Pokemon right now, and if you had guessed that Pokemon would be the one character Crocs doesn't make shoes in, you'd be right.  So, I'm still scrounging.  And of course, the birthday party theme will be.........Pokemon!  Minecraft narrowly lost in this heated battle.

Likes:  Squirtle, going to the playground, riding bikes

Dislikes:  being made to come home when he'd rather be playing, thinking about his upcoming spelling test

 

140 months old

Britton started an Outschool theatre class production of "Alice in Wonderland" a couple of weeks ago and is enjoying it!  With the pandemic shutting everything down, we got complacent about not doing much, welcomed it even.  Last year, we had activities at least 3 nights of the week, commutes, rushed dinners, and we didn't know any different.  Now, the last year has been a nice change, some parts even preferable to how it was before.  I take the kids to school, pick them up, hear about their days, and we're not all so rushed anymore.  But we still need things to do, to teach us new things, to pique interest in life.  So, Britton is doing her online production, and will begin swim team soon, and we're slowly but surely getting back into the swing of things.

Likes:  Swedish fish, reading all the books!

Dislikes:  having two more months of school left