Activities this Month

Lexi ran 2 cross country meets this month.  I guess it was really last month, because OMG it’s actually November today!  She did well, but I don’t think it’s her “thing”.  They only run 1 mile in sixth grade, and Lexi finished her first meet with a time of 8.18. 

In true Culley fashion she wore this big red flower in her hair.  I can say for sure she was the only one out there with accessories!  It made it easier to spot her though!

These kids definitely don’t know how to pace themselves.  The start of the race sounded like a horse race!  They shot out like it was a 100 meter dash!  Lexi learned her lesson though, because the race left her feeling not so hot.

The next race she was careful to pace herself better.  Slow start, and kicked it in at the end.  Her time was 9.25, but I think she was holding back a little!

 

The last meet fell on the same night and time as the musical try outs, so we skipped it!  I’m glad she tried it, but I think cheerleading and the musical are more her calling!

Sof had her viewing week at dance.  She is definitely the youngest in her classes and the one that needs the most help!  She really watches the others though and is picking up fast.

See Kaitlyn in the back?  She is the opposite of Sof, on the older end and doing awesome!  I love that they’re together!

Getting help from Miss Alison.  The tongue looks like she’s concentrating:)

Next up was ballet.  Sof actually loves ballet!  I thought she would prefer the more fast paced classes, but she does nothing but ballet at home!

I love watching my girls activities!  So proud of them!

Break Even

It was something I calculated pretty early on.  Five.  That’s our break even age.  She’s been ours as long as she wasn’t. 

It seemed so far away then, but here we are.  Today my baby turned 5. 

What a transformation this girl has made.  She LOVES school.  She spends all her nights telling us how to spell things, practicing her letters and numbers, and asking us to write addition problems for her.  She is very bright.  She is never, ever quiet.  If she is, it’s not good.  It’s the one toddler trait we have not shed.  If she is not getting your attention, she’s going to find something naughty to do(because then she’s got your attention again:). 

She is a bundle of joy.  She finds joy in everything.  She loves to play outside.  She loves her family.  She says all the time, “I love you mommy.  I love my whole family”.  When she says family, she means more than just the…hmmmmm, I was about to say blood relatives, but none of us are to her.  I guess that illustrates the point even more.  If you show her love, she will love you back.  She’s the tangible object of all my good intention.  Happy birthday my sweet beautiful girl.  I love you so much my heart bursts to think about it.

And just like that…

We’re all grown up. 

This weekend we celebrated Mark’s 25th high school reunion.  On Friday we had Mark’s “group” over to the house.  Some of them are local, and some are not.  Todd was one of Mark’s best buddies, and he and his wife and 4 boys live in Ohio now.  We’ve seen them on a few big occasions over the years.  Funerals, graduations, a random holiday.  It was awesome to have the whole weekend with them catching up.  We all made a big realization.  We are now the age our parents were when we were getting married.  For the record we married young:)  Nevertheless, we’ve stood the test of time and now live real grown lives with real grown up responsibilities.

The whole night came together a bit disjointed, and yet it couldn’t have been better!  Mark had a list and day by day it grew.  We started with just the high school crowd and no kids.  The night before we added kids and a few of our more current group, because after all, why not? 

We ended up having so much fun!  We made lots of promises not to let so much time go by before connecting again.  I always really mean those promises, but it seems so hard to follow through with!  We all are in the same boat…teenagers in our house ruling our schedules!

Speaking of that, Todd hasn’t seen Adrienne since she was 4.  It was at Mark’s mother, Betty’s, funeral.  He was close to Betty and misses her lots.  He started talking to Adrienne and ended up crying because he said she reminds him so much of Betty! 

Friday night was a big success, and we would have felt complete if that was the real reunion!

It really was just the start though.  The guys golfed all day Saturday and the real reunion was Saturday night.  They came in second place golfing(not sure how that happened).  Mark got home just in time to change and we were off to pick up Todd and Betsy!

Betsy has Todd trained.  When she says, “Watch my purse”, he takes it seriously.

You just have to excuse the crappy pictures.  Bar light, flashes, and moving people makes for crappy pics.

On the way home we channeled a small piece of our youth with a stop at Wendy’s.  Then Sunday we were full circle back at the realization that we’re old.  Well maybe not that old, but too old for a whole weekend of that much fun.

Cousin Fun

It’s safe to say my sister may never leave her kids with me again.  For this weekend though, she enjoyed some time away with girlfriends and toddlers while the big girls stayed with me.  We all had fun, but before I go into detail, let me preface by saying my sister is a pediatric dietician.  Really, she is. 

Kaitlyn and Sof had dance.

It’s not unusual for us to get McDonalds lunch after.  Not a total fail yet.

The kids spent the afternoon playing outside and entertaining themselves.  In the evening we decided we would take them to a movie.  It was kinda last minute(meaning we didn’t have time to make dinner).

 

Mark and Steve decided that the popcorn, slushies, and candy we fed them wasn’t really dinner.  So what else could we do but stop at Wendy’s?  Honestly, we rarely eat fast food.  I was fairly disgusted by the end of the day, but the kids meal toys were totally worth it!

I like to call this picture “3 Shrek’s and a Jack Ass”.

As soon as we got home the girls got right back into their play.  I went to check on them to see what was keeping them so busy.

The conversation went like this:

Me:  Watcha guys doin’?

Livy: Hi Nenni!  We’re playing tattoo artist.  Over there is where you get the tattoo, and over here is surgery.

Me:  Wow, where’d you get that idea?  Never mind, have fun!

Adrienne had 3 friends spend night.  How could I not get Dunkin’ Donuts in the morning?

  I’m proud to say no one even puked!  Anyone need a sitter??

Sof and Growth

I’m lovin’ the growth in this girl.

She’s loves going to school now, and brings that learning home with her.

She’s constantly sitting at the table doing dot-to-dots, practicing her letters, or showing us how she can write all sorts of words in the “at” family.

She tells me she can read.  She gets out this chapter book and says, “Big girls don’t read with their voice, they do it in they’re minds”. 

She’s more interested in sidewalk chalk because she can actually write and draw stuff now.

She’s also into riding her bike.  She has more strength and stamina, so it’s more fun!

Even at the park she’s more capable.  She’s climbing more, sliding faster, and swinging higher.

Although I hate to see the passage of time, with every new phase seems to come some new benefit.  I’m loving the independence of this stage, and the discovery of learning.  When I pick her up from school she is no longer happy because I’m there to take her home, but more because she is excited to tell me about her day.  I never tire of that smile!