Playing Catch-Up

Somehow, some way, I've gotten way behind on writing blog posts. Another day will pass and I'll think, "Oh, I need to write about the strange rustling-about noise we heard in the middle of the night ... or how the boys have decided to take up flag football in the off-soccer season. Or how Zach and Allie's latest bedtime ritual involves Brett holding them, in turn, like a little baby and singing "Rockabye Baby." But somehow the daily routines seem to swallow up my time and energy lately. So to get caught up ... some highlights of late:

• Blake and Nick's soccer season ended about a month ago. And while I love watching their games, I was kinda looking forward to a respite from the weekly grind of practices, broken-up dinner times, scrambling to do homework and providing chauffeuring. That little sigh of relief was short-lived, however, as both boys decided to give flag football a try. So now Nick practices on Mondays, Blake on Tuesdays and both have games on Wednesdays. Sigh ...
• Allie is still enthralled with her weekly dance class. She loves practicing her stretches and the five ballet positions. Recently when I was playing little-kid baseball with Zach and Allie, it was Allie's turn at bat. I told her to choke up on the bat, turn her feet around and to "get into position." She then proceeded to turn her feet and get into her ballerina first position. Priceless.
• Zach, who had about an 18-month obsession with all things pirate, has now progressed to all things Star Wars. Light Sabers and action figures and endless showings of our collection of Star Wars movies keep this little boy going these days.
• Although it's starting to heat up here, the pool is still a little brisk for most of the family. There have been three or four times where Zach and Allie will ask to get in. Zach will stand on the top step with his life jacket on and just dabble around a bit. But Little Miss Adventure, I mean Allie, will gleefully run to the side of the pool and jump in without even testing the waters. And she's done this more than once.
  
• School is in the home-stretch now. Our last day is May 21 ... three weeks and two days. Always mixed emotions. I am excited that we can say good-bye to 3rd-grade homework and that I don't have to pack lunches (yippie!).

"The odds of going to the store for a loaf of bread and coming out with only a loaf of bread are three billion to one."
~Erma Bombeck