Go, Go, Goers!

We had an anomaly this week...Ava got 5 green days in a row!  We've had fun each day coloring the appropriate earned color on her Barbie calendar, and it hit me that this month, she's had a majority of greens with a smattering of yellow.  So proud of her for keeping that non-stop mouth under control!  And for that, she's earned a trip to the Barbie Dreamhouse at the Mall of America.  I won't lie, I'm also looking forward to it. :) We actually haven't seen her since yesterday.  Ha.  That makes it sound like our little 5 year old is off wandering the streets of Minneapolis, getting into some crazy hijinks.  In reality, she's been with Grandma Deb and Grandpa Whitey since after school yesterday.  They picked her up and surprised her with a trip to the circus this afternoon.  We'll have to see what she thought of it!  We're also bringing G up to their house for an overnight adventure.  Scott and I are going to celebrate with one of my...

Remember when just a mere seven days ago, I said it was great that G hadn't gotten sick yet?  We SO should have found a 2x4 and pounded the heck out of it.  G developed a really nasty cough, and on Tuesday, I ended up taking him to the doc to get it checked out.  Turns out that G had croup.  Awesome!  He's too young for steroids, so we couldn't help the virus with medication.  Double awesome! So, what do you do?  You pull out the humidifier, crank it up, and pray for the best.  G ended up staying home with Scott on Wednesday, but he was back to daycare on Thursday and Friday...and doing much better.  He still has a cough, but it's not as deep and bark-y as his croup cough was.  We felt so bad for the little guy.  And I am now a master of sucking snot out of his nose.  Motherhood is not as glamorous as it appears, people! Hahaha...that went out the window with poopy diapers, spit up, exhaustion, etc.  Good thing those kid...

Strep throat made its way back into our household, exactly one month after Ava had it the first time in 2014.  At least we know the drill...strep test, medicine for 10 days, new toothbrush, and done!  Even better, Ava likes the medicine, so it's not a fight to get her to take it twice daily.  G has managed to remain healthy over the last 4 months, so we are knocking on wood that it continues on this path!  Or, maybe his immune system is amazingly strong for such a little guy.  Who knows?! So, with the arrival of strep throat last week, Ava couldn't go to school on Friday.  Grandpa Whitey was nice enough to help us out, so I brought her up to SSP before driving into work.  As we were driving on the lovely Hwy 3, I was observing that the snow had really melted down over the past few warmer days that we had.  And then I noticed an animal of some sort on the side of the road.  Dead.  And this is how the conversation went from there: Me: ...

We had Ava's spring conferences this past Wednesday...academically, she's doing wonderfully!  She's right where she should be, and reading at a higher level than average.  Almost every night she brings home a little book to read to Scott and me, and I often wonder if she has just memorized it, or if she's actually reading it.  Turns out, she's really reading it!  Her teacher told us we could test her by having her read the book backwards to us, so I did....and she did great! Her teacher also let us know that Ava picked out the Pledge of Allegiance sign that's hanging on their classroom wall.  She noticed that when they recite it, it ends with "for all"...and she saw that at the end of the sign, so she figured out that's what they were saying.  Such a smartie!  Turns out she's also a leader, which isn't a surprise to us...she's very social, not shy, and smart.  I think we have a dangerous combo on our hands...  The only problem is how mu...

What's this?  Did Ava actually go to school five days in a row this past week?  Why yes, yes she did!  I had forgotten what that was like, but before I get too comfortable with the idea, it's a good thing school is closed this coming Thursday and Friday for conferences...  The only good news about that is that we'll be meeting with Ava's teacher to see how she's doing.  We're back on a green day kick, but I do want to talk to her about those red days that Ava had been "earning."  It might be working to have the goal of going to the Barbie Dreamhouse at the MOA - she only needs three more green days in a row, and she'll have earned that fun trip! G has his four month appointment tomorrow, which Scott will be managing on his own.  Pretty sure he's due for some shots, so that should be fun!  It'll be interesting to see how much weight/height he has gained...I think he looks a lot longer, and now he has a double chin, so...something is workin...