Knights & Dragons

Today we had a combined birthday celebration for Ethan and Jesse.  It was a lot of fun!  Since we're studying the Middle Ages, we decided to do a knight tournament as the theme.  Heath was the king (and he did an awesome job with it)!  And we had several young squires who were knighted for their brave and chivalrous deeds.

I even made a dragon cake!  I've never attempted anything that complex before, but since I had step-by-step directions I decided to give it a shot.  I was so impressed with how it turned out!

One unexpected addition to the day was SNOW!  Since living in Maryland I have NEVER seen snow in October so I would've never thought to worry about it.  But it snowed big, heavy flakes almost all day!  Fortunately, it was warm enough that the roads didn't get too bad, and almost everyone braved the weather and came to the party.  Our friends the Hills live in PA, so they just stayed the night rather than drive home through the snow (to their house without electricity).  All in all, it's been a really good day!

You Live, You Learn

Well, today we took a "field trip" that I planned a couple months ago.  We're studying the Middle Ages right now, soon to be followed by the Renaissance period.  I found out that Maryland has a Renaissance Festival . . . how perfect!  The 3 younger kids were free, and an acquaintance was able to get us discounted tickets.  So today, we drove to a town just outside of Annapolis to this festival.  But it wasn't nearly as educational or family-friendly as I'd hoped.  It was kind of like a giant outdoor bar with a costume party going on!  Many people were dressed in attire of the era.  Some costumes were beautiful; others were, well . . . strange to say the least.  (Sorry I didn't get any pictures.)

We only went to one show because we were just there for a half a day, and a lot of the descriptions made them sound pretty raunchy.  Most of the activities cost extra money so we didn't do them.  BUT . . . the kids did get to ride a pony and play on a pirate-ship playground, and we got to see a jousting competition and eat some turkey legs.  So, not a totally wasted day.  =)  The jousting was actually really cool and fairly educational, and the ponies were fun.  I'm glad we went, but I don't think it's something we'll be doing as a "field trip" again!

8 Years Old!

Ethan turned 8 yesterday!  It's hard to believe we've had him for 80% of a decade, that in 10 years he'll be an adult, and that he's half way to getting his drivers license!  It's amazing to see how he's been growing lately.  First of all, he's up to my chin in height, and wears shoes only one size smaller than mine!  But, it's not his physical growth that I'm most interested in.  He's really been growing and maturing in his character this year.  He's such a big helper with his little sister and with jobs around the house.  He's having a much better attitude about school and doing really well with it.  And he's old enough now that we can have a real conversation with him.  It's really fun watching him grow!

Happy birthday, Ethan!  We love you!

Welcome, Caleb!!!

OK, so I know this blog is supposed to be about OUR family, but I have some news that's too exciting not to share! Our good friends from college just had their first baby today!  They've been waiting many years for him, and we are so excited for them and so thankful that God has answered this prayer.  His name is Caleb.  Isn't he a cutie?!

Congratulations, Jen and Joel. We love you guys!

Random Updates

Since my last post, here's what's been happening:

Last Monday I took Tabitha to the Johns Hopkins cleft clinic. She has what's called venopharyngeal insufficiency. The part of the throat that's supposed to close off when we speak does not, which is why she has a nasally sounding voice. So they recommend a P-flap surgery to repair that. It's not urgent, so we're going to research it a bit and probably end up doing that next summer. Oh goodie.

Last Tuesday I took Rayanna to the opthamologist for her clogged tear duct. The doctor said that's definitely what it is, and since she's over a year old it's unlikely that it would resolve itself. It'll require a quick, 10-minute surgery to fix it. The earliest they can get us in for that is December 22nd though! It doesn't do any damage, but it is annoying for her to always have her eyes goopy and tear-filled. This week she had her 18-month check up. She was none to happy about the shots, but other than that things are good. She's gained 2 pounds in 2 months! And she's continuing to make good progress in every area of development.

Last Wednesday Ethan had an orthodontist appointment. He had several interesting molds made of his teeth, plus pictures and x-rays. I thought it was kind of cool actually. He'll be getting a retainer soon to fix his underbite. Depending on how that goes he may need further work done.

Sometimes I wonder how we manage to get ANY school done with all these appointments!

And, just in case Jesse felt left out, he's sick today! Just a fever so far; hopefully it doesn't turn into anything worse.

I have to say the most precious moment of the past week was when I looked out on the front porch and saw this:

The two kids who fight the most, the boy who hates to read, in this completely un-coerced, un-staged, spontaneous moment. That's the type of thing that makes it all worth it!