Don't Blink!

I can't believe it has been so long since I last posted. I have to admit that it is much more fun to post when I have pictures to share (see "My Life Without Pictures"). I am happy to report that we have ordered a new camera and it should be on its way. I can't wait to get it!
So, July has been a(nother) busy month! Our most exciting news is that we bought a large play set for the backyard. It was just installed today, and Kyrie already loves it! Degen will need a little time to grow into it. A few weeks ago we went to the showroom with a sale flyer in hand. The kids played & played on the demo sets and trampolines. We are looking forward to this play set becoming a real center for our backyard life! I've already have two play dates on the calendar so that Kyrie can get a little help breaking the ol' girl in!
My thoughts flutter around a thousand different stories to tell about the kids and the happenings in our life:
Darren started switching out light fixtures, outlets & switches. Unfortunately, the wiring in our almost 60 year old home has never been updated. He has run into many troubling issues, so much so that he feels it is almost dangerous for him to continue the project on his own. He is disappointed with the entire situation.
A couple weeks ago, our cat Brutus caught a baby bunny and ran into the house with it. When I gave chase, he dropped it on the floor. The poor, stunned thing was unharmed so I took him out for Kyrie to see. She held him for about 20 minutes and loved every minute of it. When we told her she had to put him down, she cried and cried. We told her that when it's time to get a kitten (when our hunters have passed on), we can get a baby bunny to raise with it.
Degen seems to have arrived at the terrible twos. He's gotten quite whiny and demanding. Kyrie started the same thing around the same time. It's fairly frustrating, but it also coincides with an increased interest in play among the siblings. I am actually finding myself with brief moments of peace when both kids are happily occupied in shared play. It's a happy glimpse into the future. Though showing his "tough side," Degen is just too darned cute! He LOVES music and dance, and will break out in the cutest moves. You just can't be upset with him for too long. 
We are tentatively planning for a family trip to Los Angeles this fall that will coincide with one of Darren's business trips. I am very excited for this opportunity!

Pass the Popcorn

I have always thought that there was something special about going to the movies. Since becoming parents,we have not been able to go to the movies very often at all. And to be honest, even before that our movie attendance seemed sparse because we've been pretty busy since the months before our wedding. But in the past few weeks, I've been to the movies multiple times. My theater loyalty card is racking up numbers after years in hibernation, and I'm buying theater gift cards (for the fuel rewards from the grocery store) every other week.
It actually started about a month ago when I started putting prize cards into Kyrie's big prize bag. Usually, the bag is stocked with an assortment of toys and movies, but I thought giving her the option to choose experiences with one or both parents would be nice now that she's older. There are three prize cards: dinner choice, ice cream shoppe and the movies. Right off the prize cards were a big hit, and her first choice was to see "Shrek..." with Darren. She loved it!
I took the kids to one of the summer kids' movies to test Degen out, and he did well enough. He liked the popcorn and watched a little of the movie before falling asleep. Sitting in a darkened theater with a bag of warm popcorn was great, even if I did have to spend part of the movie trying to keep Degen from running amok. After he fell asleep, it was nice to settle back into the comfy seat with Kyrie and take a break from the summer heat and all the errands waiting at home.
When "Twilight: Eclipse" came out, I knew that I'd be headed back to the theater. (Yes, I am one of those!) One of the moms from playgroup read all the books around the same time I did, and we'd seen the last two movies together. We made a plan to go over the July 4th holiday weekend. I felt like I'd won a small jackpot when mid-week before our planned jaunt, I got coupons for $1 concessions on July 4th. The date was set and with coupons in hand, we had the cheapest trip to the movies either of us had ever seen ($7 bought a morning matinee ticket, a large popcorn and large drink). We went early and stayed for most of the credits, lingering. Oh, sweet freedom!
This morning, we headed back to the movies. Kyrie wanted to see "Toy Story 3" using one of her prize cards. Degen had been fairly interested in the first two on DVD, so I held off his nap and told Darren that we would all be going. We all shared a popcorn and drink and both kids did great (Degen fell asleep about halfway through). It was great to have the whole family there all in a row, big & little hands reaching for popcorn while our faces took on rainbow hues with the light from the screen! 
Leaving the theater, Kyrie said that she wanted to see the movie again and before we even got to the car, I, too, was thinking about our return!

My Life Without Pictures

I am not one who has a camera glued to her hand. There have been many happy, fun, "momentous" occasions in which the camera has been forgotten. Generally, I am not too saddened by these times because I do feel that there is something missed in the moment when you are witnessing it through a 2 inch screen on the back of a metal box. That being said, I love pictures... actual pictures that come in envelopes and you put in frames or scrapbooks or shoe boxes to save for later. Our family lives so far away, that I feel it is important to capture as many moments of our children's lives as possible. I hope that through the photos that I post on this blog or send through the mail that grandparents, aunts, uncles, special friends will feel like they are able to watch our children grow up and share in that special journey. Sadly, we have now been without a camera for weeks that are turning into months.
At first, I didn't really notice or care that we didn't have a camera. I missed the photos from our Memorial Day visit to Virginia, but felt better knowing that others had taken pictures. Summer has started off slowly, so there haven't been an abundance of photo opportunities, plus the kids got their summer portraits done so we had photos to send to family. However, in the last few weeks I've felt some pangs of sadness at the small moments that I would have liked to share, but have missed.
At VBS last week, the roar of the kids was amazing. I would have taken a small video of the 200+ crowd singing, dancing and cheering, especially Degen dancing and clapping to the music. And when Kyrie went on-stage at the VBS carnival and sang & danced with the other kids, I wish I could have gotten video of her "performance."
Last night, Kyrie road her big girl bike all the way to the neighborhood park. It was the first time she'd ridden anywhere other than our driveway. Within minutes of us setting off on our trip (me jogging alongside her), she looked back at me, and I wish I could have captured that moment. She was wearing a long, turquoise tank top and her blonde hair spiraled down her back from underneath her purple, flowered helmet. When she looked over her shoulder at me, she had this amazing look of pride & happiness with just a tinge of surprise. It was amazing! I also would have wanted the picture of her riding "far" ahead of me, so independent and confident.
Degen's babbling is just now barely starting to become words. (I'm not worried, Kyrie was a "late" talker, too.) He CAN say "Daddy" & "Momma," though he rarely does. He knows a handful of signs, but just grins when you ask him to use one. When the moment is right, you might get a "whee" or an "uh-oh," if  you're lucky. That's why I was so surprised  last week when I heard him singing, "ash-eh, ash-eh" and turning around. He'd picked up the concept of "Ring Around the Rosie" from Kyrie, and it had made an impression. This boy loves music, so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that he started singing before talking. In the past week, we've sang "Ring Around..." more times than I can count prompted by little Degen's "ash-eh, ash-eh." I would make a short video of that to share with you.
The other night, I peeked in Kyrie's room after we put her to bed and our cat, Brutus was curled up on the pillow next to her. It was very sweet, and I wish I had a picture of it even though it probably would have been difficult to make out the scene in the room's low light.
Degen's hair is getting long. It curls a lot in the back, so you can't really tell how long it is, and I don't have the heart to get it cut. The past few nights after bath, the top has begun to curl back like a Kewpie doll's hair. It is absolutely adorable. I would like a picture of that too-cute curl on the top of his head!
The splashing in the pool, catching fireflies with Daddy, Degen in his new Cozy Coupe.... I need a camera because as much as I want my memory & heart to hold all these pictures as clearly as I do now, I know that they will get jumbled and lost in the weeks, months and years that fly past. 
Independence Day is almost here, and I'm not sure if we'll have a camera by then or not, but I hope so because I know that even though we don't have any plans, we do have kids and they're gonna do something too cute to miss. And you'll miss it, and someday I'll miss it, too.

Holy Roller

This past week, Kyrie spent every morning at "Gold Rush" Vacation Bible School at Linworth Baptist Church. She was invited to attend by the King family who were our first friends in Columbus. Kyrie was very unsure about the experience to start. Every morning began with a boisterous welcome that included singing, dancing and about 200 screaming kids. She was much more comfortable with Degen and me joining her before the small groups went off for their crafts, games, snacks & stories (and rejoining her for the closing, which was much the same as the welcome). She was a little clingy as I said goodbye each morning, but she didn't cry at all, which made me very proud. At the end of the first day she told me that she had fun, but didn't want to go back. By Wednesday, she wanted to go to VBS every day forever! We were delighted that she had such a positive experience! 
It was interesting to observe both of the kids in the concert-like experience of the VBS welcome & closing.  Degen just had to be on the floor to dance and clap. His two dance moves are the bend and the stomp, and they are both pretty cute! Kyrie mostly wanted to sit on my lap, though she occasionally would clap her hands or sway a little if we stood up to dance. She never wanted to do the dance moves or sing along. Needless to say, we were surprised when she went on-stage with all the other kids at the VBS Carnival and danced and (sorta) sang along. It was super-cute! As I mimed the motions from my seat in the front row, I felt a little like stage-mom, but I just went with it!
Kyrie was very excited for the carnival. The evening started off with the kids singing and a testimonial from Doug Worthington who played for the Buckeyes and will play for the Pittsburg Steelers this coming season. Then everyone headed to the church parking lot, which was set up with several activity booths and refreshments. Kyrie liked the bounce house, pony ride and cotton candy best. Degen liked the bounce house and petting zoo best. It was a great end to a busy week that also included swimming almost every afternoon & evening and riding her BRAND NEW BIKE!
On Sunday, the kids are supposed to sing again for the congregation and I was hoping that we'd be able to take Kyrie. However, she's come down with a fever today that might keep us home. I'm hopeful that her fever will pass quickly, and she'll be feeling better in the morning.

Kaput!

We've kinda had one of those weeks or so. I finally turned on the AC last week because the mix of sun & rain made it too humid to get the house comfortable. The next evening, I went down to the basement and found water all over the floor around the furnace. The HVAC guy came out, and it turns out that there is a drain hose that we didn't know about that was just coiled against the wall instead of sitting over the floor drain. Unfortunately, the water spilled all over the motor and burned it up. $$$ New furnace motor and capacitor were installed. $$$
The bathroom was finally completed at the end of last week, and it's really, really nice. I would love to take some photos and post before & after shots, BUT our camera didn't fare well after our last trip to the beach in San Francisco and does not work at all now. $$$ We need to get a new digital camera as we are missing many photo opportunities with the kiddos this month. $$$
As the workers were leaving the completed bathroom, they told us that the sinks were not draining well because of the old, galvanized pipes in the wall. I guess that they are notorious for getting gunked up (the pipes, not the workers). At first, the sinks just drained really slowly, but after a few days they stopped draining altogether. $$$ The plumber came today and he said that they will need to cut a hole in Kyrie's closet to replace all the pipes with new plastic. $$$
I'll also include something that is NOT kaput, but fits with the theme of this post: our aquarium. We got a great deal on an aquarium from a friend, but it needs all the stuff that actually makes the aquarium more than just a glass box. On Father's Day, we headed to an aquarium shop to check out some of the equipment. $$$ We walked out with everything but plants and fish. $$$
Now, I need to go turn off all the lights, turn up the thermostat and cut some coupons!

Welcome Summer!

A Very Merry Un-Birthday!

Over Memorial Day weekend, we headed to Virginia to visit some of my family. The trip did not get off to an altogether great start as Degen screamed and cried for more than 3 hours out of the first 4 hours. He simply didn't want to be in his seat and would actually stop crying as soon as we slowed the car down. Kyrie & I have learned to tune it out to a certain degree, but Darren was almost in pain from it (I think his parents would call this "payback"). We stopped at our usual rest stop for lunch. It is a beautiful stop in the mountains right outside of Friendsville, WV high on a hilltop overlooking a lake. We ate and played and explored in the woods. We even found a snake. Thankfully, Degen fell asleep for nearly all of the second part of the drive, and when he did wake up he didn't cry at all.
Our weekend was quite relaxing! We relaxed at the hotel, lingered over meals with Grand-Dude & Mimi and wiled away the afternoons in conversation at my grandparents' home. The most exciting thing on the agenda was the un-birthday party at the un-cookout at Nanny & Pop-pop's. Dude & Mimi saved the kids' birthday gifts for the celebration and even bought a cake. My aunt, uncle & cousins came, too, which made the day very special for all of us! We were delighted to meet the newest member of the family: my cousin Danny's wife, Meaghan, who is expecting the very newest member of the family! It was a really wonderful afternoon!

As if an apology for the drive to Virginia, on the drive home Degen slept for more than 3 hours! Wow! Though we had to pull over to wait out a bad rainstorm in the mountains, the drive was mostly uneventful. We were glad to get home, but are already looking forward to our next visit!