Jack & Co along with First Soccer Practice

This weekend we had our friends over and Ben can't seem to get enough of Jack.  We had the small pool blown up so the kiddos could swim and they played with their cars which was followed by a turkey dinner.  Mallory couldn't get enough of the pool and Kate had too much fun walking around trying to keep up with the boys.  Of course Ashley just watched it all and was exhausted by the time she went to bed.

Ben and Jack

Ben and Jack

Ben, Jack and Mallory

Ben and Jack being silly

Ash

Mallory

Kate

Then on Sunday we had Ben's first soccer practice.  We joined Happy Feet which is just down the road at the park and let's just say it didn't go well.  All we do at home is kick the soccer ball around so I decided to sign him up for this practice thinking he would at least enjoy kicking the ball around a little bit.  On Thursday we went and picked out a ball at the store which he thought was awesome and today we got shin guards which he was also excited about.  He kept talking about playing soccer with the kids and by the time we got there he just stood and watched.  I'm hopeful this will turn out like our swim lessons did.  He didn't really enjoy the swim classes too much earlier this year, but all summer he's been a champ with the water and is comfortable enough to try kicking and such.  So I can only hope that even if all these classes don't go great, he'll end up loving it next year.

The most participation/attention he spent for the entire hour were these 2 minutes

Coming back over instead of playing with the kids/coach

Some of my favorite things about the kiddos right now are Ben's curiosity and Ashley's giggle.  Ben is constantly asking questions and talking which is great and I'm pretty sure Bri and I are the only ones who understand the majority of what he says.  A few standard sayings of his are: "Whatcha doin mommy?"  "What's that noise?"  "Ashey girl"  "See Jack"  "Outside"  "Ashey not happy" (when she cries)

Ashley has expanded on her solids and is doing great eating them.  Her new favorite is butternut squash.  Ben loved this when he was young also.  She's getting better about sitting up on her own, but still is too wobbly to do it all alone.  She's mastered rolling over, grabbing her feet and giggling.  As long as she's around her brother she is generally happy and loves when you talk or sing to her and move her arms/legs around.

Being silly and refused to wear clothes, but wanted to wear the cape and cowboy hat

Ash is 5 Months

It's been a little too long since my last post so I'll try to do a short recap of the happenings at our household.

finding her feet

Ash is now over 5 months old and has started solid foods.  So far she's had rice cereal, oatmeal, bananas applesauce and sweet potatoes.  So far she likes all of them and has mastered the art of swallowing instead of spitting out the food.  She's also sleeping pretty well through the night.  She's still not a big drinker so if she doesn't have a full belly before she passes out she generally will stir around 4 or 5, but a binky solves that until 6am.  She loves to smile and watch her big brother, without him for entertainment I'm not sure what she would enjoy.  Her legs are always kicking and she can turn herself in a circle when she's on her belly to try and see what's going on around the house.  I can tell she's already frustrated that she can't crawl and keep up with her brother, but for the time being I like that she's not fully mobile yet.  The rolling over and spinning around is enough for the moment.

To put it briefly - Ben is fun.  Daycare always says he's "tiny, but mighty" which is such a true statement.  He loves to help around the house and is talking so much now it's crazy.  Since it's been so hot out, he's loved going to the pool or swimming in his blow up pool at our house.  He's still crazy about basketball and soccer and plays with his cars everyday.  We're starting him in Happy Feet which is a soccer program for kids.  It's only 8 weeks long for an hour a week, but with his obsession I think he'll enjoy it.  He's pretty good at kicking the ball and even throwing balls.  He'll step forward and try to imitate the pitchers he sees on tv's.  He's not very good at it, but it's hilarious to watch.  Ben loves to help give Ashley her baths and actually does a decent job at helping although most of the time is spent playing with the water and spilling it all over the bathroom floor.

trying to prove he's not too big for ashley's exercauser

action shot - loves jumping into the pool

notice he's still trying to watch us as he lands in the pool

helping me clean off the highchair