Kyle meets a golf club

So this is what happened on our day to regroup after our DC trip and before the kids went back to school... Kyle and Aaron were playing golf in the front yard. With Aaron's plastic golf clubs. Kyle decided to show Aaron how to swing a real golf club. Aaron swung early, Kyle wasn't out of the way and well, you see... boys... 

Right after with some clean up. He left pools of blood along the way. I was cleaning out my closet and he came inside panicked and I immediately knew something was wrong. 

We Facetimed with Uncle Eric for a recommendation and consulted with our 2 doctor neighbors who all agreed it was splayed open enough for Urgent Care to glue him back together. I tried steri-strip to hold it together for a little but it just didn't work. 

Cleaned up and glued back together.  

D.C.

The kid's school had the 5th grade trip up to DC earlier this month. Kyle and Emily did not go on that trip because we could not commit to it back when we had to because we didn't know if we'd still be here. Furthermore, after hearing their itinerary for the trip, it's best they didn't go! (They had to be at school by 5am on a Wednesday to bus up to DC, had what was left in the day to do the tours they had set, went to a hotel outside of DC to sleep and be up by 5am the next day, bus back into the city, tour all day, back to hotel late to sleep, up at 5am to tour for half a day and then bus back home, all in less than 3 days. Surely they covered A LOT of ground in that little time but that is some serious hustling!) 

So we went up as a family and had a leisurely great time and got to see the Cherry Blossoms in bloom. We spent time with Jeff's Aunt Barbara, his cousin Rachel and her family. We ate great food - Saku Ramen, had cupcakes, and visited more of DC's sites that we haven't yet seen.

First up was Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Appropriately, it was cold and raining out. Arlington is quite a site to behold. Amazing to see the cost freedom. And the Tomb of the Unknown is beautiful. Growing up, I was terrified of cemeteries. This is different. 

We then went to Saku Ramen to warm up with some delicious ramen that we discovered last time we were in town. It did not disappoint. On our walk to the train from there, we saw a cupcake shop and just had to stop. Because we wanted to. Because we could. 

On to the train (and the only picture I took there) (Jeff: do you have any to add?)

We headed toward the Mint which we had gotten tickets for a tour earlier in the AM. We were actually trying to get tickets to the Holocaust museum, but they were out within 20 minutes of opening and we arrived 25 minutes after opening. So the mint was next door and we were able to get tickets to see how money is printed. Pretty fascinating. Reasonably, no pictures allowed. 

We chilled outside and saw more of the Cherry Blossoms as it was now sunny and very warm out. Deciding where to go next, we went into the Holocaust museum which was next door to see the parts we were able to see without a ticket. While asking a question at the info desk, someone turned in tickets they were unable to use and we were able to see the rest of the museum. I don't really have many words. It stands as an incredible memorial to a horrific time in history. Very moving, very heartbreaking. And a part of history that should never be forgotten or repeated.

We closed the evening with dinner with family at a new restaurant nearby. 

The following day, we had one thing on our docket after our ambitious day before (though it wasn't intended to be so busy, just turned out that way based on where we were and tickets or lack thereof): the Spy Museum. The kids LOVED the Spy Museum. Kyle, Emily & Jeff did the special Spy Experience where they were part of solving a mystery (I think). Aaron and I grabbed some breakfast and went through the spy exhibits during that time. It's a great museum for kids of all ages because they have a scavenger hunt that keeps them engaged in the exhibits, decoding ciphers, looking for clues, etc. When Jeff, Kyle & Em were done with their experience, we went through the museum with them again. Next up was a nice slow lunch at a great Mediterranean restaurant a block away. We headed back to Barbara's house afterwards and played and relaxed. After a delicious Greek dinner with the family, we headed home to North Carolina so we could have Sunday to regroup before the kids went back to school and Jeff to Utah. 

NC bucket list: Parlour

As our time in North Carolina draws to a close, we are working on our NC bucket list. Well we are just starting to create that list and knock things off as we can, but hey we're working on it! Ice cream at The Parlour in Durham was on that list. Check. 

For my dad

Happy birthday to my dad. Who loved ice cream. I miss you. I love you. 

Aaron turns 5!!

Somehow my baby is now 5 years old! Not sure how that happened so quickly. He is so very sweet and loving. Sometimes he's a 10 year old in a 5 year old body doing everything he can to keep up with his brother and sister. And sometimes he's just a 5 year old who still needs kisses for his booboos or a hug when he's skinned his knee. Happy birthday sweet little Bear!

Aaron had some fun celebrations for turning 5. His class had a birthday celebration for him with his birthday crown and all. And for the first time, he had a friend birthday party! Sorry, 3rd child. Don't feel too left out Aaron, Kyle and Emily have really only had parties every other year. And not to worry, we of course always celebrate birthdays as a family. For Aaron's friend party, he had it at his gymnastics center where they got to bounce, swing, roll, run and tumble around and then eat some cake! Perfect for a group of 5 year olds. 

School party

Cake for his friend party

Kyle bouncing

Emily on the beam with Kyle flying around in the background

Happy birthday!

Aaron flying into the foam pit

What a handsome 5 year old!

Star Wars and marbles. Aaron's loves. 

Milkshake

We like milkshakes. 

Sleepy sick

After Emily got sick during the Arizona trip, the boys caught some version of it. They were mostly just sleepy which could have been the time zone shift, jet lag, late nights, early mornings or maybe some mild version of what Emily had. Needless to say, just a few pictures of the lively crew at home. 

Arizona

This weekend, we went out to Arizona to visit with Jeff's family and to get some warmth in this cold winter. The weather didn't cooperate too much at first with some cold and rainy days, but we made the best of it with the family and had a great time. 

Like we did in past visits to Arizona, we set out to climb Camelback Mountain. Last time we were there, Aaron was a baby. And the kids hadn't been to the top (to the best of my memory). This time, that would change. Jeff, Kyle, and Emily made it to the top on this climb. Aaron and I stopped just short of the top because Aaron was getting tired and we still had to be able to climb down. Nonetheless, he made it 95% of the way up. Not bad for a 4 year old!! Kyle and Em were thrilled to have made it all the way to the top. 

The next day, the cousins arrived and so we had a lot of family time. Kids played, swam, played poker, hung out. Emily came down with some sort of flu or cold or fever or something that basically knocked her out for the rest of the trip and then some. So she was pretty much couch surfing for the rest of the trip. When the rain cleared, a handful of us went to a new train which we called Coyote Trail because of the real life coyote packs that we could hear howling and crossing the paths!! We were a bit frightened about that but found comfort in the fact that there were many other people out on the trails. They basically advised us to stay together in a pack and to certainly keep smaller kids with us. We didn't quite make it to the top due to daylight fading and not wanting to be out there in the dark with the coyotes so we turned around just shy of the top. For me, it was my 2nd attempted and failed (though that's too strong of a word because they were wise decisions in both cases) at a summit. So I was going to make it to the top of Camelback the following day when we went again. 

With Emily still sick, Jeff, Kyle, Aaron and I set out to attempt Camelback again. About a quarter mile in, Aaron tripped on a stone and skinned his knee. He wasn't going any further at that point, well, unless he was being carried so Jeff turned around with him. Kyle and I scurried our way up to the top at a good clip. And we made it!! Wahoo!! Was a great cap to a fun trip to Arizona. 

BB gun

So Aaron had a milestone today. He got to shoot his first BB gun. It was just his size. And he certainly enjoyed this milestone. For a kid who loves his light sabers and nerf blasters, he couldn't believe he was able to use a BB gun. And no, he didn't shoot his eye out. 

Hockey game

Tonight we went to our first ice hockey game with some friends to see NC State play UNC. While we didn't grow up playing ice hockey and our kids certainly don't play (that's on the banned list of sports for our kids - football and hockey), it was fun to see a game up close. And there sure are a lot of rules to hockey, yet there are so many missing about not fighting and such. It's a bit crazy how the aggression and fighting is just part of the game. Entertainment I suppose. 

Duke gardens

The kids and I spent the day at Duke today enjoying the gardens, playing some soccer, climbing some trees and watching a women's basketball game. Jeff was still away on his work trip but that didn't stop us from enjoying his alma mater. Emily's friend came with us as well. 

Some monkeys in a tree

Our tree. Jeff and I had a tree while we were in college that we carved in the gardens. We have been unable to locate that tree and the carving through we do acknowledge that 17+ years of tree growth would likely cover it up. Our old one said JB+KB inside a heart. And now we have a new one. 

Beach boys

Tonight was a bucket list event for me. The kids and I went to see the Beach Boys in concert!! Jeff would have joined us but he was out of town for work. I know the Beach Boys are 'old school' music, but my kids thankfully know their songs and rock out to them because it's just great music! And it takes us back to our San Diego days not too long ago. 

We started off with dinner at Fosters and brought some over to the concert for Ross' friend who hooked us up with the tickets. 

Our seats were AMAZING! We were just left of center about 10 rows back. It was absolutely incredible and the kids enjoyed it as well. It was amazing to hear the songs that made up the soundtrack of my childhood car trips. I think there were 2 of the original Beach Boys in this tour. They started playing around 7:30 and played a good 3 hours. Needless to say, the kids were wiped out afterwards. And they had school the next day. :-) But it was totally worth it. 

Light Saber battle

Because some mornings you just need to have a light saber battle.