Toy Store, Sick Kids, & Rug Purchase

This week has been a bit of an ordeal with sick kids. First Reeve, then Gabi, and now Rania seems to be getting a bit of the 24 hour flu -- fever, some upset stomach and lots of moaning and whining.

Both Tracy and Doug have spent parts of days at home trying to console kids and using up some sick days here and there. But thank God for Juvy's amazing help -- otherwise the week could have been a nightmare.
(subtext: where is Grandpa when you need him?)

When Reeve was sick at the beginning of the week, Tracy decided that a trip to the toy store with a then-healthy Gabi might break up the long day.



What to get? Surprise! Horses and cows and a farm set for the girls.

We can also highlight the nice new rug which we purchased from people who are moving -- something much nicer (and larger) to add some life to our living room.

The School Carnival

SATURDAY, AUGUST 23, 2008



An ISKL tradition is a school carnival for the first week at school. The amount of time and effort the parents and school community put into the event is staggering-- and what a fun place for kids.

A big carnival favorite -- coconut bowling -- where Reeve shocked the odds and ended up with a strike on his first bowl -- despite daddy being sure that the pins were so far apart and the coconut so wobbly -- that strikes were impossible. (This opinion was based on watching those in front of Reeve miss the pins all together.)

Another source of great fun was the big blow-up jumping places -- where our kids (mostly) survived the middle school students and enjoyed jumping and bouncing along.

At the end of the day, much money is spent to get cheap prizes, but what a fun event for kids.

Pizza Night

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2008





We've begun to settle into a bit of a routine -- which is nice with school starting. One of the persistent challenges is trying to get our family to eat dinner together each night. Generally, our routine is to share our high points and our low points.

After a long day at school, we often are faced with grumpy kids -- who tend to complain about the food.

A one day remedy was to have Reeve decide what he wanted to eat and help make the dinner. Hence: We had Pizza Night on Wednesday.

With a bit of supervision (and some bits of cheese sneaked into little mouths in the process), the mini pizzas were all ready for serving.

Stripey

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 2008




One of the fun serendipities from the summer has been the addition of our first ever Woodward pet.

Stripey came to us thanks to our amah's (Juvy is amazing in many regards!) watchful eye. The neighbors had moved out of their house and left a pet turtle. Juvy rescued the turtle and Reeve and Gabi enthusiastically discovered a name: Stripey.

Reeve, Gabi, and Rania all enjoy feeding stripey, changing his water, and cleaning his cage. Stripey, hopefully has a good home, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind a larger, more diverse cage.

First Day of School

THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2008



Reeve, mommy, and daddy started on Wednesday, but Gabi was off for her first day of school on Thursday. My goodness, sending our dear baby off to school -- how time flies. It is only Prep-Junior, the equivalent of pre-school. But something about sending your little girl off on the bus makes us seem old.



Reeve was wonderfully kind and helpful in showing Gabi onto the bus and helping her find out the routine. Reeve had a great first day of 1st grade, talking about following gingerbread crumbs to the eating area and solving a mystery. Gabi was all excited about playing with a castle!

(...and by the way, Gabi is not infected with some terrible virus, but thanks to a cold sore, she'll have her first day of school pictures showing the scab on her lip.)

Family Picture

You have to try for a family picture when everyone's together.

A Day at the Zoo

TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2008




We had a fun day at the zoo. Tigers, and lions, and bears (polar!) oh MY!



The highlight was undoubtedly the polar bears -- the cubs would run up and then dive in right in front of the glass -- much to our incredible amusement and enjoyment. It was a blast to watch them come diving right up as the kids would sit right at the edge of the window from the viewing area.

Some mean tigers were also found -- but we managed to tame a few of them and even brought them home. They've been a good addition to our family.

And, of course, the photogenic Sandlin family.

Fish & Toledo Fun

One of the great benefits of grandpa and grandma's place is the great fishing in the pond right behind the lake. Grandpa would faithfully keep any scraps of chicken or meat and the kids would have so much fun feeding bits of chicken bones to the fish -- as they would rush up to the shore to get their fill.



Reeve also became a master fisherman -- catching 13 fish in one day -- and spending many days at the pond putting on bait, casting his line, and catching bunches of fish.

Time with family was great -- especially since it was the first time that we'd met baby Bryson - so that was a special treat since after our arrival Rania finally stopped calling herself "baby" and began saying "ME." I guess our family is growing up and the baby phase will be behind us before we know it. . . though from the diaper perspective it can't be soon enough!

Woodward Reunion

MONDAY, JULY 21, 2008



For a couple of days we had a nice retreat at Punderson State Park outside of Cleveland. All of Doug's family was there -- plus special bonuses seeing members of our extended family -- Uncle Don & Aunt Lynn, Uncle Ray (and his semi! which was a big hit), David & Leidi (who were recently married) and of course Grandpa Levi & Grandma Ramona -- who quickly re-bonded with Gabi.

And Reeve really hit it off with his cousins, having such a great time.

Sauder's Museum

SATURDAY, JULY 12, 2008

We had overnight trip to Sauder's Museum. Taking a step back in history, it was wonderful to visit the living history farm, witness the fiddle contest, and get some incredible Amish cooking.

But the best part was getting to spend more time with cousins and family. The delightful inn adjacent to the museum was a great place to stay.

Cousins!

How incredible it was to be close to cousins during when in Ohio. Now that Tracy's sister and family have moved right down the road, it is only a three or four minute bike ride to get from grandpa and grandma's house to the cousins house. Michael, Jacob and Laura could easily bike over for lots and lots of fun times.





It is so reassuring to see how timeless family can be -- the joy of being with cousins. As Michael and Jacob are older than our kids, it was neat to see them take the lead, organizing activities, games, even tours through imaginary wildlife parks in a little red wagon. . . .the bliss of summer.





Rania and Kaiden also slowly thawed and began running and running and giggling and giggling having lots of fun together. Sometimes only pictures suffice to tell the story.

First Tooth Lost!!

SUNDAY, JULY 6, 2008



Reeve lost his first tooth. It had been loose for several weeks, and Reeve finally just plucked it out of his mouth.

What a great feeling to have Reeve lose his first tooth in our very own house. Brant was even having a sleepover making it all the more of a celebration!

Fun with Friends!!

SUNDAY, JULY 6, 2008



It was so incredibly encouraging to see our kids so quickly bond with all of their friends, whom they had not seen in quite some time.

We had an absolutely delightful evening at "The Real White House" where Doug had to eat his pride, as Adam defeated him in Fantasy Football last year. Sigh -- some lessons come down to having to know when running backs will break their legs. . .

Reeve had a WONDERFUL time with Brant. How great to see them so quickly reunite and have fun together.

The BEST Children's Museum

SATURDAY, JULY 5, 2008



Still struggling from jetlag, and having the kids wake up at 1 in the morning (Doug is to blame because he let Tracy sleep more than two hours in the afternoon!), we did make it to the Children's Museum on Saturday.

How fun to feel like we were coming back home -- such a familiar place, so comfortable, and yet so fun. We were disappointed that so many of our friends were out of town for the 4th of July -- but it was a good excuse to enjoy visiting the Children's Museum.

Tracy's Birthday

TUESDAY, JULY 1, 2008

To celebrate Tracy's birthday (ah, how nice to be 29, eh!), we brought mommy breakfast in bed.

The kids also had fun at KLCC -- where "Baby Bop" (what the entire Barney clan is called by Rania) was the focus of our entire day. Nice evening, fountains, wandering around, and of course pretending to ride the little toy car next to Barney & Baby Bop.

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Back from Vacation -- Pangkor Island

Wow. We've been back from vacation now for just over a week, and it is time to do some catching up from our great time in the States. But first, at the end of June we went to Pangkor Island. Horray!

Nice place -- beach is on the Straits of Malacca, so nothing like Redang -- but good times with Auntie Tasha and fun around the pool.

Notice Gabi's great photographic efforts in the group picture at left.