Army Military Intelligence Ball

On Saturday night, we had our first date WITHOUT the baby: the Army Military Intelligence Ball, a formal event! So, all moms know that means it'll be lots of fun and yet a bit painful to need to wear a formal 4 months after your 4th child is born. But, it turned out awesome!

We had a great night, great friends sitting at our table, enjoyed time with each other, and finished it with a ride home in the convertible.

Connor told David that if he got a new haircut and lost the glasses, he could be James Bond--so David decided to pose (he also earned mega-husband points by calling me his "bond girl")

Our friends Guy and Maggie Timberlake

Kelly Carper and I hanging out at the end of the ball.

When we got home (LATE), my mom was still holding the little man. Thanks Mom!!

Boys First Day of School (2009)

Today was the boys' First Day of School. It was a rainy morning so I drove them to school instead of having them take the bus. It gave me a chance to snap a quick picture of them before they ran off to start a new year.

It's amazing to me how old the boys are and what awesome young men they are!!

Colin is in 6th grade this year and Connor is in 3rd grade.

2009 Vienna Panthers

Colin is playing football again this year; he enjoys playing and has improved his skills quite a bit. In fact, he now has a starting position on both the defense and offense.

Now, I must say that football is a whole family commitment. Practice in August is 5 days a week. After school starts, practices are cut back to 3 days a week. Games are every weekend. Parent commitments also include: some field duties and snack bar duty. But, Colin is having fun so we do it!

Thank You Cards

I received an email today that was priceless. And, when I was writing the response, I thought: "I should put this on the blog, because if two moms struggled with kids and Thank You Cards, then I bet many more have too. Also, it's a great reminder adults as well.

We have become a culture that is so accustomed to fast-paced, ever-changing information exchange and yet somewhere along the way, the simple basics of etiquette (RSVPs, Thank-You Cards, and Introductions) have escaped us.

DISCLAIMER: I am not perfect. SO, I may have missed your thank-you card following the baby's birth or some other event, but this story of a principle. It is just one of my little attempts to create good habits in my children and to teach them courtesy.

Here is the e-mail, it came from a mother (I'll call her Annie) whose son attended Connor's Birthday/Pool Party on Saturday.

Sharon -

You are an awesome Mom! We got Connor's thank you note in the mail today....it was fantastic! We are still working to get efficient at getting thank you notes done and mailed. Have a great afternoon....Annie

I replied with the following e-mail:

Annie,

I laughed out loud when I read this! Thanks so much BUT, let me tell you my secret.

I gave up on trying to get the kids to sit down and write their Thank You cards. It was a losing battle with me spending time aggravated and the cards still not written.

So I changed my approach completely. All I do is make sure that we have plenty of Thank You cards on the day of the party.

The rest is up to the kids.

They must write each Thank You immediately after opening the gift; they cannot open another gift until the card is written.

How fast or slow that happens is totally up to them. It usually takes 3-4 days to open all the gifts but I have had it take as long as 2 weeks. Connor finished his last card about 2 hours ago. :0)
I have found that not only does this arrangement cut down on our arguing but it helps them to appreciate each gift more because they spend time with it before hurrying on the next gift.

Also, If there is complaining about writing the cards, I offer that they do not have to write a Thank-You card, they can simply return the gift to their friend and explain how they don’t appreciate the gift or the time, care, and money that it demonstrates. Suddenly, the thank you card is NOT such a big deal.

At Christmas, they open all the gifts at once, but the gifts must stay in the living room and can’t be played with until Thank Yous are written.

Sounds a bit outlandish when I write it out but it works AWESOME and has solved my problem with very little effort.

Thanks for your kind words and Have a great day,

Sharon

Annie subsequently replied with the fact that her mom's group would enjoy hearing this method to the Thank-You Card "battle." So, I thought I would share it with my friends as well.

I hope if nothing else, you got a laugh out of some of our family fun.

The Police Department

Today I took the kids to the City of Fairfax Police Department.

Before I get into why I was at the police station, I have a little vignette to tell you:

We were in the parking lot on our way into the building. There was a policeman who had just gotten out of his cruiser and was on the way into the building. Sybella says, "Mom, that's a Police Man." I responded, "you're right Sybella, that is a Police Man." She then says in an adorable, sing-song, 2-yr-old voice, "I Liiiiike him!" It was too cute.

OK, back to why I was actually at the Police Station: The Optimist Club of Fairfax was assisting the Police Department in hosting a SafeAssured ID Program.

You may not know what the program is, The SafeAssured privacy-protected mini-CD offers a single repository of important information:

· All ten electronically imaged fingerprints

· Digital photograph

· Streaming video showing mannerisms and gait with linked audio file providing the child's voice inflection and accent.

· Private information (general physical description, street address, date of birth, life-threatening medical conditions, identifying scars or marks, and tattoos)

· Ability to create missing person poster from the mini-CD

Families also receive a full-color photo data card and a Parents' Guidebook with prevention tips, written in conjunction with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

Essentially, you have everything you need to launch a National Amber alert and provide identification data to the police, all at your fingertips. I hope to NEVER need the CD and ID card that I was provided for each of the kids, but I would rather have it and not need it then need it and not have it! The experience also provided me with an opportunity to review safety information with the kids including our family "password," how to handle encounters with strangers, how a 911 call works, etc.

The Program we attended today was Free of Charge and they did a CD/ID card for each of my 4 kids (the baby's CD did not include a streaming video of him walking and talking since he doesn't do that yet-- but does have a photo and his fingerprints!).

This was a great experience, an awesome resource, and the kids loved interacting with the police officers and volunteers.

Note: Most organizations offer this service for between $0 and $10. It is recommended that you update your child's kit every year because kids change so dramatically from year to year. Check with your local police department, Optimist Club, or the SafeAssured ID event site to find an event near you!

Waking Cooper Up

Sybella loves her little brother, loves him so much in fact, that she'll wake him up to spend time with him. LOL---can't ever take your eyes off a toddler!

Breakfast with Grandma Cretella

While we were in Ohio this weekend for a wedding, we got the chance to have breakfast with David's Grandma Cretella. She met us at the Cracker Barrel to spend an hour with us before we drove back to DC. Here are some shots of her with Sybella and Cooper.

Nicole's Wedding

Tracy and I have known each other for about 10 years. I honestly can't believe it's been that long but it has. Seems that our kids have gotten older but we HAVE NOT. :0)

At any rate, when we met, I got to know Tracy's 2 daughters too (and Alan, her husband). Eventually, Tracy's oldest daughter started babysitting for us. She was great with the boys and our families became close. Nicole who has been known as "Miss Micole" because that's what Colin has always called her, became a regular around our house and we stayed close even when she started college and later moved to Ohio. We have been great friends with Tracy and Alan but I have also had a special relationship with the girls. I have always been a sorta "big sister" to them. As much as I can't believe it, Nicole is now 24 and her little sister Chelsea is 20! We don't all get to see each other often, but we had the awesome opportunity to spend time together this week. Nicole got married Friday Night. She was a gorgeous bride. Chelsea was a beautiful maid of honor. And Eric is getting a wonderful wife.

I looked at David after the wedding and remarked that I got a small glimmer during the ceremony of what it will be like to watch Sybella get married someday. It surprised me the emotions that I felt watching Nicole begin the amazing journey of marriage.

Here is a photo of Eric and Nicole sharing communion at the wedding. Chelsea is the Maid of Honor and Eric's Brother was the Best Man: