Saturday Plan and Aidanisms

Mama, I love you a Padillion!!!  And that's more than infinity.  Even more than a hundred!!!

Wow.  That's a lot!!  : )

Mama, I just want to hold your hand and snuggle.  Okay?  (said when he got into bed with me this morning)

Okay buddy.  Anytime!!

Mama, I want to wear something that says Capitals on it everyday.

Laundry being done every night to meet that request!!

Aidan has been doing amazingly well with that nose spray we had to get.  I bought a bag of Peppermint Patties to bribe him with.  I don't know if he is doing better because he s more mature now or if its because of the bribe.  Whatever.  He's finally clearing up those poor little sinuses!!  That and the antibiotic he is on are working like a charm.  Once clear, we will get x-rays of his adenoids, tonsils and sinuses and I will film him sleeping for about 15 minutes about an hour before he wakes up and we will then go back to the ENT (late May) to check it all back out again. 

We're now three weeks into the final and fourth quarter of the school year and I haven't yet mentioned how Aidan's doing in school.  Well, amazing, of course!!  His report card came last week and several of his previous M's (Meets Requirements) have now gone up to E's (Exceeds Requiremets).  He is progressing extremely well and is already ready or First Grade--at least intellectually.  Emotionally, probably so also, but he still has some maturing to do.  He still dosen't like to sit still, but I really think that is because he is a very active 5 almost 6 year old boy.  I just tell him to try as hard as he can.

Aidan's homework has gotten progressively harder and we are no longer able to wipe it out in one evening.  But, that's okay too because he can still do it although he is a little more challenged now.  I really like last weeks homework.  His teacher sent home a plan of what to do each evening for three evenings.  It helped to break it up and when it was all finished Aidan seemed to really appreciate what he had done so much more than he has previously. 

I understand First Grade homework is much harder, as it should be.  I'm going to be challenged to sit still myself and have a better plan to help him get his homework done each night.  The neighbor girls (Second and Fifth Grade, respectively) seem to have homework nearly every night.  Ugh!  I don't remember that when I was a kid. . .  : )

Today, after some grocery shopping to supplement what we bought at Costco the other night, Aidan and I will be blowing up his room.  By that I mean that everything will be brought out of dressers, bookshelves, drawers, trunks and closet. . .gone through and either thown away, packed away, put away or given away.  Everything.  Ever.y.thing.  There is entirely too much STUFF in there. 

Then I plan to make a big pot of Spaghetti sauce, have a fire in the fireplace (still in the 50's and kind of drizzly cool today) and put the Caps v. Rangers game on.  Game time 3:00 Eastern Time!!!  Let's Go Caps!!!  C  A  P  S!!  Caps! Caps! Caps!!!

Health Busyness

Things have been crazy these last couple of weeks. 

Aidan came down with a cold on April 11th that prompted his afternoon Day Care to call me--he had a fever of 99.9*.  Aidan never gets fevers, so I called the Pediatrician and went to pick him up.  Fever didn't break 100* and he was negative for strep, so the diagnosis was a cold.  Which got progressively worse over the next few days.  He's on the mend now, but we did do the nebulizer a couple times a day all last week and into the weekend because, as usual, the cold went into his lungs. . .

Crankipants Aidan is much better now, although there is still some congestion.  More on that in a minute.

On Sunday we got a call from Pat's Dad saying Mom wasn't feeling well and had been been in bed all day with a fever.  She seemed better by the end of the day, so we were relieved.  However, on Monday afternoon I got a call from Dad at work saying Mom had fallen and that she was being taken to the hospital.  Turned out she had passed out--no known reason--and then popped one of her hips out.  She was admitted to have the hip manipulated back into place and she ended up staying at the hospital until Thursday.  Pat went to help transfer her back home and then we went out to dinner.  It's going to take some time for her to heal and get some strength back, but she is on the mend now.

Over the weekend, we took a Quiche and some Subway sandwiches over and then Pat took his Dad to the grocery store.  Should be okay for a bit, but we'll check back in later this week.

Yesterday, Aidan had an ENT appointment due to "persistent asymmetrical tonsils" as diagnosed by the Pediatrician last February during our most recent bout of strep.  This ENT is one of the best in the area and it took two months to get in to see him.  Of course, Aidan is still recovering from the cold, so fluid was found in one ear--not infected, though.  And his sinuses are still swollen.  His lungs sound good, but there is still some drainage.  Because we're coming up on two weeks since the cold started--as of tomorrow--we were given an antibiotic to help finish clearing it and a nasal spray tp use once a day (right.  luck with that, Stace!)  So, those will be filled today and then we go back to see the specialist on May 25th.  But, before we do, we need to get x-rays of his head showing the adenoids, tonsils and sinus cavities and I need to film him for about 15 minutes sleeping about an hour before he wakes up.  We're checking the size of his tonsils and adenoids and also checking for sleep apnea.  Wonderful. 

But, other than that and trying to figure out if it is summer or winter, we've been so excited about how great the Caps have been playing!!   Go Caps!!

What have you been up to??

The Party that Was

It's Sunday morning, so our weekend isn't over yet.  But, what a party weekend!!!

Friday, Aidan went over to the neighbors to play while we waited for Joy and Anna to arrive.  I received this picture of the boys. . .our Leesburg Eagles!!!  These boys will be fast friends for ever, I think.

After our too late of a night on Friday, we got up leisurely on Saturday, breakfasted, showered and then headed out to the store to buy some gifts to take with us to the Embassy.  We were able to purchase a lot of nice pj's, underpants, and play clothes to send to the chidren in the orphanages.  And, the sale was awwesome:  buy one get one 1/2 price and I had a 20% off coupon!!! 

We also gought some new sneakers for Aidan, which I regretted immediately afterward.  : ) The four band-aids are covering a minute scratch that Aidan got when he tormented Cleo the cat. . .we wanted to make sure it was covered!!  : )

After a quick lunch at Chik-filet, we headed off to the Embassy for the annual Easter party.  The party was held in a different part of the embassy.  It was really beautiful!  After checking in, the children were allowed to play in an area where there were large panels showing State Symbols

We were then taken into another room, that had panels from with symbols from each region on them--sadly, I couln't fin dthe one for Krasnoyarsk--and these were also beautiful.  Our children lined up nicely for pictures:

The program was pretty similar to those in the past, although there was a lot more Russian music, which was really beautiful.  There was a group of adults who played traditional Russian instruments and were dressed in traditional Russian clothes.  But, the Embassy children were really cute in their clothes doing a skit about Winter/Spring/Summer and Fall.  Very cute!!!

After the program, there was a nice buffet of sandwich rolls, fruit, veggies, desserts and drinks.  We were able to visit with our friends and the children ate and played.  As usual, we were one of the last to leave.  However, before we left, Aidan put on his Ovechkin jersey and Caps hat, which garnered much comment from others and smiles all around from the Embassy employees--we had to be ready to listen to the game on the way home!!!  : )




On the way out, the Easter Bunny was ready to bid us farewell with hugs and a bags of Easter goodies.

After we left the Embassy Compound, we lined the children up for a picture by the Embassy sign.  How cute are they!?!?!?

Aidan, home 4 years; Anna home 2 3/4 years; Landon home 1 1/3 years. 

And so ended another year at the Embassy for an Easter party to remember. 

On the way home, we did indeed listen to the Caps Game and then arrived in time to watch the Double Overtime win!!!!  Woo Hoo!!!  Go Caps!!! 

After a dinner at Anitas, we sadly had to bid Joy and Anna farewell.  But, with promises to gather again, perhaps soon, and definitely next year for the Upperville Jumper Classic--Anna is a horse fan. . .Fun times still to come!!

It's going to be a party!

People from all over are gathering in the Washington, D. C. area today. . .and it's not just for the Cherry Blossom Festival and Parade!!  There's going to be a party. . .and we're going to be there!

Last night, our special friends Anna and Joy joined us for an evening of fun:  dinner out and the s'mores by the fire on our patio.  We all went to bed late, so some seeping in this morning is in order.  Once everyone is up and moving, showered and dressed, we will head over to Target to purchase a few items to take to the party: shoes, socks, pj's and underpants will be offered at the Russian Embassy to be sent over to children in the orphanages, where all of our children came from. 

More about it all later!!

But, one last thing.  Yesterday was Aidan's fourth anniversary of being a US citizen!!  Yeah!!!!

Well, here we are at the end of our Spring Break.  Aidan and I are back to work and school tomorrow.  But, we still have one day of fun! 

This morning will be a couple of errands and then this afternoon we will head up to a friends house for a playdate.  Then home for some left overs from Easter Dinner.  Yum!!

And so, rather than write I lot, I will post some pictures from the past few days of our preparations for our glorious Easter:

So loving decorating Eggs!!!

Aidan was very meticulous with some of his pictures on the eggs. . .too bad Maggie ate most of them!

The Easter Bunny arrived late but well prepared. . .

One happy little boy!!!  He got plenty of candy, but also some new Monster Trucks!

Cool!!!  A Batman Monster Truck!!!!

Just checking out the rest. . .can I have the chocolate bunny now???  Aww...after church???  REALLY???

All cutie pie'd up and ready for church. . .

Hunting Easter Eggs. . .

Where are the rest??

Better hurry, they seem to be disappearing!

Here's one. . .but wasn't there a pink one near here, too?  I think Maggie's eating them. . .

Haning out with Grandma and Grandpa.

What a great day!  Hope you had an awesome Easter, too.

Next exitement. . .Caps v. Bruins on Thursday night and then the Embassy Easter party on Saturday!  Never a dull moment!