Little Dunkers

This afternoon Zachary had his first basketball class. The class he is in right now will alternate each week between soccer (little kickers) and basketball (little dunkers). I think he enjoyed basketball more than soccer!After soccer, we picked Kailani up from her last day of Radical Reptile camp. Since she's on fall break, she was in camp all week through the YMCA. She was really excited about all of the animals she got to see this week. Next week she's off to gymnastics camp.

Potty Time

Tonight Zachary officially went on the potty for the first time:) Before bath, I asked him if he had to go potty. He said "yes," so I sat him on the big potty and he went!

New Day 5K and Chef Boyardee

This morning Kailani and I got up bright and early to participate in the Girl Scouts New Day 5K. Actually, we just did the one mile fun run:) Becky and the girls joined us for the run at Mission Bay.
After the run, we headed home to prep the house for our Chef Boyardee Houseparty. We invited the meetup group to come try some Chef Boyardee recipes. The kids decorated chef hats, made a recipe, played games, and enjoyed the food. It's so nice that we keep getting the house parties. The company provides you with name-brand products and you host the party. Your guests need to complete a survey about the products after the party. We had a good time today.

Almost

Today we almost won a game. It was the first close game anyway...It was a little chilly this morning, so the girls wore their jackets and tub socks:) This was also the first time there were cheerleaders for the other team too. The girls did a few cheers together...too cute!

Welcome Back BBQ

Today Jason and I were able to enjoy a lunch out without the kids:) When I get out of work on Fridays, Zachary is napping so I can't pick him up. Kailani had a field trip again with the YMCA so she didn't want to be picked up early. She went to the pool at the main YMCA site. She's been there before for birthday parties and she was really excited to go. I was a little hesitant about the YMCA for before and after school care, but I am really pleased with what they're doing. Kailani likes going there too.
While Kailani was at the pool, we picked Zachary up and took him to his first soccer practice for the fall class session. This session is at a different community center than the last one. Zachary was a little shy at first to participate, but then jumped right in. There were two "coaches" and they took turns running the kids through obstacle courses. They'll switch off every other week with soccer and basketball.Tonight KinderCare had their annual Welcome Back BBQ and we headed there tonight. The kids ate and played games. They both rode a pony and went inside the little petting zoo. Kailani was excited to be back at her old school. She drew a picture and wrote an "I miss you" note for her former teacher. She is already asking if she can go to Zachary's Welcome Back BBQ next year.

First Field Trip

Kailani had her first field trip today. Since there are minimum days all week due to conferences, the YMCA (where she goes after school) organized a trip to John's Incredible Pizza. John's is very similar to Chuck E. Cheese. It has an all-you-can-eat buffet with salad, pasta, and pizza. There are games kids can play with tokens and earn tickets to trade in for prizes. They even have a few rides. During the trip today Kailani got to make her very own pizza and then spend some time playing the games. She even "bought" her brother a prize with her tickets:) I wish I could have gone on the field trip to take pictures!

First Conference

Today we had Kailani's first parent-teacher conference. The teacher raved about Kailani and what a sweetie she is:) She said she is doing very well. She is meeting or exceeding all of the standards at this point. She's ahead of many of the other kids in some areas. The teacher said she was the perfect candidate for the dual immersion program because she does have such a strong background in English already. We are very proud of our big girl!
Kailani got her school pictures back last week. We'll be sending those out soon! Zachary gets his picture taken this week too.

Apple Picking in Julian

Today we decided to make the trip out to Julian. We walked around the historic town of Julian and had lunch at the Miner's Diner. Afterward, we picked apples and then picked pears. The kids enjoyed picking the fruit, but it was really hot!

Coastal Cleanup

This morning we started our day off at a volunteer event for Daisies. We met at Sweetwater Park and cleaned up trash for the Coastal Cleanup event. Kailani and Zachary had a blast! Kailani got a chance to hang out with some of her little friends from Daisies. She'll get a patch for participating.We had to leave the Coastal Cleanup early because Kailani had a game today. Luckily the game was later than usual so we were able to participate in the cleanup.

Military Perks:)

Kailani has one more week of school before her 2-week fall break. It's hard to believe she's already through one quarter of school. I went to the YMCA this afternoon to sign her up for camps during the break (since my school doesn't have break). Military families get one week of camp free! So...I saved $210 just like that:)
There were a bunch of camps for Kailani to choose from. She chose to do "Radical Reptiles" camp, where they'll get to meet live animals and do art, games, and projects about reptiles. She also chose a gymnastics camp, where she'll be bused from the school to the gymnastics center each day. She's really excited about the camps. I hope she enjoys herself!

Pizza Party and Daisies

Tonight all of the Otay Ranch cheerleaders had a pizza party at the Super Dentists (Kailani and Zachary's dentist). The Super Dentists sponsored the league by purchasing cheer bags for all 48 girls. They presented the girls with the bags tonight at their office and gave the girls a pizza party. Each of the squads performed a cheer for the staff. Kailani ate three whole pieces of pizza!
We left the pizza party a little early to head to Kailani's first Daisy meeting. The first meeting was cancelled last week because of the black out and rescheduled to today. We were late for the meeting, but at least Kailani got to meet most of the girls and I gave out the nut sale information..

Author Signing

Tonight we went to the Yellow Book Road, a book store in Liberty Station. The woman who illustrates the Fancy Nancy books (Robin Preiss Glasser) was there doing a book signing. Her sister (Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman) was also there signing a book she wrote. Kailani and Zachary each picked out a book to be signed and posed for a picture.After the book store, we had dinner at the Corvette Diner. The waitress did each of the girls' hair with straws. Here's Kailani with her straw bow!

Freedom Walk

Today the city of Chula Vista hosted a Freedom Walk at the Otay Ranch Town Center to honor the victims of the September 11 attacks 10 years ago. The kids each got a t-shirt for participating and the adults got a pin. We walked around the outside of the mall and then gathered for a ceremony afterward. The mayor of Chula Vista spoke and so did the police and fire chiefs. They had a section in the grass where they placed almost 3o00 mini flags; one for each of the lives lost 10 years ago. After the ceremony, we had a pancake breakfast and walked around to some of the booths that were set up. We had a nice time and I'm glad we went. Here are the kids posing with the Mayor of Chula Vista, Cheryl Cox.

Second Game

Today Kailani had her second football game of the season. She seemed to be a little more comfortable today. Becky, George, and the girls came to watch. The boys lost the game, but they had a good time. The football coach asked that the girls come up and acknowledge the boys after the game and let them say "thanks." Here are the girls and Coach Mary coming back from talking to the boys.

Heritage Fall Carnival

Today, even though schools were closed, Kailani's school had their fall carnival. We headed over to the school just shortly after the carnival started. It was much better than I had imagined for a school carnival. There were rides, games, food, dancers, etc. Becky and the girls came down to join us. The kids had a blast!

Black Out

We stayed home from school again Thursday because Kailani had a rash all over her body. I'm sure it's a side effect of the strep throat, but didn't think she should be at school. Around 3:40pm, we lost all power. As I was following Facebook (on my phone), I could see that power was out in a lot of different areas. We were able to listen to the radio (by battery) to find out that power was out in all of San Diego County and even into Arizona. Cheerleading was cancelled, although Kailani wasn't going to go anyway. She was going to go to her first Daisy meeting, but that was cancelled too. The kids were bored, but we made it through the night. All of the schools in San Diego County were closed today due to the black out, so...we all got an extra day off, even Jason. The power was back on for us around midnight, but took until about 4am until power was restored everywhere. Although schools are closed, the were given the okay to hold any special events as long as they had the appropriate staff to do so. This means that the Heritage school carnival is still on! We're heading there shorty and I am sure they'll be pictures to come...

Sous Chefs

My two little sous chefs:)

Still Homebound

I should have expected this, but when Kailani woke up this morning she was complaining of a sore throat. With the luck we've been having and the fact that Zachary has strep throat, I didn't want to take any chances. We went to the doctor this morning and she does have strep throat. So...we're stuck in the house for today and tomorrow at least. Today was actually a good day to be stuck in the house...it's been raining most of the day. Hopefully the kids recover quickly and can return to school on Thursday. Kailani has a school carnival on Friday that we were looking forward to going to.

Stuck in the House for the Long Weekend

We were looking forward to this nice, long weekend. We really didn't have any plans, but I guess it worked out well since we spent most of it at home. We ran around and did all of our shopping on Friday. We took Kailani to the Girl Scout store for all of the things she needs for Daisies.
Saturday morning, Zachary woke up with a fever. Kailani and I walked up to her school so she could paint a tile that will be hung around the pillars of the school for the 10th anniversary. Becky and the kids came down to play. Although Zachary had a fever, he was acting fine and enjoyed playing with the girls. We were planning to go to the pool, but decided against it because we weren't sure what was going on with Zachary. The pool ended up being closed for some reason anyway. Becky brought her sprinkler and the kids ran around and got wet in the back yard.
Last night, Zachary's fever spiked again and he told me his mouth hurt. I decided to take him to the Urgent Care center this afternoon and it turns out that he has strep throat again. We thought it was over since no one had it all summer. The doctor suggested having Zachary tested to see if he's a carrier. We'll have to do that once he's finished with the antibiotic. Hopefully Kailani doesn't get strep throat this time. As it is right now, timing will work out because we all return to work and school on Tuesday, when Zachary will no longer be contagious.
Tonight I ironed on Kailani's Daisy patches so her apron is ready for the first meeting on Thursday. She is very excited.