The kids

I hope for this blog to be a "family thing". I'm going to encourage the kids to post things. I'm going to update it with what's going on in the kids' lives. So here's what's going on with them at the moment.

Josh is ten and in fourth grade. He loves school. He's a "math wiz", as declared by several teachers, Brian and myself. His best friends are Dylan, Dakota, Trevor and Bailey. He loves playing golf, baseball and basketball. He loves following football (college and pro). He's a wonderful kid, a fantastic big brother and a huge help around the house.

Meghan is six and in first grade. She is a reading machine. She just hit the 325 book mark since the beginning on the school year. She is excited that her teacher moved her to the Junie B. Jones series yesterday. She has been reading them for a while at home and loves those books. Meghan's best friends are Breanna ("with an e", as Meghan will tell you - not to be confused with "Brianna with an i"), Sophia, Hope and Allison (her cousin). She loves dancing, singing, entertaining, going to musicals and putting on shows for anyone who will watch. She's a fun, happy kid. She's a great big sister and also a huge help around the house.

Lauren is three and is not in school yet. She'll start preschool next fall, though she thinks she's ready for kindergarten. She loves "Stinky Bunny", her baby dolls, her play kitchen, playing outside and watching cartoons. She is a lot of fun but is also strong willed to the point of frustration often. Lauren is growing into her own, is too smart for our good and is a goofball. We love her so much. She proudly tells anyone who asks that her name is "LaurenBigSister" and has loved having Claire around.

Claire is new, cute, sweet and smiley. I know it sounds a bit crazy, but she has rolled over twice on her own already too. The first time was from her back to her belly on the exam table at the doctor's office in Ann Arbor. The second time was two days later from her belly to her back in her crib (I was changing her and had walked out for a minute only to come back finding her flipped over). She's sleeping well, eating well (now that we switched her formula), doing lots of babbling and growing more hair. She has been a great addition to our family.

I can't leave Pika out. Meghan counts him when telling people how many people are in our family. Pika is our two year old cat. He was a stray at work that I took in and surprised the kids with. He gets defensive when Lauren is mean to him, but other than that he's a great cat. He loves to cuddle and sleep on you. He's a good kitty and we enjoy having him in our family.