Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011
Well 2011 is officially here, so I am taking a moment to reflect on what 2010 brought us. We had a pretty interesting year overall I would say. I was just reviewing the posts I have made in 2010, and it is amazing to see how much the kids have grown in just that one year.
Oliver had some interesting milestones for 2010. He started Kindergarten this year. He lost his first (and second) tooth this year. He had his first Halloween Parade, as well as many other school activities this year.
Summer continues to grow everyday, and is really starting to get her own personality, with a dash of little miss boss attitude. She is still going to dance class and seems to enjoy it quite a bit. She had her first dance reticle this year. She is very much interested in coloring and other artistic things – and she does rather well in my opinion.
Both kids have been enjoying more outdoors activities lately, they like going fishing from time to time, and going on nature hikes at on trails at the local park.
Kim continues to work at the same company – but at the end of 2010 transitioned to a new position which should keep 2011 interesting for her. She also ran her first Half Marathon in 2010. She also suffered an injury that put her training back a bit in 2010, but managed to run almost just under 450 miles over 10 months, and is making a recovery and has big plans for 2011.
I made an effort to get back into shape, and even start running myself in 2010. I was able to shed about 35 pounds over the course of about 6 months. Mostly accomplished by eating better – but I also logged a little over 332 miles of running myself. I ran a few 5K’s and also ran the 2010 Run for the Diamonds.
We had a few nice outings as a family. We had a couple trips to Annapolis / Baltimore - where the kids sparked an interest in baseball and the Orioles. We also checked out the science musuem an Maryland zoo. We took advantage of our Philly Zoo membership as always, and Kim and I took a refreshing trip to to Turks & Caicos Islands. We also had plenty of fun around the house, and other activities in the area. So looks like overall we had a pretty good year
In other family news,Grandma Larrabee became Grandma Smith (though the kids still call her Grandma Larrabee). Uncle Tommy got his own apartment in the NYC area, and is engaged to be married, and Uncle Leo ironically also moved to a new apartment and also is engaged.
Here is hoping for a great 2011!
Another Weekend Comes To An End
This weekend was a bit different than most any other weekend. It started with the kids doing something that I don’t think I could even explain in words, so I provide you with pictures instead.
check out the rest of Novembers pictures
That’s right Oliver is wearing just his diaper (perhaps for the last time *prays*) and is pushing his little sister around the room in one of her baby doll strollers while she wears his sunglasses (upside down as well). I still am not 100% sure what the game was, but they took turns pushing each other around, and Oliver kept asking where the emergency was and that they were the Police – so in some way shape or form they were an emergency crew, just not really dressed as one would expect I suppose.
In addition to that comical experience Kim ran her first race, the Great American Smokeout 2008 5K in Bloombsburg. The kids and I are very proud of her for all the effort she put towards preparing and actually running the race. Considering until recently she has been plagued pretty bad with asthma since Summer was born – it is quite an accomplishment to run at all let alone that far. She placed 113 out of 142, but considering this is her first race ever, she really didn’t train very long before the race, and the fact that there are some pretty serious racers that participate in those things (just check out the dude with no shirt on in almost freezing temperatures) – I think that she did extremely well – It probably goes without saying but it is very unlikely I could finish such a race running, I might not even make it to the finish just walking. It was rather cold so the kids didn’t allow me to stay outside and see her actually make it back to the finish – but they did get to play around on the moon bounce and get some baloon animals
