Preschool Feast

Marci was so excited to have Osten and me as guests at her feast. Osten was pretty excited, too! As we were waiting for her class of pilgrims to arrive in the fellowship hall, he announced that he could hear Marci amongst all of the excited chatter on the other side of the door.

Here's Marci with some of her fellow pilgrims: Logan, Sheldon, Boots, Riley, Julia and Megan.

That's one tired pilgrim!

Marci and Julia with big bro (who refused to pose for a picture) in the background!

Princess Rainbow

Here are a few photos from the Indian Cookout last week at Marci's school. She was Princess Rainbow and quite proud of her self-made headdress, necklace and drum!

She wanted to be sure I got lots of pictures and was just posing away . . .

Sweet!

Orlando Magic

Who's to say that you can't have any fun in Orlando without venturing into one of the parks??!! We spent the one full day of our trip between Downtown Disney and the water slide at the hotel pool. Daddy's friend, Dr. Ed, even met us for lunch at T. Rex. We had such a nice time wandering around Downtown Disney and just enjoying the live entertainment. It just so happened that there was a sidewalk arts festival in town, and the kids loved the artwork.

Osten shared his pirate gear with his sister for his birthday dinner Friday night, although he got first dibs. This hat is apparently quite the disguise becuase our waitress referred to Marci as "him" when she first came to take our drink order. Since she is usually quite the little princess, it made me giggle out loud!

The kids also had a good time shopping at the big Disney store. Osten knew exactly what he wanted, and he headed right to the swords and rifles. Marci's search was a little lengthier, but she eventually fell in love with this tea set and a necklace with an "M" on it.

As luck would have it, Osten brought home an extra surprise. Strep throat. He got to ride home in his jammies, and we even took him into a Bob Evans on the way home without anyone seeming to notice that he was in his PJs.

Half Dozen

It just doesn't seem possible that Osten went for his six-year checkup today! He got another clean bill of health, and we are so grateful that he continues to grow even though it is bittersweet. Here' are his stats:

Height: 47 1/4 inches (79%)
Weight: 47.5 lbs. (60%)

And his vision is 20/20. His hearing is normal as is his cholesterol. Woo-hoo!

In sum, he grew 3 1/2 inches and gained almost 10 pounds since last year. Way to grow, Osten!!

A Pirate's Life

For Osten's birthday this year, he also chose to have a family celebration. He has been asking for months to go to this interactive pirate dinner in Orlando. He and Marci like to peruse the travel brochures whenever we happen to go to the local AAA office, which is how the little travel-agent-in-training came to know about it. It was an absolute tourist trap, and, of course, the kids loved every minute of it!

At intermission, they went up by the big pirate ship and waited their turn to have a picture with one of the pirates.

Best of all, was when they called out Osten's name ("clear as a bell," as Tom pointed out) and called him aboard the pirate ship for his special birthday surprise. He was so excited and marched himself right up there! He didn't so much as hesitate to climb the stairs and then cross the bridge onto the ship. Tom and I were so impressed with his bravery!

While he was on the ship, he got a pirate hat and certificate and took a special pirate pledge. Seeing him on that stage was worth the price of admission and then some! Osten, you are growing up right before our eyes. We are so very proud of you, and we love you infinity (as you like to say)!

Happy Fall, Y'all!

There is some serious mixin'-and-matchin' going on here!! There was something about that pilgrim hat in particular that got the kids (especially Marci) all wound up tonight. Before they would pose for a picture, Osten insisted that he know how many pictures I was going to take. I guess I've been a little trigger happy lately . . .

The Dreaded Rx

With young children, is there any more dreadful prescription than reduced physical activity??!! Luckily, after three weeks Osten's collarbone is almost completely healed, and he is finished with the sling (which was really starting to seem more like an accessory than an encumbrance). I'm putting it back in its assigned spot under the sink in his bathroom for safekeeping where it has been since he broke his arm in 2009. Hopefully, it won't be making another appearance any time soon!