Race Day

The Awana Grand Prix is now in the record books. While Ellie and Austin both were lucky enough to win trophies, they did not win one single race :-( Each car ran the track 4 times, once in each lane. John has learned a few tricks of the trade and next year the cars might roll a bit faster. Ellie won 3rd place for Design in her age group and Austin won 2nd place for Design in his age group.

So big!

It is that time of year again...time to measure the kids.  We do this every six months.  Their Grandma gave us a special growth chart when Ellie was born and we keep it on the wall in Austin's room.  I thought for sure that they both had grown quite a bit over the last six months, judging by the fact that their pants are getting short, but they didn't!  They both only grew about 1 1/2 inches.  Austin still is on the short side, compared with Ellie at the same age.  I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that is typical for girl vs. boy growth??

Rug burns hurt!

Austin has a new hobby...running and then sliding on his knees. This new hobby works relatively well in our kitchen on the vinyl floor, but it does not work well on the carpet at his school. Not only is he ripping holes in his pants, but he is also learning that rug burns hurt!

Austin is also not too tough when it comes to pain. I tell him that he is "dramatic", but he doesn't like me saying that. So, a rug burn brings lots of tears and crying. One thing I did learn, though, he can hop really well! He hopped all around the kitchen since he couldn't even walk because of the "pain".

The cars are done!

The whole family has been working on preparing the cars for the Awana Derby Race. The kids helped with painting and designing their cars.

Ellie's car was supposed to have a leprechaun on it, but we discovered that by adding the leprechaun to the back of the car would make it too tall for the size limits. So, I haven't told Ellie yet, but the leprechaun will not be making the race this weekend :-)

6 years old!!

So, Ellie woke up shortly after 6 am this morning and walked into our room and the first thing she said was "I'm 6!". Approximately two hours later she had opened her birthday presents and was looking forward to her cousin, Leah, coming over to play.

This year Ellie got a Madame Alexander doll, which has become an annual tradition now. This year it is a doll that is holding a Hello Kitty. She also got an MP3 player. John bought it a few days early and loaded some music on it so that it was ready to go. I hope she really gets hooked on it. I would like for her to listen to more music and this would be a great way to introduce her to different styles of music. Austin really likes the MP3 player, too, and so far Ellie is doing well at sharing it. I figure that won't last long.

We had a busy day - lunch at Raising Cains, playing at Chuck E. Cheese's, and pizza and cake with the cousins. By the end of the day, Ellie could barely keep her eyes open - all the while insisting that she was NOT tired.

It is so hard to believe that she is 6. When people tell you that "it goes so fast", it is true. She is pretty much too big to pick up anymore, even though I do my best to pretend that she is not. At church last Wednesday, I picked her up and held her during some of the songs. She was heavy, but I loved it. I know that the moments where I can hold her are slipping away. My baby has grown up - whether I like it or not.

Austin Jacob

Snow day again - what a winter! We enjoyed an out-of-the-ordinary buttermilk pancake breakfast this morning as a family.

The snow piles are SO high by the road that they are as tall as the top of our mailbox!

Austin's last day of soccer

Austin had his last day of soccer today. He did great and I can't wait to see him on an actual team someday. After the class was over he got a certificate. It is on his bedroom door right now :-)

He can play in the local soccer association starting in the Fall. Hopefully he can take one more beginning soccer class this spring/summer and we then can get him signed up on a team.

shoveling

Ellie helping her Dad shovel the driveway.

Painting the cars

Ellie and Austin have been excited to start painting their cars. We started on them today. It is hard for them to be patient while the paint dries before starting another color.

Ellie decided today that she wants a leprechaun AND a cloud on the back of her rainbow. It should look pretty cool when she gets it done.

Snow Day!

Somehow our alarm clock went off at 6:15 this morning and I didn't realize it was so early until I was out of the shower. Then while watching the news, we discovered that Ellie's school was closed due to the snowstorm. Yep, I was up early AND I could have slept in a little bit if I had wanted to! It was all good, though. I got on the road early and arrived at work safely and plenty early.

John stayed home with the kids and took them sledding. They've had lots of time in the snow these past few days!

We are supposed to get a few more inches of snow tonight with maybe the worst around morning rush hour. We'll see if school is open tomorrow....

Snow

Well, they predicted it and they were right - surprising, I know. We were treated to a snowstorm on Friday that lasted until Saturday morning. While I love snow and have been hoping for "the big one" for a while, I did not want it to happen this weekend. Ellie and I were going to take a trip to visit Nana and Pop this weekend. We were all disappointed about not being able to go in the storm, but at least Nana and Pop still have the Superbowl to look forward to today :-) I had a dream last night that the Colts won and the score was 98 to 12! We'll see if my dream comes true later today.

The snow on Friday was really big, pretty snowflakes and it was PERFECT for making a snowman. We used a carrot for the nose and Austin loaned his scarf that Grandma made. Ellie found some branches for the arms and we made some hair from a few twigs. Our snowman was pretty big, but I did not do a great job in making it stable. John worked on it, but it still took a tumble overnight. Poor thing.

John helped the kids make two forts. There is one back by the swingset and one out by the driveway that has a tunnel. Hopefully Ellie and Austin can get out to play today, too!

Derby Days

Ellie and Austin have been participating in Awana for the past several months. They attend once a week at church. Austin is a Cubbie and Ellie is in Sparks. They both learn Bible verses each week and have been both doing great. Ellie recently learned all of the books of the New Testament! We are very proud of both of them. John volunteers each week as a Cubbie leader, too.

Awana is holding a Pine Box Derby at the end of February. Recently, a volunteer at church helped us cut the wood. John is working to add the weights to the car now. Yesterday we bought the paints that we needed. Austin is planning a Spiderman car and Ellie's will be a rainbow with a leprechaun riding on the back of it. I'll be sure to post pictures of the finished cars, too.

Inspiration

John and I recently watched "Julie and Julia" and it inspired me to begin my own blog. I've wanted to try this out for awhile and we'll see how it goes. I am required to create and use a blog for one of my classes at Ashland University, so I've had a tiny bit of experience blogging. I hope to make this a place for family and friends to see what the Brownings are up to - whether it is something really cool or something just plain ordinary.