Soccer

 We started our first year of soccer in late August. Our club didn't have enough kids for a BU5 and BU6 team so we were combined into a BU6 team. Age-wise Reese should be on BU6 but since he didn't play last year he didn't know as much as the other 2 5 year olds. We also had 3 just turned 4 year olds on our team. There was lots of playing and chatting on the field.

Reese eventually got the hang of what to do especially when they each practiced with their own ball. There were several incidents of extreme upset when they all practiced with one ball. Reese was pretty ticked off when other people stole "his" ball.

We had 10 games from September through November 10th. Luckily we had a late start AND a late finish to summer so we had lots of good playing weather until very close to the end of the season. Reese really started to get into it and even got a special "newly aggressive player" badge for his team sweatshirt when he really started muscling into the fray.

 We didn't win any games, but fortunately at least 4 of the boys, Reese included, seemed fairly oblivious to the other team scoring. They were very excited when their own team, Sharks, scored though. I was afraid he'd get discouraged and not want to play. Luckily that didn't happen. He made a lot of progress this season and the 2 kids on our team that played last year were light years ahead, so I expect him to do well next year.

He wven managed to score a couple of goals this season about which he was over the moon!!

 Reese and Mommy made some new friends and had a good time this season. Now if the rains come in September next year that may be a different story. 

Reese the Artist

Reese took a few art classes this summer. The first was Young Artists Camp for 4-6 year olds.  He absolutely loved it. This bear was his final project.  They sketched it, then used sharpie to outline before painting it.  This school has samples around town of artwork with the artists photo.  The teacher took Reese's photo and color copied his bear to use for that purpose. His was the only one. So we're excited to see if we can find it.  There are some hanging at Reese's speech therapy office, but his isn't one of those. I may just have to call to see if I can found out where his is so Reese can see it. :)

Northwest Trek

 The last weekend of July we visited Northwest Trek.  Unfortunately it was the coldest day of the summer. You get on a tram that drives you through the park with a narrator tram driver, then there is a walk around part.

This moose was practically on the road. I could have literally reached out and touched him.

 There were a handful of bison babies.  The mama was absolutely gigantic. I wish there was something for size perspective.

 This cutie really enjoyed the tram ride, but it was hard to know if he was actually seeing a lot of the animals that weren't right in his face easy to see.

 I think these were elk, also really large animals.

 This guy was super cute!! A beaver specifically trained for special programs. She doesn't get to live with the other beavers anymore :( so she'll remain engaged with the humans. But apparently she is always given an option to perform or not and she seems to thrive on the attention.

 This bear seems super close but there is a huge fence between us.

 These cheese balls had a great time checking out all the animals.

 Though they frequently moaned about how tired their legs were.

 This beaver kept dive bombing the window and high fiving the boys. It was pretty hilarious.

Family portrait with the bear. I'm about 12 weeks along at this point.

Visiting the Aquarium

 One of Gus' birthday gifts was a membership to the Seattle Aquarium. Way back in late July we walked on the ferry and strolled down to the aquarium for our first time ever. 

The boys really liked the tide pool stuff and the octopus. They couldn't get enough of the Octopus photo ops.

 We may have spent more time on this section than anything else!

 But the conversation was focused on sharks. I was afraid we may actually experience the end of the world if this place did not produce a shark for viewing.  Luckily we found a few. I failed to snap a photo but in one of the other tanks like this shark one was a diver who played with the boys through the window for quite sometime.

 My favorites were the cute seals. The weather was so perfect we were actually able to enjoy the outside pools.

 We are looking forward to many more visits for the next year because both boys loved it and the walk on ferry option makes it an easy walk!  Who else can walk to their city's aquarium? :)

Birthday!

 Back on July 6 I turned 27!! Woo Hoo! No not really. Well, yes I did turn 27 on July 6th, but not in 2012.

 We went to Red Lobster for my birthday dinner.  Look I was still wearing regular clothes then. (aka NOT maternity) The boys generally fight over sitting next to Dad. Then they all squeeze in and I get lots of elbow room. But since it was my birthday Reese decided he could probably sit next to me.

 Gus tasted the lemons...several times.

He practiced posing for the camera too.

Why YES, We Are Still Alive!!!!

I know I've been a serious blog slacker, but it's time to get caught up. We are in fact still living and we actually did some stuff this summer.
JUNE....first and foremost in the exciting world of the Benza Clan? I finally got a pink + on my stick! Woo HOO!!!! I had mostly decided it wasn't going to happen, but I was giving us to the end of the summer before we stopped trying. In the 3rd week of May we went to Great Wolf Lodge where I ate like a piglet and caught a nasty cold. I decided to take a test before I took any cold medicine. It was positive!!

My former co-worker at a soul sucking job opened her own business!!! SK Frozen Yogurt Shop. See that cute boy in the photo? He was THE FIRST CUSTOMER ever to grace the doorway!! It was delish and you pay by the ounce...you pull your own. If you're local, head over to Mile Hill Drive in Port Orchard. It's right by the 7 Eleven and Pizza Time after you pass A&W.

 We hit the Rodeo Drive In....several times.

We won tickets on Facebook from the boys' dentist, Dr. Jessie Banks, so we got to see the Blue Jackets Baseball team play. The boys especially liked the cotton candy and cracker jacks. :)

 

I struggled to take a  not revolting 7 week self portrait. Those are size 4 pants!  By week 12 I was wearing maternity pants.

We had quite a few park days.

 Gus looks WAY too grown in this photo.

Reese tried out a bunch of the equipment he previously avoided...and showed off his muscles.

 We dragged Grandpop to the new SeeFilm Bremerton Theater for Madagascar 3.

Gus posed with the Ice Age display...we saw that one too!!

 Last but not least we celebrated this cute boy's third birthday. Oh my gosh, how did the time go by so fast??? Gus is so much less baby at 3 than Reese was. He's a munchkin too...14th percentile for BMI. ha ha...but boy this kid can talk!! At this point Reese had about 15 words and Gus has a billion so he just seems so much older to me.  He wants to do everything himself. He wants every single thing he wants the very second he thinks of it. He's pretty loudly verbal about getting too.

Gus is constantly demanding we watch to see what he can do...then he demonstrates his new jumping skill or drawing skill.  He is utterly anti-toilet, so no potty training is on the horizon. He loves to sleep on the top bunk with his brother. He's quite the homebody. He is a devilish beast about half the time and absolutely adorable the other half. When I'm about to lose my mind if there is anymore chatter he pipes up with "MOMMY, MOMMY, I really love you." He's quite the cutie, that one.

Camping

 We've been on the first "camp out" of the season. I use the term loosely as we visited campers, but we didn't spend the night. :) The Benza Grandparents camped for the whole Memorial Day weekend. We just went out on Sunday for a handful of hours.

 The boys like helping build the fire and roasting marshmallows best.

 They also roasted their hot dogs on a stick.

 Every morning since this Gus has asked me if we can go camping and roast marshmallows.

I am so not looking forward to it, but I think the need to take the boys actual camping may be upon us. Or I may be able to convince Kyle to take them for a boys night out on an overnight trip and let me stay home with indoor comforts. :)

Summer has Arrived

 FINALLY Summer has arrived and we know this not because of the balmy weather but because the drive in is open! 

The boys play on the playground before the show. You can see the screen behind them on the swings...yes that's Gus in my shadow...oops.

 They also get in some kicking and catching practice with the soccer ball and football.

 We've been showing up at about 7:30 to make sure we get a good spot...I try to park away from the smokers. That gives us plenty of time to play.

 Usually we eat some pizza in the back of the van and then get the boys' jammies on.

Then we dole out our snacks and get the boys in their sleeping bags.

So far this season we've seen the Hunger Games/The Lucky One, Men In Black 3/Ghost Rider 2, Dark Shadows/Wraith of the Titans, Snow White & the Huntsman/Battleship. We love that it's a double feature for cheaper than the regular theater for one show. While we did have a babysitter for the Hunger Games it's awesome that it's not a requirement. We can play, eat and get the boys ready for bed then watch in the front seats while listening the surround sound on the car stereo. Perfect summer fun!

Best Buddies

 With Daddy back on day shift the tv is off all day most days.  Reese was traumatized by this at first, but I need some quiet. With swing shift we wake up mostly rested and function at an easy pace, get ready for the day, have breakfast and dinner before Daddy goes to work. There's plenty of time for battles and rough housing. After Kyle is at work we putter, play, watch a movie, eat a dinner that is really like a lunch. Even if the boys stay up until 10pm I have a solid 2 hours of time ALL BY MYSELF before Kyle gets home and we watch our shows. On day shift there are literally no minutes in the day where I am alone and it's totally quiet unless I stay up later than Kyle, but I find I really enjoy a solid 8 hours of sleep. It's a good thing! SO...no tv in the day has been working super well for us. These sweet boys have been playing so well together. Yes, sometimes it is loud super hero battle type play, but lots of times I think uh-oh what is afoot in this quiet. And then I find them engrossed in something. 

This day I found them playing Scooby Doo.  Of course the nano second I got the camera out they stopped playing so quietly together. But they did get back to it. 

Which allowed me a lovely few moments to linger with my latte and William Sonoma catalog.