I spoke to soon....

Just this past week, we were on vacation in Florida with my parents. During a discussion with my dad, I made the comment that I was very thankful that our kids had not stuck anything into their ears or noses that didn't belong there. I spoke to soon....

Today at lunch, Emma asked me for more juice. When I came back from the kitchen, Emma's finger was in her ear and she had a very panicked look on her face. We make eye contact and she says: "Mommy, there is something in my ear!" I hurry over to see the object above in the opening of her ear canal. Carefully, I pull Polly Pockets cell phone from my daughters ear!

From now on, I am going to keep my mouth shut! Leave it to Emma to see what will happen when you put a cell phone in your ear!!!

Tooth Fairy to Visit Spring Hill Lane

We are happy to announce that Ethan has lost his second tooth! Once again, it required a little assistance from Dad but the tooth is now out and waiting for the tooth fairy!

We are so proud of Ethan and we love his toothless grin. We can already see the other tooth and we are looking forward to seeing him with his "grown up" teeth!

Just another little milestone to share. They seem to be coming very quickly these days and we want to be sure that we savor every one!

We love you buddy man!!!!

Emma Kate

This is what Emma should have been doing around 9:30 last night....but of course she wasn't! Emma has a hard time going to bed a night. Our night usually involves one trip to the bathroom and then a threat to take her blankets if she doesn't stay in her room. As I said before, last night followed our usual routine. I was in bed watching TV and after the threat to take away her blankets this was the conversation that followed. Please note that she is in her bedroom with the door shut and I am across the hall in our room watching TV.

Emma: Mommy.....Mommy....Mommy....Momma...

Me: Emma go to sleep!

Emma: Mommy, do you know how to say black in Spanish?

Me: Emma, I said go to sleep!!!

Emma: It's negro, Mommy. That's how you say black in Spanish. Good Night Mommy!

How can you not laugh at that! Emma can be so random and I love that about her.

Thought I would pass this along in the hopes that it will bring a smile to your face as it did to mine!

Happy Birthday Grandpa

This post is to remember my grandfather who passed away in 1997. Today is his birthday and I wanted to do this to honor him. We miss him very much and I wish that we could spend this day with him! Love you Grandpa!!!

Lost Tooth!!!

We are very pleased to announce, that with a little help from Dad, Ethan lost his first tooth tonight!!! It has been loose for quite some time now and Jon finally convinced him tonight that it would be best to pull it. For Ethan, he was brave. There were some tears and some screams but also alot of laughs!

He is very proud of himself to say the least! His tooth is safely tucked into his tooth fairy bear and sitting next to his pillow. He is excited about the tooth fairy coming but he is not quite sure how he feels about the fact that the tooth fairy is a girl!!!

We are so proud of our little man! He is growing up way too fast but it is fun to share these firsts with him! Emma, on the other hand, is not so happy. She went to bed tonight crying because she doesn't have a loose tooth!!! What a drama queen!

PS - I promise that we will share our cruise photos soon but this took precedent over that!!!

Craft Day

Yesterday was parent/child craft day at Emma's preschool. I was able to spend an hour or so with her making different crafts, having a snack and listening to The Polar Express. I have done this with Ethan previously and it was cool to have a chance to do it with Emma. Here are some pictures from our time together. Enjoy!

Emma and her gingerbread house

Emma with candy cane Christmas Tree

Emma enjoying her snack

The girls - Mommy and Emma

Catching Up....

Okay, so it has been a VERY long time since my last post! I really want to be committed to keep my blog up to date but it just seems like I have a hard time sticking with it. I thought that it was about time that I filled everyone in on a little bit of what has been going on in our lives lately. So, here goes!

Ethan has been doing awesome in kindergarten! We are so proud to see how well he has transtioned into going to school everyday. He has made alot of new friends and he really likes his teacher Mrs. Shelley. We have been amazed to see how he is reading! It seems like it is just second nature for him and he is doing really well with that and his other school work. He says that his favorite subject in school is math and he is really enjoy his art class as well!

Ethan also started swim lessons this fall. He loves to swim and we thought that it was time to get him in a program that can teach him the skills that he needs to be a good swimmer. We go on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and his favorite part is doing jumps in the deep end. He is really looking forward to this summer and being able to jump off the diving board with his cousin Benjamin!

Emma is really enjoying preschool this year. She is in Mrs. Miller class and goes three days a week. She is happy to have her friends Mikayla and Riley with her again this year and she has also made a lot of new freinds. Last year all she talked about where the boys in her preschool class and we are glad that this year she has also made friends with some of the girls!!

Last weekend was a big one for Emma. She and her daddy had a date while Mommy was out shopping and brother was at a birthday party. She wanted to go to the mall and while they were there Daddy got her ears piereced!!! Mommy had asked her several time previous to this if she would like to have it done but she always said no. Apparently, she needed to have her daddy there to give her the courage to get it done. Jon said that she didn't cry at all and she picked out her own earrings which are shaped like dolphins. She really enjoyed her time with her Daddy and she is looking forward to her next date with him. I wonder what they will do next time???

After Thanksgiving, Jon and his dad went on their annual hunting trip. This year things kind of got off to a rocky start with a change of plans for their departure and bad weather where they hunt. After sitting through the first day in temperatures of about twenty and not seeing anything worth shooting, he was a little discouraged. On Tuesday, he shoot a doe and was happy to be bringing meat home. Wednesday morning they decided to go out again before heading home and Jon was able to bring home this buck. We now had enough meat for our family and we were able to share the doe with another family. The kids and I were happy that Jon's trip was sucessful but we were also happy to have him home!!!

So, that is a little bit of what we have been up to lately. Our calendar is filled up the next couple of weeks with holiday festivites and I will try to post some pictures of those! We hope that you all have a wondeful holiday season!

Magic Bus

Tuesday was a very historic day in the Wile household. Ethan rode the school bus for the first time to his first official day of kindergarten!!! We can hardly believe how fast these last six years have gone!

He was so excited to be one of the "big kids" and to be taking the bus to school! Although, he did have to double check that morning, that if the bus ride wasn't all it was cracked up to be, would I drive him to school the next morning? Well, that time never came because he loved the bus!

I have to admit that I am a little bit of a control freak. So, putting my baby on a bus and having no control over whether he gets to where he needs to be or not was not an easy thing for me! I was so used to drive him to preschool, walking him in and getting him settled in before I said good bye. I liked it that way much better!!! Although, I have to admit that not having to rush so much in the morning to get him to school is a nice perk of the bus ride!!!

We are very happy that everything that we have heard from Ethan about kindergarten has been very positive. He really seems to enjoy it and he likes his teacher Mrs. Shelley. I think that he is enjoying the independence of kindergarten and the change of scenery!

Overall, it has been a very positive experience and that has made it easier on Mom! It is hard to see him growing up but it is also very exciting at the same time. I am looking forward to this new chapter in his life and for the all the firsts yet to come!

That Mom....

Today I was "that mom". We had to stop in at a local grocery store today to bring up a couple of things. As usual, my kids were the ones running through the store and slide on their bottoms down the aisles. Needless to say, I got more than a couple looks from other women in the store. With my purchases completed, I am finally ready to get my kids out of there and head to the safety of my van. We get to the sliding glass doors, the automatic kind, and disaster struck! For some reason, Emma decided to run her hand along the stationary door while her brother walked in front of the automatic part. It came back, Emma didn't notice and next thing I know her arm is caught between the two doors and she is moving back with them!!!! With the assitance of a man who was behind me, we held the door to get it to stop and I gently pulled her arm out from in between the doors! She was balling (with good reason) and suddenly we were the center of attention. As I was attending to Emma, there was a flurry of activity behind me as people were searching for a store employee to assess the situation. All in all, Emma was fine. By the time the store manager showed up, she had stopped crying and was laughing at her brother. We left the store with cookies and a bag of ice and I was told that a report would be written up in case she needed medical attention.

The thing that got to me was, the women (most of whom would fall into the with grown children category) who stopped to make sure that Emma was okay and give me the evil eye. I got the unwed teenage mother who isn't responsible for her kids look and one women even went so far as to tell the kids to be careful this summer because of course I wouldn't be paying attention to their well being!! I guess the fact that most of them had seem my kids running and sliding through the store earlier didn't leave them with a very good impression of my ability as a mom.

I know that I probably read more into their looks than was really there, but I definitely felt like I was "that mom". I guess it was a good reminder to me to be more compassionate the next time I am out and run into a mom who is having a "that mom" moment!!!

The End of a Chapter....

Ethan Joseph has now complete his Hempfield High School PreSchool experience. On May 15th, he had his finally graduation ceremony after completing his second year with Mrs. Miller in the three day program. He will be headed to kindergarten in the fall at Mountville Elementary School!

Jon and I are so grateful to Hempfield High School for providing it's residents with this preschool program. Ethan has learned and grown so much over the past three years! The help of the high students really provides the kids with a lot of one on one attention and a lot of opportunites to do some really neat things. The teachers are amazing and I really feel that they have helped Ethan to be ready to take this next step in his education.

I have to say that this was a tough one for mom! It seems like just yesterday that we want to his first graduation and we were so proud to see our little man up there in his cap and tassle. Now he is excited about going to the big school and riding on the bus! I have to admit that I did get a little misty watching him up there this year!

So closes another chapter of our lives! I am glad that this kindergarten program is only half day and I don't need to give me up for the whole day quite yet! (Although, there are some days.....)

I hope you enjoying the pictures! It is amazing to see how much he has changed in three years!!!! Congratulations buddy!!!!

Emma's First Graduation

On May 16th, Emma Katherine graduated from the Hempfield High School Two Day PreSchool program. As you can see they make it into quite a production complete with the cap and tassle. Emma was disappointed, though, because she wanted to wear one of the red caps and not a white one!!!

It was really cute to see them up on stage and receiving their diplomas. Next year, she will move into the three day program with Mrs. Miller.

This graduation was a fun one for mom as I know that she is just moving up to the next level of preschool next year!

Is Mommy really right?

I guess at the age of three there are certain things that mommy tells you to be fact that you just have to investigate for yourself. I was busy working in the office and I heard Emma go into the bathroom. Next thing I know she is coming out naked from the waist down telling me that she is wet. I was concerned that she had waited too long to go to the bathroom but this was not the case. I asked her why she was wet and she explained that she had tried to stand up to pee. Sure enough when I looked in the bathroom, the seat was up and the bathroom stool was in front of the toilet. Beneath the toilet was a puddle and her wet clothes!

I guess Emma had to be sure that girls really couldn't stand up like the boys! Hopefully this has satisfied her curiosity and we won't need to attempt this one again!

Emma a girly girl???

I, along with her Nan and Grandma, have tried desperately to convince Emma that is okay to wear a skirt. In the past, she has insisted that she didn't like them because her legs were sticking out. Yet, she would wear shorts???? I guess that this yet another one of those female mysteries!

We always attributed her logic to the fact that she has an older brother and sees him wearing shorts but not skirts. We had a small break through last week, when she asked to wear a dress because her friend Mikayla likes dresses. The only catch being that she wanted pants under the dress. Mom conceded because at least she had a dress on!

It is a beautiful, warm day here today, so when I was laying out her clothes this morning I decided that it couldn't hurt to put a skirt out and see what happened. She came in and looked at her clothes, pointed to the skirt and asked if she was wearing that today? My heart sank because I was sure that a NO and some tears were on the way. I told her yes that it was a skirt but it was special because it had a pair of shorts underneath. She looked it over and thought about it a minute. "Okay, mommy. Could you help me get dressed?" I was overjoyed!!!! When I take her to school I see all these other little girls who look so cute in their little skirts and today my little girl would be one of them too!

And you should have seen her! She tried on three different pairs of shoes before decideding on her pink flip flops and then proceeded to parade around the house quite pleased with herself!

Believe me, I am not looking for a frilly little girl, just one that isn't afraid to be a little girlie every now and then!!!

A glimpse of the future....

Today was a beautiful spring day and for once we were ready for school before we needed to walk out the door. Ethan noticed that our neighbor's children were outside waiting for the bus. He came running over and said "Mommy can I go outside and see Josh?" I told him that he could and he put on his coat and his backpack and headed out the door.

On my way upstairs to get something, I peeked outside to make sure that he was in fact with Josh. Looking out there was like seeing into the future for this mom. This fall my baby heads off to kindergarten and he will be standing next store in the neighbor's driveway waiting for the big yellow bus to come and take him to school.

I have to admit that I am having a hard time with this milestone in Ethan's life. Preschool wasn't half this hard because I only had to give him up for two hours! Thankfully, our school system's kindergarten is only half day! Still, this is the beginning of a whole new chapter for us. My baby is going to school!

Happy New Year - 2008!!!

The holidays always get so busy and I truly wanted to get these pictures posted before now!!! I have put together some of the highlights from our holidays. We had two awesome Christmases with both sides of the family. I truly believe that that is my favorite part about Christmas. Everybody slowing down and just taking time to spend together! We are truly blessed that both our families live so close and that we are able to spend time with all of them not only during the holidays but throughout the year!

Special thanks go to our parents for all that they do to make the holidays special! We also appreciate all that they do throughout the year, especially all the free babysitting!!!!

We also welcomed a new member into our family. His name is Finnigan or Finn for short. After getting some medical issues straightened out, (he was a barn cat) he has fit into our family quite nicely! The kids love him (maybe a little too much some times!!!) and he and Mr. Bill have become buddies!

It is crazy to think that another year has gone past! I know that I say it every year but for some reason this one REALLY seemed to fly by! I am looking forward to seeing what this year has in store and to watching our kids continue to grow.

We wish you all a very Happy New Year! We hope that it will be a good year full of good things for each one of you!

Merry Christmas!!!

As the holiday quickly approaches, I wanted to get one more post in!!! The kids finished up school this week with parties and a visit with Santa. It made for a very busy week but it was a lot of fun. They will be off now until after New Years.

This year we will be celebrating Christmas with my family on Christmas Eve and then we will spend Christmas Day with Jon's family. The kids are very excited about Santa coming and are equally excited that they will get to open some presents a day early! They keep reminding me of that when I tell them how many days are left until Christmas!

I have to admit that this holiday has been a lot of fun with them. They are getting to the point where they are old enough to really know what is going on besides just presents. They have been busy making me crafts at school to decorate with and they even went shopping for each other this year. So far, I don't think that they have told each other what they picked out but who knows what happens when we aren't around. I am glad that I took the presents and hide them or else they would both have them by know!!!!

We wish you all the very best during this holiday season! I pray that you will all be surrounded by the love of family and friends and that your hearts will be filled with happiness. We are thankful to have all of you to share our lives with! Merry Christmas!!!

"O Christmas Tree!"

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect afternoon to put ornaments on the tree! There is a light snow falling outside and I had two very eager helpers! It was really neat to watch the kids this year. They are both older and they actually are able to put the ornaments on the tree on their own. This was a real stretch for me, though. I kept wanting to move their ornaments from where they had put them because they were too "bunchy". I had to keep reminding myself that it was okay, they are having fun. But you can be sure that Mommy will be doing a little rearranging once nap time comes!!!!

Doing this kind of thing with the kids is what Christmas is all about. Watching the kids decorate the tree and talk to one another about their different ornaments. We are truly blessed to have two healthy kids and to be able to help them make these memories that they can hopefully carry with them throughout their lives.

We will complete the decorating tonight with Daddy. Emma has asked to put the star on top of the tree this year and we need him to help with that!

We hope that you are all experiencing the joy of the holidays in your house as we are in ours!

I survived "Midnight Madness"!

As we all know, the day after Thanksgiving is Black Friday. Last year the outlets and some other stores in Lancaster decided to open at midnight to begin the shopping early. My mom and my Aunt took part last year and had a blast! Not wanting to miss out on the fun, I decided to give it try this year. I was a little apprenhensive at first because I am usually a pretty early to bed type girl. About half way through I decided.......THIS IS FANTASTIC!!!!

Yes, it was cold and yes there were tons of people but it was so much fun hanging out with my mom and my aunt! It was definitely girl bonding time for the three of us. I am happy to say that we did come away with some pretty awesome deals and I was able to put a dent in my Christmas shopping.

By the time we arrived back at my parent's house about 12:30 the next day, I have to admit that I was pretty beat! But that will not stop me from going out again next year! We have invited my brother's girlfriend to join us and we are looking forward to another great time together!

Our Little Cowgirl

Emma has been learning about cowboys in preschool and it culminated with a day to dress like a cowboy or a cowgirl. Emma was so excited to dress up and go to school. So, with a hat and horse borrowed from her brother she headed to school!

She is was just too cute and I couldn't help but share her picture! She really loves going to school and Mrs. Stauffer says that she is really starting to make friends and to open up with the high school kids. Our baby is growing up!

Trick or Treat!

This year was I think the first time that trick or treating with the kids was actually enjoyable! They are both older now and they actually enjoy the event instead of it just being mom and dad dragging them out!

We went back to our old neighborhood to trick or treat because the houses are close together and they have sidewalks. Plus we know that our old neighbors give out good candy! It was nice to see people again and the kids really had a good time!

These are the moments that I want to hold onto because I can see already that they are going to go by way to quickly!!