How time flies

Holy cow, it is January 2012 and my kids will be 5 in 43 days~it can't be so!!!  I remember when they were born and just learning to walk and talk~now I can't get a word in or keep up with them. 
We had an amazing Christmas!!!  We celebrated several times with family, friends, school and church.  Max got to be Joseph in their school production and Calli got to be one of the singers (which she did wonderful at~knew every single word!) 

Calli had her first dance recital which she was a little reluctant to do, but she did it and is wanting to continue to dance.  I love that she has finally found something that she likes instead of just doing whatever Max wants to do!  She loves her teacher and is meeting new friends in her class.  It is adorable watching them:)

Max "graduated" from physical therapy:)  He has been working on increasing his strength in his legs and core (which we could all use a little work on after the holiday).  Anyway, he continues to work on his strength, but is doing a little better with his running.  He is playing basketball now (which is hilarious).  He really loves it and is learning a lot about the game and how to play it.  He dribbles the ball ALL THE TIME, so he is definately improving in that area!  He did shoot the ball 3 times last game, unfortunately no basket:( 
So, we are finally back into our routine and now focusing on planning their birthday, again, I can't believe my babies are going to be 5!

A month later...

About a month has past~wow, how time flies!  Halloween was great!  Max was Spiderman and he teamed up with a neighbor and RAN to every house on our street.  Calli was dressed as Cinderella and paired up with a neighbor and pranced around to about 10 houses total.  The difference in the two are amazing~sometimes I wonder if they are even related:)
Anyway, Calli is still dancing and doing so well.  She is now in the next level up and really learning some challenging steps.  Max has started basketball and he LOVES it.  He is really starting to pay attention to a real game too.  We got to go to the UL mens basketball game yesterday and he watched the entire first half very intently. 
We are talking a lot about being Thankful lately.  Tonight Calli said "thank you God for my mommy, daddy, brother, school and friends"~love her sweet heart!  Max said "thank you God for my  mommy, daddy, sister, brother" I reminded him that he didn't have a brother and he quickly said "uh huh, Logan" which is his monkey stuffed animal:)  Anyway, he also said "and thank you for my city so I don't have to sleep on the ground and I have a house".  Obviously we are trying to discuss larger issues in this world~which I am trying to learn about too.  Tonight our discussion was about Haiti and they were both so interested in the idea that we know someone visiting there right now.  Anyway, it is a learning experience for all of us.
On a lighter note, the other day Max was getting his hair fixed (ie~mohawk) and he said "look at all this grey in my hair".  He is a trip!
Lately, Calli has been talking about becoming a "animal doctor" when she gets older:)  It's so cool to listen to them dream and think about what they are excited about.
Of course Christmas is coming up, which the kids think Santa is bringing them EVERYTHING.  Hopefully we can continue our discussion of thankfullness and appreciate the things we have!  We are putting together some items in a shoebox to mail to a child in another country.  Hopefully we are able to track it to see where it lands~we'll see!
So with all that said, we are great and trying every day to be THANKFUL for all that we  have!!!

Staying busy!

Well, we made it though our tball season, or as Max would quickly correct me "Baseball season".  I still didn't get any pictures, but it was a great experience!  Max has started physical therapy to address an "awkward running gait".  He is working really hard at building strength in his legs and stomach.  He does great with his physical therapist~sometimes he has a little too much fun though:)
Calli is still dancing and is getting ready to move up to the next level.  She is really excited about going each week~I hope it continues as the difficulty increases. 
They are going to school 3 days a week and really loving it.  They have started going to computer class on Fridays~which Max LOVES.  Calli is more interested in the music class that they go to on Wednesdays.  She won't sing the songs for us when we ask, but when she is playing she sings a variety of songs about Jesus and how to spell colors:)  Speaking of singing, the kids have become very familiar with the top hits on the radio as my CD player is currently broken.  Their favorite songs are "Moves like Jagger" by Maroon 5, "Super Bass" by Nicki Manaj and "Last Friday Night" by Katie Perry.  I can't say that I approve of the lyrics or the lyrics that they think are correct, but it beats hearing screaming and fighting!!!  The other day at school, Max was laying down for naptime and was being disruptive.  His teacher told me she walked over to him to ask him to be quiet and she realized he was singing "moves like Jagger".  She had to quickly turn away to keep from laughing before she asked him to be quiet.  It seems like every week we get some kind of "Max story" home from school.  They find him to be "full of personality".  He also learned how to snap this week which he thinks is SO COOL. 
Calli has been mostly into pretend play.  She is often a vet taking care of her cat or dogwho is either having a party or has a boo boo and needs attention.  She is also often playing with her babies, taking them to school or on a field trip.  She has joined Max in his love for wrestling and has earned the name "pretty girl".  Craig wrestles with them for about 15 minutes every night on our bed.  Luckily, no major injuries have occurred~knock on wood!!!
They are dressing up as Spiderman and Cinderella for Halloween. I am learning to sew and made a treat bag for Calli.  It turned out really well~at least for my first project.
We also visited the Zoo last week.  It was a great day!  It was cool outside so the animals were active.  Also, the decorations for the Halloween Party were up, so the kids were even more entertained.

I love this pic~this is how a giraffe has to stand to get a drink.  We also learned that his tongue is as long as the kids arm~They thought that was AWESOME!

These pictures are from a farm that we went to last weekend.  It was another great day~animals to feed, hay mazes, pumpkin bowling, horse rides, hay rides and of course snacks!!!

Oh, and I almost forgot.  We weighed the kids the other day.  Max weighs 51 lb and Calli 37.6!  No wonder I can't pick him up anymore:(

Fall is here!

So Max has started t-ball, but unfortunately I don't have any pictures yet.  Craig is coaching and I am the "helper", so I haven't had a lot of down time to take pictures during the game.  Managing a dugout full of 12 four year olds is INTERESTING!!!  Max is doing great though.  This is actually coach pitch, which means you get 3 pitches to hit and if you don't hit then you use the tee.  So far he has only needed the tee one time.  He is very motivated about not using the tee:)  He still has the infamous Max run, which has now become a source of entertainment for the teachers at school.  They tell me he is the highlight of the recess time.  Oddly enough, Craig and I have been informed that his run may be due to weakness.  He did have a weird injury a year or two ago, but an x-ray revealed no broken bones so it was ignored.  Now, I am starting to wonder if his run is due to compensation from that injury.  I am going to try to arange a PT eval soon, so hopefully we can work out some kinks on good o Max's run:)))
Calli is still dancing and is doing a great job!!!  She LOVES her teacher and listens very well in class.  One day she got a "great listener" sticker, which has been the highlight of her dance "career".  I am trying to prepare her for a recital in December.  Anyone that knows Calli knows that she is very shy, so I want her to be fully informed that she is expected to dance in front of people.  We will see how that goes!
School is going great!  Both kids love their teachers.  They are learning songs to remember how to spell color words, which is sometimes a topic of arguement in the car.  It seems that different teachers teach different lyrics, OR my kids are just thinking they do.  So there is often a discussion about how you are supposed to sing the songs.  Max has gotten to be the "Star Student" during the month of September.  He has enjoyed being the helper for the teaching including vacuuming the classroom (I wonder if I can create a star student at home that can learn how to vacuum?) 
They have both started participating in the children's choir at their school AND we are doing Sunday school at St. Gabriel (which I am teaching as well). 
So to wrap it up we have been really busy lately!!!!

So now that Fall is here, we went to a farm in Shelbyville to pick pumpkins.  It turned out to be a great day!  We enjoyed a hayride to the pumpkin patch, face painting, climbing on hay bails and of course snacks.  Here are a few pics....

One more busy week!

Max and Calli started 4 year old preschool this past week.  They are in different classes and both love their teachers!  I am excited to hear about all of the things they are going to learn and do this year!

First day of school

Calli and Boo at dance class

Max and Calli got to visit the Halloween store with Boo while we were at the rehearsal dinner.  They thought it was so cool and a little bit scary.  This is how Max greeted me the next morning~he thought he was so scary!

Craig was in a friend's wedding and Max and Calli got to go (which may have been the first actual mass that they attended).  Max thought it was "unfair" that he didn't get to go on the alter with Craig.  He also asked if "daddy was going to marry that girl" (the girl he walked down the aisle).  At the reception, Max danced his shoes off with an 11 year old that he thought was so cool.  Calli had a blast too, mostly because she caught the boquet (thanks to a friend's daughter). 

Then we went to an MS fundraiser where we won a toy basket full of stuff!  Max said we would win it and low and behold we did!  It has been a great source of entertainment since then.

We have another busy week with tball starting (2 rain outs last week) and another wedding this weekend.  More to come.....

Labor Day weekend

Max and Calli at the Aquarium

We just returned from a very fun filled weekend at Pigeon Forge.  We went with a friend Kristi and her husband Wade and two girls (Annie Lynn and Kendle).  We had a great time!  We stayed in a cabin that had an awesome view of the mountains and a few attractions for the kids (hot tub and pool table).  We visited the town for go-carts, bumper boats, putt putt, rides and of course good food. Those kids sure are full of energy!!! 

We also got to go up to Gatlinburg to go to the Aquarium.  Max was initially a little scared as he thought the sharks could "get him", but once he had confidence in the glass, he was all for it!  This was our first trip to an aquarium, so it was a cool experience for all of us!!! 

We had a small malfunction with the storm that came through (lost power for about an hour), but thankfully the power returned and we didn't have to "rough it".  It was a great weekend~love making memories with our family and friends!

Max took this picture of us at the Aquarium

 Hot tub fun!!!

 Racing go-carts

 Fun boat ride

 Who needs a ride when you have a fun daddy?

 This ball landed on the top of this hill~he thought he had skills!

WOW, what a week!

We haven't started back to school yet (their preschool starts after Labor Day), but we have had one very eventful week!!!  Calli started Dance this week at All About Kids.  It is a mix of ballet and tap.  She did awesome!!!  This is the first thing, aside from school, that she has done without Max.  She went right into the class and participated very well.  She is very excited about wearing her outfit and shoes (as is Max, but he only wears the shoes). 

We also got to go to the zoo this week.  Max insisted on wearing his new cape and mask, and I didn't feel like arguing.  We had to stop at Dillards for Craig, and everyone that saw him told him how awesome he was (like he needed the ego boost:).  Anyway, the zoo was hot and short lived, looking forward to the weather cooling down just a little so we can do some more outdoor activities.

So, another event we have coming up is Danny and Bethany's wedding.  Craig is in the wedding, so of course he will be a little more dressed up than usual, so I took it as an opportunity to get a family picture with us all dressed up.  I found this suit for Max and he initially resisted wearing it, but then when he saw how handsome he was, he starting doing all kinds of different poses~HA!  Calli has a cute dress that has a matching doll dress~which she is soooo into right now:)

And last but not least, we went to the fair today (our Hanke tradition).  It turned out to be a great day!  A little hot when we watched the dog show, but other than that pretty good.  We all ate junk and the kids had a ball.  Chloe and Calli were inseperable as well as Max and Will.  The hit of the day was a free bouncy foam ball~go figure.  I was excited to buy a template to make hairbows for Calli~I am sure Craig was thrilled too since he already thinks her hairbow collection is rediculous.  Anyway, here a few pics from our day at the fair...