Catching Up.

The Rundown...
Michaela... is adjusting beautifully to 4th grade... started her viola lessons at school and will have a concert in January... is still brimming with energy but is pretty pooped by the end of the day... shocked us by scoring higher on her math standardized tests than language arts... is super excited for her birthday on Friday... is adored by her brother and sister... started back with her girl scout troop and is happy to be with her old friends... had an impromptu movie night here with three girls from our street last weekend... is learning, through trial and error, the unwritten rules of sitting in the back of the bus... was called a "fashionista" by her teacher on Open House night... loves playing offense on her soccer team... is learning alot about time management, organization, and homework this year... still tries to work us over whenever she can... is just as sweet and good natured and Tiggerific as ever.

Jenna... has fully embraced going to school after a few weeks of crying in the morning... loves her teacher Mrs. Crawley... is starting to correct herself- Hurray!- when she replaces a "k" with a "t"... is back playing soccer and has only asked me once to quit... sings the same "days of the week" song that Michaela learned in Kindergarten... came home with optional homework yesterday and took it very seriously... loves going to art, music, library and PE at school... is totally wiped out by about 8:15pm, a full hour earlier than she went to bed over the summer... has made new friends at school: Skye, Hallie and Elle... has a Gianna, a Jenna, a Gemma and two Emmas in her class- that poor teacher!... enjoys riding the bus and sitting with friends... was nervous about going to Sunday School, because she has a husband and wife teaching team, and the man has a mustache and she told me quite earnestly that " mustaches are tind of treepy"... is just as loving and gentle as ever.

Alec... has now popped his fourth tooth... almost didn't live to see his fourth tooth come in- he was so miserable!... is standing up and creeping around furniture... got his first pair of big boy shoes yesterday... is not enjoying wearing long sleeves and socks... gets into a LOT of things around the house, but is never destructive... is tired of hearing me say, "Your sisters never DID that!"... knocked himself backwards in a chair, pulled down a dresser, and climbed on top of our sofa table... is getting more adventurous in his eating... is done with formula and loves his milk... still hates his bath... loves throwing balls and hearing music... clicks his tongue to get the cat's attention... loves to point and laugh... is easily manipulated by the offer of cheese puffs... is as sweet and handsome as ever.

Dan... is almost done wearing the brace on his knee... goes to PT a few times a week for a few more weeks... has had a great recovery from his surgery... is planning an all-guy road trip to see a Penn State game with some friends... is happy at work... is excited to watch the Yankees playoff series... is back to taking care of Alec at night for me on Fridays. Amen.

Cheryl... is totally overwhelmed by the schedule of two kids playing soccer, church choir, Girl Scouts, church, a teething infant, an injured husband and life... is trying, with limited success, to instill a fairly structured schedule after school... is attending a Wednesday morning Bible study at church and loves it... is thrilled that she no longer has any children under 1 year old- and never will again... keeps going down to the basement to grab warm clothes and has yet to put the summer stuff in her closet away... dropped out of the library Storytime on Tuesdays because the leader irritated her and it was right in the middle of Alec's morning nap... is planning a long weekend ALONE in Chicago with her brother and his family in November- the first time away from the kids except when birthing more kids... looks forward to Sundays because of Mad Men... (and, of course, church)... is so tired from waking up all hours of the night with Alec that when he sleeps until 4am, she actually wakes up feeling refreshed... is totally useless after 9pm. Totally.