Last Monday, Grandma Margie took the kids shopping for the school clothes they'll need in the fall. Aidan got some jeans, shirts, and a lightweight jacket. Esme got a dress and a couple of outfits as most of her clothes still fit. Both kids were treated to three pairs of shoes - dress shoes, tennis shoes for everyday wear, and the required white-sole no-street-use gym shoes for school. Thank you so much, Grandma.
On Tuesday, we were treated to a visit at our house by Aunts Wanda and Juanita, our cousin Geraldine, and my parents. We had a terrific chat, lunch at Red Robin, and a bit of a drive in Grand Rapids so the aunties could see the house where they visited their grandpa in the fifties. It was super great to have them here, and we hope we can do it again sometime soon.
Aidan and Esme had their eight- and five-year checkups last Wednesday. They have really grown!
Aidan , at age eight years and five days, weighed 64.4 pounds (75th percentile) and measured 51 inches (55th percentile). When he heard his height, he jumped up and said "I'm tall enough for go-karts!!!" He has been waiting for that milestone for a long time, apparently...at Craig's Cruisers you have to be 51" tall to drive the full-size go-karts. Not that his parents are that keen on letting him do that, but he is probably a better driver than most of the teens that drive at Craig's. The thing is, they're on the track, too.
Esme, at age four years, ten months and twenty-three days, weighed 45 pounds (80th percentile) and measured 43 1/4 inches (75th percentile). Esme had to have her checkup a little early because she had to have vaccinations before kindergarten this fall, and her birthday is only two days before school begins. She grew three whole inches in less than a year! She had DTap, IPV, MMR and Varivax vaccines and threw a big fit. Four shots at once, though, is a lot. She calmed down pretty quick, though.
After the checkups, Esme and I got haircuts - and Esme's is shorter than it has been since she was a baby! She looks really cute and a lot cooler.
We spent Wednesday afternoon and all day Thursday with Mom and Dad, trying to help get things arranged and put away. They suddenly have two houses' worth of stuff in one house, and it wasn't pretty. We got the laundry room, living room and dining room straightened out for the most part, and worked a lot on the kitchen. Hopefully they find it more liveable now while they work on all the renovation and stuff they've got planned.
For those following Doctor Who, last night was a big night! The Doctor and Donna were joined not only by Martha and Rose, but also by the remaining cast of Torchwood (Captain Jack, Gwen and Ianto - don't forget Owen and Toshiko are dead), along with Sarah Jane and Luke of The Sarah Jane Adventures. And you'll never guess which enemy has returned...the Daleks. For Pete's sake, how many times does one bunch of robots have to be vanquished???
Today we found three (count 'em, three!) geocaches, one of them a three-stage cache in John Ball Park. Then we went to the zoo for a bit - the boys did the zipline three times, the sneaks! Esme is tall enough now for the zipline but doesn't weigh enough so the two of us visited the stingrays and then sat on a rock to watch our boys scoot across on the zipline.
Aidan and Jim have gone out to see Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Crystal Skull, Esme's in bed asleep, and I'm working through my large pile of paperwork I've been neglecting all week.