6th Grade School Pictures

Here they are... 6th grade! They are wearing the Hawaiian shirts from the first day of school, a tradition for 6th graders started a few years back! :) 

Softball game

We wrapped up our Monday with a softball game at O'Neill. It was chilly! Avery and I took Milo so he could hang out with Rosie. At first, Rosie wasn't so sure about Milo (he is a little crazy!) But, she warmed up to him and they even played together a bit.

We went with the orange/black bubble pony for today's game.

The cutest cheering section!

Morgan pitched an inning and did pretty well. She struck out two people, walked three people and only allowed 3 runs to get in. Considering this is her first year playing and pitching, she's picking it up pretty fast.

The team lost 12-19. It was only their second loss of the season. We're getting towards the end of the season. There is one more regular season game and then the playoffs. We'll miss the last regular season game because it conflicts with a soccer game this Saturday.

Orthodontist check-up

Our next appointment on our day off was to the orthodontist. Both girls got pictures and x-rays taken and then we talked with Dr. Neal about next steps. The girls always get a kick out of looking at their pictures throughout the years we've been going to the orthodontist.

Avery still has six baby teeth to lose! So, she's got at least another year before getting full braces. She already had an expander and the first round of braces. They basically gave her an overbite to make space for all of her teeth to come in. So, she has to deal with the big overbite for another year. I don't think she loves that, but I think she's a little happy to not have to get braces yet. I told her the sooner you get them, the sooner you get them off!

Morgan has lost all of her baby teeth and her permanent teeth are in. So, she's ready to start the process. She hasn't had any work done yet since her mouth was already wide enough for her teeth to come in. She has a small overbite, but her teeth came in pretty straight. She's going to start out with the new version of headgear, which is basically a bar in your mouth on the top that connects to a brace on the bottom by a rubber band to move the teeth back. She'll wear that for 3-6 months, then get full braces. She should be all done within two years, so hopefully before high school starts.

12 year old check up

Since we had Monday off of school, we booked a bunch of appointments for the girls, starting with their annual check-up with the pediatrician. They dread this appointment every year because they hate having blood taken and getting shots.

Both girls are healthy and growing like weeds! Morgan is almost 5'4' and Avery is almost 5'1". They are trending toward being 5'10" and 5'8", respectively. We'll see how it ends up!

Here they are after getting their fingers pricked, holding their hands above their hearts to stop the throbbing. Ha! I said you don't have to hold them up SO high, but whatever.

We do the appointments at the same time, so everything is one right after the other. The nurse who did all the initial work ups says to me "man, they really feed off of each other's energy!" I think they were pretty amped up about the appointment and just going back and forth talking non-stop to each other and me and her! It was a lot if you aren't used to them. Ha!

We got into the room with the doctor and she went through the standard checks. They each had to get two shots. They survived! The doctor asked them if they got along and they both answered "NO" without skipping a beat. Typical. One day, I hope they will say "YES!"

The doctor said they both were healthy. She said Avery needs to eat more vegetables. No surprise there. I don't think there is a vegetable she likes. Morgan will eat most foods, at least once!

The end of an era?

Do you notice what's missing???

Yep, that's right. Our playset is gone! It's moved on to it's next home in our neighbor's backyard. They just had a baby boy and said they would love to have it. Matt and another neighbor helped him get it to his backyard, which is literally just over the fence. We did move the largest piece over the fence, but the rest was just carried around. It took a few hours to move and they finished up in the dark.

I'm not sure who missed who more!

Milo is always super clingy coming home after a few days at boarding. The girls also miss him when we're away! There are lots of cuddles!

Soccer tournament

Morgan's team had a soccer tournament in Iowa this past weekend. It was at the TBK facility in Bettendorf, which is really nice! We stayed at the Cambria Hotel, which is right across the street from the sports complex. Around the hotel, there were all kinds of bar/restaurants/etc so we didn't have to drive anywhere all weekend!

We drove there on Friday night, checked into the hotel and grabbed dinner nearby at Twin Span Brewery. They had gigantic pretzels, so the girls were super happy!

The hotel had a nice bar area and outdoor seating area. The kids hung out for a while, but had a curfew of 9:30 PM. On Saturday, we grabbed breakfast at the hotel and the girls all discussed the hairdo for the game. It was decided they would do bubble pony tails.

The first game was at 9:30 AM. They lost 1-4. I didn't take many pictures of the games. Morgan played goalie the first half and in the field the second half.

There was a company taking pictures at the tournament, so here is one that they took of Morgan playing goalie.

After the first game, we all went back to the hotel. The girls and I grabbed lunch at Subway. Matt went over to Twin Span with some other parents to grab lunch and watch the Iowa game. Then, they ended up at Oscar's watching the game. They had $5 Bloody Mary's and were raffling off prizes at the end of each quarter. After lunch, I dropped the girls at the hotel and met up with them at Oscar's.

You get a raffle ticket for every drink you buy. So, before halftime, the guys decided to buy shots! I did not do one (it was Fireball, so um, no thank you!)

The shots worked, because Drew won the Iowa gloves. At the end of the game, someone in our group won the Iowa blanket and gifted it to Drew!

Then, we headed back to the hotel for the afternoon game. This was the best picture I got. Morgan played goalie in the first half and in the field the second half. Their team won 2-0! :)

Since we weren't far from the hotel, the girls normally walked to the game. But, on the way home they all piled into Clara's car for the ride back!

On Saturday night, the girls played at the Dave & Buster's like arcade, bowled and had dinner. One of the moms had brought s'mores and they made those at the firepit outside of the hotel. I think they may have swam a bit and ran around the hotel together. They got to bed a little later than 9:30!

Sunday morning, we had a game at 8:00 AM... so early! We grabbed a quick bite at the hotel before heading to the field. The girls lost this game 0-4. Morgan got hurt in the first half while playing goalie and ended up sitting out some of the game. She played in the field the second half. They have some good chances, but just couldn't get a goal.

We didn't make it to the championship game, so we were able to get home by lunch time. Everyone relaxed in the afternoon. We picked Milo up from boarding at 6:00. He was really excited to see us.