Congratulations to my brother Chris and his wife Tracey on the birth of their son (the first boy in the family to carry on the name), Julian Grey! Born at 1:29pm and measuring 21 inches and weighing 7 pounds 15 ounces. Mother and baby are doing fine.
It’s hard to believe, but today was Kylie’s first day of second grade! I wasn’t able to get the time off from work to be able to see her off for her first day, but Mommy was able too and she told me all about how sad it was. Well, the event itself wasn’t sad, seeing Kylie go off to another first day of school is actually very exciting and gratifying as a parent, the sad part is watching your child grow up and seeing them need you a little less each day. Let me explain with some back story… Last night Kylie and Mommy were talking about how this morning was going to go when they got to school and how Kylie wanted Mommy to walk up to her new classroom with her to make sure she found it ok. This year Kylie has a new classroom on the second floor of the building, in Mrs. Prince’s class, and she wanted Mommy to help make sure that she found the classroom alright. So this was the plan and Mommy was happy to help her, until they got to school that is, and Kylie changed her mind. When they got there Kylie found a couple of her friends from last year that also have the same teacher as her and so she decided that Mommy didn’t need to help because she and her friends would be fine. This sudden change in plans forced Mommy to realize that Kylie is indeed a year older and growing up, which made her a little sad. Kylie on the other hand had a great first day and is very excited about seeing all of her friends again, having a new teacher with a room on the second floor, and all the new things she is going to learn this year!
Today was Kylie’s yearly back to school check up and the numbers are pretty good. She is 49 inches tall (4 feet 1 inch) which means that over the course of the year she grew 3 inches, though to be honest it seems like she grew much more than that! Additionally she is now 69 pounds which is 16 pounds more than she weighed last year. Thankfully there were no issues with the blood pressure cup this year, and her pressure was 100/58 which the doctor told us is still normal for her age. Everything in general is looking very good and she is all set for the start of second grade!
Today we were finally able to go and have Kylie’s 7 year and family pictures taken. We typically like to have these done closer to her birthday so we have an annual timeline of her, and us, growing up. However this year we had a few issues getting the time lined up with the photographer, mainly because we were hoping to use Tiffany’s friend Sara take the pictures but the timing just wasn’t working. So we went back to Sear’s Portrait Studio and had these lovely pictures taken. I have always been happy with the way their pictures come out, but we were hoping to do some on location shots, these will have to be arranged for later I guess.
Today Melissa and I had what I think was a really neat opportunity to see a piece of history! Columbus’ ships, the Nina and Pinta, or rather historically accurate replicas of them, where docked Downriver in Wyandotte. My first thought when I saw them as we pulled up was that they were really quite beautifully as far as ships went and considering when they were designed. We were able to actually board the ships to look around, and that is when i was shocked to see just how small these ships really are. In Columbus’ time there were no crew quarters with the exception of one very small room for Columbus himself, the rest of the crew all slept on the deck! The hold below would have been used to store all the necessary supplies for the voyage, where as today the hold has been refitted for the crew and some modern conveniences. During the course of our viewing Melissa and I took many pictures, you can see them in their gallery.
Happy 7th birthday Kylie! The time has gone by so fast! It feels like it was only yesterday that we brought you home. You’re growing up too fast Little Bit, slow down some for Mommy and Daddy, please? We love you, whole bunches forever!
Here’s some things that happened this past year:
04/20/2012 – You lost your fourth tooth.
03/30/2012 – First night in your new bed.
03/19/2012 – Daddy broke down and admitted you are growing up and bought you a new bed.
03/16/2012 – Astrological conversations, and a great view.
02/14/2012 – You lost your third tooth.
02/12/2012 – We went to our first Daddy/Daughter dance!
10/12/2011 – Boy troubles get worse.
10/11/2011 – You tasted our first beer.
09/13/2011 – Boy troubles begin earlier than anticipated.
08/09/2011, 08/10/2011, 08/11/2011 – A few days in Chicago
06/24/2011 – Surgery day, tonsils and adenoids removed.
We had Kylie’s 7th Birthday party today and it was a very nice day. Kylie invited over a few of her girlfriends from school and ballet and we had a little cook out at Mommy’s house. The girls were able to play on Kylie’s swing set and swim in the pool before and after cake and presents. Even though the weather was hot, it wasn’t unbearably so, and the fact that we put up a tent canopy for everyone to sit under added a nice bit of shade. It’s hard to believe that in just a few short days Kylie will be 7 years old!
Today was Kylie’s last day of 1st grade! I can’t believe how fast the time is going by. Kylie is now officially a 2nd grader, having past first grade with flying colors. In fact she has done so well this year that she already has a tremendous leap on at least one of next years requirements. By the end of second grade all students must be reading at a level 28, Kylie is already reading at a level 24! There is a real possibility that she could reach level 28 before the next school year depending on how much reading she does over the summer. Mommy and Daddy are very proud of you Kylie!
Tonight Melissa and I took advantage of a Living Social deal I had purchased to go to Firearm Exchange, a gun range in Livonia, and shoot some 9MM hand guns. To say we had a lot of fun would be an understatement! I had only shot a hand gun once before and Melissa had never shot one. The deal included two 9MM gun rentals, 50 rounds of ammunition, two targets, and one hour of range time. After a quick safety course we got to look at a few different guns to see how they felt in our hands and decide if we wanted to rent those particular guns. I chose a Glock 19 because I liked how it felt in my hand, and I am also interested in someday possibly getting a Glock 22, along with my CPL. The Glock 19 was a little too large for Melissa’s hands so she chose an M&P Compact 9MM that fit her hands much better. We were shown how to load the magazines, sling shot the first round, drop the clip, and all basic safety. Then we were shown how to operate the range controls, where to obtain eye and ear protection, and headed into the range. Of the 50 rounds Melissa decided she only wanted to fire 15 so I got to fire off 35. Both of us did very well, better than I think we were expecting. We both decided that this is something we would really like to do again, and it reminded me just how much I want to get a handgun and my CPL.
Today was Kylie’s ballet recital! She did amazing and it is wonderful to see how far she has come over the few years she has been participating in ballet. Her instructor, Mr. Seth, says he is also very proud of her and has had told us on a number of occasions that he was very pleased that we allowed Kylie to move up to the higher level class. She is one of the strongest members of her class and moving her up gave her the added difficulty she needed to stay focused and involved. The recital was a big success and all the classes were fun to watch. After the recital we continued our tradition and went to Stroh’s for some ice cream.Now to start working towards next year’s recital.