Here is what you missed...
Joe FINALLY received his Masters of Arts in Organizational Leadership! We are all so proud of all he has accomplished, but are so happy he will not be busy with school work anymore! Christmas came and went so fast! We had a wonderful time watching the boys open their gifts and seeing the joy on their faces. A.J. is starting to understand more and more every year what Christmas is really about and that just warms my heart. We spent most of the winter inside and I am a big baby and don't like getting cold and wet in the snow. The boys did manage to get out for a few sledding expeditions and had blast. Easter was really fun, we went to my step-sister Rachel's place for the day and the kids had a blast on the 4 wheelers and trampoline. She hid something like 500 eggs, so there were plenty to go around. We had a wonderful meal and just enjoyed every one's company. A.J. had his birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese and it was a hit. We could hardly get him to leave. And our nephew Gage, enjoyed it some much that when asked how old he was he would say, "3 at Chuck E. Cheese." Needless to say, my sister held his party there too!
John turned 2 on May 31st and is talking up a storm and running, running (his phrase) everywhere. And we learned a week ago that he can count to 10 and knows about half of the ABC song! We signed him up for "preschool" or Terrific Two's as the school calls it for the fall. He will go every Monday for 2 1/2 hours. He keeps busy chasing his big brother around and "bullying" him out of his toys (he is lucky his big brother is such a softy). He hasn't really shown any serious interest in anything in particular, but he does like diggers and dinosaurs just like another little boy in this family! His passion is being outside or in the water! He could spend HOURS in the bathtub and enjoys the pool immensely. We were so glad when spring arrived early so we could get outside and play. We had his 2nd Birthday party this last weekend and it was a success (despite some crummy weather). He is an amazing little boy, but he definitely challenges me, but maybe he just seems more challenging because A.J. was so easy. But he brings a smile to my face and makes me laugh every day!! The last two years has just flown by and I cannot imagine my life with out this spirited little boy!
A.J. turned 5 on April 7th which means this fall I will have a kindergartner! He is signed up at a local elementary school, Centerpoint and we could not be more excited about it. It looks like a wonderful school and we think he will do really well there. He is also signed up for camp at LADC, his preschool, for a couple of weeks this summer. One of this themes is Rocks and Fossils and he is very excited about it. He has become obsessed with everything dinosaur lately and knows more about them then I thought humanly possible. He still loves his diggers and trains, but I love that he has become more interested in something else. His preschool graduation was last week and I am so sad that chapter in his life is done. He is just growing up way too fast and it's been hard "letting" him. Where has the last 5 years gone, it feels like only yesterday I was meeting this tiny little miracle for the first time. He still amazes me everyday with the amount of knowledge he has. He is one of the sweetest kids I know and I feel so blessed to have been given the gift of raising him!
Joe ran his first marathon in May after a few years break. He ran the Green Bay marathon and was shooting for a time under 4 hours. Well, he came in at 3 hours and 56 minutes, so he was very happy with that. Grammy and Pa Schmitt came with us and we had a wonderful long weekend away. He is set to do several (I think 7 at last count) triathlons this year. He really got the bug last year and just loves them. He is even competing in a half Ironman, his goal being to do a full Ironman before he is 40! He also talked his wife into competing in a relay tri with him this year, EEK! I used to swim in high school, but haven't been "in the water" for many years. So, I am starting my training next week and then I will swim the tri and he will bike and run it. It will be fun to compete in something together, although we are not looking to win any medals, just have a good time together!
We have our annual trip to the cabin with my family planned for the week of the 4th and we are really looking forward to spending time with them all! We have a few small trips to Rochester planned to spend time with the Mike and Jessica and A.J.'s best buddy Benjamin. Otherwise, not many other trips planned, Joe's tri schedule will keep us fairly busy. Although Joe and I are going to sneak away in August to Chicago to see Jimmy Buffet! We are both really big fans and have even turned A.J. into one too! He is really disappointed he cannot go, so we promised we would take him next year. Auntie Jessica, Uncle Mike and Benjamin will be taking the boys for us that weekend, so they get a little mini-vacation of their own. We are just really enjoying this beautiful weather and are very excited about summer.
We also received some very exciting news in the last couple of months! Jess and Jake are expecting a new bundle of joy around September 16th and Mike and Jessica are expecting the first Schmitt girl around September 25th! We are so happy for them all and cannot wait to meet the new little ones!
I will try and update more often (I know I say that every time) so that you don't miss too much along the way! We hope you all are safe and happy!
Here are a few pictures from the last 6 months. I will try and update our pictures site soon.
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