Egg Hunt

Today our town did Easter Egg hunt through the parks and rec. program.  It was a lot of fun.  The kids had a great time.

Our neighbor girls were there as well, as well as some of the kids friends from school.

There was a pancake breakfast after the hunt, and the Easter bunny was there walking around.

Although Finley and Cainan wanted nothing to do with that guy.  Finley said she knew it wasn't the real Easter Bunny, "so what was the point".

Nice.

It was really cold this morning, but I am glad we did it.  Even Arlington still had fun, even thought she is getting a bit old for an egg hunt.  I was glad to see she wanted to participate.

This afternoon Arlington played with our neighbor, "C" and then we went to run some errands and have dinner out.

Arlington and our neighbors with the bunny

Tomorrow I hit the yard for a few hours and start to get ready for spring planting.  I have an idea in my head, so I want to clear stuff before the things I want to remove get too far along.  There are a lot of leaves that still needs to be removed.  My goal this year is to get the front yard completely the way I want it, and start on the backyard.  We will see how that goes.

Spring.....

Spring has started.  Last week, Mother nature decided to tease us with 80 degree days, and the flowers came out in full bloom.  Then this week, she thought she would get funny again and give us two nights of freezing temps. and throw snow into the forecast.

Very funny M.N., very funny.

Tonight and tomorrow it is supposed to snow.  Of course it is because our town is holding its annual Easter Egg hunt tomorrow morning.   All those cute little Easter dresses under mounds of snow clothes.  How festive.

This weekend is proving to be a busy one in the Pletcher house hold.  Tomorrow is the Easter egg hung and pancake breakfast.  Then Finley has Kumon.  Arlington and I are going to do some shopping in the afternoon for their Easter outfits and a birthday present for a party on Sunday.

Sunday Arlington has a softball clinic to divide the girls into teams for this year.  Then Finley has a birthday party.  Then Finley has a small piano recital.

I don't mind a busy weekend every now and then.  And since the weather is not going to be stellar, it is best to keep the kids busy with different activities.  I am dying to get out into the yard and tend to the plants and decide where my new plants will be going.  I am excited for the flowers to start to bloom, and the trees to get their leaves back.  I am tired of my wardrobe.  The kids are tired of wearing sweaters and long pants.  We want warm weather!  We want sunny days!  We want Mother Nature to make up her mind what season it is.

Thursday

Today ended up being a very fun day.  This morning I had breakfast with my friend Maria and we did some shopping.  We had a great time.  I am glad we got to spend some time together.

This afternoon......okay, this afternoon was not a lot of fun.  I put away laundry, cleaned, and forgot the dogs were outside while I was working and they ventured over to the neighbors.  Luckily I have neighbors that like dogs.  Shaggy is a little stinker.  More on him later.

This evening we went to an event at Arlington's school.  Arlington's school is grades 3-5.  They were doing a students and staff basketball game.  Arlington has been talking about it for weeks, so we went to watch.  They had one kid from each class (not Arlington - she told me they picked someone who actually plays basketball in their class) and then teachers and divided into two teams.  It was a lot of fun and it was PACKED.  We had dinner there too - they had pizza before the game.  I have to say - our town really shows its support for the schools.  Every event we have attended, it has been very well attended.  It is nice to see.

 The game lasted until 7:45.  I am glad I had the kids get their baths before we went because they were pretty tired when we got home.

Tomorrow is Friday.  They are calling for snow this weekend.  Seriously - last week I had to dig out the shorts and it was 80 degrees.  This week, my flowers on the magnolia tree died because it was in the 20's overnight two nights in the row, and hasn't been out of the 50's this week.  Spring is so weird.

Shaggy has been with us for 1 week now.  He is still very cute, and still sleeps a good bit.  But when he is awake, look out.  He has a different personality from Scooby, and we are getting used to it.  He is sweet, but he is ornery.  Scooby never leaves our yard, and if he starts to, we are able to call him back.  Shaggy - no interest in staying in the yard.  He loves our neighbors yard because it has a bird feeder and there are seeds on the ground. 

Shaggy is an eater.  He eats his food and most of Scooby's.  Scooby doesn't eat much - once a day if that.   So if he walks away from the bowl, Shaggy is over eating his food.

We can't leave the water bowl out either.  Shaggy drinks like a fish and then immediately pees on the floor.  He has been much harder to train.  We are getting there.  He is having less and less accidents in the house, but sometimes he can't even make it an hour in the house before he goes to the bathroom.  And - like Scooby - he doesn't go to the door, or sniff around.  He just goes and moves on.  Scooby still doesn't go to the door, but he comes and gives us a nudge if he needs out.

Scooby is trained - he has been through 16 weeks of puppy school and we work with him non-stop.  But he also has a very laid back, "wants to be with us" personality.  Shaggy likes to roam.  He likes to run.  He loves to play.  And he doesn't seem to know his name - especially when we are outside. 

Shaggy is about 5 weeks older than what Scooby was when we got him, so he has some bad habits we are working through.  I see the advantage of getting a puppy as soon as you can. 

The great stuff  - Shaggy and Scooby LOVE each other.  they play CONSTANTLY and have a really great time together.  They lay together and don't like to be without the other.  Scooby adores having a playmate at his beck and call.  That was one of the biggest reasons we got a second dog.  Scooby is relentless when it comes to play, and he needs someone with more energy than we have.  And it has worked.  They play inside and outside for hours.  They play gently - no destruction or problems.  Scooby is very protective of Shaggy and is determined to show him the ropes.  They are going to be best pals.

So - there you have it.  Having two dogs has been the easy part because of how well they get along.  Shaggy is sleeping all night and holding it as well, which is a huge bonus.  But he is a bit tricky to train.  We would like to move on to teaching him to "sit" or come when his name is called, but we need to get him completely trained first.  Thankfully he is only a week away from puppy school.

Closer than you realize

Newsletter number 2

Here is our 2nd quarterly newsletter.  Our copies are at the printer right now, so hard copies will be coming out soon, but in the mean time - enjoy reading on the blog!  We have several new families, and this month we asked the kids (who wanted to) to draw their self portrait.

Enjoy!

Catching up

Okay - back on track we go.  We had a great weekend,so it is time for a wrap up.

 Apparently I missed a few bulbs when we replanted the front yard

This weekend, Mat's parents were here.  It was nice to see them.  They came to help us while Mat and I went to a dinner dance on Long Island.

 How cute is their logo for their little girl?

We had a great time at the dinner dance.  It was done by one of our RDH12 families - the Fiores.  This is the 2nd year they have done the dinner dance, and it was another huge success.  It raised $23,500 for our foundation.  Yes - you read that right.  Isn't that number amazing?  We are beyond excited about their success.

 Mike, Maria (Fiore) with Mat and I.  (Yes she is that beautiful.  Yes she is tall)

This year, Mat and I went to join in the fun, and I am so glad we did.  Not only are the Fiores a fantastic family, but all of their family and friends are amazing as well.  We met a lot of wonderful people and had a chance to see how far our RDH12 Foundation is reaching.  We got to stand in front of the group with Maria and Mike and tell that group of people how grateful we are.

 The food was great, the baskets were outstanding, and we met some really great people. The next morning we had a delicious breakfast at Maria and Mike's house before heading home.  We promise to attend this event each year.  I am so glad we are close enough that we can get together.

 

Look at these baskets!!

The kids had a great time with their grandparents while we were gone - getting to go bowling and to McDonalds, and just have undivided attention for two days.  We were sad to see them go this weekend, and are looking forward to seeing them again soon.

 I want to give a great big thank you to my sister in law's school for doing a dress down day for Finley.  Tricia is a powerhouse when it comes to fundraising for Finley, and it has rubbed off on her incredible school.  They raised $200 on a dress down day, and we are so grateful for that wonderful donation.  The kids there have really taken to Finley and our cause, and - like many other teenagers we have met along this journey - have shown me the good side of kids that age.  You hear so much about the bad, but I have seen the exact opposite in these last three years.  We have seen nothing but compassion, willingness to help, and lack of selfishness from this age group, that I KNOW the good will always outweigh the bad.

There is a group at Tricia's school called the Interact Club that wants to do a pancake breakfast for Finley and our foundation on June 2nd.  We are really excited and hope to be able to work it out so that we can attend.  They have a lot of great things planned, so if you are in the New Brighton area, hopefully you can stop by.  Once we get closer and get more details, I will share.

We are still busy working on our 5K/10K that is coming up on August 25th in Connellsville.  Have you put it on your calendar?  Do it right now.  Online registration is set up.  We will be sending out registration forms in the mail in May, but if you want to pay by credit card, or get ahead, you can go to:

RACE REGISTRATION CLICK HERE

  Please note - credit card payments will have an extra "tax" type charge to offset the credit card use.  But you can also register online, print out the form, and mail it in with your check.  OR - you can just sit back and relax and wait for the registration to come in the mail.  Many choices, one great event.  You don't want to miss it.

Also - our website for the 5K/10K will continue to be updated as we get closer to the event.  Make sure you bookmark it and check it often.  It also will link you to the online registration site of you want to use it.

http://finleys5k10k.blogspot.com/

Okay - I am all caught up on the blog, but I am not caught up on sleep.  This past week with Finley's big appointment, getting a new puppy, making a big weekend trip, and then starting back into a full week, we are getting less sleep than we need to function.  Time for bed.

Quiet weekend

Mat's parents are in visiting tonight and Mat and I are leaving tomorrow to attend a Dinner Dance in New York hosted by one of our other RDH12 families -the Fiores.  So I am signing off of the blog until Sunday night.

Lacrosse

Arlington has started playing lacrosse.  This year they actually have uniforms and play real games, so this should be interesting.

She is really liking it.  With two practices a week until the season starts, hopefully that will give her the skills she needs to start playing a game.  Lacrosse rules are really complicated.

I am glad she wanted to play again this year. 

I took Finley, Cainan, and Shaggy along with me to the lacrosse practice.  Scooby stayed behind for some peace and quiet.  He was at the groomers today, and they shaved him down because it is getting so hot.  He needed to rest from the tragedy.

 Mat was at a late meeting at the Connecticut Pfizer site, so I had to take the gang with me.

The littles were really good.  The played a game with Arlington's lacrosse ball the whole hour.

And a little girl from Cainan's class was there watching her sister, so she came over to play with them.  They had a great time, and were dirty and tired by the time we left.

On the way home, Cainan and Finley were having a conversation about who their best friends were in class.  Cainan has a couple little boys he loves to play with - same names I hear every day.  Then he said to Finley, "but my very best, best, best friend is 'A'".  I looked at him - I have never heard this "A" name before.  And it was a girl name.  So I asked him about her.  He said they play together on the playground, but not in class.  I asked him how that made her his best friend above the two boys?  He said, and I quote, "because she is a pretty".

Okay then.

It gets better.  He also said, "I like when she wears her hair down and it sits on her shoulders.  And she likes my hair longer, so I won't be needing that haircut."

I died right there.

Shaggy and other news

Today we picked up our new puppy, Shaggy.

 He is, of course, very cute.  He is about 10 pounds.  He is 12 weeks old today.  Birthday is January 4th.  Dad is a white poodle, and mom is a pure English Golden.

 He and Scooby are identical in color.  They have the same dad, but different moms.

He looks like he might be a little smaller than Scooby when he is full grown, but it is hard to tell.  He is fatter than Scooby was at this age.  He likes to eat.  And drink.  Which causes him to pee every 15 minutes.

He has already gotten the nickname fatso.

We came home and it was as if the neighborhood kids could smell that cute puppy smell.  We had all the kids over to play with Shaggy and Scooby.  It was a beautiful day outside, so I am glad they were all out there.  Shaggy did well - doesn't seem to be shy at all.  He is calm, and quiet, but followed us and Scooby around all day.

This evening he and Scooby are playing quite a bit.  And we found them sitting together too.  I think they are going to be good buddies.  Scooby seems to really like him.  Scooby spends quite a bit of time with other dogs, and will play with anyone.  He can be beyond tired, but will keep going if there is another dog to play with.

Such is the case with Shaggy.  Neither one of them has laid down for more than 10 minutes tonight.  That puppy has to be tired, but he just keeps playing with Scooby.

We gave him a bath, because as you know, I don't like dog smell.  He is now smelling much better.  Welcome to the family, Shaggy.  You will get a bath every week.  More often if you discover mud.

--------------------------------------------

In other news, Arlington had an amazing report card.  She got almost all "Exceeds" across the board with a few "Mastered".  And she has improved her organization/neatness grade which was huge.  She got a special treat for that.  Amazing report card, we were really proud.

Lacrosse practice has started this week for Arlington.  She will have Lacrosse practice twice a week for an hour.  She is already enjoying it.  They have enough girls to make two teams, so a great turnout.  Softball and Tee-ball will be starting soon as well.  Spring gets crazy.

We have been enjoying the gorgeous record breaking heat this week.

  The kids are so happy to be outside.  Flowers are popping up all over, and the beginnings of our perennials are peeking through the ground.  I am anxious to see what flowers survived my big transplant last year.

 Cainan is still enjoying his lego class.  They have been building some pretty cool things in there, and he talks non-stop about it.  I am glad he is having fun.

 I think that catches us up.  Tomorrow, Scooby has a hair cut appointment and Shaggy is going to the vet for his first appointment.  Tomorrow night, Arlington has lacrosse practice.  We don't have a single free evening now during the week.  Yay.............