Nice

Reed has logged some time 'customizing' Tod's Waze navigation app. He changed the 'child reminder' to this. Such a nice big brother.

One year meat-free

Just looked back at our photos and confirmed it's been over a year since Amy decided to be a vegetarian (I didn't take a pic to mark the occasion, I just remember it was the day of Stevie and Nikki's wedding shower!). Only a little surprised that she's stuck with it, even when I've made the things she used to love best. Still haven't gotten her to branch out and REALLY eat more vegetables and fruit, still struggling with all the fake meat and carb-y meals. But hopefully that'll change at some point.

Summer of baking

In keeping with his love of snacks, and in combination with his boredom level, Reed is doing a lot of baking this summer. He makes cookies or brownies at least once a week. And he doesn't want to make things from mixes because that's "less fun." I'd say he bakes in equal part because he wants a treat, and because he needs things to fill the day. It's hard work doing nothing all summer. :)

The best part is that he also cleans up after himself. I get cookies and a clean kitchen - win/win!

No more braces!

Amy finally got her braces off for good! She got her first set in 2014 (look how young she looks in that 'before' picture!) and the second set came off this past Monday. She's got a retainer to wear mostly full-time for a month, then just at night. The biggest difference, I think, is how her back bottom teeth fit with the uppers. Looking great! Now just to keep them clean and shiny!

Snack time

Yesterday Reed asked me "Can you get some more varied snacks for us?" I asked what he meant. He said "Some non-grain-based snacks." Well okay then. Of course I asked for specific ideas and he didn't really have any (helpful!). But the way he put it just made me laugh – non-grain-based snacks. This from the kid who, several times a day, can be found with a box of Wheat Thins, or a bag of chips, or a bag of pretzels, or a bag of Goldfish.

Another one in the books

Somehow the school year has ended. Both kids had awesome years - Amy got straight A's all year long, and Reed had a couple of quarters of Latin II where he had B's, so he ended the year with all A's except a B in Latin II. Pretty impressive! Amy made lots of new friends in middle school and Reed still has his same gang of pals - they're both happy kids and we're very proud of them.

Now on to lots of summer camps for Amy, and a whole lot of nothing for Reed (well, other than chores).

We'll have a high schooler in the fall!

8th grade dinner and dance!

Heading into 8th grade, we knew the school year would culminate in a dinner/dance. We also knew Reed wouldn't want to go. So I'd mention it from time to time, and tell him that he would indeed be going. Just to give him a heads up. As it got closer, we told him that we were sticking with this and he would be going...and he'd have fun too. I checked with his buddies' moms and learned that at least two of them were also being forced to go, so we were in good company. Some boys go all out and wear jackets and bow ties...some are more casual. We thought somewhere in the middle was very much good enough for someone who was being forced to go. So I got him some nice gray pants and a button-up shirt. Tod handed him down some old Vans that he doesn't wear much. Perfect.

Two thumbs up, ready for the dance!

One of the other parents took this shot at the dance.

We drove his friend Robbie to the dance too so he wouldn't have to arrive by himself (awkward!). During the dance, the school's fire alarm system continued its recent habit of malfunctioning and they had to evacuate twice. Reed would never say that he had a good time, but he did. I asked if he'd danced, and he said "no one really danced...we all just jumped up and down" - so I'll go ahead and say he danced. Robbie and Reed were both very happy at the end, so I consider the night a fantastic success.

Oh and while I'm thinking of it, the other day Reed noticed he could pull his hair into a ponytail (it's long!). I told him "I just don't want to see you with a man bun." So of course he announced it'd be his summer project to be able to do a man bun. Let's hope he was joking.