My Sweet Seven Year Old, Kacy

Kacy worked so hard this year in swim, and she ended up winning a huge trophy for being the tops points scorer for the 6 and unders for our swim team. She was so proud :)

She wanted pasta for her birthday dinner, and I asked her if she would mind if the waitresses sang happy birthday to her. She said no, and she loved when they all came out and sang!

Kacy at 7 has not changed too much from Kacy at any age! She still says whatever comes to her mind even if it's not exactly appropriate. She still is a very kind friend and helpful in school. She still has a beautiful smile. She still loves to spend time along when she's had enough. She still loves her "set ups" and getting her little areas all ready with her things. A few things that have changed is that she has gotten a little more shy when it comes to making new friends. At swim this year, she had a hard time finding her group, and she just hung out with me most of the meets. She also has gotten picky with the friends that she chooses. She doesn't just hang out with whoever, whenever. I don't think that's too big of a deal, but I wish she would just chill and hang out with who is around.
She loves to pretend and play teacher, gymnastics, photographer, etc...As I type this, she is pretending to be a photographer, and she is telling Brooke how to pose. There are peace signs and cute looks and hands on hips. It's pretty dang cute! She loves when Brooke chooses her to be her "buddy for the day." Yes, Brooke does this on a daily basis this summer...

Birthday questions -
What is your favorite color? Blue
Who is your favorite friend? Marley
What do you want to be when you grow up? A guitar player
What is your favorite food? Pizza
What is your favorite show? Kids Champion Baking show
What do you like to do at home? Spend time with my family
What is your favorite animal? Hippos
What are you good at? Singing
What is your favorite season? Winter
What is your favorite holiday? My birthday
What do you want to be better at? Playing the guitar
What are you most proud of? That I lost my first big tooth
What do you want to do now that you are 7? Go on big slides and do big things!

Happy 7th birthday, my sweet girl! We love you!

La Toretta with Mom

La Toretta has become a summer tradition for us! The girls always have so much fun here, but I think we might need a change next year. It's a lot of fun, but there is also not a ton to do there, so they are kind of over it. We still had a lot of fun this year, though. It's nice because it's so small that the kids can go on the lazy river alone or over to the slides, and we don't all have to go. We all got there around 3pm, and we went straight out to the pool. It was Kacy's 7th birthday, so after we played for a bit, we went out to a pizza and pasta restaurant to celebrate for dinner. After dinner we had some cupcakes and watched some TV in the hotel room. The next day, we went to eat at our favorite breakfast spot and came back to play in the water a little more before we all headed home. Kacy's favorite part is the lazy river, Brooke loved "swimming around" all the pools, and Adilyn's was playing with a friend she met. It was another successful short getaway!

Red, White, and Blue Invitational

Red, White, and Blue was so much more fun this year! Last year, Kacy (and I) were heartbroken when she missed qualifying by like .10 and .05 seconds in both freestyle and backstroke. This year, she not only qualified, but she was in the fastest heats out of about 60 girls for both of those races! I was so proud of how she swam this year, but unfortunately, she was still recovering from being sick, and she did not have her best races at the invitational. She still got 9th and 10th out of the entire group of 6 year olds. Still really, really good - but it was a little disappointing for her not to swim her best times in the biggest meet of the year. We could just tell that she did not have the energy, but she was still really excited to be there! Adilyn swam every stroke, and she was in both the medley and the free relay. Their medley relay didn't have their normal 4 girls, but they still did really well and got 6th overall. Adilyn finished really well with her freestyle! She didn't swim her best time in freestyle, but still had a good race. I think she finished 20th out of about 50 girls. Her backstroke looked so good, until the last couple strokes. Even though she slowed at the end, she still got her best time in both backstroke and breaststroke. She was in the lower time standard for breaststroke, and she ended up getting 7th there. Then came the butterfly. She was in a super slow heat, she was tired after swimming so many other races, she hadn't swam fly in a meet for almost a month, and she didn't want to do it. I told her to just get out there and do it, Cory said something about getting her a fitbit if she swam fast, and we sent her on her way. I was thinking that it was going to be pretty ugly. The gun went off, and something absolutely amazing happened. The girl started swimming this perfect butterfly. She was literally flying! She passed everyone, and she just kept going and going! Literally, when she finished, the other 7 girls were easily 10 meters behind her. We saw her unofficial time of 21.45, and we were blown away!!! Her seed time was 27 something! She ran to her coach, her coach motioned up to us like "what in the world was that?!?!" It was so awesome! I have no idea what happened to her or how in the world that happened. She ended up with the 4th fastest time of all the 8 year olds! She was in the lower time standard, so she got 1st in that group by about 5 seconds! It was so amazing to she her get out there and finally push herself. I have no idea why it came out then, but it was sure fun to watch :)

The girls and I get a little antsy while we are waiting to watch, so here is our selfie montage!

End of Swim Season

Another season of swim as ended, and it was an amazing year! First thing that was great was that we had much better coaches this year. It made the whole season so much more fun with such a better atmosphere! Both girls worked much harder than they had last year, and they made so many improvements in their times and their strokes. I'm never one to boast about my kids' achievements, but I think they deserve it this time. They both figured out how to dive off the blocks without being scared, and they both learned to do breaststroke and butterfly legally. Kacy won 1st place in every freestyle race she swam in except for divisionals. She got 1st - 3rd in each of her backstroke races, and she did really well in butterfly. In divisionals she had the 5th fastest butterfly time in the whole division out of all the 6, 7, and 8 year olds. Adilyn's relays won 1st in every single meet. Adilyn never placed less than 5th in any race during the regular season. She was seeded in the fastest heats in divisionals for every race, which means she had one of the top 5 times of the whole age group. They both struggled after they got sick, because it took forever for them to recover and get their strength back. So that was a disappointing way to end the season, but I am so proud of the way the practiced each week  It was a true example of hard work paying off! Here are some of my favorite shots of them through the season. :)

 Kacy's face while she is waiting always cracks me up!

 7-8 silliness

 Goofy grin on the ready bench

 Kacy, waiting for her start

 A great start for Adilyn!

 Adilyn's breaststroke

 Kacy, starting off the blocks

 Kacy's backstroke

 Adilyn's butterfly

Kacy, killing it in freestyle!

Zoe, My First Baby

We decided to put Zoe down today. It was a sad decision, but an easy one. She had been showing her age for quite a few months now, and it was getting harder and harder for her to stand up and walk around. We had taken her to the vet for a check up about a month ago, and they found that she had a pretty decent size tumor that was likely cancerous. We decided to just see how she would do for the next couple of weeks, and it really seemed like she was getting worse each day. I was having to lift her up to help her get on her feet, and she just seemed so tired. On Father's Day, we went to the Astros game, and we were gone almost all day long. When we got home, it was very clear that she had been stuck on the ground for a long time. She was so worn out and stressed, it made me so sad for her. We decided that night that we would take her in the morning. The girls went off to VBS, and I told them to say goodbye to her because she would likely not be coming back. They gave her one last little pet, and they headed out. The vet was very kind, and she definitely supported our decision. I didn't want to go back with her, so I just said a quick goodbye and they took her back. It was pretty sad at the moment, and I wish that I would have asked them for an extra minute or so to say something to her. I mean, I know they are dogs, but I also know that they know more than we think. I was trying to not break down in front of them, so I told them to just take her. I do regret not asking them for a few minutes alone, but I learned my lesson, I guess! I put together a slideshow of all my favorite Zoe pictures from the last 14 years to remember her.

Some of my favorite memories of Zoe...
*The girl LOVED the bayou! At our old house, she would dig out as much as she could and just run and run and run. Luckily, she always came back, but she loved it! I would go running with her sometimes, and she would stay right with me for a bit. Just when I thought she had learned to hang out, she would go crazy and jump the water and run to the other side. The only time she ever didn't run away was when I had just had knee surgery. Cory was out of town, and I was lonely and bored. I really wanted to get out of the house, but I could barely walk. She seemed to be going crazy in the house, so I took her out to the bayou. I brought a chair to sit on, and I fully expected her to run away. She must have known that I didn't have the ability to chase her this time, so she just stayed close this time.
*We took her to Tennessee to climb and camp one Thanksgiving, and it was ridiculously cold. She absolutely loved every minute of it! One night it started to snow. Cory and I were all snuggled in our warm sleeping bags, and I was worried about her getting too cold. At one point, I yelled for her to come to us. She ran right up to the tent with snow all over her, poked her head in the tent, licked my face, and ran right back out. She explored all night out in the freezing cold. It must have been a dream come true!
*When we first got Willow, she hated her! I remember crying to Cory and saying that I thought we ruined Zoe's life. She finally got used to her, and although Willow still bugged her often, I think she was glad to have a buddy. I loved how they used to play and run in circles all around the living room. When Zoe was done, she would always put Willow in her place and let her know that she was still the queen of this castle.
*I was in labor at home with Adilyn, and I was trying to get in whatever position was the most comfortable, which was getting increasingly harder. I remember at one point, Zoe just came over and licked my hand, and laid down right next to me.
*She was always terrified of thunderstorms. Anytime it started to thunder, she would jump up in our bed. Not only was just huge, but she would also breathe crazy heavy and shake all night long. One night after Adilyn was born, Dad was in town. Cory and I decided to have a quick date. As soon as we left, it started to rain and storm. Zoe just jumped right up in Dad's lap on the chair, and she stayed there until the storm passed. Dad is not the biggest fan of pets, but he felt so bad for her, that he let her stay there.
*Any time she got out of the house, she would explore. She would run and run until you got in front of her. The minute you cut her off, she would run right back to the house.
*She was always weary of certain people, especially people that really wanted to pet her. When we first got her, anytime a person crouched down and tried to get her to come to them she would go crazy barking and growling. The minute they ignored her, she would creep up to them and check them out. I always thought she must have been abused by someone who would crouch down like that. I am so glad that she chilled out in her old age.
*She always loved snuggling on a blanket or pillow. Any time the kids left anything on the floor, we would always find her laying on it. The other thing she always loved was rubbing her head in a blanket that I was using on the couch. Even just the other day, she stuck her head in my blanket like she used to.
*The best memory of all was that up until the last 6 months or so, every single time we came home, she would meet us with a stuffed animal in her mouth. If she couldn't find an animal, it would be a shoe or a Barbie. Whatever she could find! She never really liked to play with toys, but she would always greet us with one for some reason.

We will miss her, but we are so grateful for the years that we had with her! Love you, ZoZo!

Summer Thunder!

Last year, Kacy did not make any invitational meets because her times weren't good enough. It was so sad when we had to tell her that she missed the qualifying time by like .5 seconds or less in both races. Her disappointment was so real, and to realize that you tried your hardest, and you still didn't reach your goal at age 5 was tough to handle. So, this year, when she qualified, we knew that we had to do as many invitationals as possible! The first up was Summer Thunder. They both had been swimming well, and we were excited to see how they were going to do against some faster swimmers. Kacy qualified in freestyle, backstroke, and butterfly. She competed, and she swam almost her best times. She didn't finish in the medals or ribbons, but she still did well. She also did fantastic in her butterfly, even though she was competing against 7 and 8 year olds! Adilyn qualified for freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, and breaststroke. She was also going to do the medley and the freestyle relay. It was a full day! Her relay team is awesome, and out of all those teams, they had a really good seed time. The girls really get along well, and they are always competing with each other in practice and in our meets. But, it's really great when they can come together and compete as a team! It was so exciting to see them race. They ended up finishing third in the medley relay, which is my favorite. Adilyn had a great freestyle leg, and even caught up to a girl to touch 3rd. They ended up 4th in the freestyle relay, but out of all those fast girls, that was amazing! Adilyn also did well in her individual events, but not well enough for a medal or ribbon. It was a great day, and we were happy to be sitting in the air conditioned cafeteria instead of outside!
The girls also met an Olympic swimmer, Chloe Sutton, which was pretty neat! After the meet, we were all exhausted, so we grabbed some food, went home, and watched a movie in the living room. I don't know just how much the girls like swimming, but I sure love watching them!

 The amazing 7-8 relay team!

 Time to relax after a long day!

Adilyn and Kacy's Birthday Party

The girls have been dying to go to It'Z forever, so we decided to have their birthday party there. They each got to pick a couple friends to come, and of course, the Hrobars were there. I didn't know what to expect since we had never been there before, but it turned out to be so much fun! The adults even got in on the video game action. We had to "borrow" the kids' cards, but they didn't mind. Mason and Wyatt tried so hard to get a stuffed animal for the girls, it was really sweet. They finally got one, and it's name was Kacy! They all had so much fun. Kacy and her friend Marley rode on this spinny roller coaster thing like 5 times! Adilyn and her friends like playing the driving games and driving the bumper cars. It was such a great place, and the kids just ran around doing whatever they wanted to do for hours. It was a fantastic party!

Adilyn is NINE!

Adilyn at 9...where to begin? :) She is getting ridiculously tall, like sometimes I look at her, and I can't even believe she is mine. She loves to read. She hates to go to sleep, so she will stay up in her room until however long. She is super social, and always wants to hang out with her friends. She absolutely loves to swim. She is the slowest person in the shower/bath in the history of the world. She is great at math, and getting better at writing. She still writes her 5's backwards, and it drives me nuts! She loves to practice her cursive, and she does it really well. She likes to pretend she knows everything, and she loves to argue with us about it. We usually put her in her place, but sometimes she is right. Only sometimes! She loves to dance, and she loves music. She is still pretty timid when she is trying new things, but she is getting braver! I love her smile, and I love her hugs.
We love our first born so much! Happy Birthday, Addy!

What is your favorite color? Turquoise
Who is your favorite friend? Audrey
What do you want to be when you grow up? A teacher
What is your favorite food? Macaroni and Cheese
What is your favorite show? "Switched at Birth"
What do you like to do at home? Read a book
What is your favorite animal? Tiger
What are you good at? Swimming
What is your favorite season? Fall
What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving
What do you want to be better at? Swimming
What are you most proud of? How good I am doing in swimming
What do you want to do now that you are 9? Make it to the Ponderosa swim meet

End of 1st and 3rd Grade!

Another year has ended! They sure are flying by. I got to go to both of the end of the year parties this year. They did their awards in the classroom this year. Kacy got perfect attendance, which I had no idea that she had! She also got a cute little picture frame with the words that her classmates had used to describe her. It was super cute! They ate some snacks and signed each others' pillowcases.
Adilyn also got perfect attendance. She got A/B Honor Roll for the year, and she got a "super reader" award. Her teacher was so fantastic this year, and she was super sad to leave her room. She actually cried and said that she wanted to stay there instead of leaving early. I told her she had to come home, and she cried all the way home. I finally got it out of her that she was sad because she didn't want to leave Ms. Baldwin! You can't ask for a better teacher than that!
It was another wonderful year for both girls. We had some ups and downs throughout the months, but overall it was a fantastic year. Summer 2016, here we come!