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Abby Scores First Goal!

Abby has really been enjoying soccer on her kindergarten team at St. Joe's. Of course, I am one of the only parents that loves to cheer and get excited about the game. I am sure I sound obnoxious so much so that I sometimes find myself nervously holding back then blurting out.

The team has been doing pretty well. They lost the first game to the PINK team. It was 3-1. The PINK team had a dynamic identical twin duo. It reminded me of the Franklin soccer twins...Court, you would remember. Anyway, they were cute little blonds that were very fast! The second game was PURPLE team and Abby has a lot of friends from class and Messiah Lutheran on that team. She spent a lot of time waving and talking to them. Then they would do their little swarm thing after the ball. They tied 2-2.

So, last night she has gotten in her groove. No more waving and talking...she was ready to score and she did! I was so excited. I did not care that I was being loud at that point! They won 4-3. I see a lot of defensive strategy working in Ab's brain. I think that unconsciously I have been teaching her how to defend. That is a very important skill to have even as a forward! So, hopefully whatever niche she finds will work for her. I am just pleased that she is having fun and loving SOCCER!

We are Expecting...

Baby Number Four. That is right, if you've checked this blog you have heard it first if you have not heard from me in person.

Our first appointment is Tuesday, Sept. 18th. We think we are having a little girl or boy in April at the end!

The girls are excited as our family grows. The picture is of Dad, Ally and Abby on our birthday.

Pretty Good Times

I have never met someone more into clothes than Abby. She has been a bit confused as to why everyone would wear the same uniform. We'll have let her express her individuality in another way. I know when I was in Catholic high school I seemed to have no problem with that. I am sure the apple does not fall too far from the tree whether that is good or bad, you choose!

We just heard word about kindergarten soccer this week. Abby is pumped and again she has asked what color the uniform will be. When I explained an orange color she asked me if there were boys on her team. I hope she'll play as hard as she does out back with her sisters and that she enjoys soccer, too. If we have a flower picker on the field that is OK, too. She is very loved!

What is new with Allison? She is excited about going to preschool at Messiah Lutheran. The first day is the Tuesday after Labor Day so we have more time together. She is going half day like Abby, but just Tuesday and Thursday. We thought that Allison could use some more socialization experiences prior to kindergarten. By then, St. Joe's may go full day for all children and that will be just fine.

What is new at the Stann house? We got to eat lunch with Dad today because he came home for a surprise and that was nice. However, he spent most of his time prying a cup out of the garbage disposal. Ted and I continue to look forward to our meetings and formation at St. Joe's for the Christ Renews His Parish. We are actively seeking opportunities to do more in the parish. Ted and I have signed up for an adoration hour and that has been really wonderful and a specific time for prayer. Libby is working on the terrible two's as we speak. Apart from the constant screaming and dismay, she is bursting with knowledge and language. She has a birthday here soon on August 16th.

We are pretty boring, pretty happy, and pretty happy to have each other and all of our blessings.

Abby and Ally experienced their first theater production of Peter Pan at the Muny.
Allison was ready to leave by the first intermission. Abby was very pumped about the whole thing. She said that she wanted to be an actress and asked when she was able to go up on the stage. I guess some theater classes are the in the future for her. She was a bit upset that it was not "real" magic when she could see the lines that held them as they flew. Allison was very interested in the tinkling noises of Tinkerbell and the light that was representative of her!

It was a fun time. Aunt Becky accompanied us which was very nice. Earlier, she had made a great dinner for us at her house chicken spedini and potato salad. Aunt Bec's new apartment in St. Louis is close to so many neat places in St. Louis and we'll have to visit more often.

Dad's Day

Ted told us on Sunday that this was the best Father's Day weekend ever. Friday night, He watched the girls so I could go eat dinner with Christa and they had a movie night. Saturday, He cleaned the garage and dealt with a leaky basement. We went to Mass and Friday's for some fried food and then a neighbor came over to help us figure out the basement situation. It ended up being a clogged air conditioning hose...and we were happy about that. We thought it was the water heater. Sunday, We went to the Stann's in New Town and had brunch...which is always wonderful. We played on the playground there, but it was too hot to stay out long...then we ran through the sprinklers. Ted was napping at his parent's during this time. I am sure that is why he said it was the best day ever. I let him sleep!

The picture of Ally with pig tails shows that her hair is long now! She is a big girl now. The picture of Ted and Lib are the only ones we took on Father's Day...bad Mom. The one with Abby and Lib reminds me of one I posted a year ago or so with Abby and Ally. They are so big now!

Tie Dye Party

The girls hosted their first summer Tie-Dye Party to celebrate the beginning of summer. We invited several kids ranging from 22 months to 8 years old. It was very interesting doing this with toddlers. We have a seperate place for them to color and water color so they were happy and then there was also the sandbox!

May is Here

This month we have been grateful for the nice, sunny weather. The girls have been playing outside and exploring under the railroad ties in the backyard. Some of their finds include: rolly polies, worms, and spiders. They seem to like everything, but the spiders. I do not blame them! They have also been playing a lot of soccer now that we have a fence for a boundary. They are going to be strikers. Abby is playing soccer for the first time at St. Joe's this Fall. We are looking forward to see her in action and we'll report back on how she is enjoying it.

The girls and Ted really treated me to a nice Mother's Day with a pancake breakfast and Tony's on Main Street in St. Charles with our whole family for a very late brunch. It was a perfect day! The girls were happy to spend time with both sets of grandparents, Uncle Andy, Aunt Jenny, and Uncle Mike.

This May we are thankful for all the many blessings that God has given us! Abby's preschool performed for the first time at chapel at school. Abby has been coming home singing songs of praise. You have to love the Lutheran preschools! They are teaching her so much. We a happy with our decision to send Abby to St. Joseph and we are excited she'll be in Catholic school.

Polka Pot Perfection

Sara Groves

Sara Groves is a Christian Pop singer that I stumbled upon in a blog called "The Happy Catholic" on blogger. I listened to some music and really loved her words and voice. She reminds me a little bit of Shawn Colvin, Sarah Mc Laughlin, or Dido? She is becoming one of my favorites to listen to lately.

Most of all, I love the relief work she does in Africa and the good work that she does.

Happy Easter

This Easter was especially special since we were able to have all three girls go to Mass and do an Easter egg hunt together. Uncle Andy supplied the kites and they flew them over Grandma and Grandpa's lake. It was an exciting day!

What I would not give to be 5 years old again? It has to be the greatest age because you understand just enough to think that the world is full of endless possibilities and so little that you are not sickened by the world's evils. Abby surely is ready to conquer kindergarten. She absolutely loves holidays. She is constantly getting ready for the next one to celebrate. She has so much spirit and love. She knows God loves her because she tells us all the time.

Allison is in the beginning stages of growing out of being a baby to becoming a preschooler. She is ahead of her time and relentless in learning all things new. She is making connections and expressing them like a pro. She has so much love to give and she wants so much to be loved in return. She is my white angel that God sent me so that I can learn how to be compassionate.

Elizabeth, our Libby, or as the girls refer to her as Lib Lou. She is a fiesty little fire ball with a great deal of passion. She is learning about how her actions cause reactions and that she can have the ball in her court. So, we are playing a little tennis with her at the moment. We'll just lob one on over to her and she backhands us like a pro. We thought we had it down by now. She is a gift from God and has baby thighs of steel.

Pumpkin Patch

Sunday, October 8th we went to the Lakeview Farms Pumpkin Patch in O Fallon. The girls enjoyed climbing the straw stack and climbing through the maze. I was amazed at the fact that they went in the dark maze be themselves. They had a little help from some preteen girls who were being very helpful leading them through. We got a pumpkin each for the girls and then we walked a bit. Nana and Poppie were in town for the weekend so they joined us as well. Libby stayed in her backpack because she is all over the place right now. We did let her out at the end because she was ready!

Abby will be Snow White, Allison Tinkerbell, and Libby is a chicken for Halloween!

Pondering Life

These two months have flown by. It has been an exciting past two months. We visited Grants Farm on Father's Day weekend and Abby asked us where the unicorns were. It was fun explaining that unicorns are mythical creatures. I do not think she believed me, but when Ted explained that we were going to get pretzels in the Beer Garden she quickly forgot. The girls and I visited Missouri Botanical Gardens new Children's Garden which was really exciting equipped with rope bridges, log slides, creeks, sand and water play area, and lots of waterfalls. The new area was donated by the Schnucks family. It is geared toward 2-12 year olds per their literature; however, I think it is really for school age kids. Ally has no fear of heights as she was first to climb up the Mark Twain club house. It looks like something out of Swiss Family Robinson.

We have been busy with playdates with our Mom's group, going to local parks, and going to the YMCA. This past Friday Libby was at Grandma's and the girls went to Wapplehorst Pool here in St. Charles. They absolutely loved the large bucket that periodically dumps water and the age-appropriate water slide. Tax money that was actually well spent!

We are looking forward to July 4th weekend when we will visit Nana and Poppie in Indy. We plan to go to the Children's Museum and play in their pool! Mark the date for Lib's 1st birthday BBQ on August 5th. Ted will have help from another certified BBQ judge, Poppie. Lib's walking like a little pro now, but tends to crawl more to Mom than Dad. She is getting longer and her personality is starting to come out more. She is an extremely well-adjusted little baby girl since she learns so much from her sisters. We should have more to report soon, but for now I leave you with a sweet story.

We were sitting at dinner tonight and Allison said out of the blue, "Mommy, I love you!" Then she looked at Ted and said, "Daddy, I love you, too". She normally does not tell us this so it was extra special.

Happy Easter

We had a wonderful Easter! The girls really enjoyed their visit and field trips to the zoo and movies with Aunt Becky. I think that Allison only slept through part of the movie this time! Her first movie was with Bec a few months back and she would only have Grandma hold her and was a little scared of the dark.

Nana and Poppie visited and was there in the morning for the Easter Egg hunt from the bunny. We even saw one of the bunnies helpers in the grass in the early am. The girls were able to color eggs twice: Grandma and Aunt Bec's and then again at our house with Nana. The girls were so well behaved at church and their dresses were so adorable. We had a wonderful brunch at Grandma and Capaw's house and the girls seem to handle the day without a nap. I think it was all the sugar. The crash was hard at our house and their was not much room for dinner.

We look forward to the next time when we can all get together for a special holiday.

*I read these entries to the girls and show them the pictures. They really like to do this!

Grants Farm

The girls were so excited to go on another field trip to Grant's Farm. It was a bit chilly though. Allison enjoyed the tram ride the best. She was refusing to get off and was happy that Grant's Farm ends with the tram ride as well. Abby loved the flamingos. She was practicing standing on one leg. Libby rode in the back pack on my back and pulled my hair the entire time. She was very pleased!

We do not have any pictures to post of Grants Farm, but we have a sweet one of all three.

Fun at the Zoo

Abby, Ally, and Libby went to the zoo today. We went early this morning at the opening of the day to meet up with the "Marvelous Mom's" which are a group of mom's in the O Fallon/St. Charles/St. Peters area. I was hoping to meet a Mom of three girl's, but no luck yet. I did meet some nice mothers who we ate lunch with and got to know a little better.

Ally was a little worried about the hippo coming through the glass at her. She wanted to be at least 10 feet away from it. Abby was in for the long haul, but when she asked to be carried I decided we were finished. Libby seemed content to suck her thumb and laugh at Allison. They have a big time together lately as they are quickly becoming good buds. Abby wants to come back to the zoo with Dad so that they can do more as she put it is eloquently.

Spring Fever

The Stann Girls headed for Versailles, Kentucky, this past week on a six hour long road trip to visit Courtney Elbert and children. We had an uneventful trip there, but almost a poop accident from Ms. Abby on the way back. I guess I thought she could hold it to Evansville, Indiana. The poor little one held it for at least 15 miles.

The girls got a much needed haircut this afternoon. Ted said that the other Abby and Ally that live behind us were there at Custom Cuts. Abby is growing her bangs out one length per her request. Elizabeth and I went to the Parent/Teacher store to get Ally some potty training reinforcements! We also picked up some ABC flashcards and a educational game. Now if we have 1 one 1 time to do it. We are pretty much playing zone around here.

The girls officially have spring fever. They are excited to get out and play as much as possible. It is interfering with their supposed "nap time". Allison still needs a good 1 to 1 /2 hour nap to function properly. Tonight, I videotaped her falling asleep while eating at the dinner table. She went to sleep without a bath tonight!

Ted has been working hard in the yard and it looks great. We ordered flowers and bushes so we are trying really hard to get it looking great. I should not say "we" since Ted does it all. He is a one man show. We are thinking that the girls need a little gardening set since Allison was so intent on helping today.

Elizabeth is making more movements toward really crawling. She has crawled a few steps when there is something dangerous she wants like princess puzzle pieces.

I hope you will enjoy the things we post on this family blog. I hope you will post what is happening with you all as well.


We are looking forward to seeing Nana and Poppie this weekend for Easter as well as all the Stann family at Easter brunch.