Ok, so I am failing miserably as a family blogger.  With everything going on I find that my writing on here and giving updates is being put on the back burner.  So here’s our updates -

GENO

Geno seems to be doing well.  I am able to “chat” with him just about every night, which is the perfect ending to a day - no matter how it started.  We are counting down the days (as best as we can with no official date) until he is home for R&R.  This deployment he isn’t in charge of Afghan prisoners which is a blessing. 

DERRICK

Derrick is finishing up 8th grade with good, solid grades.  The last time I looked, last week, he was cruising on all A’s - we will see if that holds up, I think it will.  Derrick has one trip scheduled so far this summer and that is to visit his friend, Tyler, in New York while we are in the States.  There is a chance he will be going back to Croatia, however, it all depends on how fast I can get him signed up on the 5th of July.  He really enjoyed the trip last year so I’m hoping he gets the chance again this summer.

XAVIER

Little Man only has two more days of Sure Start then he is kindergarten bound.  I am so excited for him.  He has grown so much within the Sure Start Program and I’m not sure what we would have done without it.  It seems like overnight he’s learning new words and putting them together to read.  Both boys have their school physical on June 16th and I’m excited to see how big they have gotten.

PEYTON

Little Peanut (as Geno and I call her) is growing.  She will be weighed and measured on the 16th, with the boys, when she goes in for her blood draw. Last week she was 17lbs2oz and 27.75in. The weight I know is about right but the height seemed really long to me so we will see what the verdict is on the 16th.  She is crawling now and pulling herself up. She loves to give kisses.  She’s a pretty easy baby and we are starting to get her night time routine down - granted just in time for us to go to the States.  We had to take her off soy milk and she is now on Nutramigen.  She had been projectile vomiting a lot recently so that is why we had to switch.

SARAH

I’m just about done with this school term - only 3 weeks to go. Then I am off until mid-September and should be done around June 2011.  I did find out that my school is not a CADE (Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics ) school so I will not be able to take the Registered Dietician board until I get to the States. I kind of figured it wasn’t since in order to be a CADE school I have to do an internship - which my school doesn’t offer.  Geno and I are looking at my options for when we get back to the States. 

I did receive some bad news.  I have been diagnosed with Osteitis Pubis. This means that I am not allowed to run at all for an indefinite amount of time.  I am able to spin and use an elliptical, which is a God-send but running is my “thing”.  I will be getting another opinion as far as treatment goes while I am in the States.  I can’t imagine never being able to run again.

Well, I know that this was a short update but I promise to try harder in the future…in the meantime, here are some new pictures of the kids… It’s hard to get new pictures of Derrick so I will try this week and post them.