Seven Years Old

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Crosby is seven years old today!

The birthday interview tradition continues!

What is your name? Crosby
How old are you? Seven
What is your favorite thing to do? Spend time with you
What do you want to be when you grow up? A scientist
What is your favorite food? Tacos
Who do you like to spend your time with? You
What do you do really well? Play video games
What makes you laugh? Tickles
What is the best time of day? Recess
What are you afraid of? Nothing!
Who is your best friend? Hudson
What do you like to do with your family? Have tickle fights
What do you love to learn about? Outer space
Where do you like to go? Disney Animal Kingdom
What is your favorite book? Bad Guys (the series)
If you had one wish, what would it be? To be a Storm Trooper. and to fly.
What is your favorite color? Yellow
What is your favorite TV show? Anything on Disney+
What is your favorite animal? Weiner dogs
What is your favorite movie? Toy Story 4
What is your favorite drink? Apple juice
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Tijuana Flats
What is your favorite place to go? Animal Kingdom
What is your favorite song? Every song by Perry Gripp
What is the best part about school? Recess. and art.
What is your favorite cereal? Cinnamon Toast Crunch
What is your favorite snack? Apples
What do you like to take to bed? Nothing
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Run around
What is your favorite fruit? Apples
What is your favorite ice cream? Mint
What is your favorite outfit? Pajamas
Where do you live? My home
What is your favorite sport? Baseball

Crosby is now in first grade and he is an awesome reader. For the Accelerated Reader (AR) quizzes last year, he scored in the top five kindergartners for the whole grade! He recently discovered the Bad Guys series of books and does not put them down.

He has recently gotten into video games and loves to play Super Mario Odyssey; Minecraft; and Disney Infinity on the Switch and the PS4.

He hasn’t gotten a chance to play baseball since early March, but we are hoping to start a new sport this winter. He’s been doing a lot of swimming and bike riding this year during quarantine.

Here are some highlights from this year!

Christmas break in Sarasota!

New bike for Christmas!

Kicked off the year at Star Wars land at Hollywood Studios.

One of his only baseball games of 2020.

Spring picture day. Such a handsome kindergartner!

Nine weeks of virtual school.
The only highlight was he was able to wear his pjs.

Ended kindergarten with a plastic bag full of school supplies. Such a sad way to end his first year at the elementary school.

Crosby fell in love with Ziggy and Bruno while they were visiting from Colorado this summer. He is a huge dog lover!

He lost his first tooth on June 6!

Lots of pool days during quarantine.

His first sleepover to end the summer.

Complete with video games!

First day of first grade! He did nine days of virtual school – LaunchEd.

He lost his second tooth in his sleep and went to school the next day!

First day of in-person school. That smile says it all — so excited!

He got to meet the pilot!

Riding a horse in Montana!

Looking the part in Montana with his best bud!

Fall picture day! Such a big first grader.

Birthday(s) weekend at Disney with friends!

Happy 7th birthday to our lovable, goofy boy!

19Oct2020

Nine years old!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Kenley is nine years old today!

Our birthday interview!

What is your name? Kenley
How old are you? 9
What is your favorite thing to do? Go on the hammock
What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor
What is your favorite food? Spaghetti with butter and salt
Who do you like to spend your time with? My family
What do you do really well? Soccer
What makes you laugh? Getting tickled
What is the best time of the day? Lunch
What are you afraid of? Deadly wasps and bees
Who are your best friends? Brenna, Ashlyn, Aiden, Kyler
What do you like to do with your family? Go on water slides
What do you like to learn about? History
Where do you like to go? To Disney resorts
What is your favorite book? Junie B. Jones
If you had one wish what would it be? That I could fly
What is your favorite color? Purple
What is your favorite TV show? Jessie and Bunk’d
What is your favorite animal? Giraffe and unicorn
What is your favorite movie? Hamilton
What is your favorite drink? Pink lemonade
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Tijuana Flats
What is your favorite song? Satisfied and Helpless and the entire Hamilton soundtrack; and Hey Look Ma I Made It
What is the best part about school? Recess
What is your favorite cereal? Frosted Flakes
What is your favorite snack? Goldfish
What do you like to take to bed? My blanket
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Go on the hammock
What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
What is your favorite ice cream? Strawberry
What is your favorite candy? Skittles
What is your favorite outfit? Tie dyed shirts
Where do you live? Orlando, Florida (says subdivision and street)
What is your favorite sport? Soccer

Kenley started playing on a club soccer team in January. She was one of the youngest on an experienced team so it was a great way to learn the ropes. They had two tournaments and won both before the season started, but only ended up playing on regular season game in March before the season got cancelled. The fall season started up in August. Since the older girls moved up, she’s one of the oldest, so it’s a good learning experience on how to lead the younger girls. They’ve played a few games and we’re hoping to get through the rest of the fall season without any hiccups.

Here are some other highlights of the year:

The infamous hammock she talked about!

First daddy/daughter dance!

Field Day 2020 — the last day at school of second grade!

Virtual school for the last nine weeks of second grade. Zero stars, do not recommend.

New bike for quarantine!

Virtual Smile Mile (which is not as fun as the actual Smile Mile)

School supply pick up to end the year.

Seeing Bruno, Ziggy, and her cousins in Sarasota!

Sleepovers!

First day of third grade! The first nine days were virtual, called LaunchEd.

First day back to face-to-face school! Woohoo!

Montana!

Picture day!

Birthday(s) weekend at Disney!

Happy 9th birthday to our sweet girl!

27Oct2019

Six Years Old!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Crosby is six years old today! I am not entirely sure how this is possible. I’ll first let the birthday boy himself tell you some things about him.

What is your name? Crosby
How old are you? Six
What is your favorite thing to do? Be with you. [heart melted]
What do you want to be when you grow up? A firefighter or a policeman.
What is your favorite food? Tacos
Who do you like to spend your time with? You
What do you do really well? Climb stuff
What makes you laugh? Jokes
What is the best time of day? Lunchtime
What are you afraid of? Nothing!
Who is your best friend? Christina
What do you like to do with your family? Play with them.
What do you love to learn about? I like to learn about Legos.
Where do you like to go? I like to go to Disney.
What is your favorite book? My favorite book is dinosaurs.
If you had one wish, what would it be? To be Spider-Man.
What is your favorite color? Red
What is your favorite TV show? Star Wars
What is your favorite animal? Cat
What is your favorite movie? Jack Skellington (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
What is your favorite drink? Apple juice
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Tijuana Flats
What is your favorite place to go? Animal Kingdom
What is your favorite song? Kidz Bop Halloween
What is the best part about school? Lunchtime
What is your favorite cereal? Blueberry Cheerios
What is your favorite snack? Flavor blasted Goldfish
What do you like to take to bed? Nothing
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play with Kenley
What is your favorite fruit? Pumpkin
What is your favorite ice cream? Mint Chocolate Chip
What is your favorite outfit? Dinosaur shirt
Where do you live? At my house
What is your favorite sport? Baseball

Crosby started kindergarten in August! We really like his teacher and his classroom is Harry Potter themed. I think we’re still in the transition process into kindergarten and elementary school in general. He has had a few really good weeks recently, but the start of the school year was rough. We had a few days off from Hurricane Dorian right after the start of the year, then there was some shuffling of kindergarten classrooms so it took about a month to get into a good routine in his classroom and during extended day. The first nine weeks just ended so I am excited to have his first official parent-teacher conference.

He’s now in this third season of tee ball and really starting to enjoy it! This season he’s on the Red Sox. He’s learning more about the sport and hitting the ball hard off the tee. He certainly has had a few moments this season where he wasn’t as into it but we’ve seen really good improvement over the last few games.

Happy birthday to our incredibly smart and funny little guy!

19Oct2019

Eight is great!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Kenley is eight years old!

Our birthday interview tradition continues.

What is your name? Kenley
How old are you? 8
What is your favorite thing to do? Go on water slides
What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor
What is your favorite food? Watermelon
Who do you like to spend your time with? My family
What do you do really well? Math
What makes you laugh? Sometimes Crosby and sometimes Aiden
What is the best time of the day? Going out to recess
What are you afraid of? Snakes
Who is your best friend? Ashlyn and Brenna
What do you like to do with your family? Go in the pool
What do you like to learn about? Math
Where do you like to go? To a hotel
What is your favorite book? Junie B. Jones
If you had one wish what would it be? That I could fly
What is your favorite color? Pink, purple, blue, and green
What is your favorite TV show? Rapunzel
What is your favorite animal? Unicorn
What is your favorite movie? Descendants 1, 2, and 3
What is your favorite drink? Pink lemonade
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Tijuana Flats
What is your favorite song? Happier
What is the best part about school? Going on the computers
What is your favorite cereal? Lucky Charms
What is your favorite snack? Granola bar, peanut butter kind
What do you like to take to bed? My blanket and pillow
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Run around
What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
What is your favorite ice cream? Strawberry
What is your favorite candy? Sour Patch Kids
What is your favorite outfit? A dress
Where do you live? Says exact address
What is your favorite sport? Soccer

Kenley just finished her fall season of soccer on her first all-girl team. She played really well and scored two goals (in the same game!). She continues to show a lot of potential and played forward majority of the season. Since last year, she can successfully do a cartwheel and a handstand!

She had a crazy busy summer going to several different summer camps, including the UCF soccer camp, Double Down sports camp, golf camp, UGAMES church camp where she did karate, and gymnastics camp.

Second grade is off to a great start! The first nine weeks just wrapped up. I said the exact same thing last year, but I think we’re just now starting to get into our routine for the school year.

Happy birthday sweet girl! Looking forward to seeing what this year brings for you!

27Oct2018

Five Years Old

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Crosby is five years old!

He started VPK (voluntary pre-kindergarten) in August which is his last stop before moving to elementary school. We had his parent-teacher conference last month and got a very good report. He’s doing well in his class and is a sweet boy when he wants to be.

He also started tee ball last month! This is his first sport since we tried soccer a couple years ago. I’m happy to report it has gone much better than his soccer days, though he’s had his moments. At times, it’s a struggle for him to concentrate on anything except playing in the dirt. He also doesn’t like it when his teammate takes a ball that is remotely close to him. Overall, I think he’s had a good time and I’m hopeful he’ll play again in the spring.

Crosby’s first love is still Legos. He is obsessed with anything and everything related to Legos, including building, taking apart, and rebuilding. He talks about them, reads about them, and probably dreams about them.

What is your name? Crosby
How old are you? Five
What is your favorite thing to do? Ride Star Tours (at Hollywood Studios)
What do you want to be when you grow up? A policeman, I mean, a Power Ranger?
What is your favorite food? Pineapples
Who do you like to spend your time with? Mommy and Daddy
What do you do really well? Listen
What makes you laugh? Telling jokes
What is the best time of day? When we go on trips
What are you afraid of? Bears
Who is your best friend? Elliot
What do you like to do with your family? Go to Disney
What do you love to learn about? Um, I like to learn about trees
Where do you like to go? On field trips
What is your favorite book? Hark! A shark!
If you had one wish, what would it be? I can’t tell you.
What is your favorite color? Red
What is your favorite TV show? Ben 10
What is your favorite animal? A woodpecker
What is your favorite movie? Star Wars and Jack Skellington
What is your favorite drink? Hot cocoa
What is your favorite holiday? Winter
What is your favorite restaurant? Tijuana
What is your favorite place to go? Tijuana
What is your favorite song? Jack Skellington
What is the best part about school? Going on field trips
What is your favorite cereal? Those chocolate cereal
What is your favorite snack? Cheese dip and breadsticks
What do you like to take to bed? I don’t know
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play
What is your favorite fruit? Pineapples
What is your favorite ice cream? All the kinds
What is your favorite outfit? The one that I’m wearing right now
Where do you live? At home
What is your favorite sport? Baseball

Happy birthday to our sweet boy!

19Oct2018

7 Years Old!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Kenley is 7 years old today!

The tradition continues with our birthday questionnaire!

What is your name? Kenley
How old are you? 7
What is your favorite thing to do? Playing with my friends
What do you want to be when you grow up? A tooth fairy
What is your favorite food? Tacos
Who do you like to spend your time with? Mommy and Daddy
What do you do really well? Put away my clothes
What makes you laugh? When Daddy tickles me
What is the best time of the day? Centers…in my school
What are you afraid of? Rattlesnakes
Who is your best friend? Ashlyn
What do you like to do with your family? Go on roller coasters
What do you like to learn about? Math
Where do you like to go? Legoland
What is your favorite book? Fancy Nancy
If you had one wish what would it be? That I could fly
What is your favorite color? Pink
What is your favorite TV show? Fancy Nancy
What is your favorite animal? Giraffe, I mean panda, or elephant
What is your favorite movie? That’s a hard question… Incredibles 2
What is your favorite drink? Grape juice
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Chic-fil-a… I mean, Wendy’s
What is your favorite place to go? School
What is your favorite song? Taylor Swift
What is the best part about school? Centers
What is your favorite cereal? Lucky Charms
What is your favorite snack? Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
What do you like to take to bed? Minnie
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Go on the playground
What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
What is your favorite ice cream? Strawberry
What is your favorite outfit? A dress
Where do you live? (says neighborhood), Orlando
What is your favorite sport? Soccer

Kenley just finished her fall soccer season. She played awesome with this team (when she focused) and scored a goal! She shows a lot of potential and is very athletic. She is also competitive, I’m not sure where she gets that, ha! She was usually racing the boys on her team to see who would win during drills, even though that was not the point of the drills. We are considering keeping her in soccer through the winter until the spring season starts. She is also going to do tumbling during extended day. She is certainly not going to be a gymnast, but it is something she is interested in and can do with her friends right at the school. She wants to be able to do a handstand and a cartwheel so badly.

First grade is going very well! It has been a big adjustment from kindergarten and she also transitioned from one classroom to another after the start of the school year. We’re anxious to have her first parent-teacher conference next week. It felt like it took us a while to get into the swing of things this school year and I can’t believe that the first nine weeks just ended!

Happy birthday to our sweet, funny, and spunky girl!

27Apr2018

4.5 Years Old

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Crosby’s half birthday snuck up on me a little less considering Kenley’s was last week. I made a point to go back and read Kenley’s 4.5 year old post because I love seeing how similar they are to each other. I made a comment about how great age four is and I fully believe that to be the case. I think it continues to get better, but there is such a big difference between the ages three and four. Crosby has been no different. He is truly a little boy now and is still as sweet as ever (most days). He continues to be such a cuddler, lover, and a hugger. He’s always up for a snuggle or wants to hold a hand.

On the other hand, he’s a wild man. He’s constantly active and when he gets excited, he talks a mile a minute. If he doesn’t have your undivided attention when he wants to say something, he’ll be sure to get it. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard “mommy” more times in a minute than I do with him. He’s fearless in the sense that he will run, climb, jump, or flip on anything. He’s also scrapped up a lot too. His poor knees always have Band-aids on them. He skipped training wheels altogether and started riding his two-wheel bike just after his 4th birthday. After much debate, we opted to skip soccer season for him this spring, but we’re going to try out gymnastics this summer to see how he likes it.

We are still loving Crosby’s new school. He is learning so much and I am really impressed with his writing. He filled in a couple of lines on Kenley’s spelling homework this week and I had a hard time telling it was his writing instead of hers. His class goes on walking field trips and visits the businesses in our community, which is so stinking cute. He’s officially registered for VPK in the fall and only has one more year until he’s going to be a rising kindergartner.

One of the biggest differences between he and Kenley are their sleeping habits. They’re pretty much polar opposites. Crosby is much like his mama and Kenley is just like her daddy. C-man is not a morning person and occasionally has to be woken up to get ready for school. Kenley pops out of bed about the same time every single day and is immediately ready to start the day. It takes Crosby a while to wind down and actually fall asleep at night and for naps. Both of the kids nap on one day of the weekend, usually when it’s most convenient for us.

Crosby has really gotten into Star Wars since we started going to Disney. Hollywood Studios is our favorite park and his absolute favorite ride is Star Tours. He is constantly building with Legos and most of the time he builds his own versions of AT-AT walkers, TIE fighters, or snowspeeders. His book of choice for bed each night is one of two Star Wars books with all of the different stories in them. Somehow, I always end up reading the story where Darth Vader says “Luke, I am your father.” I’m not sure what else happens in any of the other Star Wars stories. We still haven’t watched any of the movies, but they are on the list for family movie nights.

Crosby Martin, you keep us on our toes and keep us laughing every single day.

Happy half birthday!

19Apr2018

6.5 Years Old

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

This half birthday completely snuck up on me! I’m not sure where the time is going. Kenley is officially six and a half years hold and only has about six weeks left of kindergarten. She is doing really well in school and has adjusted well. The days are still pretty long for her so she’ll occasionally nap on the weekends when her attitude warrants a nap. She hasn’t had much homework (thank goodness), but she does have weekly spelling tests and some math tests. All of the grades were required to do a science experiment and their projects were showcased at the science fair last month. Kenley’s project will represent her class at the Orange County STEM Fair next month!

Soccer has started back up again, so she is excited to be playing again. We never got back into gymnastics because the gym was just too far from school and it was too much for a weeknight. This year, she’s already ran/walked the Lady Track Shack 5k and ran the Smile Mile on behalf of her school! We may start a new sport this summer, but I’m not sure what yet.

Since we got annual passes to Disney in September, she has become quite the thrill seeker. Her favorite ride is basically any roller coaster at Disney. Everest at Animal Kingdom and Rock n Roller Coaster at Hollywood Studios is her favorite. She’s been on Tower of Terror twice and is trying to convince Crosby go to on it next time, but each time, she really doesn’t like it. I am really impressed with her as I can assure you, I was not riding these type of rides as a six and a half year old.

I am pretty sure Kenley is growing about an inch a week. I can’t believe how long her legs are and how big her feet are. In January, she got glasses which she wears (almost) daily at school and most of the time on weekends. She has also lost two teeth! Her bottom two teeth were the first to go and her top two are starting to get wiggly. She’s getting her first six year molar which she’s complained about a bit. She has also had strep throat twice in the last month!

Happy half birthday, Kenley Dee!

27Oct2017

Four Years Older

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Crosby is four years old today! I know it seems like I say this every year, but I’m not sure how this is possible. He is quickly changing from a toddler to a little boy. He’s fun-loving, ornery, wild, and loves to give hugs.

The biggest change from in the last few months is that Crosby has started at a new school! This was an abrupt decision after the school year started, but we couldn’t be happier with the surprising turn of events. We love his new school, new teachers, and new friends. We had our first parent-teacher conference last week and he’s doing so well. The Gilbertson children thrive when they are in a routine and on a schedule. Crosby had been without a solid routine for majority of the summer and into the start of the school year and his behavior wasn’t great. After a few weeks getting into a good routine at his new school, he’s been doing so well.

I will let Crosby tell you a little bit about himself with our birthday interview.

What is your name? Crosby
How old are you? Four
What is your favorite thing to do? Play outside with Kenley
What do you want to be when you grow up? An officer and fight bad guys
What is your favorite food? Pancakes
Who do you like to spend your time with? Kenley
What do you do really well? Jumper
What makes you laugh? Kenley in the bathroom saying poop
What is the best time of day? Me and Kenley playing inside our house
What are you afraid of? A bear eating my head
Who is your best friend? Kenley
What do you like to do with your family? Play toys
What do you love to learn about? School
Where do you like to go? With Kenley to church
What is your favorite book? Dracula’s Last Birthday
If you had one wish, what would it be? I wish I would be a witch
What is your favorite color? Red and orange
What is your favorite TV show? Paw Patrol
What is your favorite animal? Uh, I don’t like animals
What is your favorite movie? Cars
What is your favorite drink? Strawberry daiquiri (still reliving vacation over here)
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Chic-fil-a
What is your favorite place to go? I like to go to my school
What is your favorite song? Uh, I don’t know
What is the best part about school? Playing in Lions (his classroom)
What is your favorite cereal? The pink cereal (very berry Cheerios)
What is your favorite snack? Cheese and crackers
What do you like to take to bed? Clean movies
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play on the play set
What is your favorite fruit? Grapes
What is your favorite ice cream? Vanilla, I mean chocolate
What is your favorite outfit? The one that I am wearing (pajamas)
Where do you live? Florida
What is your favorite sport? I don’t know

Crosby is hilarious. Not a day goes by that Greg and I aren’t cracking up about something he does or says. He loves to give hugs and knows no stranger…though we frequently talk about stranger danger. He also loves Legos. He has a very creative mind and will build and re-build creations all day long. He’s also very symmetrical when he’s building with Legos. He will tell you all about the car, spaceship, rocket, boat, or plane that he’s built. He has a long list of things that he is going to do when he’s four years old, like play soccer again and ride his two wheel bike with pedals. I’ll keep you posted on how both of those things go.

Happy birthday Crosby Martin!

19Oct2017

6 Years Old!

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

Kenley Dee is six years old today! I will let her tell you a little bit about herself with her annual birthday interview.

What is your name? Kenley
How old are you? 5, I mean 6!
What is your favorite thing to do? Going on roller coasters
What do you want to be when you grow up? A hotel keeper (Can you tell we’ve been traveling?)
What is your favorite food? Donuts
Who do you like to spend your time with? Caelyn and Caleb
What do you do really well? Jumping on the couch
What makes you laugh? When daddy tickles me
What is the best time of the day? I don’t know. Afternoon because you don’t nap in the afternoon
What are you afraid of? Monsters under my bed
Who is your best friend? Kyler
What do you like to do with your family? Go on roller coasters
What do you like to learn about? That you have to listen
Where do you like to go? Amusement park
What is your favorite book? The spooky spooky book
If you had one wish what would it be? To hug Mommy and Daddy 100 times in the night
What is your favorite color? Purple and pink
What is your favorite TV show? Sophia the First
What is your favorite animal? Zebra
What is your favorite movie? Trolls
What is your favorite drink? Strawberry daiquiri (She still thinks we’re on vacation).
What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
What is your favorite restaurant? Wendy’s
What is your favorite place to go? Kyler’s house
What is your favorite song? Fight Song (Rachel Platten)
What is the best part about school? Playing computers
What is your favorite cereal? The square things (Frosted Mini Wheats)
What is your favorite snack? Muffins
What do you like to take to bed? Minnie!
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play hide and go seek
What is your favorite fruit? Grapes with no seeds in it
What is your favorite ice cream? Mint chip
What is your favorite outfit? Dress, a long long dress
Where do you live? (says street name), I mean Florida, United States
What is your favorite sport? Soccer

Kenley started gymnastics at the beginning of the summer and has really enjoyed it. She’s taking a little break now with the craziness of October, but we’re planning to start it back up again soon. She also just finished her soccer season. This was the first season with goalies, so it was a little more challenging. She had a great time despite missing a couple games due to the hurricane and our trips.

The transition to kindergarten has gone really well. We meet with her teacher next week for our first parent/teacher conference. It’s hard to believe she’ll get her first report card this week! She really likes school, her teacher, and recess. She’s been making new friends but also mentions that she misses her friends from her old school (who all go to different elementary schools now). I sometimes forget that we are “elementary school” parents. It doesn’t quite seem possible! I am excited to get involved with the school this year.