"Put Mitten's tail in my ear, Daddy"

Reference: Matthew's comment in our Christmas 2008 DVD, "Put Bunny in my ear, Daddy"

A photographer in the making?

I found these pictures (along with about 20 others) when I uploaded my pics on the camera. Obviously, someone got a hold of my camera. Who could it be?

Not Alex

Not Zack

Ahhh, the culprit turned the camera on himself. Who could've guessed!

Fun at the Fair!

Ever since I was young, going to the County Fair has been an (almost) yearly event. As a teenager (from the hicks of Halifax) it was actually a big date night. As we've continued this tradition with our kids, we've had both good and bad trips to the fair. This year we got it right, though. I got advanced tickets for a very good price, we got there when it first opened so we were done by 7:30, and all the kids were really into it. It was really fun. The only bad part was that Rachel was walking around with her friend's family for most of the night, but I'm sure she enjoyed that.

I'm pretty sure Matthew will be a roller coaster rider. He loved everything and wanted to ride all the big rides. He got very upset when he wasn't quite tall enough for something.

Chillin' out on the slow ride.

Hmmm, how can I make these more interesting....put my hands up!

That's more like it! Love the scrambler!

Alex was a little nervous about the roller coaster, but then he got on it and loved it. I was happy that we didn't have to bribe him to get on it. He was getting on it because we're going to Kings Dominion in a few weeks and I want him to ride some of the much bigger ones there.


Even Zack was brave yesterday. He rode the Hurricane (boats on an arm that go up and around fast) a couple times. I think he just wanted to be with his big brother. They're doing a sports camp together this week and have gotten into Bakugan, both of which seemed to have bonded them together over the past couple weeks. It's been very nice to see.

This pictures took about 10 tries to get. I was passing them on the ride and had to time it perfectly.

Going round and round has never been my strong suit. Dave has pretty much had to be the man for that job. But, yesterday, I think he had his fill. He looked a little green at the idea of going on another one of those rides that twirls. But, up until that point, he did his best to provide a few good spins and laughs for the boys. They really loved the Tilt-a-whirl with him.

Rachel has always loved the rides. The bigger, the better for her. The fair is just a teaser for her, so thank goodness, she's got the Dominator coming up in a few weeks. That should satisfy her hunger for speed!

Happy Birthday, Zachary!

Today, little Zack turns 12! According to him, that is. He was so pleased with himself for trying to trick his Aunt Alice about being 12 today, not 5. He really is my sweetheart. He loves to be hugged and kissed and is always willing to give them out - sometimes a little too much with his cousins. : ) I just love his smile and the enthusiasm he brings to everything. He has very strong emotions about things. He will get so excited about the smallest thing. Just finding out we're having mac and cheese for dinner sends Zack running around excitedly and have him running toward me with kisses and "thank you"s. But he also gets very upset about the slightest wrong and will let out a horrible squeal if someone just grabs the cup he wanted to drink out of it. Those screams can wear on you, but you can always count on Zack to make you smile!

He has had a full birthday. We went to pick out his cake for his small party at ChuckECheese later this week. Then, we ate Lunchables before heading to Cupcake Heaven to pick out a cupcake. He noticed the ice cream cooler and wanted an ice cream sandwich instead. While I could have gone to 7-11 for that, how could I say no to the birthday boy. Then, we headed to bowling for a marathon bowling afternoon. The kids and I all bowled 3 games each, and then Zack and Alex bowled an extra one together. It was just going so smoothly with all the kids and everyone was having such a good time.


We went to Red Robin for dinner where he was very excited about getting sung to for his birthday. But, when they got there, he got very shy (very Zack) and wouldn't really look at them. It was so cute!
I love birthdays, and I hope we made this one special for my very special little boy!

I have not figured out how this kid gets so dirty. This is shirt #2 for the day.

Aunt Jamie gave him a volcano kit for his birthday. We had a good time putting this together and erupting it.

Family of Runners

It has become quite a Kreitzer family tradition to run the Liberty 5K in Winchester on the 4th of July. They have a very hilly 5K and a couple of kid runs for the kids as young as 2. I have run it before, but I am usually the babysitter, so I opted out this year. I'm wishing I had run because everyone else in our family ran and had quite a showing.

The Big Kids

Dave, Alice, Chris and Madeleine went out for the 5K. Dave wasn't sure what to expect, but he did quite well and was happy with the end result. Madeleine impressed me by continuing on until the end despite throwing up a couple times along the route. That takes dedication!



The Medium-sized Kids

Next, we had the mile for kids 6-12. Alex, Rachel and Mia ran this one. Rachel and Mia started off with matching hairdos and holding hands. They were quite cute. They stuck together through the end and finished strong. We were proud of our girls that pushed themselves and fought to finish the race strong as a team.


Alex put on quite a show. Dave told him to take it easy at the beginning and pick it up as he felt good. We were watching the kids come in without any real idea of who would come in first and when. Then, we saw Alex pushing hard around the turn. He saw us and kicked it in a little. I couldn't believe it. He finished with a time of 8:01. He was the 10th person coming in - the 3rd 6-8 year old boy, but the 2nd place boy finished just 1 second ahead of him. I think if he had known that that boy was the difference between a prize and no prize, he would have kicked it in a little.


A week later we were discussing how impressed we were that he ran that fast, and I was contemplating how hard it would be. So, I decided to go out and see if I could run an 8-minute mile. I took Dave's watch with me so I could judge how fast I was going. With the watch and my determination to beat my 7-year old, I was able to make it in 7:48, but I was sucking wind so hard and almost threw up a few times on the walk back home. Needless to say, I was even more impressed that he could just go out and do this without any training. Maybe he and I should pick a race to train for and run together. I better enjoy it now because it won't be long before he is leaving me in his dust - just like his daddy.

Now for the little kids

The little kid race for kids 2-5 is fun. It's only a 100 meters, so even the little ones can make it.

Here they are lined up at the start. I'm pretty sure that big kid won, and I also doubt that he was only 5. Grace and Zack pulled out to the pack at the front. They pushed hard to the front and little Gracie was the first girl to cross.


Matthew wasn't far behind them. And, even little Sophie, who did not want her number on and was refusing to run, got caught up in the moment and pursued the bunch.

Despite the early morning start, it was a fun morning and I was so proud of all the Kreitzers and Doyles. I look forward to next year - maybe we'll all run!

Simple as apple pie

One of the things I like about summer is the removal of the schedule. While ours is not completely clear, we do get swim practice out of the way early on in the day and can just do whatever for the rest of the afternoon. One day last week, Alex just randomly said that he wanted to make an apple pie. Not my favorite pie, but I grabbed some ingredients and decided to let them at it.

I put Matthew down for a nap, but it didn't take. So, all four of them were gathered around the table excited to cook this pie. I let them do almost everything. They each used the slicer (with my help or watchful eye) to cut their apple. Rachel worked hard on the lattice crust on top while they all helped with the ingredients for the syrup to bring it all together. Alex took a short hiatus to go plant a couple seeds in our garden. He's dying for a fruit tree in our yard for some reason.

Sometimes cooking with all four is a major headache, but this went pretty smoothly, and I have to say that this is the prettiest apple pie that has ever come out of my oven. I thought they did quite a wonderful job. Now, to see how it tastes...

A New Milestone

Zack has gotten rid of his training wheels. A few of his friends have been riding without them for over a year, so I've felt the pressure to work with him. But, I've dreaded it because last time we tried (last summer), he just fell over and over. But, I just held the back of the bike and he took off. I guess he was ready. Now, he asks to ride every day. I'm so proud of him for being brave (because that's not really his strength) and amazed at how easily he figured it out.