The McGinnis Family

  Ceirnan in her favorite outfit outside the ballet studio- leotard and overalls.  Someone is all ready to head off to Stephens.    CJ looking cool for school.  Ceirnan,who believes jutting your hip out is the coolest thing ever. Where did my babies go?  It's so hard to believe how big they are and how much they have grown in the last year.  Ceirnan is sprouting like a weed and towers over most her own age.  CJ doesn't have the height, but he is about the most mature young man I've ever met.  They are both so bright and excited to learn.  It makes me so happy seeing them together.  Typically, they share, they are polite to each other and they never make it through the day without at least two or three hugs and kisses for each other.  It makes my heart melt to see how much they truly enjoy spending time together.  Do not get me wrong- Ceirnan is too bossy for CJ and one of CJ's favorite phrases (which we h...

It is so hard to believe that more than six months have gone by since we last updated the blog.  What a crazy year.  The kids are growing like weeds.  They are both big kids now and it's hard to believe that the toddler years are behind them.  The winter was filled with too many illnesses to count so we honestly spent most of our time behind closed doors trying to recover.  I guess to start this off, I'll try to give a little update on the kids. Ceirnan My is she getting big.  She is our sassy girl and wants everyone to know it.  That being said, she is still as sweet as can be.  She adores her big brother and gets very upset if he leaves without hugs and kisses good-bye in the morning.  I find it interesting that she really has no interest in being like CJ; she just likes to know he is around.  She is smart as a whip and often says things that we cannot figure out how she knows.  Her reply when asked is often, "I ju...

I honestly couldn't say what happened this summer in terms of updating the blog.  I suppose my excuse is that we were extremely busy at work, but still you would think I would have managed to add at least one update.  Anyway, I am going to try and get better at this and Case says he'd like to update ya'll once in awhile, too. Here are some pics of the kids during their first days of school.  It's hard to believe that CJ and Ceirnan are both in school this year.  They have grown so big and so smart.  Casey and I are constantly amazed at how much they continue to change and yet how their personalities are really the same as the first day they were born. CJ is loving kindergarten at his big school.  His favorites right now are Math ("even though it's not real Math"), Library, and Computer Lab.  He is making friends and his teachers really seem to love seeing him so that makes me happy.  He is currently working on printing his letter...

Well, they did it.  Both CJ and Case finished up their semesters with great gusto.  CJ was thrilled when his Pre-K teachers gave out diplomas and was even more excited when he got a few presents for finishing Pre-K so strong.  He is excited about moving on to kindergarten even though we have yet to decide on where.  He was accepted into the private school we wanted him to go to.  In fact, they loved him and called us the very afternoon he went in.  (Sorry, I'm bragging...)  However, after much discussion we decided we should at least try public school before committing to the time and money that the school requires.  Plus, as much as we know that they do amazing projects around social justice, we are concerned by the lack of diversity there.  For now, we are visiting two other schools and just trying to keep him excited about moving on.  I think he feels better because he knows that next year Ceirnan will be at...

Well, the end of the school year is wrapping up.  We are so excited about Casey's graduation!  I couldn't be more proud.  The days are filled with making lists of things to get done before family arrives and the nights are filled with helping Case finish up.  The end of May will bring us to an end of two big chapters in our lives.  Casey finishing school and CJ finishing Pre-K.  CJ's school does not do a graduation ceremony, but we are certainly cognizant of the fact that our little guy is moving on.  We still remember his first day at the school and cannot believe that three years have gone by since then.  Ceirnan is getting really excited to join the school in the Fall and follow in her brother's footsteps. As you can see from the photo, these two are two peas in a pod.  I know that Ceirnan is going to miss her brother so much next year when he's at school all day.

Easter time fun! The kids were thrilled this year that their friend Lena could join them at the Lancaster Easter Egg Hunt. It was Lena's first time. CJ did a great job picking up eggs and making sure he left some for other kids. Ceirnan scrambled right in as well and definitely got the most eggs this year. Of course, she's about a foot taller than most of the other kids in her category so that probably helped. LOL ! On Sunday, the kids woke up nice and early to see if the Easter bunny came and were thrilled to see that he had. We had a nice time at church and came home to another Easter Egg Hunt in the backyard where CJ found the golden egg! It was a great weekend. This week we are gearing up for opening day of CJ's Little League. Ceirnan is just as excited as CJ is especially since Uncle Eric (and his family) sent her a new baseball glove. Less than 7 weeks until Casey graduates!!!

It's time for baseball. After weeks of trying to figure out what league CJ would play, what team still needed players, what was required of parents for kids to participate, we finally got CJ started in Little League. CJ is a member of the Giants for the Newark Little League. Above you see a pic from his first practice. We can really tell how much running club as increased his speed. CJ had a great time. Mama...not so much. The first day of practice was on a Tuesday when Casey has school. That means it was up to me to take CJ and Ceirnan to the park. No problem, right? The only issue was Ceirnan had gone to her first dentist visit and had thrown up all over the office before Case could even sign her in. However, she seemed to be feeling better and had not been sick again so Case thought she'd be fine to go. She was for the first five minutes until she threw up all over herself. Did I mention there was not an extra change of clothes in the car? Mama tells CJ t...