Nature Hike

We went on a search for animal tracks today. Luckily, we have a neat little preserve right around the corner from our house. We had never taken the boys there, but after the fun we had today, I have a feeling we'll be going back soon!

What sweet boys. They had a ball on our hike!

Hmmm, now where are some tracks???

A-HA! Thanks to the recent rain, the paths were still a bit soft and muddy and we found some AWESOME deer tracks!

"Brother, can we please go back to the playground now?" (You may not be able to tell, but LJ is pointing back...in the direction of the playground.)

Reward for successful track hunting!

I couldn't resist. This child oozes happiness sometimes. It's contagious! Just ask his Aunt Cat who got multiple hugs today when we stopped by her house - and after she went back inside, he was heading back for another. ;)

Home Sweet School at Home

So now that we are starting our sixth week of Kindergarten, here's a quick update on how things are going. As you know, J attends kinder all day Tuesday & Thursday at a private school, and is home with me on M/W/F. At this point in time, we are loving it!

The SCS Kinder teacher, Ms. C, uploads each week's lesson plan every Sunday evening by 5 p.m. This way, the mom's (or home teacher...not sure if we have a dad in the school teaching), can see what the week has in store and get supplies, come up with fun, extra activities, and plan for our lesson time. It's extremely user-friendly!

Our "intense" lesson time at home is usually on Wednesday and Friday mornings. So far, it's been a huge blessing for both of us. We start each school morning at home with a Bible story and prayer. That alone has been a highlight for me. We've read stories to both of our boys out of their children's Bibles for years now, but this is different. We talk more about the story. We think of ways it applies to a kindergartner's life today. Then we hold hands and pray. LOVE IT! Oh, and FYI, if you call on Wed or Fri morning and I don't answer, don't worry, I'll call back. Please do not take offense to it, as we may be in the middle of Bible time, a prayer or building words. It's just too difficult for me to stop mid-lesson. :)

The other highlights have included watching my son learn, and seeing the excitement in his eyes - and then realizing that I'm a huge part of that. Seeing the light bulb go off in his head multiple times a week is such a joy for me. Am I saying it's all roses and sunshine and perfect? NO! There have been moments of frustration for sure. But the joy and amazing moments of learning FAR outweigh any and all of the challenges. See below all the fun we are having at the McD Schoolhouse!

Our first day of school at home. J works on his math - so far, his favorite subject!

We love the dry erase board! J spends lots of time doing extra work, such as writing out his alphabet or numbers, repeatedly. I remember how much fun I had drawing on the chalkboard...oh to be a kid!

Using our letter tiles. These things are great! We have started spelling words using them and the interaction and hands-on learning they provide are proving to be successful with our boy.

Having a ball with our letter sounds! ha! We throw the ball back and forth and wherever our right index finger lands, we have to sound out and say that word.

RECESS! Yes, we have recess here, too.

Science time! What are these ingredients? Using his senses, he discovered what was on the plate. Watching him smell, then taste the salt was hysterical. Then he shoveled in the sugar. ;)

And what does baby brother do while we learn? Play in big brother's room, of course! What concerned me the most, has ended up being fairly effortless. LJ loves being in his brother's room, so almost every day, he plays in there while we have lesson time. He occasionally has his disruptive moments (like this past Friday) but overall, it has been so much less stressful than I expected. And also a bit humorous - such as the day when LJ came in with a super stinky poopy diaper, to which J exclaimed, "Oh great! I knew this would happen! L interrupting my school with poopy diapers!!" lol 

Baby's First Day of Preschool

O.k., o.k., I know he's not a baby anymore, but he's MY baby, and I can't believe he started preschool. It was a pretty amazing first day. I had the typical bittersweet emotions about him being old enough to attend WCP. How could that be, when just two years ago we dropped off big brother at the same preschool and LJ was only 8 weeks old???

Sorry, I couldn't resist! He was so little!

And here he is today. Kicking his backpack around. Refusing to pose for mommy. He's so cute, it's hard to get mad at him though.

Look what brother drew for me! J drew a very special picture of the two them playing soccer together for the front of LJ's backpack. Have I mentioned how much I love my boys?

He was all business...walk as fast I can to get to that building. I know this place. There are TOYS in there!!!

Why are we stopping??? I want INSIDE!

After trying to walk into J's room from last year, I pointed LJ in the right direction and off he went. Didn't even look back!

He was too busy playing from the minute we got there to stop for a picture. So then daddy tried...

...and could only get a smile by hanging him upside down like a monkey!

He spots Thomas the Train and tries to figure out just how he's going to get that toy.

Mommy forces a hug before leaving. He "let" me kiss his cheek and then turned around to keep playing. Not one tear. Let me tell you, SO much easier than leaving his crying, pleading big brother at this age. It really hurts your heart when they cry for you. At pick up, he waved, got up and hugged me, then showed me what they were doing. His teacher said he was one of the only kids that didn't have one tear all day! My heart soared, I tell ya!

We also had reservations as the date approached, due to his food allergies. Of course, I was WAY more worried than hubby, but even he was a bit concerned and was eager to talk to the teacher and make sure they would be on top of all of LJ's issues. So imagine our surprise when we showed up at the "Meet the Teacher" event on Tuesday and found out that there is another little boy with the EXACT same food allergies that LJ has. AND, his parents are both Aggies. Hubby and other Aggie Dad joked it must be something in the water there.

So LJ's new "twin" is just two months older and they are destined to be friends. They will sit together at lunch, and Al's mom and I are already making plans to get together for "allergy talk" soon...over ice cream without the boys, of course! And the Preschool could not be more amazing - they have taken the issue to heart, both the teacher and her assistant have already sent home a list of approved snacks that both LJ and Al can eat - ON THE FIRST DAY! How awesome is that? GOD IS SO GOOD! LJ just went through some allergy testing again in the past 2 weeks and it is scary. Nothing with Dairy or Egg. Not even as a dry ingredient. He even reacts to whey from milk in products. So yes, I was worried. Worried that my toddler, not knowing any better and having done it in the church nursery, would eat his neighbor's cheese or pick up a goldfish off the floor and have a reaction at school. But thanks to his awesome teacher, the amazing director and the rest of the staff, I'm just not so worried now. 

I also have to admit, I am also thrilled that I'm not the only parent with "the allergic kid" in the class. The school already has a NO-PEANUT policy, but this will be new and different for the other moms. The other mom and I agreed that while we wished neither of our boys had to deal with these isssues, we sure are happy they ended up in the same class together!

Now that I'm Two...

...what will I do? SLEEP IN MY BIG BOY BED???

Our little guy said YES to his twin bed and no to the crib forever on August 23rd. We've had the twin bed "ready" for him since the first week of August. We did what our pediatrician recommended for our oldest son, and that was to start with just the box springs and mattress on the floor. So we disassembled the frame of his twin bed about a month ago and told LJ it was all ready for him. No go. He seemed a little interested, but it was as if it was too much to handle. So back in the crib he went. No big deal. He is such an amazing sleeper we were happy to let him stay in that crib as long as he wanted.

Fast forward to Monday, August 23rd. I walked LJ into his room after declaring it nap time. He literally walked over to his twin bed and pointed to it. I asked him if he wanted to take his nap in his big boy bed instead of his crib? "Yeah" he sweetly replied. Negative Nelly over here thought he'd get in, play around for a couple of minutes and get out wanting to go back to his crib. I tucked him in and closed the door. A few minutes later and a quick check of the monitor showed him still in bed. Ten minutes later, he was asleep! He took his normal 2 1/2 to 3 hour long nap, and woke up as happy as could be. YIPPEE!

We tried it again that night - same thing happened. And the next day at nap time, success again! So when Daddy came home the second night, we quickly disassembled the crib and got it out of there so he could not change his mind. He has slept every night and during every nap time since with no problems. HOORAY!

As luck would have it, he goes to sleep so quickly that I have yet to take a picture of him in his big boy bed. But I will soon, and promise to post it. In other news, I think the most painful part of getting those darn two-year-molars is over - I can see points through on all four! Whew. After two months of that, we are both breathing a sigh of relief.

And now, here are some classic LJ pictures.

Love that grin. He is such a happy boy! And sweet - he has started putting his little arms around my neck from behind and putting his face around so he can kiss my cheek. He is a lover for sure!

What's in there? Practicing to be a doctor already.

Now let's check my dinosaur. He loves dino's right now, and roars just like they did when we saw them at the museum. Very cute. And yes, his mismatched outfit bothers me, but I reached for the first pair of shorts I could get out of his drawer after a messy lunch!